Wrestling History Today - Aug 10th
On this day in history in ....
1956 - Fred Ottman, who would be professionally known as Tugboat, Typhoon and The Shockmaster, among other ring names, is born.
1964 - Savio Vega, also known as TNT and Kwang over the course of his career, is born.
1977 - Terry Boulder, soon to be known as Hulk Hogan, made his in-ring debut, facing Brian Blair in Tampa, Florida.
1979 - Kongo Kong is born.
1980 - Wade "Bad News" Barrett is born.
1992 - Big Van Vader defeated Riki Choshu to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
1992 - Reno Riggins defeated Brian Christopher for the USWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee, ending Christopher's fifth reign with the belt. On the same show, The Moondogs (Spot & Cujo) defeated Jerry Lawler & Jeff Jarrett for the USWA Tag Team Title, ending Lawler & Jarrett's third title reign, and starting the second run for this version of the Moondogs.
1996 - WCW held their "Hog Wild" event at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota. The event would later be renamed "Road Wild" when Harley-Davidson motorcycles, claimed ownership of the "Hog" term when it comes to motorcycles. The show, which included a WCW Saturday Night broadcast, consisted of 16 live matches before a crowd that didn't pay anything to see the event. Here are the results of the show:
In matches that aired on WCW Saturday Night:
- The Public Enemy defeated Dick Slater & Mike Enos.
- Konnan defeated Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
- The Nasty Boys defeated High Voltage.
- Alex Wright defeated Bobby Eaton.
- Kevin Sullivan, Meng & Barbarian defeated Joe Gomez, Jim Powers & Mark Starr.
- David Taylor defeated Mr. JL (Jerry Lynn).
- Diamond Dallas Page defeated The Renegade.
- Arn Anderson defeated Hugh Morrus.
In matches that aired on the Pay-per-view:
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion Rey Mysterio, Jr. defeated Ultimo Dragon with a springboard rana.
- Scott Norton defeated Ice Train via submission with a Fujiwara armbar.
- Madusa defeated Bull Nakano when both women had their shoulders down after a Nakano suplex, but Madusa raised hers at the two count. As a result, Madusa was allowed to destroy Nakano's Honda motorcycle.
- Chris Benoit defeated Dean Malenko with a rollup.
- WCW World Tag Team Champions Harlem Heat defeated Rick & Scott Steiner when Booker pinned Scott after Col. Robert Parker hit Scott with a cane.
- WCW United States Champion Ric Flair defeated Eddie Guerrero with a figure four leglock after Guerrero missed a frog splash.
- Scott Hall & Kevin Nash defeated Lex Luger & Sting when Hall pinned Luger.
- Hulk Hogan defeated The Giant to win the WCW World Title when Hogan hit Giant with the title belt after the Outsiders had interfered.
1997 - Shinjiro Otani defeated El Samurai in Nagoya, Japan to win the J-Crown.
1998 - The Monday Night Wars continued, with WWF Raw earning a 4.5 for a show that saw Kane & Mankind defeat Steve Austin & Undertaker, Rock & D'Lo Brown, and the New Age Outlaws to win the WWF World Tag Team Title. WCW Nitro pulled in a 4.6 to win the night on a show that featured Lex Luger defeating Bret Hart for the United States Title, and Chris Jericho defeating Stevie Ray for the WCW Television Title.
2002 - WWE ran a Stadium show in Sydney, Australia, Global Warning. Sleeper filed the following live report:
WWE GLOBAL WARNING TOUR - MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
by The Sleeper
Night opened with Desire video, music by Kid Rock. Was followed by Creed, My Sacrifice, with compilation of recent footage.
Stephanie came to the ring and welcomed everyone. She introduced Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar, who came out to the stage - Heyman told the crowd Lesnar was the reason Hogan wasn't here, feeding suspicions that Hogan may be there to do a run-in. No such luck. (Didn't stop crowd casting glances to the stage during the main bout)
Heyman added Australians would never see Hogan wrestle live, that he was finished. Lesnar said he would leave Australia with the undisputed champion's belt.
Steph said let's get this party started. Rikishi came to the ring, stopping to dance with the SmackDown! general manager at the bottom of the ramp before hitting the ring.
RIKISHI vs RICO in a Kiss My Ass match. (Time: 2.30)
Lots of martial art-type moves from Rico early but he missed nailing a moonsault and gave Rikishi an easy pin. After the cover, Rico went to leave but the ref halted his departure. A super kick from Rikishi laid him out and the stinkface followed. Predictable.
Rikishi plucked two kids from the crowd and held their arms up in the air to a good pop. Then they danced to his music. One kid did a modified spinarooni and got a huge laugh.
REVEREND D-VON & BATISTA vs MARK HENRY & RANDY ORTON (7.00)
D-Von and Batista interchanged and the bulk of their offensive was performed on Orton. Henry got tagged in and Orton was sent out in a flurry of action that saw Batista hit a spinebuster on Henry. He tried to spear Henry in the corner, while D-Von waited, perched on the top rope.
