Wow, what a WrestleMania. Obviously, Undertaker losing to Brock Lesnar has dominated the discussions. And Undertaker's loss took everyone by surprise.
But there's plenty more to discuss coming out of WrestleMania XXX. John Cena defended his legacy after defeating Bray Wyatt. AJ Lee defeated the entire Divas division to retain her Divas title. And of course, there was the main event. Daniel Bryan finally overcame The Authority and won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
We'll get into all that and more in the following slides. But before we get into the rankings, here's how they work.
Holding a championship, being No. 1 contender or holding a Money in the Bank briefcase counts for much of a wrestler's ranking. If a wrestler is tied with another wrestler, any of the listed scenarios will break the tie.
Wins and losses account for much of the week-to-week movement. "Getting the better" of someone—like beating someone down—as well as "getting got" counts as well, though not as much as wins and losses. Being "over" with the fans is considered but not heavily weighted in the ranking decisions. Pay-per-view performance takes on added importance.
Only the top 10 wrestlers are ranked, and every other wrestler is unranked. Wrestlers on the "Watch List" were considered for top-10 status but ultimately were nixed. They too are unranked, and their listing is in no particular order.
Generally speaking, these rankings do not break kayfabe, though any major non-storyline information (serious injury, WWE Wellness Policy violations, legitimate hirings, firings, contract information, "sabbaticals," etc.) may be taken into consideration. No spoilers are included unless WWE acknowledges them.
All WWE shows, televised or digitally distributed, as well as anything from WWE.com, the WWE App, the WWE Network and any WWE or Superstar social media accounts that don't break kayfabe may be taken into consideration.
But there's plenty more to discuss coming out of WrestleMania XXX. John Cena defended his legacy after defeating Bray Wyatt. AJ Lee defeated the entire Divas division to retain her Divas title. And of course, there was the main event. Daniel Bryan finally overcame The Authority and won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
We'll get into all that and more in the following slides. But before we get into the rankings, here's how they work.
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| WWE Power Rankings for 4/7/2014, WrestleMania XXX Edition |
Wins and losses account for much of the week-to-week movement. "Getting the better" of someone—like beating someone down—as well as "getting got" counts as well, though not as much as wins and losses. Being "over" with the fans is considered but not heavily weighted in the ranking decisions. Pay-per-view performance takes on added importance.
Only the top 10 wrestlers are ranked, and every other wrestler is unranked. Wrestlers on the "Watch List" were considered for top-10 status but ultimately were nixed. They too are unranked, and their listing is in no particular order.
Generally speaking, these rankings do not break kayfabe, though any major non-storyline information (serious injury, WWE Wellness Policy violations, legitimate hirings, firings, contract information, "sabbaticals," etc.) may be taken into consideration. No spoilers are included unless WWE acknowledges them.
All WWE shows, televised or digitally distributed, as well as anything from WWE.com, the WWE App, the WWE Network and any WWE or Superstar social media accounts that don't break kayfabe may be taken into consideration.
Alberto Del Rio
13. Alberto Del Rio clawed his way back to importance after pinning Big E on Raw this past Monday. He could be in line for an Intercontinental Championship match, especially since Christian seems to have fallen by the wayside after his concussion prevented him from getting his title shot. He was one of the last competitors in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, though he was eliminated by Sheamus. He did take Sheamus out with him, though. Will Alberto Del Rio keep climbing back up the rankings?
Big Show
12. The heavy favorite to win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal made it to the final moments of the match and appeared ready to win. Cesaro had other plans, though, and Big Show was lifted with ease and thrown over the ropes. Where does Big Show go from here?
AJ Lee
11. If there was any doubt that AJ Lee is in a league of her own, WrestleMania XXX was the proof. AJ Lee faced every Diva on the roster and beat them all. There are a handful of Divas that could challenge AJ going forward, like Tamina or Natalya, but AJ has beaten everyone put in front of her. And last night, she quite literally beat everyone again. Who will step up to challenger her next?
Randy Orton
10. Randy Orton's title reign ended at 161 days. Orton won the WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell and then unified the WWE Championship with the World Heavyweight Championship after he defeated John Cena at TLC this past December.
Now, he'll get a rematch against Daniel Bryan. How soon he'll get it remains to be seen. But after months of ducking matches and requiring interference to escape pay-per-views with his title, he lost. He may not have been involved in the decision, but such is the nature of the Triple Threat match.
Perhaps landing spine-first on a monitor as he RKO'd Daniel Bryan through the Spanish announce table took enough out of him to prevent him from retaining. Will The Viper get back on track tonight on Raw?
Movement: Into Top 10
9. It appears Cesaro has finally broken away from Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter and will fly on his own from here on out. And while WrestleMania XXX didn't start well for him, it ended very well.
