Hassan/Hogan at WM?

[Promoter 0]

HHH jobbing in that fashion would be similar to another Mania in "hollywood". How likely will lighting strike twice, but Batista would be a rocket of heat if he ever destroyed HHH in that fashion. Maybe Goldberg/Hogan type heat and career before Nash put that flame in smoke. The appeal is not really Hogan giving Hassan the rub, but Hassan wanting to take on the most deserving HOF inductee to a last match. Again, if they book the match and write the storyline effectively it CAN work.

[tekcop 0]

So... has WM21 happened yet?

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

Why should Hogan job to Hassan? Is he that desperate for money?

[iggymcfly 0]

I don't think that it's necessary to job HHH out in 5 minutes. Batista is not Goldberg. The man can actually work a good match, and doesn't need to rely on gimmickry to get over. I say that they should give the fans as good of a match as they can for the man event of WM, and milk the fact that the fans always believe HHH has a chance to win, no matter how unlikely it seems.

 

Backlash has a chance to sell really well as long as they keep HHH fairly strong, so I don't see any reason to jeopardize that. The deciding factor on how well Batista gets over will be his first feud after he's done with HHH. If they can get a hot feud with a jealous Orton going into Bad Blood, and then keep Batista as the focus going into a multi-man match at Summerslam, I think Batista will be in fantastic shape.

[Guest wildpegasus]

WP -- So happy that the WWE's plans to put someone over at the expense of Benoit failed right in their face. Serves them right for booking Benoit so poorly the last couple of years.

[jester 0]

Fuck this shit. The only way they can have this match is if Hassan went over, but you can't have THE standard-bearer for patriotic characters lose at Wrestlemania to an evil foriegn sympathizer character. It's like Hogan losing the ultimate blowoff of Patriotic Characters versus Evil Foreigners. Hassan needs something big if they want to legitimize him, but not Hulk fucking Hogan.

Yep. No way Hogan loses to the evil foreign menace (which is what Hassan essentially is) at WM, especially right after he's spent the day getting inducted in the Hall of Fame and being told how wonderful he is.

 

Mind you, since I hate Hogan, I can dream though.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Oh come on..you know it should really be

 

Hogan/Slaughter vs Hassan/Daivari.

 

Then Slaughter can turn on Hogan and form the Arab World Order with Hassan and Daivari.

[spman 0]

I imagine it'll probobly end with some screwjob involving the Iron Shiek finally getting his revenge after 11 years. Maybe it'll be a big clusterfuck with all of Hogans former and future nemesis's coming out, Seargent Slaughter, Iron Shiek, Nikolai Volkoff, and Kenzo Suzuki debuting an "I rove North Korea" gimmick.

[cbacon 0]

This match won't happen, and if it does, i;ll leave CE, FOREVER!11!!!1

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I imagine it'll probobly end with some screwjob involving the Iron Shiek finally getting his revenge after 11 years. Maybe it'll be a big clusterfuck with all of Hogans former and future nemesis's coming out, Seargent Slaughter, Iron Shiek, Nikolai Volkoff, and Kenzo Suzuki debuting an "I rove North Korea" gimmick.

Are you kidding? The Iron Sheik finally made it Backstage from his WM XVII battle royal win just yesterday.

[Scroby 0]

I don't see why you guys are debating on why Hogan and Hassan would or woudn't happen, or even the outcome of the match will be.

 

1. The match would most likely happen at a surprise match, as in Hassan comes out and interupts the event and starts talking about its racist that he isn't on the card or anything and demands that someone/anyone from the back comes out and takes him on in the ring and he'll sit there until someone does. A few seconds later Real American hits and Hogan comes out.

 

2. The match would be your same Hogan match as always. They work for a few minute, Hassan starts whopping on Hogan for a little bit, does that one move, I forget what its called at the moment, Hassan goes for the pin, Hogan kicks out and starts Hulking up, Hogan Big Foot, Hogan Leg Drop, Hogan wins as the crowd marks out.

 

3. It would be a surprise match to tell the fans who didn't watch Wrestlemania 21 that not only did you miss the fact that Hassan got beat when he wasn't even suppose to be wrestling but he got beat for a one night only return of Hulk Hogan.

 

 

Its simple WWE surprise logic.

[alfdogg 0]

Backlash has a chance to sell really well as long as they keep HHH fairly strong

Yeah, because he's been such a huge draw over the last three years.

[Some Guy 0]

I don't think that it's necessary to job HHH out in 5 minutes. Batista is not Goldberg. The man can actually work a good match, and doesn't need to rely on gimmickry to get over.

