Wrestling Past And Present: 07/28/20

Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Classic Championship Wrestling From Florida Volume #1 (Featuring Terry Funk & Dusty Rhodes)

The Cuban Connection vs The Sheephearders
Terry Funk & Dory Funk Jr. Promo
Mike Rotunda vs Terry Funk
Bruiser Brody & Bad News Allen attack Lex Luger
Lex Luger vs Bad News Allen
Strange Interview with Ron Slinker
The Ninja (The Great Muta) vs Prince Iaukea
Lumberjack Match: Dusty Rhodes vs Harley Race (10-28-78)
Dusty Rhodes Promo (10-25-78)
Sonny King Promo with Eric The Red & Pak Song (10-25-78)
Wahoo McDaniel & Killer Karl Kox Promos (10-25-78)
Gordon Solie gives a rundown of the 10-31-78 card in Tampa (10-25-78)
Boxing Match: Kendall Windham vs Kendo Nagasaki
Ron Simmons/Dewey Forte workout video
Highlights on Ron Bass vs Barry Windham
Harley Race & Stan Hansen vs The Road Warriors (9-2-85)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dtnzo2gDBdM

Nick Aldis Takes Shot Again At Bruce Prichard For Declining WWE Ratings

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis took to Twitter to address Executive Director of SmackDown and RAW Bruce Prichard's comments on Aldis saying that he doesn't have the "It Factor". Aldis said he would talk more about Prichard's comments on Busted Open, and Aldis did just that.

"Well, you've seen some of my reactions. Bubba knows that 10 years ago, I might have reacted slightly differently," Aldis admitted. "I may have been slightly more reactant in general. This time I took a moment to process it. Bruce and I even spoke on the phone.

"Bruce claimed, 'Oh I was talking about the Magnus character. I wasn't talking about Nick Aldis.' OK, well, his team uploaded a video that was a separate clip, and they had a picture of me with the NWA Title. The same title that Harley Race, Ric Flair [and] Dusty Rhodes held. The same lineage I busted my ass to rebuild and put into the Modern Era, and they used my name. So, he's full of sh-t is the reality."

Aldis worked for TNA from 2008-15 before returning to the company for a year in 2017. Aldis talked about the opinions that other WWE Hall of Famers and wrestling legends have on him while also taking a shot at Prichard's TNA runs in 2010-2013 and 2017.

"Honestly, what he did was just expose the fact that he hasn't been paying attention to anything that's been going on," Aldis stated. "Because like you said, anyone who has seen my sh-t the last three years, the one consistent thing that comes up from everybody, from Mark Henry, to Hall of Famers, Harley Race, Dusty Rhodes, even tippy-top guys in WWE who have text me privately, whose names I won't mention. They all say the same thing, which is 'You have that thing. You send yourself like a real pro wrestler. The kind of wrestling that I miss. The kind of wrestling I thought wasn't here anymore.' And for Bruce to say that, it just showed that he hasn't been paying attention, kind of like when he was running TNA.

"He wasn't paying attention. He was asleep, and the reality is he took a shot and he tried to give some half bait reason to why he decided to say it and whatnot. [He said] he was going to address it. Did not. Let it breathe. So now, he's getting a receipt. He's not getting a fu--ing receipt, he's getting a fu--ing invoice is what he's getting. There's different Hall of Famers who have a different opinion, and he likes to float things out that are subjective and sort of present it as fact.

Aldis again took a shot at RAW's current ratings while also saying that Prichard was responsible for TNA's down ratings. He talked about how the ratings went up after Prichard left and when he became TNA World Champion.

"He lives in this past sort of mentality, where he thinks because he's WWE, he can just say whatever about someone and that's the only thing anyone will hear and that will be the opinion everybody shares," Aldis remarked. "Well, it doesn't work like that anymore. Times have changed. People fact check. People can go present their opposing opinion and you know, I'll follow up with facts if he wants to go there because by the time Bruce was relieved of his duties in TNA in 2013, he brought the viewing figures down to like 1 million people.

"By the time I had the World Title at the end of that year and through the start of 2014, we got the average going figures back up to like 1.3 and peaked at 1.55, which was just short of 1.561, which was the lowest RAW rating in history, which was the rating that came out the same week that he decided to trash me on his podcast. I guess that maybe that extra bit of rating that RAW got must be the 'It Factor' I don't have."

Jim Ross On Which WWE Star The Company Dropped The Ball On Regarding Promos

On a recent episode of the Grilling JR Podcast, Jim Ross talks about the career of Bobby Lashley. Throughout the episode, JR discussed how he was receiving many comparisons to Brock Lesnar since debuting with WWE. Ross discussed Vince McMahon meeting Lashley and the comparisons with Lesnar.

"He didn't meet Bobby in the grandiose way that he met Brock Lesnar, apples and oranges here," Ross said. "The comparison was physical. Lashley had this great strength, amateur background, he looked great, all the same things you can say about Brock. We've got another heavyweight amateur star that we've got great expectations for, I can describe when we first signed Brock the same exact way."

When Lashley finally made his main roster debut in September of 2005, he was introduced as a four-time All-American, 2002 Silver Medalist at the Military World Championship, a two-time Armed Forces Champion and a three-time National Amateur Champion. Lashley was put on the similar path to Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar when they debuted with the company. JR noted that Vince had a new toy in Lashley and how he may have brought him up too soon compared to Lesnar or Angle.

