Ask 411 Wrestling 03.11.09: Hogan's Belt, Marlena's Loyality, and Doctored Footage
Posted by Mathew Sforcina on 03.11.2009
Who would use a small package in a Royal Rumble? How far ahead were Wrestlemania's planned? Which Big 3 compnay had the lowest ever buyrate? How did Bob Holly and 1-2-3 Kid win the tag belts? What's a good Wrestling Text Book? And just why do Samoans have Hard Heads? All this plus Ask 411's Ultimate Wrestlemania, here inside. So click. Or not, it's up to you...
Hello, and welcome to the only 411 column written by a guy who is glad he can now stop complaining that JBL is an uncrowned Grand Slam champ and can now focus on counting down the days till Christian joins him, Ask 411 Wrestling!
Although maybe I shouldn't drag that whole sorry mess back up. Goodness knows I'm giving the haters enough ammo with being occasionally wrong without giving them opinions to hate me for.
Banner goes here.
Ask 411's ULTIMATE WRESTLEMANIA!
Results!
We're getting down to the nitty gritty as we finish shaping up our card. The nominations are getting concentrated, the votes much more careful, but winners have been found. In this Ultimate Wrestlemania, the Workrate match, the match to draw all the stars and hard line Wrestling fans will be…
Kurt Angle V Ricky ‘The Dragon' Steamboat!
A very close run choice, with Bret/Angle overall having more votes, but they were too evenly spread over the options, leaving Angle V Steamboat, one fall, the winner.
And on the other end of the scale, the majesty of the show of this Ultimate Wrestlemania will draw in a celebrity to do battle, and that battle will be…
Kane V Pete Rose- No Holds Barred!
Well, if I didn't like you guys before for getting Victoria in this, I'm now 100% pro you guys for voting in this one. Tyson V T and Cena/Ali V Orton/Tyson (which I'll admit is a hell of a match, and would have won any other time) came close, but Kane/Rose got the nod.
And certainly put a spring in my step.
Voting
Tag Match
If it's in bold, it was multi-nominated.
Animal/Hawk V Ax/Smash LOD V Demolition!
Animal/Hawk/The Ultimate Warrior V Ax/Crush/Smash V Mr Fuji/The Barbarian/The Warlord- Elimination Rules Poor Mr. Fuji… Arn Anderson/Ric Flair/Tully Blanchard V Chris Benoit/Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid- Elimination Rules No Barry and Malenko/Regal?
Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard V Chris Benoit/Dynamite Kid You guys are really trying to get him on the card, aren't you? Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard V Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid Arn & Tully V The British Bulldogs!
Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard V IRS/Ted DiBiase I'm happy, but who do we cheer for?
Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard V Rick Steiner/Scott Steiner Yeah, this'll be nice.
Bruno Sammartino/Hulk Hogan/Vince McMahon V Dusty Rhodes/Harley Race/Ric Flair WWF V NWA!
Christian/Edge V Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid Old School meets New School
Christian/Edge V Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy V Marty Jannetty/Shawn Michaels- TLC The Rockers in new territory.
Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid V Rick Steiner/Scott Steiner Dogs Everywhere!
Spectacle/Car Crash
Ahmed Johnson V Nathan Jones- 60 Minute Iron Man Chairs Legal Match Ah see, when I said Car Crash…
Bubba Ray Dudley/D-Von Dudley V Cactus Jack/Terry Funk V Christian/Edge V Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy- TLC This is what we call a pattern.
Bubba Ray Dudley/D-Von Dudley V Christian/Edge V Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy- TLC See?
Bubba Ray Dudley/D-Von Dudley V Christian/Edge V Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy V Shawn Michaels/Triple H- TLC Not that I'm complaining, just pointing it out.
Cactus Jack V Shawn Michaels- HITC The two bumpers, together
Cactus Jack V Terry Funk- HITC Oh my god.
Cactus Jack V Vader- HITC Oh. My. God.
Cactus Jack/Terry Funk V Sabu/Tommy Dreamer- HITC OH MY GOD!
Chris Benoit V Edge V Shawn Michaels- Ladder Match 2 originators and that other guy… Christian V CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V John Morrison V Matt Hardy- MITB I approve!
Christian/Edge V Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy V Marty Jannetty/Shawn Michaels- TLC Only double up, oddly enough.
Christian/Edge V John Morrison/Shawn Michaels- Ladder Match Simple but effective.
Christian/Edge/Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy V Mick Foley/Sabu/Terry Funk/Tommy Dreamer- Wargames Wow.
CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V Sabu V Shawn Michaels V Shelton Benjamin- MITB Interesting choices.
Nominations
The Rivaly
The semi-main, kinda has to be some history between the people/teams, personally or professionally. Possible Options: Bret Hart V Shawn Michaels- Respect Match, Bret Hart/Bruno Sammartino/Madusa/The Ultimate Warrior V Steve Austin/The Fabulous Moolah/The Rock/Vince McMahon- Elimination Match, Hulk Hogan V John Cena V Steve Austin V The Rock, Ric Flair V Triple H
&
The Main Event
The big one. You can double nominate for both matches if you so choose. Possible Options: Steve Austin V Hulk Hogan, The Rock V John Cena, Team WWF (Bob Backlund/Bret Hart/Bruno Sammartino/Hulk Hogan/The Ultimate Warrior) V Team WWE (John Cena/Shawn Michaels/Steve Austin/The Rock/Triple H) V Team WCW (Booker T/Dusty Rhodes/Goldberg/Ric Flair/The Big Show) V Team ECW (Bam Bam Bigelow/Raven/Rhyno/Sabu/Tommy Dreamer)- Survivor Series match, Kevin Nash/Scott Hall V Steve Austin/The Rock
Backtalking
Kayfabe Breaking Moves: I think there's a gap between my choices and the majority of the readership, and that centers around how there's two different ways to take ‘breaking kayfabe'.
The vast majority of you focus on the "Strings and Wires" type of kayfabe breaking moves, i.e. those moves that clearly show that the whole thing is fake, like seeing the wires in a magic act or having the set fall down during a play. Moves like the Canadian Destroyer, the badly done superplex, these moves that can only be done with the help of the other guy are definitely moves that rip you out of the experience, and I can totally understand why they make your lists.
But for whatever reason, I'm not as bothered by those sorts of moves. Sure if they are botched, that's one thing, but I have no problem with the Styles Clash or the arm drag etc in of themselves. Maybe because I've trained, maybe because I'm just lazy, for whatever reason, I forgive them.
It's the ‘Plot Hole' moves that bug me though. Wrestling has it's own internal logic, which I am very focused on. It's part of the reason why I created the Evolution Schematic, it's something I HATE to see broken for no reason. When you're irish whipped, you run, missed dropkicks hurt, etc. Thus, moves that don't make sense within the context of wrestling, they have a bigger yank out of the moment effect on me. In wrestling, a cover is when the shoulders are down and some body part is covering the top half of the body. In a figure 4, there's no top cover. That's the sort of thing that really bugs me and to me, remind me that this is a show and they are doing that to ‘tell a story'. Bad storytelling to me is a worse crime than a cheap set.
But I'm in a minority, and that I accept.
Primary Finishers With A Major Title: I took Major to mean World or equivalent, so the IC and such don't count. (And again, to reiterate, in this column under my watch, the ROH title is a World Title. Get over it.) And the question was not who has won the title by submission, but who had a submission as their primary finisher when they won the belt. So Shawn doesn't count.
