Hello, welcome to Ask 411 Wrestling. I am your host Mathew Sforcina.

Yes, I’m feeling better, thank you. My illness was not life-threatening, but I was in the Emergency room for a few hours to monitor me. It was fine, but I wasn’t really in the right frame of mind to do a column. I was up and about by the Friday, ready to enter the Aussie Rumble in which the winner clearly cheated but it’s all good.

And since this is being posted on the 4th of July, which I understand is a special day for the US, it’s a special AMERICA! themed week, as opposed to all those weeks where I focus on Lucha and Joshi action.

Hmm, America and medical issues. Shame I can’t link them together better.

…

This is why I don’t write for 411Politics.

Regardless, big props to Ryan “He Doesn’t Actually Have A Nickname You Aussie Idiot” Byers for filling in for me on shortish notice. He’s always had my back, and I appreciate his efforts. Go read all his usual stuff, it is high quality, and not just when discussing me.

Just Another God Damned Wrasslin’ Show won’t be on this week due to the whole “July 4th dealy” so instead, go here and vote for me. And like it and all. And also like 411mania’s podcasts and the Wrestling PodClash.

And speaking of listening, this is extremely awesome. Well, to my ears anyway.

And this is awesome to my eyes.

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Backtalking

I don’t want to discuss Ryan’s stuff because he’s kewl, but I do have something from my last edition, in that just after I posted, I found the answer. So, let’s try this again.

Scott has been trawling the 411 archives.

I love your column, it’s the only wrestling column that I read these days. Great work!

On to my question. I used to read 411mania a LOT back in the early 2000’s. I remember there being a writer that would use a formula to determine a wrestler’s workrate. For instance, he would take a HHH match and count the number of moves that he did (i don’t think he counted basic punches and kicks, but he did count rest holds and such), then based on how long the match was, he would determine how many moves per minute HHH used. This would be his workrate. I think he mostly used this to show how “lazy” guys like HHH was, and would do the same thing to Benoit and Angle matches just for comparison.

I’m sketchy on the details though. Those articles were really interesting to me and I was hoping you could figure out who I’m talking about, and help me track down some of those articles. Thanks!

Actually yes, I do know who that is. Or rather, Sean Kelly does, and he was kind enough to point me in the right direction.

The “Count HHH’s moves” game was played by Peter Kent, a.k.a The Violent Panda. You can see some of his work and counting skills here and here.

Thank you Sean. I will now plug you to say thanks.

Go read Sean Kelly. He’s good people.

Oh, and apfelkrautsalami also had it in the comments section. Well done him too.

And on we go.

Your Turn, Smart Guy…

Who am I? I’m a current member of the TNA roster, who was around during the weekly PPV era. My tryout match that got me into the WWE was against an ECW alumni. I’ve had 8 title reigns in the major leagues, with one being less than 24 hours long. I once beat Jeff Jarrett in one of the more odd gimmick matches used on a semi-regular basis. Bobby Lashley once knocked me out of a tournament. I once got to kiss a very popular WWE diva on air. I ended my WWE run on Smackdown, due to a trade. Who am I?

Some Jerk had it.

Who am I? I’m a current member of the TNA roster, who was around during the weekly PPV era. – As Alexis Laree, was a member of the Gathering.

My tryout match that got me into the WWE was against an ECW alumni. – vs. Dawn Marie.

I’ve had 8 title reigns in the major leagues, with one being less than 24 hours long. – 5 times WWE Womens Champ, 1 time WWE Divas Champ, 2 time Knockouts Champ.

I once beat Jeff Jarrett in one of the more odd gimmick matches used on a semi-regular basis. – in a Clockwork Orange House of Fun match.

Bobby Lashley once knocked me out of a tournament. – for the OVW TV title.

I once got to kiss a very popular WWE diva on air. – Trish Stratus.

I ended my WWE run on Smackdown, due to a trade. – traded in October 2009.

Who am I? You are Mickie James.

Who am I? I once wrestled FOR AMERICA in a tag match. I’ve held a UNITED STATES title. I was born in AMERICA. I once worked for the AMERICAN Wrestling Association. I’ve wrestled in JAPAN (wait…) as well. I once teamed with Animal of the Road Warriors to try and defeat a team for World Tag Team gold, although the team I was facing was AMERICAN! A former NWA UNITED STATES Tag Team Champion (once with my long time partner, another time with a guy who was helping me feud with my former stablemates), I Am Who?

AMERICA!

Questions, Questions, Who’s Got The Questions?

Please play this on loop as we go through the questions this week.

