It's January 22nd, 1995. Legends of the Fall is strong in the box office. Boyz II Men were On Bended Knee in the Billboard Hot 100. Just 11 days prior, The WB is on the air and five days after that saw the television premiere of Star Trek: Voyager. But there was a far different voyage underway in the WWF. A voyage to the main event of Wrestlemania. It's the 1995 Royal Rumble from the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida. Only ten thousand in attendance this year, a steep drop from the 14,500 from 1994. Despite that, the buyrate was 1.0, higher than last year's 0.9.
So what's been going on since the Royal Rumble? Well, really not a whole lot. Yes, Diesel won the WWF Championship in eight seconds over Bob Backlund three days after the event in Madison Square Garden, and the WWF Tag Team Titles have been vacated due to the split between Shawn and Diesel, but other than that, the title picture has been pretty basic. Bret returned after almost two months out of action due to the Chicken Wing locked on him by Bob Backlund and a tournament has been held for the Tag Titles that culminated in newly formed 1-2-3 Kid and Bob Holly and The Million Dollar Corporation's Tatanka and Bam Bam Bigelow as the final two squared to meet at this event. Plus, Jeff Jarrett, who has had more screen time lately, has an Intercontinental Championship match against Razor Ramon. And IRS, who has been flanked by hooded druids, has been feuding with the Undertaker after a month of vignettes involving Irwin taxing the literal dead.
We open the PPV with Pamela Anderson arriving in the building, and looking particularly uncomfortable being there. But I guess when you're being ogled by the likes of a clown, a garbage man, and Tatanka, you wouldn't want to be there either. It's Vince and Jerry Lawler on commentary tonight as we get right into action. Opening action tonight is Razor Ramon defending his Intercontinental Title against Jeff Jarrett.
Crowd is definitely pro-Razor as we open with Razor dodging a clothesline and landing some hard rights. Jarrett come back with one of his own, but his running attack is caught into a fallaway slam and a chokeslam. Jarrett rolls out of the ring to safety. Jarrett pauses to wipe off with a towel and returns to action with an arm drag takedown. Both men exchange waistlocks, but Jarrett is the one to take him down. He struts cockily as we continue to stall.
Razor works the wrist, but Jarrett turns it around, only for Razor to do so. Jarrett takes down Razor and does Razor's patented paintbrushes to the back of the head. Razor lands a right hand, and another that sends Jarrett over the top rope. The Roadie gives Jarrett some water as Jarrett returns to the ring. After some more stalling, Razor easily wins a test of strength and hits some hard strikes to the shoulder of Jarrett and follows with an arm bar and some paintbrushes of his own.
Jarrett hits several dropkicks and a clothesline for two. He whips Razor twice into the buckle, but misses an enziguri. Razor misses an elbow as Jarrett covers for two. Jarrett applies the chinlock. Razor breaks out and turns a hiptoss attempt into a backslide for two. Clothesline by Jarrett and a cover for two. Jarrett tries a sunset flip, but Razor counters, only for Jarrett to turn it around for 2. Dropkick by Jarrett, who covers for two. Jarrett locks in a headlock (Complete with his "GLAHGOTTEM" yell). Razor escapes, but Jarrett quickly gets a neckbreaker for two. Jarrett tries to use the ropes for leverage, but the ref catches him.
Razor reverses a clothesline, and slides out the ring, sending Jarrett crotch first into the steel post. He follows with a neckbreaker off the second buckle for a two count. He tries a clothesline, but gets tossed over the top rope, landing on his left knee. The Roadie hits a chop block while the ref is distracted, causing more damage. Referee Tim White calls for the bell and a count out, much to the distress of Jarrett as that would mean he doesn't win the title.
The Roadie gives Jarrett a microphone as Jarrett says he didn't come here to get his hand raised so easily. He came here to take the Intercontinental Title. He challenges Razor to a rematch calling him a chicken, which eventually Razor accepts despite limping his way to the ring. The bell rings, and Razor sends Jarrett to the buckle and tries a roll up for two. Jarrett recovers and works the leg, but Razor rolls up Jarrett in a small package for two. Jarrett lands a kneebreaker and slams the knee hard into the mat a couple times.