Care to show some evidence of this ability of Batista's to work a good match? I've seen a few matches that he's been in that I'd call good adn they were against HBK and Benoit, so it wasn't exactly Batista working a good match, rather two guy working a match around him. Goldberg was carryable to the same level and his offense was unique, as opposed to the 1980s hoss moveset that Big Dave brings to the ring with him.

 

Bottomline is that HHH will either make or break Batista at WM. He is over right now but if HHH doesn't job for him in under ten minutes to the powerbomb then Dave is pretty much dead in the water. If they go 20 minutes (unless Batista has been holding back a ton in the last few years) he'll be exposed for the poor worker that he is.

[nl5xsk1 0]

Fuck this shit. The only way they can have this match is if Hassan went over, but you can't have THE standard-bearer for patriotic characters lose at Wrestlemania to an evil foriegn sympathizer character. It's like Hogan losing the ultimate blowoff of Patriotic Characters versus Evil Foreigners. Hassan needs something big if they want to legitimize him, but not Hulk fucking Hogan.

You know, I'd agreed with you up until I remembered HHH going over Booker T after saying all that "his kind of people" bullshit a few years ago. If the bigoted idiot can go over the mocked minority, then ANYTHING can happen.

[Guest krazykat72]

Kenzo Suzuki debuting an "I rove North Korea" gimmick.

with the terms Korea and Japan have been on for centuries, not likely.

 

 

-Paul Jacobi-

[Promoter 0]

I don't see why you guys are debating on why Hogan and Hassan would or woudn't happen, or even the outcome of the match will be.

 

1. The match would most likely happen at a surprise match, as in Hassan comes out and interupts the event and starts talking about its racist that he isn't on the card or anything and demands that someone/anyone from the back comes out and takes him on in the ring and he'll sit there until someone does. A few seconds later Real American hits and Hogan comes out.

 

2. The match would be your same Hogan match as always. They work for a few minute, Hassan starts whopping on Hogan for a little bit, does that one move, I forget what its called at the moment, Hassan goes for the pin, Hogan kicks out and starts Hulking up, Hogan Big Foot, Hogan Leg Drop, Hogan wins as the crowd marks out.

 

3. It would be a surprise match to tell the fans who didn't watch Wrestlemania 21 that not only did you miss the fact that Hassan got beat when he wasn't even suppose to be wrestling but he got beat for a one night only return of Hulk Hogan.

 

 

Its simple WWE surprise logic.

You know, this would actually be pretty entertaining. If they do the match it should go down like this. They can't lose.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

I don't see why you guys are debating on why Hogan and Hassan would or woudn't happen, or even the outcome of the match will be.

 

1. The match would most likely happen at a surprise match, as in Hassan comes out and interupts the event and starts talking about its racist that he isn't on the card or anything and demands that someone/anyone from the back comes out and takes him on in the ring and he'll sit there until someone does. A few seconds later Real American hits and Hogan comes out.

 

2. The match would be your same Hogan match as always. They work for a few minute, Hassan starts whopping on Hogan for a little bit, does that one move, I forget what its called at the moment, Hassan goes for the pin, Hogan kicks out and starts Hulking up, Hogan Big Foot, Hogan Leg Drop, Hogan wins as the crowd marks out.

 

3. It would be a surprise match to tell the fans who didn't watch Wrestlemania 21 that not only did you miss the fact that Hassan got beat when he wasn't even suppose to be wrestling but he got beat for a one night only return of Hulk Hogan.

 

 

Its simple WWE surprise logic.

You know, this would actually be pretty entertaining. If they do the match it should go down like this. They can't lose.

They would lose. Hogan's return has ONE strong buy rate jump in it, and that's the first match back. Blow that on an unadvertised match, and you're giving away PPV revenue.

[Promoter 0]

I disagree. They may actually get more buys out of the replays from doing this. The big money return match happened already with The Rock at WrestleMania 18. They stand a better chance of creating a WrestleMania moment by doing the impromptu match. That way down the line people will know "anything can happen" especially at the biggest event. Hassan is a cheap version of Iron Shiek at the moment. The fans will want Hogan to win and he should if it's his last match to finish his career. The fans being told it's Hogan's last match again won't be believable. He's made a million comebacks as it is. Hassan has more to lose by jobbing to Hogan in a scheduled match. Hassan can survive losing an impromptu match and then challenging Hogan for a rematch where Hogan claims he is retired. Hassan can go off that post Mania.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

People are more likely to watch Hogan's first match back if it's live, rather than on a replay. Watching it live creates a buzz that you can't get with a replay. Hogan isn't a regular draw anymore, but a special return match with the proper hype will draw some significant buys. Is it really worth sacrificing the money that could pull in just to get people to think that anything can happen ?