Thank you.

…

That’s enough of that.

Stromi starts us off with the Great American Bash!

Hi again Mathew,

Quick question for you,

Can you shed some light on the Dusty Rhodes/Ron Garvin/Barry Windham situation from Great American Bash 1988? Was there ever a blowoff between Dusty and Garvin before Ron left NWA? And why book that angle if Ron was leaving? I seem to recall a few weeks later the announcers stating that “Dusty got him in the parking lot” and that was it. There was even an old PWI cover story with a picture of Garvin with a fistful of money laughing with Gary Hart and JJ Dillon.

Any info is great. Thanks

Short term, the point was to make it so that Rhodes didn’t win the title but look like he should have, to establish that Rhodes was a super guy and Windham wasn’t. Garvin was paid $50,000 to do the deed, as insurance to make sure Rhodes didn’t win the title, paid for by the Horsemen via Gary Hart. He had a few squash match victories that ended quickly with punches, and was targeted in promos by both Rhodes and the Road Warriors, who had helped him earlier in the night, AND Gary Hart was quick to remind everyone that Garvin was a former World Champion.

But the angle was curtailed when Ron left the company, and popped up in WWF soon after? Why? Well, Garvin did speak on this in a shoot interview which is recapped below…

What’s the deal with Dusty? Ronnie beat all of the Four Horsemen, won the title, then never even got a rematch after he lost the belt. He started thinking about moving on after that. He sat back and started watching things after that, at which point Dusty came up to him and pitched him the idea of turning heel on him at Great American Bash 1988. He figured that it wasn’t going to work because he was over big as a face in Baltimore, bigger than Dusty. He went to the ring and knocked Dusty out, at which point half the crowd booed and half the crowd cheered. He knew that Dusty was going to beat him, Al Perez, and Gary Hart at the same time in the upcoming angle, so he left the company right after that as a bit of a screw you to Dusty. After he left, Dusty went on TV and explained that the reason he’d left was that Dusty had beaten him up in a bar fight, which Ronnie laughs at because he felt that Dusty could come up with a better excuse than that.

So Garvin didn’t really want to do it, knew he was going to get buried and left before that point. That may or may not have happened, but that was what he thought was going to happen so he jumped ship prior.

Keith asks about American Made, Hulk Hogan V Ric Flair.

Hi Mathew,

Love the column as always and you are the bomb. This may be an old question, but I can’t remember the answer. Does Ric Flair hold any pinfall victories over Hulk Hogan? I think there were some count-outs and maybe some DQ’s and Hogan has only submitted to I think just Angle, but what about Pinfalls?

Thanks,

January 29th, 1996. It was due to Miss Elizabeth’s shoe, but Flair did pin Hogan.

That was pretty much the only time, beyond the Uncensored 99 cage match that saw Flair pin Hogan in a first blood match that set off the double turn.

Yes, Flair pinned Hogan in a first blood match. No, it still doesn’t make any sense.

Victor asks about Madusa. Totally USA there.

Hi Ryan or Matt,

In light of last week’s questions concerning Madusa/Alundra Blayze, I had a question about her infamous Nitro debut. I read that she was released from her WWF contract due to financial restraints, freeing her up to sign with WCW. If that’s the case, then why was she still in possession of the WWF Women’s Title when she debuted on Nitro? Wouldn’t Vince have taken it back as a condition for letting her go? Or was it an oversight on his part? I know that, back then, wrestlers generally held on to their belts (oops, championships) and were responsible for making sure they brought them to the shows. Was it case where Vince just wasn’t able to physically regain the belt before Madusa debuted?

Thanks,

You know, that’s an aspect that isn’t talked about too much, how she kept the belt. I was unable to find any explanation, but it seems fairly straight forward. The WWF was in the middle of a dry spell financially, and clearly the idea was floated to drop the women’s division lock stock. Or at least severely reduce it. And with that came the abolishment of the division. Since Alundra was the face of the division, and the leader, and the champ, when they negotiated the leaving, they let her keep the belt as a mark of respect, apparently. Or at the very least, no-one bothered to get it back.

But yeah, that question is never asked. Huh.

*goes to twitter*

Joshua asks about Kurt Angle. Yep, True American.

So I was watching Rock vs. Triple H vs. Kurt Angle from Summer Slam 2000. Early in the match Angle takes a nasty bump and has to leave the match. Thinking back I remember the websites saying that he suffered a concussion, but anyway he leaves the match which just leaves Rock and Triple H. Did this match end the way it was suppose to? Angle did come back later in the match, but I suppose he was meant to be in the entire match right? What do you think would have happened if Angle was not able to come back at all? Would they have to improvising a finish?

