Slobberknocker Central Monday Night Recap #258 October 23rd, 2000 The Opening Word: The Big Fish always swallows the Little Fish ... As professional wrestling entered the decade of the 1980's there were any number of men who envisioned taking their local, small-time promotions nationwide. They saw that the days of the regional territories were coming to an end. Wrestling, popular since the early days of television, was poised to take advantage of the rapidly booming television industry of the early 80's. Cable TV was expanding at an exponential rate, and new TV stations were springing up across the country. Both needed cheap programming which could draw good ratings. Professional wrestling, many thought, could be exactly what the expanding TV universe was looking for. One such man who had that vision was Vince McMahon. McMahon, starting with the company built by his father, embarked on an aggressive campaign to dominate the wrestling industry. He ignored the age-old territorial system and invaded markets across the country, earning the hatred of the wrestling establishment as well as the label "outlaw." He lured name talent away from smaller promotions, improving the perceived quality of his World Wrestling Federation, while in some cases crippling those small smaller companies now without their top stars. McMahon also established a nationwide presence and identity for his WWF through syndicated television, to an extent never before attempted by other wrestling promoters. He also found nationwide exposure for the WWF with the USA Network (and, for a brief time, Superstation TBS). This coordinated blanket coverage of the country through television and live events led to McMahon and the WWF rising to the top of the wrestling industry. In the process he put a lot of people out of business, either through direct competition, or because they failed to alter their product so that it appealed to McMahon's new breed of wrestling fans, or because they tried to keep up with McMahon and eventually fell by the wayside. That's what happened to Jim Crockett, who tried to follow in McMahon's footsteps and become his number one competitor. Crockett did to the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) what McMahon is generally credited with doing to the wrestling business as a whole. Crockett crippled the NWA by signing all its top talent to exclusive contracts. NWA promoters unwilling to work with Crockett were unable to book the top NWA stars for their shows. Crockett also raided talent from the American Wrestling Association (AWA) and Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF). In the case of the UWF, Crockett actually bought the company outright when UWF owner Bill Watts was forced to sell it because of money problems. Crockett added the best UWF wrestlers to his growing World Championship Wrestling promotion, then folded the UWF as if it had never existed. Crockett eventually overextended himself, forcing him to sell the promotion and TV show which bore the initials "WCW" to cable TV giant Ted Turner. Turner, an avid wrestling fan, had broadcast wrestling programming on his Superstation TBS since the 70's. Turner often thought of getting into the wresting business himself, and attempted to do that on at least one notable occasion when he tried to strongarm Vince McMahon into selling the WWF to him in the early 80's. That encounter gave rise to the personal rivalry between the two, and saw McMahon's WWF leave TBS after securing a timeslot on the network just a few months prior to that. A few years later, with Jim Crockett in dire financial straits, Turner was able to achieve his dream by buying WCW. The day Ted Turner bought WCW was the day he sealed its fate, as it went from being a wrestling promotion to a series of figures on a corporate ledger. Turner never took a hands-on approach to running WCW, rather that responsibility was left to a near-endless string of grizzled wrestling bookers and clueless corporate stooges. Over the course of a decade only one man--Eric Bischoff--figured out how to profitably run WCW, and he was only able to do that for a little over a year. (Eric Bischoff's rise to power, and subsequent fall from grace, has been well documented in the pages of the Monday Night Recap.) October 2000 may go down as the month where time finally caught up to WCW. It will likely be the month in which the Big Fish--the WWF--finally swallowed the Little