Wrestlemania 3
March 29, 1987
SteamPunk, the WWF Blogger – Post Date 3/19/2013
Classic WWF PPV Review: Wrestlemania 3
Two down…a lot to go. Continuing my look at past ‘
Manias in honor of the 29th anniversary of the PPV, today we go back to March 29, 1987, to
Wrestlemania 3 in the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, near Detroit.
This PPV occurred when the WWF was in its big heyday in the ‘80s, coming off the highly acclaimed
Wrestlemania 2, and many huge names were employed by the company at the time. Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat was riding high as WWF Champion, and former champ Hulk Hogan had just turned heel several months prior, challenging the Dragon to a match that many people still see as one of the ultimate “headline” matches in pro wrestling history. 90,087 fans would pack the Silverdome to see Steamboat vs. Hogan, setting an indoor attendance record that wouldn’t be broken for over two decades, and is still the largest attendance of any wrestling show in history. [1] This
Wrestlemania also set the record for the most matches of any ‘
Mania, at 12. But enough history—let’s get started.
Vince McMahon is in the middle of the ring, and he welcomes us all to the show. He introduces Aretha Franklin, who gives an incredible performance of the Star-Spangled Banner. [2] All these years later, this is probably still the best
Wrestlemania musical moment.
Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura are our announce team. They are joined on commentary by Mary Hart, best known as one of the hosts of
Entertainment Tonight. I have no idea why Mary is here. Maybe someone told her this was a Hollywood movie premiere or something…
Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff (w/ Slick) vs. The Killer Bees – The Killer Bees were a fairly talented tag team, and I usually enjoy watching them in action. I never got why Slick was managing Sheik & Volkoff at this point. Was Slick supposed to be anti-American or something? Maybe he was mad at “the man” for always keeping him down; I don’t know. Anyhow, we get the standard Russian national anthem before the match, but before the song is even halfway over, out runs “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan in not only his ‘
Mania debut, but his WWF PPV debut. He gets a mic, and says that Volkoff won’t be singing the Russian anthem, because this is America, damn it, the land of the free. Um…if this is the land of the
free, then why the hell can’t Volkoff sing the anthem? I mean, it’s not like it’s against the law in America to sing a foreign national anthem or anything. Anyhow, Duggan stays at ringside to cheer on the Bees as the match begins. [3] Mary Hart says she loves Duggan, for some reason. Maybe it’s the giant 2x4? The heels jump the Bees to start the match off, but the Bees soon reverse it after Sheik and Volkoff try a double-team. Blair whips Sheik into the ropes, then takes him down with a dropkick. Sheik has been very…
colorful in his hatred for Blair (along with other wrestlers) in past interviews… [4] Nikolai breaks up a pinfall by Brunzell, and the heels begin working him over in their corner. Brunzell goes for a crossbody, but Volkoff catches him in a bear hug. Jim escapes, but Volkoff tags in the Sheik, who hits a gutwrench suplex for a 2-count. Another suplex gets another near fall. Brunzell nails a high knee and tags in Blair, but the ref is distracted by Volkoff and doesn’t see it. Sheik & Volkoff take Brunzell to the outside and double team him, but Duggan comes over and makes the save. Sheik rolls Brunzell back in the ring and locks in the Camel Clutch, but Duggan notices, climbs in the ring, and hits Sheik with his 2x4 to draw a DQ at
5:14. Duggan clears the ring of Sheik, Volkoff and Slick, helps the Bees up, and leads the crowd in a “U-S-A” chant. Sadly, Duggan’s presence really drags this match’s score down. If he weren’t there, this match could have been pretty good. With Duggan involved, it was almost a complete disaster. But since the Iron Sheik and the Bees were pretty talented, this match is prevented from being a total flop.
*¼
Backstage Interview – Mean Gene finds Brutus Beefcake backstage getting ready for his match, and asks him why he has turned his back on Tito Santana. Brutus growls that it’s Tito that has turned his back on him. He claims Tito has gone soft, and he’s through pandering to him. Beefcake says he was the true star of their tag team, and he’s going to prove it tonight. Ugh…this was painful to watch. Not only can Beefcake not wrestle, he can’t cut a promo to save his life.
DUD
Tito Santana vs. Brutus Beefcake – Tito & Brutus were a dominant babyface tag team up until several months prior to this PPV, when Brutus started beating down their opponents after matches. When Tito confronted Beefcake about his recent heelish attitudes in an interview, the Beefster officially turned heel, and voila! We got this match. I should probably point out now that each wrestler makes his/her entrance at this PPV by riding down to the ring in little “mini-rings”. It was…an interesting sight, to say the least. [5] Beefcake and Tito start out by trading punches for several seconds, but Beefcake grabs Tito and rams him into the corner. Beefcake lands several shots on Santana before the former IC Champion turns it around, staggering Beefcake with rights and lefts. Tito hits a flying shoulder block that staggers Beefcake, but when he tries a second one, Beefcake hits a clothesline that gets a 2-count. A scoop slam gets another 2 for Brutus. Beefcake has this weird look on his face that’s a cross between “don’t mess with me” and “I’m constipated”. Beefcake hammers the downed Santana until the referee pulls him off. A roll-up by Santana gets a 2-count, and Beefcake looks shocked that he almost got pinned. More shots by Santana, followed by a dropkick in the corner. Santana hits a knee lift that staggers Brutus, then a second one that scores a near fall. Tito applies a side headlock to Beefcake, but Brutus fights out and hits a powerslam for another 2. Beefcake drops some elbows on Santana, and mocks the crowd and Tito. He picks Tito up for a bear hug, but Santana eventually fights out and runs Brutus into the corner. Tito hits a legdrop off the top rope, then quickly slaps on the figure four leglock. Beefcake struggles for a while before giving up at
8:44. Tito climbs the turnbuckle and celebrates as the crowd cheers, and Brutus rolls out of the ring in defeat. This was a decent enough match to have Brutus Beefcake in it, even though it dragged in many places. Still, Tito was still pretty good at this point in his career, and he carried Brutus enough in this match to make it watchable.
