WWE's ninth installment in the WrestleMania series featured Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna and Hulk Hogan and Brutus Beefcake vs. Money Inc.
WrestleMania IX Location and Announcers
The WWE brought WrestleMania IX to Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada for the largest toga party in history. Given the event’s theme, the WWE did not bring in the typical celebrities, but this year WrestleMania featured Julius Caesar and Cleopatra arriving in kingly fashion by riding in by elephant. Caesar wasn’t the only person to enter by riding an animal; a disoriented Bobby Heenan came to WrestleMania riding backward on a camel. Meanwhile, “the Brain’s” broadcast partner and former 2 time WWE Champion Macho Man Randy Savage arrived with all the pleasantries that vestal virgins can offer. Jim Ross made his WWE debut to join Savage and Heenan as the third man in the broadcast equation.
Shawn Michaels (IC Champion) vs. Tatanka
In the previous year’s WrestleMania, Shawn Michaels defeated WWE Hall of Fame member Tito Santana in the opening contest, but he did that with Sensational Sherri at his side. That would not be the case in 1993 because Sensational Sherri made her way to ringside to support Shawn’s opponent. Holding two non-title victories over Shawn Michaels, the Native American Tatanka had his sights set on securing an Intercontinental Championship victory over the Heartbreak Kid. The question of how Shawn Michaels would react to Sensational Sherri being in the corner of Tatanka remained, but Michaels answered by debuting a very mean looking woman by the name of Luna Vachon. The match went on for quite a few minutes, but a frustrated Shawn Michaels couldn’t take the pressure any longer. To retain his title, Shawn got himself disqualified by blatantly attacking the official. After the match, Luna would blindside Sherri and leave her lying on the arena floor.
WrestleMania Debuts
Many tag team and single wrestlers made their WrestleMania debut at WrestleMania IX. Among them were the Steiner Brothers, the Headshrinkers, Doink, Razor Ramon, Bob Backlund, the Giant Gonzales, and Yokozuna. As if one Doink wouldn’t be enough, Crush ended up facing two clowns and losing because of it. Razor Ramon outwrestled one of the strongest technical wrestlers in WWE history when he defeated former WWE Champion Bob Backlund with a backslide.
Money Inc. vs. Hulk Hogan and Brutus Beefcake
The Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase and Irwin R. Shyster (I.R.S) wrestling under the moniker of Money Incorporated dominated the tag team title division for over a year, but in one half of the WrestleMania’s double main event, Hulk Hogan and Brutus “the Barber” Beefcake challenged Money Inc. for those titles. The grudge surrounding this match began when the champions attacked Brutus Beefcake’s recently reconstructed face and caused the return of Hulk Hogan. Frustration must have been a second theme for WrestleMania IX because that’s how Money Inc. felt about half way through the match. There are two ways to lose a match and still retain a championship title: disqualification or count out. Shawn Michaels chose to take the short cut of disqualification to keep his title, so when Money Inc. decided to attempt ending their contest by count out, the referee made a judgment call. If the tag champions did not return to the ring, they would not only lose the match, but they would also lose the titles. Although irate, the tag team champions did return to the ring. The referee’s call ended up working out good for Money Inc.’s win/loss record because Hogan and Beefcake eventually got disqualified when Jimmy Hart interfered on their behalf.
Undertaker vs. Giant Gonzales
WrestleMania IX also marked chapter 3 in the Undertaker’s amazing undefeated WrestleMania record. The Giant Gonzales made the 6’10” Undertaker look like a garden gnome, but the frustration theme continued in this match because the Giant couldn’t easily defeat the Phenom. When Gonzales couldn’t defeat the Undertaker, he attempted to merely beat him down and steal the life from the Undertaker’s career by using a cloth of soaked formaldehyde. As we know, there is no life in the Undertaker, so of course there would be no stealing it. After WWE paramedics carried the Undertaker out on a stretcher and Gonzales finished celebrating in the ring, a single bell tolled and the Undertaker made his way back to reclaim his ring. The Undertaker won this match by disqualification.
Bret Hart (Champion) vs. Yokozuna
In what was supposed to be the final match of the evening, Bret “Hitman” Hart defended his World Heavyweight Championship against the 500 pound Yokozuna. As tradition would dictate, Bret Hart made an appearance earlier in the day for a WrestleMania brunch, but as Hart enjoyed his deserts, the Narcissist Lex Luger blindsided him knocking him out cold. The question on everybody’s mind was “How did that knockout affect Bret Hart’s ability to compete?” With Yokozuna just seconds away from submitting to the sharpshooter and with the referee out of position, Mr. Fuji tossed salt in Hart’s face. With Bret Hart suffering from temporary blindness, Yokozuna made short work of the WWE Champion.
Yokozuna (Champion) vs. Hulk Hogan
Before the ring announcer could even declare Yokozuna the new WWE Champion, Hulk Hogan was helping Bret out of the ring. Yokozuna’s manager, Mr. Fuji, was booming with pride over his man’s victory, but he made one big mistake on the evening of WrestleMania IX. Believing that Hogan was no match for his champion, Fuji challenged Hogan to a match to take place right then. Fuji’s second attempt with the salt backfired when Hogan ducked causing the salt to fly into the eyes of Yokozuna. Just like before, a blinded champion made no match for the hungry challenger. For the second time in the evening, wrestling fans had a new WWE Champion.
- Tatanka defeats Shawn Michaels via disqualification
- The Steiner Brothers defeated the Headshrinkers via pinfall
- Doink defeated Crush via pinfall
- Razor Ramon defeated Bob Backlund via pinfall
- Money Inc. defeats the Mega Maniacs via disqualification
- Lex Luger defeats Mr. Perfect via pinfall
- The Undertaker defeats Giant Gonzales via disqualification
- Yokozuna defeats Bret Hart via pinfall
- Hulk Hogan defeats Yokozuna via pinfall
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