It’s definitely not an April Fool’s Joke. On April 1, 2012, The Rock Vs. John Cena headlined a star-studded WrestleMania 28. It was the first time The Rock actually won a main event match at WrestleMania and the first time two smaller former indy darlings headed into the show as world champions.
Related: Every Match From WrestleMania 28, Ranked From Worst To Best
While it began with an instantly depressing squash it was also a squash that started a movement. The heart of the entire show belonged to The End of an Era Hell in a Cell match between Triple H and The Undertaker with Shawn as the guest referee. There was a lot going on behind the scenes at the 28th Show of Show to get the show we saw live on the screen.
10 John Cena’s Bathroom Break
When you’re going up against The Rock in the main event, chances are you should use the facilities before leave Gorilla. But in all seriousness, prior to the main event, Brodus Clay’s strange but fun segment of dancing mamas was going to be cut for time. Until Cena announced not-so-coyly that he needed to go to the bathroom and asked Brodus how long he should take, so The Funakasaurus would get to do his thing.
9 Punk’s New Tattoo
The WWE title was on the line and things had gotten personal between Chris Jericho and CM Punk. Jericho had returned proclaiming that Punk had stolen his Best in the World monicker. While the feud got even more bitter and personal the following month at Extreme Rules, Y2J was ready to take things to the extreme at WrestleMania.
Related: 13 Dog Collar Matches Fans May Have Forgotten About
He had pitched an idea to actually tattoo his name on the incredibly inked up champion. The Chairman would eventually shoot down the idea.
8 Cena Almost Turned Heel
Unless your name is Hulk Hogan or Stone Cold Steve Austin, it is really hard getting cheered when you’re going up against The Brahma Bull. John Cena is certainly not either of those two icons and during the build up to Once in aLifetime, he wasn’t well liked by the WWE Universe. It would have been easy to turn him full-blown heel during the match. It certainly was discussed. Cena told McMahon he’d do it but since the John Cena character was the epitome of virtue, the heel Cena would have to be pure evil, and you can't switch back and forth.
7 Cena Was Supposed To Win
The other thing that was supposed to happen during the main event was that Cena was going to be able to topple the mighty Rock; just as he had done to so many other superstars. But rather than do what WWE normally does to wrestlers in their own hometown, they changed the booking, so The Rock would go over John Cena in The Great One’s adopted hometown.
6 Big Show Vs. Shaq
At this point the hype for Shaq against Big Show has subsided now that each man had entered the twilight of their careers. But for several years around WrestleMania season, the giants' names were thrown around for a clash of the titans. The match was again on the docket for WrestleMania 28. But according to Bryan Alvarez, years ago WWE was not happy that Shaq tweeted about it, ruining the surprise and the match would up getting canceled.
5 Lawler’s Heart Attack Line
It’s a funny coincidence how life works out sometimes. Several weeks prior to WrestleMania 28, Bruce Prichard was working for TNA, then the distant number two company in the world and had recently suffered a heart attack. Jerry Lawler was still several months away from suffering one of his own live on Raw.
Related: 10 Things Fans Forgot About Jerry Lawler's WWE Career
During this show, The King may have inadvertently gotten in a dig at his the former colleague. Looking at the outfit John Laurinaitis was wearing Lawler said “that suit is so ugly, it would give Brother Love a heart attack.” Given the company’s propensity to kick executives when their down (the JR Dr. Heiney skit), this very well could have been a subtle dig at Prichard.
4 Maria Menounos Played Hurt
WrestleMania has been home to many celebrity matches and WrestleMania 28 was no different, when entertainment reporter Maria Menounos jumped into the fray. The lifelong fan known for espousing the glory of Bob Backlund showed off her own guts and glory during the Show of Shows. She teamed up with Kelly Kelly to take on Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres. Not only with a few broken ribs, but she also was working with fractured feet thanks to her appearance on Dancing with the Stars.
3 18 Seconds
WrestleMania 28 began with a match that wound up living in infamy. Daniel Bryan, who was then and now considered one of the top three wrestlers in the world camer to the ring shouting “Yes! Yes! Yes!” gearing up for his World title defense against Sheamus. The match ended in 18 seconds, which annoyed plenty of fans. The reasoning behind the booking wasn’t necessarily to bury Bryan, but WWE were trying to really get the Brogue Kick over as a devastating finishing movie.
2 The Four-Bidden Door
As we all know, the night before WrestleMania, WWE inducts legends into the Hall of Fame. WrestleMania 28 featured the legendary Four Horsemen, led by Ric Flair. Flair, who became the first ever two-time Hall of Famer, despite being employed by TNA at the time.
Related: Every Version Of The Four Horsemen, Ranked From Worst To Best
But thanks to a deal brokered by then current TNA executive and former WWE executive Bruce Prichard, the two promotions reached a trade and Flair was allowed to attend. In exchange, Dixie asked for and received the services of Christian Cage.
1 The Deadman Requested JR
One of the big matches during WrestleMania 28 was the End of an Era Hell in a Cell match. Two stalwarts who helped the company reach new heights collided. Triple H and The Undertaker knew it would truly be the end of decades-long rivalry. The Phenom demanded and received Jim Ross to call the action and there was no more a fitting commentator for the match.
