Posted in: Ripped To Shreds Ripped To Shreds #27: Caught Up In The Moment
By Ripper
Dec 21, 2009 - 5:54:48 AM
Ripped To Shreds #27: Caught Up In The Moment
Welcome to the 27th edition of Ripped To Shreds.
Thanks to all of you who responded to my last column regarding The Ultimate Warrior's possible Hall of Fame induction.
This week I'll be discussing some of WWE's greatest moments over the years.
If you wish to send feedback to this column, you may send it to
“Life if not made up of how many breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.”
I’m not sure who said the above quote, but the message is loud and clear. The way we should measure life is not by the amount of time we have lived, but rather by certain moments in our life that leave us in joyous captivation. These certain moments may include someone’s wedding day, or the birth of their children. Moments like these go on to not only captivate us through our memories, but also as our lives go on.
So too is how the WWE is measured. The WWE is not measured by the number of matches that wrestlers have competed in much the same way as a professional wrestler’s career is not made up simply by the amount of check marks he has in the win column. But rather the WWE is measured by the amount of moments that have stood out as being exceptional, phenomenal, enchanting, and what ever other appropriate verbs you can come up with. And a wrestler’s career is measured by the amount of number of breathtaking moments he has given us time and time again, the number of times he has left us on the edge of our seats, etc.
But the question arises, just which moment stands out as the GREATEST in WWE history? Which moment among all others stands head and shoulders above the rest as being the absolute best? To find the answer to that question, we must first define what type of moment the greatest moment would have to be. Would it be a moment that is known for it’s great influence on the history of the WWE, or would it be a moment that is known simply for it’s sheer entertainment value?
The answer to that question is very tough to figure out, but when it comes right down to it, a moment that has influence is greater than a moment that has merely entertainment value. Sure, both types of moments, when important enough, will never be forgotten. However when the after effects of a moment can be seen and felt in the WWE product for years to come, it means more than only being able to feel a moment through memory. Therefore the greatest moment in WWE history would have to be one that is known for it’s great influence on the product.
Chris Benoit laying with his tear filled face up against the title at Wrestlemania 20 is one contender. In arguably the best Triple Threat match in WWE history, Chris Benoit’s then 18 year career culminated in one of the most climactic ways possible. He made debatably the best wrestler in the business, Triple H, tap out for the first time in his career. The aftermath of this event was priceless, with Chris Benoit celebrating with his family and his longtime friend Eddy Guerrero. However the influence of this match was only felt for a few months afterwards, as Benoit’s career culminating title reign came to a halt at the hands of one Randy Orton. A very entertaining moment, but there no real influence to be felt on the product afterwards.
This then brings us to another man who joyfully cried after winning the WWE title for the first time at Wrestlemania. The man I am talking about is none other than the Heart Break Kid, Shawn Michaels. After a 60 minute plus Iron Man Match that ended by sudden death rules, Shawn Michaels’ career arguably climaxed with him being awarded the WWE Championship title. Tears of joy streamed down his face as Shawn’s boyhood dream was becoming a reality. But even though that moment basically cemented Shawn Michaels as a main eventer, this moment did not have much more influence on the WWE product that the aforementioned moment with Chris Benoit did. He was a true leader of "The New Generation", however, the overall product was not drastically changed.
Then you look at a moment like The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan from Wrestlemania 18. (It was more than just one moment, but you get the big picture) In this match Jim Ross may have made one of his best and most accurate call ever by calling this match an “emotional ride”. Those two words summed up exactly what this match was. With the Toronto crowd solidly behind the supposedly heel Hulk Hogan, The Rock and The Hulkster fought in a classic bout that probably left you on the edge of your seat. It may have been the lighting in the arena, the pro Hogan crowd, or the fact that two Icons in their own right were battling it out, but this contest has become one of the most legendary encounters ever to take place. But I ask, just what was it’s influence on the product? Besides leading to a Hulk Hogan face turn, there was no real influence coming from this match.
Then we move on to a moment that left us in awestruck wonder and horror at the same time. The moment I am talking about is Mankind’s infamous 15 foot fall off during a Hell In A Cell match against the Undertaker. This moment was beyond unbelievable, and today is still one of the most talked about moments in wrestling history. However besides giving us all a good story to tell, and solidifying Mick Foley as having the reputation of a crazy risk taker, this match contributed almost nothing to the history of the WWE.
Then there also was the moment of Superfly Jimmy Snuka diving off the top of a cage onto a prone Don Muracco in 1983. Today we nearly expect a high flying move off the top of a cage each time that structure is built around a ring, but at the time no one had ever seen anything like it. The mere shock value at the time was probably the equivalent of the aforementioned dive off the cell that Mick Foley took. This event however did make a impact on wrestling’s history, as it inspired many wrestlers to try riskier and more creative high flying maneuvers. This moment also inspired certain wrestlers to become professional wrestlers, among which are Mick Foley, Tommy Dreamer, and Bubba Ray Dudley.
Then there was the moment that Vince McMahon ordered for the bell to be rung in the infamous Montreal Screw Job. In a moment that has become legendary if the business, Vince McMahon ordered for the bell to be rung prematurely in Bret Hart’s match with Shawn Michaels, thus screwing him out of the title. This match is credited for helping people turn their heads over to Raw to see what was going to happen next, and may ultimately be credited for being the turning point for the power to shift sides in the Monday Night War. This gave much momentum towards Vince McMahon becoming a true heel boss. That my friends is what I like to call a great influence on the product.
The creation of Vince's heel authority figure went on to become the best rival to one of sports entertainment's biggest stars, Stone Cold Steve Austin. At King Of The Ring '96, Austin won the KOTC tournament, and in a post match insterview gave his now famous line "Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!". Some say that this was the birth of Austin's character as we know him as today. But Austin would have two more major moments in the next two yeats that were nothing short of being very influential. The image of blood running down Steve's face as he was locked in Bret Hart's Sharpshooter is now legendary. This became the launching pad for Stone Cold to become a mega star, and gave him much momentum to do so. At Wrestlemania 14, Austin won the WWE Title from Shawn Michaels. WWE was then staring down the barrel of WCW, but with Austin now the champ and the main event storylines revolving around him, he became a major contributor to WWE gaining much momentum that year and forming a huge comeback.
As influential as those moments were, there are still others that rival it. A. moment that was even more influential, and thus the greatest moment in WWE history. That is, in the mid eighties, when Hulk Hogan defeated The Iron Sheik to capture the WWE. I was very young at the time, but looking back, this clearly was the most influential moment in professional wrestling history. This title win gave Hogan the momentum he needed to comepletely revolutionize the business. He put the spikes in the ground to turn WWE into the global phenomenon. Wrestling became elevated to a whole new platform, where it still is today (despite lower ratings over the years). Pro wrestling used to be seen as entertainment for rednecks and the lower level of society. But with Hulk Hogan, those stereotypes were lessened dramatically.
When it comes right down to it, it’s very hard to choose only one moment for being the greatest in WWE history. I could go on and on listing moment after moment, but ultimately I will always come to the answer of Hulk Hogan winning his first WWE Championship as the single greatest moment in WWE history. Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels crying with the championship belt in their hands were great moments, as was the Rock vs. Hogan match, but none of them came close to having the type of influence that the Hogan had.
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Thanks for reading.
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