First Ric Flair, now King Booker
 

In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reports that Robert Huffman (King Booker) quit WWE when he was told that he was to be suspended for 60 days, as a punishment to the Signature Pharmacy bust. He was believed to have failed a Wellness Program test before, hence the 60 days suspension instead of 30.

While WWE is still trying to negotiate Huffman's staying with them, they're going on under the impression he's done. The two sides had been having troubles recently, with a major setback being John Laurinaitis' call to go with Florida for a developmental territory - where WWE would start from scratch - instead of going with Booker's already established PWA, which WWE had been loaning wrestlers to. After they made the call to stop that, Booker went to his friends at TNA and booked them for his shows instead, which didn't sit so well with anyone backstage, but they couldn't say much having pulled WWE talent from PWA.

Booker is pretty much set financially and has wanted out of wrestling for a while. At age 42, he's accomplished a lot, and thanks to his hip hop store doing well in Houston, and his two wrestling schools up and running, there's really no need for him to stick around.

You know what, I don't care what anyone says, I would mark out if at No Surrender, Kurt Angle brings out a lawyer who states that Adam "Pacman" Jones has not been physically cleared to wrestle by the NFL, and is likely to sustain an injury, and hence has to be removed. Angle believes it to be a handicap match now, and Sting feels like it isn't fair, but then Ron Killings says he has a back-up partner just in case Angle pulled something like this...*cue Booker T making his TNA debut*

Have the two work as great a tag team match possible between these four (with Sting, Angle, Booker and Killings all being capable, I think you would be surprised) and the end sees Ric Flair run out to the ring (in a suit, as the suits make Flair look classy again) and he goes right after Sting, as Booker finishes off Angle with the Scissors Kick to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship with Ron Killings.

I don't care if it's more ex-WWE/WCW stars in TNA, and if Flair is old, and Booker is getting up there. I would mark out like a little bitch. At least Killings was made a "star" relatively in TNA.

Personally, I think it is bullshit when something like Kennedy gets suspended for taking steroids (I can't remember if any of these pharmacy things have been proven or confessed to right now) and gets taken off of TV completly, but Randy Orton and Batista get to stay on TV and be in the main event pictures (and in Orton's case, possibly be given the title at Unforgiven).

Someone PLEASE explain this logic to me.

Beats me.

I was going to mention the "OMGZ THEY ARE TEG MAIN EVENTERS1!1!" logic.

But then Kennedy was suppose to be revealed as McMahon's son and that probably trumps every other storyline they are doing.

So I dunno that one...

Batista does steroids? :wtf:

Orton already fessed up to buying the stuff from Signature earlier

So I'm probably alone, but I'm not seeing this as a bad thing. I have no real problem with Booker T, but I would have murdered him to not hear "All Hail King Bookah!" Again from that little cunt on his arm.

Come on Inno, please tell me you're not buying WWE's sack of shit called damage control?

He was never going to get anywhere on Raw anyway. If he stayed on Smackdown it would be different but his career peaked last year with his World title run.

He made me laugh alot and has really got the King Booker gimmick completely nailed.

"I await our joust at the summerslam GAMES!"

Well, it was being reported well before WWE said anything of the sort, and was assumed that Orton would not be punished again for the same deal.

My real question is, do people who are out on injury get suspended now, or later?

I mean, as much as Edge is "the man" for lying to us and attacking the news (Who got it right) the fans (Who said nothing) and just about everyone else, he was part of this, too. And never punished because "he had a prescription." Like the rest of the guys, of course.

Him and the Hurricane, who claims that he was only following Doctor's orders (Which is doubtless why he went to Signature).

lol...BOOKER in TNA would be awesome.

COME HITHER TO T.N.A

he could fuckign do a gimmick jousting match with chairs.

The Power does nor care much for King Booker RRRRAAAARRR SNNOOORRRRTTTT

This comes as absolutely no surprise.

Edge and Helms should be suspended too.

Then again how will we know that they actually suspended them?

Since both of them are out with injuries for an extended period of time, they can "suspend" them for 30 days when in all reality they are just using rehab time.

Maybe Edge and Helms won't get paid for a month.

King Booker will prolly go to TNA, I don't think he will retire yet.

I'd imagine that Booker & Flair can't go to TNA for some time. Since they are walking out on their contracts, WWE should have a no compete clause (or Rick Rude clause if you will) written in there.

I'm better we see Booker pop his head up for very rare special occasions for smaller promotions, and eventually Flair will get some kind of on air, but non wrestling role in TNA.

I just want to see TNA acquire booker and flair and hopefully do something with them. I know I know it's TNA . blah blah but still!

Flair I wouldn't be as surprised, as it's been discussed that his allegedly doesn't include anything that would prevent him from signing with another promotion right away, and I could see that with Flair...although you are probably completely right.

Booker is awesome, and if he shows up in TNA, I will mark the fuck out.

Also, Booker is probably pissed that someone like him is suspended, but people like Batista have been pushed and continue to be pushed to the moon.

Wow, what a year for the WWE.

-Rey Mysterio was already out to start off the year.
-Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Undertaker, Edge & Bobby Lashley all go down due to injury.
-Chris Benoit kills himself and his family.
-Big Show, Rob Van Dam, Ric Flair & King Booker all leave the company.
-Congress investigates the WWE.
-10 Wrestlers suspended for violating the Wellness Policy.

Thats terrible news :(

i'd like to see booker com in as the king of tna...a big fucking procession etc.

Meh, it wasn't like they were going to do much with him.

We'll see him in TNA as Booker Tea.

Only if he brings William Regal and some crumpets along would Jim Cornette ever agree to that...:shifty:

But seriously. The funny thing is, I opened this thread expecting to read about how Booker flashed people on an airplane or something.

well at least we wont hear that annoying bitch say:all hail king boooookhaaa"

"Can you suck it... GOLD DIGGAAAAA!?!??!"

Isn't it just a little weird that you answered my question with an almost identical question?

You know, maybe this is reading too far into things, but I think this speaks of a bigger (and growing) problem within the WWE. Two MAJOR stars quitting this close together. The backstage area must be chaos and moral must be at an all time low. These guys are frustrated to the point of just giving up and this could be horrible for professional wrestling altogether. I hope this is just two isolated incidents (with Flair and Booker) but I'm afraid it is something much bigger.

Just to point out, a few of those are kinda redndant.

wwe is becoming redundant

was doing steriods always against the rules :?: or just now :?: It seem to me they are punishment against them 4 something they did b 4 when it was ok. Well maybe not ok, but not against any wrtiien down rules.

Seriously though, Booker T showing up on TNA is like a tree falling in the woods.

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa but its my style.

Aside from many and/or most of these violations coming after the introduction of the wellness policy and these people breaking the fucking law?

And the list is so much bigger than that. When Benoit got shipped down to ECW, he obviously gave up on his wrestling career with WWE because he committed suicide.

Big Show left earlier in the year, despite constantly being on TV and getting airtime as the ECW World Champion.

RVD left recently because he doesn't have the passion for the business anymore.

Jericho left for more or less the exact same reasons.

HBK doesn't want to return right away because of the state of the WWE.

Flair has been on the fence for months now due to his lack of TV exposure and the complete misdirection of his character.

And now King Booker, one of the most reliable and entertaining workers on WWE TV, is leaving too.


It's like Goldberg's career circa 1998. Who's next?