25 Years Since SummerSlam hit the UK - The Show

A tad over 25 years ago, thousands of people were sitting in anticipation at Wembley Stadium for the only major WWF pay-per-view event to ever cross the pond.

With a multitude of media coverage in the build up, tickets bought and transport sorted, it was time for the real event to begin.

The first bell saw a dark six-man-tag match with Hacksaw Jim Duggan teaming up with The Bushwhackers to take on the trio of The Nasty Boys and The Mountie. Despite being a match full of gimmicks that were old hat a t the time, it is obvious looking at a video of this match that the atmosphere was a special one from the word go.

Lee Kimber said: ''When the event actually started and the stadium was filling out, I can honestly say that I’d never experienced anything like it, and if I’m honest nothing since has come close.

''I’d never seen so many people in one place before and they were cheering every last thing that happened in that ring. It was a party atmosphere in the stadium and the footage of the event really doesn’t do justice to how loud the crowd were at times. ''

Alan Dicks said: ''It was loud and it was the first time I had been in a crowd with that amount of people. Everyone was into every match.

A loud USA chant erupted as Duggan and The Bushwhackers picked up a victory, and that was followed by Papa Shango defeating Tito Santana before the real action was to begin.

Vince McMahon and Bobby ''The Brain'' Heenan introduced the PPV action before the Legion of Doom's music hit and they rode out on motorcycles in one of the most memorable moments of the night to take on Money Inc.

Lee Kimber says: ''One of the biggest reactions was for the Legion of Doom. When their music hit and they rode down to the ring on motorcycles the crowd loved it.

Alan Dicks also believes this to be the one of the more memorable moments, stating: ''The LOD entrance stands out, I was at the top of the stairs when they came out on the bikes. ''

After LOD's victory, Nailz beat Virgil, Shawn Michaels and Rick Martel fought to a double countout in a match, The Natural Disasters beat The Beverly Brothers to retain the WWE Tag Team Championships and Crush defeated Repo Man before one of the most hyped up matches of the evening.

Credit - Lee Kimber

It was time for ''Macho Man'' Randy Savage to defend the World Wrestling Federation Championship against The Ultimate Warrior in a rematch of their ''Retirement match'' at WrestleMania VII the year before.

Lee Kimber says: ''I went in with low expectations of Warrior Vs Savage. I had enjoyed their WrestleMania match the previous year but this one seemed to come out of nowhere.

''I wasn’t a fan of Warrior’s matches and I didn’t see how he had earned a title shot. The match exceeded my expectations though and the crowd were certainly hot for it.

Alan Dicks said on the title match: ''I was looking forward to Savage v Warrior the most, Savage is my favourite ever wrestler and I loved their epic match from WrestleMania VII.''

Ollie Clark said: ''Warrior v Savage was good but not a patch on the retirement match from the previous year.

The match may not have been at the level of their WrestleMania bout but it was still worthy of the event. The two had a back and forth match for around 25 minutes before Ric Flair and Mr. Perfect came out to the ring, pretending to be in cahoots with Warrior before attacking him too. After Flair hit Savage with a chair which left him unable to get back into the ring, Warrior won the match by countout before he joined forces with Savage to chase the duo away. It was a bit of a bullshit end to a big title match, but the real main event was still to come.

A short match between The Undertaker and Kamala followed, with a memorable Undertaker entrance on top of a hearse being the highlight as Taker eventually won by disqualification following interference from Kim Chee.

After Tatanka beat The Berzerker in an encounter that never made the US pay-per-view broadcast, it was time for hometown hero ''The British Bulldog'' Davey Boy Smith, accompanied to the ring by British boxing great Lennox Lewis, to take on his brother-in-law Bret ''The Hitman'' Hart for the Intercontinental Championship.

One of the best matches seen in the United Kingdom saw Bulldog win the title in front of his hometown crowd to end the show on a high note.

Speaking of the main event, Lee Kimber said: ''''The Bret vs Bulldog match was the highlight of the night and still holds up as one of the best matches I’ve ever seen.

''The crowd were absolutely rabid for this one and they were split down the middle, with duelling chants for Bulldog and Hitman.

''When Bulldog cradles Bret for the win the place just exploded. I honestly don’t know if you’d got a bigger roar in there when England won the World Cup.

Ollie Clark agreed with his assessment, stating: ''I remember seeing shots on the TV screen during Bulldog v Bret and seeing Diana Hart but the screen was small and I thought it was Jeff Jarrett!

''The biggest reaction of the night was with the Bulldog and Lennox Lewis.

''Bulldog v Bret is probably the best WWF match of all time on UK soil.

Alan Dicks wasn't too pleased about the result as a youngster, saying: ''The Bulldog vs Bret match was really good to watch, I remember getting upset at the result as I was a huge Bret Hart fan.

Looking back on the events 25 years later, all three attendees have fond memories but realise there are many differences between professional wrestling then and the product on screen now.

