Skip to main content

Throwing in the towel finish

So I was watching some early 80s wrestling and wondered why the throwing in the towel finish went the way of the dinosaur. It's still legal in boxing and it's a good finish to have if you want to protect a wrestler during a loss, plus it can be used as a plot device for a face/heel turn.

Absolutely correct.  Plus there's a billion ways to screwjob it creatively.  I myself am I huge fan of it and I'm also kind of stunned that it hasn't been used since, what, Survivor Series 1994?  You can have the heroic babyface who doesn't give up but has someone surrender for him so he doesn't get hurt further, or the babyface who doesn't give up but someone fucks him over, or the heel who "gets his" by having someone throw in the towel to cost him a title, thus keeping him strong.  It's a GREAT finish.

Comments

  1. One of my all time favorite moments is Owen Hart pleading with his mother to throw in the towel to save his brother, only to have one of the most over the top celebrations when the deed is done.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The best part of that was that it took her 2 tries to get the towel into the ring, She was RIGHT THERE and she couldn't do it in one toss. I know the woman was 4 days older than sand, but still.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Similar to the the throw in the towel is the referee stoppage. The last ref stoppage I can think of wrestlemania 13 with Austin/Bret. This would also be a great way to screw over someone and/or keep someone strong. For example, Alberto del Rio could pay a referee off when he gets in his armbar and thus, he wins the title.

    ReplyDelete
  4. And since adr turned face creative will probably book that.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This would require them to brick back managers and we all know that is never going to happen.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I was just about to post about the ref stoppage. When done in a clean finish it makes both guys look like a million bucks. The winner looks great because he beat someone's ass so thoroughly that the ref has to step in and end it, the loser great because he's so tough that he won't give up no matter how badly he's getting thrashed. With WWE's obsession with 50/50 booking I'm surprised they're not beating it into the ground.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Kinda hard to justify a ref stoppage without buckets of blood.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yeah...the last one I recall is during the Edge/Fatt Hardy feud. Don't think it works w/out blood or obvious injury or something too extreme for PG.

    ReplyDelete
  9. The ref stoppage is probably gone because it's too much like "rasslin." Like calling them "championships" instead of "belts" and having managers and referees with names.

    Although with AJ Lee and Paul Heyman, managers are making a bit of a comeback.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Was the Steph/Vince I Quit match the last time they did it?


    You know who else should throw in the towel? America's Team, because I will whoop that candyass next Sunday and take home that Fantasy Football League of DOOM! Championship.

    I need this, Darryl. I need this more than you can ever now.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Vickie Guerrero needs to get that sweet MILF mamacita ass back to ringside too. Waaaaaay better heat magnet as a manager than Evil Authority Figure #9202171 (now that I think about it...same goes for Heyman and AJ)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Actually, I think they have kept the managers bricked back for years now.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Man, I struggled this year. Won two comps, but barely got over .500 in the FFLoD.

    ReplyDelete
  14. No idea how I got brick from bring.

    ReplyDelete
  15. "... and Mom and Dad: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!"

    Ah, Owen. Such a heel.

    ReplyDelete
  16. You guys are having your championship game week 17? Noobs - no one does that. 14/15/16 are playoff weeks because no one rests.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thanks captain hindsight!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I'm still in shock about losing in the semis

    ReplyDelete
  19. I'm so surprised they didn't do a ref stoppage for Cena/Brock. It seemed to be building to that with the blood loss and it would've kept the juice going for a rematch. I guess they didn't want to start anything they couldn't finish when it came to Brock in case he flaked on them though.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I think it adds a bit of that "Anything can happen feel" though. You have to play smart. Pick some people you wouldn't otherwise pick because not EVERYONE rests.


    Like, maybe you play Victor Cruz, because the Giants play at one o clock and absolutely need to win to have any shot at the play-offs. But certain members of the Patriots will be resting. My league does the two game play off thing and we always end in week 17. It can make for some fun "Miracle" situations as it were. Especially if people are trying to rack up some garbage time stats. It's more fun I think.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Last week. I'm 13 points behind. Winner of the league gets $120. Second place gets zero. (To remind everyone that second place is just the first loser.) and third place gets $40.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Owen was so good. I still don't get what the he'll WWF was thinking in 1995 when the Hart's were so hot the year before

    ReplyDelete
  23. There's one this year people are forgetting, in relation to stoppage. The second fall of the Bryan v Sheamus Best of 3 was stopped when Sheamus passed out.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I can't think of a better time for it than that match. Cena is still the tough guy, Brock is still the monster, and there is an obvious opening for an even bigger rematch.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Heyman = sweet MILF mamacita ass? Oh wait, I misread.

    ReplyDelete
  26. My favorite part of that whole spectacle was how Davey Boy Smith took a header in the stairs in order to negate his appearance out there. Then the poor schmuck had to play dead for an eternity in order for the angle to get over. When the match ended everyone worried about Bret's arm while no one gave a damn about Davey Boy and his apparently quite sincere head injury...haha...

    ReplyDelete
  27. GOD BLESS YOU CAPTAIN HINDSIGHT!!!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Next year... FFLoD2: Revenge of The Fuj

    ReplyDelete
  29. Definitely could have used this finish for Lesnar/Cena. HHH or Vince running out there to protect their star for buisness reasons would have totally made sense and kept both guys strong.

    ReplyDelete
  30. I am too. Losing by two points in the semis against the #6 seed is like Beth Phoenix losing to a roll-up. Meanwhile, I'm working on my sign-pointing picture.

    ReplyDelete
  31. I know a lot of us have short memories (and the WWE writers certainly do), but I remember they did quite a few ref stoppages during Tensai's initial push.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Downvoted for editing your comment after people have already responded.


    Be a man, Cult!

    ReplyDelete
  33. He really was the best. Anyone that had little brothers growing up had a natural DNA-deep hatred of the Owen character.



    Miss that goofy fuck.

    ReplyDelete
  34. I acknowledged my mistake and then edited it. It's not like I tried to ninja edit it and plead ignorance.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment