| WrestleMania VI | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 A promotional poster for WrestleMania VI featuringthe Ultimate Warrior andHulk Hogan. | |||
| Promotion | World Wrestling Federation | ||
| Date | April 1, 1990 | ||
| City | Toronto,Ontario,Canada | ||
| Venue | SkyDome | ||
| Attendance | 67,678[1] | ||
| Tagline | The Ultimate Challenge! | ||
| Pay-per-view chronology | |||
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| WrestleMania chronology | |||
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WrestleMania VI was aprofessional wrestlingpay-per-view (PPV)event produced by theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the sixth annualWrestleMania and took place on April 1, 1990, at theSkyDome inToronto,Ontario,Canada, marking the first WrestleMania to be held outside of the United States. The event had an announced attendance of 67,678, a record for the Skydome at the time. The main event of WrestleMania VI was "the Ultimate Challenge" — pittingWWF World Heavyweight ChampionHulk Hogan againstWWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championthe Ultimate Warrior in aWinner Takes All match.
WrestleMania is considered the World Wrestling Federation's (WWF, now WWE) flagshippay-per-view event, having first been held in1985. It is held annually between mid-March to mid-April.[2] It was the first of the WWF's original four annual pay-per-views, which includesRoyal Rumble,SummerSlam, andSurvivor Series, which were eventually dubbed the "Big Four".[3] WrestleMania VI was chosen to be held on April 1, 1990, at theSkyDome inToronto,Ontario,Canada, marking the first WrestleMania to be held outside of the United States.[4]
On February 3, 1990, a week after Hogan, and Warrior crossed paths in the 1990Royal Rumble match, Hogan put forth "the Ultimate Challenge" to Warrior, and had to know whether "Hulkamania" or the "power of Warrior" was the "strongest force" in the WWF. On February 10, the match was officially announced as the main event of WrestleMania VI by thenWWF PresidentJack Tunney. On February 24, Tunney announced that both the WWF Championship and WWF Intercontinental Championship would be on the line for the first time during the match.
Demolition had recently regained theWWF Tag Team Championship from theBrain Busters (Arn Anderson andTully Blanchard), who departed the WWF shortly afterward. To fill the void, and give managerBobby Heenan another tag team,Haku, andAndre the Giant, who had teamed occasionally earlier in 1989, were formally joined to form theColossal Connection.[5] Haku and Andre were immediately pushed as No. 1 contenders for the championship, and on December 13, 1989, the pair defeated Demolition – Smash was never legally tagged into the match – to win the belts.[6] Andre and Haku held off Demolition in a series of rematches (most often with either one or both teams being disqualified) while also defending againstThe Rockers (Shawn Michaels andMarty Jannetty) andThe Hart Foundation (Bret Hart andJim Neidhart).
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Commentator | Gorilla Monsoon |
| Jesse Ventura | |
| Ring announcer | Howard Finkel |
| Interviewers | Gene Okerlund |
| Sean Mooney | |
| Referees | Joey Marella |
| Earl Hebner | |
| Danny Davis | |
| Shane Stevens | |
| Jim Korderas | |
| John Bonello |
Future multi-timeworld championsEdge[7]andChristian[8][9] were in attendance at WrestleMania VI, as wereLance Storm andRenee Paquette. ActorStephen Amell, who would go on to compete in a match atSummerSlam in 2015, was also in attendance.[10]Mary Tyler Moore was sitting at ringside.
The first bout was asingles match in whichPaul Roma defeatedthe Brooklyn Brawler. This was adark match that did not air on the pay-per-view broadcast.
The pay-per-view broadcast opened withRobert Goulet singingO Canada.
The second bout, and the first match to air on the pay-per-view broadcast, was a singles bout betweenKoko B. Ware, andRick Martel. Martel won the match by submission using aQuebec Crab.
The third bout was atag team match in whichWWF Tag Team Championsthe Colossal Connection defended their titles againstDemolition. Demolition won the bout to become the new WWF Tag Team Champions afterAx pinnedHaku, following aDemolition Decapitation. Immediately after the match, the Colossal Connection'smanagerBobby Heenan began yelling atAndré the Giant in the ring, blaming him for the loss, and slapping him in the face. In response, André grabbed Heenan and knocked Heenan out of the ring; when Haku attempted to sneak attack André, André caught his leg and knocked Haku from the ring, making André aface for the first time in three years.[11]
The fourth bout was a singles match pittingEarthquake againstHercules. Earthquake won the bout by pinfall following anEarthquake Splash.
Following the fourth bout, columnistRona Barrett interviewedMiss Elizabeth.[4]
The fifth bout was a singles match pittingBrutus "The Barber" Beefcake againstMr. Perfect. Beefcake won the bout by pinfall after throwing Perfect into the ring post and knocking him out, marking what was credited as Perfect's first loss in the WWF. Following the match, Beefcake also knocked out Mr. Perfect's managerThe Genius using asleeper hold, then used shears to cut his hair.
The sixth bout was a singles match pittingBad News Brown against"Rowdy" Roddy Piper. The match ended in a doublecount-out after both men brawled out of the ring.
Following the sixth bout, a backstage segment aired in whichSteve Allen sang theState Anthem of the Soviet Union withthe Bolsheviks.
The seventh bout was a tag team match pitting the Bolsheviks againstthe Hart Foundation. The Hart Foundation won a shortsquash match whenBret Hart pinnedBoris Zhukov following aHart Attack.
The eighth bout was a singles match pittingthe Barbarian againstTito Santana. The Barbarian won the bout by pinfall following aflying clothesline.
The ninth bout was amixed tag team match pittingDusty Rhodes andSapphire against"Macho King" Randy Savage andQueen Sherri. Rhodes and Sapphire won the bout when Sapphire pinned Queen Sherri using aroll-up.