Jarrett drops his weight on the leg as its suspended on the rope, as the Roadie takes joy in the pain of Razor. However, Razor manages to toss Jarrett over the ropes. Unfortunately, Jarrett manages to slam Razor's leg into the apron. He sets up the figure four and locks it in. Razor refuses to give up and eventually manages to break out by smacking Jarrett around. He gets a couple rights and a clothesline. He manages to land the back suplex off the top rope, but Jarrett turns it around for two, as Razor turns it around for two. Clothesline by Razor. He sets up the Razor's Edge, but the leg gives out and Jarrett rolls up Razor for three to become the new Intercontinental Champion.
It was an okay match. A bit too much stalling in the beginning, and definitely too long in parts, but Jarrett worked well as a cocky heel and Razor put in some good offense. Also a good fake out with the count out finish. Honestly this was one of the better outings for Jarrett since his start with the company. And him winning the IC title is fine by me as while you know the old "broke a thousand guitars, never drew a dime" thing is true, I never thought he was that bad and his work in this match showed it. Overall, while not the strongest opener, it wasn't too bad.
We go to Todd Pettengill who is with Pamela Anderson in her dressing room. She's been bombared with gifts from the superstars. From a plush bulldog from the British Bulldog to a shrunken skull by the Headshrinkers, they have spared no expense in giving her some weird crap. Speaking of gifts, Jarrett is ecstatic and ready to give Pamela the gift of Double J. Drink it in man.
Up next, it's The Undertaker taking on IRS. And don't worry, we get the tax cheats promo from Irwin. He tells Undertaker and the crowd that no one will rest in peace until they pay all their taxes. Great reaction for the Undertaker as Paul Bearer is still carrying the gigantic urn. Paul wailing "Irwin" is also one of the greatest things I've ever heard.
IRS gets a dropkick from behind, but Undertaker no sells it, sending him in retreat. He consults with Dibiase and takes his time to come back into the ring. Irwin ducks some strikes from Taker and then exits the ring again. He confronts Paul Bearer as Undertaker gives chase. As both get back in, Irwin gets some offense, but Taker turns things around landing a big boot. Hard whips to the buckle by Taker, sending Irwin crashing back first. He grabs Irwin by the tie and gives him a toss. Taker does his old school clothesline off the buckle as Dibiase distracts. Taker grabs Dibiase, but Irwin tries a strike, almost hitting Ted. Taker tosses him over the ropes.
With things not going Ted and Irwin's way, Dibiase calls out the hooded druids to ringside. Undertaker is distracted, but still manages a shot on Irwin. He gets an uppercut and goes for old school again, but the druid shakes the rope, knocking Taker down. But Taker sits up and follows with some strikes. Irwin boots Taker on a back drop and clotheslines him over the rope. Taker chokes the druids, but Irwin gets an ax handle on Taker, and follows with a ram into the steps. The druids continue to stomp down Taker and throw him back in.
Abdominal stretch by Irwin, who uses the ropes for leverage. Eventually the referee catches him, allowing for a hiptoss by Taker. Slam by Taker, who misses an elbow drop. He sits back up, but Irwin is quick with the strikes. Elbow and a clothesline from Irwin, followed by more elbow drops and a leg drop. But Taker sits right back up, causing Irwin to miss a splash. Both men collide after some reversed whips. A druid throws Irwin on to Taker which only gets a two count. Taker sits up and chokes the druid, and tosses Irwin into him. Taker tries a tombstone, but the Druids interfere. Clothesline by IRS. Undertaker sits up yet again as Irwin gets more strikes, but Taker grabs him with a chokeslam for the three.
It's your basic Undertaker match. A lot of no selling and some simple Undertaker offense (strikes, clotheslines, etc). Irwin did a good job heeling and the addition of the druids added to the drama, but other than that, it was a bit too long and just lacked any real entertaining moments. But most importantly I'm going to list this as PPV loss #1 for the Million Dollar Corporation. Take notes kids, this is going to be important as we get through 1995.
Post-match, the druids and IRS attack the Undertaker mid-celebration. Undertaker gets a chokeslam on one of the Druids and a clothesline on the other. King Kong Bundy enters the ring and both men stare each other down. IRS gets a cheap shot on Paul Bearer and steals the urn. Bundy whips Taker into the corner and splashes him followed by a series of jumping elbow drops and splashes. He exits as Taker doesn't sit up this time due to the urn being repossessed.
