What we learned from WrestleMania 31

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Another WrestleMania has come and gone and once again, WWE made sure the event not only lived up to, but exceeded the hype. It seems like this year went all the way up to Sunday’s pay-per-view before the majority of fans realized how absolutely stacked this year’s card was -- so much so that they had to move two of the matches to the WWE Network’s kickoff show.

76,976 people came to Levi’s Stadium to watch the biggest wrestling event of 2015 and bear witness to history. Three titles changed hands, there were some big returns and there were at least half a dozen moments that will be replayed for years to come. So what happened and where do we go from here? Let’s find out!

In a very fun opening match the kickoff show, these four tag teams let it all hang out. Ultimately, the reigning champs retained after Cesaro stole a pinfall on Big E after Jimmy Uso hit him with a big splash.

What we learned: The best dang tag team in the company will be able to continue spreading their wings and growing, as they will remain the focus of the division. Los Matadores busted out some new and amazing moves and may have a renewed shot at doing something interesting again. Even New Day debuted a new highlighter color scheme. The tag team division might just be reinvigorated after this.

Another absolute romp where (nearly) all 20-plus combatants got a chance to shine. The battle royal came down to The Miz and Damien Mizdow against the Big Show. Mizdow finally turned on The Miz and got the entire crowd behind him, giving everything he had to try and eliminate Big Show, but came up just short. The Big Show will have his name engraved on the Andre trophy, just below Cesaro’s.

What we learned: Big Show winning was an interesting choice, albeit an understandable one. While there’s not obviously a lot to do with him from here, this match was more about giving others a chance to shine. Ryback and Cesaro had big moments and for a minute it looked as though Cesaro might repeat as the Andre winner. The biggest story from here is Mizdow splitting from Miz, likely reverting to Damien Sandow and the two almost certainly beginning a feud. Let’s see how Sandow does as a fan favorite going forward.

The third straight match in a row that was sheer spectacle. This was a fantastic multi-man ladder match that harkened back to the early days of the Money in the Bank match. Craziness abounded here. Stardust even produced a custom SPARKLY LADDER. The match ended after Daniel Bryan won a HEADBUTT WAR with Dolph Ziggler and pulled down the title belt.

What we learned: This may be the beginning of a new golden age for WWE’s secondary titles, starting with putting the prestigious Intercontinental Championship on a legitimate main event wrestler in Daniel Bryan. Every man got a chance to shine in this match and you can go anywhere with any of these men, beginning on Monday night’s RAW. The most likely scenario is that Bryan will feud with a returning Sheamus, but this was a premier showcase for WWE’s elite and stacked midcard.

The end of this match is something that’s going to be replayed a million times and may actually top Randy Orton’s previous greatest RKO of all time. Seth Rollins went for a curb stomp, launched himself off Orton’s shoulder and got caught in an RKO on the way down.

What we learned: Randy Orton reestablished himself as a true main event babyface and this set the stage for a potential Rollins Money in the Bank cash-in later in the evening. HMMMMM. Ultimately, this loss doesn’t hurt Rollins at all and it’s likely this feud will continue.

The dream match of this year’s WrestleMania was up next and boy howdy, did they pull out every stop and then some. In a real-life version of Marvel vs. DC, D-Generation X tried to interfere on Triple H’s behalf, which let to the nWo coming out and having a DX vs. nWo showdown. Shawn Michaels made a surprise appearance, there were sledgehammers and baseball bats and even dueling over-the-top entrances. Triple H got the pin after hitting Sting with half of a broken sledgehammer. The two men shook hands in the middle of the ring to end things.

What we learned: This was there to give everyone the biggest shot of spectacle and nostalgia they could manage and they unloaded with both barrels. The crowd both in the stadium and on social media ate this up and rightly so. This may be Sting’s final match, or he may return for one more at next year’s WrestleMania, but the truth is the result of this match didn’t matter. It exceeded all expectations and will likely be fondly remembered for its sheer absurdity (in a good way).

They actually gave Divas a chance! The four women were given a nice, long match to show what they could do and the result was one of the best women’s matches in WrestleMania history. At the very least, the best women’s match at WrestleMania since they’ve been known as “Divas.” (Although it’s been a while since I’ve seen Trish Stratus vs. Mickie James.) AJ Lee got the win for her team when she forced reigning Divas Champion Nikki to tap out to the Black Widow submission hold.

What we learned: WWE isn’t afraid to give their women a chance to shine when it matters most. This bodes really well for NXT in particular, which is stocked with incredibly talented women who are tremendous wrestlers. Next up for these four will likely be a feud between AJ and Nikki for the title. That’s the most likely guess, anyway.

Well let us start at the beginning here: Rusev showed up in a god dang tank in maybe the greatest entrance EVER. It was going to be a fantastic match based on the entrances ALONE. Seriously, if you subscribe to WWE Network, go watch those matches right now. If you don’t, it’s worth paying $9.99 to watch the entrances in full. Seriously. At any rate, in the end, the evil Russian received his comeuppance at the hands of the valiant American patriot when Cena pinned him after an Attitude Adjustment.

What we learned: Yep, as noted earlier, it truly is a new era for the secondary titles in WWE, as both are now held by main event performers. This can mean nothing but good things for both belts. Rusev will likely get a rematch, then both men will move on to other things. Now that he’s taken a decisive singles loss, this frees up Rusev to challenge for the world title at some point, should the WWE be in need of mixing things up.

After the U.S. title match, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon came out to announce the attendance and run down the fans. They were interrupted by none other than The Rock, making his big return. He was eventually joined in the ring by none other than RONDA ROUSEY, who tossed Triple H with a judo throw and armbarred Stephanie. This may set up a mixed tag match or one-on-one matches at next year’s WrestleMania in Arlington, but even if this is the end of that angle, it was a WrestleMania moment to end all WrestleMania moments.

The first time the Undertaker returned to a WWE ring since losing to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. He confronted the new supernatural wrestler on the block in Bray Wyatt. These two had a long match that probably exceeded expectations, but in the end, the Undertaker pinned Wyatt after a Tombstone.

What we learned: There was probably no way the Undertaker was losing two WrestleMania matches in a row. Although Wyatt looked good going toe-to-toe with the Deadman (and while plenty of opponents have lost to Undertaker at WrestleMania in the past without it hurting their careers), one wonders where Wyatt could go from here and whether this bodes poorly for him in the future. Winless in his first two WrestleMania appearances, now without his Family behind him and not in any position to challenge for a title, what do you do with Bray Wyatt? Maybe this is a question that will be answered on RAW.

Brock Lesnar once again reiterated his place as the greatest pro wrestler on the planet and it isn’t particularly close. The unparalleled freak show of a human being completely brutalized Roman Reigns, giving him three F5s, but the resilient Reigns withstood the onslaught, busted Brock Lesnar open on the ringpost and gave him with three Superman Punches and three big spears. After a fourth F5 put both men down, Seth Rollins ran out to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase MID-MATCH, making it a triple threat. After some tussling, Rollins hit a Curb Stomp on Reigns to get the pin and the world title.

What we learned: This basically changes everything. Rollins won the world title, Lesnar never lost and Reigns got screwed out of his opportunity by the man who stabbed him in the back to start his singles career in the first place. This was essentially the perfect ending to a phenomenal WrestleMania. Rollins has immediate challengers to his title in Lesnar, Reigns and Orton ... who beat him cleanly just a few hours earlier. The world title is on someone brand-new and the secondary titles are on John Cena and Daniel Bryan. The landscape of WWE looks different for the time being. I, for one, cannot wait until RAW. WWE has done it again. There is nothing like WrestleMania.

★★★

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