Sage Cortez
THE MEGA POWERS EXPLODE! Talk about hype, this is one of the most hyped up shows in history. At the time, probably the most. They have a lot of solid programs put on this show, some interesting celebrity involvement, and of course, the big one with Hogan and Savage. They’ve cooled some of these feuds off in a bad way, but not all of them. This show being at Trump Plaza isn’t great, but this wasn’t a tournament. They actually had feuds going into it, rather than having the tournament aspect that the previous year’s WrestleMania had. Time to get to it!
– April 2nd, 1989, from Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, New Jersey
The opening video package is interesting, that’s for sure. Short and to the point. We have Jesse Ventura with Gorilla Monsoon here, and I’m pumped! Right into “America the Beautiful” we go, with Rockin’ Robin singing it. WHY? This actually wasn’t so bad, but I don’t understand. Jesse crapped all over it with the quickness.
King Haku (w/Bobby Heenan) vs. Hercules
Pre-Match Thoughts: Haku got the podium entrance here, with guys carrying him to the ring. I bet he felt special. I’m drawing the conclusion that this match is taking place because Heenan sold Hercules into slavery. Heenan grabbed the microphone and said that people needed to bow before their king. Donald Trump was sitting at ringside, and laughed during that line. Immediately you can tell how much more of a professional product this is than the competition. Choosing this as an opener is quite strange, to be honest. It doesn’t really tick any of the boxes.
Match Review: Haku attacks Hercules from behind, and that starts the match off.He clobbers him with his best shots, but Hercules comes back with a hip toss and bodyslam. He follows with a flapjack, and clotheslines Haku over the top rope too. Hercules suplexes Haku back into the ring, and drops an elbow on him a few times. Hercules now decides to get his hands on Heenan, which wasn’t too smart. Haku clotheslines Hercules, and drives his back into the apron as well. Haku gives Hercules a backbreaker, done in such a fashion that it looked like a lethal move. That lethal move only got a 2 count, though. Haku puts a bear hug on Hercules, and that part goes on for far too long. This match was going well until this part. Hercules finally breaks out of the hold, but Haku chokes him. Hercules gives him a cross body for 2, which is a move I’d classify as out of character. Hercules dodges a springboard cross body from Haku, and gives Haku a knee lift and clothesline. Hercules powerslams Haku too, and it gets 2. He climbs up top for the first time, and eats a kick from Haku on the way down. Haku goes for a big splash from the second rope and misses, then Hercules gives him a back suplex. Both guys have their shoulders down, but Hercules lifted his at the last moment for the victory at 6:53.
My Thoughts: Great WrestleMania MOMENT for Hercules. Not really. The match started off well with some nice power moves and decent heat, but it turned into nothing as time went on. Too bad, I’ll give it *1/4 for the early action though. I guess Hercules got his revenge over Heenan even though the angle from late ’88 was never mentioned during the broadcast.
The Twin Towers (w/Slick) vs. The Rockers
Pre-Match Thoughts: The Rockers have a promo before this match, and they look so drugged out. Shawn had a terrible hangover, and sure as hell sounded like it. He looks dead on his feet. We didn’t get to see the Towers entrance, and we really didn’t need to. That being said, it’s quite a fall for them from what they were doing against the Mega Powers to this. The Rockers can’t even run to the ring like usual, haha. They’re definitely over big, though.
Match Review: The bell rings, and the Towers chase the Rockers around the ring. Once the Rockers get back in, they hit the Towers while they’re standing on the apron. That’s a smart move. Boss Man and Michaels will continue the match from there, and Michaels gets placed upon the top rope. He jumps off with a dropkick on Boss Man, and does a house of fire thing where he hits both of the Towers. The crowd is digging this. Marty and Shawn exchange tags, and Akeem is in now as well. They give him some double axehandles to the arm, a double chop, and run over to hit Boss Man again. Michaels and Akeem keep it going, and Akeem misses a lumbering rush to the corner after a whip. Marty tags in, as does Boss Man, and he catches Marty in a bear hug. Akeem runs full speed into Marty’s back, and Boss Man spits at Michaels. This Boss Man gets great heat. He gives Marty a leapfrog body guillotine, and holds Marty in place for Akeem to give him a huge splash up against the ropes. Boss Man and Akeem pile onto Marty with a double avalanche in the corner, as this match has turned into a complete destruction. The match has also slowed down too much. Boss Man tries to hold Marty in place for Akeem, but Akeem runs over Boss Man and Marty makes the tag out. Shawn gives Akeem 5 in the corner, and the Rockers whip him from post to post. They come off the second rope with a double flying shoulderblock, it gets 2. Shawn gets crushed with a clothesline by Akeem, and Boss Man tags in. He heads up top for a big splash, but that’s a big miss. Shawn takes Boss Man down with some punches and a great double team by Marty. Then the Rockers give Akeem a double dropkick, and head up top for a double missile dropkick. That was insane. The cover gets 2, as Akeem rushes in to clean house. Shawn climbs up to the top once again, gets caught on Boss Man’s shoulder, and Boss Man POWERBOMBS HIM. Akeem tags in, BIG SPLASH, that’s it for the Rockers at 8:05.
