WWF Mania (July 17, 1993)

Original Airdate: July 17, 1993

Your Hosts are Todd Pettengill and Randy Savage from the studio

We open with highlights of the Stars and Stripes Challenge, culminating in Lex Luger bodyslamming WWF Champion Yokozuna

WWF Title Match: Yokozuna v Crush: From the July 12 episode of Monday Night RAW (taped July 5) in New York City. Power-showdown goes to something of a stalemate, so Crush switches to simply punching, but gets bodyslammed. He manages to dodge an elbowdrop though, and a big boot knocks Yoko out to the floor. Call that foreshadowing for SummerSlam. Back in, they do another power-stalemate, so Crush gives him a Stinger splash. Second try misses, and Yoko savate kicks him, then hits a headbutt. Punch to the throat knocks Crush out to the floor, and back inside, Yoko slaps on a nervehold. That eats up a few minutes, but Crush won't submit, so Yoko slaps him around with chops, and goes for the avalanche, but Crush sidesteps. Crush with a standing dropkick and a clothesline to take Yoko off of his feet, and the Hawaiian adds flying shoulderblock for two. Up again, but Mr. Fuji whacks him with the flagpole, and Crush falls to the floor. Yoko follows for a slam out there, and he rolls the challenger back in for a belly-to-belly suplex. Legdrop and the Banzi Drop (the looks on people's faces when he does that move are amazing) finish at 13:00. But Yoko isn't satisfied, and decides to give Crush another Banzai. And another. And another! Tatanka runs out to break it up, but Yoko slaps him down, and hits a fourth Banzai. A few jobbers run out, but Yoko swats them all away as well. Fifth Banzai, but this time Randy Savage drops his headset, and pulls Crush out of harms way. Nothing match, but this set up Crush's heel turn (and subsequent feud with Randy Savage) nicely, so it wasn't a waste of time. ¼*

Back in the studio, Savage explains that he ‘kinda feels bad’ that he didn’t save Crush sooner, but he had a deal with President Jack Tunney that he wouldn’t get involved in matches. This kind of made Randy come off like a heel, especially since his whole character is that of a loose cannon, but now all of a sudden he cares about a ‘deal’ he made with Tunney?

SummerSlam ad

Gene Okerlund is in the studio with the SummerSlam Report, and Bret Hart/Jerry Lawler is still the only match announced at this point

Back in the studio, Savage is deeply focused on learning how to use the tape machines. Glad to see his concern for Crush hasn’t caused him to get distracted. That would be a shame

Owen Hart v Dave Keiner: From Wrestling Challenge on July 11 (taped June 14) in Columbus Ohio. I won’t repeat them, but Bobby Heenan is in rare form with his jokes (about Stu Hart and the women in Ohio) here. Hart works the arm, as Jerry Lawler split screens in, offering Owen a spot as his guest on next week’s King’s Court. Owen with a bridging northern lights suplex at 3:25. This felt really long. DUD

Six-Man Tag Team Match: Tatanka and The Smoking Gunns v Bam Bam Bigelow and The Headshrinkers: Also from the July 11 episode of Wrestling Challenge. Billy Gunn and Samu start, as Heenan speculates that Tatanka and the Gunns are a doomed pairing on general principle. He’s got a point. Billy dominates with speed, and he passes to Bart Gunn to work a wristlock, but Samu goes to the eyes, and bodyslams him. Over to Fatu, but Bart wins a criss cross with a dropkick, and he takes Fatu down in an armbar. Over to Tatanka for a flying tomahawk chop, and a shoulderblock finds the mark, so Bam Bam takes a cheap shot to put Tatanka down. That allows Fatu a shoulderblock of his own, and Bigelow tags in to put the boots to Tatanka. Tatanka comes back with a bodypress for two, and a single-arm DDT follows. Tatanka goes up with a flying bodypress, but Bam Bam hits the deck, and Tatanka wipes out. That allows Bigelow a headbutt drop, and he works a chinlock, but misses an enzuigiri. That allows the tag to Bart, but Fatu pounds him down, and delivers a backbreaker. Over to Samu for a tandem backdrop, and the heels go to work, cutting the ring in half on Bart. Gunn finally fights off Bigelow long enough, but we run out of TV time at 13:35 shown, just as the hot tag is about to be made, and you have to tune in to Wrestling Challenge to see the rest of the bout. This felt a little too long, but it was solid action throughout, with some nice, fast paced sequences sewn into it. I don’t know how much was left in it, but based on the usual booking style, it was probably about over. I won’t officially rate it, but it was around one-and-one-half-stars from what we saw.

BUExperience: This was a pretty forgettable episode.