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Greatest promo in the history of wrestling.

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StoOgE

First tragedy, then farce.
http://www.wwe.com/shows/wrestlemania21/trailers.jsp

In case you have missed any of these awesome commercials.. the JBL/Cena parody of a few good men is AWESOME. Not as funny as some of the others (HHH).. but JBL might cut a better promo than anyone else out there.. its really a shame its going to come to an end so a white guy who cant really rap and cant really wrestle can take over the reigns... hopefully Cena can step up in the ring.
 

ToxicAdam

Member
Anything Ric Flair from 1984-1988.


End this fucking thread now.


(then I would put up ECW Mick Foley and some Joel Gertner stuff)
 

Triumph

Banned
The Greatest Wrestling Promo of All Time is clearly Hulk Hogan's "Yapapi" strap match promo, cut in the waning days of WCW. I think the match was with Flair? I can't remember, I didn't even see the match, but I still have that on tape somewhere and when I feel the need to laugh hysterically at something, that's what I put in.
 
Raoul Duke said:
The Greatest Wrestling Promo of All Time is clearly Hulk Hogan's "Yapapi" strap match promo, cut in the waning days of WCW. I think the match was with Flair? I can't remember, I didn't even see the match, but I still have that on tape somewhere and when I feel the need to laugh hysterically at something, that's what I put in.

Is there a link to this anywhere?
 

impirius

Member
The dreaded Apple Pie Indian Strap Match!

There have been some great ones, but I still love Flair's tirade on Nitro. All Flair's pent-up anger from months of backstage politicking was ready to explode, and Bischoff had enough business sense to just let him loose. I couldn't see one person in the building who wasn't going crazy.

Ric WOOOOOOOOOOOOO Flair said:
"My God, thank you. Thank you very much. I'm almost embarrassed by the response, but when I see this, I know that the twenty five years that I've spent trying to make you happy every night of your life was worth every damn minute of it."

"Now, somebody told me that the Horsemen were having a party tonight in Greenville! Could that be true that the most elite group, that Eric Bischoff said was dead, is alive and well? Bischoff, this might be my only shot, and I've got to tell you, I'm going to make it my best."

"Is this what you call a great moment in TV? That's wrong, because this is REAL! This is not bought and paid for! It's a real life situation! Just like the night in Columbia, South Carolina, when you looked at me, tears in my eyes, and said "God, that's good TV", it was real! Arn Anderson passed the torch, it was real, damn it! You think Sting was crying in the dressing room like I was on TV if it wasn't real? This guy, my best friend, is one of the greatest performers who ever lived, and you, you squashed him, in one night. Then you get on the phone and tell me, 'disband the Horsemen, they're dead.' Disband the Horsemen, me? You know what, I looked at myself in the mirror the next day and I saw a pathetic figure that gave up and quit! And for that, I owe you, the wrestling fans, I owe these guys an apology. Because it won't happen again!"

[Bischoff walks down the ramp yelling, "You're finished Flair!"]

"Bischoff, whatever you think...no, you're an overbearing asshole! That's right! You're obnoxious, you're an obnoxious, overbearing ass! Abuse of power! You! Abuse of power! Cut me off! Come on! It's called abuse of power! You suck! You... I hate your guts. I hate your guts! You are a liar, you're a cheat, you're a scam, you are a no good son of a bitch! Fire me? I'm already fired! Fire me! I'm already fired!"
 

bjork

Member
Best promo ever is the one Mick Foley did in ECW when he was trying to tell Tommy Dreamer about the downside to being hardcore, and he went off on that rant about the ECW fans and pro wrestlers never being respected. It was like he had a legitimate nervous breakdown as he gave it.
 
Kurt and Christy spoofing "When Harry Met Sally" was the funniest promo i have seen lately, acutlly starting laughing out loud the first time i saw it.
 

