10 Times Outside Factors Totally Changed WWE WrestleMania

1. The Gulf War (WrestleMania VII)

SADAM Wrestlemania VII Speech
WWE.com

Quick question: Would you rather...

A) Read up on the increasingly dire India/Palestine conflict? It's fascinating, if grim; the latter nation has now threatened the former with, quote, a "surprise". The taunting, puffed-out chest language of stunted children, the tragic human toll, the generational determinism...it's all so awful, so helpless.

OR

B) Escape into a vibrant, technicolour world of simulated drama and epic, athletic theatre?

Well you're not reading the f*cking New York Times, and for that, there can be no blame.

The WWF attempted to capitalise on the Gulf War, ahead of WrestleMania VII, by pushing Sgt. Slaughter as an "Iraqi sympathiser". The role alienated the public. This was a monumental and calculable promotional error; the show, downscaled from a stadium to an arena, failed to draw interest because it brought into focus that which the public wished to escape. Besides which, the WWF didn't even appeal to the xenophobic crowd effectively, for Slaughter was a transparently phoney Boogeyman. Vince used the familiar - the white, let's face it - to mine fear of the "other". The passe foreign menace wasn't even foreign.

Deeply contrived, the WWF barely allowed themselves time to change the colour of the Ultimate Warrior's belt, too rushed to realise that the black strap at least reflected one colour of the Iraqi flag - and again, the promotional shots only served to underscore the vulturism of it all.

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!