Biggest Falls From Grace?

[ShawnRhodeIsland]

During pro-wrestling history, many sad things happened that still leave an impression on it's fans. Once respected promotions turned into sinking ships, prestigious titles lost all their credibility due to terrible title holders and booking decisions, big stars who couldn't take the pressure lost battles with their personal demons and of course pro-wrestling has also many times been the subject of negative media attention.

A question I'd like to pose to all of you, is what are some of the biggest falls from grace you have ever seen in pro-wrestling history?

I'm sure we'd all say the Benoit tragedy was one of them but what about also World Class Championship Wrestling becoming a shell of its former self, due in large part to the Von Erich tragedies, and being dissolved into a regional Indy Fed??? That really bothers me.

What are your thoughts?

[Destor]

Benoit

[ShawnRhodeIsland]

I know this is long, and I don't know if you'll want to read it or if you've seen it already, but it's an report by Chris Masters of the Benoit tragedy. It was on Masters' myspace.

What an eerie day it was...

It started two days prior to the announcement for me. Chris & I had our tights done by Rick Michaels. Rick had given a new pair of trunks I had made to Benoit to give to me. Chris was supposed to give those to me at the show we were going to do in Canada. When I got to the arena I was looking for him so I could grab my trunks. No Benoit!

We were under the impression that his kid was sick. Chris was 100% dedicated to wrestling, so it was odd that he would not come, but understandable if his son was ill. The next night was a pay-per view, and still no Benoit. Very odd. Chris Benoit would never miss a big pay-per view, so we figured it might be serious. Vince decided to put the bell on Morrison in light of Benoit's absence, which I thought was awesome since he was a close friend of mine.

RAW the following day...

The next day at RAW TV there was a buzz going around about some odd text messages Chris had sent to Chavo Guerrero and one of the ECW referees. We were preparing for the funeral of Vince that was set to be the primary focus of the show. We all were asked to bring black suits for the supposed death of Vince McMahon. It was around 2:00pm when they gathered everyone ringside. We had no idea what was going on. Just figured it was a meeting just like any other we have had regarding the product and agents giving a refresher regarding dos & don'ts. The first thing I noticed was Randy Orton break out in tears after speaking with Michael Hayes. From there it was a chain reaction of tears, shock, and disbelieve amongst the whole roster. There were no details given about the cause.

My first reaction was exactly what had happened. I mean how many different scenarios can there be: either home invasion or Chris snapping! To be perfectly honest, I respected the hell out of Chris Benoit for being the man that he was but there was always an intense energy coming from him every time I shook his hand. It made for sometimes short and awkward conversations. Not many others shared my thoughts on the possibility of a double murder/suicide. The rest of the day was a daze for me. I stayed to watch some of the tribute show, and then signed autographs for all the fans waiting outside.

Tuesday Smackdown...

I woke up the next morning to a nightmare I had of Chris stabbing his wife. I laid there and stared at the ceiling, hoping and praying that he wasn't responsible for what had happened. I called up Big Daddy V to find out details and news of what was going on. He asked me if I had watched the news yet. I told him I had just woken up to a horrible nightmare. Big V confirmed that nightmare. He told me double murder/suicide at which point my stomach dropped and my hard was beating so fast...It was an indescribable feeling!

We were set to shoot Smackdown that night. It was tentatively set to be matches in honor of Chris, but I knew in my mind I wanted no part of that. I got a call at noon from the office telling me that Vince was having a meeting with all the boys at 1pm. I showed up to the meeting and in light of us discovering the details of what had happened, Vince stated that we would not be doing a tribute show to Chris. Our focus for that night was to go out there, wrestle, and put smiles of peoples faces because that's what we do. We had to move forward!

A couple of hours later, we were all in catering and the news was on. We all watched as everyone was discussing what had happened and if it was steroids or what the cause was. We were all glued to the TV. Apparently we were all the primary focus on the news because of the unfortunate circumstances.

The big question on a lot of people's minds was did WWE have any knowledge of what had happened when they ran the tribute show the first night. Some say yes, most of us don't know; however, I believe that if Vince or the office was aware of the situation, they wouldn't have ran the show that night! When Vince had the meeting with us earlier that day, he had a completely different energy than the night before on RAW. He was definitely very upset about the whole situation!

