By Octavio Fierros

10. Steve Austin vs. Savio Vega (IYH: Beware of Dog, May 28, 1996, Charleston, SC)
Pre-Match Analysis: Two mid-carders were feuding during the first few months of the year. Steve Austin, who was once known as The Ringmaster, started a feud with Caribbean Legend Savio Vega. Vega was a very high-energized wrestler who made quite an impact in the WWE during his first year. He made a name for himself at the King of the Ring in 1995 when he wrestled four times and almost won the crown. Vega continued to be pushed, thanks to his alliance with Razor Ramon. In 1996, Vega won the IC Title from Goldust, but there was a controversial finish. The title was vacant and Goldust won the match to make himself the official IC Champion. Vega lost to Austin at WrestleMania XII, but the feud continued during WWE TV tapings. At one point, Austin challenged a wrestler named The Caribbean Kid on WWE Superstars. The Caribbean Kid scored a surprising upset over Austin, but he later revealed himself as Savio Vega. Both men decided to settle their score in a Caribbean Strap match.
Match Analysis: Austin and Vega wrestled twice in two nights. The second match was better than the first one, according to those in attendance in Florence, SC. The lights went out at the Beware of Dog PPV so the match was not featured on the telecast. The second match was better, thanks to the stipulation added. Ted DiBiase appeared on the May 27 Raw (head-to-head with Scott Hall’s Nitro debut) and promised to leave the WWE if Austin loses the match. Vega won the match and DiBiase had to leave WWE. The match itself was very good with great intensity by both men.
Post-Match Analysis: Ted DiBiase left the WWE and made his debut for WCW few months after. Steve Austin went on to win the King of the Ring and the WWE discovered a new superstar. A superstar that would become a break-out star for years to come. Savio Vega didn’t stick around and left the WWE after 1996.



9. Smoking Gunns vs. Owen Hart & British Bulldog (IYH: Mind Games, September 22, 1996, Philadelphia, PA)
Pre-Match Analysis: Sunny managed The Smoking Gunns at this point. She managed three consecutive tag team champions that year because she was simply a gold digger. Sunny turned The Gunns heel when she started managing them. Billy Gunn was a full-fledged heel while Bart was a tweener. Owen Hart and British Bulldog started teaming up since they were part of Camp Cornette.
Match Analysis: Very good tag team match. I always believed that both Bulldog & Owen had great chemistry in the ring. They knew how to wrestle each other and pair up as well. This match was not only for the tag team titles, but Billy was also focused on Sunny. Owen and Bulldog won the match and the tag titles.
Post-Match Analysis: Sunny turns on The Smoking Gunns for losing the tag team titles. She goes on to manage her first singles wrestler Ron Simmons. Owen and Bulldog have a long title reign until almost mid-1997 when they lost the tag belts to Austin and Michaels. Despite both men wearing tag team gold, they were also feuding with each other. Bulldog won the finals of the European Title tournament by defeating Owen. Bret reunited both men to form The Hart Foundation.



8. Shawn Michaels vs. Vader (SummerSlam 1996, August 18, 1996, Cleveland, OH)
Pre-Match Analysis: Vader was a monster for the first eight months of the year. He was eliminated by Michaels in the Rumble, but after that, he was destroying everyone in his path, including Yokozuna, Razor Ramon, Ahmed Johnson and others. He pinned Michaels in a six-man tag match at the In Your House: International Incident PPV.
Match Analysis: The match was booked to make Vader a legit contender before, during and after the match. That was not quite the case. At first, Vader won the match via disqualification when Michaels used Cornette’s tennis racquet. Then, Michaels lost again, this time via count out. Cornette asked the referee to restart the match. Michaels won the match with a super kick to retain the WWE Title. Cornette and Michaels had their problems behind the scenes and this was one reason why the WWE Title changed hands. Vader was scheduled to win the WWE Title.
Post-Match Analysis: Vader continued his dominance until 1997 when he turned face. Michaels went on to lose the WWE Title to Sid at Survivor Series.



