Who Was The Better Option: Ted DiBiase or Randy Savage?

[Tenta]

Let's rewind the clock a little bit, if you will; 1988, to be precise. Here, we see the WWE in a period of transition. Vince McMahon, wisely sensing the future is upon us, realizes he can't ride his cash cow, Hulk Hogan, for much longer, at least not without building another star to be his potential equal. Vince realizes a sad fact I'm not sure if he's learned, even to this day; he has to get away from the concept of Hulkamania, at least for a little while. The issue becomes, who to put his Championship Belt on, and give the rub of being the next great heavyweight champion in the company. He also realizes he has to have something to top Andre/Hogan, which probably is never going to happen, and so god help me, if you bombard me with spam about Taker/Michaels being better, I will slit your wrists. Anyway, realizing he's going to need a new champion to take the belt off Hogan, he orchestrates a Screwjob Finish to the most anticipated rematch of all time (Again, Michaels/Taker=Slit Wrist), as Hulk Hogan takes on Andre the Giant on the inaugural WWE's The Main Event, which takes the belt off Hogan, at least, and inspires a connection between Andre the Giant and his newest superstar, The Million Dollar Man, Ted DiBiase. The result is a unprecedented one night tournament to crown a new WWE Champion, with Hogan and Andre meeting in the second round off of byes. Now, as the story goes, Ted DiBiase was supposed to be the man to unseat Hogan, and become the new WWE Champion. Meanwhile, an exciting, if not a little small, wrestler by the name of Randy Savage was going to culminate his feud with the Honky Tonk Man, winning the belt away from The Honky Tonk Man at the same event.

Except, Honky balks at dropping the belt to Savage. Honestly, I have no clue why this was allowed, but Vince allegedly allowed it, and came to the conclusion to award Savage the World Heavyweight Title as, I don't know, a consolation prize. Some consolation prize. This leaves DiBiase as the ultimate loser, as the man who was going to be coronated as the new WWE Heavyweight Champion is left with jack shit. Still, now we have a case of great speculation, something I just thought about. Sure, we have the gift of hindsight, but I'd like to know, in your opinion, who was the better option to go with the title at Wrestlemania 4: Ted DiBiase, or Randy Savage.

Honestly, this is more a case of me needing swaying. Thus, I'm listening to both arguments, to see what people feel. That said, I'm going to remind people of a few things.

If You Have DiBiase Winning: Say goodbye to The Mega Powers Exploding, and your main event at Wrestlemania 5, arguably one of the greatest of all times. That feud was sparked entirely from Savage's jealousy of Hogan hogging the spotlight, while Savage was the champion. If you're going to say that DiBiase should have won, you'd be better be prepared to say you're erasing history, at least in terms of between Wrestlemania 4 and 5.

If You Have Savage Winning: You're only feeding a culture in which babyfaces are sheltered in the WWE. This is a fault, even in today's WWE, that the babyfaces are almost coddled when it comes to doing the job. Having Ted win that match means you're breaking a vicious cycle. And, for every bit one could say, The MDM was a better promo cutter, and better overall character compared to Randy Savage, at least in my eyes. The matches won't drop off as much, as DiBiase is still a great worker.

Again, there's no wrong answer. The choice is up to you.

 

[Midnite Express 2009]

Good post. I knew for quite sometime that Ted was supposed to be the man and that The Honky Tonk Man supposedly decided at the last minute to not go through with losing the strap to Savage. The thing is, how do we know if that story is actually true? I mean, Savage did apparently go to Vince complaining about HTM not dropping the strap at WM IV, so therefore yeah, Vince gave the belt to Savage. I don't wanna rehash what you're saying.

I would have rather seen Ted DiBiase win the belt OVER Savage which would have made Savage come out looking better as the loser. The reason being is that nobody expected Savage to go that far anyway, and to lose it right when he was at the doorstep, to the man mostly everyone already knew was going to win it anyway, well folks, that would have only helped to intensify Savage as a contender and as a character. Savage vs. DiBiase with Ted being the champ would have tore down houses across the country, as fans would have witnessed Savage's "savage" quest to win the WWF title.

Enter Hogan: Hogan could have come into play, err let's say about 4 months later, trying to be the only voice of reason to a mad man Savage. Randy would have not listened to Hogan, even though he knew Ted DiBiase was doing every underhanded trick in the book to keep Randy from the belt. Ultimately, Savage DOES win the title, with Hogan now feeling like Savage went too far. The Mega Powers would have already been in place, but more so with Hogan not wanting to leave his buddy behind but knowing his friend was taking his hunger to be WWF Champion to the extreme.

