Editors Note: CrazyMax would like to send our condolences to the family, friends, and fans of King Kong Bundy. It’s fitting this show goes up soon after he passes because this was the biggest moment in his career and he delivered. Rest easy big man.
After an extended hiatus that was somewhat intended but wasn’t intended to go as long as it did we are back. There was some family things that went on during the time away and then the holidays rolled right into that and it just created a period of time where there just wasn’t a lot of time to sit down and knock out some reviews. I was able to get In Your House 3 up in the middle of the chaos but that was really the only time I had to do anything. Needless to say we are back and we are going to get things going with a bang here at the Event Center. Screw the list of stuff and time frames to keep things going in order. We are just going to review whatever the hell we want when we want. What a better way to start this off than with Wrestlemania 2. A lot of people have negative thoughts regarding this show and some of them are deserved no doubt. However, I feel that there is a lot of good when it comes to this show and I am anxious to get this thing going.
On a side note I do plan on posting the reviews that I have done so if some parts don’t flow in order as far as when they are posted then I apologize. I am not going to waste the reviews I already have done so I will post them in between new reviews that I am currently working on now. Also, look for a few new things that may get picked up on top of what we already have going on. What those things are is anyones guess at this point but keep it locked here at CrazyMax to find out. Anyways, enough of what is to come so lets get this thing going and lets get to Wrestlemania 2.
Event Information:
Date: April 7th, 1986
Location: Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, NY, Rosemont Horizon in Rosemont, IL, & LA Sports in Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 40,085 (combined)
Main Event(s): Mr. T vs. Roddy Piper (Boxing Match), 20 Man Battle Royal featuring NFL greats, & Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy (Steel Cage Match for WWF Title)
Show Opening:
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Show opens up with a Wrestlemania 2 logo and a voice over saying “Wrestlemania…what the world has come to.” A nice play on words as we head into the ring in New York with Vince McMahon welcoming us all to the greatest sports entertainment spectacular of all time….welcome to Wrestlemania. Not quite as good as his Wrestlemania 3 intro but not bad either. Vince then introduces us to his co-host for the night, Susan St. James. Vince then introduces us to Ray Charles and he sings his rendition of America the Beautiful to kick off Wrestlemania 2.
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After Ray Charles wraps up we head over to Mean Gene Okerlund for the first time tonight. He is standing by from the Rosemont Horizon in Chicago where he lets us know that there is going to be a big time battle royal featuring WWF Superstars and Superstars from the NFL. Gene then sends it back to New York where Piper is standing by getting hyped up for his boxing match against Mr. T.
Promo by: Roddy Piper, Bob Orton, and Lou Douva
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Duva is stuttering over his words but he lets us know out of all of the prospects in the heavyweight division that Piper is the best prospect. Douva says Piper has been training diligently and that all it is going to take is one punch and it will be all over. Piper says he is cute and that he grew his hair long that way he could tell the difference between he and T. Piper says he has had the best training possible for this match and that he is more than ready. Piper says he has been with Spinks’s trainer and that Mr. T has been working out with Joe Frazier and that he will be in Mr. T’s corner. Piper says he is down to 219 pounds. Piper says if Mr. T can knock him out in this fight then Piper would quit and retire boxing and professional wrestling. He said he would also quit dating girls. Piper then hugs Bob Orton and says he will just stick with him. Classic Piper here.
Piper says he is going to stick his head out each and every round because as pretty as it is he will be sticking and moving while Mr. T throws his punches. Piper says he will never cut his hair like an Indian and paint himself black. Hmmm I wonder what happens 4 years from now? Explosive comments from Piper here and something you will definitely never hear in todays product. Piper pushed the envelope and this promo is no different here. What a great talker.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
I don’t know of any heat going into this one between these two. They did turn Orndorff face during this time so getting him in the ring with one of the stronger heels in Muraco was probably way to get him over as a top face. Other than that there isn’t much to this one.
Match 1: Paul Orndoff vs. Don Muraco
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When the match first starts they play promos by Muraco and Orndorff respectfully. Muraco says after the embarrassment of Wrestlemania 1 for Orndorff and now he is fighting Muraco he is going to become the embarrassment of Wrestlemania 2. Orndorff says that he has been training and he feels great and tonight Muraco is going to be his.
This match starts off with some tie ups until Orndorff hits the ropes and gets slammed by Muraco but Orndorff kicks out and ends up slamming Muraco as the crowd gets pumped up for Orndoff. Orndorff reverses an irish whip and ends up back dropping Muraco as the crowd goes nuts again. We get a couple of arm drags and then an arm bar by Orndorff to slow the pace a little. Susan St. James is already terrible and makes your ears bleed. Muraco ends up scaling the middle rope and trying to roll through the arm bar but Orndorff ends up rolling through and keeps the arm bar. Pretty sweet looking move there.
Muraco tries to break free but Orndorff ends up holding on through the irish whip and keeps the arm bar a live. Muraco finally has enough and dumps Orndorff with a samoan drop to gain control of the match. They start brawling in the corner until Muraco has enough and he picks up Orndorff and both men go flying over the top rope. Orndorff gets his foot stuck in the rope so it doesn’t look as good as it could have. Both guys continue to brawl on the outside as the ref counts the 10. This one is a double count out. This match is a draw.
After the bell Orndorff posts Muraco and then snags a chair and threatens to hit Muraco with it. Orndorff throws the chair into the ring as Muraco walks off. There is a loud and clear “bull shit” chant by the crowd and Vince acknowledges it by saying “fans certainly not liking the outcome of this one.”
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Recap:
This was a nothing match and was way to short for my liking. This was the classic WWF finish where they wanted to keep both guys strong and not getting a definitive winner here. Kind of a shame because the crowd was eating up Orndorff and he was getting quite the reaction. Muraco was kind of just there and didn’t do anything of relevance in the entire match. It’s kind of hard to really say anything positive about a match that goes 3-4 minutes and the majority of it is Orndorff working the arm in a rest hold. Not much to see here to be honest and it is not worth watching. I’d give it a * just for the reaction Orndorff was getting.
There is a lot of confusion as to what the hell is going on here. Vince sends it to the Fink to announce the outcome of the match but Fink has no idea what is going on and never really declares a winner, loser, or a draw for the first match. George Steele gets in the ring and they still haven’t announced anything so Vince sends it to the back where Mr. T is waiting with his promo.
