50 Things You Learn Binge-Watching Every WWE WrestleMania
49. That Old Blue Cage Visibly Hurts
Buoyed by the fact WrestleMania I didn't kill his family's financials after all, Vince decided to go even bigger for the second event. 'Mania II was spread across three cities: New York, Chicago and LA. Credit where it's due. This was incredibly ballsy back in 1986 when technology was still playing catch up with McMahon's ambitions. He clearly didn't like the results, because WWE never tried this again.
They'd inflict the old steel cage on hundreds of wrestlers for another decade plus though. Internally, the roster called this "the Hogan and Bundy cage" well into the late-90s. Hulk and King Kong Bundy worked a fun enough main event in '86. They were locked inside the blue bars of steel, and honestly? Well it looked like a bloody nightmare to work with. The old WWF ring also appeared to be made of concrete.
No wonder Hogan had hip and back problems years later. Their joints must've been screaming. Wrestlers would've been thrilled when the promotion eventually did away with this cage in 1999. A famous bout between Steve Austin and Mr. McMahon at St. Valentine's Day Massacre marked one of the final occasions when old faithful was put up then torn down.
A new mesh style, partly inspired by the flashy new Hell In A Cell variant, debuted after that. Watching Hogan vs. Bundy back reveals that the previous cage was nightmare fuel for workers planning to get a good night of sleep in. Let's hope the WWF had some ice packs on standby for these men once they came back through the curtain.
Ouch...brother!