Henry stepped clear, Batista cleaned up D-Von and once Henry tossed D-Von's disciple from the ring, a cover soon followed. Henry for the three-count over D-Von, the crowd not overly worked up.
HURRICANE HELMS vs JAMIE NOBLE (with Nidia) (10.00) - Cruiserweight title match.
Crowd was into Helms, who had the upper hand early until he chased Nidia outside the ring, getting leveled by Noble as he came back into the ring.
Helms hit two neckbreakers in quick succession, the second from the second rope, which got a nearly got the pin. Pinning predicaments seesawed, at one stage both men were down for 10-count that stopped at seven. Nidia ultimately influenced the result, standing on the ring apron and distracting Helms, who was rolled up and pinned by Noble, who retained the belt, the ref not seeing his feet on the ropes for added leverage.
Good-paced contest that continued beyond the pinfall. Hurricane went to chokeslam his ex-girlfriend Nidia but saw Noble coming for the save and pushed her into him. In the end it was Noble who was chokeslammed. Good pop for Hurricane.
CHUCK & BILLY (with Rico) vs HARDCORE HOLLY & CHAVO GUERRERO (with Maven) (15.00)
***Maven is due an MRI on his ankle next week and made a cameo appearance while Holly's regular partner, Big Valbowski, is recovering from a neck injury suffered when 300lb pounds came down on his neck when bolts broke on an apparatus while he was in the gym***
It was almost four minutes from the time they arrived at ringside that Chuck and Billy got down to action. A lot of goading from Holly, Chavo and Maven - Chavo grabbing Billy's headband and putting on himself.
It didn't take long for a "boring" chant to go up from the crowd. This seemed to fire Hardcore Holly up before he tagged in Chavo. A slow handclap broke out next. Holly tagged in and connected with a flying drop-kick.
The crowd loved it when Rico jumped in and got Alabama-slammed. Chuck super-kicked Holly sending him out and Billy hoisted Chavo on his shoulders as Chuck went to the top rope. He missed with the clothesline and then Chavo botched his huracanrana but put the crowd out of its pain and pinned Chuck.
Maven DDT-ed Rico for good measure. The fans popped for that but you have to realize the Aussies make noise for something good or something or someone they like but not for the sake of it. The tempo of the event needed to lift and it soon did.
TEST vs KURT ANGLE (11.00)
Test came out and said Australia sucks like America. Angle's music hit and the crowd got into the "You Suck" chorus.
Angle said insult Australia and it is like insulting America, you insult me. At the point, he started hitting Test and the match was underway. There was lots of good back and forth in and outside the ring. Test had the momentum his way when he hung Angle over the top rope and had him roll off onto the floor below.
As he came back up on the apron, Angle tugged down on the top rope and a charge by Test aw him spill out onto the floor. Back inside, Test tried for a pump-handle slam but Angle got out of it and slapped on the ankle lock. Test struggled to the ropes.
Angle was forced to twice kick out of pinning attempts, the second-time from a big boot. Test went to the top rope but Angle ran up, only to slip and sending Test to the floor once more. Test soon after kicked out of the Angle slam.
After going out for a chair, Test swung wildly, missing everything with one sweep and then smacking the top rope, after Angle ducked, on his second swat with it. It bounced back and caught Test in the face and there would be no kicking out of the Angle slam this time. Entertaining match before 20 minute intermission.
Michael Cole made his sole appearance of the night when the show resumed. He told the fans they had to get louder and said they should give themselves a roar. This would be a celebration. The WWE Global Warning Tour had set a new attendance record at Colonial Stadium (in its third year of existence) - 56,734 people. (This beat the previous number by around 700)
BILLY KIDMAN & REY MYSTERIO vs LANCE STORM & CHRISTIAN - Tag-Team title match (9.00)
Good heel heat for the reigning champs. Huge pop for Mysterio, who was teaming with his ex-WCW tag team championship-winning partner. Kidman started the match and soon had the crowd with him, after being double-teamed, he double-clotheslined Storm and Christian, bringing Mysterio in.
Rey hit all his moves during the match - including the top rope huracanrana and the 619. Kidman launched him into the former, bringing Storm down and leaving the crowd in disbelief at what they had seen. Kidman scaled the ropes to hit the shooting star press and Mysterio took Christian outside. Somehow, Storm rolled through to pin Kidman and keep the belts.
So much was happening at the precise moment in and out of the ring and there was no replay. Can't be more definite on the match ending.
Storm and Christian scampered away with their title while Mysterio and Kidman milked the plaudits of the crowd. A very popular duo, the crowd especially into Mysterio
CHRIS JERICHO vs EDGE in a RAW vs SMACKDOWN! match (15.00).
Jericho got a great pop when his opener came on screen but it soon turned to heel heat. They went wild for Edge (I think my wife nearly peed her pants she squeeled that much) who came to the ring filming the crowd with a hand-held video camera.
A "You are a wanker" chant went up - wanker = masturbator. Jericho called us Australian jackasses and to shut up and listen to him.