People have asked me if I think Chris Benoit should be inducted in the Hall of Fame. There's no denying who he was and how much he contributed to the business, but it's hard to imagine praising someone for their acolytes in the ring when that person has committed such a horrible and incomprehensible act! Lets be honest, it would be very awkward and disturbing for all to watch a tribute show and applaud a man knowing that he had killed his wife and 8yr old child!

I'm wrapping up for today, but all you WrestleZone .com marks are welcome to checkout my myspace for any questions or to check out where I'll be next... www.myspace.com/chrismordetzky

See you all next time,

Chris M

[McLegend]

I think Angle has had a pretty big fall from grace

[Chavo Classic]

Dynamite Kid.

Poor bastard

[Chavo Classic]

I think Angle has had a pretty big fall from grace

Yeh, single handedly carrying the number 2 promotion in America with world-wide exposure is a step-down for anyone.

[Mr. JL]

Benoit... easily

[Destor]

Yeh, single handedly carrying the number 2 promotion in America with world-wide exposure is a step-down for anyone.
I agree with you, Angle is still doing great and relevant things, but you have to acknowledge that people's perceptions of him have changed for the drastic worse.

[Heros Welcome]

Its gotta be Benoit.

[FourFifty]

Lex Luger
He had the world on a string and could have been a huge draw today if he would have played his cards right and not get mixed up with drugs.

[FourFifty]

ANYONE WHO STEPS IN TEH RING WITH THA UNDERTAKER!!!!! :mad: *BOING!!!!!*

[Chuck Jones]

Benoit went from the most respected man in wrestling to the most hated in two days. He fell from grace faster than the XFL. Now that is saying something.

[Marc the Smark]

That thing from Chris M is very sad but very informative. You deserve mad props for posting that.

[Hanso Amore]

Dino Bravo

[Indifferent Clox]

[refrains from making a owen hart/ rafters joke]

[Destor]

no you didn't

[ron the dial]

[refrains from making a ric flair/plane crash joke]

[ron the dial]

no i didn't

[St. Jimmy]

I was going to make a joke about Road Warrior Hawk jumping from the titantron, but Beniot.

[BigDaddyCool]

Owen had literally the biggest fall. But yeah, Benoit...or the Von Erics as a family.

[GD]

Lex Luger, Chris Benoit. As a kid I used to look up at guys like Hogan and Warrior...not any more.

[mrslackalack]

Benoit

[ShawnRhodeIsland]

It seems like most of us are saying Benoit and a couple of you said other things. Can we think of anything else? Any fans of WCCW here?

[ron the dial]

I bought Heroes of World Class a while back and it is one of the saddest thing I've ever seen.

[El Fangel]

Shane off the Titrontron to Kane was the biggest I have witnessed.

[Anybody Thrilla]

Jake Roberts maybe.

[El Fangel]

I agree.

Also Terry Funk.

[Nark Order]

The Ultimate Warrior

[El Fangel]

The Ultimate Warrior

How the fuck was he forgotten?

[Hanso Amore]

Hey Indifferent, go Klox your self

[Dave Youell]

The Ultimate Warrior

The guy that signed onto 4 different big money contracts with 2 of the biggest company on the planet, made a ton of money and left when he was still healthy?

Granted the man’s opinions are insane, but he didn’t have a fall from grace, he was a very smart man who made a lot of money and got out of the business when still healthy, if anything I’d say he’s the exact opposite of a fall from grace

[Dave Youell]

Oh and I go for Ricky Morton

[Indifferent Clox]

Hey Indifferent, go Klox your self

That made no sense whatsoever.

I know the Navy got you into dick, but it doesn't mean you have to be one.

[Bad Company]

Mike Awesome is up there.

[ozzman6669]

Being from Québec I would say that it was pretty sad when Dino Bravo got shot.
The Von Erich family
Chris Benoit
Jake the snake Roberts
Lex Luger

[.44 Magdalene]

That made no sense whatsoever.

I know the Navy got you into dick, but it doesn't mean you have to be one.


Wait... if the Navy gets you into dick, and you were in the Navy...

[.44 Magdalene]

Also, I have to side with Benoit, Luger, or Jake.

[.44 Magdalene]

Mike Awesome is a much smaller fall, not because he didn't fall any lower than the other guys, but because he had a much lower place to fall from...

