5 matches from the 90s that could have been the main event WrestleMania

WrestleMania is a global entertainment phenomenon, produced by WWE and enjoyed by millions every year. It is now a week-long event that raises hundreds of millions of dollars for host economies and is attended by fans from every US state and many countries around the globe.

In the 1990s it was also a pop culture extravaganza, though perhaps with less international appeal. That said, WrestleManias 6 to 16 delivered some fantastic entertainment, and matches that will live long in the fans' memories.

With so many cards packed with great quality, it is only natural that the show-closing efforts sometimes paled in comparison to some of what came before them on those same events.

Here, we outline 5 1990s 'Mania bouts that could have main-evented the industry's biggest show, but didn't. Admittedly, some matches were placed earlier cards out of necessity (much like our first offering) but nonetheless, here are bouts I consider good enough to have been a main event.

---

#5 Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart (WrestleMania X)

Owen Hart defeated Bret in 1994

As I've mentioned, some matches were not the main event out of necessity. As it is, Bret's march towards the WWE Championship in 1994 meant that his meeting with Owen at Madison Square Garden couldn't have closed the show - but it was good enough to have been in the top slot if the storyline would have allowed for it. Bret and his co-Royal Rumble winner Lex Luger each had a shot at WWE Champion Yokozuna, but to make it fair, all three men would potentially have to wrestle 2 matches.

Bret had to wrestle Owen before getting his shot at the title. Yokozuna and Luger wrestled for the title later on in the show, and the winner of that match (Yokozuna) had to wrestle Bret in what would be both of their second matches of the night.

In what is one of my favourite WWE matches of all time, brother met brother in New York and put on a fantastic show. Trading hold for hold, the youngest Hart brother caused a major upset by pinning Bret's shoulders to the mat in the night's opening bout, but not before a spate of hair pulling here, and stiff slapping there.

So good was their chemistry and storytelling, this was a match that was 'Mania main event-worthy on merit.

#4 Randy Savage vs. Ultimate Warrior (Wrestlemania VII)

Savage v Warrior

Here's a true story. When I first saw WrestleMania VII, it was on videotape. With a good portion still to run on the tape, Gorilla Monsoon cried: "Coming up next, the career ending match!" Given I expected that match to be the last on the card, such was its magnitude, I genuinely thought I'd got a dud copy of the video! The match was contested between Randy Savage and The Ultimate Warrior, two of the top stars of their time in a battle with both men's careers on the line, and not only was it not the main event, but WWE staged seven matches to go on after it!

For me, with such a huge story being told between two huge megastars, this battle deserved a better spot on the card, and wouldn't have looked out of place had it knocked the Hulk Hogan versus Sgt. Slaughter match out of the main event slot.

This was a classic encounter. From the epic war between the two that saw Warrior pin Savage to, as we thought at the time at least, end the iconic and legendary career of the Macho Man, to Sensational Sherri's turning on Savage only for Miss Elizabeth making the save as the two became reunited, it was unforgettable.

#3 Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart (Wrestlemania VIII)

Roddy Piper v Bret Hart

I'd happily live in a world where the main event of the 1992 edition of WrestleMania was a good old-fashioned scrap between Bret Hart and Roddy Piper.

Piper had recently won the Intercontinental Championship from The Mountie, a reign that would end up being the one and only singles title run in his entire WWE career. Soon after at WrestleMania, Piper locked horns with Hart, who was looking to regain the gold he'd previously held with such distinction.

This meeting wasn't the longest you'll ever see at just 13 minutes, but in such a small space of time, they did so much. Sportsmanship went out the window, as after the usual holds were exchanged to begin the match, it soon devolved into bloodshed.

Bret would eventually win and become Intercontinental Champion once again, and would go on to lose the championship to the British Bulldog at SummerSlam later that year - in the main event no less!

#2 Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair (Wrestlemania VIII)

Flair v Savage in 1992

You can guess that it's my opinion that WWE made a bad call by slotting Hulk Hogan versus Sid Justice in the main event slot of the 8th annual WrestleMania.

Sure, many at the time expected that it was going to be Hogan's last match in WWE, but it was a simply poor match in every aspect, while classics like my previous listing, Bret Hart vs. Roddy Piper, and this option, Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair, toiled further down the card.

Savage was an incredible performer and storyteller, and this feud with Flair was yet another example of that. The match was for the WWE Title which Savage would go on to regain, and it was also deeply personal storyline. Flair had spent much of 1992 claiming he was having an affair with Miss Elizabeth - much to the rage of Savage and the distress of Liz herself. That was, of course, nonsense, but it stirred the pot big time for the hot-headed Macho Man. It was great for fans to see Flair get his comeuppance as Savage snared back the gold and both he and Liz left the unseated former champ and his executive consultant, Mr. Perfect, with their tails between their legs.

No doubt, this could and should have been the 'Mania main event.

#1 Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels (Wrestlemania X)

Razor Ramon v Shawn Michaels

This contest stands undisputed as the best ladder match in WWE history and, in the eyes of quite a few, one of the greatest WWE matches of all time.

In late 1993 and early 1994, Shawn Michaels, having been stripped of his Intercontinental Championship, was chasing Razor Ramon, who had won the vacant belt fair and square; earning the title opportunity by co-winning a battle royal alongside Rick Martel before beating the Canadian one-on-one afterwards.

Michaels, having never lost his title in a match, claimed to still be the 'true' and 'real' IC Champion, so it seemed that a collision between the Heartbreak Kid and the Bad Guy was unavoidable. It happened in 1994 at Wrestlemania 10.

While the ongoing saga with the WWE Title between Bret Hart, Lex Luger and Yokozuna claimed the main event that year, this ladder match would have been a more than adequate main event at MSG. With Michaels' bodyguard, Diesel, ejected from ringside after interfering, Ramon eventually triumphed after Shawn had tangled himself in the ropes.

Simply stunning, and a moment that could have been the perfect finale for the 10 annual Showcase of the Immortals.