To get the belt off of Ted DiBiase, Savage would have injuired him so bad that he was unable to wrestle for a while. This would have been the introduction to the heel turn that would have eventually led to WM V with Savage defending the title against a fed up Hulk Hogan, who was also a former friend. Savage would have traded everything for the title, including his wife and friend, and now that he has the title, it's "his" title and no one can take it from him, including Hulk Hogan...

This would have given Ted DiBiase, one of the best, yet underused workers ever, a chance to be champ even though he would never regain it again. It would have kept The Mega Powers storyline going, albeit it would have started a few months later and under different circumstances and finally, it would have helped Savage be the "Savage" champion he ultimately became. Why Vince didn't go this route I will never, ever know...

 

[dtroppe]

Savage easily. He had great charisma and Vince and his crew obviously saw a star in Savage. Million Dollar man didnt have much going for him except a good gimmick- hence why he never amounted to much and is largely ignored now days. Savage on the other hand was a huge draw and was easily the best choice to carry the belt.

 

[Tenta]

Savage easily. He had great charisma and Vince and his crew obviously saw a star in Savage. Million Dollar man didnt have much going for him except a good gimmick- hence why he never amounted to much and is largely ignored now days. Savage on the other hand was a huge draw and was easily the best choice to carry the belt.

I'm sorry, what? Ted DiBiase isn't forgotten man, not at all. He's in the damn HOF, man. How is that a forgotten wrestler? You're really underselling his abilites, both in the ring, and the mic. Sure, he had a great character, but ut was great because he made it great. Vince didn't tell him to use that evil laugh, that;'s a character creation. Vince didn't instruct him to say "Every man has a price", that's a character creation. Sure, he was given a great gimmick, but he ultimately made that gimmick so great by his own performance.

Really underselling DiBiase here, and I'm not sure why.

 

[legendkiller1979]

I have heard Randy Savage himself that Ted Dibiase was supposed to take the belt at mania 4. Why would he lie? So there's little doubt to the truth of this rumor. With that said, I have a hard time believing it for one reason. The wwf at the time was huge on baby faces coming out on top. I just can't see a heel, regardless of who it is, at this point in wwf history and at the biggest show of the year coming away with the biggest prize in the company. For the first 30 years of the wwf, a heel champion was used as a transitional champion and nothing more. There was only one exception to this being Superstar Billy Graham. The next heel champion with any kind of major run was yokozuna. If Dibiase wins the belt, surely Hulk Hogan will be the one feuding with him. Where does this leave Savage? If you look back at the results of the tournament there were some upsets to make sure you had the face/heel match up. If Dibiase wins, not only do you have one of the two biggest stars in the company left out in the cold but you have Andre the Giant reduced to a bodyguard until Dibiase drops the belt. I just dont' see how you don't put the belt on Savage.

 

[CobraVenom]

Savage easily. He had great charisma and Vince and his crew obviously saw a star in Savage. Million Dollar man didnt have much going for him except a good gimmick- hence why he never amounted to much and is largely ignored now days. Savage on the other hand was a huge draw and was easily the best choice to carry the belt.

Largely ignored by who? The kiddies who don't give two shits about history, that's who. They don't matter. If those who ignore DiBiase cared and did some research, they would know that he was very charismatic and a fantastic in-ring worker too. Ted was much more than just a great gimmick. Fact.

That's why I am choosing Ted here. I never did understand why Vince never went with the old "heel has title, uses help and cheats to keep said title, and finally loses on the biggest stage of them all." It made a lot of sense to me. Wrestlemania V could have been Savage vs DiBiase for the title, and then VI could have been Hogan vs Savage.

 

[Mark0820]

I'm going to go with "the devil we know" for lack of a better term. Savage/Hogan was one of the best feuds in wrestling history culminating in one of the best main events in WM history. I'm a big DiBiase mark but he was never as good as Savage was.

 

[Tenta]

The wwf at the time was huge on baby faces coming out on top. I just can't see a heel, regardless of who it is, at this point in wwf history and at the biggest show of the year coming away with the biggest prize in the company.

See, we agree here, we really do. The WWE does way too much to protect its babyfaces. That said, this could be a changing of the guard. The fact that it was even tossed around means you can kill that off, and make it more of an even level playing field.

