On Tuesday, April 8, 2014, the professional wrestling world lost another one of the greats. The Ultimate Warrior, who for millions of fans who jumped on the pro wrestling bandwagon during the late 1980s boom period, was among the biggest and most recognizable Superstars in history. Today, we are going to look back at five matches that helped establish Warrior as the undeniable legend that he became.
It’s no secret that Ultimate Warrior wasn’t what one would call a “catch-as-catch-can” classic type of in-ring performer, but if you look back at his career from an unbiased point of view, there were certainly some diamonds in the rough. He had some great moments in the ring, and at times was absolutely more than just “a cool ring entrance.”
WWE SummerSlam 1988 (vs. The Honky Tonk Man)
On August 29, 1988 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, The Ultimate Warrior captured his first WWE Championship. In just 31 seconds, Warrior ended The Honky Tonk Man’s legendary 454-day reign as WWE Intercontinental Champion.
Going into the show, which was actually the inaugural edition of what became WWE’s annual summer tradition, Honky Tonk Man was originally supposed to square-off with Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake. Beefcake ended up on the sidelines, however, and it was announced, live during the show, that Honky Tonk Man would still have an opponent and would still be defending his title.
To make a long story short, the infamous guitar riff hit the big speakers, thousands of fans in MSG exploded, and 31 seconds later, Warrior’s first WWE title reign began. History was made.
WWE SummerSlam 1989 (vs. “Ravishing” Rick Rude)
Nearly a year later to the day, Ultimate Warrior found himself capturing WWE Intercontinental gold once again at WWE’s SummerSlam pay-per-view. Several months prior, Warrior suffered his first official defeat in WWE at the hands of “Ravishing” Rick Rude, who was arguably Warrior’s best in-ring opponent.
This was the rematch.
The bout took place on August 28, 1989 at The Meadowlands Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It was the second annual WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view event.
In what turned out to be a pretty good little contest, Warrior prevailed and in the end, managed to get his hand raised and once again become the WWE Intercontinental Champion.
– A new episode of WWE’s “30 Years of WrestleMania” podcast, which features Renee Young interviewing Howard Finkel, has been added online. The official preview for the show reads as follows:
WWE: Ep. 8 – Howard Finkel Get the lowdown on WrestleMania from the only person to have appeared at every single edition, WWE Hall of Fame announcer Howard Finkel. “The Fink,” as he’s affectionately known, details what it was like to be in WWE when The Grandest Stage of Them All was just getting off the ground, as well as reflects on this year’s WWE Hall of Fame inductees and offers his predictions for WrestleMania 30.
You can download the podcast right now at PodcastOne.com.
– The following is a preview clip for this Sunday’s edition of Total Divas:
The following is a non-spoiler match listing for this week’s edition of WWE SmackDown. For complete spoiler results, click ahead to page two.
– Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose vs. Drew McIntyre & Jinder Mahal
– Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose vs. Ryback & Curtis Axel
– Damien Sandow vs. Sin Cara
– Goldust vs. Fandango
– Batista vs. Sheamus
– The Bella Twins vs. AJ Lee & Tamina Snuka
– Jack Swagger vs. Jimmy Uso
– The Miz vs. Mark Henry
– Bray Wyatt vs. Big Show
For complete spoiler results for this week’s WWE SmackDown, click ahead to page two …
– The latest edition of the “30 Years Of WrestleMania” podcast, which features Renee Young interviewing Mick Foley, is now available at PodcastOne.com.
– WWE is advertising a steel cage match between John Cena and Randy Orton, as well as Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio, for the company’s return to Nassau Coliseum in Long Island, New York on March 22nd.
– The shirt that Jerry “The King” Lawler wore on RAW last night in his hometown of Memphis was said to be a hot topic of discussion backstage during the show. Lawler tweeted the following about the shirt after the show:
My Raw shirt tonight in Memphis was a tribute to Elvis & his gold lame’ suit. From the Graceland gift shop! pic.twitter.com/nuX4aDuhAR
– WWE Hall Of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart is scheduled as Renee Young’s next guest on the “30 Years Of WrestleMania” official WWE podcast, which will be available soon at PodcastOne.com.
