WrestleMania XX

WrestleMania is considered World Wrestling Entertainment's (WWE) flagship pay-per-view (PPV) event, having first been held in 1985. It has become the longest-running professional wrestling event in history and is held annually between mid-March to mid-April.[6] It was the first of WWE's original four pay-per-views, which includes Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, and Survivor Series, referred to as the "Big Four".[7] WrestleMania XX was scheduled to be held on March 14, 2004, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the third time at this venue, after WrestleMania I in 1985 and WrestleMania X in 1994. The event featured wrestlers from the Raw and SmackDown! brands.[8]

The main feud heading into the pay-per-view was for the Raw brand, with Triple H, Shawn Michaels and Chris Benoit feuding over the World Heavyweight Championship. The rivalry began on the December 29 episode of Raw, when Michaels challenged Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship in Michaels' hometown of San Antonio, Texas. It appeared as if Michaels was would win, with the then-Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff coming into the ring at the last minute and making the pinfall, counting to three for what appeared to be Michaels winning the title. However, as Michaels' shoulders were on the mat at the same time as Triple H's, the match was later declared a draw, and Triple H retained the championship. At the Royal Rumble, Triple H and Michaels faced each other again in a Last Man Standing match for the title, which resulted in another draw; as a result, Triple H retained the title yet again, leaving a question as to which of the two truly deserved the championship.[9] Later that night, during the Royal Rumble match, SmackDown!'s Benoit won the contest by last eliminating The Big Show, after being the first entrant to the event (a feat only 2 other wrestlers have achieved).[10] On the following night, Michaels and Triple H were involved in an in-ring confrontation when Raw's Sheriff Steve Austin made his way to the ring. He stated that, although Michaels should have a rematch, he had to "enforce the law", and that even though the Royal Rumble rules gave the winner of the match a shot at "the (world) championship", there was not any specification as to which world title that was. Benoit, who at the time was a member of the SmackDown! brand, then came to the ring and said he was taking advantage of the loophole, joining the Raw brand and challenging Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XX.[11][12] On the February 9 episode of Raw, a contract signing took place between Benoit and Triple H. As Triple H signed his name on the paper, Michaels came out to inform Benoit that the last thing he wanted to do is "rain on [his] parade". He then stated that he, more than anybody, can respect Benoit's effort to win the Royal Rumble match and earning a World title shot, but suggested that Benoit should've stayed on SmackDown! to take care of business while Michaels, himself, was trying to finish his feud with Triple H. Benoit refused to relinquish his guaranteed title shot, resulting in Michaels hitting Benoit with Sweet Chin Music and signing the contract himself for the WrestleMania match. After the two men wrestled a match marred by interference from the champion on the February 16 episode of Raw, Austin decided to make Triple H's title defense a Triple threat match. On the March 1 episode of Raw, after Michaels and Benoit lost to Randy Orton and Batista, Triple H's stablemates in Evolution, the entire group attacked Michaels and Benoit, ending with Triple H hitting both with the Pedigree and rubbing his World title belt into their faces while they lied motionless in the ring.

The main feud for the SmackDown! brand was between Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship. Angle and Guerrero were initially allies while Guerrero feuded with his nephew Chavo Guerrero. On the January 29 episode of SmackDown!, Guerrero last eliminated Angle in a 15-man Royal Rumble match to earn a shot at the WWE Championship. At No Way Out, Kurt Angle defeated The Big Show and John Cena in a Triple threat match to earn himself a title shot at WrestleMania, and Guerrero defeated Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship. On the February 19 episode of SmackDown!, Angle was the special guest referee in a WWE Championship match between Eddie Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero. As Eddie was about to close in on the victory, Angle stopped the 3-count and turned on Guerrero.[13] On the February 26 episode of SmackDown!, Guerrero was eager to get his revenge on Angle while looking for him, but when he finally saw Angle, he shoved SmackDown! General Manager Paul Heyman and his assistant Dawn Marie out of his way, only for Heyman to have Guerrero escorted out of the arena by security. Guerrero was scheduled to team with John Cena to take on Chavo Guerrero and the Big Show in a tag team match on that night, but due to Guerrero being escorted out of the arena, he was replaced by Rey Mysterio for the tag match, which Mysterio and Cena won. Later that night, Angle appeared and stated that he attacked Guerrero for the SmackDown! fans and for the WWE. He then referred to Guerrero as a former drug addict that shouldn't represent SmackDown! as the WWE Champion, and stated that one day, people would be thanking him for a champion to be proud of. Guerrero then re-entered the arena and assaulted Angle until he got arrested by orders of Paul Heyman. As Guerrero got taken out of the building in handcuffs, Angle made some insulting comments to him before the officers drove away with Guerrero in the police car. On the March 4 episode of SmackDown!, during Guerrero's match with Heyman (while he was handcuffed), Angle interfered and knocked him down a few times until Guerrero defended himself by spitting on Angle. As Guerrero begged Angle to challenge him for the WWE Championship belt, Angle did so and raised the title belt over his head to hype their match at Wrestlemania XX.

This also marks the first WrestleMania to have a match billed as "inter-promotional", which means that a party from Raw would wrestle a party from SmackDown!. WWE owner Vince McMahon named three matches to be inter-promotional on the February 16 episode of Raw. The first was a match a tag team match featuring SmackDown!'s Torrie Wilson and Sable, who had recently been featured in a pictorial in Playboy magazine, against Raw's Stacy Keibler and Miss Jackie, who had protested the decision made by Hugh Hefner not to feature them.[14]

On the January 26 episode of Raw, Goldberg came to the ring, and demanded a match between himself against Brock Lesnar, with whom he had problems over the past two months. At the Royal Rumble, Goldberg was entered in the Royal Rumble match, only to have Lesnar (who, as the reigning WWE Champion, was not entered into the match) interfere and hit an F-5, causing Goldberg to be eliminated by Kurt Angle. On the February 2 episode of Raw, as a result of the rivalry extending between the two programs, sheriff Steve Austin gave Goldberg the option of attending No Way Out by giving him a front-row ticket. At No Way Out, Goldberg was seen arriving at the arena and being escorted to his front seat by security. Then SmackDown! General Manager Paul Heyman gave a promotional in-ring segment on how SmackDown! was the better program over Raw. Lesnar would come down to the ring to promote his match and to insult Goldberg. Goldberg immediately jumped over the barricade and entered the ring, where Lesnar performed a running shoulder block to Goldberg's stomach and tried to perform another F-5 on Goldberg; however, Goldberg countered it and lifted Lesnar vertically in the air before slamming him down to perform the Jackhammer. Goldberg was then escorted out of the arena by security.[15][16] During Lesnar's WWE title defense against Eddie Guerrero later that night, Goldberg returned to the arena and interfered by executing a Spear, which caused Lesnar to lose the title after Guerrero nailed him with a Frog splash. On the February 23 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon named the Interpromotional singles match pitting Lesnar versus Goldberg for WrestleMania XX with Austin as the special guest referee. Later that night during the match between McMahon and Eric Bischoff, Lesnar appeared and nailed Austin with an F-5 then stole Austin's four-wheeler.[14] On the February 26 episode of SmackDown!, Lesnar stated that he appeared on Raw just to get back at Austin for giving Goldberg the front-row seat ticket and suggesting that Goldberg would attack Lesnar at No Way Out. Behind the scenes, it was widely known that the match would be Goldberg's last in WWE. Only a week before WrestleMania; however, rumors surfaced that Lesnar, too, was leaving in order to pursue a career in the National Football League. On the March 11 episode of SmackDown!, Austin appeared to get his four-wheeler back from Lesnar only for the entire roster to get in his way by orders of SmackDown! General manager Paul Heyman. Moments later, the entire roster had decided to move aside and let Austin by to confront Lesnar in the ring. As Austin got to the ring, he and Lesnar traded punches with Austin ramming Lesnar headfirst into the steel ring post and attempting to nail Lesnar with the Stone Cold stunner only for Lesnar to escape, leaving Austin to finally get back his four-wheeler and closing in on the show with his trademark beer bash.

On the next match was made at the request of Kane, and had its roots from a match at Survivor Series in which Kane's storyline brother, The Undertaker challenged Vince McMahon to a Buried Alive match. Kane interfered in the match and buried his brother under several tons of dirt, apparently killing him.[14] On the November 20 episode of SmackDown!, Kane appeared to give the eulogy for his brother, claiming that The Undertaker was no longer his brother and had died a long time before that as he no longer embraced his dark side. This rewarded him a match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Armageddon which was won by Triple H in a triple threat match also involving Goldberg. Kane participated in the Royal Rumble and was eliminated by Booker T after the bell from The Undertaker's old theme music began playing just to upset and distract him. Over the following weeks, Kane repeatedly insisted that The Undertaker was "dead", only to be met with various paranormal incidents such as a rainstorm localized over the ramp on which he stood. On the March 8 episode of Raw, Kane appeared to the ring and saw an empty casket standing in the ring but as he opened it, he saw an urn inside of it. He then grabbed the microphone and asked if that's what he's been looking forward to. He also stated it's going to take more than an empty casket and an urn to intimidate and beat him. He then stated that The Undertaker's legacy, his 11–0 WrestleMania streak and his life is coming to an end as he said: "it's back to the grave for you for good". As he claimed that it's over and that he's not afraid of The Undertaker. The lights turned out but this time, the 10,000-pound wrestling ring lifted off the ground with Kane standing in it and tilted sideways, which would be the final message sent from The Undertaker before their match at WrestleMania XX.