That match was a case of the planned angle almost going legit. See, the idea was for Angle to come out, incite the crowd, HHH comes out and they brawl.

At about the 8:30 mark in that video, you see the Pedigree. Or at least, the attempt at one. The table gives away a little too early, when Hunter goes to push for the leap, and they go down and Angle ends up slamming his head into the concrete floor, knocking him loopy.

Now, that said, the angle was actually something like anyway. Angle was going to be laid out by the Pedigree, and then stayed laid out for a bit, until he’d make a return to the ring during a dramatic moment, he was meant to be ringside and pretend to be laid out.

That’s why they did the angle with Steph in the back, to explain why he returned frpm the back, and then Angle got led through the match by Steph, Hunter and Rock every step of the way, as the dude was out on his feet.

So, ironically, the angle intended actually happened, just for real rather than an angle.

If Angle was totally unable to continue, if he’d been knocked totally out, then Rock and Hunter would have just worked a match. By this point the two had been working together for a while and had a chemistry down, they could easily string together a match no problem. Rock goes over clean regardless, so they’d just call it in the ring. I know that at that point, they could do that. But they deserve credit for helping to lead Kurt through as he was totally out on his feet.

Shawn has an image with red white and blue, so it counts.

Hello Mathew,

Enjoy reading your column every week, especially when you are kind enough to answer my questions. I saw this GIF today and I was wondering who the guy that went through the ropes was and if he got seriously injured as that looked like a pretty bad botch. Sorry that I can’t provide a video or date, hope you are able to find the answers without it.

Thanks,

Hmm. Well it’s certainly the 1 2 3 Kid. That looks like Ricky Morton being the guy going through the ropes.

*fires up www.profightdb.com*

Nope, not him.

*fires up www.google.com*

Ah, here we go. The gentleman in question, the one falling through the ropes, is one Chris Hamrick, who worked in WWF as a jobber for a bit but is best known for his work in ECW from mid 2000 to the end as part of Hot Commodity as “Confederate Currency” Chris Hamrick, as well as some appearances in TNA under a hood as Crimson Dragon.

But the dude is 100% fine. That ‘botch’ isn’t one. It’s in fact his signature bump, like the Flair Flop, or the Sgt Slaughter turnbuckle bump, or Mr. Perfect’s slingshot selling, or Dolph Ziggler’s everything. That is his signature bump, and he was A-OK afterwards. Apparently he did/does it quite a bit.

Kevin asks about a US title reign. Counts!

After Ric Flair got injured in September 1996, The Giant was seen for

a couple of months carrying around and “defending” the US

Championship. Was there a reason he did that, and why wasnt there

plans for him to win it legitimately?

The logic was that the nWo were not nice people who didn’t respect the belt or tradition or anything like that.

And also to get the belt back on the air ASAP. This was a week after the Flair match against Kensuke Sasaki in which Flair got injured, so this was the first instinct at the time, to have the nWo steal the belt. Then after they got bored with the angle felt the angle had run its course, they had Flair officially vacate it and hold the tournament to crown a new champ.

Hillraiser asks a question about Eddie Guerrero… Who once wrestled in USA tights, so it counts!

I’m sure it’s been brought up dozens of times on the site before and I’ve checked out forum topics on other wrestling sites, but I’ve never gotten a clear answer on this: If Eddie hadn’t died back in late 2005, would his rumored title victory have been revealed as some sort of convoluted “friendship” plot schemed against Batista, or did the higher-ups realize we actually liked Eddie and his cheating antics too much to really boo him?

Well considering that the title win wasn’t going to happen, the question is impossible to answer.

Eddie was not, repeat, NOT about to win the WWE title when he died. The plan was always to put it on Orton in that three way match, and continue building to the Eddie heel turn at Survivor Series where he screwed Team Smackdown out of the win, leading to eventually Eddie/Taker at WM.

The idea that Eddie was going to win the title is people wilfully misreading statements or just wishing really hard. Eddie’s reign put a huge pressure on him, and he felt that he couldn’t handle it, and asked to drop it, and pushed for JBL to win it. The idea that he was about to win it again is wrong. He was working towards it, he did want the title again, but only when he felt ready, when he felt he could handle the pressure. Not before.

And certainly not on the day he died.

Andrew wants to talk about Mick Foley’s title wins. And he’s a good New York boy so…yeah.

Greetings Mathew,

Your column and answers continue to entertain and educate, I thank you for your knowledge and insight, and for answering my past questions.

