-Haven’t watched this one in awhile, but this was right after the WWF blew the biggest angle in wrestling history. Ric Flair left the NWA during a contract dispute and brought the NWA title with him to WWF TV! A match with Hulk Hogan should have been an instant, but of course, WWF blew the angle by making Ric Flair “pay his dues” and finally gave him the world title at the Royal Rumble.

-Standard video hyping the “double main event” and the Hulk Hogan retirement match HAHAHAHAHA.

Tito Santana vs. Shawn Michaels

Slugfest to start, and Tito gets a cross body for two. Headlock from Tito, and a nice sequence off the ropes before Shawn gets clotheslined over the top rope. Tito grabs the headlock on the apron and drags Shawn back into the ring. Shawn drives him into the corner and works him over. Shawn tries a reversal two times and it doesn’t work, so Tito goes right back to the headlock. Shawn tries to get out of it a bunch of times, but Tito keeps the hold on. Shawn gets out, but Tito gets a small package for two and goes right back to the headlock. Off the ropes and Shawn throws Tito over the top and to the floor. I don’t know who this goof of a referee is, but he looks like my ex-girlfriend’s dad, which is very weird for some reason. Back inside, Shawn gets a backbreaker for two, and then goes to the chinlock. Tito fights out of it, but Shawn gets Sweet Chin Music before it was over to slow down Tito. Shawn goes for the Teardrop Suplex, but Tito fights out of it and catches Shawn with a flying forearm that shoots Shawn outside the ring. Tito introduces him to the steps and rolls Shawn back in. Tito comes back in with a shoulderblock, and he gets an inverted atomic drop. The El Paso del Murte hits, and Shawn rolls to the outside. On the apron, Tito goes for a slam, and it looks like Sherri was supposed to grab Tito’s foot, but she forgets so Shawn just falls on top for the pin.

Winner: Shawn Michaels

-Wasn’t too bad, a long headlock segment, but it didn’t hurt the match too much. **1/2 for a decent opener.

-Mean Gene introduces the Legion of Doom, who bring back Paul Ellering into the fold. They talk about discovering their roots, which would lead to “Rocco”. If you don’t know who Rocco is, consider yourself lucky and never speak of it again.

-Backstage, Sean Mooney interviews Jake Roberts, who laughs over DDTing Paul Bearer on Superstars. (Jake: “Short ride, bad landing.”) Evil Jake was so cool.

Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. The Undertaker

Jake was on his way out here, heading into the arms of WCW for his one PPV headlining match. Big pop for the Undertaker, which I’m still amazed got over the way he did. UT stalks Jake to start, and Jake tries to keep dodging and punching, but of course they are no-sold. Jake punches UT over the top, but he lands on his feet and drags Jake out and kicks his ass. He runs Jake into the post, but Jake hammers away on him back inside. UT to the corner, but Taker chokes out Jake and drives him into the corner. Jake tries to get away, but UT grabs him by the throat and keeps him in the corner. Jake is whipped into the corner again, and Taker grabs a chokehold to bring Jake down. Taker works…very…slowly. Flying clothesline from the Undertaker, but Taker reverses the Tombstone into the DDT. It gets a pretty good pop from the crowd too. Taker sits up though to a bigger pop, so Jake gives him and short-arm clothesline and Taker sits up again. Jake delivers another DDT, and now Jake wants to beat up Paul Bearer. UT jumps him from behind and Tombstones Jake on the floor. Jake is DEAD. UT drags Jake back in the ring for the pin. Well that was pretty decisive.

Winner: The Undertaker

-Taker works WAY too slowly to get another over ** at this point, so that’s what this gets because it popped the crowd, but it was basically a squash for Taker. See ya, Jake.

-Mean Gene interviews Roddy Piper and Bret Hart. Piper is the man. Piper jokes around with Hart about knowing him before he was potty-trained at age 8. Bret is too serious and threatens to beat him up right there, but Piper already has his belt wrapped around his fist and goes into full heel mode. Awesome.

