10 Things You Didn't Know About WWE WrestleMania
The man who stopped Vince McMahon naming WrestleMania 'The Colossal Tussle' REVEALED!
8. No 'Mania For You
WrestleMania 4 is admittedly on the weaker end of the 'Mania spectrum, what with its bloated 16 match card (that sounds familiar...), and aside from Macho Man Randy Savage capturing the WWE Championship in the finale, there wasn't much else in the way of priceless moments.
However, WrestleMania was a hot ticket, and the fourth incarnation did 485,000 buys, up 21 per cent from the previous year, as people clamoured to see both the tournament, as well as the Hulk/Andre rubber match.
What's less known is that WrestleMania was ruthlessly used by McMahon as part of a hard bargain. When Jim Crockett Promotions entered the PPV game with Starrcade in 1987, McMahon counter-programmed by scheduling the brand new Survivor Series for the same night. As cable providers were left to choose which show to carry, McMahon earned those companies that if they didn't carry Survivor Series exclusively, they would not be allowed to air WrestleMania 4.
The threat worked - only a handful of cable providers in the Carolinas, and one in California, aired Starrcade, while every other American PPV provider went with Survivor Series, assuring themselves WrestleMania 4 in the process.
Written by Justin Henry
In addition to writing lists and commentaries for Cultaholic, Justin is also a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine, and is co-author of the WWE-related book Titan Screwed: Lost Smiles, Stunners, and Screwjobs.
