Guest JAxlMorrison Report post Posted June 16, 2003 HBK wanted more time to showstop by Phil Speer HOUSTON -- June 15, 2003 -- On one hand, Shawn Michaels was relieved after his match against Ric Flair tonight at Bad Blood. The Heartbreak Kid had been battling stomach flu all week, so he was happy to get through the match successfully. On the other hand, he was a bit disappointed. “I’m disappointed in the time,” he said moments after the conclusion of the match. “You had two of the best wrestlers in the world. We were given 18 minutes to wrestle. That’s b.s.” On Friday’s Byte This!, HBK said he was hoping to have 30-35 minutes of good, old-fashioned wrestling with the “Nature Boy.” Tonight, he got barely half that amount of time. Michaels’ body language and facial expressions after the match indicated that he was frustrated. Asked if he wanted to have a rematch, HBK said, “That’s up to the office. I don’t think they plan on one, but I have no idea.” Michaels no doubt was hoping for more for his first major singles match with Flair. Until tonight, the two had only wrestled together in a few tag team matches and one singles match, about 10-12 years ago in Corpus Christi, Texas, a match taped for WWE Wrestling Challenge. Michaels said he’s been bedridden all week, unable to train due to the stomach flu, so while he wasn’t sure if he was a step slower during the match -- “That’s for everyone else to say,” he said -- he was feeling worn out afterwards. But fortunately, there were no major injuries. “I’m fine,” he said. “My back is sore, and I’m hungry, so that’s a good sign.” Michaels said his symptoms began on Monday after RAW and continued until Friday afternoon. He started feeling better yesterday, but took a turn for the worse this morning. All day long at the Compaq Center, he drank fluids to make sure he was sufficiently hydrated. He only had a little bit of bland food, like pasta and a bagel. “But I feel like it’s starting to taper off,” he said. “Now I’m just feeling run down.” It’s not the first time that the Showstoppa has battled illness heading into a big pay-per-view. At the 1997 Royal Rumble in San Antonio, Michaels battled the flu. “That one wasn’t as bad as this,” Michaels said. “That was just one night. This has been all week.” Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bps "The Truth" 21 Report post Posted June 16, 2003 But...see...they NEEDED to end 25 minutes early. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JHawk Report post Posted June 16, 2003 And they NEEDED the Redneck Triathalon to waste over 30 minutes by itself. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest The Grand Pubah of 1620 Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I had no idea he had a bug. They need a rematch at SummerSlam. If they are both up to par the match could be GREAT! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest RavishingRickRudo Report post Posted June 16, 2003 And they NEEDED for the two other title matches to be under 10 minutes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest razazteca Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Nothing can overshadow HHHell in the Cell. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest NoCalMike Report post Posted June 16, 2003 ppv ended really early....I guess this match outclassed the rest of the ppv too much for it to go on longer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JRE Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I agree with Shawn. So much bad planning spent on the Redneck Triathalon. First of all, if they had determined all of the events in it on a Raw before the show...they wouldn't have had to do the singing contest bit....as the whole point of it was for Austin to throw it out and pick the Pigpen thing without making it look stupid...since there just happened to be a pigpen in the arena. Second, why have a backstage segment where Bischoff shows the ladies when they could have just merged it into the inring thing. And then why so damn much Austin celebrating? HELL- the whole thing wasn't needed. And they still had half an hour left over. I'm with Shawn, this was the match I paid to see, especially after hearing it would be 35 minutes on Byte This....pfft. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest RavishingRickRudo Report post Posted June 16, 2003 WHOOOPS, wrong thread. Um... HBK sucks... YEAH! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest wrestlingbs Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I thought HHH wanted more time for his match. And did we really need to see 30 minutes of the Redneck Triathlon? God that thing wil haunt my nightmares. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest AndrewTS Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Holy shit, I agree with HBK on something. I guess HHH couldn't take having his older, part-time wrestler buddy and his 50-something manager have a better match than him and Nash. Well, they still did, but the possible match they could have had would have completely blown Shit in a Cell away. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Agent_Bond34 0 Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I thought HHH wanted more time for his match. Didn't he want 30-45? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Nevermortal Report post Posted June 16, 2003 More time for that suckfest? BOO. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Austin3164life Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Shawn and Ric deserved at least another 10 minutes, and the quality of the match would've jumped a star probably. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JHawk Report post Posted June 16, 2003 The way they built HBK-Flair, it HAD to get around 30 minutes. Instead it got about 18 if you count the entrances. Which is still less than bell-to-bell time for Hell in a Cell. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest RavishingRickRudo Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Yes. I totally agree. Why give more time to the title matches when the meaningless match between two guys with no futures and who don't work a regular schedule ONLY gets 20 minutes (longer than the two title matches COMBINED)! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ANKLELOCK 0 Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I didnt see Bad Blood, but I heard that match was good,but nothing great. If it was given an extra ten to fifteen minutes it could have been a showstopper(no pun intended). Im an HBK and Flair mark, so i hope they have another one and it does get 35 minutes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest the 1inch punch Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Fuck him, serves him right for not jobbing to Jericho at Wrestlemania, or countless other matches where he should have laid down Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Eric the Eagle Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I haven't seen the match yet, so I can't comment on whether it should have been longer, but there is no way someone who had spent the week bedridden would get a 30-minute plus match if I was booking. That's just asking for trouble. Give them a (relatively) short match now and bring the payoff when you're sure both guys can handle it. That being said, when you're out there, 18 minutes feels like five, tops. If you want a 30-45 minute match, that will feel like a letdown. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Monday Night Jericho Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I haven't seen Bad Blood yet either. But on a side note, HBK thinks that he can and Flair are two of the best in the world? Ha! They are terrible nowadays. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Memphis Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I haven't seen Bad Blood yet either. But on a side note, HBK thinks that he can and Flair are two of the best in the world? Ha! They are terrible nowadays. Which, funnily enough, is better than 90% of the roster on RAW. The Hurricane, Chris Jericho, Booker T (only just barely) and Goldust are the only guys I can think of that I can honestly say are talented in the ring and are worth watching. M Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dynamite Kido Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Why wouldn't you want to see a match like Flair vs. HBK go 30 to 40 minutes? These two have fought marathons before and if they would have let these two go longer it might have saved one of the worst PPV's I have ever seen...... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest KingOfOldSchool Report post Posted June 16, 2003 "Wanted more time vs. Flair" So we can see the table spot and overbooked finish ruin even more build than before. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest godthedog Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Why wouldn't you want to see a match like Flair vs. HBK go 30 to 40 minutes? These two have fought marathons before and if they would have let these two go longer it might have saved one of the worst PPV's I have ever seen...... cause flair's 55 and way out of shape? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Mad the Swine Report post Posted June 16, 2003 cause flair's 55 and way out of shape? Could you please back that up? Cosmetically, he doesn't look as good as everybody else, but that's not going to change. And it has nothing to do with his physical condition; it's more of a result of being 280-290 lbs. when he was younger. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Murmuring Beast 0 Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Flair is serving up instant match with fries. Chop, chop, chop, leg, figure of four = no substance. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Retro Rob Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I think Flair is still a pretty good wrestler. Hell, he is better than most of the people half his age in the WWE. He brought out what was arguably HHH's best match of 2003. Michaels also still has the goods, so what is the argument here? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted June 16, 2003 My only problem is that you cut off about 10-15 minutes of an DREAM MATCH that a lot of people havent been lucky enough to witness...all just to extend lousy comedy segments that serve no purpose and to make it worse...cut the show off so damn early... Would've it killed Vince to strech it 10 minutes more? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LooseCannon25 0 Report post Posted June 16, 2003 I would have been all for 10 more minutes from them. They still can work especially Michaels so why not. And for them to cut it short for the redneck nonsense is idiotic Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest RavishingRickRudo Report post Posted June 16, 2003 Do HBK and Flair work the same schedule as the other WWE guys? Do those other guys get the same amount of PPV/TV match time as HBK and Flair? I think there is a huge problem with this. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
