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WrestleMania XXIV

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WrestleMania XXIV
File:WrestleMania24logoNEW.JPG
PromotionWorld Wrestling Entertainment
Brand(s)RAW
SmackDown
ECW
DateMarch 30 2008
CityOrlando, Florida
VenueCitrus Bowl
Pay-per-view chronology
← Previous
No Way Out 2008 		Next →
Backlash 2008


WrestleMania XXIV is the forthcoming twenty-fourth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It is scheduled to take place on March 30 2008 at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida. It will be the first WrestleMania to be held in the state of Florida,[1] and the second WrestleMania to be held entirely outdoors, the other being WrestleMania IX. The tagline for the event is "The Biggest WrestleMania Under the Sun."[2] The official theme songs for the event are "Snow ((Hey Oh))" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and "Light It Up" by Rev Theory.[3]

WWE and the city of Orlando plan to host festivities that will span over a five-day period within the central Florida region, bringing numerous branding opportunities and television coverage, leading up to the event at the Citrus Bowl.[4] The Central Florida Sports Commission estimate WrestleMania XXIV will pump $25 million into the local economy while creating numerous jobs, and bring around 60,000 visitors to the city for the event.[5] Tickets went on sale to the public on November 3 2007.[6] Over 41,000 tickets were sold in 30 minutes, already making WrestleMania XXIV the highest-grossing event in the history of the Citrus Bowl.[7]

It will be a joint-promotion event, featuring performers from the RAW, SmackDown, and ECW brands. The main matches scheduled include a Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship between Randy Orton, Triple H and John Cena,[8] and Edge against The Undertaker for the World Heavyweight Championship.[9] Other matches include a Money in the Bank ladder match,[10] and a match between Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels.[11]

Report

Background

After John Cena made his return to the WWE and won the 2008 Royal Rumble match entering at the #30 spot, he decided to challenge Randy Orton for the WWE Championship at No Way Out instead of WrestleMania. During the match, Orton slapped the referee to get himself intentionally disqualified and retain the WWE Championship.[12] Also at No Way Out, Triple H defeated five other competitors in an Elimination Chamber match to earn a WWE Championship match against Orton at WrestleMania.[13] The night after No Way Out on RAW, Cena argued that he deserved another shot at the WWE Championship due to the way his match with Orton ended. The General Manager of RAW William Regal then announced that Cena would face Orton in the main event later in the night with the stipulation being if Cena won, he would be added to the WrestleMania match, changing it to a Triple Threat match, but if Orton won, the main event would stay as Orton defending against Triple H. Regal also announced Triple H as the Special Guest Referee for the match. Cena won the match after an FU to Orton. After the match, Triple H delivered a Pedigree to both Cena and Orton and posed with the WWE Championship.[14]

On the heels of William Regal announcing an Elimination Chamber match at No Way Out to determine the No. 1 Contender to the WWE Championship, Theodore Long announced another Elimination Chamber match to determine the No. 1 Contender to the World Heavyweight Championship.[15] The Undertaker won the Elimination Chamber to earn a title match against Edge at WrestleMania.[16]

At No Way Out, The Big Show made a surprise return to the company. In his return promo, Big Show threatened to give Rey Mysterio a Chokeslam. Professional boxer Floyd Mayweather, Jr., who was in attendance and a close friend of Mysterio's, came to his aid and confronted Big Show. Big Show then got on his knees to allow Mayweather to punch him, which Mayweather did, by hitting him with a combination of punches, which caused Big Show to bleed from the nose and mouth.[17] The following night on RAW, The Big Show challenged Mayweather to a match, which Mayweather accepted.[18]

On the February 25 edition of RAW, 2008 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee Ric Flair challenged Shawn Michaels to a match at WrestleMania, which the latter accepted after some reluctance, knowing that Flair's career will be on the line. Flair also said that "it would be an honor for him to retire at the hands of Shawn Michaels."[19]

