One of the most colorful wrestlers in WWE during the '80s was Macho Man Randy Savage. He was, at times, the most hated heel in the company and the most popular babyface as well. He was part of some of WWE's most memorable moments, from the implosion of the Mega Powers to the reunion with Miss Elizabeth.
Savage moved on to WCW and enjoyed more success both before and after the launching of the nWo and even had a cup of coffee in TNA Impact Wrestling before he finally hung up his boots and retired. Sadly, Savage died in 2011 at the age of 58 following a heart attack, but his legacy lives on. Here is a look at the 10 most vicious rivalries for Macho Man Randy Savage.
10 10. KEVIN NASH
Randy Savage had a few big moments in WCW and was their world champion more than once. He was also a big part of the match when the nWo arrived and took over. It was Savage, Lex Luger, and Sting against Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, and a mystery partner. After Luger was injured, Hulk Hogan came down, turned heel, dropped a leg on Savage, and the nWo was born.
Randy Savage was one of the leaders for WCW in their battle with the nWo, but it was mostly against Hulk Hogan. Savage later joined the nWo and then, when the nWo was on its downswing, he started a faction called Team Madness and eventually feuded with Kevin Nash again. Savage won his final world title by beating Nash.
9 9. LEX LUGER
Randy Savage turned on WCW when he returned in 1997 and joined the nWo. In 1998, he started a feud with long-time WCW stalwart Lex Luger. The feud was an interesting one because when the two men had major matches, it wasn't Macho Man who came out on top.
Lex Luger beat Randy Savage at both Souled Out 1998 and then again in their rematch at SuperBrawl VIII. What made no sense about this is that Luger won the feud between the two wrestlers, but it was Savage who immediately moved into a world title feud with Sting, before Savage and Kevin Nash formed the nWo Wolfpac.
8 8. THE AMERICAN DREAM DUSTY RHODES
Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth were one of the hottest duos in WWE history. When The American Dream Dusty Rhodes shocked his legions of NWA fans and joined WWE, it was immediately time for Vince McMahon to do everything he could to humiliate Rhodes.
This humiliation included dressing him in black with yellow polka dots and then giving him a manager of his own in Miss Sapphire. Dusty somehow won over the fans anyway thanks to his immense charisma and the fact that he and Savage both had female managers led to their feud. Rhodes and Sapphire won a mixed tag match at WrestleMania VI, but Savage won their big singles match at SummerSlam.
7 7. GEORGE "THE ANIMAL" STEELE
When Macho Man Randy Savage debuted in WWE, he introduced the world to his new manager, Miss Elizabeth. It was crazy, as every manager in WWE wanted to lead Savage, but he chose the unknown Elizabeth, who also happened to be his wife behind-the-scenes.
Savage's gimmick, other than being unhinged, was to be extremely jealous of anyone speaking to Miss Elizabeth. When George "The Animal" Steele, at that point in his career a cartoony simpleton, started trying to cuddle up to Elizabeth, Savage lost it. The two had a minor, but very entertaining feud, as Savage tried to keep his manager away from the Animal.
6 6. JAKE "THE SNAKE" ROBERTS
To understand how vicious the feud was between Macho Man Randy Savage and Jake "The Snake" Roberts, listen to Roberts retell the stories of their matches. There was the one infamous match where Roberts pulled out a cobra and it bit Savage and took a chunk out of him. According to Roberts, Savage made Jake let the snake bite him in the back before the match because he was scared Roberts wanted to kill him with a poisonous snake.
The feud began when Roberts broke up the wedding reception of Savage and Elizabeth with the snake, and the two started a blood feud. The snake bite was horrific to watch and was just part of one of Macho Man's most violent feuds of his career.
5 5. DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE
The first significant feud that Macho Man Randy Savage started when he returned to WCW in 1997 and joined the nWo was against Diamond Dallas Page, and it ended up being the best feud of Savage's WCW career. This feud was what turned Page into a bonafide star and a world title contender.
DDP has made no secret of the fact that Savage requested the feud and asked to put over Page. Savage also allowed Page to get in more offense than almost anyone he had ever faced and this was a moment where Savage proved how valuable a veteran superstar could be when it comes to elevating talent to the main event.
4 4. ULTIMATE WARRIOR
There have been many moments in Randy Savage's career that stands the test of time as iconic moments in wrestling history. The one that stands above them all took place at SummerSlam 1991. Ultimate Warrior was the world champion earlier in the year, and Savage wanted a title shot.
Warrior refused Macho Man time and time again, so Savage interfered to cost Warrior his title in a match against Sgt. Slaughter. Because of this, Warrior wanted revenge, and he challenged Savage to a match at SummerSlam where the loser had to retire. Warrior won, but after the match, Sensational Sherri turned on Macho Man and Miss Elizabeth made her WWE return for the save. Savage had to retire, but the reunion is what people remember to this day.
3 3. NATURE BOY RIC FLAIR
Nature Boy Ric Flair was one of the top names in professional wrestling for years and fans always dreamed of seeing the day Ric Flair (NWA) and Hulk Hogan (WWE) finally stepped into the ring to prove who was the best. It did not happen in WWE. Instead, Randy Savage feuded with Ric Flair.
This was a vicious feud because Flair was the heel at the time and brought in doctored videos that made it look like Miss Elizabeth was cheating on Randy Savage with him. The two ended up in a blood feud, and it was Savage who finally ended Flair's WWE world title reign.
2 2. RICKY "THE DRAGON" STEAMBOAT
For years, it was easy to name the best WWE match of all-time. It was at WrestleMania III, and while fans came to see Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant, it was "Macho Man" Randy Savage vs. Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat that stole the show.
In an era where professional wrestlers went into the ring and called shots to put on matches, Savage and Steamboat practiced ahead of time to create a perfect match with great moments of tension and massive turning points. Savage was the heel who would do anything to win, and Steamboat was the best babyface in the world. When Ricky won the title, it went down in history as one of WWE's best moments.
1 1. HULK HOGAN
When talking about Macho Man Randy Savage's most vicious feuds, it begins and ends with Hulk Hogan. In WWE, Hogan was the world champion, and Randy Savage was the top heel, sitting in the secondary role. Soon, Savage turned babyface, and the Mega Powers were born when he teamed with Hogan.
Thanks to Savage's jealousy of anyone speaking to Miss Elizabeth, he and Hogan imploded and started to feud. Hogan ended up beating Savage for the WWE world title to win the feud. Then, in WCW, it started again, and during the genesis of the nWo angle, it was Savage and Hogan that led the way.