WrestleMania XII

WrestleMania XII
WrestleMania XII
	Promotional poster featuringRazor Ramon,Shawn Michaels,Bret Hart,Diesel,andThe Undertakerwith the logo spoofing the20th Century Foxlogo and its searchlights.
Promotion	World Wrestling Federation
Date	March 31, 1996
City	Anaheim, California,United States
Venue	Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim
Attendance	18,853
Buy rate	North America: 290,000
Pay-per-view chronology
←Previous; In Your House 6	Next→; In Your House 7: Good Friends, Better Enemies
WrestleManiachronology
←Previous; XI	Next→; 13

WrestleMania XIIwas the 12th annualWrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view(PPV)eventproduced by theWorld Wrestling Federation(WWF, now WWE). It took place on March 31, 1996, at theArrowhead Pond of AnaheiminAnaheim, Californiain the United States. Eight matches were held at the event, including two on theFree for Allpre-show.

In the main event,Bret Hartlost theWWF ChampionshiptoShawn Michaelsin the first televisedIron Man matchin company history, lasting over 60 minutes. In his return to the company after a four-year hiatus,The Ultimate WarriordefeatedHunter Hearst Helmsley.Roddy Piperhad his first match since 1994.

Production

Background

WrestleManiais considered theWorld Wrestling Federation's (WWF, now WWE) flagshippay-per-view(PPV) event, having first been held in1985.It has become the longest-running professional wrestling event in history and is held annually between mid-March to mid-April.^[3]It was the first of the WWF's original four pay-per-views, which includesRoyal Rumble,SummerSlam,andSurvivor Series,which were dubbed the "Big Four",^[4]and was considered one of the "Big Five" PPVs, along withKing of the Ring.^[5]WrestleMania XII was scheduled to be held on March 31, 1996, at theArrowhead Pond of AnaheiminAnaheim, California.^[6]

Storylines

The main attraction of this WrestleMania was theWWF Championshipcontested in anIron Man match;whereby the winner would be the man to win mostfallsover sixty minutes. Michaels had earned the opportunity to face reigning championBret Hartby winning the1996 Royal Rumble,and had also defeatedOwen HartatIn Your House 6for the right to keep the WrestleMania title shot.

Themain eventwas built on Bret Hart wanting to retain the WWF Championship against Shawn Michaels, who had suffered a number of setbacks over the course of the previous year, including failing to winDiesel'sWWF Championship the previous year atWrestleMania XIin April 1995, being accosted at aSyracuse, New Yorknightclub in October 1995 (and subsequently forfeiting theWWF Intercontinental ChampionshiptoDean DouglasatIn Your House 4), and suffering astoryline concussionat the hands of Owen Hart in November 1995.

Hunter Hearst Helmsleymade his debut in the WWF in May 1995, with hiswrestling gimmickbeing in that he was a rich snob born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He went on an undefeated winning streak throughout the year until theRoyal Rumble.The Ultimate Warriormeanwhile had left the WWF in 1992 after failing a drug test. His last match was on the November 14, 1992 edition ofSaturday Night's Main Event XXXI,where he and"Macho Man" Randy SavagedefeatedTed DiBiaseandIrwin R. Schysterin a tag team match. WWF officials later signed on a match between Ultimate Warrior, who re-signed to the WWF in an attempt to increase ratings, and Helmsley for WrestleMania XII.

Diesel began feuding withThe Undertakerafter interfering in a bout between The Undertaker and Bret Hart at the 1996 Royal Rumble. In an episode ofMonday Night Rawthat aired on March 18, 1996, Diesel was battlingBarry Horowitzwhen he caught a glimpse ofPaul Bearerpushing acasketup the entrance ramp. Believing it to be The Undertaker's casket, Diesel armed himself with a wrench before opening the casket's lid and seeing his own "corpse" lying in repose inside (which was actually an illusion made possible by having live footage cut to a pre-recorded close-up footage of Diesel himself in the same casket, lying in a relaxed position with his eyes closed, filmed at some time before the episode, thus avoiding showing the mannequin in the casket up-close); seeing "himself" in the casket terrified him, as it foreshadowed The Undertaker's upcoming match against Diesel in WrestleMania XII.^[7]

Event

Marc Merodebuted in theWorld Wrestling Federationat WrestleMania XII.

The opening bout, which aired on the free-for-all broadcast, was atag team matchfor the vacantWWF Tag Team Championshipbetween theBodydonnas(SkipandZip) andthe Godwinns(Henry O. GodwinnandPhineas I. Godwinn). This match was the final bout of a tournament held to determine the new champions after the titles were vacated in February 1996. The match ended when Skip pinned Phineas I. Godwinn using aroll-up,making the Bodydonnas the new WWF Tag Team Champions.^[8]

The second bout, which also aired on the free-for-all broadcast, was asingles match(billed as a "geriatric match" ) between "The Huckster"and"Nacho Man",two characters created to parodyHulk Hoganand"Macho Man" Randy Savage(former WWF performers who had joined its competitorWorld Championship Wrestling). The referee for the match was "Billionaire Ted",a parody ofTed Turner,the owner of World Championship Wrestling's parent companyTurner Broadcasting System.This bout marked the culmination of a series of skits the WWF had aired featuring the three characters. This match did not take place in the Arrowhead Pond, having been pre-recorded elsewhere. The match ended in a no contest when both competitors, along with Billionaire Ted, seemingly expired in the ring.^[8]

