WWE WrestleMania VI was a major event booked towards operating in a future without Hulk Hogan. Almost 68,000 fans crammed into the SkyDome in Toronto for the ultimate clash.
Obviously—at the time—two-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Hulk Hogan was there. His opponent was the then Intercontinental champion The Ultimate Warrior.
In a match billed as “The Ultimate Challenge”, Ultimate Warrior managed to defeat Hogan after 24-minutes of action to wield both titles. Warrior eventually relinquished the IC championship.
A Tale as Old as Time: The Successor to Hulk Hogan
The Hulkster made WWE his home in 1983. At 30-years old, he still had a lot of career left at his peak condition and just…lots of career left in general as we would see.
Fast forward to WWE WrestleMania VI and Hogan was 36 while his challenger was six years younger. Hogan was at a tricky time for an athlete and in WWE, it was time to pass the torch.
The match itself was pretty damn enjoyable and The Ultimate Warrior looked every bit the perfect champion for the period.
While Warrior could go and do his matches, interviews, and angles as requested attitude issues nudged him out of that team player position in WWE.
I mean, it didn’t stop him from having a lengthy reign but it helps when your talent does what’s best for the business and doesn’t present any issues while things are ongoing.
Save that for contract negotiations or when the company needs to revisit running a wrestler at the top after a successful run.
Good Idea, Bad Idea with The Ultimate Warrior
It was a good idea to run The Ultimate Warrior as Hogan’s successor. He was the closest thing to Hogan without being the same age or older.
Of course, it was a bad idea as the cartoonish product of the 80s was no longer valid. It was time for WWE to grow but the early 90s was just a dicey place for the company to mature further.
Also, Warrior was just proving to be a problem for Vince. Considering what happened in this period between Warrior and the corporate aspect of the company, he wasn’t going to be there long.
When the New Generation started, Warrior was going to be in the same position that Hogan was in as the Hulkamania period waned in the early 90s.
You know, an older guy who couldn’t keep pace with the younger guys getting ready to carry the company. Although Bret Hart was older than Warrior, he could hang with his New Generation and Attitude Era contemporaries easily.
Overall, it would be easier to just say “Bad idea! WWE should’ve just started the New Generation in 1990.”
However, Hogan was still there and it can’t be a new generation if the biggest star in the company and of the previous generation is still there, brother.
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