Fish--WCW. Vince McMahon seems on the verge of finalizing a deal to buy WCW. The deal may even be completed by the time anyone reads this. For McMahon it's just the latest step of a journey begun in the early 80's, to dominate the wrestling industry. For WCW, it's probably a sign that its journey is nearing an end--a journey it began when Ted Turner bought the company from Jim Crockett those many years ago. If it happens, is it a good thing for wrestling? I'll come back to that below. There's still a chance the deal with McMahon may not go through. McMahon holds all the cards in the game, and he has the luxury of being able to walk away if things aren't laid out to his satisfaction. Time Warner, on the other hand, is under pressure to sell WCW before the merger with AOL goes through later this year. There are already rumors that the deal has hit a snag, and that WCW may go back to negotiating with Eric Bischoff and whatever group he represents. Whether McMahon buys WCW or someone else does, the Big Fish that is the WWF is set to swallow Little Fish WCW. It's a near-inevitability. The only thing that could spare WCW is if some kind of disaster befell the WWF, making it so they were no longer the Big Fish (as happened in the mid-90's, though even that just seemingly delayed the inevitable). If Time Warner keeps WCW their only hope to avoid being swallowed up is to completely downsize the company, making it clear that they're not trying to compete with the WWF. In other words, don't swim in the WWF's pond and you can't get eaten. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- WCW Monday Nitro: Live/Taped: Live. Length: Two Hours+. Location: Little Rock, Arkansas. Hosted By: Tony Schiavone, Stevie Ray & Mark Madden. HOUR ONE: - Clips from last week open the show. - THE PERFECT EVENT (w/ Coach Nash) vs. THE HARRIS BROTHERS Shawn Stasiak & Chuck Palumbo come out arguing. A sign at ringside says "Hall = Ratings." It should read "Hall = Unemployed." Nash sits in on commentary and again badmouths Stasiak like he did last week. Schiavone, Stevie Ray and Madden all praise Palumbo. Palumbo is pinned after being put down with an H-Bomb. This is supposed to be Stasiak's fault because he wouldn't tag in, so Nash goes in and grabs him, physically threatening to hit him. The story here, played up by everyone, is that Palumbo is a rising star and that Stasiak is holding him back. Isn't Nash a heel? Doesn't that mean we're supposed to dislike Palumbo because he supports him? Yet the announcers do too. So who's the babyface in this team-split angle? Nash, I guess. Nash being on this show was a real question mark, WCW afraid of what he'd say about Hall. - Pamela interviews Mike Sanders, who says he'll be the next commissioner after Halloween Havoc. - Mean Gene Okerlund is out to interview Booker T. Booker talks smack about Scott Steiner. Steiner comes out to garble a reply. (Man, he's one to talk about not understanding a word Booker says!) A typical "let's do it now!" brawl ensues, Jeff Jarrett running out to help Steiner, then Sting running in to even the odds. The lockerroom empties to break it up and they all get into it. Mike Awesome, in particular, goes at it with Steiner, and I'd guess that's our main event tonight. Awesome, by virtue of winning an ugly Royal Rumble-type match on Thunder last week, gets a shot at whoever's the champion next Monday. - Pamela interviews Steiner. - MIKE SANDERS vs. THE JUNG DRAGONS (w/ Leia Meow) This is a kickboxing match, or something like that. Madden says they're tough competition. Stevie Ray says they do know martial arts. Schiavone buries them. Sanders pours some stuff on his gloves and with one punch knocks Jamie San out. Nitro Girl Syren carries the card signaling Round Two. One punch, another Dragon down, and it's on to Round Three. Ditto. Sanders wins. Leia comes in and gives him a low blow. Schiavone: "Sanders no-sells it ..." Sanders pulls out a cup, and fills it with some of the knockout stuff, intent on using it on Leia. Here comes Miss Jones to serve as a distraction, followed by the cat, who knocks out Sanders with a kick. I shouldn't even have to mention the absurdity of Sanders spilling that knockout stuff all over himself, and repeatedly putting his glove by his face, yet not being affected by it like the Dragons were. - Adams & Clark of Kronik come out to badmouth Goldberg. They then say they've been hired by ... 