WWE
Classic Graded: WrestleMania Final Results and Grades
WrestleMania. The inaugural “show of shows” that began as a way to battle Jim Crockett Promotion’s StarrCade. Vince McMahon went all in before it was cool; He put everything he had into this one show. The original WrestleMania is still seen as one of the bigger financial gambles in sports history. If this show flopped, then WWE would most likely not be here today.
History Lesson:
WrestleMania takes place in the world-famous Madison Square Garden Arena in New York City, New York. The audience attendance is set at 19,121; Which is very low when comparing to today’s events. The commentary team consists of Jesse “The Body” Ventura and Gorilla Monsoon.
The event is broadcasting across the nation on “closed-circuit” cable television. This would later become the “pay-per-view” system we know now.
With Vince McMahon’s cross-promoting with MTV, MTV aired two wrestling specials. The first one, The Brawl to End It All, aired on July 23, 1984. Wendi Richter defeated The Fabulous Moolah to win the WWF Women’s Championship on the card, with Cyndi Lauper at her side.
At The War to Settle the Score, which aired on February 18, 1985, Leilani Kai, accompanied by Moolah, defeated Richter to win the Women’s Championship. Aside from Lauper, other celebrities also appeared during the event. The celebs include: Muhammad Ali, Liberace, and Major League Baseball manager Billy Martin.
Hulk Hogan famously appeared the night before the event on Saturday Night Live to promote Vince’s big gamble.
“Rowdy” Roddy Piper infamously smashed Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka over the head with a coconut. That attack eventually led to a feud with Mr. T and Hulk Hogan.
Tito Santana def. The Executioner via submission
Final Grade: C+
Buddy Rose is the man under the mask. But he’s wearing the mask so he wouldn’t lose any of his built up reputation.
It could be argued that Tito Santana is ahead of his time. He shows some good athleticism and wrestling skill. The match was very brief, so we don’t to get to see a lot of his technique.
Figure Four in the middle of the ring. It’s odd to see them call a submission without the opponent tapping out. This is before “tapping out” was practiced. It’s apparently just a simple “yes, I give up” or “no, I don’t give up”.
King Kong Bundy def. Special Delivery Jones
Final Grade: F
Nine seconds? NINE SECONDS?! No, it’s closer to twenty-five. Why do you lie to me, WWF?
The only two moves Bundy does is an Avalanche Splash and a prone Body Splash.
Ricky Steamboat def. Matt Borne
Final Grade: C+
Another technical bout. Ricky Steamboat is one of those great wrestlers that should have been WWF/E Champion at some point in their career. Matt Borne did great to aid Steamboat in pulling off most of his athletic moves.
Flying Crossbody from the top rope gets Steamboat the pin. That doesn’t seem like a big deal these days, but back in the 80’s, any move from the top rope was unheard of and amazing to see.
Brutus Beefcake vs. David Sammartino ends in a double disqualification
Final Grade: C-
If you ever feel overshadowed by an older sibling or a parent, you have some idea what David Sammartino feels like being the son of Bruno Sammartino. Bruno gets a bigger cheer and introduction than his son. It makes sense that Bruno gets that much hype, but he wasn’t even competing.
Decent back and forth match. The double DQ is disappointing to see, but it makes sense in this situation.
WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship: Junkyard Dog def. Greg Valentine via count out; Valentine retains
Final Grade: C
Had this been JYD in his prime, this match would’ve gotten a higher grade.
Greg Valentine got the original win with his feet on the middle rope to pin JYD. But Tito Santana came down to the ring and convinced the referee to reverse the decision. Valentine then got counted out as a result when he refused to continue the match.
WWF Tag Team Championships: The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff def. The U.S. Express to win the titles
Final Grade: D
USA pride overload. The U.S. Express lose to Iron Sheik and Volkoff with the use of “Classy” Freddie Blassie’s cane.
Body Slam Challenge with the Winner Receiving $15,000: Andre the Giant def. Big John Studd
Final Grade: C
Andre the Giant won and threw his winnings at the crowd. Pretty decent “big man” match, but not a lot went down.
WWF Women’s Championship: Wendi Richter def. Leilani Kai to win the championship
Final Grade: D+
A long ways off from the Women’s Revolution that AJ Lee would bring. Both women showed off good wrestling skill. Richter reversed a pin attempt from Kai into a pin of her own and won herself the title.
Hulk Hogan and Mr. T def. Paul Orndorff and “Rowdy” Roddy Piper
Final Grade: B-
The first WrestleMania main event is a tag team match. Hulk Hogan and Mr. T pick up the win over the bad guys.
Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your take, this isn’t the last time we see Piper and Mr. T square off in the WWF.
Hulkamania is running as wild as ever as Hogan marches to the ring with “Real American” blaring into the arena.
Considering one of the men involved wasn’t even a wrestler, this match was very good. Slow paced, but it needed to be to draw out the drama of the situation.
Overall WrestleMania Final Grade: C-
There’s obviously a lot of growing pains this show has to go through being the first of its kind. It was a big hit when it originally aired and became an annual event for years to come. Compared to others, this is one of the poorer in terms of match quality. But, it remains a classic simply because it’s the OG.
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