Scott,
Following the career-ending back injury (haha!) in the Rumble '98 Casket match, how close were we to no Shawn Michaels to drop the WWF Title to Stone Cold at WMXIV? I still can't think of a more important 'sucking it up' than Michaels' gutting that main event out before hanging it up (at the time). He surely had his share of 'bitching-out' previously (including the previous year's Wrestlemania) but if you have no Michaels (and no Bret at that point), what happens with Austin's first title win?
If Shawn Michaels can't go at Wrestlemania 14:
- Do you hotshot Michaels' belt to Shamrock for a main event of "World's Most Dangerous Man" vs. "World's Toughest SOB", enforced by the "Baddest Man on the Planet?" (Someone else could challenge Rocky for the IC title, with Shammy moving to the main event).
- Do you do some contrived Triple Threat and put Austin in the middle of the Undertaker-Kane issue for the title?
- Pull Vader out of mothballs as Vince's 'hired moster' and have him against Austin for the vacant title? The big guy was shunted down pretty far by then, but had that legitimate tough guy image to threaten Austin.
- My favorite: Give Owen the mega-push as Vince's top heel and 'Corporate champ'-type (even going so far as saying Owen had kayfabe involvement in 'Montreal' to get his brother out of the way?). The Owen-Austin blowoff would have made storyline sense as well, with Owen nearly putting Steve out before his meteoric rise the previous summer. Vince probably didn't want to push Owen to the top following Montreal, but what a way to get him his well-deserved moment in the sun!
Boy, that's a toughie. Shawn would have had to be pretty injured, like unable to walk, in order for Vince to allow him to no-show Wrestlemania. Another option besides some of the really good ones above might be Austin taking on DX in a handicap match, so that Hunter could work the match and Shawn could stand on the apron. Shamrock would be tough to pull off because you're hotshotting a babyface v. babyface match as the main event, but it was a possibility. That roster was so ridiculously thin that the only other possibility I can even think of would be Undertaker. And it's not like there was any big stars floating around WCW or ECW (aside from X-Pac) that they could steal for it, either.
So yeah, I'd have to agree either Shamrock or evil Owen.
Isn't the WM XIV match the one where Taker had to physically threaten Shawn to do the right thing?
ReplyDelete"Shawn would have to be pretty injured, like unable to walk, in order for Vince to allow him to no-show Wrestlemania."
ReplyDeleteOr, you know, he could have lost his smile again...
Yeah I think that's bullshit. True enough Shawn was a pain in the ass back then but I just don't buy that at all.
ReplyDeleteI wanted Austin vs Tyson
ReplyDeleteWe probably would have gotten something like the Wrestlemania 2000 main event two years early. When in doubt, put a McMahon in Every Corner.
ReplyDeleteI think both Michaels and Taker have both mentioned that happening, though.
ReplyDeleteThey could have pulled Foley out of the tag title scene and bumped him up a few months early to main event status. He's go on to challenge at Backlash anyway.
ReplyDeleteI was trying to think of a legend to throw in there but literally everyone was in WCW except Warrior, who is a less reliable choice than an injured HBK.
Looking at the rosters available around then, Vince could have gone in house with Lawler or Ron Simmons, although that would have required some pretty quick build-up to get either over as credible.
How about signing Bam Bam over from ECW? He was always generally over and could have played monster heel against Austin for a few months.
THREAD JACK: Another PP goal on the Devils! Holy Shit!
ReplyDeleteSorry, but i've been waiting 15 years for the Panthers to get into the play-offs! Thank you Dale Talon!!
Without Michaels, who else could it be? Owen was a great wrestler but he just wasn't Wrestlemania main event-caliber. Michaels would have to be a total bitch to actually try and get out of jobbing to Austin, especially when there was really no one else (aside from Taker) as credible to do so (and this was an important moment in turning the tide in the wrestling war.)
ReplyDeleteYeah, Michaels is pretty up front in his book about being in a bad mood about what was happening that day. He doesn't come out and say he doesn't want to job but the implication was clear. Granted that book was ghostwritten but I'm sure most of it came from interviews with Michaels. Despite the fact that he could barely move, he somehow thought that they should put Wrestlemania on hold for him, or something.
ReplyDeleteThe real money would have been in throwing every dime they had at Tyson to get him to wrestle Austin. They probably would have needed some hefty bribes to the athletic commission to get that to happen, and they probably could have gone in the red paying Tyson to do it, but he was still a hot commodity at the time and that would have been the biggest selling PPV in history, no question. Barring that, I like the evil Owen scenario.
ReplyDeleteYep, that's the one
ReplyDeleteTaker confirmed it on Off the Record back in 2002. It's on YouTube.
