SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 2014—7:09 P.M.
Wounded yet victorious, Bryan hobbles up the ramp in a condition that appears to signify that his greatest hope of winning the WWE World Heavyweight Title is in heavy jeopardy. The “Yes!” Man finds his fiancée waiting for him to pass through the curtain. She’s overjoyed for her husband-to-be and proud of the “Yes!” Movement. So much yet lies ahead for both competitors, and so their exchange is short and is sealed with a kiss.
Due to Triple H’s postmatch assault (which is methodically consistent with the one he’d levied on WWE programming weeks ago), Bryan receives attention from WWE medical trainers. The new “co”–No. 1 contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Title winces each time he raises his left arm farther during the assessment. Meanwhile, time ticks away before his triple-threat match against both Batista and Randy Orton. Some might stop right there. Quit. But the Animal and the Viper will have no choice but to face an unwavering American Dragon.
“I’ve got one more match,” Bryan asserts. “I’ve fought through worse and I’ll fight through this.”
Soon after, jaws remain agape in the audience and around the world following the greatest upset in the history of WrestleMania. Brock Lesnar has rendered a blemish on the Undertaker’s streak, and now that it’s time for his second match of the night, Daniel Bryan aims to rally the Mercedes-Benz Superdome back into an optimistic frenzy by sustaining a one-armed “Yes!” chant. The WWE Universe was already pulling for the underdog warrior, but now, with the fall of a Phenom, Bryan has become the last hope for WWE fans this night.
After the opening encounter with Hunter, I went into near isolation in order to prepare for the second match. The first match was good and physical—the way I like it—but that also comes with repercussions. I had to allow my body to come down from that first high, then get ready to repeat it just a few hours later. I’d done this before, but never at such a high level—and as I get older, the harder it becomes. It’s not as easy now as it was when I was twenty years old doing the Super 8 and King of Indies tournaments, especially with my neck issue.
I was so focused on getting ready that I didn’t even see it when Brock Lesnar pinned the Undertaker, ending his WrestleMania winning streak at 21-1. I heard the bell, turned over and looked at the monitor, then stood in shock as I saw Brock with his hand raised, while the Undertaker was down. This was the one match that everybody knew the finish of, and we were all wrong. Myself included. As a performer, the first thing I recognized was that with Brock’s win, the life and energy were suddenly gone inside the Superdome. On trons around the venue, there were amazing shots of the audience’s reactions and people standing with their mouths wide open, as if they had just witnessed the impossible. I’m sure if they had filmed the Superstars and Divas backstage, there would have been even better stunned reactions. My concern instantly went to Bri. Her match was next, and the silence that permeated the Superdome was eerie. The ending of the Undertaker’s streak was one of the most shocking, monumental events in WrestleMania history. And now Bri and the other Divas had to follow it. I kept my eyes glued to the screen to see how she would do.
Throughout the week, I could tell how eager Bri was for her match at ’Mania—a fourteen-woman match for the Divas Championship. After the disappointment the year before of having their match pulled right before they went out, this time the Bella Twins had to go out in front of a crowd completely deflated by the Undertaker loss. But Bri wouldn’t be deterred. Even though it was a short match, she did her best. She and Nicole were able to get the crowd back into it when the two of them did a double-suicide dive to the floor, rarely seen from the Divas, and then came back and had the first Bella face-off in a long time. When they went at it, fighting back and forth until Nicole hit Bri with her Rack Attack, the crowd came up for it. She did a great job with the opportunity she had, and I was very proud of my soon-to-be-wife.
I was getting ready to go on next, and as I was getting ready to walk out, I saw Undertaker just outside of the Gorilla position, lying down in a heap on the floor. He’d suffered a serious concussion, and a doctor and a trainer were checking on him, among other people. I walked past the scene as I went out and couldn’t help but think of how much Undertaker had given of his body and of himself to make WrestleMania special. Our main event needed to keep it special. For the first time, I felt the pressure of the moment. All I could do was focus on my performance.