My Thoughts: It was unfortunate that this match didn’t have any heat, but none of them do in this arena. This match was a lot of fun when Boss Man, Jannetty, and Michaels were involved. When Akeem was involved, it wasn’t. The double missile dropkick spot was nice, but Shawn totally whiffed on his. The finish was good, and the right team won, although I don’t understand the Rockers being put in a match that they couldn’t win. **1/4.
Ted DiBiase (Million Dollar Champion, w/Virgil) vs. Brutus Beefcake
Pre-Match Thoughts: Well, I just can’t care about this one. I’m sick of seeing Beefcake wrestle, he’s terrible. I am especially annoyed by seeing him face their good acts. In the back, we have an interview with DiBiase, where he’s with Tony Schiavone. His promo is pretty good, and he points out that the highly elite are at this show. REAL PEOPLE. DiBiase shook hands with Donald Trump during his entrance, that was a good touch.
Match Review: DiBiase tells the Barber why he’s a peasant, and the Barber doesn’t seem to like that much. He gives DiBiase a backdrop and hip toss, and follows with a second backdrop. DiBiase tries to fire off some chops, but gets sent hard into the buckle and given a few bodyslams. Beefcake clotheslines him over the top, and DiBiase wants to take a timeout as a result. Once he’s done, they trade punches in the middle of the ring. Virgil grabs a hold of Beefcake’s leg when they reach the ropes, which allows the Million Dollar Man to take Virgil down and start choking him. DiBiase gets up and nails Beefcake with a back elbow, it gets a 2 count. DiBiase gives Beefcake a clothesline too, and heads up to the second rope for an elbow, which is landed. Beefcake tries a small package and it gets 2, and he keeps control with a suplex. I’ve never seen Beefcake do this many wrestling moves in a match. They take each other out with a clothesline, and DiBiase gets up first for a suplex. DiBiase slaps the MILLION DOLLAR DREAM on Beefcake, but the Barber reaches the ropes. That’s too bad. This match is nearly putting me to sleep, despite the moves used. These two trade punches again, and DiBiase gets rammed into the buckle 10 times. That was funny stuff. Beefcake puts the SLEEPER on DiBiase, and got a huge pop for doing so. Virgil distracts Beefcake by getting on the apron, so DiBiase knocks him to the outside. Virgil beats the Barber up for a little bit, but Beefcake is tired of that mess. Eventually DiBiase attacks him from behind with a double axehandle from the ring apron, and these two brawl on the floor until a double count-out at 10:00.
Eventually Beefcake gets the better of it and chases Virgil around the ring, to give him an atomic drop and clothesline. He puts Virgil in a sleeper, but this guy doesn’t have any hair. DiBiase runs in to get bodyslammed, and now Beefcake goes for the clippers. DiBiase and Virgil get out of dodge, and that’s the end of it. Very anticlimactic.
My Thoughts: Dead crowd equals a dead match. It’s sad because DiBiase performed really well and made the Barber look far better than he actually was. The match wasn’t terrible but I was yawning like crazy during it, that was a tough watch due to the environment. Nonsensical finish, too. *1/2.
The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. The Bushwhackers
Pre-Match Thoughts: Before this match starts, we have the Bushwhackers preparing for their match, at the WWF BRUNCH. This was pretty funny, their mouths were full and they couldn’t talk. Jimmy has a nice yellow jacket, here. Looks like the crowd likes these Bushwhackers.
Match Review: Butch and Luke chase Hart around the ring at the beginning of the match, and they’ve stolen his jacket. How dare they! The Rougeaus rush in before the Bushwhackers ruin it, then Jimmy gets in there and the Rougeaus are thrown into him. Poor Jimmy. Luke and Raymond keep the match going, but Jacques knocks Luke down from behind. Butch runs in and takes Raymond out, then they give him the BATTERING RAM. Gorilla talks about us having too many people to let in more immigrants, which is just outstanding. Not really, but trying to hold down my people, that’s not cool at all. This match is a total mess. Raymond puts Luke in a Boston crab, and once that’s done, he launches Luke into the turnbuckles. He gives Luke a bodyslam too, and heads up to the second rope for a double axehandle. Jacques comes in and lands a back elbow, then slaps Butch for no reason. They give Luke a double chop for 2, and another double chop too. This is so boring, and so bad. Jacques puts Luke in an abdominal stretch, then Raymond tags in for a savate kick. This match is a joke. Butch runs in and the Buswhackers give Raymond a BATTERING RAM out of nowhere, then a double stomach-breaker for the victory at 5:11. It was great to have Butch essentially assault Sean Mooney by licking his head. Not that head. Get your mind out of the gutters.
