Take up thy wrestling boots and walk - Summer is here, Take up and walk
Submitted by Pt2 on Sunday, July 23, 2006 at 2:18 PM EST





Welcome once again, after a fairly long absence, to the column that would like to have you fat, out of shape, Summerslam sweathogs keep the noise down, Take up thy wrestling boots and walk. I’m the columnist that’s just a common man, working hard with his hands, Pt2, back once again from the monotony of the real world to discuss the elixir of life that is pro wrestling.

August is almost upon us, and in wrestling terms, that means only one thing: Summerslam. If Wrestlemania is the biggest jewel in the WWE’s crown, then for spectacle, big matches and the whole “sports entertainment” superhype fest, Summerslam is certainly placed in second. I’ve gone back and looked at all the previous Summerslams, and picked out the matches that I think have really helped make the Summerslams over the past 18 years. I ended up with 8, that I think deserve mention above the rest. There are some that people will consider notable exceptions, and if you want to write to me with your argument about matches that should have been included, then that’s fine with me - if you argue well enough I’ll even post your comments here in the next column. But for now, these are the eight that I have come up with - they may not be the most technically sound matches at Summerslam ever, but for excitement, crowd reaction, and the old school imperative of “butts on seats” these matches are classics - and I don’t think that even the oldest have aged all that badly, either, so for any fans whose wrestling experience begins at the attitude era, these matches would be a pretty good place to start looking back, if you are at all inclined to do so.

Anyway, I’ve rambled long enough, lets get on with it.

Rick Rude vs. Ultimate Warrior, Intercontinental Championship, Meadowlands Arena, East Rutherford New Jersey, August 28th 1989

This match is getting on in years, but I think it’s still pretty fresh, in many ways. The Warrior was at the peak of his popularity here, and Rude walked him through the match by the nose. It’s an interesting match, and in many ways the most important match on the card - This would finish the feud between Rude and Warrior (at least until it was resurrected in the next year), while the main event was effectively a nothing tag match featuring Hogan and Savage, a feud that was effectively ended at Wrestlemania and was lingering on. As such, there was a lot riding on the shoulders of Rude. He had the WWF’s young darling kid in the ring, he had to drop the title and make this guy look good, while at the same time having the match of the night. Predictably, Rude didn’t fail to deliver, and a great match ends after “interference”, of a sort, by Roddy Piper. A match from simpler times, when good guys were good and bad guys were bad, but the story of the match is still well told, Rude is still on top of his game, and the intensity that the match had at the time is little faded by the years and the changes in style in the WWE.

Bret Hart vs. Mr Perfect, Intercontinental championship, MSG, New York, August 26th 1991

If there was ever a match that jumpstarted a singles career, this was it. I’m sure everyone knows the story behind this one by now. Curt Hennig leaving due to a back injury, but working one last match to put over the next young star as a mark of respect for his wrestling ability... it’s fairly well documented, not least by Bret Hart himself.

This match is somewhat of a miracle then, considering the condition that Hennig was in at the time. Although in the opinions of many it is nothing in comparison with the later match between the two at the 1993 King of the Ring, this match is probably the first great singles match of Bret Hart’s WWF run as a major player, and as great a wrestler as Bret Hart was (and would go on to be) much of the credit for that has to go to Curt Hennig. While it is not the best match of either man’s career, this is a classic example of what happens when you get a super hot face and heel combined, both about as talented as you can ask for, a raging Madison Square Garden crowd roaring for a title change, and the glamour of Summerslam combined - and all those factors make the few, small flaws seem even more insignificant. Definitely one for the collection of fans of either wrestler.


Bret Hart vs. British Bulldog, Intercontinental Championship, Wembley Stadium, London, August 29th 1992

No collection of matches at Summerslam would be complete without this match from the only Summerslam that has emanated from outside of North America. This match has the unusual distinction of both routinely being voted the greatest match of all time by fans, while at the same time also having many fans who constantly insist that it isn’t as good as a later bout between the two at the In Your House event in December 1995.

With the right people, Davey Boy Smith could have a tremendous match. Shawn Michaels was a constant opponent with whom he often delivered the goods, but this is probably the most high profile match of the British Bulldog’s career, for the Intercontinental championship in his home country, against his brother in law Bret Hart. A fore runner to a style that would dominate the end of the attitude era, this match features multiple finishers (and subsequent breaks/kick outs), and since this was unusual for the time as opposed to the overkill experienced in 2002, it was revolutionary - the British crowd lapped it up, and Vince McMahon clearly made the right decision in putting this match on last and letting the two Stampede boys go at it, because frankly, the WWF title match would not have been able to follow this. A great, high paced match, a tremendous familial situation back when the WWE still knew how to market them, and a marvellously executed finish make this one of the all time classics.

Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart, WWF Title, Cage Match, United Center, Chicago Illinois, August 29th 1994

Bret Hart’s third entry in succession - by this point Shawn Michaels and Owen Hart were beginning to establish themselves as stars in their own right, but Bret Hart had been something of a flag bearer for quality wrestling in the WWE over the past couple of years. When Shawn and Owen came through though, they didn’t replace Bret - what they did, as this match shows, is throw up the potential for more quality match ups.

Bret would have to wait a couple of years to meet Shawn in a really high profile match (he had previously beaten him twice in 1992), but he got his hands on Owen as soon as Owen was considered ready to main event in the eyes of management. The Bret and Owen feud was the fuel that drove the WWF in 1994, and it culminated (at least, was pushed to the back burner in favour of other match-ups) here at Summerslam.

For people who have only seen a cage match since Hell in a Cell came into existence, this is a pretty good example of what they used to look like - a story, psychology, of escaping a cage, as opposed to trying to beat the other guy to death. For that alone, it becomes worth watching, because it is something you rarely see in a high profile wrestling match anymore.

With that being said, the main selling point of this match is the feud, which really was a very strong offering. Beyond that, you get two great athletes putting on a fairly intense match, and while this is certainly the weakest of Bret Hart’s matches to get a mention in this column, it’s certainly no bad match, and I think it does make it in on merit. Perhaps with the change in style in cage matches, this could be the most dated match here? Either way, it is a great example of the type of match it was intended to be, and for lovers of wrestling as an art form or lovers of the history of wrestling, this is certainly the pick of the Summerslam 93/94 matches.

Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon, Intercontinental title, Ladder match, Civic Center, Pittsburgh PA, August 27th 1995

Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon tore down the house at Wrestlemania X, and in the eyes of all but the wrestling purists, they stole the show with the first ladder match at Wrestlemania.

This match the following year, although nowhere near as recognised or replayed is better. Shawn Michaels had gone from being a bankable heel to a super-face, while Ramon still carried a sizeable fan base himself. While the first one was face vs. heel, this one has the huge advantage that a successful face
vs. face match can give you - The Pittsburgh civic centre are no less into this match in 1995 than the Toronto Skydome were into Hogan and Warrior in 1990.

It’s hard to explain the difference between this match and the Wrestlemania X match - it’s not particularly faster, and the mania match is not outdone on high spots to any real degree, but something is different, and it really is just a much easier watch on modern eyes. While some people raised on TLC may find the Wrestlemania bout a struggle, this one really doesn’t suffer from that. Also, the right man won - this would just further promote Shawn Michaels, and a year later he was WWF champion, and his star power was one of the only things stopping the WWF fall victim to the nWo angle on Monday Nitro.

HHH vs. Rocky Maivia, Intercontinental title, Ladder match, MSG, New York. August 30 1998

There were some decent matches on the cards of the Summerslams in 1996 and 1997, but to find one that really stands out after all these years, we have to come to 1998, and an early installment in a feud that would run for years and be one of the biggest and most profitable in company history - between one of the WWE’s best in ring stars, HHH, and one of their most charismatic performers, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Although The Rock would spend most of his WWE career as a face, the roles were reversed here with Triple H playing the babyface as the leader of D-generation X, while The Rock played his part as the leader of the Nation of Domination. This match was the finale to the first stage of their feud - the next step would be to break this off, and elevate the Rock to main event level, but before that, the rubber match in this feud had to go ahead, and Summerslam in a ladder match was the venue.

In terms of excitement, this match may have one fatal flaw, and that is the two out of three falls match between the two a month earlier, which ended with HHH pinning the Rock for the final fall only to have time expire. This match unfortunately doesn’t live up to that one, but viewed on it’s own, this certainly is an enjoyable contest, and once again Madison Square Garden’s superb crowd help to make a very nice match incredibly memorable. HHH would get the win thanks to some interference from Chyna, but it would not halt the Rock, and the two would both eventually become multi time World Champions - but this must be one of the matches in the early stages of both their careers when the company bosses looked at them and said to themselves, “I think they can handle it”.


