On an August 15, 1987, episode of WWF Superstars of Wrestling, the Islanders attacked Martel after his win over Barry Horowitz. Whoa, what a different feeling. It was the first time ever. This marked the beginning of the pair as a team. Vince Jr. came up to me and said the reason that you are the first match is because this is the biggest match in the history of the WWF and we need someone to get the people off their ass and I don’t think there is anybody else that can do it better than you can. I said, ‘I want to change my style a little bit.’, He said, ‘No, no, you guys have a great thing. I had somebody that could get the job done. My career took off from there as a different kind of style.”, Sources used in this article: SLAM! Check out this clip of now WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg capturing the... You can watch the complete episode of WCW Pro from January 20, 1996 below: Copyright © 2020. Strike Force got their official start as a tag team in the then-WWF in July of 1987, but it was five years earlier on August 29, 1982, when Tito Santana and Rick Martel teamed up for the first time. He’s a good guy, he would be the guy that would, you know, be the first one to come to your aid. As ... Write CSS OR LESS and hit save. As the years go by I realize just how important the first match of WrestleMania 1 was. So I guess when he found out I gave my notice and was serious, he called me up and said, ‘Rick, listen,’ this is exactly what he told me, he said, ‘WWF don’t need Rick Martel, and Rick Martel doesn’t need the WWF…’. On October 27, 1987, Strike Force won the titles when Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart submitted to Martel’s Boston crab. Below are the highlights from the interview: Being in the first ever match on a WrestleMania & not being in a marquee title match: I never realized it and I was kind of upset because at the time WrestleMania 1 took place I was involved in a really hot feud with Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and we were selling out and we were the Main Event in big buildings and selling out shows that Hulk Hogan wasn’t on and that hadn’t happened too often in the WWF because Hulk Hogan was usually the headliner. Inside the ring, outside the ring. The two feuded for the next year, and in the process, Martel transformed into “The Model,” an arrogant narcissist. We were there for the match; Tito and I were just like that, man [clasps fingers together]”. just been watching a few matches of his on Youtube & that guy was truly talented, very quick, very fast, agile, great wrestling skills & when he hit that flying forearm, just wow! Following the event, Santana and Atlas scheduled a match for June 15 in Nassau in The Bahamas for the IWCCW title, where Santana sought to avenge his former tag team partner "Polish Power" Ivan Putski , whom Atlas had hung over the ropes previously. I gave them my notice – ‘If you don’t want it this way, somebody else will…’. Of course, the return matches against Tito were pretty exciting. He thought I was just bluffing or something. Maybe he could have, I don’t know, because usually heels are the best guys in the locker room. We got along just like two peas in a pod. During a recent edition of his “Something to Wrestle” podcast, Bruce Prichard commented on Vince McMahon never allowing Tito Santana to turn heel, and more. He was the best body in Professional Wrestling and he hit it at the right time and he got over. From there, Strike Force was booked to face The Brain Busters at WrestleMania V. During their match at Mania that year, Santana accidentally knocked Martel out with a flying forearm. Because it’s hard to hate Tito Santana. I don't think Rey ever played a heel in the WWE. The human being is, you know, what you saw is what you got on Tito.