My Thoughts: This was an absolute trainwreck. It was like watching four amateurs try to wrestle with each other. They weren’t even able to put together logical ways to get in their spots or much of anything else. I was shocked by the clean finish, anyone would be. I’m going to give it a DUD as it wasn’t long enough to be offensive, but I didn’t understand this at all.
Mr. Perfect vs. The Blue Blazer
Pre-Match Thoughts: This should be an excellent match, look at the workers on display here. If they were given 10 minutes, they would have stolen the show. Sadly they were not. The Blazer getting on the show here just shows that they put everyone on the roster in a spot on this card.
Match Review: Perfect takes Blazer down with a hip toss, that starts it off. Blazer comes back with a drop toe-hold, but that isn’t enough for him to control the match. He flips through another hip toss, gives Perfect a few bodyslams, and a standing dropkick to send Perfect over the top. Blazer follows with a baseball slide, and back in they go. He puts an armbar on Perfect, then dodges a rush to the corner and gives Perfect his own hip toss. After another bodyslam by Blazer, he gives Perfect another big dropkick. Blazer follows with a backbreaker, it only gets 1 though. Blazer continues with another bodyslam, and heads up top for the first time. Down he comes with a big splash, and lands right on Perfect’s knees. Perfect goes to a chinlock for a brief moment, and once again…this crowd is dead. Perfect runs into a big boot when Blazer gets out of it, and he gives Perfect a powerslam. Blazer gives him a belly to belly suplex, it gets a close 2 count. Blazer tries a crucifix for another 2 count, and Perfect responds to that with a vicious clothesline. Perfect finishes Blazer with the PERFECT-PLEX, one of the better moves in the WWF, for the victory at 5:49.
My Thoughts: This was a decent, although one-sided match. Perfect did pretty much nothing for the entirety, but that’s his style. The thing is, even though it was decent, it could have been a lot better. The crowd also did not care, once again. It’s hard to get into a show when the crowd isn’t doing shit. I don’t understand at all. **1/2. Big fan of both these guys, and sad I won’t get to see Owen wrestle for a little while. It was for the best that he leave the silly gimmick behind, though.
Now, we have some filler crap. First off, it’s Jesse Ventura leading the crowd in cheers. That’s the loudest pop of the whole show and we’re an hour in.
Next, it’s time for the 5k run! What the hell…I thought this Mr. Fuji thing was from WrestleMania IV. He joined the race, and at some point I don’t see him running anymore. He’s in his tuxedo and bowler hat! He finished!
Lastly, we have a performance from RUN DMC. WHO CARES? This is a good time for me to fill in writing about all my thoughts on the matches I didn’t have time to cover, so I really appreciate this. Music and wrestling rarely go together.
The Powers of Pain & Mr. Fuji vs. Demolition for the WWF Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: Yes, this is a 3 on 2 match. The funniest thing about it is that Fuji isn’t the worst worker in the match. That’s the Warlord. This feud cooled off and never really got off to the degree that the WWF wanted, which is a good thing from my perspective. Sorry, I don’t want to watch the Powers of Pain and Fuji wrestle. The sound from the Survivor Series double turn has been edited big time in favor of Demolition. An attack of Demolition by the challengers was shown as well, leading to a Demolition interview. It was a good one too. The Powers don’t even have an entrance theme anymore! Fuji does a salt toss before the match, that’s a neat touch.
