WWE King of The Ring 2002 (6/23/02)

Due to declining ratings and inept booking, this year's 10th annual King of the Ring would be its last. The main feuds in here would be the semi-finals and finals of the KOTR, Kurt Angle vs Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker vs HHH. I should point out that The Rock would be making his return from filming duties to wrestle again as Jamie Noble makes his ppv debut. The tournament semi-finals would pit Rob Van Dam against Chris Jericho and Test against Brock Lesnar. Other matches include Eddie Guerrero vs Ric Flair (who turned face immediately after the Austin feud as I predicted) and Trish Stratus vs Molly Holly in what should be a good women's title match.

June 23, 2002

NATIONWIDE ARENA

Columbus, OH

Commentators: Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler

Match 1

Rob Van Dam vs Chris Jericho (KOTR semi-finals)

Van Dam had advanced by pinning Eddie Guerrero and X-Pac on Raw while Jericho took a forfeit from Edge (out with a shoulder injury) and a submission victory over Val Venis on Smackdown. Rob had previously won the IC title back from Eddie Guerrero but the title is not on the line in this match. Jericho gets the early advantage as JR shills the both of them. Jericho hits a shoulderblock and says "I'm the king of the world". They do a series of leapfrogs before Van Dam gets the upper hand but Jericho counters and the crowd gives them a standing O at the end. Rob then does his R.....V....D taunt in Jericho's face so Y2J slaps him across the face. Rob boots him in the face in retaliation. Van Dam hits a rolling monkey flip and a spinning leg drop which merrits a 2 count. A minor ECW chant breaks out as Jericho hits his facelock takedown and then puts the boots to him. Y2J hits a spinning heel kick but misses the second rope dropkick on the apron....and goes flying over the top rope to the floor. Rob hits a sommersault plancha before heaving Chris back in and going upstairs. Rob hits a one legged missle dropkick and goes for the 5-star but Jericho alertly kicks the referee into the ropes, crotching Van Dam in the process. Rob and Chris go back up top but this time Y2J hits a double-arm suplex but the cover only gets 2. Jericho goes to work in the corner but a charge eats boot, and Rob hits a drop toe hold cradle combo for another 2 count. Y2J quickly gains momentum with a clothesline then exposes the turnbuckle. Rob catches Jericho with a cradle from out of nowhere but the ref is busy trying to put the turnbuckle back on. Chris hits the facebuster that pinned Rob at Survivor Series but this time he kicks out. Jericho begins choking rob on the second rope and then with a roll of athletic tape. Jericho goes for a running jump but Rob moves out of the way, causing Chris to crotch himself on the second rope. Chris sends Rob off the ropes and catches him with a knee to the mid-section then locks in a surfboard. King mentions a possible all-Canadian final with Jericho against Test as JR brings up the Canadians victory over the USA in the Ice Hockey final of the 2002 Winter Olympics. Ugh, you had to mention that?? They trade blows before Rob moves and Jericho goes shoulder first into the ringpost. Rob hits 2 spinning heel kicks in succession and then a springboard savate kick. Rob hits a step-over heel kick and a cartwheel moonsault for the 1.....2...noooo. Jericho hops over a sweep attempt by Rob and hits a standing enziguri. The cover gets 1...2..nope, Rob kicks out and you can hear a clear Y2J chant being overdubbed with an RVD chant. Jericho goes for the facebuster but Rob blocks it, then Jericho ducks under a heel kick and hits an overhead German suplex for a long 2 count. Jericho catches Rob with a kick to the face but charges into a hot-shot by Van Dam. Rob hits the split-legged moonsault for a 2 count and hits a shoulderblock/backflip combo but Jericho rolls into a sunset flip. Jericho goes for the Walls of Jericho but Rob turns into an inside cradle for a 2 count. Rob catches Chris mid-air and slingshots him into the exposed corner, but Chris lands feet first on the second rope but jumps into a crescent kick. Jericho rams Rob face first into the exposed steel and rolls him up for the 1..2...NOOOOOOOO. Jericho can't believe it and hits the facebuster but misses the lionsault. Rob hits a back-heel kick and goes upstairs but misses the 5-star frog splash attempt. Jericho finally hits the lionsault but Rob shockingly gets the shoulder up. Rob goes for a frankensteiner but Jericho turns it into the Walls of Jericho. Rob makes it to the ropes and crawls onto the apron, where Jericho rams him into the ring post. Jericho goes upstairs but Rob crotches him and when Chris falls off....Van Dam hits the 5-star frog splashes and covers for the 1..2..3...that's it. Rob Van Dam advances to the finals as Lawler hits the ring to get a word with Rob. Right then and there I knew something was up because King never does this and sure enough, Jericho pulls a sore loser and attacks Rob from behind. Jericho locks in the Walls of Jericho before the refs pull him off as JR calls him a pathetic loser. I guess the point of this was to put Van Dam over as the face long-shot (Roberts in 96, X-Pac in 98) to win the finals. Very good opener with no rest-holds.

Time of Match: 14:32

Winner: Rob Van Dam by pinfall

 The next segment is Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar in the locker-room beaming about Van Dam getting attacked. Heyman imitates Godzilla and says that the monster is fake but Brock is real and says the time is now to prove the next big thing....is the next big king. The 6'6 Test was pretty much the next logical step since Lesnar had destroyed everyone he's come in contact with at this point.

Match 2

Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) vs Test (KOTR semi-finals)

Brock had made mincemeat out of Bubba Ray Dudley and Booker T on Raw while Test snuck by The Hurricaine and Hardcore Holly on Smackdown to set up this match. Brock enters to the theme song everyone knows today although I still say his first one back in April wasn't so bad. JR brings up Lesnar's dominance in his Minnesota wrestling days as Test stares him down. Test is actually taller than Brock but the sheer mass of Lesnar makes Test look scrawny in comparison. They lock up to star but Lesnar powers Test in the corner and hits a series of hard shoulderblocks. Lesnar works over Test but a charge in the corner eats elbow and Test hits a series of clotheslines. Test goes for the big boot but Lesnar retreats under the rope and re-groups with Heyman who says "watch the boot!" Test continues to work Brock over in the corner and stomps a mudhole in him. This is the first time since Lesnar's debut he looks in any form of danger but on cue Lesnar takes over with right hands. Lesnar bull rushes but eats another elbow, then Test mistakenly charges into a spinebuster. Lesnar hits a hard irish whip that floors Test and begins stomping away. A slugfest ensues before Lesnar hits a back suplex for a near fall. Brock picks him up and hits a backbreaker but Test rallies with fists and an inverted atomic drop. Test charges but Lesnar hits a powerslam and covers for a 2 count. They botch a sleeper hold attempt so Lesnar hits forearms to the back but runs into a side-slam by Test. Brock recovers quickly although Test hits a running clothesline into the corner followed by another one and finishes with a full-nelson slam. Test goes for the pump handle slam but Lesnar blocks it. Test goes for it again and hits it for the 1..2....NOOOO Lesnar kicks out. Test misses the big boot and Brock counters with a powerbomb attempt, but Test blocks it and goes for another boot and catches him with it. The cover gets 1.....2..nope. Brock kicks out and Test can't believe it. Test goes for another big boot but Heyman hops up on the apron and distracts him long enough for Brock to sneak up and hit the F-5. 1..2....3 that's it and Lesnar advances to the finals against Rob Van Dam. Not as terrible as I thought it would be but not a good match, it served its purpose of setting up Lesnar's push.

Time of Match: 8:18

Winner: Brock Lesnar by pinfall

    The next segment is Jonathan Coachman in the Raw locker-room interviewing Bubba Ray Dudley about who he thinks is going to win the King of the Ring finals. In the background you can see Matt Hardy, Bradshaw and Shawn Stasiak...what a crew. Bubba says that Lesnar is going to win although he prefers Van Dam. Next is some dorkus malorkus in the Smackdown locker room interviewing Lance Storm and Christian, and they say that it should be an all-Canadian final and scoff its an all-American. Christian says the company and America are prejudicial against Canadians.....apparently this is where the whole Un-Americans storyline started. On to the next match..

Match 3

Jamie Noble (with Nidia) vs The Hurricane for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship

The Jung Dragons vs 3 Count feud apparently is alive after all as Jamie Noble (Jamie-san) faces The Hurricaine (Shane Helms) for the Cruiserweight title. Noble is making his debut as a redneck and Nidia is his ditzy sidekick. The storyline to this is rather absurd as Nidia is the ex-g/f of The Hurricaine who he dumped, so she's with Noble to get revenge. I thought the Hurricaine character was kind of funny for a while but it really held back Helms' career. They tie up to start and Hurricaine sends him flying and then hits a roll up before they do a chain wrestling sequence. Noble gets the upperhand in the corner and King asks JR if he's ever been in a trailor park before. Hurricaine gets offense in but Noble blocks the chokeslam attempt. Hurricaine hits a superkick and applies a leg-lock chokehold as the crowd chants "She's a crackwhore" Noble reverses Hurricaine and Nidia grabs his leg, causing Shane to run to the outside and chase her but eats a clothesline from Noble. Jamie covers him inside for a 2 count and then goes on offense as JR and King debate over King's infatuation with women half his age. "Look at the way she squats JR" says King as JR scoffs and says "Squats??!! who does squats in wrestling?" Noble locks in an abdominal stretch and turns it into a back suplex for a near fall. Hurricaine hits an inside cradle and a flying bodypress for near falls but Noble stalls the momentum with a backdrop. The ensuing cover gets a 2 as Noble locks in a horrible rings of saturn. King makes sexual references toward Nidia as JR scoffs and prefers to call the action. Hurricaine hits his arm-cross takedown and then a sleeper hold, but Noble counters with a jawbreaker. Noble hits a sleeper of his own (Hayes: Is this 2002 or 1982) and Hurricaine revives with fists then scores with a neckbreaker. Noble runs into the corner but Hurricaine hits the blockbuster, which Noble counters at 2. Hurricaine goes for the finisher but Jamie counters with a bridged german suplex for a long 2 count. Hurricaine quickly recovers and finally hits his finisher for 1...2..noooo, Jamie-San kicks out. Hurricaine goes for the cape but Nidia snatches it away. Hurricaine then tries to suplex Noble on the apron but Jamie misjudges the distance and lands hard on the outside. Hurricaine goes upstairs and hits a flying bodypress. Hurricaine rolls Jamie inside and then Nidia kisses him to distract long enough for Noble to hit a baseball slide. They both go upstairs from opposite ends of the apron and Hurricaine hits a neckbreaker from the top rope. Hurricaine goes for the cover but Nidia hops up to distract the ref before Hurricaine comes over and gives her the business. Noble charges but Helms moves out of the way causing Noble to crash into Nidia and into a Hurricaine chokeslam. The cover gets 1...2...NOOOOOO, the crowd thought that it was over. Hurricaine goes upstairs but Noble runs into the ropes causing Helms to crotch himself.  Noble hits a powerbomb and covers but Hurricaine puts his foot on the rope...until Nidia knocks it off (BRILLIANT) for the 1..2...3 to end the match. JR scoffs but Jamie Noble is the new WWE Cruiserweight champion in a decent match that was kind of dumbed down with the gimmicks. Nidia then pounces on Jamie in the ring and they celebrate as King squeals. Again...good match, bad gimmicks.

Time of Match: 11:38

Winner: Jamie Noble by pinfall (New Crusierweight champion)

The next segment shows the return of The Rock on Heat as the crowd goes wild. We then go to Terri who interviews Eddie Guerrero about his match with Ric Flair by showing what happened last week on Raw when Benoit turned heel on an interview saying Flair drove Steve Austin out of WWE and he's ruining his life as well as Eddie's. The whole purpose of this match was because Flair lost a winner-take-all match on Raw to Vince McMahon so the whole co-owner storyline could end. Now Flair is just an active performer and his first feud will be against Guerrero. This should be a good match which actually happened 6 years earlier in WCW with a lot less fanfare. In the actual interview Eddie says hi to his brothers and about a hundred different women (in real life he was separated from Vicki at this time and he shockingly knocked his g/f at the time up). Guerrero then says Flair can't do half the moves Eddie can and mocks Flair about his "one last run". Flair's last run would last about six more years.

Match 4

Ric Flair vs Eddie Guerrero

 This should be a good match but the key word is should. Flair makes his entrance as JR brings up how Brock Lesnar's interference led to Flair's downfall in his match with Vince (and later Brock pinned Flair to cement his status as a legitimate main eventer) They tie up to start as JR says Eddie is younger and faster but Flair is the dirtiest player in the game. They both stall, Guerrero says WOOOOOOO and JR tells how Austin walked out in the middle of his feud with Guerrero. They do a leapfrog segment which ends with a dropkick by Guerrero then Flair regroups on the outside. Eddie taunts but Flair nearly corner chops him out of the ring. Eddie rolls to the outside as Flair struts inside, too much stalling going on here especially with 4 matches still to come. Guerrero goes to work in the corner with chops of his own before Flair reverses it. He hits headlock with punches combo followed by a low-blow. King says "Latino Heat has cooled off". Flair continues to hit rights and lefts in the corner before hitting a chop off the irish whip, then Eddie retreats to the outside to regroup. They stall some more before Eddie finally sommersaults back in about 2 minutes later and hits a nice takedown. Flair turns a facelock into a suplex but Guerrero counters with a dropkick to the left knee. Eddie then goes to work on the left leg with stomps and elbow drops before Flair counters a figure four attempt with an inside cradle for a near fall. Eddie chops Ric in the corner and then locks in a hold then rams the left leg into the ring post. Guerrero slingshots himself from the apron into a knee drop then does the same thing out of the ring onto the left leg. Back inside Guerrero locks in a figure four as JR says Buddy Rogers was the first to use the figure four. Eddie milks it for momentum as Flair oversells it to death, but that's how you put people over. Ric finally makes it to the ropes then is attacked in the corner by Eddie with fists. Eddie hits a snapmare then a rolling blockbuster but Flair counters with chops. Eddie then hits another snapmare and a rest hold as the crowd goes to get some nachos. Flair backs Eddie into the corner and they exchange chops before Eddie goes for the ol thumb to the eye. Flair ducks a charge and Guerrero goes flying outside as Flair does the "Flair Flop". Guerrero snaps Flair off the top and hits a vertical suplex before going for the frogsplash. Eddie dives off but misses so Flair hits a chopblock and teases a figure-four attempt as Chris Benoit walks to ringside. Flair finally hits the figure-four as Benoit cheers on Eddie but doesn't attack just yet. Eddie makes it to the ropes but Flair continues to work over Eddie with chops before Eddie reverses a suplex into a rolling prawn for a long 2 count. Eddie hits a backslide for 2 and they trie to do a rising backslide but Eddie can't lift Flair so he just gets off. Ric chops Eddie in the corner but a charge eats elbow as Guerrero goes upstairs. Eddie hits a tornado ddt and covers but Flair gets the foot on the rope. Eddie stomps and punches away and as the ref restrains Eddie, Benoit pulls Flair out and locks in the crippler crossface. The ref goes outside and gives Benoit the heave-ho as Guerrero complains from the inside. All of a sudden Bubba Ray Dudley comes through the crowd and hits the Bubba-Bomb on Eddie as Benoit breaks free and chases him away. Ric crawls over and covers for 1....2....3.. to win the match. Benoit comes back inside to chase Flair away but Ric comes away the winner. Eddie looked really impressive I must admit but there was too much stalling, also it was great to see Chris Benoit again since his return from neck surgery. Like I mentioned on the Backlash review, Guerrero probably had to job for awhile because of his previous reckless behavior to earn Vince's trust back. Slowly but surely Eddie would climb back into the good graces.