Ones that do that I missed were:
Dory & Terry Funk (Spinning Toe Hold)
Kerry Von Erich (Iron Claw)
Masa Chono (STF)
Verne Gagne (Sleeperhold)
Ken Shamrock (NWA/TNA World Champ, Ankle Lock)
Antonio Inoki (Octopus Hold)
Samoa Joe (Coquina Clutch)
And MAYBE Mick Foley (Mr. Socko), but that's borderline since by the time Mick won the title (and put butts in seats) the Claw had become more a pinfall than submission move.
Kurt Angle's Reigns and Submission Skills: Having reviewed the Angle DVD, and rechecked the facts, I admit to making a mistake here, but I pled clemency since I was confused by TNA being stupid.
See, the NCAA titles don't count, and Kurt was 1995 World Champion in Amature Wrestling. But that still leaves 1 reign.
And this is the silly part, because the 12th reign is a reign TNA doesn't recognize. May 13th, 2007, the NWA stripped Christian Cage and Team 3D of the NWA World and Tag titles, citing failure to defend against NWA sanctioned opponents (actually it was doing title changes without telling NWA). Later that night, TNA had their Sacrifice PPV, where Cage defended a vaguely titled "World Heavyweight Championship" against Sting and Kurt Angle. Angle won the match and the ‘title', but controversially. Kurt was handed the new belt, then immediately stripped of it, and it was on the line in the King Of The Mountain match the following month, which Kurt won. TNA doesn't give Kurt credit for this short reign in their title history, and yet still calls him a 12 time champion. Crazy.
So the list should read…
IWGP Third Belt Championship (a.k.a the belt Inoki made up for Brock). 1 Time, for 1.
TNA World Heavyweight Championship. 2 Time, for 3.
WCW World Heavyweight Championship. 1 Time, for 4.
(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship. 1 Time, for 5.
WWF/E Championship. 4 Time, for 9.
Olympic Gold Medal. 1 Time, for 10.
1995 World Champions. 1 Time, for 11.
'World Heavyweight Championship'. 1 Time, for 12.
As for Kurt's submission style not being Olympic like, yes , technically Ole is right, and Kurt should be a pinning machine, with Submissions being a weak point. But Pro Wrestling is all about perception. Kurt is an Olympic Gold Medallist, so he's a great amateur wrestler. And in the mind of the fan, amateur = technical, and technical = submission. Ergo he appears to the average fan as a technical genius, which he co-incidentally is, and thus it's ok to tap out. Like how all football players have great tackles even if they were QBs or something.
Austin & Hogan Tapping: Austin did not submit to Bret Hart, he passed out and lost due to ref stoppage. That's different (since his entire face gimmick was based around that). And even if you use that logic to rule that Piper's win over Hogan wasn't via Submission, Hogan still submitted, gave up, whatever term you want to use, to Lex Luger to lose the WCW Title, but he did not do so via tapping the mat/a body part. So my point stands.
Hassan: Ok, saying the gimmick was mishandled from day 1 might be overstating it, although he really should have started as a face. Regardless, the moment he feuded with Lawler, the character was down a path it couldn't recover from.
TTIT: Ok, even if I give you that it was an attempt to do weekly PPVs (a week and a half after the last one), Sunday was still the usual day for PPVs at that point, you'll give me that, right? Right?
Eh, bloody sources being inaccurate…
Your Turn, Smart Guy…
Yes, the answer was Jake Roberts. The Teaming with snakes bit was a deliberate curveball, since Jake teamed with real snakes. The guy still on the roster I intended to mean Mark Henry, although I realise now Taker fits the bill as well. And Mick was mentioned by name since I didn't have a catchy phrase to call him by.
Who Am I? I've wrestled at multiple Wrestlemanias, and in multiple Royal Rumbles. I've been managed by a legendary manager, a somewhat well known manager/announcer/annoying person, a famous lackey and some old guy. I was almost always a follower of someone else, only once tasting gold myself. I've teamed with a man over 7 foot, a woman in a long dress, a man who has been the answer to one of the previous questions here, and arguably the biggest star in WWE today. Oh, and I have exactly one catchphrase, or rather, catchword. Who am I?
Questions, Questions, Who's Got The Questions?
Ryan is up first with his questions.
1. It is well known that the real life Bret Hart/Shawn Michaels feud caused many backstage issues in 1997. I was wondering if any wrestlers took clear sides in the battle outside of the obvious (Triple H with Shawn, the Hart Foundation with Bret).
Not ‘clear' sides, no. At least, not before Montreal. Obviously the Clique and it's hangers on (Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Sean Waltman, Justin Credible) sided with Shawn, and guys like Shane Douglas, Vader and Bam Bam Bigelow who were ‘against' the Clique were, you'd assume, likely to side with Bret. But for the most part the rest of the talent was hesitant to take sides publicly (or as publicly as the dirt sheets are) for whatever reason.
Of course, Montreal was a different kettle of fish. There, it's easier to draw the line, as some guys clearly sided with Bret (Vader warned him, telling him to kick out quickly and avoid submissions to avoid a screwjob prior to the show, and Mick Foley being the sole wrestler to not work the following Raw), most were shocked and appalled at the Screwjob and some clearly siding with Vince/Shawn (The Harris Brothers acting as Shawn and Hunter's bodyguards that night).
Montreal galvanized a lot of people's opinions, but prior to that point, most of the other wrestlers did not take clear sides.
2. I've read a lot of wrestling commentators at 411mania and other sites talk about the great job the WWF did of planning out the year long Hogan/Savage story arc leading into WrestleMania V. They seem to suggest that the booking in Wrestlemania IV (with Savage not really beating DiBiase cleanly thanks to Hogan) was done with a Hogan/Savage blowoff in mind. My question is whether or not there is any proof of this being true? Did they really know on the night of WrestleMania IV that a Hogan/Savage feud was coming? And did they know it would culminate at WrestleMania V?
Not hard evidence, no. But it's about as accepted a fact as you get, in that once the tournament was changed, Savage/Hogan was then the inevitable outcome. Those few people who have spoken about it all agree that the plan was to do Hogan/Savage out of the Mega Powers (since all tag teams split up), although arguing that they knew that well enough to have Hogan interfere is pushing it. Hogan always interfered, that was his MO, he had to be the center of attention, that's what drove most of his feuds at that stage.
Again, a lot of wrestling ‘knowledge' is, when you get down to it, logically worked out guesses. Alas.
3. Speaking of WMV, I was recently watching the Hogan/Savage match and had a question. Before the bout Ventura talks about Hogan lusting after Elizabeth and Monsoon responds by saying that Savage had shown doctored photos. What were these photos that Savage showed and when did he do it?
They weren't photos, but rather it was doctored footage. Savage had video edited together to show Hogan touching and looking at Liz in ‘lustful' ways, to further his claims that Hogan was moving in on his girl. But sadly I couldn't find any posted video of the footage. But it was edited video, and he showed it on practically every show he was interviewed on between the heel turn at The Main Event II (Feb 3rd, 1989) and Wrestlemania V.
4. Has any other promotion had a one night world title tournament of eight men or more like the WWF had at WMIV and Survivor Series 1998? I know WCW had a tournament in late 1999 but I believe only the semis and finals took place at the PPV.
