THE GREATEST WOMEN’S WRESTLEMANIA MATCHES OF ALL TIME

We have seen a women’s revolution in WWE over the last decade. The time they have been given to show off how great they can be has led to many awesome matches. Of course, many of these took place at WrestleMania. Some of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches of all time have certainly happened over the last ten years. We cannot discount that solid matches came before this too on the grandest stage of them all.

What went from an afterthought has quickly grown into a main attraction. This is a testament not just to the women on today’s roster, who are as good as they’ve ever been, but to all the women who came before them. We’re talking about those who sadly endured the sub-five-minute matches and silly gimmick matches. Those women walked so that these ladies could run, and we should never forget that.

For this article, we’re diving into pro-wrestling history to discuss the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches. We’ll discuss what made them special and why you might want to check them out. We’ll be ranking these matches based on what we feel the greatest are in ascending order. As in,

We’ll attempt to rank them in order but we understand that this is all subjective but we’ll try and have a little fun with it.

WENDI RICHTER vs LEILANI KAI: WRESTLEMANIA I

This falls in the back of the pack but deserves to be on the list for several reasons. The main reason is that this is the first-ever women’s match at the first-ever WrestleMania. Plus, these two ladies were talented and would do quite well in their match. Wrestling went through a phase in the 1990s and early 2000s where they weren’t looking for their female talent to be equipped in the ring. Rather, they only cared if the women were beautiful.

In the 1980s, this was a different story, as women often trained alongside men and would do pretty much everything the same. Heck, some women would even wrestle the guys, especially if the company they were in did not have a solid female roster. Wendi Richter & Leilani Kai were great workers as well. We all remember Wendi due to how much WWE featured her during this period in the Rock N’ Wrestling Era. However, Kai was a great wrestler in her own right.

The match had a pretty good pacing, as they created a match that lasted six minutes. Wendi won the Women’s Title that night and women got to shine on what would become the biggest stage of them all.

VICTORIA vs MOLLY HOLLY: WRESTLEMANIA XX

We put this on our list simply because of the awesome Molly Holly. For those unaware, Molly was upset that WWE did not have any plans to have a WWE Women’s Championship match on the WrestleMania 20 card. This card is a big deal to be on for multiple reasons. It is the 20th anniversary and therefore special, it’s also a nice payday for those involved in the show. Holly felt her rivalry with Victoria needed to be on the card and that women needed to be properly featured.

The only other women’s match they had on the card was a Playboy Evening Gown match. Remember those stupid gimmicks we referred to? Exhibit A.

WWE initially denied her attempt. This led Holly to do something most women would have never dreamed of. She agreed that if they gave her a match on the card, it would be a Hair vs Title match. The storyline was that Victoria, the champion, would only agree to the title match if it became a Hair vs Title match. If Molly lost, she’d have her head shaved but if Holly won, she took home the Women’s Title.

Vince McMahon was totally behind this.

This match lasted nearly 5 minutes. Victoria won, of course, and Holly had her head shaved live. We mark it as one of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches because of how determined Molly was. The fact that she agreed to do something like this was incredible. How can you not love Molly, right?

ALEXA BLISS & NIKKI CROSS vs THE KABUKI WARRIORS: WRESTLEMANIA XXXVI

A tag team title match that had Asuka and Kairi Sane? What more could we ask for? With a good amount of time to open the first night of WrestleMania 36, these women were given the steam to do what they do. Alexa Bliss might not be at the level of Asuka, yet she is still a good worker and an excellent in-ring character. Her partner Nikki Cross is a great worker herself, known for being willing to do nearly anything to win a match.

This match was really good and certainly felt like a match that belonged on this card. It wasn’t the best women’s match on the card but it was definitely one of the better ones. While it will not be remembered as much due to the insane matches that would follow it, the fact that a women’s tag team match of all things was this fun is a very great thing to see. They created one of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches out of a match that could have been just a throwaway.

ASUKA vs RHEA RIPLEY: WRESTLEMANIA XXXVII

Asuka is going to be all over this list, as is Rhea Ripley. That said, it should not shock you to find out that their singles match from WrestleMania 37 turned out pretty well for them. This was a pretty interesting setup too. Basically, Rhea had been on the WrestleMania card in the past. Yet that last match did not go very well for her in many ways. She lost & it was in front of zero fans. Ripley wanted to get everything she should have gotten the year prior.

Asuka was the RAW Women’s Champion and did not have an opponent for WrestleMania yet. To be fair, Asuka had kind of beaten all major contenders on the RAW Roster. She won the title at SummerSlam in 2020 and most women were beaten or out of action. Rhea had been on NXT for most of 2020, but 2021 would be different. She’d hit the main roster and challenged Asuka to the match on her very first night as an official member of the RAW Roster.

