Pro Wrestling is Fake.
- Thread starter Huge
- Start date
- Jan 25, 2013
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It's not a sport if the winner is pre-determined IMO.
Big Pete
International Captain
- Mar 12, 2008
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Pro Wrestling is a television show genre about a sport, it isn't a sport itself, unless you're talking about promotions like Pancrase.
The one time the WWF tried to be a shoot, it was a disaster. A hilarious trainwreck where everything that could have gone wrong, did.
The one time the WWF tried to be a shoot, it was a disaster. A hilarious trainwreck where everything that could have gone wrong, did.
- Jan 25, 2013
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THAT sounds like good viewing.
Big Pete
International Captain
- Mar 12, 2008
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It was called the Brawl For All, a shoot-fighting tournament comprised mostly of wrestlers who had nothing better to do around that time (June of 1998).
The whole thing was a mess from the start. The whole aim was to generate publicity but there were agendas riddled through out the tournament. For instance despite having guys with actual shootfight/amateur wrestler backgrounds, they didn't allow them to compete and when it became clear that one guy was going to sweep the entire tournament, they had him withdraw after the first round.
They also wanted to use the tournament to push this one wrestler called Dr Death Steve Williams so he'd have some status before challenging Stone Cold Steve Austin in a fake match. The problem was, the rules were completely vague and changing all the time, so the format didn't suit him and he was promptly eliminated in the second round after suffering a serious injury mid-match.
In the end a complete no-name in Bart Gunn took out the tournament. He quietly disappeared off television, only to resurface in the lead up to Wrestlemania where he took on gimmick boxer Butterbean. Butterbean cleaned his clock making the entire show look even more silly than it was (this was around the time a wrestler was going around, abducting other wrestlers and performing satanic rituals on them...with no police intervention whatsoever).
It didn't draw fans in, the fans who paid money to be at the show found the fights boring and the only thing to come out of it was injuries. It was an absolute trainwreck, but in the best kind of way since fans to this day still remember it and laugh at the ridiculousness of it.
If you want to learn more here's a video recapping the entire tournament:
The whole thing was a mess from the start. The whole aim was to generate publicity but there were agendas riddled through out the tournament. For instance despite having guys with actual shootfight/amateur wrestler backgrounds, they didn't allow them to compete and when it became clear that one guy was going to sweep the entire tournament, they had him withdraw after the first round.
They also wanted to use the tournament to push this one wrestler called Dr Death Steve Williams so he'd have some status before challenging Stone Cold Steve Austin in a fake match. The problem was, the rules were completely vague and changing all the time, so the format didn't suit him and he was promptly eliminated in the second round after suffering a serious injury mid-match.
In the end a complete no-name in Bart Gunn took out the tournament. He quietly disappeared off television, only to resurface in the lead up to Wrestlemania where he took on gimmick boxer Butterbean. Butterbean cleaned his clock making the entire show look even more silly than it was (this was around the time a wrestler was going around, abducting other wrestlers and performing satanic rituals on them...with no police intervention whatsoever).
It didn't draw fans in, the fans who paid money to be at the show found the fights boring and the only thing to come out of it was injuries. It was an absolute trainwreck, but in the best kind of way since fans to this day still remember it and laugh at the ridiculousness of it.
If you want to learn more here's a video recapping the entire tournament:
- Mar 14, 2008
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I was watching wrestling at this time and I remember this tournament being on RAW. I actually thought it was pretty cool, even though everyone universally hated it.
Poor old Bart Gunn, if they wanted him to lose so bad to Steve Williams they should've just paid him to take a fall. He gets the cash and no one's the wiser.
- Mar 14, 2008
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Both were better in the 90's / early 2000's ? ;)
Big Pete
International Captain
- Mar 12, 2008
- 32,140
- 25,819
You're right Renegade, at the time it just seemed apropos. Especially when the rival promotion is having PPV matches featuring NBA Superstars and Jay Leno. It wasn't like they were wrestling each other either, they were taking on and beating world champions.
Wrestling was just throwing ideas against the wall and you never knew what was going to happen next.
You could get Mike Tyson one week, the next you'd get a trainwreck like Brawl For All, or a guy getting castrated on live television.
Wrestling was just throwing ideas against the wall and you never knew what was going to happen next.
You could get Mike Tyson one week, the next you'd get a trainwreck like Brawl For All, or a guy getting castrated on live television.
- Jan 25, 2013
- 25,617
- 29,895
Big Pete
International Captain
- Mar 12, 2008
- 32,140
- 25,819
He made the bench for the Mounties in the Ron Massey Cup.
- Jan 25, 2013
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Next 10 year contracted player, just you wait.
