Missy Hyatt sits down for Press Conference. WCW invades New York to mixed results. The real winners and losers from WrestleMania IX. Does Van Hammer have what it takes to win the NWA World Title? The South rising up against Dirty White Boy. Will Lex Luger and Mr. Hughes feud or be friends? And, the first ever PWI Poll! All this and more!
FROM THE DESK OF… : written by: Stu Saks
Stu talks about how gross Manhattan is but yet Tony Anthony wants to be there. Anthony is 100% a southerner but has turned his back on the area and embraced his inner yankee. One wrestler stated that Anthony will learn that people in the South don’t forgive should the day come that Anthony asks for forgiveness. When Anthony leaves the South he better not come to New York because he’s not wanted there either. However, New York does want WCW. They held a show on April 14th and didn’t get a sellout at the Paramount Center. Stu has faith that you just have to give them time.
Staks also talks about the publication moving from their New York office to an office in Pennsylvania. He goes through a lot of members on the team and praises their work ethic. It seems to be rather bittersweet for Stu to be leaving New York.
BETWEEN FALLS
John from PA believes that Lex Luger will not be a failure in WWF and thinks he’ll be elite in the WWF for quite sometime considering his track record in WCW. Rita from Chicago disagrees believing that Luger is a sissy and will not last past this year. Stan from New Jersey praises Big Van Vader as being an underrated wrestler and has shown he can dominate without Harley Race as his manager. Sheila from Texas says that anybody who doesn’t believe in Sherri Martel being able to handle Luna Vachon will be in for a surprise should they meet in the ring. Jim from MA thinks the editors have forgotten that Mr. Fuji has successfully managed people prior to Yokozuna, most notably Demolition. Jim says that they shouldn’t criticize WWF for not acknowledging the past if they don’t either.
David from Georgia is not excited about Hulk Hogan returning at WrestleMania IX and winning the WWF World Championship. He hopes that the quickest match leads to the quickest title reign and Hogan leaves. Richard from Mississippi has bought his final WWF pay per view until the WWF World Championship is settled since Hogan and Yokozuna never signed a contract. He thinks that Bret and Yokozuna should have a rematch with Mr. Fuji barred from ringside. Dustin from Oregon thinks the WWF should have more midget matches since his father watched and laughed, and his father isn’t a wrestling fan. With more midget wrestling matches they’ll get more fans.
RINGSIDE: written by: Bill Apter
Missy Hyatt seemingly wants to manage Ric Flair now that he’s returned to WCW from WWF. Apparently, in England Mr. Fuji cost Yokozuna a match against Jim Duggan that led to Duggan pinning Yokozuna in under two minutes. The same thing happened at WrestleMania and many people are suggesting that Yokozuna is angry towards Mr. Fuji. Bobby Eaton will be making his debut for NJPW soon and Too Cold Scorpio will be returning on the same show. Arn Anderson competed in SMW teaming with the Rock N’ Roll Express having a brawl with the Heavenly Bodies that led to their team winning but plenty of weapons being involved.
Steve Doll and Rex King won the USWA Tag Team Championships from the Moondogs with King holding Spot’s foot down to get the three count. Later on, King rubbed a towel with ether on it in Jeff Jarrett’s face costing him a ten man tag match. Don Muraco won the ECW Heavyweight Championship from Mr. Sandman thanks to Paul E. Dangerously. Dangerously is also managing Jimmy Snuka and Eddie Gilbert. This is the new era of the Dangerous Alliance in ECW.
WIN, LOSE, OR DRAW: written by: Andy Rodriguez
Mr. Fuji has proven to be the worst manager ever when he allowed Yokozuna to defend the WWF World Championship against Hulk Hogan just minutes after defeating Bret Hart and then losing the championship. Fuji continually strives for success but squanders the opportunities. In 1985, Fuji managed Don Muraco against Hogan for the WWF World Championship and after three matches, Hogan remained the champion. Muraco wouldn’t get closer to the championship again. Fuji didn’t teach Muraco about Hogan’s weaknesses and that prevented Muraco from winning the championship. Fuji managed Yokozuna differently and near perfection until the night that Yokozuna won the WWF World Championship from Bret Hart at WrestleMania IX. Fuji’s mistake could tarnish his legacy forever. Fuji let his confidence get the best of him, but perhaps next time he’ll get it right with Yokozuna. This is Andy’s final article writing for PWI on a full-time basis. He’ll remain on a freelance basis.
