It would appear that the wrestler known as El Generico will be going forward without his popular character in WWE as he competed sans mask at tonight’s NXT event. In his debut match last month for the organization, he sported the mask and attire. The renowned grappler competed under his real name, Rami Sebai.
Here’s a picture of Rami Sebai competing at Thursday night’s NXT show:
– TNA Wrestling revealed this week to VIP ticket holders that a Knockouts-exclusive pay-per-view event will be taped on Sunday, March 17 at 1:00 p.m. at the Impact Wrestling Zone in Orlando, Florida. In addition to current stars, organization officials will apparently be utilizing former female talent as Angelina Love revealed on Twitter Thursday that she was contacted to appear at the “One Night Only” series event. She, however, has declined to appear.
The five-time TNA Women’s Knockout Champion was asked if she will be on hand for the show and responded, “They asked me but I politely declined.”
In addition to the event, TNA will tape TNA 10 Reunion that day, which is billed as a “celebration of the stars from the first 10 years of TNA.”
– ODB, who has not appeared on Impact Wrestling in recent weeks, revealed on Twitter that she will be on hand for tonight’s show.
She wrote, “buisness men r such dicks,I get it u wear a suit n tie,anyways headin to Orlando 4sum @IMPACTWRESTLING 2 stand by my man @ShowtimeEY #BAM.”
The following is courtesy of WrestlingEpicenter.com: Check out our latest show with an exclusive interview with TNA Gut Check’s Lei’D Tapa! This young lady, the niece of legendary WWF/WCW performer The Barbarian of the Powers of Pain and Faces of Fear, opens up about her athletic background, her love of our business, and her aspirations for the future. If ou enjoyed her on Impact, you’ll love this interview.
Plus, Chris Yandek returns to pay tribute to his fallen friend, WWE Legend Paul Bearer.
All of this is available for free at WrestlingEpicenter.com. You can download the MP3 or watch the youtube video 100% free of charge. We do ask, though, that you check out our store and help us going so we can continue to do this for you all free of charge!
LEI’D TAPA:
– Lei’D Tapa joins Patrick and James after Chris Yandek is off the line. Yandek had joined us to dedicate the show to the memory of Paul Bearer.
– Lei’D Tapa says getting the chance to be on Impact Wrestling’s TNA Gut Check was like a dream come true. She says when she started only 2 years ago, everyone said it would take several years to get a chance at being on TV. She knows her chance came sooner than expected and does not take it for granted.
– Getting a chance to be on Impact Wrestling made her desire that much stronger to make it all the way to the top. “All I have on my mind right now is going all the way to the top!”
– She feels her unique look does both help and hinder her. She feels that people looking at what she can do in the ring and liking her as a “beast” is a plus but of course the modern age of wrestling calls for a different type of female performer than in years gone by.
– James compares her to Awesome Kong AKA Kharma. Tapa says that is an honor but it isn’t her goal to borrow from her. But, they certainly do share the power game. But, she feesls Kong’s style is much more dominating.
– Tapa’s athletic background is extensive. She played all major sports when growing up but says she specialized in track and football. In fact, she played for the Independent Women’s Football League as a member of the Carolina Queens. She played Middle Linebacker and Tight End. She streeses this is real tackle football, not the Lingerie Bowl.
– For the first time ever, a woman tried out for the NFL at the NFL Combine last week. The NFL described her efforts as a publicity stunt. Tapa says she believes a woman could play in the NFL but that woman would have to be built for it. She thinks it is a great thing for the sport to have a woman try to break into the ranks and would have liked to have seen what she could have done had she not gotten injured when attempting her first place kick.
– Back to wrestling, Barbarian had a good long talk with her, his niece, prior to her entering wrestling. When he knew she was serious, he sent her down to train with Geore South. He told her “Don’t give up!”
– She feels wrestling is a much harder thing for the wrestlers to learn than anyone who hasn’t trained realizes. She says there is so much more to it than just learning how to perform simple moves. She stresses that learning the ropes as she has done has given her an incredible amount of respect for every wrestler who trained this way because it is not easy.
– Backstage at TNA, it was extremely cool for her. As the niece of the Barbarian, she was backstage at the WWF/E and WCW at some of his matches and as a little kid, looked up at guys like Sting like they were giants. Now, she had a chance to work on the same show they were on and says she’s nearly as tall as they are. She says nobody remembered her but she always just kept to herself as a kid and saw them at the food area. James remarks that it is incredible that guys that Barbarian worked with, like Hulk Hogan, Chavo Guerrero, Sting, and so on and so forth, are there for her to work along side with.
– She teared up during the video package because the night prior to her match on TNA, she worked out with the Barbarian. He had a heart to heart with her and says that conversation just touched her and when doing the interview for TNA, she remembered the things he said and it made her well up.
– Team Tapa, her fans, have been incredibly supportive in her time learning the ropes and in helping her with the TNA Gut Check. She is so grateful for everyone helping her – Her husband, wrestler and fan alike, and welcomes everyone to find her on Twitter and Facebook. Just give a search for Lei’D Tapa. She is not hard to find!
– Sean Waltman announced on Twitter this morning that he’s been signed to a WWE Legends contract:
https://twitter.com/therealxpac/status/309703762656759808
– Eric Pankowski is no longer the Senior Vice President of Creative at WWE, according to a tweet by former WWE creative team member Court Bauer. Pankowski was hired by WWE last February 2012 and was a former executive at Warner Bros.
Pankowski worked with Stephanie McMahon managing WWE’s creative writing teams as well as developing WWE programming for kids, which led to the creation of Saturday Morning Slam.
As reported earlier today, WWE is hiring a new VP of Creative Writing.
Buff Bagwell appeared on 4th & Pain where he cleared up rumors that Eric Bischoff spoke with him about returning to TNA Wrestling. The multi-time WCW Tag Team Champion says the conversation never took place, but he did speak with Sting about returning to the promotion.
Bagwell also weighs in on whether TNA’s decision to take Impact on the road will help grow the brand or prove to be the undoing of the company.
Most sensationally, Bagwell also reveals he essentially forfeited a $120,000 payday to join WWE immediately after Vince McMahon purchased World Championship Wrestling.
Bagwell also talks in depth about the seizure and car accident that nearly took his life.
Here’s Part 3 of our WrestleMania Retrospective series, looking back at past WrestleMania events as we march towards WrestleMania 29 on April 7th.
WrestleMania III (1987)
Tagline: Bigger! Better! Badder!
