Mt. Rushmore: SummerSlam Main Events

By Kevin Hunsperger @kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter Listen to the podcast  Follow my blog with Bloglovin  

SummerSlam makes its return this Saturday, so I thought, what better topic for this week's Mt. Rushmore than my favorite SummerSlam main events. Please note I said my favorite vs. the best because I think those are two very different things. My list, as you will soon see, is built mostly on nostalgia. 

Courtesy: WWE

John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan (2013): This match, I realize, is probably a happy accident in terms of how it all played out. Daniel Bryan, my favorite wrestler of that era, was finally getting some main event love. Sure, he'd been the World Champion earlier, but I felt like he was truly over now, and the powers that be seemed to be on board.

He challenged John Cena to a great match for the WWE Championship and ends up winning. I was pumped until Randy Orton comes out to cash in the Money in the Bank briefcase. Triple H, who was the special guest referee, double-crossed Bryan, and Orton won. Of course, the underdog prevailed in the end, winning the undisputed championship six months later at WrestleMania XXX (a match I was there to see). 

Courtesy: WWE

British Bulldog vs. Bret Hart (1992): My all-time favorite tag team is the British Bulldogs. In the 80s, that duo feuded with the Hart Foundation. The matches were incredible. Fast forward a few years, and now Davey Boy Smith and his brother-in-law Bret Hart are feuding for the Intercontentinal Championship. Both men were good guys, but that didn't stop them from bringing out all the stops.

Hart and Smith closed the show at Wembley Stadium. It was the first and only time in SummerSlam history that the event was held overseas and that the IC Title match was in the main event. Bulldog got the victory in this hard-fought match. Unfortunately, his reign and his time in WWE were cut short, but that doesn't take away from this incredible matchup. 

Courtesy: WWE

The Mega Powers vs. The Mega Bucks (1988): I can't leave off the first SummerSlam main event. This was reffed by Jesse 'the Body' Ventura and featured the new WWF champ Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan teaming up against Andre the Giant and 'The Million Dollar Man' Ted DiBiase. It was a solid main event for the inaugural event. 

The match ends with Elizabeth showing off her legs and distracting the Mega Bucks. It was great storytelling as the seeds were being planted for the eventual breakup of the Mega Powers, which would culminate at WrestleMania V.

Courtesy: WWE

Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior vs. Sgt. Slaughter, Col. Mustafa, and Gen. Adnan (1991): What an awesomely bad main event this was. It's the era I grew up in. I have to pick it. I loved this time and everything that was going on in the WWF at the time. Newcomer Sid Justice had just arrived and was the referee for the match. Ric Flair was being talked about coming in at the time. I was so stoked.

But yes, the match quality here was low, but it was fun. As a fan, I had no clue about the tension with the Warrior at the time. Little did we know that would be the last time we'd see him for six months until WrestleMania VIII. As I write this, I'm noticing many connections between SummerSlam and WrestleMania... go figure.

So what are your favorites? I think John Cena and Roman Reigns will close the show this year and do an excellent job. 

Mt. Rushmore: Hulk Hogan's 80s Feuds

 

By Kevin Hunsperger @kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter Listen to the podcast  Follow my blog with Bloglovin  

It's been a long time coming, but I'm doing something to get this decade-old blog up and running again. While it's not an original idea by any means, I am going to start writing weekly with a Mt. Rushmore theme. I mean, wrestling fans these days seem to create some sort of Mt. Rushmore of Wrestling ____ all the time, so why not me? And for the record, I actually took a picture of Mt. Rushmore I'm using while on vacation earlier this summer in South Dakota. 

First up, the Mt. Rushmore of Hulk Hogan's 80s Feuds. With the recent passing of 'Mr. Wonderful' Paul Orndorff, I got to thinking about his significance in pro wrestling and quickly deduced that he is on the shortlist of Hulk Hogan's greatest foes (not just the 80s, but of all-time).

Courtesy: WWE

Andre the Giant and Hulk Hogan were the best of friends during the first few years of Hulkamania. Andre was in the locker room celebrating Hogan's victory over the Iron Shiek at Madison Square Garden. They teamed up to face members of the Heenan Family. That's why it was all the more shocking when in January 1987, Andre declared war on the Hulkster and hired Bobby Heenan as his manager.

The two had a huge main event at WrestleMania III and went on to battle against each other for the next 18 months, meeting in tag matches, singles matches, and the big blue steel cage. More than 33 million people watched their epic match on NBC's 'The Main Event' in February 1988. I still remember crying when the crooked referee counted Hogan's shoulders to the mat. Yes, I was 14 at the time... 