If Dibiase wins the belt, surely Hulk Hogan will be the one feuding with him. Where does this leave Savage? If you look back at the results of the tournament there were some upsets to make sure you had the face/heel match up.

Look... Savage was going to get to the main event eventually. Even with his feud with the Honky Tonk Man, he was associated with Hogan. Who was the guy that saved Randy from getting smashed with the guitar? That's right, Hogan. As long as Randy was tied to Hogan, he wouldn't be out in the cold. It might have taken him longer to reach the main event, but he would have eventually reached it.

but you have Andre the Giant reduced to a bodyguard until Dibiase drops the belt.

Look... I love Andre as much as the next guy. But at the time, this was his best role. He gave instant credibility to DiBiase, and really, his back wouldn't have allowed him to work like he used to. Him as a bodyguard wasn't that bad a thing, really.

I just dont' see how you don't put the belt on Savage.

Does my logic help?

 

[dtroppe]

I personally like Dibase- don't get me wrong. He would upstage many of the guys around today, but he was a mid-carder in WWF. He was good on the mic, great in the ring, and had one of the best gimmicks of all time, but for some reason he could not get himself fully over. I mean he had guys like Hogan, Savage, Warrior who had a presence that upstaged him, and then guys like Bret Hard, Shawn Michaels, and Undertaker just getting into WWF and we all know that they were bound to steal the show.

Its a shame that the mid-card guys like Dibiase and Perfect and Rude are not celebrated like Savage, Warrior, and Hogan, but those guys could sell out an arena. It doesnt matter if the better workers held the matches together, It was a guy like Savage or Hogan that helped a guy like Dibase get in front of so many people.

 

[The Brain]

I heard this rumor a long time ago, but I can’t imagine that it’s true. Did The Honky Tonk Man really have that much power? Was he really able to dictate the outcome of WrestleMania and the future world champion because he didn’t want to lose to Savage? It seems so unlikely. It’s more likely Vince would do what he wanted and show Honky the door. Plus it seems like Savage was picked for that spot when the Mega Powers first came together the previous October. I always assumed Hogan was paired with Savage so the fans would be accepting of him as champion when Hogan finally had to lose it. It seems natural that a lot of fans wouldn’t like the new champ simply because he wasn’t Hogan. Hogan endorsing Savage would change that. Also it took 16 years for a heel to finally win in the mania main event. I just can’t picture that happening in 1988. Now that that’s out of the way I’ll assume the rumor is true for the sake of this thread.

As for the question at hand I think putting the belt on Savage was the right call. I’m sure the main event of WrestleMania V was planned before WrestleMania IV even took place. Everything played out so perfectly it just had to happen that way. I know I don’t need to explain how awesome the Mega Powers angle was. We all know it. I wouldn’t want anything to have changed it.

 

[Hulkamaniac]

As much as I love Ted DiBiase, I just can't delete the history you're asking me to delete. To me, The Megapowers Explode is the greatest angle in history. I loved it. It felt so real (and funnily enough, their real life relationship went along a very similar path). It was like a more emotional version of Hogan-Andre. In Hogan-Andre, the association was very loose (and I may be being generous here). On-screen, Hogan and Andre didn't associate all that often. But the Megapowers...Hogan and Savage were kayfabe best friends. It was just an awesome angle. Also, that was the most emotional I saw Hogan act after a win, further selling the angle. Hogan draped over the top rope, reaching for his belt with both hands, exhausted, was a great moment.

So while I'm sure a Hogan-DiBiase feud could have been very good, I don't think it could ever have held the same emotion that was captured in Megapowers Explode, and so I can't delete what happened from Wrestlemania IV to V.

 

[fraserbee]

I think they did the right thing in going with Savage. As good as he was, I think DiBiase was best used a a challenger rather than a champion. He had a nice run as a solid, believable challenger for Hogan, then for Savage and then for Warrior too. He had a really good ability to go all that time and never win the title but at the same time remain strong and legitimate as a contender.

Savage was great champion an became a huge deal. Having him win the IC title back would have likely pigeon holed him as a mid-carder and perhaps would have hindered his development. Also, to have Warrior beat Honky in the end helped make Warrior into an instant sensation.

All in all, things worked out for the best.

 

[AttitudeAJM]

Savage was definitely the best option to win this. WWF was looking for a new face. The formula for success has always been establishing a new babyface and allowing him to run with the belt. Dibiase made a great foil to not only Savage but also to Hogan. If this were now and it wasn't Wrestlemania, I'd say Dibiase should have won simply because there is more television time and countless other ppvs to eventually put Savage over. However, Wrestlemania was really all you had so the right man definitely won.