"Have you forgotten I was the first undisputed champion and now I am the undisputed King of the World," Jericho said.
"I'm not going to listen to you convicts call me a wanker. I don't even know what a wanker is."
At this point, Edge gestured with his hand leaving nobody in uncertain terms as to what it meant, getting a big laugh. Jericho called him a stupid son of a bitch and that was like waving a red rag at a bull.
Jericho was caught in the ropes early and Edge speared him. Jericho put a submission hold on in the center of the ring but Edge responded to the crowd calling his name. He almost pinned Jericho when he rolled Y2J up while he was berating fans at ringside. Jericho put Edge in an abdominal stretch, using the rope to get leverage. The match moved to the top rope and Jericho went to suplex Edge but instead he got pancaked.
Jericho left the ring and grabbed a chair but Edge speared him. The ref was down after an collision moments earlier with Edge, preventing a surefire three count. Jericho soon landed a chair shot to Edge's chin and hit the lionsault but Edge kicked out at 2-1/2.
Edge sent Jericho into the turnbuckle with a slingshot maneuver before attempting the Edgecution. Jericho countered and applied the Walls of Jericho but Edge turned through it and wrapped him up in a small package for the 1-2-3. Immensely entertaining match between this pair, as we have come to expect.
Jericho trashed the ringside area in his frustrated state, throwing a chair in the ring before sliding up the ramp and tearing up a "Melbourne is Jericho" sign belonging to a fan. Edge, quick as a flash, grabbed the chair and sat back with his hands behind his head, one leg crossed over the other...only serving to make Jericho more furious. Edge then scaled the scaffolding at ringside supporting the ring lights and popped the crowd.
STACY KEIBLER vs TORRIE WILSON in a Bra & Panties match (5.30) - Big Valbowski guest ring announcer.
Valbowski said he and Australians had a lot in common. "Outside of Australians, nobody knows more about going down...under than me."
On a scale of one to 10, we would give both ladies one without hesitation (think about it). Sadly, that is also what mark we could give for their wrestling ability. Some funny moments, however. They rolled over the ref (might have been young Hebner), who adjusted his fly as he got up off the mat. He duly had his pants pulled down to reveal a pink g-string and retreated to the corner to hoist his trousers.
Torrie lost her top first, revealing a hot pink bra. Then Stacy's black one was revealed. Nidia did a run in and lost her "sawn off" jeans to expose a red pair of knickers and she ran away. Torrie rolled Stacy up and peeled off her skirt to show us all her black panties before spanking her curvaceous bum in a "whose your daddy" fashion.
Torrie left the ring but was called to a halt by Big Val, who reminded her of his earlier suggestion that nobody knew more about down under. She gestured to him with a finger to come...to her...and they left up the ramp arm in arm.
BROCK LESNAR vs TRIPLE H vs THE ROCK in a no DQ triple threat match for the WWE Undisputed Championship (13.00).
I couldn't split the pops for Triple H and The Rock. The crowd went wild for both.
Once all were in the ring, a stare down took place. The Rock then told Lesnar to "just bring it" and it was on. Rock and Triple H double-teamed Lesnar and then Lesnar and Triple H double-teamed Rock.
Rock rallied and sent Lesnar into Triple H and then put the young challenger over the top rope. The People's Champ chased Paul Heyman but ran into Lesnar and was ironed out. Lesnar and HHH went at it for a while, Tripper beating him down. All three men were soon back at it again.
Hunter got Rock with a neck-breaker and then spinebustered Rock. Rock narrowly avoided an F-5 from Lesnar and nearly walked straight into a pedigree, just managing to flip HHH over. Triple H was then sent into a corner and wound up on the floor, blood streaming from a forehead wound.
Lesnar slapped a bear hug on Rock, the arm lifted a third time by the ref before he responded. Rock narrowly avoided another F-5 and gave Lesnar a DDT before getting a two-count. Before we knew it, Rock had Lesnar in a sharp shooter and Triple H broke the hold with a headshot before there was any tapping out done.
Rock got pedigreed by Triple H but Lesnar broke the count. Lesnar F-5ed HHH, Rock making an 11th-hour save. Rock hit the spinebuster followed by the People's Elbow but Lesnar kicked out. Heyman hit the apron but Rock punched him, only to FINALLY find himself on the end of the F-5. Triple H broke the near three-count.
With that Triple H pedigreed Lesnar, who kicked out but Rock re-entered the fray and hit the Rock Bottom on Triple H. The ref counted three and The Rock retained the gold. Lesnar came at Rock with a chair after the bell but Triple H made the save, sending Lesnar to the outside and he did not re-enter the ring.
Heyman was trapped between Triple H and Rock and the deliberated for sometime as to what they would do. Heyman made gestures as to what they might do - very comical. In the end, Triple H gave him the pedigree. Rock put his head between the ropes to leave but HHH grabbed an arm and pulled him back inside.
He signalled to Rock to give Heyman the People's Elbow and he did. Then Rock suggested Hunter do the same and he did, mimicking every element of the Rock's move.
