Top 10 SummerSlams: Number 9 – SummerSlam 1991

Looking back at the best 10 SummerSlams of all time, today we get to witness number 9 on our list. For that, we go back to 1991, which saw one of the most memorable segments in professional wrestling history, as well as the controversy surrounding The Ultimate Warrior, who was subsequently fired after his match at SummerSlam.

The PPV took place at Madison Square Garden in front of a capacity crowd. The other highlight of the PPV was the WWF Intercontinental Championship match between “Mr Perfect” Curt Hennig and Bret Hart. Without further ado, let us take a look at the events that unfolded during the PPV.

Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart in action

Undercard:

The British Bulldog, The Dragon and The Texas Tornado defeated The Warlord and Power and Glory (Paul Roma and Hercules with Slick)

This peeved everyone off, because Steamboat was back in the WWF but his previous run wasn’t even mentioned. Heck, his name wasn’t mentioned either, as he was now called “The Dragon”. Anyway, he teamed up with Davey and Texas Tornado (Kerry Von Erich for those who care) to take on The Warlord and the team of Roma and Hercules.

It was a good way to kick off the show though, as the crowd was hot for the match. Steamboat picked up the win for his team with a huge cross body on Paul Roma, and this match set the tone for the rest of the card.

Rating: ** ½

Bret Hart defeated “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig (With The Coach) for the WWF Intercontinental championship

There were two things that were wrong with this match. First was its place on the card, as everyone knew this match would steal the show. Second, there was no background story going into the bout. Mr. Perfect was hurt at this point, and the management wasn’t even sure if Curt could compete! Major props to Curt Hennig for working through the pain.

This match arguably made Bret Hart, and even Bret would tell you that. Good back and forth action which saw Bret taking control of the match, but Mr. Perfect came back due to distractions and heel tactics.

The end saw Bret countering a low blow attempt into a sharpshooter and Mr. Perfect tapped out as soon as Bret locked it in. You could see that Mr. Perfect was really hurt, so the longer the match went, the harder it got for him. This match made Bret a bona fide singles star, and paved the way for him to win the WWF championship.

Bret then celebrated with his parents. You don’t get to see that even for the WWE championship now, and that’s how useless it has become.

Rating: ****

The Natural Disasters (Earthquake and Typhoon with Jimmy Hart) defeated The Bushwhackers (Butch and Luke with André the Giant)

This was at a point when André could no longer compete due to his back problems. Going into the bout, no one expected a clinic, but the match turned out to be tolerable (being generous). Disasters dominated the match and Earthquake finished it off with a splash for the pinfall victory. Post-match, they tried to attack André, but the Legion of Doom made the save, and it was the beginning of the LOD – Natural Disasters program.

Rating: * ½

We get a video of Bobby Heenan saying “The real world’s champion” was coming to the WWF. This was when Ric Flair had a falling out with the WCW management and jumped ships to the WWF with the World Championship still with him (long story about the management not giving him his money back). Classic segment by The Brain.

Midcard:

Virgil defeated Ted DiBiase (With Sensational Sherri) for the Million Dollar championship

Ted DiBiase and Virgil (R)

Long before Virgil started auctioning things in flea markets and signing autographs, he took on Ted DiBiase in one of the most anticipated matches, not because Virgil was a phenomenal in-ring talent, but the story leading up to this match was amazing.

Virgil was a slave for Ted, who mistreated him, and when Virgil had enough, he turned on Ted DiBiase and challenged him for his Million Dollar Championship. The match saw Ted using every dirty tactic to get the upper hand, and at one point, was disqualified when Sherri hit Virgil with her purse.

The referee overturned his own decision and restarted the match, and Virgil took advantage of Ted taking off the padding of a turnbuckle and rammed him face first onto the steel for the pinfall victory. The crowd went wild, and Piper’s great commentary made this match memorable.

Rating: ***

The Big Boss Man defeated The Mountie (With Jimmy Hart) in a “Jail house” match

This was America vs. Canada in a way, as the Big Boss Man took on the Mountie in a match that was anything but a classic. The loser of this match would be forced to spend a night in the New York City jail as per the stipulations. BBM took control before Mountie came back. The match was entertaining but had no psychology (today’s matches follow the same route), and BBM delivered an Alabama Slam for the pinfall victory. Nothing great about the match.

Rating: * ¾

The Legion of Doom (Hawk and Animal) defeated The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobs and Jerry Sags) in a Street Fight for the WWF Tag Team Championships

This match saw the Legion of Doom winning all the major tag team titles at that time, as they held the AWA, NWA and the WWF tag team championships. The rules of the match didn’t make much sense, as it was almost a regular bout. Nastys took control over Hawk, and the hot tag sequence saw Animal coming in and taking the Nasty Boys out. The bout ended when LOD got in a helmet shot and the Doomsday Device to pick up the victory and the Tag Team championships.

Rating: **

Irwin R. Schyster defeated Greg Valentine

“The Hammer” is a legend in the WWE, but was plain boring. There was no build to this match, and the fans didn’t care about both the performers. IRS came back to the WWF, and these two were the second last on the card! This is where the Bret – Perfect match should have been placed. Anyway, after a boring, drawn out scuffle, IRS won the match with a roll up. Nobody cared.

Rating: *

Main event:

Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior defeated Sgt. Slaughter, Colonel Mustafa, and General Adnan in a Handicap match with Sid Justice as the special guest referee

The only interesting thing about this match was Vince firing Warrior, reportedly during the match! After a boring bout, which centred around Sid’s loyalty (the commentators wanted to see whose side Sid was on, and to everyone’s surprise, he called the match right down the middle. Wait!), Warrior chased Mustafa and Adnan to the back (and was subsequently fired by Vince) while Hogan pinned Slaughter. Weakest SummerSlam main event till then.

Rating: * ¾

The segment to close the PPV was the “Match made in Heaven”, the ceremony of Savage and Miss Elizabeth, who were married in real life. As tears rolled down the cheeks of those who witnessed, Savage and Elizabeth got married on-screen, and after this segment during the reception, Jake Roberts scared Elizabeth with a snake while The Undertaker attacked Savage.

Overall Rating: *** ¼

That was an interesting PPV, highlighted by Bret Hart’s victory and the Savage – Elizabeth segment, which reduced all the fans to tears, in a good way. SummerSlam ’91 will be known for those two reasons, and also for the Vince – Warrior scuffle. Well, that does it for the review of SummerSlam ’91. With only days to go for this year’s biggest party of the summer, do check in next time as we continue to count the days down by looking at the top 10 SummerSlams in WWE history.