– The next set of WWE NXT television tapings is scheduled to take place on March 13th at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Main roster WWE Superstars The Usos and The Great Khali are scheduled to appear.
– The following is the official trailer for the upcoming “Signature Sounds: Music of WWE” DVD, which is scheduled to be released on March 18th. The description that goes along with the video reads as follows: “Music has been integral to WWE history, especially anthems for all the greatest WWE Superstars. Since Sgt. Slaughter first made his entrance to the Marine Corps Hymn in the early 1980s, music themes have become synonymous with the Superstars themselves. Just hearing the first few notes brings the crowd to its feet. These are the songs that let the WWE Universe know that business is about to pick up. Now, count down the timeless anthems of WWE and its Superstars.”
– A bunch of new PodcastOne.com podcasts are now available. Part two of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin on the new Jim Ross “Ross Report” podcast is available.
A new “Talk Is Jericho” podcast with Chris Jericho interviewing Ghosthunter star Jeff Belanger is up on his page.
Finally, the latest “30 Years Of WrestleMania” podcast featuring Renee Young interviewing Goldust and Cody Rhodes has been added.
You can check all of these shows out right now at PodcastOne.com.
– NBA star LeBron James recently bought his whole team WWE World Heavyweight Championship replica belts. He tweeted the following photo of his team with the belts on his Instagram account.
Always wanted to be the WWE Heavyweight World Champion so today I surprised my teammates with their… http://t.co/NmT44sSlVG
– As previously reported, the “expert panel” for the upcoming NXT “Arrival” special on the WWE Network will consist of Kevin Nash, Paul Heyman, Bret Hart and Renee Young. Apparently Nash is replacing Shawn Michaels, who was originally scheduled to be part of the panel.
– According to reports, Alexander Rusev may be using a sidewalk-slam as his finishing move. Up until recently, Rusev had been using the camel clutch as his finisher.
After promoting Steve Austin’s podcast on RAW for the past several weeks, WWE has started plugging Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast on their official website as well.
As we previously reported, WWE has been looking at entering the podcast business after seeing the success that Austin and Jericho have had with their shows. Additionally, they seem to be allowing their talent to appear as guests on these shows.
WWE launched their own PodcastOne.com show a few weeks ago, “30 Years Of WrestleMania,” with two shows thus far, which featured Shawn Michaels and Edge talking to host Renee Young about their WrestleMania memories and highlights.
As previously reported, WWE has launched their first PodcastOne.com podcast with host Renee Young interviewing Shawn Michaels about WrestleMania. Company officials are apparently looking at expanding into more podcasts following the success of Steve Austin and Chris Jericho’s podcasts.
Additionally, following the success of Mick Foley’s live comedy touring act, WWE is looking at possibly doing some touring talk shows in comedy clubs.
WWE has added the latest sit-down interview with Triple H, this time conducted by Renee Young, to their official YouTube channel.
The video, which you can view above, is accompanied by the following description: “WWE COO Triple H addresses whether Randy Orton “made things right” on Raw, CM Punk as the first entrant into the Royal Rumble Match and the possibility of Batista being “The Face of WWE.””
– WWE.com conducted an interview with backstage interviewer Renee Young, who says she wants to be WWE’s first female commentator:
“I was doing color commentary down at NXT, and it’s been a really great opportunity for me to tap into my hosting background, using my brain and thinking on my feet. Being clever with it is awesome for me. I love being able to do that. I would love to be the first female to do color commentary for this company. That would be a cool thing to do. I would love to be the girl to take on that role.”
– WWE will be offering a free 1-week trial to fans who order the WWE Network. Signups begin on February 24th at 9am (Eastern) via WWE.com. This is described as a “limited time” offer.
The official WWE website has added a new video interview with WWE legend Jake “The Snake” Roberts, who returned as a surprise at the end of Old School RAW on Monday night.
Roberts spoke with WWE interviewer Renee Young backstage after the show, where he spoke about his “long journey” back to WWE. He talked about his excitement to be back, apologized for messing up his own gimmick and thanked DDP and others for helping with his recovery.
