(01.22.95)
Live from Tampa, FL
Attendance: 10,000
Your hosts are Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler
Pamela Anderson receives a bunch of gifts from the superstars. It's pretty corny.
Intercontinental Championship
Razor Ramon (C) Vs Jeff Jarrett (W/The Roadie)
Jarrett tosses Razor over the top rope, causing Razor to fall awkwardly on his knee. The Roadie chopblocks Razor from behind on the outside behind the ref's back. Jarrett wins by countout. HOWEVER, Jarrett goads Razor into restarting the match. Razor tries the Razor's Edge but his leg buckles. Jarrett gets him in an inside cradle to win the title. This is one of those matches that goes unnoticed because of the terrible overbooking. This is a pretty good match with both men on top of their game. If it wasn't for the terrible booking, it would be considered a great opener.
***1/2
The Undertaker (W/Paul Bearer) Vs I.R.S (W/Ted Dibiase)
The Undertaker wins with a chokeslam. This match isn't bad as I remembered. That's kinda a backhanded compliment, though. It's still a pretty mediocre match with nothing special about it what so ever. Nobody bought I.R.S as a threat to The Undertaker.
*1/2
WWF Championship
Diesel (C) Vs Bret Hart
Diesel has it won with a jackknife powerbomb until Shawn Michaels runs in and prevents Diesel from winning. In lieu of a DQ, the referee elects to continue the match. Bret has the match won with the Sharpshooter, but Owen Hart runs in to prevent a submission. The referee declares that the match MUST continue AGAIN. Shawn Michaels, Owen Hart, Jeff Jarrett, The Roadie, and Bob Backlund run in to Finally make this a no-contest. Diesel and Bret embrace after the match in a show of respect.
Thoughts: Bret Hart gives Diesel his best matches. This is an excellent match that's loaded with creativity and suspense. I liked how both men acted heelish in this match, especially Bret. The psychology is also excellent with Bret doing a great job of going after Diesel's leg. It's overbooked a little bit but it doesn't detract from the match too much. It's the perfect example of finesse Vs power.
****
Tag Team Championship
Bam Bam Bigelow & Tatanka (W/Ted Dibiase) Vs The 1-2-3 Kid & Bob Holly
The Kid & Holly win the titles after a heel miscommunication. This was a fun little match with a great Cinderella story. The Kid & Holly played the perfect underdogs and managed to make you care about them.
***
Lawrence Taylor starts laughing at Bam Bam Bigelow. Bigelow shoves him. This would lead to a match at Wrestlemania 11.
The Royal Rumble
1. is Shawn Michaels. 2. is The British Bulldog. Like an idiot, The Bulldog picks up Shawn for a military press slam, but he slams on the mat instead of the floor. 3. is Eli Blu. 4 is Duke "The Dumpster" Droese. 5. is Jimmy Del Ray. 6. is Sione (The Barbarian) of The Headshrinkers. Bulldog eliminates Del Ray. 7. is Tom Pritchard. 8. is Doink, and the crowd pops huge for some odd reason. 9 is Savio Veg...I mean, Kwang. 10. is Rick Martel, who has outlived his usefulness at this point. 11. is Owen Hart. Bret attacks Owen in the aisle way to get revenge. 12. is Timothy Well. Owen Hart gets eliminated off camera. Shawn Michaels eliminates Droese. The Bulldog follows that by tossing Timothy Well. Sione ends Martel's night, and Michaels gets rid of Pritchard. Kwang eliminates Doink as 13. is Bushwhacker Luke. Eli Blu and Sione eliminate each other. So many quick eliminations! Michaels quickly ends Luke's night by throwing him out. 14. is Jacob Blu. He goes out almost as quickly as he came in. 15. is King Kong Bundy. 16. is Mo from Men on a Mission. He lasts a few seconds before getting thrown out by Bundy. Mo breaks Bushwhacker Luke's quickest elimination record. 17. is Mabel. He goes after Bundy, of course. 18. is Bushwhacker Butch. Mabel eliminates Bundy. Michaels gets rid of Butch. 19. is Lex Luger. He starts off with a bang by eliminating Mabel. 20. is Mantaur. 21. is Aldo Montoya. (Justin Credible) 22. is Henry Godwin. 23. is Billy Gunn. 24. is his brother Bart Gunn. 25. is Bob Backlund. to thunderous boos. He's greeted by an attack from Bret Hart as well. 26. is Steven Dunn. Luger tosses Backlund to a big pop. 27. is Dick Murdoch. 28. is Adam Bomb. 29. is Fatu. Luger eliminates Mantaur. 30. is Crush. Crush gets rid of the Smoking Gunns simultaneously. Montoya eliminates Steven Dunn. Crush gets rid of Adam Bomb. Montoya is eliminated by Crush. He follows that up by getting rid of Fatu. Murdoch eliminates himself after the effects of an airplane spin. Luger eliminates Henry Godwin. Murdoch gets a standing ovation on his way out. The final four are Luger, Michaels, Crush, and The British Bulldog. Michaels eliminates Luger. The Bulldog clotheslines Crush out, leaving Michaels and Bulldog as the final two. The British Bulldog clotheslines Michaels out to WIN the Royal Rumble...
WAIT! Michaels dangled his feet above the ground, and only one foot hit the floor. He comes back in while Bulldog is celebrating on the top rope, and knocks him to the floor to eliminate The Bulldog. Shawn Michaels has won the Royal Rumble.
Thoughts: Shawn winning the rumble after drawing number one was unheard of back then. It's one of the most memorable rumble performances of all time. Despite Michael's heroics, this one suffers greatly from a lack of star power. I did enjoy Shawn teasing elimination, and the ending to the Rumble was cool as well. I just wish the rumble itself was more exciting and had more star power.
**
7/10 overall.
