Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of Triple Threat from Smark Out Moment, where three of us get together to discuss three questions based on one big topic going down in the week of professional wrestling.

This week, Dallas Allsopp, Bodeen Green and Ben Williams will be reviewing WrestleMania 36.

WrestleMania 36 was quite the showpiece, as for the first time ever, the granddaddy of them all was held in front of no fans. This gave the show a unique feel, albeit it for sombre reasons. But was it a memorable event? Was the return of Edge a success? And which new champion will have the best first reign?


ALLSOPP: I am adamant that Shayna Baszler will receive another shot at the Raw Women's Championship, however I feel the real money is in Becky Lynch vs Ronda Rousey, therefore Baszler will once again come up short. It is a real shame, but this could be remedied by Baszler being transferred to SmackDown in order to provide Bayley with a fresh challenger. When, not if, Rousey returns, Lynch will lose the title to Rousey so she can gain her revenge for the finish to the main event of WrestleMania 35.

GREEN: I can understand why Shayna Baszler didn't win at WrestleMania 36, and whilst it may be a bold call, Becky Lynch is the modern day Stone Cold Steve Austin, and there's no chance that the modern Stone Cold is going to tap or pass out in an empty arena. However, this is not the end of the road for Baszler. I can easily see the former NXT Women's Champion getting a rematch down the line at the next big pay-per-view, or whenever we get crowds back into the arenas. As much as an extended title reign would continue to cement Lynch's legacy, the passing of the torch needs to happen, with the first big pay-per-view with a crowd being the best moment to pass the torch.

WILLIAMS: The rivalry between Shayna Baszler and Becky Lynch seems to be far from over coming out of WrestleMania 36. The finish to their match seemed to be a call back to Lynch’s match against Ronda Rousey at WrestleMania 35, and hinted at the idea of Lynch having to almost sneak her way to victories against much tougher opponents. With the Raw women’s division becoming seriously stacked following the additions of Nia Jax and Bianca Belair, there’s no telling what the future of the Raw Women’s Championship might be.


GREEN: Well this certainly put the entertainment in World Wrestling Entertainment. I loved this match, although it dragged on at times. It was the perfect way to hide The Undertaker's lack of mobility and agility, as well as a perfect way to end the night. However, the true amazing nature from this match came from the discussion about it afterwards. Whether fans loved or hated the over the top shenanigans, the discussion about it took everyone's minds off the whole COVID-19 situation, and personally, it was the longest time I've seen my social media feed without any COVID-19 news. Wrestling, especially at times like these, is supposed to bring people together. This match certainly achieved that.

WILLIAMS: What an awesome battle the boneyard match was! A real thumbs up to WWE and their use of a more movie like feel, as The Undertaker and AJ Styles managed to steal the show on a pretty stacked WrestleMania card. The Undertaker has obviously aged over the years, but you would never know it due to WWE carefully hiding his flaws that would’ve been obvious had this been a normal one on one match. Props to Styles and The OC for their part in this match as well, as they made excellent heel counterparts for The Deadman.

ALLSOPP: It was a breath of fresh air, with The Undertaker coming across as an absolute badass. Yes, this match had all the hallmarks of a final deletion match, but The Undertaker and AJ Styles managed to make the boneyard match feel unique and special. The cinematic feel allowed The Phenom's deficiencies to be hidden, whilst Styles loses nothing in defeat due to the grandiose manner in which he was buried alive. It was fun, it was campy, and most importantly, it was entertaining. This was a great way to cap off the first night of WrestleMania 36.


WILLIAMS: Potentially the strongest in ring match of the entire WrestleMania 36 week, Charlotte Flair vs Rhea Ripley was a fantastic showing from both women. Ripley was the odds on favourite going into this match, but it just goes to show you can never bet against Flair when it comes to championship matches. Flair as NXT Women’s Champion could do big things for the division if she actually becomes a full time member of the NXT roster, and she may bring some more casual eyes to the NXT product as a whole.

ALLSOPP: I would hope so, as her upcoming match with Io Shirai is a true dream match. Charlotte Flair is a very divisive figure as she is perceived as a female Roman Reigns, but it cannot be overlooked just how talented she is. Flair has the talent and fitness to combine Raw appearances with matches on NXT, whilst her name value will help NXT fight back against AEW in the Wednesday Night War. It would be foolish for her to completely transition to NXT as she can give the brand more exposure on Raw, which can only benefit the yellow brand.

