From the Podium VI: The Legacy of Championships (The Hardcore Edition)

[Leonard]

I’ve had a blast writing these columns since I first started about a month ago, but not only for you fine folks to read. Certainly that is a lot of it, but it also gives me a nice release from whatever the stresses of the week provide. From writing lesson plans, to editing videos of my teaching, to writing theses proposals, to finishing class assignments and staying proficient on my instrument, it’s nice to get away from music, even for a little bit, and write about something else that is near and dear to my heart. While I may seem critical at times, it is also a load of fun to share my opinions, and read the opinions of my fellow board members. At any rate, this analysis practically wrote itself, which explains it being released in such close proximity to the previous edition. I had started writing it yesterday, thinking I would just give myself a general outline, and then come back to it later. Boy was I wrong…a few hours later, I was almost completely finished. It really did write itself, this one.

Here we go…

The noticeable beat of a conductor’s pattern.

WWE Hardcore Championship
First Champion: Mick Foley (awarded by Vince McMahon)
Last Champion: Rob Van Dam (defeated Tommy Dreamer)

Mick Foley (at the time, Mankind) was awarded the title by Vince McMahon in November 1998 as nothing more than a farce, or an insult. Of course, Mankind was touched and honored by the distinction, and carried the old beat up title with pride. Shortly after receiving a “Bret Hart-like” loss from The Rock at Survivor Series 1998, he lost his Hardcore Championship to the Big Bossman in a ladder match.

From that point on, a title that was originally nothing more than a joke sort of took on a life of its own. Men would go to seemingly insane lengths to hold the Hardcore title. Very early on, in fact, Al Snow and Bob Holly would fight clear to the banks of the Mississippi River to earn the title, and later Road Dogg and Big Bossman would fight throughout a city, ending up in a billiards pub. The hardcore division of the WWE was Vince McMahon’s way of competing with the “against the establishment,” no-rules environment of ECW (and I think, to a certain extent, it worked). As hard as it may be to believe, however, moments like this were not what gave the title such a niche in the WWE during its four year existence.

On February 22, 2000, Crash Holly won the title for the first time. Wanting to prove that he was the best Hardcore champion ever, he created the “24/7” rule, simply meaning that the title could be defended anytime, anywhere…as long as there was a referee present. The enacting of this rule, to me, epitomized the “entertainment” aspect of Vince McMahon’s idea of “sports entertainment.” While the brutality of some of the sanctioned matches were still intact, the new rule allowed for some of the most entertaining moments in WWE hsitory. Take for example one of the very first 24/7 rule moments; the Mean Street Posse (yeah, remember them?) attacking Crash Holly in an airport. Pete Gas made the pin, only to get immediately rolled up by Holly. This set the stage for what the Hardcore title would become, setting such scenes as a chase throughout an amusement park, the start of the Acolyte Protection Agency, a “ho” winning an official WWE title, stooges fighting in evening gowns, and many 24/7 matches occuring within regular sanctioned matches. Needless to say, it was an interesting and engaging time to be a wrestling fan.

On to the ratings, then. When considering lineage,…well…there is none. For several years, the actual belt was thought to have been the same world title that Mr. Perfect and the Genius stole from Hulk Hogan back in 1989 and smashed with a hammer. Perhaps too prestigious for the Hardcore Championship, the title was actually a replica of that smashed belt (for the record, the actual championship that was smashed was, at one point in time, owned by former WWE booker and announcer Mel Phillips). Considering that the belt used is actually a replica rather than the real thing, and that the belt was a gift created by the owner of the company, there is no lineage to be factored into this discussion. Lineage=N/A Because of this fact, look for the “Prestige” rating to be doubled, to make four ratings to be averaged into the “Legacy” score.