Check out the Jake Roberts interview online at WWE.com.
– This week on “Backstage Fallout” for SmackDown, The Bella Twins talk to Renee Young about Brie’s victory over Tamina. Plus, Xavier Woods reacts to causing Brodus Clay to lose his match to Tensai.
– The WWE.com profile of Knuckles Madsen has been deleted after it was reported on Tuesday that he had been released from his developmental contract with WWE.
A Memphis, Tennessee-based wrestler, Knuckles joined developmental late last year. His appearances were solely limited to non-televised events as he never appeared on WWE NXT. He donned clown gear until recently, when he began portraying a country musician with guitar in tow.
– Former WWE wrestler Chris Masters will be appearing at The Wrestling Guy Store 6085 State St. Huntington Park, California, on Sunday, January 12, 2014 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. (Event Information)
– It was revealed this week through social media that former WWE Divas Champion Kaitlyn got engaged to bodybuilder boyfriend PJ Braun, who reigns as President of Prime Nutrition and Blackstone Labs. Speaking to WWE.com, the 27-year-old discussed his unexpected wedding proposal and the beginning of this exciting new chapter in her life.
Braun first noticed Kaitlyn when she was competing on the bodybuilding stage years ago, but they did not date until recently.
“We always joked that we would probably end up together someday,” said Kaitlyn, while also noting that their busy schedules and personal lives prevented them from taking things “to the next level.” “We didn’t start dating until this summer, which is funny because he lives in Florida and I was living in Florida for three years. I finally moved back home to Houston, and we started dating shortly after that. We lived a few hours from each other for three years!”
Braun popped the question following Tuesday night’s WWE SmackDown taping at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. However, that wasn’t his original strategy.
“He was planning on asking me today [Friday] while we were in New York City, but when he got to Connecticut, he lost the ring in the airport,” Kaitlyn said. “So he sits me down in the big suite after SmackDown and we’re laughing and hanging out [with his family] and he’s telling me this ridiculous story about how he lost it and eventually found it. After that, he knew he had to ask me the very next time he saw me. I had no idea it was coming.”
Kaitlyn also discusses her ring and why her wedding ceremony will be anything but conventional. To read the full article, click here.
– John “Bradshaw” Layfield, who turns 47-years-old today, receives the ultimate happy birthday on the latest edtion of The JBL & Cole Show. Plus, Aksana asks JBL a question, Andy Kaufman stops by to say hello and “#CasualCole” does some green screen improv.
The following are highlights from the latest online Q&A by WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On Curtis Axel’s short Intercontinental Title reign: “It’s all about casting. Axel is more relevant now that he was just a few months ago. Short reign create awareness.”
On whether or not WWE will drop the “big gold belt” when they unify the titles: “I have no idea what WWE creative is doing or is going to do but if I had to guess I’d say the WWE Titles stays and the World Title goes. Bottom line is that I don’t know.”
On whether or not the WWE & World Titles should be unified into one championship: “Again, I don’t know exactly what is going on but it appears that WWE wants to have one primary title going forward. I don’t spend much time on the creative plans of any pro wrestling company.”
On not being “big-headed” even though he’s a great, successful announcer: “I’d surmise it is the way in which I was raised by my Mom and Dad. Plus, who likes being around pompous, arrogant, entitled people? I certainly don’t.”
On the job Renee Young is doing in WWE currently: “Renee has plenty of talent and should continue to do well in WWE as I see her role expanding and then see other opportunities coming her way.”
The “Backstage Fallout” video for this week’s Survivor Series “go-home” edition of WWE SmackDown has been added to the official YouTube channel of WWE.
This week’s SmackDown “Backstage Fallout” features WWE Superstar Rey Mysterio reacting to his first in-ring return match on WWE television. Mysterio talks about returning to the ring with The Usos to take on The Shield. He also talks about the match scheduled for this Sunday’s WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view.