IN FOCUS: written by: Craig Peters
Craig was surprised to see Sherri Martel won the USWA Women’s Championship from Miss Texas largely because he forgot about the championship. Sherri must have found it to b e a big deal considering she challenged for it and eventually won. Craig doesn’t take this as a women’s revolution, but suggests that it’s just waiting to fully happen. He also wants to know what makes people watch wrestling whether it’s on television or live at the arena. He was surprised to see the arena was only 2/3 full when WCW ran in New York. He figured that people would be running over each other to attend the shows. If given the choice of Doink or Ric Flair, who are you going to see?
There appears to be an influx in tag teams where you can’t tell the partners apart and it’s been difficult for referees to enforce the rules as result. The Cole Twins, Wrecking Crew and the Harris Twins are examples. Nick Patrick, a referee for WCW, has the same old suggestions to prevent it, which include video replay and additional referees. However, rule changes are as easy to change as it is to change the US Constitution.
THE STEEL CAGE: written by: Chris Bernucca
Chris will not be joining PWI in their new offices in Ambler, PA as he prefers to remain in New York. However, he will continue to write for PWI and their sister publications. Chris gives us a rundown of his day, which includes showing up to work 26-minutes late. A correspondent calls about a USWA show. He took a cigarette break takes place at 10:03, roughly two hours into his work day. They have headline meetings where two headlines that weren’t used were mentioned. The first one being “Sgt. Slaughter: Fat Sack Of Shitte.” One of his favorite ones is “Ron Simmons: The First Black Ex-Champion.” At the end, Chris thinks about being his own boss and likes the sound of sleeping in and working on his tan.
OFF THE TOP ROPE: written by: Eddie Ellner
Robert from England isn’t impressed by the Frankensteiner finishing move that Scott Steiner performs. Frankly, he finds it to be overrated. He finds the savant kick by Chris Adams or the Oklahoma Stampede by Steve Williams to be real finishing moves. Eddie thinks that a move that needs real praise is the leg drop performed by Hulk Hogan. Michael from Arkansas wrote a letter that included a stamp to be delivered to Paul E. Dangerously. Eddie tells him that Paul can’t help him, but rather the only guy who could help him is Hulk Hogan. Val from Florida thinks that Lex Luger is finally gaining his footing in the business thanks to his previous association with guys like Harley Race, Hiro Matsuda and Bobby Heenan. Eddie, of course, says that Luger isn’t a match for Hulk Hogan. Fred from Detroit believes that Hogan should run for political office, which Eddie fully supports.
PRESS CONFERENCE: MISSY HYATT
Hyatt walked into the room wearing a low cut stop and Dave Rosenbaum dropped his pen to get a look down her shirt prompting Craig Peters to call him out on it. The topic of Ric Flair is brought up, who Hyatt says doesn’t have much time for her these days. Hyatt claims that she is a loyal person and dumped Barbarian because she realized how much work was left for him to become a champion. There wasn’t a contract between them. She wants to talk to Flair, but doesn’t understand why he sends bodyguards towards her. She’s only trying to do her job. She won’t confirm or deny whether or not she wants to manage Ric Flair. Under the right terms, she’d manage anyone. She’s not hot for Flair’s body. As for her column at WCW Magazine, she just writes down whatever comes to mind. She believes that the world isn’t just for men, and that women have played an important role in the life of a man. The right woman can keep Flair going and she might be the right woman.
A NEW ERA IN WRESTLING? WCW TAKES MANHATTAN!: written by: Dave Rosenbaum
WCW managed to get their foot into the NYC scene when WWF’s exclusive contract with MSG ran out and they decided to run weekly shows at the Manhattan Center while cutting back on MSG shows in the process. The Paramount is a 5,000 seat arena and is easier to fill, which could lead to WCW going into the Garden. WCW managed to get 3,500 fans into the arena, which featured Van Hammer winning in his hometown over Vinnie Vega. Also, Sting defeated WCW World Champion Vader, but didn’t win the championship. Sting admitted he was nervous wrestling in New York because this could lead to a big expansion for WCW.