**
“Magnificent” Don Muraco (w/ Mr. Fuji) vs. Billy Jack Haynes – I never understood why Fuji was still managing Muraco at this point. Sure, it worked when Muraco was feuding with Steamboat, where we could play the “good Asian vs. bad Asian” card, but after that, it just seemed…weird. Muraco had kind of let himself go at this point, and was no longer “Magnificent”, if you will. Muraco and Haynes lock up, and Muraco pushes Haynes into the corner and clotheslines him. He tries to hit another one, but Haynes moves out of the way. A gorilla press slam on Muraco gets Haynes a 2-count. Billy Jack signals for the full nelson, but Muraco rolls out of the ring. Billy Jack goes outside, only to have Fuji try to hit him with his cane. Mary Hart calls Fuji a “little Japanese sushi roll”. Yeah, that’s not racist at all… Haynes grabs Fuji, but Muraco makes the save, and throws Billy Jack back in the ring. Muraco picks up Haynes and goes for the piledriver, but Haynes gets out with a back body drop. Haynes clotheslines Muraco, then locks on the full nelson for real. Muraco soon submits, winning Haynes the match at
4:42. Not exactly the easiest thing to sit through, I’ll give you that. Still, this match was fine for what it was: an exhibition between two big guys that were fairly decent wrestlers, and could entertain a crowd for a good period of time.
*¾
Backstage Promo – Hulk Hogan is in his dressing room, growling and mumbling as he stretches in preparation for his match. Every other word he says is “Steamboat”. This…was really weird.
DUD
Andre the Giant, Greg Valentine & Junkyard Dog vs. The Heenan Family (w/ Bobby Heenan) – Valentine had dropped the “Hammer” nickname at this point because of Demolition recently coming on the scene, which kind of makes me sad. I wonder how much they had to reinforce the mini-rings to carry the two three-man teams out for this one—Bundy, Orndorff and Studd have to weigh well over 500 pounds combined, and their ring-cart also has to carry Heenan down, too. It’s a wonder the thing didn’t break! Valentine and Orndorff start off, and they lock up for a moment before Orndorff gets the better of Valentine with a hard clothesline. Orndorff backs Valentine to the corner and hits several kicks before tagging in Studd. A hard chop by Studd gets a 2-count. A side slam gets another 2. Studd tags in Bundy, who goes for a corner splash, but Valentine moves out of the way and tags in JYD. The Dog peppers Bundy with punches, but Bundy blocks a right hand and lands a clothesline for a 2. Bundy hammers JYD with shots in the corner, then tags in Orndorff, who hits a scoop slam for a near fall. A press slam from Orndorff gets another 2. Orndorff goes for a piledriver, but JYD squirms out. JYD hits the THUMP~ and goes for the pin, but Studd breaks it up. Orndorff tags in Bundy, who rams JYD into the corner. The crowd is loudly chanting for Andre, and Mary Hart brings it up, but Gorilla and Jesse don’t even seem to pay attention to her. Way to go, guys… Bundy tags in Studd, who hammers the Dog for several minutes, then locks on a bear hug. The Dog struggles for a few minutes, but escapes by raking Bundy’s eyes, and finally makes the hot tag to Andre. The crowd comes unglued as Andre starts cleaning house, clubbing Bundy with blows. He slams an interfering Orndorff and knocks Studd off the apron as well. Andre hits a sloppy clothesline that staggers Bundy, then signals for the bear hug. Studd attacks from behind, though, and he and Bundy double-team the Giant. Bundy irish-whips Andre to the corner, but Andre catches him with a big boot. Studd gets one a few seconds later. Andre hits a sloppy legdrop on the downed Bundy and pins him at
8:49 to net his team the win and go 3-0 at ‘
Mania. Andre celebrates with his partners, lifting up Valentine, then JYD on his shoulders briefly. Considering how much Andre was said to be hurting at this point, I can understand why he didn’t lift them both up at once. It also explains why he wasn’t in the ring very much. Since Valentine (the best worker in this match by far) also didn’t spend a lot of time in the ring, it drives this match’s score down quite a bit. The match was also
way too long. Still, seeing Andre celebrate with his partners at the end was pretty sweet.
