10 Fascinating WWE King Of The Ring 1994 Facts
7. It Was The Event Where The "New Generation" Campaign Truly Kicked Up
For much of 1994, WWE had been thematically presenting their top wrestlers as the leaders of a younger class of superstars. When Bret Hart felled Yokozuna to become champion at WrestleMania 10, Vince barked that Hart was going to be the one to help WWE "blast off into the next decade".
When 40-year-old Hulk Hogan took part in a ticker-tape arrival parade in WCW the week before King of the Ring, WWE dialed up their attempts at appearing younger and hipper by advertising their "New Generation" campaign, something that commentators Gorilla Monsoon and Macho Man Randy Savage incessantly mentioned throughout the night. The hype video made sure to present Hogan as past his prime, a bitter swipe across WCW's nose.
In a humorous irony, during the event's pre-show, emcee Todd Pettengill interviewed the aforementioned Maryland Governor, William Donald Schaefer, who blurted out that Hogan was his favorite wrestler, which led to a flustered Pettengill scrambling to move on.