Live from Tampa, FL
Attendance: 10,000
Your hosts are Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler
Pamela Anderson receives a bunch of gifts from the superstars. It's pretty corny.
Intercontinental Championship
Razor Ramon (C) Vs Jeff Jarrett (W/The Roadie)
Jarrett tosses Razor over the top rope, causing Razor to fall awkwardly on his knee. The Roadie chopblocks Razor from behind on the outside behind the ref's back. Jarrett wins by countout. HOWEVER, Jarrett goads Razor into restarting the match. Razor tries the Razor's Edge but his leg buckles. Jarrett gets him in an inside cradle to win the title. This is one of those matches that goes unnoticed because of the terrible overbooking. This is a pretty good match with both men on top of their game. If it wasn't for the terrible booking, it would be considered a great opener.
***1/2
The Undertaker (W/Paul Bearer) Vs I.R.S (W/Ted Dibiase)
The Undertaker wins with a chokeslam. This match isn't bad as I remembered. That's kinda a backhanded compliment, though. It's still a pretty mediocre match with nothing special about it what so ever. Nobody bought I.R.S as a threat to The Undertaker.
*1/2
WWF Championship
Diesel (C) Vs Bret Hart
Diesel has it won with a jackknife powerbomb until Shawn Michaels runs in and prevents Diesel from winning. In lieu of a DQ, the referee elects to continue the match. Bret has the match won with the Sharpshooter, but Owen Hart runs in to prevent a submission. The referee declares that the match MUST continue AGAIN. Shawn Michaels, Owen Hart, Jeff Jarrett, The Roadie, and Bob Backlund run in to Finally make this a no-contest. Diesel and Bret embrace after the match in a show of respect.
Thoughts: Bret Hart gives Diesel his best matches. This is an excellent match that's loaded with creativity and suspense. I liked how both men acted heelish in this match, especially Bret. The psychology is also excellent with Bret doing a great job of going after Diesel's leg. It's overbooked a little bit but it doesn't detract from the match too much. It's the perfect example of finesse Vs power.
****
Tag Team Championship
Bam Bam Bigelow & Tatanka (W/Ted Dibiase) Vs The 1-2-3 Kid & Bob Holly
The Kid & Holly win the titles after a heel miscommunication. This was a fun little match with a great Cinderella story. The Kid & Holly played the perfect underdogs and managed to make you care about them.
***
Lawrence Taylor starts laughing at Bam Bam Bigelow. Bigelow shoves him. This would lead to a match at Wrestlemania 11.
The Royal Rumble
1. is Shawn Michaels. 2. is The British Bulldog. Like an idiot, The Bulldog picks up Shawn for a military press slam, but he slams on the mat instead of the floor. 3. is Eli Blu. 4 is Duke "The Dumpster" Droese. 5. is Jimmy Del Ray. 6. is Sione (The Barbarian) of The Headshrinkers. Bulldog eliminates Del Ray. 7. is Tom Pritchard. 8. is Doink, and the crowd pops huge for some odd reason. 9 is Savio Veg...I mean, Kwang. 10. is Rick Martel, who has outlived his usefulness at this point. 11. is Owen Hart. Bret attacks Owen in the aisle way to get revenge. 12. is Timothy Well. Owen Hart gets eliminated off camera. Shawn Michaels eliminates Droese. The Bulldog follows that by tossing Timothy Well. Sione ends Martel's night, and Michaels gets rid of Pritchard. Kwang eliminates Doink as 13. is Bushwhacker Luke. Eli Blu and Sione eliminate each other. So many quick eliminations! Michaels quickly ends Luke's night by throwing him out. 14. is Jacob Blu. He goes out almost as quickly as he came in. 15. is King Kong Bundy. 16. is Mo from Men on a Mission. He lasts a few seconds before getting thrown out by Bundy. Mo breaks Bushwhacker Luke's quickest elimination record. 17. is Mabel. He goes after Bundy, of course. 18. is Bushwhacker Butch. Mabel eliminates Bundy. Michaels gets rid of Butch. 19. is Lex Luger. He starts off with a bang by eliminating Mabel. 20. is Mantaur. 21. is Aldo Montoya. (Justin Credible) 22. is Henry Godwin. 23. is Billy Gunn. 24. is his brother Bart Gunn. 25. is Bob Backlund. to thunderous boos. He's greeted by an attack from Bret Hart as well. 26. is Steven Dunn. Luger tosses Backlund to a big pop. 27. is Dick Murdoch. 28. is Adam Bomb. 29. is Fatu. Luger eliminates Mantaur. 30. is Crush. Crush gets rid of the Smoking Gunns simultaneously. Montoya eliminates Steven Dunn. Crush gets rid of Adam Bomb. Montoya is eliminated by Crush. He follows that up by getting rid of Fatu. Murdoch eliminates himself after the effects of an airplane spin. Luger eliminates Henry Godwin. Murdoch gets a standing ovation on his way out. The final four are Luger, Michaels, Crush, and The British Bulldog. Michaels eliminates Luger. The Bulldog clotheslines Crush out, leaving Michaels and Bulldog as the final two. The British Bulldog clotheslines Michaels out to WIN the Royal Rumble...
WAIT! Michaels dangled his feet above the ground, and only one foot hit the floor. He comes back in while Bulldog is celebrating on the top rope, and knocks him to the floor to eliminate The Bulldog. Shawn Michaels has won the Royal Rumble.
Thoughts: Shawn winning the rumble after drawing number one was unheard of back then. It's one of the most memorable rumble performances of all time. Despite Michael's heroics, this one suffers greatly from a lack of star power. I did enjoy Shawn teasing elimination, and the ending to the Rumble was cool as well. I just wish the rumble itself was more exciting and had more star power.
**
7/10 overall.