Promo by: Mr. T, Joe Frazier, and The Haiti Kid
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Mr. T says it is not his idea to be talking before a big fight. He says his fists are going to be doing the talking for him in the ring. T says he doesn’t know what he is going to do to Piper but he knows he is going to get hurt out there. T says if Piper starts doing dirty things then he will start doing dirty things. Mr. T says he doesn’t play that stuff but tonight he is ready and he is going to do his thing.
Promo By: Macho Many Randy Savage
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“Freak Out, Freak Out” is how Savage starts his promo and he says that the intercontinental champion is talking to everyone right now. Savage says by the end of the night Steele will be saying “excuse me Macho Man you are the greatest in the world.” Savage says this is the spectacle in the world and that he and Macho Madness is zeroing in on George Steele.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
You all know the story here on what this feud was all about. Steele had an infatuation with Miss Elizabeth and felt like he loved her, you know kind of like King Kong loving the blonde in the movie, so they built a storyline around this. They had some matches before and after this one on Saturday Night Main Event and Savage spent the better part of a year defending against Steele. Speaking of that, we would be remised if we didn’t take a moment to talk about how terrible I felt for Savage during 86. He had to spend the majority of his IC title reign defending against George Steele, of all people, and thats such a shame. The roster could have been a little thin and nobody really worth going after the title but at least give the guy an opponent that can work and someone that could put Savage’s talents on full display, you know like a Ricky Steamboat or something. Instead we get comedy matches for an entire year by one of the greatest to ever do it. Good job Vince.
Match 2: Intercontinental Title Match: Macho Man Randy Savage (c) vs. George ‘The Animal’ Steele
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Vince calls Elizabeth beautiful and Susan St. James says she is beautiful. She is hoping that Savage loses so Steele can teach Savage a lesson on how to treat a lady. Steele comes after Savage and he hightails it out of the ring to finish taking off his head band and glasses as this one gets going. We go through the same process again. Savage heads outside and grabs a chair and hits the ropes with it. We go through this a third time and this time Steele goes out after him. Savage has the advantage by getting back in the ring first but instead of attacking Steele he goes back outside again.
Savage tries to get back into the ring and this time Steele catches him and bites the calf of Savage, which makes no sense considering Savage’s boot covered the area. Savage turns the table and hits Steele with a big knee but Steele ends up catching Savage in a choke hold and he throws Savage down to the mat. Steele then drops Savage with a right hand. Steele then goes over to Elizabeth and gets distracted until Savage gets up pulls Steele back into the ring but Steele gets tied up in the ropes and Savage starts laying in the boots.
Savage goes to the top rope and hits Steele with a big splash for a 2 count. That looked terrible because Steele was out of position. When Steele kicks out he sends Savage to the outside. Steele lays in the right hands when Savage gets back in the ring and then throws Savage out of the ring. Savage then crawls under the ring and comes out on the other side and he nails Steele with another knee to the back. Savage goes for a clothesline but Steele catches him and starts to bite the arm of Savage.
Savage goes to the outside and takes a breather and steals some flowers by a fan ringside. Savage then takes the flowers and blasts Steele with them in the face. Steele ends up stealing the flowers from Savage and he rams them into the face of Savage. Steele then whips Savage into the corner but Steele goes over to the corner and bites open the turnbuckle. Steele takes the foam from the turnbuckle and rubs it in the face of Savage. This is what Savage had to deal with for a year? How sad.
Savage rolls to the outside to slow down the momentum but Steele goes out after him. Savage gets back in the ring but Steele gets distracted by Elizabeth. Savage then comes off the top rope to the back of Steele. Savage then puts Steele back into the ring and drops him with a body slam. Savage then goes to the top rope and nails Steele with the flyin elbow for a 2 count. Steele gets up and grabs Savage by the nose and then he throws Savage into the corner upside down. Steele comes back in and Savage drops him with a double leg take down and he puts his feet on the middle rope and gets the 1-2-3. Your winner by pinfall and still WWF Intercontinental Champion….Macho Man Randy Savage!
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After the match Steele goes over to another turnbuckle and chews that one open. Vince says it’s a consolation prize for the Animal.
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Recap:
This match was brutal. Not even the great Macho Man could do much with this. You could tell by this match that he was a star and deserved better than this. The comedy spots got old rather quickly and it was something that you couldn’t sustain into a decent match. Savage did his best but you can only do much with Steele at this point. * 1/2 just for how well Savage looked and how hard he tried to get something good out of Steele, which was a lost cause.
Ringside Interview: Bill Fralic and Big John Studd
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Fralic says that all the talk is done and it’s time to get this thing going. Fralic says he can’t wait to get his hands on the Studd here or is it the Dud. Studd then slaps Fralic in the chest. Fralic pushes him back as Gene tries to settle them down. Studd says Fralic has no class because he is a football player. Studd says he is going to get Perry (William Perry) in his home town and then he is going to get the rest of the football guys. Studd then takes a football and flattens it and throws it into the chest of Fralic. Fralic then says the match will be in 5, 10, or 20 minuets and then we will really see what the Dud is all about.
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We come back to Vince and Susan St. James sitting in some comfy seats talking about whats coming up. Vince asks James if she likes snakes and she says she doesn’t and she hopes Jake loses so we don’t have to see it. Vince is really trying to sell it here that this is going to be a great match up. Ha I doubt that.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
There’s not much going into this one either. Just a squash match on the show to get Jake and the DDT over. Really no other reason this match is here to be honest. The real question is how the hell did George Wells get a PPV match?
Match 3: Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts vs. George Wells
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Jake gets in the ring and lays in a right hand to Wells in the corner. Wells retaliates by sending Jake back into the ropes with some rights and lefts of his own. Wells then hits Jake with a big time back drop and a forearm until Jake hits him with a boot and tosses him to the outside. Wells meets him with a right hand as they get back into the ring. Jake ducks down and Wells goes over the top but Jake thinks he’s done something but when he turns around Wells drops him with a flying shoulder block. Jake is selling like a million bucks for this jobber and it’s pretty awesome.
Wells whips Jake into the corner and then whips him in again and Wells drops Jake with a nice head scissors. Jake lays on the bottom rope and calls for timeout as Wells continues to bring the offense. Wells hits Jake with a big knee lift and Jake rolls backwards and gets his legs caught on the top rope to sell it. George then drops Jake with a big time power slam and gets a 2 1/2 count out of it.
Jake then rakes the eyes of George and Susan keeps saying “uh oh, uh oh.” What terrible commentary. Jake goes to the outside and George goes out after him and when Wells tries to get back in Jake drops him with a big time knee. Jake then calls for the DDT and ends up dropping wells with a beautiful looking DDT for the 1-2-3. Your winner by pinfall….Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts!
