McCool’s Massive Ego Continues On, WWE Creative Changes
July 31, 2008
Creative team member Ed Koskey is now the head writer of ECW, reports the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. He joins Michael Hayes as head writer of Smackdown and Brian Gewirtz as head writer of Raw
Thanks to Disco Inferno1 for sending in the following: Lex Luger will be speaking at Holly Creek Baptist Church in Chatsworth, GA, on (Sunday) August 10 at 6:30 p.m. Unfortunately the church’s website is currently under construction. But it is being advertised locally. The church is located at 422 Holly Creek Cool Sprgs Rd, Chatsworth, GA 30705.
Reigning WWE Divas Champion Michelle McCool has posted a new blog on the WWE Fan Nation site talking about her title win at The Great American Bash. McCool wrote, “I came in this business from day one with people wanting to hate me (mainly from coming through the Diva Search … and I get that), people wanting to see me fail, people doubting me, people saying I’m undeserving and to that … I say thank you.” She also added, “I know that may sound crazy, but I thrive on proving people wrong. I love breaking down barriers and winning someone over. Hopefully I did that with at least one person on Sunday. Hopefully I made at least one person believe in me as a champion. Hopefully I made at least one person say, “Hey, Michelle does deserve that!” And if I didn’t, hopefully I will be given the chance to win more hearts soon.” Man, can someone say EGO? I’m not a woman or Diva but stuff like that would definitely rub me the wrong way. It is a well known fact that many of the girls do not like her and there it not much they can do about it due to her real-life relationship with ‘Taker. They’ve been together for about or a little over a year now.
The New York Times is scheduled to do a story on independent wrestling this Saturday.
Undertaker Cheating On Michelle McCool! Could Lose Her Job!
Popularity: 3% [?]
Lashley Comments On New Blog, HTM’s Finger Injury Update, More
July 31, 2008
Former ECW Champion Bobby Lashley has posted his first blog on the website of his online supplement company, www.LashleyNutrition.com. The preview on the front page reads, “Check out my blog. I’ll be writing about nutrition, MMA, WWE, and what i’ve been up to lately and what i’ll be doing soon. Feel free to drop some comments too.” In his first blog he talks about the best way to fuel your muscles following an intense workout. You can read the blog at http://www.lashleynutrition.com/.
Dan Arsenault sent in the following: Just wanted to pass along some further info on HTM’s injury over the weekend. The accident happened outside Boston Pizza in Charlottetown, PEI Canada. The fan, no it wasn’t me, was not at fault. The stunt was supposed to happen as follows, HTM and the fan swing the guitars together and a photographer snaps a pic of the two exploding. According to HTM himself, when the guitars collided, the neck of the guitar Honky was holding twisted and that was what caused the injury. While he was unable to wrestle that night, HTM came to the ring at the Charlottetown Civic Centre told the fans what happened, apologized he was unable to wrestle, but he made himself fully available for autographs and pictures and gave a great performance of singing and dancing for his “beautiful audience”. On a side note, HTM’s replacement that night arrived 2 minutes before the start of his match after being price gouged for over $200.00 for a rental car at the Halifax Airport and driving the 3 hours on short notice to perform. (again not me, just passing along info)
Amy Vitale, a Florida independent valet, and model, appears on tonight’s edition of Burn Notice on the USA Network tonight at 10 p.m. She plays a kidnapped Russian girl. You can see Vitale’s MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/amyvitale.
Popularity: 3% [?]
A Rare Sable Sighting, Update On Brock Lesnar/Sable, SSlam
July 31, 2008
As a reminder, WWE will be releasing the 20-event SummerSlam Anthology DVD box set this coming Tuesday.
