WWE WrestleMania 33: 25 Greatest Moments in WrestleMania History

15. Changing Of The Guard (WrestleMania 21)

Much like at WrestleMania VI, there was a sort of passing of the torch at WrestleMania 21. It doesn’t happen very often in WWE — usually, it’s a more gradual process. But in 2005, it seemed like in one fell swoop WWE was looking to establish new faces of the company.

With the first brand extension in full effect, both Raw and SmackDown put forth world title matches for the show. On the SmackDown side, JBL entered the show as WWE Champion. His challenger? One John Cena. For Cena, the victory he attained kicked off his first world title reign. Since then, he’s captured a total of 16 world titles, matching Ric Flair’s all-time record.

Meanwhile, in the Raw main event, World Heavyweight Champion Triple H defended against his former partner in Evolution, Batista. It was a back and forth affair, but The Animal hit a Batista Bomb for the victory – earning his first world title. When his initial WWE run ended in 2009, Batista left as a six-time world champion.

Even though Cena and Batista were able to win their respective titles at WrestleMania 21 — and hold them for extended periods of time thereafter — the two main event matches were poorly received. It’s no knock on either competitor, as Cena and Batista both had exceptional careers as legitimate main event talents. But after the first ever Money in the Bank ladder match, and a stellar Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels contest on the undercard, the two world title matches failed to deliver on the same level.

Regardless, this was one of the rare instances that WWE pulled the trigger on establishing new stars at WrestleMania. In the long run, it worked out well.