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From The Shelf – WWF King of the Ring 1993

October 9, 2015 | Posted by Dylan Diot
7.5
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From The Shelf – WWF King of the Ring 1993  

WWF King of the Ring 1993
6-13-93
Dayton, OH

Your hosts are Jim Ross, Bobby Heenan, and Randy Savage.

King of the Ring Quarterfinal Match- Razor Ramon vs. Bret Hart
Rights by Bret and he works the arm of Razor to start. Clothesline by Razor and he misses an elbow drop. Bret goes back to the arm but Razor pokes the eye to come back. Back elbow by Ramon gets 2 and Bret is still able to maintain control of the arm. Ramon finally fights out and he sends Bret shoulder first into the post. Razor works over Bret on the apron and back in, Razor works over Bret. Fall-a-way slam by Razor gets 2. Running powerslam by Razor gets 2. Sidewalk slam by Razor and he misses some elbow drops. Rights by Bret and he hits an inverted atomic drop. Clothesline by Bret gets 2. Side Russian leg sweep by Bret gets 2. Back breaker by Bret gets 2. Front elbow drop by Bret gets 2. O’Connor roll by Bret gets 2. Ramon blocks the bulldog, sending Bret sternum first into the corner. Bret counters the Razor’s Edge and catches Razor with a small package for 2!!! Razor nails Bret as he argues with the ref and he puts Bret on top. Razor follows up and goes for the back superplex but Bret counters in mid-air for 3!!!
Winner- Bret Hart ***1/2 (Really good opener with both men having a go big or go home attitude, focusing on high impact maneuvers and attempting a relatively quick win in preparation for a long night, so it got over the importance of the tournament and the exciting nature of it. As good a start to this new concept as you could have had. )

King of the Ring Quarterfinal Match- Mr. Hughes w/Harvey Whippleman vs. Mr. Perfect
Arm drag and a dropkick by Perfect to start but it doesn’t have much effect on Hughes. Hughes knocks Perfect to the floor and back in, Hughes grabs a neck crank. Perfect fights out but Hughes catches him with a big boot. Clothesline by Hughes and he goes back to the neck crank. Perfect fights out again so Hughes catches him with a knee to the midsection. Hughes sends Perfect hard into the corner and they botch a powerslam spot. Hughes chokes Perfect in the ropes and he goes to jump on Perfect but misses. Hip toss by Perfect and he hits a backdrop. Neck snap by Perfect and Hughes nails him with the urn for the DQ.
Winner by DQ- Mr. Perfect *3/4 (This did the opposite of what the opener accomplished. This only existed to help build up Mr. Hughes as a monster for the Undertaker to conquer when they eventually met and the finish was just lame. At least we get Bret/Perfect in the next round. )

Mr. Fuji says Hulk Hogan stole the championship from Yokozuna but Hogan faces a stronger and wiser Yokozuna tonight.

King of the Ring Quarterfinal Match- Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Jim Duggan
They try to overpower each other and it takes three clotheslines to knock Bigelow down. Bigelow bails to regroup and back in, Bigelow pounds away on Duggan. Head butt by Bigelow and he grabs a bear hug. Duggan fights out and Bigelow misses a dropping head butt. Duggan goes for a slam but Bigelow blocks for 2. Bigelow goes back to the bear hug but Duggan bites out of it. Duggan slams Bigelow and he misses the Three Point Stance, crashing into the corner. Bigelow goes up and hits the diving head butt for 3.
Winner- Bam Bam Bigelow *1/2 (Short and sweet match, with Bigelow decimating Duggan’s ribs and looking like the dominant force in this tournament. Props to Duggan for putting Bigelow over so big in one of his final WWF appearances. )

The Smoking Gunns and Steiner Brothers are looking forward to teaming with each other tonight. Not much else to this interview than that.

