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UFC 81

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ChadTower:

It was notable that the ring announcer called him an NCAA champion and a former WWE superstar... but not a former WWE champion.  Guess they didn't want people thinking about the championship concept in pro wrestling.  During the hype bits they did show him with the WWE belt and called him a former WWE champion.

hulkster:

--- Quote from: Jouster on February 05, 2008, 03:32:46 pm ---..I actually said to the TV that I hope the UFC doesn't turn in to a joke like pro wrestling.

Jouster

--- End quote ---

well as a former fan of "pro" wrestling, it never really took itself serious to begin with.  so to call it a joke is really unfair, because its not trying to be serious in the sense of the word.  vince mcmahon always says that he is "in the entertainment business" not in the wrestling business.  he knows the difference in "real" wrestling and what he does.  he incorporates real wrestling and athleticism with scripted events.  its not a joke, its just like a movie or a soap opera. 

would you call movies a joke to real life?  is the Terminator a pathetic excuse for real post apocalyptic events??  no, its just a movie, and its fake, and everyone knows it is, but its a movie and entertains for that purpose alone.  thats all the wwe is, and all it ever was.  ufc is much more brutal and guys will get knocked out and cut and broken bones and stuff, but they arent doing backflips off the top of a ladder through a table either.  both have their niche audience.

ChadTower:

--- Quote from: hulkster on February 06, 2008, 08:37:28 am ---well as a former fan of "pro" wrestling, it never really took itself serious to begin with.

--- End quote ---

For over 100 years the pro wrestling business took itself so seriously that a pro wrestler would beat the ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- out of you in a bar if you questioned the integrity of the "sport".  The entertainment nature of pro wrestling was a very very closely protected secret.  It is only in the last 10-12 years that the actual nature of pro wrestling has been open for the general public to see.

IIRC it mostly started around 1994 when WCW started holding television tapings months in advance, with live crowds, that included title changes that wouldn't be acknowledged until a couple of months later.  The business had been shifting a little but that was the first open exposure to the "internet public". 

shardian:

--- Quote from: ChadTower on February 06, 2008, 08:58:40 am ---For over 100 years the pro wrestling business took itself so seriously that a pro wrestler would beat the ---Cleveland steamer--- out of you in a bar if you questioned the integrity of the "sport".  The entertainment nature of pro wrestling was a very very closely protected secret.  It is only in the last 10-12 years that the actual nature of pro wrestling has been open for the general public to see.

--- End quote ---

Oh man, back in the 60's and 70's, wrestling was a HARDCORE serious sport for fans. I remember seeing a documentary that detailed the Andy Kaufman - Jerry Lawler feud in Memphis Wrestling. The majority of fans were old women, and those old women were PISSED at Kaufman to the point they would probably beat him with their purse if they saw him in public.

It has always been a big deal in Mexico and Japan too - more so than in the States.

ChadTower:
This is why a lot of pro wrestlers used to have criminal records and a history of violence in real life.  If they wanted to succeed in the business, they had to follow its rules, which included severe reactions to people asking insider questions in the wrong context. 

For the most part it was the advent of the internet that brought about the downfall of that era of pro wrestling.  TV tapings had been held for many years, but all of a sudden, information could be spread all over the world in a day or less.  A person from the taping would send results in to a web page and suddenly everyone knew two months ahead of time that Rick Rude was going to be the WCW Heavyweight Champion and on what date it would happen.  WCW didn't anticipate that - and they couldn't do anything about it.  They didn't have the money to adjust after banking everything they had left on booking Disney facilities and taping 3 months' of TV in advance.

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