Seven things I love about WrestleMania VII

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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It's hard to believe WrestleMania VII went down 27 years ago today (March 24, 1991). I was a senior in high school and it's one of the first WrestleManias I watched live. I watched the first WrestleMania on closed-circuit later that evening and WrestleMania IV the same way but from the Kiel Center in downtown St. Louis. My buddy Jim had invited me over to watch VII and I still remember being so stoked to not have to watch to get a VHS copy of the show.

So since today is the anniversary, I figured I share some things I love about WrestleMania VII. 

7.  Bret Hart's solo career launches. Hart and his tag team partner Jim Neidhart lost the WWF Tag Team Championships that night to the Nasty Boys. It was pretty much the end of the Hart Foundation as Bret would get a huge push as a solo act and won the Intercontinental Championship at the company's next pay-per-view, SummerSlam 1991. They'd tried this a few years prior, but the Hitman and Anvil ended up reuniting. This time, however, Hart went full speed ahead as Neidhart joined forces with Owen Hart for a while. 

Courtesy: WWE

6. Blindfold match. The blindfold match between Rick Martel and Jake "The Snake" Roberts gets criticism from some fans. However, I enjoyed the hell out of it and the story that led to the match. Back in the early 90s, there were no Raw or monthly pay-per-views. WWF was able to build this story and let it simmer from the fall of 1990 all the way to the culmination in March 1991. 

5. Andre's swan song. I don't think anyone knew it, but WrestleMania VII would be Andre the Giant's last Mania. He died less than two years later and even at the event in Los Angeles. He wrestled a few more times after this. You probably recall Andre didn't actually wrestle at Mania, just aided the Big Bossman in his match against Mr. Perfect.

Courtesy: WWE

4. The Streak is born. In 1991 no one had any idea that the Undertaker would still be showing up for WrestleMania in 2018. I had believed at that point that the gimmick would be around for a year or two and then fade away like so many of the other over the top cartoonish characters we'd come to see in the WWF. But much credit to Undertaker, Paul Bearer and WWE Creative for staying the course and creating one of the most iconic characters ever. The Streak was something of importance for more than two decades as well. 

3. Hulkamania ran wild again. Yes, I was a Hulkamaniac, even in high school. I couldn't stand the fact that Sgt. Slaughter was WWF Champion. It was great to see the belt back where it belonged (even though I had no problem with Warrior's run on top either).

2. Kerry Von Erich makes his WrestleMania debut. WrestleMania VII was Kerry's one and only Mania appearance. Growing up, I was a huge fan of his. When he signed with WWF in 1990 as the Texas Tornado I was excited to see him on the big stage. His run was solid despite having the personal demons he battled. His appearance at Mania was short and sweet, but he was victorious that night beating Dino Bravo.

1. "Macho Man" Randy Savage vs. The Ultimate Warrior. This remains my personal favorite when it comes to WrestleMania matches. The emotion involved in it radiated through the TV that night. The end was amazing with Warrior, war paint smeared all over his face, pinned an exhausted Macho Man with one foot on his chest. Some criticized that move, but to me it was perfect. Then with Sherri turning on Savage and Elizbeth making the save made me pop. I loved Savage and Sherri together, but we all know he and Liz were meant to be.

So what are your favorite moments from that night? Share here or on the My 1-2-3 Cents Facebook page.

The Undertaker's Wrestlemania History

Bray Wyatt gets his answer
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
Listen to the My 1-2-3 Cents Podcast here.

The Undertaker has accepted Bray Wyatt's challenge for Wrestlemania 31, marking the Deadman's 23rd Wrestlemania. It's quite a feat, as the Undertaker has only missed two Manias (10 & 16) over the last 24 years.  I'm sure this has been talked about before, but I'm looking back at how life was when Undertaker embarked on his Wrestlemania journey in 1991.

My senior photo (when the Streak started)

I was 18 years old, a senior in high school, on the night the Undertaker pinned the legendary "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka at Wrestlemania VII.  Who knew that night so many years ago, we'd still be talking about Taker?  I certainly didn't.  I thought he'd be a flash in the pan, but to the credit of Mark Calaway he's created the greatest gimmick in the history of the business (IMO).

