On this day June 2, 1987, the Honky Tonk Man defeated Ricky The Dragon Steamboat for the WWF Intercontinental Championship during an episode of Superstars of Wrestling. The match was taped at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York.
The title change came as a surprise to many fans, especially following Steamboat’s classic WrestleMania III victory over Randy Savage just months earlier. The Honky Tonk Man’s win launched one of the most controversial and longest title reigns in the history of the Intercontinental Championship, lasting a record setting 454 days.
The match aired later in June, but the actual event occurred on this date, marking a pivotal turning point in 80s wrestling and signaling the rise of one of the WWF’s most notorious heel characters.
80s insight: The Honky Tonk Man’s unexpected victory came during a transitional period in WWF storytelling, where characters were growing larger than life and personas like his, complete with Elvis inspired gimmicks and arrogant promos, began to define the era's entertainment first approach to professional wrestling.
The title change came as a surprise to many fans, especially following Steamboat’s classic WrestleMania III victory over Randy Savage just months earlier. The Honky Tonk Man’s win launched one of the most controversial and longest title reigns in the history of the Intercontinental Championship, lasting a record setting 454 days.
The match aired later in June, but the actual event occurred on this date, marking a pivotal turning point in 80s wrestling and signaling the rise of one of the WWF’s most notorious heel characters.
80s insight: The Honky Tonk Man’s unexpected victory came during a transitional period in WWF storytelling, where characters were growing larger than life and personas like his, complete with Elvis inspired gimmicks and arrogant promos, began to define the era's entertainment first approach to professional wrestling.