Looking at the list of champions from the inception of the WWE Hardcore Championship in 1998 to its deactivation in 2002, here are the facts:

-52—Unique Champions
-240—Championship Reigns
-21.6—Percentage of Unique Champions
-6.02—Average Title Reign (in days)
-27—Most Reigns (Raven)
-97—Longest Reign (in days) (Big Bossman)
-<1—Shortest Reign (in days) (139 reigns…don’t ask, people)

I think you’ll all agree that the statistics that are normally used in this column are damn near laughable for the Hardcore Championship. Come to think of it…to get a true sense of how unique and “entertainment-friendly” this title was, we need some more stats:

-100—Percentage of reigns under 100 days
-96.25—Under 30 days
-88.3—Under 14 days
-82—Under 7 days
-71.25—1 day or less
-57.9—Under 1 day
-32.7—Percentage of holders to never hold another WWE title

You have to have a little chuckle when analyzing all of these numbers. Obviously, you must take into account that the 24/7 rule drastically affected the way the title can be analyzed. This proves quite a dilemma for me as a researcher. I have two choices: To compare the title’s statistics to other championships, or; to analyze the statistics in terms of the attributes of the title itself. After much soul-searching, it would be unfair to the other titles that I have analyzed if I just looked at these stats from the “hardcore” perspective. To keep the integrity of my system intact, I must compare to the other titles, as I have done previously.

Having said that, in all seriousness we can tell that the Hardcore Championship, in terms of statistics, is in trouble, Zack Gowen style (i.e., barely has a leg to stand on…HA HA. Well, it’s official…I’m going to hell). The average reign is under a week, and the longest reign is only three months. We can see the effects that the newer stats have on the “regular” stats. The most disheartening number, however, is that of only 21 percent of unique champions. I think the WWE could have done a much better job of establishing new superstars with this unique concept. However, they kept going back to the same old title holders. I guess if looking at pure numbers, Raven’s 27 reigns are ridiculously good. To me, this kills legacy here, and, if you haven’t figured out from my rant, this rating isn’t going to be good. Statistics=2/10

Fortunately, I believe the history of champions has much more of a fighting chance here. While there is practically a “who’s who” of losers and nobodies in this list, there is also a surprising list of top-tier athletes who have held this title. What’s that? You want to know who? Allow me: Mick Foley, Matt Hardy, Kane, The Big Show, Chris Jericho, Jeff Hardy, Rob Van Dam, Kurt Angle, The Undertaker, Christian, Booker T, and JBL. That’s a quarter of the title holders.

You might shake your head at this and think, “What does it matter?” Well, let’s consider the fact that this was, in my opinion, the lowest ranking title of WWE during its tenure. So, does the fact that these top tier wrestlers held this title mean they stepped back, or the title stepped up? I think the latter, in terms of it did mean something to hold the Hardcore title because some of these guys (not all of them, mind you) had substantial reigns with the belt. By holding the title, this gave the lower-tier wrestlers something meaningful of which to gain possession, and also a possible niche of something for which they could be known. Look at Steve Blackman, the Holly cousins, Al Snow, the list goes on. Even with all of the strange inhabitants of this title history, the abundance of legitimate superstars holding this low-ranking title is a major bonus. History of Champions=6.5/10

There is so much to take into consideration for this final rating, especially because it will be added twice to the “Legacy” ranking for sake of continuity. Here’s an interesting tidbit: The Hardcore Championship has been vacated only once, by our friend the Road Dogg. Following this, the above-mentioned match at St. Valentine’s Day Massacre took place. One time in a five year span is fairly decent, especially when considering all of the title changes and different champions. This is a thumbs-up in my book.

The design of the title is one of the things that give the Hardcore title its unique niche. While most championships are regal, prestigious, or at least pretty, the Hardcore Championship looked like a piece of crap. So then why did so many battle over it? Because it came with bragging rights, sort of like winning a tough man contest. Only the roughest and toughest could hold that title, which is why it was such a commodity. This, along with the design, made it stand out. On a side note, I think this is why the WCW Hardcore Championship failed (besides the fact that WCW as a whole was failing). The WCW’s version came off as a cheap imitation, plus it was a pretty belt. Hardcore does not equal pretty. While this factor may come off as the “antithesis” of prestige, it actually adds a lot in terms of the context in which we are discussing.