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After the match Jake gets Damien out and lays it on top of Wells, who is laid out. Wells his foam coming from his mouth and it really makes the snake and DDT come across as very dangerous. A really good way to get the spot and the move over. Job well done Wells.
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Recap:
This was a quick solid match. Jake sold like a million bucks for Wells and it really enhanced the match. On the surface it didn’t make sense for Wells to dominate the match but when you think about it a little further it made all the sense in the world. Wells dominated the match but all it took was getting caught with the DDT to end it. It really got the move over and how dangerous it is. The ending with the snake crawling on Wells and the foam on his mouth was an added bonus that got the post match stuff over as well. A solid squash that accomplished what it was supposed to. I’d give this one **.
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They show a highlight video on the feud between Roddy Piper and Mr. T.
Backstage Interview: Hulk Hogan
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Jesse says Vince doesn’t have to throw anything to Jesse. Jesse asks Hogan about his injured ribs. Jesse says Hogan is facing his biggest and toughest man he has ever fought and it is inside a steel cage. Jesse says he can’t believe Hogan would do something like that as the champion of the world. Hogan says he doesn’t care what Jesse believes and that Jesse is getting paid to asks the questions. Hogan says he doesn’t care if his ribs are busted up or not because he is going to defend the world title. Hogan says it is everything he believes in, for all the little Hulksters, and it stands for America. Not sure what America has to do with it but okay. Hogan says Bundy is going down and it doesn’t matter about the ribs.
Hogan also predicts that Mr. T is going to come out on top in the boxing match against Piper. Hogan says T is fighting what he believes in. Hogan says Piper and people like Ventura take a lot of shortcuts and they go down fast. Jesse then wraps it up by saying that good guys don’t always finish first.
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They come back to Vince and St. James in the announce position and Vince asks her what she thinks of the cage match. St. James says she is concerned about the ribs being hurt but she is really pulling for Hulk in that one. Vince sends it back to the ring to get us to the boxing match.
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The Fink introduces Joan Rivers as the guest ring announcer for the next match.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
This all stemmed from Wrestlemania 1 when Mr. T got the better of Piper and Orndorff in the main event with Hogan. It picked up more steam when T fought Orton in a boxing Match on Saturday Night Main Event where Piper challenges T after the match. Orton ends up attacking Mr. T from behind with a beautiful high knee to allow Piper to gain the advantage. This all led to the boxing match that we are about to witness next.
Match 4: Boxing Match: ‘Rowdy’ Roddy Piper vs. Mr. T
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Before Piper and T even get in the ring Rivers introduces us to the guest judges. We got Darryl Dawkins of the NBA, entertainer Cab Calloway, & Watergate judge G. Gordon Liddy. We also have a guest time keeper named Herb. He prances around the ring and hugs Joan Rivers and then leaves. Vince pulling out all the stops for this one (lol). We finally get Piper and T out in the ring. The ref goes over the rules as we get this thing started.
Round 1:
We start slow with a feeling out period. T is holding the arms up as Piper is going for jabs. T goes to the body and they end up tying up. They get into the ropes again and T lays in a nice left right left combination to the mid section. The ref tells Piper to break but Piper throws a left hand and the ref lays into him. Piper is throwing combos but they aren’t landing so Mr. T winds up and nails Piper with a big left hand. They tie up again on the ropes and when the ref tries to get it to break, Piper pushes T away. Piper leads with the left and then nails with the right on T there. We get another tie-up in the corner and the crowd is getting restless already.
T drives Piper back into the corner with 30 seconds left in the round. T is just laying on Piper as the bell finally rings to end round 1. Both guys won’t stop going at it and the round is already over. The corner men are in to break them up as we get a rest in between rounds 1 and 2. Piper gets up and goes over to T and tells him he aint nothing.
Round 2:
T starts off the round throwing but the ref says Piper has to much vaseline on his face so the ref wipes it off and we get this going again. Piper is laying in the lefts and rights and then goes to the body as the crowd starts cheering for Piper a little bit here. They tie up in the corner and the ref tells them to break when he tells them to. Piper then goes to the body with some lefts and rights as T starts to slow down in the corner. Piper is landing clubbing lefts and rights as T just stands there and protects himself in the corner. Piper winds up and drops T with a big time right hand with 1 minute to go in the 2nd round. The crowd is cheering Piper here.
As T is down Piper kicks him in the head just to taunt him. T gets up at the 8 count and the ref allows this one to continue. The crowd starts chanting Roddy, Roddy as the round winds down. The bell sounds to end round 2 and T falls down. For some reason the ref is counting the 10 count but he clearly fell after the bell rang. What a pile of shit this match is.
In between rounds Orton comes over and throws Water on Mr. T and gets the mat all wet and slippery.
Round 3:
Piper comes out dancing and is using the jab. T starts showing some life and goes to the body of Piper and drives him back into the corner. T comes in and nails Piper with a huge left hand as Piper falls down in the corner and he is down early here in the 3rd round. Piper gets back up at 8 as the ref allows this one to continue. Piper then calls for T to bring as we have a minute and a half to go in the 3rd round. T drives Piper back into the corner and when Piper comes out of it T drops him with a huge left hand that sends Piper to the outside.
Piper is on dream street as T comes in and can barely throw the punches as we have about 30 seconds left in the round. They are both trying to throw some haymakers but they don’t have much left as the bell sounds for the end of round 3.
In between rounds Mr. T goes over and taunts Piper as the ref tells him to get back.
Round 4:
The bell sounds for round 4 and piper starts it off by throwing his stool at him. Both guys stare each other down and Piper lands a big right hand. T returns with a big left and then they just start exchanging lefts and rights on each other. Piper hits 5-6 lefts and rights on T but T returns the favor and lays in the lefts and rights himself. Piper then hits a big time right hand that knocked T’s mouthpiece out. T then hits a big time left hand that sends Piper’s mouth piece out.
T then goes to the body and drives Piper back into the corner. The ref tries to break them up but Piper throws him down to the ground and then Piper picks up Mr. T and drops him with a body slam as the ref calls for the bell to put us all out of our misery. Your winner by disqualification….Mr. T!
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After the bell sounds Piper and T roll around on the ring as all the corner men get into the ring. Frazier tries to pick up Duva and body slam him but Duva sandbags him. Joe then goes after Orton. Meanwhile, the ref finds Mr. T and raises his hand but Piper ends up attacking him from behind. The crowd starts booing as they announce that Mr. T won the match. The fans are not happy about this one and neither was Piper.