Also, on the February 25 edition of RAW, the RAW General Manager William Regal was "sent a letter" by the SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero, issuing a challenge to him for an interpromotional "RAW vs. SmackDown" match at WrestleMania XXIV, with each brand selecting one superstar to represent it. Regal accepted and chose Umaga to represent RAW at WrestleMania XXIV.[20] On the February 29 edition of SmackDown, Batista was chosen as the SmackDown representative by Vickie Guerrero against Umaga at WrestleMania XXIV.[15]

On February 18, WWE announced via its website that the fourth annual Money in the Bank ladder match would take place at WrestleMania XXIV, with superstars competing from RAW, SmackDown and ECW. The winner will earn a contract to challenge for any of the three WWE World Championships (the WWE Championship of RAW, the World Heavyweight Championship of SmackDown, or the ECW Championship) at any time and any place over a one-year period. Qualifying matches occurred to determine the participants in the match.[10] Jeff Hardy was originally supposed to be a part of the Money in the Bank ladder match, but was excluded from the event due to his suspension. WWE decided not to fill his spot with another superstar, making this year's Money in the Bank ladder match the first year to only have 7 participants.

On the March 11 edition of ECW, ECW General Manager Armando Estrada announced a twenty-four man battle royal at WrestleMania XXIV with the winner going on to face ECW Champion Chavo Guerrero for the ECW Championship following the battle royal. The first announced participant was The Great Khali. WrestleMania XXIV marks the first WrestleMania in which the ECW Championship will be defended.

Celebrities appearing at the event will include Kim Kardashian,[21] Snoop Dogg, John Legend and Raven-Symone.[22][23] Kardashian will serve as the show's guest hostess, [24] Legend will sing "America the Beautiful" at the start of the show,[25] while Snoop Dogg will serve as the Master of Ceremonies for the Playboy BunnyMania match.[26]

Money in the Bank qualifying matches

Production

File:WrestleMania XXIV ring design.jpg
The ring setup for WrestleMania XXIV, as seen in WWE Magazine

As the second WrestleMania to be held entirely outdoors, WWE chairman Vince McMahon early on announced that the show will go on, regardless of the weather risks.[28] In the March 2008 issue of WWE Magazine, WWE set designer Jason Robinson revealed that a tarpaulin will be built above the ring itself to prevent rain.[29]

Without a roof, a rig will be built around the stadium for lighting.[30] Two giant screens will be featured above the ring on the lighting rig.[29] The set design for the entrances will be at the north end of the stadium and consist of another steel structure with a video board hanging from it. The steel beams for the structure were custom built in Belgium and shipped over to Orlando. Up to seven generators will be used to power up the show.[30]

Heavy-duty plastic flooring has been put over the field, to protect the turf, provide seating and serve as the steel structures' foundation.[30] The ring itself will be built on the 50-yard line of the Citrus Bowl to give the best view for fans.[29] During an interview, WWE production manager Brian Petree mentioned that video reinforcement should prevent anyone from being obstructed by the steel structure.[30] According to WWE Magazine, the amount of pyrotechnics used will be ten times that of the amount used on RAW.[29] With the Citrus Bowl's locker rooms on the south side and the entrance set on the north side, a tented 40,000 ft² mini-city outside the north end will serve as the show's backstage area and will include air conditioning, trailers, VIP areas, showers and restrooms.[30]

Development on the set design began in the middle of 2007.[31] The building of the actual set began on March 12 2008. The steel structures began to take shape on March 17 and will take about a week to bolt into place. 100 people are currently working 16 hours a day to construct the set for the event.[30]