Time of Match: 17:00

Winner:  Ric Flair by pinfall

 The next segment is a Get the F out commercial which I already explained in my Judgement Day piece and then going to The World in NYC where William Regal and Christopher Nowinski complain that other people got their orders before they did. This would be the ppv debut of Nowinski as an active performer since his Tough Enough days. When their orders arrive Nowinski mocks the girl for going to a community college so she spits in his soup before serving it. After the hijinks we go to the next match

Match 5

Molly Holly vs Trish Stratus for the WWE Women's Championship

 This should be a good match although it would lead to a very very stupid and untrue storyline, but I'll get to that in due process. Molly starts off with a bodyslam and an elbow drop for a 2 count as JR and King scoff at Molly's "virgin ways". Molly hits a back bodydrop and a hair-pull takedown as King tries to get a "She's a fat-ass" chant going. Before I go any further I'd like to point out this was the first storyline was based purely on an out and out lie. There's a difference in saying Umaga's a dirty samoan since Umaga the character is from Samoa even though the real life man is not, but saying Molly Holly has a big ass when she actually doesn't is really dumbing down the fans IQ's worse then they already are. Anyway Molly continues to beat up Trish until Stratus rallies with right hands. JR further tries to stir the pot by saying "I betcha Molly's never worn a thong in her life" shame on you JR, I expect that from King not from you! Molly hits a decent Fujiwara armbar takedown as Trish oversells it as usual. King "What kind of thong do you wear JR?" Ross "That is a repulsive thing to even envision, you're gonna make little kids run to their rooms." Molly hits an axehandle to the back as JR says its against Oklahoma state laws to sell thongs to men. Trish goes for a boot but Molly catches the foot, so Trish turns it into a victory roll...beautiful. Trish ducks under a clothesline and hits a neckbeaker for a nearfall then throws Molly against the rope into a rolling prawn for another 2 count. Molly hits a drop-toe hold and Trish goes crashing into the second rope. Molly chokes down Trish with her boot and then dropkicks Stratus to the outside. Molly rolls out and throws her against the ring and over the barricade into the crowd. JR brings up the upcoming Divas Undressed event (another unmitigated disaster). Molly taunts the crowd and Trish chick kicks her off the apron as King says "Would you play naked twister with Molly?" JR "No I wouldn't, I'm a happily married man" The thought of those two together makes me long for Bushwhackers match but luckily Trish and Molly continue to entertain. Trish hits the stratusphere on Molly off the top rope and then chops her into the ropes before spanking herself in a taunting fashion. Molly then misses a clothesline so Trish continues the assault and then hits a clothesline. Trish hits another chick kick and goes for the Stratusfaction, but Molly counters with a bridging german suplex for the 1..2...NOOO, Trish kicks out. Molly hits a hairgrab takeover and goes upstairs as King and JR debate on what to call the Molly Go Round. Its funny how these 2 coincidentally just noticed the size of Molly's posterior since she's been on the active roster for three years at the time. Anyway Molly misses the attempt and Trish rolls her up, but Molly rolls through it and hooks the tights for the 1...2...3 and we got a new champion. King says it was the survival of the fattest even though Trish was pretty much the same size. From an athletic standpoint it was a great match but the stupid storyline ruins everything.

Time of Match: 5:41

Winner: Molly Holly by pinfall (new Women's champion)

The next segment has the same dorkus malorkus from earlier interviewing Kurt Angle about his upcoming match with Hulk Hogan. Kurt still wears the wig/headgear combo and scoffs at the title of the match being Battle of the Real American Heroes. Kurt "What the hell....did Hulk Hogan ever do to become a real American hero? The only reason Hogan became a real American hero is because Vince made him one. If Vince wanted Hogan to be a zoo-keeper, he would have been a zoo-keeper."  Its a wonder Hogan didn't sue Angle for that like he did Russo for calling him bald. We then go up to Michael Cole and Tazz to show us a highlight package of how this started. Hogan said he was going to retire and then Vince McMahon came out and said hellllll no (from a storyline standpoint wouldn't he have been overjoyed to have Hogan out of his hair?) Then Kurt Angle attacked and set up this match.

Match 6

Hulk Hogan vs Kurt Angle

In his only other King of the Ring appearance, Hogan was defeated by Yokozuna and left WWE shortly after, lets hope history repeats itself. For whatever reason the crowd goes nuts over Hogan's entrance complete with Voodoo Child (RIP Jimi). The announcers make fun of Kurt's baldness but also allude to Hogan's near-baldness and I wonder if Hogan would sue....wait I already asked that earlier. A lot of lawsuits would be going around if this were WCW, but luckily its WWE. The crowd chants for Hogan while the bell starts and they circle around as JR shills the both of them. Hogan tosses Angle into the corner and taunts him but Angle hits a standing go behind. Angle turns a headlock into a top wrist-lock as Hogan still has the bandana and Angle has the wig on. During the downtime King says there are Hulkamaniacs in Tanzania, and the fans sure loved the shoulderblock Hogan hits on Angle. Kurt rolls to the outside and regroups as Hogan taunts from inside the ring. Angle goes for punch/kick offense and hits a clothesline as Hogan looks a step too slow. What I mean is when Angle whipped Hogan, he was already in clothesline position as Hogan jogged off the ropes and how's Hogan supposed to make this look interesting if Angle's moving too fast? Hogan sidesteps Kurt and heaves him over the top to the floor. Hogan goes outide and hulka punches him before sending Kurt into the black barricade. Hogan rams Angle's head into the turnbuckle 9 times and hits a windup punch for the 10. Hogan goes to remove the wig but Angle counters with a boot to the nads. Kurt stomps away before chopping him in the corner followed by right hands. Kurt hits a back suplex as JR defends Hogan by saying he's entertained fans all over the world for over 20 years. Angle hits another back suplex and covers for a near fall before choking him with his knee in the second rope. JR says a lot of people from other countries cheer Hogan but King answers by saying "Well people around the world cheer Hogan only because they probably hate Angle, after all Angle beat their best representatives that their countries had to offer in the Olympics." Good point.....but Hogan counters a suplex attempt with a vertical one of his own. Hogan ducks under a clothesline and hits a scoop slam as King asks JR who Angle beat for the Gold Medal and Ross answers "an Iraqi" so King says "Yeah, I betcha there aren't any fans of Kurt Angle in Iraq" Actually Jadidi was Iranian but never let the truth interfere with a cheap-shot against the country you're at war with. Angle locks in a sleeperhold (yawn) as Hogan does the fade then revive routine. Hogan counters into a sleeper of his own, but Kurt hits a back suplex to stall the momentum. Hogan misses a clothesline so Kurt hits the angleslam and covers for the 1...2...noooo Hogan got the shoulder up. Kurt pulls the straps down but Hogan hulks up......oh great. Hogan hits the punches and the big boot as the crowd goes wild, then he pulls the wig and headgear off. Hogan goes for another big boot so Kurt rolls outside and taunts him. Kurt teases walking away but then grabs a steel cheer and runs inside, only to hit himself with the chair and get caught with a big boot by Hogan. Hogan goes for the leg drop but Kurt catches the leg on the way down and turns it into the ankle lock. JR screams "Has Hogan ever tapped out? Has Hogan ever given up?" Apparently he never saw Starrcade 97 where Hogan lost by submission to Sting. Anyway Hogan reaches for the ropes but Kurt pulls him back to the center of the ring as the crowd gets a "Hogan" chant going. Hogan rolls over and tries to kick him off but Kurt hangs on. Hogan makes it to the ropes but Kurt pulls him away and back into the center where Hulk TAPS OUT! Angle wins by submission and he puts the wig and headgear back on. The announcers speculate if Hogan hadn't taunted Angle when he pulled the wig off, he would have won by count-out. At least Hogan is willing to put over younger and more athletic stars (or maybe Vince ordered him to) because from an in-ring standpoint Angle was a much better wrestler and not a bad performer. At this point in his career with his prime days long gone, the least he could do would use his drawing power to have high profile matches with the likes of Lesnar, Angle, Rock and others. This was actually pretty good by Hogan standards.

Time of Match: 12:08

Winner: Kurt Angle by pinfall

The next segment is Booker T and Goldust in the back discussing the return of The Rock. Booker T was kicked out of the nWo by the new leader.....SHAWN MICHAELS. Yes, the retired Shawn Michaels who was one of the primary adversaries of the nWo during the Nitro vs Raw heydey until he suffered the back injury. Anyway Goldust is dressed as The Rock and begins cutting a promo until the real Rock shows up. The Rock shows Goldust how to do the cheap plug promo and goes completely off with a killer rhyme before Booker answers with an equally good one. Goldust tries to join in but can't and The Rock and Booker just stare at him. The Rock then says he's going to watch the main event but runs down Goldust in the process. The Rock then says he and Booker will team up to beat the crap out of the nWo. After the hilarity its on to the Finals.

Match 7

Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) vs Rob Van Dam (KOTR Finals)

 Ah yes, the classic rested steamrolling heel (Bam Bam, Mabel, Austin) against the never-say die exhausted babyface (Bret, Vega, Roberts) Finals match. Van Dam comes out and looks fine, so there goes that previous statement. Once again, Van Dam's IC title is not on the line but what's at stake is an automatic shot at whoever the champion is at Summerslam. Heyman is on the apron saying "You're one victory away Brock, one victory away." Heyman drops down as the bell rings, then Brock starts by driving Rob into the corner but Rob starts with quick fists. Rob kicks the right leg a few times before backsaulting over Brock to delive a crescent kick. Rob goes for the monkey flip in the corner but Lesnar hits a powerbomb to stall the momentum. Lesnar puts the boots to Van Dam then drives him into the corner before doing the same in the opposite one. Brock hits a huge powerslam and covers for a near-fall before putting more boots to him. Brock hits 2 consecutive back-breakers and then a bear hug as JR says Heyman isn't one of his favorite people. Brock drives him into the corner again and hits football shoulderblocks but misses a charge and eats ringpost. Brock tries to counter a heel kick but Van Dam rolls out of the running powerslam attempt and once again goes for the legs of Lesnar. Rob hits 2 jump kicks that barely fazes Brock then hits one from the top rope that does floor him. Rob hits rolling thunder and covers but Brock throws Van Dam off like he was nothing. Rob hits a spinning leg drop and goes upstairs and hits the 5-star frog splash. Heyman hops up and snaps Rob off the top rope, who then falls right on top of Lesnar for 1...2...NOOOOOO Brock just got the shoulder up and a lot of people thought that was the finish. Heyman almost has a heart attack and then Rob hits a baseball slide to knock the hat off exposing Paul's bald head. Rob goes back upstairs and tries a bodypress but Brock catches him mid-air and hits the F-5. Brock covers for  1....2....3 that's it, Brock Lesnar is the 2002 King of the Ring. From an athletic and storyline standpoint it makes sense to put Brock over this way and also brings back memories of Yokozuna who beat Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 9 for the WWF title.....which was Yoko's 5th month in the company. No matter who the champion is at Summerslam, Brock Lesnar awaits.

Time of Match: 5:42

Winner: Brock Lesnar by pinfall (2002 King of the Ring)

 The next segment is HHH walking into the nWo and is greeted by Shawn Michaels and Kevin Nash....and they proceed to group hug. He then smiles and hugs X-Pac but barely gives Big Show a look. The point of this was to show the nWo had HHH's back although HHH was on Smackdown. Its funny because the watered down nWo had in essence only Big Show and X-Pac as active workers since Shawn had been retired for years with a back injury and Nash was healing a torn quad. We go back up to Michael Cole and Tazz who gives us a run-down on the feud. Those who've been following my reviews to this point knows the background to the feud, but to those who don't I'll give a quick run-down. HHH met Hulk Hogan for the WWE title at Backlash and thanks to The Undertaker, Hogan came away with the strap. The next month Taker beat Hogan for the title and since HHH never got his rematch with Hogan, he pertained the right to face Taker for the title. During the highlight package it shows that HHH comes out and saves Randy Orton from a beatdown....yes, THAT Randy Orton who was still a rookie on Smackdown. Was this ever mentioned again? Also was a number one contender's match between Hogan and HHH and Hunter actually pinned Hogan clean with the pedigree.....talk about Hogan seeing the error of his ways. Anyway you know the drill, Taker vs HHH again but this time The Rock is going to be on hand, basically saying he's got winner next month at Vengeance.

Match 8

HHH vs The Undertaker for the WWE Heavyweight Championship

 As if we didn't see a long match between these 2 last month at Insurrextion, I suppose we have to sit through another one. Luckily we got a saving grace because Paul Heyman decided to join in on commentary. They stare down in the middle and they exchange blows as HHH gets the upper hand. Taker eats an elbow but works over HHH in the corner as referee Earl Hebner says "HEY! HEY!" HHH hits a choke takedown and clotheslines him over the top rope to the floor. HHH rams Taker's head into the steel steps and HHH whips him into them. HHH works over Taker before both roll inside where Taker goes on offense. Taker hits a series of fists in the corner as Heyman asks why HHH's elbow is all taped up. Undertaker misses a big boot and crotches himself in the turnbuckle, then HHH hits a 10 punch in the corner before Taker hot-shots him. Taker hits hits a clothesline and covers for a 1 count. Heyman asks "Hey King, wouldn't you sell six of your nine ex wives for a shot at the title?"  Taker hits a headbutt and more slow placed maneuvers before HHH rallies, only to be hit with a side slam by Big Evil. Taker chokes HHH on the second rope and then attacks him on the apron with a leg drop. A cover gets a near fall and HHH begins to fire back with fists, but eats a big boot. Taker heaves HHH outside and rams his had into the steel steps, but Hunter counters with a suplex on the floor. Back inside Taker scores with a clothesline and a leg drop for another 2 count. Taker goes for a superplex as Heyman tells a cockamamie story of how Lesnar beat up The Rock in the backstage area. HHH blocks the superplex and then hits a back suplex, but HHH counters with a flying clothesline. Taker exposes the turnbuckle and goes to ram HHH it, but Hunter counters and whips Taker into it. HHH ducks under a clothesline and hits a neckbreaker. HHH hits a sloppy looking spinebuster and covers for a near fall then Taker hits snake eyes on the exposed steel but HHH hits a high knee. Didn't even sell the snake eyes for 2 seconds, but he does sell the ddt Taker hits. HHH and Taker exchange blows then Taker slingshots HHH into Hebner. Taker charges but HHH rolls out of the way and he splashes Hebner instead. Hebner falls like a dead deer and they hit a bad looking double clothesline which leaves both HHH and Taker sprawled out. IF YA SMELLLLLL, WHAT THE ROCK...... IS COOKIN blares over the speakers and The Rock makes his entrance. The Rock chases Paul Heyman away and sits in on commentary, he then tells how Lesnar didn't attack him but shook his hand instead. Taker rolls outside and grabs a chair as The Rock shills the 2 men inside. HHH blocks the chairshot with boots and hits a facebuster before clotheslining him over the top rope to the floor. HHH and Taker go at it outside and Taker suddenly big boots The Rock into Carlos Cabrera knocking them both down. Taker grabs another chair and goes to hit HHH but The Rock cuts him off and fires away with punches, Rock grabs the chair and goes to hit Taker but he ducks and Rock levels HHH instead causing Hunter to blade. Taker heaves Rock into the ringpost and rolls HHH inside then calls for the last ride. Taker hits the last ride but Hebner is still down and out, until Nick Patrick hits the ring and counts for 1....2..nooo. Taker "What the hell was that?" then he knocks Nick Patrick out. Rock back inside punches away and hits the rock bottom on Taker then leaves the ring for good. We got 2 referee's down, HHH is down, Undertaker is down....look at the carnage. HHH crawls over and drapes the arm over but Hebner takes too long and Taker kicks out at 2. Both take forever to get back up but HHH hits the pedigree out of nowhere, but he's got no energy to cover him. He finally rolls over and covers but Hebner is still recovering, so he drags the carcas to the center of the ring where Taker hits a low blow on Hunter. Taker rolls up HHH for 1.....2.....3 and Taker retains the title. JR "We've all respected The Undertaker for his accomplishments, but his attitude sucks!" Taker then taunts The Rock by the entrance way after the match which sets him off and bolts to the ring. The Rock fires at Taker with rights and hits a spinebuster. He then hits the people's elbow but as he celebrates he runs into HHH who hits the pedigree, which is understandable. HHH turns around into a chokeslam by The Undertaker. Taker leaves with the title as Rock and HHH are sprawled out in the ring, this should set up Vengeance nicely. Bad match but the return of The Rock made it special.

Time of Match: 23:44

Winner: The Undertaker by pinfall (still WWE Champion)

 

  From an in-ring standpoint this was one of the better ppv's of the year but with the stupid gimmicks and hot-shot booking, the ppv didn't draw the ratings it was supposed to. The only match that wasn't that great was the main event but even the return of The Rock saved that one. Its too bad things turned out the way they did as this would be the last King of the Ring ppv and the last tournament for four years. The next PPV would be Vengeance.  3 Stars out of 5 because the in-ring action was hot....but the buildup and storylines were agoobwa (so bad I had to make up a word).

WWF Backlash 2002 (4/21/02)

This was the official last American ppv under the name WWF. As it turned out, it was released under the WWE name so technically this is the first WWE ppv in which to work with. This is partially why the ratings dropped like a bomb because the casual fans were confused. Let me give you an insight of what was going on at the time before we continue. In mid April 2002 Vince McMahon was battling a lawsuit over the copyright to the name WWF by the World Wildlife Foundation. Now rather than settle out of court and pay them on advertising and what not, Vince decided to let the Wildlifers win the battle and he changed the name of World Wrestling Federation to World Wrestling Entertainment. Now in Vince's mind, it was no big deal....after all he changed the name from World Wide Wrestling Federation to World Wrestling Federation in the early 80's so it wasn't like changing names was never done before. What Vince failed to realize was that changing the name in today's age was a huge deal. The NYSE, the internet and just about everything else had to change and part of the suit was they could no longer say the letters WWF in that specific order. Now Vince had to change the logos, the stock info, the website, everything. It became a huge mess and casual fans were confused.

