Preshow
Match 1: The Hardy Boys vs The Godwinns
Between tapings we end up getting The Hardy Boys vs The Godwinns. Pretty decent match between these two teams. I am getting more and more impressed with The Hardy Boys every show. Godwinns however do end up picking up the victory.
Winners: The Godwinns
Rating: 5/10
Match 2: Mankind vs Aldo Montoya
Anytime Mankind is in a match I expect it to be a great match, however, it was clear that Mankind wasn’t really on the top of his game today, most likely due to the fact that he was wrestling in a dark match. Mankind dominated the match, easily picking up the victory over Aldo Montoya
Winner: Mankind
Rating: 5/10
Main Card
Opening Match: Bret “The Hitman” Hart vs British Bulldog w/Owen Hart
Fantastic way to start off the show. Bret Hart, was outstanding as always and put on a hell of a match. Owen did attempt to distract Bret a few times but it did not matter. After about 12-minutes Bret ends up getting the win after Bulldog tapped out from the Sharpshooter.
Winner: Bret “The Hitman” Hart
Rating: 8/10
After the match Bret gets up immediately and is looking around the ring and arena. Vince McMahon in the commentary mentions that “Bret is clearly looking for Austin.” After 30 seconds of Bret looking around and the crowd chanting Austin the titantron turns on and show Austin backstage. Austin looks at the camera. “Look at all this crap.” The camera zooms out and it is now evident that Austin is in Hart’s locker room. Austin starts knocking Bret’s stuff over, snapping his sunglasses and ripping his shirts. Bret is then seen running into the backstage area. Another great segment from these two. Austin was fantastic as always. Everytime he ripped, threw or broke one of Bret’s things he had some witty comment that made the crowd go wild. Great segment.
Rating: 9/10
Up next we have Rocky Maivia and Bob Holly vs Bob Backlund and The Iron Sheik. Sheik and Backlund are out first, followed by Rocky Maivia. Once Bob Holly’s music hits though Holly doesn’t come out. Rocky looks behind waiting for Holly, but after a minute of waiting, Holly is still not out. Rocky ends up heading to the ring anyways and it looks like we are having ourselves a Handicap Match.
Rating: 6/10
Match 2: Rocky Maivia vs Bob Backlund and The Iron Sheik
Decent match. Backlund and Sheik did a nice job of making Rocky look strong, however, Backlund and Sheik returning to the ring was the real story here. The crowd actually ended up cheering for these two men during the match. Simply due to their star power alone, Backlund and Sheik made the match, with Rocky being the weak link. Towards the end of the match the Titantron turned on to show a hurt Bob Holly backstage. Rocky looks over to the Titantron as the camera pulls back to reveal The Sultan was the one who took out Holly. Rocky ends up leaving the ring to help his friend. Rocky ends up getting counted out as Backlund and Sheik get the cheap victory.
Winner: Bob Backlund and The Iron Sheik
Rating: 6/10
The camera continues to follow Rocky as he runs around backstage frantically. He is shouting for Holly, asking some backstage staff if he knows where he is. Eventually Rocky finds Holly lying on the ground as we see Sultan, escaping with Backlund and Sheik. Rocky looks like he was going to chase after them but ends up getting down to check on Holly. Holly screams in pain as Rocky tells him it will be okay. Not the best segment but it did do its job of advancing the story.
Rating: 5/10
We cut to the ring as Tito Santana is announced and heads to the ring. Tito gets to the ring and says that he is excited to be back in the WWF. Tito says that he isn’t the only guy coming back tonight, referring to Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, so he will make it quick. As Tito is about to talk Hunter Hearst Helmsley’s music hits as he comes out and interrupts. Hunter heads into the ring and grabs a microphone. “Do you remember this old man”. Hunter then shows Tito the Intercontinental Championship. Hunter continues… “You know, people once thought of you as a great Intercontinental Champion, but now that they have seen me, they realized that you were not a great champion. You were just another nobody who was holding onto this belt until a real champion came around. Well Tito, a real champion is here now, so why don’t you just use the little air time the WWF provided you to announce your retirement.”
Tito lifts the microphone to his mouth. “You know Hunter, I have been watching you and I will admit you are impressive. You have all the tools to be a great champion, yet you miss one thing...respect and until you learn that, you will never be considered a great champion.” The crowd starts to chant Tito as Hunter is looking pretty angry. “You know what Hunter, I am not sure if you know this but I first won that belt almost 13 years to this day, about an hour away from here in Boston. So...if you are so great, why don’t you give this old man one more chance. Put that title on the line...right here...right now.”
