-Today we look at The Main Event from the WWF.
-The Main Event was broadcast live on NBC on February 5, 1988. It was broadcast from the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, Indiana. It had a 15.2 Nielsen rating and approximately 22 million viewers watched the event.
-Randy Savage says he’s going to send The Honky Tonk Man back to Disgraceland.
-The Honky Tonk Man and Jimmy Hart say Randy Savage is a whiner and lucky that HTM doesn’t play a piano.
-Andre the Giant and The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase say after tonight that belt will fit as easily around Andre’s waist as his hands fit around Hulk Hogan’s neck. Andre says he can’t wait to do it again, and again, and again…
-Hulk Hogan says when Andre the Giant put his hands around his neck, he knew he was in the fight of his life. Hulkamania will never die.
-Opening Credits
-Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura welcome us to The Main Event. Jesse says Hulk Hogan is going down tonight.
-Video of Hulk Hogan training. They use what is about to be Jake Roberts theme as the music.
-Mean Gene Okerlund interviews HTM and Jimmy Hart. HTM says Liz is head over heels for him.
-Mean Gene then interviews Randy Savage and Elizabeth. The music bleeds through here. You can’t hear anything hardly. Savage is intense though. He’s purple in one of the shots.
-WWF Intercontinental Championship Match: The Honky Tonk Man with Jimmy Hart and Peggy Sue VS. Randy Savage with Miss Elizabeth:
-Jimmy Hart is the bravest man alive.
-Randy Savage is as usual intense to start. HTM and Jimmy Hart both selling hard for him. HTM uses the megaphone on Savage to gain advantage. If you listen to Peggy Sue, it’s obviously Sherri Martel under a blonde wig. More and more cheating by HTM and Jimmy Hart. HTM goes after Miss Elizabeth. Savage attacks from behind. Savage hits all of his patented moves. Goes for the elbow but HTM gets up. Savage then puts the sleep on. Peggy Sue goes after Elizabeth. HTM and Savage go outside. Savage beats the count in and wins the match but not the title. They attack Savage after the match and Elizabeth protects him until Savage gets the guitar. He then breaks the guitar. Savage parades Liz around the ring.
-Vince and Jesse then recap the Hulk Hogan/Andre the Giant feud.
-Mean Gene interviews Ted DiBiase, Andre, and Virgil. DiBiase says that Andre is already the champ and that Hogan is a coward. Andre says once he gets his hands on Hogan, he’ll never let go.
-Andre, DiBiase, and Virgil go to the ring.
-Mean Gene interviews Hulk Hogan. He says with all the controversy over WrestleMania III, he is ready because with the world watching, Hulkamania will live forever.
-WWF World Heavyweight Championship match: Hulk Hogan VS. Andre the Giant with Ted DiBiase and Virgil: Hulk Hogan tries to go after the trio with the belt. They make a big deal over Dave Hebner being the referee instead of Joey Marella. Hogan poses before the match just to get it in. He is pumped and ready. Andre slow to get into the ring. Hogan attacks both DiBiase and Virgil then he and Andre slug it out. Hogan having trouble knocking Andre down. Hogan throwing everything at Andre. Goes up top but gets caught. Both men get injured. Andre choking Hogan. Hogan battered. Hogan sells really well here. They subtly keep mentioning Dave Hebner. Hogan Hulks up! He knocks Andre down. Goes for the leg. Virgil interferes. Hogan complains. Andre gives two head-butts and an awkward hip toss suplex, pins Hogan, who has his shoulder up on 2 but the referee keeps counting. Andre is your winner and new champion. So much controversy here. Referee presents the belt to Andre. Mean Gene is in to interview Andre, who calls the belt the tag team championship and then surrenders the belt to The Million Dollar Man. Hogan is upset. All of a sudden, there are two Dave Hebners in the ring. Hogan grabs both. Then they start fighting. One knocks the other out then Hogan throws the remaining one on DiBiase and Virgil. It was revealed post-match that the referee was not the assigned referee, Dave Hebner, but rather his twin brother, Earl Hebner, who was hired by Ted DiBiase as part of a storyline screw job. Then WWF president Jack Tunney said the title could only change hands by pin or submission, and said that by attempting to surrender the title, Andre had actually vacated it.
-Great Angle. Earl had been with JCP until a few days before.
-Mean Gene interviews Hulk Hogan, who is awesome here: HOW MUCH MONEY DID THEY SPEND ON THE PLASTIC SURGERY, MAN!?! I had all bases covered! I had the Hulkamaniacs watchin’ DiBiase! I had Virgil in his place! NEVER IN MY WILDEST DREAMS, MEAN GENE, would I think I would get ripped off by a penny-pinching, two-timing referee. HOW MUCH MONEY ON THE PLASTIC SURGERY?! How much money did he spend to pay the referee off?!?!
When I turned around, Mean Gene, they were identical!
IDENTICAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!
Look at the shoulder, brother! Look at the shoulder! The referee is paid off, brother! Look at the hundred dollar bills falling out of his pocket! MY GOD! HULKAMANIACS!
-WWF Tag Team Championship Match: Strike Force Tito Santana and Rick Martel VS. The Hart Foundation Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart with Jimmy Hart: Joined in progress as Vince has to sign off just as we join the match. But as we see the credits we see Tito pin Bret after a failed sunset flip.