| WrestleMania XXIV | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotional poster featuring various WWE wrestlers and boxerFloyd "Money" Mayweather | |||
| Promotion | World Wrestling Entertainment | ||
| Brand(s) | Raw SmackDown ECW | ||
| Date | March 30, 2008 | ||
| City | Orlando, Florida | ||
| Venue | Florida Citrus Bowl | ||
| Attendance | 74,635[1] | ||
| Buy rate | 1,041,000[2] | ||
| Tagline | "The Biggest WrestleMania Under the Sun"[3] | ||
| Pay-per-view chronology | |||
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| WrestleMania chronology | |||
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WrestleMania XXIV was a 2008professional wrestlingpay-per-view (PPV)event produced byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was the 24th annualWrestleMania and took place on March 30, 2008, at theFlorida Citrus Bowl inOrlando, Florida, marking the first WrestleMania to be held in the state ofFlorida. The event featured wrestlers from the promotion'sRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrand divisions. It was also the second WrestleMania to be held outdoors (the first wasWrestleMania IX in April 1993). American socialiteKim Kardashian served as the hostess of the event.
Nine professional wrestling matches were scheduled for the event, which featured asupercard, a scheduling of more than one main event. In the final match of the event, which was the main match from SmackDown,The Undertaker defeatedEdge to win theWorld Heavyweight Championship. Raw's main match was atriple threat match, in whichRandy Orton defeatedTriple H andJohn Cena to retain theWWE Championship. The main match from the ECW brand was asingles match in whichKane defeatedChavo Guerrero to win theECW Championship. From the six scheduled bouts on theundercard, three received more promotion than the others. In aNo Disqualification match, professional boxerFloyd "Money" Mayweather defeatedBig Show. The other featured undercard matches sawCM Punk win the inter-promotionalMoney in the Bank ladder match and aretirement match in whichShawn Michaels defeatedRic Flair, leading to Flair's departure from WWE and a period of retirement from active wrestling.
Tickets for the event commenced sale to the public on November 3, 2007.[4] WWE and the City of Orlando hosted festivities that spanned a five-day period within the central Florida region.[5] For the second consecutive year, WrestleMania broke the record for the highest-grossing pay-per-view in WWE history. It also set a gate record for the Citrus Bowl, grossing US$5.85 million in ticket sales. According to a study by Enigma Research Corporation of Toronto, the Citrus Bowl's record-breaking attendance brought an estimated $51.5 million – surpassing the projected $25 million – into the local economy and generated $1.8 million in local tax revenue.[6] The Central Florida Sports Commission reported that the event created jobs and brought approximately 60,000 visitors to the city. Over one million people ordered the event on pay-per-view, grossing $23.8 million in revenue. It was also the first WrestleMania PPV broadcast inhigh definition.[7] This would also mark the final WrestleMania of theTV-14 era. WWE would go toPG in July 2008
WrestleMania is consideredWorld Wrestling Entertainment's (WWE) flagshippay-per-view (PPV)event, having first been held in1985. It has become the longest-running professional wrestling event in history and is held annually between mid-March to mid-April.[8] It was the first of WWE's original four pay-per-views, which includesRoyal Rumble,SummerSlam, andSurvivor Series, referred to as the "Big Four".[9] WrestleMania XXIV featured wrestlers from theRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrands.[10][11]
On March 21, 2007, a press conference was held at City Hall inOrlando, Florida, formally announcing that WrestleMania XXIV would be held in Orlando at theFlorida Citrus Bowl on March 30, 2008, which would be the first WrestleMania held in Florida.[12][13] According to an interview withThe Daytona Beach News-Journal at the press conference, WWE chairmanVince McMahon mentioned Orlando being one of three front-runners to host the event, the other two beingLas Vegas and Paris. McMahon explained that Orlando was chosen as geographically, a WrestleMania was never held in thesoutheast before.[13]
As the second WrestleMania to be held entirely outdoors (afterWrestleMania IX), McMahon also announced that the event would have taken place regardless of the weather conditions.[14] In the March 2008 issue ofWWE Magazine, WWEset designer Jason Robinson revealed that a steel rig with atarpaulin roof would be built above the ring itself to prevent rain from falling on the ring;[15][16] during theMoney in the Bank ladder match, it rained briefly.[17] In that same issue, an initial design of the ring setup was revealed showing a larger rig surrounding the tarpaulin rig, withlighting and two giant screens attached.[15] The final design had the lighting and video screens on the tarpaulin rig, as well as the sound system.[18] During an interview, WWE production manager Brian Petree mentioned that video reinforcement should prevent anyone's view from being obstructed by the steel structure. Up to sevengenerators were used to power up the event.[16]