Date: March 29, 1987
Venue: Pontiac Silverdome, Pontiac, Michigan
Attendance: 93,173
America The Beautiful: Aretha Franklin
Hall Of Famers: Bob Orton, DON Muraco, Mr. Fuji, Bobby Heenan, “King” Harley Race, The Fabulous Moolah, The Junkyard Dog, Greg “The Hammer”, Roddy Piper, Jimmy Hart, Bret Hart, Tito Santana, Koko B. Ware, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, The Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, Hulk Hogan, André the Giant, Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, Mean Gene Okerland, Howard Finkel
WrestleMania III held the the record for 23 years as being the largest recorded attendance for a live indoor sporting event in North America with 93,173 in attendance. The record was broken February 14, 2010 when the 2010 NBA All-Star Game with an attendance of 108,713 at Cowboys Stadium.
The WWF generated $1.6 million in ticket sales ($3.1 Million in 2012 dollars) Nearly one million fans watched the event at 160 closed circuit locations in North America. With
several million, watching on pay-per-view. Pay-Per-View revenues were estimated at $10 million. (Almost $20 million in 2012 Dollars)
The main feud from WrestleMania IIi stemmed from André the Giant’s turn and betrayal of his ally, the WWF Champion Hulk Hogan, which began when Hogan was presented a trophy for being the WWF Champion for three years. André, his friend at the time, came out to congratulate him.
Shortly afterwards, André was presented a slightly smaller trophy for being “undefeated in the WWF for 15 years” and Hogan came out to congratulate André, but
ended up being the focal point of the interview. Annoyed by this, André walked out during Hogan’s congratulation speech and not long after that, on an edition of the interview segment Piper’s Pit, Bobby Heenan, a long-time Hogan adversary, announced himself to be André’s new manager. André then challenged Hogan to a title match at WrestleMania III and attacked Hogan, ripping off Hogan’s T-shirt and crucifix necklace.
While Andre vs Hogan will go down as one of the most iconic matches in WrestleMania history, if not the most. One legendary match, that is widely revered to be one of the best WrestleMania matches of all time, saw the late Randy “Macho Man” Savage vs Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, for the Intercontinental Championship.
Rock singer and Detroit native Alice Cooper was in Jake “The Snake” Roberts’ corner during his match with The Honky Tonk Man, at WrestleMania III. The Honky Tonk Man
had attacked Roberts with a guitar on Roberts’ interview segment The Snake Pit, which legitimately injured Roberts’ neck.This event began Roberts’ turn into a babyface as well as the feud between the wrestlers, which culminated in their WrestleMania match.
Twenty years later, the WWE returned to Detroit for WrestleMania 23, showing footage from WrestleMania III, having Aretha Franklin sing “America the Beautiful,” and having Kane scoop slam The Great Khali.
WrestleMania III Results
• The Can-Am Connection (Rick Martel and Tom Zenk) defeated Bob Orton and The Magnificent Muraco (with Mr. Fuji)
• Billy Jack Haynes and Hercules (with Bobby Heenan) fought to a double countout
• Hillbilly Jim, The Haiti Kid and Little Beaver defeated King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo and Lord Littlebrook by disqualification
• “King” Harley Race (with Bobby Heenan and The Fabulous Moolah) defeated The Junkyard Dog in a Loser Must Bow match
• The Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) (with Johnny Valiant and Dino Bravo) defeated The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques and Raymond)
• Roddy Piper defeated Adrian Adonis (with Jimmy Hart) in a Hair vs. Hair
• The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) and Danny Davis (with Jimmy Hart) defeated The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and The Dynamite Kid) and Tito Santana
• Butch Reed (with Slick) defeated Koko B. Ware
• Ricky Steamboat (with George Steele) defeated Randy Savage (c) (with Miss Elizabeth) for the WWF Intercontinental Championship
• The Honky Tonk Man (with Jimmy Hart) defeated Jake Roberts (with Alice Cooper)
• The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff (with Slick) defeated The Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and Jim Brunzell) by disqualification
• Hulk Hogan (c) defeated André the Giant (with Bobby Heenan) to Retain The WWF Championship
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2H_RbnnX-II
TNA sent the taping schedule for the One Night Only pay-per-views to the VIP ticket holders. Here’s the schedule, courtesy of Devin Cutting:
Sunday, March 17
1:00pm – TNA Knockout Knockdown: TNA Crowns the true “Queen” of TNA
7:00pm – TNA 10 Reunion: Celebration of the stars from the first 10 years of TNA all competing in the squared circle
Monday, March 18
1:00pm – TNA Tag Team Tournament: TNA determines the greatest TNA Tag Team in TNA history
7:00pm – TNA World Cup of Wrestling: Teams of wrestlers from around the globe compete in Heavyweight, X Division, Tag Team Division and Knockout Division matches
Tuesday, March 19
1:00pm – TNA Hardcore Justice 2: Hardcore rules for the stars of Hardcore wrestling
7:00pm – TNA Heavyweight Title Tournament: The top World Champions in TNA history battle to determine the greatest of all time
– More matches for Sunday’s TNA Lockdown pay-per-view will be announced on tonight’s Impact Wrestling.
– TNA will also announce more upcoming Impact TV event locations tonight.
– With the Lethal Lockdown teams set, there will be a Best-Of-Three Series on Impact between Team TNA and Aces and 8s. Whoever wins determines who has man advantage going into Lethal Lockdown this Sunday.
– TNA has announced that a limited number of premium seats for Sunday’s Lockdown PPV at San Antonio’s Alamodome have been released. The newly available tickets, primarily floor seats previously held for television production purposes, can be purchased through the arena’s website www.alamodome.com or through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com.
– Former WWE Superstar Hakushi has been added to the Alumni section of WWE.com.
– WWE Superstar the Big Show will make a guest appearance on the USA Network original series “Psych” next Wednesday, March 13. Details about his character are not available yet, but the episode description reads, “Shawn (James Roday) and Gus (Dulé Hill) join a pair of college students in the woods who are filming a documentary on Bigfoot.”
– WWE Superstar Triple H and 2013 Hall of Fame inductee Bruno Sammartino sat down with Larry Richert of CBS Radio in Pittsburgh to discuss Bruno entering the WWE Hall of Fame this year:
WWE is hiring a new VP of Creative Writing. The description reads:
“The VP Creative Writing will be responsible for the creative content strategy and direction for all weekly TV programming. He/She will manage the Head Writer, Show Runners, and the writing team, provide long-term direction in the development of story lines and WWE superstar characters, and be the primary liaison with other partner departments especially including Talent, TV and Digital.”
Responsibilities include:
* Develop and implement creative storylines for broadcast on all WWE programs and platforms in coordination with the writing team and senior creative management (CEO, EVP,SVP)
* Work with Talent Department to develop powerful character back-stories
* Manage the Head Writer, the home-based writers, and the road writing team by providing feedback, training and supervision.
