Controversy Creates Cash - Eric Bischoff

[Dobbs 3K]

Yeah, Eddie was definitely given a push and World title reign based on overall crowd reaction and marketability. Benoit's reign was more of a "respect" type thing.

[cd213]

As for WCW...Had WCW stayed alive, they'd likely be in great shape today. They were bringing up new people, trying different things, and trying to build stars for one of the first times EVER. Mike Sanders was an amazing mic peice if nothing else, while the sky seemed the limit for Sean O'Haire, doing things that at that time, no big man had done in the national stage. He had fire, intensity, and made up for his lack of experience with awesome feats of athleticism. I've always heard it rumored that the reason Vince buried O'Haire during the Invasion, and was so quick to cut him when it didn't work out, is because he knew O'Haire was Bischoff's big hope, and had WCW stayed alive, O'Haire would have been his top guy. As such, he was viciously jobbed out.

 

The problem with wondering "what if", is there are so many variables. If WCW was still alive, would WWE be in it's funk? Probably not. Would another fed have opened like TNA? Maybe. You can't predict what might have happened, because we can't even accurately predict what WILL happen a year from now.

 

I liked a lot of the guys they were bringing up at that time. Does anyone know what ever happened to Mike Sanders. I always thought he could be the next generation Shane Douglas. A guy with talent that can talk circles around everyone else.

[Dobbs 3K]

The problem with WCW at that time, though, was that they were bringing up all these young guys all at once, and thrusting them right into the midcard, and title reigns, etc. I personally found it tough to keep track of all these new guys they had at one time, none of whom were established yet.

[Hunter's Torn Quad]

Does anyone know what ever happened to Mike Sanders?

 

He got a rep for being lazy and coasting and wound up vanishing from TNA ages ago.

 

The problem with WCW at that time, though, was that they were bringing up all these young guys all at once, and thrusting them right into the midcard, and title reigns, etc. I personally found it tough to keep track of all these new guys they had at one time, none of whom were established yet.

 

That was a major problem of the writing at the time. They tried to do so much at once that none of it got over. It's a problem that those people, and others in wrestling, have all the time, especially when they panic.

[Art Sandusky]

I remember when Mike Sanders was doing the "HEY!" thing in TNA but was told to cut it out. 'round that time was when I knew they didn't have a chance of being competition.

[MillenniumMan831]

At the risk of sounding ignorant, what was the "HEY!" thing?

[Gert T]

Does anyone know what ever happened to Mike Sanders?

 

He got a rep for being lazy and coasting and wound up vanishing from TNA ages ago.

 

The problem with WCW at that time, though, was that they were bringing up all these young guys all at once, and thrusting them right into the midcard, and title reigns, etc. I personally found it tough to keep track of all these new guys they had at one time, none of whom were established yet.

 

That was a major problem of the writing at the time. They tried to do so much at once that none of it got over. It's a problem that those people, and others in wrestling, have all the time, especially when they panic.

 

 

Well Nash was his mentor in WCW.

[garfieldsnose]

I remember when Mike Sanders was doing the "HEY!" thing in TNA but was told to cut it out. 'round that time was when I knew they didn't have a chance of being competition.

 

 

 

what's the difference with Ron Killings' "WHATS UP!?"

[Guest East.Coast.J]

I heard that Mike Sanders was doing standup comedy in the Atlanta area. I heard an mp3 of some of his stuff a while back and it was pretty lame.

[Art Sandusky]

I remember when Mike Sanders was doing the "HEY!" thing in TNA but was told to cut it out. 'round that time was when I knew they didn't have a chance of being competition.

what's the difference with Ron Killings' "WHATS UP!?"

I dunno, since I missed out on that. I watched TNA during the S.E.X. angle and off-and-on these days. "HEY!" was the shit.

[Lil' Bitch]

According to Eric Bischoff, it was him who changed the finish of Starrcade 1997. The reason was because he was disappointed in Sting for not fully appreciating the opportunity he was given. He showed up out of shape, pale, and addicted to drugs and Bischoff didn't feel confident in him carrying the company just yet.

[Wyld Cannon]

According to Eric Bischoff, it was him who changed the finish of Starrcade 1997. The reason was because he was disappointed in Sting for not fully appreciating the opportunity he was given. He showed up out of shape, pale, and addicted to drugs and Bischoff didn't feel confident in him carrying the company just yet.

 

Bischoff: Sting you're a mess! Now if you'll excuse me i have to go give Scott Hall a check for 20,000 dollars because its payday.

[EdwardKnoxII]

According to Eric Bischoff, it was him who changed the finish of Starrcade 1997. The reason was because he was disappointed in Sting for not fully appreciating the opportunity he was given. He showed up out of shape, pale, and addicted to drugs and Bischoff didn't feel confident in him carrying the company just yet.

