On this day in 1985, the very first WWF (now WWE) WrestleMania took place at Madison Square Garden in New York; there were an estimated 19,121 fans in attendance. Over a million people watched WrestleMania 1 on TV, making it the largest event on closed-circuit television in the U.S. at the time.
There were a total of nine matches that inaugural year, with the main event pitting Hulk Hogan and Mr. T with “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka against “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff and “Rowdy” Roddy Piper with Cowboy Bob Orton. After interference from “Cowboy” Bob Orton, Hulk Hogan won the match.
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Celebrities involved with the WrestleMania 1 Main Event included Muhammad Ali, Billy Martin, Liberace, and The Rockettes.
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The eight matches before the main event and their results are as follows:
– Tito Santana defeated The Executioner
– David Sammartino w/ Bruno Sammartino vs. Brutus Beefcake w/ Luscious Johnny Valiant went to a no contest
– Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat defeated Matt Borne
– King Kong Bundy w/ Jimmy Hart defeated Special Delivery Jones
– Bodyslam Challenge: Andre the Giant defeated Big John Studd
– Intercontinental Championship: Junkyard Dog defeated Greg “The Hammer” Valentine w/ Jimmy Hart via count-out
– World Tag Team Championship: Nikolai Volkoff & Iron Sheik w/ Classy Freddie Blassie defeated Mike Rotundo & Barry Windham to become new champions
– Women’s Championship: Wendi Richter w/ Cyndi Lauper defeated Leilani Kai w/ Fabulous Moolah to become new champion