*
WWF Tag Title Match: The Hart Foundation (C) (w/ Jimmy Hart, Dynamite Kid & Davey Boy Smith) vs. The Rougeau Brothers – There was very little build-up to this match, from what I can find. I honestly cannot find how the Rougeaus became #1 contenders…oh well. The Rougeaus are the babyfaces here—they wouldn’t turn heel until a few months later. Bret and Raymond start us off, and after locking up, Raymond backs the Hitman into the ropes. Bret nods and smiles in appreciation at the move, but soon backs Rougeau into the corner, hitting him with several boots to the midsection. Quite a few cheers for Bret here—he and Neidhart were on the cusp of a turn at this point, but we’ll get to that soon enough. Hart goes for a bulldog, but Rougeau counters into a suplex. Bret takes down Raymond with a headlock, and Mary Hart points out that she’s not related to any of the Harts. Good to know, Mary…that makes me hate you even more. Raymond struggles in the submission hold for a few moments, but soon whips Bret to the ropes before taking him down with a knee to the gut. Raymond locks on an armbar—a “tribute to the Dragon”, Gorilla suggests. Oh, please…the Dragon’s armbar is 10 times better, and you know it, Monsoon. Bret fights out and whips Raymond to the ropes. A blind tag from Jacques, who hits a dropkick on the Hitman, followed by a slam from Raymond. Jacques hits a knee drop for a 2-count. Bret rolls out of the ring, and the rest of the Harts (minus Anvil) berate him for getting his ass kicked so badly. Anvil comes over and backs his partner up, and the other three Harts back off for now. Bret rolls back in the ring, soon getting the better of Jacques by backing him into his corner and hitting several kicks. Hart tags in Neidhart, who stomps on Jacques some more. Anvil irish-whips Jacques, who comes back with a shoulder block; however, Anvil doesn’t budge. Jim pulls his straps down and dares Raymond to come at him again. “Put those things away, Anvil,” Mary says. “There are children in the audience!” Okay, I’ll give her that one—that was pretty good. Another shoulder block, and again, Anvil doesn’t move. Anvil charges at Jacques, who leapfrogs over him and takes him down with a chop to the chest in a pretty cool spot. He tags in Raymond, and a double back elbow gets a 2-count on Neidhart. Jacques tags back in, and a legdrop gets another 2 on Anvil. Anvil rolls out for a breather, and again, the other Harts start chewing him out. The Hitman comes over to defend him, and they glare back at the other three Harts. Gorilla points out that they seem to be eyeing Dynamite the most. Anvil rolls back in, only to get taken down again. Jacques locks in a Boston crab for a few seconds, but Bret breaks it up. Neidhart tags in Bret, who chokes Rougeau in the corner, then throws him to the floor. Like clockwork, Dynamite and Davey come over and hammer Rougeau, but the ref catches them and stops it. Jacques slowly climbs back in the ring, and Bret hits a backbreaker for a close 2-count. He tags in Anvil, who gets in several more shots. Tag back to Bret, who hits an elbow drop for another near fall. An irish whip attempt by Bret is reversed into a dropkick by Rougeau that sends Bret out of the ring. Dynamite gets in Bret’s face, cursing him for getting beaten so badly. Bret looks close to snapping, but he holds it together and climbs back in, slapping a headlock on Jacques. Jacques fights out, but Bret comes back and hits a snap suplex. He tags in Jim, and they both hit the Hart Attack, and while Bret takes care of Raymond, Anvil gets the 3-count on Jacques at
9:49. Dynamite and Davey hit the ring and hand the Harts their belts, then Dynamite begins pounding on the downed Jacques. Bret comes over and rips Dynamite off, and Dynamite angrily tells the Hitman to get his damn hands off of him. Anvil comes over to back up Bret, and Dynamite backs away, glaring at the two all the while. All the Harts head to the back in silence, except Jimmy, who never shuts up anyway, and Anvil, who tells Bret “you did good”. This was a really good tag team match between two highly talented teams, and we’d see plenty more encounters between them. For now, though, this was just a taste of what these four guys could do in the ring together.
***¾
Jesse Ventura is in the ring, and Vince introduces him to the fans. Gorilla puts over Ventura’s new movie
Predator. Amazing how many really good films in the ’80s and early ‘90s had wrestlers in them:
Predator,
They Live,
The Running Man,
The Princess Bride…I could go on and on.
Backstage Interview – Mean Gene finds the Harts, and asks them their feelings about retaining their titles. Dynamite interrupts, saying the Hart Foundation is the most dominant group in the WWF, and he’s going to cement that tonight when he sends Roddy Piper out of the WWF for good. He yells at Bret and Anvil for almost losing the Tag Titles, and Bret grabs the mic, telling Dynamite to never raise his voice to him again. He suggests that after he beats Piper tonight, maybe Dynamite wants a piece of him next? The two men glare at one another before Jimmy breaks it up, citing “Hart family values” (whatever that is). Good segment here, and it hinted at what was about to occur.
**½
Backstage Interview – Ken Resnick (remember him? No? Me neither) interviews Honky Tonk Man and Johnny V, asking Honky what he’s done to prepare for his match with George Steele tonight. Honky says Steele is an animal alright, but he knows that music calms the savage beast, and he’s got a little tune to play Steele tonight. Johnny V pipes in and says when Honky’s finished with the Animal, he’ll call up the zoo and tell them they’ve found the Missing Link. Really? Last I checked, he wasn’t employed by the WWF at this point… Not a bad promo, but also far from the best out of Honky, who despite his limitations, was pretty good on the mic.
