Wrestlemania VIII

[RWOOD]

edit: in keeping with tradition of fucking up my threadtitles, I meant to say Roberts instead of Savage in that subtitle. Oh well, you get the point, hah.

 

I got this idea watching the old episode of Saturday Nights Main Event the other day where Roberts goes to hit Liz with the chair after his match with Savage. Lets say he hit her, setting up a Wrestlemania match with Savage instead of going on to feud with Taker?

 

For continuity's sake lets say Taker still turns face at this show, but instead helps Hogan when Sid walks out on him during the tag match, much to the frustration of Flair I guess. Taker and Sid can battle to the back and set up a Wrestlemania VIII confrontation between the two instead of Taker and Roberts.

 

This, I suppose, would have made Wrestlemania VIII look like this...

 

 

WWF Championship: Ric Flair vs. Hulk Hogan

 

Intercontinental Championship: Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart

 

Sid Justice vs. The Undertaker

 

Steel Cage Match: Randy Savage vs. Jake Roberts

 

I guess Sid's barbershop moment would have been on the funeral parlour with Paul Bearer instead of with Beefcake with and then cut to footage of Brother Love and Harvey Whippleman standing beside the Undertakers padlocked casket or something. Along with his stretcher jobs, Sid coulda put people in bodybags like Taker used to do then.

 

A lot of the same stuff that happened with Flair could have happened with Hogan, calling Hogans wife a Jezebel and whatnot. She wasnt famous at the time, but whatever, Hogan was. It would have worked fine. In my opinion, they could have ran a few angles where Flair and Perfect kick the crap out of Hogan a few times leading into the Hoosier Dome. You dont even really need the woman angle nonsense.

 

For the Roberts/Savage blowoff, you already had a hot program going into the chairshot on Liz. That alone would set up the match perfectly. You dont even really need Savage at tapings, just have Roberts destroying jobbers and cutting promos with footage of Randy in the hospital convalescing with Liz.

 

Lets say the same thing happens for the Piper/Hart program as well as the rest of Wrestlemania undercard. There is no sense in fucking with the whole card because I always thought it was pretty good. I might be in the minority for that.

 

Anyway, Flair Hogan can be a twenty minute blood bath and Flair can still get in shit for blading. I'd go out on a limb and call it Hogans best match ever at that point and I'm sure if Pat Patterson laid it out (in my booking he didnt try to sleep with that announcer ) everyone would agree. I would put it on at the end obviously. Flair can get his comeuppance when Hogan drops the leg and wins his fifth title. For the sake of the crowd going apeshit lets say the ref takes a bump and Perfect takes a Hulk up before Flair does. After the match, the post match beatdown that happened to Savage happens to Hogan during his celebration and the Ultimate Warrior can still make the save and pose with Hogan. I dont think I would Have Papa Shango show up. Big bang boom theres your biggest Mania main event ever that never happened.

 

Taker/Sid can be booked the same way as their 13 match only less monumental I guess with Taker getting his second Mania victory. Sid can go play softball and history is untouched. Taker can still win the title from Sid at 13, although in my long term booking I guess Bret would get back his win over Shawn. But would that have even happened if this happened at Mania VIII?

 

Savage can recreate the Snuka splash with an elbow from the top of the cage on Roberts, get redemption, hold Liz up, still have that same Hoosier Dome moment with the fireworks and the feud is blown off properly. He can even win the title later in the year, just not here.

 

So there. This is very realistic and in all likelihood may have been set to happen before shit all mucked up with that press conference and double main event thing. I guess its less armchair creative booking and more food for thought. I have a few ideas for long term booking I guess but I'd like to hear what everyone else may care to think about this scenario and Im not exactly looking into fantasy booking something that already happened 21 years ago.

 

Let me know what you think. Cheers and have a great weekend everyone.

[Ricky Jackson]

I like the idea of Savage/Roberts being blown-off properly in a cage. It should have happened. I love Savage/Flair from VIII, but both Hogan/Sid and Roberts/Taker sucked, so your fantasy scenerio probably would have been better. One issue is that Hogan was leaving after Mania to let the heat from the steriod scandal die down, so not sure if him winning the strap would have been realistic, but fuck it, who cares, it's a fantasy.

