Is Bobby Lashley any good?
 

I've seen maybe 2 of his matches, and they kinda sucked, but anyone can have a bad day.

He has some potential but he's been pushed way too fast. His ring psychology and personality are near nonexistent at this point.

no.

Amed Johnson.

Brock Lesnar.

That's better.

He can be carried to a good match.

He has the tools. He just hasn't fully learned to utilize them. His mic skills are also suffering but who says he needs to talk.

Lashley is good. Well, he has the potential to be good. He's got an amateur wrestling background, and he used to work 20-minute matches with guys like Finlay and King Booker on a week-to-week basis on SmackDown!. That's where he should still be.

A heel turn with Lashley, with a mouthpiece and a feud with Chris Benoit over the United States Championship would have been a thing of beauty.

No he is shite.

Lashley is pretty terrible. Even Jesse Jackson says he's pretty bad.

Well he's certainly no Monty Brown.....

...PERIOD!

Comparing shit to dhiarria doesn't make shit any better.

Comparing Hippophants to Hammers doesn't make sense.

Quoted AND highlighted cause this perfectly describes Lashley.

I hate his voice, I know he's educated and a really clever guy, but when he talks he sounds like a fuckin' prissy simpleton.

He's really green yes. But he oozes charisma, don't kid yourselves. Can he talk? Nah. Guess what? That has nothing to with charisma.

Lashley isn't half as bad as he's made out to be.

He only started to get heat when they put him on ECW. Before that no one gave him shit, now he's the anti-Christ.

He shouldn't have been champ yet though.

He's not good enough to be IC champ?

Yeah, that's not his fault. They shouldn't have put him in ECW either nevermind make him champ.

I mean how much different is the ECW from the IC belt? Not much.

I meant ECW champ. He shouldn't have any world title yet even if the belt doesn't mean much these days.

My point exactly. If they want it to be seen as the ECW World championship, they should treat it that way. It shouldn't be like a mid card belt.

ANd he IS more credible the EVERYONE on the ECW roster save RVD.

Explain to me why I should blame Lashley for that.

Raw Tag Team Championship > ECW World Title.

You shouldn't. I did say 'it's not Lashley's fault'.

Good point.

I like Lashley. He's got potential, but he's pulling it all together enough.

Yeah he is. Having said that though, his stuff with Umaga this week made me want to see their match at Mania.

I won't lie. Me too.

Bobby Lashley's suicide dive into the steel cage was hilarious in a way. That's not an insult on Lashley, it was just so funny to see him leap into it like that, and then crash out. I liked it. That's the kind of energy Bobby Lashley had when he squashed Simon Dean in his very first WWE match.

Lashley has got so much potential, but he is being pushed way to fast for his own good. It's almost heartbreaking, because you know he's going to stay there, and he's going to be booed for months until people just give in and accept he's there to stay. It's not the way things should be done, and it's fucked up the WWE picks and chooses which guys to market themselves on.

Bobby Lashley's performance on SmackDown! was...mmm. When Vince McMahon slapped him, Lashley gave him the funniest look. It was hilarious. It was the kind of face Wayne Brady pulled on Whose Line is it Anyway when he played a pissed-off grandma. It was that deliberate. If it was intended for comedy purposes, it would have been decent (he's certainly no Wayne Brady in the performing department), but it was meant to be serious. When Mr. Kennedy followed it up by having a promo exchange with Vince McMahon, my thoughts were "Kennedy is so much better than Lashley."

When he gets into the ring is when he shines best, but he is still finding his style. When he does get it down, he will be able to draw people into his matches really well, but right now he's a pre-schooler playing with adult wrestlers, and it's just upsetting to see.

He should make that his gimmick. When he cuts promos, bust out: "Mr. Umaga, do you know what I'm going to do to you? Please do not find offence in this, I am mainly presenting my attentions to you in an earnest manner. I'm going to...as the very peculiar metaphor, in it's disposition to be very close in terms of thematic concept to what it represents...kick your ass. Mr. Estrada, would you kindly translate for Mr. Umaga as kindly as would be appropraite. Thank you very much."

Another observation about Bobby Lashley's SmackDown! work. After he finished his match, his walk to the back was routine. If Bobby Lashley is really like that, my apologies, but it just didn't seem "in character" as much as it seemed "try to melt the hearts of the women and children." Another John Cena we have.

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Jeritron again.

i don't mind him.

but he's been pushed way too fast (like everyone has said), so its just a shame.

If he was still making his way up,maybe with the US title or something similar, I'd say he'd b getting a far better reaction that he is now.