**
George “the Animal” Steele vs. Honky Tonk Man (w/ Johnny V) – Steele does his standard “bite the turnbuckle” schtick before the match. Doesn’t he usually do it
afterwards? Anyhow, as some random dude puts a new turnbuckle cover on in the background (awkward…), the bell rings, and Steele rushes at Honky. Honky plays the cowardly heel, ducking out under the ropes to force the ref to beg Steele off. Steele rushes at Honky again, and the same exchange occurs. On the third time, Honky catches Steele with a right hand. Honky tries for a clothesline, but Steele catches him for a body slam. Animal picks Honky up by the hair and bashes him against one of the turnbuckles multiple times. Honky sells the shots like his head’s about to explode, then Animal knocks him down with a shoulder block. Animal raises his arm and grunts, and the crowd cheers. Why? I have no idea… Steele picks up Honky again, but Honky rakes Steele’s eyes. Honky grabs the stunned Animal, hits him with the Shake-Rattle-n-Roll neckbreaker, and pins him at
2:50. Honky dances in celebration for a few seconds, but then Steele gets up and clubs him in the back. Steele grunts to the audience, but Johnny V passes Honky the guitar behind Steele’s back. When Steele turns around, Honky hits him over the head with the guitar, but it doesn’t break. Steele drops, clutching his head in non-Animal-like fashion, as Honky gloats. According to the stories, Honky had accidentally grabbed a real guitar backstage, not a prop one, and legitimately injured Steele with the head shot. [6] This match was extremely painful to watch, and the fact that Steele was injured by the guitar shot makes the ending even more painful.
DUD
Backstage Promo – Jake Roberts quotes Shakespeare as he prepares for his match with the Macho Man. He says that from the beginning of time, women have been nothing but trouble for man. Truer words were never spoken. Maybe Elizabeth shouldn’t even be at ringside, because the beating Jake will give Savage is not going to be something a lady should see—and what Liz will see is Savage falling at the hands of Jake. Great Jake Roberts promo, but then again, aren’t they all?
****
Backstage Interview – Lord Alfred Hayes has found Savage and Elizabeth, and gets his thoughts on facing the Snake tonight. Savage takes off his sunglasses, so you know it’s serious now. Macho says Jake thinks he’s so eloquent when he talks, but it doesn’t matter, because he’s too angry right now to listen to anything the Snake is saying. He’ll protect Elizabeth from the venom Roberts is spewing, and beat Roberts senseless for good measure. Savage then walks off, yelling “SENSELESS” at the top of his lungs once he’s off-camera. This was a typical “crazy Savage” promo, and the fact that he was red in the face while giving it helped a lot. That “SENSELESS” thing at the end was also hilarious…
***½
Intercontinental Title Match: Randy “Macho Man” Savage (C) (w/ Miss Elizabeth) vs. Jake “the Snake” Roberts (winner gets IC Title and Elizabeth as manager) – Elizabeth and Savage are both dressed in green: Savage in neon green tights, and Liz in a forest green gown. At least, I
think it’s forest green; I’m not a big color expert. Jake smirks at Savage and Liz creepily as he rides down. Roberts motions at Savage to get out of the ring and fight him on the floor, but Savage just shakes his head and plays to the audience, all while keeping his eye on Liz. As soon as Roberts climbs in, Savage starts hammering him before the bell even rings. Jake soon recovers and throws Savage to the floor, then goes for Elizabeth. Savage saves her by ramming Roberts into the barricade, then the ringpost. Roberts is thrown back into the ring, and Macho Man goes to the top, but the Snake catches him with a chop to the stomach. Jake controls the match for a while, hitting a knee lift and an inverted atomic drop that gets a 1-count. Savage rolls under the ropes to escape, but Roberts goes outside and hits an elbow to the throat. Roberts rams Macho Man into the post, then yells “That’s how you do it” to Elizabeth. Do
what, exactly, Jake? The action gets back in the ring, where Jake stomps on Macho’s face. Roberts backs him into the corner, but Savage fights back with rights and lefts. He goes for a slam, but Roberts counters with a finger to the eyes. Jake drapes Savage’s throat across the ropes, and asks him where Elizabeth is now. Try the other side of the ring, Jake. Jake takes Macho down with a clothesline, then kicks him down as he tries to get up multiple times. Roberts irish-whips Savage, but Savage leapfrogs over him and takes him down with a forearm. A pair of standing elbow drops gets Savage a 2-count. Savage puts Roberts in a headlock for several seconds, and Mary Hart voices her support for Elizabeth when she says she hopes Savage wins. What, you think Jake couldn’t treat Elizabeth like a lady? All women love giant snakes! God, there I go again, typing things out before I think about them…I should really stop that. Jake is out