WWF Intercontinental Title

“Rowdy” Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart

This was Piper’s only singles title in his WWF career, as he won it from the Mountie at the Royal Rumble. Lockup to start, and Piper gets an armdrag. Lockup again and Bret returns the armdrag. Piper takes Bret down and gets a waistlock, and Bret uses his momentum to send Piper through the ropes. Piper is pissed and gets right back in Bret’s face and spits on him as the crowd goes ballistic. Gorilla wants an apology. Piper wants a test of strength, and they trade armbars. Piper chops away and runs Bret into the corner. Bret holds onto the arm though, and drags Piper to the mat into a hammerlock. Off the ropes, Bret gets a dropkick but looks to have hurt his shoulder as he hit the mat. Piper looks somewhat concerned until Bret reveals he was only kidding and small packages Piper for two. Piper responds by slapping him across the face very hard and pissing off Bret. Serves you right. Off the ropes and Bret gets a crossbody that takes both guys to the floor. Piper back in first, and even holds the ropes for Bret to get back into the ring…now that’s a gentleman right there. Piper continues his nice ways by telling Bret his boot is untied; of course he blasts Hart with an uppercut as soon as he looks down. Attaboy. Piper puts the boots to him and runs Bret into the corner. Piper is really working the forehead, and he bulldogs Bret for two. Bret is busted open, which was a HUGE no-no in the WWF at this time, so Bret told Vince it was hardaway (*wink wink nudge nudge). Piper gets a knee lift for two. Piper is working the cut like a madman, but Bret gets a sunset flip for two. This gets Piper even madder, as he slugs Bret down for two. Bret comes back with a flying forearm that sends Piper to the outside, as the Brain screams for Piper to get a chair and bust Bret’s head it. Piper runs back into the ring and they clothesline each other as Bret is starting bleed very nicely now. Piper goes up top, but Bret was playing possum again and he drops Piper on his face. Inverted atomic drop and a vertical suplex gets two. Russian leg sweep gets another two count. Backbreaker from Bret, and he goes for the Sharpshooter, but Piper blocks it, so Bret drops an elbow. Bret tries the elbow from the second rope, but Piper gets the foot up. Slugfest and Bret gets shoved into the referee. Bret gets clotheslined out, and Piper slams him into the stairs. He rolls Bret back in, and grabs the ring bell. He contemplates hitting Bret over the head with it, as the crowd screams for him not to. DO IT RODDY, SMASH HIS HEAD IN! Heel Piper needs to make a return! He can’t do it because he lacks the testicular fortitude as Bret cowers at his feet. He tosses the bell away and locks in the Sleeper hold instead. But Bret kicks off the turnbuckle and gets the pin for his second Intercontinental title.

Winner and NEW Champion: Bret Hart

-Definitely a good match, and an original ending for the time. ***3/4 for some good wrestling and great drama.

-After the match, Piper and Bret do the “male bonding” thing.

-Heenan introduces Lex Luger, who is the “new star of the WBF”. Oh God, the World Bodybuilding Federation. You thought the XFL was Vince’s first major mainstream slip up? Lex gloats about his body, but since a motorcycle accident ended Lex’s use as a wrestler, maybe he was better off just posing.

-Backstage, The Mountie, Nasty Boys, and the Repo Man laugh in an evil way about the 8-man tag match next. Duggan, Slaughter, Virgil, and the Bossman (RIP) respond in a typical 1992 WWF manner.

“Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Sgt. Slaughter, Virgil and Big Bossman vs. Nasty Boys, Repo Man, and The Mountie

Ray Combs, the late host of Family Feud, is the guest ring announcer. He gets some decent jokes about the heels (“One word to describe the Nasty Boys success: Lucky.”), before they chase him out of the ring. Big brawl to start, I know I’m surprised too, and the faces clean house with a four-way clothesline. Heenan updates us that Shawn Michaels has left the building, thank God for Bobby. Duggan and Sags start off, and Sags pounds away before getting caught with a clothesline off the ropes. Duggan gets an atomic drop, and Slaughter tags in. Sags goes to the eyes and tags in Knobbs, who hammers away in the corner, but gets caught with a clothesline. Gutbuster from Slaughter and an elbow to the stomach sends Knobbs down. Bossman tags in and catches Knobbs with a big boot and a wind-up uppercut. Bossman misses a blind charge, and Knobbs tags in the Repo Man. Repo takes a shoulderblock, but Bossman misses a splash. Repo jumps on his back a few times, but tries it once time too many and lands crotch-first on the Bossman’s fist. Bossman tags in Virgil, who has a nose guard on courtesy of Sid. Virgil gets a high crossbody, and the Mountie comes in and clotheslines him down. Repo gets a side suplex and brings Duggan in to distract the ref so the Nasty Boys can beat down Virgil. Sags comes in and gets a pump handle slam for two. Mountie tags in and jumps right into the arms of the Bossman, who came running into the ring. Huge brawl erupts and it ends with Sags accidentally hitting Knobbs with Virgil’s nose guard and getting pinned by Virgil.

