WWF WrestleMania VI Review (Hulkster VS Warrior)
- Oct 14, 2022
- 10 min read
Greetings, everyone, and welcome to yet another chronological lookback at every WrestleMania. Today, we will be visiting a rather historic ‘Mania to say the least, as it is the first-ever of its kind to emanate from outside the United States – coming to you from Toronto, Canada!
In the main event, we will witness WWF World Champion, Hulk Hogan, defending his gold against his Intercontinental counterpart, the Ultimate Warrior, in a match dubbed “The Ultimate Challenge”. Also on the card, Mr. Perfect puts his perfect streak on the line against Brutus Beefcake, Jake Roberts challenges Ted DiBiase for the Million Dollar belt, the Macho King and his queen meet the American Dream and Sapphire in a mixed tag, and more! Let’s dive onto the show.
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Date: April 1st, 1990
Venue: SkyDome
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Attendance: 67.678
Your hosts for tonight: Gorilla Monsoon & Jesse Ventura. I’m not gonna lie, their commentaries have been the highlights of this WrestleMania retrospective viewing so far.
We kicked things off with our obligatory national anthem performance, only this time it’s the Canadian rendering instead, since, you know, we’re in Canada, after all. Anyhow, it’s Robert Goulet who sang ‘O Canada’ for us all, starting the show on a pretty high note.
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Rick Martel vs. Koko B. Ware
This was essentially an extended squash for Martel, but that doesn’t mean they have to dog in their effort. The crowd erupted for all of Koko’s high-flying flurries, which begs the question whether his ceiling could’ve been higher or not. Martel did his schticks with flair and arrogance, comfortably fitting his new Model gimmick. Koko had himself a short and sweet comeback near the end before succumbing to the eventual defeat at 5:30 via Martel’s Boston crab. They did what they needed to and got out at the right time. The first-ever Canadian WrestleMania bout was an energetic one! [**]
WWF Tag Team Title: The Colossal Connection (c)[w/ Bobby Heenan] vs. Demolition
The Giant’s last hurrah in the WWF is far from good, but it’s one that holds a lot of significance, with a satisfying conclusion to close the book on one of wrestling’s most beloved attractions. Andre was strictly limited to getting involved only when necessary, practically making this a glorified handicap match. Haku was rock-solid in his role, working down Demolition and feeding their hot tag, even if it did make for a weird dynamic of a heel trying to overcome two faces. Andre finally came in at the last minute, but Haku accidentally kicked him in the mush, causing him to get tied up in the ropes. A Demolition Decapitation later, and Demolition successfully regained their tag titles at 9:15 to a monster pop. Andre then turned face for the first time in 3 years after the Brain attempted to teach him a lesson by slapping him in the face. That made for one hell of a post-match, with the crowd cheering like nuts for the Giant as he walloped the holy hell out of the heels before riding off into the sunset. [**]
Earthquake [w/ Jimmy Hart] vs. Hercules
This was done simply to establish Earthquake as a major threat to the WWF audience ahead of his huge program with Hulk Hogan over the summer. Hercules is quickly falling down the ranks at this point, but he proved to be a sufficient hand here as he made Earthquake look like a legit monster and sold for him accordingly. Quake gave Herc a couple of hope spots before the Earthquake splash inevitably brought things to an end at 4:52. A rough and ready semi-squash that exactly did what it had to do. [**]
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Mr. Perfect [w/ The Genius] vs. Brutus Beefcake
I know it isn’t saying much, but this could probably make a case for Bruti’s top five best singles matches. All the more proof of how great of a worker Mr. P was, managing to get something watchable out of this goofball in a 1V1 situation. Perfect bumped like a maniac to get Beefcake’s dreary offenses over. Hennig took over after the Genius handed him his scroll, and we got a short control segment where Perfect landed all his signature moves with precision. Perfect made the mistake of trash-talking the fallen Beefcake, and that resulted in him taking a slingshot to the turnbuckle that brought his undefeated streak to an end at 7:48. I don’t mind the idea of ending Mr. Perfect’s streak on the biggest show of the year, but that finish was so sh-t it’s hard to come up with any excuse to defend it. [**¼]
Roddy Piper vs. Bad News Brown
The WWE Network removed this from its version, which would save me the trouble of going through it again. But where’s the fun in that? It’s not WrestleMania in the SkyDome without this infamous cluster of a showdown!