3 Count? Madden says he should hire them to protect his career in case someone buys the company. 3 Count comes to the ring. They say they paid Kronik to watch their back so they won't be interrupted by anyone when they sing. Kronik then decides they don't want to hear them sing and lay the three out. They even cover for a pinfall. - Nash says he'll give Stasiak a second chance because he, unlike WCW, doesn't give up on people. "Let those who have not sinned cast the first stone." Ooh ... he's shooting. He's wearing a "Hey Yo" shirt, in case we still don't get what this is about. Nash then blatantly announces Hall's firing. He warns WCW that the Outsiders aren't a gimmick, and that they'll be back together someday. In a soup line, maybe ... - The Misfits in Action come out dressed as the Four Horsemen--I mean DeGeneration X--I mean the Corporation--make that Team Canada. A-Wall is dressed as "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, General Rection as Lance Storm, Lt. Loco as Elix Skipper, and Corporal Cajun as ... Bullwinkle Moose? The crowd is only slightly amused, laughing at only a few of the jokes. A-Wall is the funniest imitating Duggan. I'd rate this the fourth-best "stable imitates another stable" promo we've seen on a Monday night in the last three years. Bump that further down the list if I've forgotten any. - Pamela interviews Mike Awesome. - Oh boy, Nash comes out to shoot some more. Nash tells Shawn Stasiak that he and Scott Hall used to be a team, and that they were arguably the best team ever. I'd argue with that, and Stevie Ray says he would too. Hah! Nash says he's cooked up a little test to see if Stasiak deserves to remain on his team. SHAWN STASIAK vs. GOLDBERG Spear. Jackhammer. Pin. 12-0. The entrance lasts probably three times longer than the match, and for once WCW timed this right to coincide with the start of RAW, but it's being over so quickly nullified whatever good it could have done. Even with a post-match promo, replay, and shots of Goldberg shaking hands with the fans, they still only go three minutes into the start of RAW. Bret Hart's still in the promo for Thunder ... maybe his being fired was a work?! Nah. HOUR TWO: - Boogie Knights come out. I should note that Disqo's duck is gone, but has become a permanent part of his entrance video (labeled "Disqo Goose"). Disco says he has a huge announcement, which was teased by WCW on their website earlier Monday afternoon. Disqo says there's a question which is on the minds of everyone, alluding to the sale of WCW. Disqo then asks "who let the dogs out?" Stevie Ray sums it up best when he calls this a song no one but DIsqo knows the words to. BOOGIE KNIGHTS vs. THE FILTHY ANIMALS vs. MARK JINDRAK/SEAN O'HAIRE The animals win quickly when Billy Kidman pins Alex Wright. I guess they'll be redoing this one at the PPV for the Tag Titles. Why? - Pamela interviews Crowbar. Jimmy Hart pops in to tell Crowbar he's been booked in a match, coming up next. - A video package recaps the pregnant Stacy/crazy David Flair storyline, leading up to Flair's "DNA Match" against Buff Bagwell at Halloween Havoc. - CROWBAR vs. VAMPIRO Late last week word got out that Vampiro would be back tonight. Then WCW, on their website, said a superstar would be returning tonight who would have an impact on the PPV. Strangely enough few people connected the two things, instead wondering "who's coming back? Diamond Dallas Page? Hulk Hogan?!" Vampiro comes out with a pair of nunchucks, using them on Crowbar, this being a hardcore match. This isn't so much a match as it is an extended brawl, fought at half-speed to start, mostly at ringside. A few highspots and chairshots keep things interesting. Vampiro wakes up the crowd with a huge belly-to-belly suplex off the top, which sends Crowbar completely across the ring! From there they pick things up a bit, selling less and less, as they eventually fight to an area next to the stage. There's a platform set up with two cages for the Nitro Girls to dance in (during commercials) and DJ Ran's turntable. Suddenly two druids come out (Schiavone calling them that) carrying two stacked tables. Vampiro chokeslams Crowbar off the stage through the tables. The ref ends the match, Vampiro presumably the winner. Vampiro grabs a mic and says this is Mike Awesome's fault, showing a clip of Awesome putting him out last month by tossing him out of the ring onto a table. An okay match, but too long (about ten minutes) given the