E&C, Dudleys, Hardyz, TLC Match, entertainment and sports arena, Raleigh, north Carolina, august 27th 2000

This match is not a favourite of mine. Much like the Tag ladder and Table matches that went before it, I place a lot of the blame for the current trend of turning all gimmick matches into spotfests on this match. With that being said, my own personal feelings aside, I would be remiss to not mention this match as one of the great Summerslam matches of all time - the first time you see it, it is simply incredible, and there is no doubt that it (and the subsequent TLC matches) were a big part in Vince McMahon putting on the type of PPV that people wanted to see, while WCW foundered. The effect that this match has had on wrestling is noticeable, and for that alone it receives a mention - plus, the WWE show that they knew all along what we would all go on to discover, that despite the crowd reaction, Edge and Christian are the best team of the three, by picking up the win in both this TLC match and the Wrestlemania X-7 rematch.

Shawn Michaels vs. HHH, Unsanctioned match, Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale New York, August 25th 2002

Now we are getting closer to time, I’m sure this match will stand out in the memory much more than some of the others. Here, Triple H is a multiple time World champion, not the rising star of the match that he had with The Rock. Here, Michaels is not the young gun fighting Razor Ramon or Vader, he’s older, and making his return in the ring after years off with a back injury. Triple H was only back approximately six months after his quad tear.

So, you’ve got two of the biggest stars in the recent history of the company, and all eyes on it, for all kinds of different reasons.

It certainly wasn’t a technical classic. I doubt it will make the top five of either man’s list as an athletic display, but there are more important things in professional wrestling - after all, this isn’t the amateurs - and these guys managed to convey the drama that the story warranted. Above all, I think the crowd were just pleased to see that both guys could still go - a step may have been lost here or there, and there may have been some ring rust, but as entertainers they could both still cut it, and not only that, but on this night they stole the show. They say that chemistry can be so important to making a good match a great one, and I’m not sure if these guys have so much chemistry in terms of their physical styles, but in terms of thought, and selling a match to the crowd, these two are not only on the same page, their reading the same letter of the same word on the exact same line. The D-X segments are currently a highlight on RAW in terms of fan reaction, and it’s not purely living off nostalgia, people are getting off on what these guys are doing - this match at Summerslam 2002 was what happens when you get these guys working against each other as opposed to allied. A technical classic? Probably not. A classic, nonetheless? I’ll leave you to decide.


Before I go, I’d just like to make a return of sorts.

A return of the 464th most prestigious awards in Professional wrestling, were someone is told to Take up thy wrestling boots, and some one is told to Walk!

Take up thy wrestling boots, Edge: People who read this column regularly will know that I’m not the biggest fan of Edge. Like many, I have often struggled seeing him in a main event role, and think that a lot of the time neither he, nor the material he is given, has helped to dispel that image.

However, I don’t know what has happened recently, whether he has just been on the best form of his career or whether he has been given better stuff to work with or what, but something has changed. I now think immediately of Edge when I try to think of the companies top heel. I’m a fair man, and I’ve criticised him enough in the past, so I’ll give him his due on this occasion - he’s a strong part of a strong show, and at the moment, he is doing a very nice job.

On the other hand, there are people I’m not impressed with.

Walk, the entire Smackdown brand: I had a few weeks when I could only see Smackdown a few weeks back. And so I couldn’t write a column afterwards, not only because of limited online time and connection problems, but also because I couldn’t remember a single thing that had happened on the show. I literally saw the show last night, and am now struggling to remember what happened. That’s not the mark of a good show. I look forward to watching the RAW show and the ECW show, and even though they are not the best shows I’ve ever seen from a wrestling company, I look forward to them and make sure I see them. Smackdown, I couldn’t care less. When the best thing you have had to offer over the last month has involved Mark Henry, you know you are in trouble. Hopefully, Batista’s return can spark something. I don’t know what Batista has that gets people so behind him, but they have traditionally booked him well, hopefully that can continue and jumpstart the show.

As a final note, just to point out how impressed I am with Smackdown right now, they have a PPV tonight, and I have instead chosen to write about matches occurring at Summerslam throughout it’s history. For all those who think that we always write negatively just because that gets hits, exactly how interested can I be in the show?


I think on that rather damning note, It’s time to call it a day. I’ll be back more often now, and I’ll soon be bringing you another YBTB contest. If you’d like to send feedback, reach me at takeupthywrestlingboots@gmail.com, but until next time, take care of yourselves.










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