Theset design for the entrance stage was at the north end of the stadium and consisted of another steel structure with various video screens hanging from it.[16][18] The steel beams for the structure were custom built in Belgium and shipped over to Orlando.[16] According toWWE Magazine, the amount ofpyrotechnics used would be ten times that of the amount used onRaw.[15] Without the restriction of a roof, the pyrotechnics for the show shot as high as 2,000feet (610 m) as compared toWrestleMania 23's height of 150 feet (46 m).[19] The fireworks were set off from boats on one of the lakes nearby the stadium. WWE has been said to have spent an estimated $300,000 on the fireworks alone.[20]
With the Citrus Bowl's locker rooms on the south side and the entrance set on the north side, a tented 40,000square feet (3,700 m2) mini-city outside the north end served as the show's backstage area and included air conditioning, trailers, VIP areas, showers and restrooms.[16] As a consequence, the road next to the north end zone, W. Church Street, was closed down until a day after the event.[21] Numerous other roads were also closed to allow trucks and forklifts to move in mega equipment for the event.[22] The ring itself was built on the50-yard line of the Citrus Bowl to give the best view for fans.[15] Heavy-duty plastic flooring had been put over the field, to protect the turf, provide seating, and serve as the steel structures' foundation.[16]
Development on the set design began in the middle of 2007.[23] The building of the actual set began in the middle of March 2008. 100 people worked 16 hours a day to construct the set for the event. The construction finished on March 29.[16][22] WrestleMania XXIV was the first WrestleMania event to be filmed inhigh-definition. It was also the first WWE show and sports related title to be released on theBlu-ray Disc format byWWE Home Video.[24][25] WrestleMania also led to an increase in sales for musical artists related to the event, including theRed Hot Chili Peppers' albumStadium Arcadium,John Legend's albumLive from Philadelphia,Rev Theory's single "Light It Up", andFuel's single "Leave the Memories Alone", which was used as part of a tribute toRic Flair.[26]
WrestleMania XXIV featured nineprofessional wrestling matches with wrestlers involved in pre-existingscripted feuds,plots, andstorylines. Wrestlers were portrayed as eithervillains orfan favorites as they followed a series of tension-building events, which culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. All wrestlers belonged to either theRaw,SmackDown, orECW brand –storyline divisions in which WWE assigned its employees to different programs.[27]
The predominantrivalry scripted into WrestleMania on the Raw brand was betweenRandy Orton,John Cena, andTriple H, over theWWE Championship. At theRoyal Rumble pay-per-view event in January, Orton successfully defended the WWE Championship againstJeff Hardy and later that night, Cena returned from an injury and won theRoyal Rumble match when he last eliminated Triple H. Instead of challenging Orton for the title at WrestleMania, Cena decided to challenge him atNo Way Out, where Orton got himself intentionallydisqualified byslapping the referee, thus retaining the WWE Championship.[28] Later, Triple H also became a top contender to the WWE Championship by defeating five other men in anElimination Chamber match.[29] The next night onRaw, Cena argued that he deserved another WWE Championship match. Rawgeneral managerWilliam Regal then announced that Cena would face Orton later in the night, where if Cena won, he would be added to the WrestleMania match between Triple H and Orton, making it atriple threat match. If Orton won, the main event would remain as Orton versus Triple H in asingles match. However, Cena won the match and was added to the bout at WrestleMania. After the match, Triple H, who was thespecial guest referee, executed a Pedigree on both Cena and Orton.[30]