slow start. - KONNAN (w/ Tygress) vs. SHANE DOUGLAS (w/ Torrie Wilson) Shane comes out with his armed wrapped up. He can't fight tonight, but will be ready to go at the PPV. He and Konnan exchange words, Konnan a bit more fired up than usual (or annoying--take your pick). The two argue, with Douglas eventually attacking Konnan. The match that follows is all Konnan, Douglas getting killed, until Torrie wraps a chain around his fist and distracts the ref. Douglas pops Konnan and covers for the pin. Torrie and Tygress then get into it. The other Filthy animals come out to make sure Douglas & Torrie leave quietly. - The announcers mention the passing of Yokozuna and offer their condolences. - SCOTT STEINER (w/ Midajah) vs. MIKE AWESOME Steiner comes out with a tiger (a trainer holding the leash). Awesome gets in very little offense. A Samoan Drop off the ropes by Steiner prompts Madden to suggest it's a tribute to Yokozuna, which rubbed me the wrong way. Steiner finishes Awesome off with the Recliner. Assuming Steiner beats Booker at the PPV we'll see these two going at it again next week. I've thought for a while that Steiner's going to beat Booker at the PPV, but would they really do the same main event two weeks straight, especially after one guy squashed the other guy so badly the first time? - This Wednesday: Nothing announced. - Next week: Nothing announced. Comments: Vince Russo, citing his concussion, has taken an indefinite leave of absence. With any luck we'll never see him again (as a booker, anyway). That left Terry Taylor with the tough task of trying to pick up where Russo left off and put everything in order leading to the PPV this Sunday. One immediate change was the abandonment of Russo's backstage skits. Most segments started and finished in the ring. The censors were really asleep at the switch tonight. They either didn't bleep or missed trying to bleep about 90% of the profanity. Mark Madden wasn't as annoying as usual, save for that last comment of his which really didn't sit well with me. I'd swear Booker T and the Rock were wearing the EXACT SAME clothes tonight. Other than that there's really not much I can say about this one. It was a by-the-numbers PPV hype show. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- WWF RAW is WAR: Live/Taped: Live. Length: Two Hours+. Location: Hartford, Connecticut. Hosted By: Jim Ross & Jerry "The King" Lawler. WWF RAW: - The WWF notes the passing of Rodney Anoai (Yokozuna), who died yesterday at the age of 34. Yokozuna held three World Tiles in the WWF, two WWF Championships and one World Tag Team (with Owen Hart). - Opening 15 Minute Interview: Rikishi comes out and says he's pressed charges against Stone Cold Steve Austin. Also, he was trying to help the Rock win at No Mercy, and he will do whatever it takes to help the Rock win his title back. The Rock comes out and says he wants nothing to do with Rikishi. The segment ends with the Rikishi being given the Rock Bottom. Good confrontation, with Rikishi drawing a lot of heat from the crowd. Commissioner Mick Foley is tickled pink to book a "Bra & Panties Match" between Trish Stratus and Lita. T&A are barred from ringside. A camera waits in the parking area to catch the arrival of new WWF Champion Kurt Angle. - TRISH STRATUS vs. LITA Not much wrestling to speak of here. Lita loses her top, but comes back and tears Trish's top and bottom off, winning the match. Right To Censor then comes out. Steven Richards introduces their newest member: Ivory. Ivory's now dressed like a nineteenth century schoolmarm. She says she's seen the light, that the WWF degrades women and yadda, yadda, yadda. Tons of heat for the RTC here. Michael Cole is trying to interview Los Conquistadors when Edge & Christian come in. They tell Cole and his camera crew to beat it. - The camera outside shows ... some lady ... arriving. Funny. - Chris Benoit comes out and cuts a great promo, saying the WWF isn't about being the best wrestler. He says Triple H only beat him at the PPV because of Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley. Benoit says from now on things will be different. CHRIS BENOIT vs. ROAD DOGG Benoit dominates, but Road Dogg is able to hang in there, until Dean Malenko runs out and distracts him. That allows Benoit to slap on the Crippler Crossface for the win. The two then embrace. An alliance between Benoit & Malenko? Interesting ... Michael Cole asks Rikishi why he's still