WrestleMania VIs main event can only be described as a dream match, as WWF Champion Hulk Hogan took on Intercontinental Champion The Ultimate Warrior in what was known as The Ultimate Challenge. It was one of the best matches in both mens careers, established Warrior as a Hogan level star, but it was nearly a very different match. A year prior, WWF and Hulk Hogan took on the silver screen with No Holds Barred, where Hogan essentially starred as himself (under the name Rip Randall) and took on the mighty Zeus, played by Tiny Lister. While No Holds Barred was a critical flop, it did surprisingly well at the box office, and that was enough for Vince McMahon to want to extend the Rip Randall v Zeus feud onto his own programming. Tiny Lister was brought in as Zeus to take on Hogan numerous times over the course of 1989, but the pair never met one-on-one. While Zeus was supposed to challenge Hogan to their singles confrontation at WrestleMania, fans were bored with the angle as Lister wasnt a trained wrestler, and it was needlessly confusing that he was playing his character from the film, but Hogan wasnt. At the same time, The Ultimate Warrior was becoming incredibly popular among fans, so McMahon changed up his plans and instead set Warrior and Hogan to face each other at WrestleMania VI. WWE rarely mentions No Holds Barred these days, and when they do, its often in a mocking tone usually reserved for the likes of past failures such as The Gobbedly Gooker.