of the hold, but Savage knocks him back down with an elbow, then hits a double axe handle from the top rope for a 2-count. Savage hits Roberts with a HARD shoulder block in the corner, but Roberts catches him with a boot as he tries it again. A short clothesline from Roberts takes Savage down, and the announcers suggest Jake might be ready for the DDT soon. Sure enough, Jake sets Savage up, smiles evilly at Liz…but then Savage grabs the ropes to stop the move. Roberts drops to the mat, and Macho Man climbs to the top rope. The crowd cheers as Savage goes for the elbow drop, but Roberts rolls out of the way. Both men slowly get to their feet, and Roberts hits a DDT out of nowhere. He covers Savage, but only gets a 2-count. The announcers stress how nobody had ever kicked out of the DDT until just then. Roberts pulls strands of his hair out (ouch) before grabbing Macho again. Macho clotheslines Roberts out of the ring and follows him out, ramming him into the barricade twice. Roberts retaliates by going for the DDT on the floor, but Savage pushes him into the ringpost. Savage grabs one of those weird purple padded chairs the WWF used to use at ringside, but before he can do anything, the bell rings. Savage looks up at the ref in disbelief as Finkel announces that there’s been a Double Count-Out at
10:40. [7] Savage looks back at Roberts, who is now stirring again, and hits him in the stomach with the chair for the hell of it. Savage goes to check on Elizabeth, and Jesse gripes that Savage is only just now tending to her. Roberts slowly climbs to his feet as Savage and Elizabeth climb back on their mini-ring and ride back to the back to the adulation of the crowd. A pretty entertaining match here, though I was expecting a bit more from both these men. Both Savage and Roberts were really good ring psychiatrists, and while the Double Count-Out finish may have seemed like BS at the time, I think it helped both guys in the long run: Savage got to continue his long IC Title reign, and Jake came out looking strong because the champ didn’t technically beat him. Liz, of course, would continue to manage Macho Man, as there was no mention of the stipulation after the match and the PPV. It’s kind of a shame, really, as I think they could have gotten a decent storyline out of it.
***
Backstage Interview – Ken “Nobody Remembers Me” Resnick has found Bobby Heenan, and asks his thoughts about the Heenan Family losing the big 3-man tag match earlier. Heenan says that all great wars suffer casualties. Tonight, he and his Family may have lost a battle, but they will win the war when Hogan takes the WWF Championship from Ricky Steamboat. Heenan says Steamboat may be the Dragon, but Hogan is the knight that will slay the dragon. Pure Heenan gold right here, as usual, but having Resnick even in the same building as Heenan drags it down a bit.
***¾
Backstage Segment – Wendi Richter is doing some weird “punch the air” thing, and out of nowhere comes Cyndi Lauper. She and Wendi hug like two giggly teenage girl pals who haven’t seen each other in years. It’s…unsettling. Cyndi tells Wendi she’ll be at ringside for her match, and predicts that she’ll be the new Women’s Champion before it’s over. Someone shoot me. Please.
DUD
Hercules Hernandez (w/ Slick) vs. Dino Bravo – This is the second match tonight in which Slick accompanies his client to the ring. Bravo was actually the Canadian Heavyweight Champion at this time. The title belt was rarely mentioned on TV, and would quietly be retired not long after this event. [8] A lot of people forget, but Hercules was a pretty good worker for a big man. The bell rings, and Herc gets a knee lift on Bravo. He tosses Bravo into the corner and goes for an elbow charge, but Bravo moves. Bravo hits several shots to Hercules, but the big man retaliates with a STIFF clothesline. God, that looked painful. Herc works over the back of Bravo for a while. Bravo fights out and hits an inverted atomic drop, then goes for a suplex, but he can’t get Hercules up because of his hurt back. Great ring psychology there. Hercules hits a press slam, then applies the Torture Rack. Bravo struggles for a few seconds before giving up at
4:43. Herc won’t let go of the hold after the match, and keeps it on for a good 30 seconds before finally dropping Bravo, who convulses in pain as Hercules and Slick exit the ring. Tito Santana comes out of nowhere for some reason to check on Bravo, who is out like a light. Hercules and Slick slide back in the ring, and Herc picks up Tito for the Torture Rack, but Tito reverses it and hits a dropkick that sends Hercules out of the ring. Slick tries to hit Tito with his cane, but Tito grabs it and starts wailing on the Slickster. Tito starts to tear off Slick’s suit as the pimp barely escapes with Hercules. Tito helps up Bravo as the crowd applauds. This match was a decent little squash, and it did manage to set up a feud between Tito and Hercules. Still, couldn’t they have found a better use for Bravo on the card?