there? Rikishi says it's family business, and he'll be around for the entire show. - Still no sign of Angle. - Triple H (big crowd pop out in the arena) tells the Coach that Benoit is indeed the best technical wrestler he's ever faced, but when the bell rang at No mercy it was Triple H who won. He then says that he's going to take Stephanie being put in harm's way out on Angle, and if the Rock touches her again he'll take care of him too. - Still photos are shown from the Austin/Rikishi match. - Crash Holly is cleaning up the APA's office when he's run off by T&A. - Chris Jericho is telling a crew member about the "Fozzy" CD coming out this week when he accidentally spills hot coffee on Kane. Kane snaps and flips overs the beverage table. - WILLIAM REGAL vs. CHRIS JERICHO Before the match Regal bashes Connecticut for being the country's leading manufacturer of handguns. These two are having a really good match when Kane comes in and destroys Jericho. Boo! T&A rack their brains trying to come up with the proper initials for their new protection agency. Angle & Stephanie finally arrive. WWF WAR ZONE: - Angle comes out to celebrate his WWF Championship victory, balloons and confetti being dropped from the ceiling. Angle recaps his first year in the WWF, showing clips on the Titan-Tron of him winning the European Title, the Intercontinental Title, and the 2000 King of the Ring. Angle is just beginning to read a poem when Mick Foley comes out. Foley says he knows how Angle feels, and celebrates with him with a hug, then adds he's very happy to announce Kurt's first title defense: a Triple Threat Match tonight against Triple H and the Rock! This segment ran WAY too long (nearly fifteen minutes), especially since the show already started with a fifteen minute interview. - Chyna's looking for Eddie Guerrero. Instead she finds Mandy & Victoria in Eddie's dressing room. Chyna says she should thank then, closes the door on the cameraman, and we hear the sounds of a struggle. When the door opens again Chyna comes out, the two ho's laid out unconscious. - TOO COOL vs. TAZZ/RAVEN Scotty Too Hotty has Tazz set up to receive the Worm, but Raven stops it at the last second with an Evenflow DDT. Tazz then covers for the pin. Christian is trying to figure out which sunglasses he should wear when Pete Gas comes in. He says commissioner Foley wants to see Edge. - Edge couldn't find Foley. When he gets back he finds Christian laid out in a trashed room. Christian blames the Dudley Boyz. Edge says don't worry--he'll take on the Conquistadors by himself. - MR. ASS (w/ Chyna) vs. VAL VENIS (w/ Steven Richards) Even, back-and-forth match, which Billy Gunn eventually wins after Richards comes in to interfere. Gunn takes him and Venis out with a clothesline, then hits the FameAsser for the pin. Eddie Guerrero watched the match from the stage. Plug for the WWF's new "Can You Take The Heat?" cookbook. - Footage is shown from the XFL cheerleader tryout in Las Vegas. - LOS CONQUISTADORS vs. EDGE Sharp-eyed fans will notice that the Conquistadors are both the same height this time, instead of one being much taller than the other. Edge seems to notice this too, and very quickly he's in trouble, the masked men dominating. One of the pair then does a running leg smash off the other's back, a signature Hardy Boyz move, at which point the whole crowd realizes who *these* Conquistadors really are. Edge put down with a Twist of Fate, followed by a Swanton Bomb. 1 ... 2 ... 3! The Conquistadors "retain" the titles. Up on the stage the Conquistadors pull of their masks, revealing you-know-who. Christian comes out to ask Edge what went wrong? Mick Foley then comes out. It turns out that in that earlier Edge & Christian segment with the Conquistadors, when the cameraman was kicked out of the room, the camera was left behind, running. The tape reveals E&C's plot to win the belts, them having won them under the masks at the PPV, then having two jobbers defend the belts against them on RAW. Foley allows the PPV title change to stand, but so will the decision in tonight's match, so the winners, and new Tag Champs ... the Hardy Boyz ("the ConquistHardyz"). Talk about using the Sledgehammer-O-Plot to drive home something the fans got right away. Rikishi orders Michael Cole to tell the Rock that he's going to help him win tonight. - Tiger Ali Singh and Lo Down are at WWF New York. Tiger Ali Singh?! - TRIPLE H vs. THE ROCK vs. KURT ANGLE Angle's music plays, but he doesn't come out. It plays again, but still there's no sign of him. Cut to the back--Stephanie tells Angle to make them wait. A commercial now?! Early in the match the Rock is removed from action when going into the ropes he's dumped to the floor, Triple H pulling the ropes down. He and Angle go at it for a bit. The action spills to the floor, where Triple H and the Rock play their game of bashing Angle's head into the announce desk. More fighting, and Angle gets his hands on the ring bell, knocking Triple H out cold with it. For the next few minutes Triple H is attended to by officials, loaded onto a stretcher, and carried up the ramp. On the stage he comes to and staggers back to the ring. A bit later he gets Angle with a Pedigree and covers, the crowd going nuts. The Rock pulls him out at two. Clothesline, and the Rock goes in to cover Angle after a Rock Bottom. Triple H pulls him out at two. Everyone ends up back in the ring. Triple H sets the Rock up for Pedigree, but Angle waffles him with the championship belt. He also hits the Rock. Referee Earl Hebner sees this, but lets it go. Angle stomps on his two fallen opponents. Here comes Rikishi to a chorus of boos. Rikishi hits Angle, and that's enough for Hebner--he calls for the bell. The fans chant "Austin! Austin! Austin!" **KEE-RASH!** The roof explodes off the arena as Austin charges the ring, clotheslining Angle along the way. Austin knocks Rikishi into the corner and stomps on him. Angle comes in from behind and hits Austin. Austin lays out Angle with a Stunner, as Rikishi slips out of the ring and limps away. The show ends with Austin up on the ropes, cans of beer tossed his way. - This Thursday: Nothing announced. - Next week: Nothing announced. Comments: The show started hot, and finished hot, but the remainder was sort of up and down. Umm ... that's about all I have to have to say. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Bottom Line: Is Vince McMahon buying WCW a good thing? That's a tough question to answer. A lot of people assume McMahon buying WCW would be bad for the wrestling industry. My gut reaction to this is to agree, but let's look at it for a second. Just exactly what is the wrestling industry today? Honestly speaking, it's the WWF. Certainly from a profit perspective it is. WCW is losing money. ECW is losing money. Other independent wrestling promotions, some are making money, some aren't. From the standpoint of public perception, the WWF *is* wrestling. Even after WCW's run as the top company and all the waves they made with the New World Order and Goldberg, people still equate "wrestling" and the WWF as being synonymous with one another. Many wrestling fans fear the WWF will just coast with no competition. Face it--that's what they have been doing for two years now. The WWF has had no real competition for about that long. McMahon buying WCW certainly isn't changing that. It would be one thing if WCW were healthy and competitive and McMahon were buying the company to deliberately kill it. WCW isn't competitive, and as far as we know killing off WCW is not McMahon's intention (immediately, anyway). As for the WWF being entertaining without competition, it's hard to ignore that the company reached it peak and stayed there for months without WCW being a threat to them (though they obviously wouldn't have reached that peak were it not for the competitive period which preceded it). People speak fondly of that golden period where for about a year WCW and the WWF were both strong. The combined TV ratings, PPV buyrates, live event attendance and merchandise sales made for an overall peak for the wrestling industry. That period may have been the greatest peak ever for the entire industry. It lasted about a year, yet people talk about it like it's the way wrestling always was, before WCW went into the tank. Listening to people talk you'd think McMahon buying WCW is what would prevent the industry from seeing a peak like that again. I hate to break it to you, but no matter who owns WCW, we may never see a time like that again. Personally I think what we're seeing right now is more indicative of the overall history of wrestling than that one year was. Certainly it reflects that span of time that started when Hulk Hogan became a mainstream phenomenon in the WWF, to the day he signed with WCW. For all of that time the WWF was on top, with everyone else a distant