They shook hands, Triple H raised Rock's arm and then posed on the ropes in each corner to his music before departing up the ramp to massive applause.
Rock's music then hit but he killed it and grabbed a microphone. The fans had waited to hear him say the obvious.
"Finally, The Rock has come back to Melbourne," he said.
"The Rock wants to thank Australia for three things...all the kangaroo steak he could eat, laying the smack down on all their candy asses and for getting some of the best damn Australian pie The Rock has ever had.
"Just four more words...much love, thank you."
With that he retreated to the back to an enormous ovation and the show was over.
BIGGEST POPS
1. The Rock, just got in front right at the end.
2. Triple H, so close to The Rock for the honor it wasn't funny.
3. Edge, right over with the Aussie fans.
4. Rey Mysterio, the fans are so into him...a belt before the year is out, surely.
5. Hurricane Helms, the surprise of the night to make the top five.
BIGGEST HEAT
1. Chris Jericho.
2. Chris Jericho.
3. Chris Jericho.
BUCKETS & BOUQUETS
Fans seated on the arena - ticket price $A200 plus - couldn't see the stars in the ring clearly because of a metal structure for the lighting with uprights on the corners of the ring. This would have been countered had the ring and the immediate area beyond it been a little higher. It is a lot of money to pay to go and watch the big television screens.
The security staff were to be commended for allowing the young kids every opportunity to come down to the fences near ringside as each star made his entry to see them close up before asking them to resume their seats. It was appreciated by many. On the whole a good show, the second half of the card carrying the day.
2002 - WWE ran Kamloops, British Columbia. Darren filed the following live report:
Saturday August 10, 2002 Sportmart Place Kamloops, BC
7:30pm is the time, the lights go dark and over the loudspeakers "Welcome to the Jungle" starts blaring!
Howard Finkel makes his way down to the ring and welcomes us and goes over the usual speech "Don't throw things at the ring or be ejected and arrested, don't take pictures for commercial use etc etc.."
Sean O' Haire over Shelton Benjamin
O' Haire is over huge, even though he tries his best to play the heel, Crowd pops for Benjamin on his entrance because he was escorted to the ring by two local VERY HOT women, but the crowd starts very vocally booing him mid match and continues till the end.. Crowd cheers wildly when O'Haire wins... with a powerbomb pin combo. Go figure..
Tommy Dreamer over Steven Richards
Exact same as the Kelowna match on Friday.. same spots it was weird.. the salad tongs to the balls into a flip was nifty.. even for the second time. only slight difference is Tommy looked bored, and didn't take a fans drink to spit at Richards like he did in Kelowna..
Molly Holly over Victoria
Molly dissects Victoria in a very technical match, wins with feet on ropes.
Bradshaw over Chrisopher Nowinski
Almost same match as last night, except no powerbomb.. just a clothesline from hell, and match was a few min longer. Bradshaw truly seemed to like Kamloops and even got on the stick for a spell and flirted with a local female DJ who was acting as a timekeeper crowd popped HUGE when Bradshaw said "Shut on Nowinski i am talking to a lady. if i want to talk to a ho i would talking to you instead of her.. you stupid ass Harvard Ho". Bradshaw was wearing boots that said "Blackjacks" was this normal? or kinda odd.. he hasn't done the blackjacks gimmick for a number of years..
Goldust over William Regal
Same as last night in Kelowna, Dust's left arm was majorly bandaged and seemed to be favoring it the whole match.
Chris Beniot over RVD
Identical match as last night almost like it was choreographed heh heh.. Pissed of the guy beside be telling him 30 seconds before Guerrero ran in the 'spoiler' lol.. he was a drunken yelling idiot.
Intermission
Howard Finkel welcomes us back and holds a draw from a Nintendo Gamecube Game that I have never really heard of.. didn't win, oh well don't own a gamecube system anyways and the game would do me no good.
Spike Dudley over Johnny Stamboli
Same spots as last night, same Hogan bit, different ending. Spike wins this with the Dudley dog?
Bubba Ray Dudley over The Big Show in a "Kamloops Street Fight Tables Match"
Match of the night! EXCELLENT Four *'s, PPV calibre..Totally different then last nights match.. lots of cool and very funny spots..laughed my head off..Funny spots of note..Bubba and bigshow having a contest running ropes buhbuh stops after about 10 passes, and show keeps going for about 20!! After show finally stops buh buh pats him on the back and raises his hand.. and then pulled out a few of his chest hairs.. it was so freaking funny... you had to be there..
Then of the match had the entire locker room empty out (heels and faces) and after many many attempts and the show beating them all off. put show through the table via a suplex. It was crazy seeing 8 guys suplex one big guy... cool stuff.. After the table was destroyed by the shows massive body crushing it they ALL went into the crowd and took fans drinks and went back into the ring and toasted there victory over show... even the ref had a beer after a while of celebrating show got back up all wobbly and asked for a beer Bradshaw gave him one and as show was about to drink he spit his beer at show and gave him the clothesline from hell.. good stuff.. after that Bradshaw and buh buh got on the stick and told everybody in the crowd that they loved kamloops and would most definitely be back soon. Seemed very genuine and honest.. they did NOT do this in Kelowna the night before. I know my wrestling angles and bullsh*t but this seemed genuine.. anyways awesome match and aftermath! should have been the main event!
