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The Professional 3 6.23.13: Top Corre Moments

June 23, 2013 | Posted by Jon Harder

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Welcome to another edition of the Professional 3 on 411wrestling.com! I’m Jon Harder and professional wrestling has endured another great week. A phenomenal pay-per-view followed up with some entertaining TV on all sides makes for some great strides in the upward swing of pro wrestling. And after this week’s P3, you’ll see some more of wrestling greatness within the column. By the way, Mark Shurman, I still know who you are.

Before we go any further, check out this week’s Hardway Podcast with Leigh A Russ. Granted, he might not be a wrestling personality, but he has a science music CD out entitled “Branches of Science Through Song”. He is on iTunes under Leigh A Russ, but if you want to purchase a CD, go to his official website http://branchesofsciencethroughsong.com and find out the inspiration behind the album!

Also, find me on Twitter @TheJonHarder and let me know what you think of the Professional 3 or Hardway each week. I love your feedback.

Now, this week on the Professional 3, I have to discuss about a particular topic I’ve seen addressed through all these different forms of social media. Whether it is through Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube, I’ve heard the same statement said over and over…

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WADE BARRETT IS CRIMINALLY UNDERRATED.


I tend to truly disagree in that statement. Wade has been consistently a part of the WWE upper-midcard scene for quite some time. The latter half of 2010 was Wade Barrett’s time in WWE, as he main-evented the majority of pay-per-views and found himself involved and invested in big-time storylines. One way or the other, Mr. Barrett has found his way around the WWE television screen consistently over the past 3 years.

Wade, I will say, has truly evolved over the past few years as a character on television. Starting off as a rookie in NXT season 1, he quickly won the competition and was the figurehead behind one of the greatest out-of-left field ideas in WWE history with the Nexus. After losing out ultimately to John Cena, he went to Smackdown, became a multiple-time Intercontinental champion, started a win streak (as well as a vicious mean one) known as the Barrett Barrage, and became a feared competitor once going back to his roots as a bare-knuckled fighter. Barrett has truly had a successful career in WWE…except for one idea that has been universally panned as an awful idea. That idea…THE CORRE.

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You know what the sad thing is? I LOVED the Corre. Sad how that is, right? Makes for an interesting column though.

In theory, The Corre made sense for a very unique faction. Wade Barrett had just been kicked out of the Nexus in 2011 and after transferring to Smackdown along with other former Nexus members Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater, Barrett wanted to create a group of equals with no true leader. Each was their own man and alongside the last ever ECW champion Ezekiel Jackson, the Corre set out to dominate Smackdown. For a short time, they actually did. For a little over 5 months, the Corre reigned supreme, but due to the combustible element between them because of Wade’s internal desires of ultimately being the leader of the group, they split.

One of the questions I know this column will get: Why was Corre spelled with two R’s? My answer as a journalist: no idea. I will say that to stand out, you have to be different. When I looked up what Corre meant online, I received, via Wikipedia, “Corre is a commune in the Haute-Saône department of France.” We could go with this example as a group of four young athletes trying to make a name for themselves in the big country of WWE. For a time, it worked. Barrett, as I alluded to earlier, was an Intercontinental champion, and Gabriel and Slater were WWE Tag Team champions. A small group trying to make a name: it did work with this tandem.

The big question is simply this, especially for the fans that absolutely hate the fact that I’m writing about the Corre: do they even have 3 moments worthy of this column? OF COURSE THEY DO! As the resident nerd here on 411, I have dug up three moments, plus an honorable mention and a bonus here or there, and you have THIS:

THE PROFESSIONAL 3: Top Corre Moments

BONUS: The Corre Theme Song


To have a fresh look, you need to have a fresh style. Unlike the Nexus logo, which was a simple yellow square with a Capital N in the middle, The Corre had a very modern, futuristic symbol with a wheel as the O. Red and black are very fashionable at that. Combined with End of Days as the theme for the equal 4, which is vastly underrated as a theme, and you have the right sound and look for the new group. EDITOR’S NOTE: I always prefer End of Days to We Are One from 12 Stones. Just the way I feel.

1) THE CORRE RUIN JOHN CENA AND THE ROCK’S WRESTLEMANIA 28 MATCH ANNOUNCEMENT


You can say what you will about the Corre not coming out on top of this interaction between the Rock and John Cena, but this was a huge time to step out and make an impact. The Rock and Cena, two men who transcend superstardom in the world of professional wrestling, just announced their main event match for WrestleMania 28, which was the day AFTER WrestleMania 27 in 2011. After the handshake between combatants, Barrett, Gabriel, Slater, and Jackson all hit the ring and ruined the major moment. It might not have fared well for the Corre here, but to take a major risk and have a flashback to when Barrett and the Nexus debuted, was well worth it. I will never forget this moment. It was monumental.

2) CORRE LOSE AND REGAIN THE WWE TAG TEAM TITLES FROM JOHN CENA AND THE MIZ IN ONE NIGHT


The day after No Way Out in 2011, it was all official. John Cena would face WWE champion the Miz for the championship at WrestleMania 27. However, during the wacky days of the Raw Anonymous General Manager, the computer (later figured out to be Hornswoggle) decided that Cena and the Miz should TEAM UP and face the Corre for the WWE Tag Team championships. For whatever reasons, I have no clue. Yet, Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater had their game faces on and were ready to go. Within a 5 minute span, Miz and Cena won the belts! Shocked, Barrett announced that Gabriel and Slater wanted their rematch for the belts…RIGHT THEN AND THERE!

Slater and Gabriel found a way to persevere and regain their belts, approximately ten minutes after losing them. Miz, the conniving bad guy he was, turned his back on Cena just as “the Doctor of Thuganomics” was about to hit the AA on Slater. One three-count later, and the Corre came out on top. Although it was a shady way to win, it was still two of the top main event level talent in 2011, which is no easy feat. A big night for the Corre.

3) EZEKIEL JACKSON VERTICAL SUPLEXES THE BIG SHOW


The unsung hero of the Corre was Ezekiel Jackson. Although Barrett was the Intercontinental champion and Slater and Gabriel were the Tag Team champions, Big Zeke was the one to hold them all as one. His displays of power and the simple yet effective wrestling ability helped show the Corre’s dominance for the beginning of 2011. None were as impressive as the attack on the Big Show. Big Zeke wasn’t the tallest guy, or the most muscular, but he had an incredible display of tendon strength. The straight-up vertical suplex Jackson did to the Big Show showed what he can do. Big Show did not expect that power from Jackson and he ultimately paid for it. An underrated moment from this group and a reason why Big Zeke deserved better in the long run.

HONORABLE MENTION: THE BEGINNING OF THE END – The Corre loses big at WrestleMania


The Corre was rolling strong going into WrestleMania 27. Borderline unstoppable even. Suddenly, this event happened and everything changed. Within a two minute period, all the hard work the Corre had put in all went away. The Big Show, Kane, Santino Marella, and Kofi Kingston ended it all and made the Corre look pathetic. The worst day for those four.

After that point, it all went downhill for the group. Big Zeke left first and then the group disbanded shortly afterwards. For a few month period, the Corre was in the midst of making a huge impact. Forget the way the name was spelled, or how they were a “poor man’s Nexus”; they were DOMINANT. I respect this group and what they stood for. They were a group of equals. They stood for unity. Most of all, they stood for teamwork.

#Professional3

Jon Harder

[email protected]




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