The Wrestling Thread

[Greggulator]

I spent many a Saturday afternoon watching wrestling with my dad. Along with Ted DiBiase, and Jimmy Snuka, Randy Savage was one of my favorite wrestlers. He'll be missed.

[rant]That a schlub like Drew Carey is enshrined in the WWE Hall of Fame and Macho Man isn't is an utter travesty. I just hope that they pay him a proper tribute on Monday Night.[/endrant]

 

One of the all-time best wrestling rumors is that Macho got blacklisted from the WWE because he slept w/ an underaged Stephanie McMahon (Vince's daughter, for those not in the know).

[Chris L]

Macho Man Randy Savage freaking out!

Macho Man's look from this era reminds me of this:
http://youtu.be/hN9BhuzQjeU

[Eric Fishlegs]

The Randy Savage-Honky Tonk Man feud is why I became a wrestling fan. I watched it like everyone else did back then, but I didn't really care about any of it until I just got fed up with Honky Tonk Man and wanted to see Macho Man really kick his ass. I was a little surprised on my Facebook page to see how many people who were non-wrestling fans saw his passing as being worthy of note. I hope he gets some sort of tribute on RAW. Something more than the still photo and ringing of the bell.

Memphis Wrestling THE FIRST APPEARANCE OF RANDY SAVAGE ON TV

I love this clip because Savage just comes across like a complete lunatic. The writers did not sit round and come up with the Macho Man character. It was Randy Poffo amped up to the Nth degree.

[buffcoat]

I found out today that George The Animal Steele has a Master's Degree.

[Eric Fishlegs]

I found out today that George The Animal Steele has a Master's Degree.

For years he wrestled during the summer while he taught school during the year.

[Greggulator]

I think the best part about Randy Savage is how similar his face/heel personas were.

His most telling attribute as a face was how intense he was. But when something went wrong -- like when the whole Hogan/Liz thing broke down -- his intensity brought him over the edge and he became an unhinged lunatic. But then when he regained his senses you could tell he was a really good dude who just went nutty for a while.

[Kormod]

I was pretty disheartened after reading this (http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/post/Over-25-percent-of-the-performers-from-Wrestlema?urn=top-wp132):

Over one-quarter of the performers who took part in 1991's Wrestlemania VII have died, a wrestling website noted in the wake of the death of "Macho Man" Randy Savage.

The Wrestling Observer newsletter discovered that 14 of the 51 performers at the event have died in the past 20 years, with many of the deaths attributed to drug use (link is subscription only).

The list of wrestlers who have died since 1991 include some of the biggest stars in the sport like Savage, Andre the Giant, Miss Elizabeth and The British Bulldog. Causes of death include suicides, murder and heart attacks, some the result of years of anabolic steroid use. Savage died last week after suffering an apparent heart attack behind the wheel of his truck. His ex-wife, Miss Elizabeth, passed away after overdosing on a variety of drugs in 2003.

Looking at the list is a sobering reminder of the realities of a make-believe sport like professional wrestling. Not all of the men and women listed played a part in their own demise; referee Joey Marella was the victim of a car crash that occurred when he was driving home from a match.

As wrestlinginc.com points out, none of the 44 starters from the Super Bowl played in 1991 have passed away and only two of 44 boxers who held a championship belt that year are gone.

At 58, Savage made it nearly a decade longer than some of his deceased colleagues.

[Kid Pain]

I'm not sure which was better on Monday night: CM Punk's Macho Man tribute trunks or CM Punk taunting Bret Hart by imitating his move set.

[Eric Fishlegs]

I'm not sure which was better on Monday night: CM Punk's Macho Man tribute trunks or CM Punk taunting Bret Hart by imitating his move set.

CM Punk seems like one of the only wrestlers who's actually a fan.

Though I did like R. Truth's whole "Little Jimmy" bit.

[Greggulator]

R-Truth has been one of my least favorite wrestlers since I can remember but I love his heel turn with how bizarre he's become. "I want my son back!" Like all the stresses of not getting title shots have caused him this strange nervous breakdown where he's borderline psychotic. I also like that they're not going full-fledged, "I refuse to shuck and jive for you white people anymore" and are being subtle about it with him saying "Where's my little Jimmy?" The thing where he took the sunglasses right back from the kid he just gave them to was pretty great.

[buffcoat]

And yet Ted DiBiase lives on.  I guess being extremely rich really DOES make a difference.

[TacoSmith]

I never get tired of this:

I'm from Winnipeg You Idiot!

[Greggulator]

THIS IS WHY I LOVE PRO WRESTLING!

The Miz is one of the best stories in wrestling history. For those who aren't in the know: He was a goof on the Real World who wanted to be in the WWE. He was on their early addition of Tough Enough (their reality "be the next wrestler" show) and didn't win. But he kept at it and ended up getting in the WWE. He started off as an interviewer and, by all accounts, was a total laughingstock in the back who the other wrestlers harassed non-stop.

But he stuck at it and slowly got better and better. He's now arguably the best heel in the WWE and main-evented Wrestlemania.

Along the way, he -- in typical heel fashion -- hired Alex Riley (who was on their NXT show, which was a way to showcase newer talent and led to the original Nexus invasion) as his lackey. Miz had an "I Quit" match against John Cena at the last PPV which was essentially a 2-on-1 match in which their plan to have Cena quit (via a secret recording, which was used in a legendary I Quit match years ago between Mick Foley and The Rock) backfired. Cena rallied and Miz said I Quit as quickly as possible since he's such a chickenshit.

The next night, The Miz wanted a rematch. He did not get it. And of course, this wasn't his fault but it was Riley's. He verbally abused Riley and fired him in the ring. So Riley, who took Miz's abuse for some time, snapped and beat the crap out of his former mentor.

It's also a huge sign of their faith in The Miz. He showed he could hold the title and main event a PPV. But now they're using him to get a newer guy over.

It's just a great, time-honored storyline executed perfectly.

Raw: A fired Alex Riley attacks The Miz

[ABBAs Helicopter]

I never get tired of this:

In the same spirit there's this - the very end is what kills me here:

I hate you, Batista!

[Bryan]

Preview of The Warrior's Upcoming Uncensored Video on Hulk Hogan.

This is really worth watching in its entirety.