Hunter’s face turns from anger to a smirk. “You want a match...YOU GOT IT”. Hunter backs into the ring corner as he takes off his jacket and shirt. An Impromptu Intercontinental Title match is next!
Rating: 7/10
Match 3: Tito Santana vs Hunter Hearst Helmsley for the WWF Intercontinental Title
Good match between these two. It was great to see Tito Santana in the ring again, even if he isn’t as good as he once was. Match was back and forth for the majority. The match ended little after the 7 minute mark. Hunter pushed Tito into the referee who ended up falling and getting knocked out for a moment. Tito ends up getting the upper hand and finally nails Hunter with the Flying Forearm Smash. Tito pins Hunter as the crowd counts to 3 multiple times. We should have a new champion but the referee is still out! Tito stands up to help the referee but when he turns around he comes face to face with the former King of the Ring...Mabel! Mabel lifts up Tito and nails him with a Chokebomb. Mabel then pulls Hunter on top of Tito as the referee finally comes back to his senses. The ref counts the 1,2,3 and Hunter Hearst Helmsley retains the WWF Intercontinental Championship.
Winner: Hunter Hearst Helmsley
Rating: 7/10
After the match Mabel comes back into the ring as he throws Tito out through the ropes. Mabel lifts Hunter up and hands him the Intercontinental Championship. Hunter grabs the microphone and begins to talk. “Let me introduce you all to my new bodyguard. Former King of the Ring and a 480lb Monster...Mabel! I told you all that I only buy the best, and there is no better bodyguard around”. Hunter drops the mic as Mabel helps him out of the ring. Getting some strong Ted DiBiase vibes from Hunter recently. Look forward to seeing where this heads.
Rating: 6/10
We cut to the back where we see Bret Hart walking through the hallways, yelling for Austin. Out of nowhere Austin ends up jumping Hart from behind. The two men brawl through the halls, throwing each other around and even hitting each other with a few objects. Eventually Austin grabs Hart and throws him through a door. Hart crashes into Ken Shamrock, knocking him over. Austin notices Shamrock and starts to hit him as well. As Austin and Shamrock fight, Hart starts to get up and rejoins the brawl. The three men brawl for a couple more minutes until WWF officials are able to get them all off one another. Great segment. Shamrock was the weakest link in it, however, it is great to see more people getting dragged into the feud.
Rating: 9/10
Match 4: Flash Funk and Marc Mero w/Sable vs The New Blackjacks
Nothing too crazy here. During most of the match we actually hear the announcers talking about what is happening backstage between Shamrock, Hart and Austin. Marc Mero ends up getting the win for his team after he hit Blackjack Bradshaw with a Shooting Star Press.
Winner: Flash Funk and Marc Mero
Rating: 6/10
We cut to Dox Hendrix who is with Goldust and Marlena. Dox asks Goldust what he thinks about Hunter having Mabel as a bodyguard. Goldust tells Dox that “He may want to invest in another 500lb bodyguard because nobody is going to get in the way of him winning back his Intercontinental Title."
Rating: 7/10
As Goldust walks off the screen Sycho Sid walks in. Dox asks Sid if there is something he wants to say. “You know Dox, there is something I want to say. Shawn Michaels, I know you are watching and let me tell you something. At In Your House: Rage in a Cage you better be ready because not only will you not walk out of that ring with the WWF Title, I plan on making sure you don’t walk out at all!” Good segment with Sycho Sid. Looks like we also have an official name for this month’s In Your House. Important to note that last year the February PPV was also Rage in a Cage. Looks like they will continue with the name for this upcoming event.
Rating: 8/10
We cut back to the arena when we hear Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboats music hit the PA system. Steamboat runs out as the crowd chants “Dragon”. Once Ricky gets to the ring he grabs the microphone and begins to talk. He thanks the WWF for inviting him back and he looks forward to being an active wrestler on the WWF roster once again. Ricky starts to talk about what he has planned for this run when the Nation of Domination’s music hits. Faarooq can be heard immediately on the microphone as the entire Nation, including a new member, head down to the ring. As they walk Faarooq starts talking smack to Steamboat. The entire Nation surrounds the ring as Faarooq gets in. Faarooq tells Steamboat that this is a new era in WWF wrestling and it will be led by one Nation under Faarooq. Faarooq tells Steamboat that he will provide him with a one time offer to join the Nation. Steamboat starts to think about it as the Nation slowly starts to get on the apron surrounding the ring. Steamboat is seen getting into a fighting stance as he looks at all the men around the ring. “What’s it going to be Ricky” Faarooq says to him. Before Ricky has a chance to talk though we see Ahmed Johnson hit the ring hard, throwing Nation members off the apron. Ricky then starts to fight Faarooq as the two go back and forth. Eventually Ahmed gets in the ring and throws Faarooq out of the ring with to the other members. The Nation starts to retreat as Steamboat grabs the microphone and says “No deal!”. Should have been a good segment but J.C. Ice, Wolfie D and the new guy really ended up making the segment look bad. They had some really bad acting at the beginning, which was incredibly distracting and when Ahmed hit the ring they over sold Ahmed's attack, making it look incredibly fake. Should have been a good segment but just feel flat because of all that. Too bad as Ricky’s return could have been an amazing segment.
