100 Greatest WWE WrestleMania Moments
20. The Ultimate Challenge Favours Warrior (WrestleMania VI)
Vince McMahon presumably needed some throat sweeties after performing the gravelly voiceover for WrestleMania VI's "Ultimate Challenge" between Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior. The then-boss was in OTT hype mode for the studio session, but he sold this babyface vs. babyface collision with gusto by ranting and raving about "powerful forces" in the cosmos like his life depended on it.
The match was carefully constructed with several simple receipt spots. One minute, Hulk was shoving Warrior down. The next, Hogan ended up on his big tanned behind. Cleverly, a few double downs also permeated proceedings and added to the swelling drama amongst fans. Just who would win?! Iconic WWF good guy Hulk or new kid on the block Warrior. Soon, people would have their answer.
It was Warrior, baby.
Hogan might not have wanted to publicly admit it, but he definitely needed a bit of a breather come 1990. McMahon can't be cursed for trying to move in a fresh direction, or for seeing if the burgeoning popularity of Warrior could become his next ticket to making millions of dollars heading into a new decade. Things didn't quite work out that way, and Hulk was back later in the year, but the WWF had to try it on for size.
All things considered, the "Ultimate Challenge" was excellent. It did seem like the WWF's fanbase would accept Warrior as a Hogan successor as 'Mania VI closed business for the night too. This is still one of the most must see main events in the event's rich history whether you're into that particular era or not.