30 DAYS OF WRESTLEMANIA ROLLS ON....... WRESTLEMANIA 7:STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER! FOUR MATCHES STAND OUT AMONG ALL OTHERS: THE UNDERTAKER VS SUPERFLY JIMMY SNUKA: THIS WAS A SHORT BUT SWEET MATCH BETWEEN A LEGEND LIKE THE SUPERFLY AND A MAN WHO HAD MADE A GREAT IMPACT AT THE SURVIVOR SERIES IN 1990 AND A DOMINANT PERFORMANCE AT THE 1991 ROYAL RUMBLE MATCH,THE UNDERTAKER. (THE UNDERTAKER HAD TO BE ELIMINATED DURING THE RUMBLE BY BOTH MEMBERS OF THE LEGION OF DOOM). THIS WOULD BE A TASTE OF THINGS TO COME FROM THE MAN FROM THE DARK SIDE. JAKE THE SNAKE ROBERTS VS RICK THE MODEL MARTEL IN A BLINDFOLD MATCH: TIME FOR BACKSTORY......IN LATE 1990, RICK THE MODEL MARTEL DEBUTED A NEW COLOGNE FRAGRANCE CALLED ARROGANCE THAT HE SPRAYED FROM A GIANT BUG KILLER SPRAY CAN. WHILE BOTH HE AND JAKE THE SNAKE WERE GUESTS ON THE BROTHER LOVE SHOW, MARTEL TRIES SPRAYING JAKES GIANT PET SNAKE, DAMIEN. JAKE SEES THIS, AND TRIES TO STOP MARTEL, BUT GETS SPRAYED RIGHT IN THE EYES,BLINDING HIM FOR SEVERAL MONTHS. SO, WHEN JAKE REGAINED HIS SIGHT, THE SNAKE CHALLENGED MARTEL TO A BLINDFOLD MATCH IN WHICH BOTH JAKE AND MARTEL WERE BLINDFOLDED WITH SOLID BLACK HOODS. THIS WAS A GREAT AUDIENCE PARTICIPATORY MATCH, WITH THE CROWD FIRMLY BEHIND THE LEGENDARY SNAKE, WHO MADE SHORT WORK OF THE MODEL ONCE HE GOT HIS HANDS ON HIM,FINISHING HIM OFF WITH THE DEVASTATING DDT. THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR VS THE MACHO KING RANDY SAVAGE IN A CAREER THREATENING MATCH: TIME FOR BACKSTORY........THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR,( FRESH OFF HIS WWF TITLE WIN FROM THE YEAR BEFORE AGAINST HULK HOGAN, ALONG WITH ONE OF MY FAVORITES AGAINST RAVISHING RICK RUDE IN A STEEL CAGE MATCH AT SUMMERSLAM), WOULD BE BAITED AT THE 1991 ROYAL RUMBLE BY SAVAGES VALET, SENSATIONAL QUEEN SHERRI, IN AN EFFORT TO GET SAVAGE ANOTHER WWF TITLE SHOT AFTER THE WARRIORS DEFENSE AGAINST IRAQI TURNCOAT SGT. SLAUGHTER AT THE RUMBLE PAY PER VIEW. SAVAGE WOULD GO ON TO ATTACK THE WARRIOR DURING HIS TITLE MATCH AGAINST SLAUGHTER,CRACKING HIM ACROSS THE HEAD WITH A SCEPTER, AND COSTING HIM THE TITLE, AND DEMANDING A CAREER THREATENING MATCH AT WRESTLEMANIA. AT MANIA, THE WARRIOR WALKED TO THE RING. HE NEVER EVER WALKED TO THE RING. HE ALWAYS RAN AT A 100 MPH, SO THIS (IN MY EYES AS A FAN) WAS A VERY SERIOUS MOMENT. MACHO KING (SIDE NOTE: MACHO MAN RANDY SAVAGE GAINED THE TITLE OF KING FROM WINNING THE KINGS CROWN REGAL TITLE FROM HACKSAW JIM DUGGAN, WHO IN TURN WON IT FROM HAKU, WHO WON IT FROM HARLEY RACE. THE KINGS CROWN TOURNAMENT WAS A ONE NIGHT WRESTLING TOURNAMENT THAT WAS A PRECURSOR TO THE WWF KING OF THE RING TOURNAMENT PAY PER VIEW EVENT) WOULD DROP MORE THAN FIVE FLYING ELBOWS ON THE WARRIOR BEFORE THE WARRIOR WOULD RALLY AND SEND THE MACHO MAN INTO RETIREMENT. ENRAGED AT LOSING HER MEAL TICKET, THE FORMER QUEEN