The final factor to weigh in here is the unification aspect. In mid-2002, the Intercontinental Championship was unified with this title. At the time, this clean-up needed to be done. There were too many titles on the RAW brand. But the fact here is simple; the Hardcore Championship is now infused in the Intercontinental title’s heritage, which cannot be discounted. Also, the “entertainment” factor must be included here, as that is part of the business. Prestige=6/10 (this score will be added twice to the average because of the non-applicable “Lineage” rating)

I have always been one to believe that the Hardcore Championship should be reinstated in the new ECW, because there should be more than one championship for these people to fight over. In the average title hunt, there is no more than two to four people. What do the other members of the roster fight over? Who gets to be first in line at catering? In order to achieve this, however, the rosters have to be evened out a little bit (in other words, add some depth to ECW). I fully understand that there are a lot of titles in the WWE, but they are unique to each brand. If you consider each brand a “mini-promotion,” these titles are needed. Anyhow, back to the task at hand…after averaging my ratings:

LEGACY OF THE HARDCORE CHAMPIONSHIP=5.12/10

“LEGACY” RANKINGS:

FIRST TIER:
1. World Heavyweight Championship=8/10
2. WCW World Championship=5/10

SECOND TIER:
1. Intercontinental Championship=7.37/10
1. United States Championship=7.37/10

OTHER (GENDER, WEIGHT, GIMMICK):
1. Hardcore Championship=5.12/10
2. ECW Championship=4.75/10


TOP THREE:

3. Crash Holly (22 reigns, combined 101 days)
Crash is the one who started it all, for all intents and purposes. Yes, before the inception of the “24/7 rule,” the Hardcore Championship was a title that an athlete (albeit, a low/mid-card athlete, but still) would gain by any means necessary (thank you, Nation of Domination). Crash Holly’s creation of the new rule, however, would give the Hardcore title a passionate following that few could have anticipated. The moments that would happen from that point forward are largely due to this rule. Crash was the catalyst. Forgetting this fact, Crash was nicknamed “The Houdini of Hardcore,” as he always managed to find a way to get his title back soon after, if not immediately after, he lost it.

2. The Undertaker (1 reign, 58 days)
Along with those mentioned in the “History of Champions” section, the Undertaker brought some legitimacy to a title that desperately needed it. The Undertaker during this time was a no-nonsense, “this is my yard” character, so, in that respect, the Hardcore Championship was a good match for “Big Evil.” Also, he used his skill set to the best of his ability to help Maven’s stock rise as a legitimate title contender. The fact that this did not happen is not a mark against the Undertaker by any means, as he did for the Hardcore title what people like C.M. Punk are trying to do for the Intercontinental Championship right now.

1. The Big Bossman (4 reigns, combined 154 days)



Having thought long and hard about this, I was torn whether to award #1 with The Undertaker or Ray Traylor, a.k.a. The Big Bossman. My decision on the Bossman was for purely one reason: The Big Bossman was the first to truly contend for the Hardcore title. Without him going after the title (even after he lost it the first time), I believe the title would have continued to be looked at as a farce, rather than a legitimate championship accolade. What if the Hardcore title was like the ECW Championship is now, where seemingly no one who held it goes to any great lengths to get it back (save C.M. Punk, and maybe Chavo Guerrero)? The answer is simple: The title would have quickly faded into obscurity (kind of like TNA’s Legends Championship is now!), and forgotten forever. We owe the Bossman for this one.

HONORABLE MENTION: AL SNOW, HARDCORE HOLLY, BUBBA RAY DUDLEY


BOTTOM TWO:

2. (TIE) Pat Patterson (1 reign, 6 days) & Gerald Brisco (2 reigns, 27-28 days)

I couldn’t pick just one “stooge,” now could I? In all seriousness, there is no reason that this angle needed to occur. For starters, there were plenty of other stars in the mix that could have contributed more to a Hardcore title/Crash Holly feud than these two guys. Don’t get me wrong, I respect everything they’ve done for the business, as both are WWE Hall of Famers, and deservedly so. But, when two old men go out in an “Attitude Era”-inspired Pay-Per-View and have a “Hardcore Evening Gown Match,” there are some evidently major problems with the booking of a title at this particular point (or somebody mistakenly thought it would be funny and/or good). Thankfully, Crash would continue to feud with other wrestlers that weren’t middle aged and/or wearing formal women’s attire/lingerie.