Earlier in the week on Raw, The Real Americans took a loss when Swagger was rolled up by a Matador in an eight-man tag match in which they teamed with RybAxel against Los Matadores and The Usos. They got vengeance on SmackDown, however, when they defeated Los Matadores in tag team action.
At WrestleMania XXX Sunday night, The Real Americans lost in a 4-Way Elimination tag team match. They were the final elimination, and Swagger was not happy about the loss. He attacked Cesaro, but Cesaro turned the tables after Zeb Colter tried to get them to shake hands. Cesaro put Swagger in the Cesaro Swing, seemingly ending his partnership with Swagger and possibly Colter, too.
Then, he was a participant in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. No one was talking about Cesaro, as all the attention was on Big Show, Sheamus and other "big men." He made it to the final two, facing down Big Show. He ended the match by lifting Big Show like he was a cruiserweight and then raised that hulking trophy after a hard-fought win. What's next for Cesaro?
13. Alberto Del Rio clawed his way back to importance after pinning Big E on Raw this past Monday. He could be in line for an Intercontinental Championship match, especially since Christian seems to have fallen by the wayside after his concussion prevented him from getting his title shot. He was one of the last competitors in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, though he was eliminated by Sheamus. He did take Sheamus out with him, though. Will Alberto Del Rio keep climbing back up the rankings?
Big Show
12. The heavy favorite to win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal made it to the final moments of the match and appeared ready to win. Cesaro had other plans, though, and Big Show was lifted with ease and thrown over the ropes. Where does Big Show go from here?
AJ Lee
11. If there was any doubt that AJ Lee is in a league of her own, WrestleMania XXX was the proof. AJ Lee faced every Diva on the roster and beat them all. There are a handful of Divas that could challenge AJ going forward, like Tamina or Natalya, but AJ has beaten everyone put in front of her. And last night, she quite literally beat everyone again. Who will step up to challenger her next?
Randy Orton
10. Randy Orton's title reign ended at 161 days. Orton won the WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell and then unified the WWE Championship with the World Heavyweight Championship after he defeated John Cena at TLC this past December.
Now, he'll get a rematch against Daniel Bryan. How soon he'll get it remains to be seen. But after months of ducking matches and requiring interference to escape pay-per-views with his title, he lost. He may not have been involved in the decision, but such is the nature of the Triple Threat match.
Perhaps landing spine-first on a monitor as he RKO'd Daniel Bryan through the Spanish announce table took enough out of him to prevent him from retaining. Will The Viper get back on track tonight on Raw?
Movement: Into Top 10
9. It appears Cesaro has finally broken away from Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter and will fly on his own from here on out. And while WrestleMania XXX didn't start well for him, it ended very well.
Earlier in the week on Raw, The Real Americans took a loss when Swagger was rolled up by a Matador in an eight-man tag match in which they teamed with RybAxel against Los Matadores and The Usos. They got vengeance on SmackDown, however, when they defeated Los Matadores in tag team action.
At WrestleMania XXX Sunday night, The Real Americans lost in a 4-Way Elimination tag team match. They were the final elimination, and Swagger was not happy about the loss. He attacked Cesaro, but Cesaro turned the tables after Zeb Colter tried to get them to shake hands. Cesaro put Swagger in the Cesaro Swing, seemingly ending his partnership with Swagger and possibly Colter, too.
Then, he was a participant in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. No one was talking about Cesaro, as all the attention was on Big Show, Sheamus and other "big men." He made it to the final two, facing down Big Show. He ended the match by lifting Big Show like he was a cruiserweight and then raised that hulking trophy after a hard-fought win. What's next for Cesaro?
Movement: Up 1
8. The Usos were on a roll heading into WrestleMania XXX, and they made the most of their appearance on the WrestleMania XXX pre-show. On Raw, they teamed with Los Matadores in a win over RybAxel and The Real Americans.
Then came WrestleMania, where the defeated RybAxel, Los Matadores and finally The Real Americans in a 4-Way Elimination tag team match to retain their Tag Team Championships. Like AJ Lee did to the Divas, The Usos pretty much defeated the entire tag team division. Now, they have to look forward to a rematch against The New Age Outlaws, who are still due their chance after losing the titles to The Usos. Beyond that, The Usos have a wide open field to contend with.
Movement: Down 4
7. Sheamus drops four spots this week, but it has more to do with others having better weeks than Sheamus doing anything wrong. That said, the lone bright spot for Sheamus this past week was a win over Miz on Main Event.
On Raw, he was a part of yet another impromptu "Battle Royal," which he "lost." Then, as mentioned before, he defeated Miz on Main Event. And while he was one of the last men in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, he and Alberto Del Rio eliminated each other, and that was the end of his night.