The predominant rivalry on the SmackDown brand was betweenEdge andThe Undertaker, over theWorld Heavyweight Championship. On the February 1 episode ofSmackDown,assistant general managerTheodore Long announced that at No Way Out, an Elimination Chamber match would be held to determine the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania.[31] The Undertaker won the match by last eliminating Batista.[32] On the following episode ofSmackDown, Edge predicted that The Undertaker's 15–0 undefeated streak at WrestleMania would come to an end once he defeated him.[33] Two weeks later on the March 7 episode ofSmackDown, the team of Edge andCurt Hawkins and Zack Ryder defeated The Undertaker in aHandicap match after Edge pinned The Undertaker.[34] The following week,La Familia (Chavo Guerrero, Edge, Hawkins and Ryder) defeatedRic Flair andShawn Michaels in asteel cage match. During the match, Undertaker interfered and attacked La Familia. However, Edge escaped the cage to win the match for his team.[35] Two weeks later onSmackDown, Edge, along withVickie Guerrero, Hawkins and Ryder, held a mock burial entitled "Burial of The Undertaker's WrestleMania Undefeated Streak", to celebrate Edge's early victory over The Undertaker. During the "burial", however, The Undertaker emerged from a casket, which was inside the ring, and attacked Edge, Hawkins, and Ryder, knocking Hawkins and Ryder outside the ring and chokeslamming Edge through the casket.[36]
At No Way Out, Big Show made a return to the company after taking time off for injuries beginning in December 2006.[37] In his return promotional interview, Big Show threatened to giveRey Mysterio a chokeslam.Professional boxer andWBC Welterweight ChampionFloyd "Money" Mayweather, who was in attendance and a close friend of Mysterio's, came to his aid and confronted Big Show. After Big Show dropped to his knees, Mayweather attacked him with a combination of punches, which caused Big Show to bleed from the nose and mouth.[38] The following night onRaw, Big Show challenged Mayweather to a wrestling match, which Mayweather accepted.[39] As part of the storyline, Big Show arranged an exhibition match with fighter Brandon Hill, who was similar in size and stature to Mayweather. Unimpressed with Big Show's display of dominance over Hill, Mayweather told Big Show that "at WrestleMania, I'm going to break your jaw". At their weigh-in for their WrestleMania match, Big Show threw Mayweather into a crowd of wrestlers to emphasise the disparity in size.
On the February 25 episode ofRaw,2008 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee Ric Flair challenged Shawn Michaels to a match at WrestleMania.[40] Michaels accepted after some reluctance, knowing that due to a previous announcement from WWE chairmanMr. McMahon the next match Flair lost would result in his forced retirement.[40][41] Flair said that "it would be an honor for [him] to retire at the hands of Shawn Michaels."[40]
On February 18, WWE announced via its website that the fourth annualMoney in the Bank ladder match would take place at WrestleMania XXIV, a match where the objective is to retrieve a briefcase suspended in the air using a ladder. The match involved wrestlers from all three WWE brands. The winner would earn a contract to challenge for any of the three WWEWorld Championships (the WWE Championship of Raw, the World Heavyweight Championship of SmackDown, or theECW Championship of ECW) at any time and any place over a one-year period. Qualifying matches occurred to determine the participants in the match at WrestleMania, starting on that night'sRaw withJeff Hardy andMr. Kennedy defeatingSnitsky andVal Venis respectively to qualify.Shelton Benjamin became the third participant when he defeatedJimmy Wang Yang on the following episode ofSmackDown. During the next two weeks onRaw,Chris Jericho defeated Hardy, andCarlito defeatedCody Rhodes to qualify. At a non-televised SmackDown/ECWhouse show held on March 8,Montel Vontavious Porter qualified when he defeatedJamie Noble. On the March 11 episode ofECW,CM Punk became the seventh entrant when he defeatedBig Daddy V.John Morrison was the final person to qualify when he beatThe Miz on the March 14 episode ofSmackDown. Hardy was later removed from the match after alegitimate suspension by WWE for a drug violation of the company'sWellness Policy. WWE decided not to add another superstar in his place, making that year's Money in the Bank ladder match the first year to have seven participants.[42]
AlthoughFit Finlay was embroiled in a feud withJohn "Bradshaw" Layfield,Hornswoggle revealed in a May 2024 interview that Finlay was planned to faceVince McMahon for a championship during an illegitimate son storyline but the plans were dropped.[43] In addition, McMahon was also planned to return withMr. Kennedy following a limo explosion in June 2007. The storyline was set to begin on the June 25 episode ofRaw with the McMahon family holding a "funeral" for Vince, but these plans were ultimately been scrapped following thedeaths of Chris Benoit and his family.[44]
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Englishcommentators | Jim Ross(Raw) |
| Jerry Lawler(Raw) | |
| Michael Cole(SmackDown) | |
| Jonathan Coachman(SmackDown) | |
| Joey Styles(ECW) | |
| Tazz(ECW) | |
| Spanish commentators | Carlos Cabrera |
| Hugo Savinovich | |
| Interviewer | Mike Adamle |