1. Maven (3 reigns, 28 days)



Where to start with Maven? Well, the inaugural “Tough Enough” champion, I thought, had a bright future ahead of him. Unfortunately, he started the “Tough Enough Curse,” but held onto his job a lot longer than any of us thought he would. Being Hardcore Champion, and feuding with The Undertaker, apparently didn’t help him much. If an established, nearly 20-year veteran of the ring is working an arc with a young rookie, who do you think needs to step up his game? Maven didn’t do that here, and the aforementioned “curse” would last until John Hennigan would capitalize on his opportunity as “John(ny) Morrison (Nitro).”

UN-HONORABLE MENTION: ANYONE WHO HAD ONLY ONE REIGN THAT LASTED LESS THAN A WEEK


MY FAVORITE HARDCORE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES:

Raven (c) v. Kane v. The Big Show, WrestleMania X-7, April 1, 2001

Simply put, this was a fun match. I have never been a fan of Raven, but this match between two big men and an odd man out was a good break from the tension that was “McMahon v. McMahon” and The Rock v. Steve Austin. The match featured a “Marty Jannetty-like” smash through a similarly sized window, and granted, they almost killed each other with the electric carts thing, but it was an entertaining match, nonetheless.

Crash Holly (c) v. Hardcore Holly v. Tazz v. Viscera v. The Mean Street Posse v. Kaientai v. The Headbangers v. The Acolytes, Hardcore Battle Royal, WrestleMania 2000, April 2, 2000



Strangely enough, before the match, the referees had a meeting with the participants. Tim White said that once the 15 minutes are up, so is the chance at the Hardcore title. Isn’t this a moot point, since there was a 24/7 rule? Anyways, this match was a terrific mix of decisions and pure bedlam, as there were 10 title changes in this match. If you ask me, this is a pre-cursor to the Scramble Matches that we saw at Unforgiven. While sometimes there were looks of “what next” from some of these guys, that is to be expected in a match of this nature (in my opinion). The picture you see above is Michael Cole’s interview with the winner, Hardcore Holly. Bob famously ends the interview by calling Cole “a little shit,” followed by Jim Ross immediately apologizing. Speaking of JR, this fine piece of dialogue occurred during the match:

JR: Viscera’s like a planet and everyone’s orbiting around him!

Jerry: Well, he is the champion…

JR: What would he be? Uranus?

Another gem of dialogue occurred when Funaki and Taka ran backstage after pinning Viscera. While they ran, Jerry Lawler sang a little snippet of “Flight of the Bumblebee.” It was barely audible, but I think that was the piece. Yes, there were botches at the end, but it was still entertaining, nonetheless.

You can find these matches on “WrestleMania: The Complete Anthology Volume IV,” now available at WWEShop.com and other fine Digital Video Disc retailers.

HONORABLE MENTION: SNOW/HOLLY, ST. VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACRE; DOGG/BOSSMAN, SUMMERSLAM 1999

Secondary gestures to signal certain moments or instruments in a piece of music.

MY FOUR FAVORITE GIMMICK MATCHES:

4. Championship Scramble Match (first/most recent in 2008)

The Adamle Original that really wasn’t an Adamle Original (damned Pat Patterson strikes again) was one of my favorite parts of 2008 in wrestling. The Rumble/Hardcore Battle Royal mix was very intriguing, and pulled off very well by all 15 wrestlers involved at Unforgiven. I think if they are all done in the same night, it could lead to overkill (much like I feel about the Elimination Chamber at No Way Out), but the concept itself is awesome, and has worked well thus far.