*¾
Backstage Promo – Misty Blue Simms, in a standalone interview, says she’s stronger, faster, more beautiful, and a better wrestler than Wendi Richter, so it’s a given that Wendi will lose tonight. You forgot one thing, Misty: when it comes to cutting promos, you both suck…
DUD
WWF Women’s Title Match: Misty Blue Simms (C) vs. Wendi Richter (w/ Cyndi Lauper) – Wendi and Cyndi are way too giggly and excited here. When you consider Lauper was 36 years old at the time, it makes it all the more pathetic. Wendi and Misty lock up to start, and Wendi backs Misty into the corner and unloads with several boots to the midsection. A running baseball slide from Wendi prompts Mary Hart to let out a noise I can only describe as a cross between a Michael Jackson yell and a dying rabbit. My ears are already bleeding from all the commentary she’s done so far, but now I think they just started gushing blood. Thanks, Mary… Misty recovers with a running bulldog for a 1-count. A pair of chops from Misty staggers Wendi, and Misty goes for a slingshot suplex, but Wendi rolls through for a 2-count. Misty reverses a headlock from Wendi into an irish whip and a clothesline that gets her a 2. Misty locks on a headlock for a while, and Lauper is grimacing at ringside like she’s bet money on Wendi winning (who knows, maybe she has). Misty hits a back suplex that gets another near fall. Misty climbs to the top and goes for a splash, but Wendi rolls out of the way just in time. Lauper now heads under the ring and pulls out her giant handbag, and everyone in the crowd can see what’s coming from a mile away. Wendi reverses an irish whip from Misty, and Lauper smacks Misty in the back with the LOADED PURSE OF DOOM~. The Blue Belle drops, and Richter hits a quick elbow drop and pins Misty to win the Women’s Title at
5:13. Cyndi climbs in the ring and celebrates with Wendi as they hold the title belt aloft. This wasn’t a good match at all, even for a women’s match. Still, it could have been worse, and they mercifully kept it relatively short. Wendi would hold onto the Women’s Title for a few more months before a relatively famous women’s wrestler/manager came onto the scene in the WWF. Perhaps you’ve heard her name…Sherri Martel?
½*
What
Wrestlemania is complete without musical guests? We saw Aretha Franklin earlier, and now we get the king of shock rock himself, Alice Cooper. He performs a medley of “No More Mr. Nice Guy”, “School’s Out”, and some weird song called “Man Behind the Mask”. Apparently, it was the theme to a
Friday the 13th movie…who knew? [9]
Koko B. Ware vs. “Natural” Butch Reed – A shot of the announcers before the match lets Jesse show off the
WM3 t-shirt he has on. No Slick here, as we saw Tito beat him up after Hercules’ match. Koko, of course, brings his bird to the ring, dancing like a wet fish to that crappy entrance music he had. Reed claims a hair pull right after the bell. Not gonna touch that one. Koko glides over a slam attempt and tries a roll-up, but Reed grabs the ropes. A dropkick sends Reed to the outside, and Koko dances for a bit while the parrot tries to eat the camera at ringside. Reed climbs back in and hits a few hard shots, but Koko reverses an irish whip into a hip toss. Ware comes off the ropes with a body block, but Reed rolls through and hooks Koko’s tights for the quick win at
2:04. Let’s be honest here—this match was nothing more than another pee break. The only saving grace was that at least it served to get Reed over as a heel a bit better.
DUD
Backstage Interview – Mean Gene asks Roddy Piper what his strategy is in his upcoming match with Dynamite Kid. Piper says he knows Dynamite is a crazy psycho, but he’s pretty crazy himself. And tonight, win lose or draw, he’ll be leaving this crazy business knowing that he’s had a hell of a good time. He dedicates this match tonight to his family, and walks off. Great mic work by Piper, as usual, and you could sense the emotion that made it really feel like Piper was walking away for good after this.
***½
Roddy Piper vs. Dynamite Kid (w/ Davey Boy Smith & Jimmy Hart) – This is Piper’s retirement match, and Dynamite was also close to the end of his career at this point, too. The announce note that the Tag Team Champions are absent from ringside, and point out their disagreement with Dynamite earlier. Both Piper and Dynamite lock up, and Piper gets the best of the smaller Dynamite for a while, backing him into a corner and hitting several chops and punches. Piper goes for a superplex, but Dynamite shoves him off and hits a dropkick. A snap suplex from Dynamite gets a 1-count. A slam by Piper gets 2, but Dynamite takes Piper back down with a clothesline. Dynamite goes for a suplex, but Piper rolls through with a schoolboy, getting the surprise pin at
1:10! [10] The crowd erupts in cheers, and Dynamite has a look of pure shock on his face. Piper celebrates in the ring…for about fifteen seconds. Dynamite jumps Roddy from behind, clubbing him with blows. Davey Boy hits the ring and joins in as Jimmy climbs in and cheers them on. Hart & Neidhart rush down, and the announce team speculates that we’re going to have a 4-on-1 beatdown. Surprise, surprise when the Tag Champions block Dynamite and Davey from attacking Piper! Dynamite yells at them to get out of the way, but they only glare at him instead. Dynamite gets in their faces, yelling “you take orders from me!”, and then shoves Anvil. Anvil looks down, then at Bret; they both nod, and the Harts hit Dynamite with a double clothesline! Davey asks what the hell they’re doing, but they shove him down too! The Harts stomp down their former stable-mates, and dispose of them. Jimmy Hart is left in the ring, and he tries to beg the Tag Champions off, but to no avail—Jimmy eats a Hart Attack, and the audience loves it. The Harts help Piper up, and the Hotrod celebrates in the ring with the two newest babyfaces in the WWF, sending the Scotsman off into the sunset with his head held high. This match, in and of itself, was a major letdown (likely because Dynamite was said to be hurting like hell), and was for all intents and purposes a dud, but I’ll bump up the score to half a star because what followed was so epic. Hart and Neidhart had been taking major abuse from Dynamite for months leading up to ’
Mania, and it all culminated here with their babyface turn. The Dynamite Kid would “quit” a few days later, never to return to WWF TV. Davey Boy would go on to be a singles wrestler (with Jimmy as his manager for a while), and the Harts’ tag title reign would end several months later at
Survivor Series. As for Piper, this would be his final match ever…
½*
Backstage Interview – Lord Alfred has Hogan and Heenan together, and Heenan says the time is upon us for the Dragon’s reign to come to an end. Hogan claims that he knows Steamboat’s afraid of him, and he’s going to enjoy seeing the Dragon crumble up like a stale fortune cookie. God, the Asian racism jokes abound at this PPV… Hogan boasts that he’s bigger and stronger than Steamboat, and if the Dragon is smart tonight, he’ll hand the title belt over without a fight. As usual, Hogan and Heenan are great here—heel Hogan really came across as an egotistical schoolyard bully, and he played the role to a T.
