7. British Bulldog In Your House 8: Beware Of Dog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbE9c9ENlgw When discussing legendary wrestlers that never held the coveted WWE Championship, there are a handful of names that immediately spring to mind at the very top of that list; legends like Mr Perfect Curt Hennig, Scott Razor Ramon Hall and Ravishing Rick Rude to name just a few. Another name right at the top of that list is iconic UK grappler, Davey Boy Smith The British Bulldog. With a career that spanned three decades and saw multiple championship victories including the unforgettable main event of SummerSlam 92 in Wembley Stadium one belt that eluded him was the WWF Title itself. That is except for one often-forgotten moment in 1996 at the eventful In Your House 8: Beware of Dog pay-per-view. The event would be memorable for a number of reasons; not least because over half of the show was contested almost completely in darkness. Severe weather conditions had led to a power outage in the arena, causing virtually the entire event to be held without the use of arena lighting; giving an entirely new meaning to the term dark match in the process. Thankfully, by the time the main event rolled around, the lighting had been restored and the main event went ahead as planned. Shades of the Cena/Punk scenario at Night of Champions 2012, Michaels would hit a German Suplex on Bulldog from the corner; yet much like Cena 16 years later HBK would also fall foul of the double pinfall, leaving his own shoulders pinned to the mat during the three-count. Bulldogs music played and the Brit was declared the new WWF Champion. The result led to widespread confusion before replays proved that both men were in fact pinned during the manoeuvre and, after some conferring between referees, the bout was ruled a draw. Michaels retained and Bulldogs WWF Title victory was quickly nullified; left buried in the stormy darkness of the Florence Civic Centre. The indecisive finish would lead to a rematch one month later at King of the Ring 1996 in a forgotten classic of the 90s. Barring participation in a Six-Pack Challenge at Unforgiven 99, Bulldog would never come close to WWF Championship gold again.
Martyn Grant
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Occasional wrestler, full-time gym rat and lifelong lover of the grapple game. Would probably buy you a shot of Jack at the bar in exchange for witty banter...and preferably more Jack.
@MartynGrant88 for more wrestling-related musings and weight room wisecracks!
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