Sheamus had been on a big roll, but that seems to be over. Can he rebound from a couple of bad weeks and push toward a title opportunity?
Movement: Down 4
6. Bray Wyatt made it his mission to defeat John Cena at WrestleMania XXX and destroy John Cena's legacy. And that seemed a likely outcome on Raw, where he destroyed R-Truth in what amounted to a warm-up bout for WrestleMania.
And when he faced down Cena last night, he tried to get Cena to betray his principles. He failed. Not only did Cena refuse to play Bray's game, but Bray Wyatt was defeated by Cena and was promptly removed from ringside.
Movement: Down 1
5. Big E didn't have a great week. It started with a loss to Alberto Del Rio on Raw, though it was a non-title match. Then, at WrestleMania XXX, he was unceremoniously eliminated in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
He didn't even have to defend the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania XXX. This was a blow to Big E, but it was a bigger blow to the prestige of the Intercontinental Championship. Big E has work to do to get back to his winning ways and restore that missing luster from his title.
How will Bray Wyatt recover from this? Can he? And will he keep going after Cena, or will he choose a new target?
Movement: Up 2
4. he Shield started its week in similar fashion to how the group ended it. On Raw, Roman Reigns took a DQ loss to Kane after The Shield attacked Kane in the ring. The New Age Outlaws saved Kane from a nasty beating.
They couldn't avoid that beating at WrestleMania XXX. The Shield absolutely dominated the match, making quick work of Kane and The New Age Outlaws. It ended with a double Triple Powerbomb on Billy Gunn and Road Dogg, followed by Seth Rollins pinning Billy Gunn for the win.
Aside from the tag team victory, Dean Ambrose did not have to defend his United States Championship. The title, with a rich history dating back to the 1970s, is basically invisible right now. Not being defended at WrestleMania deals a blow to its prestige.
Can Ambrose restore the title to prominence? And with the victory at WrestleMania, where does The Shield go from here?
Movement: Up 4
3. John Cena got the best of The Wyatts from the beginning to the end of the week. On Raw, he attacked The Wyatts and drove them away from the ring. But it was WrestleMania that really mattered.
Bray Wyatt gave Cena every chance to betray his principles and give in to Wyatt's evil ways. He refused and successfully defended his legacy and everything he stands for. Bray Wyatt was a challenge for Cena as he moves out of the prime of his career and into seemingly a lesser role as new, younger stars move to the top of the card. So it's fitting Cena is now becoming concerned about the legacy he leaves behind.
Movement: Into Top 10
2. Of all the matches on the WrestleMania XXX card, Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar with Taker's streak on the line seemed the easiest to predict. There was no way Lesnar could win. How could Undertaker lose to Lesnar when Lesnar kept backing down? Lesnar seemed scared at times during the build to the match.
Boy, were we all dealt a major shock at WrestleMania.
The unthinkable happened. The impossible occurred. The Undertaker, once untouchable at WrestleMania, fell in battle. Brock Lesnar did what wrestlers like CM Punk, Shawn Michaels, Triple H and Kane could not accomplish. He did the impossible.
Previous Rank: 1
Movement: None
1. Daniel Bryan did it, despite all the obstacles The Authority placed in his path. He was called a "B+" wrestler. He was called a "goat-faced troll." He was assaulted and beaten down. He was screwed over. No more.
Daniel Bryan has finally become the WWE World Heavyweight champion after defeating Triple H in the opening match of WrestleMania XXX and then defeating Randy Orton and Batista in a Triple Threat match that also featured Triple H and Stephanie McMahon interfering.
After Bryan defeated Triple H early in the evening, Triple H attacked his already-injured shoulder. Then, during the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match, Bryan was the victim of collaboration between Orton and Batista. Batista hit Bryan with a Batista Bomb and Randy Orton hit an RKO at the same time, sending Bryan crashing through the Spanish announce table.
(By the way, even when a French announce table is present, the Spanish announce table still can't catch a break.)
Now, Brock Lesnar will be remembered by fans of pro wrestling forever. And more importantly, he's now one of the biggest bad guys in WWE. A strong case could be made for Brock Lesnar to get a shot at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
For Cena, the win is proof that he doesn't need to change his ways to stay relevant. But Where will Cena go from here?
8. The Usos were on a roll heading into WrestleMania XXX, and they made the most of their appearance on the WrestleMania XXX pre-show. On Raw, they teamed with Los Matadores in a win over RybAxel and The Real Americans.
Then came WrestleMania, where the defeated RybAxel, Los Matadores and finally The Real Americans in a 4-Way Elimination tag team match to retain their Tag Team Championships. Like AJ Lee did to the Divas, The Usos pretty much defeated the entire tag team division. Now, they have to look forward to a rematch against The New Age Outlaws, who are still due their chance after losing the titles to The Usos. Beyond that, The Usos have a wide open field to contend with.