second. Towards the end of that period the WWF's profits dwindled, until they were actually losing money, but the competition hardly did better. WCW was losing money too. Nobody else, making money or not, were even big enough to be considered in their league. In a perfect world WCW would be able to turn itself around; or Eric Bischoff or someone else would buy the company and pull it out of its nosedive. Vince McMahon stands just as much chance of doing it as anyone else. Probably more. If he fails then either it's likely that no one else could have done it anyway, or he deliberately let it die because that's what he wants it to do. We don't yet know if that's what he has in mind for the company. I won't suggest we "give the guy a chance": rather I say if he's going to buy it, we wait and see what his plans for the company are before we preemptively label him the Devil once again. There are those who argue that wrestlers would lose all power to negotiate contracts. This one is definitely true. No longer can a wrestler play one company off the other to secure a higher-paying contract. The question that comes to my mind is, "is this necessarily a bad thing?" Just look at what all the big money contracts did for WCW. It created an atmosphere where too many wrestlers felt they didn't need to perform at the top of their game because they got paid guaranteed money no matter what they did. Minor injuries became major ones, the wrestlers content to sit at home and still earn their pay. Lesser paid wrestlers lost the incentive to perform because it never reflected on their salary nor their level in the company. Worse, higher paid talent was often used well beyond the point where they could entertain and draw fans because WCW felt they had to justify the money being spent on them. Higher salaries also meant talent of any name value was automatically out of reach of the smaller wrestling promotions. What has the bidding war for talent done to ECW? Pretty much killed it. Anyone with talent in that company would eventually be lured away by a bigger deal from WCW or the WWF. And big name free agents always asked for more money than ECW could afford to pay. Go beyond ECW and your local wrestling promotion stood no chance of signing a name bigger than one of the washed-up stars from the 80's, like Greg "The Hammer" Valentine or Jake "The Snake" Roberts. The WWF used to pay wrestlers a pittance for their services. WCW being granted a bottomless bank account in the mid-90's changed that. McMahon had to sign higher guaranteed deals to compete. Today most WWF wrestlers sign incentive-based deals. The better they perform, and the better business is, the more they get paid. If WCW falls under McMahon's control then the wrestlers lose a major bargaining tool. But is that so bad? Yes, if you're a wrestler just starting out and hoped to score it big right off the bat. Maybe, if you're a talented wrestler who could face political opposition in the lockerroom, preventing you from proving your worth as a performer and money draw. No, if you're an aging wrestler who hoped to sign a cushy deal cashing in on your name. I'm sure there'll be horror stories, and across the board wrestlers will be paid less than they were during the business boom, but I've got to think there could be benefits to this too. Maybe more guys lower on the card will actually make more money. Perhaps lower salaries will open up opportunities for the smaller companies. Or maybe it'll be as bad for wrestlers as some people fear. All I know is a McMahon-run WCW is a better alternative than no WCW at all. It's not as if WCW, in the state it's in now, or if it's bought by Eric Bischoff, can match any contracts McMahon could offer anyway, not for the foreseeable future. There's talk that the government will prevent McMahon from buying WCW. So if Vince buys WCW he will have a monopoly on the wrestling business. Isn't that really the case right now? His is the only company making money, and in the eyes of the public the WWF *is* wrestling. I can see the argument against one man having too much power and all that, but whether McMahon owns WCW or someone else does, the playing field is pretty much the same for all the other wrestling companies out there. Companies like ECW and on down aren't going to be denied opportunities they aren't already denied by their being two major companies. As for the government declaring the combined WWF-WCW a monopoly, I