GREEN: Why did this even happen? What does this achieve? Charlotte Flair has already achieved nearly everything that's possible in the women's division. Whilst this does open the door for a future Bianca Belair vs Flair match, it makes Rhea Ripley look weak in the process as she lost her title just a few months after winning it. Whilst I wouldn't mind seeing Flair face the top names of the NXT women's division such as Io Shirai, these matches can be done without the use of the NXT Women's Championship.


ALLSOPP: It depends how you are quantifying the success. In terms of getting through the match in a healthy state, Edge's match against Randy Orton was a roaring success. However, in terms of match entertainment, his return was disappointing. The contest went on for far too long, with the action struggling to keep me interested for long periods. It wasn't outright bad, however it also wasn't good. I have faith that once he returns to competing in normal matches, he will be able to put on better matches that won't tarnish his legacy.

GREEN: Whilst I enjoyed the style of this match and how they adapted to the fact that there was no crowd, the match itself lasted way too long. The last 10 minutes just dragged on, though the finish was great, especially as we are used to seeing last man standing matches end with a big spot. The simple brutality of the conchairto really felt like a change of pace, with Edge's emotion really hitting this out of the park. Despite the fact the match wasn't perfect, it was definitely a successful return for the Rated R Superstar.

WILLIAMS: Whilst there was definitely some controversy attached to this match, both in terms of content and the length of the match, who can deny how fucking unbelievable it is to see Edge in a WWE ring once again? Edge and Randy Orton are some of the all time greats of their era, and whilst I do agree this match ran way too long, the sight of Edge winning a match at WrestleMania 8 years after his retirement more than makes up for it. This match didn’t do much for me from an in ring perspective, as it was a whole lot of strikes and weapon shots whilst Edge and Orton slowly moved around the entire WWE Performance Centre. It sucks that Edge’s big return match took place in front of no crowd, but in the grand scheme of things, just having him back in the WWE fold is a real heart warming feeling.


GREEN: Sorry Braun, you're losing that WWE Universal Championship the first chance WWE gets. Even if we don't get Goldberg vs Roman Reigns somewhere down the line, Strowman will most likely have his first title defence against Reigns at the first pay-per-view with a crowd, where Reigns will beat Strowman and either challenge Goldberg or a big name that has been drafted from Raw. As for Drew McIntyre's reign, I can see him holding the WWE Championship for a good couple of months, having a good number of successful title defences in the meantime.

WILLIAMS: Without a doubt, Drew McIntyre will be far more successful as world champion than Braun Strowman. You bet your ass the second that it’s possible for them to do so, WWE is going to hot shot the WWE Universal Championship back onto either Roman Reigns or Goldberg to set up their inevitable title clash. McIntyre has a high ceiling as Raw’s top babyface, and hopefully he has a better run as WWE Champion than Seth Rollins did in 2015. Oh, and in 2019.

ALLSOPP: Drew McIntyre will easily have the better reign, purely because Braun Strowman only became the WWE Universal Champion due to Roman Reigns pulling out of WrestleMania 36. McIntyre has seemingly been groomed by Paul Heyman to succeed on Raw, and as long as he can provide the Scottish Psychopath with quality challengers, he will have a strong and exciting first reign as WWE Champion.


WILLIAMS: This was never going to be a top 10 of all time WrestleMania. The lack of a crowd and build to a lot of the matches on the card definitely hurt the show overall. The fact that WWE pulled this show off at all is impressive in itself, and I would say they provided at least a few hours of distraction from the world around us, so in my book, WrestleMania 36 was a success!

ALLSOPP: This was a surprisingly successful WrestleMania, but that is due to the inclusion of some really strong matches. The Undertaker vs AJ Styles and Bray Wyatt vs John Cena were cinematic masterpieces, whilst the feel good moments of Braun Strowman and Drew McIntyre winning their first world titles in WWE felt similar to those of WrestleMania 21, when Batista and John Cena achieved this feat. Yes, some matches were poor and uninteresting, but WWE still managed to put on a show when the rest of the world was struggling with the COVID-19 outbreak. And for that, I am grateful. WrestleMania 36 ranks in the top 20 WrestleMania events in my opinion, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It was entertaining, and I hope WWE use the same 2 night format with WrestleMania 37.

GREEN: Whilst I wouldn't call the event a success by WrestleMania standards, I'd definitely call it a success given the circumstances. WWE were given rotten lemons and made tasty lemonade with them. WrestleMania 36 may not be up there with some of my favourite WrestleMania events, but it was definitely enjoyable. Whilst the whole 2 night format might lead to some awkward viewing when watching WrestleMania 36 as a whole, it was easily more enjoyable than some of the previous editions.