ReplyDeleteRon Simmons or Jerry Lawler. Headlining a Wrestlemania. In 1998. Out of all the candidates to replace HBK, Lawler and Simmons are a notch below Austin wrestling himself for 5 minutes.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe how the Devils are playing right now. Who would've thought Broduer would be this bad and have to be replaced? Are you a Panthers fan?
ReplyDeleteI think everyone wanted that.
ReplyDeleteYeah man, been following them since opening day of their expansion year. I tuned in/out over the last 10 years since they just could never get a team that could get into the play-offs.
ReplyDeleteThis, this is fun.
I think the Panthers are just outplaying them right now.
Yeah, I'm a Rangers fan so anytime the Devils do poorly I am happy. I definitely underestimated the Panthers this year, I thought the Devils would've taken care of them handily. You think Clemmenson starts Game 4?
ReplyDeleteDid you see the Torres hit on Hossa? It seems like these playoffs are going from "physical" to down-right nasty right now.
I kind of felt back then that Shawn was sort of the third wheel in that match anyway in regards to the build-up. It was mostly the red-hot Austin and the infamous Tyson with the champion Shawn really the placeholder, which is shocking to say but it really felt that way.
ReplyDeleteAlmost kind of like Miz was with Cena-Rock at WM 27. And that will be the only way in history that Miz and Shawn are comparable.
"Tell me a lie....and say that you won't goooooo...."
ReplyDeleteSmackdown Spoiler threadjack!
ReplyDelete?seluR emertxE ta hctam eltit saviD a steg ehs ebyaM .noitcerid wen a ni JA gnikat era yeht ekil skooL
It wouldve been Austin vs. Tyson, obviously. Tyson's camp didn't want him wrestling since he was suspended at the time but if Vince ponied up whatever insane $$ was necessary, it would've been Tyson/Austin. And i can't even imagine what the buyrate wouldve been.
ReplyDeleteHow about HHH murdering Shawn to take the belt? It probably kills HHH long-term to drop the belt to Austin back that quickly, and Foley probably never makes it to the main event. But Owen probably feuds with Jarrett over the Euro title and settles in the role of a sold mid card baby face.
ReplyDeleteJust watched that. Wow. I was all ready to be that guy who was like, "that's just a rumor" but Undertaker all but says he would have kicked Michaels ass if he didn't do the job.
ReplyDeleteI think Cimerica was just looking for workers not currently involved in a match on the show, which would have been Lawler, Faarooq (sure in that meaningless battle royal, but he could've been replaced), or Jeff Jarrett.
ReplyDeleteBigelo would have been an interesting choice. The match would have been good, although I'm not sure he would have been better than someone else on the roster, unless they brought Paul E. with him and gave the match an invader-like vibe (Bigleo threatening to take the belt away from WWF to ECW or something).
!SEY
ReplyDeleteWell, that and Miz won the "who's Shawn and who's Marty of this team" thing with Morrison.
ReplyDeleteI think Foley was probably where they would have gone since they main evented with him the next 2 months anyway.
ReplyDeleteShamrock would probably also be a possibility since then you would have a wrestler, boxer, and UFC guy involved in the main event and could market it that way (a decade before that would actually be a big deal.)
Yeah, I was basically looking at who was free. Kane/Taker isn't something they likely would have broken up since it was the secondary main event.
ReplyDeleteLawler and Simmons had main evented WWE shows in the past, although it had been some time since Lawler had done so. I honestly forgot that Jarrett was back at that point.
"I'm going to finish taping up my fists and you're either goof to change your mind and do the job or I'll change your mind for you"
ReplyDeleteAs a Flyers fan I have to second the Devils schadenfreude and the dirtiness of the playoffs. I'm not going to jinx anything, but I'm looking forward to tomorrow night.
ReplyDeleteI was just about to post, yeah since they wen't with Foley right after (in what was in hindsight absolutely just a placeholder feud en route to Undertaker, no offense to Foley) they would have just moved what happened with Dude Love up a bit. Though, it wouldn't have been Dude...Foley might have convinced Vince to let him do it as Jack as like a hired gun gone insane & involve Funk in some way.
ReplyDeleteCould have went with a 10th anniversary of WM IV vibe and did a tournament. Ugh, that would've sucked ass,lol.
ReplyDeleteThe real answer is they would've given the title to Austin right away and done Tyson-Austin and had the biggest PPV in history. And not just wrestling history. History.
ReplyDeleteI guess it depends on just how far out Michaels' injury would've taken place. My guess is they fold HHH and Owen into the match to make it a fatal four-way. That adds another layer of "DX working together, but can Austin and Owen co-exist?" intrigue to the bout, plus with Tyson as allegedly part of DX it stacks the deck even more against Stone Cold. Sure, Austin didn't want to work with Hart at this time, but I think he would've sucked it up given that it was Wrestlemania and his career-defining championship win.
