Tito Santana © vs Randy Savage
WWF Intercontinental Title Match
02/08/86
When he was touted upon his arrival in the WWF as the hottest free agent in wrestling, Randy Savage was already entering his twelfth year in the business. Though he had had title success in areas such as Nashville and Memphis, this was his first step up into the so-called big leagues. Brought straight in with a storyline surrounding who would manage him, the resolution that saw the arrival of Miss Elizabeth helped the ‘Macho Man’ hit the ground running. Liz was arguably his unique selling point, yet his charisma and unorthodox offense was miles ahead of the plodding action which fans had been subjected to for years.
Within less than a year, he was feuding with Tito Santana for the Intercontinental Title. In an odd choice considering the heel and face disposition of both men, the booking positioned Savage as the chaser. Off of television, Santana had beaten Savage several times towards the end of 1985, but when it came to a contest on Saturday Night’s Main Event, Savage defeated the champion by countout – a finish often saved for a face challenger. This not only prolonged the feud off air, but began to suggest that Savage might have Santana’s number.
It would take until February for Savage to finally take the title off of Santana. With two months of DQ, countout and double DQ finishes, the decision was finally made to pull the trigger on a Savage Intercontinental Title run. This eventually seemed never in doubt, especially with Savage picking up several countout victories over WWF World Heavyweight Champion, Hulk Hogan. Bigger things were clearly in the future for the Ohio native.
The Boston Gardens was the venue for the crowning of only the seventh Intercontinental Champion, a transition made during a time when there was a legitimate claim that the belt truly signified the second most valuable guy on the roster. Santana, having traded the title with Greg Valentine in a truly epic feud, was once again gaining momentum; a real fan favourite in every sense of the word. Savage wasn’t going to beat Santana by sheer force of will alone.
A closely contested match eventually came down to the lengths Savage was willing to go to win the title. After a ref bump that saw Savage lands on Danny David following a kickout, a small package from Santana was subject to a slow count that arguably cost him the title. That is not to suggest that Santana didn’t have further opportunities to put Savage away. A missed knee drop by the challenger allowed Santana to blast away at the knee with kicks and slap on his patented Figure Four Leglock, only for Savage to claw his way to the ropes and force the break.
Having headed to the ring apron for a breather, Savage’s attempts to initially grab an object from his trunks is noted by Monsoon, though he is unsuccessful as Savage dropped him into the ring hard with a suplex. Another attempted Figure Four is blocked this time, allowing Savage to once again head to the apron. Unlike the previous failed attempt, Savage grabbed a metal object from his trunks and balled it into his fist. A first swing at Santana connected with nothing but air; a punch mid Santana back suplex knocked the champion out. Three seconds later, the WWF were crowning their newest champion.
What become most telling about this title victory was a post-match interview with Gene Okerlund. Whilst Savage would claim Gene was ‘ribbing’ him for suggesting that there was any cheating in the match, as well as dubbing Monsoon ‘Tito Santana’s psychiatrist’, Savage also took the opportunity to make it very clear that the title victory left him one step closer to the ultimate prize: the WWF World Heavyweight Title. It would take another two years, a change in his general disposition and the dethroning of Hulk Hogan, but Macho Man would finally fulfil this promise at Wrestlemania IV.