King of the Ring Quarterfinal Match- Lex Luger vs. Tatanka
Luger is forced to put an elbow pad on before the match or he is DQ’ed. Luger attacks to start and he dumps Tatanka to the floor. Back in, Tatanka shoves Luger’s mirror on top of him and he chops away, knocking Luger to the floor. Tatanka follows out and slams Luger on the floor. Back in, Tatanka hits a back drop and he clotheslines Luger for 2. Tatanka goes to work on the arm but Luger eventually fights out. Crossbody by Tatanka gets 2 and he goes back to the arm of Luger. Luger goes to the ropes to force a break and he stomps away on Tatanka in the corner. Knee strike by Luger gets 2. Back breaker by Luger and he drops an elbow for 2. Another elbow drop by Luger gets 2 and he argues with the ref, allowing Tatanka to roll him up for 2!!! Tatanka fires back but Luger ends that run and goes to the chin lock. Tatanka starts to fight out so Luger takes him down and quickly goes back to the hold. Tatanka starts to fight out again so Luger catches him with a clothesline for 2. Small package by Tatanka gets 2 and he gets a sunset flip for 2. Luger works over Tatanka and pounds away but this fires Tatanka up!!! Tatanka knocks Luger down with a chop for 2. Powerslam by Tatanka gets 2. Slam by Tatanka and he goes up. Tomahawk Chop off the top by Tatanka gets 2. Tatanka goes up and misses a crossbody off the top. Clothesline by Luger gets 2. Powerslam by Luger gets 2. Backdrop by Luger and he hits a suplex for 2. Back breaker by Luger gets 2. The time limit runs out!!! Bam Bam Bigelow gets a bye to the finals. Luger wants five more minutes as does Tatanka but that’s not happening. Luger nails Tatanka with the exposed elbow and lays him out.
Match ends in a Draw *** (Solid match. Tatanka was fantastic here, as his flash near falls kept things interesting during Luger’s dull heat segment and I liked the urgency of the final few minutes from both guys. The finish fell flat though and having Luger getting closer to victory at the finish than Tatanka didn’t feel right. )

Bret Hart tells he respects Mr. Perfect but for whatever reason, Mean Gene tries to spin it that Bret wanted an easier match than he would have had against Hughes. Perfect and Hart trade jabs about their fathers and Perfect wants redemption for SummerSlam 91. Mean Gene was a total dick here for no reason.

King of the Ring Semifinal Match- Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect
Bret overpowers Perfect to start and they fight for control on the mat. Bret slams Perfect and Perfect returns the favor before Bret catches him in the side headlock. Crucifix by Bret gets 2 and he goes right back to the headlock. Crossbody by Bret gets 2 and he gets a sunset flip for 2 before it’s back to the headlock. Perfect breaks with a knee to the midsection and he hits a dropkick knocking Bret to the floor. Perfect helps Bret into the ring only to cheap shot him and work over the ribs of Bret. Knee lift by Perfect gets 2. Bret bails to recover and Perfect slingshots Bret off the apron into the railings!!!! Back in, Perfect hits a knee lift for2 and he goes up. Missile dropkick by Perfect gets 2 as Bret gets his foot on the ropes!!! Perfect sends Bret hard into the corner sternum first for 2. Perfect goes up but Bret crotches him and follows up. Superplex by Bret gets 2!!! Bret sweeps the leg of Perfect a few times and he grabs the Figure-4. Perfect makes the ropes to break!!! Bret works the leg of Perfect but Perfect is able to fight out of Bret’s clutches. Perfect tosses Bret down by the hair and he grabs the sleeper on Bret. Bret gets to the ropes to force the break. Perfect goes right back to the sleeper but Bret runs into the corner, sending Perfect crashing into the turnbuckle to break. Bret tosses Perfect by the hair and Perfect gets crotched against the post. Inverted atomic drop followed by a side Russian leg sweep by Bret gets 2. Back breaker by Bret and he goes up. Second rope front elbow by Bret gets 2. Bret goes for the Sharpshooter but he GRABS THE INJURED FINGERS TO BLOCK!!!! Perfect goes for the Perfect Plex but Bret blocks by suplexing Perfect and himself to the floor!!! Back in, Perfect gets a small package for 2 as Bret rolls through for 3!!!
Winner- Bret Hart ****1/2 (There is so much to love with this match. Bret’s selling here was unbelievable, having been worn down from the Razor bout and Perfect made sure to go after every injured limb Razor already damaged. I loved Perfect going to the dark side, knowing he had to resort to his old tricks since he’s facing someone at equal level in terms of his own technical prowess. This was a fantastic contest, with some incredible psychology mixed in with a surprisingly face paced match between two of the greats. )

Hulk Hogan promises to retain the WWF Championship against Yokozuna and promises to defend American in the heart of America.