Brock Lesnar and his wife, former WWE Diva Sable, threw out the first pitch at the Minnesota Twins vs. Chicago White Sox MLB game on Monday. They also plugged Lesnar’s 8/9 UFC fight against Heath Herring at the Target Center. Lesnar was announced as a former NCAA heavyweight wrestling champion at the University of Minnesota; a former World Heavyweight Champion for WWE, as well as a current UFC competitor. They also promoted Lesnar’s upcoming UFC fight at the Target Center on Saturday, August 9.
WWE Sign Sable To Face McCool For Diva Title!
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Hogan On Stern Recap, Brooke/Playboy Update, Ashley, ‘Taker
July 31, 2008
TNA sent out this press release today.
TNA WRESTLING ADDS IRELAND EVENT TO THE JANUARY 2009 “MAXIMUM iMPACT!” TOUR OF THE UNITED KINGDOM TNA Wrestling has announced a new event in Dublin, Ireland, in January 2009 as part of the “Maximum iMPACT!” Tour. The stars of TNA Wrestling will compete Friday, January 16th 2009 at the National Stadium, Dublin. Tickets from €33.60 (including booking fee) go on sale next Thursday 7th August at 9am from Ticketmaster and Usual Outlets Nationwide TNA Executive Vice President, Andy Barton commented: “We are looking forward to bringing TNA Wrestling to Dublin for the first time and playing a venue with such an incredible history.” TNA Superstars scheduled to compete on the “Maximum iMPACT!” Tour include: TNA World Heavyweight Champion Samoa Joe, Olympic gold medallist Kurt Angle, “King of the Mountain” Jeff Jarrett, “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles, “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal, Abyss, The Motor City Machineguns, Awesome Kong, Gail Kim, “The Guru” Sonjay Dutt, “Cowboy” James Storm, Curry Man, and Shark Boy and more! (Talent line-up is subject to change) The “Maximum iMPACT!” Tour itinerary: Friday, January 16 – Dublin – National Stadium, Tuesday, January 20 – Manchester – Manchester Evening News Arena, Wednesday, January 21 – Birmingham – National Indoor Arena, Thursday, January 22 – Glasgow – Braehead Arena, and Saturday, January 24 – London – Wembley Arena.
Undertaker is on the cover of the September 2008 issue of WWE Magazine. The headline reads: Inside The Deadman’s Lair - UNDERTAKER’S REVENGE - The Deadman’s Trap Is Set. And His Prey Will Pay. Also, Ashley Massaro was featured as a guest editor in the Music section of the magazine. The magazine should hit newsstands next week.
Hulk Hogan appeared on Howard Stern today. When asked about posing for Playboy, Hogan says Brooke got offered the cover of the 55th Anniversary issue and that it was her decision. Hogan said he didn’t think she should do it and Stern agreed, saying Brooke already has her own TV show and should save the Playboy card for when her career really needs a spark. Hogan also said that Nick got a harsher sentence than expected but that he was taking it like a man, saying most criminals crack after 72 hours in solitary confinement but that Nick lasted 28 days. Stern then took a call from the Iron Sheik who ranted about how he put Hogan over for the title and Hogan had promised that he owed him one. Sheik said he would let it go though and Hogan said thanks. Hogan later said Sheik was crazy and that he talks a lot of smack behind people’s backs but if they saw each other face-to-face, he’d come give him a hug. Hogan also talked about his new Celebrity Championship Wrestling show, saying Dustin Diamond (Screech from Saved by the Bell) was the best wrestler and got the psychology down, and that it took Frank Stallone two weeks to come up with a cross-dressing character for himself. He also said his catchphrase on the show is “You’re a jabroni, get out of my ring.”
Hogan’s Divorce Exposed As A Sham! Stunt To Boost Ratings!
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ECW Gets Head Writer, Bret Hart Needs Surgery
July 31, 2008
- ECW has been a bit of an afterthought recently from a creative standpoint, but Ed Koskey has now been named head writer, so it will have at least one mind behind it full time.
- Like a lot of retired wrestlers Bret Hart is in dire need of knee replacement surgery.
