Are We Having Fun Yet... 04.27.08 Ode to the Hardcore Title

Posted by Gary Traverson on 04.27.2008

In this week’s column 411’s Gary Traverson takes a trip down memory lane in defense of the Hardcore Title. Is there any room in modern mainstream wrestling for this most violent and frivolous of titles? Please, by all means, click to find out.

Hello 411 readers and welcome to yet another week of glorious professional wrestling. I'd first like to take the time for all of the comments and suggestions. It really is a treat to hear what you guys have to say. I think the gimmick column was a hit, and so I would like to introduce my new segment "Gimmicks R' Us." In this new segment I am going to take a brief look at a crazy wrestling gimmick you want to hear about. Because so many people have been asking for him, I would like to present to you…


Gimmicks R' Us Volume 2
The Hurricane



Well you asked for it and here it is. As far as gimmicks go, I feel there is nothing bad anyone can say about The Hurricane. The gimmick was entertaining through and through, and it also went well with the eventual heel turn. I love this choice, so let's say we look into the history of the gimmick.

The WCW superstar Shane Helms was brought into the WWE during the notorious Invasion story line in July of 2001. As an interesting piece of trivia, his name was changed from Shane to Gregory because many of the WWE writers thought that having Shane McMahon and Shane Helms on the same program was too much for the average viewer to handle.

The Hurricane gimmick stems from another name change that Helms went though on WWE's Jakked and Heat programs. Helms' became his superhero alter ego after defeating Matt Hardy for the WWE European Championship.

In the beginning of the gimmick, Helms would walk around backstage as "Gregory Helms" before changing into his superhero costume during times of need. The first few times The Hurricane appeared he was a heel character, though after some positive fan reactions, he was changed into the character we can all look fondly back on.

The BEST part of the superhero gimmick was the character's belief that he possessed superhuman strength. The Hurricane would attempt to lift heavyweight superstars and usually fail. This led to what is one of my favorite Royal Rumble moments as Hurricane ran to the ring to attempt to choke slam both Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H. Sure, he failed, but it was an awesome comedic moment, the likes of which we haven't seen in wrestling in a long while.

The end of the Hurricane gimmick was also very well done. Several articles in WWE the magazine hinted that Hurricane's Super Hero in Training (S.H.I.T.) and tag team partner Rosey was going to turn heel and become a super villain. Interestingly enough, the exact opposite happened. Helms turned on Rosey and became uber-heel Gregory Helms. Helms went on to be the longest reigning Cruiserweight Champion in history, before he was taken down by a neck injury. Which brings us up to current events.

Ode to the Hardcore Title



Looking back to the attitude era, there are a lot of things to be grateful for as a wrestling fan. There were the classic Stone Cold rivalries with McMahon and the Rock, there was DX, and there was the introduction of Mankind to the world. During the peak of these years there were so many edgy, risky moves taken by both WWE and WCW that, as a viewer, I was in heaven. However, one such move that stands above all of the rest in terms of sheer entertainment value was the Hardcore Championship title.

The title started as a joke belt given to Mankind in an attempt to prove his gimmick as a famous Hardcore Wrestler was genuine. However, due to Mankind's increasing popularity, he was given a push to the Championship, and he dropped the belt to the Big Bossman. The original plans for the belt were to have it involved in several comedy segments while it was around Mankind's waist. The Hardcore Championship was in danger of fading into obscurity, but thanks to all of the fans the Championship rose to become one of the most memorable changes to the Attitude era.

The Belt itself was really cool to look at. It was a banged-up version of the Eagles Wings Championship Belt. The Belt sported duct tape with "Hardcore Champion" written in black permanent marker. There were rumors that this title was actually destroyed by Curt Henning (Mr. Perfect) after he stole it from Hulk Hogan in the late 1980's, but that isn't the case.

The rules of Hardcore Wrestling (for the uninitiated) were really simple. All of the following were vital parts of Hardcore Wrestling:

A. Falls count anywhere
B. No Disqualification
C. No Holds Barred
D. 24/7 Rule

The 24/7 rule was introduced to the Hardcore Championship when Crash Holly (may he rest in peace) won the title in 2000. This rule was absolute magic and it led to some of the best moments of the Attitude era. Crash Holly had to defend his title 24 hours a day for the duration of his title reign. As long as there was a referee present, the title was in jeopardy. Crash would run around the back of arenas and through popular attractions in host cities to try and fend off opponents looking to get the title. The title would change hands several times each night, and it was a blast to watch. One particular moment of note was when Gerald Briscoe won the title by pinning Crash Holly with his pinky while he slept. The title was so unpredictable that at one show in California saw the title change hands 10 time. The 24/7 rule was one of the triumphs of the Hardcore title.

Sadly the Hardcore title has not lasted in the modern age of wrestling. Edge is credited as being the last man to hold the belt, and seeing as how WWE writers these days don't know what to do with secondary titles, it doesn't look like it will come back anytime soon.

I think that today's wrestling fan would take kindly to a reintroduction of the Hardcore title. Some might say that there are already too many titles in the WWE picture. However, there is a secondary WWE show that has no title besides its own Heavyweight Championship. ECW built much of its early reputation on this sort of edgy, rule breaking entertainment. This title would be an obvious perfect fit on ECW programming for more reasons than you would initially think.

Consider this 411 fan, ECW is the only show where this title can come back and make sense in terms of story line. Right now Edge and "la familia" are invading ECW and causing problems for ECW Champion Kane. If Edge, the cocky superstar were to put his Hardcore Championship up for grabs on ECW to show that he is more Hardcore then anyone on their roster, things could get interesting. Since there are no holds barred and no DQ several ECW wrestlers can be involved in a title change, building up Edge as you take the title off of him.

The Hardcore title would also be a great addition to ECW seeing as it is a cable television show. Most of the problems that the Hardcore Title ran into during its time on WWE programming were because it made such violence accessible to young viewers on basic TV. Keeping the title on Cable television would prevent this sort of complaint while making the most exciting belt in history a staple on a newer edgier WWE program.

ECW has been billed by the WWE management as a place where younger superstars are being trained for the other "bigger" shows. With that being the case the WWE needs a second belt that younger talent can compete for. It is obvious with the past set of champions that the WWE is using mostly veterans to carry the load of the show. If the young men who are supposed to be the stars of the promotion have no belt than there is no point in even having the show to start with. The Hardcore Championship could look really good around the waist of young talent like Elijah Burke or even CM Punk. The belt would not only establish ECW as a real show, but it could also build the young talent as the toughest superstars in the WWE. I see only benefits in bringing the Hardcore Gold back.

Well 411 fans, that's my take on things. Please tune in next time, and don't forget to keep the comments coming. I look forward to hearing from you.