We cut to earlier in the day as Todd Pettengill tries to interview Diesel, but gets told pretty politely to get the hell out of his face. Todd tries with Bret, who is a bit more talkative, saying that all he thinks about is winning back the WWF title. He wants the title back. When it comes to the Jackknife, he'll cross that road when he comes to it.
It's time for the WWF Championship on the line (yep, squat in the middle of the card again). It's Bret Hart vs Diesel. Great reaction for Bret, but not as strong a pop for . Diesel is now also using his newer "Diesel Blues" theme song. he also shakes hands with NFL legend Lawrence Taylor. A lot of focus on L.T on commentary mind you. I wonder if that will lead to something (Hint hint)?
Diesel tosses Bret to the corner early on. Bret gets a waistlock, but Diesel gets to the ropes. Both men shove each other and lay in rights, but Diesel is the one in control as he follows with a slam. Diesel misses an elbow drop as Bret hits a clothesline, but gets elbowed to the face and tossed over the top rope. Bret and Diesel slug each other, but Diesel again is the better man in the brawl. Bret grabs Diesel's leg and smashes it into the buckle several times, a smarter strategy than to just strike the big man.
Bret works the leg, locking in in a hold and following with some stomps to the knee. He tries a figure four and succeeds. Diesel eventually gets to the ropes, but Bret doesn't let go until it's close to a disqualification. Bret pulls Diesel's leg and hits more strikes to the injured knee. He puts the figure four right back in. Diesel manages to grab the rope again, but again Bret takes a while in keeping the hold locked in until nearing a DQ. He stomps Diesel out of the ring and lands a running dive out of the ring, following with more strikes to the face.
Bret rams Diesel into the post, but Diesel turns things around sending Bret flying into the steps. He tosses Bret back in the ring and whips him hard into the buckle. Elbows to the face in the corner followed by a sidewalk slam. Cover gets a two. He chokes Bret in the ropes and drops his hip into the back of the neck. Backbreaker by Diesel as he squeezes Bret over his knee. Cover gets another two. Hard shove into the corner, but Bret comes back with strikes. Diesel cancels that out with more offense, including a hard whip into the corner. Diesel puts Bret in a backbreaker over his shoulder. Arm drop spot, but Bret recovers on the second drop, managing to break free. He tries a sleeper, but Diesel quickly escapes.
Bret ducks a clothesline but eats a big boot. Diesel drops an elbow, covering for two. Bret gets a knee to the face and follows with a clothesline off the second buckle. He goes back up top, but gets caught by Diesel. The knee buckles, causing Bret to drop on him for two. Bret goes back to the corner, tying Diesel's legs with his wrist tape. He stomps Diesel as the referee tries to free the champ.
Diesel is freed as Bret lands a bulldog. Cover for two. Russian leg sweep for a two count. Backbreaker by Bret followed by the patented elbow drop off the second buckle. Cover gets a two. Bret grabs the leg, but Diesel gets the rope. Bret sends Diesel over the ropes on a clothesline and goes for a plancha, but Diesel grabs him in midair and rams him back first into the steel ring post. Diesel signals a Jackknife (to a mixed reaction) and lands it. Cover, but Shawn Michaels shows up and attacks Diesel. He stomps at Diesel and works the leg. Weirdly the referee doesn't call for a disqualification. Instead, the match will continue. So this has been a night where maches continue despite screwy outcomes.
Bret fights out of the corner by working some kicks to the leg. He drops some knees to the elbow of Diesel and drops his weight on the leg as its suspended on the rope. Bret locks in another figure four, but Diesel manages to escape with more clubbing blows. Bret wraps the leg into the ropes and pulls as the referee takes forever to attempt a disqualification. Bret goes for a charge, but misses a strike in the corner. Diesel lays in more elbows and knees in the corner. Gutwrench suplex by Diesel, who slowly covers for two. He chokes Bret in the corner and goes for a boot, but misses. Bret bashes the leg into the post yet again. He grabs a chair and smashes it into Diesel's knee, but misses. But the match is still not thrown out. The crowd boos Bret shortly, but get back in when the Sharpshooter is locked.