* Use consumer insights and social media to deliver impactful storylines that are consistent with the WWE brand and each talent’s skills and history.
* Identify new writing talent and ensure that current writers’ work is aligned with the network’s brand and programming strategy.
* Supervise Head Writer in creating a comprehensive training program for new writers and remedial training for existing writers.
* Work with senior management to continually improve the process supporting WWE’s creative writing system.
* Provide mature leadership to the writing team, relating to the implementation of the vision of senior management (CEO, EVP, SVP
* Drive professional interaction with other departments of the WWE (Talent Development, TV Production, Marketing, Digital, Sales and HR)
To apply, visit WWECorp Careers.
Here is TNA’s official preview for tonight’s episode of Lockdown
– It’s the countdown to the Lockdown event! Tonight’s IMPACT is the final battleground before the war in the cage on Sunday – what will happen on Thursday that could potentially alter Lockdown? Tune in and find out!
– Who did Kurt Angle see after he infiltrated the Aces and Eights clubhouse and unmasked the gang’s VP? The Aces attacked Angle before he could show the world – but will Angle reveal his identity on Thursday? What is Angle’s condition after the brawl? Don’t miss it!
– With the Lethal Lockdown teams set, there will be a Best-Of-Three Series between Team TNA and Aces and 8s on Thursday’s IMPACT! Whoever wins determines who has man advantage going into Lethal Lockdown!
– What will be the fate of the Gut Check contestants? This past week, female newcomers Lei’d Tapa and Ivelisse Velez battled for a chance be the next TNA Knockout! Who will the judges pick to join the roster?
All this and much mow on Thursday’s IMPACT WRESTLING on SpikeTV at 8/7c!
– It was reported in January that WWE’s creative team had plans for Randy Orton to turn heel following numerous requests on the part of The Viper. F4WOnline.com reports Wednesday that plans for Orton to become a villain again are still in place and it is expected to take place soon after WrestleMania.
– WWE officials announced Wednesday that Damien Sandow will replace Alberto Del Rio and Ricardo Rodriguez at the Friday, March 15 NXT live event in Immokalee, Florida.
**Sandow to Replace Del Rio at NXT Live Event**
Immokalee, Fl – March 6, 2013
WWE NXT officials have announced that due to scheduling difficulties, Alberto Del Rio and Ricardo Rodriguez will be unable to attend the NXT Live Event in Immokalee, FL. However, officials are proud to announce that WWE Superstar Damian Sandow will now be making a special guest appearance to meet and greet with fans in attendance prior to the show. The session highlights what will be a historical night as NXT travels to Immokalee for the first time.
Nicknamed “The Intellectual Savior of the Masses,” Sandow burst onto the scene in the WWE last year and hasn’t looked back since. Vowing to raise the moral value in the organization, Sandow has stood face-to-face with WWE greats like John Cena, The Rock and D-Generation X. Damien Sandow has quickly become one of the most recognizable faces on WWE’s Flagship programs, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown
The appearance of Damien Sandow is in conjunction with the WWE NXT Live Tour, which takes place at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Immokalee, FL. Bell time is 7:30pm while doors open at 6:30pm. Eight action packed matches are slated for the card that will feature over twenty NXT Superstars and Divas. NXT is the official developmental system for the future stars of WWE.
Tickets range from $10 to $35 and will be available at Buddy’s Home Furnishings (1097 W Main St) in Immokalee, FL Tickets and additional information on the shows are available at NXTWrestling.com. NXT Live is sponsored by Buddy’s Home Furnishings and Brand Source Printing.
QUICK GLANCE
WHAT: NXT Live with WWE Superstar Damien Sandow
WHEN: Friday March 15, 2013
Seminole Casino – Immokalee
506 South First Street
Immokalee, FL 34143
TIME: Autographs 6pm VIP, 6:30pm All others Bell Time is 7:30pm
INFORMATION
For more information please login www.fcwwrestling.com
– After news broke Tuesday evening that Bill Moody, famously known as Paul Bearer, had passed away, there was a push among some WWE circles to posthumously induct the legendary manager into the WWE Hall of Fame this year.
Bearer addressed the topic to Chris Yandek of www.cyinterview.com in an interview in January, stating, “I know that I will [be in the WWE Hall of Fame]. So that’s all I need to know. Whether it’s next year or whether it’s five years from now, I know the time’s coming. … I’ve been very, very blessed in professional wrestling because I’m just a Alabama kid, from the Alabama Gulf Coast that grew up watching local territory days wrestling. … I have been all around the world. I performed in all 50 states, 28 countries and I got a paycheck every week.”
– The USA Network announced via press release Wednesday that Big Show will guest star on the next episode of Psych, which premieres Wednesday at 10:00 p.m.
– With conservative commentator Glenn Beck refusing to associate with WWE after publicly speaking out again Tea Party-inspired villains Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter, the sports-entertainment organization has nixed plans to draw attention to him.
(source: F4WOnline.com)
– It was announced on tonight’s episode of WWE Main Event on ION television that Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman will be on hand for Monday’s Raw in Indianapolis, Indiana, to respond to Triple H’s challenge for a match at WrestleMania 29.
“Apparently, Lesnar and Heyman are looking forward to addressing The Game’s challenge live on Raw,” the official WWE website teases. “What will unfold during Lesnar’s first appearance on Raw since being attacked and injured by The Game on the Feb. 25 edition?”
– Promoting WWE Studios’ much-anticipated DVD and Blu-ray release of The Marine 3: Homefront, The Miz spoke to movie news outlet I AM ROGUE in the following video interview.
– Former WWE wrestler Marc Mero is currently on a speaking tour in Georgia advocating youths on the dangers of drugs, suicide, bullying and peer pressure. He will be speaking Thursday at the J.J. Daniell Middle School in Marietta at 9:30 a.m., noon and 1:45 p.m., Friday at the Simpson Middle School in Marietta at 1:30 p.m. and 2:50 p.m., and Sunday at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. at Piedmont Church in Marietta for a free community outreach event.
Jake “The Snake” Roberts appeared as a guest on the latest edition of Busted Open Radio, hosted by Doug Mortman and Dave LaGreca (Busted Open Radio airs every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Sirius 94 and XM 208), where he addressed such topics as the WWE Hall of Fame, dealings with The Undertaker and Vince McMahon, TNA Wrestling, and more. Highlights from the interview are as follows:
On appearing at WrestleReunion this weekend: “Well, you can expect everything. You can expect the unexpected from me. It’s just a great moment for the fans ‘cause you’ll be able to get up close and personal with the guy, and , to me, that’s the best part about it…to give back a little bit what they’ve given me over the years; give them a moment.”