7. Shawn Michaels vs. Sid (Survivor Series 1996, November 17, 1996, New York, NY)
Pre-Match Analysis: Sid defeated Vader at the previous pay-per-view to become the number one contender for the WWE Title. Sid was working as a babyface for the second time in the WWE. It was going to be interesting to see who was going to get booed if these two wrestle each other. This is not the first time Michaels and Sid crossed paths. About a year and a half earlier, Sid was Michaels’ bodyguard. That relationship didn’t last long when Sid turned heel on Michaels. Michaels brought Sid back in 1996 when he replaced Ultimate Warrior at the International Incident PPV.
Match Analysis: To answer your question about who was booed more, well here it is. Michaels was shocked during the match when he heard boos from the New York crowd at MSG. Sid was cheered throughout the match. Fans wanted Michaels to end his long title reign at the time. That’s exactly what happened when Sid used the camera to attack Michaels’ mentor, Jose Lothario. Michaels was busy helping his trainer that he forgot he had a match going on. Sid used the camera on Michaels too and scored the pin to win his first WWE Title.
Post-Match Analysis: Michaels didn’t have to worry about getting booed in his rematch against Sid at the Royal Rumble. Michaels regained the WWE Title from Sid in front of his hometown in San Antonio at the Alamo Dome. Sid continued to wrestle in 1997 until he decided to join WCW two years later.



6. Shawn Michaels vs. British Bulldog (King of the Ring 1996, June 23, 1996, Milwaukee, WI)
Pre-Match Analysis: British Bulldog accused Michaels of hitting on his wife Diana. That’s how the feud started. Michaels and Bulldog wrestled a good match at the Beware of Dog PPV. The finish came when both men scored a double pinfall. The finish was probably planned during the event when the lights went out. A rematch would take place the following month at the King of the Ring.
Match Analysis: Mr. Perfect was the special guest referee for the match. Well, he was outside enforcer, but he was wearing a referee shirt. This was a very good match that ended with Michaels retaining the WWE Title. The feud against Camp Cornette was not over yet for Michaels as the true test is next .Vader is in line for a title shot. The finish was great with Ahmed Johnson and Warrior coming to the rescue to even the sides. Ten years later, it was weird to see Michaels team up with two men that can’t wrestle one bit.
Post-Match Analysis: The British Bulldog went on to team with Owen Hart to capture tag team gold.



5. The Undertaker vs. Mankind (SummerSlam 1996, August 18, 1996, Cleveland, OH)
Pre-Match Analysis: Mankind made his WWE TV debut on April 1, 1996 Raw when he attacked The Undertaker. It was clear that Mankind and Taker were going to start a feud. Their first match took place at the King of the Ring when Paul Bearer accidentally hit Taker with the urn, letting Mankind apply the mandible claw to win the match. It was the first time that Taker lost via submission in a regular match. Now, they wrestle for the second time in their careers.
Match Analysis: It was a very good match for those who watched it on PPV. These were the days before the famous Titan Tron, so fans in attendance had to watch from three TV screens in the ring. Mankind displayed his usual bumps, but ended up winning the match. Paul Bearer turned heel on Undertaker and ended his five-year relationship with his protégé.
Post-Match Analysis: Bearer continued his feud with Undertaker and manage two other superstars. Terry Gordy came to the WWE for about two months as The Executioner. He was gone after his match with Taker. Then, he managed Vader and he scored a pinfall over Taker at the Rumble. In 1997, Bearer revealed a big secret and brought in Kane as Undertaker’s evil brother.



