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Wrestlemania should feature current stars

By Rennie Detore

TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, March 14, 2004 

Not many things in sports entertainment are bigger than The Big Show.
Wrestlemania is one of them.
"It's the Super Bowl, and I hate to go to another sport for a title.
It's one man's dream of the ultimate in sports entertainment," said
Paul Wight, better known as WWE superstar, The Big Show.

Wight isn't kidding about Wrestlemania as the pinnacle of professional
wrestling. Whether it was Hulk Hogan teaming with Mr. T or Hogan
finally trading punches with his long-time boss, Vince McMahon, the
annual spring pay-per-view resonates with an audience that stretches
far beyond the traditional audience.

"If you are anybody in the world, even if you're not a wrestling fan,
you've heard of Wrestlemania," Wight said. "Even if you don't know
characters or angles, you know Wrestlemania is a big deal."

But Wrestlemania is more than just meaningful to fans but equally
critical to the wrestlers, who strive every year to be prominently
featured on WWE's biggest pay-per-view. Just being considered for a
spot on the coveted lineup transforms even the average sports
entertainer into a part of an unforgettable legacy.

"You can be on any other pay-per-view, but Wrestlemania is the big dog
and sets you apart in history," said Wight, who will compete at his
fifth Wrestlemania today. "Look at Wrestlemania III with Hulk and
Andre, and the ladder match with Shawn Michaels. There are so many
moments you can go back; you just want to go out and try to have one."

This year's Wrestlemania, the 20th installment, certainly will be
filled with its share of moments, too. The legendary event returns to
its 1985 birthplace -- Madison Square Garden -- to celebrate 20 years
of athleticism, competition and creativity.

"I'm hoping to get an opportunity to be a part of that whole event,"
said Rey Mysterio, who will likely compete at the Cruiserweight
Invitational. "It's a whole different level at Madison Square Garden.
With legends, celebrities and millions and millions of people watching
on TV, you have to be at your very best. Believe me, I'm preparing
mentally and physically for it."

But superstars such as Mysterio and perhaps even The Big Show may not
see much of today's Wrestlemania XX spotlight, as insiders speculated
that the event would showcase more legends that focus on WWE's current
crop of talent.

That quickly changed, when Vince McMahon issued a stirring statement
during a "Wrestlemania XX" promo, featuring other WWE superstars. The
tanned, bulked-up McMahon sternly, yet with gilded emotion, said:
"Wrestlemania XX -- Where it all begins ... again."

The clever marketing catchphrase is more than an advertising
brainstorm but rather an admission of guilt and sense of optimism for
the future.

McMahon's proclamation also quelled rumors that Wrestlemania XX would
be about the past. Names such as Hogan, Randy Savage, Roddy Piper and
Ricky Steamboat disappeared as the event drew closer. Those icons are
synonymous with Wrestlemania, but they should not be at center stage,
even if it means more buzz and a greater payday for the company.

Special appearances and interviews for legends are fine but not a spot
in the main event.

"You have to give the younger guys the opportunity," Wight said. "They
are the ones who go up and down the road all year long -- Japan, South
Africa, everywhere. These guys are the ones away from their families
and aren't necessarily making huge paydays. They deserve to be at
Wrestlemania."

Nineteen years ago, McMahon took his World Wrestling Federation and
transformed it from an up-and-coming professional wrestling group into
a sports entertainment phenomenon. He gambled everything on his first
Wrestlemania, a unique idea that enthralled fans with hulking
superstars and a sea of celebrities from Cyndi Lauper to Muhammad Ali.

No one in the company knew, except for maybe McMahon, that his vision
would become the most important and anticipated spectacle in
professional wrestling.

"Vince put everything on the line for Wrestlemania I," Wight said,
"and because of that, you want to say, 'At least I competed in
Wrestlemania, and it was a privilege to perform.' The honor of just
being there is the big thing."

= Former WWE champ Brock Lesnar quit the company Tuesday before the
Smackdown tapings in Atlantic City, N.J. Lesnar recently had been
unhappy, citing stress and fatigue from a relentless traveling
schedule.

Rennie Detore's Pro Wrestling Insider appears Sundays in the
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review


--- Internet Rex 2.29