Full Details On What Exactly Freddy Prinze Jr’s Creative Role Will Entail!
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More On IWA Incident Including A Brutal Uncensored Video Inside
July 31, 2008
The CBS affiliate out Louisville, Kentucky has a report on a beatdown incident on an indy wrestler by the name of Mike Levy several weeks back at an IWA-MS show in Sellersburg, Indiana. The IWA-MS promotion is now being investigated by the police on the heels of upset fans e-mailing the online footage to the local authorities as well as the television station.
On June 21, 2008, Mike Levy, an indy wrestler from North Carolina, was booked into IWA-MS’s female Death Match tournament, which was attended by maybe 75 people. Rather, Levy is apparently an untrained wrestler who through some message board postings, made it known that he wanted to participate in the IWA-MS Death Match tournament. The false hype by a few wrestling message board posters led IWA-MS promoter Ian Rotten to add Levy to the women’s tournament as a joke.
Levy’s opponent in the match was current TNA Knockout Mickie Knuckles, and he took a horrible beating from her. She worked stiff on him, giving him several brutal shots with weapons throughout the match. Levy, who was apparently trying to defend himself, also starts throwing legit punches at one point in the match. This greatly angers Knuckles, so she becomes even more violent towards him. During this, Knuckles gives herself a huge lump on her head from headbutting Levy so much. The beating went on for eight to ten minutes before Knuckles got the win. As bad as the beating was, it was actually the tame part.
Following the match, two apparent wrestlers dressed in street clothes enter the fray. One’s a skinny guy by the name of Devon Moore, and the other is a guy by the name of Tank, who looks to be about 400 pounds and is supposedly a wrestler. The crowd began chanting for Levy’s finisher The Curb Stomp, which WWE star Paul Burchill uses. Tank then grabs Levy and holds his head over a barbed wire ladder. Devon comes the top rope with a double stomp that drove Levy’s head hard into the ladder. As if that wasn’t enough, the 400-pound Tank climbs to the second rope and lets his much larger size come crashing down from the second rope, stomping Levy’s head into the ladder in a sickening fashion. Tank had trouble maintaining his balance through this, and he toppled over after stomping Levy’s head.
Following this, the Moore gets on the mic, insulting him. Levy is sitting up, and Moore gives him a stiff kick in the chest. He then kicks him several more times, and telling him to “learn to sell,” in his expletive-laden tirade. The 400-pounder then gets on the mic and tells him in his thick Southern drawl to go back to North Carolina, and to never come back to their parts again.
Too add insult to injury, even Ian Rotten’s young son, who appears to be 12-years-old, gets involved in the beatdown. The child can even be seen asking “daddy” if its alright to hit him. Levy, who is now outside the ring, gives the grounded Levy with a few stiff shots with a Kendo Stick. Moore follows this up by hitting Levy with a chair. While Levy is down, the child kicks him in the back of the head.
Ian Rotten then gets on the mic and says, “Unlike you, she has a career you dip****. Unlike you, she’s going to ******g national TV on Monday.” He then kicks him in the head and tells him to “stay the **** down.” He also adds, “I told you to stay the **** down. Don’t you ****** move. You move and I’ll rip your ****** nuts off and feed ‘em too yah.” Rotten then gives the okay for apparently a fan to hit Levy over the head with a weapon, which breaks upon impact.
Rotten’s spiel is not over, as he brings Mickie Knuckles over. Holding his arm over Knuckles, Rotten says, “Look at this. Look up at me you dumb mother******. Look at your knot on her head. She’s got to go to national television, cause you don’t know how to f***** work with that on her head. You f***** no-good c***-******* son of a b*****.” It should be noted that Knuckles likely gave the bump on her head to herself. During one sequence in the match, Knuckles gets incensed and gives Levy a repeated number of vicious headbutts.