Match Review: Things begin with the Warlord and Ax, and Ax takes control with many quick punches and forearms. Smash tags in to keep it going, and he puts Warlord in a neck vice. Too early for rest holds. Ax tags back in, and puts the same hold on. Smash comes back in, and finally Warlord drives Smash back to the corner and tags out. The Barbarian heads in, gets booted in the face, and Smash gets out of there. Ax gives Barbarian a clothesline, and a bodyslam as well. Smash tags in, gives Barbarian a back elbow, and back out he goes after a double back elbow. The crowd is deader and than dead for this match. Smash tags back in after nothing happens, takes some big chops, and Warlord tags back in. Demolition gives him a double clothesline, then Ax gets kicked and stomped on. Fuji tags in for the first time, and gives Ax a headbutt to the groin region. Out Fuji goes, and Barbarian gives Ax a big boot. Barbarian also gives him a flying shoulderblock, and picks Ax up for a bodyslam. Fuji tags in and heads up top, but misses a leg drop. The crowd actually reacted to that. Warlord cuts Ax off from making a tag, and gives him a bodyslam. Ax knocks him down, and finally makes the tag out. Smash gives Barbarian and Warlord some bodyslams, then picks Warlord up to drop him throat-first on the top rope for 2. Ax comes in and clotheslines Barbarian over the top, then Fuji goes for some salt. Warlord tries to hold Smash in place, but Fuji hits Warlord with the salt. They put Fuji up for DEMOLITION DECAPITATION, and Demolition retains their titles after the pin at 8:55.
My Thoughts: That was so unbelievably bad and boring. The Powers of Pain were simply a terrible team, they completely ruined this match. There was minimal bumping, hardly any wrestling, and Fuji was merely in there to take the pin. I guess that serves to end the feud seeing as Demolition pinned the manager who turned on them. It’s still very weak. DUD, I hope this show picks up. It really sucks.
Tony Schiavone has been trying to talk with Randy Savage all day, and when he finds him, Savage pushes the cameraman to the ground and still doesn’t want to talk.
Dino Bravo (w/Frenchy Martin) vs. Ron Garvin
Pre-Match Thoughts: Frenchy is still hanging on, I guess. Garvin got a jobber entrance, no surprise there. Bravo has been getting pushed and Garvin has not been. Before the match starts, we have a special guest…IT’S THE SUPERFLY. JIMMY SNUKA, BROTHER. He looked extremely old.
Match Review: Bravo attacks Garvin from behind to start the match, and gives him a bodyslam. After an elbow drop, Bravo hits Garvin with punches in bunches. He puts Garvin in a bear hug, and throws him into the corner like a sack of potatoes. Bravo also gives Garvin a shoulderblock for 2, and is completely dominating the match. Bravo picks Garvin up, but Garvin knocks him down with punches and covers for 2. He follows with a big right hand, and splashes Bravo for 2. Garvin gives Bravo 6 turnbuckle shots, and pins for 2. He puts a sleeper on Bravo, who reaches the ropes very quickly. Garvin then goes a PILEDRIVER, only for Bravo to reverse into a backdrop. Garvin holds on and covers for 2 with the use of a sunset flip, then is given an inverted atomic drop. Bravo picks Garvin up for the SIDE SUPLEX, and plants him with it. Bravo then covers and wins at 4:00.
After the match, Garvin knocks Bravo out of the ring, and gives Frenchy the GARVIN STOMP. Poor Frenchy.
My Thoughts: This wasn’t any good either, but at least it was better than the last match. Bravo was getting pushed, so he had to win this thing. Garvin did his best, but you can’t make chicken salad out of chicken crap. Or can you? 1/4*.
The Brain Busters (w/Bobby Heenan) vs. STRIKE FORCE
Pre-Match Thoughts: Strike Force is reuniting now that Martel is back from his personal leave and is able to wrestle in the States. This is kind of a big deal. If not for this I don’t believe Santana would even have made the card. Weird to see a team reunite and act like nothing happened.
Match Review: Martel and Tully start the match off, with them immediately doing an Arn attack with a knee from behind. Martel fights his way out of the Busters corner, then all four guys get in the ring. Strike Force gives the Busters dropkicks in stereo, then Martel rams Arn’s face into the mat for 2. Arn traps Martel in a body-scissors, and Martel turns that into a Boston crab! Tully pokes Martel in the eye, and tags in. Santana also tags in, and gives Tully a bulldog. He locks on the figure-four, and Martel comes in to do the same thing to Arn. These guys are trying so hard to get the match over. Tito and Tully do a great bridge to a backslide spot, and Santana gets 2 off it. Arn comes in for a double team, but Santana cradles Tully up for 1. Tully tries for an atomic drop, and Strike Force makes a blind tag, leading to Santana accidentally hitting Martel with a FLYING FOREARM. Tully gives Santana a dropkick, then is accidentally thrown into the knee of his partner. Arn tags in to cut Santana off, but Santana gives him a sunset flip…only for Arn to tag out when falling down. Santana uses a springboard cross body, but that only got 1 as well. Arn uses a chinlock on him for a second, then picks him up. Santana misses a charge towards Arn, who heads up top and is slammed down. Tully makes a tag in, and Santana is trying to do so as well, except Martel isn’t sticking out his hand. He refuses to tag! Martel drops from the apron now, and heads to the back! Arn continues to pound on Santana as the crowd has a buzz over what’s just happened, and part of that punishment is a SPINEBUSTER. Tully tags in, struts around the ring, and Santana fights out of the corner. Or tries to. He goes for a monkey flip, but Arn grabs his leg to block it. Now Arn tags in again, and sets Santana up for a SPIKE PILEDRIVER. Arn covers, and that’s an easy win at 9:17.
