There's no evidence to support that this was actually close to happening other than the fact that it's been a persistent rumor for years and has been somewhat validated by Dave Meltzer and others, but it's a fun hypothetical nonetheless. In 1985 Vince had pushed all his chips in with the inaugural WrestleMania event, essentially betting the future of his company that the show would be a success. And it was, because otherwise you'd be reading about something else right now. The inclusion of Mr. T in the main event was a tremendous coup for the company and gained them a massive amount of media attention. But if rumors are to be believed, that fabled event could have ended much differently. Legend has it that journeyman wrestler and notorious bad*ss Bruiser Brody was offered a very large sum of money to do a run-in during the main event. The details vary, from Brody specifically attacking Mr. T during his entrance to him interrupting the match itself and causing chaos. When you really broke the tale down it's likely just that, seeing as how it not only would have hurt Brody's standing with every promoter in the business but also would have landed him in jail and facing a heavy lawsuit, not to mention having to square off with Paul Orndorff for messing with his money. But had it happened and the event fallen apart, it's very likely that the WWE would have fizzled out rather than riding the momentum they built with the first Mania. Are there any other days you think could have brought an end to WWE as we know it? Name them in the comments.
Brad Hamilton is a writer, musician and marketer/social media manager from Atlanta, Georgia. He's an undefeated freestyle rap battle champion, spends too little time being productive and defines himself as the literary version of Brock Lesnar.