Winners: Jim Duggan, Sgt. Slaughter, Bossman, and Virgil

-This was just supposed to be a fun match, and I enjoy one of those. **1/2 for some decent stuff.

-Backstage, Flair and Perfect promise that they have a nude picture of Miss Elizabeth that they promise to put on the big screen tonight. Oh man, I would have given my left arm to see that at the time. Admit it, you thought Liz was hot. Flair is in full “Nature Boy”-mode right here, WHOOOOO!

-Mean Gene tries to get a word with Savage, but he’s not coming out of the dressing room.

WWF World Title

“Nature Boy” Ric Flair vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage

For those who don’t know the story, Flair did the whole “Liz was mine before she was yours, and I got the pictures to prove it” schtick. Flair even published photos in WWF Magazine of him and Elizabeth sitting poolside. Savage comes to the ring and goes right after Flair, who bails. Savage finally catches Flair and pounds away on him in the aisle. Perfect jumps Savage from behind and tosses him around by his hair. The heat for this match is UNREAL. Inside, Savage gets a clothesline and drives Flair into the corner and hammers away. Savage counters an inverted atomic drop and gets a clothesline, and then another one gets a two count. Savage argues with the referee, and that allows Flair to back drop Savage over the top in our first HOLY CRAP bump of the night. Flair drives Savage’s back into the apron, and lays the boots to Savage back in the ring. Flair chops away in the corner, and it’s weird to see them without the WHOOs from the crowd. Big suplex from Flair gets two, and a back suplex gets another two count. Back into the corner, and Flair lays some more chops in before whipping Savage from corner to corner for another two count. Flair drops the knee across the face, and Savage rolls to the outside to buy some time. Flair follows him and drives the back into the apron again, beautiful psychology here. Flair suplexes Savage back in for two. Flair sends him hard into the corner to kill the back some more, and stomps a mudhole in Savage. Savage fires back after every chop and Savage starts building some momentum and gets a swinging neckbreaker for the double KO. Flair first to his feet, but Savage slugs away and Flair goes to the eyes. Flair goes up top, but of course gets thrown off the top to a big pop from the crowd. Flair begs off, but Savage backdrops him out of the corner and follows with a pair of clotheslines. Savage sends Flair upside down and to the apron, as Flair runs up the corner, but gets caught coming off with a clothesline for a very close two. Flair is the MAN. Crowd HATES that two count. Off the ropes, Savage clotheslines Flair over the top rope, and Savage follows with a double ax handle to from the top rope. Flair does the Flair Flop on the floor, and Savage slams his face into the stairs, and then the post for another Flair Flop. Flair is busted wide open for an awesome visual and Savage hits a suplex on the floor. He rolls Flair back in as Bobby Heenan is having a stroke. Savage goes to the top rope and hits a double ax handle for another CLOSE two count. Have I mentioned how much heat this match has? Bodyslam from Savage and he goes up top and nails the big Flying Elbow. Perfect runs in and pulls Savage off and Savage chases him into the ring. He tosses Flair a pair of brass knuckles while scuffling with the referee, and Flair KOs Savage, who goes out like a light, but Flair only gets two. Flair goes nuts on Savage, pounding away and trying to choke him out. Mr. Perfect nails Savage with a chair in the knee behind the referees back, as Elizabeth comes running to the ring looking WOWZA hot. Back in the ring, Flair in working over the knee like only Ric Flair can. And now WHOOOO, we go to school! A bunch of officials are trying to get Liz away from ringside, while Flair locks on the Figure Four in the ring. The crowd is having a collective heart attack at this point as Savage is fighting like hell to get out of the Figure Four. Flair of course grabs Perfect’s hands for extra leverage, as they cheat like crazy just trying to escape the pissed off Macho Man. The crowd is going nuts as Savage tries to reverse it, and the referee finally catches Perfect cheating and kicks their arms, allowing Savage to turn the hold over. Flair releases the hold as Savage hobbles around the ring, but still gets a small package for two. Flair jaws at Liz while he kicks the hell out of Savage’s leg (“It’s for you baby, WHOO”). Flair atomic drops Savage’s knee, but he counters with a schoolboy and grabs a huge handful of tights for the pin!! The crowd goes insane, HOLY SH*T!