[RWOOD]

I like the idea of Savage/Roberts being blown-off properly in a cage. It should have happened. I love Savage/Flair from VIII, but both Hogan/Sid and Roberts/Taker sucked, so your fantasy scenerio probably would have been better. One issue is that Hogan was leaving after Mania to let the heat from the steriod scandal die down, so not sure if him winning the strap would have been realistic, but fuck it, who cares, it's a fantasy.

I love Savage/Flair too and I would have booked that exact match at Wembly. The EXACT match.

 

The way I see it he could've dropped it to Flair again at some point to set up either Flair/Warrior or Savage/Flair at Wembly to go along with Bulldog/Bret. Bret would still get his first title win in Saskatoon leading to most of the same stuff until the Royal Rumble in 1993 where Wrestlemania would once again be booked differently.

 

My ideas for Wrestlemania IX were to have Bret defend the title against Mr Perfect in title match that would have seen Perfect eliminate Flair for the Rumble win. I would also have Flair stick around to be involved in the Mania angle but I wouldnt have him wrestle I dont think, since I guess he would still go to WCW in 1993. I wouldnt have Hennig booked against Flair in the tag match at Survivor Series. I suppose Warrior never ran off, whatever you want. I guess the angle would be less about Bret because it would be about how Flair dropped the strap to Bret and never got a rematch as a result of losing the Rumble. Maybe have him get a rematch on RAW or whatever prior and have Hennig cost Flair the match somehow. Bret would win the match, Flair would be responsible in a non-shitty-ending way and he and Hennig could have their loser leaves town match the night after Mania.

 

Of course I would hotshot Hogan/Yoko to Mania in a nontitle grudge match that would have seen Hogan defending his friend Beefcake who would have had his face crushed by Yoko prior instead of being accosted by Money Inc. I think I would have Hogan go over at Mania and win the title from Bret at King of the Ring only to lose it Yoko at Summerslam and then have Yoko as the monster heel, maybe face a properly pushed Crush or a rematch with Bret at Survivor Series where go into the program with his brother, who would be in his corner and get jealous of Bret and then try to win Bret the match only to have Bret screw up and lose in a flukey way leading into his their reconciliation, subsequent breakup against the Quebecers, a decisive Rumble win and finally his double duty match with Owen redemption story against Yoko for the title at X. Fuck Lex Luger.

 

I would imagine that I would have Michaels work an IC title program that would be less about the IC title and more about Michaels treatment of Sherri Martel and Savage taking exception to it. Suppose Liz was still around and she showed some character and turned slightly heel and went with Michaels, or at least was torn. A great moment could've been Michaels hitting the elbow on Savage after a hard fought match and hitting him with the chin music, going over as a heel and having Sherri and Liz run to him and then get destroyed by Luna, who could still make her debut with Michaels that night and then form a pre-dated DX with Michaels and Nash by the time he comes around. I think the heel going over here couldve elevated Michaels more than any other match or feud at the time. A heel going over here also wouldve complimented Hogan and Bret going over as faces.

 

I would have Money Inc drop the tag straps to the fucking Steiners and I would've put Razor in there with Crush, have Crush crush him, continue his face push and then repackage Razor as a face like he was by October of that year anyway. I wouldve had Doink play all those heel tricks on Backlund. Backlund still gets his damn Mania match and wrestles Doink. Great. It wouldve added so much to Backlunds crazy old man gimmick if clowns tormented him at Mania. Tatanka could have his winning streak ended at Mania by a heel, Narcissist Luger. Whatever. Gotta fill out the card, right?

 

THE BIG CHANGE AFTER ALL THIS: Undertaker vs. Bam Bam Bigelow the monster heel. Imagine that fuck.

 

Wrestlemania IX sucks, now I want to see this card.

 

WWF Championship: Bret Hart vs. Mr Perfect w/ Ric Flair

Intercontinental Championship: Shawn Michaels vs. Randy Savage w/ Liz & Sherri

Tag Team Championship: Money Inc. vs. Steiner Brothers

Hulk Hogan w/ Beefcake vs. Yokozuna w/ Mr. Fuji

Undertaker vs. Bam Bam Bigelow

Razor Ramon vs. Crush

Bob Backlund vs. Doink The Clown

Lex Luger vs. Tatanka

 

So good.

