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Lt. Al Giardello

OMG, what a KO!!!

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I was watching WMXV the other day, and was watching Bart Gunn Vs. Butterbean.

 

Butterbean knocked Bart Gunn into the next world! That was a crazy KO punch.

 

My question was, why did they have this match-up? Was it punishment for Bart Gunn(He didnt return to the WWF after that)? Why did Bart Gunn leave? Can someone tell me the whole story?

 

I remember the Brawl 4 All's they had in 1998, but I was still into kayfabe back then( Gr. 5). Were they fixed? Or they actually brawled?

 

Thanks in advance.

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Guest Staravenger

The story, IIRC was Dr. Death was a ringer who was known for being a badass, and was the clear favorite to win. This would set him up into a feud with the other Steve Williams (known as Steve Austin, duh) and feud into the end of fall.

 

That all changed when Gunn knocked him out, and Williams injured himself as well on the fall.

 

Gunn was rarely seen afterwards because Jim Ross' "Boy" was Steve Williams, and Gunn was sent to Japan while his contract expired. Easy paycheck says I.

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Guest Staravenger
Yeah, my guess would be the Butterbean match was punishment for Bart Gunn screwing up WWE's plans for Steve Williams.

I also think Butterbean was obligated to fight twice in his contract. He fought Marc Mero in a super-suckfest at In Your House: D-Generation X, and needed to do one more...and damn was it memorable. He played tee-ball with Bart Gunns head...and yes, I got that from someone in the Tyson thread in sports except with names changed.

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That all changed when Gunn knocked him out, and Williams injured himself as well on the fall.

Well, to be exact (and honest) about Gunn's victory...

 

As Gunn stunned him with a punch, Williams stumbled backwards - which turned into tripping onto the mat, completely tearing his hamstring. Williams stood up, but he had no way to defend himself due to his leg giving out beneath him. He was easy pickings for Gunn to legitimately knock out, throwing a wrench into the writers' plans.

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So this whole tournament was actual boxing? They really said to go out there, and whoever wins wins? Meaning they thought Steve Williams was going to beat the hell outta Gunn, but it happened the other way around?

 

Ahh... im so confused.

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Guest Staravenger
So this whole tournament was actual boxing? They really said to go out there, and whoever wins wins? Meaning they thought Steve Williams was going to beat the hell outta Gunn, but it happened the other way around?

 

Ahh... im so confused.

I'm almost sure the winner would recieve $50,000, but everyone knew Dr. Death is a legit tough guy, so they probably had the check already written to him. IIRC, in his shoot interview he did it mainly to pay for his daughter/sons college.

 

The tournament was completely fucked, since 3 or 4 people were injured, and in one case, Marc Mero (who LOST in Round 1) advanced to round 2 to fight Bradshaw in Steve Blackmans place, and lost again.

 

Also, it was a hybrid of boxing and wrestling, which really was gay during Blackmans fight, since all he did was takedowns, and I think the crowd shit all over it.

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Guest Staravenger
WTF? Mero lost in Round 1?(Can't remember the tournament, long time ago).

 

I thought Mero was a golden glove boxing champ.

He fought Blackman, who kept doing motherfucking takedowns. I'm glad the jackass injured himself.

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Alright, alright...let me school you really quick.

 

In late 98/early 99 I believe, the WWF came up with a boxing style tournament called the Brawl For All. The rules were that you could box, or you could do take downs.

 

Now Jim Ross has always been one of Steve Williams' biggest supporters and practically got him the job in the company. He had convinced Vince to do this tournament and since Williams is a legit tough guy, everyone figured on him to win. The bouts were 100% legit to make Williams look THAT good. But that was not to be...

 

The first round was disastrous as the matches were terrible and many of the guys got injured. I specifically remember The Godfather, Savio Vega and Bradshaw having to be out for some time due to the tourney. Anyway, Bart Gunn faced Williams and knocked him out, catching the company with their pants down. Steve Williams never got a chance in the WWF after that and Gunn went on to face Butterbean.

 

The WWF felt that if Gunn even got a couple of good shots in, the company would look good...but they didn't count on him getting DESTROYED. That killed his entire North American career. His tag title reigns as the Smoking Gunns? Means NOTHING. The only thing that he'll be known for in America is getting knocked the fuck out by Butterbean.

 

Bart Gunn ended up going to Japan where Steve Williams had built himself a great reputation, so Gunn besting him in a legit situation gave him respect over there. He's been there ever since, never to return to the WWF. He made an appearance or two in TNA a while back, but that's about it.

