10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week
2. Politics Stopped Steamboat vs. Savage WrestleMania Rematch
The battle between Ricky Steamboat and Randy Savage over the latter's Intercontinental Title is still one of the most-heralded bouts in WrestleMania history. Taking place at 'Mania III, the match influenced everyone watching, even Chris Jericho recalls it as his favourite of all time. It makes sense that there would have been a rematch, but it never ended up happening.
WrestleMaia IV the next year featured a 14-man tournament to crown a new WWF Heavyweight Champion. Both Steamboat and Savage were involved, but they wouldn't face one another. Instead, Steamboat was defeated by Greg Valentine in the first round, meaning 'The Hammer' faced Savage, not Ricky.
Steamboat himself feels politics were out in force, stopping such a rematch from happening. The bout would have surely stolen the show, making it nigh-on impossible for anybody to follow. For that exact reason, Ricky Steamboat feels the idea was nixed. In many ways, the WWF shot themselves in the foot here, because the rematch would have been an incredible spectacle.
Alternatively, 'Macho Man' beat Greg Valentine in a relatively short, routine match. The fans were definitely robbed of a show-stealing performance.