This Week In WWE Vintage Collection History: The Bret & Shawn Cage Match You Barely Knew Existed (Until The DVD Came Out Anyway)
By Aaron Wood Feb 19, 2012 - 1:44 PM
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COLLECTION #195 mean
Gene was on-hand to introduce the show as he told us we'd continue
the "Famous Foes" deal, including a rivalry that Gene said
was "perhaps the greatest rivals of all time". Remember
this come the end of the show. Anyway, we were kicking off with one
of the "hottest" feuds in history ***Nudge Nudge Wink
Wink***. Because when Scheme Gene says "hottest", he means
Lita & Trish Stratus. Both women proved that there was more to
them than just a pretty face. After starting out by managing their
respect teams against each other, to battles over the Women's Title,
they built up to an encounter on the RAW of December 6th 2004 for
Trish's Women's Title. Indeed, this match was such that it was the
actual main event of the show, which was in Lita's "home"
of Charlotte, NC. I'm not sure we've seen that since.
After
the break, in the studio Gene talked about how long before the
formation of Legacy, the family names of Rhodes & DiBiase were
often intertwined, beginning with their fathers, who had a different
outlook on life, Dusty was the common man while Ted believed anyone
could be bought, which included Dusty's valet Sapphire. And each man
would recruit backup for their cause. While DiBiase obviously had
Virgil, Dusty brought in his son Dustin to fight alongside him in a
tag team match that took place at Madison Square Garden on November
24th 1990.
After
the break, we went to the NWA/WCW Worldwide episode that aired on
July 11th 1987 and a clash of Tag Team titans as the NWA US Tag Team
Champions, The Midnight Express and the NWA World Tag Team Champions,
The Rock & Roll Express, took each other on in another classic
match, with the World Tag Titles on the line. interestingly, of the
seemingly many videos online of their matches, I can't track this
bastard down.
So,
we join things in progress with Ricky Morton working the legs of Stan
Lane. He got out but dropped again before Robert Gibson tagged in.
This went on for a little while. I should note that Jim Cornette was
not with the Midnights here, as he was taken out. Also, the referee
is a certain Earl Hebner. So you know he's going to suck at doing
something at some point here. Lane escapes long enough to try a
bodyslam, but his leg gives out and so he was still buggered. He
eventually managed to tag out, but Bobby Eaton ran right into a drop
toehold. Eaton powdered out, but Morton hit a suicide dive onto him
as we took a break, and we were told 10 minutes had elapsed.
We
came back as we skipped ahead with Robert Gibson having inevitably
been taken advantage of. The Midnights draw Morton in to distract
Hebner as they dumped Gibson out over the top rope, a move that
SHOULD have been a DQ. The Midnghts draw Ricky over and out as they
Gibson in and toss him out the other side of the ring, again without
Hebner seeing. Told you he would suck. That said, these tossing out
led to something in the range of F**k and Nothing, so I don't
entirely see the point.
Anyway,
the Midnights continued to Gibson their wonky-eyed bitch until after
a Worldwide ad break where we saw Gibson hit a kneelift in
telegraphing a backdrop. However, being in totally order meant the
Midnights could easily stuff a comeback. However, Eaton missed an
elbow off the top, which allow Ricky Morton to tag in and go wild.
However a Rock & Roll dropkick bumped Hebner out of the ring. In
the melee, Big Bubba Rogers (Big Bossman) came in and hit the Bossman
Slam on Morton, dragging Eaton on top. In a neat touch, Rogers
remembered to remove his hat (in a callback to a previous match and
it's similar finish where the hat was left and the Midnights DQ'ed).
Hebner counted the three, seemingly giving The Midnight Express the
World Tag Titles. However, another referee quickly ran down to tell
Hebner what happened, resulting in Hebner DQ'ing the Midnight Express
and allowing the Rock & Roll Express to keep their titles.
This
week's main event saw us look at a rivalry that was possibly the most
personal one ever. While the Montreal Screwjob was a tipping point
in their careers, Shawn Michaels & Bret Hart had been a thorn in
each other's side since the days of The Rockers and Hart Foundation.
However, between the tag days and Montreal, with both men on a
mission to make themselves household names in a steel cage match.
This match took place at a TV taping on December 1st 1993, although
it only ever appeared on the "Bret "The Hitman" Hart
VHS tape of 1994. That was at least until the awesome DVD of Shawn &
Bret's feud.