I have a question regarding Mick Foley’s time as WWF/E Champion. It seems apparent to me that Foley’s three title victories were not achieved purely of Foley’s own accord.

First win: Steve Austin waffles The Rock with a chair before Mankind (Foley) pins Rock

Second win: Mankind uses a forklift to hold down The Rock for a “pin”

Third win: Triple H gives Steve Austin a Pedigree before Mankind hits the Double-underhook DDT and pins Austin

Is it feasible to think that the WWF never had full faith in Foley’s ability to achieve the Title of his own volition and skill (or rather, his character’s)? To an extent I can understand them not seeing Foley’s DDT or the Mandible Claw as effective or pop-worthy enough finishers, and I can certainly understand their wanting to keep Austin involved in the main event somehow amidst Foley’s first win, seeing as Austin-mania was still running wild. But was a clean title win for Foley never seen as logical, even if the Mankind character was at least partially hardcore-gimmicked? Or were the circumstances of the three match finishes just seen as the best-written for the given angles?

Your thoughts?

Thanks much,

To understand the logic in these changes, you have to break them up into two halves, because the logic of the first two is tied together, while the third is separate.

With the first two, the triple threat match is a fairly well established bit of folklore. The original plan was that WMXV would be Foley V Rock V Austin. You look at that match, and you have to ask, who’s the champ? Logically, if you went in with Rock as champ, why dilute the babyface side? Yes, this is Russo booking, but it’s also Russo with Vince over his shoulder.

I don’t have proof of this, mind you, but before Shawn Michaels gets involved, it seems logical to me that the match would have Austin and Rock challenging Foley for the belt. Have evil and good on either side, with poor Mankind stuck in the middle with the title… That has possibilities.

But for that to work, Foley has to be a tweener. He has to be a face when put up against Rock, but also be justified in going after Austin, or at least be seen as being ‘wrong’ to do so. And if you look at the booking up until the Raw after St Valentine’s Day Massacre, it does point to a Mankind who is… lucky. Austin helps him win the title. He gets screwed out of the title, then only regains it via forklift (with magic camera) and then just manages to keep it at the next PPV via draw.

I can totally see a Austin/Mankind V Rock/Kane main event for Raw where Austin makes a passing comment about Mankind just ‘holding Austin’s title’ or some such. And Mankind is then justified to leave him be, but still understandably lovable when compared to Rock. He’s not evil, he just wants to stay champ.

Now, you may suspect that I’m reading far too much into Russo booking, but it’s 4th of July, and America is noted for it’s free speech, so I’m utilising it.

As for his third win, that was just match booking. If Austin had to lose (his neck was getting worse) and he wasn’t going to lose to Hunter unless it was one on one (so it meant something) and they didn’t want to make Hunter look bad (since he was going to be the main champ in a minute) and a face has to win (so Jesse can stay face by rasing a good guy’s hand) then you’re left with one outcome, Foley over Austin. The methodology was just how they chose to book it, I wouldn’t read too much into it.

A little, but not a lot.

These may become a recurring feature. And this is many many Batistas. And finally this is still moving.

Banz is up next with a bunch of questions that crosses barriers.

Hey Matt, always loved the column since it started, good to see a fellow Aussie representing us proudly 🙂 I was hoping you could clear up a few questions I had, and an opinion:

1. I watched WCW as a kid and being Australian, I never really understood American politics. But in what I think was 1998, I distinctly remember Hulk Hogan returning to WCW not in a wrestling sense, but to promote the fact he was running for President or something? It was treated as a huge deal and the crowd ate it up. Then he disappeared again for a stretch. Then he came black, reunited nWo Black and White, and promptly started sowing discord before leaving again (like telling Vincent he could be the new leader, then Scott Norton etc.). I don’t remember seeing him actually wrestle during this period either, unless my memory is screwed. Anyway, did Hogan actually run for a political position or anything like that? What was the point of it? Also, why did he keep making sporadic backstage appearances attempting to destroy his own stable, and make limited wrestling appearances during this time?

This angle had several different causes. The most obvious was the fact that at the time it occurred, Jesse Ventura was governor of Minnesota, nearing the end of his tenure. So it was in some ways a parody of him. But it was mainly due to Hogan wanting time off. By announcing he was ‘running for president’ (a full year prior to the proper campaign) Hogan got some publicity and then time off, just in time for the ratings to dip for unrelated reasons, then he would return later on and take credit for the upswing.