This match lasted roughly 13 minutes as the two threw everything they had at the other. It was Rhea’s power versus the strikes and technical prowess of Asuka. The champion would hit a DDT on Ripley, off of the apron onto the ringside floor. Thinking she had it won, she’d get Rhea back in the ring and apply the Asuka Lock. Rhea managed to escape to hit her Riptide finisher and capture her first World Championship outside of NXT.

TRISH STRATUS vs JAZZ vs VICTORIA: WRESTLEMANIA XIX

If you want to go back to find one of the best “Diva’s Era” matches, we’d recommend starting here. Trish Stratus had become a slowly rising star in WWE but was certainly not considered a great wrestler. She was getting better, but her looks and mic work would result in Stratus capturing the WWE Women’s Title at the 2001 Survivor Series.

Jazz, a former ECW standout and one of the best women’s wrestlers alive entered the company shortly after. She beat down any woman that got in her way. This led to run-ins with Trish Stratus and Lita. They’d battle at WrestleMania 18 where Jazz walked away the winner. Yet Trish would win the title back, lose it to Molly Holly, win it back from her, and then lose it to a relatively newer woman in the company named Victoria.

Jazz wanted back into the hunt and Trish wanted to win her 4th Women’s Title. That led to this triple threat at WrestleMania 19. It was a truly good match. It took quite a while for us to reach a period where we could say WWE had a solid women’s match on the WrestleMania card too. Roughly 12 years would pass after WrestleMania 1 before we’d get a women’s match on the card again. Therefore, getting back on the card and showing how much you deserve to be there is great to see.

Thank God for this match!

This proves that even in the Divas era, we had solid in-ring workers. These were three of the best of their era. With only seven minutes, they didn’t get a lot of time, but they certainly made the most of it.

BAYLEY vs CHARLOTTE FLAIR vs NIA JAX vs SASHA BANKS: WRESTLEMANIA XXXIII

One year after having an absolute classic of a match, WWE has to follow it up with something good. While it was not the greatest match, it was still very good and certainly was very entertaining. While Charlotte Flair & Sasha Banks had been a major focus on WWE programming while Nia Jax was a major presence due to her size alone, Bayley was left behind on the NXT Roster. Becky Lynch, Charlotte, and Sasha went up while she remained behind to help the NXT Women’s Division stay strong.

Nia was a major threat for Bayley on NXT but when she hit the main roster, her power and size made her a threat to everyone on the RAW roster. When Bayley debuted, she wanted to show that she belonged. That was why this match was built to be a coronation for Bayley. To give her the love and attention she deserved for remaining behind to help keep the NXT women’s division thriving.

While it would take her years on the main roster before she found her stride, she still showed that she belonged on this night. This match was good, but maybe with a little more time, it would have done more. Keep in mind that it was also a Fatal Fourway Elimination match. It was smart booking for the women to gang up on Nia and ensure she went out quickly. That ultimately made this a triple threat for most of the match and improved it overall as a result.

BECKY LYNCH vs CHARLOTTE FLAIR vs RONDA ROUSEY: WRESTLEMANIA XXXV

The fact that the first-ever women’s WrestleMania main event falls to the middle of the pack on this list might upset some people. However, to us, it just shows how amazing the women have been over the last 5 to 6 years alone. It might feel unexpected for this match to be here, but it was still a terrific match.

For years, the NXT Four Horsewoman succeeded well but Becky was considered an afterthought on the main roster. She was a huge talent and a wonderful talker, but she couldn’t find the foothold she needed to advance to the next level. She did well on SmackDown, but they had no idea what to do with her there.

After turning on her “friend” Charlotte at SummerSlam, fans were with her. WWE tried to make her into a heel so they could further elevate Charlotte even more, but fans refused. They disliked how Flair was pushed down their throats while Lynch was deserving of much more. Fans went nuts every time Becky came out, and just like that, “The Man” was born.

She’d turn this into one of the most incredible runs the women’s division has ever seen.

WWE yet again tried to insert Flair where she did not belong by having her win the SmackDown Women’s Title shortly before this. Ronda Rousey entered with the RAW Women’s Title already. Lynch had won the Women’s Rumble. Two titles on the line, in the main event…who could ask for more?

The crowd was kind of dead by the end, as the show went extremely long, so it did not give the women as much respect as they deserved. Yet Becky Two-Belts walked out of WrestleMania that night, and the WWE hasn’t been the same ever since.

