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Royal Rumble 2003


> I have a question and I'm not sure if this has been asked before. Let's say the WWE didn't sign Scott Steiner in 2002, what would've been the best World Heavyweight title match for HHH at the Rumble? I was thinking a triple threat match with himself, HBK, and RVD, considering we didn't get this match at Armageddon in December of that year.

I'm thinking HHH v HBK in some form, yeah.  Maybe the RVD match since he was supposed to get the shot at Jericho before they panicked and changed it to Rock again.

Comments

  1. RVD had basically been beaten by HHH twice (Unforgiven and the Chamber), so if Steiner doesn't show up in 03 I don't think RVD is the answer. I think they'd put Booker T in that spot. How that would play out going into Mania? I think Booker would lose a screwy match at nWo in Montreal and HHH finally wins a stipulation match at Mania.

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  2. There have been some obvious, obvious Rumble winners, and Brock from this year is right up there with Austin in 98 and HBK in 96.

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  3. After getting pinned by HHH at Unforgiven and by Booker at Survivor Series, there is no way RVD gets this title shot. I have no idea who would have gotten the title shot. Jericho and Michaels had already began their feud by this point. Besides Michaels, there really wasn't a main event babyface on Raw at this point. Austin wouldn't return until the following month. Maybe Edge gets moved to Raw and gets the title shot?

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  4. Randy Orton in 09 was another extremely obvious one

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  5. Your_Favourite_AssholeJune 12, 2013 at 6:15 PM

    'Maybe the RVD match since he was supposed to get the shot at Jericho before they panicked and changed it to Rock again.'


    wait wut

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  6. My opinion on this is basically my opinion from everything from 02 to 04 or so. Why not Goldberg? IIRC he wasn't in the promotion by RR03 yet, but they could have brought him in a few months earlier. He was the biggest star available and the fans genuinely believed in him before WWE went out of their way to kill his mystique. Every booking decision that went wrong during this era could have been fixed by backing up a Brinks truck to Atlanta, giving Goldberg his money and letting him drill HHH/Rock/Jericho through the canvas and collect your money for 6 months before moving onto something new.

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  7. Your_Favourite_AssholeJune 12, 2013 at 6:26 PM

    but then rck jericho from the get go makes sense since jericho beat both austin and rock in the same night and then he had singles matches over the next 2 ppvs


    botttom line i think you mighta mistyped somethin', cause i'm confused

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  8. Your_Favourite_AssholeJune 12, 2013 at 6:31 PM

    'Why not Goldberg?'


    why not zoidberg

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  9. I honestly can't think of anyone. Maybe run Booker vs. Triple H here and then debut Goldberg at Mania against Triple H?

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  10. Because he's not a professional wrestler.

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  11. Wait.. you talking about Goldberg or Zoidberg, Dougie?

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  12. Sheamus in 2012 is another one.

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  13. Who was complaining that we don't get enough content from Scott alone? That's four straight posts from yim on a Wednesday...

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  14. i thought the money was on jericho in 2012.

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  15. I agree. I thought Sheamus was a tremedous letdown. Especially since it was making like the third straight year the Rumble winner was challenging for the clearly lesser prize.

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  16. They heavily teased RVD/Jericho for RR 2002. I don't remember if they went as far as announcing it, but then they blew off the tease and brought Rock into the picture. It was the right decision, but it definitely seemed like they were planning to go the other way.

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  17. Scream09_HartKillerJune 12, 2013 at 7:20 PM

    We're assuming that they knew in December that Jericho beating Rock and Austin would have lead to him facing them one on one on the next two pay per views. You're right, I think they have to do something to play off Jericho beating them both - maybe let him beat RVD clean at the Rumble to, you know, give the impression he's good, and then do a Triple Threat vs Rock/Austin at No Way Out where the nWo and attack both of them.

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  18. Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels Ironman. Then it would be a three match PPV for the lulz.

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  19. When all else fails, plug in Kane.

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  20. Yeah, maybe reverse things, with Booker facing HHH at the Rumble and building RVD back up for a WM19 title match?

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  21. Edge was out with his neck surgery and didn't come back until after 'Mania IIRC

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  22. This is definitely company philosophy. Works about 40% of the time.

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  23. That didn't happen until Feburary 03, so Edge is a viable option.

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  24. I don't see that. They weren't going to put RVD on that level at the biggest show of the year. I'm not saying it wouldn't work, I'm saying VINCE says it wouldn't work.


    I'd say rush Goldberg in, but they were trying to get him in to do Goldberg/Rock at Mania (I believe), so if he wouldn't come in for a Maina match with Rock, he probably wouldn't do it with HHH.

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  25. it all depends on when his Time Warner contract ran out.


    You have to remember all the top guys sat out for the remainder of there contracts and got that free money after Vince bought WCW except for the marks who reneged on their contracts and took lesser deals and of course everyone who made less than 1 million a year


    If Goldberg still had time on his contract, why give it up just to job?


    and if you think vince was book goldberg like WCW with HHH there... i dont know what to say.

