10 Iconic Wrestling Moments That Weren't Meant To Happen

5. The First Proper WWE Dream Match

Daniel Bryan Mania XXX
WWE

Hulk Hogan Vs. The Rock, WrestleMania X8's inter-generational Icon Vs. Icon bout, wasn't quite the plan; another inter-generational Icon Vs. Icon bout was mooted originally. Steve Austin rejected the opportunity to square off against the Hulkster in fear of being overshadowed. He displayed his trademark prescience here; Hogan, master politicker, drunk on the fierce wave of nostalgia crashing through the Skydome, went off script. He turned himself babyface in the process, necessitating a third called audible; with the nWo 'Band' destroyed over the course of 17 ultra-heated minutes, underbosses Kevin Hall and Kevin Nash were dispatched to the ring to turn on the turncoat in an improvised post-match beatdown angle.

The WrestleMania XIX match between Hogan and Vince McMahon was predicated on a more or less unanswerable question: who was responsible for the rise of Hulkamania? The rebirth was all Hogan; in masterminding his own, inevitable face turn, Hogan secured a belated sixth reign with the WWF Heavyweight title in little over a month.

The landscape of the WWF was altered so thoroughly that Hogan, in effect, created an alternate timeline.

Maybe, in the planned reality, Vince would have defeated the pandas in court and told his daughter that scripting promos to the letter was an absolutely stupid idea.

In this post: 
Daniel Bryan
 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!