Owen Hart now interferes, pulling off a turnbuckle pad and whipping Bret sternum first into it. So even with this match being completely off the rails due to two interferences and Bret using a foreign object, this match is still continuing. Diesel slowly covers Bret, but gets a two. Diesel goes to ram Bret into the exposed buckle, but Bret turns it around and smashes Diesel into it. Some rights by Bret on a punch drunk Big Daddy Cool. Diesel ges some forearms, managing to send Bret dangling in the ropes on the outside. Diesel grabs a chair and goes to slam it on the prone Bret, but bret escapes. Bret sells an injured leg, managing to trick Diesel into a small package for two. Bret goes for more strikes and a whip, but Diesel turns it around, but both men end up crashing into the ref.
Shawn Michaels, Owen Hart and now Bob Backlund run to the ring and attack both men, followed by Jarrett and the Roadie. The bell is finally rung as the heels beat down on both men. Patterson, Brisco and the rest of the officials try to separate the heels, eventually finally putting a stop to things. Now, the match is officially thrown out. Backlund puts in the Chicken Wing as the heels try to beat down Diesel. However, he gets some strikeso n the heels, while Backlund still has the hold in. He eventually saves Bret, sending Backlund in retreat.
I don't know how to feel about this match. The in-ring was great with Bret working very heelish for the most part, working the leg in the post, and just acting more aggressive than we're used to. Diesel also had a lot of great offense and never looked like a slouch. Honestly, just like their match at the King of the Ring both men brought out the best in one another. I particularly liked Bret tying up Diesel's legs in the corner to keep him incapacitated. But that aside, this felt messy with the multiple run-ins and out of control nature of the match. Though it makes sense that neither Shawn, Owen or Backlund would want either men as champ, the outcome by the end got tiring and a bit too much. And we end a great match on a sour no contest, which hurts it greatly. So, I guess I liked the in-ring and nothing more.
Todd Pettengill is still with pamela as she's getting dressed for the upcoming appearance. Todd (tying to hide his boner) hands her purse over to her. We also get a promo from Holly and the Kid who say that like the San Diego Chargers, they're getting their opportunity.
It's time for the finals of the Tag Team Title tournament. It's Bob Holly and the 1-2-3 Kid vs Tatanka and Bam Bam Bigelow. What a difference a year makes as last year Tatanka and Bam Bam were one on one at the Royal Rumble. Holly and Tatanka start things off. Tatanka throws Holly off a headlock. Holly ducks a clothesline, but gets caught into a sidewalk slam. He tries a second, but Holly gets a headscissor takedown, followed by a slam and a series of dropkicks. Tag to Bam Bam who gets hit with a drop toe hold. Tag to the Kid as both men try a double team on Bam Bam, only to eat clotheslines.
He tosses around the Kid, landing a headbutt to the back of the neck. He goes for a whip and what may be a pop up powerbomb, but the Kid turns it into a hurricanrana. Spin kick by the Kid is met with a bigger spin kick by Bam Bam for two. Tag to Tatanka who lays in a bunch of chops in the corner followed by a hard whip to the buckle. Tag to Bam Bam as the Kid gets some strikes and a dropkick, but gets slammed hard into the mat. Suplex by Bam Bam followed by a big shoulder block. He charges the Kid, but the Kid sends him over the rope. He goes for a plancha, but Tatanka stops him. The Kid turns things around, kicking Tatanka into Bam Bam.
Holly is tagged in as both men try cross bodies, but both get caught. However the Kid and Holly send Tatanka and Bam Bam into each other. Dropkick by Holly for two followed by some clotheslines. Tatanka ducks a third as Bam Bam pulls the ropes, sending Holly tumbling out. The Kid tries to fight, while Bam Bam gets a cheap shot. he sneds Holly back in as Tatanka lands a body slam and an elbow drop. Irish whip and a forearm by Tatanka who follows with some body slams. He gets a cheap strike on the Kid and follows with a power slam for two as the Kid tries a break, but he hits Holly instead.