Also on this week’s “Backstage Fallout” is The Real Americans talking about not winning the WWE Tag-Team Championships from Goldust and Cody Rhodes, as well as Zeb Colter taking over for Renee Young to end the show.
You can watch this week’s “Backstage Fallout” video for SmackDown below:
The special one-year anniversary edition of The JBL & Cole Show has been added to the official YouTube channel of WWE.
The show this week features a number of guest appearances, including Dolph Ziggler, Santino Marella, Josh Mathews, Road Dogg, Damien Sandow, Renee Young, Hornswoggle, Big E. Langston, John Cena, Daniel Bryan and John Cone.
You can check out episode 52 of The JBL & Cole Show below:
– Ryback appears to be turning babyface after Paul Heyman dismissed Ryback as a potential “Paul Heyman Guy” on Raw on Monday. We can now confirm that WWE creative plans call for Ryback to feud with Brock Lesnar, with a match likely taking place at January’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The storyline will be that Paul Heyman will enlist Lesnar to destroy Ryback, since he blames Ryback for CM Punk putting him in a wheelchair.
Meanwhile, while WWE officials would like to have Ryback face Goldberg at WrestleMania XXX, sources within the organization don’t expect the former World Heavyweight Champion to come on board since he would almost certainly be asked to job. Goldberg stated in an interview earlier this year that he would not return to the company to lose.
– This week’s edition of The JBL & Cole Show features never before seen bloopers, outtakes, and footage from the show. Renee Young hosts.
– With John Cena capturing the World Heavyweight Championship from Alberto Del Rio at Hell in Cell, it will once again be portrayed as equal to the WWE Championship. According to F4WOnline.com today, Cena and Randy Orton are expected to remain as champions through at least Elimination Chamber, and will be portrayed as equals.
– In this edition of The JBL & Cole Show, Renee Young takes fans on wild ride through some of the best, funniest and most outrageous moments from the past 49 episodes of the show.
– WWE Divas Champion AJ Lee is once again a member of the Raw roster. She was transferred to SmackDown shortly after her “Pipe Bombshell” tirade and the official WWE website now has her listed as a member of Raw again. The home page of the WWE App, however, has not been updated as she is still featured on the SmackDown graphic (below CM Punk representing Raw).
– WWE continues to highlight the legendary career of Hulk Hogan. “The Hulkster” is currently featured on the front page of WWE.com, as rare photos of the iconic wrestler are being showcased again. Also, the company’s YouTube account just released a clip from last year’s nWo: The Revolution video release of Kevin Nash, Billy Kidman, Jimmy Hart, Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes discussing Hogan’s infamous heel turn at Bash at the Beach in 1996.
WWE highlighting Hogan’s career online is not an indication that he’s coming back to the promotion. Joey Styles, WWE’s Vice President of Digital Media Content, revealed in an interview with VOC Nation last month that the Hall of Famer was intentionally placed on the front page last month as means to build traffic after news surfaced that his contract with TNA Wrestling had contract expired.
“Nobody at WWE.com knows if the (front office) is talking to Hulk Hogan,” Styles said. “But it’s out there on every other site; we know that fans are thinking it, so why wouldn’t we use all of the videos and content that we own and use it on the site to build traffic and entertain the fans?”
– At Monday’s Raw in Greenville, South Carolina, WWE hosted a party for Susan G. Komen honorees. Stephanie McMahon, Lilian Garcia, Dolph Ziggler and Renee Young appeared at the reception. Click here for photos.
WWE Superstar Damien Sandow cashed in his “Money In The Bank” briefcase on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. After interupting and attacking John Cena’s surgically repaired arm in the opening segment of Monday’s RAW, Sandow officially cashed in his briefcase. Unfortunately for Sandow, Cena ended up getting the win in the match, making Sandow only the second WWE Superstar to cash in his briefcase and not win a WWE Championship.
Speaking of the Cena-Sandow match, the World Heavyweight Champion spoke with Renee Young backstage immediately after his victory. You can check out a Tout video of the interview online at Tout.com.
