WWE King of the Ring 1993 (1993)

Live from Dayton, OHAttendance 6,500Your commentators are Jim Ross, Randy Savage & Bobby HeenanKOTR: First RoundBret Hart Vs Razor RamonBret wins after a countering a suplex from the top in mid-air. This was a fun opener. Bret was a godsend around this time, but the two really had good chemistry and the last 5 minutes are almost breathtakingly exciting. They have another good match at the Rumble.***1/4 out of 5KOTR: First RoundMr. Perfect Vs Mr. HughesThe battle of the Mister's! Perfect wins by DQ after Hughes foolishly nails Hennig with The Undertaker's urn. Personally, I would have had Perfect win clean here. Hughes was garbage. That said, Perfect did his best to get a good match out of him. He was semi-successful.** out of 5KOTR: First Round Bam Bam Bigelow Vs 'Hacksaw' Jim DugganThis is gonna suck, big time. Bigelow wins with a diving headbutt. Well, this could have been a lot worse, considering Duggan was wrestling. That's about the best compliment I can give it.*1/2 out of 5KOTR: First Round'The Narcissit' Lex Luger Vs TatankaThe match ends in a draw after the 15 minute time limit expires. This was actually well above average. Both men worked pretty hard and this was much better than I remembered it to be. The finish makes sense since you had to protect both men. Tatanka had the undefeated streak and Luger was a new heel.**3/4 out of 5There is a great interview segment between Bret Hart and Mr. Perfect.KOTR: Quarter FinalsBret Hart Vs Mr. PerfectBret wins with a small package. Perfect teases a heel turn after the match but ends up shaking Bret's hand and patting him on the back. This was one beautiful match. Amazing action, perfect storytelling, and flawlessly executed. Not quite as good as their Summerslam match, but it's a classic for sure. It's got everything. I love how desperate Perfect was and I loved Bret's resiliency. Close to 5 stars as you can get.****3/4 out of 5WWF ChampionshipHulk Hogan (C) Vs YokozunaAs much as I love Heenan, he makes one of the stupidest comments I've ever heard. "The longer the match goes, the advantage goes to Yokozuna. He'll wear Hogan down" Bahahahahahaha. Yokozuna wins the title after a photographer flashes fire in Hogan's eyes. Yokozuna beats Hogan with his own leg drop. Man, even as an adult, this is still upsetting. Hogan put Yokozuna over big time and I'm not sure people realize that. Yokozuna kicked out of the leg drop, beat Hogan with Hogan's own maneuver, and looked very strong. Hogan barely got in any offense. Personally, I think Hogan should have done the honors to Bret Hart, but that's just me. The match was pretty awful, but it wasn't expected to be a masterpiece. Hogan did the job and that's the last we would see of Hulkamania in the WWF until 2002. *1/4 out of 5Promos from Mr. Perfect and Shawn Michaels, where Michaels introduces Diesel as his bodyguard.The Steiner Brothers & The Smoking Gunns Vs Money INC & The HeadshrinkersThe Steiner Brothers and The Gunns win. This was a throwaway match if there ever was one to calm the crowd down. The crowd was completely dead and still in shock from Hogan's demise. Don't blame them either. I barely paid attention to it.* out of 5Intercontinental ChampionshipShawn Michaels (C) (W/Diesel) Vs CrushHBK retains with a superkick to the back of the head after three Doinks come out and distract Crush. This was actually decent stuff. Shawn bumped like a mad man for Crush and Crush looked solid as well. Much better than I remembered.**1/4 out of 5King of the RingBret Hart Vs Bam Bam BigelowBigelow initially pins Bret with a diving headbutt after Luna Vachon interferes. The referee reverses the decision when Earl Hebner tells the main ref what transpired. The match restarts and Bret wins King of the Ring with a victory roll. This was a very good big man vs little man match. It was a tad overbooked, but the match quality cannot be denied. This was Bret's consolation prize after kinda being screwed out of the WWF Title.***1/2 out of 5Jerry 'The King' Lawler says Bret is a pretender and doesn't deserve to be king. He'll make Bret a prince if Bret kneels down and kisses Lawler's feet. Bret calls Lawler a Burger King. Lawler responds by beating the crap out of Bret to end the show.Well, this was a memorable show for a lot of reasons. Bret winning King of the Ring, multiple great matches, and the end of Hulkamania in the WWF for 9 years. Hart Vs Perfect is worth watching for the PPV alone, but there is plenty of other great stuff too. It may have been the end of Hulkamania, but this was Bret's night. He proved he was the workhorse. One of the best King of the Ring PPV's and the best PPV of 93 by far. Highly recommended.8/10

1. Razor Ramon Vs. Bret Hart Decent match with some upsets. 7/10 2. Mr. Hughes Vs. Mr. Perfect - Hughes totally screwed Spinebuster. Hennig won by DQ. 6.5/10 3. Bam Bam Bigelow Vs. Jim "Insult" Duggan 6/10 4. Lex Luger Vs. Tatanka - Draw match, but I must admit I expected it worse. 6/10 Semifinals: 5. Bret Hart Vs. Mr. Perfect - That was nice match full of technic and strategy, pity that Mr. Perfect didn't win. 8/10 6. WWF Championship: Yokozuna Vs. Champ: Hulk Hogan - I give this match 6 points only because of Yokozuna won and squashed another American Hogan's stupid dream, but beating from The Undertaker was far better. 6/10 NOOOOOOOOO! NASH Appeared, omg save me from another few PPVs.7. The Steiners/Smoking Guys Vs. Million Dollar Man/I.R.S./Headshrinkers 5.5/10 8. Intercontinental CHampionship: Greatest Mullet in the game-Crush Vs. Champ-Shawn Michaels 6/10 Final 9. Bam Bam Bigelow Vs. Bret Hart - Unpredictablly wins Bret Hart. 6/10

The King of the Ring 1993 is an uneven pay-per-view overall, as there are some matches that don't really deliver. All of those matches are lacking the same thing: Bret Hart. This show was all about the Hit-man. He wrestled three times this night, against three different styles, and each one was great in its own way. They call Bret one of the greatest storytellers in all of wrestling, and this is my favorite story: Bret had recently lost the world title that he still deserved to have, but now he had to climb his way back to the top of the mountain. This show was like a b-line to the top of Mt. Everest. I totally felt like I was watching a man claw his way to the top over the course of these three matches. The inspiring was the final match against the much larger Bam Bam Bigelow. There were so many times when it looked like Bret was beaten or couldn't keep going, but he never gave up. For me, this was as important as any championship or title. The outcome in wrestling is pre-planned. Most of the time you can guess who is going to win. You are fully aware watching that it is choreographed and discussed beforehand. Yet, every time I watch this back, I am charged with a feeling of wanting to go out and accomplish great things in my own life. For me, this was the best of all time.

The 1993 King Of The Ring saw Bret"The Hitman"Hart once again create WWF history by winning the first ever King of the Ring tournament by defeating Razor Ramon, Mr.Perfect and Bam Bam Bigelow in one night to be crowned the first ever King of the Ring. It was also Hulk Hogan's final PPV match with the WWF as he defended the WWF title against Yokozuna.