On August 29th 1992 WWE presented Summerslam from Wembley Stadium. With a live attendance of just over 80,000 fans, at the time of writing this is the largest non-Wrestlemania crowd WWE ever had, and fifth overall.
In October 1989 WWE promoted their first ever event in the UK at the London Arena. The show was called UK Rampage which aired live on Sky TV, and was an annual event for a few years, with the first one main evented by Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan. That match is part of the WWE networks recent compilation of the best UK matches ever. From there WWE gained in popularity over the years, so much so that Summerslam which was originally planned to come from Washington DC, was moved not just to England, but the giant Wembley Stadium, whose maximum capacity was 82,000.
In a rare change of the format the main event would feature the Intercontinental championship, as the English born Davey Boy Smith would challenge the champion Bret Hart, but I'll talk more about that match later. In the semi main event the WWF champion Randy Savage defended his title against the Ultimate Warrior. This was a rematch from their epic clash at Wrestlemania 7, but wouldn't come close to stealing the show as they did in the first match, thanks in part to the convoluted story going in.
At Wrestlemania 8, Randy Savage had won the WWE championship for the second time defeating Ric Flair. The Nature Boy's strategy going into the match was to play mind games with Savage, presenting fake photographs of himself chilling poolside with Savages wife, Elizabeth. Flair promised once he won at Wrestlemania that he would reveal more pictures of Liz, but Savage put a stop to that by dethroning him. Going into Summerslam Flair and his cohort Mr. Perfect weren't done with the mind games. Over the weeks leading up to Summerslam, Flair claimed that either Savage or Warrior had hired the services of Mr. Perfect to interfere in the match in their favour, but wouldn't reveal which. He claimed we would find out at Summerslam, but both men denied brokering any kind of deal. This served to create more tension between Savage and Warrior, as both believed the other had hired Curt Hennig, when in truth neither had and Flair was turning them against each other. He was doing it out of jealousy for not being announced the number one contender himself. In a pre match interview with Gene Okerlund Flair again refused to say whose side Mr. Perfect would be on.
What followed was a 28 minute clash not quite as good as their Wrestlemania match. Near the end Warrior hits his press slam and goes to hit his finishing splash off the ropes, when Flair hits him in the back with a chair, which Savage doesn't see. All he sees when he gets to his feet is the Warrior down on the mat. Savage climbs the ropes to hit his Elbow drop, but instead decides to leap towards Flair, who clips him in the knee with the chair on the way down. Savage fails to beat the referees count, and therefore loses the match but not the title, but in the process it is clear that Flair and Perfect were on the side of neither man. Flair attempts to finish Savage, but Warrior runs him and Mr. Perfect off. He then presents Macho Man with his championship, and helps him up to his feet as the two heroes show each other respect.
Elsewhere on this show Shawn Michaels and Rick Martel fought in a match with a unique stipulation. Both men were fighting over the affection of Sensational Sherri, who demanded that in the match neither could hit the other in the face. The reason for this was that the Model and the Heartbreak Kid both prided themselves on their looks, and therefore neither could alter the facial features of the other. The match ended in a double count out, with both men fighting over being the one to carry a lifeless Sherri to the back. Let me explain a bit here, after about 8 minutes both men slap each other in the face, and to prevent anymore of this, Sherri who is on the apron fakes fainting, and both men rush to her aid, taking turns in carrying her up the long Wembley walkway. One hilarious detail is that when Martel carries Sherri, he holds her in a respectful manner, whereas when it's Shawn turn he throws her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
Shawn and Sherri had been paired together in February of 1992. The dynamic between this was always that Sherri loved Shawn, but Shawn only really loved Shawn. This was the early version of the Heartbreak Kid persona he would perfect through the 90's following his split with Marty Jannetty. The iconic theme music Shawn Michaels has used to this day now has long had his own voice performing the vocals, but the original version composed by Jimmy Hart has the same lyrics but with Sherri's voice. This was played on years later when Kurt angle was taunting Michaels pre-Wrestlemania, when he invited Sherri back to perform the not legendary parody known as 'Sexy Kurt'. Shawn has said in many interviews and his autobiography that he was hesitant about being put with Sherri in the beginning, but often praises her for the affect she had on his career at the time.
In a strangely placed match between the WWE championship and the main event, the Undertaker defeated Kamala in a three minute match. The reason this is notable is that if you have ever seen the clip of Undertaker arriving into an arena on the back of a hearse, its from this night. Being an open air show in Summer the venue looks very different as the evening progresses, being daylight at the start and dark once the night sets in. This is likely why this match occurs so late in the card, as Takers entrance might have looked strange in broad daylight. Undertaker at this point was only a couple of years into his legendary WWE run, and now along with his manager Paul Bearer was quickly becoming one of the most popular WWE stars, despite entering as a feared villain.
