25 Best Wrestling Shows EVER
15. WWE King Of The Ring 1993
A great wrestling event isn’t necessarily a collection of great matches. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla shows alone could populate much of this list, were that the case.
King Of The Ring 1993 was an expertly booked pro wrestling show.
It was designed to reheat Bret Hart, after the debacle that was WrestleMania IX, and set up his next long-term programme. It succeeded to an extent that fans of Bret will never tire of telling you that he made wrestling what it was to them. He made them realise that wrestling wasn’t a fad but an art form, a lifelong obsession.
Bret defeated Razor Ramon in a very good opener before bettering one of the all-time great Intercontinental title matches in an unvarnished thriller against Mr. Perfect in the semi-final. Bret Vs. Perfect II is the best lost WWE classic. Their chemistry was always beautiful, but there’s a wildness to the all-babyface sequel, driven by the urgency of the tournament setting, that is remarkable. There’s a danger to it, a thrilling sense on Perfect’s part that, if it Hart was to get badly hurt, f*ck him. There’s glory to be had.
His opponent in the final, Bam Bam Bigelow, had received a bye and made swift work of a game but past-it Jim Duggan. The storytelling was inspired, if the peril was laid on a bit thick, but Bret was so fantastic that it was never once hokey. He sold multiple body parts and sold as if it would be no shame, were he to not prevail - but prevail he did.
The post-match angle was dynamite, too, even if the resulting programme with Jerry Lawler never reached its potential.