WWF The Main

Event

The Main Event is an American series of professional wrestling television specials that were
produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). The Main Event was a spin-off of
Saturday Night's Main Event and was held only one time in a year (with the exception of 1990
where it was held twice) and was equivalent to today’s monthly pay-per-view (PPV) events.
Like Saturday Night’s Main Event, The Main Event aired late and held its main event match on
the first hour of the show. There were five shows between 1988 and 1991. Only the first three
The Main Event episodes were shown live on NBC. The final two were taped and then shown
on NBC at a later date. It included mainly high-card wrestlers of the WWF including Hulk
Hogan, André the Giant, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, The Ultimate Warrior and "Million Dollar
Man" Ted DiBiase.
 WWF The Main Event

Genre Professional
wrestling

Created by Vince McMahon

Starring World Wrestling

Federation roster

Country of origin United States

Original language English

No. of episodes 5

Production

Running time 60 minutes

 Production Once a Month
companies Productions
Titan Sports Inc.

Original release

Network NBC

Release February 5, 1988 –

February 1, 1991

Related

Saturday Night's Main Event

All episodes of The Main Event are available on the WWE Network, included with Saturday
Night's Main Event.
Dates and venues
Event Date City Venue Main Event Ref

Market Hulk Hogan (c) vs. André the Giant for

The Main February Indianapolis, [1]
Square the WWF World Heavyweight
Event 5, 1988 Indiana
Arena Championship

The Mega Powers (Hulk Hogan &

The Main February Milwaukee, Bradley [2]
Macho Man Randy Savage) vs. The
Event II 3, 1989 Wisconsin Center
Twin Towers (Akeem & Big Boss Man)

Hulk Hogan (c) vs. Macho King Randy

Savage for the WWF World
The Main February Detroit, Joe Louis [3]
Heavyweight Championship with
Event III 23, 1990 Michigan Arena
Buster Douglas as the special guest
referee

October Allen
30, 1990 County The Ultimate Warrior (c) vs. Ted
The Main Fort Wayne, [4]
Aired War DiBiase for the WWF World
Event IV Indiana
November Memorial Heavyweight Championship
23, 1990 Coliseum

January
28, 1991 Sgt Slaughter (c) vs. Jim Duggan for
The Main Macon, Macon [5]
Aired the WWF World Heavyweight
Event V Georgia Coliseum
February 1, Championship
1991

(c) – refers to the champion(s) heading into the match

Results

The Main Event

The Main Event (1988)

Promotion World Wrestling

Federation

Date February 5, 1988

Venue Market Square Arena

Indianapolis, Indiana

The Main Event chronology

← Previous Next →
First II
The Main Event (1988) took place and aired live on Friday February 5, 1988 at 8pm ET from
the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, Indiana.[6][7] The live broadcast drew a 15.2 Nielsen
rating and 33 million viewers, both records for American televised wrestling.[8]

The match between André the Giant and Hulk Hogan saw André receive the pinfall victory
despite Hogan's shoulders not being down. It was revealed post-match that the referee was
not the assigned referee, Dave Hebner, but rather his twin brother, Earl Hebner, who was hired
by Ted DiBiase as part of a storyline screwjob. After the match, André attempted to surrender
the title to DiBiase. Then-WWF President Jack Tunney said the title could only change hands
by pin or submission, and said that by attempting to surrender the title, André had actually
vacated it.[9] Following the vacancy, a single elimination tournament was held at
WrestleMania IV to crown the new champion.[10]

The Strike Force vs. The Hart Foundation match was still in progress when NBC signed off. In
2014, when the WWE Network made available this episode to its on-demand section, the
ending of the match was added in.