Gene
said it was neck and neck but Hitman would escape with the win.
However, Okerlund noted the next marquee match they would have would
be the Ironman match at Wrestlemania that saw Shawn's boyhood dream
come true. But they would just be a couple of the big moments in a
long rivalry that while now forgiven wouldn't be forgotten. Gene
then noted we had one more week of it next week, saying we'd be
looking at "perhaps the only feud bigger than Michaels and
Hart". Dude knows how to carny this stuff. Either that or
between links, someone realised there was a bigger feud.
Epilogue Trish
would actually end up winning the title back a month later at New
Year's Revolution when Lita suffered a legit injury on a Thesz Press
off the apron, tearing her ACL. Trish moved on to spark a feud with
Diva Search winner Christy Hemme, who had also just done a Playboy
shoot. Trish took exception to Christy doing all of these things.
After she had "slut" spray-painted on her back by Stratus,
Christy challenged Trish to a match at Wrestlemania, revealing that
she was being trained by Trish. However, she eventually lost.
The
whole Trish & Lita feud at this point revolved around the stuff
going on with Kane, and after Christy was unsuccessful, the feud
continued on for a little while longer, albeit on a by proxy basis.
It ended at Backlash when Lita's Kane beat Trish's Viscera, with Big
Vis laying Trish out after being berated by her. However, it would
be 2 weeks later that Lita turned on Kane, hooking up with Edge.
Dustin
Rhodes had not long made his debut in WWE at this point. However,
not long after this same tag team match happened at the 1991 Royal
Rumble, both Rhodes left the company and went back to WCW. Dustin
initially feuded with Larry Zybszko before moving onto the York
Foundation, specifically Terrence Taylor. Leaving WWE meant the end
of Dusty's full-time in-ring career as when he returned to WCW, he
took up the booking duties for a period before moving onto commentary
duties with Schiavone on WCW Saturday Night.
After
the tag match at the 91 Royal Rumble, after winning, DiBiase ordered
Virgil to strap the Million Dollar Title around his waist. However,
not only did Virgil refuse, but he lamped DiBiase in the head with
it, splitting away from him. They fought at Wrestlemania, with
Virgil winning by countout with help from Roddy Piper. Then at
Summerslam, Virgil would win the Million Dollar Title itself.
However, on the "Survivor Series Showdown" show before the
PPV itself, DiBiase won his title back, essentially ending the feud.
Things went downhill for Virgil from there, being used as enhancement
talent, albeit one that got major PPV matches in going so until his
release in 1994.
The
Midnight Express would hold on to their US Tag Titles for nearly
another full year after this match here, losing to The Fantastics in
April 1988. They would win them back in July, only to vacate the
belts when they won the World Tag Titles from Tully Blanchard and Arn
Anderson, holding those for just over a month before the newly-heel
turned Road Warriors beat them, completing a Midnight face turn.
Arn
& Tully won the tag titles from The Rock & Roll Express in
September of 1987 (with a feud between Luger & Windham for the
Horsemen before losing to the Midnights), and this would be the last
World Tag Title win for the pair, at least in WCW terms. They would
wrestle in the Continental Wrestling Association under the AWA banner
in 1988, having the feud with the then named-Midnight Rockers, which
put Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty on the map. When they
returned to the NWA/WCW in 1989, the RnR's found themselves a lower
card act, thanks to teams like the Road Warriors and Steiners being
on top of the babyface side. They would remain there until 1991 when
Gibson turned on Morton to join the York Foundation.
The
cage match took place not long after Shawn's return to the WWE having
"retired" in September. He would soon kick off the feud
with Razor Ramon that would lead to the famed Ladder match over who
was the true IC Champion at Wrestlemania 10. Niggling injuries would
soon blight Michaels once again, which were covered by the beginning
of the Heartbreak Hotel talk show segment on Superstars.#
As
for Bret, at the Royal Rumble, he and his brother, Owen, faced The
Quebecers for the Tag Titles. However, when Bret went down with a
knee injury, the referee stopped the match. Owen, pissed off with
losing a title opportunity, attacked Bret, working over the leg.
After Bret "won" the Royal Rumble with Lex Luger, both men
would face 2 match at Wrestlemania. One for the title and one other.
Bret would actually lose to Owen at Wrestlemania in a bona fide
classic match, but would end the night beating Yokozuna for the WWE
Title.