Lee Kimber said: ''The crowd were great and it was a truly amazing experience, and I’ll always be proud to say I was there in the audience when the British Bulldog beat Bret Hart at Wembley Stadium in one of the greatest matches of all time.

''I watched it back a couple of years ago. On reflection it was not a good card and there were a lot of screwy finishes. It was more cartoony then, but the characters were half of the fun.

''As bad as some of it was though it still holds up against today's supercards and surpasses many of them. That said, the Bret vs Bulldog match still holds its own against anything you’ll see today. It was storytelling at its finest.

I am surprised given how much of a success this one was, but then it’s not all about gate revenues.

''With the core audience in the US you couldn’t run the live event in the UK and delay the US showing until its usual time slot. The results would be online immediately. Mind you with betting odds most of the results are online before an event has even taken place these days so maybe it’s irrelevant now.

''I’m not sure wrestling is popular enough now in the UK to fill Wembley Stadium again, but you’d still draw a healthy crowd.''

Alan Dicks agrees with most of this having watched recently, adding: ''I remember not being able to talk for a couple of days as I had been shouting so much.

''It was an enjoyable show and I got to see most of the big names of the time but it was strange watching without the commentary.

''I've seen it recently and would say it's a one match show with some cool entrances. The in ring work was a lot slower compared to today.

I don't think the show did too well in the US due to time differences but I would have expected other PPV's to have been held over here before now.''

The common theme seems to be that the characters hold up more than the wrestling in hindsight, and Ollie Clark also agrees with his, saying: ''I last watched about 2 years ago - the wrestling these days is better but the characters and storylines were much better in the 80s and 90s.

I'm not really surprised there hasn't been an event since as they made a loss and what with them holding fire on and UK Heavyweight events I don't expect to see another UK PPV this decade unfortunately.

''The UK interest in WWE peaked between 1989 and 1992 alongside the release of the WrestleMania song and Slam Jam.

''But saying that ,I am sure they would have no problem selling out Wembley for another SummerSlam, or a Mania or Rumble.''

Article by Andy Phillips (AndyP_GY)

25 Years Since SummerSlam hit Wembley - The Build Up

Many have been talking about a different 25 year anniversary this week but with the latest edition of Summerslam coming this Sunday, this year also marks 25 years since the only major pay-per-view to hit WWE shores – Summerslam 1992.

80,335 fans crammed into Wembley Stadium on 29 August 1992, two weeks after the official start of the Premier League as the WWF hit its peak in Europe in front of their second highest crowd attendance ever as hometown hero The British Bulldog went for the Intercontinental Championship against Bret ''The Hitman'' Hart, whilst ''Macho Man'' Randy Savage defended the WWF Championship against The Ultimate Warrior in a rematch of the previous years Wrestlemania VII classic.

Lee Kimber attended the event as a 16-year-old along with his friend Graham. and has fond memories of this era of wrestling, saying: ''I had only gotten into the WWF the year before when Graham loaned me his VHS recording of Wrestlemania VII. From that point I was hooked.

''In 1992 I think it’s fair to say my love of wrestling was at its peak and I was pretty much obsessed with it. My outright favourite was The Undertaker, but I was a big fan of several others, particularly Bret Hart, Ric Flair and Mr Perfect.

''The WWF was massively popular here at the time with their tours selling out all over the country. I think it was an opportunity to cash in on the huge European popularity at the time and they took it.

When the announcement was made on either Superstars or Wrestling Challenge. I remembered being stunned, then deciding that I was going to get there no matter what.''

Alan Dicks was also one of the thousands in Wembley Stadium as a 14-year-old along with his dad and sister. Speaking of his fandom at the time, he said: ''I was a huge fan, I watched both WWF and WCW and was a big fan of both Bret Hart and Randy Savage.

''There were over the top characters, a lot less TV so you didn't get to see everyone all the time and big events seemed a lot more important.

''It was hot at the time, I think WWE went with the live event in 92 due to Bret and Bulldog being very popular with the UK audience and the US business not being that strong. ''

Ollie Clark attended with several friends and concurred with these reports of the WWF in 1992, explaining: ''I was a massive fan. I'd been watching religiously since 1987, went to the first ever televised WWF show in the UK in 1989 at the London Arena and went to WrestleMania VIII in 1992.

''The night before WrestleMania VIII, I found the hotel were a lot of the wrestlers were staying and spoke to Vince McMahon!

''I asked him if he thought he would ever do Wrestlemania in the UK and he said 'never say never but probably not Wrestlemania', but another pay-per-view absolutely!

''It was really good over here at the time. I felt it peaked in between 1988 and 1990 but was still massive in the UK in 92.

''Loads of kids talked about at school and were wrestling each other.''

According to The Wrestling Observer, the plan was to do the event in Washington, DC but with business in the US down, which had a lot to do with Hulk Hogan leaving the company for the first time, the decision to come over to the UK and air the show on a two day tape delay in the States was made.