No. Results Stipulations Times

1D Ax defeated Ken Patera Singles match 9:06

2D Jake Roberts defeated Harley Race Singles match 11:21

3D Ron Bass defeated Koko B. Ware Singles match 6:33

The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and

4D Dynamite Kid) defeated The Islanders (Haku Tag team match 13:42
and Tama)

5D Jim Duggan defeated One Man Gang Singles match 5:55

6D The Ultimate Warrior defeated Sika Singles match 4:01

Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated

Singles match for the WWF
7 The Honky Tonk Man (c) (with Jimmy Hart and 8:20
Intercontinental Championship
Peggy Sue) by countout

Singles match for the WWF

André the Giant (with Ted DiBiase and Virgil)
8 World Heavyweight 10:05
defeated Hulk Hogan (c)
Championship

Strike Force (Tito Santana and Rick Martel) (c)

Tag team match for the WWF
9D defeated The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and 10:03
Tag Team Championship
Jim Neidhart) (with Jimmy Hart)

(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match

D – this was a dark match
The Main Event II

The Main Event II

Promotion World Wrestling

Federation

Date February 3, 1989

Venue Bradley Center

Milwaukee,
Wisconsin

The Main Event chronology

← Previous Next →
1988 III

The Main Event II took place and aired live on Friday February 3, 1989 at 8pm ET from the
Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[11][12] The live broadcast drew an 11.6 rating and
19.9 million viewers.[13]
The slowly building tension between Hulk Hogan and "Macho Man" Randy Savage boiled over
during the team's match against The Twin Towers, leading to the team's breakup upon
Savage's heel turn when Savage contended that Hogan was lusting after his manager, Miss
Elizabeth.

No. Results Stipulations Times

André the Giant (with Bobby Heenan) defeated

1D Singles match 7:11
Jake Roberts

The Fabulous Rougeaus (Jacques Rougeau and Tag team match with
2D Raymond Rougeau) (with Jimmy Hart) defeated Brother Love as special 19:35
The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) guest referee

Singles match for the WWF

The Ultimate Warrior (c) defeated Greg Valentine
3D Intercontinental 05:19
(with Jimmy Hart)
Championship

Demolition (Ax and Smash) (c) defeated The Tag team match for the
4D Powers of Pain (The Warlord and The Barbarian) WWF Tag Team 8:16
(with Mr. Fuji) by disqualification Championship

The Brain Busters (Arn Anderson and Tully

5D Blanchard) defeated The Rockers (Shawn Michaels Tag team match 14:16
and Marty Jannetty)

Brutus Beefcake vs. Mr. Perfect ended in a double

6D Singles match 12:34
disqualification

Jim Duggan defeated Dino Bravo (with Frenchy

7D Flag match 6:08
Martin)

The Mega Powers (Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage)

8 (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated The Twin Towers Tag team match 22:00
(Akeem and Big Boss Man) (with Slick)

9 Ted DiBiase (with Virgil) defeated Hercules Singles match 7:12

(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match

D – this was a dark match
The Main Event III

The Main Event III

Promotion World Wrestling

Federation

Date February 23, 1990

Venue Joe Louis Arena

Detroit, Michigan

The Main Event chronology

← Previous Next →
II IV

The Main Event III took place and aired live on February 23, 1990, at 10pm ET from the Joe
Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.[14][15] The live broadcast drew a 12.8 rating and 20.9 million
viewers.[16]

Mike Tyson was originally scheduled to be the special guest referee, but this changed
following Buster Douglas' knockout title win over Tyson just under two weeks before, on
February 11. Tyson would eventually be the guest referee at WrestleMania XIV.
Tito Santana was a substitute for Jimmy Snuka.

No. Results Stipulations Times

1D Earthquake defeated Ron Garvin Singles match 5:12

Dusty Rhodes (with Sapphire) defeated

2D Singles match 11:26
Mr. Perfect

Ted DiBiase (with Virgil) defeated Jake

3D Singles match 10:28
Roberts

The Colossal Connection (André the

Tag team match for the WWF Tag
4D Giant and Haku) (c) defeated Demolition 10:04
Team Championship
(Ax and Smash)

5D Bad News Brown defeated Tito Santana Singles match 5:31

6D Rick Martel defeated Brutus Beefcake Singles match 12:15

Roddy Piper vs. Rick Rude ended in a

7D Lumberjack match 13:00
double disqualification

Singles match for the WWF

Hulk Hogan (c) defeated Randy Savage
8 Championship with Buster Douglas as 11:14
(with Queen Sherri)
special guest referee

The Ultimate Warrior (c) defeated Dino

Singles match for the WWF
9 Bravo (with Jimmy Hart and 4:11
Intercontinental Championship
Earthquake)