FnordChan

Member
The greatest wrestling promo video ever is "Breakfast with the Mad Dog", circa 1983, where Precious Paul Ellering helps Buzz Sawyer train for an upcoming match against Rowdy Roddy Piper. The Mad Dog eats raw eggs, then goes outside to drag trees around with a chain, smash kindling with a chain, and occasionally roll around on the ground, yelling "PIPER! PIPER!" the entire time. Meanwhile, Ellering provides commentary such as "Piper! You fight great! BUT THE MAD DOG IS A GREAT FIGHTER!" It's amazing.

Alas, a watchable video copy is damn near impossible to find - and I'd love to hear from anyone who can prove me wrong - but WarPig put together an MP3 of "Breakfast with the Mad Dog" a while back, so you can bear witness to it's awesome power.

FnordChan
 
Ric Flair is hereby DISQUALIFIED... due to one thing.

HE's nothing more than a babbling, senile old man now who does nothig but tarnish his legacy. It's sad really.


ABUSE OF POWER!


I always liked DX's spoofing of the horsemen as well.. that was funny.
 

dskillzhtown

keep your strippers out of my American football
Actually, the JBL/Cena thing is pretty high up there on the list of wrestling promos. They took a spoof and twisted it into a powerful wrestling promo. JBL explained his "character" with so much conviction and passion, that it made it believable.
 

bishoptl

Banstick Emeritus
You can never disqualify Ric Flair, no matter how much Trips' ass kissing he does now. The "abuse of power" promo will go down in history as one of the most powerful, heartfelt shoot promos ever. And when you have great present-day promos like this one, well....you can't talk crap about Flair. Not now, not ever.

Russo's shoot on Hogan was also quite good.
The Rock's promo on the top-tier wrestlers ("Undertaker and his 48-pound head")
The Rock's promo re: homeless people sleeping in boxes all over the lawn of his palatial Miami estate
Any number of Heyman promos
The Chris Jericho "1004 holds" promo
Trish's oddly prescient promo on Lita the other month ("her legs are open for business!") :lol
 
i dont know about the best but i loved the promo where Mick foley asked Chyna if she had the "vaginal fortitude" to face him. ROFL Man mick could cut a really great promo when he wanted.
 
shockmaster.jpg
 
Outcast2004 said:
Ric Flair is hereby DISQUALIFIED... due to one thing.

HE's nothing more than a babbling, senile old man now who does nothig but tarnish his legacy. It's sad really.
I totally don't get this... Ric Flair is the main reason I watch Raw anymore, he's still just as funny and entertaining as he's always been. I die laughing every single time I see him covered with sweat with his eyes bulging out and his face red from just yelling at someone. Or when he tries to get in the ring during a match and the ref tries to keep him out but he just doesn't quit trying to get in, even getting off his feet and just hanging on the ropes reaching his arms in to interfere. And him saying something like "we're the three amigos! Triple H, Ric Flair and the sledgehammer!" was one of the best lines in a while.
 
I also forgot the time Flair told Maven "I'd had more world championships than you've had women! WOO!"

I don't know why he doesn't use that line every night. I also still can't figure out how anyone can not like Flair anymore.
 
Liu Kang Baking A Pie said:
I totally don't get this... Ric Flair is the main reason I watch Raw anymore, he's still just as funny and entertaining as he's always been. I die laughing every single time I see him covered with sweat with his eyes bulging out and his face red from just yelling at someone. Or when he tries to get in the ring during a match and the ref tries to keep him out but he just doesn't quit trying to get in, even getting off his feet and just hanging on the ropes reaching his arms in to interfere. And him saying something like "we're the three amigos! Triple H, Ric Flair and the sledgehammer!" was one of the best lines in a while.

What's not to get?
He's making a mockery of his former legend. This guy used to cut the best promos bar none. Now look at him.

Now he's reduced to being a "Class-A" lunatic. You know, the crazy old guy who lives downstairs from you and threatens to kill you if you damn kids don't stay off his lawn. Sweating, convulsing and not really making a lot of sense. This isn't what brought him to top to begin with. I'm sure if he toned down the lunacy he could be a great mouthpiece for someone.