Apparently, a brunette in the front row exposed her chest and she was escorted out of the arena. Rick Rude defeated Cactus Jack, NWA World Champion Barry Windham pinned Ricky Steamboat, WCW Tag Team Champions Hollywood Blonds defeated 2 Cold Scorpio and Marcus Alexander Bagwell. Fans enjoyed seeing Paul Orndorff beat Dustin Rhodes up with a foreign object. Ric Flair was scheduled to make an appearance but didn’t make the show due to a plane issues.
WCW officials considered the show a partial success and believe it was a good first step. Perhaps if they can fill the arena in the future they will consider going into the Garden.
WRESTLEMANIA IX: THE REAL WINNERS AND LOSERS
While Tatanka won the match at WrestleMania against WWF Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels, Michaels was the real winner when he got himself disqualified to keep the belt. Sensational Sherri is the real loser when she hot attacked by Luna Vachon. The Steiners won their match against the Headshrinkers and are also the number one contenders. That fact, makes Money Inc. the real losers since they will have to wrestle a superior team. Doink won his match against Crush, but Jack Tunney is seen as the real loser. Tunney allowed an impostor clown to impact the finish, similar to what happened in 1988. Tunney is a weak WWF President. Razor Ramon looked like a real winner having defeated Bob Backlund and the fans chanted for him during the match. Backlund is the real loser having fallen from being a former WWF World Champion to now losing at Mania.
Money Inc. retained the WWF Tag Team Championships against Hulk Hogan & Brutus Beefcake winning by disqualification. Dave Hebner is seen as the real winner for making Money Inc. return to the ring and defend the tag titles. Jimmy Hart is the real loser now that he doesn’t have a tag team because he can’t be seen as a trusted manager. Despite Mr. Perfect losing to Lex Luger at WrestleMania, he attacked Shawn Michaels backstage and that makes him a real winner room the show. The Undertaker prevailed over Giant Gonzalez winning by disqualification, which also makes Hulk Hogan a winner for not having to deal with either one of the big men. Yokozuna won the WWF World Championship from Bret Hart, but Hulk Hogan is the real winner having won the title from Yokozuna just moments later. Bret Hart is the real loser since he isn’t going to get rematches now that Hogan has the gold.
DOES VAN HAMMER HAVE THE TOOLD TO NAIL DOWN THE NWA TITLE?: written by: Dave Rosenbaum
Apparently, people think Hammer is too young to claim the NWA Championship. Hammer says that youth is an asset, similar to other sports. He doesn’t think he spends too much time on his motorcycle, which has been a claim as well. Sting doesn’t think Hammer realizes how tough it is to win a championship. A turning point for Hammer was when he lost to Rick Rude in England. He feels like he became a better wrestler following the loss. For a guy who couldn’t get into the top 15 rankings, he has now reached as high as sixth. A WCW fan favorite believes that Hammer isn’t going to win a championship because of his finishing move being a slingshot suplex. Van doesn’t think anyone would be upset if he won the NWA World Championship from Barry Windham.
DAMNED YANKEE: HOW THE SOUTH IS RISING AGAINST TONY ANTHONY: written by: Dave Rosenbaum
Tracy Smothers didn’t know how to go about a chain match, but luckily for him he had the South on his side when he battled SMW Heavyweight Champion Tony Anthony on April 2nd. It was the first chain match in Tennessee in fifteen years. Smothers main problem with Anthony is he is turning people against each other. Smothers was motivated to win the SMW Heavyweight Championship for the people in the South. A PWI staffer called Anthony at his old home in Tennessee, and someone answered who sounded just like Anthony but claimed not to be. Smothers doesn’t understand why Anthony lives in the South. He’s on a mission to push him up North and he has the fans behind him to do it, too.
