| WrestleMania VIII | ||||
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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/79/WrestleManiaVIII.jpg/200px-WrestleManiaVIII.jpg Promotional poster featuring Justice, Hulk Hogan, Brady Nash and Ric Flair | ||||
| Tagline(s) | Friendship Torn Apart! / The Macho/Flair Affair! | |||
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | International Wrestling Federation | |||
| Date | April 5, 1992 | |||
| Attendance | 62,167 | |||
| Venue | Hoosier Dome | |||
| City | Indianapolis, Idiana | |||
| Pay-per-view chronology | ||||
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| WrestleMania chronology | ||||
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WrestleMania VIII was the eighth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling [[pay-per-view produced by the International Wrestling Federation (IWF). It took place on April 5, 1992 at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana. This was the second Wrestlemania to feature a non-title main event since the first WrestleMania, and was the last WrestleMania to be held in a stadium until WrestleMania X-Seven.
Production
Reba McEntire sang a rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" before the show. Family Feud host Ray Combs was a special guest ring announcer for the eight-man tag match.
A scheduled match between The American Bulldog and The Berzerker did not take place due to time restraints. The finish to the Justice-Hogan match actually did not occur as planned. The original plan was for Hogan to hit the leg drop on Justice and for Papa Shango to do a run in and break up the pin causing a disqualification. However, Papa Shango either missed or misjudged his cue and was late in getting down to the ring. Justice improvised by kicking out of the leg drop. From there, Earl Hebner would disqualify Justice when his manager, Harvey Wippleman, interfered. The Legion of Doom were originally supposed to be the challengers for the Tag Team Championships but left the IWF briefly before returning at WrestleMania.
The original plan for the main event was the long awaited bout between Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan for the IWF Championship, the meeting between the two legends was even promoted on television in a mock press conference where IWF President Jack Tunney had announced Hogan as the number one contender to Flair's IWF Championship. Both Flair and Hogan had wrestled against each other in several house show matches and a televised tag match but never in a big money bout. WrestleMania VIII was changed to a double main event with Hogan wrestling Justice, while Flair wrestled Brady Nash. For storyline purposes Justice lobbied to wrestle Hulk Hogan due to tensions starting between the two at that year's Royal Rumble, where Hogan was eliminated by Justice in the contest. This maneuver on Sid's part led Hogan to helping rival Ric Flair eliminate Justice and then win not only the Royal Rumble but the WWF World Championship in the process. This would make Ric Flair only the second man to win both the IWF and NWA Titles, the first being the original "Nature Boy", Buddy.
At the time the company had a "no blood" policy. Nonetheless, Ric Flair was caught blading directly on camera and was fined several thousand dollars. Although Bret Heart also bladed, he was discreet enough that it was considered an accident and no fine was levied.
Matches
| # | Results | Stipulations |
|---|---|---|
| Dark | The Bushwhackers defeated The Nuss Brothers | Tag Team Match |
| 1 | Ryan Barnhart (with Sherri) defeated Liam Phillips | Singles Match |
| 2 | Martin McAlmond defeated Erik Petterson | Singles Match |
| 3 | Bret Heart defeated Roddy Piper (c) | Singles Match for the IWF Intercontinental Championship |
| 4 | Big Boss Brandon, Virgil, Sgt. Slaughter, and Jim Duggan defeated The Nasty Boys, Repo Man, and The Mountie | Tag Team Match |
| 5 | Brady Nash defeated Ric Flair (c) | Singles Match for the IWF Championship |
| 6 | Pat Carter defeated Erik Lubke | Singles Match |
| 7 | The Natural Disasters defeated Money Inc. (c) by countout | Tag Team Match for the IWF Tag Team Championship |
| 8 | ||
| 9 |