10 Most Important Matches In The History Of WWE
9. Hulk Hogan Vs. Andre The Giant - WrestleMania III
Hulk Hogan was already a major star by WrestleMania III, and the WWF was already on fire - but his main event opposite André The Giant in Detroit elevated him from mere wrestling star to myth of Americana, practitioner of the impossible.
The match itself was dire, technically, but it doesn't matter. It might read as histrionic, even cheesy, but there was something magical about Hulk Hogan. His ability to manipulate an audience has never been surpassed by anybody. His act was beyond cartoonish, but it still resonated. His selling was completely overblown, but still sympathetic. His comebacks could be timed to the second, but they were still rousing.
The WWF's ability to spin - a much more affordable luxury in the pre-internet age - was crucial here. Andre The Giant had been slammed countless times before - even by Hogan - but unless you subscribed to the dirtsheets or were actually there at the time, you weren't to know. Even if you did, you had no way of truly transmitting that knowledge.
When Hogan did what was expertly sold as the impossible, and bodyslammed Andre, he became a legend. That spectacular and iconic moment crystallised the success of the company's most ambitious ever venture, and propelled it to never before reached heights.