WWF Superstars – March 13th, 1993

March 13, 1993

From the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, CA

Your hosts are Vince McMahon, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, and Jerry “The King” Lawler

Papa Shango vs. Mark Ming

Shango beats on Ming to start. Ming fights back with two of the most pathetic dropkicks I’ve ever seen in my life then Shango pounds him back to the mat. The announcers talk about WrestleMania and the Roman Coliseum theme as Savage makes a joke about Lawler’s sex life. I believe this is the first time the words “sex life” have been said on WWF TV but it was a completely harmless reference. Shango stays in control then hits a reverse shoulderbreaker for the win (1:56).

Thoughts: The announcers hinted that Shango could be at WrestleMania and he was…………putting over El Matador in a dark match.

We get an ad for Hulk Hogan that puts over all of his accomplishments and how he returns to the ring at WrestleMania.

Back to the announcers as Lawler says Beefcake’s mask can be used as a weapon. They run down the rest of today’s show as Tatanka, Lex Luger, and Yokozuna are in action.

White Shadow & Ed Arce vs. Nasty Boys

The announcers put over how the Nasty Boys stepped aside to allow the Mega Maniacs a shot at the title but will still be at WrestleMania. The Nasty Boys beat on the Shadow as Lawler accuses them of being scared of Money Inc. The Nasty Boys use the Pit Stop then beat on Arce before putting him away with the running powerslam/flying elbow drop combo (2:42).

Thoughts: It looks like the Nasty Boys will get another title shot after WrestleMania. However, that did not happen for reasons we will learn about later on in this timeline.

Yokozuna w/ Mr. Fuji vs. Casey Cleric

We get a USA chant as Savage is on commentary wanting Jim Duggan to return to the ring. Cleric charges and gets caught with a clothesline. Vince talks about the demand for Duggan to return to action from the fans as Yokozuna flattens Cleric with a leg drop. Yokozuna stays in control then uses the Bonzai Drop for the win (2:32).

Thoughts: The commentary was about Duggan and him returning to the ring as Yokozuna destroys another opponnent.

After the match, Raymond Rougeau comes into the ring to say that what happened today will not happen to Bret Hart. Fuji says after WrestleMania they will call Bret the “Squash Man” instead of Hitman then after Raymond talks about respecting Bret after WrestleMania, Yokozuna destroys Cleric and hits another Bonzai Drop then sits on him until Fuji is done speaking about everyone respecting Yokozuna when he becomes the champion. Fuji’s terrible promo aside, this was an effective segment for Yokozuna as he continues to destroy everyone in his path on the build to WrestleMania.

WrestleMania IX Report with Gene Okerlund. We learn that Razor Ramon vs. Bob Backlund has been added to the card. We also learn that Money Inc. has a special briefcase for the event.

Tatanka vs. Al Burke

Tatanka works the arm as Vince puts him over for using ICOPRO. He chops Burke down as the announcers talk about Sensational Sherri and how she could be at WrestleMania then Tatanka uses a Samoan Drop for the win (2:02).

Thoughts: The announcers hinted at Sherri being part of WrestleMania and at the time it was reported in the “Wrestling Observer Newsletter” that Sherri would not be aligned with any particular wrestler but rather appearing in the corner of whoever Shawn was facing. Tatanka is being positioned as a favorite since he’s pinned Shawn twice.

After the match, Harvey Whippleman & Giant Gonzalez head to the ring. Vince says Gonzales is eight-feet call. Whippleman then said that Gonzalez was supposed to take on 10, 20, 30 different opponents tonight but they all got scared and left the building. Whippleman then said that the Undertaker is like those other cowards and how they will not wait until WrestleMania and will find him now. Gonzalez says he will bury Undertaker when he finds him then leaves with Whippleman. This did not get much heat.

We see Minnesota North Stars forward Mike Modano firing shots at Mr. Perfect, who is playing goalie. Perfect saves every shot as Modano is amazed.

“The Narcissist” Lex Luger vs. Joey Maggs

Luger runs over Maggs as Vince wants to know if Luger is able to hang with Perfect as a wrestler. Luger stays in control then hits the running forearm smash for the win after covering with his pinky finger (2:12). After the match, Luger drags Maggs in front of his mirror and calls him out for being flabby then takes him back down before flexing.

Thoughts: The story now is if Luger can wrestle well enough to beat Perfect. I do like the post-match stuff though with Luger running down his opponent while holding them up in front of the mirror.

Next week in action are Doink, Bob Backlund, Money Inc, and Kamala. Plus, an interview with Lex Luger and the Giant Gonzalez continues his search for the Undertaker.

Final Thoughts: We have a new match added to WrestleMania and the rest of the show was hype for the PPV. The hype here was fine for the most part though as we are getting closer to the PPV.