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Recap:
This went on for way to long but I guess it had to considering it was a main event at this building. They did about as well as they could with it being a boxing match. They had a feeling out round (round 1), Piper dominating (round 2), Mr. T dominating (round), and then quickly ending it in round 4. Like I said it’s about as good as you can do with a match like this but the crowd wasn’t buying it and they didn’t seem to pleased that Mr. T got the win. They booed when they raised his hand and they booed when they announced him as the winner. The crowd was even chanting Roddy, Roddy during the match. I wouldn’t have went this direction as far as a main event in New York but I understand it because they wanted the star power of Mr. T. I would have preferred a tag team match again with Piper and Orton vs. Mr. T and Snuka or something along those lines instead of a boxing match. I would give this match a * due to the fact that they did as best they could given the circumstances.
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They head back to Vince and Susan St. James one last time as Vince sends us to Chicago for their portion of Wrestlemania 2.
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We head over to the Rosemont Horizon where Gorilla Monsoon introduces us to Chicago. He introduces us to Gene Okerlund who hypes up the battle royal between the NFL and the WWF. Gorilla then introduces Cathy Lee Crosby as the guest color commentator with him in Chicago.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
This is kind of surprising getting a WWF Women’s title match on the show but considering Moolah just got it back from Wendi Richter recently they probably wanted to get something on their show. Velvet was probably just chosen as there wasn’t much build or anything to this match. Just a match thrown onto the show and thats about it.
Match 5: WWF Women’s Title Match: Fabulous Moolah (c) vs. Velvet McIntyre
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The bell rings and Moolah attacks Velvet right away with some right hands then some hair drags. Moolah hits her with a chop and then whips her into the ropes and drops her with another elbow. Velvet does a leap frog and then a couple of 1 foot drop kicks. Velvet then hits a nice back elbow and body slam on Moolah. Velvet goes to the top rope for a splash and misses. Moolah then splashes Velvet and gets the 1-2-3. Your winner and still WWF Women’s Champion….Fabulous Moolah!
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Recap:
Not much to this one as it was only about a minute and 20 seconds long. Moolah tried to get a jump early but the ref slowed her down and got in her way. After that she did her offense and got the quick victory after Velvet missed the splash. It looks like Velvet’s nipple pops out because she adjusts her gear after she lands but it doesn’t appear that anything came out. Just a dud of a match and not much here to grade.
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They head ringside where Gorilla, Gene, and Cathy are standing by. Gene runs over the rest of the card here in Chicago. They tell us that there is 2 referee’s in the tag match because of what has gone down. Gene says that Cathy has been aligned with a football player or two so he asks her to speculate on how they are going to do. Cathy says that she doesn’t think the football players have a chance because of how big the wrestlers are.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
This was the classic USA vs. USSR feud that Vince loved in the 80’s. Kirchner was the new guy and he was an Army Paratrooper so it was only natural that he would feud with Volkoff. In the middle of the cold war there is nothing better than USA vs. Russia so here we go.
Match 6: Flag Match: Cpl. Kirchner vs. Nikolai Volkoff
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Volkoff starts off with his spinning leg kick and catching Kirchner off guard. Volkoff then throws Kirchner to the outside and sends him right into the steel post. Volkoff then bites the forehead of Kirchner before throwing him back into the steel post. Kirchner didn’t protect himself and went forehead first right into the post. Have to be stupid to do that.
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After the match Kirchner grabs the USA flag and waves it around as the crowd cheers.
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Recap:
This was another short nothing match that started fast and finished about as quick as it started. Kirchner using the cain to get the win was dubious at best because that is something a heel would do and thats probably not something you would want a guy to do who is defending your countries flag. Anyways it is what it is and the fact that Kirchner got busted hard way by going straight into the post gave this match a *.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
The battle royal is the main event for Chicago and was a pretty interesting concept. I liked the idea of mixing in some football guys to go up against the wrestlers personally. They did some mini feuds to get some heat on the match with the NFL guys so lets see how this one delivers. This was also a way to get the rest of the guys on the card and not leave anyone out
Match 7: Battle Royal WWF vs. NFL
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Before this one gets underway Gene introduces us to the guest time keeper and its Clara Peller, the lady in the Wendys commercial who asks “wheres the beef?” They cut to her and they tell her to say her line but she waves the mic around like a wand and you can’t even hear her so they go back to Gene and they pretty much cut her off. Tremendous production value so far here at Mania 2. Gene introduces Dick Butkus as a guest referee as well as Ed ‘Too Tall’ Jones.
Here is a list of the participants: Jimbo Covert, Pedro. Morales, Tony Atlas, Ted Arcidi, Harvey Martin, Dan Spivey, Hillbilly Jim, King Tonga, Iron Sheik, Ernie Holmes, Jim Brunzell, B. Brian Blair, Big John Studd, Bill Fralic, Bret Hart, Jim Neidhart, Russ Francis, Bruno Sammartino, William Perry, & Andre The Giant.
Like most battle royals it’s just a brawl with everyone. This one isn’t much different. A bunch of guys start out going after the Fridge first. Andre and Studd square off in the corner until Studd goes to the outside to catch a breather. 4-5 guys were going after the Fridge but his teammate Jimbo comes over and makes the save for him. Jimbo Covert picks up Tonga and dumps him over the top but he hangs on until Fralic comes over and dumps both guys Jimbo Covert and King Tonga are eliminated.
Andre is working over Russ Francis while Studd and Tony Atlas are working over the Fridge. Bruno then picks up Ernie Holmes and dumps him. Ernie Holmes is eliminated. Studd and Andre go after each other again and Ladd on commentary says “thats heat.” Pretty weird hearing an insider term in 86. Andre then starts working over Fralic while the Harts work over the Killer Bee’s and Neidhart ends up dumping Brunzell. Jim Brunzell is eliminated.
Just a bunch of brawling until the Harts start working over Dan Spivey. Meanwhile, the Fridge picks up Tony Atlas and just tosses him over the top rope and eliminates him. Tony Atlas is eliminated. The Fridge then goes right after John Studd over in the corner. Studd is laying in the shots to the Fridge over in the corner. Pedro gets tangled up with Harvey Martin and both guys go flying over the top rope. Pedro Morales and Harvey Martin are eliminated. Hillbilly Jim and Blair end up dumping Ted Arcidi. Ted Arcidi is eliminated. Hillbilly and Blair then get tangled up on the top rope as Iron Sheik ends up backdropping Dan Spivey up and over to the floor. Dan Spivey is eliminated.