 

[mjrak]

I can really see both sides of the coin here. On the one hand Savage's win led to one of the best angle builds I can remember and one of the best Mania Main Events ever.

On the other hand, DiBiase was likely the top heel in the company who could still actively work (Andre couldn't do much more then part time by 88 and The Brain was a manager). If DiBiase wins, it has to be over Macho in my opinion in an epic in-ring match between the two. You can even keep many of the same elements with Andre cheating, Liz getting fed up and going to get Hogan...but Hogan failing to even things up. This could be the first seed to Hogan-Macho which you could have perhaps pushed to Mania 6.

I think the biggest failure post Mania 4 was how they handled DiBiase. This was his pinnacle as a top heel and after they kind of pushed him back into the upper mid-card. If they had of kept him in heavy pursuit of the title they could have built to a double main event for Mania 5, DiBiase vs. Macho and Hogan vs. Insert Random Heel here.

That would have allowed you to keep DiBiase relevant for a lot longer (and maybe even throw a title run his way, Survivor Series to Rumble, perhaps?). It would have pushed Macho-Hogan to Mania 6 and maybe we all could have avoided the Ultimate Mistake or the Iraqi Sympathizer Angle. Erasing either one of those would be a lot easier to stomach then erasing the Power Exploding.

 

[harrythem]

I think if you look at the content of the WWF during that period I'd say that Savage was deffo the best option. The fact is that WWE wrestling back then was very cartoonish/black & white or, even more simple, just like a 1980s action movie. To have Dibiase as the world champion would've sent the message to kids that you could buy your way to the top. It might've been the ethos of the 1980s but wouldn't have gone well with the image and message they liked to get across to the kids.

Besides, it worked out for the best as, I liked Ted, but him and Mr Perfect were both upper mid-card wrestlers that were destined to circle the main event, but never get invited to sit with them for good

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

I heard this rumor a long time ago, but I can’t imagine that it’s true. Did The Honky Tonk Man really have that much power? Was he really able to dictate the outcome of WrestleMania and the future world champion because he didn’t want to lose to Savage? It seems so unlikely. It’s more likely Vince would do what he wanted and show Honky the door. Plus it seems like Savage was picked for that spot when the Mega Powers first came together the previous October. I always assumed Hogan was paired with Savage so the fans would be accepting of him as champion when Hogan finally had to lose it. It seems natural that a lot of fans wouldn’t like the new champ simply because he wasn’t Hogan. Hogan endorsing Savage would change that. Also it took 16 years for a heel to finally win in the mania main event. I just can’t picture that happening in 1988. Now that that’s out of the way I’ll assume the rumor is true for the sake of this thread.

As for the question at hand I think putting the belt on Savage was the right call. I’m sure the main event of WrestleMania V was planned before WrestleMania IV even took place. Everything played out so perfectly it just had to happen that way. I know I don’t need to explain how awesome the Mega Powers angle was. We all know it. I wouldn’t want anything to have changed it.

Listen to some of the Honky Tonk Mans shoot interviews,he talks about it in damn near every one of them.

Anyway,the way he tells the story it wasn't the fact that he was gonna drop the belt that he had the problem with. It was the fact that he and Savage had a meeting with Vince and Vince proceeded to act as if Honky wasn't in the room. Honky then called Jim Barnett(who was in charge of things in Atlanta)who told him whatever you do don't drop the belt on television. The NWA was gonna fly him in and talk contract.

The only reason Honky Tonk Man kept that belt is because Vince didn't want to see it on NWA television.

Of course that's if you believe the Honky Tonk Mans story. And the fact that nobody denies it and the fact that Dibiase is on record as blaming him for not getting the World title run makes it believable to me.

 

[Chrome]

I'm sorry, what? Ted DiBiase isn't forgotten man, not at all. He's in the damn HOF, man. How is that a forgotten wrestler? You're really underselling his abilites, both in the ring, and the mic. Sure, he had a great character, but ut was great because he made it great. Vince didn't tell him to use that evil laugh, that;'s a character creation. Vince didn't instruct him to say "Every man has a price", that's a character creation. Sure, he was given a great gimmick, but he ultimately made that gimmick so great by his own performance.

Really underselling DiBiase here, and I'm not sure why.

Get out of the wrestling life bubble please...

