Ricky Steamboat vs Randy Savage is often considered one of the greatest Wrestlemania matches of all time. It was on the same show as one of the most famous matches of all time (Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant) yet still managed to be remembered as an all time great – something other matches on the card can not claim.
Ricky Steamboat revealed in an interview with Wrestling Inc that he spoke to Andre the Giant before planning his match against “Macho Man” Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 3. The main event of that event was the legendary Hulk Hogan vs Andre The Giant match for the WWF Championship, and as Andre was so respected neither man wanted to step on his toes before the big match.
Wanting to make sure they didn’t do anything to spoil the main event, Ricky Steamboat confronted Andre a month before the event. He inquired as to whether anything special was planned for the Hogan vs Andre match, so that their match could avoid doing those things and making it less special.
Luckily for Steamboat, he got on well with Andre, so the Giant had nothing he didn’t want Savage vs Steamboat to do that he was already planning to do with Hogan. His mobility was poor at the time and could barely do any moves, being a shadow of his former self as he was in his prime. His match and Steamboat’s match could not have been different, but both are incredibly memorable for different reasons.
“I approached Andre about a month before out of respect because those guys were the headliners and I was asking if they were doing anything special so we knew to stay away from that. He was very cordial. Andre and I got along very well and were tag partners on a couple of occasions. He just goes, ‘No boss.’ At that time in his career he was hurting. His back, hips and knees. He told me they were gonna have a very laid back match and he left the door open for me and Randy. So that’s why we did what we did.”
Luckily for the fans, nothing was off limits for the incredible match. Savage vs Steamboat has gone down as one of the all-time greats, and Andre The Giant put over Hulk Hogan with one of the most memorable moments in wrestling history – when The Hulkster slammed The Frenchman and hit him with the leg drop to retain his WWE Championship in the main event.