Movement: Down 4
7. Sheamus drops four spots this week, but it has more to do with others having better weeks than Sheamus doing anything wrong. That said, the lone bright spot for Sheamus this past week was a win over Miz on Main Event.
On Raw, he was a part of yet another impromptu "Battle Royal," which he "lost." Then, as mentioned before, he defeated Miz on Main Event. And while he was one of the last men in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, he and Alberto Del Rio eliminated each other, and that was the end of his night.
Sheamus had been on a big roll, but that seems to be over. Can he rebound from a couple of bad weeks and push toward a title opportunity?
Movement: Down 4
6. Bray Wyatt made it his mission to defeat John Cena at WrestleMania XXX and destroy John Cena's legacy. And that seemed a likely outcome on Raw, where he destroyed R-Truth in what amounted to a warm-up bout for WrestleMania.
And when he faced down Cena last night, he tried to get Cena to betray his principles. He failed. Not only did Cena refuse to play Bray's game, but Bray Wyatt was defeated by Cena and was promptly removed from ringside.
Movement: Down 1
5. Big E didn't have a great week. It started with a loss to Alberto Del Rio on Raw, though it was a non-title match. Then, at WrestleMania XXX, he was unceremoniously eliminated in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
He didn't even have to defend the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania XXX. This was a blow to Big E, but it was a bigger blow to the prestige of the Intercontinental Championship. Big E has work to do to get back to his winning ways and restore that missing luster from his title.
How will Bray Wyatt recover from this? Can he? And will he keep going after Cena, or will he choose a new target?
Movement: Up 2
4. he Shield started its week in similar fashion to how the group ended it. On Raw, Roman Reigns took a DQ loss to Kane after The Shield attacked Kane in the ring. The New Age Outlaws saved Kane from a nasty beating.
They couldn't avoid that beating at WrestleMania XXX. The Shield absolutely dominated the match, making quick work of Kane and The New Age Outlaws. It ended with a double Triple Powerbomb on Billy Gunn and Road Dogg, followed by Seth Rollins pinning Billy Gunn for the win.
Aside from the tag team victory, Dean Ambrose did not have to defend his United States Championship. The title, with a rich history dating back to the 1970s, is basically invisible right now. Not being defended at WrestleMania deals a blow to its prestige.
Can Ambrose restore the title to prominence? And with the victory at WrestleMania, where does The Shield go from here?
Movement: Up 4
3. John Cena got the best of The Wyatts from the beginning to the end of the week. On Raw, he attacked The Wyatts and drove them away from the ring. But it was WrestleMania that really mattered.
Bray Wyatt gave Cena every chance to betray his principles and give in to Wyatt's evil ways. He refused and successfully defended his legacy and everything he stands for. Bray Wyatt was a challenge for Cena as he moves out of the prime of his career and into seemingly a lesser role as new, younger stars move to the top of the card. So it's fitting Cena is now becoming concerned about the legacy he leaves behind.
Movement: Into Top 10
2. Of all the matches on the WrestleMania XXX card, Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar with Taker's streak on the line seemed the easiest to predict. There was no way Lesnar could win. How could Undertaker lose to Lesnar when Lesnar kept backing down? Lesnar seemed scared at times during the build to the match.
Boy, were we all dealt a major shock at WrestleMania.
The unthinkable happened. The impossible occurred. The Undertaker, once untouchable at WrestleMania, fell in battle. Brock Lesnar did what wrestlers like CM Punk, Shawn Michaels, Triple H and Kane could not accomplish. He did the impossible.
Previous Rank: 1
Movement: None
1. Daniel Bryan did it, despite all the obstacles The Authority placed in his path. He was called a "B+" wrestler. He was called a "goat-faced troll." He was assaulted and beaten down. He was screwed over. No more.
Daniel Bryan has finally become the WWE World Heavyweight champion after defeating Triple H in the opening match of WrestleMania XXX and then defeating Randy Orton and Batista in a Triple Threat match that also featured Triple H and Stephanie McMahon interfering.
After Bryan defeated Triple H early in the evening, Triple H attacked his already-injured shoulder. Then, during the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match, Bryan was the victim of collaboration between Orton and Batista. Batista hit Bryan with a Batista Bomb and Randy Orton hit an RKO at the same time, sending Bryan crashing through the Spanish announce table.
(By the way, even when a French announce table is present, the Spanish announce table still can't catch a break.)
Now, Brock Lesnar will be remembered by fans of pro wrestling forever. And more importantly, he's now one of the biggest bad guys in WWE. A strong case could be made for Brock Lesnar to get a shot at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
For Cena, the win is proof that he doesn't need to change his ways to stay relevant. But Where will Cena go from here?