In the back, Rick Martel is with Gene Okerlund. Martel is sick and tired of Tito Santana, and he thinks he’s been carrying Santana around for too long anyway. Martel had some funny lines there.
My Thoughts: This was the kind of wrestling we needed on this show. It was good, even though the crowd didn’t get too involved until Martel left the arena floor. The match could have been even better, but at this point, you take what you can get. Arn and Tully were such a great team, probably the best in wrestling at this specific point in time. I really like the direction that Martel’s character went in from here, so this was a complete positive. ***.
It’s time for Piper’s Pit! Finkel goes to introduce Roddy Piper, but it turns out that Brother Love is taking his place, and is wearing a kilt. That’s just terrible. I’ve never bothered to watch this segment in full, and thought I never would. He’s hijacked the Pit, and claims that his guest is Rodney Piper. He’s interviewing himself, and it isn’t funny at all. Bad Piper impression. Eventually, Morton Downey Jr. makes his appearance, running down to the ring while smoking a cigarette. This is terrible. He tells Brother Love to bugger off, basically…and then Piper really comes out. He and Brother Love go at it, and Downey starts throwing cigarettes at Piper during the middle of it. All of a sudden the camera cuts to Piper and Downey only, and I don’t know if this is editing or what, but I don’t see Brother Love anymore. Downey starts blowing smoke in Piper’s face, doing so until Piper grabs a fire extinguisher and puts Downey out. Really terrible segment, up there with the worst the WWF/WWE ever put on. About 20 minutes of total junk.
Once that’s over, we have a preview of Hulk Hogan’s new movie! NO HOLDS BARRED! Looks like a great film. Ventura’s promo on Hogan’s movie was amazing. Hollywood isn’t big enough for the both of them, he says.
Sean Mooney is with Donald Trump, who talks about what the event means to his company. This is all about filtering money into the casino, so of course he’s happy about it. Mooney was obviously very nervous, stammered through the interview.
It’s obviously intermission now, as a video about the formation of the Mega Powers is shown. If it wasn’t intermission it wouldn’t be necessary. They did a good job summing up just about everything over the last year’s worth of time. That leads into a promo with Hulk Hogan, who appears to be as pumped up as I’ve ever seen him. The guy is gigantic. He thinks he should have seen this coming because he was always ahead of Savage. This guy is the babyface. I don’t know where Hogan comes up with the stuff about earthquakes and the sea and all that.
Andre the Giant (w/Bobby Heenan) vs. Jake Roberts with BIG JOHN STUDD as special referee
Pre-Match Thoughts: This is not likely to be a good match, is it? This feud has been going on forever at this point, and it’s time for Jake to pick up a clean or semi-clean victory. I suppose the guest referee vehicle was a good way to get Studd on the card. I really did not want to see him wrestle. Jake doesn’t look so great either, by the way.
Match Review: Andre attacks Roberts to start the match, throwing him into an exposed turnbuckle. He puts Jake in a position where he chokes Jake with his singlet, but Jake gets out of it with punches. He goes for the snake, but Andre pulls him back into the ropes. He squashes Jake with his ass in the corner, and sadly we’re at snail’s pace. This match is so slow. Andre stands on Roberts, but Roberts comes back with some punches causing Andre to get tied up in the ropes. The crowd popped! Crazy that it took that to get a fan reaction. Andre grabs a hold of Jake’s neck, and that’s the end of that. After a headbutt, it’s back to the choking. There’s no psychology to this match, it’s completely about filling time. Jake rams Andre into the exposed buckle, but Andre comes back with a chop to knock Jake to the outside. Andre and Studd start arguing with each other, giving Jake an opportunity to get his bag. Studd tries to keep Jake from getting in the ring with it, giving Andre an opportunity to attack Studd from behind. Now, Ted DiBiase and Virgil run down to the ring and hit Jake from behind, then steal his bag. What evil people these are. Jake runs back there and chases him, leading to a split screen view. Jake takes his snake back, as Andre is completely beating Studd down. Jake’s pissed about that, and throws his snake into the ring. Andre gets out of there, and the decision appears to be a DQ in favor of Jake Roberts at 9:39.