He's not the Ric Flair I grew up with and hated as a heel and liked as a face.

In my eyes he's Ric Flair by name only.
 
Outcast2004 said:
Sweating, convulsing and not really making a lot of sense. This isn't what brought him to top to begin with.
Huh? Yes it is. You must have some nostalgia glasses on, because Ric Flair honestly hasn't changed a single thing about himself in 25 years except adding flab and wrinkles.
 
Liu Kang Baking A Pie said:
Huh? Yes it is. You must have some nostalgia glasses on, because Ric Flair honestly hasn't changed a single thing about himself in 25 years except adding flab and wrinkles.

His promos and actions HAVE changed considerably since his NWA/WCW heyday. It isn't nostalgia.

He's a lot more exaggerated now, it's borderline ridiculous. Just go back and watch some of his older promos. Watch the ones he had with the Magnum TA's and the Ricky Steambots and Dusty Rhodes. He doesn't lose his mind anywhere close to what he does now. He used to be the arrogant playboy type. Not the delusional epileptic he's fashioned himself into.

Like I said previously, if he slowed it down and actually cut the meaningful promos he'd use to (only this time helping someone who isn't exactly gifted on the mic), he'd return to that greatness.

I still lvoe the guy for his legacy, but don't admire what he's let himself become.... A joke.
 

Juno

LIAR and a FELON
I wish somewhere else hosted them trailers for download. They;ve never worked for me on the WWE mini-site. I always get the window pop-up, then it buffers, then it says 404 not found.

:(
 

Hollywood

Banned
Best ever: Rock, Hogan face to face the day after No Way Out .. as the fans chants change from Rocky Rocky, to Hogan Hogan ... in mid air.
 

Memles

Member
bishoptl said:
That wasn't a promo. That was the crowd forcing a heel/face turn through sheer force of will.

These aren't really promos either; they're commercials. So, pretty well everything in this thread is not in direct relation to the topic, in terms of competitions.

The commercials rock (Taker and Eugene's are kind of weak), the promos mentioned are good, all is well.
 
Wow, lots of things wrong. First off, if we're going to get technical:

1. Promo - I've always considered this to be a live call out, in the 80s, we're talking Hogan w/ Mean Gene, or with this generation, when someone is interviewed by some scumbag or when they walk out to the floor

2. Vignette - a lot of you guys are talking about vignettes, like DX invading WCW, or my favorite all-time series, Mr. Perfect. Christy and Kurt, blah blah, all that storyline crap

3. Commercial - obvious spoofs, like Playboy Buddy Rose's BLOW-AWAY, or this parody that is being discussed by the thread starter

As for Ric Flair, I agree with the both of you, but here's how I see it. Flair's delivery has always been the same in the last 20 years. When he first won his belt, he was calm, collected, and the emotion was ready to explode, and did, after he won the belt. But once Flair developed the stroll, the swagger, the NATURE BOY, all that shit went out the window. I do think he gets a bad rap from old wrestling hawks, because he's clearly not the same wrestler he once was. But, the content over the last 5 years has been shit.
 

bjork

Member
Well, if we're talking vignette/cutaways, then there's one clear-cut winner:

When DX (GOOD DX, not shit DX with NAO/Xpac) trashed Nation of Domination's lockerroom, but made it look like the Harts did it, and there was that spraypaint that said "Uncle Tom 3:16" :lol

PS: if we get tags back, I want "Uncle Tom 3:16" kthx <3
 

scarybore

Member
Just watched those Wrestlemania trailers and some were pretty damn good. HHH and his scottish accent along with Flair doing something funny and being useful was great!

Are there any videos of these other moments you are folks talking about?
 

Penguin

Member
Juno said:
I wish somewhere else hosted them trailers for download. They;ve never worked for me on the WWE mini-site. I always get the window pop-up, then it buffers, then it says 404 not found.