Ironically enough, the only other major company that had a one night, 8 man tournament for a ‘world' title was ECW, hosting the NWA World Title Tournament on August 27, 1994, where Shane Douglas won the NWA World Title, then tossed it down.
If you open up the definition to "Company's highest title", then a bunch of NWA affiliates held one night tournaments in the 60's-80's to crown new company champs, but they don't count. But I have a list if you want it.
5. With the WWE running WrestleMania from TNA's home turf of Orlando last year I was wondering: Did they ever consider having a WrestleMania or other big PPV in the Georgia Dome or somewhere else in Atlanta during the war with WCW?
Maybe, but why would they? During the height of the war the crowd would probably be hostile. Once WCW was no longer a threat, the WCW ‘home cities' would have been an option, but they stuck to the arenas they had deals with. Besides, WCW probably had a similar agreement with WCW that WWF had with MSG.
Phil E. Buster is next.
Hey, great column, man. Quick question: I recently re-watched the Raw tribute to Owen Hart from the night after his fateful accident. In one segment, HHH confirms Owen's reputation as a huge prankster. At one point, HHH mentions how Owen, bent on embarrassing him, once held him down with a small package during a Royal Rumble match. I can't seem to find any footage of this. Was this televised? Could you name me the match? Thanks!
The 1996 Royal Rumble. I have video, but you can see why it's not well known since the moment isn't on screen very well.
Fast forward to Austin, sorry, The Ringmaster's entrance at 15:30 or so. Owen and Hunter are fighting in the corner, we cut to Austin running, and just as he slides in you see in the corner the small package.
stamps gets flyin'.
Ok, so I'm a huge Brian Pillman fan, he's very high on my list of all time favorites. So my question is about the last storyline he was involved in which was Marlena (Goldust's wife) serving as his valet for thirty days. How was the angle suppose to end? Because obviously Brian passed away before the end of it. Was Marlena supposed to end up turning on Goldust and joining up with Pillman as his valet? And also do you think the storyline was meant to lead to Pillman getting a bigger push? Maybe even an IC title reign, I would have imagined Austin would have pushed for a main event program with him for the world title too, but unfortunately Pillman passed way too soon. Can you give any insight on this for me?
Yes, the angle was set up for Marlena to turn on Goldust and run off with Brian. Russo is nothing if not predictable in his swerves. As for Brian's push, the original plan was for Brian to be Austin's first feud after winning the World Title, so they clearly saw big things for him, despite his limitations. But those limitations ended up catching up with him.
Joe K goes back to buyrates.
I was watching an old UWF show on ESPN Classic the other night and matches from the UWF Beach Brawl PPV were shown. In checking an old newsletter from 1991 (Matwatch), it stated that the show did an estimated 780 buys (yikes!). With that in mind...what's the least purchased...
WWE/F PPV?
WCW PPV?
ECW PPV?
WWE: December To Dismember, 90,000 buys. Assuming you only count official WWF/WWE ones. WBF was much lower, for instance.
WCW: Greed, with 40,000 buys.
ECW: All of them.
Seriously, November to Remember 97 and 99 both had a rough buys count of 80,000.
Ralph sees a botch.
I just watched the Saturday Night's Main Event DVD and it featured the bout where Andre "defeated" Hogan for the title thanks to the double Hebners. They also show on the DVD the pre match interview with Hogan before he hits the ring. In the interview, Hogan is wearing a different championship belt than the one he wears to the ring. Why is that?
Ah, this is a famous moment in wrestling history. The belt Hogan has on in the pre match interview is the "Hogan 86" belt, the belt Hogan wore as WWF champion from late 85 to… that very night, as that would be the last time that belt would be used, for they changed to the more well known "Winged Eagle" design that lasted for the next decade or so, up until 1998, when the belt was retired the night after Wrestlemania XIV. And they changed over, without saying anything, between the promo and the match.
Yeah, not well thought out, that.
For the record, here are some pictures of (replicas of) the Hogan 86 belt and the Winged Eagle belt for comparison.
David Knight has faith in me.
Alot of these have been saved up for a while, but I think you're up to the task of answering them.
1. In 1995, 1-2-3 Kid and Bob Holly won a tag title tournament, then immediately lost them the next night. Why?
Because they needed Bam Bam Bigelow to mess up on the show so he could get into a fight with Laurence Taylor, so they couldn't have The Smoking Gunns, their pick for the tag titles, win the final of the tourney, because that would mean heel/heel. So, they had the Gunns not enter, gave the makeshift underdog side of Holly and Kid the improbable victory, allowing Bam Bam to do his angle, and then Holly and Kid lost the belts the next night on Raw.
2. How do referees get their jobs? Do they go to the same schools as the wrestlers?
Well, most wrestling schools will train referees as well, but if you look at WWE's new Ref Bio Page, most of the refs in WWE get in via friends/ring crew of small companies and working up. For the most part, most refs start out as hangers on of small companies, who get thrown in one night when they need a spare ref, and go from there. Although some people do set out to be referees, most tend to fall into it.
3. Why do Samoans have hard heads?
Because they have tiny brains.
Well, it began as a gimmick of the original Wild Samoans, Afa and Sika, since they were savages, they had Cro-Magnon like heads (although they never said it like that…), thick skulls, hence hard heads. Then as more wild Samoan savages came in, since it was an easy and effective gimmick, it was perpetrated, although that fact that most of the Samoans are related certainly helps explain it.
So yeah, simply it's an easy gimmick with a vaguely legit reason that is now accepted wrestling logic.
4. Any clue what the buyrates are for ROH PPVs? I'm interested in how they do compared to TNA.
No idea. ROH isn't a publicly traded company, so they have no legal obligation to publish them. Beyond vague "higher than expected" quotes from Cary and the infamous "36 buys in Canada" figure, your guess is as good as mine.
5. Why don't WWE female wrestlers take place in more specialty matches, i.e. Ladder Matches? I know they've got their image to think of, but to an extent, so do the guys.
It's not image, it's health. WWE women are not nearly as tough as the men, ergo they rarely risk their bodies in more dangerous matches like ladder, cage, hardcore etc. Especially now, when most of the divas are Diva Search contestants and/or former models. After all, Candice and Melina have rarely fought in those types of matches and how often are they injured?
Now, if WWE were to get back to having a decent women's roster of women who were tough…
Robert asks about title belts. Again.
I have a question about the possession of the a title. When the company is travel, or the champion decides to visit home, does the belt remain in possession of the wrestler who is champion, or does a backstage person take hold of the belt? And if the wrestler/superstar keeps possession has there ever been an incident where the belt was misplaced or lost?
As a rule, when you are champion, you take care of the belt. For instance, I currently hold one half of my fed's Tag titles, and my belt is upstairs on my desk as I type this. It makes sense to keep the belt, since you do promotional work, pictures with fans, you're the champ, you carry the belt.
I don't recall anyone losing a title, although there have been some incidents with title belts. Apart from the ones that everyone knows about (Ric Flair keeping the WCW Title, Shawn Michaels keeping his IC title), the funniest one I ever heard was that Homicide once left his TNA tag title at home since he only had to do a run in on Impact. When he was in mid transit, they called him and said there was a change of plans, he had a match, he needed the belt. Cue mad rush to have the belt taxied and flown to him. He gets the belt, gets to the arena, and is promptly told the plans have changed and he's only doing a run in.
Speaking of comedy, comedy video time!