| Todd Grisham | |
| Hostess | Kim Kardashian |
| Master of Ceremonies | Snoop Dogg |
| Ring announcers | Tony Chimel(ECW) |
| Armando Estrada(ECW Championship) | |
| Howard Finkel(WWE Hall of Fame) | |
| Lilian Garcia(Raw) | |
| Theodore Long(Raw vs. SmackDown) | |
| William Regal(Raw vs. SmackDown) | |
| Justin Roberts(SmackDown/Money in the Bank match) | |
| Referee | Scott Armstrong(ECW) |
| Mike Posey(ECW) | |
| John Cone(Raw) | |
| Mike Chioda(Raw) | |
| Jack Doan(Raw) | |
| Marty Elias(Raw) | |
| Mickie Henson(SmackDown) | |
| Jim Korderas(SmackDown) | |
| Chad Patton(Raw) | |
| Charles Robinson(SmackDown) |
Before the show aired live onpay-per-view,Kane won a24-man InterpromotionalBattle Royal, an elimination style match where the last person remaining was the winner, to win anECW Championship match againstChavo Guerrero later that night.[46] The event officially began withJohn Legend singing a rendition of "America the Beautiful".[47]
The first match was aBelfast Brawl betweenFinlay andJohn "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL), a match in which there were no disqualifications or countouts and the match outcomes could have occurred anywhere. Finlay was accompanied to the ring by hisstoryline son,Hornswoggle, who was returning from a scripted injury suffered at the hands of JBL. During the match, JBL hit Finlay with atrash can lid when the latter was about to perform a suicide dive on him through the ropes on the outside.[48] Later on, Finlay tossed JBL through atable that he had set up earlier on the turnbuckle. Hornswoggle also got involved during the match by hitting JBL with akendo stick, while later on JBL threw a trash can at him. Attacking Finlay's knee with akendo stick, JBL delivered aClothesline from Hell to Finlay to score a successfulpinfall. This was an interpromotional match.[1]
The next match of the evening was the fourth-annual Money in the Bank ladder match, in which there were no disqualifications or countouts, and the only way to win the match was to climb a ladder in the ring and retrieve a contract briefcase hanging above. The match featured Chris Jericho, Mr. Kennedy, and Carlito from the Raw brand; CM Punk, Shelton Benjamin, and John Morrison from the ECW brand; and Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) from the SmackDown brand. Jeff Hardy was supposed to be in the match, but he violated the wellness program and was taken out of the match. Early in the match, Morrison climbed aturnbuckle and performed amoonsault onto other competitors outside the ring while holding a ladder against his chest. Later, while Kennedy and Morrison were battling on top of a ladder, Benjamin climbed another ladder placed adjacent to the first one and performed asunset flip powerbomb on Kennedy, who in turnsuperplexed Morrison from the top of the ladder. Later, Carlito and Kennedy flipped Benjamin off a ladder in the ring, sending him crashing through another ladder set-up between thebarricade and the ring apron.[48] When MVP was close to retrieving the contract briefcase,Matt Hardy (returning to action after suffering alegitimate injury), entered the ring from the crowd, climbed the ladder, and delivered aTwist of Fate to MVP off that ladder. As soon as Morrison started to climb a ladder,see-sawing with another ladder, Jericho flipped the other one and Morrison landed on the ring-ropesgroin-first. Jericho even performed aCodebreaker on Punk using a ladder. In the end, Jericho and Punk fought each other on a ladder, but Punk trapped Jericho's one leg in the ladder's steps and retrieved the briefcase to win the match. This was an interpromotional match.[1]
Next after that match,Howard Finkel introduced the2008 WWE Hall of Fame class:Jack andGerald Brisco,Gordon Solie (represented by his family),Rocky Johnson,High Chief Peter Maivia (represented by his wife Lia and daughter Ata),Eddie Graham (represented by his son Mike),Mae Young, andRic Flair (represented by his family).[1]
The next match, which was billed as a "Battle for Brand Supremacy", was between SmackDown'sBatista and Raw'sUmaga. Early in the match, both Batista and Umaga exchanged blows and Batista knocked Umaga outside with ashoulder block. Umaga laterkicked Batista in the face, which caused him to fall back-first outside the ring from the ring-apron. As a result, Umaga started targeting Batista's injured back. In the end, however, when Umaga tried to perform hisSamoan Spike, Batista countered the attempt and gave him aspinebuster. Batista won the match by pinning Umaga after aBatista Bomb.[1]
The fourth match for the event featured Chavo Guerrero defending his ECW Championship against Kane. Kane surprised Chavo by emerging from underneath the ring instead of from the entrance stage during his ring entrance. Kane instantly pinned Chavo after achokeslam and won the ECW Championship in eleven seconds. This was the only ECW match on the show and the only ECW Championship match in WrestleMania history.[1]