(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match

D – this was a dark match
The Main Event IV

The Main Event IV

Promotion World Wrestling

Federation

Date October 30, 1990

(aired November 23,
1990)

Venue Allen County War

Memorial Coliseum
Fort Wayne, Indiana

The Main Event chronology

← Previous Next →
III V
The Main Event IV took place on October 30, 1990, from the Allen County War Memorial
Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and aired on Friday November 23, 1990 at 10pm ET.[17][18]
The broadcast drew an 8.6 rating and 15 million viewers.[19]

The WWF Tag Team Championship match between The Hart Foundation and The Rockers
was supposed to be on the show. The Rockers defended their newly won titles a few times
before the WWF rehired Jim Neidhart, pairing him with Bret Hart once more, and quietly
handing the belts back to The Hart Foundation, erasing The Rockers' reign from the history
books. Retrospectively, the WWF explained that the title change had been revoked due to a
ring rope malfunction during the second fall of the two-out-of-three falls match. The match
can be seen unedited on the DVD The Shawn Michaels Story: Heartbreak & Triumph. Marty
Jannetty pinned Bret Hart in the first fall with a sunset flip counter at 9:33. Hart pinned Shawn
Michaels in the second fall with the Hart Attack at 19:23. Jannetty pinned Jim Neidhart in the
third fall when Michaels dropkicked Jannetty onto Neidhart, who was setting up the Hart
Attack at 25:41.

Nikolai Volkoff was scheduled to face Sgt. Slaughter on the show, but Slaughter attacked
Nikolai before the opening bell rang and the match never took place.

No. Results Stipulations Times

The Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Two-out-of-three falls match

1D Jannetty) defeated The Hart Foundation (Bret for the WWF Tag Team 25:41
Hart and Jim Neidhart) (c) 2-1 Championship

The Ultimate Warrior (c) defeated Ted DiBiase Singles match for the WWF
2 9:47
(with Virgil) by disqualification Championship

3 Mr. Perfect defeated Big Boss Man by countout Singles match 8:15

4 Rick Martel defeated Tito Santana Singles match 6:46

(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match

D – this was a dark match
The Main Event V

The Main Event V

Promotion World Wrestling

Federation

Date January 28, 1991

(aired February 1,
1991)

Venue Macon Coliseum

Macon, Georgia

The Main Event chronology

← Previous Next →
IV Final

The Main Event V took place on January 28, 1991, from the Macon Coliseum in Macon,
Georgia, and aired on Friday February 1, 1991 at 8pm ET.[20][21]
KNBC, the NBC-owned-and-operated station in Los Angeles, did not air this program when it
was shown by the network on February 1. That day, a collision took place at Los Angeles
International Airport between a US Airways passenger jet and a SkyWest Airlines commuter
plane. The crash occurred in the late afternoon, and KNBC opted to air news bulletin coverage
of this story throughout the night. The station did replay the program unadvertised on a later
date.

The broadcast drew 10.6 million viewers and a 6.7 rating,[22] which was at the time the worst
rating any WWF program had received on NBC despite the presence of Hulk Hogan. This has
been blamed on the controversial and exploitative Sgt. Slaughter Iraqi sympathizer storyline
that was on going at the time.[23]

WWF President Jack Tunney declared Hulk Hogan the number one contender for Sgt.
Slaughter's WWF Championship at WrestleMania VII.

No. Results Stipulations Times

Hulk Hogan and Tugboat defeated Earthquake and

1 Tag team match 8:56
Dino Bravo (with Jimmy Hart)

Jim Duggan (with Hulk Hogan) defeated Sgt.

Singles match for the
2 Slaughter (c) (with General Adnan) by 6:50
WWF Championship
disqualification