The beatdown is still not over. Rotten kicks him in the head following his tirade and the child throws something at Levy. An apparent wrestler in plaid shorts (it’s hard to tell, as some of them look like members of the audience) gives Levy a really sloppy suplex on top of some debris. Rotten gets on the mic again, and says, “This is a message to anybody who wants to f*** with us. I told everybody yesterday, you f*** with one of us, you f*** with all of us. You’re a f****** outsider b**** and don’t you ever forget it Internet Sensation.” Rotten then mutters, “It’s over,” and finally leaves.
In the background, you could hear a fan say, “This is one of the greatest moments of my entire life.”
WLKY has video from the match, although some of the footage claiming to be a part of beatdown directed towards Levy were spots from his match with Knuckles.
Rotten was interviewed by WLKY and claimed that the beating was supposed to look like a “gang-style beating, and it did.” Rotten said that Levy wasn’t seriously injured, and that this was all a part of the show. He said that while Levy took some “brutal strikes,” he also added that it’s “not ballet.” Rotten also said that Levy is scheduled to participate in their Fall Death Match tournament later in the year.
The police officer investigating the incident said, “It was hard for me to know whether everything was a part of the show. I was assured that it was. I’m not so sure.” Charges have yet to filed regarding the matter, due to Levy not pressing charges himself as well as a “lack of evidence.”
In a side note coming out of the investigation, the event was held outside a bowling alley and they didn’t have the proper zoning variances to hold outdoor entertainment. Although, they claimed they weren’t aware they were needed. Should the bowling alley promote future wrestling events, they’ll need to get the proper permits first.
You can see WLKY’s video report at http://www.wlky.com/video/17042576/index.html.
Following the incident, Knuckles was booked at two Impact tapings the next week. This is where she defeated ODB and Roxxi Laveaux in matches involving weapons. On Sunday, July 6, Knuckles broke her femur in her right leg after a botched attempt to dive off a platform onto Sara Del Rey during the main event at the IWA Mid-South Summertime Black & Blues indy show in Joliet, Illinois. The rest of the show was canceled following the injury. Mickie underwent surgery the next day and is expected to miss six months of in-ring action. A job in TNA is expected to be waiting for Knuckles as soon as she is cleared to return to the ring.
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The Real Reason Nash Walked Out Of iMPACT!, BFG Pre-Sale
July 31, 2008
The pre-sale for Bound for Glory tickets started this morning. The password is ANGLE.
As noted earlier, Kevin Nash was upset with TNA management over the finish to a Gauntlet match he was involved in at the iMPACT! taping and walked out of the show. Management booked another Gauntlet match and he was to get eliminated during the commercial break, which upset him. But because he is set to headline an upcoming PPV against Samoa Joe, he has leverage and is thus remaining with the promotion.
Major TNA Talent Walks Out With Nash! Click To Se Who!
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Real Reason Why Tomko/TNA Parted Ways, Angle Injured At iMPACT!
July 31, 2008
As reported yesterday, Tomko is done with TNA. His problems with the company started when he opted to go to Japan for the Inoki Genome Federation instead of attending a TNA Fan Festival. Tomko had been trying to balance commitments in Japan and TNA which caused conflicts. This left him in the doghouse with TNA management.
Kurt Angle was injured in said Gauntlet match after he took a bad hardway shot with the ladder and was bleeding profusely, to the point it alarmed everyone.
ROH is set to return to Japan on September 13th and 14th for shows at Differ Ariake in Tokyo.
Huge WWE Star Jumps To TNA TODAY!
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An Incident At An Indy Show, Freddie Prinze, Jr./WWE, Goldberg
July 31, 2008
The Mike Levy incident from a few weeks ago is now being investigated by police. The incident saw North Carolina independent wrestler Mike Levy get beaten up badly by wrestlers Devon Moore, Tank, Ian Rotten, and Rotten’s son after Levy following his match with Mickie Knuckles at an IWA show. The reason for the beatdown was apparently because Levy left a knot on Mickie Knuckles’ face during their match. Ian Rotten, the promoter of IWA, later said that Levy got his ass kicked for the right reasons and claimed that Levy was fine afterwards and happy he could still be part of IWA. Once press attention started coming in, Rotten said the beatdown was an angle and part of the show. The officer investigating the situation says he isn’t so sure the beatdown was part of the show.