The Hardy Boys over Raven and Justin Credible
Pretty much the same match, and same ending as Kelowna. Jeff was dressed different then last night his face was totally blue as was his hair.. looking like he was dieing his hair blue and spilt the die all over his face and neck. Also 2 hot blonds with massive breasts where in the front row beside me and flashed Raven, Raven's eyes almost popped out of his head and he said to Justin (no mike but i over heard it it was right beside me) "Hey man check em out.. she f***ing flashed me! so they both walked over to the women and visited with them (this was all taking place during the Hardys entrance). After the match raven did a fully spot that his back was stuck with his legs in the air.. the ref and Justin tried righting him to hilarious results.. again you had to be there! I hated raven before this match... he is my favorite now..
Booker T over Eddie Guerrero
Exactly the same match with slightly different finish.. bookend, frog splash from RVD and pin. Guerrero got on the stick before the match but was pretty much unintelligible, marblemouthish.
2002 - WWE broadcast Confidential. John Keane filed the following TV report:
Recorded at the WWE TV Studios in Stamford CT.
Your Host: Mean Gene Okerlund.
Gene welcomes us in and we go straight to work. First up: tonight's 'Cover Story', focusing on Rikishi. Gene prefaces the main body of the piece by mentioning that back in 1987 Rikishi, then 21 years old and living in a rough neighborhood, was nearly killed in a drive-by shooting.
Rikishi briefly describes the event, which he admits was a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Upon regaining consciousness at a hospital, he was informed he'd 'passed away' for 3 minutes. He praises his wife and family for aiding his recuperation.
The incident took place while Rikishi was still in training to become a pro wrestler. Upon entering the Fed he and his cousin Samu established themselves in the tag team ranks as the Samoan Swat Team and later the Headshrinkers. He admits his initial singles run, as Phatu and later the Sultan, was less than successful. A conference with Vince McMahon, wherein Rikishi was told it was time to go 'back to the chalkboard', led to him spending some time in the Memphis developmental territory.
During this time a new version of an old gimmick (quick shot of Yokozuna hits the screen) was decided upon-that of a Sumo wrestler. Rikishi brought his weight from 270 lbs. to over 400, and adopted his current style of ring attire featuring the thong. He admits he was a bit uncomfortable having his 'butt hanging out', primarily due to the embarrassment his wife and children might feel. No problem, his family backed him up and got totally behind the gimmick.
(Commentary: Yep, guess I get to spend a week in the punitentiary. Sorry.)
Rikishi soon started tweaking his character, adding non-traditional Sumo touches such as bleached blond hair and dancing. He feels his in-ring work as both a wrestler and an entertainer helped him avoid being pigeon-holed as 'the guy with the butt'. More with Rikishi later on, we take a break.
WWE Rewind: Molly Holly, cheating to win, defeats Trish Stratus earlier this year at the King of the Ring PPV to become Women's Champion.
Back, Gene brings us a 'Before They Were Superstars' segment focusing on Molly (real name Nora Greenwald). We see video footage of Molly as a child growing up in a small town in Minnesota. She got into gymnastics early on, and later followed in her dads footsteps as a power lifter. Stuff about cars follows-Molly likes to restore classic models, cites her dream vehicle as a '67 Chevelle. Moving along, Molly mentions she got an invite to attend a wrestling school when she was working at a Subway. Molly admits she had no idea women seriously wrestled, but decided to give it a shot. Turns out she enjoyed the training, and decided to go with wrestling on a part-time basis. She had her first match in Land of Lakes FL-outdoors on a rain-soaked ring before a crowd of about 6. Thing improved after that, and after working the indies for a while Molly got a try-out match with WCW. Dean Malenko was present, and he invited Molly to attend his wrestling school. She did so, and continued working the independents, primarily in Florida. This led to her big break-Randy 'Macho Man' Savage noticed her abilities, and retained her services in training his girlfriend to become a wrestler. Molly soon became part of Macho's entourage, which got her some TV time in WCW (she was then known as Miss Madness). WCW archived footage rolls-don't know the particulars, but it featured Molly and Madusa being treated to double noggin-knockers at the hands of Hulk Hogan, followed by a catfight.
Molly finishes the segment with thanks for her parents support and praise for WWE. Break.
Gene returns to reference the Hulkster as the personification of wrestling in the '80's. This leads to a follow-up piece on a segment that aired 2 weeks ago, focusing on one of the more notable factions of the 90's, D-Generation X, and their 'Invasion' of WCW in April of '98.