A lost classic match.
Ben Lathrem sadly stumps me.
In the USWA (CWA) territory there was a referee by the name of Jerry Calhoun. How did he come to work as a referee and what is he doing now?
Well, apparently still refereeing, in that some recent Memphis shows talk about him being the ref. But I wasn't able to find an active link/homepage/whatever for Jerry. If you're out there, or you know him, drop me a line please.
Laszlo asks about the Omni, and Flair, and the Miracle Violence Connection.
Flair made mention that he battled Stan Hansen a number of times in his recent shoot interview. Do you have any details of when, where and the outcomes of these encounters?
I'm not doing too well here. The only time they could have fought was in the mid-80's, probably during his 84-86 reign, on rare occasions when Stan was in the States and/or the rare occasions Flair was in Japan, since Flair wasn't in Georgia in the late 70's when Stan was and they never fought in Stan's brief run in WCW in 1990. Beyond that, I could find no record of their matches, although with Flair's career a complete match history would probably nearly fill up the internet.
Did the Omni tape its house shows? Places like MSG and Maple Leaf Gardens always seemed to tape its shows but there are major events that occurred at the Omni (Backlund/Flair, Backlund/Race, Flair beating Sting for the world title a few days after the Black Scorpion loss) that I've never seen footage of.
No, they didn't, not by habit anyway. Despite some people's push to make the Omni the MSG of the south, they didn't have tape recorders there for every show. These matches don't seem to be in the tape libraries, although if they do exist they'll turn up on WWE DVD eventually. But remember, MSG had their own network, so it was in their own interests to film everything/have tape.
Another thing that occurred at the Omni was the MVC defeating the Steiners for the WCW Tag Belts. The belts switch wasn't televised yet the MVC defeated the Steiners on TV in the NWA Tag tournament and went to a draw on PPV. Why not do a televised switch if they were already going over the Steiners on TV?
Because Bill Watts, in the words of J.D. Dunn, had a chubby for them, and for the Omni. He was one of the guys who was big on making the Omni special, so he booked big wins and stuff to happen there, and since he was pushing MVC to the moon, he might as well combine the two and have them win the belts there. Not the greatest booking move in history, as the flaw you've pointed out shows.
GregsSisterTakesIt continues.
In the Rise and Fall of ECW DVD. Taz points out that Mike Awesome was a WCW contracted wrestler when he fought Taz, a WWE contracted wrestler, in an ECW ring. My Question is was Matt Hardy under WWE contract when he fought Chris Daniels at ROH's Fate of an Angel? And if so, is this the only time a WWE contracted wrester has fought a TNA contracted wrestler in an ROH ring? (The current Big 3 IMO)
Yes, Matt appeared on WWE programming, July 11th, and was thus under contract. So when he fought Daniels, he was under contract with WWE, fighting a TNA contracted wrestler, in an ROH ring.
Hardy is the only contracted, appearing on TV WWE wrestler to fight a TNA one in ROH. But if you allow any WWE contracted wrestler to qualify, then CM Punk also has fought TNA wrestlers while under contract, during his farewell tour of ROH as champion, when he was threatening to take the belt to WWE with him. He fought Christopher Daniels to a 60 minute draw July 23rd, 2005, and then in the 4 way the follow show on the 12th of August, he fought Samoa Joe and Christopher Daniels, as well as James Gibson who won the belt.
My Damm Opinion
This is sorta opinion, sorta not, so it goes in here. Luke?
I'm doing a dissertation for university next year on wrestling making an argument for it being an unrecognised form of performing art (I do a Drama practice and theory degree). Can you recommend any good text books on the storytelling (both in and out of ring) side of wrestling? I'm going to use Foley and Jericho's books to start with, but i wondered if there was anything from an outside source.
Decent text books on wrestling are few and far between. To start with, avoid "The Complete Idiots guide to Pro Wrestling", because it sucks.
Pretty much the only high quality text book about wrestling that I know of, in terms of what you're asking about, is "The Professional Wrestlers' Workout & Instructional Guide", which was written by Les Thatcher, Ricky Steamboat and Harley Race, with models Nigel McGuinness and Matt Striker (the current announcer). It's not exactly what you're after, but it's as close as you have right now. Here is the Amazon link. Now, if someone could get Jake Roberts sober and get him to write one, that'd be nice. You could maybe use Lance Storm's website as well, since it's well maintained, consistent, and impartial right now.
Dr. Feelgood has been hanging on the line for a while with his questions.
1. Do you think it would be a bad idea for the WWE to bring back the cruiserweight title and put it on ECW along with sending some cruiserweights over such as Jimmy Wang Yang, The Brian Kendrick. They already got Evan Bourne who could be the face of the division. I just feel like a lot of the ECW roster ain't ECW championship material.
Well, it wouldn't be a BAD idea. But it's not the best idea, not when either the ECW TV or, even better, the European title are both right there, thus giving you options to not just have cruisers win the belt AND we might get some more Grand Slam Champions out of it. But sure, if you were to add another title to ECW, the Cruiser belt's a good choice.
2 .Do you think MVP needs a better finisher? I think that Drive By Kick is ok and the Ballin' elbow drop seems like a trademark but what move do you think would be better for him? For some reason I think a scorpion death drop would look cool since its quick and can be done to anyone but what's your take?
Well, good thinking. A really great finisher is one that can be done on anyone, anywhere, any time. Right now in WWE, for instance, the best finishers are the RKO, the Clothesline from New York and Sweet Chin Music, all simple, easy, effective and work well.
MVP does need a new one if he's to get a face push, something snappy and quick but fitting the character. The Death Drop's ok, but if I was there with him, I'd suggest, after consulting The Big Book Of Wrestling Moves, The Cradle Neck Breaker (a.k.a the spinning fisherman's suplex). Not quite as instant as you'd like, but quick, dramatic, and is one that you can counter into somewhat easily.
3.Do you think TNA should sign the following people?
1.Elijah Burke
2.Paul London
3.Victoria
I know TNA gets flack for hiring and pushing ex WWE folks but I honestly think these three could be a great addition and be better as well as properly utilized in TNA.
Yes (criminally underutilized), No (he seems to be a git), HELL YES (Goddess).
Christian V CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V John Morrison V Matt Hardy
Posted By: Guest#9691 (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 10:58 PM
YES! Angle-Steamboat!
Votes:
Flair/Brain Busters vs. Benoit/Bulldogs
Christian V CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V John Morrison V Matt Hardy- MITB
Nominations:
Rivalry: Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart, I Quit Match
Main Event:
Hulk Hogan vs. Steve Austin vs. The Rock
Posted By: Chief Runs With Beer (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:26 PM
I'm fairly certain that once the Montreal Screw Job happened, Rick Rude immediately left the company.
Posted By: Blanky (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:32 PM
Questions for fellow commentors as much as sforcina-which tag team broke up/reunited the most times?
Posted By: bubba sky (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:43 PM
Hrm... the woman in the long dress makes me think of Ivory, which would hint towards Bull Buchanan, who's been managed by Don Callis and Stevie Richards, teamed with Kurrgan and John Cena, and has had Mania matches. Didn't he win the tag belts with the Goodfather too?
Eh, yeah. Bull Buchanan is my guess.