Winner and NEW Champion: “Macho Man” Randy Savage

-Post-match, Flair kisses Liz and Savage goes BALLISTIC on Flair and every official in the locker rooms tries to break it up. Perfect and Flair put the boots to Savage’s knee as the officials finally get control. The crowd is just rabid at this point, and finally Randy gets his moment with Elizabeth while the crowd goes nuts.

-Great match, great drama, and a great storyline. See, WWE, it’s not that hard. I gotta give this ****1/2 for great wrestling, mark out moments galore, and a great storyline. This one really should have gone on last.

-Backstage, Flair and Perfect ignore all their cheating, and complain about Savage grabbing the tights. Heenan comes running into the shot saying it’s on tape and they will take care of it. Flair is awesome with his bloody face, saying someone will be claiming to be the World’s Champion, but this will NEVER happen again. Flair promises to kiss Elizabeth every time he sees her, WHOOO!

-Mean Gene is with the Macho Man, who doesn’t care about the tights, because he got to beat the hell out of Flair and take his title from him. He says he took what makes Ric Flair tick, and he wants to kick his ass some more since Flair somehow made him even madder. Damn, I love this feud.

-Recap of the Justice-Hogan feud. Jack Tunney has a press conference when he was going to announce who was going to challenge Ric Flair for the title at WrestleMania. His choices were the Undertaker, Roddy Piper, Hulk Hogan, Macho Man, and Sid Justice. They even had a phone number you could call ($3.99 a minute of course) to vote for who you wanted. Tunney picked Hogan, after Justice stood up and thought it was him. Sid goes nuts afterwards, claiming they only picked Hogan because he’s a movie star and calls the decision “bogus”. Yeah man. Come on, Sid, you were in Ready to Rumble! Hogan, being as gullible as he is, accepted Sid’s apology a few weeks later and teamed with him on Saturday Night’s Main Event against The Undertaker and Ric Flair. Of course, Sid walked out on Hogan after a good acting job. Sid was actually pretty good as a heel here. He even threatened to break Beefcake’s face, who was at ringside, all over again. Sid was on the Barber Shop interview segment the next day, and destroyed the set with a chair, complete with a dramatic shot of Beefcake’s shears lying on the floor. They show Sid destroying some jobbers.

-Back in the ring, a bunch of Indians are jumping around for Tatanka.

-Rick Martel has some “reservations” (har har) about Tatanka winning. “The Model” was he heard there wasn’t going to be a match since Tatanka was still out “scalping tickets”. Now that was pretty funny.

“The Model” Rick Martel vs. Tatanka

I always laughed at the “Yes, I am a model” oversized button Martel always wore. I thought he had a pretty good character going for him. Tatanka (Buffalo) was still “undefeated” at this point. Martel backs Tatanka into the corner and hammers away, but Tatanka hiptosses Martel and gets a couple of bodyslams. Martel rolls to the outside as Tatanka runs around the ring like an idiot. Heenan comes back and gets all pissed off and offers to fight Monsoon. Martel misses a blind charge to the corner and hits the post, as Tatanka works the shoulder with an armbar. Tatanka blocks a hiptoss, and Martel gets a chokeslam. Martel sends Tatanka over the top rope, and Martel follows and rolls him back in. The crowd is kind of burned out after that title match, as Martel gets a backbreaker. Martel goes to the top rope, but Tatanka shakes the ropes and crotches Martel. Tatanka chops away in the corner and gets a backdrop. He chops Martel down, but gets caught with his head down and takes a kick to the head. Bodyslam by Martel, and he clotheslines Tatanka down. Off the ropes, Tatanka gets a crossbody for the pin out of nowhere.

Winner: Tatanka

-Well, it wasn’t anything great and was relatively short. *1/2 for both just going through the motions.

-Backstage, Sean Mooney interviews Money Inc. and Jimmy Hart. DiBiase and IRS promise to take the Natural Disasters to the bank.

-Mean Gene listens to Earthquake and Typhoon scream and yell about Jimmy Hart.