At least, that’s the cynical, ‘Hogan is a political bastard’ viewpoint. A more neutral viewpoint is that he had time off, given that he had a certain number of dates and so he couldn’t be used for too many or else they’d run out.

As for the ‘breaking up of the nWo’ stuff, this sort of thing, that was twofold. It was to establish that Hogan was a manipulator and not at all a nice person, and it was also a way to break up the nWo B&W, or at least have them end up feuding with each other on the undercard while the R&W was the main focus of the show. A way to get more nWo on the show. Because that was what people wanted, right?

2. Did Rick Steiner EVER actually properly destroy Buff Bagwell during their fued? I must’ve watched them fight on PPV 4 times and every time, Bagwell did something utterly awful to get the upper hand on Rick. I guess what I’m getting at is that I never remember Rick get a single win on him. Also, was his heel singles run aborted because he wasn’t over, or because he injured himself?

…

Rick and Bagwell never wrestled one on one at a PPV. He pinned Bagwell on a Thunder in 1999 to blow off the “You broke my neck” angle which was horribly handled (seriously, Bagwell’s neck injury should have made him a massive face when he came back…), but the two never had a PPV match.

I think you may mean Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner, as Scott did have a run in 98 where Steiner kept ducking and avoiding matches. But Rick did get a pin on him at Halloween Havoc 98, despite Buff Bagwell turning on him in the tag match that led to the single’s match, where Rick pinned Scott.

I can only assume that is what you mean. And Steiner’s heel singles run that saw Scott Hall get his TV title at the end was cut short due to injury, not overness, as he hurt his neck taking a powerbomb from Sid Vicious through the stage. Although, that was at the start of Russo so who knows…

3. WCW had a lot of luchadors, a lot of wrestlers in general actually. Did they all have little contracts ’cause they had that much money to throw around back then, or were they paid quite well per appearance?

They didn’t have that much money to throw around, but they did it anyway. WCW had a lot of guys under contract, not only all the luchadores, but also guys like Lanny Poffo and Kevin Wacholz, who were never actually used. All the lucha guys were under contract and rarely used, and for a long time WCW even allowed them to work down in Mexico as well if it didn’t conflict with their own bookings, although that was phased out eventually.

But yeah, they had far too many guys under contract. When they were making millions it didn’t matter, but when they were losing money it was a major factor.

4. Maybe a stupid question, but in 1996, why was Raven never stopped by security when he went to ‘fight’ wrestlers in NO DQ matches if, according to the company, he didn’t have a WCW contract? I always found that one to be a bit bizarre unless I’m missing part of the story?

You’re sort of not but are missing a bit of the story. See, after his debut…

James J Dillion, and Stevie Richards, both tried to get Raven to sign to WCW.

And then his first in-ring match was when he was ‘unsigned’.

But then he did sign, but on his terms.

Basically before he signed, he was wrestling as a free agent, and then when he did sign, he had the Raven’s Rules stipulation attached, which meant there was no DQ. He had no matches apart from the Stevie one until October 97, after which it was all Raven’s Rules.

5. I remember they repackaged a guy called Wrath as a singles guy (who I think then made KroniK), and he was completely dominant ala Goldberg. Then his streak was broken by Kevin Nash on a whim, who completely no-sold his offence and he never really recovered. Who did Wrath piss off for that to happen? Or was Nash a complete jerk?

He didn’t so much piss anyone off as be in the wrong place at the wrong time. WCW gave him an undefeated streak right at the time Goldberg was the champ heading into Starrcade. So in the lead up to the Nash/Goldberg match, Nash fought Wrath…

… and beat him to show that Nash could beat undefeated powerhouses, and that Goldberg was in danger of losing.

It actually wasn’t THAT big a squash, it is just that he wasn’t pushed afterwards, they moved on afterwards. It served the purpose to show that Nash could stop unstoppable guys, and thus you had to buy Starrcade because Goldberg might lose!

My Damn Opinion

6. I never got into the WCW main events for a couple of reasons. First off, it was because they really sucked and were slow or boring, but the second larger part was because I didn’t understand the story behind a lot of them. For instance, a lot of video packages were done to highlight exactly how much Hogan hated Savage, but it seemed to heavily reference things that happened long in the past (which NOW make lots of sense), or things that happened in real life in a shoot sense. When older stars like Jeff Jarrett, Ric Flair, Roddy Piper, Bret Hart and Sid Vicious started talking about past matches with wrestlers in ‘other companies’ and ‘encounters outside the ring’ I was completely disengaged because I couldn’t relate. Anyway my question is, do you think WWE is almost shoehorning its audience by blurring the lines of work/shoot to appeal to smarts? Are kids, and especially casual fans, completely lost on the whole ‘shoot’ aspect of wrestling and are more inclined to tune in, or tune out? Because I can honestly say if it wasn’t for the cruiserweights and TV title, I would have stopped watching wrestling long ago…

Cheers mate!