Tickets went on sale in around April 1992 for the event, and this video from Sky News shows footage of people queuing up overnight for the occasion and providing some refreshing insight on what it meant to have the show in the UK at the time.

Alan Dicks went to the show after seeing a travel package advertised in a newspaper and made his way down to the event on a travel agency coach, whilst the dark days before the internet saw Lee spend three hours on a phone hotline before getting through whilst Ollie queued up for tickets at Wembley itself.

The build up to the show revolved around a lot of drama, in particular with the two big babyface matches which were a rarity at the time.

Lee Kimber remembers this well, saying: ''It was covered heavily on weekly programming, in particular the Warrior v Savage match with speculation of whose corner Mr Perfect would be in, and the focus on Diana Hart Smith and her emotional turmoil as her husband and her brother prepared to face off.

''The national press got fully behind the event as well, with The Sun in particular giving it a lot of publicity in the run up to the event.''

Ollie Clark also remembers seeing the event advertised on television, explaining: ''It was heavily advertised in all the newspapers and remember seeing interviews on television with the promoter, Harvey Goldsmith.''

Shawn Michaels and Rick Martel were also feuding over the services of Sensational Sherri and The Undertaker's first feud of what went on to be a four year stint of him taking on big men saw him face Kamala in a Casket match, which you can see more of in Mean Gene Okerlund's special Summerslam preview two weeks before the event on an edition of Wrestling Challenge.

So the stage was set for a terrific event to unfold, and we'll continue with this when we take a look back at both the day and the show itself exactly 25 years to the day, on 29th August. See you then!

Written by Andy Phillips (@Andy_PGY)

Opinion: Unanswered Wrestling Mysteries Chapter 3 - What Was In The Lockbox? - Part 2

Chapter One - Who Kidnapped Samoa Joe?
Chapter Two - Who Was the Higher Power of The Nexus?
Chapter Three (Part One) - What Was In The Lockbox?

Yay, you came back! Here's some more possibilities for what Shane O'Mac had tucked away in his box that locks.

4. A Large Amount of Timeshares in Puerto Rico

It would explain a lot.

5. All the copies of The Self Destruction of The Ultimate Warrior

It would explain significantly less but you know, I can't imagine Vince wants to remind people of the time he decided to be as petty as to market his own grudge with the Squared Circle's most incomprehensible bigot in one neat DVD package of a man's downfall from Warrior-sized portions of drugs. I don't think I can explain this one any better than to just give you a panel from a Warrior comic in which... this happens.

6. Vince's Prank Suggestions for Swerved Season 2

Vince loves to get hands-on with all his projects. So when he was pitched a wrestling prank show, he squealed with delight. Two of this favourite things: big, sweaty men and pranks. Sadly his notes for season two got a little... off-kilter. He wanted to put an electric buzzer on every chair of Madison Square Garden and have them go off just as Roman Reigns entered to force them to give him a standing ovation, he wanted to hide Zack Ryder somewhere in Chessington World of Adventures and not tell him they weren't filming just to see how long he'd stay there, he really wanted to make Mamps (Man Clamps) a thing but wouldn't tell anyone what they were, one note just said 'Kill Santino?', no one yet knows if he meant for real or not, he wanted Michael Cole to walk around Central Park whispering 'Mountain Dew: Do the Dew' in people's ears then running away giggling like the Laughing Gnome, he wanted to dress up Big Show like R-Truth and vice versa. White/Black-face and all. He wanted to release Cody Rhodes, send him to the Indies and have him win all the titles in three star matches and take them back to him so he could sit on them like a wrestling Smaug. 

Along the way, he started to forget what the line between 'prank' and 'weird act of megalomania' was.

7. An explanation for Dean Ambrose & Baron Corbin's hair lines

Where are all the full manes of Smackdown Live going? Were they in the Lockbox? Did Vince want Styles to be treated as the L'Oreal soaked lion he is so he stole loads of the main event talent's hair? How did Ziggler manage to get away with his Golden Fleece? Is that why Kalisto wears a mask to cover his embarrassing lack of hair? No one knows, this is pure speculation. The fact that this storyline existed months before the Brand Split was even publicised either hints at a plot hole or that Vince is that well prepared that he is always thinking six-to-eight months ahead which is DEFINITELY TRUE.


8. Some bullshit cop-out that would have satisfied no one.

I don't know, maybe they'd have just filled it with pictures of Scott Hall or Branston Baked Beans or another Lockbox. And in that Lockbox, another Lockbox. And just keeps those Russian Nesting Lockboxes going deeper and deeper until we're so befuddled by the prop department's ability to provide smaller lockboxes that we all forget what this was about in the first place. Wasn't it something to do with Shane? Was The Undertaker there? Did we all watch about 40 minutes of submission holds just to see one moment where a Hot Dad nearly dies for our entertainment? Was it worth it?* Was The Vincent Kennedy McMahon Award for Excellence just a collective dream incepted by a dying God? Was it you Murder Clown? Did you do this you sick fuck? But that would never happen because RAW is the home of logical, progressive storytelling. No loose ends up there, eh, Triple H? We all know exactly why you turned on Seth Rollins. Sometimes, I despair for the state of modern storytelling, I truly do.

