Resident Evil

Been watching some stuff lately 3 or 4 really dissapointing matches but I'm only here to talk positive Jamie Noble vs Roderick Strong -- The starting's kind of eh but this really picks up towards the end and ends up being one of if not the best ROH match I've ever seen. Not too many people agree with but I think Noble's the best wrestler ROH ever had. Eddie vs Bradshaw Cage Match -- Very good, one of Eddie's better matches in the WWE. Kerry Von Erich vs Ric Flair WCCW cage match with Hayes as an additional reff THis was great and it's matches like this that make me rethink my rankings for the best wrestlers ever. For anyone who tires of the Ric Flair formula watch this match because the bout breaks out of it. Flair has great mannerisms in the ring here which drag you into the match and Von Erich was no slouch here either in this department. In fact, a lot of the greatness of this bout is due to Von Erich. He does all sorts of neat stuff like punching away at Flair's knee and concentrating on attacking Flair's bloody head. And his selling after getting hit with the steel cage door is terrific. