Newsgroups: rec.sport.pro-wrestling, alt.pro-wrestling.wwf (http://groups.google.com/groups?q=wrestlemania+worst+IX&start=20&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&selm=b649a1805a2d4c78d6e5546e1a52f2b9%40news.teranews.com&rnum=23)

22. The Undertaker vs. Sid, WrestleMania 13 - The Undertaker is arguably the
best big man in wrestling history. Don't get me wrong. The guy can move in
the ring against pure wrestlers too. This match was the worst main event in
WrestleMania history because of his opponent, Sid. "Psycho" Sid is one of
the worst in-ring wrestlers of all-time. You are probably asking yourself
why was this even a main event? Well, after seven years wrestling for the
WWF, The Undertaker had to win the WWF Title. Not only win the title, but
also win it at a WrestleMania. This match was also the worst because a great
match between Steve Austin and Bret Hart overshadowed the main event. Not
only that, this has to be the worst WrestleMania too because it was coming
off a bad year in 1996 and part of 1997. The WWF didn't have enough time to
change plans for the main event, since it was scheduled to be Bret Hart vs.
Shawn Michaels, a rematch from the previous year. Unfortunately, Michaels
"lost his smile" and the rematch didn't take place until eight months after
WrestleMania 13. The Undertaker went on to defend the title for part of
1997, but lost the belt quickly to Bret Hart. Sid left the WWF shortly after
this match.

21. Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter, WrestleMania VII - Hulk Hogan and Sgt.
Slaughter were not your favorite in-ring wrestlers, but they put on a
memorable ending. Still, it was considered a poor wrestling match. Wrestling
fans that knew these two dating back to the early 80s knew that this main
event was not going to be successful. Both men were old already and it was
only to get publicity out of the Persian Gulf War going on during the time.
Slaughter was a great heel during the time and Hogan was the popular one to
get the belt off him. This match was not the best one of the night, of
course, but I loved the ending when Slaughter threw a flame backstage and
injured Hogan. There was blood involved, just to make it seem memorable. How
long was Hogan in that camel clutch anyway? Hulk Hogan went on to keep the
WWF Title for the next eight months, until he lost it to Undertaker. Sgt.
Slaughter kept feuding with Hogan, until he regretted turning on USA and
became a soft babyface.

20. Hulk Hogan & Mr. T vs. Paul Orndoff & Roddy Piper, WrestleMania I -
Another Hulk Hogan main event match becomes part of the "worst" list. This
was the first ever WrestleMania main event, but it's ahead of Taker-Sid and
Hogan-Slaughter for one reason. This was the main event that put
WrestleMania and Vince McMahon's WWF on the map. If it weren't for the
mainstream publicity and mainly Hulk Hogan that night of March 30, 1985, I
wouldn't be writing this column. Hogan saved WrestleMania during its birth
and I give him credit for that. Other than that, I didn't like this main
event because it was a tag team match and it was a good way to put Mr. T in
the fray. Good to see Muhammad Ali at WrestleMania. Kudos goes out to Vince
McMahon for showing those doubters that he can succeed without his father
promoting a wrestling event in Madison Square Garden. Hogan continued his
winning ways in 1985, while Mr. T came back the following year to fight
Piper in a boxing match at WrestleMania 2. Mr. Wonderful turned babyface,
while Piper kept being the heel he was.

19. Lawrence Taylor vs. Bam Bam Bigelow, WrestleMania XI - Due to mainstream
publicity purposes, this match was the last at WrestleMania XI. This was
Bigelow's chance to shine after he was selected to face WWF fan Lawrence
Taylor. Taylor was heading into the NFL Hall of Fame few years later and
didn't mind becoming part of sports entertainment. Not only that, several
NFL players wanted to take part of the event by supporting LT. This was the
first ever football player vs. wrestler match in WWF history. After this,
WCW decided to use the likes of Kevin Greene, Steve McMichael, and Reggie
White to be part of wrestling. This match was good, but didn't belong at
WrestleMania. LT was surprisingly good in the match, throwing some hard
forearms and clotheslines. It's safe to say that LT was the best
wrestler/football player, since those three men I stated above didn't cut it
in the ring. Bigelow was great in this match too, but his character totally
fell apart a month later when he turned face.

18. Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy, WrestleMania 2 - Hulk Hogan was
overcoming the odds against big men in the next three WrestleManias. This
match didn't make sense at all. It was predictable because we all knew Hogan
was going to win. Who expected Bundy (who weighed over 450 pounds) to climb
the cage and win the title? The match was just surrounded by Bundy
re-injuring Hogan's ribs. Hogan would do his "superman comeback" to defeat
the monster. The second WrestleMania was not as good as the first one and
the main event showed why. King Kong Bundy kept wrestling for the next two
years and left the WWF in early 1988. He returned six years later, under Ted
DiBiase as his manager.

17. Triple H vs. Big Show vs. Mick Foley vs. The Rock, WrestleMania 2000 -
This main event took place to have all the McMahons hog the spotlight. Linda
McMahon was in the corner of Mick Foley, but she was the least important
McMahon as Foley was eliminated from the fatal-four way match. Shane,
Stephanie, and Vince were the centerpiece of the match. Vince was in The
Rock's corner, but turned on him to reunite with his daughter Stephanie, who
was in Hunter's corner. Shane, who was in Big Show's corner, decided to join
the duo after WrestleMania. Fans left Anaheim disappointed that night, just
to see Triple H retain the WWF World Title. (Triple H was the first to
retain the World Title at WrestleMania since 1995). The Rock tried to make
some fans leave home happy by doing the "rock bottom" on Stephanie. Anyway,
poor match that had a wrestler that didn't even belong in the main event
(Big Show).

16. Hulk Hogan vs. Sid Justice, WrestleMania VIII - This match was
meaningless for both men because they were on a verge of leaving the WWF.
Sid failed a drug test and was going to get fired after the match, while
Hogan decided to take some time off. This was the last match of the card,
despite Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair (World Title match) becoming the first
main event. This WrestleMania was billed as a "double main event" because
the name Hulk Hogan was featured in the event. Sid kicked out of the leg
drop, which was surprising for marks at the time. It was known that Sid knew
he was going to leave the company, so he had nothing to lose by kicking out
of the leg drop. The Ultimate Warrior returned to the WWF after this match,
just to cover for Hogan's absence. It didn't work, as Warrior left the WWF
seven months later.

15. Lex Luger vs. Yokozuna, WrestleMania X - This match would probably been
better ranked if Lex Luger walked out WWF World Champion. Luger was the
favorite to win the belt, after finally getting his rematch against
Yokozuna. But why didn't Luger win the belt? Well, before the days of
Internet spoiling, Luger went out and spoiled the finish of his own match to
some fans and friends. Not only that, I heard stories of Luger getting drunk
the week before WrestleMania. Management punished Luger and changed the
finish of the match to Yokozuna retaining the belt in a shocker. Luger vs.
Bret was scheduled to take place in MSG, but thanks to Luger's stupidity,
Yoko ended up wrestling twice that night. Now, on to the match. The match
had a lot of Yoko rest holds, but the hot crowd woke up as soon as Luger
started mounting some offense towards the end. Luger signaled for the
forearm, ready to put Yoko away. Mr. Fuji and Jim Cornette tried to
interfere, but Luger brought them in. Special referee Mr. Perfect refused to
count because there was carnage in the ring. Perfect told Luger to clear the
ring, then he would count. Luger didn't understand and touched Mr. Perfect
twice. Perfect, the fair referee that he was disqualified Luger. Fans booed,
but it was a clean DQ. As a young mark, probably we were disappointed to see
Luger lose that way. Knowing the consequences, now we know that Luger
screwed Luger.

14. Randy Savage vs. Ted DiBiase, WrestleMania IV - The finals of the WWF
World Title Tournament featured Ted DiBiase vs. Randy Savage. The tournament
took place because WWF President Jack Tunney declared the title vacant when
DiBiase tried to buy the belt. Savage wrestled like a heel during the night,
but was cheered when he won the title because he was taking on all heels.
Savage wrestled four times that night en route to his title win. Hogan had
to be in the spotlight one way or the other by uniting the Mega Powers,
along with Miss Elizabeth. Savage went on to keep the WWF World Title for
about a year. He also became the first man to win the World Title at a
WrestleMania. Wow, some WrestleMania record that was not accomplished by
Hogan. This match was good with both men knowing what to do in the ring.
DiBiase, who was wrestling in his first year in the WWF, impressed a lot of
people with his gimmick and in-ring style. Good match.

13. Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna, WrestleMania IX - You never know if this match
would be better if Mr. Egomaniac Hulk Hogan would show up to "clean the
mess". Bret just showed you here that he can wrestle against big men like
Yokozuna. I remember watching Yoko's small legs wrapped up in a
sharpshooter. Yoko had to win the title here, so we can have Hogan come
down, win the title from Yokozuna, and leave WrestleMania on a high note
after a loss earlier in the night. It was just too damn sad to hear from
Hogan during that time that he didn't want to put Bret over because he was
too small. Well, in my words, Hogan couldn't handle a good 20 minutes in the
ring with Bret Hart. I'm still upset for the impromptu match during this
PPV. This was the reason why this match was ranked lower than their match
the following year.

12. Randy Savage vs. Hulk Hogan, WrestleMania V - This had a "Rocky" feel
into it because it looked like Randy Savage (the student) was facing Hulk
Hogan (the mentor). Well, it was more like two grandfathers playing chess.
This match was billed as the "Mega Powers Explode" because they were
together for a year, dominating the ranks. Savage was jealous because
Elizabeth asked Hogan for help, instead of him. That started a long feud
between both men. The match was good, but Hogan's blade job was ridiculous.
Hogan had to win in order to keep fans jumping on the Hulkamania bandwagon.
How was Savage rewarded? Well, he won the crown and was a heel king months
later. Miss Elizabeth sided with Hogan for a while, but she left the WWF for
a while only to come back the following year at WrestleMania VI. These two
have feuded since then and Savage is still calling out Hogan for a match
today.

11. Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna, WrestleMania X - I admired both men for putting
an average match, despite wrestling twice that night. Two hours earlier,
Bret wrestled a classic match against his brother Owen. Yokozuna had
wrestled Luger and defeated him in a shocker. Despite his size, Yokozuna
wrestled two matches that night and lost the WWF World Title to Bret Hart.
Vince McMahon realized that Bret Hart was going to be his top draw for the
next few years. Roddy Piper was the special referee and the announcers
(Vince & King) wondered if he was going to screw Bret like Mr. Perfect
screwed Luger. It turned out that Yoko fell from the second turnbuckle,
missed the banzai drop, and Bret went for the win. The finish was poor, but
there was no way Bret can win with the sharpshooter. Jim Cornette complained
that Piper touched the rope, that's why Yoko lost his balance. Whatever the
call was, this was a good match, despite both men having grueling matches
all night.

10. Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage, WrestleMania VIII - The storyline behind
this match was great because they hated each other. Again, Miss Elizabeth
had reunited with Savage and she was part of the angle. Flair claimed that
Liz was in love with him. Savage defended Liz and the match was on for
WrestleMania VIII. Mr. Perfect, his executive consultant, accompanied Ric
Flair to the ring. Savage came without Liz. During the match, Liz came to
ringside to cheer on Savage. Flair had the match won because Savage had a
bad knee during he match. The finish came when Savage pulled Flair's tights
during a schoolboy to win the belt. This was one of Ric Flair's best matches
in the WWF.

9. Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior, WrestleMania VI - The "Ultimate
Challenge" was the first ever babyface vs. babyface main event at
WrestleMania. This was truly a dream match between the two most popular
wrestlers at the time. We all know they don't have the wrestling skills like
Michaels and Bret, but pulled off a memorable match in front of 60,000 plus
fans at the Sky Dome. It was considered an upset at the time when The
Warrior became the first wrestler to pin Hogan at a WrestleMania event.
Hogan left the match crying, but was still the most popular wrestler in the
WWF. The Ultimate Warrior flopped, as WWF Champion and they had to put the
title around Slaughter's waist a few months later, just for Hogan to take
the belt from him. I loved this finish and it was a mark-out moment for
young fans at the time.

8. Triple H vs. Chris Jericho, WrestleMania X8 - Chris Jericho was the
Undisputed champion entering the ring, and walked out with no belts. Jericho
was going to be in the spotlight during the event because he was part of the
main event. Well, The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan was the most memorable of the
night because the crowd ate it up. The crowd was pretty much silent during
this match. Now, knowing these two wrestling styles, we can have a match of
the year candidate if given the chance. But why was this match not that
important? Two words: Stephanie McMahon. It looked like Stephanie was facing
Triple H in this match because she was part of this angle more than Jericho.
Jericho went on to become a great mid-card wrestler, while Triple H turned
heel and became the most hated man in this planet.

7. Diesel vs. Shawn Michaels, WrestleMania XI - I was really surprised how
Diesel looked in the ring against Shawn Michaels. If there was ever a
two-match DVD series of the Best of Kevin Nash, this match would be
included. He also had a very good match about a year later in a no holds
barred match against Michaels. This match was great because Michaels made
Diesel looked like a good wrestler. Michaels took bumps for Diesel in this
match, which also made both stars look good. This match was billed as the
semi-main event because Bigelow vs. LT was the last match. Diesel retained
the WWF World Title and became the first wrestler to retain the belt since
1987 when Hogan defeated Andre the Giant. Both men reunited the following
night on Raw, which made it obvious that the Clique booked their own
storylines and matches. This was not a good year for the WWF because Diesel
spent a year with the title, not putting other wrestlers over. Michaels went
on to win the IC Title against Jeff Jarrett a few months later, becoming one
of the most popular wrestlers of 1995.

6. Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels, WrestleMania XII - Personally, I think this
was a boring match because this was the first time we saw a 60-minute Iron
Man match on pay-per-view. The match seemed memorable for a lot of reasons.
Bret and Michaels used every move for an hour and they performed to their
highest level. The match was competitive because both men didn't score a
pinfall during regulation. They had to go to sudden death in order to
determine the winner. A frustrated Bret Hart lost the match with a superkick
from Michaels to end the match. This was almost going to be Bret's last WWF
match because WCW contacted him to sign with them. Bret decided to stay with
the WWF eight months after becoming a free agent. Michaels had a tough year
as champion. This was a bad year for business and Michaels had a tough
workload, working PPVs, Raw, and house shows during his title run.

5. Shawn Michaels vs. Steve Austin, WrestleMania XIV - Most people are going
to disagree with how I ranked this match too high. Well, I liked this match
a lot because Michaels shut the critics by putting on a great performance in
the ring, despite his back injury. Michaels laid down for Austin clean in
this match. Not only that, like JR said after the match, this was "a dawning
of a new era for Stone Cold". This was one of Austin's great matches in his
career. Austin only wrestles good matches with good wrestlers. A very good
match overshadowed the addition of Mike Tyson at ringside. This was truly
the beginning of the Stone Cold era as he won the WWF World Title. For
Michaels, he faced retirement and had to be part of a non-wrestling role for
the next four years.