 

Cheers.

[Ricky Jackson]

I think Savage pitched the idea of a program with Michaels in 93 to Vince but was shot down and relegated to announcer duty for most of the year. I like the idea of involving Randy's history with Sherri in a feud with Michaels.

 

I think Mania IX is still the show I hate more than any other.

[RWOOD]

I think Savage pitched the idea of a program with Michaels in 93 to Vince but was shot down and relegated to announcer duty for most of the year. I like the idea of involving Randy's history with Sherri in a feud with Michaels.

 

I think Mania IX is still the show I hate more than any other.

I hated IX even as a 9 year old I thought it was a bunch of nonsense. 1991 - 1992 was not without its flaws but I loved WWF presentation then. May seem silly, but it seemed so real. I stopped believing pro wrestling was real when Papa Shango made the Warrior ooze brown stuff but I believed in Santa Claus was real til just before that Christmas, if that puts it in perspective.

 

Saughter hanging out with Saddam? Macho bit by a snake? Taker driving the warrior crazy? The real worlds champion getting his title blurred? Michaels throwing Janetty thru a window? Fucking Sid? Real as fuck, man. Papa Shango and the Lex Express? Fuck. No.

 

I really think this Wrestlemania that I proposed, I suppose, wouldve been so historical and memorable without changing "history" that much.

 

The worst thing I did looking back on this stoned jot about IX is that I fanasy booked Bret out of his series of matches at King of the Ring. His match with Bigelow would be missed the most if you ask me.

[dgrblue]

On this card, Hogan has to fight Flair, right? I mean, sure Flair and Savage can put on good matches, but everyone wanted to see Hogan v Flair. Even if it was not for the title, Who goes over? I believe that Flair would do the job, because he knows that he is not staying, and eventually will be going back to WCW. I believe it could have been done one of two ways: Hogan goes over cleanly, Flair does the job, but carries the match. Two, Hogan wins by DQ, this way both save face, Flair takes the heat, and Hogan stays strong. Perfect can interfere with a chair or whatever, and cause pain to Hogan, beat him up, this way a program emerges, and ultmiately, Hogan reacquires the title.

[flyonthewall2983]

I love Savage/Flair too and I would have booked that exact match at Wembly. The EXACT match.

 

Would you have fixed Randy and Liz's marriage too?

[Sidebottom]

Hogan / Flair

Savage / Jake Roberts

Undertaker vs Sid

 

Are the changes I'd make. Bret vs Piper was perfectly booked and executed. If he were available, Marty vs Shawn would have also gone down a treat. And trying to get LOD on terms for a match also.

[flyonthewall2983]

Natural Disasters/Nasty Boys, and push the eventual title change to SummerSlam. LOD/Money, Inc. in a No-DQ match. Re-arrange the 8-man a bit to include Berzerker and Davey Boy and a few others (maybe Owen and Skinner too). Instead of taking Hogan off TV entirely, Just use him sparingly for the rest of the year. I'd think even a Hogan/Undertaker vs. Flair/Sid match could work, if you took the title off Flair in between the Rumble and WM.

[Danish Dynamite]

This would never have happened, but fuck it, it's my fantasy :-) ...

Rumble 92: Flair wins title

WM8: Flair beats Hogan

Slam92: Flair beats Warrior

Survivor92: Savage beats Flair

Rumble93: battle of machismo, Savage beats Razor

WM9: Yoko beats Savage

King93: Yoko beats Hogan (Bret wins King)

Slam93: Yoko beats Bret (injured kayfabe)

Survivor93: Yoko sole survivor

Rumble94: Yoko beats Taker (Bret returns, wins Rumble)

WM10: Bret beats Yoko

[milky wimpshake]

I've heard all the reasons that Hogan v Flair didn't transpire at WM8, but just for kicks, how do you book that match in a way that doesn't kill Flair in defeat, and keeps Hogan strong in a loss. Short of a messy finish (run-in, DQ/CO), I cannot come up with a satisfying finish. Flair cannot lose clean, as he would be done in the main events, and Hogan cannot lose clean, because, um, Hogan. So, without having another super hot match as the show closer, no DQ,s, no CO's, no Dusty Finish, what do you do?