WWF WrestleMania V

WrestleMania V returned to Atlantic City, New Jersey, on April 2, 1989, with a broken friendship behind its main event. A year after celebrating together at WrestleMania IV, Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan were preparing to face each other for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. The World Wrestling Federation promoted the event under the Trump Plaza name, although the fourteen-match card took place at the nearby Atlantic City Convention Hall.

The opening match gives Hercules another chance to fight back against his former manager, Bobby Heenan. Heenan had tried to sell his services to “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase, who treated Hercules as someone he could own. Hercules refused and broke away. He now faces King Haku, one of the wrestlers who stayed with Heenan.

The Rockers make their WrestleMania debut next. Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty rely on speed, aerial moves, and teamwork against The Twin Towers, the much larger pairing of Big Boss Man and Akeem. DiBiase then faces Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake, a crowd favorite known for cutting opponents’ hair. DiBiase’s bodyguard, Virgil, accompanies him to ringside.

Two very different teams follow. The Bushwhackers, Luke and Butch, bring their rough style and comic antics against The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers, Jacques and Raymond, with manager Jimmy Hart in their corner. Mr. Perfect then puts his unbeaten WWF run to the test against The Blue Blazer, a masked wrestler whose offense includes quick counters and moves from the top rope.

The first championship match gives Demolition a chance to get their hands on the manager who betrayed them. Ax and Smash defend the WWF Tag Team Championship against The Powers of Pain, The Warlord and The Barbarian, alongside Mr. Fuji. Fuji had turned against Demolition at Survivor Series 1988 and joined their rivals. His place in this three-on-two handicap match gives the challengers an extra partner, but it also means Demolition can legally face him in the ring.

After Dino Bravo meets “Rugged” Ronnie Garvin, former tag team champions Strike Force reunite for a match against The Brain Busters. Rick Martel had spent months away after an attack by Demolition, leaving Tito Santana to compete without his partner. Their return to WrestleMania brings them up against Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard, an experienced team managed by Heenan.

Roddy Piper also returns for a special edition of his interview segment, Piper’s Pit, with television host Morton Downey Jr. and Brother Love. It’s Piper’s first WrestleMania appearance since his advertised retirement match two years earlier.

Jake “The Snake” Roberts faces André the Giant with an unusual advantage. During their earlier clashes, Roberts discovered that André was terrified of Damien, the python he carried to ringside. The snake gave Roberts a way to unsettle an opponent he couldn’t match in size or strength. Big John Studd, a longtime rival of André’s, serves as the special guest referee.

The Hart Foundation, Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart, continue their dispute with former manager Jimmy Hart when they meet Greg Valentine and The Honky Tonk Man. Jimmy now stands in the opposite corner, backing two former Intercontinental champions against the team he once managed.

The Ultimate Warrior then defends the WWF Intercontinental Championship against “Ravishing” Rick Rude. Their rivalry grew out of a posing contest at Royal Rumble 1989, where both men showed off their physiques and the crowd chose the winner.

Rude couldn’t accept the fans favoring Warrior and attacked him afterward. Now the powerful, face-painted champion faces Rude in a wrestling match, with Heenan supporting the challenger at ringside.

The outspoken “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan meets the bad-tempered Bad News Brown before Heenan has to compete himself. His opponent, The Red Rooster, had left him after growing tired of his insults and constant criticism. Heenan then arranged an attack by The Brooklyn Brawler. The Rooster’s chance for revenge comes with the Brawler accompanying Heenan to the ring.

The main event brings “Macho Man” Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan back to the setting where they’d celebrated Savage’s championship victory a year earlier. As The Mega Powers, they’d fought together with Savage’s manager, Miss Elizabeth, at their side. Over time, Savage became jealous of Hogan’s closeness to Elizabeth and accused him of wanting both her affection and his championship.

Their partnership finally broke during a televised match against The Twin Towers. When Savage accidentally collided with Elizabeth at ringside, Hogan carried her backstage for medical help, leaving Savage to face both opponents alone.

Savage saw Hogan’s actions as another betrayal and later struck him with the championship belt. Now he defends that title against his former partner, while Elizabeth chooses a neutral corner rather than taking either man’s side.