We see the faction, then consisting of HHH, Chyna, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg and X-Pac, riding military vehicles while searching for what they expect will be the huge building serving as WCW HQ. Upon coming across the actual site, which pretty much looked like the home office of a small legal firm that specialized in ambulance chasing, they voiced their disgust and amusement. Sadly, they had no luck gaining entry, and were forced to leave under pressure from the police. They next visited the nearby CNN Center and tried to arrange a meeting with WCW owner Ted Turner-no luck meeting the boss, but they did meet one high-ranking employee named Dick Cheetham (sp?) who expressed his support of DX. Hunter ends the segment by stating that if Eric Bischoff was upset with what actually happened, he's lucky DX didn't get a chance to accomplish all they'd planned. Break.
Back, Gene presents us more on Rikishi. Big man talks about his Samoan roots, references High Chief Peter Maivia, Afa, Sika, Superfly Jimmy Snuka, Samu, the Tonga Kid, Haku, The Barbarian and The Rock as members of the largest extended family in the business of professional wrestling. Rikishi offers his thoughts on one other member, sadly no longer with us-his cousin, road partner and former WWF Champion Yokozuna, who he describes as more like a brother. He tells of receiving a call from his wife back in '93-she and their son were stuck in a cold house due to a broken heater. Yoko immediately signed him a blank check and dispatched him to tend to his family.
Rikishi and Afa talk about their extended family, stressing the strength of their Samoan traditions and Christian values. Rikishi finishes up by stating he wants to be remembered as a good family man. Break.
Back, we get a segment on a lady who may be the worlds oldest WWE fan-107 year old Gertrude Gash.
(Gene: "Love that name!" Whatta perv.)
Gertrude's been watching wrestling since television first arrived on the scene, and is a huge fan of The Rock. For her 107th birthday party, the People's Champ sent her a personal video extending his best wishes. Separate piece of video sees Rocky stating he hopes he gets a chance to meet Gertrude in the future. Break.
Next up, Gene presents us a segment promoting NASCAR-The Big Show and Kurt Angle both had cars bearing their likeness running in the Stacker 2/GNC 250 race that ran in Daytona on July 5th. No word on how they did.
Gene finishes up with a plug for the new movie 'XXX' and mentions next week we'll be seeing in-ring and behind the scenes footage of the WWE Australian tour.
OK show this week-highlight had to be seeing Molly putting on a brave face as she headed to the ring for her first match. Have to wonder if some wiseguy at WWE thought it would be amusing to have her and Rikishi spotlighted on the same show.
2002 - WWE broadcast Velocity. Matt Zylbert filed the following TV report:
Hosted by Mark Lloyd and Tazz (In for Michael Cole)
NO MICHAEL COLE! NO MICHAEL COLE! YES! YES! What a great week to be a Velocity reporter! Hello all and welcome back to my domain of excellence. As you already know, I am your esteemed reporter, Matt Zylbert, and THIS is the 'five-star' 1Wrestling.com Velocity report that gets two thumbs up worldwide. With no Michael Cole this week, it's gonna be a lot easier to report, or SO I thought....
Before the opening video montage rolls, we see Rico doing Marky Mark's hair in the backstage area. Unfortunately though, that jerk Hardcore Holly, who I lost ALL respect for last week shows up, and Mark gets scared. Well I'm not there to protect him so I understand. Anyway, Rico tells Holly get on line and take a number, and before leaving, the Hardcore-One shaves off a piece of Rico's hair. Let me tell you this, if I ever see Hardcore Holly in person, don't blame me if I give him a Baldo Bomb!
NOW that the opening montage has rolled, let me send it down my buddy, and yours, TONY THE CHIM, for our opening bout....
Chavo Guerrero vs. Tajiri
Oh yeah! A Chavo Guerrero match to kick things off is all I need. And I like I say every week, Chavo has the best music! Yes, it's true. And of course, the strut is awesome as well. After all, there IS no one cooler than Chavo, as he gets set to take on Tajiri here, in what I assume is the BATTLE OF THE BEATEN BY REY MYSTERIO!
Before the match, Tazz says this match is gonna be a ROCKETBUSTER, and if he says it, you know it's right. To the match now as we get a nice chain sequence of basics, leading into a stand-off from both men. After another series of some reversals, Tajiri blasts ma' man Chavo with a superkick, giving him control. On the follow-up, Chavo pulls off a sunset flip, but in a weird manner, Tajiri would head to the outside from that position. Chavo comes out as well, and he would somehow slam Tajiri's right shin into the steel post. That's gonna hurt. Back in now, Chavo goes to work on the right leg, and despite Tajiri pulling off a victory roll for two at this point, the potential-Cruiserweight champion keeps in control with a single leg takedown. Chavo now works a submission hold, only to break it up as Tajiri reached the ropes. He would now go for a corner ram, but Tajiri avoids it, and here it comes, and executes the TUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHRANTULA! Of course, Tajiri breaks it up after three because it's an "illegal" move and all. Tajiri would continue his current offense with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, and although he would receive a dropkick to the gut from Chavo, both men engage in an exchange of chops. The Japanese Buzzsaw would gain the upper hand, allowing him to hit a nice German suplex for two. Meanwhile, on commentary, Tazz says he's gonna call Mark as Mitch Lloyd. It's Marky Mark! Anyway, Tajiri would now go for a moonsault, but misses and lands on his injured leg. Chavo takes advantage with a modified backbreaker for a near fall, and then yells at the crowd to draw some boos. Gotta love Chavo. Guerrero would now backdrop Tajiri to the apron, where he gets in a kick to the face. As he goes up though, Chavo corrals him and slams him off the top. The former Jr. now heads up top himself, and as he comes down in axe-handle smash form, Tajiri, out of desperation, sprays the GREEN VELOCITY MIST into the face of Chavo. Unfortunately, he was caught, giving the DQ win to Chavo! YEAH! Good match, and what made it better was that their was no annoying Michael Cole.
