Round 1 - Quadrant 3 - WM X-Seven vs. WM X8

[Troy]

WrestleMania X-Seven - Steve Austin vs. The Rock (c) (No disqualification match for the WWF Championship)
WrestleMania X8 - Triple H vs. Chris Jericho (c) (Singles match for the WWF Undisputed Championship)

Your favourite mainevent?

 

[Deezy]

WM X7 was the best match Rock and Austin would ever have, not the best imo. But definitely #2 in my books. The Vince McMahon involvement and heel turn of Austin left a sour note on it though.

Poor Jericho and Triple H had to follow Hogan and Rock, not an enviable task.

 

[Troy]

Triple H vs Jericho as the mainevent rather than The Rock vs Hogan just kills that match for me. It should never have been the mainevent, one of the biggest matches of all time should have been mainevent instead.

I liked the Rock vs Austin match from X-Seven but it did have a weak finish. The brawl through the crowd was good and the turn at the end was key for storylines but did kill a Mania mainevent. Still a better match than HHH vs Jericho.

 

[Keith]

You two are nuts, Rock and Austin at Mania X7 is the best Mania main event ever at the best Mania ever. The match had everything, and the Mcmahon twist at the end was fatastic! It was the only logical thing for them to do, and it was a great sting in the tail as well, JR's commentary made it all the better.

What part of the finish didn't you like Troy?

 

[Deezy]

You didn't ask me, but I'm going to tell you why I didn't like the ending.

First off, it took how many chair shots to put Rock down when it should've taken one, Vince didn't need to be there, since the swerve just killed the match. The crowd loved Steve Austin too much to boo this and it just took away from an intense match. The build to this was great and it didn't need to have a swerve involved, if Austin beat the Rock clean it would've made it more special, but no. We get this shit version where Austin turns into an inneffectual heel then turns to a goof and then turns to an even bigger goof come Alliance time. It wasn't needed.

 

[Keith]

In a way the reasons you give are the reasons the finish worked for me. For example the Houston crowd refusing to boo Austin just added to how unique the moment was, you very rarely see that sort of thing in WWF/WWE.

And the thing about the chairshots at the end, yes in thory it should have taken only one to win the match, but this is Pro Wrestling, and The Rock had been built up in the sort of way than fans gotten used to him taking that sort of beating and still fighting. Also the fact it a number makes Rock look stronger in defeat, and to me it added more drama, because with him keep kicking out it does make you wonder if Austin is going to be able to put him away.

I honestly would not have changed a thing, I think the match was perfectly booked, and it was performed perfectly. Now you will get little disagreement with me about Austin's heel character in the Allience.

 

[Deezy]

The swerve was done for shock value, it wasn't even teased during the entire build up heading into this. It was nothing more than Russo-styled swerve for swerve sake heel turn and it wasn't even pulled off right. Steve Austin would tell you this himself.

 

[Keith]

Yes and Steve Austin like yourself is intitled to his opinon, doesn't mean he is right, and personally I disagree with both of you.

Now normally I would agree you on that sort of shock turn, but given the fact the Austin VS Mcmahon feud had been done death at that point, to unite them was perfect idea. Also I think the way the story went was that Austin was willing to sell out to the win the WWF Title, and to make sure it stayed in his possission, so I think it worked.

 

[The New F'n Show]

Taking the story out of it, that may have still been the best Rock match I've ever seen, he looked great in that match. Finish worked for me at the time, the angle after Mania was awful but at the end of that night it was huge!

 

[Troy]

I think what sours me a bit on the finish is also what happened after that. Austin's heel turn didn't work at all and his work as Alliance leader later that year was poor, fans just don't want to boo some people. I thought that it was the easy finish having Vince come out and stop Rock from winning and then giving Austin the chair to defeat The Rock with. It was a great match but the finish just didn't do it for me, it takes away a bit when you don't get that clean finish you are hoping for.

 

[Dod Draper]

Rock vs. Austin put on a fantastic match, and ended the greatest PPV of all time in some style. Absolutely easy decision.