*Yes.

9. Mitch

#JusticeForMitch.

Well, that's nine possible explanations which is...erm...nine more than WWE gave you. Praise be to Jozef.

Words & Images: Jozef Raczka - (@NotJozefRaczka)

Editing: James Marston - (@IAmNotAlanDale)

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WWE Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe DVD Review

WWE's Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe is out now on DVD, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk. The three disc set features features an extended version of the Warrior: The Ultimate Legend documentary (aired on the WWE Network) as well as twenty one matches and a multitude of promos. The set includes matches opposite the likes of Owen Hart, Isaac Yankem DDS, Rick Rude, "The Eight Wonder of the World" Andre the Giant and "The Model" Rick Martel. 

Disc One

The documentary portion of this set takes up the first disc and runs for just over an hour and a half. The main bulk of the documentary comes from the Warrior: The Ultimate Legend feature that aired on the WWE Network shortly following his death, with about fourty minutes of extra content added in. Whilst some of the ground, regarding Warrior's career, that was covered on the Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection (2014), is gone over again here, it's in the human moments that the feature captures that this release really shines. There's some personal moments captured here, that give a real picture of who Warrior was as a person, as well as how much he meant to his family and those close to him. The coverage of The Self-Destruction of The Ultimate Warrior DVD (2005) is handled extremely well, with not only Warrior and his wife, Dana, talking candidly about how the release effected him, but also a number of those who appeared in the derogatory film discussing their part in it's production.

It would be safe to say that at points the documentary is hard to watch, even for those with the stiffest of upper lips. The closing stages had me in absolute fits of tears in Gordano Service Station in Bristol, and there were a number of points throughout were I was very close to the same. It's a credit to Warrior's family that they allowed this footage to be filmed and were able to hold it together just enough to produce an incredibly moving piece of film. Even if you weren't a huge fan of The Ultimate Warrior as a performer, one would like to think that this documentary would make you a fan of Warrior, the human being.

Disc Two

The second disc is a match compilation spanning Warrior's career in both WCCW and the WWF from June 1986 to July 1996. Fans may notice straight away when looking at the match listing that all of Warrior's most famous matches are missing. There's no Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VI, no Randy Savage from WrestleMania VII or SummerSlam 1992, no Rick Rude from SummerSlam 1989 and no Ted DiBiase from The Main Event IV. All of these matches are either housed on The Self-Destruction of The Ultimate Warrior or Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection. 

The disc begins with a handicap match against Perry Jackson and Chico Cabello, under the Dingo Warrior gimmick with Gary Hart managing Warrior. It's notable for Warrior working as heel, and for the elimination gimmick that ambushes you out of nowhere. "Big Bear" Collie is the next to fall to Dingo Warrior in an extended squash that more than out stays it's welcome. Having Fritz von Erich on commentary does present some moments of interest however. 

As Warrior becomes Ultimate and makes the trip to WWF, Frency Martin is little test, as he seems to suffer a legitimate injury, cutting the WWF on MSG Network match pretty short. The commentary from Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and Gorilla Monsoon is the only highlight of a piss poor match with Brian Costello from The Wrestling Challenge. The first of the squashes that really caught my attention was a match with "Iron" Mike Sharpe from WWF on PRISM Network, which see's Sharpe really heel it up opposite Warrior which produces a much more interesting match. The match might be a little longer than it needed to be, but it seems that Sharpe was really trying to help Warrior get over. The last of this bunch of squash matches is another from The Wrestling Challenge, this time against The Conquistador, which features some of the funniest selling one could hope to find.

Lord Alfred Hayes does his best to make a WWF on NESN bout against The Honky Tonk Man (accompanied by "The Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart) utterly unwatchable with some of the worst commentary there has ever been (an on-running theme in any match that features Hayes on commentary). The bout itself is clearly a set-up for a rematch between the two, with plenty of antics to close things. A match with Rick Rude (managed by Heenan) from WWF on MSG Network is the strongest on offer, producing some quick and slick action, with a red hot crowd that really help things along. The closing stages produce a very house show finish and it's not as strong as their SummerSlam 1989, but it's still a decent slice of late 80's action. Rude returns, alongside Andre the Giant (both managed by Heenan) for a tag match that see's Warrior teams with King Duggan in a bizarrely formed bout that had me scratching my head for a good while. It does feature some nice comedy from all four men, with Giant especially showing a side that many may not have seen before.