On not being inducted yet into the WWE Hall of Fame: “There’s been a lot of guys go in that belong there, and—I’ll say it again—I think there are some who shouldn’t be in there, but who the hell am I? Hell, I’m not in there, so what the hell. Maybe someday when they put some more guys in there, maybe I’ll go in. I would love to go in, not so much for me but for my kids, man. It’s part of my legacy. I put so much into wrestling; 37 years of it. Why I’m not there, I’m sure somebody’s got a reason.”
On getting to meet Alice Cooper: “It was a real hoot, man! I remember going to do a photo shoot at some hotel in New York City with Alice Cooper getting ready for Wrestlemania. I remember going up to his room with all the camera guys and stuff. We knocked on the door and this guy lets us in. And of course it’s not just a room; it’s a damn big suite. Alice comes in and what he does is like—I don’t know if you ever seen the commercial where the two people are running up the hill towards each other in slow motion?—coming closer. All of a sudden he’s being the fan, and here I am It’s my turn to be the fan, asshole! He’s saying, “Come here, man! Come in!” I’m like, “No wait, man! I listened to you when I was in high school! ‘School’s Out for Summer’, that was hot when I was 17.” To be there with him was just unbelievable, and of course doing a match out there with him was unbelievable too. They took us up on our scissor-lifts way up in the air where it came to the curtain. From ninety-four thousand people… it took your breath away. You felt like your hair was growing, man! And as we’re getting closer to the ring, I feel his fingernails sliding down my damn side and arm and I’m What the hell is that?! And I look, and Cooper is sliding down. I’m like, “What’s wrong?” And he’s like, “Too much rush.” And I’m like, “What the eff are you talkin’ about?!” And he’s like, “I’m alone!” And if you think about it, I understand where he’s coming from. In his world, he’d come out on the stage, he’d have his band around him, had all his stuff ready to go, and he knew where he was going. But in my world, he was having to stand there on his own two feet with no guitar, no microphone, and he was running the show. We get to the ring and the match starts, and of course The Honky Tonk Man—being the prick that he is—he’s really screwin’ with Alice. He’s like: “You little f****t b**ch! I’m gonna make you my horny woman!” And Cooper is starting to fire up, and Honky Tonk (once he sees him getting mad) he just keeps going: “C’mon you little queer! Why they call you Alice, you little b**ch?!” And he just keeps riding Alice, y’know: “Take that jacket off, boy, I’ll whoop your ass too, soon as I get through with Jake!” And Cooper pulls that jacket off, man, and it’s like, Oh my god! Biafra! His arms are about the size of my toe!”
On the WWE: “It was different. I certainly see where this is going, which is bringing us into the mainstream, and that’s a positive thing. Y’know, Vince McMahon and the WWF did a hell of a deal turning this into such a monster. His machine is unbeatable. I mean, don’t kid yourself TNA, you’ll always be third stream; there is no second stream. You’ll be third at least because there is no way in hell you’re gonna catch these people, and you might as well forget about it and quit telling the people you are.”
On gimmicks in professional wrestling: “As far as characters…you have a good one and you take care of it, it should last forever. The big thing is you just shouldn’t go out there and destroy your own credibility. If you got two guys out in the ring and you’re clothes-lining each other five times, who’s the tough guy? Maybe one or both of you are lying pricks. Less is more and do the right thing. Don’t do things that are stupid; that’s how you get longevity out of a character. And today there are no characters, I don’t think. They’ve all been just stirred up in a bucket and everybody’s just the same.”
On The Undertaker and his presence in the WWE: “I love the guy, number one. Number two, I was there when he first got in there in the WWE. Here’s really quite a story: He comes to me, he says, “Hey I hear you know where all the good strip joints are at.” And I’m like, “In the world, yes. I know them all.” And he’s like, “Well, I’ll travel with you!” And I said, “Oh boy, why don’t you go back to playin’ basketball because you’re not gonna be able to hang with me,” and I said, “I’ll kill ya.” And a few weeks later, I believe he was in pretty bad shape—something about alcohol poisoning. Yeah, it was a chemical world, and I was cheating, man. He didn’t know it. I wasn’t gonna tell him! He rolled with me for quite a while. We’re great friends and I’d like to think that I helped him more. I think if you asked him he’d tell you the same, that he learned a lot from me. That’s what I was all about anyway, man, not only helping my own character, but helping others with theirs. My idea of being a professional wrestler is to make the show better. In other words, everybody must be better. And if I can help this guy lift his thing up a little bit, I’m gonna go help the guy. That’s something I’m proud of. Whether it be Undertaker or Steve Austin, right on down the line. I think if you asked Austin who helped him the most, he’d tell you it was me. Wherever I met Austin, he wasn’t gonna be more than third or fourth match, and I told McMahon, “Try him for third for next superstar, man.” And he said, “I don’t think so.” Well, gee, even Mr. McMahon can be wrong every now and then!”
On if people are scared to take a chance on him: “I don’t think it’s the past. I think it’s just me, period, because of what I believe in. Vince McMahon once told, “Jake, perception of you with our TV people and stuff is that you’re angry.” I’m like, “I’m not angry!” “You told this guy it was a ‘stupid effin’ idea’!” I’m like, “Well, it was a stupid effin’ idea!” So I stand my ground on what I believe. And—uh—sometimes that gets you in trouble. I wouldn’t be good in a boardroom, man. I speak my piece; I won’t follow any stupid thing that I think is stupid. I’ll just say Screw that; that’s bulls***. That’s gets me in trouble, man. I’m a team player because I want the product better, but… my nose doesn’t fit well up anybody’s butt.”
On if inmates are running TNA: “Oh yeah! I think I told Vince McMahon that one time. Back whenever it was [Scott] Hall, [Kevin] Nash/Diesel (The Kliq) stay in this, you’re letting the Inmates run the asylum. They were calling the shots as they wanted to! And that’s wrong. That is just totally wrong. I would have never thought about doing that out of respect for what this business it and what it is supposed to be. That is just freakin’ wrong! You got people in the wrong positions, you got people that shouldn’t be in those positions. And Dixie Carter—for whatever she is—I think she’s a mark! And for whatever Hogan is, Hogan’s not a booker! Christ. I mean, thank god they got rid of the jerk, the one that destroyed the WCW. What was his name? DL: [Vince] Russo. JtS: RUSSO! He’ll probably go in the goddamn Hall of Fame before I do.”
On Training Wrestlers: “I would love that! I would love to kill them! I would love to touch them all over. Enter their orifices with my thumb when they do something wrong. It’s stupid! I would love to be teaching these kids. My god, I would love that. Because I could either sit back on my ass and try to watch wrestling (which I get so frustrated with today that I turn it off), or I could say, Okay, look, man, get up there and try to do something about it. And the only thing I could do about it now is by teaching. My physical problems: my feet, my hands, my neck, no wonder! If you have that happen, well, thirty-seven years of getting your ass kicked will do that to you, Jake! I can’t compete anymore, but I can teach these kids so much. That would be a real joy for me. It certainly would.”
– WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has posted an article in remembrance of memorable wrestling manager William “Paul Bearer” Moody, who passed away Tuesday at the age of 58-years-old after being diagnosed with a blood clot over the weekend.
“As great as Taker’s run has been in WWE, arguably the most marvelous, long term run in WWE history, it would have not been the same without Paul Bearer being added to the presentation in the Phenom’s formative years,” wrote Ross, who he personally referred to as Percy. “They went together like BBQ sauce on a great rack of ribs and created a presentation that including the perfect music, with perfect lighting and special effects to go along with the amazing package of the Dead Man and his scary, unmistakable figure of a manager.”
He continues, “Percy was so proud of his sons and loved his family deeply. His southern roots ran deep as he never moved, for long any way, from Alabama. During the football season we would exchange messages or talk about his Crimson Tide and my Sooners hoping that they would meet for the national title in our life time. If I got a ‘Roll Tide’ message on my phone or on Twitter I did not have to think twice about who sent it.”
– Former WWE wrestler Gene Snitsky has been cast in the film adaptation of Bill Bean’s book Dark Force. He will play “the central supernatural entity in the film,” with the character billed as “The Undertaker.” Additional information on the film is available here.
– The Miz appeared on The Opie & Anthony Show on Sirius 206/XM 105 today promoting the release of The Marine 3: Homefront on DVD and Blu-ray. The show replays at 8:00 p.m.
– Promoting the release of The Marine 3: Homefront on DVD and Blu-ray, The Miz appeared on Fox & Friends this morning. During the interview, the Raw Superstar said he wanted to be the one to face Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson at WWE’s upcoming pay-per-view spectacular.
“He’s the WWE Champion, he’s going to be main eventing WrestleMania 29… I wanna be in John Cena’s spot, let’s put it that way,” remarked The Miz.
To view video of the interview, click here.
– The official WWE website has posted a video playlist of Hall of Famer “Mean” Gene Okerlund’s strangest interviews over his legendary broadcasting career, which includes interactions with Papa Shango, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair.
– Following the passing of legendary manager Paul Bearer Tuesday evening, ‘Paul Bearer dies’ has ranked among the top trending topics on Yahoo.com today.
TMZ.com reports that just three days before William Moody (Paul Bearer) passed away, he was having trouble breathing, was hospitalized and diagnosed with a blood clot.
“Cowboy” Bob Kelly, president of the Cauliflower Alley Club, says he saw Paul Bearer over the weekend and the legendary WWE manager was in bad health with a severe breathing problem. He was reportedly telling people people he was going to seek treatment for what he called “respiratory issues,” which turned out to be complications from the blood clot.
The following video has surfaced of Paul Bearer at the 2013 Legends Award at The 23rd Annual Gulf Coast Wrestlers Reunion in Mobile, Alabama over the weekend. Despite the fact that he’s in a wheel chair and does show signs of breathing difficulties, his sense of humor is still spot on and he still knows how to work a crowd:
In what might well have been Paul Bearer’s last interview, the legendary pro wrestling manager was sure of his legacy in sports entertainment. Speaking to Chris Yandek of CYInterview.com at the end of January, the legend knew that one day he would end up in the the WWE Hall of Fame. He also summed up his career experiences:
“I know that I will [be in the WWE Hall of Fame]. So that’s all I need to know. Whether it’s next year or whether it’s five years from now, I know the time’s coming. … I’ve been very, very blessed in professional wrestling because I’m just a Alabama kid, from the Alabama Gulf Coast that grew up watching local territory days wrestling. … I have been all around the world. I performed in all 50 states, 28 countries and I got a paycheck every week.”
You can listen to the entire interview at the link where Paul Bearer spoke about many career topics including stories of The Undertaker, Kane, Mankind, the state of the pro wrestling, what he had been up to and many other things by clicking here (.MP3) or listening below:
– The Undertaker is being advertised for Monday’s WWE RAW from the CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh, PA.
– WWE.com has an article up looking at the Undertaker’s upcoming match against CM Punk at WrestleMania 29, including quotes from several of his most memorable opponents. Here are some highlights of what the following Superstars said:
Kane: “The unique thing about The Undertaker, and probably the thing that is most underrated, is that he has the ability to adapt that a lot of people don’t have. The fact that he can change is why he’s been so successful and has been able to endure so long.”
Big Show: “When you see your name on a card next to The Undertaker and know you’re competing against him, your stress level automatically rises. It pushes you to a level that you don’t push yourself to with other talent. I’ll say it on record, I don’t care what anyone says. I think he’s the best ever in the ring, period.”
Mick Foley: “Everyone seems to get it. It’s the perfect guy doing the perfect thing with the perfect music and he makes the situations he’s in perfect as well … The guy is timeless. He is The Undertaker.”
Ric Flair on Wrestling Taker At WM18: “It was awesome. I never saw that opportunity coming because I had just come back in 2001. I didn’t plan on wrestling ever again and then I find myself WrestleMania with The Undertaker. It was a phenomenal experience … I think The Streak is great. No one deserves that position more than him and just the fact that I was able to be there at that point in time was fabulous for me.
– WWE returns to the Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas on May 12th, 2013 at 3 PM. Tickets go on sale March 16th. (Thanks to Devin Cutting.)
– WWE’s new state-of-the-art developmental facility in Orlando area is expected to open some time this summer. The company spent millions of dollars on the building.
– Here’s the latest episode of WWE Inbox:
Sheamus, Kaitlyn and plenty of other Superstars & Divas debate their favorite video games, as well as who would win in a fight…Zack Ryder or Justin Bieber. See if you agree with their picks in “WWE Inbox.”
* Plans For THE SHIELD At Ryback, Big Angle Scheduled For RAW & More
(Partial Source: PWInsider.com)
Recently the Shining Wizards spoke with former ECW Superstar, WWE Champion and Current TNA Star Rob Van Dam . Here are some highlights:
Training with the Original Sheik: He was there almost always, in fact he didn’t like us to train without his presence. Which we did once in a while, especially more once we reached a certain level, where we understood the basic fundamentals, and at a certain point his nephew Sabu could teach us and it was only like 3 or 4 of us. It was a real personal, family like atmosphere, some other guys would come and go, but they never stuck around, our training was so stiff. We just got taught how to manhandle each other, squeeze each other and try and pin each other. That was the way we got trained, it was a really stiff style. That’s how we broke in. The Sheik was always besides the ring when he was there, once in a while he would get in the ring to really try and drive a point home. Usually the ring was outside, depending on the location, but i remember a lot of times it was in his backyard, and we would be working out in the ring and he would be in a chair soaking up some sun with some suntan oil all over him.
