This is really the quintessential "You had to see it when it happened to appreciate it" Mania. I don't know, maybe it's because I was a kid at the time, but it's really not hyperbole to say that the build up to this WM main event was truly earth-shattering. The Piper's Pit where Andre turned heel on Hogan was monumental. In retrospect, it was obvious that it was coming and I should have known, but at the time you just couldn't imagine Andre turning heel - it was like you didn't want to believe it - Andre was absolutely beloved. And remember that Hogan was in the first months of his FOURTH consecutive year as champion. What this meant for fans was that you knew Hogan was McMahon's meal ticket and when it came to Hogan's title defenses you pretty much knew that Hogan was going to win. So, for example, in his feud with Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff, as great as it was, you knew Orndorff wasn't winning the belt, so that detracted from the matches a bit.
This match with Andre was different. At the time I remember discussions with my friends in which we talked about how Andre really could be the one to beat Hogan. As a fan at the time you really believed Hogan could lose the match. Andre was undefeated and considered one of the best ever - the 8th wonder of the world! Certainly someone worthy of ending Hogan's long run. So when Hogan picked him to slam him and Andre fell on top of him early in the match I truly thought we had a new champ!! Basically, WWE worked the hell of 15 year old me. This was the FIRST time in Hogan's 3 year/2 month reign that I thought he actually might lose the belt. And the result only made Hogan an even bigger star!
With hindsight, of course Hogan won. Andre could barely walk at that point and having Hogan win in this match on this stage made an already huge wrestling star into a massive one. But man, I'm telling you, sitting in my friend's family room on that March day in 1987, watching that match on PPV, seeing Hogan pick up Andre and fall backwards, not being able to slam him, being crushed under the Giant's massive weight and then the ref going in for the count - my eyes widened, I stood up and I thought to myself, "My God! This is it!! He's finally going to lose!!!" But no. The Hulkster kicked out on two. And in the end, Hulkamania ran wild.
Amazing event - amazing experience. Wrestlemania was truly born on March 29, 1987.
Watch: WWE Network
Podcast to listen to and watch along with: Lapsed Fan Review
Date: March 29, 1987
Location: Pontiac Silverdome
Attendance: 93,173.. or around 78,000
PPV Buy Rate/Close Circuit Television: – 400,000 PPV Buys (approx) & 185,000 on Closed Circuit Television
Card:
- Billy Jack Haynes Vs Hercules – 7:44 - 2 ¾*
- Harley Race Vs Junkyard Dog – 4:22 – 1*
- Roddy Piper Vs Adrian Adonis – 6:54 – 3 ½* - This match was builded as not only a ‘Hair Vs Hair’ match, but also as Roddy Piper’s Retirement match, whether he won or lost (spoilers, he wouldn’t stay retired). This match is actually pretty fun, and glad it was a big step up for Adonis who arguably had one of the worst Mania matches in history the previous year. I personally think there are a few reasons that this match isn’t remembered much because it’s overshadowed (and rightfully so) by the Steamboat/Savage classic and also the Hogan/Andre bout. The reasoning this match was builded as Pipers Retirement, was because he wanted a break from wrestling so he could act in movies (such as They Live) and because he wanted to spend more time with family. Additionally, here's the Piper's Pit Segment with Adonis.
- Ricky Steamboat Vs Randy Savage – WWF Intercontinental Championship – 14:35 – 4 ½* - I know my role majority of time on here is to look back at ‘Essential Matches’ of wrestlers, and if you’re not familiar with these two wrestlers this would be a great starting point for yous to really familiarise yourself with, plus additionally I think this match is universally seen as the first ‘Great’ Wrestlemania match, and it’s very hard to debate there’s any match better up to that point. – people for generations after this started emulating this match including Chris Jericho. The match still holds up today today, the build up to this match is months in the making when Savage injured Steamboat and took him out. Future spoilers now, it’s a real shame that Steamboat never had a WWF Championship reign, because the matches he would’ve had with some of wrestlers back then would’ve been great; I really wish we saw these two get to the finals the next Wrestlemania. Additionally, here's the Promo & Pre-Match Macho Man Interview.
- The Honky Tonk Man Vs Jake Roberts – 7:04 – 2 ½*
- Hulk Hogan Vs Andre The Giant - WWF Championship – 12:01 - -4* - Now I’ll tell you straight-up people paid to see this match at ‘Mania, I could lie and say that people wanted to see the other matches on the card but from everything I’ve read about this show was that people had bought a ticket to see this match. It was the ‘Irresistible force meeting the immovable object’. Two legends, two icons in the squared-circle. Arguably two of the biggest wrestling names in households across the word, were main-eventing Wrestlemania and nearly everyone wanted to see how Hogan would be able to beat Andre. The ‘Slam heard around the world’ is still one of the biggest things to older wrestling fans. It’s a shame that Andre was in so much pain and that his health was fast deteriorating as the days went by, but he knew there was a job to do and that was to put Hogan over. Hogan has been very open saying he was worried about how this match would end and if Andre would go through with the ending, thankfully he did which saw Hogan Bodyslam Andre to remain the WWF Champion. I know Meltzer has harshly rated this -4 stars (1 star on second review, I believe) but this will forever be a big Wrestlemania moment, and even in WWE history. Also here’s the Wrestlemania Rewind discussing the match. Additionally, here's the promo for the match.
Trivia:
- André the Giant supposably drank 14 bottles of wine before his main event match with Hulk Hogan.
- According to Ricky Steamboat, Randy Savage planned every single move in their match. Wrestling matches are usually improvised and called on the fly except for the finish. But Savage was such a perfectionist that he wrote every step in the match on papers and faxed them to Steamboat for him to memorize.
- In an effort to boost the live attendance numbers, the entire state of Michigan was excluded from pay-per-view access for this event.
- According to Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon traveled in a private jet to the set of Predator (1987) in Mexico, extending an invitation in-person to Arnold Schwarzenegger to appear as a celebrity guest at WrestleMania III. Arnold turned down the offer, due to things he had been told by Jesse Ventura. (Assumable about the whole Union for the boys situation).
- André the Giant lost his first WWE match in over 15 years on this night.
- On the True Story of Wrestlemania DVD, Vince McMahon claimed that as he was about announce "Welcome to WrestleMania III!" he felt the spirit of his father Vincent J. McMahon who had passed away three years earlier.
- Aretha Franklin was stuck in traffic moments before WrestleMania III went on the air. Breaking free of the traffic jam, she rushed to the Pontiac Silverdome and performed "America the Beautiful" without a sound check.
- According to Hulk Hogan in his autobiography, he tore a hole in his back body-slamming André at the end of their match. Therefore, this was the last time he ever fully body-slammed him.
- According to many wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan – No one knew if Andre was going to go along with Hogan attempting to slam him due to him being in a bad mood, being in bad back pain & didn’t like the direction the company was going in. Source
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