SHERRI STARTED ATTACKING SAVAGE,BUT THE ESTRANGED FORMER MANAGER OF THE MACHO MAN, MISS ELIZABETH (WHO WAS SITTING AT RINGSIDE AT MANIA) LEAPED THE RAIL AND FOUGHT OFF SHERRI, REUNITING WITH RANDY MUCH TO THE DELIGHT OF THE CROWD. HULK HOGAN VS SGT. SLAUGHTER FOR THE WWF TITLE: TIME FOR BACKSTORY.....SGT. SLAUGHTER HAD RETURNED FROM A FIVE YEAR STINT IN THE AMERICAN WRESTLING ASSOCIATION PROMOTION( DURING THIS TIME, THE WWF FORBID ANY OF ITS CURRENT EMPLOYEES TO MENTION THE EXISTENCE OF OTHER WRESTLING PROMOTIONS), AND BEGAN A TRANSFORMATION FROM THE LEGENDARY AMERICAN HERO WE ALL KNEW AND LOVED FROM THE G.I. JOE CARTOON TO AN IRAQI SYMPATHIZER WHO WAS IN SUPPORT OF SADDAM HUSSEINS TAKEOVER OF KUWAIT DURING THE GULF WAR. (THIS HEEL OR BAD GUY TURN, MAY HAVE WORKED A LITTLE TOO WELL BECAUSE SARGE WAS LEGITIMATELY REFUSE SERVICE IN RESTAURANTS, HE AND HIS FAMILY RECEIVED BOMB THREATS,ETC.) SGT. WOULD GO ON TO WIN THE WWF TITLE AGAINST THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR AT THE 1991 ROYAL RUMBLE PAY PER VIEW, AND TAKE CREDIT FOR DEFACING THE AMERICAN FLAG. ONE HERO, THE IMMORTAL HULK HOGAN, WINNER OF THE 1991 RUMBLE MATCH ITSELF, WOULD GO ON TO FACE SLAUGHTER FOR THE TITLE AT MANIA. (ONE OF THE SEGMENTS LEADING INTO THIS MATCH WAS GREAT. ORIGINALLY, ON AN EDITION OF WWF SUPERSTARS, VINCE AND THE CREATIVE STAFF WANTED SARGE TO BURN THE FLAG ON T.V. SARGE REFUSED, BUT HE SAID HE WOULD DO THE NEXT BEST THING, HE WOULD BURN HULK HOGANS SHIRT. THAT WORKED SO WELL THAT IT TOOK EVERY SECURITY GUARD TO KEEP THE FANS FROM JUMPING THE RAILS WHEN HE DID IT.) DURING THE MATCH, HULK WAS SPLIT OPEN BY SARGE AND SARGES MANAGER GEN. ADNAN, AND IN A SIGN OF DOMINANCE, WOULD DRAPE THE IRAQI FLAG ACROSS THE HULKSTER. THATS WHEN HOGAN WENT SUPER SAYIAN ON THEIR ASS, RALLYING TO DROP THE LEG ON SLAUGHTER, AND WINNING THE WWF TITLE FOR THE THIRD TIME. I MAY NOT SHOW MY LOVE FOR MY HOME COUNTRY ALL DAY EVERYDAY, BUT MARCH 21ST, 1991 WAS WHEN MY FAVORITE U.S.A. MOMENT TOOK PLACE: HULK HOGAN HOLDING AND WAVING THE RED WHITE AND BLUE ABOVE HIS HEAD, BLOOD STREAMING DOWN HIS FACE, WITH THE WWF WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE BELT AROUND HIS WAIST. I HAVE IT AS A WRESTLEMANIA CELEBRATION POSTER ON MY WALL TO THIS DAY. AS THE PAY PER VIEW WAS GOING OFF THE AIR, MEAN GENE OKERLUND WAS WALKING BACK TO THE HULKSTERS DRESSING ROOM, TALKING WITH THE NEW CHAMP. WHEN HOGAN OPENED THE DOOR TO HIS DRESSING ROOM, SGT. SLAUGHTER THREW A FIREBALL INTO HULKS FACE AND PROCEEDED TO BEAT DOWN HOGAN ALONG WITH GEN. ADNAN AND AN ENEMY FROM THE HULKSTERS PAST: THE IRON SHEIK, THE MAN WHO HOGAN DEFEATED FOR HIS FIRST WORLD TITLE REIGN IN 1984. THE THREE WOULD GO ON TO DUB THEMSELVES THE TRIANGLE OF TERROR, AND THIS WAR WOULD CONTINUE INTO THE MATCH MADE IN HELL.......
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 06:20:11 +0000