The WWE is obsessed with the concept of a WrestleMania moment. Every year, Michael Cole and his gang of commentators scream at the top of their lungs, proclaiming every pinfall, submission, head scratch, and wedgie a WrestleMania moment to remember. Well, that’s just not true. About 90 percent of WrestleMania matches have been terrible or, worse, forgettable. That’s not a bad thing, though, because it further pushes the cream of the crop to the top. You can usually count on one actual WrestleMania moment for the ages at each year’s show, with some mattering way more than others.
In the 30 years of the Showcase of the Immortals, wrestling fans have seen superstars arrive, legends solidify their legacies, and story lines come to the most epic of conclusions. The 15 moments highlighted here represent the best of the best from the first 30 years of WrestleMania. They provide the answers to the question that the WWE attempts to answer every single year: What defines a WrestleMania moment?
Illustrations by Henry Kaye