Speaking of miscommunication, Tatanka goes up top, but accidentally hits Bam Bam on a chop. The kid is distracted as Bam Bam charges Holly in the corner. Bam Bam throws Holly hard over the top ropeSunset flip by Holly, but Bam Bam drops his weight to the sternum of Holly. Cover by Bam Bam for two. A second attempt just gets two. Holly is out of it and ends up in the wrong corner as Tatanka is tagged. The Kid distracts the ref as the heels beat down Holly in the corner. Gutwrench suplex by Tatanka followed by a hard whip to the corner and a clothesline.
Tatanka throws Holly into the head of Bam Bam. Holly fights out of the corner, but Tatanka rakes the face. Hard chop by Tatanka and a whip, but both men hit cross bodies, sending them both crashing to the mat. Tags to the Kid and Bam Bam. Spin kick by the Kid to Bam Bam followed by a missile drop kick off the top. Another drop kick to Tatanka and a spinning plancha to the outside. Cross body off the top to Bam Bam for two as Tatanka breaks the count. Dibiase distracts the ref as Bam Bam press slams the Kid over the top rope. Bam Bam goes to the top for a moonsault, but Tatanka, like an idiot goes for an elbow drop, knocking Bam Bam off the rope. Holly lays out Tatanka as the Kid slowly rolls over Bam Bam to win the tag team titles.
A pretty decent match, though your basic underdog fare. Holly was decent, Bam Bam was great, the kid was fast and innovative and Tatanka... was also there as well. I do feel that they made Tatanka and Bigelow be a bit too foolish with their miscommunications, but it worked in terms of building Holly and the Kid as this team that can only win through some crazy fluke. And in the end, I'd rather Holly and the Kid with gold over Tatanka any day. Also, this puts the loss counter for the Million Dollar Corporation at 2.
Post-match, a frustrated Bam Bam is angry at the crowd. He particularly focuses his attention on Lawrence Taylor. The crowd is pro-L.T as he tries a handshake. Bam Bam shoves L.T instead. L.T goes to fight with Bam Bam but is held back, while Bigelow is pissed at being laughed at.
It's time for the 30-man Royal Rumble. As always the rules are as follows. 2 men enter with superstars entering every 60 seconds (faster this year). Eliminations occur over the top rope with both feet touching the floor. The last man in the ring will go to the main event of Wrestlemania XI. Pamela Anderson is introduced first as she will escort the winner to the Wrestlemania match. Entrant #1 is...
Shawn Michaels! Vince gloats that it will be unlikely that Shawn will be going to Wrestlemania considering his bad draw. Entrant #2 is out next and it's...
The British Bulldog. Michaels attacks the Bulldog early on. Bulldog reverses a whip and gets a back body drop. He presses Michaels up and drops him to the mat. He follows with a big clothesline that turns Michaels inside out. Michaels gets tangled in the ropes. Bulldog tries a clothesline, but Michaels gets a boot as entrant #3 arrives.
Eli Blu? What the hell is an Eli Blu? Well, he and his brother Jacob debuted on WWF TV outside of Raw. We'll learn more about them later on. Eli clubs the back of the Bulldog and stomps him in the corner. Michaels rakes the eyes of Eli, but gets caught into a slam in the corner. Bulldog tries to slam Eli, but to no avail. Up next is entrant #4, Duke "The Dumpster" Droese. He eats a boot as he enters. Michaels fights Droese as Bulldog fights Eli. Drose hits a body slam to the mat and lays in a bearhug. Entrant #5 is out next and it's...
Gigolo Jimmy Del Ray. Del Ray and Michaels work on Droese before the two go at each other. Del Ray almost gets Michaels over the top rope as the counter goes down again. Entrant 6 is Sione of the Headshrinkers. Sione headbutts Michaels and tries to throw him over the rope. Meanwhile Del Ray is eliminated, becoming the first elimination of the match. The timer goes again as Entrant #7 is Tom Pritchard. Sione almost tosses Michaels out, but he escapes. Eli Blu works on Pritchard while Sione and Droese work on Bulldog. Entrant #8 is...
Doink! Doink gets attacked by Sione and Eli Blu while Droese works on Michaels. Entrant #9 enters. It's Kwang. Entrant #10 is... Rick Martel? He's still around? Kwang tries to toss Michaels out, but Michaels saves his hide yet again. Sione and Pritchard work on the Bulldog while Doink is brawling with the Model. Entrant #11 is Owen Hart.