WWF Championship-Hulk Hogan w/Jimmy Hart © vs. Yokozuna w/Mr. Fuji
Yokozuna overpowers Hogan to start he works over Hogan in the early going. Yokozuna slams Hogan and he rakes the face of Hogan. Yokozuna sends Hogan hard into the corner and he misses the hip check in the corner. Hogan fires away and he hits some punches in the corner to Yokozuna. Hogan bites the head of Yokozuna and he can’t slam Yokozuna, hurting his back in the process. Yokozuna pounds the back of Hogan and Hogan comes back with some clotheslines that can’t knock him down. Clothesline by Yokozuna and he misses a big splash. Yokozuna overpowers Hogan again and he catches Hogan in the bear hug. Hogan fights out so Yokozuna catches him with a back elbow to maintain control. Belly to belly suplex by Yokozuna gets 2 as HULK IS HULKING UP~!!!! Rights by Hogan and he hits a big boot but Yokozuna still stays on his feet. Two more finally knocks Yokozuna down!!! Leg drop by Hogan gets 2!!! Hogan knocks Fuji off the apron and a photographer hops on the apron. He kicks Hart away as he went to grab him and his camera blows up in Hogan’s face!!! Yokozuna knocks him down and hits the leg drop for 3!!! Yokozuna lays out Hogan with a Bonzai Drop after the match.
Winner and NEW WWF Champion- Yokozuna **1/2 (This was pretty much every Hogan vs. big man match you have ever seen, so it was fun if formulaic. Yokozuna got to look incredibly strong though and I loved he beat Hogan with his own finisher to cement the end of the Hogan era. In the Raws following this show they never really followed up on the cameraman thing, so it was a weird albeit different way to get out of a clean Hogan job. )

Mr. Perfect is disappointed with the loss tonight but he tells everyone to keep an eye out on him going forward.

Shawn Michaels reveals the name of his bodyguard, Diesel. He declares he is his insurance policy and he’ll protect Shawn.

Steiner Brothers (Rick and Scott Steiner) and Smoking Gunns (Billy and Bart Gunn) vs. Money Inc (Ted Dibiase and IRS) and Headshrinkers (Fatu and Samu) w/Afa
Dibiase and Scott start. Both men battle for control and Scott catches him with a dropkick. He clotheslines Dibiase to the floor and back in, Scott quickly clotheslines him back out. Back in, Fatu and Bart tag in. Dropkick by Bart and he begins to work the arm of Fatu. Super kick by Fatu and Samu tag in. Double clothesline by Headshrinkers and he hits a dropping head butt. Tag to IRS and he hits a back elbow. Tag to Dibiase and he hits a back elbow. Suplex by Dibiase and Fatu tags in. Double back drop to Bart and IRS tags in. Sunset flip by Bart gets 2 and they clothesline each other. Tag to Billy and he cleans house. Stun gun by Dibiase and he grabs the Million Dollar Dream. Dibiase lets go for some reason and Billy gets a small package for 3!!!
Winners- Steiner Brothers and Smoking Gunns ** (I like all four teams but this did nothing for me. The crowd was burnt out after what happened the previous match so they really didn’t do anything to regain the crowd’s attention. It was kept simple and was an easy night for all involved. )

They hold a ceremony backstage for the new WWF Champion Yokozuna and Fuji says Japan will honor them. They plan to hold their celebrations in America.