Ric Flair's"Career Threatening" match against Shawn Michaels was next, which stipulated that Flair would have to retire fromwrestling if he had lost. At the start of the match, both superstars engaged in a series of counters, and then Flair shoved Michaels in a corner, making "Old Yeller" comments to him. In retaliation, Michaels slapped Flair in the face, which caused him to start bleeding from the mouth. Later, Michaels attemptedSweet Chin Music, but stopped in the process and Flair capitalized by trapping him in hisfigure four leglock.[48] Afterward, Michaels finally delivered the Sweet Chin Music to Flair for a near-fall. Michaels then trapped Flair in hismodified figure four leglock, but Flair delivered athumb to the eye to Michaels to break the submission. As Flair was deliveringchops to Michaels' chest, Michaels executed a second Sweet Chin Music.[48] After getting up on his feet with a worried face, Michaels said to Flair "I'm sorry, I love you", before nailing a final Sweet Chin Music and thus pinning Flair to end his 35-year-long wrestling career. After the match, Michaels left quickly and Flair got a standing ovation from the crowd. An emotional Flair embraced his family at ringside and then, as he proceeded to go backstage, he thanked the crowd for their support.[1]
The sixth match was thePlayboyBunnyMania Lumberjack match, in whichMaria andAshley (the latter who replacedCandice Michelle due to injury) facedBeth Phoenix andMelina, who were accompanied to the ring bySantino Marella.RapperSnoop Dogg served as the official "Master of Ceremonies" for the match. In the match, severalWWE Divas surrounded the ring and were able to interfere in the match without disqualifications. Due to some technical difficulties, the lights at Citrus Bowl temporarily went out during the match.[48] Near the end, a pin attempt by Maria was prevented when Marella pulled Maria's leg. In response, Raw commentatorJerry Lawler approached and knocked Marella down with a punch. Phoenix executed aFisherman Suplex and pinned Maria to win the match. After the match, Snoop Dogg executed a Clothesline on Marella and kissed Maria, before leaving with her and Ashley.[1]
Next was Randy Orton defending his WWE Championship against Triple H and John Cena in a triple threat match, which is a standard match involving three wrestlers with no disqualifications. For his entrance, Cena had theJones High School Marching Tigersmarching band perform an instrumental version of his theme song "The Time Is Now" live.[48] During the match, when Triple H had held Orton in asleeper hold, Cena picked up both Orton and Triple H for anFU, but Triple H dropped down andlow blowed him. Orton then dominated the match for some time; one highlight of the match featured Orton performing acrossbody from the top rope on Cena, while the latter was held on Triple H's shoulders in aseating position. Orton also performed aDDT to both Cena and Triple H simultaneously. Orton then tried to perform anRKO on Cena, but he countered and threw Orton onto Triple H. Triple H then started targeting Orton's legs and using some submissions on him.[48] The match came to an end when Cena had Triple H on his shoulders for the FU, but was countered into aPedigree. As Triple H was in the pin, Ortonpunted Triple H and pinned Cena to win the match and retain the WWE Championship.[1]
The next match was the No Disqualification match between Big Show and Floyd Mayweather Jr. Early in the match, Mayweather repeatedly escaped Big Show's grasp and delivered body shots to him.[48] Mayweather and his accomplices tried to "walk out" of the match, but Big Show walked up the ramp and brought Mayweather back in the ring. As Big Show was about to chokeslam Mayweather, one of Mayweather's accomplices struck asteel chair on Big Show's back, and the latter chokeslammed him in retaliation. Capitalizing from this distraction, Mayweather grabbed that chair and hit Big Show multiple times on the head with it. Finally, Mayweather removed his right glove and put on a pair ofbrass knuckles to hit Big Show in the face. As a result, Big Show wasknocked out as he could not answer the referee'sten count, and Mayweather was declared the winner.[1]