   The second biggest change was after Wrestlemania, Vince decided to have two brands so to speak which meant wrestlers would only work on either Raw or Smackdown. Hardcore fans thought this was a good idea because seeing the same guys on two shows every week really sped up the decline of their buyrates, TV ratings and merch sales. WCW stars that were hot in 1995 were old in 1998 for the very same reason, being on tv too much gets people bored faster. Unfortunately the problem with this was Smackdown was on network television while Raw was on cable, meaning people without cable could no longer see guys like Kane or Steve Austin or anyone else on Raw. The second problem was the WWE champion can appear on both shows but that would over-expose him as well, not to mention having to fly to arenas for Raw and then fly to arenas for Smackdown. While it was a good idea in some aspects to split into brands, the drawbacks would further confuse fans and led to a rapid downfall of ratings. Now then, lets move on to the review.

    Backlash 02 was the site of one of the most infamous matches of all time. The previous month at Wrestlemania, HHH had beaten Chris Jericho to win the WWF undisputed title and on the same show, Hulk Hogan lost to The Rock and revived Hulkamania in the process. Somehow even though The Rock won the match, Hogan became number 1 contender to HHH and they would wrestle for the belt at Backlash. The two biggest ego-maniacs in wrestling will go at it and someone has to do the job, question is who is the unlucky one?

APRIL 21, 2002

KEMPER ARENA

KANSAS CITY, MO

Commentators: Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler

Match 1

Billy Kidman vs Tajiri (with Torrie Wilson) for the WWF Cruiserweight championship

  This was right in the middle of Tajiri's heel turn so he's got Torrie unwillingly dressing in kimonos. Kidman enters to his cool old school WCW music and we're set to go. I will no longer be reviewing matches blow for blow but I'll try to get most of the action that I can. Ross starts off by mentioning Tajiri had beaten Kidman for the title last October in the same arena. Tajiri is shoved down but nips back up and they do a sequence of flips and takedowns before Tajiri chops Kidman in the corner. Kidman returns the favor and goes for a hurracarrana but Tajiri catches him and slingshots him into the turnbuckle. Kidman lands on the second rope and delivers a flying dropkick and goes for the cover. After a 2 count,  Kidman goes on the offensive as the crowd chants for Torrie. Tajiri slides to the outside and grabs Kidman's legs and proceeds to pull him out and drop him face first on the guard-rail. Tajiri throws Kidman inside and goes on the offensive as JR talks about Tajiri's heel turn and Lawler makes a racist comment on how Tajiri will take his money and open a "Tall Man" shop in Tokyo. Tajiri drops Kidman on the first rope then slides out of the ring and hits a kick on Kidman's head. He taunts the crowd gets back in and applies a rest hold as JR brings up the feud started when Tajiri knocked Kidman out cold with one of his kicks on Smackdown. Kidman powers out of it, bounces off the ropes and hits a hurracarrana before Tajiri catches him on the second attempt with an around the world backbreaker. Tajiri ties Kidman up in the tree of woe and tells the crowd "Shutaaapppppp" before hitting his trademark dropkick in the corner. Tajiri rolls out and does a bow and arrow using the ring post for leverage and kicks him for good measure. Tajiri rolls back in and goes on offense while King screams for Torrie's puppies. Tajiri tries a backbreaker submission but Kidman rolls through and gets a 2 count. Tajiri goes back on the offensive with elbows and kicks and JR says Tajiri has a degree in economics which shocks Lawler. Kidman rallies and charges in the corner but Tajiri avoids it and tries a tarantula. Kidman blocks it and Tajiri kicks him from the apron, then leaps over the rope and somehow gets the tarantula locked on. Nice spot and Tajiri signals for his buzzkick but misses it and Kidman rallies again. Kidman whips Tajiri and he tries his cartwheel back elbow but Kidman counters with a dropkick to the back. A cover gets 2, Tajiri then rolls through a backdrop and spin kicks him Savio Vega style in the back of the head. Tajiri and Kidman hit a series of reversals before Tajiri hits a German suplex for a 2 count, and then turns into a rolling prawn hold for another 2 count. The crowd cheers the spots as Tajiri goes back on the offensive and hits a savate kick but the cover gets 2. Kidman turns a powerbomb into a facebuster but the cover gets a long 2 count. Kidman goes for the seven year itch but Tajiri moves out of the way and hits his buzzkick. Tajiri's cover gets a 2 count as Lawler wonders how Kidman kicked out. They end up on the top turnbuckle where Kidman hits a spinebuster but the cover only nets a 2. Kidman goes for a powerbomb but Tajiri sprays the red mist in his eyes, rolls through and gets a 1...2....3 to win the match and the title. Ross scoffs as Torrie applauds and Michael Cole hits ringside to interview him. Tajiri answers in Japenese to confuse everyone and Ross says Tajiri is the champion by hook or crook. Decent opener with some nice spots.

Time of match:  9:08

Winner: Tajiri by pinfall (new Cruiserweight champion)

  The next segment has the APA re-uniting for the first time since Bradshaw was drafted to Raw and Faarooq went to Smackdown. They chat for a bit before the nWo's music plays so Bradshaw heads off as we head to the next match. I initially thought that breaking up the APA was a bad idea but when Bradshaw became JBL two years later it turned into a good idea.

Match 2

Scott Hall (with X-Pac) vs Bradshaw

  After Hulk Hogan left the re-formulated nWo it was basically all down-hill from there. Kevin Nash got injured (in the storyline Flair "suspended" him) which left Scott Hall the only original member left. Vince tried to salvage the situation by bringing Big Show and X-Pac into the group. X-Pac enters besides Hall wearing Kane's mask and JR talks about how the nWo put Kane on the shelf (he'd come back later in the year with a new look). I was a huge Scott Hall fan growing up so when I saw him come back at No Way Out, I was thrilled. It didn't take long for me to find out he was still an alcoholic and his matches were no longer what they once were and I hoped this one would be different. Hall actually gets a loud face pop from the crowd though he's a heel and Bradshaw gets almost as big as one. X-Pac and Hall circle around Bradshaw before the APA music hits and out comes Faarooq to be in Bradshaw's corner. Hall throws his toothpick at Bradshaw and laughs before Bradshaw slugs him down. Bradshaw goes on the offensive and beats Hall around the ring before hitting a ddt.  A cover gets a 2 as Hall bails to the outside and backs into Faarooq. Hall slowly turns around and eats a right hand before Faarooq turns around and nails X-Pac for his troubles. Faarooq throws Scott in and Bradshaw goes back on the offensive and gets a 2 count after an elbow drop. Bradshaw resumes clubbing and chopping Hall and then hits a float over suplex for another 2 count. Bradshaw resumes slugging Hall and Scott staggers around as if he was drunk...then again I wouldn't doubt that he may have actually been so. Bradshaw gets another 2 count before Hall rallies and hits his around the world punch. Hall chokes Bradshaw on the second rope before X-Pac gets some cheap shots in. They trade blows and Hall goes on the offensive and hits a clothesline in the corner. Hall continues to go to work with boots in the corner before Bradshaw hits a shoulder tackle. When both men get up Bradshaw goes on the offensive and hits clubs and elbows before hitting a big boot. Bradshaw hits a running corner clothesline spot Hall had hit earlier. Hall reverses a whip but turns around into a clothesline from hell. Bradshaw covers but X-Pac puts Hall's foot on the rope to break the count. Faarooq chases X-Pac onto the apron where Bradshaw slugs him off and Faarooq catches him then rams him back first into the ringpost. Hall sneaks up behind Bradshaw and hits a low blow then cradles him up for the 1-2-3 to end the match. Hall and X-Pac and JR explain how Hall won the match. Bad match and it would turn out to be Hall's last ppv match as a wrestler for he would be fired for sexually harassing a flight attendant after INSURREXTION 2002, least he went out with a win.

Time of Match:  5:43

Winner: Scott Hall by pinfall

  The next segment is Vince McMahon barging into Ric Flair's office and sticks it to him for his recent misfortune of pissing off people on Raw. Flair says he'll never be Vince McMahon as Arn Anderson smirks and refuses a handshake. Guess the point of this was to hype the Austin/Taker showdown later on in the night.

Match 3

Trish Stratus vs Jazz for the WWF Women's Championship

   Jazz had recently won the title from the rapidly improving Trish so maybe this time Trish will get the upperhand? Up until the fall of 2001 Trish was a horrible wrestler if you can believe it, and through dedication and endless training she turned herself into the great wrestler she is today. Jazz is the opposite of Trish, she's not that attractive but she can kick some serious ass. Trish enters to a huge pop and Molly makes her entrance instead of Jazz. Molly cuts a heel promo and then attacks Trish, after giving her a beat-down Jazz makes her way to ring side and throws Trish in the ring like Molly wasn't even there and the match begins. Jazz goes on the offensive hitting a series of moves culminating in a sidewalk slam. Trish rallies and hits a clothesline but is thrown down seconds later. Jazz hits Tyson like left jabs before Trish counters with her own. Trish misses a right legged chick kick but lands one with her left and gets a 2 count. Trish goes on the offensive in the corner and hits a Stratusphere but Jazz pops up. Trish hits a series of clotheslines and then a neck-breaker which nets a 2 count. Jazz counters with a boot to the head (yeah yeah) and hits a sit-down powerbomb but the cover only gets 2. Jazz strangles Trish on the first rope. Jazz whips her into the corner but misses a stinger splash attempt but Trish's roll attempt gets 2. Trish goes for the Stratusfaction but Jazz counters with a back suplex. A cover gets a 2 count and Charles Robinson the referee goes "woah woah". Jazz whips her in the corner and counters a boot with a single leg takedown. Jazz locks in a Boston crab and Trish inches her way to the rope before Jazz turns into an STF where Trish submits. Action packed for 4 minutes with little rest holds, decent showing. JR says Molly Holly's interference cost Trish the match and Jazz should take her out to dinner. Some doofus I don't even know tries to interview Jazz after the match and she just walks off.

Time of match: 4:25

Winner: Jazz by submission (still Women's champion)

 The next segment is a replay of the previous Raw where Paul Heyman invades Lita's locker-room and begins playing with her panties (like he's never done this before?) before Lita walks in. Heyman says that Lesnar is gonna destroy Matt Hardy at the ppv unless Lita plays nice nice with Heyman (again, like she's never done that?) Later on in the show Heyman comes out to the ramp with Lita's bag and plays with her thongs and whatnot before Matt charges right into Brock Lesnar. Lesnar proceeds to F-5 Hardy into the steel ramp and puts him out of the ppv. Jeff Hardy takes his place instead and back to live action which shows Heyman telling Lesnar tonight's his night to shine, yeah no kidding. The start of a two year run begins.....now

Match 4

Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) vs Jeff Hardy (with Lita)

   Brock Lesnar was an NCAA wrestling heavyweight champion from the U of Minnesota and he's being booked as a monster heel so this should be a one sided squash. Lesnar comes out to cool music that's not his most famous theme, wonder whatever happened to that song. Hardy attacks at the opening bell but Lesnar quickly takes over with knees to the abdomen. Lesnar heaves Hardy underneath the rope as JR tells the crowd about Lesnar's amateur wrestling success. Hardy slides in the ring and when Lesnar jumps on the apron he's promptly dropkicked off. Jeff springboards onto Lesnar, who catches him but Hardy reverses a snake eyes and rams Lesnar into the steel post. Hardy hops on the top rope and hits a crossbody for a 2 count. Lesnar gets up and spears Hardy into the corner and rams him with shoulders. Lesnar throws him around and nails a series of greco-roman suplexes. Lesnar hits 3 back-breakers in a row as Heyman says that's for Lita. Lesnar stalks Hardy and Jeff tries to rally but Lesnar whips him hard off the corner. JR says that barely anyone in the WWF can match power with Brock and when he gets more experience he'll be a force to be reckoned with in the future, good call on that one. Lesnar whips Jeff into the corner where Hardy hits a whisper in the wind out of nowhere. Jeff hits a sitdown jawbreaker and then his inbetween the legs leg-drop. Jeff goes upstairs and hits the swanton bomb, but Lesnar powers out at 2. Jeff goes outside and gets a steel chair but Lesnar picks him up and nails te F-5. Heyman tells Lesnar not to pin up but hurt him so Lesnar hits a huge powerbomb, picks him up and does it again. Lesnar hits another powerbomb and referee Teddy Long stops the match. I think that's the first stoppage I've seen since 1999 but in terms of storyline and on-screen impact it was a good call. Impressive showing by Lesnar who hit power moves like Hardy was 100 lbs instead of 200. This was just the beginning for Brock now known as The Next Big Thing and the next step was conquering more than The Hardy Boyz.

Time of Match: 5:31

Winner: Brock Lesnar by stoppage

  The next segment is a highlight package for the upcoming Edge vs Kurt Angle showdown. The highlight was when Edge humiliated Angle by posting "I suck" under pictures, you'd have to see it to appreciate it.

Match 5

Edge vs Kurt Angle

  Good friends, better enemies. These two haven't feuded since the previous King of the Ring before the whole Invasion angle so its taken them a while to pick up where they left off. They lock up and Angle hits a headlock as Lawler asks Ross if he thought it was funny what Edge did as JR brings up both Edge and Angle won matches at Wrestlemania 18. They do a wrestling sequence before Edge throws Angle outside, Angle then pulls Edge out. Angle and Edge go at it in the ring and trade suplexes as Lawler asks if Edge even knows what the Olympics are. Kind of dumb seeing as the Canadians had won the gold medal in hockey a month or 2 earlier over the US. Edge and Angle exchange chops as Lawler says that JR kissed Vince McMahon's ass on tv and JR says that he did it under duress and Angle does it willingly. A charge by Angle in the corner eats boot but as Edge charges, Angle hits a nice overhead suplex. A cover gets 2 and Ross says that Angle might just be the greatest WWF superstar in history someday, I'm sure Hogan and HHH have something to say on that subject. Angle continues to work over Edge and hits a standard suplex for a 2 count. Angle locks in a rest hold and Edge does the fade then revive routine and as Edge rallies, Kurt catches him with a german suplex. A second attempt is blocked and Edge hits an overhead suplex of his own. Angle and Edge trade blows before Edge nails Angle with clotheslines and a back bodydrop. Edge whips Angle off the corner and catches him with the Edgecution but a cover gets 2. Edge rolls through a back suplex and hits a one arm ddt and gets another 2 count. Edge goes upstairs and Angle pops up and hits a belly to belly suplex off the top rope. Angle takes too long to cover and only gets 2 as the crowd cheers then Edge blocks an ankelock attempt and initially counters a german suplex but Angle finally hits his 3 suplex sequence but the bridge only gets a long 2. Angle taunts Edge and blocks an Angle-slam and follows up with a german suplex of his own. During downtime, JR brings up how Angle won the gold medal in wrestling with a broken neck. Angle charges Edge and Edge backdrops him out of the ring before going upstairs. Edge dives off and hits a crossbody and they're both down again. Angle rolls into the ring as Edge once again goes up top and hits a flying dropkick but the cover gets 2. Edge taunts Kurt to get up but Angle blocks another Edgecution attempt and rolls Edge into an Angle-slam. Kurt covers by only gets 2 as the crowd goes "ohhh" simultaneously. Angle is enraged and puts Edge in the ankle-lock and holds them there until Edge turns it into a victory roll for a 2 count. Angle gets up and clotheslines Edge and is clearly frustrated so he goes outside and gets a chair. He gets back in and goes to hit Edge with the chair but Edge moves and the chair bounces off the ropes and hits Angle in the head. Edge nails the Edge-o-matic and the crowd cheers but Angle kicks out at 2. The crowd goes nuts with cheers and boo's as Angle rakes the eyes and goes to pick up the chair. Edge boots him in the head as the ref gets the chair out of the way as Angle counters the spear attempt with a boot of his own. Angle hits an angle-slam and covers for the 1---2--3 to win the match. Angle won this match fair and square even though he brought a chair in the ring and it was an awesome match. I'll say this right now, the set up for this match was sophmorically stupid with the pictures but the match itself was damn good. The difference between WWE and WCW was WCW's ppv's sucked just as bad as their television shows by the end, and normally WWE ppv's had some great matches out of bad storylines.