It's squashy McSquash time for John Weiss on an episode The Wrestling Challenge, with Warrior's feud with Andre the Giant continuing to be the main focus thanks to a bizarre in-vision promo from Giant. A match between the two is then featured, an whilst the novelty of seeing two of the biggest names in the game face off is there, it wears off quickly. Things aren't helped by footage that seems to have been filmed on stone, making the match looking much much older than it is. Just a few weeks before winning the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, Warrior is back in squashing action against The Brooklyn Brawler as part of the build for Warrior's match with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VI. 

Warrior's first TV title defense is a nice inclusion, as he faces Haku (with Heenan) on Saturday Night's Main Event. The match is a decent watch, added to because of the historical significance, even if it's pretty much an extended squash for a competent Haku. Another Saturday Night's Main Event bout with Sgt. Slaugher (with General Adnan and Colonel Mustafa) is enjoyable, until things go a bit mental with The Undertaker, Paul Bearer and Hulk Hogan all getting involved, as well as Randy Savage on commentary. The interaction between Warrior and The Undertaker is a great watch however, that the two only ever had one televised match is mind boggling considering the potential. A bout with "The Model" from The Wrestling Challenge is a laboured affair, with Warrior seemingly blown up from even the slightest of movements.

A Superstars collision with Demolition Smash (with Mr. Fuji) isn't a wrestling clinic, but the two make the match completely watchable with their larger than life personas. Warrior seemingly drops some considerable weight before another Superstars bout, this time against Skinner in a complete and utter squash. A character-driven match against Papa Shango had me hooked from start to finish, with both men putting together an interesting match and seemingly knowing exactly how their characters complemented each others. It is a shame to see that Warrior was no longer as over with the crowd as previously on the disc.

Teaming with "Macho Man" Randy Savage against The Nasty Boys (with Jimmy Hart) works as a solid prelude to the pairs match at SummerSlam 1992, with all the focus being on Savage and Warrior, as well as the involvement of Mr. Perfect and Ric Flair. I'm not a huge fan of The Nasty Boys but they also plays their roles well in this one. Warrior's first match on Monday Night RAW see's him face off against Isaac Yankem DDS (whatever became of that guy?), which includes Jerry "The King" Lawler being as annoying as possible on commentary, as the pair feuded. The final match on the disc is Warrior's final televised match with the company, opposite Owen Hart on Monday Night RAW. Things get a little weird due to Vince McMahon running down Warrior on commentary and an in-vision interview with Shawn Michaels and Ahmed Johnson discussing who will be replacing Warrior in an upcoming tag bout. The clash of styles is an interesting one, but things never get the chance to develop into anything special.

The match quality on this DVD is weak and doesn't perhaps do Warrior justice when his best and most popular matches can be found elsewhere. The squash matches get a bit much one after another, and whilst the matches with Rick Rude, Papa Shango and the tag match with Savage all provide some entertainment this disc is a difficult watch and is probably best served by watching in, at least, four or five sittings, or by selecting those matches that particularly interest you. 

Disc Three

A third disc of consisting of promos is also included. These range from short pre-tapes to longer interviews and chat show set-pieces. Whilst there's a range in types of promo, there's also a range in quality, or both ideas and execution. Warrior's captivating style is present throughout and a number of his memorable feuds are highlighted with promos aimed at Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage and Rick Rude. I could have done without multiple edition of The Brother Love Show, as Bruce Pritchard makes me want to remove my liver and throw it at a hungry dog. His time in WCW was also a dark time indeed for everyone involved and it's reflected here in some truly awful pieces of television. The highlights for me here are Warrior's Hall of Fame Induction, which is included in full and his final appearance on Monday Night RAW just hours before he passed away. The final promo may have been some of Warrior's best work and one can only imagine what a rejuvenated Warrior could have done for the WWE if he was still with us today. 

Whilst I have brushed over the third disc (I'm sure no one wanted a promo by promo look here), I couldn't help but thinking that this set would have been better off combining the promo and match discs and having everything appear in chronological order across the two discs. The matches would benefit from not directly following on from one another (especially the shorter squash matches) and would be placed within a greater context because of the promos. An almost three hour disc of promos was also a difficult watch in one go, whilst most were too short to watch on their own merit. 

Finally...

This is a mixed bag of a DVD set, with a strong main feature that is let down by a weak match listing and a bizarre format that see's matches and promos split into two separate discs. A must-have for any Ultimate Warrior fan, most would be better off with Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection and checking out the shorter documentary on the WWE Network.

WWE Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection DVD Review

I was hoping to get this done before WrestleMania unfortunately that wasn't possible and then with the passing of Warrior I was finding it difficult to sit and watch in large portions so it's taken a little bit longer than I had hoped but here is the review of WWE's Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection.