Courtesy: WWE

'Rowdy' Roddy Piper was the man I loved to hate in the early days of Hulkamania. He set the standard for a wrestling heel back in those days. He was a master on the mic and someone hard to beat in the ring. Hot Rod was front and center in the Rock 'n Wrestling Connection which, of course, led to the first-ever WrestleMania. While we never got a one-on-one encounter between Hogan and Piper at WrestleMania, their work before the event to set the tone for 80s wrestling is unforgettable. 

Courtesy: WWE

'Macho Man' Randy Savage came into the WWF in 1985 and quickly set his sites on Hogan's championship. The two had some great matches even before Savage won the Intercontinental Championship. Those matches continued to impress after Savage's win over Tito Santana. Then, of course, we had the epic build of the Mega Powers. This is without a doubt one of the best stories ever told in wrestling. It wove in nicely with the previously mentioned Andre the Giant match on NBC.

The explosion of the Mega Powers added a new element to WWF programming. It all came to a head at WrestleMania V, with Hogan once again winning the gold. Savage tried the rest of the year to regain his belt but always came up short. The Hogan-Savage story worked on so many levels and one that the creative team could depend upon. 

Courtesy: WWE

'Mr. Wonderful' Paul Orndorff, as I mentioned, is the inspiration for this blog. He, too, had some matches with Hogan before the first WrestleMania. His association with PIper made him another one of those guys I loved to hate. But then, after the mishap at Mania, Orndorff became a good guy and teamed off and on with the Hulkster. Then in the summer of 1986, Orndorff snapped and turned on Hogan, rejoining former manager Bobby Heenan. 

This feud was the most serious threat to ending Hulk's first title reign. I thought WWF might make the switch a couple of times, most notably on the January 1987 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event. Inside the Big Blue Cage, the match saw both Hogan and Orndorff escape at the exact same moment.

So there you have it. A very concise but precise list of Hulk Hogan's best four feuds in the 80s. Who is on your Mt. Rushmore of the Hulkster's foes?   

The Ultimate WrestleMania

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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With the fate of WrestleMania still in flux and so many of us at home for the weekend and potentially for the next several weeks, I thought it would be fun to talk more about past WrestleManias. So I posed the question if you built the Ultimate WrestleMania, what 12 matches would you put on the show. 

Turns out this was a bigger challenge than I anticipated as there are hundreds of matches to choose from. The other caveat, no duplicate Superstars for me. But you construct your list however you see fit. These aren't necessarily the best matches of all-time, just ones that entertained me.

Oh, my list is in no particular order, other than the first, which is my all-time favorite Mania matchup. 

💪Ultimate Warrior vs. Randy Savage: WrestleMania VII

💪Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Batista: WrestleMania XXX

💪Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels: WrestleMania XXIV

💪Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant: WrestleMania III

💪Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis: WrestleMania III

💪The British Bulldogs vs. The Dream Team: WrestleMania II

💪Trish Straus vs. Mickie James: WrestleMania XXII

💪Undertaker vs. CM Punk: WrestleMania XXIX

💪Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart: WrestleMania X

💪'Stone Cold' Steve Austin vs. The Rock: WrestleMania XV

💪Chris Jericho vs. Edge vs. Christian vs. Kane vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Chris Benoit (MITB): WrestleMania XXI

💪Doink the Clown vs. Crush: WrestleMania IX (yes, I'm serious, I love how this played out.)



Because I limited myself on one Superstar only, I would have had other matches as well. So let me know your card.

VIDEO: Go Figure Friday: Slim Jim 'Macho Man'

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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After failing the first time around, I finally got my hands on the Elite Mattel Slim Jim 'Macho Man' Randy Savage figure. I love the look of it and the presentation in the Slim Jim box. I've debated what I'm going to do with it. But for now, it's on the shelf in the My 1-2-3 Cents studio. 

Take a look and subscribe to the My 1-2-3 Cents YouTube channel and let me know what other types of content you'd like to see. 

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VIDEO: Go Figure Friday: Tag team figures

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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In less than a week I'm stepping back into the ring. This time I'll be teaming up with Heath Hatton against the Stride Pro Wrestling tag team champions, Jay Spade and Tony Flood. That match is happening Thursday, Aug. 29 at Rent One Park in Marion, Illinois. BE THERE!

So to gear up for the match, I'm sharing a few of my favorite tag team action figures on this week's Go Figure Friday. Take a look! 

