The Rockers – 1988 – 1991

The Rockers redebuted at a WWF house show on July 7, 1988. Due to WWF chairman Vince McMahon’s desire to have his performers carry WWF-exclusive ring names, they were renamed, as simply “The Rockers.”The team proved popular with both children and women. The team was a mid-card stalwart of television and pay-per-view shows for the next two years.

In October 1990, The Rockers were scheduled to win the WWF Tag Team Championship from The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart), as Neidhart, half of the championship team, was in the process of negotiating his release from the company. The match was taped with The Rockers winning the belts, but soon after, Neidhart came to an agreement with management and was rehired. The belts were returned to the Hart Foundation, while the title change was never broadcast or even acknowledged on television. When news spread, WWF explained that the original result was void due to a collapsed turnbuckle in the ring during the bout. A buckle had indeed broken, but not to a noticeable or dangerous extent during the match. The Rockers continued their partnership, eventually splitting on December 2, 1991 during an incident on Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake’s televised Barber Shop talk show promotional segment. Michaels superkicked Jannetty and threw him through a glass window on the set of Beefcake’s talk show. Jannetty disappeared from the company, and Michaels became a villain as “The Boy Toy.”