Spankys left WWE!!!!!!!

[Darwin Henderson]

From 1Wrestling

Brian “Spanky” Kendrick gave WWE his notice last night at the Smackdown taping. I am not sure when he will finish out with the company, but people close to him have been telling us for a while now that he has not been happy with his mostly nonexistent role in the company. After a nice initial push, the company has largely ignored the talented young worker.

It’s interesting to note that a number of the wrestlers were talking about Spanky leaving WWE, on his own terms, at Smackdown last night. With talk of the annual winter talent cuts being on the minds of many in WWE of late, Spanky’s move shocked a lot of people. I have talked to three people in the company who have told me that the respect his decision, pointing out that for many young wrestlers, the dream of going to work for WWE has almost turned into a nightmare once they get there. Mike Johnson will have more on this story shortly.



As Dave Scherer noted earlier today on the Newsline, Brian Kendrick, known professionally as Spanky, has given notice and I was told last night was his final night with the company.

Kendrick requested to be released on Tuesday 1/13 at 4 PM while at the Smackdown tapings as he wanted to go back to ZERO-ONE in Japan, where he had been a regular under the ring name Leonardo Spanky. He had been scheduled to work the taping with Paul London for this Saturday's Velocity against Akio and Sakoda, but once he asked for his release, they instead booked London to work a dark match against Akio.

ZERO-ONE has Kendrick scheduled to return shortly. He is expected to be a full-time gaijin again along with Steve Corino, Tom Howard, The Predator, and Low Ki.

I am told Kendrick's request being granted is an amicable situation, so the door is open for his return down the line as WWE management was impressed with the way he handled the situation.

Kendrick, who was trained by Shawn Michaels and Rudy Boy Gonzales, signed with WWE in October 2002. He had received a short Cruiserweight push under his real name prior to Wrestlemania 19 before morphing into his longtime persona Spanky during an angle with John Cena.

In recent months, he had been paired on the Smackdown roster with another Gonzales trainee, Paul London as a babyface tag team, working mostly on Velocity. Kendrick had been under a developmental deal several years back but was released.

As Dave noted on the Newsline, there is more and more unhappiness among undercard wrestlers who feel they aren't getting their shot. Many of the veterans in the company will advise them that they have to grab their shot and not wait for it to be handed to them. At the same time, they are frustrated because of the feeling that it's impossible to grab anything when week after week the creative team tells them, "We don't have anything for you right now." That frustration worsens when suggestions the wrestlers make to the creative team (In essence helping them do their job) are shot down as well.

One wrestler likened it to me as watching the New York Yankees your entire life and making your way to the team to sit on the bench for an entire season. When you think about it, Spanky is following the veterans' advice, and grabbing his shot, just outside of WWE.

[The CyNick]

Its WCW all over again when talented guys like Spanky cant get a spot on one of the big shows.

I'm glad he left, its good to see that guys have some options and dont have to deal with the crap that goes on in the WWE. At least now he'll be used to his capabilities.

On a side note, I guess this could be the end for Paul London, unless maybe they throw him with Kidman or something.

[Darwin Henderson]

If only everyone who was misued left

[Kane Knight]

:y: Good for him. He's been wasted, and he was awesome when he did get time.

[Fryza]

He should have just treated the WWE like the MLB, and went on strike with the other misused workers. Then when Vince tries to fire them or what not, BAM, WWE Labor Union (and no, not gimmick wise).

[Kane Knight]

He should have just treated the WWE like the MLB, and went on strike with the other misused workers. Then when Vince tries to fire them or what not, BAM, WWE Labor Union (and no, not gimmick wise).

I'm not so sure a Union could ever be formed.

[Fryza]

I'm not so sure a Union could ever be formed.

But Shamrock, Show, and Foley did once. :( :shifty:

[Head]

Damn, I really liked Spanky.

He could have been a great addition to the Cruiserweight division if he got some air time.

[John la Rock]

There goes the idea of Paul London and Spanky wrestling at Wrestlemania XX :shifty:

[wrestling_god]

But Shamrock, Show, and Foley did once. :( :shifty:
and al snow


the job squad ruled ass

[Kane Knight]

But Shamrock, Show, and Foley did once. :( :shifty:

And look how far they got.