The choice was a no brainier for Vince. Hogan/macho/Warrior sold more merchindise than ANYONE in the 80's. They had CROSSOVER appeal in mainstream media hence why Macho/Hogan/Warrior were in commericals etc..

Ask any NON-wrestling junkie who they remember wrestling from the 80;s and the names you get are Hogan/Flair/Warrior/Macho..

Ted Dibase is not even in there vocabulary.

also lets think about this.. that wrestlemania was built to start a fued for the following wrestlemania.. and Million Dollar Man Vs Hogan.. doesn't have the same effect as Macho Man vs Hogan it was the RIGHT choice in the long run.

Sure... WRESTLING fans know who he is.. but he had ZERO crossover appeal. Not many outside of wrestling knew this guy back then. So YES Macho Man was the better fit with his unique voice and charismatic ways.

Hell even "OHHHH YEAH!!!" is as popular with people as "WHOOOOOO" or "HULKAMANIA BROTHER" Ted simply had NO cross over appeal and to sell Wrestlemaina cross over appeal has always been its nitch.

Really not a hard choice to make when you are a business man that thinks OUTSIDE of the wrestling bubble.

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

Get out of the wrestling life bubble please...

The choice was a no brainier for Vince. Hogan/macho/Warrior sold more merchindise than ANYONE in the 80's. They had CROSSOVER appeal in mainstream media hence why Macho/Hogan/Warrior were in commericals etc..

Ask any NON-wrestling junkie who they remember wrestling from the 80;s and the names you get are Hogan/Flair/Warrior/Macho..

Ted Dibase is not even in there vocabulary.

also lets think about this.. that wrestlemania was built to start a fued for the following wrestlemania.. and Million Dollar Man Vs Hogan.. doesn't have the same effect as Macho Man vs Hogan it was the RIGHT choice in the long run.

Sure... WRESTLING fans know who he is.. but he had ZERO crossover appeal. Not many outside of wrestling knew this guy back then. So YES Macho Man was the better fit with his unique voice and charismatic ways.

Hell even "OHHHH YEAH!!!" is as popular with people as "WHOOOOOO" or "HULKAMANIA BROTHER" Ted simply had NO cross over appeal and to sell Wrestlemaina cross over appeal has always been its nitch.

Really not a hard choice to make when you are a business man that thinks OUTSIDE of the wrestling bubble.

Wait,so if the man had no cross over appeal,WHY IN THE HELL WERE THEY GOING TO GIVE HIM A RUN WITH THE WORLD TITLE? That my man was the plan until the Honky Tonk Man screwed up the works. Surely Vince doesn't contemplate this if Dibiase wasn't as known as you try to make out. I mean why would you let someone people don't know be the man to represent your company?

 

[supermanatsea]

If You Have DiBiase Winning: Say goodbye to The Mega Powers Exploding, and your main event at Wrestlemania 5, arguably one of the greatest of all times. That feud was sparked entirely from Savage's jealousy of Hogan hogging the spotlight, while Savage was the champion. If you're going to say that DiBiase should have won, you'd be better be prepared to say you're erasing history, at least in terms of between Wrestlemania 4 and 5.
Again, there's no wrong answer. The choice is up to you.[/QUOTE]

I truly do think they dropped the ball making Savage champion over Dibiase. Savage could have been champion later on. But Ted looked like a champion, and he could have faced Hulk at WM5, like Randy, and dropped it to Hulk. Andre could have helped Dibiase hold onto the title during his reign. Randy could have had countless opportunities against Ted and been denied thanks to Andre/Virgil etc. Ted Dibiase will go down in history as a 3-time former tag champ, that's it. He should have been the first Intercontinental champion (sorry Pat) and the first long term heel World champ. He deserved it. He would have made a good enemy for the Ultimate Warrior once he won the title...

 

[Whatsinaname696]

"He also realizes he has to have something to top Andre/Hogan, which probably is never going to happen, and so god help me, if you bombard me with spam about Taker/Michaels being better, I will slit your wrists." lmao, f'n love that ..ok so to the question... Dibiase, for two simple reasons, firstly as has been said savage was friends with hogan already, in that era if you were attached to hogan the only thing more to hope for was to BE hogan, so I think mega powers might have happened in some form anyway, and dibiase to me never got the respect he so clearly deserved... too bad his seed wasn't as good as him... he could talk like a mother fucker, and wrestle the same, so could his dad r.i.p. and that laugh he had.... that was just money, pun intended so yeah dibiase for me