WWE's Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection is out now on DVD and Blu Ray, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk, currently priced at £19.99 for DVD and £22.99 for Blu Ray. The three disc set, chronicles the career of the Ultimate Warrior and features matches and segments from UWF, WCCW, WWF and WCW, alongside a special interview with Warrior introducing the segments as they appear. As you'd expect the set features The Ultimate Warrior taking on some of wrestling's greatest from between 1986 and 1996, including The Undertaker, Mr. Perfect, Bobby Heenan, Ted DiBiase and Randy Savage.

 

Content Listing

Disc 1 

Interview Part 1: Warrior's Back

Interview Part 2: Finding Wrestling

Match 1: Perry Jackson & Shawn O'Reilly vs. The Blade Runners – UWF, 11th April 1986

Interview Part 3: Move to WCW 

Match 2: The Dingo Warrior vs. World Heavyweight Champion “Gentleman” Chris Adams - WCCW. 8th August 1986

Interview Part 4: Arrival in WWE 

Match 3: Barry Horowitz vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF Wrestling Challenge. 7th November 1987

Match 4: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Steve Lombardi. WWF Superstars. 14^th November 1987

Interview Part 5: Getting Noticed 

Match 5: King Harley Race vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Boston, Ma. 5^th March 1988

Interview Part 6: Upgrading Warrior 

Match 6: Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Los Angeles, Ca. 15^th July 1988

Interview Part 7: Intercontinental Champion

Match 7: The Honky Tonk Man (C) with “Colonel” Jimmy Hart vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the Intercontinental Championship. WWF SummerSlam, 29^th August 1988

Match 8: The Ultimate Warrior vs. The Honky Tonk Man with “Colonel” Jimmy Hart. WWF in Philadelphia, Pa. 17^th December, 1988

Interview Part 8: The Macho Man

Match 9: Randy “Macho Man” Savage © vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the Undisputed Championship and Intercontinental Championship. WWF in Boston, Ma. 11^th February, 1989

Interview Part 9: Simply Ravishing

Match 10: “Ravising” Rick Rude © with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Intercontinental Championship. WWF SummerSlam. 28^th August 1989

Interview Part 10: Building Momentum

Match 11: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Bob Bradley. WWF Prime Time Wrestling. 18^th September, 1989

Match 12: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Brian Costello WWF Prime Time Wrestling 25^th December 1989

Segment 1: Ultimate Warrior confronts Andre on Brother Love Show, WWF Superstars. July 29, 1989.

Interview Part 11: Memories of Andre

Match 13: Andre the “Ultimate” Giant with Bobby Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the Intercontinental Championship. WWF at MSG. 28^th October 1989

Match 14: Andre the Giant with Bobby Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the Intercontinental Championship. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event. 25^th November 1989

Disc 2

Interview Part 12: Leading to Toronto

Segment 2: Ultimate Warrior Promo "Crash the Plane". WWF Superstars, 10^th March 1990

Match 15: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Mr Perfect. WWF at MSG. 19^th March 1990

Interview Part 13: Running to the Ring

Match 16: Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Championship and Intercontinental Championship. WWF Wrestlemania VI. 1^st April 1990

Interview Part 14: Responsibilities as Champion.

Match 17: “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Tokyo, Japan. 13^th April 1990

Match 18: “Ravishing” Rick Rude with Bobby Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the WWF Championship. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event. 28^th July 1990

Match 19: “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase with Virgil vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the WWF Championship. WWF The Main Event. 23^rd November, 1990.

Match 20: Sgt. Slaughter with General Adnan vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Huntsville, Alabama. 7^th January 2014.

Disc 3

Interview Part 15: New Direction

Match 21: “Macho King” Randy Savage with Sensational Sherri vs. The Ultimate Warrior in a Steel Cage Match, WWF at MSG, 21^st January 1991

Segment 3: Ultimate Warrior ends Brother Love's career. WWF Superstars. 2^nd March 1991

Interview Part 16: No Limitations.

Match 22: Randy Savage with Sensational Sherri vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF WrestleMania VIII

Interview Part 17: Into the Darkness

Segment 4: Ultimate Warrior on Paul Bearer's Funeral Parlour. WWF Superstars, 13^th April 1991

Match 23: The Undertaker with Paul Bearer vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF at Maple Leaf Garden. 2^nd June 1991

Interview Part 18: Returning

Segment 5: Gene Okerlund Interviews Ultimate Warrior and Randy Savage. WWF Superstars 25^th July 1992

Interview Part 19: Ultimate Maniacs

Segment 6: “Riding on the Edge of a Lighting Bolt". WWF Superstars, 14^th November, 1992.

Match 24: Money Inc. with Jimmy Hart vs. Ultimate Maniacs for the WWF Tag Team Champions. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event. 14^th November, 1992

Interview Part 20: Reestablish

Segment 7: “Faster Than A Cheetah”. WWF Raw. 11^th March 1996

Match 25: Hunter Hearst Helmsley with Sable vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF WrestleMania XII 31^st March 1996

Interview Part 21: Warrior Confronts Goldust

Segment 8: Ultimate Warrior returns. WWF Raw. 8^th April 1996

Segment 9: Vince McMahon interviews Jerry “The King” Lawler and Ultimate Warrior. WWF Raw. 10^th June 1996

Match 26: Jerry “The King” Lawler vs. Ultimate Warrior. WWF King of the Ring. 23^rd June 1996.

