Welcome to the latest edition of our WrestleMania Rewind series, written by yours truly, exclusively for everyone here at SLTD Wrestling. The aim of WrestleMania Rewind is to review every WrestleMania in roughly 2,000 words. Click here to read the series so far.
It’s WrestleMania 11 today, which took place on April 2nd, 1995 from the Hartford Civic Centre. Surprisingly, the Hartford Civic Centre is in Hartford, Connecticut. Just over 18,000 people crammed themselves into the arena for the show, and our commentary team this time consisted of Vince McMahon and Jerry Lawler.
Match 1: The Allied Powers (British Bulldog & Lex Luger) vs Jacob & Eli Blu (w/Uncle Zebekiah)
Nope. No idea who Jacob & Eli Blu were either. However, the moustachioed master of magnificence himself, Zeb Colter (aka Dutch Mantell) was with them, under the guise of Uncle Zebekiah, so as far as I’m concerned, they’re A-OK in my book!
A brawl kicks off before the bell, with Luger and Bulldog getting the best of it. Bulldog and Jacob start things off. Bulldog gets a 2-count off a standing vertical suplex. Jacob attacks Bulldog from behind to give the heels control, and they isolate Bulldog.
Hot tag to Luger (that’s the first, and last, time you’ll see me write THAT sentence!), who gets a couple of 2-counts from a powerslam and a flying forearm. The twins switch places behind the ref’s back, but Bulldog still picks up the win for his team with a Sunset Flip.
Opinion: I’ll continue to wax lyrical about Bulldog because, well, it’s my series and I’ll do whatever the hell I want! It genuinely astounds me that Bulldog was never WWF Champion. He was one of the only foreign babyfaces in that era, the crowd LOVED him and most importantly, he drew sympathy from the fans. He was something special. Good match to start things off.
Match 2: WWF Intercontinental Championship Match – Jeff Jarrett (c) (w/The Roadie) vs Razor Ramon (w/1-2-3 Kid)
A flurry of offense from Razor early results in a couple of 2-counts. Jarrett can’t get into it until he lands a neckbreaker and a couple of dropkicks. They exchange pins. Jarrett locks in a sleeper and gets a 2-count off a modified neckbreaker. Razor gets out of a sleeper with a side suplex. They’re both down after a couple of collisions.
Razor counters a crossbody into a fallaway slam for a 2-count. He then decides to go high risk. Sadly, it doesn’t pay off. Jarrett gets a figure-4 in, but Razor reverses it. He also lands a side suplex from the top rope and goes for the Razor’s Edge. Roadie comes in to cause the DQ.
Opinion: It seems to be a running theme with these old WrestleManias. I’m slowly but surely getting wound up with all these DQ finishes. If you want to keep Jarrett as champion, then have him pin Razor clean. Razor was established enough that he could handle it. Hell, he lost to the 1-2-3 Kid remember! It’s so frustrating because, again, I really enjoyed the match.
Match 3: King Kong Bundy (w/Ted DiBiase) vs The Undertaker (w/Paul Bearer)
Taker’s all over Bundy early. It’s clothesline city! Taker gets distracted by Kama, who takes the urn and runs backstage with it. Bundy gets in control as a result. He gets 2-counts from a slam and a kneedrop. Chinlock by Bundy. Taker fights back to his feet, lands a big boot and a scoop slam for the win.
Opinion: Largely underwhelming. The feud was built around DiBiase and the Million Dollar Corporation stealing Undertaker’s urn. It shows how little WWE thought of Bundy if Undertaker was able to pin him after a scoop slam.
Match 4: WWF Tag-Team Championships – Owen Hart & Yokozuna vs The Smoking Gunns (c)
Owen and Big Yoke have the early advantage until the Gunns clear the ring. They get a 2-count on Owen thanks to a neckbreaker. There are frequent tags between the Gunns and they’re in control until Yoke makes a blind tag. Owen drop toe-holds Billy, allowing Yoke to land a huge legdrop. Owen slams Billy into the ringpost behind the ref’s back.
Yoke’s in control with a nervehold. Some miscommunication leads to Owen nailing Yoke with a dropkick. The Gunns exchange tags. Owen drops Bart on the outside, leaving Yoke to land a belly-to-belly suplex and the Banzai Drop on Billy. Yoke tags Owen, who picks up the win.
