7 WrestleMania Matches That Weren’t All Bad
2. 20-man Invitational Battle Royal - WrestleMania IV (1988)
The match, which seemed to function only to provide 20 otherwise redundant roster members with something to do on the March 27, 1988 event from Atlantic City, was notable for the performance of and reaction to the runner-up, in retrospect.
Among the 20 entered into the battle royal were Harley Race, George Steele, Sam Houston, Hillbilly Jim, Sika, The Junkyard Dog, The Hart Foundation and Bad News Brown.
Houston was eliminated at the 44-second mark. Sika followed him to ringside 12 seconds later. It was clear before the match had reached the one-minute mark that it would not be an epic confrontation.
Indeed. The field was whittled down rapidly. The final four were Brown, Paul Roma, The Junkyard Dog and Bret Hart of The Hart Foundation tag team.
Once Roma had been eliminated, heels Brown and Hart conspired against lone babyface JYD and were able to eliminate him, amazingly. Villains rarely prospered in matches like these in the WWF of 1988.
As Hart and Brown celebrated together, commentator Gorilla Monsoon said: I think maybe these guys have decided to split the purse money.
Honour among thieves? No chance in hell. As Harts back was turned, Brown floored him and whipped him into the corner: Bret absorbed his running chest-first collision with the turnbuckles. The difference here was the public was intended to sympathise with Hart. Bad News was framed as the villain.
Fans received the message.
Brown threw Hart over the top rope to win the match to the sound of boos. But Bad News didnt have the last laugh. In the end, the WWF adhered to its tried and trusted formula.
Hart returned to the ring and dropkicked the treacherous Brown to the floor. Seizing Browns winners trophy, Hart smashed it as spectators cheered. Though he had fallen at the final hurdle, the spotlight after the match was firmly on Hart, who was given the floor to interact with the audience in his official babyface turn.
This result also marked the separation of Brets Hart Foundation tag team with Jim Neidhart: Hart was promoted as a solo wrestler after Mania IV albeit temporarily.
The ever-fickle Vince McMahon reunited The Hart Foundation three months later. Hart had to wait until 1991 before he was the recipient of a prolonged singles push. Nonetheless, Harts performance in the battle royal and individual promos and matches in the spring and early summer provided a sneak peek of what was to come from The Hitman.