Given the length of the enormous entrance walkway, and the trademark slowness of the Undertakers entrance, I'm glad they thought of him riding on the back of a hearse as if he had walked to the ring he might not have made it by Wrestlemania 9. Undertaker made short work of the Ugandan Giant, before moving on to his famously terrible Mania match with Giant Gonzales. Given what we know now, I wonder if Undertaker wishes the Kamala feud lasted a few months longer...
By 1992 the British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith was a popular fixture of the WWE's midcard as a solo act following his split from Dynamite Kid. He had also become a main eventer on WWE's UK events, winning the Battle Royal at the Albert Hall in 1991, and defeating IRS to close out another UK Rampage earlier in 92. This time Bulldog would face his biggest test yet, challenging Intercontinental Champion, and his own brother in law, Bret Hart.
By this time Bret Hart was enjoying a second lengthy reign as Intercontinental champion. He had held the title almost continuously since August of 91, losing it to the Mountie due to illness then winning it back from Roddy Piper at Wrestlemania 8. It would soon be time for Bret to ascent from the workhouse title however, as in October of 92 he would defeat Ric Flair for his first of five world championships. There was just the matter of Bret having to drop the IC title first, so he did the honours for the British Bulldog in front of his fellow countrymen.
I mentioned before that Bret and Bulldog were brothers in law. Thats is because at the time Davey was married to Diana Hart, Bret's sister. Right before the match Diana is interviewed by Sean Mooney in the crowd, and is given the lofty task of selling the drama of the match, as she represented a division in the family that this match had created. Throughout the match there are camera cuts to Diana sitting in the crowd watching as a reminder that we were seeing family members battling over a prestigious prize. After the match Diana enters the ring and celebrates with both men, who shake hands, as a way of closing this story with the family is back together. This was of course just a storyline to build up the drama of the match, but more Harts would become involved later when Bret feuded with his brother Owen.
I'd be remiss is I didn't mention the opening video for the event, in which fans were asked to read lines about wrestlers on the show. One young fan said "the British Bulldog is gonna win, whether he wants to or not." Had social media been a thing at the time, this would likely have gone viral. In 2020, 28 years later, the kid in the clip was found. I won't identify her in case I shouldn't, but she described that day as one of the best in her life, so hopefully she sees the funny side of that clip being remembered.
The Bulldog enters first to his trademark Rule Britannia music, led by London born Boxing champion Lennox Lewis. Across the crowd are Union Jacks and signs of support for the Bulldog. While there were boos upon the champions arrival, Bret had his share of fans too. In the later years of Brets WWE career the idea of him being a hero in Canada and a villain in the US was based on how popular Bret was not just in Canada, but everywhere else WWE went to internationally, especially the UK. By the time the opening bell rings, this intercontinental title main event has a special big fight feel.
One of the more memorable moments in this 25 minute main event was Bret Hart applying the Sharpshooter from his back. Both men are laying on the mat when Bret starts to configure their legs into position, he then rolls over and managed to stand up, locking Bulldog in the hold. Bret might have done this in other matches, but I don't remember ever seeing any other time, and the crowd reaction is amazing when Bret manages to complete the hold. *Editing note: Bret did this same move at Summerslam 1991, and likely more times than that.*
Following Bulldog making to the ropes to break the Sharpshooter, Bret makes a critical mistake. He hits the ropes and attempts a sunset flip, only for Bulldog to catch him in a flash pin, and win the championship as the crowd roars in approval. A flash pin is usually done to remind fans that a pinfall can occur at any time, and in this very evenly wrestled match it was the perfect choice for a finish. I just can't imagine Bulldog winning decisively with his running Powerslam having the same explosive reaction from the crowd. Following Bulldogs win Vince McMahon on commentary calls it one of the greatest wrestling matches ever, meaning that he does in fact know it when he sees it. Bulldog doesn't celebrate and his music doesn't play as Bret sits in the ring looking bitter. Bulldog offers a handshake, and Bret teases leaving before coming back and celebrating with the new champion. I might be a little biased having seen this match dozens of times over the years, but to me this match is a classic.
Despite mine and many other fans' warm memories of this match, Bret Hart has expressed a different opinion in various interviews. Speaking to Inside the Ropes he recently claimed that by the time he got back to the locker room most everyone had left to get to the hotel, and thus didn't see him and Davey steal the show. He has also on record stated that due to his abuse of certain substances, Bulldog had forgotten the entire plan for the match, so Bret had to lead him through it. There are brief moments where knowing this you can tell Bulldog looks a little lost, but other than that Bulldog doesn't seem to miss a step at all. Bret's WWE career is littered with esteem-able performances, but this night might have been the British Bulldogs finest hour.
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