Posted By: Raptor (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:50 PM
Kane
Posted By: DanBklyn510 (Registered) on March 10, 2009 at 11:56 PM
"It's not image, it's health. WWE women are not nearly as tough as the men, ergo they rarely risk their bodies in more dangerous matches like ladder, cage, hardcore etc. Especially now, when most of the divas are Diva Search contestants and/or former models. After all, Candice and Melina have rarely fought in those types of matches and how often are they injured?
Now, if WWE were to get back to having a decent women's roster of women who were tough…"
That's a pretty ignorant way of putting it.
Posted By: Guest#8974 (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:59 PM
I realy think we did the ultimate wrestlemania backwards. We should have booked the main event first and worked backwards.
Posted By: dig it (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:59 PM
What fed do you wrestle for? I've always wondered how good our Australian wrestling 'scene' is, but can never be bothered following up on it.
Where did you train and where do you get your gear?
Posted By: Shady Lurker (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:12 AM
You're wrong about the reasoning behind Kid and Holly winning the tag titles. The Gunns were still faces at that point. They didn't do it to avoid a heel/heel match, hell, the match on Raw was a face/face match. One of the Gunns was injured when the tag tournament started, so (logical guess) they thought they'd see if they could get Holly or the Kid over before dropping the belts back to the Gunns. I imagine if the Gunns hadn't had an injury, they probably would have won the tourney, setting up the same LT scenario for Bam Bam.
Posted By: Hawkeye (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:15 AM
are you ric flair??
Posted By: setobakura (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:16 AM
Re: The Kid/Holly tag title win
The Smoking Gunns were faces at the time, so it wasn't an issue of doing a heel/heel final. The Gunns were originally booked to be in the tournament but had a contract dispute and were pulled at the last minute. The 1-2-3 Kid and Bob Holly were put in their spot and went on to win, presumably going over where the Gunns were booked to win in each match.
During the tournament, the Gunns signed new contracts and came back, but by the time they did it was too late to put them back in. So the tournament finished up, Kid and Holly won the belts, and then they immediately dropped them on Raw the next night to the Gunns, who were intended to win the belts all along.
Also, a comment on the Omni question:
I'd like to point out a mistake on the part of the person asking the question - Ric Flair didn't regain the WCW Title from Sting at the Omni after the Black Scorpion fiasco. That match was held Jan. 11, 1991 at the Meadowlands in New Jersey. As for WCW taping house shows, they didn't have the network deals to air them that the WWF had. The WWF broadcast shows from MSG, the Spectrum in Philly, the LA Sports Arena, Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens and a few other arenas on local stations. Once the deals to broadcast those shows ended, so did the tapings. You may notice that the only footage the WWE has ever aired of the famous Clique curtain call at MSG looks to be shot by a fan with a handheld, so they clearly didn't tape MSG shows during the period that the shows were no longer airing on TV. If some station wanted to pay WCW to broadcast its Omni shows, I'm sure they would have been taped as well.
Posted By: Kia (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:29 AM
Regarding the referee question, if you read Dixie Carter's interview with Congress, she says that a lot of them have background as sport referees, eg. basketball.
Posted By: Donners (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:34 AM
Not ‘clear' sides, no. At least, not before Montreal. Obviously the Clique and it's hangers on (Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Sean Waltman, Justin Credible) sided with Shawn, and guys like Shane Douglas, Vader and Bam Bam Bigelow who were ‘against' the Clique were, you'd assume, likely to side with Bret. But for the most part the rest of the talent was hesitant to take sides publicly (or as publicly as the dirt sheets are) for whatever reason.
TWO OF THE THREE GUYS MENTIONED wrre in Ecw at the time of the screwjob so they had zero to do with it.
Posted By: Guest#0092 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:38 AM
The answer is Bull Buchanan.
Who Am I? (Bull Buchanan) I've wrestled at multiple Wrestlemanias (14,16), and in multiple Royal Rumbles (2001, 2003). I've been managed by a legendary manager (Jim Cornette in SMW), a somewhat well known manager/announcer/annoying person (Don Callis), a famous lackey (Stevie Richards) and some old guy (The Commandant). I was almost always a follower of someone else (RTC, Bossman), only once tasting gold myself (World Tag Titles with The Goodfather). I've teamed with a man over 7 foot (Kurrgan), a woman in a long dress (Ivory), a man who has been the answer to one of the previous questions here (Bossman), and arguably the biggest star in WWE today (Cena). Oh, and I have exactly one catchphrase, or rather, catchword (OK, this one I don't know).
Posted By: Kia (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:43 AM
1. Has a wrestler ever pooped his/her pants while performing in a televised wrestling match?
2. What was the plan for Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania 22 if Batista didn't get injuted.
3. Has there ever been a Batista vs. Mysterio match? and if not, do you think it would be a fitting retirement match for Batista?
Posted By: Guest#6068 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 01:16 AM
The answer to the question is Funaki.
And to clairify on the title belts, a few months back news came out that the E made exact copies of the belts. The titles are all transported via the company in protective cases to TV and PPV and back to stanford. The champions are given replicas (damn nice ones) to do house shows and live apperances, so to reduce wear on the big boy belts.
The cena-spinner WWE title is in its 5th incarnation if i'm not mistaken, it takes alot of damage and diamonds do fall out.
The World Heavyweight Title has changed about 10 times in the last 5 years that I can notice.
Posted By: DigitalJesus (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 01:24 AM
Blanky,
Rude stayed with the WWF for two more episodes of Raw, the second being the infamous taped Raw/live Nitro night. WWE 24/7 showed those episodes not too long ago.
Posted By: Steve307 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 01:56 AM
I actually like the Playmaker as MVP's finisher. I never really bought that move before, but MVP's been able to incorporate his personality into the set-up and he actually manages to make it look like it does some damage. I think the Shinning Drive-By works pretty well, but I don't buy it as a finish unless he delivers it from out of nowhere or as a clever reversal.
Posted By: Beard Money (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 02:07 AM
Ron Simmons!!
Posted By: Bobby Truth (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 02:27 AM
I know it's not the current title and hasn't been for awhile, but when I think of the WWF/WWE title, I always think of the eagle belt. I think that one looked the best. Smoking skulls and spinners are OK, but if I'm the champ, bring back the eagle belt for me.
Posted By: Omni (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:02 AM
Why would the crowd for a WWE PPV in Atlanta during the Mondya Night Wars be hostile? If someone hated the WWE wouldn't it make sense for them to simply not buy a PPV-priced ticket?
Posted By: Guest#2870 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:50 AM
I'm pretty sure Bruno Sammartino's WWWF title belt got stolen out of his car in NYC back in the mid 60's.
Posted By: Krystof the Tattoo Artist (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:50 AM
Hehe Paul London = Git!
Posted By: DVR (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:58 AM
Yep - Bull Buchanan
and his one word catchphrase was "Booyah!" - used when teaming with Cena as B2
Posted By: Snubbed (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 04:45 AM
The answer is Bull Buchanan.
Who Am I? (Bull Buchanan) I've wrestled at multiple Wrestlemanias (14,16), and in multiple Royal Rumbles (2001, 2003). I've been managed by a legendary manager (Jim Cornette in SMW), a somewhat well known manager/announcer/annoying person (Don Callis), a famous lackey (Stevie Richards) and some old guy (The Commandant). I was almost always a follower of someone else (RTC, Bossman), only once tasting gold myself (World Tag Titles with The Goodfather). I've teamed with a man over 7 foot (Kurrgan), a woman in a long dress (Ivory), a man who has been the answer to one of the previous questions here (Bossman), and arguably the biggest star in WWE today (Cena). Oh, and I have exactly one catchphrase, or rather, catchword (OK, this one I don't know).