Having Second Thoughts on being a wrestler: I am sure there were, I don’t remember them happening during training. There were a few points early in my career when I thought, jeez what am I doing? I should be in college preparing for something else. I don’t have what it takes to make it. That certainly happened. I remember one time early on, in my career, it was 91, I had my 21st Birthday at a wrestling show in Jamaica. And we wrestled at Coney Island amusement park in Kingston and we had like 3 shows there over 3 nights. It was an awesome deal and a great experience, for me to travel somewhere like that, just everything about being there. The island, the feel, the reggae music. I had second thoughts then, I wrestled this dude named Mark Starr , and I did something, cause I was green at the time. I don’t know what it was, he just took it to me, and ended up PowerBombing me 3 times and pinning me. This was my first match after doing interviews for newspapers, and everything. I was pretty upset about it, and I had to check my gut later on that night, and fight down some thoughts of possible resentment, or regret. I had a scholarship to college. What the hell am I doing here? I don’t fit in with these guys. I hate these guys. During training, training was stiff, your sides hurt from hitting the ropes when you start and you have bruises on them. Let alone hitting the mat, I always went home with headaches. At that point I don’t remember ever doubting my choice. Not until I got into the actual business world of it.
On other wrestlers taking liberties on him when he first started: Oh sure, that’s just part of the coming up. That’s part of what you do. You’re at a disadvantage, because you’re just trying to do the right thing. It’s not like it’s an all out fight in the street where you just wanna like take the guys eye ball out and leave him laying there with a punch to the throat or something. You’re trying to be respectful to him and the business. And you’re trying to gauge the whole ratio between entertainment and the physicality that’s going on. So when you’re young and green like that it defiantly happens. It’s not like an all out challenge, its about using tools against you that you don’t even know, they can use yourself against you at that point. Nothing comes to mind at the moment, but it happens. I remember one time in Japan, when I first started wrestling in Japan. I was young and green. I wore this happy coat like it was a karate gi. It was actually what Japanese wear when they get out of the bathtub, so they must have thought I was an idiot. I tied a black belt around it, and I had electric tape that I put around my ankles for some reason. For whatever reason, I thought I was getting support out of that. So they would kick the shit out of me. Kawada would make it a point of not reacting to when I was kicking him, and then he would kick the shit out of me and at first I really took offense to it, then it really fired me up. Made me want to give back, then I realized, that’s what he wanted, that’s what the match needed. Out of respect to him, you had to lay it in to him, or he can’t react to it. He was at that level. That really helped me step up my game. It was years later, that I was stepping my game up too much for most Americans.
Using his Martial Arts Kicks in Wrestling: When I was training with Sabu, one time in the backyard. It was just Sabu and I, no Sheik. We were talking about a move. Which I still use today, in fact a form of that, is when I kicked Abyss and knocked his teeth out about a year ago. Sabu said you’re a martial artist, you should be able to control anything. I said it would be cool to jump off the second rope and do a flying spinning back kick, but I don’t really know how to do that without killing you. He said try, and I was like if I do it Bam, I can’t imagine it not knocking your head off. Sabu said, just try, and if you knock my head off, then try and pull back next time. I said, that sounds crazy, and he said just do it. So I bounced off the ropes and I kicked him so hard, he had to eat through a straw for 2 weeks. I felt really bad, but sure enough, he was back and wanted to try that kick again.
Training With Sabu: I think that our like minded opinion of what was entertaining and what was exciting to see that helped us really get along at that stage. I was acrobatic, mostly from showing off on a diving board or trampoline. And at that point I was kickboxing, so I was able to show Sabu how to do some backflips and stuff. He had a crazy way of doing it, it looked wild. It worked for him, and he was teaching me, arm bars, arm drags, stuff i needed to add to my repertoire. And we both really liked the same wrestlers, when we watched TV. We were drawn towards the same style. We both enjoyed someone who was considered a high risk flyer. It made an impression on people.
WCW: December of 92 to May of 93. Bill Watts hired me, through Ron Slanker. He was a promoter at the time, the same promoter who had given me the name Rob Van Dam. The first promoter to look at me, when I was 20, not old enough to drink, he saw me in USWA. Ron Slanker was there to visit his son in law, Tex Slazenger. He told me, not only that he was going to be running shows in Tampa, at the Sportatorium, and that he wanted my info and he would like me to come down there. He also told me, I would be World Champion someday. He said I might be wrong about you kid, but I wasn’t wrong about Curt Henning, I wasn’t wrong about Savage, he named a couple of guys. He said I have got this feeling about you. He was the first person to put that confidence in me that made me feel like, ya know I don’t know if I am better then a bunch of the other guys in the dressing room or not , but I am going to go for it like I am and see what I can get out of it. So Ole Anderson took over from Bill Watts in WCW, February of 93 when I did my first tour with All Japan. WCW wrestlers wrestled for New Japan which was the competition. I had this previous booking in All Japan in 92, so when I went to work for Bill Watts he said, go ahead do the booking. When I came back he was gone, and Ole had taken over. And I didn’t have that interest from him that I had from Bill Watts, he was putting me down, I was either getting beat on a regular basis or I was having dark matches giving guys tryouts. And I was young and green, but I still had enough self worth and business sense to decide to leave against the veterans wishes. They said I was crazy to leave, I was on TV and I have only been working a couple of years. I went and worked Independents, and made a lot more money doing that. And I also wouldn’t advise some of you young green kids to go the route that I did. I have no regrets, I walked away from every single company that I worked for until this point, with the exception of the USWA. I left WCW, I left WWE twice, I left All Japan, I left ECW, and fact is, I never regretted it.
Not being booked for the 1st ECW PPV: I am sure there was a reason. I don’t know why I wasn’t booked on the 1st ECW PPV. It wasn’t my job to make the matches. That was Paul Heyman’s. I am sure when he put the card together, he had a reason for not putting me on it, and I took offense to it. So I entertained the first offer that Eric Bischoff put on the table to go to WCW.