VIDEO: Go Figure Friday: Let Them Eat Cake

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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Let's eat cake! This week I show off my "Macho Man" Randy Savage cake topper. This is circa 1990. Take a look and don't forget to subscribe. 

VIDEO: Go Figure Friday: WCW Thumb Wrestlers

Click to watch 

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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This week on Go Figure Friday I take a closer look at WCW Toy Biz's thumb wrestlers. This line came out in 1999 and the set I have is Hulk Hogan and "Macho Man" Randy Savage. Both are wearing nWo gear.

Take a look at the video and let me know what else you'd like to see in the series.

Improving past Survivor Series teams

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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When Survivor Series made its debut in 1987 I was instantly hooked. I loved the concept, 'teams of five strive to survive.' I hated it when the WWF tweaked the format in 1992 and started moving away from the elimination matches. Through the years they've done different things with the show but to me, the best events are the ones with those matches.

That being said, I've decided to make today's blog a fantasy booking one where I replace one member of a team to make that unit more strong. Obviously, I'm not going to hit each year or every match but just a few here. Let me know what you think and how you'd change previous Survivor Series teams.

Courtesy: WWE

In 1987 there were three glaring omissions to me from Survivor Series. Ted DiBiase, The Ultimate Warrior and the Junkyard Dog. I understand wanting to save DiBiase and have him make a bigger impact. I'll even give it for the Warrior too. However, JYD had been a long time staple in WWF and would have fit well into the show. So no disrespect to Ken Patera, but I'd replace him with the Dog. Patera's second run as a face was lackluster. I believe JYD would have added some charisma to Hulk Hogan's team of Don Muraco, Paul Orndorff and Bam Bam Bigelow.

Courtesy: WWE

When 1990's event rolled around, I'd argue the "Macho King" Randy Savage was among the top heels in the company. However, he wasn't even on the card. At least he didn't wrestle. If I remember correctly, he and Queen Sherri cut a promo that night. However, I would have made The Perfect Team more perfect by adding some royalty. Savage, along with Mr. Perfect and Demolition (Ax and Smash with Crush on the outside) would have been a better foursome. I would still use Ax even though he was being phased out and close to leaving. However, he and Smash were the better form of Demolition and one of WWE's most iconic duos. 

Courtesy: WWE

A year later I would have done some swapping around on the card, not removing anyone. I'm a huge Kerry Von Erich fan and his appearance in 1991 was in a hodgepodge match, teaming with El Matador, Hacksaw Duggan and Sgt. Slaughter. The faces all survived and beat Hercules, Skinner, Col. Mustafa and The Berzerker. I would have put Texas Tornado in a higher profile contest with Roddy Piper, Bret Hart and Davey Boy Smith. That would move Virgil to the team with Duggan and company. 

Also in 91, I can't remember why, but for some reason, Sid Justice and Jake "the Snake" Roberts were pulled from their respective teams. Justice was to lead Big Bossman and the Legion of Doom into battle against Jake, IRS and the Natural Disasters. Instead, we got a three-on-three elimination match which actually went on last that night. I guess that was so fans didn't leave upset with Hogan dropping the WWF Championship to the Undertaker. Like I said, I don't remember the reason for the change but it would have been a much better match if the two captains had remained involved. 

Courtesy: WWE

Shawn Michaels was the last minute replacement for Jerry "the King" Lawler to face the Hart Family in 1993. Lawler's partners were all 'knights' from his roundtable. I get the reasoning for that because it fit the gimmick. However, when Lawler was pulled from the show and HBK put in his place, the knights should have been scrapped too. As cheesy this sounds, they could have kept the 'knights' under masks and just called them Hartbreakers. Remember the team they're facing and Shawn's heartbreak kid gimmick was peaking here.  

What are your thoughts? Share here or on the My 1-2-3 Cents Facebook page. 

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One Man Gang vs. Akeem

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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I've found a new pro wrestling podcast and became an instant fan. It's called Our Vantage Point. The first episode I listened to is number 95. They recap that year (1995) as they also talk about successful and not so successful gimmicks. The One Man Gang was brought up as well as his alter-ego Akeem, the African Dream. There was a debate on which character enjoyed the most success. So I brought the conversation over to the My 1-2-3 Cents Facebook page and created a poll.

As you can see OMG easily beat Akeem. But there were some who were passionate in the reasoning for picking the African based character. Sam Banks had this to say: 

"One Man Gang was very popular in the regional territories in the 70’s and 80’s, but really rose to prominence when he took on the African Dream gimmick in the WWF. 