WWF Tag Team Titles

Natural Disasters (Earthquake and Typhoon) vs. Money Inc. (Ted DiBiase and IRS)

Earthquake and DiBiase start off, and Quake takes him into the corner a few times. Quake shoves DiBiase to the ground, and he retreats to his corner. DiBiase takes a big clothesline, and IRS comes in and takes the same from Typhoon. The Disasters clear the ring and Money Inc. regroup on the outside. IRS comes in and works the arm, Quake reverses and tags in Typhoon. He takes a knee from Irwin, but gets a hiptoss and throws IRS into the corner. Irwin gets driven into the corner 10 times, but he Typhoon misses a blind charge and IRS tags in DiBiase. Typhoon reverses though, and they mess up an off the rope spot and Typhoon gets dumped in a very awkward way. IRS runs him into the stairs, and DiBiase puts the knees to him. Money Inc. double-teams Typhoon and IRS gets two. DiBiase works him over in the corner, and tags in IRS and they get a double elbow. Irwin works a front facelock, but Typhoon gets a false tag to Earthquake. DiBiase comes in and they clothesline each other for the double KO. Typhoon gets the “hot” tag (not really) to Earthquake and IRS takes a clothesline. DiBiase comes in and all four men are in now. They run Money Inc. into each other, and Earthquake clothesline DiBiase out. Typhoon splashes IRS, and Earthquake tries the butt splash, but Jimmy Hart pulls IRS out and they take a walk for the cheap-ass count out.

Winner by count out: The Natural Disasters

-This was boring, with no real action or anything, so ½* is all this gets.

-Mean Gene is with Brutus Beefcake, who has full mulletitude going for him. He says “yay for Hulk” and I fast forward.

Skinner vs. “The Rocket” Owen Hart

Skinner spits the tobacco juice on Owen when he gets in the ring, and gets a backbreaker. He hammers away and chokes Owen in the ropes. Skinner gets a reverse DDT for two. He tries to throw Owen over the top rope, but Owen skins the cat and comes back in for a rollup and the pin. Time restrained short match.

Winner: Owen Hart

-Too short to be worth anything, DUD.

-Backstage, Mean Gene is with Sid, who promises to end Hogan’s career.

-Recap of Vince interviewing Hogan about his “last match”. How many of those did he have? Like 42 of them?

Sid Justice vs. Hulk Hogan

“Heat magnet” himself, Dr. Harvey Whippleman introduces Sid Justice to the crowd. Still a pretty impressive pop for Hogan on his entrance, even though Hulkamania was clearly over. Sid attacks Hogan when he gets in the ring, but Hulk sends Sid over the top with the music still playing, and hammers Sid on the apron. Staredown once the bell rings, and Sid starts with some knee lifts, and hammers away in the corner. The heat is awesome for this match, since everyone was told it was his last match. Hulk comes back with right hands that send Sid through the ropes. Sid finally gets back in the ring after forever, and wants a test of strength. Sid brings Hogan to his knees, as Hogan finally starts to fight out of it, but is backed into a corner and takes a knee. Hulk whips him into the corner and follows with a clothesline, but Harvey gets on the apron to distract him, and Hulk takes a chokeslam. Sid mugs for the camera to waste more time. Sid moves in slow motion with forearms to the back, and he tosses Hogan between the ropes. Sid hits him with that doctor bag from Whippleman, and he rolls Hogan back in. Sid works the nerve hold, as his moveset is completely used up. Hogan fights out, but gets caught with a sidewalk slam. Sid powerbombs Hogan, but of course Hogan kicks out and Hulks up. Crowd goes nutzo as Hogan runs Sid into corner after corner and hits the big boot. He bodyslams Sid, and nails the Big Legdrop. But see here is the problem, Papa Shango was supposed to run in here and break up the count, but he missed his cue like an dolt. So Sid had to kick out, which instantly made people scream “SHOOT! SHOOT!” like idiots. Whippleman comes in instead, and the referee calls for the DQ. Both Hulk and Sid don’t know what to do, as Papa Shango finally wanders out and attacks Hogan.

Winner by DQ: Hulk Hogan

-Shango and Sid tie up Hogan in the ropes, before the ULTIMATE WARRIOR makes his return and beats the hell out of everyone as the crowd goes INSANE!! Sid hits him with a chair, but the Hogan kicks his ass and tosses him. Well, Sid sucks so the match gets *, but good crowd heat, and a huge pop for the Warrior return.

-Show closes with the usual, Hogan and Warrior pose for the crowd.

Final Word

While the workrate of this one isn’t exactly top notch, the Savage-Flair match is AWESOME, and the Warrior return brought the crowd to it’s feet. It’s a fun WrestleMania and worth it for the IC title and World title match.

To order this show, please click below:

WrestleMania: The Complete Anthology Volume 2 DVD Boxset

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