****
Backstage Interview – Mean Gene has Ricky Steamboat, and he asks if he is ready to face Hogan. The Dragon says that he has been training night and day for this match, replaying the moment Hogan betrayed him in his head over and over again. Steamboat says Hogan is a liar, a fraud, and a bully. Millions of people and kids looked up to Hogan, and he let them all down when he attacked Steamboat. Steamboat says if Hogan doesn’t understand the power of the Dragon by now, then he’ll just have to beat it into him tonight. The Dragon was just starting to get really, really good on the mic at this point—you could really feel the intensity, and this was a great promo.
****
WWF Title Match: Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat (C) vs. Hulk Hogan (w/ Bobby “the Brain” Heenan) – As Hogan and Heenan ride down to the ring, the fans pelt them with garbage. Steamboat gets a very loud reaction as he rides down, and he and Hogan have a long staredown after the bell rings. Hogan shoves Steamboat, and he goes down. Hogan poses, drawing a gale of boos from the audience. Steamboat only nods in response as he gets up, and he and Hogan lock up. Steamboat whips Hogan to the ropes, leapfrogs over him, and dropkicks him to the mat. Steamboat now poses over a downed Hogan as the crowd eats it up. Hogan glares at the Dragon as he gets up, and goes to punch him, but Steamboat blocks it and hits several chops, backing Hogan into the corner. Hogan takes Steamboat down with a clothesline, then hits an elbow drop for a 1-count. A backbreaker from Hogan gets another 1-count. Hogan bodyslams Steamboat. Really loud chants for the Dragon. Hogan grounds Steamboat and applies an STF-like submission hold. Steamboat escapes, and reverses the hold into a seated armbar. Hogan fights out, but Steamboat hits a swinging neckbreaker for a near fall. Steamboat goes for another armbar, but Hogan reverses it into a headlock. Hogan irish-whips Steamboat, and the Dragon tries to reverse it with an armdrag. Hogan’s too big, however, and the Hulkster knocks Steamboat down with a clothesline. Hogan smirks down at Steamboat as he stomps on him several times, then covers him for a near fall. A hard lariat from Hogan gets another 2. Steamboat rolls out of the ring, grimacing in pain. Hogan taunts the crowd, and Heenan is shown smiling like the cat that just ate the canary. “Wipe that smile off his face, Ricky,” Mary Hart suggests. Steamboat climbs back in the ring, and he and Hogan lock up again. A neckbreaker by Hogan gets 2. A spinning heel kick by Steamboat staggers the Hulkster, and the Dragon unloads with chops, but Hogan counters with a hard right hand. A hard clothesline by Hogan gets another 2. Hulk locks on an armbar of his own, prompting extremely loud boos from the audience. Jesse comments on how much stronger Hogan’s armbar will be because of the 24-INCH PYTHONS BROTHER~. Steamboat struggles in the hold, but then counters with a unique headscissors variation that really looks like it hurts. Hogan screams in pain for a while, but claws over to the ropes to force the break. Both men struggle to their feet, selling their injuries, then go at it with lefts and rights again. Hulk locks a bear hug on Steamboat. The Dragon struggles, and Gorilla says you can “literally see the life oozing out” of Steamboat. “Literally”, huh? I wasn’t aware life could be seen with the naked eye, Monsoon. Steamboat fades, and the ref drops his arm once. Twice. Three…no! The Dragon fights back, hitting Hulk in the ears to break the hold. Steamboat unloads in the corner with hard chops and kicks, and tries an armdrag again. He still can’t get it, and Hogan bodyslams the Dragon. Hogan goes for the legdrop, but Steamboat moves out of the way. Hogan gets to his feet, but the Dragon hits a high knee that staggers the Hulkster. Steamboat picks up the staggered Hogan and bodyslams him, prompting a gale of cheers from the crowd. He then heads to the top rope and hits the flying crossbody for the 3-count at
18:25. The Hulkster rolls out of the ring, and Heenan’s mouth hangs wide open as Steamboat mounts the turnbuckle and celebrates. The Hulkster just shakes his finger at the Dragon, and the camera catches him saying “this isn’t over yet”. Heenan looks completely despondent. Steamboat celebrates for the crowd as the PPV ends. A really good match, even though it was no
WM2 main event (but then again, what match was?) It was highly exciting throughout, and the fact that Hogan busted out a lot of his old moves from Japan was really awesome. [11] I’ve also talked to people who say this might be the most important match in Steamboat's career, because A) it solidified that Steamboat could hang with the big, muscular guys, and B) it proved to the naysayers that Steamboat could beat a big man like Hogan clean. Steamboat would continue to reign supreme for several more months before…well, you probably know the story by now.