WWF Intercontinental Championship- Shawn Michaels w/Diesel © vs. Crush
Shawn works the arm to start and Crush throws some dropkicks, knocking Shawn to the floor. Back in, Crush hits a press slam and a tilt-a-whirl back breaker. Diesel pulls Shawn to the floor to help him regroup and Crush confronts Diesel, allowing Shawn to attack from behind, sending Crush into the post. Diesel does the same to Crush and Shawn rams his head off the post a few times. Back in, Shawn covers for 2 and he stomps away. Shawn goes up and hits a double axe handle. Shawn goes to the front face lock but Crush is able to toss him away. He tosses Shawn to the floor and back in, Shawn goes up. He leaps but Crush swats him away. Backdrop by Crush and he hits a back breaker for 2. Big boot by Crush and he hits a leg drop for 2. Crush clotheslines Shawn to the floor and Doink makes his way out. There is a second one directly behind him and the distraction allows Shawn to super kick Crush from behind for 3.
Winner and Still WWF Intercontinental Champion- Shawn Michaels **1/4 (See, they were doing distraction finished twelve years before it was cool. Match was pretty mediocre, as Shawn wasn’t putting his best foot forward and this was one of the uglier Crush performances I have seen. This just didn’t click at all. )

Bam Bam Bigelow says he’s going to be the first King of the Ring and he’s going to get the job done.

King of the Ring Finals- Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Bret Hart
Rights by Bret but Bigelow fires back. Bret blocks a press slam for 2 and he works the arm of Bigelow. Bigelow overpowers Bret and he presses Bret to the floor!!!! Back in, Bigelow with some dropping head butts to the back of Bret for 2 as Bret gets his foot on the ropes. Back suplex by Bigelow gets 2. Head butt by Bigelow and he hits a dropping head butt for 2. Bear hug by Bigelow but Bret starts to fight out, so Bigelow hits a back suplex for 2. They go to the floor and Bret sends Bigelow into the railings. Bret pounds away and leaps off the apron but Bigelow catches him before ramming him into the post. Bigelow slams Bret on the floor and Luna Vachon comes out. She nails Bret in the back with a chair and back in, Bigelow slams Bret. He goes up and hits the diving head butt for 3!!! BUT WAIT!!!! A second ref comes out and won’t allow Bigelow to win due to Vachon’s interference, so the match continues!!! Bigelow hammers the back of Bret and he knocks Bret down with a head butt. Bigelow goes back to the bear hug but Bret starts to fight out so Bigelow grabs the gut wrench. Bret escapes and catches Bigelow with a back suplex. Back senton misses and Bigelow sends Bret hard into the corner again. Bret again escapes the gut wrench and catches Bigelow in the sleeper. Bigelow starts to fight out so Bret dropkicks Bigelow from behind, knocking him to the floor. Slingshot pescado by Bret and hammers Bigelow on the floor. Back in, Bret hits a second rope clothesline for 2. Side Russian leg sweep by Bret and he hits a second rope bulldog. Bigelow blocks the Sharpshooter and he blocks the back suplex for 2. Bret catches him with the Victory roll for 3!!!
Winner and the 1993 King of the Ring- Bret Hart ***1/4 (Solid finish to the tournament. They got over Bret’s endurance and warrior mentality big time and he looks like a conqueror despite the beating he took in the tournament. The restart annoyed the hell out of me like it usually does and the majority of the match was kind of dull but the last finish minutes made for a nice cap off to a successful first tournament. )

Bret Hart gets his crown and scepter which brings Jerry Lawler out. Lawler calls Bret an imposter and he is the real king of the WWF. He says he will allow Bret to be a prince of he kisses his feet. Bret questions why Lawler wasn’t in the tournament and he calls Lawler a burger king. Lawler nails Bret with the scepter and lays him out to end the show.

7.5
The final score: review Good
The 411
This is a pretty historic show, as it marked the end of the Hogan era that dominanted the WWF for nine years and marked the unofficial transition into the New Generation era. Yokozuna was put over as an unbeatable monster and Bret Hart looked like a world beater, surviving three hard fought battles to win the innauguerial King of the Ring. From a booking standpoint, the WWF set themselves up well in the post-Hogan world, officially establishing their number one heel and having an ace in the hole in Bret if they couldn't find their next big megastar. This wasn't the blow away, amazing show it was praised to be back in 1993, but this is a pretty good card well worth checking out, especially for Bret's run which is one of the most impressive performances of his career.
legend