Time of match: 13:24

Winner: Kurt Angle by pinfall

  The next segment is Tazz in WWF New York interviewing fans about the Hogan/HHH main event. After this nonsense we get back to ringside where none other than Chris Jericho makes his entrance. He gets on the mic and proceeds to bitch that he was in the main event of Wrestlemania 18 the month before and wasn't even booked to wrestle at Backlash. Yeah really....it reminded me of WCW Road Wild 97 where Hogan beat Lex Luger for the title and Luger wasn't even mentioned on television for a whole 2 weeks. He goes off calling fans jackasses and says Billy Kidman, Maven and Trish Stratus have matches and he doesn't. He then says he's a better wrestler than the "has-been" Hulk Hogan and even asks the crowd if Hogan deserves the title shot more than he does? The crowd cheers Hogan but the statement is so true on many accounts. Jericho main evented Wrestlemania and instead of HHH facing Jericho in a re-match or The Rock, somehow Hogan is the number 1 contender? In reality, The Rock had left the WWF to go film the movie The Rundown and he wouldn't be back till June. Jericho claims Hogan's not worthy of being champion and that Jericho is before leaving. JR tries to save face but even he has no counter to Jericho's statement because its 100% true.

    The next segment is Ric Flair an Arn Anderson getting ready for the number 1 contender's match later on. A door is kicked open and Arn Anderson says "here we go" as The Undertaker enters. Undertaker doesn't even say a word, he just sneers and points the finger at Flair as if to say "don't doublecross me". After this we go to the next match

Match 6

Eddie Guerrero vs Rob Van Dam for the WWF Intercontinental Championship

  After getting fired the previous year, coming out of rehab clean and doing indy feds to get back in ring shape (one of which I was there for), Eddie Guerrero is welcomed back to the WWF and has a title shot against Van Dam. This is pretty much a battle of the frog-splashes and King asks JR who was the first person to do the frog splash. JR correctly answers D-Lo Brown as King says.. "ok, the SECOND man to do it". Van Dam and Guerrero trade blows before Eddie rolls through a backdrop attempt into a spinning back kick. Van Dam does a rolling monkey flip and a heel kick before getting a 2 count. They trade blows and Guerrero hits a single leg takedown and beats in the corner. Van Dam does 2 shoulder tackles but Guerrero blocks a german suplex attempt and works him over in the corner. Van Dam nails Eddie with kicks and drops him with a spin kick. A standing moonsault gets a near-fall and goes back on offense as JR praises Van Dam. Van Dam hits a floatover suplex for a 2 count and goes upstairs. Eddie knocks Van Dam onto the top rope and Eddie goes for a superplex but Van Dam counters by driving Eddie into the top rope while simultaneously jumping to the floor. Cool spot that gets a huge "ohhhh" the crowd. Van Dam goes back up top and hits a flying dropkick and then a cartwheel moonsault for a 2 count. Guerrero hits an inside cradle for a 2 and rolls though a slam into a prawn hold for a 2 as well. Eddie slides out of the ring and Van Dam hits a base ball slide and then a moonsault from the second rope to the floor. Van Dam drops Guerrero on the guard roll and hits a spin leg drop on Guerrero. Van Dam rolls Guerrero back in and scores a near-fall but Eddie counters the rolling thunder attempt. Guerrero goes on the offensive and hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker followed by a back suplex. A cover gets a 2 and goes back on the offensive before applying a bending surf-board facelock. Van Dam powers out of it but Guerrero goes right back to work on the lower back and hits a standing stretch, Van Dam eventually rolls through into a sunset flip for a 2 count. Guerrero goes back on the offensive and hits a back kick and hits a springboard moonsault from the apron to the ring. A cover gets a near-fall and Guerrero goes back to work on the lower back before climbing up to the top rope and hitting a hurracarrana, but the cover gets only 2. Guerrero hits 2 suplexes but a lateral press gets 2 so Guerrero goes upstairs but Van Dam kicks him off the top rope. Van Dam goes for a superplex but Guerrero counters it into a sick looking rolling powerbomb. I thought Van Dam broke his neck with that impact but a quick kick-out meant he was ok. Guerrero goes on the offensive again but Van Dam counters a powerbomb with a step-over kick that sends Eddie through the ropes to the outside. Guerrero grabs the IC title belt and gets in the ring, he swings and misses as Van Dam accidentally knocks out the ref by pulling it away. Eddie then hits a rude awakening neckbreaker on the belt, goes upstairs and hits a frogsplash half-way across the ring. The cover gets 1---2---3 and we have a new champion. Vince McMahon can be a dick sometimes, but he's been known to give people second chances and Guerrero being IC Champion proves this. A great match by both guys with minimal rest-holds.

Time of match:  11:43

Winner: Eddie Guerrero (New Intercontinental champion)

   The next segment is JR and King shilling The Scorpion King before a highlight package of The Undertaker vs Steve Austin showdown is shown. Basically The Undertaker has been giving Flair grief ever since Wrestlemania (where Taker beat Flair) and Flair figures the only way to shut him up is to put him in a number 1 contender round robin with Rob Van Dam, Scott Hall and Steve Austin. Both Austin and Taker won their matches so the stage was set, both men had beaten up Flair before so Ric has no alliances or favorites here.

Match 7

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs The Undertaker (Ric Flair is the special guest referee)

 Austin and Undertaker wrestled each other on pay-per-view every single year from 1997-02. To say the feud was old by now was a huge understatement. Least having Flair as the ref saves a little bit of drama because fans had grown tired of this match. Flair enters to his old school WWF theme and gets a nice pop. Taker and Austin circle around engaging in a stare-down. They back up, circle around and finally lock up one minute in. Undertaker applies a headlock and takes a shoulderblock before rolling outside. Austin takes his time getting back in the ring and applies a headlock of his own upon entering and they eventually do a "force meeting object" routine. They tease locking up before doing push-ups to rev the crowd up before finally locking up again. Austin and Taker exchange headlocks before Austin clotheslines him down and gives the one finger salute. Austin teases a game of mercy before flipping him off again, Taker then hists a shoulder block before Austin counters with arm drags and a drop toe hold. Austin applies an arm-lock as King says "Hey Austin can wrestle" People forget he was a mat-based wrestler in WCW and he could match hold for hold with anyone. Austin hits a series of knees to the shoulder before hitting a bar arm pin for a 2 count. Taker rises and King claims that whoever is pinned might attack Flair after the match. Taker backs Austin in the corner and turns around to wallop him in the head, Austin goes on offense but a charge in the corner eats boot and is followed by a clothesline. Taker gets a 2 count and he begins working the left arm of Austin. Taker goes upstairs with the arm and hits the old school for a 2 count as well. Taker stalks Flair for a few seconds before Austin catches him with a Lou Thez press and an elbow drop. A cover gets a near-fall and Austin clotheslines Taker over the top rope to the floor. Taker pulls out Austin and they slug it out on the floor before Taker throws Austin back in....only to have Austin clothesline him out again. Austin rams Taker's head into the Spanish announce table a few times and throws him back in. Austin takes his time getting on the apron and pays for it as Taker big boots him off. Taker pounds on Austin outside the ring before Austin rallies and knocks Undertaker into the crowd. Austin beats down Taker in the crowd before heaving him over the time-keeper's table. They continue to brawl outside and Austin goes for a piledriver but gets backdropped. Undertaker pounds on Austin as JR asks King why he's so anti-Flair. I should note Flair has let everything go so far with no signs of favortism. All of a sudden Scott Hall and X-Pac show up and slowly make their way to ringside as Taker stares them down. Austin rams Taker's head into his Harley before Taker whips Austin into the retaining barrier. The crowd starts chanting X-Pac sucks as Flair checks on Austin. Taker continues to work over Austin outside the ring before finally getting the action back inside. Taker legdrops Austin while Austin is on the apron as Pac and Hall confer with each other. Taker begins to go to work on Austin's left leg and applies a leg lock as JR calls Austin "Bionic Redneck" Taker applies a leg grapevine until Austin makes it to the ropes. Austin tries to fight back without selling the leg work at all before Undertaker hits a sloppy clothesline with a near fall. Taker applies a resthold as the crowd either boo's the ring or boo's the nWo. Taker continues to apply the neck vice until Austin sticks a thumb to the eye. Austin whips Taker off the ropes and catches him in a sleeper but Taker counters with a back suplex. A cover gets 2 as King says "that may have been the slowest count in the history of the WWF" JR points out that Flair has counted that way the entire match no matter who was down for the fall, I must admit the count was slightly slower than Nick Patrick's "fast-count" at WCW Starrcade 97. Taker goes back to the neck vice before Austin powers out of it and goes for a stone cold stunner attempt, Taker blocks it and catches Austin with a clothesline. A cover gets 2 and Taker begins Indian rubbing Austin with his forearm. Hall and Pac are still there watching as JR says Kane's mask makes Pac look a little better than normal. Austin rallies with fists before Undertaker his his flying clothesline but the cover gets a near-fall. Taker goes and removes the top turnbuckle but Austin whips him into it. They do a double clothesline spot and both men take forever to get up but they go at it upon the action resuming. Austin stomps a mudhole in Taker as the crowd chants "What" in between stomps. A charge in the corner eats elbow as Taker goes for a tombstone but Austin avoids it and whips Taker into Flair. Flair goes down and Austin hits the stunner on Taker and goes for the cover but Flair's down. Austin picks up Flair as Taker hits a low blow and hits a chokeslam but Austin kicks out at 2. Taker goes outside and gets a chair. Back inside, Flair grabs the chair and Austin returns the favor by low blowing The Undertaker. Undertaker ducks under a clothesline and hits a big boot but the cover gets a long 2. Austin hits a spinebuster but also only gets 2. Austin says "get up you sonovabitch" but Taker blocks the stunner by shoving him into Flair who goes down again. Taker grabs the steel chair and hits Austin in the head with it. Taker covers but Austin kicks out and Taker signals for the last ride. Austin counters with a clothesline and then a dragon sleeper before Taker takes over. Taker gets the chair and swings and misses before Austin rallies and stomps another mudhole into him. Austin goes and gets the chair and when Flair tries to grab it away, Austin flips him off. Taker big boots the chair into Austin's face. Taker covers and Austin puts his foot on the rope but Flair doesn't see it and counts 1...2...3 and the match is over. Scott Hall and X-Pac leave as the crowd boos. Taker says "I'm number one" as Flair walks away and JR cries foul. Austin gets up and says "what the fuck" before Taker taunts him. Austin fires back with rights and stuns him out of the ring and says he's number 1.  Not the best Austin/Undertaker match but not the worst either, I'm guessing Hall and X-Pac was scouting the winner for a future storyline but with Hall getting the heave-ho, nothing came of it. The Undertaker will now meet the winner of Hogan/HHH at Judgement Day which means Hogan, HHH and The Undertaker will be main eventing ppv's until at least June.

Time of match: 26:58

Winner: The Undertaker by pinfall

    Jonathan Coachman catches up with Flair and shows Ric how he counted the fall with Austin's foot on the rope. Flair's response is simply "aww shit". Yeah, no kidding...on to the next match

Match 8

Al Snow and Maven vs Billy and Chuck (with Rico) for the WWF Tag Team Championship

   Like Jericho said earlier in the night, how Maven had a match and not Y2J I'll never know. In any event, this was basically the crew from Tough Enough against the champs and the results will probably be as expected.  Billy and Chuck nail them off the bat but the faces take over and clear the ring. Chuck pulls Maven out of the ring and he and Billy work him over outside. Billy Gunn whips him into the rail and then throws him inside. The heels take turns beating on Maven inside until Billy knocks Al Snow off the apron, then turns around into a ddt by Maven. Billy tags in Chuck Palumbo as Al Snow runs in and beats on the heels and after he leaves, Chuck works over Maven in the corner. Chuck whips Maven off the rope and catches the foot, which Maven does a sloppy looking enziguri. Al Snow tags in and beats down Billy and Chuck before backdropping Chuck. Snow does a 10 punch in the corner spot on Billy and Rico distracts the ref long enough for Chuck to clothesline Al from the apron. Billy does a swinging neckbreaker on Snow and the cover gets a near-fall. Chuck tags in and works over Snow as the crowd chants "Rico's gay" Chuck puts Snow in a surfboard but Snow powers out of it before Chuck hits an overhead suplex. A cover gets a deuce and Billy tags in to do damage to Al. Al Snow ducks a charge and Billy goes face first into the ringpost. Billy goes down and Chuck charges but is drop toe'd into Billy. Maven tags in and goes to work on the champs before Billy clocks him. Maven sends Billy off the ropes but stupidly puts his head down and Gunn hits the fame-asser. Al Snow pulls Maven out of the ring and gets on the apron to slug it out with Gunn. Snow flips over Gunn and runs into a superkick by Palumbo. Billy distracts the ref and Chuck holds Maven but Rico spinkicks Chuck when Maven ducks out of the way. Rico gets out of the ring as Billy works over Maven in the corner. Maven reverses a whip and Al Snow hits a baldo bomb on Billy. Maven goes upstairs and hits a high cross-body on Billy for a long 2 count. Maven goes "get up! get up!" and Rico gets in the ring, but Al Snow gets in and chases him away. As the ref yells at Snow and Rico, Chuck gets in the ring and hits a superkick on Maven. Billy covers for the 1-2-3 to win the match, then Snow clears the ring. Wasn't that bad all things considering, got the crowd calm enough before the main event.

Time of Match: 5:58

Winners: Billy and Chuck by pinfall (still champions)

  Next up is a highlight package of the Hogan vs HHH showdown. The fans simply refused to boo Hogan when he came back no matter what he did with the nWo and Vince was more than happy to re-ignite Hulkamania. Standing in the Hulk's way of redemption was HHH who completed his own redemption story of coming back from quad surgery to win the WWF title from Jericho at Wrestlemania 18.

Match 9

Hulk Hogan vs HHH for the WWF Heavyweight Championship

   This is the match of the ages, the two biggest ego-maniacs in wrestling history other than Vince McMahon. Hogan and Triple H.....someone's gotta job, just who will it be? On one side you got Hogan who basically killed WCW by refusing to put over anyone young other than his friends until the young stars left for WWF. Then you have HHH who would go on to damn near do the same thing to WWF/E until Batista and John Cena came along. They circle around to start out and HHH heaves Hogan into the corner twice to show his strength. Hogan does the same and poses for the crowd and somehow the fans cheer. HHH teases a game of mercy before actually going through with it. Hogan gets the upper hand early before HHH takes it to Hogan. The match is 3 minutes underway and we've seen 2 tests of strengths and a game of mercy, quite a contrary to the Tajiri/Kidman match earlier. Hogan finally begins to power out of it so HHH elbows him and applies and overhand wrist lock. The match is now 4 minutes old and Hulk still has his bandana on, Hogan reverses the hold into a side headlock. HHH whips Hogan off and runs into a shoulderblock as Hulk poses for the crowd again. HHH drives Hogan into the corner and when the ref says to break the hold, HHH slaps Hogan across the face. Hogan looks shocked and charges only to be met with a knee and a series of fists that knocks the bandana off 5 minutes into the match. HHH works over Hogan in the corner before Hogan whips HHH off the turnbuckle into a backdrop. Hogan hits a series of clotheslines and works over HHH in the corner and does a 10 punch in the corner spot. Hogan whips HHH off the ropes and Trips counters with a forearm to the back of the head. HHH charges and Hogan backdrops him out of the ring. Hogan attacks HHH on the outside and whips him into the guard-rail before HHH counters with a thumb to the eye. Hogan hits a suplex on HHH on the outside as referee Earl Hebner says "get back in the ring!" HHH rallies and rams Hogan's head into the steel steps before they both get back in. HHH works over Hogan in the corner and whips him hard off the other corner. HHH whips Hogan and goes for the pedigree but Hogan counters by slingshotting him into the post. A roll up by Hogan gets a 2 count and Hogan fires away at HHH with clothesline into the turnbuckle. Hogan hits a diamond cutter (WTF?) on HHH for a 2 count. Hogan hulka punches HHH before Trips does a sloppy looking chop-block. Hogan gets up and HHH does it again. The crowd boos but JR points out that its a legal maneuver. HHH works over the left leg on the ring post and hammers away on Hulk. HHH hits another chop block and jumps on it using the first rope. Hogan grabs the hair of HHH so Trips pounds on him. HHH does an Undertaker style leg lock on the left leg as JR notices the crowd's silent. Almost to the moment of that statement, a small Hogan chant starts. After Hogan powers out of it, HHH hits yet another chop-block, say what you will but its effective. HHH hits a series of elbow drops on Hogan's leg as Lawler asks why there are so many Hogan fans in the crowd, yeah me too. After HHH applies a step over leg lock, Hogan counters by booting him into the turnbuckle. HHH goes for a figure four and cinches it in and HHH uses the ropes for leverage after a minute as Lawler mentions Hogan would have done the same thing if roles were reversed. Hogan finally counters the figure four and HHH crawls free, HHH then applies a sleeper hold as the crowd groans. Hogan does the fade then revive routine and hits a back suplex at the end of it. The last 2 maneuvers took a combined six minutes and the crowd's asleep. Hogan counter punches HHH and hits a polish hammer Ivan Putski style. Hogan hulka punches HHH and hits the big boot followed by the leg drop of doom when all of a sudden Chris Jericho sprints to the ring with a chair. Jericho pulls out Earl Hebner and slugs him, Hogan goes to attack Chris so Jericho waffles him with the chair. HHH goes to cover Hogan so Jericho shoves Hebner back in the ring. HHH then attacks Jericho and hits his big knee facebuster before clotheslining Y2J out of the ring. HHH goes back to Hogan who proceeds to Hulk Up and you know the rest, he punches, he big boots and he....NOOOO, HHH rolls out of the way of the leg drop and then hits the pedigree on Hogan. He covers but all of a sudden The Undertaker runs down to ringside and belts the referee to stop the count. Taker grabs the chair and clocks HHH with it, causing a Trips blade job. Taker drags Hogan on top of HHH but he Hulks Up on The Undertaker instead. Both guys trying to out-face the other by refusing outside interference. Hogan clotheslines Taker out of the ring and hits the leg drop for the 1----2---3 to win the match and the title. Hogan rode the wave of nostalgia all the way to become WWF Champion for the first time in nine years. Hogan celebrates in the ring and HHH offers a handshake and they do it. Both saved face in the match and as expected, there was no clean pinfall job as it involved drastic cheating by Chris Jericho and The Undertaker.