My Thoughts: This was a brutal match, and I can’t believe I watched all 10 minutes. I suffered through them. So boring that I nearly fell asleep, seriously. -**1/2, please do not watch this. If you have, let’s talk about how bad it was! Neither guy took a bump, there seemed to be no chemistry, and the match didn’t tell any story at all. Can’t believe that was on a WrestleMania card.
Tony Schiavone is with Sensational Sherri, who has a few things to say about Rockin’ Robin. She also has things to say about Elizabeth. She laughs about the Mega Powers exploding…and we don’t quite know the whole story there yet. Fortunately we find out at a later date!
The Honky Tonk Man & Greg Valentine (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. The Hart Foundation
Pre-Match Thoughts: HTM and the Hammer do not have any sort of tag team name yet. Before the match, apparently HTM refused to do a job, and there was some controversy surrounding whether or not the finish would be changed. Does he do the job?
Match Review: HTM and Bret will begin the match, one of the few I was looking forward to on the show. They exchange shots, then Bret cradles HTM up for 2. He follows with an atomic drop, and an inverted atomic drop. The Hammer tags in for his own inverted atomic drop, and Bret continues by taking him out with a dropkick. Bret slingshots Neidhart in with a shoulderblock, it gets a 2 count. Bret tags in again, and gives Valentine a backbreaker. Up to the second rope, down with an elbow drop that misses. Valentine lands a few elbow drops, and gets out of there. Bret gets trapped in the opponents corner, and HTM drops a fist on him. He gives Bret a fireman’s carry throw, some elbow drops, and Valentine tags back in. He heads up top, and comes down with a standing elbow. Valentine gives Bret an inverted atomic drop, and a headbutt down low. HTM comes back, and gives Bret SHAKE, RATTLE, AND ROLL. He tags in Valentine, who adjusts his shin guard and puts Bret in a figure-four. Bret gets out of it very quickly, and is given a gut buster by Valentine for 2. HTM switches in, and Bret gives him a cross body for 2. He winds up on the floor after HTM kicks out, at which point the Hammer tags in. Bret makes the tag out after a failed cradle, and the Anvil takes both guys out with dropkicks. A shoulderblock to Valentine gets 2, and he gives him a huge clothesline for another 2 count. HTM tags in after a snap mare, and his fist drop misses. Bret tags back in, and gives HTM a bodyslam. Up to the second rope, and he elbows him. Bret picks HTM up for a suplex, it gets 2 once again. The Hammer gets in the ring, at which point Hart leaves the megaphone for HTM. Bret grabs it first, hits HTM with it, and covers him for the 3 count at 7:40.
My Thoughts: This got the crowd involved, and about time. It has taken so long for the crowd to react to anything here, it doesn’t make sense to me. We’re nearly 3 hours into the show, too! I’ll give this **1/4. It was ultimately irrelevant, as HTM and Valentine didn’t team up much more for quite a long time. They just had to put some teams together for this show to provide opponents for their more favored wrestlers.
Rick Rude (w/Bobby Heenan) vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Intercontinental Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: At least this match got a pre-match video. I really needed to see what happened at the Royal Rumble once again. This would seem to be the second important match of the card. Warrior runs down to the ring at full speed, down steps. How? That’s true dedication to the gimmick.
Match Review: To start the match, Rude accidentally knees Warrior’s title belt. Warrior knocks him down, shoves him into the corner a few times, and poses for the crowd. Warrior launches Rude into the turnbuckles a few times, and picks him up for a bear hug. Not sure that’s going to work out. This was a good idea for Warrior to regain some energy. Rude breaks out and heads up top, coming down with a MISSILE DROPKICK. WHAT? Warrior kicks out at 1, and gives Rude a couple of bodyslams. Warrior goes back to the bear hug, which is necessary given that he blew himself up during his entrance. Rude bites Warrior to get free, and Warrior comes back with a bite of his own. Warrior backdrops him, and misses a big splash. Rude gives the champion a piledriver, but Rude can’t cover quickly enough, so it gets 2. Rude gives Warrior a jawbreaker, and during the SWIVEL, his back hurts too much to keep going. Rude gives Warrior a clothesline for 2, and a Russian leg sweep follows that for 2 again. Warrior powers to the ropes during a rest hold, and starts SHAKING THEM. Eventually Rude eats a flying shoulderblock, and Warrior rams his face into the mat too. Warrior gives Rude a backbreaker, then they botch another one and tumble into the ropes. Warrior gives him a clothesline, and he’s too blown up to do much of anything else. He sends Rude into the buckle, and misses a charge into it. Rude tries to give Warrior the RUDE AWAKENING, but Warrior powers out of it and gives him another clothesline. Rude heads to the outside to try to get away, but gets thrown right back into the ring. Rude takes a huge clothesline over the top, and winds up on the apron. Warrior picks him up, tries to suplex him in, and Heenan grabs Warrior’s foot and holds onto it. Rude has Warrior covered for 3, and he is the NEW INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION after 9:42!