MICKIE JAMES vs TRISH STRATUS: WRESTLEMANIA XXII

This was an era where women did not get a lot of focus. Getting a proper storyline for them was laughable unless it involved a man in some way. Yet when Mickie James entered WWE as a massive fan/stalker of Trish Stratus, that changed. For months, Mickie would get a bit too close for comfort. WWE liked the idea of making her obsessed with Trish because it would allow them to do a lot of, well, “interesting” segments.

Things like James walking in on Trish in the shower, changing, or in very little clothing. She’d also kiss her under a mistletoe because you know, guys like that sort of thing remember? She dressed up like Trish, began acting like her, and basically tried to become Stratus. It was some weird stuff, but highly entertaining. When Trish pushed back and tried to make James understand that she was going too far, Mickie saw that as a betrayal. That led to the two battling at WrestleMania 22.

This match was perfect and stood as one of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches ever…if not the best, for many years.

At the time this was thought to be the career-ending match of Trish Stratus, a bonafide hall of famer. By this point, both were two extremely good workers and had a knack for bringing out the best in each other. Trish became solid in the ring and Mickie was already trained properly but improved dramatically during her WWE run. They were given around nine minutes in this WWE Women’s Title match.

Mickie would pull off the win as the two made every second of their time matter. It still holds up as a great match, even given the great women’s matches of the present day.

BIANCA BELAIR vs ASUKA: WRESTLEMANIA XXXIX

Spoiler alert: this isn’t the last time you’ll see Bianca on this list. She’s got a few more in her.

This match proves that you don’t need a huge build when you have two outstanding performers going one-on-one.

Asuka makes magic with anyone and Bianca is capable of doing the same. That said, it was not a surprise at all when these two ended up having one of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches of all time at WrestleMania 39. While this PLE had another classic on it we’ll get to later, Bianca and Asuka absolutely destroyed on this night.

They went for 16 minutes and it felt like the action never stopped the entire time. The pacing and action were impressive, and Asuka proved to be the greatest test for the EST’s title run. We really felt that the Empress of Tomorrow could have beaten Belair at any moment. While Asuka fell short in the end, the effort is noteworthy and just shows how any match with her can be a classic. Yet the same can clearly be said about Bianca as well.

CHARLOTTE FLAIR vs RHEA RIPLEY: WRESTLEMANIA XXXVI

We really wish this match was happening right now. Ripley had been part of the NXT system either in America or the United Kingdom for the better part of 3 years and was ready for the main roster. However, WWE felt she was ready to be on the WrestleMania stage. This led to Charlotte Flair winning the Women’s Rumble match and challenging Ripley for her NXT Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 36.

Of course, we all know what happened in 2020. The Pandemic led to WrestleMania going ahead but without a crowd. Ripley made her WrestleMania debut but not in the way she would have liked. She was also not quite ready to be on this stage, yet still performed incredibly well. While Rhea was still a bit green, she was capable of following Charlotte’s lead throughout. Leading to one of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches of all time.

The lead-up to this was fun at first, but the Pandemic hurt a lot of the programs. Rhea did look like a legitimate threat to Flair, but she was certainly not capable of taking Charlotte down just yet. Thus, Flair won the NXT Women’s Championship that night. Yet these women had chemistry on this night and showed us a lot of what we now see today in Ripley.

As we all know, Flair vs Ripley wasn’t a one-time thing.

CHARLOTTE FLAIR vs ASUKA: WRESTLEMANIA XXXIV

While this match was clearly terrific, many hate it for the obvious reason. Why did Charlotte Flair end Asuka’s unbeaten streak, especially here of all places? Going into this match, we have Asuka who won every single match she had in NXT. She won so much that she passed Goldberg’s unbeaten run. Her NXT Women’s Championship run is one of the longest title runs of the modern era, and the longest women’s title run of all time (removing Fabulous Moolah’s run).

She went on to win the very first Women’s Royal Rumble match and challenged Charlotte Flair for her title at WrestleMania. It made all the sense in the world to give Asuka gold early in her main roster run. She proved she could be a great champion already. Yet it was not to be, at least not yet for the Empress of Tomorrow.

This was an absolutely great match between two of the best workers to ever step into a wrestling ring, male or female.

Asuka doesn’t get nearly enough credit for how powerful she comes across in the ring and how smooth everything is. The timing of every move is nearly perfect. She was on her game for this match. Charlotte is just as smooth and makes every strike and kick look impactful. They were both clicking in this match.

It’s one that, if you have the time to go back and watch, we highly recommend.