The Legion of Doom (Hawk and Animal) defeated

3 Tag team match 5:11
The Orient Express (Kato and Tanaka) (with Mr. Fuji)

(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match

References

1. "WWF The Main Event « Events Database

« CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling
Database" (https://www.cagematch.net/?i
d=1&nr=5145) . www.cagematch.net.
Retrieved 2019-09-13.
2. "WWF The Main Event II « Events
Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet
Wrestling Database" (https://www.cagem
atch.net/?id=1&nr=5619) .
www.cagematch.net. Retrieved
2019-09-13.
3. "WWF The Main Event III « Events
Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet
Wrestling Database" (https://www.cagem
atch.net/?id=1&nr=5633) .
www.cagematch.net. Retrieved
2019-09-13.
4. "WWF The Main Event IV « Events
Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet
Wrestling Database" (https://www.cagem
atch.net/?id=1&nr=5637) .
www.cagematch.net. Retrieved
2019-09-13.
5. "WWF The Main Event V « Events
Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet
Wrestling Database" (https://www.cagem
atch.net/?id=1&nr=5638) .
www.cagematch.net. Retrieved
2019-09-13.
6. "Online World of Wrestling" (http://www.o
nlineworldofwrestling.com/results/snme/
880205.html) . Online World of Wrestling.
1988-02-05. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
7. "The Main Event: February 5, 1988" (http://
www.wwe.com/shows/snme/history/198
5to1992/feb051988) . World Wrestling
Entertainment. Retrieved 2015-08-28.
8. Powell, John. "Steamboat — Savage rule
WrestleMania 3" (https://archive.today/20
120629102306/http://slam.canoe.ca/Sla
m/Wrestling/Wrestlemania20/WrestleMa
nia3.html) . SLAM! Wrestling. Archived
from the original on June 29, 2012.
Retrieved October 14, 2007.
9. "Andre the Giant's first reign" (https://web.
archive.org/web/20050624001310/http://
www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/wwech
ampionship/304454122) . WWE. Archived
from the original (http://www.wwe.com/in
side/titlehistory/wwechampionship/3044
54122) on June 24, 2005. Retrieved
February 15, 2011.
10. Puckering, Dean. "WrestleMania IV" (htt
p://www.twm.news/wrestlemania-iv/) .
TWM Wrestling News. Retrieved
March 19, 2019.
11. "Online World of Wrestling" (http://www.o
nlineworldofwrestling.com/results/snme/
890203.html) . Online World of Wrestling.
1989-02-03. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
12. "The Main Event: February 3, 1989" (http://
www.wwe.com/shows/snme/history/198
5to1992/feb031989) . World Wrestling
Entertainment. Retrieved 2015-08-28.
13. "Nielsen ratings". USA Today. February 8,
1989. p. 3D. ProQuest 306179902 (http
s://search.proquest.com/docview/30617
9902) .
14. "Online World of Wrestling" (http://www.o
nlineworldofwrestling.com/results/snme/
900223.html) . Online World of Wrestling.
1990-02-23. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
15. "The Main Event: February 23, 1990" (htt
p://www.wwe.com/shows/snme/history/
1985to1992/feb231990) . World
Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved
2015-08-28.
16. "Nielsen ratings". USA Today. February 28,
1990. p. 3D. ProQuest 306288240 (http
s://search.proquest.com/docview/30628
8240) .
17. "The Main Event IV" (http://www.onlinewo
rldofwrestling.com/results/snme/901030.
html) . Online World of Wrestling.
Retrieved May 17, 2012.
18. "The Main Event: November 23, 1990" (htt
p://www.wwe.com/shows/snme/history/
1985to1992/nov231990) . World
Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved
2015-08-28.
19. "Nielsen ratings". USA Today. November
28, 1990. p. 3D. ProQuest 306389941 (htt
ps://search.proquest.com/docview/3063
89941) .
20. "Online World of Wrestling" (http://www.o
nlineworldofwrestling.com/results/snme/
910201.html) . Online World of Wrestling.
Retrieved 2012-03-04.
21. "The Main Event: February 1, 1991" (http://
www.wwe.com/shows/snme/history/198
5to1992/feb011991) . World Wrestling
Entertainment. Retrieved 2015-08-28.
22. "Nielsen ratings". USA Today. February 6,
1991. p. 3D. ProQuest 306407811 (http
s://search.proquest.com/docview/30640
7811) .
23. Observer Staff (February 18, 1991).
"February 18, 1991 Observer Newsletter:
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s://members.f4wonline.com/wrestling-ob
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Newsletter. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
(subscription required)

External links

WWF The Main Event (https://www.imd

b.com/title/tt0783198/) at IMDb
Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=WWF_The_Main_Event&oldid=1202019156"

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21:42 (UTC). •
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