Warrior starts chasing Heenan around the ring after the match, and Rude doesn’t seem to care much. Warrior drops Heenan with a press slam, which ends the segment. Bear in mind that Heenan still has to wrestle the Red Rooster.
My Thoughts: I appreciated this match quite a bit. They blew the double backbreaker spot, but otherwise the match was quite good. It was far better than you’d expect from these two, with good action throughout. I was shocked by the booking and most everyone was. It made sense to have Warrior chase Rude’s belt, though. Warrior was also unbelievably blown up, and I’m shocked he made it through the match. Rude carried it and did the work of two, it deserves **3/4. While it wasn’t a special match, his performance certainly was. Not many guys ever got a match like that out of a guy who couldn’t wrestle the way Warrior couldn’t wrestle.
Bad News Brown vs. Jim Duggan
Pre-Match Thoughts: Talk about a throw-away match. Does anyone even care? Could they care? I like the way Bad News reacted to people touching him. Bunch of dirty thugs trying to put their hands on him. Hacksaw got a big pop for his entrance, but he needed music.
Match Review: Bad News attacks Hacksaw to start the match, but he misses a rush to the corner and Hacksaw gives him a clothesline. Hacksaw brings Bad News in from the apron the hard way, and has a backdrop attempt blocked. Hacksaw gets rammed into the buckle a few times, it doesn’t even hurt him. They punch and kick each other a lot, and Hacksaw tumbles to the outside. Bad News follows him, throws him into the post, and back in they go. Bad News sets him up for the GHETTO BLASTER, but he misses it. Hacksaw knocks him out of the ring with a clothesline, so Bad News grabs hold of a chair. He brings it into the ring, and Hacksaw grabs his 2×4. They swing them at each other at 3:47, leading to a double DQ. Hacksaw gets the better of the ensuing fight, hitting Bad News on the chin with his 2×4.
My Thoughts: This match and the way it finished showed that nothing about it mattered. Duggan had snot all over his face after he was done, he looked disgusting. Why waste words? It didn’t matter. 1/2*.
Bobby Heenan (w/the Brooklyn Brawler) vs. The Red Rooster
Pre-Match Thoughts: Okerlund is interviewing the Red Rooster, who got more promo time on this than a slew of other wrestlers. That’s hard to believe, but hey…it’s true. Heenan was taken care of by Warrior earlier, so Rooster won’t even get the pleasure of beating him clean. The deck got stacked!
Match Review: Heenan cowers away in the corner, only to be rammed into it a couple times. Rooster causes Heenan to miss a charge to the buckle, and pins him after 32 seconds. The match is over, but Brawler clotheslines him from behind and gives him a bodyslam. Brawler clears him out of the ring, Rooster chases him away…what a total waste of time.
My Thoughts: Absurd. Were they just filling time, did they get cut? Probably both. You have to give this a DUD, even though it was funny to see Heenan wrestle. I hope he was paid well for all his work on this show. Not that he had to do much, but he certainly worked harder than many of the wrestlers. Hard to believe Terry Taylor stuck around doing that rooster gimmick for another year.
Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage for the WWF Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: Elizabeth is supposed to be in somebody’s corner here. Who will it be? She’s with Mean Gene right now, and says that she’ll be in a neutral corner while these two beat each other up. Why no Savage interview before the match? This is disrespectful. This was at the time expected to be the most profitable match in the history of the business. Ventura makes a good point here, why did the champion enter first? Everyone anticipated this match, and I expect it to get real heat. This is what people paid to watch, the rest of the card was quite thin. Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage fed families, brother.