The third bout, and the first bout to air on the pay-per-view broadcast proper, was asix-man tag team matchpittingThe British Bulldog,Owen Hart,andVader(Camp Cornette) againstAhmed Johnson,Jake Roberts,andYokozuna,with the stipulation that if Yokozuna's team won he would receive five minutes in the ring withJim Cornette,the manager of Camp Cornette. The match ended when Roberts attempted to give Cornette aDDT,only for Vader to knock Roberts down and pin him following aVader Bomb.^[8]^[9]

The fourth bout was a "Hollywood Backlot Brawl"betweenGoldustandRoddy Piper.The match began in a parking lot, with the men brawling and using weapons. After Goldust fled in a goldenCadillac,Piper pursued him in a whiteFord Bronco.^[8]^[9]

The fifth bout was a singles match betweenSavio VegaandStone Cold Steve Austin.Austin won the bout by technical knockout after hitting Vega with theMillion Dollar Championshipthen applying theMillion Dollar Dreamto Vega until he passed out.^[8]^[9]

During and after the fifth bout, footage aired of what was purportedly Piper pursuing Goldust (the actual footage aired was from theLos Angeles Police Department's pursuit ofO.J. Simpsonin 1994).^[8]^[9]

The sixth bout was a singles match betweenHunter Hearst HelmsleyandThe Ultimate Warrior.Early in the match, Helmsley performed his finishing move,The Pedigree,on The Ultimate Warrior. However, The Ultimate Warriorno-soldthe move and went on to pin Helmsley following aflying shoulder tackle,gorilla press slam,andWarrior Splash.^[8]^[9]

Bret Hart(left) foughtShawn Michaelsin a 60-minuteIron Man matchfor theWWF Championshipat WrestleMania XII.

Following the sixth bout,Todd Pettengillinterviewed the debutingMarc Merobackstage. The interview was interrupted by Hunter Hearst Helmsley, resulting in a brawl between Helmsley and Mero.^[8]^[9]

The seventh bout was a singles match betweenDieselandThe Undertaker.The Undertaker won the match by pinfall following achokeslamandTombstone Piledriver,marking his fifth consecutive win at WrestleMania.^[8]^[9]

Following the seventh bout, Goldust and Piper arrived at the Arrowhead Pond, with Piper crashing his car into Goldust's car. Piper then chased Goldust to the ring, where the match continued. The match ended when Piper tore off Goldust's bodysuit - revealing him to be wearing woman's lingerie - and gave him alow blow,after which Goldust fled from the ring, leaving Piper the winner.^[8]^[9]

The main event sawWWF Champion Bret Hartdefend his title againstShawn Michaelsin anIron Man match,with the stipulation that whichever wrestler won the most falls in 60 minutes would win the match. Towards the end of the match, with neither men having won any falls, Hart applied hisSharpshooterhold to Michaels, but time expired without Michaels submitting. As Hart began to leave with his title, WWF PresidentGorilla Monsooninstructed refereeEarl Hebnerto continue the match under "sudden death"rules, with ring announcerHoward Finkelannouncing that "there must be a winner!" The match ended shortly thereafter when Michaels pinned Hart after giving himSweet Chin Musictwice, thus becoming the new WWF Champion.^[8]^[9]

Reception

WrestleMania XII received generally positive reviews from critics, who aimed praise, particularly at the main event. Rob McNew of 411mania called the opening match "really good," and gave it 3 and 1/4 stars (out of 5 stars). However, he called the match between Helmsley and The Ultimate Warrior the worst of the night, going on to call it the "funniest squash ever, considering that HHH is now arguably a bigger star than Warrior was." He gave the main event the highest score of the night, with 4 stars. However, he says the match "isn't for everyone." Continuing, he says, "It's about a three-star match for the first 40 minutes, the last 20+ are an easy five stars." He gave the entire event a score of 7 out of 10.^[10]In 2015, Ryan Dilbert of Bleacher Report called it the 16th greatest of the first 30 WrestleMania events.^[11]

While the Iron Man match got positive reviews, PWInsider's Mike Johnson pointed that in the match both wrestlers "were working in spite of each other, not together".^[12]

Results

No.

Results

Stipulations

Times^[6]

1^F

The Bodydonnas(SkipandZip) (withSunny) defeatedThe Godwinns(Henry O. GodwinnandPhineas I. Godwinn) (withHillbilly Jim) bypinfall

Tag team matchfor the vacantWWF Tag Team Championship

5:22

2^F

The Huckstervs.Nacho Manended in a no contest

Pre-taped Singles match withBillionaire Tedas thespecial guest referee^[13]^[14]

—

3

The British Bulldog,Owen Hart,andVader(withJim Cornette) defeatedAhmed Johnson,Jake Roberts,andYokozuna(withMr. Fuji) by pinfall

Six-man tag team match
HadYokozuna's team won, he would have received five minutes in the ring withJim Cornette.