 

Dames

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Guest Staravenger
Yeah cause winning within the rules makes him such a dick

Yeah, but sticking him with a Golden Gloves champion was just the worst thing they could do. Blackman would just go for the legs, and Mero wouldn't be able to throw any type of punches, making Blackman look like a wimp. IIRC, Blackman was the only person who went with all takedowns.

 

Thanks for the info of filling up the cracks (and putting it all together) Dames.

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Guest NoMercy

Off topic but what the hell does IIRC stand for? I see it everywhere on this board.

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Guest Staravenger

That was the only time I ever saw Brakus...and Savio Vega knocked him silly. (shakes head in shame)

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Guest The Ultimate Fantasy

Didn't Bart Gunn return on RAW to face Hardcore Holly for the belt? If I remember correctly it's on the WWF Hardcore DVD.

 

On a sort of un related topic, what was J.R's obssesion with Dr.Death?

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On a sort of un related topic, what was J.R's obssesion with Dr.Death?

He's a former football player from Oklahoma.

 

Seriously, that's why.

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On a sort of un related topic, what was J.R's obssesion with Dr.Death?

He's a former football player from Oklahoma.

 

Seriously, that's why.

I believe he was All-American in wrestling and football....

 

 

JR's fetish.

 

 

But also, let us not forget Williams' legendary 100-stitches match...respect people.

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Don't misunderstand me. I'm a huge Dr. Death fan from way back. But there's a reason JR has a reputation for liking a certain type of wrestling, and Doc is part of that.

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Didn't Bart Gunn return on RAW to face Hardcore Holly for the belt? If I remember correctly it's on the WWF Hardcore DVD.

He did, and Dr. Death came out in a Kabuki Mask and Robe and Walloped him with a watermelon

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Didn't Bart Gunn return on RAW to face Hardcore Holly for the belt? If I remember correctly it's on the WWF Hardcore DVD.

He did, and Dr. Death came out in a Kabuki Mask and Robe and Walloped him with a watermelon

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Guest The Ultimate Fantasy
Didn't Bart Gunn return on RAW to face Hardcore Holly for the belt? If I remember correctly it's on the WWF Hardcore DVD.

He did, and Dr. Death came out in a Kabuki Mask and Robe and Walloped him with a watermelon

Seriously? Cause the match actually does exsit.

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The man in the kabuki mask was Al Snow, who didn't want Bart Gunn beating Holly for the Hardcore Belt because he wanted to win it from Holly himself.

 

While I thought Bart going over Dr. Death was an upset ... the real shocker, if only for me, was Bart going over Bradshaw in the finals. Bradshaw had just turned heel and it looked like he was going to make easy work of Bart, having the size, weight, and intensity advantage, until of course the knock out punch. From what I understood, that right there was when the WWF really became angry at Gunn since they had their money on Bradshaw and it seemed like he was in for a big push.

 

On a side note, Jim Cornette still puts over Bob Holly for being the only man Bart couldn't knock out in the tournament.

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Guest Staravenger
The man in the kabuki mask was Al Snow, who didn't want Bart Gunn beating Holly for the Hardcore Belt because he wanted to win it from Holly himself.

Oh....I remember Jim Ross coming out and bad mouthing the gimmick, because it was for Steve Williams. Same night he kicked Michael Cole in the jimmies...and he got cheered! (J.R. was kinda playing a heel at the time)

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From what I understood, that right there was when the WWF really became angry at Gunn since they had their money on Bradshaw and it seemed like he was in for a big push.

I think Bart's last two wins were fixed (he even had a storyline building towards he and Godfather in the semis), so I don't think they expected Bradshaw to win. Either way, they had been hyping the hell out of Gunn following the KO on Williams, and he pretty much became the center of attention for Brawl for All, so I can't see them being upset with him going over in the end.

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Guest TheZsaszHorsemen
Yeah cause winning within the rules makes him such a dick

No, but it does make it quite boring.

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Yeah cause winning within the rules makes him such a dick

No, but it does make it quite boring.

Well if it's 100% legit, entertainment isn't a factor to them.

 

They fight to win, not to entertain.

 

WWF made the mistake to match them two up. Mero should of fought Bradshaw in the 1st round. That would of been a good brawl, I would have my money on Mero though, because of his boxing background.

 

Brakus... IIRC, the WWF was hyping this guy in late 1997 with promo videos on RAW. And he never appeared on TV until Vega beat his ass at the Brawl 4 All.

 

Anyone know the deal about him?

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Don't forget Dan Severn was in the Brawl For All too. I remember he withdrew after winning his first round match. I just assumed they pulled him since they thought he posed a threat to Williams.

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Severn probably coulda took the whole tournament had he stayed in.

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