Fantasy Booking: King of the Ring Tournament Winners 1988-1995
August 14, 2014
By Ryan Porzl
This is part two of my King of the Ring winners article. Once again, the rules are the same. In the fantasy world, the real KOTR winners are injured and I have to pick someone else. Keep in mind I can only select wrestlers from that time period and not just anyone. With each year, I will also pretend what happened in real life the previous year happened since I can't predict if my choices would be successful or not and how much that would change things. I'm also going to pretend the 1985-1991 tournaments meant as much as the later ones. I should also point out that there were no tournaments in 1990 and 1992.
The 1988 King of the Ring tournament took place on October 16, 1988. The winner was the “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase. With Dibiase on the shelf, my choice to win would be Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake. For the 1988 tournament, The Big Bossman would be another choice. However, since he was already beginning to feud with Hulk Hogan and “Macho Man” Randy Savage, I feel he doesn't need it that much. On the other hand, Beefcake would benefit from it more. Mr. Perfect would be another good choice but he had just come into the WWF and was given an undefeated streak so he didn't need it. By this time, Beefcake had feuded with the Honky Tonk Man over the Intercontinental Title for most of the year. However, right as they were heading to a blow off match at Summerslam '88, the WWF took Beefcake out and gave the title to the Ultimate Warrior. Having been skipped over for the IC Title, the King of the Ring would be something to give Beefcake to regain some of his momentum. To Beefcake's credit, he was starting to grow as a talent by 1988. He was already entertaining on the mic, knew how to work a crowd, was popular, and was getting better in the ring. Speaking of Honky Tonk Man, he would be the wrestler Beefcake would defeat in the finals to win the tournament. These two never really had a blow off match in their feud so this could be it.
The 1989 edition took place on October 14, 1989 and was won was Tito Santana. With Santana being out, my choice would be “Ravishing” Rick Rude. Other choices I would consider would be “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes and “The Widow Maker” Barry Windham. Ultimately, the 1989 tournament was one of the biggest no-brainers for me. Rhodes was great but he just came into the WWF a few months earlier and was already very popular with the fans. Windham would've been my first choice since he just came back to the WWF a few months earlier and winning the tournament would be a great way to reintroduce him to the WWF audience. But I believe he was injured at this time. He would also leave shortly after this due to personal reasons as his father Blackjack Mulligan and brother Kendall were going to jail for counterfeiting. Because of this, Rude is the best choice. At the time this event took place, Rude had just lost the Intercontinental Title back to the Ultimate Warrior at Summerslam '89. By giving Rude the King of the Ring tournament, it would allow him to bounce back and regain momentum which is important since the WWF wanted to move him to the main event in 1990. In the finals, I would have Rude beat Bret Hart. Hart was still in the Hart Foundation so him losing wouldn't hurt him. Meanwhile, he was reliable and could be a great opponent for Rude.
After taking a year off, the WWF held the next King of the Ring on September 7, 1991. Bret would win his first of two straight King of the Ring tournaments. But with the Hitman out, my choice would be another future legend in the Undertaker. The Undertaker was only in the WWF for ten months but was rapidly rising to the top. With the Undertaker being two months away from challenging Hulk Hogan for the WWF Championship at Survivor Series, winning the KOTR would be a great step up for him and make him come off more of a threat. A threat who is continually gaining momentum. As for other choices, there aren't many others. Perhaps the only other consideration is Sid Justice (Sycho Sid) but he only debuted two to three months earlier so they didn't need to give him the tournament so soon. For the finals, I would have Undertaker defeat “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. Duggan is a credible veteran that Undertaker can squash and the win will be considered a big one for him. Meanwhile, Duggan is a midcard act so the WWF can have the Undertaker do his usual dominating zombie act without risking the possibility of hurting a main event act.
The next King of the Ring tournament was held two years later on June 13, 1993. The event was also the first one to be on Pay-Per-View. For the second straight time, Bret Hart won the tournament. However, for the second straight time, The Hitman is out of action. My choice to win would be Crush. In 1993, Crush seemed like a wrestler with a lot of potential. He was a talented big man with a lot of strength and moved around very well for a 6'6, 300 pound wrestler. He also had a good look and was underrated on the mic. He seemed like someone who could be a star. Another choice would be Bam Bam Bigelow. Bigelow had come back to the WWF around six months earlier so he had been around for awhile and wouldn't come off as someone being hastily pushed. Most fans already know about Bigelow's skills and how talented he was especially for a big man. Bigelow as a winner would elevate him and give the WWF another monster villain. On paper, Razor Ramon would look good but that wouldn't work. He was coming off his upset loss to the 1-2-3 Kid and was about to be mocked and ridiculed by Money Inc. (Ted Dibiase and I.R.S.) which would lead him to become a fan favorite. It wouldn't make much sense to have him suffer this upset loss and then rebound a month later by winning the tournament when he's supposed to be down on his luck. For the finals, I would have Crush win by defeating Bigelow. My hope would be that I can elevate both by having Bigelow make it to the finals and put on a good show while Crush would win. I would go with Crush winning because I believe he has the potential to go farther.
The 1994 King of the Ring took place on June 19, 1994 with Owen Hart winning the tournament. But with Hart out, my choice is Lex Luger. This one is one of the easier ones to choose from. The WWF had a lot of hope for Luger to be a major player for them. Unfortunately, Luger lost a lot of momentum after he wasn't giving the WWF Championship at Wrestlemania X and a feud with Mr. Perfect was canceled due to Perfect's recurring back injuries. A King of the Ring win would be a big shot in the arm for his career that desperately needs it. It could shoot Luger back to main event status and regain credibility after the recent setbacks. One other choice would be Tatanka. Since Ludvig Borga ended his near two year undefeated streak in October 1993, Tatanka seemed to lack direction. By the summer of 1994, he lost some of his luster and momentum. The King of the Ring would be a good way to revitalize his career. In the end, I'm settling with Luger since I believe he has more upside. In the finals, I would want Luger vs. Yokozuna. Yes, I know this would be the third Pay-Per-View match in the past year. However, the best way for Luger to regain his momentum is for him to win the King of the Ring and defeat a main event talent like Yokozuna. By defeating Yokozuna, Luger would show he can win the big one and wasn't a choker.
The next King of the Ring was held on June 25, 1995 with Mabel ultimately winning the tournament. With Mabel out of commission, I would pick the guy he defeated to qualify for the tournament in Adam Bomb. Bomb was one of the most underrated wrestlers during this period. He was not only a power wrestler but was very agile for a man who is 6'6 and 280 pounds. He can come off the top rope with diving clotheslines, do planchas like a cruiserweight, and slingshot from the apron and back into the ring with a clothesline. He was popular and very marketable. Overall, he had the ingredients to be a star. Perhaps a second choice would be British Bulldog since he would turn into a villain a few months later. My finals would be Adam Bomb vs. Double J. At the time, Double J was the reigning Intercontinental Champion which can be beneficial. With Bomb being popular and Double J being the IC Champion, they should hopefully keep the brutal Philadelphia crowd interested in the finals. Also, both are very good wrestlers so it should be a very good match. Finally, this could lead to a feud over the intercontinental title.