Winner via Disqualification: Chavo Guerrero
Commercial
Rewind: Third time's a charm. Shannon Moore and Hurricane prove that statement to be true, as on Smackdown, Billy and Chuck are unable to execute the Doomsday Device, enabling Shannon to pull off a victory roll on Chuck to give his team a win. I guess it has to do with the fact that they were on Smackdown for once.
Rico vs. Funaki
You look soooo..... good to me. ONCE AGAIN, I have Billy, Chuck, and Rico's theme music stuck in my head, but since Rico is Mark Lloyd's stylist now, I got no problems. Anyway, this match should prove one thing: Is Funaki REALLY that much of a jobber? Well, I'm still waiting for his first Velocity win, where you DON'T have the Jakked Jobbers to beat.
To the match now as Tazz calls Velocity a family show. No WWE show is a family show anymore. This ain't Superstars or All-American Wrestling, or even friggin' Prime Time! To me though, Velocity is the best show on television, especially with Michael Cole in Australia this week. I feel bad for those Aussies though. NOW let's get to the match, where we get some reversals from both men, leading into a small package by Funaki for two. We then get a staredown, and here's some advice for both guys: When you do the exact same thing that happened in the match before this, you're not gonna get as big of a reaction. Anyway, Rico now claps and gives the Japanese Bow, and as Funaki does the same, Rico clotheslines him. Well, that's what you get for showing Rico Japanese respect. This current offense by Rico would not last long though, as he would quickly fall victim, to what I now call, the THREE JAPAN MOVES OF PAIN! That would be a hip-toss, arm-drag, and dropkick, all in that order. Rico would now head to the corner for a break, and as he looks to get a handshake from Funaki, he gets a kick instead. HA! I think I may consider Funaki as the dirtiest player in the game. However, Funaki loses control soon after, as Rico gives him a snake eyes in the corner, before drilling him with a superkick. Rico now gets in some more of his martial-arts kicks, before hitting a dropkick for a near fall. After a spinning kick at this point, Rico gets another two count, and the Stylist now would continue the punishment with a bodyslam. He then drops Funaki's hand twice while he was on the ground, which is the referee's job, and then heads up top. From there, Rico would miss a nice moonsault, enabling Funaki to take control. He gets in some punches, prior to hitting a bulldog for a near fall. Funaki would now issue an enziguiri, and a school boy gives the Indeed One yet another two count. Rico would come back at this point, as he takes a page out of Matt Hardy's book, executing a hip-toss into a neckbreaker. Guess he watches HeAT a lot. Rico now looks to perform a modified powerbomb, but Funaki wiggles free. He would, however, run into a vicious spinning heel kick, and that's all Rico needs to pick up the 1,2,3. Good win for the Stylist, in a pretty good match.
Winner: Rico
Commercial
Boot of the Week: After Chris Benoit makes John Cena tap out to the Crippler Crossface, chaos ensues, which saw Edge, John Cena, and Rey Mysterio take out their respective foes.
OH NO! I just realized that during recaps, I have to listen to Michael Cole, which absolutely sucks. Marky Mark and Tazz show us the six-man tag match between Angle/Benoit/Eddie and Edge/Cena/Mysterio. And for the 63rd time Michael, IT IS NOT RUTHLESS AGGRESSION! Stop blaming it on everything. Ya know, if I ever go to Stamford, Connecticut and see Michael Cole, I think I'm gonna give him some "ruthless aggression." Folks, I think that may be the most annoying word I've ever heard.
Commercial
Mike Awesome vs. Bull Buchanan
It's the return of Bull Buchanan! This is his first match back since the demise of the Right to Censor, who were always a favorite of mine. Now take a look at all of them. Steven Richards is pretty much back to being the old Jakked Jobber he used to over on HeAT (Despite beating Matt Hardy two weeks ago), Godfather is injured, Ivory is nowhere to be found ever since Tough Enough, and Val Venis is using the most ridiculous name in wrestling history. Will the trend continue for Bull? Well luckily for him, he's taking on NEW Jobbers Inc. member, Mike Awesome.