***½
Overall: This
Wrestlemania was a mixed bag. It had its downs, for sure—Koko vs. Reed, the 6-man tag, and Steele vs. HTM were all pretty laughable. Dynamite vs. Piper also failed to live up to most of its hype, at least as far as the match itself was concerned. But the show also had its good points: that image of Steamboat slamming Hogan has been cited as one of the most famous moments in ‘
Mania history, and Dynamite’s meltdown and the Harts’ face turn were also both really great and well-executed. Most of the high-profile matches were also pretty exciting and well-done. All in all, this was a pretty good ‘
Mania, and I’d recommend it to any wrestling fan—even if several of the matches and promos should be fast-forwarded through.
Overall Score: 6.5 out of 10
Full Wrestlemania 3 Card
The Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff (w/ Slick) def. The Killer Bees (Jim Brunzell & B. Brian Blair) via DQ (5:14)
Tito Santana def. Brutus Beefcake (8:44)
Billy Jack Haynes def. “Magnificent” Don Muraco (w/ Mr. Fuji) (4:42)
Andre the Giant, Greg Valentine & Junkyard Dog def. The Heenan Family (King Kong Bundy, “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndoff & Big John Studd) (w/ Bobby “the Brain” Heenan) (8:49)
WWF Tag Team Championships: The Hart Foundation (Bret “Hitman” Hart & Jim “the Anvil” Neidhart) (C) (w/ Dynamite Kid, Davey Boy Smith & Jimmy Hart) def. The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques & Raymond) (9:49)
Honky Tonk Man (w/ Johnny V) def. George “the Animal” Steele (2:50)
WWF Intercontinental Championship / Winner Gets Elizabeth: Randy “Macho Man” Savage (C) (w/ Miss Elizabeth) fought Jake “the Snake” Roberts to a Double Count-Out (10:40)
Hercules Hernandez (w/ Slick) def. Dino Bravo (4:43)
WWF Women’s Championship: Wendi Richter (w/ Cyndi Lauper) def. Misty Blue Simms (C) (5:13)
“Natural” Butch Reed def. Koko B. Ware (2:04)
“Rowdy” Roddy Piper def. Dynamite Kid (w/ Davey Boy Smith & Jimmy Hart) (1:10)
WWF Championship: Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat (C) def. Hulk Hogan (w/ Bobby “the Brain” Heenan) (18:25)
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[1] IOTL, the Silverdome attendance was reported to be 93,173 (though the exact number is debated), an indoor attendance record that wouldn’t be broken until the 2010 NBA All-Stars Game at Cowboys Stadium, which hosted 108,713 spectators. ITTL, there’s slightly less hype—because, let’s be honest: Hogan vs. Andre is a bigger ticket-seller to the casual wrestling fan than Hogan vs. Steamboat—so the attendance is a little lower.
[2] You might have noticed by now that the
Wrestlemania musical guests are singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” to kick off the show. IOTL, the kickoff song of
Wrestlemania has always been “America the Beautiful” instead. Consider this change a very minor product of butterflies.
[3] Jim Duggan debuted in the WWF in much the same way IOTL: in a match involving Sheik, Volkoff, and the Killer Bees at
WM3. In fact, the details of this match are similar to the OTL
WM3 version.
[4] There was no possible way I could butterfly away Sheik’s disenchantment with many guys in the business (Blair included), for one reason: the Iron Sheik is 100%, certifiably insane.
You can view the infamous interview in which Sheik bashes B. Brian Blair
here (WARNING: NSFW!!!)
[5] As OTL.
[6] Honky did the same thing to Jake Roberts in the buildup to their OTL
WM3 match, legitimately injuring Jake and beginning his longtime addiction to painkillers. In typical Honky Tonk Man fashion, Honky has denied he was the one responsible for Jake’s injury to this very day.
[7] I had this match’s results written up as a double count-out from the beginning, but I still have to say kudos to
PistolSO for predicting this match’s finish correctly. You, sir, win…absolutely nothing.
[8] As OTL.
[9] Cooper did appear at
WM3 IOTL, but instead of singing, he accompanied Jake Roberts to the ring for his match with the Honky Tonk Man. Here, he gets the same treatment as Ozzy at
WM2, and at this point, Wrestlemania “mini-concerts” are about to become quite the norm. “Man Behind the Mask” is as OTL.
[10] If you remember, I hinted at this back in
Post #89, except the quote from the book stated the match lasted under a minute. You can call this an error on the book’s authors’ behalf.
[11] One positive of TTL is that due to Steamboat’s superior wrestling ability, Hogan’s forced to step up his in-ring work as well…
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Well, this took longer than expected. Sometimes real life can be a pain in the ass, I’ll tell you…but my job and my family must come first. Nonetheless, I hope you guys enjoyed this update, and hopefully they will come more quickly now that my work schedule seems to have slowed down.
Steamboat’s being WWF Champion has unfortunately made
WM3 a
slightly lesser show than IOTL, but it still has its big moments, and trust me when I tell you that the Steamboat/Hogan feud is only getting started.
Coming up: we’ll see that Ricky Steamboat isn’t the only “
Dragon” destined to rise in this timeline…