WrestleMania 23
| WrestleMania 23 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| File:WrestleMania 23huge.jpg | |||
| Promotion | World Wrestling Entertainment | ||
| Brand(s) | RAW SmackDown! ECW | ||
| Date | April 1, 2007 | ||
| City | Detroit, Michigan | ||
| Venue | Ford Field | ||
| Attendance | 80,103 | ||
| Pay-per-view chronology | |||
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WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by World Wrestling Entertainment. It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. The event was the first WrestleMania at Ford Field, but the second to take place in the Detroit metropolitan area (following WrestleMania III, where a record-setting 93,173 fans filled the Pontiac Silverdome in 1987).
Tickets for the event went on sale on November 11, 2006. The all-time attendance record at Ford Field of 80,103 people from 24 countries, all 50 states and 9 Canadian provinces, pumped an estimated US$25 million into the local economy, and made this event the highest grossing one-day live event in WWE history, grossing more than $5.38 million in ticket sales. [1] This makes WrestleMania 23 the highest-grossing pay-per-view in WWE history as well as the highest-grossing event in professional wrestling history in North America, shattering the previous record of $3.9 million held at WrestleMania X8.[2]
WrestleMania 23 was a joint-promotion pay-per-view event, featuring performers from the RAW, SmackDown!, and ECW brands. The tagline for WrestleMania 23 was All Grown Up. The theme song for the event was "Ladies and Gentlemen" by Saliva. The secondary theme song was "The Memory Will Never Die" by Default.
Results
- Dark match: Ric Flair and Carlito defeated Gregory Helms and Chavo Guerrero in a Tag Team Lumberjack match
File:OrtonPunk.jpg Randy Orton giving CM Punk an RKO off the top of a Ladder - Lumberjacks: Viscera, Shad Gaspard, JTG, Chris Masters, Shelton Benjamin, Charlie Haas, Robbie McAllister, Rory McAllister, Super Crazy, Val Venis, Johnny Nitro, Jim Duggan, Eugene, Lance Cade, Trevor Murdoch, Kenny Dykstra from RAW. Daivari, Shannon Moore, Sylvain Grenier, Deuce, Domino, Paul London, Brian Kendrick, The Miz, Vito, Scotty 2 Hotty, Jimmy Wang Yang, Jamie Noble and Funaki from SmackDown. Balls Mahoney, Little Guido Maritato and Snitsky from ECW.
- Mr. Kennedy defeated Edge, CM Punk, King Booker (w/Queen Sharmell), Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Finlay and Randy Orton in a Money in the Bank ladder match (19:10)
- Kennedy grabbed the briefcase to win.
- The Great Khali defeated Kane (5:31)
File:Benoit23.jpg Chris Benoit after retaining the WWE United States Championship - Khali pinned Kane after a Chokebomb.
- Chris Benoit defeated Montel Vontavious Porter to retain the WWE United States Championship (9:19)
- Benoit pinned MVP after a Diving Headbutt.
- Howard Finkel introduced the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2007:
- "Good Ol' J.R." Jim Ross, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Nick Bockwinkel, Mr. Fuji, Dusty Rhodes, The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika). The Sheik was represented by his widow Joyce Farhat, and "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig was represented by his widow Leonice and his father Larry Hennig.
- The Undertaker defeated Batista to win the World Heavyweight Championship (15:47)
- Undertaker pinned Batista after a Tombstone Piledriver.
- The Undertaker made his entrance surrounded by druids.
- The ECW Originals (Tommy Dreamer, Sabu, The Sandman and Rob Van Dam) defeated The New Breed (Elijah Burke, Marcus Cor Von, Matt Striker and Kevin Thorn) (w/Ariel) (6:26)
- Van Dam pinned Striker after a Five-Star Frog Splash.
- Bobby Lashley (w/Donald Trump and Tara Conner) defeated Umaga (w/Vince McMahon and Armando Estrada) (w/Steve Austin as Special Guest Referee) in a Hair vs. Hair match (13:00)
- The tagline for the match was "Battle of the Billionaires".
- Lashley pinned Umaga after a Stone Cold Stunner from Austin and a Spear from Lashley.
- Shane McMahon interfered on Umaga's behalf and delivered the Coast-2-Coast to Lashley with a trash can.
- After the match, Trump and Lashley shaved Vince bald followed by Austin giving Trump a Stunner.
- Melina defeated Ashley Massaro in a Lumberjill match to retain the WWE Women's Championship (3:14)
- Melina pinned Ashley with a Bridge Pin.
- After the match, all of the lumberjills got in a fight.
- Lumberjills: Victoria, Layla, Jillian Hall, Candice Michelle, Kelly Kelly, Trinity, Torrie Wilson, Brooke Adams, Kristal Marshall, Michelle McCool, Maria and Mickie James.
- John Cena defeated Shawn Michaels to retain the WWE Championship (28:21)
- Cena forced Michaels to submit with the STFU.
- In his entrance, Cena drove a black Mustang sports car down to the ring.
Other on-screen talent
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Notes
- Soul legend Aretha Franklin performed "America the Beautiful" at the start of the event, reprising her role from twenty years earlier at WrestleMania III.
- Ron Simmons, Slick, The Fabulous Moolah, Mae Young, Ricky Steamboat, Jimmy Hart, Irwin R. Schyster, Dusty Rhodes, Sgt. Slaughter, Howard Finkel, Gene Okerlund and Gerald Brisco appeared backstage dancing with Eugene, Cryme Tyme and Extreme Exposé (Kelly Kelly, Brooke Adams and Layla El).
- Celebrity guests in attendance for WrestleMania 23 included: Franklin, Trump and Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner (for the Hair vs. Hair match), Miss USA 2007 Rachel Smith, Miss USA 2000 Lynnette Cole, Miss Universe 2006 Zuleyka Rivera, members of the Detroit Tigers, and Thomas Hearns.
- Cena is the second man in history to retain the WWE Championship at back-to-back WrestleManias. Hulk Hogan was the first, retaining the Championship at Wrestlemania 2 and III. Cena, as well as being undefeated at WrestleMania, is the first to win the WWE Championship match three years in a row.
- This was the second year in a row that Cena main evented WrestleMania against a founding member of D-Generation X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels), and both times he won with the STFU. It is also the second year in a row that the World Heavyweight Championship has changed hands, but not the WWE Championship.
- This was the fourth year in a row that the World Heavyweight Championship has changed hands.
- This is the 5th consecutive WrestleMania without an Intercontinental Championship match, 4th with the championship being active.
- With this WrestleMania win, The Undertaker is the only superstar to win both the WWE Championship and the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania.
- This is the 3rd consecutive WrestleMania to feature the final two superstars in January's Royal Rumble participating in World title matches. 2005 featured Batista and John Cena, 2006 featured Rey Mysterio and Randy Orton, and 2007 featured The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels.
- Despite the stated promise of a "World Title main event match at WrestleMania," this year marked the second straight WrestleMania where the winner of the Royal Rumble was in a World Title match, but not in the main event.
- This is the first year that ECW has been featured at Wrestlemania having ECW Champion Bobby Lashley, C.M. Punk, RVD, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, The Sandman, Marcus Cor Von, Kevin Thorn, Elijah Burke and, Matt Striker compete in a match.
References
- ^ "WrestleMania Blows Away Attendance Record At Ford Fields". Retrieved April 2.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "WrestleMania X8 Sets Revenue, Attendance Records". Retrieved January 16.
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