Posted By: Kia (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:43 AM
The catchword is 'Word'. He used to say it after Cena's promos.
But you're still wrong, the answer is actually Paul Roma.
Posted By: It is always Paul Roma (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 05:06 AM
The answer is Bull Buchanan.
Posted By: Kia (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:43 AM
Yeah, i think ur right, i just can't remember the catchword he said. I think it was when he was with cena as "B2".
Posted By: Brian T (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 05:23 AM
Isn't it Matt Stryker (monobrow) not Matt Striker in that book with Nigel?
Shady Lurker, what state are you in? If you're in SA or WA you should check out EPW. By far the best company in the country in my opinion.
Posted By: scott hardie (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 05:25 AM
You said ROH was a World Title!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Posted By: JG (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 05:46 AM
I think I'm Ron Simmons/ Farooq
Posted By: ftw924 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 06:39 AM
Votes
Tag Match - Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard V Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid
Spectacle/Car Crash - Christian V CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V John Morrison V Matt Hardy- MITB
Nominations
Bret Vs. Shawn - Loser leaves Town
Main Event
Hogan Vs. Austin Vs. The Rock Vs. Cena Vs. Flair - Elimination Chamber
Nominations
Posted By: yesplease (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 08:19 AM
Bull Buchanan's catchword was "BOO-YAH!!!", when he was known as B2.
Posted By: Hunter (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 08:45 AM
"Oh, and I have exactly one catchphrase, or rather, catchword (OK, this one I don't know"
Lol, you did all the hard work in guessing it was Bull, but you then didn't get this. The catchphrase was "BOOYAH!"
Posted By: Tim (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 09:25 AM
I could be mistaken, but when Andre "beat" Hogan, did he refer to the belt as the World TAG TEAM Championship???? He said it twice....
Posted By: Froze (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:10 AM
Completely forgot I sent those questions, thanks for answering them!
Posted By: dAVE!!! (Registered) on March 11, 2009 at 10:12 AM
I finished JC's raps with a "boo-yah!" - that is my catchword
boo-yah!
Posted By: B Squared (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:18 AM
Votes
Tag - Bulldogs vs Steiners
Car Crash - Cactus Jack vs Vader HitC
Noms
Rivalry Bret Hart (managed by Mr. Perfect) vs Shawn Michaels (managed by HHH) - I Quit, Loser Retires
Main Event - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Hulk Hogan
Posted By: HBK's Smile (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:25 AM
Who Am I? I've wrestled at multiple Wrestlemanias, and in multiple Royal Rumbles. I've been managed by a legendary manager, a somewhat well known manager/announcer/annoying person, a famous lackey and some old guy. I was almost always a follower of someone else, only once tasting gold myself. I've teamed with a man over 7 foot, a woman in a long dress, a man who has been the answer to one of the previous questions here, and arguably the biggest star in WWE today. Oh, and I have exactly one catchphrase, or rather, catchword. Who am I?
Was it Ron Simmons?
Posted By: Ben (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:38 AM
If you are a "worker" (since you mention some fed you're the tag champ in), why are you writing a mark column for a mark website? Who trained you? No trainer worth his salt would have been okay with you doing this, you realize, right?
Posted By: Mark? (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:41 AM
"MVC?"
Posted By: McLovin (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:46 AM
That small package by Owen is going to make my day!
Posted By: Johnny O (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:51 AM
Why you are Bull Buchanan
Wrestlemania XIV in the Tag Team Battle Royal
Wrestelmania XVI w. Bossman vs. Godfather & D'Lo
Wrestlemania XVII w. RTC vs. Tazz & APA
Royal Rumble 2001
Royal Rumble 2003
Legendary Manager: Jim Cornette
Somewhat Well Known manager/announcer/annoying person: Don "Jackyl" Callis
A Famous Lackey: Steven Richards
Old Guy: Kenny Bolin
Man over 7 foot: Kurrgan
Woman in a long dress: Ivory
Man who has been a previous answer: Boss Man
Biggest star in WWE: John Cena
One Word Catchword: Boo-yah!
Posted By: Robbymac (Registered) on March 11, 2009 at 10:53 AM
Voting
Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard V IRS/Ted DiBiase (How can this not be the easy choice)
The Rivaly
8-Man Elimantion - Hall,Nash,Michaels,HHH vs. Brett Hart,Niedhart,Flair, Mr. Perfect
The Main Event
Steve Austin V Hulk Hogan V The Rock Triple Threat to be The Man.
Posted By: krash9924 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:55 AM
guiest6068- yeah it was a stupid question but if u read tommy dreamer's blog on wwe he mentioned in a match mark henry hit him so hard he pooped his pants in the ring. That gives a hardcore norman bates shower a whole new meaning...
Posted By: accidentinring6068 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:24 AM
People who think that the answer to the "Who am I?" is Ron Simmons apparently know little of wrestling history. WCW World Champion, WCW World Tag Team Champion, WWF Tag Team Champion (3X).
Also, do you think there's any set of criteria under which JBL could possibly be considered "arguably the biggest star in WWE today"?
Posted By: Big Daddy Matty (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:32 AM
Definitely agree on the internal logic of a wrestling match, but I think the figure four pin makes perfect sense. It doesn't allow for the victim to lay there, he has to make some effort to escape, which harkens back to amateur wrestling and how the ref will stop a match is the bottom guy is making no effort to, or is unable to, escape. It can also be viewed as the ref saying, "You're not getting out that easy. If it hurts that bad, give up." I like the psychology and drama of it.
-----
"1. Has a wrestler ever pooped his/her pants while performing in a televised wrestling match?"
Sid Vicious famously shat himself during his World Title match with The Undertaker at WrestleMania 13.
-----
"I'm fairly certain that once the Montreal Screw Job happened, Rick Rude immediately left the company."
Rude was actually around for the live Raw the next night as well as the taped show the night after that. This led to the situation on November 17th where he appeared on Raw that had been taped on the 11th at the same time he was on the live Nitro. I'm not sure if the screwjob led to it but it's known that Rude was working without a contract and was paid per appearance and Bischoff contacted him about jumping ship.
Posted By: neverAcquiesce (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:35 AM
Benoit also won a major itle via submission, both against Sid (if you count that), and HHH/Shawn.
Posted By: Jim (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:48 AM
TTIT: Ok, even if I give you that it was an attempt to do weekly PPVs (a week and a half after the last one), Sunday was still the usual day for PPVs at that point, you'll give me that, right? Right?
The WWF didn't move all their PPVs to Sunday nights until 1995. SummerSlam was a Monday night until 1994, Survivor Series was on Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Eve until 1994 and the Royal Rumble flipped between Saturday and Sunday. Only WrestleMania and the King of the Ring were always on Sundays until 1995.
The History of WWE site told me this. Check out the promotional ads section.