Interview Part 22: Going to WCW

Segment 10: Ultimate Warrior interrupts Hogan. WCW Nitro. 17^th August 1998

Interview Part 23: Repulsive

Segment 11: Ultimate Warrior promo. WCW Nitro. 26^th Otober 1998

Interview 24: The Right Story

Review 

I want to try and keep this review to how it would have been if I had posted it when I had originally intended, obviously in parts that is going to be difficult, as recent Warrior's untimely death no doubt changing the viewing experience of this three disc set. 

Disc One looks at Warrior's career between 1986 and 1989, chronicilling Warrior's time in UWF, WCCW and his early days in WWF. There's a total of 14 matches on the first disc, alongside 1 segment and the first 11 parts of the brand new interview conducted with Warrior. The interview sections lead nicely into the matches, giving a nice insight into both Warrior's personal and professional life, with talk of his early career being the most interesting as it's the least talked about, hearing Warrior talked about his training with Red Bastien and his teaming with Sting as The Bladerunners.  

 

The matches begin with The Bladerunners taking on Perry Jackson and Shawn O'Reilly, in a very quick squash, followed up by Dingo Warrior taking on Chris Adams in an awful match, it's clear that Warrior is very very green at this point. As Warrior becomes Ultimate in the WWF the squashes come thick and fast, with appearances on Wrestling Challenge and Superstars against Barry Horowitz and Steve Lombardi respectively, with both featuring invision promos, because why not? King Harley Race fairs a little better, bumping like a boss for Warrior in Boston, Massachusets, a Race not going for the cover off a Piledriver and bizarre finish let this bout down. A "Weasel Suit" match with Bobby Heenan is an entertaining contest, made even more so considering the age of the ATPW Hall of Famer, there is however a large amount of stalling throughout. It's then onto a pair of matches with The Honky Tonk Man with the Intercontinental Championship on the line, first the classic squash at SummerSlam 1988, before the pair engage in a longer contest in front of a half empty arena in Philadelphia, with Honky Tonk pulling out all the heel tactics in the book and the camera showing the fans any time there is a choke. A double title match with Randy Savage is the proto-type for a house show title match, the crowd absolutely loves it and that helps the match, which presents plenty of false finishes.

 The SummerSlam 1989 bout with Rick Rude is the highlight of the first disc, as the pair put on a classic over the Intercontinental Championship, with Warrior's comeback being superb. Seeing the crowd lose their shit over a diving double axe handle is also great. It's back to squash matches then with Warrior taking on Bob Bradley and Brian Costello in a pair of bouts from Prime Time Wrestling. A melo-dramatic confrontation with Andre the Giant on The Brother Love Show, is followed up by a pair of contest with Andre the "Ultimate" Giant. The first a very short bout from MSG, before a messy bout with a bizarre finish from Saturday Night's Main Event rounds off the disc.


Disc 2 houses just three interview parts, alongside six matches and one segment, with the interview focusing heavily on WrestleMania VI, leading the viewer through the build up and finishing with Warrior's review of the match. An interesting story about Warrior refusing to enter the arena on a cart, continues to build a picture of a man who truly loved his character and worked hard to create a mystique and excitement around it. It's intriguing that Warrior's interview is kept fairly positive throughout, with no discussion of Hulk Hogan's actions post to the match, or Hogan's comments regarding Warrior not being ready to have the torch passed to him. 

Kicking off the action, we get a crazy promo from Warrior off an episode of Superstars, aimed at Hulk Hogan. Just in case we weren't sure who he was talking about here, he finishes each sentence with "Hul Kogan". His intestity is comendable, but I have no idea what he was attempting to say. This is followed up by a disapointing clash with Mr. Perfect, a poorly booked affair judging Warrior's lack of selling ability, this bout also see's the longest camel clutch that I have ever seen. 

Making up for this match, the WrestleMania VI bout with Hulk Hogan is next, with all the build up, including a superb promo from Hogan, included. The characters work excellently together, with the pair managing to get pops off even the littlest things, the amount of rest holds does bring proceedings down slightly, but the finish is excellent. The crowd couldn't have loved this match more. A bout with Ted DiBiase in Japan is fascinating for the crowd reactions and isn't a bad match at all. A rematch with Rick Rude on Saturday Night's Main Event is another decent outing for the pair, but doesn't really live up to the SummerSlam bout. A second match against Ted DiBiase, this time from Main Event, trumps the first with Warrior pulling out a string of uncharecteristic moves such as a backslide and even a sunset flip. Warrior's come back is electric in this one. Unfortunately the disc can't keep up this strong run of matches, as a terrible bout with Sgt. Slaughter rounds of the set, although if you're into matches with lots of clotheslines and submission holds in the ropes for three minutes before anyone notices, this ones for you. 