Time of match: 22:05

Winner: Hulk Hogan by pinfall (new WWF Champion)

   Not the best ppv I've ever seen but certainly not the worst. The undercard was good for the most part but the high profile matches were under-whelming. Austin and Taker had gone at it so many times that the crowd really wasn't into it, and HHH and Hogan went 20 minutes.....10 minutes too long in my opinion and neither Hogan or HHH did a clean job as I expected. HHH's reign of terror as champion was over for the time being but his backstage presence on Raw began to drive away fans. Jobbing out Chris Jericho after finally getting main event pushes was just the first misfortune. The next ppv would be their British ppv Insurexxtion so that'll be my next ppv review. I must say the main event did establish Judgement Day's storylines with Jericho vs HHH and Undertaker vs Hogan. Although watching Undertaker and Hogan go at it 10 years after the last time makes me cringe just thinking about it.

2 1/2 stars out of 5

Wrestlemania 4 (3/27/88)

Wrestlemania 4

March 27, 1988

Trump Plaza

Atlantic City, New Jersey

Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse "The Body" Ventura

Ring Announcer: Howard Finkel

There was no way Vince McMahon could top Wrestlemania 3 in terms of ticket sales and a main event that could come close to topping Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant so he had to come up with something different. He decided that, similar to The Wrestling Classic, that the night should be centered around a tournament to crown a new WWF Champion. To do this he had to get the title off Hulk Hogan who had it for 4 years running. The LONG backstory to this was they used the long two count in the opening minute of the Wrestlemania 3 match as an angle to say Andre the Giant should have been champion. Hogan and Andre hooked up at Survivor Series but that resolved nothing. In the winter of 1987, new top heel “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase wanted to buy the WWF Championship from Hulk. Hogan famously shouted “HELLLLL NOOOOOOO!” as a response to Dibiase’s purchase attempt. At the 1988 Royal Rumble, an official re-match between Hulk and Andre was signed for The Main Event. Before that match, Andre promised Dibiase that after he won the title, he’d hand it to him. During the Main Event match, everything was going hunky dory until Andre got the upperhand on Hogan and covered him. Hogan raised his shoulder at one but referee Dave Hebner kept counting to three anyway. Everyone in the world was shocked as Hebner handed the belt to Andre and proclaimed him new WWF champion. Suddenly another Dave Hebner ran to the ring and confronted the one reffing the match. It was revealed that this wasn’t Dave reffing the match but rather his “evil twin” Earl (who had been working for the NWA up to this point) who ran away laughing with Andre, Virgil and Ted Dibiase. The fans were completely confused as to what just happened. Later on, sure enough, Andre handed the world title to Dibiase. Soon after, WWF president Jack Tunney announced that Andre had officially defeated Hogan for the championship, but the title exchange to Dibiase was illegal and the championship was vacant. There would be a 14 man tournament at Wrestlemania 4 to decide a new champion. It was 14 and not 16 because Hogan and Andre had byes in the first round so they could open the Quarterfinals against one another. So Hogan and Andre were going to lock up for the second year in a row but in an entirely different situation. This presented the fans a whole list of candidates to root for and who could possibly be the new champion. Joining Hogan and Andre in the tournament would be Dibiase, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Dino Bravo, “The Rock” Don Muraco, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, “The Natural” Butch Reed, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, One Man Gang, Bam Bam Bigelow, Jake “The Snake” Roberts and “Ravishing” Rick Rude. That literally was the best in the roster not on a tag team at the time or involved in another feud. Other matches included a showdown between powerhouses Hercules and Ultimate Warrior making his ppv debut. The Intercontinental title was on the line as Honky Tonk Man defending against Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake. Finally the tag team belts were on the line as Strike Force defends against Demolition. To give everyone else something to do, a 20 man battle royal was booked with the winner getting a 7 foot tall trophy. So with this unique Wrestlemania format in place, they wouldn’t be able to top Wrestlemania 3 but they were trying something different. Say what you will about Vince McMahon but he was always willing to try something new.

Before the show starts we get a Coliseum Video exclusive segment with Craig DeGeorge who had lost his voice the night before, isn’t that too bad? “Mean” Gene Okerlund greets the crowd to open the show and sends it over to Gladys Knight for a wonderful rendition of America The Beautiful. She gets a well deserved hand from the crowd as the show begins with the huge trophy being brought to the ring. The winner of the opening match Battle Royal gets the trophy. We go to Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura who run down the card as the battle royal entrants make their way to the ring. Monsoon asks what Jesse thinks of Bob Uecker and Vanna White and right on cue, Bob joins the broadcast booth. Bob isn’t too happy to see Jesse and vice versa. Monsoon sends it to ringside but not before Jesse makes a fist at Uecker, hahaha.

Match 1

20 Man Battle Royal

The participants are Bret Hart, Jim Niedhart, Jim Powers, Paul Roma, Sika (making his PPV debut), “Dangerous” Danny Davis, Jim Brunzell, Brian Blair, Bad News Brown, Sam Houston, Jacques and Raymond Rougeau, Ken Patera, “Outlaw” Ron Bass, Junkyard Dog, Boris Zhukov, Nikolai Volkoff, Hillbilly Jim, “King” Harley Race and George “The Animal” Steele. Before the match starts Bob somewhat breaks Kayfabe by saying Vince McMahon called and asked him to repeat his performance at Wrestlemania. Vince was presented as just the babyface announcer 99% of the time in those days so for Bob to mention Vince had any sort of pull was a rarity. The bell rings and everyone goes at it. A host of guys gang up to try to dump Sika while Bob Uecker says this reminds him of the final day of cuts during Spring Training in baseball. Sam Houston and Danny Davis go at it as the Harts doubleteam Hillbilly Jim. Bob Uecker says Billy Martin has to be there somewhere. You’re 3 years late Ueck. It should be noted that George Steele doesn’t actually get in the ring, he’s just chilling outside. Gorilla mentions Jesse will be doing some baseball commentary as Ron Bass whips SAM HOUSTON into Davis who shoulder dips him over the top and gone. First guy out 41 seconds into it. Moments later Hillbilly Jim, Brian Blair, Junkyard Dog and Nikolai Volkoff team up to dump SIKA out. Ventura says Houston went out first because he’s too light and Gorilla counters by saying Sika is certainly not light and he’s gone. Blair hits an atomic drop on Davis but is nearly tossed out by Nikolai. The Rougeau’s double team Niedhart for a bit. Jesse finally notices Steele outside and Monsoon says he never got in. Ventura says George is smarter than anyone thinks if that’s his strategy to chill outside and let everyone tire themselves out. Junkyard Dog goes at it with Race, shades of last year. Brunzell saves Patera by ramming Bass and Davis’ heads together. Bob asks if anyone’s seen Vanna White because he’s supposed to meet her there. Monsoon says she’s definitely there. Jesse scoffs and jokes that she’s in love with him, not Bob. Bret comes off the top and nails Raymond. Niedhart starts swiping at Steele outside the ring as Jacques backdrops Blair over the top rope but Brian catches himself on the apron. Suddenly Steele grabs JIM NIEDHART by the goatee and pulls him out. Once again, great strategy by George. Bret is steaming mad as Monsoon says George is already out (he’s not). Jacques stomps away trying to get rid of Blair and Bad News joins in. Jesse says if Vanna has great taste than she’s less filling. Gotta love a beer joke on a family show. Bad News nails BRIAN BLAIR with a chop to the throat and he crumples off the apron to the floor, he’s gone. Ken Patera matches up with Bret as Brunzell tries to dump Raymond in retaliation for Brian. Brunzell does manage to dump RAYMOND ROUGEAU but Jacques sneaks up from behind and JIM BRUNZELL is tossed out. Bob on commentary says the Bees are gone. Boris Zhukov matches up with Hillbilly Jim as JYD hits a headbutt on Ron Bass. Race tries to dump Patera as JYD tosses out RON BASS as Steele comes up and pokes him in the eye, hahahaha. Bob and Gorilla think Steele is out while Jesse correctly points out he never got in the ring. Bret nearly dumps Jacques as the Bolsheviks double team JYD. Jesse randomly makes fun of Uecker’s lifetime batting average in the big leagues but Ueck is a good sport about it. Zhukov dumps out HILLBILLY JIM as Uecker said that was his pick to win the battle royal. If you pay attention outside, referee Jimmy Korderas more or less disqualifies GEORGE STEELE and sends him to the showers without ever getting into the ring. The real reason he never got in the ring was that he was nursing a knee injury suffered at a house show prior to Wrestlemania. Paul Roma picks DANNY DAVIS up in a fireman’s carry and dumps him out to the crowd’s delight. Unfortunately for Paul, Bad News dumps his partner JIM POWERS on the other side of the ring. Uecker says the guys that went out early got their per diem money. Monsoon says he’s gonna have trouble with Jesse and Bob tonight as JYD stares down his old nemesis Race. Harley headbutts him and sells it like HE got hit with a chair. Jesse mentions the only tag team intact at that point is the Bolsheviks. Right on cue Ken Patera shoulderdips NIKOLAI VOLKOFF out. Patera then dumps out BORIS ZHUKOV as Uecker says “USA IS IN, YES SIR!” Unfortunately for Bob, KEN PATERA is dumped by Bad News. We’re down to 6 men left…make it 5 after JACQUES ROUGEAU is dumped out by Race. Roma is in the corner with the Hitman as JYD fends off Bad News and Race JYD then nails HARLEY RACE with a right hand that sends the King over the top and out. Roma unloads on Bad News but an eye rake stops him. Bad News dumps out PAUL ROMA and its down to Bret and Bad News against JYD. All three of them represented Stu Hart’s Stampede Wrestling at one point so this must have been fun to see for the Stampede fans. Bad News drops Bret with a clothesline by accident. Dog headbutts Bad News down and does his Doggie headbutts on the ground to both Brown and the Hitman. JYD stops to rev up the crowd which allows Bad News enough time to collect himself. He and Bret double team JYD until he goes down. Bret and Bad News high and low five each other and Bad News whispers in his ear to set up a strategy. Jesse says its like talking to the third base coach before dropping down a bunt, but in Uecker’s case he’d have to make contact for that to happen. Once again Uecker runs with it in a hilarious fashion. Uecker was pretty lousy but nowhere near the worst baseball player of all time even though that was his gimmick that he claimed to be. Bret and Bad News continue to work over JYD. Bret and Bad News try to dump JYD as Jesse says this is Bad News style of match since he’s a loner anyways. Another attempt by Bret and Bad News succeeds and JUNKYARD DOG is gone. Bret and Bad News celebrate as Monsoon reasons that Bret and Bad News are going to split the purse money. Jesse correctly asks how they’re going to split the trophy? Just wait Jess. Bret and Bad News continue to pose for the crowd as Monsoon says one keeps the trophy for a year and then hands it to the other. Jesse says they’re going to have to tell the referee to call it off and right on cue, Bad News nails Bret with the ghetto blaster out of nowhere. Uecker says that’s the last time he’s going to listen to Gorilla and Jess because he thought they were friends. Bad News goes to town on Bret and Jesse says when money is involved, there are no friends. Bad News whips Bret sternum first into the corner as Monsoon says its like running into the centerfield wall. Bad News finally tosses BRET HART out and there’s your winner. Bad News dumped Brian Blair, Jim Powers, Ken Patera, Paul Roma, JYD and the Hitman to win it. The triophy is legit 7 feet high and its brought into the ring. Ring announcer Howard Finkel declares Bad News the winner as Brown holds up the black gloved fist. I always thought that was an awesome gimmick that should have been taken to a higher level in the main events. Bad News taunts the irate crowd as Jesse says this is going to propel him up the ranks. Suddenly Bret sneaks back in the ring and dropkicks Bad News out of the ring. What a sore loser! Then again, he got double crossed. Bret then smashes the trophy must to Bad News’ dismay. The crowd pops for the Hitman as Bret destroys the trophy and throws it at him. Bret holds up pieces of it in the ring as Bad News bails. Uecker says he’s glad he never won MVP for reasons like that. Hahaha I would have loved to have seen Bob win the 1964 National League MVP instead of his teammate Ken Boyer only for Boyer to attack him in the clubhouse, destroying the plaque. Jesse says that’s why he hit .200 in his career. The battle royal win DID somewhat help Bad News on his quest for title shots against the Mega Powers depending on who had the belt. Honky Tonk Man once said in a shoot interview that Vince could have saved so much money by having Bad News as the black power world champion back when racism was more rampant than it is now instead of having to waste millions of dollars on Ultimate Warrior. He’s right in a sad sort of way. Imagine the anti-white Bad News standing over the body of a defeated Hogan or Savage, holding up the black gloved fist in one hand and the WWF Championship in the other. To be fair, even Bad News wasn’t really broken up about it. He said in his own shoot that he was never in wrestling to win “fake wrestling belts”, he was in it to make money. He didn’t understand that being world champion gave you a chance to make more money in private appearances, endorsements and main event money. Then again, he wasn’t a personable guy anyway so its not like you could market him as such. Still, Bad News had his Wrestlemania moment…even if it was ruined by a pissed off Bret Hart.

Time of match: 9:44

Winners: Bad News Brown

Bob Uecker hightails it out of the announce booth to find Vanna White. We then go to a Coliseum Video exclusive interview with Craig DeGeorge and Ted Dibiase. Dibiase is in the “plush” locker room which is probably Donald Trump’s suite at the Plaza. Ted says you’ll never see him in a “stinky, dingy locker room with a bunch of bubbling buffoons”. Ted predicts he’s going to be WWF Champion. DeGeorge asks about Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Ted says Duggan is the lowest form of scum and he’ll plow through him. He tells DeGeorge to beat it and we cut back to ring side. Obviously Dibiase was one of the favorites otherwise he wouldn’t get this kind of interview. We go back to The Fink who introduces Robin Leach of the popular tv show The Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous (for you youngsters, think MTV Cribs or Vanderpump Rules). Robin reads a proclamation from a golden scroll to let the tournament begin. Really? I know it was a big deal to crown a new champion but a golden scroll? Well he IS Robin Leach and he does know why. Finally we get to our first tournament match.

