SLAM! Wrestling - WrestleMania 17

WrestleMania 17 stories

By JOHN POWELL -- SLAM! Wrestling

Austin and McMahon form an alliance at WrestleMania X-7.

Their rivalry propelled the World Wrestling Federation to the top of the business and ushered in the now fizzling pro wrestling boom. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin portraying the working man's wrestler rebelling against his boss, Vince McMahon, touched a nerve with the general public. Who would have thought then that the sworn enemies who would stop at nothing to destroy each other would join forces. That's what happened at WrestleMania X-Seven pay-per-view broadcast from the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. Over and above turning Austin heel there were no major surprises at WrestleMania, an event recognized as the premiere sports entertainment show.

Apr. 2: Full story

SLAM! Wrestling X-Seven Gallery

HOUSTON -- Come with SLAM! Wrestling's Greg Oliver, Nick Tylwalk and photographer Brett Coomer on a special photographic journey through two days at WrestleMania X-Seven in Houston.
Check out photos from the WWF Fan Axxcess event and from WrestleMania X-Seven itself in our special gallery.

On to the Gallery!

Lessons from the cheap seats

By NICK TYLWALK -- For SLAM! Wrestling HOUSTON -- Things looked a little different to me at WrestleMania this year. No, I'm not talking about a victorious Steve Austin sharing a beer with former arch-enemy Vince McMahon. I mean my view of the WWF's premier pay-per-view literally looked different, since it came from the upper deck of the Reliant Astrodome.

Apr. 2: Full story

Wrestlemania great big show

By Mr. X -- Ottawa Sun Stone Cold Steve Austin sold his soul for the World Wrestling Federation championship last night.
Forming an unholy alliance with WWF owner Vince McMahon, Austin rocked the Houston Astrodome by defeating The Rock to claim the championship belt at Wrestlemania XVII.

Apr. 2: Full story

Austin reclaims WWF gold

By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling HOUSTON -- Whenever you get 67,925 fans in one place, it's an awesome sight. But when you get 67,925 fans all cheering in unison for 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin's victory over The Rock, it's a truly memorable experience.
Sunday night at Houston's Reliant Astrodome, Austin claimed the WWF World title in an epic, bloody at WrestleMania X-Seven with a little help from WWF owner Vince McMahon, who surprisingly came to the aid of his former enemy Austin.

Apr. 1: Full story

Regal fields questions at Axxcess

By NICK TYLWALK -- For SLAM! Wrestling HOUSTON -- With WrestleMania just over a day away, fans at Axxess, the WWF fan festival, were eager to hear from the superstars on hand. And who better to offer his unique insights on the upcoming pay-per-view than WWF Commissioner William Regal? Assisted by Howard Finkel, Regal fielded questions on a variety of topics from an enthusiastic crowd at the Chef Boyardee Arena.

Apr. 1: Full story

Mar. 31: Access improved at WWF Fan Axxcess

Book excerpt: Part Three

WrestleMania: The Official Insider's Story

It's called WrestleMania and there's never been anything quite like it in the wild world of "sports-entertainment."
From Hulk Hogan and Mr. T in the inaugural 1985 spectacle to Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock today, WrestleMania has grown into a huge phenomenon.
In WrestleMania: The Official Insider's Story, Basil V. DeVito Jr. takes fans on a journey into the squared circle and into the private worlds behind the curtain and behind the boardroom doors.
DeVito, a longtime executive with the World Wrestling Federation, highlights great Canadian moments such as WrestleMania VI in Toronto in 1990 and the victory of Bret "Hitman" Hart at WrestleMania X.
In the last part of a three-part series of excerpts exclusively in the Sun Media newspapers and CANOE.ca, DeVito reveals how the Federation's new "attitude" has changed the face of WrestleMania -- which celebrates its 17th year in Houston tonight.

Apr. 1: Book Excerpt, part three

Part One: Wrestle-maniacs | Part Two: 'Ultimate' in T.O.

Mar. 21: WrestleMania: The Official Insider's Story reviewed

Five minutes with Kurt Angle

By JOHN F. MOLINARO -- SLAM! Wrestling It's 2:30 P.M. on a Saturday afternoon and I've been waiting an hour and a half in the reception area at TSN when Kurt Angle finally arrives.
He's greeted by Michael Landsberg and some TSN staffers before being whisked off to the makeup room where he gets ready for his appearance on 'Off The Record'. Once he's done, he quickly grabs a piece of fruit from a tray in the green room and is escorted promptly to another room.
I'm summoned by Neil Bennett, one of the bookers of 'Off The Record', who leads me into the room where Angle is waiting for me. Neil does the honours and introduces us.

Mar. 31: Full story

Countdown to WrestleMania

Houston, we don't have a problem. No, our SLAM! Wrestling writers aren't scared at all to put their necks on the line predicting who will win and lose this Sunday at WrestleMania X-Seven at the Astrodome. Does The Rock stand a chance at all? Which McMahon will win? Will TLC2 be as good at the first one? But more importantly, who will win the Gimmick Battle Royale? Now that Vince, er, Shane, owns WCW will that mean a last minute entry by the Ding Dongs too? Now that would be sweet! On to the countdown...

Mar. 30: Full countdown

Mar. 30: The Great SLAM! Wrestling WrestleMania poll

WrestleMania means a lot to first-timers

By JOHN F. MOLINARO -- SLAM! Wrestling Every year around this time, the eyes of the wrestling world turn towards WrestleMania.
It's at WrestleMania, the most important event on the WWF schedule, where careers are made or broken.
For many first-timers, it can be nerve-racking. With a rabid live crowd, a huge pay-per-view audience and the promise of a large payoff, some crack under the pressure, failing to seize the opportunity that the wrestling world's biggest stage provides. Other WrestleMania 'rookies' grasp their chance and make the most of it.