:(

Well, if you know a place to host them, I have all of the Ads on my comp and would upload.
 

calder

Member
Jericho enters the WWF was a classic. Still listen to the mp3 sometimes, it was a total fluke I watched that eps of RAW since I hadn't watched much wrestling in months.

Another fav was...
Hardcore Holly doing his dumb "I only wrestle heavyweights" schtick where he forced opponents to weigh themselves before agreeing to fight them. Pretty meh and forced as he kept claiming guys much bigger than him were too small to bother wrestling, except when he had Gangrel on the scales and he blurted out "Dracula, you fat bastard!" with perfect timing and a great tone of surprise. For one split moment, Hardcore Holly was funny... mainly because him being so unfunny for so long helped make his one clever line seem like Seinfeld's best joke.

Bret Hart did one in Edmonton or somewhere in western canada during one of his worse WWF arcs where they tried everything to make his anti-America turn as over the top as could be. The crowd obviously wouldn't accept him as a heel no matter what so he got up and did a speech about how much he loved canada that had me fucking weeping.
 

Tamanon

Banned
I'd have to agree with the first RAW IS JERICHO! I remember when I used to watch wrestling all the time for the Jericho/Angle feuds and the old Hardyz/Edge/Christian/Dudleys. Could've cared less about the rest, but those feuds were great:)
 
Liu Kang Baking A Pie said:
I also forgot the time Flair told Maven "I'd had more world championships than you've had women! WOO!"

I don't know why he doesn't use that line every night. I also still can't figure out how anyone can not like Flair anymore.

Better version was to Syxx (paraphrased) "I've had more championships than you've had pieces of ass!"

I think the problem with Flair is that he's not able to really cut a promo anymore...only on rare occasions. He's not the focus, HHH is, and HHH is making the promos. When Ric can only get a few lines out, and while I enjoy them, it's not the same to me. They need to get some other fool into Evolution that can't cut a promo for shit, and make Flair the mouthpiece/manager, similar to what he did for Batista in his early RAW days. That way, we get Flair goodness promo-wise, and he NEVER has to enter a ring again to actually wrestle. I know he still loves it, but please, stop before you kill yourself Naitch.
 
bjork said:
Best promo ever is the one Mick Foley did in ECW when he was trying to tell Tommy Dreamer about the downside to being hardcore, and he went off on that rant about the ECW fans and pro wrestlers never being respected. It was like he had a legitimate nervous breakdown as he gave it.

I always thought Foley gave the best promos in wrestling too. I never saw the one you mentioned, but I'd like to. What got me hooked on wrestling for a brief while was a Foley/Austin/McMahon promo. In it, Austin had been fired by McMahon and was terroizing him. McMahon had ended up in the hospital, and Foley (as Mankind) went to comfort him. As they were putting Vince in the ambulance there was lots of screaming and comotion, and once in awhile you'd see a fat hairy arm offer some type of food or beverage to McMahon in order to help him. Then when McMahon was in the hospital Foley went to visit him. I'll never forget the lines that followed in their conversation as Vince was being wheeled out of his room.

Vince: You know Mick, I may have lost a son...but I feel I gained one tonight.

Mick: Really?

Vince: Yeah...(Begins to wheel out of room).

Mick: Thanks....Dad.

That shit had me in hysterics, it was hilarious how Vince cringed when he heard "dad" and how Foely managed to say the word in just the right way to illicit that response.

But, to get back to the original comment...I think Folely was really at his best when he sort of had a nervous breakdown and went nuts in a promo. I remember seeing him give a promo as a face that just ripped into the fans for them cheering for Austin while he was chained up. He really seemed to mean what he said, and his voice broke as he screamed it out. It left an impression.

That JBL parody was pretty good. I haven't watched wrestling in ages, but I've heard nothing but good things about him. Wow, this is the same guy who was an acolyte?
 
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