– Three-time Pro Bowl and All-Pro selection Shawne Merriman is looking to enter the world of professional wrestling after retiring from the National Football League in March at the age of 28. He participated in a multi-day tryout this week at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, and according to sources within the sports-entertainment organization, has not been offered any deal, much less signed to a contract.
Merriman was a first-round pick in 2005 by the San Diego Chargers and named the Defensive Rookie of the Year after recording 10 sacks. In 2006, he served a four-game suspension for violating the league’s steroid policy, and still finished the season with 17 sacks.
The once promising pass rusher was never able to match the production of the early years of his career. After totaling 39.5 sacks in his first three seasons while making the Pro Bowl each year, he managed just six sacks from 2008 through 2012. He was looking to revitalize his career as recently as July, as he went on Twitter to make a plea for the Atlanta Falcons to sign him.
– This week’s edition of The JBL & Cole Show features a Halloween theme as The Bella Twins terrorize Hornswoggle, Renee Young gets possessed, Paul Heyman cackles and more.
-Paul Heyman spoke to WWE interviewer Renee Young following his “client” Curtis Axel’s victory over R-Truth in the WWE Intercontinental Championship match on Friday night’s edition of WWE SmackDown. The interview, which appeared exclusively on the WWE App, featured Heyman talking about CM Punk’s recent obsession with him, as well as Heyman questioning whether or not Young was going back to Punk with his answers. On that subject, Heyman said, “When you’re the man on top like Paul Heyman, you always have to wonder when they’re coming after you. Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean that they’re not coming after you. When I say they, I mean CM Punk.”
-Philly.com has posted a new interview with WWE Superstar and the current holder of the Money In The Bank briefcase, Damien Sandow. Fans interested in checking out that interview can do so online at Philly.com.
– On this week’s edition of The JBL & Cole Show, Goldust has a “creepy interaction” with Hornswoggle. Plus, John “Bradshaw” Layfield, Michael Cole and Renee Young tour Niagara Falls while discussing some of WWE’s “greatest falls,” and Wade Barrett sends a message to fans.
– The Miz will appear in the ABC Family original action-comedy movie Christmas Bounty, premiering on Tuesday, November 26 at 7:00 p.m., as part of its annual “Countdown to 25 Days of Christmas.” The cable network issued a press release Friday offering details on the flick.
It states, “Former bounty hunter turned Elementary school teacher Tory Bell (Raisa) was ready for a new life when she left the family business behind and moved to Manhattan. But when an old enemy is released from jail and vows retribution on Tory and her loved ones, she returns to New Jersey to take care of him once and for all. When Tory’s upper-class fiancé, James, follows her home for Christmas, she tries to keep her bounty hunting ways a secret, but the plan backfires when James unwittingly becomes involved in the Bells’ mission. Further complicating matters, Tory must work closely with her ex-boyfriend, Mike (Mizanin) to bring down their target and keep James out of certain danger. But as Tory becomes further entrenched in her old life, she finds herself torn between whom she once was and her plans for the future. Will Tory choose her new life with James, or will the thrill of bounty hunting and unresolved feelings for Mike prove too powerful to ignore?
“Christmas Bounty” was produced in partnership with WWE Studios and was written by Claudia Grazioso and Andrew Black & Vivian Lee. The movie was executive produced by Michael J. Luisi, co-executive produced by Richard Lowell and Marc Bienstock, and directed by Gil Junger.”
-There was reportedly a small celebration backstage at the WWE SmackDown and Main Event television taping on Tuesday night. Both WWE Diva Eva Marie and Renee Young had birthdays this week, so they all celebrated together backstage at the taping on Tuesday night.
-According to one report, there is said to be a lot of talk internally in WWE regarding how talented new interviewer Renee Young is in her role with the company, specifically after the Total Divas After Party reunion special on E! on Sunday night.
-In addition to The Miz and a host of other WWE Superstars, Dusty Rhodes is being pushed on the WWE.com website as being injured following a storyline on WWE television. In this case, the official WWE website is reporting that Rhodes suffered a dislocated jaw as a result of the knockout punch he received from Big Show on Monday’s RAW. Obviously, Dusty Rhodes is fine, and his jaw is not dislocated.