WWF Championship Tournament First Round Match 1 (Match 2 overall)

“Hacksaw” Jim Duggan vs “The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase (with Andre The Giant and Virgil)

Ironic as these two Mid-South Wrestling stablemates would be competing to open the tournament on WWF ppv while their former comrades in Mid-South would be working for Crockett that same night at the first ever NWA Clash of Champions. Monsoon instantly bitches about Andre being at ringside with Dibiase as Ventura speculates what would happen if Dibiase beats Duggan and Andre beats Hogan later. Monsoon correctly points out Dibiase would have to face the winner of Don Muraco and Dino Bravo before he’d meet Andre. Ventura says suppose Ted wins that one, then what? Monsoon says Andre would step aside as Ventura says Dibiase may. Yeah right Jesse. Andre tried to hand him the belt once and President Jack Tunney said no way. Both men are in standard attire as the bell rings. Duggan backs Dibiase in the corner as Jesse says we got a contrast in styles, Dibiase the classic mat technician and Duggan the brawler. Duggan was a pretty good amateur in his home state of New York but he made his career brawling. They lock up as Ted breaks clean while Duggan says “HOOOO!”. Duggan unloads with right hands as Jesse says he saw it coming. Dibiase tries to go toe to toe with him but Duggan ducks under a punch and delivers an atomic drop that sends Ted over the top to the floor. Duggan poses for the crowd as we get a panoramic view of the crowd. Ted regroups with Andre and Virgil before getting back in. Jesse asks if Gorilla scalped his comped tickets for money for the tables at the Trump Plaza the night before. Ted backs Jim down with chops but Jim ducks under one and clotheslines him down. Duggan pounds on Dibiase in the corner as Jesse says he’s not a Rhodes scholar. Jim charges but eats a boot from the Million Dollar Man. Dibiase unloads on Duggan before whipping him in the corner. Dibiase drops Duggan with a clothesline as Monsoon says whoever wins the tournament will have earned it having to face 4 opponents. Dibiase floors Duggan again, drops the Fistfull of Dollars Punch and covers for a 2 count. Duggan rallies with right hands but an eye rake stops the momentum. Dibiase whips him but Duggan sunset flips him for a two count. Jesse can’t believe Duggan was capable of a technical move, ha. A knee to the gut drops Hacksaw as Jesse says it would be a disgrace if Duggan won the title. Duggan blocks a suplex and delivers one of his own. Dibiase hops on the second rope but eats a punch to the ribs on the way down. Duggan rallies with right hands and a clothesline. Monsoon says we may see the three point stance soon as another whip by Duggan ends with a body slam on Ted. Duggan goes for the 3 point stance clothesline but is tripped up by Andre on the outside. Duggan reaches through the ropes and eats not only a right hand from Andre but a knee to the back by Dibiase. Referee Jack Kruger was looking right at Andre too, logically that should have been a disqualification. Duggan drops like a dead deer and Dibiase lands the Fistfull of Dollars Punch. Monsoon bitches as Dibiase covers for the 1…2..3 and Dibiase wins the match. Horrible officiating by Kruger as he was looking right at Andre but whatever, Dibiase advances to the next round. Virgil and Andre get in the ring to celebrate with Ted as the crowd is irate. Duggan grabs the two by four as the heels bails to the back. Jesse says its too little too late and Dibiase moves on. We get shown the replay where Duggan is blasted by Andre and Ted at the same time. Most of these matches are going to be short due to a tournament night so no sense squawking about the length of any of them. The contrast of style worked to tell the story of Dibiase trying to evade the brawling tactics of Duggan long enough for the equalizer outside (Andre) to help him win. Some would call this a bad match but I say the hell with em. This would be a recurring theme throughout the night with Ted, Andre and Virgil watching each other’s backs as Dibiase advances to the second round with Hogan and Andre already there.

Time of match: 5:02

Winner: Ted Dibiase by pinfall

We cut to “Mean” Gene Okerlund who interviews Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake on his upcoming Intercontinental Championship challenge against Honky Tonk Man. Brutus says you don’t get his tights on the boardwalk. “When its all said and done, I will be the new championnnnnn.” Gene asks what about Jimmy Hart? Brutus says he’s gonna give him a haircut. That would be fun wouldn’t it? Brutus “It could happen to YOUUUUUUU” Back to ring side.

WWF Championship Tournament First Round Match 2 (Match 3 overall)

Dino Bravo (With Frenchy Martin) vs “The Rock” Don Muraco (with Superstar Billy Graham)

The battle of the powerhouses with the winner facing Ted Dibiase in the second round. Back in those days that’s a dead giveaway Muraco wins it. Let’s see what happens though. Muraco is in the light blue trunks and Bravo in the green for this one. Before the match starts Jesse says Billy Graham is rubbing off on Muraco since Don wears the tie-dye t-shirts to the ring too. Also the 39 year old Muraco was in much better shape than he was 2 years earlier during Roddy Piper’s face turn. Ventura bitches that he invented tie-dye and taught Graham everything he knows. Monsoon scoffs and says Graham is a former WWF champion and Jesse is not. Jesse takes a shot at Bruno Sammartino by saying Graham beat an easy champion. Frenchy and Billy leave as Monsoon points out that Muraco is in better shape than he was as IC champion. Gotta love steroids. Ventura teases that Graham is thinking of making the big comeback as they lock up in the ring. Bravo gets the upper hand as Monsoon says if it wasn’t for Muraco, Graham would have been in a wheelchair at the hands of the One Man Gang and Butch Reed. That was the kayfabe reason Graham became a manager as the real reason was his artificial hip left him a shell of himself and couldn’t work anymore. Bravo shoulderblocks Muraco in the corner but Muraco whips him into the other corner. Murao hits a clothesline and a scoop slam then goes up to the second rope. He goes for a Vader bomb but switches to a forearm smash at the last second and covers for a deuce. Don backdrops Dino then takes him down with an armdrag. Muraco goes for a second one but Dino drops it and he drops a couple of elbows. Dino hits a gut wrench suplex and puts the boots to Muraco. Bravo rams Don into the buckle then whips him to the other one. A charge eats knee and Don kicks the left leg. He goes to work on the left leg with a toe hold as Graham on the outside chases Frenchy away. Dino kicks Muraco away but again Don goes back to the leg lock. Dino kicks Muraco off and he gets his head caught in the ropes. Bravo takes advantage with a piledriver and poses for the irate crowd. He covers for two and goes for a second piledriver, only to be backdropped. Don ducks the line and they wipe each other out with a double clothesline. Muraco rallies with a forearm to the chest and another scoop slam. Muraco goes for another running forearm but Bravo pulls the ref in the way, Muraco wiping him out instead. Dino gets the sidewalk slam and covers but the ref just taps him. Finkel announces Muraco has won by disqualification as Ventura asks why. Bravo protests in the ring as Monsoon says he pulled the referee in the way. We go to the replay that does show Bravo pulling the ref in the way and Ventura has to admit that's what happened. Big hoss match here and Vince wanted the face to advance without Bravo losing too much heat. Modern fans wouldn't like it but nobody cares what they think.

Time of match: 4:54

Winners: Don Muraco by DQ

We cut to Bob Uecker who says he’s going to take a walk with Vanna White after the interview. Jimmy Hart and Honky Tonk Man crash the party and Bob says Hart is gonna get a haircut. HTM makes fun of Uecker’s lifetime batting average. Uecker “You guys ain’t ever comin to my house! Back to you Gorilla and Jess!”

WWF Championship Tournament First Round Match 3 (Match 4 overall)

Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (with Jimmy Hart) vs Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat (and "Little Dragon" Richie Steamboat)

Yes, this began the ridiculous process of Ricky bringing his infant son to the ring before his matches. Jesse jokes that Ricky will tag out to the baby. Jesse “He’s got cheeks fatter than Bundy.” Ruh roh, you're not supposed to mention guys no longer in the company! Anyway a lot of people at the time picked Ricky to win the whole thing after he was IC champion the year before. Fans also wanted a Savage/Steamboat re-match from last year, just have to get by Valentine first. Tie ups go nowhere to start but Ricky slides under Greg before catching The Hammer with a hiptoss. Ricky gets in an armdrag and locks in an arm-ringer. Valentine gets dropped three times with shoulderblocks and near falls after. Ricky gets thrown over the top but skins the cat back in. Steamboat dropkicks Valentine in the back but Greg falls on top of Ricky to negate the schoolboy. Instead Ricky gets a lateral press for 1...2..nope. Jesse Ventura gives a shoutout to Barry Blaustein by saying he predicted Steamboat to win. Monsoon picks Hulk Hogan. Valentine gets some forearms and a big elbow to drop the dragon. Valentine chops Ricky down and chokes him with his boot. Valentine drops Ricky on the external occipital protuberance area as Jesse says "The WHAT?" Ventura drops a forearm and covers for a deuce but Ricky rolls out of a back suplex. Ricky rams Valentine into the buckle who falls backwards down. Ricky drops a knee and gets in an arm-ringer, but Valentine counters with an inverted atomic drop. Valentine levels Steamboat with a clotheslines then delivers elbows right between the eyes. Valentine elbows Ricky on the apron and hits a series of left jabs. Donald Trump is shown in the crowd as Steamboat chops Hammer down. Ricky covers for a deuce and goes for a scoop slam but couldn't hold him. Valentine lands on him and gets 1...2...nope. Valentine hits a stomach breaker and delivers a headbutt to the midsection. Valentine goes for the figure four but Ricky kicks him off. They trade blows in the middle of the ring and Valentine lands a forearm. Ricky hits a huge running chop and Valentine does the tree flop face first. Ricky covers for a deuce but gets a thumb to the eye. Valentine hits a shoulderbreaker and covers for 1..2....nooo. Valentine goes up to the top rope and hits the big forearm. Valentine taunts the irate crowd but Ricky blocks the figure four attempt. Ricky slams Greg's head into the mat three times. Ricky catches Valentine with a back elbow then goes up to the top. Ricky hits the top rope chop to the head and covers for 1..2...noooooo. Steamboat rams Valentine's head against the buckle 11 times but referee Earl Hebner pushes Ricky away and Ricky shoves him to his knees. Ventura says "Wait a minute!" Ricky goes up to the top and hits the flying crossbody....but Hammer rolls through and hooks the tights for 1....2....3..to win the match. So much for Ricky going all the way as Valentine pulls off the upset. That was a great match and people are stunned. Ricky waves goodbye to the fans as the reason why he didn't win it all....was that he was leaving. This would be the last we'd see of Steamboat until his various appearances in WWE nearly 20 years later.

Time of match: 9:10

Winner: Greg Valentine by pinfall

We go to Mean Gene who’s with The British Bulldogs, Matilda, Koko B Ware and Frankie. Davey boy says Matilda is on a weasel hunt. Koko says he smells a weasel hunt. He wants Matilda to eat Heenan’s lunch. We go to a Coliseum Video exclusive where Craig DeGeorge tries to snoop into a package being delivered to Bobby Heenan’s dressing room. The courier tells DeGeorge to get lost and he doesn’t know what’s in the package. Heenan tells the camera crew to get lost and says its none of Craig’s business what’s in the box.

WWF Championship Tournament First Round Match 4 (Match 5 overall)

“The Natural” Butch Reed (with Slick) vs “Macho Man” Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth)
With Valentine in the second round, conventional wisdom has Macho Man taking this one. The Peacock overdub of Jive Soul Bro during Butch's entrance is downright criminal if you choose to watch that version. Ventura says Monsoon is drooling over Elizabeth so much that he looks like Matilda. Savage and Elizabeth enters with matching blue outfits with Savage in the beige trunks. Ventura says he was on the Macho bandwagon 2-3 years ago which is true. Ventura says Reed is more powerful and Slick is the better manager compared to Elizabeth. Savage ducks a line to start but Reed backs Savage into the corner. He gets some knees in then delivers a snapmare. Reed drops a fist and rams his head into the buckle. Savage rams Butch into the buckle and kicks him in the ribs. Reed blocks a vertical suplex and executes one of his own. Reed drops an elbow and covers for a deuce. Butch punches away on Randy as Monsoon says so far the Quarterfinals are Andre vs Hogan, Dibiase vs Muraco and the winner of this faces Valentine. Butch snaps Randy off the top rope and he falls to the floor. Reed stomps away at Randy and drops him with a back elbow smash. Butch goes up to the second rope and drops the forearm to the head. Reed drops his head and gets kicked for it. Randy rallies with left jabs. Reed misses a charge in the corner but lands a clothesline. Butch starts taunting Elizabeth by saying its all over girl as he slowly goes up to the top rope. Savage slams Butch off the top, goes upstairs himself and hits the flying elbow drop. Savage covers for 1..2....3 to win the match. Ventura says he was wrong about Elizabeth as she distracted Reed long enough for Savage to take advantage. Crash style match with Reed dominating until the Savage rally at the end. Much like Steamboat, this was Butch Reed's last match with the WWF as he would go back to the NWA soon.

Time of match: 4:09

Winners: Randy Savage by pinfall

We go back to Bob Uecker who’s holding the Wrestlemania 4 program. He's happy that Vanna and him are in the progam next to each other. Bobby Heenan and The Islanders walk in and Uecker taunts them all. Best line is Uecker saying the ASPCAKGBY will be after Heenan. Heenan scoffs and cuts his own promo saying he's got the Islanders and he's not afraid of the miserable mutt Matilda or the bird. Bob Uecker says Matilda will have a smorgasbord with Heenan and the Islanders.

WWF Championship Tournament First Round Match 5 (Match 6 overall)

One Man Gang (with Slick) vs Bam Bam Bigelow (with Sir Oliver Humperdink)

The battle of the super heavyweights and rematch of the Survivor Series was the dark horse match of the first round. All eyes were on Hogan, Andre and Dibiase but nobody was talking about Bam Bam or Gang. Monsoons says Bam Bam is not too far from his hometown. Gang attacks at the bell and clubs away in the corner on Bam Bam. Gang continues to club away with forearms and right hands into the other corner. Gang whips Bam Bam into the corner and Monsoon says his highest weight was 440. Gang clotheslines Bigelow in the corner and whips him in the other. Gang misses a charge and Bam Bam drops him with a shoulderblock. Bam Bam does a cartwheel and does a terrible splash. He covers for 1...2...no. Bam Bam had no air on that and Gorilla says he can't beat Gang that way. Bigelow ducks under a clothesline and hits a crossbody for 1....2...no. Bigelow works over Gang as Ventura says Vanna White won't have to worry about being chased around by these two. Another cover gets a deuce and Bam Bam goes to town with forearms to the side of the head. A headbutt and a clothesline drops Gang as Ventura says this match will come down to who has the most endurance. Monsoon said he could go an hour when he weighed 440 as Ventura says Slick won't be happy if Gang loses because Butch Reed already lost. Another headbutt drops Gang and Bigelow lands a diving headbutt. Instead of covering Bam Bam tells the crowd one more is coming....uh oh. Bam Bam goes off the ropes but Slick pulls the top rope down in plain view of referee Jack Krueger. Krueger starts counting while Bam Bam makes it to the apron. Gang pummels him yet Krueger is still counting. Bam Bam headbutts Gang down, kicks Slick off his leg and gets in the ring as Krueger STILL COUNTS HIM OUT AS HE'S ALREADY IN THE RING! Bam Bam cartwheels and Gang bails as the bell rings. Ventura and Monsoon was too busy yapping to notice anything that just happened. Fink gets on the mic and says Bam Bam has been counted out. Good grief did Bam Bam attack Jack Krueger when he was still an active wrestler? That was one of the worst ref performances ever. Still, Gang goes over and that was a pretty bad big man match. Oh well.

Time of match: 2:55

Winner: One Man Gang by count-out

We go to Mean Gene who’s with the former champion Hulk Hogan himself. Hulk cuts one of the weirdest, asinine promos ever. Basically saying how he’s going to slam Andre so hard that Trump Plaza will sink into the ocean and Donald Trump will have to forgo his riches to dog paddle his family to safety, and if he can’t swim anymore Hogan will dog paddle everyone to safety. This is why you don’t script interviews, nobody could have POSSIBLY wrote something that hilariously stupid. Still though, Hogan was Hogan for a reason and he's ready for Andre. We cut to Trump himself signing autographs in the front row and the replay of Slick pulling the rope down. On to the next match.

