35 Years Of WWE WrestleMania Mistakes

32. WrestleMania IV - Clash Of The Champions

WWE Network

Shortly after Vince McMahon created the 'WrestleMania' concept, he invented pay-per-view wrestling alongside it. The company experimented with the format for The Wrestling Classic in 1985, and finally employed the medium full-scale for WrestleMania III. It was a huge success; the event drew a mammoth 400,000 buys, with people in many cases purchasing cable boxes just to be able to watch the show.

Though the WWF was undoubtedly the mainstream wrestling promotion at the time of WrestleMania III, Georgia-based Jim Crockett Promotions had been doing incredible business itself. Starrcade '86 had been the biggest selling wrestling VHS to date, and the company was starting to build momentum for their own national expansion. By 1987 JCP was finally ready to put on a nationwide pay-per-view show, starting with the flagship Starrcade.

McMahon was furious. Unwilling to allow a rival group to eat into his pay-per-view pie, the WWF chief announced a second annual PPV, Survivor Series, which would air directly against Starrcade '87. Cable companies were wise to McMahon's attempts at sabotage, and negotiated with Crockett so they could offer fans both events back to back.

Incensed, Vince threw his toys out the pram and issued an ultimatum to the carriers: if you air Starrcade, you can't have WrestleMania. Most conceded; the revenue from WrestleMania was just too big to forego. A hugely impeded Starrcade '87 attracted just 20,000 buys.

JCP had the last laugh. When WrestleMania IV rolled around, Crockett decided to play McMahon at his own game, airing a TBS special headlined by Sting vs. Ric Flair on the same night. The show - known as Clash of the Champions - was a huge success, severely curtailing WrestleMania IV's buys in the process. Irritated that this inter-promotional one-upmanship was costing them revenue, the cable companies banded together and warned the WWF and JCP to play nice or else they wouldn't air either of their shows in the future.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.