 

In other words Bischoff is making an excuse as to why he fucked up the easiest and biggest payoff to one of the company's biggest angles. A payoff the would have really given a crushing blow to the WWF.

[The Buzz]

So really the only thing differentiating Sting at that time from every other wcw and ecw wrestler during that time period was he didn't have a tan and wasn't in ring shape. He definately wasn't looking like a fatass. So I don't have any idea how Bischoff knew he was out of shape just looking at him.

[Guest netslob]

cause Bischoff's completely full of shit.

[EdwardKnoxII]

So really the only thing differentiating Sting at that time from every other wcw and ecw wrestler during that time period was he didn't have a tan and wasn't in ring shape. He definately wasn't looking like a fatass. So I don't have any idea how Bischoff knew he was out of shape just looking at him.

 

Right. And when you consider that Sting hadn't wrestle for a year and a half he was in great shape.

[Scroby]

According to Eric Bischoff, it was him who changed the finish of Starrcade 1997. The reason was because he was disappointed in Sting for not fully appreciating the opportunity he was given. He showed up out of shape, pale, and addicted to drugs and Bischoff didn't feel confident in him carrying the company just yet.

I thought it was Hogan who came to Bischoff and told Bischoff that he didn't feel comfortable dropping the title cleanly to someone who was out of shape and didn't have a tan (stupid I know) and Bischoff agreed and thats why it was changed.

 

I don't remember Bischoff saying anything about drugs. Also if Hogan really did go up to Bischoff and tell him that, I don't think Bischoff had a choice in the matter because Hogan had creative rights for himself.

[EdwardKnoxII]

I thought it was Hogan who came to Bischoff and told Bischoff that he didn't feel comfortable dropping the title cleanly to someone who was out of shape and didn't have a tan (stupid I know) and Bischoff agreed and thats why it was changed.

 

I don't remember Bischoff saying anything about drugs. Also if Hogan really did go up to Bischoff and tell him that, I don't think Bischoff had a choice in the matter because Hogan had creative rights for himself

 

I thought it was Hogan didn't want to do the job and they couldn't make him cause of his creative rights. So the company gave Hogan things like cars, motorcycles, etc so he would job to Sting. And then Hogan agrees to do it and then he pays off Nick Patrick to not give a fast count and fuck up the whole match.

[Corey_Lazarus]

At the risk of sounding ignorant, what was the "HEY!" thing?

After knocking an opponent down, usually with either a dropkick or a clothesline of some sort, Sanders would crouch down and then jump to his feet with his arms spread out and yell "HEY!" The Heel Section at the old Asylum (10x better than the fucking Impact Zone, if only for atmosphere) would then yell "HEY!" back at him.

 

Sanders was a case of a great talker who should have been either utilized as a color commentator or as a mouthpiece. He was a piss-poor worker whose only in-ring strongpoint was that he could sell individual moves like he was getting murdered, but his mic skills were outlandish for somebody with his level of inexperience. A Sanders/heel Styles teaming would've been great, IMO.

 

I may be the only one, but when WCW was in its dying days after Russo left the second time (October 2000 or so), I really enjoyed WCW the most out of any of the Big 3 (and I'm a diehard ECW - true ECW - mutant). O'Haire/Palumbo squashing Buff/Luger in less than 5 minutes is still one of my favorite moments in wrestling history.

[geniusMoment]

The finish to Starrcade 97 didn't matter, as even if it had been a great match with a true passing of the torch at the end of the day Hogan was would've been passing it to sting not steve austin. Flat out, sting doesn't have what it takes to carry a promotion, especially by that time. He had made tons of money and was no longer hungry.

[Hunter's Torn Quad]

The finish to Starrcade 97 didn't matter, as even if it had been a great match with a true passing of the torch at the end of the day Hogan was would've been passing it to sting not steve austin. Flat out, sting doesn't have what it takes to carry a promotion, especially by that time. He had made tons of money and was no longer hungry.

It didn't matter what the finish was? They spent over a year building to that match, so it definitely did matter what the finish was. Whether Sting could have carried the promotion or not, you don't build to a match for over a year and then have such a terrible finish.

[Dobbs 3K]

The finish to Starrcade 97 didn't matter, as even if it had been a great match with a true passing of the torch at the end of the day Hogan was would've been passing it to sting not steve austin. Flat out, sting doesn't have what it takes to carry a promotion, especially by that time. He had made tons of money and was no longer hungry.

It didn't matter what the finish was? They spent over a year building to that match, so it definitely did matter what the finish was. Whether Sting could have carried the promotion or not, you don't build to a match for over a year and then have such a terrible finish.

 

Exactly. And frankly, while Sting may have been a bit out of shape, it wasn't like he was carrying a huge beer gut or something. Him beating Hogan was the only ending that made sense, and they didn't go through with it due to stupid Hogan politics.