3. Iron Man Match (the 60 minute version) (first in 1996, most recent in 2004)

The 60 minute Iron Man Match is a very hard match to do well. So difficult, in fact, that only seven men have attempted to pull it off (Triple H was in two). To me, the first (Michaels/Hart) was the epitome of this match type. Some may have found it boring, but I found it to be evidence that technical wrestling can still entertain. The other three (Rock/H, Lesnar/Angle, Benoit/H) were all also entertaining in their own right.

2. Hell in a Cell (first in 1997, most recent in 2008)

This is the most brutal match in wrestling history, by far. Look no further than matches such as Foley/Undertaker, H/Michaels, and Undertaker/Edge. Even though the match is very brutal by nature, the match has brought us several that were terrific on a purely wrestling standpoint also, such as Undertaker/Lesnar, and Undertaker/Orton.

1. WarGames (the original) (first in 1987, most recent in 1997)

The TNA version just doesn’t do it for me. I would love to see the WWE do a match like this at a Survivor Series in our old friend Hell in a Cell. All they would have to do is build another door…or not. Imagine the 2009 edition—Legacy vs. a team headed up by a face. It would be epic. Maybe it’s dated but I think it can work in modern wrestling times, if done correctly and built up properly.

The last additional note (mostly in marches) that signals the end of a piece.

Well, that does it for the sixth edition of “From the Podium.” I hope that I conjured up some “Attitude Era” memories for you all, and, if not, I hope I showed you some neat stuff concerning what was the WWE Hardcore Division. Put in your requests for what championship should be next (I may or may not do it next time), as on the VI+IV edition, I will be putting this series on a “one-column hold” for a topic near and dear to my heart to be revealed at a later date (although I’ve already talked about it). On that same token, I love feedback, good or bad. Lay it on me, folks, in addition to your own opinions about what I have presented.

Also some quick plugs for Kano’s RKO Edition IX (featuring a comparison of the ECW, Intercontinental, and United States Championships), as well as all of that CSI stuff going on out there—top quality stuff by top quality contenders. I look forward to seeing who comes out on top.

Until the next downbeat…

[cicero]

Excellent as alaways, two things though;

Zack Gowen style (i.e., barely has a leg to stand on…HA HA. Well, it’s official…I’m going to hell).

The parentheses' are uneseccary, "Zach Gowen style as in..." would have worked better as your point was a continuation as opposed to an aside.

the above-mentioned match at St. Valentine’s Day Massacre took place

I couldn't find what you were reffering to here.

[Kano]

Excellent stuff man. Think you could do a US Championship one soon? But onto the column, very enjoyable, and a sweet read. Each has topped the last one, so I am definatly looking forward to it

[J and Silent Dubb]

Len - Enjoyable column as always. I may diagree that the HardCore title is above the ECW title (you may be a little DubaDubaE biased,) but you do a good job backing your arguement with use of the top tier stars.

I am really looking forward to your next column since it will be a different topic, as I want to see how your style translates to new subject.

Much love for my Ohio Hommie.

[Roger Murtaugh]

Excellent as always, and I once again find myself agreeing with your picks. I remember watching the WM 2000 match and begging for Tazz to walk out as champion but a jar of candy cost him the match. After beating Angle in his debut I was hoping the Hardcore division would be Tazz's stomping ground, but it wasn't meant to be.

As far as gimmick matches, the Ironman match is good but I always preferred the 30 minute version. The 60 minute ones usually have too much downtime. The best one I think I ever saw was Benoit/HHH. 30 Minute versions have seen pretty good Rock/HHH (pretty sure that's the one I'm thinking about) and a really good Rick Rude/Ricky Steamboat match from one of the Bash at the Beach ppvs.

Hell In a Cell are almost always classics so again no argument from me. War Games of course is the best match WWE refuses to bring back. The damn Elimination Chamber isn't even close.

Can't wait for the next one man.

[Vikodin]

Haven't seen the two HHH ironman matches, so won't comment, but I'm a big fan of the Brock/Angle ironman match. Hell in a cell is a great match.