Posted By: ODog (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:48 AM
Voting is:
Animal/Hawk/The Ultimate Warrior V Ax/Crush/Smash V Mr Fuji/The Barbarian/The Warlord- Elimination Rules
Christian V CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V John Morrison V Matt Hardy- MITB
Nominations are:
The Rivalry
Shawn Michaels Vs Bret Hart
3 Stages of Hell - Submission, Ladder and 30 Mon Iron Man!!
Main Event
Main Event
Undisputed Champion HITC 6 Pack Challenge
John Cena V HHH V The Rock V Steve Austin V Ric Flair V Hulk Hogan
Posted By: Wrasslin_God (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:58 AM
Thanks for mentioning me in your column, and if you know where I can find some work, please let me know. Thanks!
Posted By: Jerry Calhoun (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:04 PM
Tag Match:
Animal/Hawk V Ax/Smash
Spectacle:
Christian/Edge/Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy V Mick Foley/Sabu/Terry Funk/Tommy Dreamer- Wargames
The Rivarly:
Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels-I Quit Match
Main Event:
Steve Austin V Goldberg
Posted By: Guest#3851 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:41 PM
"I could be mistaken, but when Andre "beat" Hogan, did he refer to the belt as the World TAG TEAM Championship???? He said it twice...."
YES! I don't know what the hell was wrong with him there, but he definitely said it TWICE.
Posted By: Guest#4559 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:45 PM
"Sid Vicious famously shat himself during his World Title match with The Undertaker at WrestleMania 13."
No, he didn't 'famously' shit himself at WM13, because no one has EVER confirmed that's when it was, if it even happened it all. People have mistakenly tried to point to WM13 as the time (as it's the most notable time they ever faced each other), but the closest I've heard was at a house show from the spring of '97
Posted By: Guest#1239 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:47 PM
Votes -
Tag Match: Christian/Edge V Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid
Spectacle/Car Crash: Cactus Jack V Terry Funk- HITC
Nominations -
The Rivalry: Bret Hart/Owen Hart vs. Shawn Michaels/HHH No DQ Tag Match
The Main Event: Steve Austin vs. Hulk Hogan vs. The Rock vs. Ric Flair Elimination Match
Posted By: Ben (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 12:50 PM
I heard somewhere that one of the Nasty Boys (Saggs I think) gave his tag title to one of the guys in Motley Crue.
Posted By: Jeremy (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 01:00 PM
""MVC?"
Posted By: McLovin (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:46 AM"
Miracle Violence Connection, an Internet-created name for the team of Terry Gordy & Dr. Death Steve Williams.
I've got to credit the Internet because every time I've asked if they were ever called "MVC" on screen, nobody seems to know the answer.
Posted By: Brad B (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 01:13 PM
During the Royal Rumble clip included in today's answers, there's a funny quip about Aldo Montoya as he comes to the ring concerning his mask. Lawler states: "Aldo has his jock on the wrong body part." Vince, who can't make a smart reply to save his life goes: "I'm not so sure about that." Funny stuff.
Posted By: noirfan (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 01:24 PM
On the losing titles front: In an interview with this month's PowerSlam (#176) Bruno Sammartino tells a story of how the WWWF title was stolen from his car while he was at dinner with Vince Sr and Arnold Skaaland.
Posted By: BringTheNoise (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 02:27 PM
I was gonna say Ron Simmons too. Bull Buchanan might work, im a bit hazy on him. But Simmons teamed with Taker at one point so could easily be the guy. Also managed by Teddy Long at one point.
Posted By: Pure Dynamite (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 02:51 PM
"That's a pretty ignorant way of putting it."
Haha, is it? Then what's the reason? I would loooove to know.
Posted By: Ernie Ladd (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:23 PM
bull buchanan was with Don Callis in the TRUTH COMMISSION ALSO KURRGAN WAS IN IT TOO. NOT THAT ODDITIES TEAM
Posted By: hidickie (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:30 PM
Mike Tyson/Mr.T got robbed, and so did Kurt Angle/Bret Hart!
Voting
Tag Team Match: Animal/Hawk vs Ax/Smash
Christian vs Edge vs Jeff Hardy vs Matt Hardy vs CM Punk vs John Morrison
Nominations
Rivalry: Shawn Michaels vs Triple H (I Quit)
Main Event: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs The Rock vs Hulk Hogan vs Ric Flair
(Fatal four way elimination match)
Posted By: Chris (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:38 PM
I cannot believe anyone would recommend BBOWM to someone for wrestling moves
Posted By: Guest#3174 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 03:45 PM
noirfan, I think my favorite Vince McMahon line from that Royal Rumble clip is this one, right after Shawn Michaels eliminates both Yokozuna and Vader: "Unbelievable! Can you believe that?" Well, apparently not.
Posted By: That Guy (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 04:28 PM
Hogan TAPPED to Kurt Angle's anklelock at King Of The Ring '02.
Posted By: PhiDeltaSham (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 04:51 PM
2 Chandler's! Excellent!
Posted By: Mathis (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 04:57 PM
I stopped reading and skipped right to commenting when you said the ROH Title was a World Title.
You liking it =/= World Title
Posted By: Guest#2228 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 05:23 PM
Flair fought Hansen at least twice while he (Flair) was NWA champ. October 3 1982 (double count out) and June 03 1984 (Flair wins by dq). Both matches took place in Atlanta.
I'm pretty sure I read awhile back that Jerry Calhoun was involved in real estate now. I think it was posted somewhere on Kayfabe Memories.
Posted By: TALLEY! (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 06:29 PM
Main Event
The Rock V John Cena
Posted By: Matt P (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 06:38 PM
Votes:
Flair/Brain Busters vs. Benoit/Bulldogs
Christian V CM Punk V Edge V Jeff Hardy V John Morrison V Matt Hardy- MITB
Nominations:
Rivalry: Hell in the Cell--Shawn Michaels/Triple H vs. Bret Hart/Mick Foley (Bret and HBK feudin, Trips and Foley feudin)
Main Event:
Hulk Hogan vs. Steve Austin vs. The Rock
Posted By: RipStamps (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 06:55 PM
footage from the Omni was frequently used during intros for WCW saturday night, and some matches were featured on WCW Sunday during the mid 80's
Posted By: The fresh (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 06:56 PM
Damn- Your Ron Simmons
Posted By: thrasher (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 06:56 PM
Wow, Isn't TNA counting Angle's Medals a World Championship sorta stupid? I mean I'd count it as a bigger accomplishment than winning any Pro-wrestling Championship but wrestling at the Olympics or at Amateur and wrestling in WWE or TNA are totally different things. I remember in one of their promos TNA counted Kurt as 13 time World and Olympic Champion, so maybe it is something else? I could also see why they might count Sacrifice as an Unofficial NWA title or "Interim World Championship but, they seem like they are going overboard for Kurt Angle reigns. I sometimes wonder if he's secretly racing Triple H.
Posted By: Sev (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 07:02 PM
Hogan tapped to the Rock at Wrestlemania too, but there was no ref to see it or the rope break that should have broken the hold earlier.
Posted By: Sev (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 07:37 PM
Hey Sforcina, What Fed you work for? Why not post some pics of your belt?
Posted By: CharlieAdam'SistersPants (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 07:51 PM
Anyone notice at the beginning of the Rumble clip (about 10 seconds in) that Bob Holly (i think that's him in the red outfit) kicks Vader in the gut and Vader completely no sells and continues walking ahead. LOL
Posted By: Guest#4102 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 08:19 PM
There was also an incident involving the Nasty Boys giving one of their tag title belts (freshly won) to Willie Nelson after WMVII.