It looks like Blair and Hillbilly are just standing there waiting for somebody to come and dump them but Spivey ends up getting dumped instead. The Sheik finally comes over and he dumps both guys. Hillbilly Jim and B. Brian Blair are eliminated. Bill Fralic is working over the Iron Sheik when John Studd comes over from behind and ends up dumping him over the top rope. Bill Fralic is eliminated. Sheik and Bruno start to tangle but Bruno quickly disposes of him as we get down to the final 7 guys. Iron Sheik is eliminated.
We have Andre, Russ Francis, Studd, Bruno, Bret Hart, Neidhart, and the Fridge left. Bruno quickly goes after Studd in the corner. The Harts are working over the Fridge and poor Russ Francis is dealing with Andre. Seems like Russ has been messing with Andre this whole match. Studd ends up poking Bruno in the eye and dumps him over the top rope. Bruno Sammartino is eliminated. Studd goes right after Andre in the corner and drops him. The Harts end up tossing the Fridge across the ring but he gets up and football tackles both of them and sends them flying over the top rope but they end up landing on the apron and get back on. Crowd pops huge for this one and it was one hell of a cool spot. Kudos to the Harts for selling like that for him.
That leaves us with four guys: Andre the Giant, The Hart Foundation, and Russ Francis. The Harts are working over Andre until Russ Francis gets involved. The Harts hit a double drop kick on Andre and he gets tied up in the ropes. This leaves Russ alone with the Harts. They take Russ and dump him over the top rope. Russ Francis is eliminated. That leaves the Harts against Andre. They are working Andre over in the corner.
Bret shoots Neidhart into the corner and he nails Andre with a big time shoulder block. They try to dump Andre but he kicks them both off. They go for another irish whip but this time Andre gets the boot up and drops Bret with it. Andre rams their heads together. Andre then hits Jim with a big boot and Jim just flails and sends himself flying over the top rope to eliminate himself. Bret then climbs to the top rope and Andre catches him and throws him off the top rope and to the floor to eliminate him. The Hart Foundation is eliminated. Your winner of the battle royal….Andre the Giant!
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Recap:
I always did like this match and I have no clue why. There is a lot of old time stars in the match and I think thats what draws me to it. I also remember having the Wrestlemania: History and Heroes Hot Ticket and I watched it all the time. This match was one of the matches that made the cut and I feel like that is another reason why I enjoy this match. Adding the NFL guys to the match helped it if you ask me because the crowd was super into it when the Fridge had big moves and whatnot. It also helps with the star power but when you have Andre, Bruno, Studd, and a few others you really didn’t need it. Anyways, this was a solid ** 1/2 star match if you ask me and one that I would recommend watching at least once.
Ringside Interview: Roddy Piper
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They head back to New York where Vince and St. James are standing by with Roddy Piper. Vince says Piper’s actions were unbecoming of an athlete but Piper disagrees. Piper says if he wanted to go to a picnic he would have packed his lunch. Piper says he came here for a fight and when he was getting it going the refs stopped him. Piper says that T and Perry come from the same mold because they cheat. Piper says that nothing T could do could hurt him. Piper says that he has plenty of fight in him because T couldn’t knock him out so he isn’t going to retire. Piper says he doesn’t have to cut his hair like an Indian and he doesn’t have to dye himself black. Piper says he has never seen Frazier look better than he did tonight wearing a kilt.
They then show the replay of what happened during the match. Piper says he wasn’t losing anything but the ref was just getting in his way. Piper said he enjoyed dumping T on his head with the body slam, and the crowd in the back started cheering him. Piper says it’s to bad he dumped him on his head because it doesn’t do a lot of damage. Piper says he was slipping on his tongue thats why he kept falling.
Ringside Interview: Jimbo Covert, Iron Sheik
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Gene tells Jimbo it was quite the baptism in wrestling for him. Jimbo says he got cheated because he was going to help the Fridge and Fralic dumped him from behind and he cheated.
Iron Sheik then comes in and says that this will prove it to everyone in America that wrestler is better than football player. Sheik said if he had Volkoff in there with him he would have won the battle royal.
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They go ringside with Cathy Lee and Gorilla talking about the battle royal.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
This feud started right after the Dream Team defeated the U.S. Express for the Tag Team Titles. The Bulldogs challenged the Dream Team for the titles right away. The first time they fought the Dream Team would keep their titles via disqualification. They fought again on a Saturday Night’s Main Event where they held onto the titles by defeating the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs then asked for one more shot against them and they granted it at Wrestlemania and here we are. This one has two referees for it due to Johnny V on the outside and helping the Dream Team keep their titles by cheating. This should be a pretty damn good match if you ask me so lets get to it.
Match 8: WWF Tag Team Title Match: Dream Team (c) vs. British Bulldogs
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The Bulldogs come out with Ozzy Osbourne in their corner. I guess he is there to keep Johnny V in check. I doubt that is going to go well. The bell finally rings and we start with Davey Boy and Valentine with a collar and elbow tie up. Davey tosses Valentine to the ground like a piece of trash and he shows off his strength early. Valentine goes for an elbow on the mat but Davey Boy gets out of the way and goes right to the arm ringer before Valentine sends him into the ropes and hits him with a hip toss. Davey Boy moves out of the way of an elbow and tags in Dynamite who rams Valentine into the turnbuckle and gets a 2 count.
Dynamite picks up the pace and blasts Valentine with a shoulder block that sends Valentine flying into the corner. Dynamite then hits a beautiful snap suplex as he tags in Davey Boy. Beefcake just hanging out on the apron because he isn’t ready for this. He’s just to green at this point to do anything of substance with a team like the Bulldogs. Bulldog then gets Valentine in a nice delayed vertical suplex for another 2 count. Valentine heads to the outside and slows down the momentum. Davey Boy goes for a back drop but Valentine drops an elbow and the a head butt between the legs. Beefcake finally gets the tag and he comes in to work on the arm.
Bulldog gets out of the arm ringer with a beautiful press slam and drops Beefcake with it and then he tags in Dynamite. The Kid hits a nice clothesline but Beefcake doesn’t go down and he just stands there like an idiot so Dynamite drops him with a chop and gets a 1 count. Bulldog comes in and hits Beefcake with a nice fisherman suplex with a bridge and he nearly gets the 3 count on Beefcake. Beefcake tags in Valentine and he comes in off the top rope and drops Davey Boy with an elbow off the top rope. Valentine drops Davey Boy with a suplex and then we get a headlock in the middle of the ring.