"Vince had a new toy that he loved to look at," Ross said. "Could Bobby have used a little bit more time in the farm or working the second or third match on house shows? Yes, he should've had more time. I had the same battles with Vince about Brock Lesnar. Creative wanted to bring Brock Lesnar up earlier than I wanted him to go and I simply told Vince 'He can't protect anybody right now, he's still learning things and he's so god damn strong that a small calculated error could be disastrous.'"

Ross mentioned Shelton Benjamin as another star who may have been pushed too soon. Ross mentioned how he believes the WWE fumbled with Benjamin by not having him work with other stars to enhance his promo skills. JR feel that fumble cost them a massive star.

"If we had spent more time with Shelton Benjamin on his promos, we would've had a major major star on our hands," Ross said. "There was nothing, absolutely nothing, in the ring Shelton Benjamin couldn't do and that holds true today. He's a freak of nature athletically and a good human being. We should've cut him from the herd and put him with somebody so he can have practice on the mic and talking than he did drills in the ring. That's our fumble, we messed that up for him."

As of late, Bobby Lashley has joined up with MVP and Benjamin to form their own alliance, The Hurt Business. Ross talked about the grouping of Lashley and MVP and how he sees the two potentially exploding because Lashley can handle his own now and doesn't need a mouthpiece anymore.

"At some point sooner or later, MVP and Bobby will be an issue and Bobby will have matches with MVP soon," Ross said. "I think Bobby is at the level now that he doesn't need a mouthpiece to the degree he needed it [back] then. I like the package of MVP and Bobby together, a lot, but it's just the matter of Bobby getting better and getting the confidence to cut good promos. I think that day is almost here."

EC3 Talks What Went Wrong In WWE, Meetings With Vince McMahon, If Impact Was His Only Option

Dave LeGreca and Bully Ray welcomed Impact Wrestling's EC3 onto the Busted Open podcast to talk about his WWE run and what went wrong in WWE. EC3 talked about the micromanaging in WWE and the lack of trust within the leadership.

"Yeah like with anything, it starts at the top, and I think the very very top is micromanaging [at an] extremely dangerous level where there is no trust in the Lieutenants, majors, and generals to do anything," EC3 stated. "Everything goes through the top and what the top's inundated with. So much business gets lost, I believe you had EY (Eric Young) on here and you mentioned there's a broken system. It seems like it.

"I'm not following the product, but they have the most talented roster in the world, and the product becomes unwatchable and insufferable sometimes. As a leader, instead of passing blame to people and firing them, sometimes it comes down on me and so leadership starts at the top."

EC3 gave his opinion as to why his WWE career wasn't taking off after returning as EC3. He talked about already being established and the feeling in the company that they didn't need to work on anything else with him since he had a fanbase during his debut.

"I started with a great match to kick it off," EC3 noted. "I think the problem was, I created such a self-made brand and individuality and persona that when they threw me out there, I was already very popular and 'over' that they realized we don't have to worry about this kid and nobody took it upon themselves to manufacture what I was to them.

"When it becomes nobody's project, you can just fall into the complacency of being a popular act or semi-over. So I think that's part of it. Plus, NXT is mostly a stomping ground cause we think my skills would be for main roster kind of talent."

EC3 also talked about his call-up to the main roster being rushed as well as his return from his injury being rushed as well. He stated that he is currently happy now and hopes to take "the narrative of the wrestling world" and Impact Wrestling to different places.

"When I did get called up, it was a rush call up," EC3 admitted. "My mistake was trusting the process and believing there's a reason for it as opposed to it was a rash decision because they were feeling heat for some reason. My mistake was thinking that it was for a reason. I take full accountability for that. Plus they called me up and I was out with an injury. I was rushed back from injury. I was not in a good place physically and mentally.

"Whatever. It did not work and that's fine because it not working has made me create something I'm finally happy and proud of and hopefully can take not only to Impact Wrestling but to the narrative of the wrestling world in various different locations. I think various different locations are ripe to take over this scene I think coming."

EC3 is back with Impact Wrestling, but he noted that Impact was not his only option after leaving WWE. He teased he has things in the works in other places that almost no one knows about.

"Absolutely not. Every option was and is on the table," EC3 revealed. "What I'm doing is controlling the narrative. I have things in works in multiple locations and plans to hopefully bend the narrative and confuse people. I love the fact nobody knows what I'm doing."

EC3 was one of many people released as part of budgetary cuts made by WWE during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was asked if he would be in a more comfortable position if the pandemic never happened.

"I would have, post-WrestleMania, request my release privately," EC3 revealed. "I would not have been the guy who takes his business public, trying to get out. I would have a man-to-man conversation to whoever it was worth and their decision may have been yes, may have been no.

"I think I had people in my corner, but nobody that would openly step up because everyone is scared and apprehensive and no one wants to rock the boat. So they're like 'Man I can't believe they don't let you talk'. You're in the production meetings. You can say something."

EC3 was also asked if he had ever opened up to Vince McMahon. He said he's had one-on-one meetings with McMahon, but the two never saw eye-to-eye in terms of the direction of his character.

"I've had one-on-ones with Vince," EC3 said. "They were always good and instructive and he saw me for what I am. 'Look good, work good'. I'm not like the workhorse. He doesn't make money off those guys. He makes money off guys who have charisma which I have. He saw one promo and thought it was over the top. I'm like, 'well that was one, and I can always scale it back. Yeah, it's funny that you don't talk.'

"'It's only killing me inside. It's cool. Your show, great.' There were those meetings where you feel good walking out, but nothing ever happens. Pitched him a bunch of different ideas. Showed him a video of me and Drake Maverick he goes 'Oh this is great!', but nothing happens."