Whether they're hardcore WWE fans or not, everyone who follows some form of professional wrestling knows that WrestleMania is called "The Grandest Stage Of Them All" for a reason. While it may not be the best event of the year, it will always be the biggest, with millions of eyes watching, so quality matchups and main events are usually booked. Except when they're not.
RELATED: 10 Oldest Wrestlers To Main Event WrestleMania
WWE hasn't always handled the final matchup at their marquee show well. Sometimes, the main event of the PPV before WrestleMania far outshines what headlined the big event. Whether it's the booking or the in-ring action, these PPV main events were far more satisfying than their 'Mania counterparts.
10 Fastlane 2018
The main event of WrestleMania 34 was a massive flop. Not only did fans get the Brock-Roman rematch they never clamored for, but it also wasn't anywhere near as good as their WrestleMania 31 encounter. Lesnar also ended up winning, which was a head-scratching move that left a sour taste in fans' mouths.
The month prior, however, fans were treated to an awesome main event that saw AJ Styles successfully defend his WWE Championship in a Six-Pack challenge that also featured John Cena, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Baron Corbin, and Dolph Ziggler.
9 Roadblock 2016
In the main event of the first and only Roadblock, Triple H defended his newly won WWE Championship against Dean Ambrose. This match was far superior to what fans got at WrestleMania 32. It was an energetic, wild brawl, while Triple H and Roman Reigns bored the exhausted audience at the AT&T Stadium.
The Game was in his "ring general" mode at 'Mania, wanting to work an old-school, classic style that wasn't well received. His match with Ambrose the month prior was far more exciting with an invested crowd.
8 Elimination Chamber 2013
Very few fans wanted to see The Rock wrestle John Cena in the main event of WrestleMania 29, a year after what was billed as a "Once In A Lifetime" showdown. They absolutely delivered at 'Mania XXVII, but that should've been it. Not that their rematch was bad, per se, just incredibly predictable and completely unexciting.
WWE messed with CM Punk's epic WWE Championship reign, wanting to up the stakes for their "Twice In A Lifetime" matchup. The Rock beat Punk at the Royal Rumble for the title, and their rematch was set at Elimination Chamber. It was much better than Rock-Cena II, not only from an in-ring perspective but also because CM Punk should've been involved in the WrestleMania 29 main event.
7 Elimination Chamber 2011
Although the outcome was fairly predictable, this was one of the more entertaining Elimination Chamber matches. John Cena overcame CM Punk, Randy Orton, John Morrison, King Sheamus, and R-Truth to book his spot in the main event of WrestleMania XXVII against The Miz for the WWE Title.
RELATED: Every Elimination Chamber PPV Main Event, Ranked From Worst To Best
That match, however, did not deliver. Not only was the Cena/Miz feud overshadowed by The Rock, but The Miz got legit concussed during the match. It was sloppy and boring, booked for the sole purpose of building to The Rock and John Cena at WrestleMania a year later.
6 No Way Out 2009
Here's another Elimination Chamber match that was better than the WrestleMania main event that year. Edge forced his way into the match by taking out Kofi Kingston before the match started. The Ultimate Opportunist lived up to his name, as he defeated John Cena, Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho, Kane, and Mike Knox to win the World Heavyweight Championship.
As for WrestleMania XXV, Randy Orton and Triple should've torn the house down with their brutal, personal feud, but it was once again Triple H trying to emulate his heroes with a slower, more calculated match that bombed with fans and critics alike.
5 No Way Out 2000
Triple H and Cactus Jack went to war with each other in early 2000, giving fans some hardcore classics that helped establish The Game as a main eventer. At No Way Out, the two battled in a fantastic Hell In A Cell match that was supposed to be Mick Foley's retirement match.
To the surprise of no one, it wasn't. A month later, Foley was brought back to face off against Triple H, The Rock, and Big Show in the main event of WrestleMania 2000. It was an underwhelming match and finish that suffered from too many McMahons.
4 In Your House: Final Four
Stone Cold Steve Austin won the 1997 Royal Rumble in a controversial fashion. He was eliminated by Bret Hart, but the refs never saw it, so he snuck back in and ended up winning the Rumble. This, coupled with WWE Champion Shawn Michaels "losing his smile" and vacating his title, led to the main event of In Your House: Final Four.
RELATED: The 10 Longest WrestleMania Main Events, Ranked From Worst To Best
Bret, Vader, The Undertaker, and Stone Cold faced off for the vacated WWE Championship. Hart came out victorious in a much better main event than what fans got at WrestleMania 13. The Undertaker Vs. Sycho Sid was a slow, plodding affair that's better left forgotten.
3 Royal Rumble 1993
While most of the matches on this list were legitimately great, this one was just sort of alright. It took place right before what many consider to be the worst WrestleMania ever, notably so because of its terrible main event.
Yokozuna won a forgettable Royal Rumble that featured a debuting Giant Gonzalez manhandling The Undertaker. However, it was a 5-star match compared to the insulting WrestleMania IX main event that saw Hulk Hogan show up and challenge Yokozuna for the WWE Title, moments after defeating Bret Hart. The Hulkster won in 22 seconds.
2 Royal Rumble 1992
Many consider the 1992 Royal Rumble match to be the best of them all, and with good reason: it's a star-studded Rumble featuring Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, The Undertaker, Randy Savage, Sid Justice, Roddy Piper, Ted DiBiase, and even a young HBK. Flair was the last man standing, being awarded the WWE Championship in the process.
What followed that historic main event was a disaster. Hulk Hogan and Sid Justice headlined over the WWE Title match between Ric Flair and Macho Man. It was a very poor matchup, even by Hogan and Sid standards, that ended in DQ.
1 Survivor Series 1987
While "Macho Man" Randy Savage winning the WWE Championship at WrestleMania IV was a historic moment, the series of matches that led to his huge win, including the main event against Ted DiBiase, was rather forgettable.
The PPV before WrestleMania IV was all the way back in November, which was the first-ever Survivor Series. It featured a really fun main event that saw Hulk Hogan, Bam Bam Bigelow, Don Muraco, Ken Patera, and Paul Orndorff take on André The Giant, Rick Rude, King Kong Bundy, Butch Reed, and One Man Gang. The Heenan Family was victorious, with André as the lone survivor.
NEXT: 10 Most Disappointing WrestleMania Matches Of the 1990s