The WWF is where he did the most memorable things in his career in front of the most eyes, and with the WWE Network available to everyone, his Akeem stuff will be what most people see for as long as the Network exists.

Akeem is the clear answer here. The majority of young wrestling fans since the year 2000 have probably never even heard of One Man Gang, but I would bet they’d know who Akeem and the Twin Towers were."

Jerry Travelstead commented too:

"Personally, don't think this one is close. OMG gimmick wasn't just WWF. Believe he did Mid South, Texas, The Carolinas, and other regional organizations well before WWF. He has popped up as OMG several times when I've been watching some of the older stuff on the network."

I'm still on the fence on the issue. I remember Gang when I watched World Class Championship Wrestling and Midsouth (UWF). Even in his first year or so in WWE he competed as the big man from Halstead Street in Chicago. Then the transformation happened and Akeem was born.

Some fast facts about the WWE tenure of George Gray (the man behind the gimmicks):

One Man Gang debuted in the spring of 1987. He feuded with Hulk Hogan, Don Muraco and Bam Bam Bigelow in that first year. He was in the main event of the first Survivor Series (his team won) and he made it to the semi-finals of the WWE Championship tournament at WrestleMania IV before losing (by DQ) to the eventual winner Randy Savage. 

As Akeem, Gray was back in the main event picture. He and the Big Bossman feuded with Savage and Hogan as the MegaPowers. Again he was part of the Survivor Series main event as well as The Main Event on NBC when the Megapowers finally exploded in 1989. He and Bossman pursued the tag team titles that summer against Demolition. I really thought they were going to win but the Brain Busters did instead.

Akeem vs. Bossman

After that, it seems both men floundered a bit. The Twin Towers split in early 1990 and Bossman made quick work of his former partner at WrestleMania VI. He faded away and resurfaced in WCW as the OMG once again. During the second run in 1995, he picked up the company's U.S. Championship. 

Gimmick Battle Royal

When he returned to WWE in 2001 for the Gimmick Battle Royal at WrestleMania 17 he did so as the Gang. He also competed as that character at the King of Trios tournament with Chikara a decade ago. 

Both characters had an impact and were successful. But what are your thoughts? Who had more success in pro wrestling, the One Man Gang or Akeem? Weigh in here or on the Facebook page.

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Instead of 14 men, how about 8

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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Thirty years ago, Hulk Hogan lost the WWF Championship in controversial fashion to Andre the Giant. The Giant surrendered the title to "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, who was then stripped of the belt by WWF President Jack Tunney. That, of course, led to the championship tournament at WrestleMania IV and the crowning of "Macho Man" Randy Savage as "the man" in WWF. 

I'm not suggesting changing the ending of the tournament or the title run for Savage by any means. In my 1-2-3 cents, the buildup and implosion of the Mega Powers are one of the greatest storylines in the history of professional wrestling. Instead of 14 men in that tournament though, how about just eight competitors?

Tournaments involving more than eight Superstars are usually too many. While I love guys like Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and Don Muraco, I knew none of them stood a chance in this tournament. A year earlier, I would have believed in Steamboat, but I digress. So here's how I would have done the tournament some 30+ years after the fact.

Hulk Hogan

Andre the Giant

Randy Savage

Ted Dibiase 

One Man Gang

Bam Bam Bigelow

Jake "The Snake" Roberts

"Ravishing" Rick Rude

Savage wins
Courtesy: WWE

Opening round: Hogan beats One Man Gang. DiBiase gets a win over Jake, Andre beats Bam Bam, and Savage pins Rude. Then DiBiase beats Hogan by count out and Savage wins against Andre by disqualification. This still sets up the finals for DiBiase and Savage, with Savage winning the gold and the celebration goes on as it originally did.

A smaller tournament would have allowed for longer matches. The 14 man concept meant quick matches. The remaining six men, Muraco, Steamboat, Duggan, Greg Valentine, Butch Reed and Dino Bravo could have been injected into the battle royal. Again, I'm not minimizing their contributions, but in hindsight, it was clear none of these Superstars was going to win the gold. 

This scenario would have also given us Savage and Rude on pay per view. I don't recall these two ever wrestling in WWE nor WCW. Plus Roberts and DiBiase would have torn it up in the opening round. So much potential there, but of course I'm biased since it's my idea.

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Previous 'Instead of' blogs

 

Instead of Bundy, how about Brody?

Instead of Debra, how about Luna?

Instead of Slaughter, how about Jake?

Instead of Hart, how about Von Erich?

Instead of Garvin, how about Windham?

Instead of Diesel, how about Bulldog?

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