In 1992, the vacated WWF Cahmpionship was won by “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair in the Royal Rumble Match. It led many to believe that he would square off against Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania, but it wasn’t meant to be. At WrestleMania VIII, the WWF Champion Ric Flair would defend against the Macho Man Randy Savage. Some fans saw it as a failure on the WWF‘s part to not book Hogan vs. Flair, but in hindsight it was probably the best move. It doesn’t take a wrestling expert to watch a Hulk Hogan match and realize he’s not exactly the best grappler. Macho Man, on the other hand, basically invented the modern style of wrestling. With all due respect to Hogan, perhaps a wrestler with such a limited skill set was better suited to face Sid Justice, rather than stink up the joint for 20 minutes, then pin the legendary Ric Flair for the title. Maybe Vince McMahon knew that, and maybe that’s why he didn’t book the match. When the big night finally came, Macho Man and “The Dirtiest Player in the Game” lived up to the hype. They delivered a championship worthy bout, with Savage coming out the winner. Sadly for both men though, it wasn’t the main event. Instead, the main event would be the yawn fest of Hulk Hogan vs. Sid Justice. The match massively under delivered, and the finish was botched when Papa Shango missed his cue to interfere and break up a 3 count. Even the surprise return of the Ultimate Warrior at the end couldn’t save it. It would be the first time in WrestleMania history that the Champion didn’t close the show, but at least Savage was on top of the mountain again.