But before Owen can even get to the ring, Bret attacks him from behind as revenge for his interference in the WWF title match earlier. Officials try to separate the two as Bret lays fist to the King of Harts. Bret gets another strike as he finally walks off. While this goes down we get Entrant #12. It's Timothy Well. Meanwhile, Owen gets in the ring, and easily thrown over the top rope. Duke Droese is also eliminated. Timothy Well follows with the Model and Tom Pritchard. A flurry of tosses as we get to entrant #13, Luke of the Bushwhackers.
Doink is eliminated, followed by Kwang and both Sione and Eli Blu, leaving Shawn and the Bulldog as the ones still in the match. Luke comes in and is just as quickly thrown out. Entrant #14 is out next, and it's Jacob Blu. He clotheslines Shawn and attacks the Bulldog. Blue goes for a clothesline, but gets tossed over the top rope. Bulldog tries to toss Shawn out again, but Shawn saves himself. Entrant #15 comes out next, and it's King Kong Bundy. Shawn is unable to toss Bundy over as entrant #16 is next. It's Mo, but...
MO NO! Mo is gone in barely three seconds. Bundy continues his offense on both Shawn and Bulldog as entrant #17 is next, and it's Big Mabel. Mabel and Bundy shove each other. Mabel tries to get Bundy over the top while the counter goes for yet another entrant. Entrant #18, Butch of the Bushwhackers. Mabel manages to get out Bundy. So that counts as loss #3 for the Corporation. Butch is quickly tossed out as Mabel and Bulldog try to eliminate Shawn. Entrant #19 is up next...
Last year's co-winner Lex Luger. He goes after all three men early on and manages to toss Mabel out with ease. Hard clotheslines to Michaels and a big body slam. Luger works Michaels in the corner and Bulldog helps. Entrant #20 is Mantaur. Yes, Mantaur is still a thing. He attacks Luger but begins a brawl with Bulldog. Shawn fights Luger in the corner as Mantaur gets a hiptoss and an elbow drop. Entrant #21 is next, and it's Aldo Montoya. Aldo tries to eliminate Michaels and Lex and the Bulldog double team Mantaur. Entrant #22 is up next and it's Henry Godwinn. Godwinn beats down Bulldog until Luger fights him off. Both Shawn and Luger battle as we get to Entrant #23...
Billy Gunn. Everyone is still battling with each other as no eliminations occur while we see entrant #24, Bart Gunn. Mantaur ambushes Bart as they brawl. Bart tries to toss Mantaur while Luger is already winded. Lex stomps on Godwinn as we get to entrant #25, Mr. Bob Backlund. But Bret shows up again and attacks Backlund, beating him down before he can enter the ring. Officials hold Bret back as we see our next entrant. It's Steven Dunn. Backlund is thrown back in, and thrown right out by Lex Luger. Bret and Backlund brawl on the entrance way as officials try in vain to keep them separated. Entrant #27 is next...
It's wrestling legend and alleged Klan member Dick Murdoch. Murdoch lays strikes one everyone as the ring is filled with beef, and I don't just mean the cow man. Entrant #28 is Adam Bomb. Splash in the corner by Mantaur, who tries to eliminate Luger, while Godwinn almst eliminates Shawn. Entrant #29 is Fatu. Fatu almost eliminates Bily Gunn while Mantaur is elimnated by Luger. We get our final entrant. Entrant #30 is...
Crush! Speaking of people we haven't seen in months. He had briefly left the company in August of last year. Bart and Billy brawl with each other, but are both thrown out. Steven Dunn is out next. Murdoch almost gets Michaels out, but Luger attacks Murdoch. Murdoch tries to headbutt Fatu, but of course, this proves ineffective. After a lot of brawling and near eliminations, the next to go is Adam Bomb, thrown over by Crush. Crush tries to toss out Fatu, but fails.