Many mainstream media outlets have picked up the WWE hiring Freddie Prinze, Jr. story. One of the goals WWE had when hiring Prinze was to get the type of media attention they are now.
Bill Goldberg will be appearing on an upcoming episode of the “Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?” game show.
SLAM! has a good interview up with Terri Runnels at http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/.
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Another Fan Sues WWE, Magnum TA/WWE, & More News
July 31, 2008
According to reports out of Kansas City, Twyla Riley, a fan who attended WWE’s 5/19/07 Smackdown event at the Gale Bullman Multipurpose Center on the campus of Missouri University of Science and Technology, has filed a lawsuit against WWE. She is blaming WWE for a fall she took from the bleachers when a railing gave way. Lawyers from both the university and WWE say Riley is at fault.
Botswana is now one of over 100 countries carrying WWE programming. The Gaborone TV network will air ECW on Tuesday, Smackdown on Wednesday and Raw on Thursday in prime time.
Magnum TA was backstage at the recent Charlotte show, visiting with friends. He recently had back surgery and was needing crutches to get around.
Magnum TA Signs With WWE To Feud With Returning Flair!
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Notes On Hell In A Cell, Hulk Hogan, SumnmerSlam, iMPACT!
July 31, 2008
WWE will be releasing a 3-disc Hell in a Cell DVD set on 10/14.]
WWE’s Summerslam Anthology box set will be released this Tuesday. The set features every Summerslam show from 1988 to 2007. You can pre-order it from Amazon for $184.99/
Hulk Hogan is scheduled to be on the Howard Stern Show today.
The following matches are scheduled for tonight’s edition of TNA Impact:
- For a Tag Title Shot at Hard Justice: Christian Cage and Rhino vs. Beer Money (Robert Roode and James Storm)
- Jay Lethal, Shark Boy and Curry Man vs. Johnny Devine and The Rock and Rave Infection (Jimmy Rave and Lance Rock)
- Non-Title Match: Petey Williams © vs. Consequences Creed
- Matt Morgan vs. Sal Rinauro
- The Beautiful People (Angelina Love and Velvet Sky) vs. Gail Kim and Taylor Wilde
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Live News & Notes From This Week’s SmackDown Taping
July 31, 2008
Thanks to PWMania.com reader Berry M for sending this in:
Some notes from the Smackdown tapings in Hershey, PA:
The Wedding Planner is shown backstage a couple times, once she is seen by Chavo/Bam/Vickie and another time with just Edge, because he bought her a ticket to watch the Cutting Edge.
After the Khali - Hardy match, they ran a promo for Ron Killings. They showed shots of a jail cell and talked about his past problems. Seems as if Ron is going to be known as “R-Truth” this time around, as it was in graffiti at the end of the promo. A lot of Ron chants.
In all actuality, the Khali - Hardy match was probably the best of the night, right past the Kennedy - Benjamin match. Hardy got a lot of success in the match and actually hit both the Whisper in the Wind and Swanton Bomb. Khali did a great job of drawing a lot of heat on himself.
The crowd shortly started cheering for Edge as Mick was building him up. This of course ended when Edge attacked Mick. Nice reaction when Edge jumped off the ladder with a chair and landed on Mick. Afterwards, Mick was taken to the back on a stretcher. I’m sure they will cut the show after this.
Edge came back out and said that we just watched history because he was the first person to make Mick leave on a stretcher. He said he would do the same to the Undertaker. Vickie came out pushed by Chavo and Bam. Said that Edge needed some practice to get ready for Hell in a Cell, so she made a No DQ match with the Big Show and Edge. Edge ran away, was caught and brought back, beat up a little and then went to the back again. Big Show won by count out. Obviously a little less exciting then the advertised dark final match of Triple H and Edge.