From one rivalry to the other, it had been simmering for some time between Mick Foley and Randy Orton. On the June 23 episode of Raw, following an on-air ceremony honoring Foley for his achievements, Orton and Ric Flair attacked him backstage and threw him down a flight of stairs. Foley returned as the replacement for Steve Austin as Raw co-general manager and gave himself a shot at Orton's Intercontinental Championship on the December 15 episode of Raw, but he walked out of the match and would not face Orton even after he spat on his face. On the January 19 episode of Raw, a furious Austin declared that Foley would be entered in the Royal Rumble match and he expected him to return and wrestle, which he did by eliminating Orton (and himself) from the match. On the March 1 episode of Raw, Foley was later joined by The Rock in the feud, and the reformed Rock 'n' Sock Connection challenged Orton, Batista, and Flair to a handicap tag team match at WrestleMania.

John Cena made his first title win at this event, defeating The Big Show for the United States Championship.

The event began with the Boys Choir of Harlem singing "America the Beautiful".[17][18] The first match that aired was a singles match between Big Show and John Cena for the WWE United States Championship, the first time the title was ever defended at the event; the match began with Big Show beating down Cena. Cena executed an FU for a near-fall. Cena grabbed his signature chain and tried to attack Big Show with it, however, the referee saw the chain and confiscated it due to it being illegal in the match. With the referee distracted, Cena hit Big Show with hidden brass knuckles and executed another FU to win the match and the title.[17][18][19]

The next match was a fatal four-way tag team match involving Rob Van Dam and Booker T, Garrison Cade and Mark Jindrak, The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) and La Résistance (René Duprée and Rob Conway) for the World Tag Team Championship. The match saw quick action between all four teams, and ended when Conway was pinned by Van Dam after Booker T performed a Scissor kick on him, which was then followed by Van Dam's Five-Star Frog Splash, leading to the two retaining the title.[17][18][19]

The third match was between Christian and Chris Jericho. The match centered around both men furiously attacking each other; Christian won the match after Jericho's love interest, Trish Stratus, attacked Jericho thinking he was Christian, allowing Christian to roll him up for the win. Following the match, Stratus turned on Jericho and slapped him several times, allowing Christian to perform the Unprettier on Jericho.[17][18][19] This was the last match officiated by referee Tim White and he retired after this.

Next up was a Handicap match featuring Evolution (Randy Orton, Batista and Ric Flair) against The Rock 'n' Sock Connection (The Rock and Mick Foley). Evolution won the match when Orton pinned Foley after executing an RKO.[17][18][19]

"Mean" Gene Okerlund then introduced the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2004. This was followed by the inter-promotional Playboy Evening Gown match between Torrie Wilson and Sable against Stacy Keibler and Miss Jackie, which had both teams wrestle in lingerie. Wilson and Sable won after Wilson pinned Jackie with a roll up.[17][18][19]

The next match was a Cruiserweight Open for the Cruiserweight Championship. Último Dragón and Shannon Moore started the match with Dragón getting a pinfall victory after the Dragon-DDT, but was then forced to submit by Jamie Noble with the Dragon Sleeper, who next eliminated Funaki in 8 seconds. Nunzio was then in the match, but was eliminated after being counted out of the match when he was unable to return to the ring by the referee's count of ten. Billy Kidman then entered the match, pinning and eliminating Noble following a top rope BK-Bomb. Kidman was then pinned and eliminated by Rey Mysterio with a Sunset Flip Powerbomb from the top rope. Tajiri was the next entrant, but was also pinned by Mysterio following a Victory Roll. Akio was the next scheduled entrant but was unable to compete due to being inadvertently attacked by Tajiri with his signature green mist he spat out of his mouth when Mysterio ducked. The Cruiserweight Champion, Chavo Guerrero, was the final entrant and pinned Mysterio with a reversal of Mysterio's Sunset Flip to win with the assistance of his father Chavo Classic, thus retaining the title.[17][18][19] This was the last time in WrestleMania that the Cruiserweight Championship was defended.

The seventh match featured Brock Lesnar and Goldberg with special guest referee, Steve Austin. The beginning of the match began with both men staring each other down, jawing back and forth, with no physical action for several minutes, causing an exasperated Austin at one point to coax them into locking up. The fact that they both were leaving the WWE immediately after the match, as well as the lack of effort brought forth by both Goldberg and Lesnar drew large heat from the fans throughout the match, with fans chanting, "You sold out", the chorus of Steam's "Na Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", "Austin", "This match sucks", "We want Bret", "Boring", "Goldberg sucks", and "Hogan". Goldberg then executed a Spear on Lesnar for a near-fall. Lesnar then executed the F-5 on Goldberg for a near-fall. Afterward; Lesnar tried to use Goldberg's signature spear on him and missed, hitting the ring post, allowing Goldberg to execute another spear and a Jackhammer for the victory. After the match, Lesnar responded to the fans' criticism by gesturing his middle finger at the crowd, which was actually directed towards Vince McMahon, and to Austin. Austin then executed a Stone Cold Stunner on both competitors to the crowd's delight and celebrated with beer in the ring.[17][18][19]

The next match was another four-way tag team match for the WWE Tag Team Championship involving Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty, versus the APA (Bradshaw and Faarooq), the Basham Brothers (Doug Basham and Danny Basham) and the World's Greatest Tag Team (Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas). Rikishi and Scotty retained after Rikishi pinned Danny with a Bonzai Drop.[20]

Victoria as WWE Women's Champion entering the event.