Well… let’s just say I regret the decision of having to watch this again. This is of course the infamous Piper’s black paint match. I honestly have no idea why Piper thought this was such a good idea to begin with. First off, it’s visually off-putting and repugnant. And secondly, it featured racial overtones that are absolutely unneeded on a wrestling show like this. I’m a fan of both guys, but this was a complete and utter mess in the worst way possible. Piper used a white glove to slug Brown to the floor, triggering a ringside brawl that ultimately caused the bout to end in a spectacularly lame DQ at 6:48. Absolute retardness of a match and a big-time disappointment considering the build and the talents. That FU finish didn’t help either. [DUD]
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The Hart Foundation vs. The Bolsheviks
The Hart Foundation ambushed Nikolai and Boris when they were singing the Russian National Anthem. They then hit the Hart Attack at 0:19 for the fastest victory in WrestleMania history up to that point. Just like that, it was all over. [N/R]
The Barbarian [w/ Bobby Heenan] vs. Tito Santana
Similar to the Earthquake match earlier in the show, this existed merely to build up a brand-new singles act for the company. You can always count on Tito to make a monster heel look like a world-beater, and it wasn’t too different here. Tito tried to use his speed to combat the larger opponent to little effect. He had his fair share of hope spots, including a flying forearm nearfall that Heenan stopped by placing the Barbarian’s foot on the rope. Barbarian expectedly won in 4:33 after a killer diving clothesline that turned Tito inside out. Fine enough for a 4 mins quickie. [*¾]
Mixed Tag Team: Randy Savage & Queen Sherri vs. Dusty Rhodes & Sapphire [w/ Miss Elizabeth]
Dusty introduced Miss Elizabeth as his and Sapphire’s manager before the match was about to get underway, much to the crowd’s appreciation and Savage’s dismay. They started this off with plenty of comedy spots that felt like they were ripped from those Saturday morning cartoons. All rules were thrown out the window when the men and women were allowed to stay in the ring simultaneously and put their hands on each other without the ref’s prevention. Sapphire, in particular, looked horrible here, and I feel bad for Sherri having to sell for her. Elizabeth interfered on her team’s behalf by pulling Sherri’s hair and allowing Sapphire to get the pin at 7:31, earning the loudest pop of the contest. The crowd clearly ate it all up, so I can’t fault it too much, but this unfortunately didn’t do it for me. A rare miss from two all-time greats here. [*½]
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The Rockers vs. The Orient Express [w/ Mr. Fuji]
This was just a taste of what these two teams are capable of when compared to the other match(es) they would have the following year. Several cool maneuvers were showcased here from both teams, with my personal standout being Tanaka’s vicious gutwrench gutbuster (or a ‘Stomach Breaker’ as Jesse called it). They slotted a double FIP segment into this sub-ten minutes tag bout until the Rockers predictably began their comeback. Just as the Rockers started to get things going their way, Mr. Fuji interfered by tapping Marty with the cane. This caused Jannetty to go after Fuji, got blasted with salt by Kato, tumbled over the railing, and counted out at 7:38. A decent undercard tag match with a poor finish. [**¾]
Dino Bravo [w/ Jimmy Hart & Earthquake] vs. Jim Duggan
Jim Duggan in the WWF and a late-stage Dino Bravo? It’s the worst of both worlds! I’m not sure what Duggan was thinking there, trying to start a “U-S-A” chant in Canada while he’s in there with an ACTUAL Canadian? No wonder so many modern fans loathe his character when watching back from now. Duggan intercepted a 2×4 shot from Bravo and used it on him behind the ref’s back at 4:15 for the pin. Post-match, Earthquake squashed Duggan (literally) with a trifecta of Quake splashes, deservedly so for winning so unfairly. [½*]
Million Dollar Title: Ted DiBiase (c) [w/ Virgil] vs. Jake Roberts
Jake Roberts cut one heck of a pre-match promo in the back, saying he’s gonna make DiBiase a ‘victim of his own greed’. They slugged it out to start before Roberts teased a couple of unsuccessful DDT attempts to set the tone for the matchup. Roberts and DiBiase are two seasoned veterans of the business, but the Toronto audience didn’t give them the desired reaction needed as they were too busy doing the wave. They seemed to be getting the crowd back once Roberts started firing up his comeback, but soon the contest came to a halt when Virgil’s intervention allowed DiBiase to knock Jake out for the count-out win at 11:53. Robert got his revenge afterward as he attacked both DiBiase and Virgil before handing out DiBiase’s money to the fans and stuffing a bill in his mouth. A solid match I enjoyed to a lesser degree, although the crowd reactions didn’t do them many favors. [**¼]
