Randy Savage vs. Jushin Liger: I Never Knew This Happened!

One of the fun things that comes with being a fan of any genre are the undiscovered gems you stumble upon. That wow factor kicks into overdrive because it sounds too good to be true when you find something that you never knew existed.

‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage and Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger are two of my favorite professional wrestlers. Up until this past weekend, I would’ve called you a liar if you said they actually wrestled each other. Well, they did in fact tango in the squared circle.

Their one and only encounter took place on July 17, 1996, in Sapporo, Japan, during a New Japan Pro Wrestling tour. Savage was one of four wrestlers representing WCW and hurt his leg on a dive the night before in a losing effort to Ric Flair.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, a sellout crowd 6,400 fans filled the Makomanai Ice Arena as Savage hobbled to the ring for his showdown with the esteemed junior heavyweight. Liger entered next with his usual flash and energy as an admirer handed him a bouquet.

While the match was only eight minutes and really nothing special, it was a nice novelty to see two of the all-time greats dance one time. It was odd seeing Savage being the bigger of the two wrestlers since he was often the smallest guy in the ring.

Despite winning the match with his patented flying elbow drop, Savage really worked to put Liger over as a serious threat. He played defense most of the time due to his leg injury, sold like a champ for the palm strike, and took a Liger Bomb.

Wrestlers have always been expected to wear their working shoes when traveling to Japan. However, looking at the landscape of superstar American heavyweights at the time, I don’t think that many of them would have gone out of their way to make a wrestler in a weight class below look like credible.

It was fun to see Savage out of his element and with Liger. Again, the match is nothing to write home about, but this one time encounter is worth a gander if you a fan of these colorful titans of the mat. The Madness versus The Thunder, Ooh Yeah!

Tag Team Wrestling in ECW

The design of Tag Team wrestling is to increase the amount of action and drama in a particular match. Four wrestlers can pull off certain moves and tell certain stories that two wrestlers alone could never do, such as blind tags and double team maneuvers.

ECW revolutionized the wrestling business in the 90’s with hardcore action, mature storylines, and highly technical and competitive matches showcasing different styles. Their tag team division was not only a pivotal part of the show, but they exuded the essence of the art by increasing the excitement in a promotion that was already extreme.

My latest column at What Culture.com reviews the best tag teams that ever graced the land of extreme. What qualifies someone as being the best? Championships do. Click here to check out 10 Best ECW Tag Team Champions Ever

The Undertaker is One of My All-Time Favorites

The Undertaker is tied with Bret Hart as my all-time favorite wrestler. While his dark side persona has gained him fame the world over, he represented something else to me. The giants of the squared circle often apply dastardly tactics while using their size advantage to steal victories. Taker started the same but quickly became something different, something more. Continue reading “The Undertaker is One of My All-Time Favorites” →

Seth Rollins is a Poor Man’s Randy Orton

I’m going to get some static for this one, but it is my opinion that the WWE world heavyweight championship reign of Seth Rollins, so far, has been flat, dull, and a repetitive loop of the same old song and dance we’ve already seen. Continue reading “Seth Rollins is a Poor Man’s Randy Orton” →

The Ladies Prove Unstoppable in NXT and Hopefully Beyond

“The NXT Women alone are worth more than $9.99.” Lance Storm

Any wrestling fan worth their salt logged on to the WWE Network on Wednesday evening and watched NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable. It was a great night of action and excitement that culminated with the debut of former TNA star Samoa Joe. While Joe’s arrival means a plethora of dream matches for the energetic brand, the women’s championship match featuring Sasha Banks vs. Becky Lynch stole the show.

In fact, they didn’t just steal show, they flat out hijacked it at point blank range. Continue reading “The Ladies Prove Unstoppable in NXT and Hopefully Beyond” →

The WWE Debut of Kevin Owens

What appeared to be another U.S. open challenge suddenly turned into a much more exciting affair as the guitar riffs of the CFO$ song, “Fight”, coursed through the sound system of the Richmond Coliseum. For some, it was an audible invasion of the unknown. For others, it was familiarity at its finest as Kevin Owens unexpectedly emerged on Monday Night Raw. Continue reading “The WWE Debut of Kevin Owens” →

WWE Network Revives The Elimination Chamber

Break out that big ’ol cage! The Elimination Chamber returns as an exclusive WWE Network offering on May 31. This will be the second pay-per-view this month, and will most likely overshadow this Sunday’s Payback event since the event often produces a fun night of wrestling with some memorable moments.

It was reported by the Wrestling Observer that almost nobody watches the older content (I do), so there is no rush to add more of it. However, the most popular offerings happen to be the newer stuff, such as monthly pay-per-views, network specials, and NXT. Last week, Chris Jericho’s interview with Stephanie McMahon was one of the most watched shows. Continue reading “WWE Network Revives The Elimination Chamber” →

Raw Is In-Zayn

The Montréal faithful were loud in their disapproval of John Cena as they sang “John Cena sucks” to the tune of his entrance music. The U.S. open challenge was laid out on foreign soil as chants of “Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole,” filled the Bell Centre, foreshadowing a pending arrival. Much to everyone’s surprise, the legendary Bret Hart came out to introduce “a great wrestler.” The people slid to the edge of their seats with baited breath as Sami Zayn emerged from behind the curtain. Continue reading “Raw Is In-Zayn” →

Meeting the Excellence of Execution: Bret Hart

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Bret Hart is my all-time favorite wrestler and he was my inspiration for trying my hand at professional wrestling. The “Hitman” appeared at a pop culture convention last weekend and I was offered press credentials to cover the event.

I really wanted to meet him. So for the sake of professionalism, I declined the offer. I didn’t know when I’d have another chance to rub shoulders with the “excellence of execution” so in the words of Mike Pono “Dude, be a fanboy for once.”

The thing is, I know so much about his career, I was concerned that I wouldn’t have anything to say or ask. On the drive to the convention center, my wife assuredly stated “Its Bret Hart, I’m sure you’ll think of something.” Continue reading “Meeting the Excellence of Execution: Bret Hart” →

WWE Does Right By Hideo Itami

Last week’s episode of NXT flipped the script as Hideo Itami was made to look like a big deal. He won three highly competitive tournament matches at WrestleMania Axxess to earn a spot in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. As good as that was, the video segment highlighting Itami’s WrestleMania experience was amazing. Continue reading “WWE Does Right By Hideo Itami” →