Ted DiBiase Sr. on WWE removing his title reign from the record books (Exclusive)

Ted DiBiase Sr. is not officially recognized as a former WWE Champion even though he once held the title in controversial circumstances. In an exclusive interview, The Million Dollar Man gave an insight into the storyline logic behind his nixed title win.

On the February 5, 1988, edition of The Main Event I, Andre the Giant ended Hulk Hogan's 1,474-day tenure as WWE Champion. The storyline revolved around DiBiase Sr., who bribed referee Earl Hebner and received the title from Andre as part of an agreement before the match.

DiBiase Sr. told Sportskeeda Wrestling Senior Editor Bill Apter and host Dr. Chris Featherstone about his short-lived title reign:

"Basically, I said I bought the title from Andre the Giant. He wins it, I buy it, and so they take it off me. 'You're not really the champion. You didn't win it. We can't give it back to Hulk because he technically lost it.' They can't give it back to Andre – he won't take it because I've paid him off – so what do you do? You have a tournament to declare a new champion." [1:27 – 1:54]

Watch the video above to hear Ted DiBiase Sr. discuss several topics, including Vince McMahon leaving WWE.

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Ted DiBiase Sr. on facing Macho Man Randy Savage at WrestleMania 4

On-screen WWE President Jack Tunney forced Ted DiBiase Sr. to vacate the world title, leading to a tournament to crown a new champion. At WrestleMania 4, Randy Savage defeated The Million Dollar Man in the final to cement his status as one of WWE's top babyfaces alongside Hulk Hogan.

DiBiase Sr. enjoyed facing Savage and thought their wrestling knowhow made up for their lack of in-ring experience together:

"That tournament ended up with me and Macho Man in the last match, and of course Macho Man became the champion, and basically what I did is I came in as the new heel and basically made Randy Savage the new babyface. That was the first time that Randy and I had ever wrestled each other. We both came from wrestling backgrounds and so it wasn't too hard for us to have a great match." [1:56 – 2:28]

DiBiase Sr. held other titles during his WWE career, including the Million Dollar Championship twice and the tag titles three times with IRS. However, he never captured the WWE Championship again.

What is your favorite Ted DiBiase Sr. moment? Hit the discuss button and let us know.

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