LEX LUGER & MR. HUGHES TOGETHER AGAIN – AS PARTNERS OR RIVALS?: written by: Dave Rosenbaum
Luger and Hughes have arrived in WWF at almost the same time and perhaps it was all by design. They were aligned together in WCW with Harley Race as their manager and Hughes playing the role of bodyguard for Luger. Once Luger left WCW, Hughes was still forgotten behind Vader and Vinnie Vegas. Luger made his debut in January while Hughes arrived in March. Hughes may have revenge on his mind after losing a feud to Luger in 1990. Hughes blamed Luger for his career being ruined for making him his bodyguard. Plus, when Luger left for the WWF that left Hughes not having any kind of direction. Now in the WWF, if both men continue to win they would likely meet at the top. There, Hughes will have to decide to either join Luger or battle him. They could very well ignore each other as they haven’t interacted and Luger hasn’t brought Hughes up at all. Hughes considered Luger a boss and not a friend. Time will tell what direction they go.
THE PWI POLL: WRESTLING INSIDERS HAVE THEIR SAY
1.) Who is pound for pound the best wrestler in the world?
Jushin Liger 32%
Bret Hart 18%
Jeff Jarrett 12%
Curt Hennig 9%
Ric Flair 8%
Others 21%
2.) If you could watch the match of only one wrestler, whom would you choose?
Ric Flair 27%
Jushin Liger 9%
Hulk Hogan 7%
Lou Thesz 6%
Bruno Sammartino 5%
Sting 5%
Bret Hart 4%
The Great Muta 4%
Buddy Rogers 3%
Others 31%
3.) If you could watch the machos of only one tag team, which would you choose?
Steiner Brothers 21%
Legion of Doom 20%
The Heavenly Bodies 11%
The Freebirds 10%
The British Bulldogs 4%
The Hart Foundation 3%
The Rockers 3%
Rock n’ Roll Express 3%
Ole & Gene Anderson 3%
Others 18%
4.) Who would win a match between Vader & Hulk Hogan?
Vader 53%
Hulk Hogan 47%
5.) Which North American Federations has the highest quality wrestling?
WCW 68%
WWF 28%
Others 4%
6.) Which is the dominant federation in North America?
WWF 83%
WCW 6%
None 11%
7.) Who would win a match between Sting & Bret Hart?
Bret hart 51%
Sting 49%
8.) Would you describe wrestling’s immediate future as hopeless, cloudy, status quo, promising or shining?
Cloudy 25%
Status Quo 32%
Promising 35%
Shining 5%
Hopeless 3%
9.) Who is wrestling’s best manager?
Jim Cornette 60%
Jimmy Hart 25%
Bobby Heenan 7%
Mr. Fuji 3%
Others 5%
10.) If you could watch a world championship at any venue, where would it be?
Madison Square Garden 69%
Tokyo Dome 9%
Baltimore Arena 8%
The Omni 5%
Kiel Auditorium 4%
Others 5%
11.) Do you think steroid use is still prevalent in wrestling?
Yes 41%
No 59%
12.) Will Ric Flair win his 10th World Title?
Yes 38%
No 62%
13.) Should wrestling have a mandatory retirement age?
Yes 12%
No 88%
14.) Who is the best television commentator?
Jim Ross 33%
Jesse Ventura 29%
Tony Schiavone 27%
Bobby Heenan 2%
Gorilla Monsoon 2%
Others 7%
15.) Should all titles change hands on disqualifications and count outs?
Yes 76%
No 24%
16.) Are the best go today’s wrestling as good as the best of those 40 years ago?
Yes 66%
No 34%
17.) Is pay per view good for wrestling?
Yes 77%
No 23%
18.) Would you describe mainstream media coverage of wrestling as poor, mediocre, good or excellent?
Poor 92%
Mediocre 6%
Good 2%
Excellent 0%
19.) Would you gauge the general public’s perception of wrestling as poor, mediocre, good or excellent?
Poor 44%
Mediocre 33%
Good 22%
Excellent 1%
20.) Who is wrestling’s best referee?
Dave Hebner 53%
Nick Patrick 35%
Dick Kroll 8%
Others 4%
21.) Who is the most influential man in wrestling?
Vince McMahon 83%
Hulk Hogan 7%
Ted Turner 7%
Others 3%
What’s your thoughts on the magazine or memories of what was going on in wrestling at the time? Did you purchase this magazine?
Thanks for reading.