Interesting... a Voluntary WWE Middle East Tour

[Mr. JL]

Backstage Heat On RVD; Refuses To Attend Middle East Tour


Written by Dougie Nunny on 12/20/2004


We're being told that there is a lot of heat backstage on Rob Vam Dam after he refused to go on the "voluntary" middle east SmackDown! tour. The guys were all told backstage at a meeting last week that the trip was 100% voluntary and it was to be left entirely up to them.

Luther Reigns approached management last week and told them he didn't want to go. WWE talent VP John Laurinaitis then told him that if he didn't go, it would have been a huge mistake because although the tour was optional, Vince McMahon expected everyone to attend. He was basically told in more ways than one that if he didn't go, there would be heat on him After being given a long lecture, Reigns reconsidered and went.

Rob Van Dam on the other hand was a different story. He had absolutely no desire to attend the tour and he didn't. Rob told Laurinaitis last week that he wasn't going and was told to go meet with Vince McMahon. Many WWE employees would have likely reconsidered the idea of not going due to having to meet with the boss. Rob Van Dam went to Vince McMahon though and told him he wasn't going. WWE tried one last time to get him to go and he stood by his ground and never went. WWE management is less than happy with his decision.


credit: wrestling-edge.com

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Thought this was interesting.

[The One]

Meh...If he didn't want to go he didn't want to go. It's not like WWE is going to bury RVD anymore...

[V]

good for RVD

it's obvious they were just trying to say "it's voluntary but you have to go"

which is ridiculous

[loopydate]

Yeah, what damage could they do to him that they haven't already done?

Good for him for not doing something that he didn't want to do. If the guy doesn't want to fly into a war zone to perform, no one should hold it against him.

[Gouda]

Next week on Smackdown: RVD vs. Hardcore Holly.

[Fryza]

Good on Rob. The Man ain't holding him down.

[Volchok]

arent him and Rey tag champs?

[Nervous Ferret]

yep.

[mike627]

Good,for RVD! afterall what are they gonna do put him on velocity?

[Nowhere Man]

Good for RVD. I can't wait to see him and Paul London mix it up on Velocity for all eternity.

[Innovator]

Rey: Hey RVD

RVD: Yoooo Rey whats up

Rey: Yo man mad props to you for sticking up for yourself against Vince, aren't you worried that they're gonna be holding you down now?

RVD: Holding? You holding? Holden Caulfield ahahaha

:shifty:

[Corkscrewed]

lol

Ah, that's just stupid anyway. I hate it when a company pulls the whole "voluntary but we really recommend doing it" bullshit.

Anyway, this prolly means he's losing the strap sometime soon, and will be eliminated by Puder in the Royal Rumble, then be forced into a hardcore bronco buster match with Mae Young, but props to RVD for not putting up with the bullshit.

[Londoner]

Next week on Smackdown: RVD vs. Hardcore Holly.

He could always refuse to turn up, and go to TNA. :D

[Mayo]

Good,for RVD! afterall what are they gonna put him on velocity?Yeah I think they will. Give it a few weeks after he and Rey lose the titles, and there he'll be. I mean, it is stupid of the WWE to say that it is voluntary and then imply that those who don't go will be punished, but would it really be that bad to go there for a few days?

The real reason he doesn't want to go is that he won't be able to find a good dealer over there :shifty:

[The Icon of Elisim]

Anybody else think it might be cool if they use this to turn RVD heel.

I'm just watching the show now and they are talking about how everyone there volunteered to be there. They could use this to turn RVD into an egomaniac charchter, like back in ECW.

[loopydate]

but would it really be that bad to go there for a few days?
Yeah. I can think of a few places I'd rather be than on a base in the middle of a warzone.

[Savio]

He could always refuse to turn up, and go to TNA. :DI think there is a 1 year can't compete contract.

[Shaggy]

Anybody else think it might be cool if they use this to turn RVD heel.

I'm just watching the show now and they are talking about how everyone there volunteered to be there. They could use this to turn RVD into an egomaniac charchter, like back in ECW.


would have to agree with you on this one. WWE could take this time to instead of burying RVD more than they have to turn him into the great he once was. Use this heat and let him ride it to the top. Maybe WWE sees the idea here and hopefully goes for it.

[road doggy dogg]

Yeah it's retarded. No way you could ask me to voluntarily go to Iraq at all. Don't see why RVD should be punished for it, though he probably will be. Oh well he's still the man

[Sickboy]

Next week on Smackdown: RVD vs. Hardcore Holly.

But the good thing is that RVD works quite stiff too sometimes, or at least that's what I've heard, so maybe he could kick Holly's teeth in? :drool:

[The Icon of Elisim]

But the good thing is that RVD works quite stiff too sometimes, or at least that's what I've heard, so maybe he could kick Holly's teeth in? :drool:
I dunno, last time someone injured Hardcore he got a world title push

[Gouda]

But the good thing is that RVD works quite stiff too sometimes, or at least that's what I've heard, so maybe he could kick Holly's teeth in? :drool:

Ah. Good show old chap.

Anyways, saw the show. Real nice gesture to the troops there. However... if I wished to entertain the troops I wouldn't have gave them:

*****SPOILERS AHEAD*******

Hardcore Holly vs. Kenzo Suzuki
Undertaker vs. Heidenreich with no finish.

I would have brought along some of the cruserweights too... Unless maybe the reason why they weren't there is because they all decided not to go...

Another thing... They showed in numerous clip packages JBL walking around being all friendly with the troops, even saying he was great and cheered up all the troops and such...

And then we get him coming out in a bio hazard suit acting all afraid when we know from all the video packages, he isn't. JBL was still hilarious in this segment though. :rofl:

*End spoilers..................... and post*

[Infinite Pigeons]

I would like to go to the middle east.

[M-A-G]

Why not just make it mandatory if it was going to piss the company off so much?

[The CyNick]

Sometimes in life you have to pick your battles. RVD is already a hated man in the company. Heyman I'm sure was pushing to give him a bigger push (hence the DVD coming up), and now that Heyman is on the outs, I'm sure there will be "certain" people looking to drop RVD down even further.

Knowing that RVD should have known that this is a big deal to the WWE, especially Vince and went along.

I really dont get what his problem is on this issue. I guess you could say he feared for his life, which I guess is understandable, but if he didn't go "just cuz" well it kinda makes him a dick. I'm pretty much dead against the war, and I think Bush is a terrorist and should be in the Hague for what he's done, but the kids over in Iraq are victims, and doing stuff to make them happy for a couple of days seems worthwhile. So if it were me, I would have went.

But to actually think this was a "choice" thing is pretty naive on Rob's part.