4. The Rock vs. Steve Austin, WrestleMania XV - After a great year for
business in 1998 and a successful title run for Austin, there was still life
for the WWF in 1999. Another wrestler was catching up to Austin's success so
quickly that even jealousy was involved. The Rock entered the picture in
late-1996, but became so popular with wrestling fans with his tremendous mic
work in 1997 and 1998. That took him to main event status and headlined his
first WrestleMania against Austin. Leading to the match, it was known that
Austin was jealous of The Rock's popularity, even though he was a heel. Rock
was a face for two months the year before, but he turned heel in order to
keep Austin as the number one wrestler in the WWF. The match was on for
WrestleMania XV and both men incredibly wrestled a good match. Austin
defeated Rock with the stunner, thanks to Mick Foley's three count. A month
later, Rock turned face again, but they had to keep both men apart. The Rock
became center of attention the following year, becoming the number one man
in the business, while Austin was out for a year due to injuries.

3. Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant, WrestleMania III - This was not your
typical Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels or Randy Savage vs. Hulk Hogan type of
match. This was ranked very high because of the atmosphere that night. Hulk
Hogan vs. Andre the Giant was the dream match of the 80s because they were
the two biggest stars of the decade. From the close three count by Andre in
the first minute of the match to the bodyslam by Hogan, everything was
memorable. Too bad Andre was in bad shape that night. He couldn't move in
the ring that much like in his early days in wrestling. Hogan won the match
with the leg drop and it still stands in his memory today. Yes, this was
Hogan's most memorable night of his career. Vince McMahon was the happiest
man in the world by promoting this event. Everyone had their working shoes
on that night. Andre the Giant was tired, we all know that, but did the best
thing to put Hogan over (or pass the torch?)

2. The Rock vs. Steve Austin, WrestleMania X7 - One of the best main events
ever in my opinion. The Rock vs. Steve Austin from WrestleMania X7 was
better than their match two years before. This was a very good main event
that silenced some critics from talking about how Austin couldn't work a
match again, despite neck and knee injuries. The storyline surrounding this
match was that Austin was going to turn heel in his hometown. Vince McMahon
hugging Austin after the match set up a bad storyline for the rest of the
year. The Rock started his first trips to Hollywood this year and Austin had
to carry the WWF with Hunter. But Hunter injured himself two months later
and now we all depended on Austin. Again, this was a very good match and I
loved the chairshots given to The Rock, hinting that Austin was going to be
your next heel.

1. Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle, WrestleMania X9 - It's strange to see that
the most recent main event at WrestleMania was the number one match in my
list. Now, this was a pure wrestling main event and unlike Michaels-Bret
from WrestleMania XII, this was much more entertaining. Angle was wrestling
with a bad neck, while his opponent almost had a bad neck. Lesnar was one of
the wrestlers that night on the spotlight, performing a shooting star press.
Credit goes for to both athletes for headlining WrestleMania so early in
their careers. Angle went on to have neck surgery and returned sooner than
expected to win the title back from Lesnar. Brock dominated the Smackdown
brand as the World Champ, then turned heel.

Agree or disagree with my rankings? - No problem. Sound off here:
ofierros@msn.com

***

LOUNGE Flashbacks Ticker - This Month in WWE History

JANUARY 24, 1984 - Hulkamania was born at Madison Square Garden when Hulk
Hogan won the WWF Title over Iron Sheik.JANUARY 22, 1996 - Vader was
suspended from the WWE after attacking then-WWF President Gorilla Monsoon on
Raw.JANUARY 23, 1995 - Bam Bam Bigelow refused to apologize to Lawrence
Taylor for the incident at the Royal Rumble. .

WrestleMania XX is just eight weeks away and as a tribute, I decided to do
several flashbacks on the event. The list of upcoming columns are on the top
and you can start sending in your Best & Worst WrestleMania IC Title
Matches. Send your best and worst here: ofierros@msn.com - Also, if you want
to be part of a weekly roundtable in which we discuss your favorite
WrestleMania moments, drop me a line so we can get together in a chat room.
I have a lot of wrestling fans in my buddy list waiting to meet other fans
to discuss WrestleMania. Send me a request to be invited in the roundtable
and I'll reply to you with instructions.


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