A lot of disappointed fans that Triple H wasn’t there. They showed a highlight of the “King of Kings” and everyone thought he was coming out and started cheering.
Crowd was definately into it tonight. Almost a sell out. Hopefully they let it on TV, but when Kennedy came out, he let the crowd say the Kennedy part of his chant twice, and then faked us out the third time. It was hilarious.
Biggest Pop:
1. Jeff Hardy
2. Mr. Kennedy
3. Mick Foley
Most Heat:
1. Edge
2. Khali
3. MVP
MAJOR SmackDown Superstar SUSPENDED For 60 Days! (Huge Name >>)
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Confirmed Matches For Tonight’s TNA iMPACT
July 31, 2008
The following has been taped for tonight’s edition of TNA iMPACT on SpikeTV:
TNA Tag Team Title Shot At Hard Justice
Beer Money vs. Christian Cage and Rhino
Six Man Tag Team Match
Jay Lethal, Shark Boy and Curry Man vs. Lance Rock, Jimmy Rave and Johnny Devine
Non-Title Match
TNA X-Division Champion Petey Williams vs. Consequences Creed
Matt Morgan vs. Sal Rinauro
TNA Knockout Champion Taylor Wilde and Gail Kim vs. The Beautiful People
TNA Champion Samoa Joe, Booker T, Kurt Angle, AJ Styles, Team 3D, Tomko and others are also scheduled to be appearing.
For complete TNA iMPACT spoilers for tonight click here.
Breaking News: HUGE TNA Superstar **QUITS**! (Shocking News >>)
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Official TNA iMPACT! Preview For Tonight
July 31, 2008
The following is from TNAWrestling.com:
This Thursday night, TNA Wrestling returns to SpikeTV with two hours of Total Nonstop Action as we continue the road to the Sunday, August 10 “Hard Justice” Pay-Per-View event!
Scheduled for the broadcast is as follows:
- More on the situation involving Samoa Joe and Booker T and their war over the TNA World Heavyweight Championship! The two superstars will clash inside the Six SIdes of Steel cage match at Hard Justice for the World Title! Plus, will “The Icon” Sting show up to explain his actions? Is he trying to sabotage Samoa Joe’s title reign? What are Sting’s motivations? Tune in and find out!
- Beer Money (”Cowboy” James Storm and Robert Roode) will face “The Instant Classic” Christian Cage and “The War Machine” Rhino to determine the number-one contenders to the TNA World Tag Team Championship.
- Another installment of “Karen’s Angle” with Kaz
- In an X Division non-title match, it will be “Maple Leaf Muscle” Petey Williams facing Consequences Creed
- The team of Knockout Women’s Champion Taylor Wilde and Gail Kim will battle The Beautiful People
- “The Blueprint” Matt Morgan will be in action
- Curry Man, Shark Boy and “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal will face Johny Devine and The Rock N’ Rave Infection
- Plus, more matches will be announced for the August 10 “Hard Justice” Pay-Per-View event!
All this and much more this Thursday night on “iMPACT!” on Spike at 9pm ET
TNAHeadlines.com - DETAILED Spoilers For Tonight’s TNA & Exclusive News! (>>)
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This Week’s ECW On Sci Fi Rating Drops
July 31, 2008
This week’s edition of ECW on Sci Fi scored a 1.4 cable rating. This is down from last week’s 1.5 cable rating.
[PAGE 2] Major **SPOILERS** For WWE SummerSlam Now Online! (Huge Shocker >>)
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CM Punk Injured, Ashley Returning To TV
July 31, 2008
- CM Punk is rumored to have broken his nose on Monday’s Raw. Either way the blood wasn’t a “blade job” because that is no longer allowed under their new “PG” rules.
