A storyline that kicked off with a botched double turn ended with the Powers Of Pain rueing their decisions after a union with Demolition's former manager Mr Fuji couldn't guide them to tag team gold.
Survivor Series 1988's two-way switch had inadvertently presented Fuji as a babyface rather than Warlord and Barbarian as fiendish heels, but there was no confusion when it came to the 'Show Of Shows' title clash.
Audiences had made their minds up on Ax and Smash long before this point - the two were sh*tkickers in a time without many others around, always backed up their threats, and always won. With less cheating - and here, a numerical disadvantage to overcome - it was stunningly simple to get the desired reaction for the dominant duo.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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