ReplyDeleteIt's still stupid. If HBK flaked out a week before Mania or even the night of, Vince would have came out and told everyone he has fired him. He then would have put in one of the upper card guys in as a replacement, Foley, Taker, HHH etc, not an announcer or a guy who was barely a mid-carder.
ReplyDeleteTough one here... I'd say that in a perfect world you'd do HBK/Nash 3 at No Way Out and job Nash at WM to Austin... barring that, I'd go with stripping Shawn of the belt and do a 3-way with Austin, Taker, and either Owen or Vader. Maybe bring in the top guy from Japan at the time or something. Better idea: Kane over HBK at No Way Out, Austin over Kane at WM. Or Sid wins the belt on Raw 2 weeks after the RR and jobs to Austin. This would be a really bad situation no matter how you do it.
ReplyDeleteI like your Kane idea better. It probably would of done wonders for him at the time.
ReplyDeleteWhich I think was a fairly arbitrary choice in the case of Miz/Morrison.
ReplyDeleteI just want to note that when I mentioned Sid I had my timeline mixed up. Shawn beat Sid at RR97, not RR98. Oops...
ReplyDeleteI don't care what anyone says, out of the big 4 of sports the NHL have the best playoffs(NFL/MLB might be close), way more unpredictable and whatnot.
ReplyDeleteAlso on the SCSA Blu Ray when Austin and JR are doing commentary for the match Austin keeps referring to the match as "not sure if it was going to happen" and that he "wasnt sure Shawn was going to do the match". A bunch of comments about that and how unprofessional Shawn was at the time pretty much confirm to me that they werent sure Shawn was going to walk dat aisle even on the day of the event.
ReplyDeleteI think the most sensible option would have been to go with Vince vs. Austin, completely overbooking so you have the Stooges et al run-in and have Tyson turn on Vince in the end. That way Austin-McMahon feud kicks off with Austin giving Vince his on his biggest show and Vince going all out across the next year or two for revenge
ReplyDeleteHow does Nash end up in WWF in time for No Way Out 1998?
ReplyDeleteThat's why I said "in a perfect world". I was just trying to come up with shit no one else mentioned.
ReplyDeleteI think involving Kane would have killed the mainstream press. Could you imagine how much fun the smug SportsCenter anchors would have mocking 1998 Kane?
ReplyDeleteI legit think Marty Jannetty is a better pro wrestler than Miz.
ReplyDeleteIf I recall correctly (and I am pretty sure I do)- Sid was heavily rumored to be the fourth member of the DX/NAo team at No Way Out when it became obvious that HBK could not work the show.
ReplyDeleteIt would be pretty easy to hotshot the belt on to him and work an injury angle with Shawn- is it the best possible outcome- no, would it be a good match- no (at least not without a ton of stips and overbooking).... but he is a guy who was a two time WWF champion and who had headlined WM the previous year, so there would be some crowd buy in.
Owen would never get a look because Austin refused to work with him. If you don't bring in Sid, I think you are looking at a rush elevation of HHH or the Rock or a Four Way.
I don't think many people would disagree, at least regarding in-ring ability.
ReplyDeleteHere's what bugs me, Shawn's back was a mess, and pretty much knew his career was over, and yet he still didn't want to put over Austin. What did he want to do? Retire as champ?
ReplyDeleteOh, Sid vs. Austin at Mania 14 would have been interesting. As long as they kept it short it might even have ended up being a decent brawl. Did Sid and Austin ever wrestle each other?
ReplyDeleteYeah, there was a RAW match in 96 or 97. It was pretty short, I think and ended via outside interference. As was the norm back then. I think it was Bret or Vader who came in.
ReplyDeleteNo, that hotshots the angle FAR too soon.
ReplyDeleteI dunno, in a perfect world, I'd much rather have Bret stay in the WWF and give Austin his win back in another classic between the two.
ReplyDeleteNash can stay where he is.
I think Tallon is probably the most underrated GM in the game.
ReplyDeleteI still contend he was milking the injury. He's done it before!
ReplyDeleteIt's not like they treated Tyson much better...
ReplyDeleteHere's a question that I don't think has ever been answered: what if Shawn called Taker's bluff? Would the Deadman really have kicked his ass all over the lockerroom? And what happens then? Because if anything, Shawn would have had the perfect excuse not to work that night, plus some heavy ammo for a lawsuit to boot (especially if he could prove that WWE knew what was going to happen and did nothing to stop it).
ReplyDeleteI mean, it's a great story and all, but there could have been some serious consequences if things had gone the other way.