Dynamite gets the tag in and he comes in and just exchanges blows with Valentine. This match is already unique in the fact that neither team is maintaining the advantage for to long and it is making it out to be a great match. We get some quick tags and then the Bulldogs drop Valentine with a double shoulder block and Dynamite gets a 2 count out of it. It is getting a little sloppy where spots are being missed but the Bulldogs and Valentine are so good they are hardly noticeable. Dynamite gets a backbreaker but Beefcake breaks up the pin before we get to 3. Valentine then hits Dynamite with a couple of forearms and then dumps him with a piledriver. Valentine goes for the cover and Dynamite kicks out at 2 1/2.
They had a test of strength on the ground and Valentine jumps up in the air but when he comes down he lands on Dynamites knees and racks himself. Valentine gets up first and he heads to the top rope but Dynamite grabs him and body slams him off the top rope. All four guys come in the ring and they dispose of Beefcake quickly. They were going for the press slam head butt but Valentine rolls out of the ring to break it up.
Davey Boy gets tagged in again and he drops Valentine with the running power slam but Valentine kicks out at 2. Beefcake has been the legal man only twice this whole match. Says all you need to know about the talent of Beefcake at this point. Valentine reverses an irish whip and sends Davey Boy shoulder first into the steel post. Valentine finally tags in Beefcake and he comes in off the second rope and hits Davey Boy with an elbow. Beefcake then works the arm and he picks up Davey Boy and just drops him on his arm. That was a pretty sweet looking move there.
Valentine gets tagged back in and he comes off the top with an elbow to the bad arm of Davey Boy. Valentine then picks up Davey Boy and drops him with a shoulder breaker. He goes for the cover and he ends up picking up Davey Boy after a 2 count. Valentine gets Davey Boy in a headlock but Davey Boy ends up pushing him off right into the head of the Dynamite kid, who was standing on the middle rope, and knocks Valentine out. Dynamite goes crashing to the floor and you can hear a thud as he lands. Pretty brutal spot there. Davey Boy goes for the cover and he gets the 1-2-3. Your winners of the match and new WWF Tag Team Champions…..The British Bulldogs!!!!
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Post Match Interview: British Bulldogs, Cpt. Lou Albano, & Ozzy Osbourne
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Lou said he made the prediction a while ago and now it has finally come true and he has his 16th tag team champion. Albano says he feels good. Ozzy then says it is fantastic and it’s the British Bulldog’s forever! Dynamite is busted open hard way and he can barely stand up or get in the ring. He is knocked out on his feet. Davey Boy thanks Gene and all of the fans in the US that if they became the WWF Tag Team Champions then they would stay in the US and that is where they are going to stay.
Recap:
This is the best match on the card and it doesn’t get nearly the credit it deserves as a Wrestlemania quality of match. It had everything you would want in a tag match and Valentine worked his ass off. The Bulldogs were great throughout and the fact neither team held the advantage for longer than a minute or two at a time and that was different than anything else that was going on in the WWF at the time. Also, the fact that they were able to hide Beefcake for a 13 minute match when he wasn’t ready for it is miraculous in it’s own right. Just a solid tag team match and it really highlighted just how great the British Bulldogs really were.
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They head back to Vince McMahon and Susan St. James from Nassau Coliseum. They discuss the LA portion of the show. They talk about the Hogan and Bundy match.
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They then head ringside in LA where Jesse Ventura, Lord Alfred Hayes, and Elvira are waiting. Jesse runs down the matches they have there in LA.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
There really is no heat going into this one either. They threw these two together to get them both on the card. Hercules was relatively new here and looked great with the afro and the garb that he wore to the ring. Steamboat was Steamboat so if anyone could get a good match out of Hercules it would be him. Shouldn’t be all that bad so lets get to it.
Match 9: Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat vs. Hercules Hernandez
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Hercules ends up attacking Steamboat from behind as soon as the bell rings. Hercules keeps control until Steamboat slides through the legs a few times and hits Hercules with a big chop off the ropes. Steamboat hits a couple of hits patented arm drags to get control of this one. Steamboat gets backed into the ropes and irish whipped and then Hercules does a leap frog and misses a float over type spot from Steamboat but Steamboat is good enough to hide it and ends up getting to the side kick anyways and we have a lot of quick action early on here.
Steamboat works the arm until Hercules lays in a right hand but when he tries to whip Steamboat he blocks it and then Steamboat hits two leap frogs and a back elbow on Hercules. Steamboat picks up Hercules and hits him with a big time suplex and then back to the arm we go. Hercules ends up ramming Steamboat into the corner and then dumps him with a vicious clothesline that floors Steamboat. Hercules ends up hitting Steamboat with a stun gun type move. Steamboat goes for a body slam on Hercules but he couldn’t get him over and Hercules falls on him for a 2 count. Hercules keeps control with a back elbow and then some elbow drops to the ground. He starts posing instead of going for the cover and he only gets the 2 count.
Steamboat tries to come back and goes for some chops and when he goes for a third one, Hercules dunks and he drops Steamboat with another clothesline. Hercules then picks up Steamboat and drops him with a gorilla press slam but again he stalls and doesn’t go for the quick cover. Hercules ends up picking Steamboat up again for another gorilla press and drops him again. Hercules goes to the top rope and goes for a splash but Steamboat gets the knees up and blocks the move. Steamboat heads to the top rope and hits the flying cross body for the 1-2-3. Your winner by pinfall….Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat!
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Recap:
This match started out really quick but there was a lot of stalling and a not very hot finish. The commentary in LA, especially Jesse, was brutal because of audio issues and it has always bugged every time I watch this show. Anyways, not a horrible match to get us started here in LA. A lot of that had to do with Steamboat being Steamboat but Hercules ended up showing some athleticism and looked pretty good himself. All in all not a bad match and one worth checking out.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
Adonis was running the flower shop and ended up starting stuff with the Hillbillies so they put the big guy of the group in the ring with Adonis. Thats pretty much it going into this one. This should be trash because Elmer is pretty much useless at this point but we shall see.
Match 10: ‘Adorable’ Adrian Adonis vs. Uncle Elmer
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Before the match gets going Elmer prances around the ring making fun of the Adonis’s gimmick. Adonis gets dragged back into the ring and Elmer nails him with some clubbing forearms to the back. Elmer then whips Adonis into the corner and he flips upside down and then crashes to the mat. Elmer then lays a right hand and falls down himself. Adonis gets back up and he gets nailed with another right hand and Adonis goes crashing into the corner shoulder first and then falls outside to the mat. Adonis selling like a million bucks for Elmer here. That is the best part of Adonis and thats his selling.
Elmer drags Adonis up to the apron and tries to tear the dress off of Adonis until he flips him back into the ring. Elmer hits Adonis with a chest bump and Adonis gets tied up in the ropes backwards. Again a great selling job by Adonis here and he is making this match worth while. Adonis tries to whip Elmer into the corner but Elmer reverses it and hits an avalanche splash into the corner. Elmer then goes for a big leg drop but Adonis moves out of the way. Adonis then climbs to the top rope and hits a big splash off the top and gets the 1-2-3. Your winner by pinfall….’Adorable’ Adrian Adonis!
Recap:
This was a nothing match here but Adonis sold like a million bucks for Elmer and really makes this match watchable. He sold better than almost everyone on todays roster outside of a couple of guys and it really makes this match fun. It’s a shame we lost Adonis as early as we did and it is also a shame he lost control of his weight at the end of his run here in the WWF because it took away from his selling. Anyways, a decent match because of Adonis and one that is worth checking out just because of Adonis.
Backstage Interview: Hulk Hogan
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Hayes says this is the toughest title defense yet for Hogan. Hayes says that it is rumored that Hogan isn’t 100% and that Bundy may have a psychological edge on Hogan. Hayes asks Hogan what his thoughts are. Hogan says there are rumors that he is all busted but so what because the title is on the line. Hogan says they have been living Hulkamania 1 day at a time and this is no different. Hogan says that Hulkamania is going to live forever. Hogan says if he has to crawl into the cage with one good arm he is still going to do it and he will stand behind the the WWF title because of the Hulkamaniacs.
Hogan says he has been thinking about the ambulance ride night and die as well as the animosity. Hogan says he has thinking about his aggressiveness and when he steps into the cage with the whole world watching Wrestlemania 2, Hulkamania running wild all around the world. Hogan is going to take away Bundy’s pride and put it back into the World Title. Hogan says he is going to win the match and he hopes that Bobby Heenan sticks his nose into his business. Hayes then cuts off Hogan, which is shocking, and tells him that all the fans are wishing him good luck and that’s pretty much it.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
This feud started with JYD and Funk going at it on Saturday Night’s Main Event where JYD ends up branding Jimmy Hart and Funk. Jimmy then brings in Dory Funk as a tag partner for Terry and Tito then joins up with JYD and here we are. The real reason is because JYD was terrible at this point and they wanted Tito out there to hide that on a big stage.
Match 11: Terry Funk/Hoss Funk vs. Tito Santana/Junkyard Dog
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Before the match even starts, Terry goes to the outside and starts launching chairs into the ring and slams them on the floor. The bell finally rings and we start off with Hoss and JYD. They start in a tie up and Hoss drives JYD into the corner and lays in some right hands. Funk goes to grab JYD but he misses him and goes flying into the ring where JYD ends up whipping Hoss into Terry and then JYD hits 3 body slams on Hoss and Terry as Tito gets in the ring and the Funk’s go to the outside to take a powder. JYD tags in Tito and then Hoss tags in Terry.
They tie up and Terry drives Tito into the rope and nails him with some chops. Tito then pushes Terry off and whips him into the ropes and then Tito drops down and Terry trips over him and damn near goes flying out of the ring. Tito ends up clotheslining Terry to the outside anyways but what a spot that was. Not sure if it was intentional or not but Terry has went flying over or into the ropes twice now. Hoss gets into the ring and Tito nails him with a two dropkicks and sends him packing to the outside as well as the Funks take another break here.
Terry wants the JYD so Tito tags him in and here we go with JYD and Terry. Terry wants to exchange rights but JYD ends up nailing him with a big time right hand and then rams him head first 10 times into the top turnbuckle. Terry has no idea where he is at and ends up in the other corner and JYD rams him 10 more times into the top turnbuckle. JYD then takes Terry and sends him flying over the top rope again. Terry ends up tagging in Hoss and he comes in as JYD tags in Tito. Tito finally slows this one down with a head lock until Hoss hits a big knee and some uppercuts to Tito.
Tito does a couple of leap frogs and then hits Hoss with the flying forearm for a 2 count until Terry comes in and breaks up the pin. We get a criss cross until Terry hits Tito in the lower back with a knee. Terry then gets tagged in and he throws Tito to the outside. Jimmy Hart gets some licks in before JYD comes over and Jimmy hightails it out of there. This match is pretty damn awesome thus far. Tito finally gets back in the ring as Terry continues with the control of the match.
Terry goes for a suplex but Tito blocks it and ends up hitting Terry with a suplex. Terry then hits the ropes and they go head to head and both men get laid out until Terry tags in Hoss. Hoss comes in and drops Tito with a nice double under hook suplex for a 2 count. Hoss and Terry take turns in preventing Tito from tagging and Tito nearly gets a tag after Terry misses a leg drop but he can’t quite get the tag in to the JYD. Tito is down on the mat and fakes out Terry a few times and finally gets the tag to JYD.
JYD comes in and nails both guys with lefts and rights and then rams them head first into each other. JYD drops Terry with a clothesline and then Funk grabs the tag rope and tries to choke JYD with it but JYD gets out of it and ends up backdropping Terry all the way to the outside. JYD then picks up Terry Funk and bodyslams him onto a table. Both Funks are laid out on the floor while JYD is in the ring waiting. Jimmy gets drug onto the apron and gets floored by JYD. All four guys end up in the ring and Tito gets Hoss in the figure four. The ref is trying to get Tito out of the ring as Jimmy throws in the megaphone. Terry takes the megaphone and nails JYD in the back with it and gets the 1-2-3. Your winners by pinfall….The Funk Brothers!
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Recap:
What a match this was. Terry Funk was phenomenal and his selling in this match was just amazing. Getting body slammed on a table, taking a backdrop to the floor, getting dumped on the concrete a few times, and doing all of this in an 11 minute match. Just awesome. Theres no better person than Funk when it comes to selling and he makes this match definitely worth watching. Just a really solid match and all four guys did well. Definitely one of the better matches on the card here.
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They show highlights of the feud between Hulk Hogan and King Kong Bundy.
Interview w/: Hulk Hogan, Hillbilly Jim, & Hogan’s doctor
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Gene interviews Hogan’s doctor and tells us that he advised Hogan not to take the match. The doctor also says that he is afraid for a disk injury and it could lead to permanent damage if he ends up taking the match. Gene then talks to Hogan and asks him if he is going through with the match. Hogan says that he doesn’t get to call in sick because he is the World Heavyweight Champion. Hogan sells the back injury and Gene asks him if he is still experiencing pain. Hogan says he has been training for 5+ plus weeks and he can’t let his Hulkamaniacs down. Hogan then takes a 100 pound weight and puts it on his neck and does some chin ups. Ridiculous. Gene tells him enough because he has proven his point. Hogan says he will do a 1000 to beat King Kong Bundy.