There is a fine line to walk with shoot aspects. Certainly Russo is too far into it, in that with Russo he expects you to remember everything that ever happened, unless he wants to ignore it, in which case he acts like it never happened. Even if the fact he wants you to remember is from the 70’s, and what he wants forgotten happened last week, you have to do it.

That said, there is no hard and fast rule, no official guideline to what kids do and don’t know. I have the ‘6 year old rule’, in that it doesn’t matter what the angle is, no matter how complex or shooty, as long as a 6 year old can understand the basics of it, you’re fine. It’s ok for a kid not to know who Colt Cabana is, it’s just some guy CM Punk is bringing up on live TV because he doesn’t care. But it’s not ok to ask Sid Vicious where his scissors are since that isn’t well known. (Although it could be worse, Bischoff could have asked where his squeegee was).

But it is normally fine to toss in a reference or a line, to talk in passing about how long you’ve been at each other’s throats. You can’t make it the main focus, though. Vince McMahon actually brought this up, as relayed in Foley’s first book, with the Vader/Mankind thing. Mick wanted to do an angle based on the fact Vader ripped off his ear, so Vince said let’s establish a reason here in WWF, then bring that in as bonus stuff. That’s how you work a shoot angle.

Unless you’re in ECW or possibly ROH. Then all bets are off.

Nick asks about a TRUE American!

This first one might be more of an opinion question, but I’ll ask it nonetheless. Do you feel like JBL will ever make another appearance at the announcers table? I could care less if he wrestles again, but I actually enjoyed him on commentary while he was doing it.

Thanks!

I really really hope so. I think that JBL was, and most people would agree, one of the best commentators of the modern era. Certainly him and Cole was a team that was actually quite good, back before Cole tried to play a character.

Hell, I’d love to hear Scott Stamford (who I think is genuinely good at the job of play by play guy) and him as a team, that would probably be excellent. Maybe Striker as the Mike Tenay role, and that way all the Internet has someone to love and hate at the same time.

That said, I am not confident it’s in the cards. I know he’d be open to the job, he’s kept the door open, I’m sure if Vince or Hunter called with a big enough pay check he’d do it, but the fact is, the dude gets to live in the Bahamas for half the year, play golf, run a hedge fun, host a TV show ever so often, and climb mountains. Dude is living very well for himself. Does he love the sport? Of course. But to come back anjd get yelled at by Vince every week… It would need to be a decent wage. Or WWE would need to be in real trouble.

So as much as I’d love it to happen, it probably won’t. But please JBL, prove me wrong. Bring your unique blend of heel storytelling and actual knowledge back to the announce table, please.

And we finish with Bo asking about replacing WWE’s developmental system, Nationwide. Which nation?

PERU!

No, actually, sorry, America.

First off, enjoy the column, and look forward to reading it for many more moons. It seems the talent level in WWE is not much different than it has been in the past, however the HHH-Undertaker match showed everyone that there is no substitute for experience. I blame the complete downfall of the territory system for the vanilla matches we’re getting now, and vanilla wrestlers as well. What do you think of the WWE instituting a territory type system of their own, but without the control they have over FCW? Let me explain, since we know on the surface Vinnie Mac would never go for that idea if pitched in the form I just laid out, especially without the control aspect.

First off, you don’t set it up as a WWE run territory. You sell a maximum of five to six franchises, with certain guidelines laid out by WWE for what they can and cannot do. i.e. a wellness policy, no chair shots, following whatever rating WWE is adhering to at the time (PG, PG-13, etc) and you make sure the equipment they would be using would be similar. You from time to firm provide rough guidelines for certain stories or characters you want out of the system, but nothing overly specific. You also make sure those purchasing franchises have acceptable knowledge of the wrestling trade, and you make certain that there is limited geographical overlapping.