- Ashley has stated on her Myspace that the medication her sick daughter is on, is working and she’ll be back on TV in no time. For the record she is no longer under a WWE contract.
Former WCW Hardcore Champion Joins WWE!
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Dr. Wrestling:Top 5 that should have been WWE champion
July 31, 2008
This week for That’s My Story and I’m Sticking To It I’ll be telling you who I think are the top five wrestlers that should have been the WWF/WWE champion but for one reason or another didn’t get a chance to have a main event title run. I got the idea for this column when I was watching a tape of Summer Slam 1989 this past week and it was really unbelievable to see how much wrestling has changed over the past two decades. I’ve been a wrestling fan basically my whole life and while wrestling has changed, the audience’s prospective of wrestling has changed while the product has changed with the times. Some people claim that hine sight is 20/20 so which performers could have and should have been world champion? Please keep in mind this is not at all “official.” This is just my opinion and it would be cool to read your opinion as to who you think should have been WWF champion so e mail me your opinions because it’s always cool to read e mail. While some of the things I’m going to mention in this column were slightly before my time considering the event I was watching, Summer Slam 1989 took place a few months after I was born I’ve added many events from the 80s to my video collection so I have knowledge of who I will be mentioning in this column.
#5-Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat has been called by many, the greatest baby face or “good guy” of all time and they might be right. Hogan had a bigger run when comparing his WWF title reign to Steamboat’s NWA title run but Steamboat was able to stay face for his twenty year career. Steamboat as a face didn’t get stale and he was able to maintain his popularity with the fans, which is why he very well may be the best baby face of all time. Steamboat had a great career with time spent wrestling in the NWA and WCW as well as his time in the WWF, which is what the focus of this column will be when explaining why he should have been WWF champion. More specifically, The Dragon’s run from 1985-1988 in the WWF could have been his time to shine, especially in 1988 when Randy Savage was the world champion. A year prior to that at Wrestlemania 3, Steamboat and Savage had a match for the IC title, which is still talked about today. Based on that, it would seem that a Steamboat v.s. Savage feud for the world title could have been a draw and while it probably would have been a short title reign for Steamboat it still could have been an entertaining feud. I know Savage was a “good guy” when he won the title but he would eventually turned heel so the door was definitely open for Steamboat v.s. Savage at the time. As was shown in his classic series of matches with Ric Flair for the NWA title, Steamboat had the skill to be the world champion but because of his lack of mic skills it seems like some fans don’t really give Steamboat the credit he deserves but hopefully with The Dragon currently as an agent for the WWE, he will be inducted into the Hall of Fame soon.
#4-Rick Rude had the all the tools to be world champion except the title. Rude, had the look, the charisma, the in ring ability, and the mic skills to be a main eventer. Rude’s time to shine would have been in 1990-1991 and his feud with Ultimate Warrior could have been when he won the title, at least for a short reign. I don’t think anyone could argue that Warrior could be a better champion then Rude or deserved the title more then Rude because by all accounts the Warrior didn’t deserve to have the main event run he did in the WWF. Much like Steamboat and basically the remaining “should have been champion” wrestlers in this column, Rude isn’t really given the credit he deserves from some fans and not having a WWF title run could have contributed to that. Despite not getting the main event run in the WWF, Rude still accomplished alot in his career with runs in the AWA, WWF, WCW. and ECW. In fact, in the span of a year in 1997 Rude had appeared on the T.V. shows of all three majors companies that existed at that time. This includes the infamous night that Rude appear on both Raw and Nitro. Raw was taped a week prior and Rude jumped ship to WCW to appear on a live episode of Nitro. This stunt while one of the most unique and memorable moments in wrestling history might effect if Rude is inducted into the WWE hall of fame. One thing that has to be mentioned about Rude is how well he portrayed his heel character and how he used his mic skills to get heat for a match.