WWF Championship Tournament First Round Match 6 (Match 7 overall)

Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs “Ravishing” Rick Rude

With the Gang winning his match, the natural set up would be Roberts winning this one. Rude gets on the mic and says all the little boys are taking a gamble by letting their women see his ravishing body. He says the odds are in his favor as Jake makes his entrance. They tie up to star and Rude pushes Jake into the corner, posing for the irate crowd. Another tie up has Jake throwing Rude face first to the ground. Ventura says Jake has more experience but Rude has the size. Rude scoop slams Jake and clocks him with a series of rights. Rude scoop slams him a second time but Jake blocks the third attempt. Jake hits two scoop slams of his own and Rude begs off in the corner. Jake drops him with a right hand and Rude crawls right onto Damien's bag causing him to crawl away. Jake gets in an arm-ringer and ducks a big right hand. Jake continues to work over the left arm while ducking right hands. Jake turns it into a wristlock as Ventura says he's been out of the ring for two years & can still go. Monsoon says he'd buy a ticket to that. Jake continues to work over the wristlock but Rude shoulderblocks him in the corner to break the hold. Rude props him on the second rope but runs right into a knee lift. Jake gives the sign for the DDT but Rude slides out of it and regroups with Heenan on the floor. Rude slides back in and Jake locks in another left arm-ringer. They criss-cross and Jake catches Rude with a scoop slam. Jake goes for the knee lift but Rude gets out of the way. Rude takes advantage and stomps on him as Heenan says don't waste any time. Rude drops Jake with a clothesline and poses again. Rude covers for a deuce then locks in a chinlock. Ventura says there's only 15 minutes in the match so wear down holds aren't the best decision. Hmmm, they haven't mentioned time at all until this match, what's the implication here? Jake gets to his feet but Rude yanks the hair to get Jake back on the mat. Referee Jimmy Korderas tells Heenan to get lost as Jake finally powers out of it with an arm-drag. Rude goes up to the second rope and decks Roberts with a forearm. Heenan yells at Rude to hurry up as Rude clobbers Jake with right hands as Monsoon again brings up the time limit. Rude clotheslines and covers for a deuce before going back to the chinlock. Someone in the crowd shouts "BORING!" as right on cue Jake elbows out of it only to be face planted on the mat by Rude. Rick goes to the top rope and lands a flying fistdrop. Rude covers for 1..2...nope. Rude goes for another chinlock as the crowd starts to chant "weasel". Jake goes for the back suplex but Rude held on to the chinlock. Rude rolls over on top for 1...2...nope. Rude kicks Jake against the bottom rope and covers again for a deuce. Rude goes back to the chinlock as the "boring" chant gets louder. Jake grabs the hair but it doesn't work as the crowd continues to chant boring. Monsoon and Ventura bicker out of boredom as Jake tries to rally the crowd with a comeback. Jake hits a jawbreaker and rallies with left hands. Jake hits a backdrop and hits the short armed clothesline. Jake signals for the DDT but Rude drives him in the corner. Rude whips Jake in the corner but a charge eats knee. Jake hits a stomach breaker and covers for 1...2....nope. Ventura says they gotta be getting close to the time limit and you know where this is going. Rude hits a back suplex and covers for a deuce. Rude ducks the line but they clothesline each other down. Jake goes for a DDT but Rude scoops the leg for the Flair Pin for 1.....2....DING DING DING. Monsoon says he didn't see a three count but the bell rang anyway. Rude thinks he's won but the Fink announces the time limit draw, both men are gone. One Man Gang has a bye into the semi-finals. Jake grabs Damien and chases Rude & Heenan away. That match was brutally boring even by 1988 standards and its mostly due to the booking. They were supposed to go the full 15 so they worked the chinlock for half the time.

Time of match: 15:00

Winners: No one (Time limit draw)

We go to Mean Gene who’s with Vanna White to check out the updated brackets. Hogan and Andre received byes in the first round so they will kick off the quarter finals. After that Ted Dibiase battles Don Muraco. Greg Valentine takes on Randy Savage and One Man Gang has a bye into the semi-finals. Pretty straightforward here as Vanna says she loves the Hulk, Randy & Elizabeth.

Match 8

Ultimate Warrior vs Hercules (with Bobby Heenan)

Power vs power as rising star Warrior takes on the perennial mid-carder Hercules. Funny how Heenan just left with Rude and had to come back with Hercules. Warrior sprints down the stairs at Trump Plaza and gets a big pop. Bell's gone and they circle to start. A shoulderblock goes nowhere and a second one is ineffective. Hercules and Warrior shove each other then tie up. Warrior backs Herc in the corner but Warrior clubs away with punches and chops anyway. Herc ducks a line and it takes three clotheslines to drop Warrior. Warrior lands a left arm clothesline then does another one. Warrior tries to drop Herc on the top rope but misses so he sends him off the ropes. Herc runs right into a chop but dumps Warrior over the top to the floor. Warrior pulls Herc out and they brawl on the floor. Warrior rams Herc into the ring steps then rolls him inside. Herc punches away at Warrior and hits an elbow. Warrior punches the back of the neck then chokes him in the corner. Warrior does 10 punches in the corner but Herc hits an inverted atomic drop. Herc rams Warrior into the buckle but gets whipped into the corner. Warrior misses a charge and backs right into the full nelson. Warrior kicks off the ropes and Herc turns it into a German suplex bridge for 1.....2....Warrior gets the shoulder up....3 to end the match. Monsoon notices right away Warrior got the shoulder up as Herc and Heenan think they've won. Referee Earl Hebner says Warrior has won it. Herc attacks after the bell and grabs his chain. He wraps the chain around Warrior's neck but Warrior uses his strength to pull it off and chase Hercules away by swinging the chain wildly. Ventura says the rivalry is far from over but Warrior gets the duke this time. That match sucked as Ted Dibiase once said Hercules and Warrior both could work if they had someone to lead them, but against each other they were lost. It showed here.

Time of match: 4:29

Winner: Ultimate Warrior by pinfall

We show Sugar Ray Leonard in the crowd as Ventura said Marvin Hagler won that fight....don't get me started. We go to a highlight package of the events leading up to Hogan vs Andre starting the previous year where Andre turned heel to challenge Hulk at Wrestlemania 3. We get a highlight of Wrestlemania 3 then to Ted Dibiase saying he's going to buy the world title. Hogan says HELLLL NOOOOOOOOO! Then Andre attacking Hogan on Saturday Night's Main Event leading to Andre promising Ted Dibiase he'll deliver the world title. Then we cut to The Main Event where Andre pinned Hogan due to the crooked referee. We cut before the twin ref angle and we're back at ringside for the next match.

WWF Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Match 1 (Match 9 overall)

Andre The Giant (with Ted Dibiase and Virgil) vs Hulk Hogan

The monster match of the second round would pretty much set the tone of the remainder of the tournament. After all, if Hogan won, logically that would mean he’d face One Man Gang in the finals. If Andre won, that would mean logically taking on Randy Savage in the final. Why have Andre beat Hogan just to lay down for Dibiase? Virgil and Dibiase accompany Andre to the ring and Monsoon scoffs there's too many guys. Monsoon says he had "Wild" Red Berry as a manager as Hulk makes his entrance. Hogan runs to the ring and Andre kicks him at the bell. Hogan didn't even take his shirt off as Andre rams him into the buckle. Andre chops him and hits a big roundhouse right. Andre chops and hits the big headbutt. Hogan rallies with running forearms but Dibiase hops up on the apron. Hogan chokes Dibiase then grabs Andre for the double noggin knocker. Hulk chops Andre until he's tied up in the top rope. Dibiase and Virgil free Andre as Hogan punches away at the giant. Hogan fires away and finally Andre goes down. Hulk drops an elbow but Andre snatches him by the throat for the blatant choke. Andre does the seated splash and puts the boots to Hogan. Andre grabs Hogan and chokes him again. Andre locks in a nerve hold and Hogan goes down to one knee. Hogan's arm drops twice but Hogan revives and rallies with a knee to the ribs. Hogan punches away at Andre, runs off the ropes and clotheslines Andre in the corner. Hogan calls for a slam but Virgil distracts the referee. Dibiase clobbers Hogan with a steel chair but Hogan chases Dibiase away. Hogan grabs the chair and goes to hit Andre but Andre blocks it. Hogan kicks him in the ribs and nails him with the chair. Ventura correctly points out that's a disqualification but Andre grabs the chair and waffles Hogan with it. The ref calls for the bell....oh NOW you call for the bell? Hogan nails Andre with it a third time as Hogan chases Dibiase and Virgil away. Dibiase throws Virgil to Hogan and runs off. Hogan hits a vertical suplex on Virgil and goes back to the ring. Monsoon says double disqualification is the official rule as Hogan slams Andre again. Ventura says both men are gone so the winner of the next match gets the bye to the Finals. Ventura scoffs at Hogan posing for the crowd since he didn't win. People want to say it was a bad match but considering they had five minutes, it served its purpose. Hogan poses and poses....and poses some more.

Time of match: 5:22

Winner: No one (Double DQ)

Mean Gene Okerlund is with Randy Savage and Elizabeth. Okerlund says he's surprised that Hogan & Andre are gone as Savage says "Hogan is a cheated man not a defeated man." Gene asks Savage about his chances and Savage says nothing's going to stop the Macho Man now. Elizabeth says she believes Randy will win it all. Savage "ALL THE WAY, YEAH! DOIN IT YEAH!" On to the next match.

WWF Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Match 2 (Match 10 overall)

“The Rock” Don Muraco (with Superstar Billy Graham) vs “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase

Muraco comes out looking cool, calm and collected while Dibiase comes out in just his tights, looking distraught without Andre and Virgil. After Hogan manhandled Virgil, Dibiase is going for it alone. That actually is a cool set up considering he needed both Andre and Virgil to beat Duggan in the first round. Muraco also has Billy Graham in his corner so actually Dibiase is the underdog here. Monsoon and Ventura points out the winner of the match is in the finals. Muraco grabs him onto the apron and rams his head into each buckle as the bell rings. Muraco slams Dibiase in the ring and clotheslines him. Muraco drops an elbow and hits a powerslam, covering for 1...2..nope. Muraco unloads on Ted and drops him with a back elbow smash. Muraco hops on the second rope and drops a fist then covers for a deuce. Dibiase is sent into the buckle and snap mared. Muraco does a neckbreaker as Ventura says Graham isn't above bending the rules. Muraco hits a dropkick and covers for 1...2...nope. Dibiase bails to outside and Graham threatens to hit him with his cane. Back inside Muraco nails him with a series of right hands. Muraco whips Ted into the corner and Dibiase slingshots The Rock into the ring post. Ted stomps away on Muraco and goes for the blatant choke. Ted stomps Muraco and rams his head into the buckle. Dibiase hits a left armed clothesline as Ventura says the favorite to win is One Man Gang with Hogan & Andre gone. Dibiase does his million dollar fistdrop but Muraco's foot is on the rope. Ted goes back to the blatant choke and a headlocked punch. Ted chops Muraco but puts his head down, eating a boot. Dibiase recovers and goes for the eye rake followed by a scoop slam. Ted misses the second rope elbow and Muraco unloads in the corner with right hands. Muraco clotheslines Dibiase and Ted begs off. Ted sends Don off and eats a shoulderblock. Ted catches a charging Muraco with a stun gun and covers for 1...2....3 to win the match. Dibiase is in the Finals. Today's fans hate the match but I dug it. Muraco was just a fading mid-carder but the fact Dibiase was in distress and didn't have Virgil gave the illusion Don could win. We go to the replay of the stun gun as one half of the Finals is set before the second round is even over! That leaves the Macho Man the only babyface left.

Time of match: 5:44

Winner: Ted Dibiase by pinfall

We go back to Bob Uecker who’s nervous that he can't find Vanna White. All of a sudden Demoltion and Mr. Fuji walk in. Smash in baseball you get hit in the head with a bat, you go down. Strike Force is going down. Ax says they're grabbing the golden goose in Atlantic City and ringing its neck. Uecker says it must be October 31st already. "I've never eaten sushi either!" Ha. Before the next match starts, One Man Gang is in the ring with Slick. Howard Finkel announces Gang advances to the semi-final via a bye and the ref raises his arm for the obligatory victory pose. He makes his exit as we begin the next match.

WWF Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Match 3 (Match 11 overall)

Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (with Jimmy Hart) vs “Macho Man” Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth)

Valentine had defeated Steamboat who defeated Savage the year prior, if there was a kayfabe reason to go with Greg, that would be it. Otherwise Savage is now the only babyface left in the tournament. Savage and Liz come out with matching pink outfits. Savage is in the orange trunks this time as the bell rings. Ventura says this is a nightmare as the winner faces the One Man Gang. Valentine clobbers Savage and rams him into the corner. Valentine forearms Savage and Randy turns it around with an elbow. He takes Hammer over with a snapmare and covers for a deuce. Hammer goes upstairs and nails Savage with an elbow. Hammer drops a conventional elbow and covers for a deuce. Valentine executes a shoulderbreaker and covers for 1...2..nope. Monsoon scoffs at the nonchalant cover. Valentine heaves Savage over the top to the floor and drops another elbow to the back of the neck. Ventura says he's giving Savage a taste of his own medicine. Greg chops Randy twice and sends him into the barricade. Greg grabs Randy and elbows him twice in the chest on the apron. Hammer stomps away on Randy and drops an elbow on the apron to Randy. Valentine does a blatant choke as Ventura says to get back in the ring. Valentine starts going to work on the right leg but the figure four attempt is blocked when Randy grabs the rope. Greg hits a vertical suplex as Monsoon goofs by saying "The ravishing one took a lot out of him" Ventura "Who??" Ventura "You mean Butch Reed?" Monsoon "Oh, what did I say? I'm sorry, The Natural" Greg hits a backbreaker and covers for a deuce then fights back in the corner. Elbow drops Valentine with a back elbow smash and a scoop slam. Randy goes upstairs and hits an axehandle then covers for 1...2...nope. Greg gets a chop to the throat and hits a back elbow of his own. Savage hits a vertical suplex and goes up a second time. This time Valentine catches Randy with a shot to the ribs but falls down anyway. Randy goes for the knee to the back but Hart pulled Greg out of the way. Randy crashes into the ropes and Greg goes for the figure four in the middle of the ring. Savage turns it into a small package for 1..2.....3 to win the match! Heads up play by Savage puts him in the semi-finals. Great match for what it was, Valentine was CRIMINALLY underrated and his matches with Savage & Steamboat proves he could go. Savage goes on to the next round.

Time of match: 6:06

Winners: Randy Savage by pinfall.

Back to Mean Gene and Vanna White to check out the updated brackets. Vanna White says she has no idea who Bob Uecker is. With Hogan and Andre gone, Dibiase is in the finals. The semi-final match to determine his opponent will be One Man Gang against the Macho Man. Gene sends us back to ring-side for the next match.

Match 12

Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake vs Honky Tonk Man with Peggy Sue and Jimmy Hart for the WWF Intercontinental Championship

In case you didn’t know, Peggy Sue is actually Sensational Sherri in a blonde wig. Honky Tonk had dethroned Ricky Steamboat nearly a full year earlier and Beefcake was the next in line for a title shot. Why do you ask, because he's Hogan's best friend. Brutus enters second without his goofy, catchy entrance music and he threatens to cut Peggy Sue's hair off. That would be easy since Sherri aka Sue was just wearing a wig. Ventura delivers his classic Honky line "What he doesn't have in ability, he makes up for with luck" Luck runs out on everyone Jesse, could this be the night he's dethroned? Ventura says he's playing the piano in Honky's theme as Monsoon scoffs. The commentators commentate on the unusual wrestling attire on Beefcake as the bell rings. They do nothing at the start so Ventura gives a shout out to his kids at home, then they lock up. Honky goes for a chop but Beefcake runs underneath and catches the foot on the way back. Brutus spins him around and delivers an atomic drop before messing up Honky's hair to psych him out. Beefcake punched him down before Honky bails to the outside to regroup with his entourage. Back inside Honky begs off as Beefcake makes the cutting sign until they lock up again as the commentators discuss the rules of a championship title change. Ventura says its a good thing because "you could have a biased referee make a garbage disqualification call"....and I can't count how many times we've seen that in the damn near forty years since Wrestlemania 4. Beefcake rams Honky's head into the top turnbuckle 10 times before delivering his High Knee.....but doesn't make the cover. Honky bails to the floor and regroups with Jimmy/Peggy again. Beefcake pulls him to the apron and delivers forearm smashes to the back of the head, finishing by snap maring him inside. Beefcake sends him off and puts his head down, then moves when Honky goes to kick causing Man to fall on his back. Brutus misses a jumping elbow drop so the champ goes to work with boots. Jimmy says to Peggy "We got him now" as Monsoon says we may see the Shake Rattle N Roll...the same move that put Beefcake away at the first Survivor Series. Honky delivers sloppy looking right hands and delivers a fistdrop then taunts the crowd. Honky delivers a headlock/punch combo then stomps away again. He distracts the referee so Jimmy Hart gets in a few cheap shots. Honky teases the Shake Rattle N Roll but instead delivers a knee to the sternum. Honky brings him near the corner and Shakes....Rattles....but Beefcake grabs the top rope so Honky rolls himself down. Beefcake rallies with right hands and delivers a backdrop, causing the champ to beg off. Brutus sends him off and catches him with THE SLEEPER.....Honky flails about trying to make it to the ropes but gets caught in the center of the ring. Honky begins to fade as Peggy tells Jimmy to do something, so he hops up on the apron. Referee Jimmy Korderas tells him to beat it and turns around, which Jimmy takes the opening to clock him in the back of the head with the megaphone. Beefcake puts Honky to sleep and celebrates thinking he's won the title. Brutus turns around to see the ref out cold and points the finger at Jimmy. Brutus goes to cut Honky's hair but Jimmy swiftly grabs the barber bag and takes off. In a comical spot, Brutus catches Jimmy and cuts HIS hair instead. Jimmy flails away but Beefcake holds him down to give him a haircut, Ventura "This is horrible" Inside the ring, Peggy Sue and 2 referee's try to revive the unconscious Korderas to no avail. Peggy grabs a water bucket and douses Honky with it, waking him up. Beefcake gets the hedge clippers and gets in the ring but the refs cut him off. Jimmy and Peggy roll Honky out of the ring as Howard Finkel announces that Brutus Beefcake is the winner by DQ. Its kind of funny how the original referee is still knocked goofy so apparently Hebner interjected himself into the spotlight again by awarding the match (but not the title) to Beefcake. Honky still remains champion but Brutus has humiliated both the champ and his manager, everybody wins in this instance. I don't think Honky Tonk Man did 2 technical wrestling holds the whole match, how Vince kept him as champion for so long and still be able to draw was a testament of how over Honky was.

