10 Most Shocking WWE WrestleMania Role Reversals

3. Macho Man Randy Savage - WrestleMania VII & VIII

RANDY SAVAGE WM VII WM VIII
WWE

Macho Man Randy Savage committed to the bit when he lost a "retirement" match to the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VII. One of the greatest contests in the history of the event saw Savage sacrifice his flying elbow finisher in a heartstopping end sequence.

Warrior kicked out after Savage had hit five of the f*ckers without reply and crushed him to the point where a foot on his chest was enough for the win. There was No. Coming. Back.

Then, at WrestleMania VIII, Savage defeated Ric Flair to win the WWE Championship.

Far from being rooted in pro wrestling cynicism, Randy's return was joyous to the last. Brought back following vociferous request from the fans after Jake Roberts had terrorised him and wife Elizabeth during the latter half of 1991, his title programme with Flair centred around 'The Nature Boy's lies about a prior relationship with the 'First Lady Of Wrestling'.

Randy was a reborn babyface but knew how to compete with the 'Dirtiest Player In The Game'. He didn't need the elbow drop he'd given to Warrior one year earlier - a handful of tights did the trick.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett