WrestleMania XL: A Photo Diary
I went to Philadelphia for the 40th WrestleMania, here's what it looked like.
The 40th edition of WrestleMania took place in Philadelphia this past weekend. It has been on my bucket list since I wore a knit Hulk Hogan sweater to Kindergarten (and whenever I found out what a bucket list was.) It was a phenomenal weekend in the City of Brotherly love. Here’s just a taste of the craziness.
Philadelphia was covered in WrestleMania swag, including City Hall. You couldn’t walk more than 6” without seeing a WWE logo or a picture of The Rock, Roman Reigns or Cody Rhodes. I’ve been to a Super Bowl and now a WrestleMania, the visual impact on a city is very comparable.
No trip to Philly would be complete without plenty of cheesesteaks and without paying homage to Rocky Balboa. I had already done the first many times over by day 3, (they put those things on your table when you sit down like they’re dinner rolls, it’s not my fault I ate a dozen) but I had to walk them off.
I finally looked to my left as we left our hotel and from literally a mile away, I recognized the historic Philadelphia Museum of Art. (This is the only time I’ve ever correctly identified an art museum. Thanks Stallion.) The view from the top of the steps is amazing, now I can see why Rocky pushed so hard to get to the top.
From one Philadelphia legend to another. WrestleMania has always had it’s fair share of celebrity moments. This year was no different, as Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson jumped the barricade wearing Eagles themed wrestling masks and helped Rey Mysterio and Andrade win a tag team match. The two biggest luchadores in history popped the crowd on night one. (Oh yeah, WrestleMania is two nights now and it’s probably the best thing to come out of the pandemic.)
The biggest attraction of the weekend was The Rock’s return to the ring after 11 years off. (I heard he was making movies or something out in California.) Night one ended with The Rock and cousin Roman Reigns (the champion for the last 4 years) beating the good guys Cody Rhodes (Dusty’s son) and Seth Rollins. Oh yeah and The Rock is a bad guy now, as you can imagine, he’s a tremendous villain. Calling himself the “Final Boss” this is the equivalent of when Hulk Hogan formed the nWo in 1996. Night one ended with Cody Rhodes defeated in the ring, on the eve of his championship match with Roman Reigns. The WWE is on a heater as of late when it comes to storytelling.
We spent WrestleMania Sunday at WWE World, a convention for fans set up by the WWE and Fanatics. A lot of cool stuff on display. This is Dusty Rhodes robe that he wore to the ring while Purple Rain was playing. (Definitely didn’t pay for the rights to use the Prince tune that night.)
The robe of the toughest man to walk God’s green earth, Harley Race.
The original Million Dollar Belt, worn by the Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase. (And some guy named Steve Austin. Wonder whatever happened to him?)
They even had the body of a “Rock” themed funny car. WWE went all out with the displays.
There were legends on hand as well, here I am with the iconic Sgt. Slaughter! We took a nice picture.
Then he said he had to call the photographer a “Maggot! Because he is one!”
Then Sarge turned heel on me.
…………
When he gets that Cobra Clutch slapped on you, it’s all over, but still proud to be a member of the Cobra Clutch Club. Not all meetings ended in fisticuffs this weekend, there was one that was beyond surreal and very appropriate for WrestleMania Sunday.
We had the extreme pleasure of getting to spend a little time with the legend himself, the Immortal Hulk Hogan. There is no WrestleMania without him, he headlined the first 9 events and to this day is on the Mount Rushmore of pro wrestling.
(Pictured, my buddy Elijah, Hulk, myself and my Miss Elizabeth. (Not to be confused with the Macho Man’s Miss Elizabeth.)
Sunday at WrestleMania was an absolute spectacle and thankfully a bit warmer than Saturday. (Temps were in the 30’s on Saturday and low 40’s on Sunday.) Seth Rollins was led to the ring by 30-40 Mummers, Snoop Dogg made an appearance (Lil Wayne was there Saturday) and the matches were great.
The Rhodes vs Reigns main event was incredible. With interference by John Cena, The Rock and The Undertaker, it was a 40 minute joyride through the last 25 years of WrestleMania. In the end, Cody Rhodes won his first world title and ended Roman Reigns almost 4 year run as champion.
Pro Wrestling dominated the news cycle into Monday, (it got eclipsed by an eclipse that afternoon) and that hasn’t been the case since the Attitude Era of the late 90’s with Stone Cold Steve Austin or the mid-80’s of Hulkamania. With new leadership in the company, WWE is in as good of a place as it has been in many many years. This weekend’s event is best described by one word: fun. Even watching the main events back when I got home, I couldn’t help but giggle to myself when John Cena’s music, or The Rock’s music hit. Because when pro wrestling is good, it’s just fun.
This weekend was a whole lot of fun.