It’s WrestleMania season! and once again wrestling fans around the world are gearing up for the biggest weekend of the year. The weekend where die-hard and casual fans alike join together to witness the biggest over-the-top spectacular in the business. Despite fans being present this year, albeit, in limited numbers, we again have a two-night special on April 10 and 11, Among the matches, announced at the time of writing (card subject to change), a few have polarised opinions among fans. None more so than the Steel Cage match announced between Shane McMahon and Braun Strowman. This is partly because of the perceived “lack of ability” of both men, and partly due to the strange build-up of the match which, as far as I can tell, is built around Shane thinking Braun is stupid.
However, a third complaint is being made – this being a vanity project for Shane McMahon, who, at 51 years old, is simply “taking up space” on the grandest show of them all. There’s a renewed cry that Shane doesn’t “deserve” his spot on the show, and that it’s a match worth skipping. But that does Shane some serious disservice. Sure, he’s barely a part-time wrestler by most standards, but he can never be faulted for his effort when he does lace up his boots.
In the 22-years Shane has been dipping his toes in the water – since his debut against Mankind on the 15 December 1998 episode of Raw is War – Shane has not only held gold with European, Hardcore and Tag Team championship reigns (we won’t count the World Cup) but has been at the heart of some special moments in WWE history.
Here’s five you might want a reminder of ahead of Wrestlemania.