[NeanderCarl]

Re: Ultimate Warrior
The guy that signed onto 4 different big money contracts with 2 of the biggest company on the planet, made a ton of money and left when he was still healthy?

And each comeback he made meant a little bit less than the last one. The only reason he walked away while he was still healthy is because no fucker would book him anymore.

I'm sure Vince would love to have him on board as one of his sporadic-appearance Legends nowadays, but Warrior would probably demand $1m per booking or something preposterous.

[Dave Youell]

Re: Ultimate Warrior


And each comeback he made meant a little bit less than the last one. The only reason he walked away while he was still healthy is because no fucker would book him anymore.

I'm sure Vince would love to have him on board as one of his sporadic-appearance Legends nowadays, but Warrior would probably demand $1m per booking or something preposterous.

Trust me, he was still getting offers that he turned down, he was smart enough with money to set himself up for life.

The guy is insane, but wise with dough

[NeanderCarl]

Vince McMahon made absolutely no effort to sign Warrior, even when he heard WCW was negotiating with him. At the height of the Monday Night Wars, that speaks for itself.

Barring a spike on his first night, Warrior had no positive effect whatsoever on WCW's ratings, and the trend even implied that fans switched off during his quarter-hour breakdowns, if my memory does serve me correctly.

He managed to injure himself during a run-in, his barmy ideas led to ridiculous gimmicks and the injury which ultimately ended Davey Boy Smith's career, and the sole singles match he wrestled during his million dollar contract with WCW was so bad that, save one tag team match which was also the pits, they actually sent him home to sit out the remainder of his huge contract rather than have him fuck up their show any more than he already had done.

After all that, do you really think anybody would be stupid enough to want to book Warrior??

If you answered "yes", you'd be spot on.... that somebody who was "stupid" enough was Vince Russo, who thought the answer to all of WCW's problems in 2000 was a Goldberg vs Warrior match.

Luckily, either somebody higher up the totem pole put the kibosh on it, or Warrior demanded far too much moolah or simply wasn't interested, but when the only man who has tried to book you as a wrestler in a big-league promotion in nearly a decade is Vince Russo, I'd say you're pretty much blackballed.

As a footnote, watch Warrior show up on TNA next month, just to prove:
a) me wrong
b) what a moron Russo is.

[Dave Youell]

See, WCW paid him $1,000,000 to wrestle a handful of matches, tell me that's not great business for Hellwig

[Loose Cannon]

why don't we just say about 60% of past wrestlers and call it a day

[NeanderCarl]

See, WCW paid him $1,000,000 to wrestle a handful of matches, tell me that's not great business for Hellwig

Well... depends how you see it. Genius business move by Hellwig, or typical business ignorance by WCW.

Don't forget, this was a company that had The Genius and Nailz sitting at home collecting pay checks for a decade, wrestling a combined ONE match between the two of them during that entire time.

[Jordan]

Benoit of course is number 1.
Lex Luger was a huge decline as well, I mean he kinda killed Elizabeth, kinda.

[Dave Youell]

Well... depends how you see it. Genius business move by Hellwig, or typical business ignorance by WCW.

Don't forget, this was a company that had The Genius and Nailz sitting at home collecting pay checks for a decade, wrestling a combined ONE match between the two of them during that entire time.

I say Warrior knew how shit he was, took the big money deal and was hideous on purpose to sit at home with his mountains of money

[NeanderCarl]

If I accept that possibility, what was his excuse for the other 10 years he spent in the business?

[Dave Youell]

If I accept that possibility, what was his excuse for the other 10 years he spent in the business?

Building his own image so he could make $1,000,000

I admit it was probably as much luck as anything else.

I just don't think of him when i think of a fall from grace, he left wrestling with millions of dollars and is still doing ok for himself

Guys like Ricky Morton just got out of jail for 5 months for not paying child support

[NeanderCarl]

Even though he still has a contract in the big league, I'd still consider Ric Flair a fall from grace.

The man widely touted as the greatest wrestler of all-time in his prime has been portrayed in recent years as a virtual jobber.

To new fans unaware of the history of the business, Ric Flair is the old man with the thinning hair, preposterous tan and homosexual robes, who inexplicably drags his flabby physique into the ring on a weekly basis to suffer another loss (until the recent angle began, anyway). The man who once could work a five star match with a broomstick can't even hold up his end of a two-star match, despite the repeated propaganda that he can "still outwork 90% of the roster".