Opinion: A very enjoyable tag match. I’d forgotten how good The Smoking Gunns were as a team back in the mid-90s. Yoke’s involvement was limited, but effective, and the finish was the right way to go about things, enhancing Owen’s borderline delusional character at that point.
Match 5: I Quit Match – Bob Backlund vs Bret Hart
Roddy Piper was the special guest ref. Bret unloads on Backlund early. Backlund rolls through the Sharpshooter twice and refuses to tap to the figure-4. Backlund moves an armbar into a hammerlock and back again. Hart escapes with a slam, lands a side suplex and an elbow drop. Backlund rolls through the Sharpshooter AGAIN (that’s the THIRD time for those of you keeping count!), and locks in his Chickenwing. Bret reverses it into one of his own and Backlund quits.
Opinion: This is the ninth or tenth WrestleMania in a row where the main-eventer of the previous year’s show finds himself firmly ensconced in a mid-card one the following year. Backlund vs Hart was fine, but there wasn’t a lot of heat to it and the crowd didn’t seem to care.
Match 6: WWF Championship Match – Shawn Michaels (w/Sid & Jenny McCarthy) vs Diesel (c) (w/Pamela Anderson)
Michaels tries to use his speed and quickness early, but gets floored by a right-hand. Diesel uses his strength and power. Michaels struggles to get into it until he clotheslines Diesel outside and follows up with a crossbody. Michaels works Diesel’s ribs on the outside and rolls him back in.
Michaels gets a 2-count off a bulldog and a back elbow, as well as one from the top rope, and locks in a sleeper. Diesel fights out of it and gets back into things with a series of power moves. Michaels hits Sweet Chin Music, but there’s no ref. When the ref finally comes to, Michaels only gets a 2-count.
Sid exposes one of the turnbuckles. Both men are down after a side suplex. Diesel connects with a sidewalk slam. He slingshots Michaels into the exposed turnbuckle, lands a big boot and drops him with the Jacknife Powerbomb to retain the title.
Opinion: A really good little match. It got a decent amount of time and, in all honesty, either man could’ve won. Really competitive with good chemistry between the workers. Oh, and Jenny McCarthy’s aged VERY well hasn’t she?
Match 7: Lawrence Taylor (w/some NFL guys) vs Bam Bam Bigelow (w/the Million Dollar Corporation)
Pat Patterson’s the special guest ref. All his dreams must have come true when he discovered two sweaty men in his ring, with 12 others waiting outside for the chance to get in on the action…
As you’d expect, LT starts like a house on fire, but his inexperience counts against him and Bam Bam goes on to control the majority of the match with headbutts. He even uses a Boston Crab at one stage! I could make a joke about crabs and rings, but I won’t. Anyway, Bam Bam can’t put LT away and the NFL guy picks up the win with a flying forearm.
Opinion: Why this match main-evented a PPV, never mind a WrestleMania at that, is beyond me. It just goes to show that the WWF didn’t care enough about their own stars, and more about their “celebrity” associates. To be fair to Bigelow, he tried his best. Let’s be honest, he was never likely to main-event a WrestleMania anyway, so he jumped at the chance and did what he could. Fair play. But this should NEVER have headlined ANY PPV, OR a WrestleMania.
Summary: WrestleMania 11 was just…fine. Not great, not bad, just…fine.
I think I’ve made my feelings clear about the main-event, especially at a time when they were lacking star power anyway. Expecting NFL fans to tune in and buy a PPV just to see LT was deluded if you ask me and the fact that LT main-evented the show illustrated that old NFL guys meant more than the title. Building your biggest show of the year around a football player just shows how little they cared about Diesel/Michaels et al at the time.
Hopefully, you enjoyed that quick look back at WrestleMania 11. Leave your comments/feedback via the usual channels, and, barring any legal ramifications from that Pat Patterson joke in Match 7, feel free to join me again tomorrow to revisit WrestleMania 12!
SLTD Wrestling's resident Scottish Nightmare. Some of my content may not be suitable for younger readers or those who are easily offended!
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