Themain event of the night saw Edge putting his World Heavyweight Championship on the line against The Undertaker. This was The Undertaker's first WrestleMania main event in 11 years, last main eventing againstSycho Sid atWrestleMania 13. The early going of the match was slow-paced, in which both superstars countered each other's maneuvers. During the match, The Undertaker ran and leapt over the top rope from the ring onto Edge on the outside.[48] Then throughout the match, Edge was able to counter The Undertaker's numerous signature moves, including theChokeslam,Old School and theLast Ride, a variation of the powerbomb. Near the end, Edge hit The Undertaker with a television camera while the referee was knocked down. When he proceeded to deliver aTombstone Piledriver to The Undertaker, The Undertaker countered it into his own version and successfully delivered it to Edge for a two-count.Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder came to the ring for Edge's aid, but The Undertaker took them out. Because of their distraction, Edge was able to execute aspear on The Undertaker, but was unable to pin him. When Edge delivered another spear to The Undertaker, The Undertaker appliedHell's Gate and forced Edge to submit to win the World Heavyweight Championship, improving his WrestleMania record to 16–0.[1]
Approximately 1,058,000 people ordered WrestleMania XXIV, grossing $23.8 million in revenue.Canadian Online Explorer's professional wrestling section gave the entire event 9 out of 10 stars. The rating was higher than WrestleMania 23 which received 8 out of 10 stars. The main event between The Undertaker and Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship was rated a 9.5 out of 10 stars. The Career Threatening match between Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels was rated a perfect 10 out of 10. Big Show vs. Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr. was rated 7 out of 10 stars, and the Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship between Randy Orton, Triple H and John Cena was rated 8.5 out of 10 stars.[48]
After the show, WWE was criticized for a malfunction in the pyrotechnics during The Undertaker's victory celebration. During the celebration, a hot cable for pyrotechnics was sent flying into audience members in the upper seating bowl of the stadium, leaving 45 injured, with some hospitalized. The accident was apparently due to a cable which fireworks were traveling across snapping, thus resulting in the fireworks exploding into the top rows of the upper bowl of the stadium.[49][50] WWE's corporate website released a statement afterward stating that they would investigate the incident, but the results of the investigation were never released.[51]
On the following episode ofRaw, Ric Flair made his farewell speech, which led to Triple H introducing various people from Flair's past, such asthe Four Horsemen,Ricky Steamboat, and others, each coming out to give an emotional farewell. Afterward, the entire WWE roster came out to say thank you to Flair (Including Undertaker, who came out after Raw went off the air and hugged Flair and did his kneeling stance). Shawn Michaels, who was clearly upset about retiring Flair, was forgiven by Flair.[52] Despite Flair's forgiveness, his former protégé Batista later started a feud with Michaels, citing Michaels' "selfishness" at WrestleMania for not lying down for Flair.[53][54] The two had a match booked atBacklash, and after a confrontation between Michaels and Chris Jericho, Jericho was later added into the match as a special guest referee.[55] Michaels won with a superkick.[56]
The feud between Randy Orton, John Cena, and Triple H continued after WrestleMania with the added involvement of John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) leading to afatal four-way elimination match between all four at Backlash. At Backlash, Triple H won his seventh WWE Championship by last pinning Orton.[57] With Matt Hardy's return at WrestleMania, his feud with Montel Vontavious Porter over theWWE United States Championship, that had started in July 2007, was revived with a match booked at Backlash, which Hardy won.[58] The rivalries between The Undertaker and Edge and the one between Kane and Chavo Guerrero both continued with successful title defenses at Backlash. On the May 2 episode ofSmackDown, General ManagerVickie Guerrero stripped The Undertaker of the World Heavyweight Championship because of his continued use of his illegal chokehold, claiming she did it to protect the other wrestlers.[59][60]
The event was released onDVD andBlu-ray Disc byWWE Home Video in the U.S. on May 20, 2008, after it had completed broadcast onpay-per-view. It was also released onUMD on August 23 2008. It was the firstWWE PPV event to be released via the Blu-ray and UMD format, as well as the only one on the latter format. As well as the event, the DVD/BD release features bonus material in the form of the 2008 Hall of Fame ceremony in its entirety and the battle royal that took place before the event.[61][62][63]
... WWE's flagship event lights up MetLife Stadium ... WrestleMania
You think I'm afraid", Edge asked our fans, only to vehemently state: "I'm not afraid. Undertaker is an opportunity to cement my legacy." The Rated-R Superstar then made the boldest statement of his career, telling our fans and The Deadman that "The Streak" would be broken this year. "I will not fall like those before me.