[Mike the Metal Ed]

<img src="http://www.danasoft.com/sig/uglybob687.jpg">

:(

(Just refresh until the relevent sign comes up.)

[Kane Knight]

Damn, I really liked Spanky.

He could have been a great addition to the Cruiserweight division if he got some air time.

Why would they do that when we could see another 30 Noble vs. Tajiri matches?

Sorry, I love Tajiri, bt the fact that they ran the same match for like 6 months just shows the state of the CW scene. While I'm thankful to see Rey rey with a title, they did their best to make the CW scene pretty bland before he landed it...And with the fact that most CWs don't see much action at all...

[Ricky]

I always thought he was shit anyway.

[Savio]

But Shamrock, Show, and Foley did once. :( :shifty:

Some one else was in it maybe 2 other people but who?.....

[Loose Cannon]

Some one else was in it maybe 2 other people but who?.....

Test

[Kenny]

God damn it.. I liked Spanky as well.

The WWE needs to start using these lightweights already. :mad:

[Savio]

Test
Was there another one? I remember them having a survivoir series match with the corp.

[Kane Knight]

God damn it.. I liked Spanky as well.

The WWE needs to start using these lightweights already. :mad:

On the upside, it's good for Spanky, so it's not totally bad news.

Had he stayed with the WWE, he would have stayed unfeatured. At least this way, he'll be a regular somewhere...

[Mr. JL]

I like Spanky's decision to leave the company. If he's not being used right and feels the situation he was in, just wasn't acceptable for him then he should leave. It is just better for the locker room and more superstars should actually leave, instead of just complaining about things, just leave.

I hope its a sign of things to come.

[Boondock Saint]

Vince was kind of part of it...

[Corkscrewed]

I totally respect Spanky's decision. He definitely has the talent to be used, but like the other Cruisers, he's getting nothing. It sucks, because they have an actual CW division now, but they refuse to use it. It's still the same four guys on the scene, which really sucks.

[loopydate]

I agree with most of what's been said here. Bravo to Kendrick for standing up for himself. Maybe if enough guys grab the bull by the horns and walk out, something will click in Vince's head that maybe he's doing something wrong.

Then again...no. It wouldn't.

But, still, Kendrick's doing the right thing. He can go anywhere else in the world and be a top star for them, and he can join D'Lo Brown, Raven, Ron Killings, and however many other released WWE talents who have gone on to main-event other big promotions.

I will miss that Spanky/London team, though.

[Mikey]

Damn, I really liked Spanky.

He could have been a great addition to the Cruiserweight division if he got some air time.

I completly agree. He would of been a great asset to the Cruiserweight Division. Right now it looks like the Cruiserwieght division is a 3 man race.(Misterio, Noble and Tajiri) The others are not on TV or being misused. They need to expand the division as much as possible if the want the Cruiserweight belt to be legit

[Nowhere Man]

Well, on the up-side, at least now I'll get to see him do all those really cool moves he used to do. Now if only London will join him. I thought they made a pretty damn good tag team, and it's not like WWE's going to do anything with him.

[Russell Crowe]

Was there another one? I remember them having a survivoir series match with the corp.

4 vs 4. Mankind, Test, Shamrock and Big Show vs Viscera, Mideon, Faarooq and Bradshaw, part of the Corporate Ministry.

And CEO Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock were kind of allied with each other and The Union because of their rivalries with Vince, Shane, Triple H and THe Undertaker.

And BTW, if every misused talent walked from WWE, the roster would be A-Train, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Big Show and Vince.

[Kane Knight]

I agree with most of what's been said here. Bravo to Kendrick for standing up for himself. Maybe if enough guys grab the bull by the horns and walk out, something will click in Vince's head that maybe he's doing something wrong.

Then again...no. It wouldn't.

Actually, I bet Vince had a rather solid hard-on while Spanky was quitting.

The WWE has no place for talented wrestlers when you can get the Big Show in the main event.

I think it'd be great, but would the WWE give a damn if people they're not even using leave? I don't think there are enough misused people in key spots to make a difference, and with so many pro wrestlers willing to sell their souls to make it big...