The tenth bout was a tag team match pittingthe Orient Express againstthe Rockers. The Orient Express won the bout after their managerMr. Fuji trippedMarty Jannetty and thenSato threw salt in his eyes, causing him to be counted out.
Following the tenth bout, the tag team ofRhythm and Blues were introduced by Steve Allen.
The eleventh bout was a singles match pittingDino Bravo against"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan. Duggan won the bout by pinfall after hitting Bravo with a2×4.
The twelfth bout was a singles match in which"The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase defended theMillion Dollar Championship againstJake "The Snake" Roberts. DiBiase won the match by count-out after his bodyguardVirgil pulled Roberts outside of the ring. Roberts attacked Virgil, and DiBiase came out and applied the Million Dollar Dream on Roberts, and Roberts rammed him into the ring post. While Roberts was down, Virgil threw DiBiase back into the ring before the referee counted to ten.
The thirteenth bout was a singles match pittingAkeem againstBig Boss Man. Big Boss Man won the bout by pinfall following aBoss Man Slam.
Following the thirteenth bout,Rhythm & Blues and their managerJimmy Hart were driven to the ring in a pinkCadillac byDiamond Dallas Page, where they performed the song "Hunka Hunka Hunka Honky Love". After performing the song, they were attacked bythe Bushwackers who chased them from the ring and destroyed their instruments.
The fourteenth bout was a singles match pittingJimmy Snuka against"Ravishing" Rick Rude. Rude won the bout by pinfall following aRude Awakening.
The main event bout was aWinner Takes All match betweenWWF ChampionHulk Hogan andWWF Intercontinental ChampionThe Ultimate Warrior. The Ultimate Warrior won the bout by pinfall following abig splash, thus becoming the new WWF Champion and the first person to hold the WWF Championship and WWF Intercontinental Championship simultaneously, and giving Hogan his first clean pinfall loss since 1981.
The event received mixed-to-positive reviews, though most reviewers praised the main event between Hogan and Warrior. Jason Powell was among the reviewers who praised the main event, calling it "A truly amazing match considering the limitations of both men, particularly Warrior". However, he went on to say, "The overall WrestleMania 6 card was softer than WrestleMania 5 card, but it was a better show that [sic] WrestleManias 1, 2, and 4".[12] The Hulk Hogan-Ultimate Warrior match was named1990's "Match of the Year" byPro Wrestling Illustrated magazine readers.
The match betweenRoddy Piper, andBad News Brown received heavy criticism for featuring Piper (at that point ababyface) being painted in half-black against theAfrican American Brown.[13] In 2021, the match and promo were removed from the version of WrestleMania VI streamed onPeacock in the United States.[14]
Because the Intercontinental Heavyweight ChampionThe Ultimate Warrior defeated Hulk Hogan to win the WWF Championship, Warrior was forced to vacate the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship, as the rules prohibited any wrestler from holding more than one singles belt simultaneously. An eight-man tournament was held, conducted on the WWF's syndicatedWWF Superstars of Wrestling, andWWF Wrestling Challenge, withMr. Perfect winning the title by defeatingTito Santana in the finals.
WhenBrutus "The Barber" Beefcake defeated Mr. Perfect at Wrestlemania VI, it was billed as Perfect's first pinfall loss in the WWF. However, in reality, Perfect had been pinned by The Ultimate Warrior in a match atMadison Square Garden that aired on theMSG Network less than two weeks before WrestleMania.[15] Brutus would continue his feud with Perfect (with an Intercontinental title match pending at SummerSlam 1990) until a parasailing accident in July 1990 put Brutus out of wrestling for nearly a year.
As the new WWF Champion, The Ultimate Warrior would initially be a successfulmain event draw, with his main rival being"Ravishing" Rick Rude – a wrestler he had fought during much of 1989 over the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship – during the spring and summer of 1990.
Hulk Hogan wrestled several matches in Japan shortly after WrestleMania VI, but soon began feuding with the 470-pound Earthquake, with that feud heating up when Earthquake sneak-attacked Hogan onThe Brother Love Show in May. Announcers explained that Hogan's injuries from the attack and the loss to Warrior both took such a huge toll on his fighting spirit that he wanted to retire, and viewers were persuaded to write Hogan to encourage him to return. In reality, the attack was to write Hogan off television so that he could film the movieSuburban Commando, and to spend time with his newborn sonNicholas. Hogan would return by SummerSlam in August 1990 and got revenge on Earthquake, dominating him in matches that continued into early 1991.
WrestleMania VI would prove to be André the Giant's last televised match in the USA in the WWF as real-life health problems withacromegaly were continuing to take their toll. Andre returned to the WWF late in 1990 for several non-wrestling appearances that continued into 1991, but Andre's health continued to decline, and he died on January 27, 1993.
Demolition began a slow heel turn during the spring of 1990, adding a third memberCrush to the team. This was due toBill Eadie (who competed as Ax) desiring to take a lesser active role in wrestling, and Crush and Smash would soon become the primary defenders of the belt.
WrestleMania VI marked Jesse Ventura's last stint as a color commentator at a WWF pay-per-view event. He continued his role as an on-air color commentator forWWF Superstars of Wrestling through August 1990, at which time he left the company.
At the1998 edition of their annualHalloween Havoc pay-per-view event, rival promotionWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW) pitted Hogan against Warrior once again. Hogan won with outside assistance, giving each man one victory apiece. The contest has gained areputation as one of the worst bouts in history, being vilified by critics, then-WCW presidentEric Bischoff, and former company announcerGene Okerlund. Bischoff has disputed the rumor that he hired Warrior merely to allow Hogan to avenge his WrestleMania VI loss.[16]
... WWE's flagship event lights up MetLife Stadium ... WrestleMania