Mar. 30: Full story

WrestleMania History

Black mark on Piper after WM6

By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling One of the more memorable appearances at a WrestleMania was Rowdy Roddy Piper coming out with half his body painted black at WrestleMania VI at Toronto's SkyDome.
Piper was facing Bad News Brown that night, and wore the black paint to further provoke his opponent. Though the match ended in a double countout, according to Piper, the real fun happened afterwards.
"They had a special concoction made for me that when you sweat, it won't rub off," Piper explained to SLAM! Wrestling.

Mar. 27: Full story

Hardys pumped for WrestleMania

By JOHN F. MOLINARO -- SLAM! Wrestling Hardys

For many veteran, grizzled wrestlers in the WWF, WrestleMania means little more than a better-than-average payoff.
But for the young stars that grew up watching WrestleMania in the Hulk Hogan-Randy Savage-Roddy Piper era, it's all about the opportunity to live out a lifelong dream on the biggest night on the wrestling calendar.
Growing up as teenagers in North Carolina, the Hardy Boyz were fanatical followers of the WWF. Now in the their early 20s, they view the chance to compete on a WrestleMania as a dream come true.

Mar. 28: Full story

WrestleMania Guest Column

Why I dread Rock vs Austin

By STEVE EVENDEN -- For SLAM! Wrestling The other night, I had a dream; actually, it was more of a nightmare. I dreamt that the WrestleMania X-Seven main event was going to be Stone Cold versus The Rock. I woke up the next morning with a cold sweat on my forehead. Surely, I thought, it was only a dream. I couldn't be so lucky. WrestleMania X-Seven, Steve Austin and The Rock, one on one. I hope someone else is paying for it, because I won't. There are so many reasons to hate this. Some involve tradition, some involve who rightfully should be there, and one revolves around the fact that the match could suck, to put it bluntly.

Mar. 28: Full story

Paul Boesch and Houston's wrestling legacy

By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling Houston definitely does not have a problem when it comes to pro wrestling. This year's site of Wrestlemania is a city rich in history in the mat game, and was home to one of the most storied single-city promoters anywhere, Paul Boesch.
Wrestling in Houston goes back before the First World War, and between 1915 - 1923, there were matches at irregular intervals. In the mid-1920s, Julius Sigel started Houston's City Auditorium. Soon the top wrestlers were coming to Houston on steady basis for the Friday night shows.

Mar. 27: Full story

The Game ready to play at WM 17

By JOHN POWELL -- SLAM! Wrestling Though he is slated to duke it out in what promises to be a grueling match at WrestleMania with The Undertaker, that wasn't the WWF's original plan for Hunter Hearst-Helmsley. Bookers initially thought about having The Game work an angle with someone outside of the wrestling industry like an actor or major sports star. Most wrestlers would have found such a proposal hard to accept as the potential for an embarrassing performance is great. Not Triple H. He jumped at the chance to prove himself capable of carrying such a match.

Mar. 26: Full story

WrestleMania History

A 10-bell salute for the late WrestleManiacs

By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling The future of WrestleMania seems secure - it's the biggest pro wrestling event of the year for today and for the foreseeable future.
But let us not forget the men and women who are not around any longer to share in the success, to bask in the glow of WrestleMania that their sweat and tears helped create.
Here is our role call of past WrestleManiacs who are no doubt planning to gather together to watch the April 1 extravaganza up in that great rec room in the sky.

Mar. 26: Full story

WrestleMania History

10 Worst Wrestlemania Matches EVER

By CHRIS SCHRAMM -- For SLAM! Wrestling What matches were the best of the best at Wrestlemania? Who cares? What matches are the best of the worst? Wrestlemania is often considered the epic of wrestling and sports pay-per-views. Although epic, Wrestlemania has put out some matches that should have never taken place.
10. Wrestlemania X: Luna Vachon and Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Doink and Dink. What happened at the booking for this bout? "Okay, Vince, we have a dwarf and a freaky woman, and we will put them in a match against each other." The whole Doink thing was about the worst idea ever, and I have yet to hear who takes credit for the idea. Bigelow and Vachon won this bout, but unfortunately did not put Doink out of permanent commission.

Mar. 24: Full story

More memories of WrestleMania

By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling The superstars that appeared in the ring at WrestleMania over the years were never really overshadowed by the superstars at ringside. But that doesn't mean that the wrestlers weren't in awe of the other celebrities.
Jacques Rougeau Jr. admitted that he was a "mark" for meeting the various stars from the music and entertainment world that the WWF had at WrestleMania. His particular favourite to meet was Burt Reynolds.
"All those personalities, for me, was a new world. I was a mark for them," said Rougeau. "So when we were backstage, and you'd see Jesse 'The Body' Ventura come down with Vince and a couple of superstars with them, Bobby Heenan, a couple of guys, it created an impact on us."

Mar. 22: Full story

Pricey WrestleMania book not worth it

By JOHN POWELL -- SLAM! Wrestling

At first glance 'WrestleMania: The Official Insider's Story' looks impressive. Its colour photographs, graphics and listings are positively eye-catching. It sure is an attractive tome. Nevertheless, when one sits down and actually reads the content written by Basil V. Devito Jr. (XFL President and longtime WWF employee) and Joe Layden ('The Rock says...'), we soon realize that the inflated book is all style and no substance. With a title like 'The Official Insider's Story' we assume that we'll get the scoop on all the behind-the-scenes happenings that surrounded each and every WrestleMania. That doesn't happen. A better title for the book would've been 'Basil V. Devito's Official Story'. Serving as the WWF's head marketer for many years Devito recounts his personal endeavors to promote the WrestleMania events.

Mar. 21: Full story