wouldn't bet on that. It *could* happen. Certainly some politician could decide to spearhead an investigation. But I've got to ask if the WWF becomes a monopoly (like it already isn't?), what is it a monopoly of exactly? There are reasons the government limits monopolies, most of them having to do with the public interest. I'm not sure if the WWF having a monopoly on the wrestling industry is necessarily of any concern to the public. Perhaps it is, and maybe someone will come up with a reason why Vince owning both companies could hurt the public, but for the most part I can't think of any pressing need to prevent McMahon from buying WCW. Professional wrestling isn't a food or drink. It's not a medicine. It's not a form of communication or transportation. It's entertainment, and the only examples I can think of that come close to the WWF buying WCW is all the various mergers between entertainment companies, television networks or record labels. Usually the concern in such cases arise from the companies not only owning entertainment content, but the means by which that content is delivered. That's one of the sticking points of the whole AOL-Time Warner merger. They've had to assure the government that the cable companies Time Warner owns wouldn't block other Internet providers from having access to their cable lines to deliver high speed Internet connections. The fear was that Time Warner would grant exclusivity of that to partner AOL. Then there's Microsoft. In the case of Microsoft being declared a monopoly it wasn't because they cornered the computer operating system market with Windows, but because that very dominance allowed them an unfair advantage in pushing their Internet Explorer web browser on consumers. Why buy Netscape or any other competing browser when you get a copy of Internet Explorer free when you buy a new computer, or bundled into the latest version of Windows? The government is forcing Microsoft to split into two companies, one focused on computer operating software, and the other on Internet software. I believe appeals in that case are ongoing. Suppose AOL-Time Warner decides to just shut WCW down. Or Eric Bischoff buys it and it fails, and is shut down. Doesn't McMahon then have that monopoly on wrestling by default? Would the government come calling then? So, this all brings us back to the main question, "will McMahon buying WCW be bad for the wrestling industry?" Will it? Perhaps, but I don't think his buying WCW automatically spells doom the way some would have you believe. AOL-Time Warner keeping WCW could be just as disastrous if they shut WCW down. Eric Bischoff running the company is no sure answer either. If history has shown anything it's that WCW needs to be run by people who have knowledge of the wrestling business. Who knows more about wrestling than Vince McMahon? People are quick to assume the worst without conceding McMahon any chance of succeeding. Were it up to me I'd rather he didn't buy it, if for no other reason than I then wouldn't have to hear the daily complaints about McMahon killing the business (no matter how well WCW might be doing at the time). I also wouldn't have to grapple with the notion of comparing the two like they were separate companies, when they're really both owned by the same man. As a wrestling fan, though, I can't help but be excited by the possibilities which McMahon owning WCW opens. A WCW versus WWF feud, played out on two wrestling shows on different networks. Imagine a camera on Nitro following WCW wrestlers entering the WWF arena just as RAW starts. Then RAW comes on the air with their show under attack. One war, airing on two channels. Which do you watch? Does it matter? Wouldn't it be great to be forced to choose again? And the matches ... the WWF Champion vs. the WCW Champion, with either having a real chance to win. The Rock vs. Booker T. Goldberg vs. Kurt Angle. Triple H vs. Ric Flair. Sting vs. the Undertaker. Chris Benoit vs. Lance Storm. Vince McMahon vs. Vince Russo. That's some damn exciting stuff to think about. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Slobberknocker Central" and "Monday Night Recap" are copyright 2000 by John Petrie, and all opinions expressed therein are his own, and not those of "USLink". Check the "Slobberknocker Central" main page for info on how to receive the "Recap" free via E-Mail every week. Volume One, Number 258 of the "Monday Night Recap", October 23rd, 2000.