The only thing I would recommend is providing a link to your two favourite title matches. Quite a few of these have had matches that sound like they'd be a good watch and I've wanted to see.

Also, LOL at the Hardcore Championship being ranked higher than the WCW championship.

[Leonard]

Feedback to the feedback:

cicero--Indeed you are correct. I knew what it meant, but I should have elaborated for you readers. My bad.

Kano--If you'd like to read about the United States Championship, I did "From the Podium IV" on that title. It's probably on the third or fourth page of the Columns Forum by now. Check it out...thanks for the kind words.

Jay and Silent Dubb--I love the "View Askew" movies! Anyhow, thanks for the positive feedback. I'm glad you disagree...'tis the spice of life! I will be highlighting three other championships before I get to my one column suspension of the series. Sit tight, though...it's coming soon.

Dr. Monkey, PhD--I'm not sure why Tazz wasn't given more reigns (as in "horse reigns," not "title reigns") in terms of the Hardcore division...it is an intriquing question. I agree that the 30-minute Iron Man matches were also good. Thanks for the kind words.

Kafu--Interesting suggestion...I'll PM you about this some other time, it's getting late. I have to teach in the morning.

Keep the comments/discussion coming, guys!

[Cult Icon]

very much like the last column, which isnt bad at all. i really enjoyed reading about this, and it actually was interesting to read about the hardcore title, which i think is mostly forgotten with fans these days. i disagreed with some of your match choices and best champions (im a raven fan though) but that was about it. a nice job. bring the next one out soon

[The Failed Parachute]

aaw the hardcore belt so many great memories...Crash getting chased through the play pen , Kane winning at WM 17 great to see some stuff on this.

Brisco and Patterson worst???

"AAW no Pat you got some in my eye" *smash the champagne bottle*

Seriously great to see stuff on Takers often forgetten reign. Some of the best hardcore matches for me Jeff and RVD during Invasion storyline - Summerslam 01 etc

[styxx]

Good column but I'm positive the summerslam match you kept reffering too was al snow v boss man. The road dogg was a roving reporter and did cost the boss man the title but he only had the one reign.

The best part after the match was snow randomly beating the shit out of stevie richards and the blue meanie.

I actually believe summerslam to be the titles magnum opus. Snow/bossman, blackman/shane and rvd v jeff hardy matches were all top notch.

Other bizzarre champions for mine were shawn stasiak, johnny the bull, stevie richards and terri f'n runnels.

All in all great work. I just caught the mistake and ranted sorry dude.

[The Maz]

As good as always Len - keep these bad boys coming and I'll keep reading...

[Martin Riggs]

Awesome, loved it. clear and concise history of the hardcore championship, with enough opinion thrown in that it wasn't just talk.

And who can forget, my favourite 24/7 rules moment, ol' bob holly sneaking in and pinning crash when he's asleep!

Keep 'em coming and i shall keep reading!

[Leonard]

More feedback to the feedback...
(Sorry if this seems rather late...between teaching and masters work, I got hammered big time)

Cult--I'm glad you disagree. Raven never did it for me, but I can see why one would be a fan (especially in the Hardcore division). Thanks for reading.

Parachute--I agree on the Jeff/RVD matches as well...they put on a very good program. Patterson and Brisco...much of that decision was based on their terrible terrible match at King of the Ring. The Undertaker helped add legitimacy to the belt/division, and had one of the longer reigns in the division's history (not saying much, I know). Thanks for reading.

Styxx--You are indeed correct. After refreshing my memory, I still stand by my positive reviews of that match. You are also correct about SummerSlam being the "magnum opus" of the Hardcore division. It's okay...rant anytime (especially if I make a mistake!). Thanks for reading.

Mazza--Thank you, sir.

Johnny--Thanks for the positive feedback. I'm glad the column brought back that memory for you!

I love feedback/discussion...just saying.

Coming soon...The Legacy of the WWE Tag Team Championship.