Rating: 5/10
Main Event: Shawn Michaels vs Vader w/Paul Bearer
Once again, Michaels led the charge and put on an incredible match against Vader. Match was very brutal, with lots of brawling happening outside of the ring. The finish occurred when Sycho Sid came out to distract Michaels while Vader was out cold. Michaels gets on the rope and starts yelling at Sycho Sid. Sid gets up close to the ropes as the two start to argue. Vader is then seen getting up and is now standing behind Michaels. As Shawn turns around Vader grabs him and lifts him up for a Vader bomb. As Michaels is in the air though the lights go black and we hear the bell of The Undertaker. A few seconds later the lights come back up as we see Shawn Michaels standing in one corner and Vader standing in the other confused. Shawn Michaels then runs over and nails Vader with a Sweet Chin Music. HBK goes for the pin and gets the win. Real fun match, with a great ending.
Winner: Shawn Michaels
Rating: 9/10
HBKs music hits as he heads out of the ring. Paul Bearer is seen helping Vader up when HBK’s music stops and the lights go black again. We hear the bell of The Undertaker as the lights turn on again. This time we see Undertaker standing in the ring, face to face with Vader and Paul Bearer. Undertaker tells Bearer and Vader that “At Rage in a Cage, I will meet Vader one-on-one, and just like the others...Vader will Rest in Peace.” Vader starts to look angry as he pulls his arm back and gets ready to swing, but before he can the lights go out once again. The bell rings and when the light comes back on we see Vader and Bearer alone in the ring. Great segment, and I look forward to this match.
Rating: 8/10
Vince McMahon is in the ring as we get a few shots of the crowd. Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler announce to the audience at home that next week we will have Ahmed Johnson and Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat teaming up to take on Faarooq and Crush.
Rating: 6/10
Vince McMahon is now in the ring as he announces that last week, Gorilla Monsoon retired from his position as President of WWF. Vince then announces the new WWF President...Harley Race! Harley Race comes down the ramp and into the ring as the crowd cheers the legend. Harley Race grabs the microphone and begins to speak.
“Thank you all for the warm welcome, it is an honor to be standing here as the President of the World Wrestling Federation. Who would've thought that a boy from Kansas City, Missouri would one day become President of the top wrestling company in the world.”
The crowd continues to cheer as a “Harley” chant starts in the arena.
“Now Vince, I do want to correct you. You mentioned that Gorilla Monsoon decided that he was going to retire. Let’s make something clear. I forced Gorilla Monsoon to retire! That piece of trash wanted to stay on as President and if he had the option he would die as the WWF President.”
The crowd cheers quickly turn to boos as Harley Race starts to talk about what happened.
“You see, a little over a week ago I made a few calls. I reached out to the WWF Board of Directors and opened their eyes to the horrible job Monsoon was doing. Monsoon was destroying the WWF brand and name. Wrestlers are running around rampant. Fighting in the hallways, using weapons, cheating behind the referee’s back. This is not how a wrestling company should be run. So, I strongly encouraged them all that Monsoon should go and I should be put in charge. Last Monday, Monsoon wasn’t dealing with a small issue at WWF Headquarters. No, Last Monday, Monsoon was on his hands and knees begging to keep his job. Tonight, we begin a new era in the WWF. Tonight, the Reign of President Race begins!” Pretty good segment, with a shocking reveal that Harley Race has taken over control of the WWF. Look forward to seeing how the program changes due to this.
Rating 8/10
Overall Show Rating: 8/10
Pretty good show overall, however, with all the surprises that occurred they could have done a better job. 4 big returns to the WWF including Harley Race, which was pretty cool. I do wish they ended with the HBK vs Vader match though. This show also took some of the heat out of a few good storylines. Too bad because if they did a few things differently this easily could have been a 9 or even 10/10 show.