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  26. Yeah I had Jericho in 2012 too, and on the off chance they didn't give it to Jericho I thought it'd be Orton

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  27. http://www.wwe.com/classics/superstar-sketches-photos

    Anyone see this yet? I don't know which is worse: flamboyant Cuban callboy Razor Roman, or gay biker Shawn Michaels? I think Egyptian Dustin Rhodes beats them all, though.

    Alternately, the alternate Adam Bomb (very '90s!) and Doink sketches are better than what we ended up with. And the Papa Shango alternates need to be stolen by somebody, repackaged as Baron Samedi, and pushed like there's no tomorrow.

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  28. Austin in 98 is the ultimate. Probably the ultimate post-Hogan WM title telegraph, as well.

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  29. Can we all agree that anything that they could have done would have been better than Scott Steiner?

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  30. Sheamus wasn't obvious at all.

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  31. davidbonzaisaldanamontgomeryJune 12, 2013 at 10:44 PM

    I think HBK one more time in a stip that keeps out Flair.


    But I don't want to live in a world without one of the most amazing MINUS FIVE STARS matches ever. I mean, Steiner's purple man-thong!

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  32. Scream09_HartKillerJune 12, 2013 at 10:54 PM

    I want to see the sketch for the updated Papa Shango that was supposed to return in 1997 - he described it but the sketch never leaked.



    Gay IRS could have been interesting. Interesting that Cowboy Dustin Rhodes was a possibility for him.

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  33. IRS needs to come back to feud with Zeb Colter! Then we can have a tuxedo match for the blow-off!! With Mean Gene as the ref-in-a-tuxedo!!!

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  34. Cena this year is up there, given how inevitable Cena/Rock 2 for the title was.

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  35. to me, the iron man match easily tops that.


    in 1998 there could have at least been the chance of Michaels being a diva and going crazy (the people in charge were afraid of that as well > the usual Undertaker story).


    in 1996 I had no doubt that Hart was putting over Michaels. and the buildup was just as obvious. Hart only being able to hold on to the title because of lame dqs, HBK kicking ass left and right.


    (funny though: today that would mean nothing because the idea that champions usually should be booked strong has been totally lost)

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  36. This is the most random question ever.

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  37. Steiner comes back but falls victim to the MIDCARD NECKBREAKER OF DOOM for two. Steiner is FINISHED. I mean, we’re talking Ultimate Warrior after 20 minutes with Hogan in 1990 territory here.

    ---------------------
    Yeah, this is worth a repost. In bed.


    http://www.411mania.com/wrestling/tv_reports/31382/The-SmarK-Rant-For-WWE-Royal-Rumble-2003.htm#tleF6S0SYT0GYrqG.99

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  38. Really? I thought no one saw that coming.

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  39. Somewhat unrelated to the topic, and indeed your post, but you do highlight something quite interesting.

    Kevin Nash has bitched about Bret being whiney because he tried to alter the ending to that IYH cage match so it wouldn't look like Diesel had just won the match when Undertaker popped up through the mat, but given how much of a joke Bret was made to look consistently before WM I think some of his grievances were justified.

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  40. Scream09_HartKillerJune 13, 2013 at 8:51 AM

    I think they're both right - the idea was Undertaker/Nash would cost each other title matches to set up their feud, but it makes the champion look really weak when he was essentially beat on two pay per views - and the announcers will mention this because it's how they're building heat to the Undertaker/Nash match. I think this was their first February pay per view, maybe they didn't know how to go from Rumble to Wrestlemania while keeping everyone strong while filling the February card yet.

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  41. Oh absolutely, I can see both angles - it made sense for Taker to sabotage Diesel when victory was in grasp as a receipt and to enhance the feud, but equally it doesn't make sense to make your champ look weak either. I hadn't thought about the 'first February PPV' perspective - I think you're bang on.


    Of course, Bret thinks this is evidence of a conspiracy to make him look like a useless champ and make Michaels look unstoppable in the run up to Mania. Fuck him.

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  42. You know, looking back at it, I've never really watched the Raws leading up to WM 12 because, well, it's early 96 WWF, so I'll concede that you're probably right.

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  43. I think we all tried to talk ourselves out of it...but it was pretty obvious.

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  44. Jesus, Steiner to WWE was over TEN YEARS AGO?

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  45. davidbonzaisaldanamontgomeryJune 13, 2013 at 11:33 AM

    Goddamn that makes me feel old, and I'm only 27.

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  46. The Billionaire Ted skits are worth the price of admission alone. After all, these RAWs were only an hour!

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  47. If Goldberg was available by then, he absolutely should have been working Wrestlemania.

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  48. If they HHH didn't *INSIST* on working a 20-minute match with Steiner, they could have done something better.

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