Aldo Montoya is thrown out by Shawn Michaels. Luger saves Michaels from an elimination by Murdoch (even Lawler doesn't get that logic). Fatu is thrown out by Crush. Murdoch pulls off an airplane spin on Godwinn, but falls out of the ring. Godwinn is still safe as we are down to five, Luger, Godwinn, Bulldog, Michaels and Crush. Luger gets a boot and a clothesline to Godwinn while Michaels and Crush work on Bulldog. Luger manages to send Godwinn over the top rope, leaving us with four. Michaels and Crush double team Luger and keep Bulldog down. Luger fights both men off, but gets knocked over the top rope by Shawn Michaels.
Michaels tries to work with Crush to eliminate the Bulldog as they begin their double team. Double clothesline to the Bulldog as both men celebrate. But Crush turns on Michaels and presses him over his head, but Michaels rakes the eyes and Bulldog throws Crush over the ropes. It's down to the two men who started the match, Shawn Michaels and the British Bulldog. Big kneelift by the Bulldog. Hard whip to the corner as Bulldog kicks him hard. He sends Michaels groin first into the ropes.
Bulldog clotheslines Michaels over the top rope. Michaels is dangling on the ropes as it looks like his feet may have touched the floor. Bulldog's music hits as he celebrates his win of the 1995 Royal Rumble. However...
Michaels runs back into the ring and knocks the Bulldog out. After some confusion, it is revealed that only one of Shawn Michaels' feet had touched the floor. Remember the rule is that BOTH FEET need to touch in order to count as an elimination. So, as a technicality, Shawn Michaels wins the 1995 Royal Rumble and is the first man in history to win the match from the #1 position.
This was an average Royal Rumble, but very flawed. The main issue being the lack of major talent in this year's match. Sure you had Shawn, Bulldog and Luger. But guys like Owen and Backlund were taken out super quick as the only angle out of this match at all was Bret getting revenge on both men, and hence costing them both their shot at the match. Other than that, who else was in this that really felt like a contender? Bundy? Mabel? Eli Blu? Bushwhacker Luke? It just reeked of the biggest problem with 1995 and its midcard, which is a lot of guys who don't feel like top stars. Add in the fact that this Rumble was rushed with 60 second entrants and only 38 minutes of action and it felt like everything had to be in and out as fast as possible to make for the time they had left. And because of that, you don't really get any amazing moments or eliminations up until the end with Michaels' one foot save. Other than that, it was still a fun sit, as most Royal Rumble matches are (maybe not the current ones) but not as good as the last few.
And that's how I'll ultimately rate this Royal Rumble show in general. Not as good as the last few. The matches were all fine, especially Bret vs Diesel, but something just felt hollow about the whole event. The lack of really any big storylines outside of the issues involving Bret Hart may have had a hand in that hollowness. What else really felt big about this show? The Million Dollar corporation stealing the urn? Jeff Jarrett as IC champ? The return of Crush? There just feels like a lack of major storylines outside of the WWF title picture, anything involving Bret and the obvious celebrity angle with Lawrence Taylor.
And that right here is what already makes 1995 feel different than where we were in 1994. You had feuds everywhere that felt more important. Shawn and Razor feuding over who was the real IC Champ. Owen turning on Bret. Undertaker being put in the casket by the heels and ascending to the other side. And an ending that continued more storylines with both Luger and Bret winning the Royal Rumble. This show? It just felt like that same excitement and interest was lacking. And knowing exactly where Wrestlemania XI is headed, this show doesn't have me that pumped. So overall, the rating is a C+. Good in-ring, but a lifeless feeling overall.
And that right here is what already makes 1995 feel different than where we were in 1994. You had feuds everywhere that felt more important. Shawn and Razor feuding over who was the real IC Champ. Owen turning on Bret. Undertaker being put in the casket by the heels and ascending to the other side. And an ending that continued more storylines with both Luger and Bret winning the Royal Rumble. This show? It just felt like that same excitement and interest was lacking. And knowing exactly where Wrestlemania XI is headed, this show doesn't have me that pumped. So overall, the rating is a C+. Good in-ring, but a lifeless feeling overall.
Speaking of Wrestlemania, that's our next stop. How will Shawn Michaels deal with Diesel? Maybe he needs to find someone psycho enough to get the job done. Will Bret deal with Owen and Backlund? Will Undertaker get his urn? And will the Million Dollar Corporation win on PPV in 1995? Find out on the road to the Wrestlemania often considered by many as the worst of the bunch. Strap in gang, we're entering quite the ride.
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