Welcome back to the Drill. I might just pull this off after all. ;-) Lets get back to "Wrestlemania action"!
Caesars Palace-Las Vegas, NV
April 04,1993
Wrestlemania hit "Sin City" for its ninth edition. Held at the legendary Caesar's Palace arena, this would be the first Wrestlemania held completely outdoors. This event was billed as "The Worlds Largest Toga Party" and was entirely Roman themed.
One big surprise for this event was the return of Hulk Hogan. He had "retired" after Wrestlemania VIII but chose to come back to the ring for another run.
Wrestlemania IX featured a unique "big man" match as The Undertaker took on the 7 foot tall Giant Gonzalez.
It was a unique match in the sense that the Undertaker had never faced such a large opponent. It was his biggest challenge to date, but the Undertaker triumphed in the end.
Wrestlemania IX featured a double main event as WWF Champ Bret "The Hitman" Hart took on the almost 500 pound Yokozuna in one event. In the other half of the main event, Hulk Hogan would team up with his friend Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake to take on the WWF Tag Team Champions Money, Inc.
While the crowd was hot for Hogan's return to the ring, the match itself was not that great.
After what seemed like an eternity, the team of Hogan andBeefcake were disqualified after they were caught by the referee using an illegal object.
It was not quite the great return Hogan had wanted, but the night was not over yet.
Hopefully the second main event would get the crowd back into the event. The odds of Bret Hart successfully defending the WWE Championship against Yokozuna at WrestleMania IX were long, as he was giving up hundreds of pounds to his challenger Yokozuna. The Hit Man, however, proved in the main event that he was long on courage, taking it straight to the 500-plus pound monster.
Hart had Yokozuna locked in the his finishing move, the Sharpshooter and seemed to have pulled off the victory – until Yokozuna’s manager Mr. Fuji threw salt in Hart's eyes. Yokozuna dropped his huge leg on a blinded Hart to win the match and the WWE Championship, but that was only half the story!!
Hulk Hogan came out to tend to a fallen Bret Hart and to protest the shady way he had lost the belt. Fuji issued a challenge to Hogan on the spot for Yokozuna's newly-won championship. With Hart's blessing, Hogan accepted, and thanks to Fuji inadvertently throwing salt in his man's eyes, Hogan defeated Yokozuna in under a minute to win his fifth WWE Championship
So instead of a new era, it seemed that Hogan was destined to rule Wrestlemania for a bit longer. But things didnt work out that way. Hogan would drop the title to Yokozuna a few months later and then finally leave the WWF for good. The New Era would now finally begin.
Madison Square Garden-New York, NY
March 20, 1994
Wrestlemania reached its 10th anniversary and to celebrate, it returned to the place where it had all began. Madison Square Garden would host Wrestlemania X just as it had a decade earlier.
Wrestlemania X would be the first Wrestlemania that did not feature Hulk Hogan on the card. It was time for the "new blood" to take over and they didnt disappoint.
The celebrity presence returned to Wrestlemania as Little Richard opened Wrestlemania X with a soulful rendition of "America the Beautiful."
The crowd showed its appreciation by giving Richard a thunderous ovation when he finished. It was a great way to start what would become one of the best Wrestlemania's to date.
One of the greatest matches in Wrestlemania history took place at Wrestlemania X when Shawn Michaels took on Razor Ramon in the first ever Ladder Match. This match was for the Undisputed Intercontinental Championship.
The match took its toll on both men and featured some truly spectacular moments.
After a long and grueling match, Razor Ramon was able to capture the title when Shawn Michaels became entangled in the ring ropes.
Wrestlemania X featured TWO WWF title matches. Because their were two number 1 contenders for the title, it was decided that WWF champion Yokozuna would defend the title against bothBret "The Hitman" Hart and Lex Luger. A coin toss would determine would get first crack at the champ and the winner of that match would face the the other contender in the final match of the night. Luger won the coin toss and he met Yokozuna first.
Luger seemed to have the match won, but then special referee Mr. Perfect, disqualified Luger for "roughing him up". Yokozuna would walk away champion, but he still had to face Bret Hart later.
For this match, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper was the guest referee. Much like their Wrestlemania IX match, Bret Hart went right ater Yokozuna. It was back and forth for alot of the match, but just as Yokozuna was going to put away "The Hitman" with his "banzai drop" off the rope, the champion lost his balance and fell to the mat. Hart quickly covered him and scored the victory.
Hart avenged his loss from the previous years Wrestlemania and afterwards the entire locker room came out to celebrate with him.
The first Post-Hogan Wrestlemania was in the books and if this Wrestlemania was any indicator, then the future was indeed bright.
Civic Center-Hartford, CT
April 02, 1995
Wrestlemania began its second decade by going to to the homestate of the WWF. Connecticut would host "Wrestlemania XI" and would be the first and so far only time that Wrestlemania would take place near WWF headquarters. And just like in "Wrestlemania 2" NFL stars would be involved in the main event.
NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor would be challenged by WWF big man "Bam Bam" Bigelow. The two men had a confrontation at the "Royal Rumble" earlier that year and Bigelow wanted Taylor in the ring one on one. After weeks of taunting him, Taylor finally accepted the challenge.
Also at Wrestlemania XI, WWF champ Diesel would take on challenger Shawn Michaels. The former best friends would go at it in a classic title match.
The celebrities were back out in force as Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Nick Turturo and several stars of the NFL were on hand. Jenny McCarthy would accompany Shawn Michaels to the ring for his title bout while Pamela Anderson would accompany the WWF Champ Diesel to the ring.
The match got underway and Michaels, competing in his first Wrestlemania main event, would put on a wrestling clinc. He battered the champion with quick attacks and high risk maneuvers.
Diesel soon took control of the match however and after about 15 minutes of high impact action, Diesel would retain the title, becoming the first champion to do so, since Hulk Hogan did it at Wrestlemania 2.
It was time then for the main event as R&B group "Salt-N-Peppa" sang their hit song "What A Man" as Lawrence Taylor made his way to the ring. No one knew what to expect as Taylor stepped into the ring against the veteran Bigelow.
Talyor, who was accompanied to the ring by his "All-Pro Team" comprised of NFL greats, astounded the world by gaining the pinfall victory after executing two football tackles and a flying fist.
An embarrassed and stunned Bam Bam Bigelow never fully recovered from the devastating defeat. Taylor and his fellow NFL stars celebrated as the show went off the air.
Around this time the WWF launched its "New Generation" campaign. They were trying to get away from the old time WWF and into the new era. The next Wrestlemania would prove this formula to be successful.
To be Continued....
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