Disc Three offers up the final ten parts of the interview, six matches and nine different segments. The interview covers a wide range of topics here including Warrior's feuds with Randy Savage and The Undertaker, as well as leaving and returning multiple times and his short tint in WCW. There is again a lot of postivity from Warrior throughout this disc, especially towards Randy Savage who it seems Warrior loved to pieces. The only time we see any real negativity from Warrior is based around his time in WCW, as he talks about WCW creative not capatilising on his debut, and says he hated just taking the money they gave him. In the closing part of the interview Warrior makes it seem as if we could have been getting a lot of Warrior related stuff in the near future, which was emotional to watch, an autobiography could have been fantastic. It would have been nice to hear more from Warrior on his relationship with Vince McMahon, unfortunately that isn't really touched upon here, as well as Warrior brushing over his use of steroids and no mention of the steroid scandal of the early 90's.

The matches start with decent cage match outing against Randy Savage from MSG, that is let down by a bizarre finish. Warrior attacking Sensational Sherri after the match is uncomfortable to watch. This disc is choc full of segments, kicking off with The Ultimate Warrior ending Brother Love's career by destroying his set on an episode of Superstars, as part of the build up to WrestleMania VII.

 That match follows as Warrior and Savage put on an absolute classic Mania bout, playing to both men's strengths, and with Savage putting over Warrior huge throughout. The finish might be disapointing, but the moment between Miss Elizabeth and Savage after the match is touching. Moving onto Warrior's fued with The Undertaker, an edition of the Funeral Parlour see's Paul Bearer on form on the stick, followed up by a clunky promo from Warrior. This is difficult to watch at the moment, whilst the commentary pulled me through it being unintentionally hilarious. Taker and Warrior then battle in Maple Leaf Gardens with the match getting cut short before it get's interesting. Quickly skimming over Warrior's first hiatus and return at WrestleMania VIII, it's onto Warrior's second feud with Savage, as the two cut electric promos on Superstars, building nicely to their SummerSlam 1992 bout, before being interuptted by Ric Flair and Mr. Perfect in a truly fantastic segment. Then we see the power of Warrior and Savage as The Ultimate Maniacs, as again the two cut excellent promos on another edition of Superstars, before taking Money Inc. in a passable tag team bout on Saturday Night's Main Event. Whilst the finish is dusty, it allows them to build to Warrior and Savage's bout with Ric Flair and Razor Ramon at Survivor Series 1992, that never actually happened, as Warrior once again decided to leave the company. We get the superb "Faster than a Cheetah" return vignette from Raw in 1996, followed up by the bizarre squash of Hunter Hearst Helmsley at WrestleMania XII, which is the true definition of a complete and utter burial.

 Vince McMahon interviewing Warrior and Goldust is noteworthy for Warrior flinging thinly veiled barbs at Vince and Goldust's awesome innuendos, a segment with Jerry Lawler is less entertaining. The final match of the set, see's Warrior squash Lawler at King of the Ring 1996, after Lawler spends his entrance directly insulting fans, in a promo laced with homophobia. 

To round off the disc we have two segments from Warrior's time in WCW, which really aren't great. Warrior's debut appearance on Nitro confronting Hulk Hogan has it's moments, but seems to go on foreeeevvvveeerrrrr, before him destroying Hogan, The Giant, Horace Hogan and Eric Bischoff after losing to Hogan on PPV makes little booking sense considering Warrior was leaving the company. But that's WCW for you. 

Overall, I found this set rather enjoyable, there are a number of very good matches with the likes of Rick Rude, Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, that make sitting through dire bouts with Sgt. Slaughter and Andre the Giant bearable, whilst the squash matches highlight how the booking of the Ultimate Warrior worked so well. It is a shame however that the SummerSlam 1992 bout with Savage isn't included in it's entirety. The crowd throughout almost all of the matches is completely into everything Warrior does which really helps a lot of the bouts keep your attention. The majority of the promos and segments are awesome, especially the ones with Randy Savage, with the two characters insensity really bouncing nicely off each other. The interview is fairly basic, and whilst it does have it's moments, there isn't a lot of new information revealed, but it's very endearing to watch Warrior talk about his character because it's clear it meant an awful lot to him and he put an awful lot into creating it. I'd reccomend, you go and get this set, even if you have the WWE Network, as it's really well put together and the non-PPV's matches and segments might take a while to make it. Really a must-have set in my opinion. 

Top Three Matches From Ultimate Warrior: Ultimate Collection

1. Randy Savage with Sensational Sherri vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF WrestleMania VIII

2. Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Championship and Intercontinental Championship. WWF Wrestlemania VI. 1^st April 1990

3.  “Ravising” Rick Rude © with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Intercontinental Championship. WWF SummerSlam. 28^th August 1989