How ECW Countered the WCW Offer: He knew that things were looking like I may be going to WCW. The fans believed it, the internet reports believed it. Paul had a great idea, he said, what if we could use this momentum and capitalize on it and put the entire spotlight of the industry on you. I said what are you talking about. He said, what if everyone is expecting you to go to WCW, and we announce that you are going to Monday Nights where you belong, and we pull a switch. What if I can get you on WWF TV. And I was like, what the hell are you talking about. He is telling us, how Vince and him hate each other, how WWF wants us to die, cause we are in there backyard. I had no idea, they had a working relationship the whole time we were running, till I watched that DVD documentary, that was my first proof. He denied it all along the way. I said yeah, that sounds awesome, I am an opportunist and I could go to WCW, which by the way, the idea was to put me under a mask and make me the Mortal Kombat character, Glacier. I wasn’t wanting to do that, and I ended up not doing that. That wasn’t the entertaining part of the offer to me, it wasn’t the gimmick, we were talking numbers and stuff. Went to WWF TV while still working for ECW, which to the best of my knowledge hadn’t been done. I am all about jumping fences and breaking records and finding ways to put my mark on history, and I thought this was a great way to do it. On WWF TV I was a heel, and when I went back to ECW I was a heel because they thought I worked for WWF.
Wrestling Jerry Lynn: Every time that we wrestled we clicked right away. Since the first time we wrestled each other. Because of that, he has been one of my favorite guys to work with, and has produced my favorite match. If you had never seen an RVD match, I would show you an RVD/Jerry Lynn match to impress them. Including the last match that I had with him, a few weeks ago ,awesome match, everything was just great, everything a wrestling match should be. A kind of match, that not only the fans, but the boys in the back know that they wouldn’t survive one of those matches, everything so physical and everything was just there. I would put that match up against any of the matches we have had. Big loss to the business with Jerry Lynn tapping out.
His thoughts on weather Vince wanted the ECW Brand to be successful in WWE: No, No. I think that his ego was more important to prove that WWE was superior to ECW, then it was to try and do business. I think the king wants to be the king, and wants any competition to be visibly destroyed and devalued so everyone knows the king is the king.
His feelings on how the WWE was using RVD: I thought that the caliber of wrestlers that I was working with was great. I was in there with Main Event guys, the top stars of the industry, most respected wrestlers in the world. To be in there with them, and to be able to do some of my stuff, of course sometimes I felt held back. At Different times I was able to still show off, like when I had the hardcore title. Which is what I am out there to do, impress the people with my style, my way of doing things. My unique perspective of a fighting style that I can show with this world of entertainment. I was cool with it, but I was frustrated with the politics. But I didn’t have higher goals then where I was at, I didn’t have it in my mind, screw all these guys, I should be the one with the belt, I should be the one making the most money. I never had that in me. In fact, I never thought, and still don’t think I would have ever been World Champion had I not, personally changed the entire playing field in order to make that a possibility. By bringing back ECW, and spawning a 3rd brand and needing me to represent it. None of that would have happened without me, and my passion and desire for that, so otherwise I really didn’t think I would be wrestling main event single matches against the Undertaker and Steve Austin. I was cool with that, and I was starting to see how much more money they were getting then I was getting, and then I didn’t feel like we were on equal terms like we were in the fans eyes.
Injuring Triple H during the 1st Elimination Chamber: That was the only night that Vince McMahon ever called me, to tell me Hunter was ok. He knew I was concerned for a lot of reasons. I was visibly upset about it. I knew that it was a real big deal, and I never want to hurt anyone anyway. This was something, that was an accident. I wasn’t comfortable jumping off of there, it wasn’t my idea to do it. Just being off like that, BAM. Yeah and its Hunter, it wasn’t good, and they wanted me to know they understood. Vince was super cool about it.
Rumors of having heat about busting people open: When I came in, no one knew how to take the Van Daminator. I split open Booker T, Raven, Steve Austin, Test, everybody. The internet was going crazy with it. I had a match with Kurt Angle, and he got busted open, between the chin and the lip, I hit him with a leg drop on the table, and boom he was busted open. And when I was walking back, I passed Vince, and I said, Oh Vince, sorry about your boy, and Vince said, well next time he will learn to turn his head.
On Concussions: It’s a very physical job. I am part of the Brain and Spine donation program through Chris Nowinski. I am part of that program, I am one of those people that have received hundreds and hundreds of concussions. Even now its like once every couple of months. I hit the back of my head, Bam, my equilibrium is off, or the sound is off and everything is in slow motion. You don’t even know when you’re watching, you think you’re in the know, but you don’t know. For me, I feel like I still have it together. I feel like I am in the minority. My friends and I talk about this, some of them are MMA Fighters, Football Players, a lot of these guys have had a lot of concussions, and some of them tell me, they know they have long term damage due to concussions. It surprises me how many of my friends have that and live with that. Weather its headaches, or dizziness, or fogginess or they lose their train of thought. They tell me they relate it to concussions, and me, who has had so many concussions, I thank my lucky stars that I am able to still feel like all the damage is temporary so far.
Bloodletting in Wrestling: I’ve never been a fan of blading. Its funny, cause the Sheik was the master of blading. The Original Sheik he bladed everybody, he cut everybody up. I have never been a fan of that, that’s not what I like about the business. However when I am busted open hardway, I’m proud. Because, one I think its good for the business, and two, I am out there to show how tough I am, and that’s why for over 20 years, I have been wrestling the same style, taking those DDT’s on my head, and those crazy bumps. I have been taking all that for so many years, I feel like its my position professionally to show how much punishment I can take, cause that’s one of my strengths.
WWE Departure: I was pretty much burnt out. It was nonstop travel. Going town to town to town to town, and the meaning behind it faded for me. I needed time away. So I took it. They had burnt me out, way past the point of being burnt out. It was something I knew I may never recover from. The thought about going back to that full time schedule hurts my chest thinking about it.
Arrival in TNA: I was excited to be there. I liked the business end of it. I wouldn’t have gone unless we worked out a deal that was cool for me. Which meant more balance in my life then I had with WWE. It was a big deal that I was there. As I was ready to make my debut the fans were chanting RVD while they were waiting to enter the building. I was glad to be back I was ready to get some exposure. I was wrestling a lot over seas, and the fans in the states hadn’t seen me. I knew getting back on TV would be good for me.
TNA Leaving the Impact Zone and if its a plus for TNA: I think that remains to be seen. Its a optimistic, hopefully adventure. The bigger crowds look much better on TV. Hopefully TNA hitting all these towns with bigger promotion then they do with the house shows, the live events, hopefully that will help the brand recognition get out there more. Its a lot more expensive to run shows on the road, then it is in the studio. Its more work for us, a lot more travel, we had routine. I love my flight from LAX to Orlando. I love the routine. Now, we gotta go places, where its cold and snow. Flight connections to the smaller cities, few hundred mile drives. There are a lot of different ways to look at it. Being a traveler, I am looking at it like that. Hopefully it will get the brand recognition out, it will look better on TV. So we shall see.