#3-”Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig was a second generation wrestler as he was the son of Larry “The Axe” Hennig and here the name says it all, Henning was “Mr. Perfect.” Hennig became a star in the AWA and would eventually win the AWA would title in 1987. After holding the title for over a year, Henning would lose the title to Jerry Lawler and then go to the WWF, where he would debut as “Mr. Perfect.” During his inital run in the WWF, Perfect would have memorible matches with Bret Hart and a memorable run as the IC champion. Unfountunitly, Henning had injuries so he stepped away from the ring and became a commentator as well as a manager during various times during his run in the WWF. It would seem that those injuries are the main reason that Hennig didn’t get a world title run because Hennig and Hart could have had a great feud for the WWF world title when Hart was champion in the mid 90s. Perfect went on to WCW and would eventually return to the WWE in 2002 but would tragically die in 2003. Hennig really deserves alot of credit for how great he preformed the “Mr. Perfect” gimmick and very similar to Rude. he had all the tools to be a world champion. Curt Hennig was honored by the WWE when he was inducted into the WWE hall of fame last year and a DVD documentary entitled “The Life and The Times of Mr. Perfect” will be released in September about Hennig’s career.
#2-”The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase was skilled in the ring and had one of the most original gimmicks pro wrestling has ever seen. During a recent interview, Dibiase explained how he was given the Million Dollar man gimmick by Vince McMahon and how he debuted in the World Wrestling Federation in 1987. Dibiase said he was told if Vince was a wrestler, this would be his gimmick and that was enough to sell Dibiase as he signed with the WWF after meeting with McMahon. Not to be repetitive here but just like Hennig and Rude, The million dollar man had all the tools of a world champion, The skills, look, charisma, mic skills, and at Wrestlemania 4 he main evented the show in the finals of a title tournament against Randy Savage where Savage won the title. Dibiase won the tag titles with IRS, has been an agent for the WWE, and is currently a public speaker.
#1-”Rowdy” Roddy Piper played one of the most important roles in the WWF’s national expansion in 1980’s and I think he is very rarely given all the credit he deserves for his accomplishments. The success of Wrestlemania 1 is what made the World Wrestling Federation a force in main stream entertainment in the 1980s and if the event didn’t succeed who knows what would have happened to the company. The selling point of Wrestlemania was built around the Hogan/Piper feud and was a major part of the reason why Wrestlemania was successful but it seems like some fans forget how important Piper’s role was in the feud. As much as I’m not a fan of Hogan, he was the center piece of the WWF in the 80s and probably the most well known wrestler in the world. I’ll even go as far to say that “Hulkamania” would have been successful in the 80s with any half decent heel to feud against Hogan because of how over he was with the crowd BUT I don’t know if Wrestlemania 1 or the WWF would have became the mega entertainment force it did in the 1980s without Piper there. Piper’s ability to match the level of Hogan in terms of heel/face heat is what made the whole feud as successful as it was and as I said Piper deserves a lot of credit for his role in the feud. That being said, Piper should have had a world title run because he doesn’t get mentioned as being on the same level as the mega top stars in history and he should be because while he doesn’t have the title he was just as important to wrestling as Hogan, Austin, and others. I think if Piper would have won the world title he might be given the recognition he deserves since he is as much as a legend as the other top names mentioned in this column.
In conclusion, don’t get me wrong here I’m not trying to rewrite history. I just think that the five wrestlers I mentioned had the talent and skill to be the world champion but for various reasons didn’t get a title run. More importantly, the five I mentioned didn’t need the title to have a successful career but the deserve the recognition that goes along with winning the title.
Until next week
That’s My Story and I’m Sticking To It
Dr. Wrestling
If you have comments or questions e mail me drwrestlingallpro@yahoo.com
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Last night’s edition of ECW on Sci-Fi scored a 1.4 cable rating, slightly down from last week’s 1.5 rating.
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Source: PWInsider.com
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Source: ProWrestling.net
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