Pro wrestling fans didn't know what to expect as Wrestlemania 31 took place on Sunday, March 29 from Levi Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
What they saw was a better than expected show, highlighted by one of the most shocking things in Wrestlemania history, as Seth Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase in the main event bout between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns to capture the WWE world heavyweight championship
Also on the show, Sting competed in a WWE ring for the first time against Triple H, John Cena faced Rusev for the United States title and Daniel Bryan kicked the show off in a seven-person ladder match for the Intercontinental championship.
With WWE presenting WrestleMania 36, on Saturday, April 4, and Sunday, April 5, Sporting News will be recapping and handing out match grades on the anniversaries of pro wrestling's premier event.
Here are match grades and recaps, courtesy of SN's Steven Muehlhausen.
Wrestlemania 31 match grades
Daniel Bryan vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Luke Harper vs. Bad News Barrett vs. Stardust vs. R-Truth in a ladder match for the Intercontinental title
Muehlhausen: What a way to start Wrestlemania. All seven participants put it all on the line. We saw moves off the ladder, people thrown into the ladder, and it used as a weapon. It appeared that Bryan was on his way to securing the belt when Ziggler appeared from out of nowhere to stop Bryan. After an exchange of vicious headbutts, Bryan landed the final blow to send Ziggler off the ladder and win the Intercontinental title for the first time. You couldn’t ask for a better way to kick things off.
Grade: A
Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins
Muehlhausen: We are two-for-two in quality matches. Rollins showed he belonged in his first singles bout at Wrestlemania. He kept up with Orton, and his athleticism helped make it better. Rollins looked to have things well in hand after connecting on the Curb Stomp, but Orton kicked out at two. Rollins’ security team of Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury tried to interfere, but Orton hit RKO’s on them. Rollins hit a spinning back kick to set up another Curb Stomp, but Orton lifted his head up to send Rollins flying into the air and connected on an unbelievable RKO for the win.
Grade: B+
HHH vs. Sting
Muehlhausen: The commentary did Sting no favors here. Michael Cole and John Bradshaw Layfield made Sting out to be an afterthought despite his time as a six-time WCW champion and one of the most popular acts in wrestling for the last 30 years.
The in-ring work was nothing to write home about. The central theme was it being Sting’s first time competing inside a WWE ring.
When Sting had everything under control and ready to put away HHH, DeGeneration X members Billy Gunn, Road Dogg, and X-Pac came out to interfere, but Sting thwarted the trio off. Then HHH regained control when the NWO threesome of Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, and Scott Hall attacked them. Sting made a comeback, but Shawn Michaels came out and superkicked the WCW icon. Sting had HHH ripe for the taking when he looked to land one more Stinger Splash. HHH hit him with a sledgehammer for the victory.
A horrible final ten minutes. Way too much interference, which took away from what was looking to be a decent bout. And why couldn’t Sting win? To prove WWE was superior to WCW? Pure nonsense. The wrong guy won.
Grade: D