CHARLOTTE FLAIR vs BECKY LYNCH vs SASHA BANKS: WRESTLEMANIA XXXII

We hold this match in high regard. It was the first women’s match on a WrestleMania card in years to be given proper time, build-up, and credibility. WWE also put their three best women’s wrestlers on the main roster in this match. Going in, it was supposed to be for Charlotte Flair’s WWE Diva’s Championship. WWE decided that the Diva Era had come to an end. All women would not be referred to as female WWE Superstars.

This also led to the return of the WWE Women’s Championship and the retirement of the Diva’s Title. That made winning this match even more important for each woman. WWE gave them 16 minutes to prove to the world that they belonged, and they did not disappoint.

These women set a new standard for women’s wrestling on the biggest stage of them all with their performance at WrestleMania 32. This match was exciting and had great spots throughout. The ladies brought out the full complement of their arsenal on this night. It was a pleasure to see.

Charlotte looked powerful, Sasha sold like a million dollars, and Becky did a great job of fighting from underneath. They certainly had the best match on the card, and we are grateful for that. It paved the way for so many matches after the fact and birthed three future Hall of Famers.

Kudos to these ladies on an absolutely stellar match. At the time, this became the best women’s match WrestleMania ever had. Thankfully, we keep seeing even better.

BIANCA BELAIR vs BECKY LYNCH: WRESTLEMANIA XXXVIII

Charlotte and Rhea have great chemistry. Charlotte and Sasha have great chemistry. However, Bianca and Becky have tremendous chemistry in the ring.

This match was the culmination of almost a year of “Big Time Becks” tormenting Bianca for losing in less than a minute at SummerSlam the year before.

This was the revenge that Bianca was looking for and this wouldn’t be a minute affair. The moment they locked up, we knew these ladies were about to tear the roof off the building. Becky played the heel to perfection with such bravado and arrogance making you crave for her to be put in her place.

Bianca doesn’t ever feel like she’s fighting from underneath. A woman with her skill and strength never feels like she’s out of the fight. She was tremendous in the match and got her title back. At the same time, she proved to the world that she was just as good as “The Man.” That led us to one of the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches of all time.

BIANCA BELAIR vs SASHA BANKS: WRESTLEMANIA XXXVII

It is truly difficult to find a lot of matches better than this one. When we talk about the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches, Bianca Belair vs Sasha Banks will forever be in the conversation. The women made history before ever locking up. This match main evented Night #1 of WrestleMania 37. It was the first time that two black women main evented WrestleMania. To be honest, it was the first time a black woman had been here at all.

This was an absolute classic. Both Belair and Banks knew just how special this moment was, especially when the crowd erupted in praise and validation. You could see it visibly affecting both performers.

When they didn’t finally lock up there wasn’t a moment of disappointment. Sasha is one of the best sellers in the business. She can go from fighting from underneath to getting absolutely rag-dolled. She picked the spots where she needed to switch so perfectly. Banks made Belair look as powerful as she really is.

The “EST of WWE” delivered in every way, including whipping Banks with that trademark braid. The whole match worked on every level. What might have been the best part of the match was watching Sasha emotional on the outside as Belair celebrated inside after the match ended. Out of character, Banks did not care about losing. She loved that she was able to do something big and help to make Bianca reach superstardom.

They both knew how special that moment was. Even if this had been the third match on the card, it would have been deserving of every star it could possibly get.

RHEA RIPLEY vs CHARLOTTE FLAIR: WRESTLEMANIA XXXIX

The first time this match happened, Rhea Ripley was solid but clearly, you could see that she wasn’t quite ready for such a huge spot. A few years later, “Mami” emerged as one of the best women’s wrestlers in the world. It was only a matter of time before she faced Charlotte Flair again. This time, would the result be different? When Rhea won the 2023 Women’s Rumble match, she’d challenge Flair.

We knew this would be good, but it became an instant classic. As of this moment, it takes our top spot for the greatest women’s WrestleMania matches of all time. In our view, nothing has been better than this.

It was the single best women’s match in the history of WrestleMania. Their chemistry was good at WrestleMania 36 but this was that chemistry on a whole other level. They were absolutely outstanding.

You could tell the change in Rhea. This wasn’t a performer still finding herself. She is completely comfortable in her own skin and was outstanding from bell to bell. It was a total change from a few years earlier.

Charlotte has always made a compelling champion because, just like her father, she is supremely talented in the ring. Charlotte is completely capable of beating anyone on any night but she’s also totally vulnerable and beatable at the same time. It’s a testament to her skill set and the way she can bully her opponent. Yet she can also sell as if she was shot at the exact same time. She helped to make Rhea look like a million bucks.

WWE fans now are waiting impatiently for the next time these two square off. That rubber match has to happen eventually, and we hope it sooner rather than later.