Also, ECW isn't good for him because Tazz and joey styles can't get any1 over (prolly more a fault of wwe than styles and tazz)

He has been pushed quickly, and too soon. But it must be realized that the ECW belt push isn't on the same level as being pushed as a world champion on the other brands.
The problem is, his push isn't credible. Because other than the Big Show, he hasn't gone over anyone big. He was going over the same level of superstars on the midcard on Smackdown. So how is he supposed to be elevated as a champion?

Having him beat up on Holly or Test week in week out isn't making him credible, or the belt. He needed to be pushed as a heel and be involved in fueds with established talent. He should have gone over the Big Show 1 on 1. And he should have immediately gone into a believable fued with RVD or Benoit.
He should also be featured on Raw more, even though he's ECW.
Plus the ECW belt is honestly no more credible than the US and IC titles.

The way in which he's been pushed has been faulty, and premature. You can't make a superstar with a belt that isn't made yet. But its unfortunate that he takes the blame for this.

The long short of it is probably that they should focus on getting the brand and its only (world) title over as a whole, before they try to use it as a tool to get individual superstars over.

If its a third rate show with a third rate belt, and there is no credibility to being the top dog yet, making someone who's not established the top guy isn't going to elevate them or the brand.

Lashley going over Big Show didn't make Lashley seem more credible, it just made Big Show seem weak. If they were going to have Big Show give Lashley the belt then at least have it built up more to the point where maybe it could have made Lashley look good. They're trying to make Lashley seem like Goldberg but he's just simply not Goldberg. I know he's really big and got big muscles but he can't pull off looking powerful. Honestly, Batista doesn't look so powerful to me either. I think Bobby Lashley would be better off if they made him look fast, tough and smart instead of trying to be Black Lesnar.

The thing is though, Goldberg was Goldberg because of the way he was pushed. It was because of a lot of simple things coming together in a major way to make him "Goldberg".
If Lashley was pushed identically in his shoes, he may have been huge too. I like Goldberg, but he is no Rock.

Lashley would have looked good if they hyped him up more before his jump to ECW, and then ahd him beat Big Show in a program. Not out of the blue in their first meeting. Then you need to have him beat guys who aren't Velocity wrestlers.

This is all about booking, not Lashley.

:y:

Lashley is a talented young wrestler with a good background. but he has been carried too far too early

I also think hes floundering because of HOW and WHERE, and with what resources he's being pushed, rather than the fact that he is.

ECW's world title and main event scene are not powerful enough to propel a young star, its just not an established tool for creating stars. An already established superstar needs to make that belt, before that belt can even play a role in establishing any young superstar. Also, the show has no crop of credible main eventers for said superstar to go over, especially a fellow uncredible one.

Also, the show is C-brand and the booking is horrendous. Going over Test and Holly 20 times over and over again is accomplishing just as little as it did once. Him going over JBL for the US title was a bigger rub for christsakes.
Beating up on midcarders in a sham main event doesn't propel anything. Especially when its a first time main eventer doing the squashing. So he he's stomping on shit all day. Great, he's proven that he's better than shit and can smash it into the ground, but in doing so it just leaves him and the title with the lingering stink of shit on them.

I've said it before, beating Hardcore Holly 20 times isn't half the rub of losing to Taker.

But mainly, this whole problem with his push and the ECW title picture represents failings with the ECW product, booking, use of talent and other factors.
It in no way reflects on Lashley, or his abilities. He's no Kurt Angle in the ring, and he's not The Rock, but he is what he is and he's not god awful. He should be booked to his strengths and booked well.

It all comes down to the WWEs shortcomings and not Bobby Lashley. Unfortunatley some can't see the many factors at work here and just resolve that Lashley sucks. Which is a shame, because even though Lashley is not a 5 star wrestler, or a big talker, he IS charismatic. Its about the charisma and presence he exudes in the ring, not words for those of you who think thats charisma.

He's a decent worker. I don't care what anyone says, his style is that of what he is. And he's simply not a goat. But thats okay. There is a place for a silent, dominant big man in pro wrestling still. Even if Vince has turned you off to that idea.

I dont know why, but while reading Jeritron's post, I pictured Bobby Lashley staring down Stone Cold Steve Austin in the ring, and I can imagine electricity. Sure, it won't go anywhere, but I remember back in the day when the WWE used to be able to harness that electricity.

Lashley really is being pushed too fast. That really cannot be stated enough. He needs to a good solid run in the mid-card on RAW.

Vince McMahon should strip Bobby Lashley of the ECW World Championship. Make no excuse for it, just have him do it. The ECW Title is no more than a prop, and I think it would be more interestingly served in the New Breed vs. Originals feud, and it could help get guys like Elijah Burke, Matt Striker, Kevin Thorn and Marcus Cor Von some pedigree for when they come over from ECW.

