As WWE gets set to put on WrestleMania XL this weekend in Philadelphia, lead announcer Michael Cole posted a video to Twitter on Friday thanking the fans for making it all possible.
Cole, who will be on the call for his record 23rd WrestleMania this weekend, has been the lead voice of WWE for a generation.
The video, which can be seen below, started by discussing the roots of WrestleMania, going all the way back to WrestleMania I which took place March 31, 1985, at New York City’s Madison Square Garden.
From me to you, WrestleMania…
Thank you. pic.twitter.com/4ypMm5TDGu
— Michael Cole (@MichaelCole) April 5, 2024
Cole, who was a freshman at Syracuse University at the time, discussed his experience watching the event on closed-circuit TV at a movie theater in Syracuse, which he mentioned changed his life and career path.
“The first WrestleMania showed us the wrestling business had changed forever. It’s now a global phenomenon seen by hundreds of millions of people worldwide. I have spent nearly half my life in a love affair with this event. WrestleMania XL will mark my 23rd year behind the mic,” Cole said.
WrestleMania XL also brings Cole’s journey full circle, as WrestleMania XV, which took place in 1999 at the then-First Union Center, marked his first WrestleMania on the call.
“Ironically, it was at WrestleMania 15, in the same city, Philadelphia, where I had the opportunity to call WrestleMania for the very first time. Whether we watch from a red cushioned seat at the Landmark Theater or the best seat in the house at Madison Square Garden, that moment 40 years ago will always be remembered as the night professional wrestling became sports entertainment forever.”