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Big Boss Man vs. Akeem [w/ Slick]
The Big Boss Man and Akeem collide as the Twin Towers implode! Forget the Ultimate Challenge, THIS is the real main event of WrestleMania 6. DiBiase blindsided Bossman as he made his entrance to set up a future rivalry. Akeem tried to go in for the kill, but that’s not gonna stop the Cobb County officer. Bossman made a quick comeback before finishing him off with the Bossman Slam at 1:50. You know, it’s pretty kind that these two were holding back so they couldn’t hog the spotlight off of Hogan and Warrior. [N/R]
Rhythm & Blues’ Hunka Hunka Honky Love Concert
The Honky Tonk Man, Greg Valentine, Jimmy Hart, and a pair of Honkettes (Honky’s ladies) performed their custom song: ‘Hunka Hunka Honky Love’. The concert finished with the Bushwhackers entering the ring as Rhythm & Blues left, and they then destroyed the remaining guitars in the ring. A total time-waster. I mean, what was even the point of all of this?
Rick Rude [w/ Bobby Heenan] vs. Jimmy Snuka
Rick Rude is being groomed as the next top heel for the WWF over the course of summer, and so the company decided to put him on the card so he could rack up a free televised win on PPV. 1990s Jimmy Snuka is used best in short bursts like this one. He was able to keep up with the Ravishing One well enough, and Rude’s bumping for him made sure the action was constantly moving. Snuka missed a Bret’s rope splash, allowing Rude to put him away via the Rude Awakening at 3:51. Rude looked like a mega-star here, and this was a fun little squash for him. [*¼]
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WWF Title / WWF Intercontinental Title, Winner Takes All: Hulk Hogan (c) vs. The Ultimate Warrior (c)
When people defend Hulk Hogan as a worker, don’t try to use his ‘90s Japan matches as an example, but use this instead. Hogan carrying a blown-up Warrior to a spectacle that is still fondly remembered today is more impressive than him pulling a variety of flashy moves with no merits whatsoever.
This had a primitive and unsophisticated structure that was smartly laid out by the genius of Pat Patterson. They went through the 50/50 routine of two men meeting head-on, with the fans going berserk for every little thing they did, including a simple staredown (!!). Hogan buckled his knee when he got clotheslined to the floor. His short-term selling was excellent, but it never came to play after that, which I feel is a lost opportunity. My other qualm about this is the excessive reliance on rest holds, which managed to suck some energy out of the volcanic SkyDome faithful.
However, a counterargument could be made, as these two sure had the entire crowd eating out of their hand with all the late false finishes near the end! The finish was fantastic, as it instantly stuck in my mind since I first watched it a few years back. Warrior rolled out of Hogan’s leg drop and dropped an Ultimate Splash at 22:49 to win two of the WWF’s top titles, reaching the pinnacle of his career (and life) as well as earning a gigantic reception in the process. This was two comic book superheroes colliding on a grand stage brought to life. [***¾]
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Overall
This had the red-hot Toronto crowd and the unforgettable main event to make up for its excessive runtime. However, that doesn’t change the fact that this dragged horribly in most parts, nearly reaching the never-ending level of WM IV. As a total package, the show itself is not exceptionally bad, but it’s merely impossible to get through, especially with all the meaningless undercard matches cluttered throughout the PPV. Worst WrestleMania of all time? Not really, but pretty close to it.
Score: 3.5/10
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3.5 out of 10.
That’s all folks! Hope you enjoy this review. It’s been rather fun (and interesting) to go through all these ‘Manias in chronological order to say the least. Stay tuned for what I believe is one of the BEST WrestleManias of the ’90s – The Seventh Heaven of the Show of Shows! Stay cool, and thank you for reading!
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Written by:
Runn
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