When The Streak started George HW Bush was President of the United States.  Three other men have served in the White House since then. 

The national average for gallon of gas in 1991 was $1.01. 

Undertaker vs. Jimmy Snuka: Wrestlemania VII
Photo courtesy: WWE

The night after Undertaker's first Wrestlemania win, Kevin Costner's "Dances with Wolves" won the Oscar for Best Picture.

The Internet as we know it today was still about four years away from hitting computers everywhere.  Twitter, Facebook and YouTube were more than a decade away.

Bray Wyatt, Taker's opponent this year, was months away from celebrating his fourth birthday.  

NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks wasn't even born yet.

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin was simply "Stunning", Goldust was "The Natural" and John Cena was in junior high school.

Jim Ross was the voice of WCW and Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan called Wrestlemania that year.

Courtesy: variety.com

There have been five different company logos since Wrestlemania VII.

The only thing that has remained a constant through the last 24 years is that Vince McMahon is still in charge.  I am intrigued by this matchup for Wrestlemania 31 and can't wait to see what happens that night.

Mania Memories: Reunited

Savage and Liz get back together (WWE)

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger on Twitter

Wrestlemania 7 came at a time when our country was engaged in a battle with Iraq in 1991.  The evil, Iraqi sympathizer and former U.S. patriot Sgt. Slaughter had won the world title and was defending it again the Real American Hulk Hogan.  Of course the Hulkster won the battle and the belt, but the big story of the night happened on the undercard.

Randy Savage and his valet Elizabeth had split as a couple on air about two years earlier.  Savage had turned on Hogan and essentially Elizabeth at the Main Event on NBC back in February 1989.  Liz made very few appearances on WWF television in the time that followed, while Savage picked up Sensational Sherri as his valet.  Soon the two would become the King and Queen of wrestling and cost the Ultimate Warrior the world title (he lost it to Sgt. Slaughter)

Liz helps her man

Then WWF President Jack Tunney signed the two rivals to a retirement match at Mania 7, with the loser being forced to give up in ring action.  The battle between the Savage and Warrior was epic, with the Warrior scoring the deciding fall in front of thousands of screaming and cheering fans.  After he left the ring, Sherri entered and kick the Macho King while he was down.  She was upset over the loss as Savage had been the only wrestler she worked with at the time.  As she continued her rage against Savage, Elizabeth, who was sitting in the crowd, hopped the rail and charged the ring.  The two women had a brief scuffle as Liz sent the Queen scurrying from the area.  What followed was the biggest reunion in the history of wrestling (at least in my opinion)  Savage and Elizabeth embraced and replicated the iconic pose with Liz sitting on Macho Man's shoulder like they'd done three years earlier.

Savage and Liz had already been married throughout the angle of them being apart.  But the reunion lead to a marriage on live TV at SummerSlam 91 and eventually Savage got back into the ring and won the world title again (more on that tomorrow).  

Other tidbits from Wrestlemania 7, the event was supposed to be held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, but was moved to a smaller venue.  The company claims it was due to threats made against Slaughter and they didn't want to take any chances with it being in an outdoor stadium.  I've read rumblings that it was because of sagging ticket sales.  Personally, I think had they made a Hogan-Warrior II, they would have filled the coliseum with no problem.

Blinded!

The event also featured 14 matches, which was becoming the norm back then.  Jake "the Snake" Roberts beat "The Model" Rick Martel in what I believe was the company's first Blind Fold match.  The Hart Foundation dropped the tag team titles to the Nasty Boys, and the Big Bossman nearly won the Intercontinental title after beating Mr. Perfect by disqualification.  Andre the Giant (who was a face again) made his last Wrestlemania appearance at 7, by being in the corner of Bossman.  This Mania also marked the only one for one of my all time favorites, Kerry Von Erich.  The Texas Tornado pinned Dino Bravo.

The Streak begins

Wrestlemania 7 will also be remembered as the birth place of "the Streak."  The Undertaker made his Mania debut that night, pinning now WWE Hall of Famer "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka.  It's still hard to believe that was more than 20 years ago.  So lots of significant events came out of that event that would impact the business in the weeks, months, and in one case decades ahead.