Why do they keep putting new heels in the ring with this guy. It's completely counter-productive when he refuses to sell for anyone and always goes out of his way to make his opponent look like shit. And the worst part is no one in the WWF seems to give a damn. They just keep throwing new heels in there and then wonder why no one cares about them afterwards.

I hope the next guy shoots on him.

I don't think Lawler is trying to make his opponents look bad, I just don't think he's capable of making them look good right now. I'm sure they use him thinking the new guy will get a rub off this "legend". Unfortunately, it doesn't work out that way, and really is a now win situation for the new guy. If he beats Lawler, well, so has everyone else, plus the fact that Lawler is 60. If he loses to Lawler, career is over.

Same reason his Memphis wrestling is so shit - God Forbid anyone look better than him, because he was a star 30 years ago

I mean, Bob Holly I can understand, but Lawler is worthless, and having watched a tape last night, I reckon they should go with Coach and JR, starting to phase JR out, and be done with it

His shitty announcing just compounds how much he pisses me off.

But I agree. He seems to still think he's the star he was in Memphis. I also hate how he tends to pop right back up after getting pinned in his matches.

How does Lawler give anyone a rub? Outside of Memphis he means jackshit to the common fan. Hogan jobbing clean is a rub, Flair (before recently) jobbing clean was a rub. Lawler jobbing clean outside of Memphis means shit.

And he sucks at announcing too. If anyone is wondering why Jim Ross sucks, it's because of Lawler. Anytime J.R. is with Coach he actually seems better because Coach has a mentality higher than a 14 year old.

Are JR and Tazz on for calling the Rumble this year, because they were excellent last years

Let's hope so. Cole and J.R. gel like salt and ice cream, and Lawler and Cole... BLECH! Anyone ever watch Smackdown from 1999-mid 2001? Tazz and Lawler won't happen because they are both heels (unless they make Tazz jump ship again), and thus won't put the babyface winning over.

Now we are finally starting to see why the whole Memphis territory went to shit eh? Personally, I hate the whole Memphis mentality (aka Lawler is God and every fued will be build over 40 years) so this isn't surprising to me. Hell, this makes the story in Dynamite Kid's book about Lawler and the Memphis crew getting no sold it Japan even funnier than when I first read it.

I never cared for Memphis because Lawler was the HHH of everything there. How many times did he hold the top title there?

Didn't he hold the USWA (or whatever it's called) title 25 times or something? That makes Triple H look like a non-political player.

Yeah, something like that.

Really I'm surprised the WWF ever hired him. Lawler had never been worth a damn outside of Memphis at any point leading up to that.

Right on the money CB.

Lawler = HHH = Dusty

in that regard.

Didn't Lawler also have major heat when he first came into the WWF in December of '92? Bunch of people from Memphis days that he held down weren't too thrilled about his hiring.

I've heard that.....but honestly I don't know how true it is. Thinking back to then, I don't know how many people on the WWF roster it would have affected.

Then again, I'm not thinking very hard at the moment either.

The stat rape charges against Lawler were still kind of fresh in everyone's minds at that point. That could have a lot to do with it too.

1993 is definitely a year most people want to forget about when concerning the roster.

This weeks main event... DAMIEN DEMENTO vs. BOB BACKLUND!

HEY!!!!

I kind of liked Damian Demento just for how stupid he looked.

Confession...

1993 is one of my favorite years in WWF. I liked Demento too, mainly because he was just so fucking weird. Royal Rumble had a decent under-card, Summerslam gets WAY too much shit, King of the Ring is the Bret Hart Show, and quite a few entertaining matches at the Survivor Series.

I guess people shit on the year because Wrestlemania IX sucked. Sure, it fucked up the angles (the blowoffs should happen AT WM, not have the feuds continue), but the outdoor atmosphere makes it one of my favorites to watch as a casual fan.

Over here on the Wrestling Channel, we get two shows, one called Memphis Wrestling, and the other, Classic Memphis. The first is this turgid little show where Lawler and Bill Dundee and any old ass they can find are put over the younger talent, and the second is this sickening show where a bunch of neverweres sit around talking about Memphis like it was getting WM3 attendences and Heat.

Blah, that's gotta be some horrible horrible tv to watch.

I would have to agree with MD on that one, but still they did do a hell of a lot of sellouts in Memphis for years.


Memphis people = stoopid.

Yeah, wasn't Viscera mega over in Memphis before coming back to the WWF?

Big Fat Wrestlers™ with no talent still sells in Memphis because the place is in a constant loop of 1981.

I wasn't sure as I hadn't heard a word about the place since the WWF had dropped them as a developmental league when Lawler quit.

Well, it's basically dead. They are currently doing some nostagia stuff now and drawing well locally too. But it's basically like a band doing a reunion tour.........





































without all the original members..........





















Or really anything of value.

So it's basically the new version of Drowning Pool?

Back up, Back up........Memphis Power Pro Wrestling was a WWE developmental territory, most famous for giving Kurt Angle something to do for years, run by a clod called Corey Maclin and Lawler and his untalented offspring. When Lawler left, and showed up in MPPW, the WWE bailed on them, pulling financial assistance with it, Maclin, extremely bitter, went to ground till last year, when he resurfaced with Original Memphis Wrestling, with much of the same guys, and Lawler getting involved. Maclin's publicly said he thinks he should get the dev. contract back, but I dont see that happeneing

Well, from everything I've read about Maclin and his crew.....nothing is taken too seriously. Basically I'm saying that they aren't going to be the new WWE developmental territory. They have drawn well for some of their shows, but Meltzer usually reports on them in the observer and always states how it's bascially dying out.

Oh I don't mind the "Throwback" shows, fuck them, let them have their nostalgia - it's the TV shows where guys like Lawler bury guys like Derrick King that bother me.

Man I have to get my hands on some OVW

Tatanka/Michaels and Shrinkers/Steiners OWNED. I really like those matches, even now.

I'm getting ready for a shitstorm saying this, but some of his Memphs stuff isn't that bad. In particular his 4287568756673453 match series with Mo are pretty damn decent. But then again, I liked his match with Benoit a few weeks ago, so what do I know?

Actually I like the Benoit match aswell



Who didn't?

It wasn't outright bad, but Viscera no selling the crossface and basically being told what to do by the referee for the entire match doesn't scream entertainment to me.

I DID, however, like the german suplex Benoit did. I'm amazed Viscera didn't fall on him.

I admire any guy, his size that can do a Koppou Kick like that

Back when Mabel was actually being pushed, I woulda had people sell that move like a piledriver through a table in Memphis.

It's the only thing unique he does, and basically looks like him falling over with his leg in front of him.

It doesn't just look that way. That's seriously all he does.