Posted By: Guest#5419 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 08:32 PM
To all people thinking it's Ron Simmons:
Who has Faarooq/Ron Simmons mostly been a follower of throughout his career? He was the leader of the Nation of Domination for a while. The only time he was a follower was in the Ministry for a bit, but that's it. Bull Buchanan fits more.
Posted By: iamguest (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 08:37 PM
voting
Flair/Arn/Tully vs Benoit/Bulldogs
Cm Punk vs Edge vs Jeff Hardy vs John Morrison vs Christian vs Matt Hardy-MiTB
Main Event: Steve Austin vs Hulk Hogan vs The Rock
Posted By: Guest#3453 (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 08:57 PM
1. Most indy feds here, they keep belts because you never know when someone will no show.
2. Wrong Matt Striker, the book has Matt Stryker, the good wrestler. Trust me, Les Thatcher has made that point directly to me
Posted By: supa sta (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 09:09 PM
Shady Lurker, what state are you in? If you're in SA or WA you should check out EPW. By far the best company in the country in my opinion.
Posted By: scott hardie (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 05:25 AM
I'm in the NT, which, I can say, has absolutley NO wrestling scene at all. Haha.
The only Australian I remember ever seeing was WAAAAAAAAAAAY back, like, 2002, when they had a wrestling event on Fox Sports.
And it sucked. :(
Posted By: Shady Lurker (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 09:16 PM
ATTN: indie haters.
The RoH belt has been defended in Japan, the UK and Mexico. It's a World Title.
Posted By: scott (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 09:32 PM
Women have worked gimmick matches before. Often they were quite good. I think they could have a Mickie James vs Beth Phoenix cage match or something for example. Lita and Victoria did it.
Posted By: Sev (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 10:26 PM
Voting
Brainbusters vs. Steiner Brothers
Cactus Jack vs. Vader HITC
Nominations
Rivalry.
Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels.
Three Stages of Hell Match.
Submission.
Ladder.
30 minute Iron Man match.
The Main Event.
Elimination Chamber
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Ric Flair vs. The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan vs. Eddie Guerrero vs. John Cena vs. Triple H
...hell, i
Posted By: Vulgar Display of Power (Guest) on March 11, 2009 at 11:42 PM
didn't Austin tap during the tag match between Benoit/Jericho vs Austin/HHH. It was illegal(I remember Heyman quickly yelling that) since both Jericho and Benoit were applying the hold, but he did submit.
Posted By: K. Bett (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 12:02 AM
Votes:
British Bulldogs vs. Steiners
Funk vs. Foley Hell in a Cell
Nominations:
HBK vs. Hart I quit match
Hogan vs. Stone Cold
Posted By: dickey (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 12:22 AM
Booyah! It's none other than Barry "Bull" Buchanan. For those asking, "booyah" was his catchword, while he was a lackey of John Cena on Smackdown.
Posted By: mr_wonderful (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 08:59 AM
2 things. First its not entirely out of the question for divas to compete in specialty matches. Victoria and Lita did indeed wrestle in a cage once on RAW. At survivor series 2002 Trish Stratus and Victoria wrestled in a hardcore match for the women's title.
Regarding the question if any wrestler has ever pooed his pants before. I don't know if this was on live television or not but Danny Basham once talked about how he literally pooped his tights after being body slammed pretty hard. Thankfully he was wearing under tights or else all his feces would be flying all over the ring.
Posted By: King Of Kings (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 11:06 AM
Okay, are you the real Jerry Calhoun?
Posted By: Ben (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 11:53 AM
"didn't Austin tap during the tag match between Benoit/Jericho vs Austin/HHH. It was illegal(I remember Heyman quickly yelling that) since both Jericho and Benoit were applying the hold, but he did submit."
I believe so. I know they did the double submission in the Triple Threat at King of the Ring '01, though I don't recall if Austin tapped then or not. It was beyond badass, though.
Posted By: neverAcquiesce (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 12:16 PM
Bruno Sammartino is being featured in a 2 part interview in Power Slam at the moment.
He was asked about his WWWF title being stolen from his car after a match in MSG in Sep 65.
He went to a restaurant off broadway and did a Public appearance for Vince McMahon Sr. He parked out front with Arnold Skaaland (white towel man !) and left the belt in a suitcase on the back seat.
The security team went off duty and someone broke the window and stole the suitcase. The belt was never recovered so they had to make another belt which was a replica one.
Well done on the column but felt i had to try and answer the belt question for you ..
Northants Grecian
Posted By: Northants Grecian (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 03:12 PM
Hey Sev and King of Kings, that's his point, Victoria/Lita/Beth Phoenix/Mickie James are WRESTLERS, they trained as wrestlers for years and toughened themselves up, Trish was able to do likewise in a shorter space of time. But when they just bring in a model who's not used to it like Candice Michelle you couldn't throw them into a gimmick match without a huge risk of injury. Torrie Wilson had to retire with a back injury, how many matches did she ever have and how physical were they? This isn't a 'women can't do this' point it's an 'untrained and unprepared people can't do this' point.
Posted By: Robin (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 04:57 PM
On the question of wrestlers losing actual belts - someone in IWA:MS back in the late 90s early 00s won the lightheavyweight belt, got high and lost it. Deranged, maybe? Dave Prazak ribbed on it a lot when he did commentary for IWA:MS and ran down titles histories of anyone who held the LHW title.
Posted By: y2jdingo (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 07:20 PM
The main event
The hurricane vs The Rock
The rivalry
Stacey Keibler vs Bubba Ray Dudley /w D-von , Spike
Posted By: Jill (Guest) on March 12, 2009 at 10:50 PM
The Miracle Violence Combination got their name in Japan,not the IWC.This was in the Apter mag days,
long before Al Gore invented
the internets.
Japanglish Rule.
Posted By: Jason (Guest) on March 13, 2009 at 12:00 AM
votes
Tag: Ric Flair/Arn Anderson/Tully Blanchard vs Chris Benoit/Davey Boy Smith/Dynamite Kid
Spectacle: Money in the Bank: Jeff Hardy vs Edge vs CM Punk vs Christian vs Matt Hardy vs John Morrison
Nominations
Rivalry: Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart
Main event: Elimination Chamber: Hulk Hogan vs Ultimate Warrior vs Stone Cold vs The Rock vs John Cena vs
Triple H............OR
Elimination Chamber: Hulk Hogan vs Ultimate Warrior vs Stone Cold vs The Rock vs John Cena vs Randy Orton(wanna give as many good options for chamber matches as possible)
Posted By: bolt vanderhuge (Guest) on March 13, 2009 at 06:51 PM
voting for Flair and Brain Busters versus Benoit and the Bulldogs!!!!
Wowza!!
Posted By: fatchickthriller (Guest) on March 16, 2009 at 11:55 PM
"It's not image, it's health. WWE women are not nearly as tough as the men, ergo they rarely risk their bodies in more dangerous matches like ladder, cage, hardcore etc. Especially now, when most of the divas are Diva Search contestants and/or former models. After all, Candice and Melina have rarely fought in those types of matches and how often are they injured?
Now, if WWE were to get back to having a decent women's roster of women who were tough…"
That's a pretty ignorant way of putting it.
Posted By: Guest#8974 (Guest) on March 10, 2009 at 11:59 PM
Typical female emotional reaction.
Posted By: Guest#4516 (Guest) on March 17, 2009 at 05:41 PM