The ninth match was between Victoria and Molly Holly for the WWE Women's Championship, where Holly would have her hair shaved if she lost. Victoria would counter a Widow's peak attempt by Holly into a Backslide pin to win the match and retain the WWE Women's Championship. Holly tried running towards the backstage area to escape the match's stipulation, but was eventually stopped by Victoria, who would knock her out and shave her bald.[17][21][18][19]

Chris Benoit, one of the challengers in the main event.

The tenth match of the night was the match for the WWE Championship between the champion Eddie Guerrero and the challenger Kurt Angle. The match was centered around both men maneuvering around on the mat. Guerrero performed a DDT and Frog Splash on Angle that would result in a pin attempt; Angle then recovered and applied an ankle lock but Guerrero escaped the hold by rolling through it and throwing Angle out of the ring. As Angle was outside, Guerrero loosened his ring boot. As Angle returned to the ring, he tried to apply the hold again. This time, Guerrero pushed Angle off with his other foot, allowing his boot to come off and also allowing him to break free from Angle's hold. With Angle confused, Guerrero pinned Angle with a roll-up with his feet on the ropes to win the match and retain the WWE Championship.[17][18][19]

The eleventh match of the event was the encounter between The Undertaker and Kane. After Kane made his entrance, he was seen looking toward the entrance ramp saying, "You're not coming back tonight. You're not coming back, I buried you alive." After this, the lights in the arena went out and Paul Bearer, Undertaker's former manager and Kane's (storyline) father, was heard screaming "Oh, yes!". Blue light began to fill the arena as Bearer, carrying the Undertaker's former trademark urn, led a group of Druids, all chanting and carrying torches, onto the entrance ramp. As the Druids made a formation at the top of the ramp, Bearer walked to ringside, turned and said to Kane, "My son... You're no son of mine." He then turned back to face the entryway and raised the urn to summon The Undertaker. As Kane continued to watch in the ring, refusing to believe his brother was back, Undertaker entered the arena in his "Deadman" persona, wearing a long black trenchcoat and hat, and walked through the Druid formation. Bearer met him at ringside and directed him to the ring steps, where Undertaker raised his arms to bring the arena lights back up. Before the match officially got underway, a now visibly shaken and distressed Kane began shouting at his brother repeatedly, saying things like "I killed you!", "I buried you alive!", and "You're not real!", while Undertaker simply stood staring stoically at Kane. Eventually, Kane decided to see if Undertaker was indeed standing in front of him by slowly inching forward with his hand outstretched. Undertaker responded by punching Kane, knocking him down, and the match got underway. The two continued brawling until Kane delivered a Chokeslam to Undertaker, which he sat up from shortly afterward while Kane was taunting Paul Bearer. The Undertaker then retaliated with a Chokeslam and Tombstone piledriver to win the match and remaining undefeated at WrestleMania with a 12–0 record.[17][18][19]

The main event was a Triple threat match over the World Heavyweight Championship between Triple H, Chris Benoit, and Shawn Michaels. The match started with Benoit and Michaels wanting to face the champion, but would wrestle each other to try and gain an advantage before Triple H's intervention led to the match going back-and-forth between all three men, performing their signature holds and maneuvers throughout. Benoit soon gained control over Michaels when he applied the Crippler Crossface. As Michaels was about to submit, Triple H saved the match, attacking both men. Triple H and Michaels would then team up to suplex Benoit through a broadcast table. The two continued to wrestle until Triple H performed the Pedigree on Michaels and Benoit broke up a pinfall. Michaels then attempted Sweet Chin Music on Benoit, but Benoit countered it by throwing Michaels out of the ring. As this occurred, Triple H attempted to execute a Pedigree again on Benoit, but Benoit countered and applied the Crippler Crossface, with Triple H submitting, making it the first time ever that a WrestleMania main event ended in a submission. As a result, Benoit won the match and the World Heavyweight Championship, crying tears of joy. After the match, Eddie Guerrero came to the ring and the two champions embraced while confetti dropped as the event ended.[22][17][18][19] Tragically, both men would die within four years of the event. See Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide and Eddie Guerrero - Death.