About finishing his career in TNA: Not necessarily. I really don’t look that far ahead. I go with the flow. I don’t know, when I will be completely finished and where I will be when I make that decision
For more with RVD and who he really enjoyed working with, what wrestling is missing these days, DDP Yoga, Stand Up Comdey and his other projects . Listen at www.Shiningwizards.com Episode 81- The Whole F’N Show-Rob Van Dam. Also available for Download on Itunes and Stitcher Radio. The Shining Wizards Wrestling Podcast will be appearing at PWS April 4th doing a live broadcast as well as hosting John Morrison. Also the Shining Wizards will be Venders at WrestleCon on April 5 with guests Nigel McGuinness, Mike Mondo and Justin Credible. For more information go to www.Shiningwizards.com or follow them on twitter @wizardspodcast
WWE wrestler Titus O’Neil spoke with Adam Silverstein of OnlyGators.com about his transition from college football to WWE, Batista mentoring him and more. Here are some highlights of what he said about:
Getting Into Wrestling: “I never really thought about it as an option. One of my really good friends [Dave Batista], who was one of the top guys at the time and is still a big guy in the history of the business, had been talking to me about it for a while. He said once I got done playing Arena Football I should give it a try. I said that I was not really into it. I watched it a lot as a fan growing up but always said that stuff is fake and not something I would do. He stopped me right away and said, first of all, it’s not fake though it is predetermined. He then did a few moves on me and I found out pretty early on that it’s very real.”
How He Got Signed With WWE: “It was one of those chance things where I was driving one day, I live in Tampa, and there is a WWE developmental facility for Florida Championship Wrestling there. I drove out one day, walked in the back door and said, ‘Hey, I want to be a wrestler.’ The next day, they brought me in for a tryout. They saw something in me right out of the gate. The process of actually getting signed with WWE is actually a very long process, but I got hired within two weeks, which was unheard of. At that point then, I was kind of very glad that I actually went on faith, walked in and basically ended up walking out with a contract after they signed me two weeks later.”
Here’s Part 2 of our WrestleMania Retrospective series, looking back at past WrestleMania events as we march towards WrestleMania 29 on April 7th.
WrestleMania II (1986)
Date: April 7, 1986
Venues: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Rosemont Horizon, Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
Attendance: 40,085 (Combined)
America The Beautiful: Ray Charles ( in Uniondale, NY)
Hall Of Famers: Paul Orndorff, Don Muraco, George “The Animal” Steel “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, The Fabulous Moolah, Nikolai Volkoff Andre the Giant, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, Tony Atlas, Bret Hart, The Iron Sheik, Pedro Morales, *Bruno Sammartino, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, Hulk Hogan
With the success of WrestleMania the year prior, Vince McMahon was looking to make things, bigger and better. Instead of holding WrestleMania II at one venue, the second installment of what was to become an annual tradition was held in 3 separate venues, with each venue hosting it’s own main event. Giant screens broadcasted the action of the other arenas. This marked the very first WresteMania to be shown on Pay-Per-View. Customers had to go and pick up converter boxes to watch the unscrambled channel.
The main feud heading into WrestleMania 2 was between Hulk Hogan and King Kong Bundy, with the two battling over the WWF Championship. On March 1, when Hogan was about to pin Don Muraco in a match, King Kong Bundy ran into the ring and—with Muraco’s help—initiated a 2-on-1 assault on Hogan, repeatedly crushing him with his body weight (with a move called the “Avalanche”) to break his ribs. Hogan had a “very serious ” injury, while Bundy challenged Hogan for the title. With revenge on his mind, Hogan decided not to heed his doctor’s advice and accepted the challenge; a match was then booked between the two in a steel cage for the WWF title
Mr. T took on Roddy Piper in a boxing match. Piper who was the top heel in the WWF in 1984, joined Paul Orndorff and Cowboy Bob Orton to feud with Hulk Hogan and Mr. T in the main event of the first-ever WrestleMania. Piper & Mr. T reignited their fued in 1986 after their real-life hatred for each other became public. The WWF, never shy to back away from turning real life issues into story line exploited the angle. Piper disliked Mr. T because he was an actor and unskilled wrestling ability. In response, Mr. T became a special WWF boxer and began competing in boxing matches. On the March 1 Saturday Night’s Main Event, Mr. T defeated Cowboy Bob Orton in a boxing match. After the match, Piper distracted Mr. T, allowing Orton to attack from behind and start a 2-on-1 assault. Mr. T then demanded revenge, leading to his boxing match against Piper.
Often when you see highlights of WrestleMania II you’ll see footage of the 20-man Battle Royal that took place in Chicago, IL. The battle royal, won by Andre The Giant, consisted of both WWF wrestlers and NFL stars of the 80’s. William “The Refigurater” Perry was inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall Of Fame for his involvement in this match.
WrestleMania II Results
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale NY
Commentator: Vince McMahon
• Paul Orndorff and Don Muraco fought to a double countout
• WWE Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage pinned George Steel
• Jake Roberts pinned George Wells
• Mr. T defeated Roddy Piper in a boxing match via DQ in Round #3
Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon & Gene Okerlund
• The Fabulous Moolah defeated Velvet McIntyre via pin to retain the WWF Women’s title
• Corporal Kirschner defeated Nikolai Volkoff in a flag match
• Andre the Giant won a 20-man Battle Royal of wrestlers and NFL stars: Jimbo Covert, Bill Fralic, Russ Francis, Ernie Holmes, Harvey Martin, William Perry, Ted Arcidi, Tony Atlas, Bret Hart, Jim Neidhart, B. Brian Blair, Jim Brunzell, Hillbilly Jim, The Iron Sheik, King Tonga, Pedro Morales, Bruno Sammartino, Danny Spivey and Big John Studd lastly eliminating Bret Hart
• The British Bulldogs defeated The Dream Team to become the NEW WWF Tag Team Champions
L.A Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Jesse Ventura & Lord Alfred Hayes
• Ricky Steamboat defeated Hercules Hernandez
• Adrian Adonis defeated Uncle Elmer
• Steel Cage Match: Hulk Hogan defeated King Kong Bundy when Hogan escaped the cage.
– WWE has announced that Brock Lesnar will be on Monday’s WWE RAW from Indianapolis, Indiana to respond to Triple H’s WrestleMania challenge. Triple H will also be at the show.
– With both Brock Lesnar and CM Punk involved in two of the top matches at WrestleMania 29, Paul Heyman is expected to pull “double duty” that night and be in the corners of both men .
– After meeting with Dr. James Andrews this week to determine whether he needs knee surgery to repair a possible torn ACL, Rey Mysterio tweeted the following update on his condition:
Have to wear a DYNASPLINT brace to prevent getting surgery! NO SURGERY 4 now! pic.twitter.com/oADBkcdiqR
— ?Rey Mysterio? (@reymysterio) March 6, 2013