Time of match: 8:58

Winner: Brutus Beefcake by DQ (Honky retains)

We go back to Bob Uecker who’s nervous since we’re getting close to the main event and he hasn’t found Vanna White. Andre The Giant crashes the party with his hand on Bob's shoulder. Andre says he's still undefeated and he got paid to keep Hulk out by Dibiase. Andre says Hogan is the ex-champion HA HA HA! Andre says don't worry about Vanna White because Hulkamania is over. Uecker says to get his foot off his shoulder and Andre hilariously throttles him. We cut to a Coliseum Video exclusive interview where Craig DeGeorge interviews a hysterical Jimmy Hart, Peggy Sue and Honky Tonk Man. Hart says he looks like Little Lulu with his haircut which is a reference that would be completely lost today but HILARIOUS for its time. Honky covers up Jimmy's head and says no one will ever see him like this. He vows revenge on Beefcake....ha!

Match 13

Bobby Heenan and The Islanders (Haku and Tama) vs Koko B Ware and The British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) with Matilda and Frankie

The Islanders actually have music? I didn’t remember that at all. Heenan’s surprise package was an attack dog suit worn by animal trainers and Bobby looks ridiculous in it. Still, Ventura pointed out that Bobby used his brains to negate the effects of Matilda. Dynamite doesn't wait for the bell to slingshot Tama into the ring. Haku charges but eats a hiptoss. Dynamite gets sent off and he shoulderblocks Tama. Dynamite hiptosses Tama and hits a backdrop before Tama wants a handshake. Dynamite chops Tama in the throat and slingshots him over the top rope to the outside. Back inside Davey Boy tags in as Tama slides back in. Davey scoop slams Tama but msises an elbow drop. Haku tags in but the shoulderblock goes nowhere. Davey hits a crossbody on Haku for a two count. Davey scoop slams Haku then hits a crucifix for 1...2...nope. Davey Boy snap mares Haku and goes to the chinlock but Haku escapes with an arm-ringer. Tama tags in and he chops away at Davey, but Smith hits the hanging press slam. Tama tags out to Haku who clubs away at Davey before dropping him with a back elbow smash. Haku and Davey exchange forearms but Davey flips out of a sidewalk slam attempt to tag in Koko. Ware dropkicks Haku then nails Tama in the corner. He does a head scissors takedown to both Islanders then tags in Dynamite. Kid hits a left arm lariat to Haku but a charge in the corner eats foot. Ventura says Heenan looks like a Chinaman in that suit as Bobby tags in. He stomps away on Dynamite but Dynamite hits him in the ribs. Tama tags in and backdrops Dynamite before taunting the irate crowd. Tama slams Dynamite but misses the Vader bomb as Dynamite got the knees up. Dynamite tags Koko and he backdrops Tama. He headbutts Haku then whips the Islanders into each other. Koko puts his head down and gets kicked in the head by Haku. Haku clotheslines Koko and rakes the face. Tama tags in and goes upstairs. Tama comes off the top with a chop and Heenan tags in. Bobby hits a knee lift and kicks him in the ribs. Bobby punches away at Koko and gets in a blatant choke. Koko breaks Bobby's grip and punches him in the head. Heenan rakes the eye but Koko whips him in the corner. Koko dropkicks Bobby into the ringpost. Heenan begs off but Koko gets attacked from behind. Everyone gets in for a pier six brawl. Tama slams Koko and both Islanders slam Bobby on top of him. The ref counts 1.....2....3 and the heels win. Heenan pins Koko but  the Bulldogs rally to drop the Islanders. Davey Boy grabs Matilda and chases Heenan, Davey sicks Matilda on Bobby but according to Heenan, Matilda was so scared with all the people around it wasn't moving. Bobby had to roll around with the dog to make it look like he was being attacked. Anyone who knows dogs know they HATE loud noise and most likely Matilda got freaked out by the roar of the crowd. Either way that was not a formulaic tag match and Heenan got the pinfall much like Danny Davis the year before.

Time of match: 7:30

Winners: Heenan and The Islanders by pinfall

Just to kill time, Howard Finkel points to the announce booth where Jesse poses for the crowd for a few minutes. We cut to a Coliseum Video exclusive with an irate Bobby Heenan who doesn’t even allow DeGeorge into camera view. He says they threw him to the wolves or in this case the dogs, but he's still standing and talking. Nobody is going to shut him up. He was right, only throat cancer could stop him, not anyone from Matilda to Monsoon. Back to the Fink with Ted Dibiase in the silver suit in the ring. Ted gets the obligatory hand raise as he's announced as going to the Finals. Ted leaves and we go to our semi-final match.

WWF Championship Tournament Semi-Final Match (Match 14 overall)

One Man Gang (with Slick) vs “Macho Man” Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth)

Before the match even starts Monsoon and Ventura speculate the severe disadvantage the Macho Man has considering Gang had a relatively short match with Bam Bam while Randy had two knock down drag out affairs with Butch Reed and Greg Valentine. Not to mention the 200 pound weight difference. Ventura admits normally he’s a Savage fan but the smart money would be on Gang. Kayfabe wise that does make sense, logically it makes zero sense because who the hell would want to watch a Ted Dibiase vs One Man Gang final? Randy and Liz come out to matching black outfits with Randy back in the beige trunks. Bell rings and Gang rolls around with Randy to start Gang misses a big right hand and Savage goes to work with right hands. He bites Gang and grabs him by the beard. Savage snaps him off the top rope but Gang shoulderblocks him into the corner. Gang chops Savage in the throat and elbows him in the back of the neck. Gang elbows Savage into the corner and avalanches him. He steps on Savage and scoop slams him. He covers for 1...2..no, foot on the rope. Gang drops an elbow in the center of the ring an covers for 1...2...no. Gang scoop slams Randy but misses the big splash. He charges in the corner and misses. Savage punches Gang into the ropes and Randy hits an axehandle to send him through the ropes to the outside. Savage hits the axehandle from the top rope to the floor. Slick rolls Gang back inside but Savage foolishly goes for the scoop slam. Gang choke bombs Savage as Slick chases Elizabeth away. Elizabeth hops on the apron to get away and referee Jack Krueger tells her to beat it. With the ref distracted, Slick hops up on the apron but Savage grabs him. Slick tosses the cane to the One Man Gang and Gang clobbers him with it. Gang keeps trying to hit Savage with it but Savage keeps rolling out of the way. Krueger finally notices it and calls for the bell. Gang waffles Savage through the ropes to the outside but is disqualified, Savage is in the Finals. Gang and Slick hug in the middle of the ring but Savage goes upstairs and axehandles Gang in the back. Gang falls on top of Slick and Macho Man hightails it out of there. Not much they could do with 4 minutes but the design was to get Savage to the Finals. Its Dibiase vs Savage for the WWF Championship.


Time of match: 4:05

Winner: Randy Savage by DQ

Back to Mean Gene and Vanna White at the brackets and there’s nothing to it, its down to Dibiase and Savage in the finals. Vanna leaves to get ready and Uecker runs in, just missed her. He says some guy named Vance White has been calling him all week. Okerlund says VANNA White is here. He apologizes to Bob then sends up to Gorilla and Jess for the next match.

Match 15

Demoltion (Ax and Smash) with Mr. Fuji vs Strike Force (Rick Martel and Tito Santana) for the WWF Tag Team Championship

Demolition enters first to their kickass Rick Derringer theme while Strike Force enters to their cheesy Girls In Cars theme. Demolition had run rough-shod on the babyface tag teams of the WWF for about a year and they would get their shot at Strike Force tonight. Ventura predicts Demolition is too big and strong for Strike Force. Bell's gone and Smash starts with Martel. Smash beats him down instantly with axehandles but Martel ducks the line and goes for the crossbody. Smash catches him and Santana dropkicks him on top. Ax runs in and beats down Santana but the double whip has Martel hitting Ax with another crossbody. Strike Force chases Ax away and hits a double clothesline on Smash. Martel covers for a deuce and locks in an arm-ringer. Monsoon and Ventura start bickering as Santana tags in to keep the arm-ringer. Santana arm-drags Ax as Monsoon says he doesn't think the Boston Crab will work in either one of Demoltion....which makes zero sense since Jim Niedhart is as bulky as Smash and Ax. Martel tags in and continues to work the left-arm but Ax headbutts him. Smash tags in and Martel hits a hiptoss before tagging to Santana. Ventura says Strike Force needs to keep Smash isolated. Santana leapfrogs Smash but Tito gets caught and clotheslined by Ax. Demoltion double-teams Santana in the corner and Ax rams Tito face first into Smash's boot. Smash tags in and he unloads in the corner before tagging Ax back in. Ax powerslams Tito and covers for a deuce. Ax kicks Tito in the head and rams him into Smash's boot again. Smash tags in and steps on Santana's throat. Martel tries to help Santana out but the ref gets rid of him allowing the double team to continue. Smash hits a snap suplex and covers for 1...2...nope. Smash "Hey come on that was" and starts clapping his hands. Smash slams Tito but misses the big elbow drop. Ax tags in and sends Tito off but Santana hits an elbow to the head. Smash pulls Santana back into the corner and Ax unloads with right hands. Santana hits THE FLYING JALAPENO out of nowhere and both men are down. Ax tags in Smash and Martel gets the hot tag. Martel unloads on Smash and hits a backdrop before punching Ax. Martel dropkicks both members of Demoltion and locks the Boston crab on Smash. Santana clubs away on Ax but the ref tries to get him out of there. Mr. Fuji hops up on the apron and Tito nails Ax with the flying jalapeno to knock him off the apron. Tito then decks Fuji on the apron and he drops the cane. Ax slides in the ring, grabs the cane and nails Martel in the back with it. Ax leaves with the evidence as Santana knocks the referee into the center of the ring. Smash covers Martel with Santana busy beating up Fuji for 1....2...3 to win the match. We got new tag team champions as Santana's haste to beat up Fuji costs Strike Force the match. Demolition gathers the belts and Fuji and walks to the back. We go to the replay with Santana hilariously smashing Fuji's head into the mat. Good match for what it was and the era of Demolition had begun.

Time of match: 8:02

Winners: Demolition by pinfall (New WWF Tag Team Champions)

We go to a Coliseum Video exclusive interview with the new champs conducted by Craig DeGeorge. Shockingly good editing by Coliseum as Ax and Smash literally look like they just came through the curtain. Ax and Smash say they knew they were going to win and they did it. Before we get to our main event we have the obligatory hooplah. Robin Leach brings the new WWF Heavyweight Championship belt to the ring on a red pillow. We know the belt as the winged eagle design that lasted for 10 years. Vanna White is introduced as special guest timekeeper and Bob Uecker is the special guest ring announcer. Bob swings and misses as he enters as Jesse scoffs and says he can’t even hit an airball. Finally, after two months, its time to crown a new champion.

Match 16  (WWF Championship Tournament Finals)

Ted Dibiase (with Andre The Giant) vs “Macho Man” Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth) for the vacant WWF Heavyweight Championship

If there were two heirs to the top heel and top babyface mantle to supplant Hogan and Andre, it was definitely Savage and Dibiase. Savage was wearing the same tights he wore against Valentine and they lock up to start. Dibiase backs Savage in the corner but Randy elbows his way out only to be tripped up by Andre outside the ring. Referee Dave Hebner was looking at a slot machine or something because he missed it. Savage locks in a headlock-go behind combo before they reverse each other. Dibiase sends Savage off the ropes then ducks down and when Savage bounces off, he's tripped up again by Andre. Gorilla scoffs as Savage points at Andre and shouts at the big guy. The crowd starts chanting for Hogan as Dibiase goes back to work and the announcers say the advantage goes to the million dollar man. Dibiase chops Randy in the corner then elbows the back of the neck. Dibiase delivers a left armed clothesline and covers for a near fall. Savage sends Dibiase off the ropes but Ted sunset flips only to be punched in the face for his troubles. Savage executes a left armed clothesline followed by a pinfall attempt for a near fall. Dibiase goes over strategy with Andre until they lock up again. Dibiase gets the upper hand with heel tactics then delivers a back elbow smash. Dibiase riles up the crowd before continuing to work over Savage. Ventura says the 3 matches have taken too much out of Savage and right on cue Randy ducks under a clothesline to deliver a running elbow to the head. Savage does the over the top guillotine that snaps Dibiase backwards into the center of the ring. Randy delivers a running knee to the back that sends Dibiase spiraling over the top rope to the floor. Savage goes upstairs but Andre stands in the way. Savage goes over to Elizabeth and whispers something to her and she takes off to the back. The crowd cheers as they know what's about to happen and start chanting Hogan. Dibiase nails Savage from behind and does his trademark Fistful of Dollars Punches as Ventura says he's seen Miss Elizabeth run off before. Dibiase covers but only gets a 2 count as Monsoon says "She may be gone too long, Jess." Dibiase locks in a rest hold as the crowd chants for Hulk Hogan until finally he appears with Elizabeth in the entrance. The crowd goes nuts as Hulk and Liz walk down to ringside as Ventura speculate that neither Dibiase or Andre know he's coming. Dibiase finally spots him and drops Savage to protest at Hogan being here. Hogan grabs a chair and....WAFFLES ELIZABETH WITH IT!!! Just kidding, he just sets it down in Savage's corner and sits to watch the proceedings. Ventura says that Hogan's got Dibiase's attention which could distract him from the bout. Dibiase attacks Savage in the corner until he distracts the ref allowing Andre to strangle him. Hogan comes over and nails Andre before Savage rallies with right elbows. Dibiase sticks a thumb to the eye then executes a clothesline. Dibiase covers but only gets a near fall. Ted delivers a suplex and covers for 1....2...nope. Dibiase executes a gut-wrench suplex and covers for 1...2..nope. Dibiase scoop slams Savage then goes upstairs. Savage recovers and throws Dibiase off the top. He quickly goes up to the top but misses the flying elbow drop attempt. Dibiase locks in the million dollar dream and leads Savage over to the ropes where Andre takes a swipe at him. Hebner leans through the ropes to scold Andre which allows Hogan to slide into the ring with the chair. Hogan cocks and WHAM...nails Dibiase in the back as Ventura has a heart attack at the thought of Hogan cheating. Savage recovers and goes upstairs to progressively louder cheers. Randy delivers THE FLYING ELBOW DROP. Savage covers for 1....2....3..WE GOT A NEW CHAMPION! Hogan runs in and gives the new designed belt (which would last exactly 10 years) to Savage. Dibiase and Andre protest in the isle as Savage hugs the belt in the corner. Ventura protests the cheating as Savage shakes Hogan's hand then celebrates with Elizabeth and the Hulkster. Monsoon says he's the undisputed champion as Savage says he couldn't have done it without Hulk's help. Savage puts Liz on his shoulders with the belt on her shoulders.


Time of match: 9:14

Winner: Randy Savage by pinfall (New WWF Champion)

Monsoon and Jess sign off after running down what just happened. Wrestlemania 4 was doomed to be a let down no matter what the card was after the previous year. Still, it was a landmark event for "Macho Man" Randy Savage as he became the new WWF Champion. It would have been nice if Hogan wasn't THAT involved in it but the Mega Powers are the Mega Powers for a reason. This was only the beginning for Randy as he finally got his due as one of the best in the business. This would also be the last pay-per-view appearance for a lot of guys for years including Bam Bam Bigelow, Sika and Ricky Steamboat. Butch Reed also quietly left shortly after this. Bad News Brown put himself on the map winning the battle royal although Bret Hart isn't too happy about it. Honky Tonk Man remains Intercontinental champion and Demolition are the new tag team champs. The question now was could Randy Savage carry the load as WWF Champion the way Hogan had for years. Unlike Hogan, he'd have to share the spotlight with the almighty Hulkster. The next show after this would be the yearly overseas tour which would eventually be called "UK Rampage". The first stop would be in Switzerland on April 1st in Lugano. I'll see you there.