If he had retired a decade ago, and settled into another role, he would have been remembered as one of the greatest of all time, but to fans who only recently got into wrestling, this is the Ric Flair they will remember, and to those who followed his career and know how great he once was, his image is still forever tarnished as the "great wrestler who never knew when to hang it up".

[NeanderCarl]

His last memorable match was the cage match against Randy Orton in 2004... nearly 4 years ago. His last outstanding match was probably against Bret Hart in 1998. A DECADE ago. His last consistantly great year was 1992. Sixteen years ago.

It's a real sad sight.

[Goulet]

Just another to add... not to say he's fallen further than others mentioned here but you'd have to include Bret Hart... He went from WWF Champion to the screwjob, to being wasted in WCW to having his brother die in the ring to having Goldberg carelessly end his career to having a stroke in the span of less than 5 years.

[Loose Cannon]

yea, basically what most of you are posting is that these wrestlers stick around wayyy past thier prime. And they have no business doing so. Guys like Flair, Foley, Austin, Piper and tons more are examples.

Rock would be the total opposite

[NeanderCarl]

Just another to add... not to say he's fallen further than others mentioned here but you'd have to include Bret Hart... He went from WWF Champion to the screwjob, to being wasted in WCW to having his brother die in the ring to having Goldberg carelessly end his career to having a stroke in the span of less than 5 years.

More like 2 years. He was WWF Champion in November 97 and suffered the Goldberg injury in December 1999.

[The MAC]

yes, but being wasted in wcw,getting kicked in the head by an idiot and having a stroke was not self inflicted like most mentions in this thread. I left out the screw job because some of you idiots will turn this into a 10 page thread about "bret screwed bret"

[DaVe]

some of you idiots will turn this into a 10 page thread about "bret screwed bret"

Yeah, I'm sure that would have happened.=/

[Marc the Smark]

Bret Screwed Bret. :yes:

[ShawnRhodeIsland]

What about the National Wrestling Alliance? This alliance of multiple territories and promotions was once the most powerful and most important company in the world and the NWA had an influence and monopoly on the business every promoter could only dream of having. After years of playing second fiddle in the 80's to the internationally-expanding WWE, WCW withdrew from the NWA in September, 1993 which was the nail in the coffin for what was once the premiere company for multiple decades. After that, the NWA consisted of multiple regional independent promotions and still fail in becoming a force again.

The NWA World Heavyweight Title. Like the company it was once the crown jewel of, the NWA World Heavyweight Title lost all its credibility and prestige during the years. Once regarded as the real World Heavyweight Title for decades, held by some of the biggest names in the business and defended all over the world, it became a total joke during the 1990's. Living on its past glory and name value, the NWA Title lost its status as a World Title and was defended on sleazy indy events for years. Some of its holders in the 1990's are some of the worst World Champions of all-time and were never main-event material to begin with. Even to this very day, the title continues to be a prop whored out to has-beens, never-were's, indy scrubs, jobbers and glorified midcarders who never were seen as legit in the big leagues. The days of press conferences are long gone, and the NWA now seems to hype up title matches on YouTube.

[.44 Magdalene]

Bret Screwed Bret. :yes:



:rant:

[NeanderCarl]

Randy Savage?

For 15 years, a regular in the big leagues. One of the most recognizable wrestling names of all time. A two time WWF World Champion. A three time WCW World Champion. A former WWF Intercontinental Champion. A commentator on cable's highest rated show. A pop culture icon. A Slim Jim spokesman. Son of a WCW Hall of Famer. Million dollar contracts. Mainstream acknowledgement. Movie roles.

But, I dunno, you fuck one kid....

[.44 Magdalene]

What?



He's a totally credible rapper now.

[NeanderCarl]

Word.

[NeanderCarl]

Hot diggity damn, Hulk!

[.44 Magdalene]

OOOH Yeah we're about to put this thing in motion
We'll hit ya so hard you'll have a body convulsion

[NeanderCarl]

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This is so stupid it made me laugh.

[ShawnRhodeIsland]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jx4GjIPTEvU

Does anyone know what the FUCK he is talking about here??

[NeanderCarl]

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Best Savage interview ever!