4. Shawn Michaels vs. Mankind (IYH: Mind Games, September 22, 1996, Philadelphia, PA)
Pre-Match Analysis: These two men worked a program during the month of September. Here’s hoping that Mankind wins the WWE Title from Michaels in a no-DQ match. Mankind and Michaels didn’t interact much leading to this match. There was a time when Mankind surprised Michaels with the mandible claw on Raw.
Match Analysis: Surprisingly a great match with a bad finish. Even though it was a bad finish, it was totally understandable at the time. Mankind had to remain undefeated in order to become a serious threat in the WWE. This match took place in front of an ECW crowd (featuring ECW wrestlers as well). It was a hardcore style match between two men that are not scared of taking bumps. The bump night took place when Michaels shoved Mankind off the top rope to the table. Michaels won via DQ when Vader interfered. Undertaker appeared from inside the casket to even the sides. Sid also came out and threw some of the lamest punches in wrestling history.
Post-Match Analysis: Mankind continued his feud with Undertaker here. A buried alive match took place with Mankind winning (3-0 against Taker on PPV). Michaels continued his title reign for two more months.



3. Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart (Survivor Series 1996, November 17, 1996, New York, NY)
Pre-Match Analysis: When Bret lost the WWE Title to Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XII, he took an eight-month hiatus. During his absence, Steve Austin made an impact in the WWE. Austin won the King of the Ring and thanks to his speech, he was over with fans. Even though fans started cheering for him, he played the heel role. Austin started to acknowledge Bret by challenging him to a match. Even though Austin was challenging Bret, the WWE was not really sure if The Hitman was going to return. There were rumors about Bret joining WCW at the time. In October, Bret decided to sign a deal with the WWE and agreed to face Austin at Survivor Series.
Match Analysis: Very good match ended with Austin attempting his old finisher, which was the Million Dollar Dream. Bret reversed it and pinned him to win he match. The finish was similar to Bret’s match against Piper when he won the IC Title. After the match, Austin was not really disappointed because he knew the feud would continue.
Post-Match Analysis: The Austin-Bret feud continued for the next eight months. A lot of series of events occurred with Bret turning heel, Austin turning face, and the reformation of The Hart Foundation. Austin and Bret faced each other twice on PPV, including a stellar match at WrestleMania 13.



2. Diesel vs. Shawn Michaels (IYH: Good Friends, Better Enemies, April 28, 1996, Omaha, NE)
Pre-Match Analysis: Diesel turned heel on Michaels at the MSG house show on March 17 of that year. After Taker defeated Diesel and Michaels defeated Bret for the WWE Title, the attention focused on these two men. Diesel was going for the WWE Title (even though experts already speculated that Michaels was going to retain due to Diesel leaving WWE). Also, Diesel was going after Vince McMahon during this match.
Match Analysis: Excellent match. It was a mix of great wrestling and hardcore. Easily this was Kevin Nash’s best match of his career. This match was better than their WrestleMania XI encounter. It was exciting right from the start. Diesel took advantage of Michaels right from the start using his power moves. Towards the end of the match, Diesel tried to use Mad Dog Vachon’s artificial leg to win the match, but Michaels used it and scored the pin. This was Diesel’s last PPV match before leaving to WCW.
Post-Match Analysis: Diesel went to WCW for more money and Michaels continued his eight-month reign.



1. Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania XII, March 31, 1996, Anaheim, CA)
Pre-Match Analysis: Bret and Shawn go back four years when they were starting as singles wrestlers. Bret was the champion and Michaels was just beginning to break out as a legit contender. Four years later, many believed that Michaels was ready for competition. WWE President (at the time) Roddy Piper announced that this would be a 60-minute Iron Man match.
Match Analysis: The most memorable part of the match was towards the end. The match ended in a tie (0-0), but returning president Gorilla Monsoon ordered the match to restart. A few seconds later, Michaels scored the pinfall to win the WWE Title.
Post-Match Analysis: Bret Hart refused to join WCW and returned eight months later. Michaels started his long title reign.

As always, I would like to read your feedback on this week’s RETRO. Send your e-mail feedback here: octaviofierros@yahoo.com - Thank you!

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