10 Big Wrestling Matches With Terrible Botched Finishes
6. Ricky Steamboat Vs. Rick Rude (Royal Rumble 1988)
Rick Rude vs. Ricky Steamboat at the 1988 Royal Rumble should've been a classic. 'The Dragon' was at the height of his powers as one of the greatest babyfaces of all-time, while Rude was the complete opposite: a despicable heel with no redeeming personality traits. Sadly, what we got was a good but not great bout, with most of the disappointment coming from the way it ended.
'The Ravishing One' looked to have the match won. He had Steamboat locked in a submission hold, but the 'tap out' rule didn't exist at the time. For a wrestler to submit, they needed to be unresponsive after having his or her arm lifted three times, and that's what happened with Steamboat.
This wasn't in the script. Ricky was supposed to raise his arm at the final attempt, after which the match would've continued. He forgot, but to increasing the confusion levels further, Rude wasn't even awarded a submission victory. Steamboat took the match via disqualification, so not only did he forget to lift his hand at the vital moment, but the referee couldn't think on his feet, muddying the conclusion further.