[Kane Knight]

I completly agree. He would of been a great asset to the Cruiserweight Division. Right now it looks like the Cruiserwieght division is a 3 man race.(Misterio, Noble and Tajiri) The others are not on TV or being misused. They need to expand the division as much as possible if the want the Cruiserweight belt to be legit

Mmmmm...Real cruiserweight division...

*Climaxes*

Sorry, it was one of the few reasons I'd watch WcW most of the time.

[Good Ol JG]

I think Spanky needs to go to TNA and join the X Division. Spanky VS Michael Shane would kick so much ass...

[Savio]

Spanky wasn't that good

[Fryza]

and al snow


the job squad ruled ass

:wtf: Wrong stable buddy..

[Fox]

I'm both pissed off, and happy for Spanky at the same time.

Pissed off because I won't get to see him wrestle anymore, since I don't watch NWA-TNA, but happy that he got out of there before he fell into a black hole like Kidman, London, Ultimo and Rhyno have (not to mention about a dozen others).

And Spanky was damn good. The kid was trained by Shawn Michaels, and it really showed when he was in the ring. He had great charisma, great ring presence, and was really entertaining to watch. I'll never understand why Vince would put A-Train or Big show ahead of this kid.

[BigGammy v1.0]

Looks like Spanky is the first of what could be several cuts in the cruiserweight division...

[RGWhat316]

I think he did what was best for him, and he felt he was misused. The last time I remember seeing him on the Thursday SmackDown show was Thanksgiving when he was dressed up like a turkey. Unfortunately Spanky's quitting will probably get the ball rolling for other stars like Ultimo Dragon.

[Corkscrewed]

I should have wished for a real CW division last Christmas... :(

[Kane Knight]

I should have wished for a real CW division last Christmas... :(

You know, Saints can work miracles, but I don't think this one's within the scope of Saint Nick...

[Geoff MacDonald]

The really sad part here, is that Spanky was over. I live in London, Ontario, Canada. There was a Smackdown TV taping last year that had the 5 minute Kurt Angle challenge Spanky had to go through to win his spot. Man, that guy was SUPER over. Even after losing that challenge, he was still really over with the London crowd. What a waste. Just another reminder why I don't really watch much Smackdown anymore.

[KayfabeMan]

Good for Kendrick :y:

He can now use the "name" he made for himself as part of the WWE
to tour internationally,and book lots of dates nationally in the US (so
long as he stays reasonable).

On the indy scene,he can make: A} more money AND B} a better name
for himself. Congrats to him,for getting out while he still could :y:

[FourFifty]

*cries*

[moshingfreak]

Just after I make a CAW of him on HCTP, he leaves.

Man, someone needs to go to NWA with shitloads of money and build it up with all the miss-used talent from WWE.

(I smell a "Create Your Own Fed" topic coming up)

(meh, im too lazy)

[TazroK]

I'm glad hes leaving. 1 less time, I have to change the channel while watching Smackdown.

[moshingfreak]

I'm glad hes leaving. 1 less time, I have to change the channel while watching Smackdown.
What are you on about. Spankster was DA man.

[Paranoid Rattlesnake]

What the hell did you expect with a name like spanky???

[#1-norm-fan]

I love Spanky, even moreso now. And the way he handled it was pretty mature from what I've heard. I do agree with not pushing many cruiserweights to main event status but he and Paul London as a serious contender for the tag titles would have been perfect.

How great would it have been to see a London/Spanky - World's Greatest Tag Team feud for the titles.

[Sephiroth]

Just after I make a CAW of him on HCTP, he leaves.

Man, someone needs to go to NWA with shitloads of money and build it up with all the miss-used talent from WWE.

(I smell a "Create Your Own Fed" topic coming up)

(meh, im too lazy)

Yeah i just created his CAW in HCTP, and he leaves...the pain,the pain :'( Dammit let me smack vinnie mac with my new CAW, should make me feel better :shifty:

[Kane Knight]

What the hell did you expect with a name like spanky???

Hairy palms and a seeing-eye dog?

[BigDaddyCool]

meh, I won't miss him, cruiseweights are kind of gay anyhow.

[SuperSlim]

another underused talent is not leaving. sad

[The Outlaw]

WHo?

Sorry I haven't been watching it much lately.