Bobby Lashley should in turn cost Umaga the WWE Intercontinental Championship. Have Umaga vs. Lashley be completely titleless. The feud will work a lot better that way, and the fans won't get confused by who is holding what, and why, and they can focus simply on the performers. Give Lashley the big win, and then have him move over to RAW and get some more exposure before moving up.

Of course, the WWE won't do that, and this time next year, we'll be talking about how the WWE dropped the ball with Lashley and Umaga.

Mostly agreed, but the ECW title is gonna do even less for Elijah Burke, Kevin Thorn and Marcus Cor von than it would for Lashley.

Not to mention how much more it would make the things I spoke about regarding the brand and the belts credibility.

Thats because they had Austin types. Lashley in a fued with Austin, Rock, HHH, Angle or whoever would get him over. He wouldnt run away with it, he'd just be a dominant heel for them to clash with.
But it'd get him over.
Thats what the problem is now, you could stick Lashley in a fued with Batista or Cena and it'd just be meh.

That's the problem with the WWE as a whole. Another is the way the WWE picks and chooses who they will make "stars". The WWE should listen to the fans and see who they want to see pushed.

Matt Hardy was the most over babyface the WWE had in 2005. He was potential cash. The WWE cut him off just because he wasn't a John Cena, yet they pushed Cena despite everything but "Die, Johnny, die" chants (which should totally be brought in).

It's also a little sad that Batista, John Cena and Bobby Lashley should all be heels at the moment. They're also going into WrestleMania with the World Championships. That's like three babyface World Champions heading into WrestleMania. Back in the day, you wouldn't even have one.

good point with the last comment

champions going into wrestlemania
22: face face
21: heel heel
20: face heel
19: heel heel
18: heel
17: face
16: heel
15: heel
14: heel
13: heel
12: face
11: face
10: heel
9: heel
8: heel
7: heel
6: face
5: face
4: vacant
3: face
2: face
1: n/a

This is how I would represent his actual value:

[IWC Opinion]----------[Actual Value]----------[WWE Opinion]

Pretty much.

what is iwc?

Internet Wrestling Community

really?

YA RLY!

is that like a cite or is it all of us as a whole?

mAybe its
an0ther
4um

You're a part of the IWC if you post on the internet and do at least one of the following (among other things):

Bitch about continuity
Bitch about logic
Bitch about Triple H, Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon or Shawn Michaels
Arm-chair book
Arm-chair book Val Venis or Doug Basham into every high-profile storyline
Think at least one really horrible wrestler is awesome

Its' really a slightly less derogatory way of saying "Internet Smarks."

I don't really bitch about continuity. I don't bitch about logic. I don't really bitch about the McMahons or DX all that much. I don't really like Doug Basham or Val Venis. And for the record Nash is not horrible and is awesome. I think I arm-chair book, but I don't. So am I part of this IWC?

"I give you... THE NEXT BLACK THING!!!"

I'd like to stress "among other things". There are like sixty-thousand more.

Seriously, though, pretty much what DarthTeedious said.

That's almost bitching about the IWC. That was the one left off the list.

Seriously, Lashley does have to get the fuck off the mic. They did the right thing with Lesnar and had him talk very little and had Heyman do his talking. Brock and Lashley aren't good promos because their voices make them sound like pussies.

Seriously, if you went to "MicrophonesinPussies.com" Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley would be the poster boys.

If anything, Lashley seems too muscular. It looks as if all his muscles get in the way of him moving. Also, for as big as he is, he doesn't look tough or intimidating. I'm mean Batista looks like he could handle himself in a fight, for some reason Lashley doesn't. Maybe it is because Lashley is short...for a wrestler.

Lashley is probably legitimately tougher than Batista, I'd think, but he doesn't have the intensity he needs to really maintain main event status.

He seems to pick it up for maybe a few seconds in his matches, or when he leaps into steel cage walls. That's it.

I like Lashley, and agree with Destor on this, the guy oozes charisma. He also seems legit tough.
I actually enjoyed the mathes he was having with Test recently. And the guy is a monster live. He doesn't need mic skills to get over, he just needs to stop smiling cause it makes him look like wayne brady.

Looking like Wayne Brady is probably the best thing Bobby Lashley has going for him. The WWE should sign Brady, have give him some training (Brady is pretty fit, I think he would be able to do some athletic stuff), and then have him cut a promo on Bobby Lashley, saying he stole his image.

Brady can come out with an entourage, and play a chickenshit heel against Lashley. But I'm sure Brady already has enough money to not need desperate grabs at stardom like that.

Wayne Brady > Bobby Lashley

But yeah, Destor is 100% right, Lashley oozes charisma. It's the same kind of charisma guys like Charlie Haas and Brent Albright have, although people label them "bland". It's a "don't fuck with me, or you will end up losing a body part" charisma.