Match Review: Savage tries to sneak in and attack the challenger, but Hogan was ready for it. Savage has his elbow wrapped up due to staph infection, but this is a real man, he’s not going to no-show the event. Hogan chases him out of the ring, and Savage steals a foam finger from a fan to throw it at Hogan. What a jerk. He’s back in there now, and gets shoved across the ring. Savage gets run over with a shoulderblock, and back to the outside he goes. Smart guy. Inside he goes again, as Monsoon and Ventura argue over the merits of Elizabeth. Savage keeps bailing on Hogan, leading Hogan to give chase. Savage then pulls the ultimate heel move, using Elizabeth as a shield. This makes him look far worse than it used to. Hogan puts Savage in a front face-lock, but Savage turns it into a back suplex. He misses an elbow drop, and Hogan knocks him down with right hands. Hogan goes to work on the arm, gets raked in the eyes, and Savage heads up top. He comes down with a double axehandle to the head, it gets 2. Savage goes to an armbar, and it’s clear this is a wrestling match, not a stupid brawl. Hogan pulls Savage to the outside with some use of the trunks, and goes out there to send him back in. Hogan rams Savage into the buckle a few times, then clotheslines him. After a few elbow drops, Hogan rakes Macho’s face with a stomp. Savage comes back with his own clothesline, it gets a 2 count. Hogan’s bleeding from the eye after something, I can’t figure out what. Savage puts Hogan in a headlock for a little bit, which displays the blood to the camera and squeezes it out of Hogan’s head. Hogan gets out and catches a big boot, then gives Savage an atomic drop. Hogan misses an elbow drop, gets kneed from behind and rolled up for 2. That was a good spot. Savage sends Hogan into the buckle, and Hogan clutches to Savage’s foot. That was funny. Savage continues the punishment with punches, and stomps on Hogan’s fingers to show how much he hates him. Hogan gets up, rams Savage into the buckle 6 times, and pops him with his own punches. Hogan gives Savage a clothesline in the corner, and powerslams him over the top rope. Wow! Elizabeth runs over to Macho’s aid, and he snaps at her. He doesn’t want her help. Hogan gets pulled to the outside, raked in the eyes, but blocks Savage’s attempt to ram him into the canvas and does it himself. He picks Savage up and Elizabeth gets in the way of the post, but Savage doesn’t have the same conniptions. He posts Hogan, and when Elizabeth tries to help Hogan, Savage gets in her face. He starts pushing her, effectively kicking her out from ringside. What a dick. Savage heads up top as Hogan is on the floor, and comes down with BOMBS AWAY! They both head back in the ring, Savage uses the rope as a clothesline, and he gives Hogan a leapfrog body guillotine. Some great offense in this match. Savage gives Hogan a bodyslam and knee drop, which gets 2. Savage takes some tape off his elbow, and starts choking Hogan with it. What a great heel! Savage then tries to choke Hogan, knocking him down to the canvas. Great time to use the flying elbow! Savage goes up for it, and THERE IT IS! He covers, but it barely gets 2. NO. Why didn’t Hogan wait longer to kick out? Hogan stops selling everything, hits Savage with three punches, the big boot, and there’s the LEG DROP. Sadly, Hogan retains his title after a cover at 17:54.
After some posing, we’re out!
My Thoughts: That was not the right finish. The match deserved better than that. I don’t understand the purpose of having Savage lose without being made to look better than the rest of Hogan’s challengers. The company should have wanted to keep him looking super strong. The match was very good and had great heat, the crowd was waiting for that match and saved all their energy for it. They just had to wait 3 hours. I don’t think there’s anything to say about the match not measuring up to the hype. In my opinion, it certainly did. Both guys worked very hard for almost 18 minutes and the Elizabeth stuff was marginalized. If anyone paid for this to see Elizabeth screw someone over, they were shit out of luck. My finish would have had Savage win with help from Elizabeth to keep their double house show touring strong with Hogan on one tour and Savage on the other. Then, you run a PPV in June and put the belt on Hogan. ***1/2 and recommended. It’s too bad about the finish, but these guys worked their asses off. To this point, it was the best WrestleMania main event.
This show aired at the same time as the Clash of the Champions, and from my perspective, the Clash was a lot better in every way. The thing is, the main event at WrestleMania was such a big match that everyone preferred to watch it. That was the value of having your TV in prominent positions on the right local channels. As an overall show, I didn’t like WrestleMania 5 at all. The matchups were not right, the crowd was terrible, and the matches weren’t particularly good. The main event was the top match, but there was so much filler. It killed the momentum of the show and I didn’t even enjoy watching it. I nearly fell asleep multiple times. I certainly don’t come away from this with a positive impression of the company at this time. The non-wrestling segments were all completely terrible, too. While this did make the WWF a ton of money, it didn’t make them as much as they thought. Next up, I’ll be filling the gap from Clash 6 to WrestleWar ’89. I don’t have a lot of things there, but the gap must be filled.
Wrestling Time: 1:46:52. So, there was more wrestling on the Clash, and the non-wrestling segments on this show that was 3 hours and 45 minutes long, completely sucked. Sounds great.
Best: THE MEGA POWERS EXPLODE.
Worst: Piper’s Pit with Morton Downey and Brother Love. There were many contenders for this, but this segment was one of the worst things to ever be put on TV during a wrestling show.
Card Rating: 4.5/10. Sorry, but the main event doesn’t save it. I’m going to avoid this one going forward. Quantity doesn’t equal quality. They put a lot of matches on the show, most of them were there just to fill time. They brought nothing to the table.