To the match, and before we begin, I notice that Awesome's hair grows every week. Maybe that's why he's losing. Bull starts out with cheap shots in the corner after a break-up, and I guess he'll be playing the heel. Oh yeah, he also has red rights so you know he's EVIL. Awesome would retaliate with some of his usual jobber offense, that being a diving shoulder block, and a clothesline, sending Bull over the top and to the outside. After doing some work on the outside, Awesome takes his offense to the air, as he connects on a top-rope clothesline for a near fall. Awesome now gets in some punches, but would end up missing a ram in the corner, allowing Bull to issue some kicks, followed by a neckbreaker for a two count. Bull now hits his nice springboard clothesline from the top for another two count, and now resorts to the rear chinlock. Oh, how exciting. What makes it strange is that Awesome actually taps the mat SEVERAL times while in the hold, but since there's so many flaws, that doesn't mean he's tapping out. "Why Mike Awesome taps on the mat I have no idea," says Tazz. He then proceeds to tap the announcer's table for some odd reason, and the people behind him think he's nuts. Well as long as we don't have Michael Cole this week, everything's all good. Anyway, Awesome gets out of the chinlock, but Bull stays in control by sending his opponent to the outside. He then sends him into the steps, but on the follow-up, as Bull is back in the ring and bouncing off the ropes, Awesome slingshots himself from the apron into a cool shoudlerblock, nailing the running Bull. That actually makes sense. Awesome would continue his offense with a suplex and a clothesline, and then heads up top. From there, he takes WAY too much time, which of course, is followed by Bull moving out of the way on the Awesome Splash attempt. For some weird reason, Tazz now starts quacking like a duck, but like I said before, ANYTHING is better than Michael Cole. Back to the action as Bull connects with a boot to the face in the corner, and then pulls himself up top, where he is able to perform a top rope leg drop to pick up the win. Impressive re-debut for Bull, but unfortunately for Awesome, he's gonna keep jobbing all the way to hell. I think Justin Credible better watch his position as being President of Jobbers Inc. Awesome's closing in.
Winner: Bull Buchanan
Commercial
The Kane promo is shown.... and let's hope he's not brought back as a face. In my opinion, he is totally USELESS and really boring to watch as a face, so as I said, let's hope the WWE is smart enough to bring him back in as a heel, where he was a dominant, watchable threat in the ranks.
Lloyd and Tazz recap the Hogan/Lesnar match from Smackdown, including the highlights package before it. Why they left out Akeem and Bossman when Hogan's biggest opponents were mentioned is beyond me.
Commercial
Hardcore Holly vs. Albert
Here's a strange pattern: This is the second week in a row here on Velocity, in which the main event had already taken place the week before. Hardcore Holly and Albert already fought last week, and on that same week, Billy and Chuck took on Shannon Moore and Hurricane in the main event, when previously, they fought on the week prior to it. Don't you just love this stuff? Well I just love Albert, being my second favorite wrestler at the moment, and let's hope he can destroy Hardcore Holly and put him in his place.
To the match now as Albert doesn't wait for the bell, sending Hardcore over the top rope with a clothesline. Albert would follow up by sending Holly into the steps, but as he then tried to ram Holly in the post, the Hardcore-One sends Albert into it instead. Back in now, and the match now officially begins, as Albert is able to execute a sit-down gorilla-press slam for a two count. Holly would come back with some chops, but would fall victim to a backbreaker soon after from the big man. After doing some work on Holly on the outside, Albert performs his signature slingshot-into-the-second rope move, giving him another two count on the pin after. We would head outside again, as Holly gets in a boot from the apron, and he follows it up by sending the North American Grizzly into the post. More chops now as we head back inside, and Holly hits his picture-perfect dropkick for a near fall. Albert would try to take control with his "I-Like-To-Scream-When-I-Ram-People-In-The-Corner" maneuver, but Holly gets out of the way, and manages to hit a flying clothesline for yet another near fall. Holly would now head up top, only to be crotched by Albert. The hairy-one now calls for the Baldo Bomb, and as he tries to get his adversary up, Holly punches his way out of it. However, Holly would run right into a bicycle kick soon after.... for a close two count. Albert would now argue with referee Mike Chioda about the speed of the count, and even shoves him. Uh-oh, you can't do that to referees anymore, big boy. Chioda retaliates with a shove of his own, and this one goes right into a Hardcore Holly roll-up for the quick three-count. Albert gets pissed after the match and knocks Holly to the outside. He then tries to send him into the steel steps, but Holly counters and Albert ends up eating the steel. Hardcore now walks over to the announce table, and takes advantage of the fact that I'm not there to protect Marky Mark. He grabs Lloyd by his shirt, and drags him all the way to the apron. Thankfully though, Rico comes from out of nowhere, and blasts Hardcore Holly with a superkick. YES! Take that, jerk. Now in a bit of more strange stuff, Rico goes to shake Mark's hand, and as Lloyd does so, the stylist slaps him instead. Huh? Hopefully we'll learn soon enough why ma' man Funky Bunch is getting such crappy treatment.
Winner: Hardcore Holly
As Lloyd is down on the ground, Tazz hypes up Smackdown this Thursday and that's that.
That's gonna wrap up another 'five-star' report, so until next week, this is Matt Zylbert wishing you guys and gals a great week. Peeeeeaaaaace!