[Promoter 0]

You have a point that maybe advertising the match will be more likely to increase the buy-rate, but I think it's easier to do a short 5 minute sports entertainmentized match without kind of ripping fans off. You know Hogan and Hassan will be terrible past the 5 minute mark and even reaching that mark is pushing it. Hogan was pretty weak in the ring with Vince Mcmahon 2 years ago and that was before that last injury Hogan got with his hip. I think in this instance an impromptu match will create a situation that will satisfy the fans that spend $50 for the event. They haven't given fans a surprise of this magnitude in forever. It use to happen all the time during the monday night war era. They've got Piper and Austin doing Piper's Pit to help draw "big name type fans".

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

A few weeks back on Raw (may have been when Hassan pinned Jericho, I think it was)...

 

JR: "And Muhammad Hassan continues his undefeated streak and has to wonder who he'll be facing at WrestleMania."

 

That makes me think that Hassan will have a scheduled opponent, not a "surprise" match.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

I don't think any kind of short Hogan match is ripping anyone off. At this point, you'd have to be an idiot to expect a long Hogan match. Besides, when Hogan returns, the people who want to see him want a basic Hogan match, and they won't care that it's five minutes or five seconds, as long as Hogan Hulks Up and gets the pin with his legdrop.

[Promoter 0]

That's a good point about JR's commentary, but it is JR. He might be rambling off at the mouth. I agree that fans will just love to see Hogan do his thing, but that could also hinder the event because there is also probably the same amount of people in TV land who would not put money on Mania for this reason. I guess the bottom line is promoting Hogan/Hassan isn't the worst they can do. I'm just thinking more in line with surprising the masses for friggin once with something that is special. They screwed up with Goldberg at WM 19 imo. 18 didn't need it. 17 had Austin's heel turn(regardless of how things turned out). 16 had Triple H retaining. Tyson siding with Austin at 14(surprise to some general fans).

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

As long as Hogan is kept as a midcard attraction, he won't put off many, if any, fans. People weren't sick of Hogan, as much as they were sick of him being in the main event, so having him be a novelty won't put anyone off. As for surprising people, I'd rather do something with a guy that can draw money in a situation that can actually draw. Save the surprises for stuff that wouldn't draw much if it was advertised.

[Promoter 0]

Okay, Meltzer kind of touched on this a few weeks ago when rumours were going around about Hogan coming in for the HOF. According to Meltzer some in the wwe felt that having Hogan have his last match would actually overshadow everything on the card. I mean all you have to do is look at Rock/Hogan at 18 to see why this might be a problem to ponder. Although Batista has come along well and he still will have heat, but Cena/JBL will certainly be overshadowed in the promotion. Having the match as a surprise won't take the shine away from the "main events". They will already have a problem with Cena with Orton/Taker. The long term effect will be Hogan pimping his last match and everyone caring about that over everything else. There is also this to consider. Hogan could be put into the midcard, but he is not midcard.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

Hogan's 'last match' can be a great draw for a PPV, which is exactly why any match that could be his last, and with Hogan's physical condition his next match could be his last, should be hyped up ahead of time. Hogan might have only one match left in him, so you may as well get some money out of it.

[Art Sandusky 0]

Kenzo Suzuki debuting an "I rove North Korea" gimmick.

with the terms Korea and Japan have been on for centuries, not likely.

 

 

-Paul Jacobi-

What's funny is that you expect them to care about this.

[Molotov The Bear 0]

I've heard from several sources that management wasn't happy with having to change the original finish, as they want Hassan to look strong and remain undefeated leading into Wrestlemania 22 next month

 

I love how there's only like 3 people who've noticed this.

[Team Angle Pusher 0]

A few weeks back on Raw (may have been when Hassan pinned Jericho, I think it was)...

 

JR: "And Muhammad Hassan continues his undefeated streak and has to wonder who he'll be facing at WrestleMania."

 

That makes me think that Hassan will have a scheduled opponent, not a "surprise" match.

You forget that WWE has been changing there plans A LOT lately. Everybody thought it would be Orton/HHH at WrestleMania but Orton got boo'ed and Batista got over big time so they went with Batista/HHH. And Angle/Undertaker was going to be the SD! main event but now Angle is facing HBK and Taker is probably facing Randy Boreton at WrestleMania. I think and hope Hassan will be in the Ladder match, it would make sense because he has a tiny feud with Jericho and Jericho is making the match. If they want Hassan to look strong then let him win the damn thing and hold the IC Title for a while.

[Guest JMA]

I'd say that it's more likely Hassan will face and defeat "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan than Hogan.