So a Jim Cornette could take the ROH style of wrestling and open a franchise in the Southeastern United Stated (I know Cornette hates WWE, but work with me, after all he hates everyone) You could have a harder edge in the northeast with someone with a similar mindset to Paul Heyman, the technical style of the Gagne’s in the midwest, a more flamboyant territory in the west or Pacific Northwest, and maybe some straight up brawling in the Southwest/Texas. Not saying each of the territories would have to shake out this way, just giving some “for-instances” of how you could have different styles for each territory. And you wouldn’t necessarily have to do that, but with different franchise owners it seems inevitable. You allow trading of wrestlers between franchises, and even have certain guys who travel between the new territories on their own getting experience, and honing their craft the way the previous generations have. You then have regional stars build their names and establish a following BEFORE going to the WWE. If the WWE has a particular character they want for someone, you let them morph gradually into that character in the territory, so it makes sense. Then you make a big deal of the WWE calling one of these guys up, so the territory he’s grown up and gained his experience in can get behind him and generate excitement. Maybe do it on a Saturday syndicated show, where Vince McMahon shows up and calls up a star from the roster to the WWE, where that guy makes his debut on the following Monday Night Raw. Logically you’d do this when the WWE was already in that market anyway. It being a franchise, the WWE wouldn’t lose money on it since people would have to come up with the franchise fee, and purchase all their equipment from WWE. Kinda like a McDonald’s of wrestling, but without the emphasis on homogeny. What do you think the pit falls of this type of system would be? And do you think it is something that would be viable? Thanks in advance.

I was discussing the death of the territories with someone recently, and I believe I may have pointed out that Vince in some ways wishes he hadn’t ruined the territories, since it led to the death of talent coming fully formed. In the territorial days, guys would arrive with gimmick, look, talent, ability, the whole package, ready to be put on TV immediately, having been seasoned by the territorial system. Now you have just one feeder company, and a bunch of indy companies that don’t work the same style, and you have to send guys to the feeder system for a while first.

That said, your plan is somewhat similar to the idea that I’ve shorthanded to “WWE Global Domination”, which I know I’ve mentioned several times. But I should probably explain it. WWE Global Domination was the last big idea Shane McMahon had before he left the company, or at least the last big idea he is rumoured to have had before he left.

The basic gist was that the WWE would set up a small, offically branded company in each major market. You’d have a WWE Europe, a WWE Asia, a WWE Mexico/South America, maybe a WWE Canada, as well as WWE America (FCW) and so on. They wouldn’t be called that, but the basic idea would be that these companies would train and look for talent from their region, run shows, and also give WWE places to send people to season, to move them about so that guys and girls got to work in front of different crowds, in different styles, and learn how to work effectively anywhere. WWE would be able to find talent all over the place, be able to send talent it wasn’t using to places they could (got nothing for Zack Ryder to do right now? Send him to WWE Australia for a couple months!) and recreate the territorial system with them at the helm of it.

Would it work on just a US scale? I mean, control with the feeder system is actually not that hard a sell, WWE tends to be somewhat hands off, relatively. Yes, Cornette complained, but Jimmy always complains, that’s why we love him. But I’m not sure it would work just on the Continental US of A, in that USA already has a lot of indy companies, and too much competition is bad.

I mean, OK, if WWE somehow bought ROH, CHIKARA, PWG and CZW in one go, maybe, but right now having them compete with your new WWE approved indies is pushing it. The International version is safer since there’s less overlap.

But hey, I’m fine with either really. Anything that helps bring back some sort of territorial system, from WWE Global Domination through to the improbable rise of the NWA, however it happens, I approve.

But what of you, dear reader? What is your view? Leave it below.

And now, the rest of the questions are about me, as asked by Dan. So if you don’t want to read about me, end the column here. Instead, let’s talk about me, since that is a very self-confident thing to do, and America is renowned for self-confidence.

Matthew, I’ve been a long time reader (great job by the way!) and I couldn’t remember if you’ve ever talked in depth about your career as a wrestler, so since you are a wrestler & this is a column about asking wrestling related questions I figured I’d shine the light on your experiences if you don’t mind sharing. Thanks!

1) How long have you been wrestling?

I started training at the beginning of 2005, and had my first match beginning 2006. So 6 years now. Wow.

2) Who trained you? Thoughts/stories on training to become a wrestler.

I was trained by the AWF, with a few guys pitching in to train me, guys you probably don’t know off hand. TNT, Bill Flyswat (now Bearcat Watson), Dean Draven, Kyle Semenoff, Jay Law, JT Robinson… And everyone I wrestle against really.

Stories… Well, most of them are pretty dull as is. Like the story of the Miracle Elbow. Where during a drill, Rob Barnes tried a spinning elbow strike and I ducked my head and then I woke up on the mat a few seconds later.

See? Not exactly hilarious. My training was somewhat dull, beyond my learning that I was vastly overshooting with my original gimmick ideas. But then everyone does, every wrestler tends to over think their gimmick at first. Hopefully you get some sense knocked into you. Otherwise…

*insert obvious Indy gimmick you hate here*

3) Which wrestlers inspired you to pursue a life as a wrestler?

I guess I’m supposed to say Mick Foley here since I’m a big fatass, and while he is an influence, it was more one match that got me hooked, one match that I saw live (on PPV) and that made me go “Yes. I want to do that.”

Cactus Jack, Triple H, MSG, Royal Rumble 2000, Street Fight.

Beyond that. In various ways, Foley, Hunter, Vader, Raven, Stevie, Kane, Regal, Andre, Heenan, Tully/Arn/Ric/Barry/JJ and yes, Victoria have all inspired me in various ways.

4) Thoughts/stories about your 1st professional match?

Ah yes, the match that never took place since there’s no video.

(Well, actually my first night ever was an Advertising Awards function thing which doesn’t really count.)

See, after a year of training once a week, I was nominally ready to wrestle. But beyond having knee pads, I had nothing. So imagine my surprise when I turned up at the next show and was told I had a match against Super Crimson Mask that night?

I went out there in a grey t-shirt, blue shorts, knee pads and joggers, and I remember doing a sort of Bret Hart/Chris Jericho thing as an entrance… Beyond that, the match itself was OK, nothing went wrong as such. It wasn’t until a few shows later when I had actual gear and officially began.

5) Largest/smallest audience you’ve wrestled in front of?

I worked in front of like a dozen people in my second match, as it was a cold, rainy night at a Dojo show (the equivalent of a house show) and only a dozen turned up. So the show was cancelled but the 6 trainees got to do their 6 man tag match anyway as training/thank you sort of thing. Largest is hard to say, because I’ve worked a few Supanovas now, and they tend to have large walk up crowds. In terms of an actual show… several hundred I think. Unfortunately Aussie wrestling is not huge business, as most kids don’t care if you’re not on major TV.

6) Do you prefer working as a good guy or bad guy?

Heel. Heel heel heel. I don’t mind getting cheered (well, when I’m working heel I do…) but I am both far better at and more comfortable playing my heel persona than I am working as a face. Although I suppose it’s been a fair while since I worked as a face for any extended period, so maybe I’ve learnt enough to handle it better… But still heel. Facedom I tend to associate with my early days which sucked. Even though I am a nice guy here.

7) What are your strengths as a wrestler & are there any areas you are trying to or think you need to improve?

Well you’re always looking to improve. But my strengths are that I can work a crowd without having to do anything fancy, I can talk alright, I can tell a story, and I’m a huge marshmallow in there, I’m not at all stiff. I also consider myself good with thinking up stories, moves and planning a match. Beyond the general “always seek to improve in everything” attitude, my workrate is fairly low. Sure, I don’t need to be doing fancy moves, but the option would be nice… But then I’m actually more focused on honing my working the crowd skills, as that’s my strength. So I’m trying to get them as good as possible, then maybe work on the moves. But I’m good at what I do, and what I do is be a slimy bully bitch.

8) Do you consider wrestling to be your 1st job or is it more of a 2nd job/hobby?

I want it to be my first, but it’s really my second/hobby. If things haven’t really progressed by say the end of 2013 I’ll be re-evaluating my life somewhat.

9) Is your career where you want it to be or do you have aspirations to make it to a TNA or WWE?

I have goals in my career. A few I’ve already done. (Win a title anywhere, have a crowd hate my guts, brighten a sick kids’ day.) But a few still remain. I want to work in MSG, the Tokyo Dome and a major Sydney arena. I want to be soundly booed in that last one, and get a major reaction in all 3. I want to be introduced to the ring by Howard Finkel. I want JR to call a match I wrestle. I want to run an angle on a major stage that I plan. I do want to turn face, and then turn heel. And the main one? I want to wrestle in the main event of a Wrestlemania. And lose.

So yeah, I do have aspirations to the big leagues.

10) As a fan of wrestling what was something you were surprised to find out about wrestling/or wrestlers when you became one?

You know, it’s kinda hard to think back to when I was just a fan, and to stuff I thought I knew but didn’t… I think the locker room attitude caught me off guard. By the time I had finished uni and started training (which I now slightly regret, I should have done both at once) I was, while not exactly a man of the world, somewhat… Nerdish I suppose. I was slightly unprepared for the attitudes expressed by some people. But I got over it.

And on that cryptic note, I bid you all goodbye if you’ve bothered to stick around this long. See you next week, and enjoy your 4th of July/Wednesday!

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