Matches

References

  1. ^ "What you need to know about WrestleMania XXIV". WWE. 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2007-10-13.
  2. ^ "WrestleMania 24 Tagline". Retrieved 2007-06-27.
  3. ^ "WrestleMania XXIV website". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-06.
  4. ^ "WrestleMania 24 Coming To Orlando". Central Florida News 13. Retrieved 2007-03-20.
  5. ^ "Orlando To Host WrestleMania 24 At Citrus Bowl In 2008". Retrieved 2007-10-27.
  6. ^ "What you need to know about WrestleMania XXIV". WWE. Retrieved 2007-10-01.
  7. ^ "WrestleMania XXIV tickets". WWE. Retrieved 2007-10-03.
  8. ^ a b "Preview: The Battle for Redemption - and the WWE Championship - at WrestleMania". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
  9. ^ a b "Preview: World Heavyweight Champion Edge vs. Undertaker". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Preview: Scaling Success: The Money in the Bank Ladder Match". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
  11. ^ a b "Preview: Honor, Legacy and Anguish: Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (Career Threatening Match)". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  12. ^ Robinson, Bryan (2008-02-17). "Robbery on the Strip: 'Mania Gamble Goes Bust". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  13. ^ Clayton, Corey (2008-02-17). "The Game gets his title match at WrestleMania". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  14. ^ Robinson, Bryan (2008-02-18). "Triple the Threat, Double the Gauntlet". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  15. ^ a b DiFino, Lennie (2008-01-31). "Chamber Mates". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10. Cite error: The named reference "EdgeTaker1" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  16. ^ Dee, Louie (2008-02-17). "The Deadman doubles down". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  17. ^ DiFino, Lennie (2008-02-17). "Showtime in Vegas". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  18. ^ Clayton, Corey (2008-02-18). "'I Accept!': Mayweather Accepts Big Challenge". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  19. ^ Clayton, Corey (2008-02-25). "A Showstopper for Orlando". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  20. ^ Clayton, Corey (2008-02-25). "Samoan Crush". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  21. ^ Ross, Jim (2008-03-05). "Back from Indy, with a side trip to Stamford thrown in for good measure". Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  22. ^ "WrestleMania attracts Snoop Dogg". Reuters. 2008-03-06. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  23. ^ "Wrestlemania to Feature Snoop Dogg, John Legend, Men in Tights". Rolling Stone. 2008-03-06. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  24. ^ Dee, Louie (2008-03-07). "The hostess with the mostess". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  25. ^ DiFino, Lennie (2008-03-03). "A Legend-ary 'Mania". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  26. ^ a b "WrestleMania XXIV Dogg Days". WWE. 2008-03-03. Retrieved 2008-03-05.
  27. ^ "Jeff Hardy Suspended". World Wrestling Entertainment. 2008-03-11. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  28. ^ Jeff Wilen Jawbreaker. "WWE needs name value". Daytona Beach News-Journal Online. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
  29. ^ a b c d "WrestleMania XXIV Set Design". WWE Magazine: 34–35. 2007. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  30. ^ a b c d e f Adelson, Andrea (2008-03-16). "Countdown to WrestleMania: Citrus Bowl's transformation is already underway". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2008-03-15.
  31. ^ Zeigler, Zack (2007-11-09). "WrestleMania XXIV: A Logistical Challenge". WWE. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  32. ^ "Preview: Final Stretch". On SmackDown, however, as seen at the conclusion of the ECW X-Stream, the duo will rekindle their pre-championship reign rivalry with a trip to WrestleMania XXIV on the line when Miz and Morrison square off for the final spot in the Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  33. ^ "Preview: Floyd Mayweather vs. Big Show - Big Time, Big 'Money' Showdown". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  34. ^ "Preview: RAW vs. SmackDown - Which is Better?". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  35. ^ "Preview: Playboy BunnyMania - Candice & Maria vs. The Glamazon & Melina". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
  36. ^ "Finlay vs. JBL-Irish Eyes of Hatred". WWE. 2008-03-03. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  37. ^ a b "24-Man Battle Royal - Winner meets ECW Champion Chavo Guerrero that night". WWE. 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  38. ^ "WWE: TV Shows > SmackDown > Results > March 14, 2008". WWE. 2008-03-14. Retrieved 2008-03-18.
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