Gene says this is it. Hogan says this is what it is all about, there will be a winner and a loser. No way in, no way out. Hogan says for 5 1/2 weeks he has been feeling the pain and now he feels no pain and he fears no man. Hogan says Bundy is his in the steel cage!
Backstage Interview: King Kong Bundy & Bobby Heenan
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Jesse asks Heenan if this is the biggest night of his career. Heenan says it is and that he is the proudest man walking the face of the earth because in a few short minutes he will be the man packing the world heavyweight title in Bundy’s luggage. Bundy says that Jesse is worried because it is a cage match and Bundy’s beautiful face is on the line in the cage. Bundy says that the worries are unfounded because it has been proven by historical fact that every time Bundy and Hogan are in the ring together its Hogan laying in the ring like a fish out of water. Bundy says Hogan is the one who gets taken out in an ambulance. Bundy tells them to get the ambulances ready because Hogan is going out on a stretcher tonight.
Bundy then says that Heenan is the greatest mind in sports and that after tonight he will be the new World Champion. Bundy says nobody has to like it but Hogan is going down. Bundy says nobody should mess with the Heenan Family because they are the best in the business. Heenan then says that the doctors in Phoenix put Hogan back together again but he doesn’t know if he is back at 100%. Heenan says Hogan is going to be left in pieces and Bundy will be the new champion. Heenan says it is Bundymania time. Jesse says that Bundy is ready and Hogan will be in for the fight of his life. Bundy then says he is going to LA on its ear.
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Elvira sends us to New York where Vince McMahon and Susan St. James discuss the main event.
Pre-Match Thoughts:
This all started when Bundy and Studd attacked Hogan on a Saturday Night’s Main Event in Phoenix. Bundy attacked him and crushed his ribs numerous times with avalanche splashes in the corner. We also have the infamous shot of Bundy standing on the back of Hogan and raising his hands in victory. This all leads to the big match that we are about to see here in the main event at Wrestlemania 2.
Match 12: WWF Title Steel Cage Match: Hulk Hogan (c) vs. King Kong Bundy
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Tommy Lasorda comes out and introduces all of the guests for the match. I haven’t heard of any of them so I am not going to waste my time here with that. Also, how stinkin awesome did Hogan look climbing up on the cage and ripping off the shirt? Just a great looking visual and is just awesome. One of my favorite shots. Hogan comes into the cage and just throws the WWF Title on the mat and tells Bundy to come and get it. He is so good at making the moment huge. Nobody has been better than Hogan except for a handful of guys.
Bundy heads for the door and tries to get out but Hogan grabs Bundy by the leg and stops him. Bundy picks up Hogan and drives him back first into the steel cage. Bundy heads for the door again but Hogan stops him again. Bundy gets back in the cage and rips off the wrap around Hogan’s ribs and starts to choke him out with it. Bundy then takes the wrap and ties Hogan to the rope with it so he can try and escape. Hogan’s breaks free and ends up stopping Bundy from getting out.
Hogan gets control again and whips Bundy into the corner and hits him with a big elbow. Hogan whips Bundy into the ropes and then drives him head first into the cage. Bundy then does a blade job and cuts himself open. Heenan is rubbing his head so you can’t see it but when he gets lifted up Bundy is cut. Hogan goes right for the cut and lays in the right hands to the forehead. Hogan then takes Bundy and rams him 2-3 times into the steel cage. Blood is starting to pour out of the head of Bundy. Bundy is draped across the top rope and Hogan climbs up the cage and chokes him over the top rope. Hogan then goes for the body slam but he couldn’t get it done and Bundy comes crashing down on him.
Bundy goes crawling to the door trying to get out but Hogan ends up stopping him again. Hogan then takes the wrap and chokes Bundy out with it. Bundy then whips Hogan into the corner and nails him with the avalanche splash in the corner. Bundy then nails him with a big time splash that looked awesome from the overhead shot they had. Bundy goes for the door again but Hogan stops him one more time.
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After the match Heenan gets into the ring and tries to keep the door shut but Hogan ends up getting in and going after Heenan. Bundy is laid out on the outside while Hogan ends up taking Heenan and throws him into the steel cage. Hogan then takes Heenan and hits him with an atomic drop right through the door. Hogan gets his belt and starts posing for the crowd as they go home happy.
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Recap:
This wasn’t a classic by any means but it wasn’t bad either. The match gets a bad wrap over the years but it’s really not all that bad. I am a visual person and some of the visuals from this match are top notch. Hogan’s entrance, the finger point from the over head shot, the splash from Bundy from the overhead shot as well, and if you add all of these up you get a really nice looking match. I can look past the excessiveness of going to the door numerous times because the match did its job. Adding the steel cage to the match worked for me because it mixed up the Hogan matches that we seen all the time so having the cage made him change it up a little bit. All in all it is not an instant classic by any means but it’s not all that bad either and it is worth watching every once in a while.
Final Thoughts:
What can you say about Wrestlemania 2 other than it is stuck in the middle of the two most important shows in WWF history. Without the success of Wrestlemania 1 then there would never have been in a position to do what they did for Wrestlemania 3 so 2 usually gets forgotten. I understand it because there is nothing on this card that sticks out as being a great match or a memorable match. You had some moments with the NFL guys but over time those NFL guys aren’t as relevant as they were when the match took place so it doesn’t carry with it any significance. Savage was in there with George Steele and the fact that he had 3-4 different matches with him on Saturday Night’s Main Event took away from this one. The best matches on this show are of teams that don’t get the recognition they deserve these days for whatever reason. The British Bulldogs were one of the greatest tag teams ever and this match shows why in many ways but for whatever reason this match is never talked about.
The other tag match between the Funks vs. JYD/Tito was no classic either but the selling that Terry did was off the charts and really made the match enjoyable and one you can watch a lot. Other than that there really is nothing special here and the fact that Hogan and Bundy wasn’t drawing across the country puts a damper on the main event here at Mania 2. The other thing people don’t like is the 3 different locations where as I don’t really have a problem with it. Unless you was in one of the locations you shouldn’t really complain about having to watch 2/3 of a show on a big screen because you didn’t have to and you can see everything the same. I liked the idea and thought it was pretty cool. If you add all of this up you had the potential for a pretty good card if you made a couple of changes but what you got is what you got and it isn’t one of the best Wrestlemania’s of all time but it is one worth checking out every once in a while.
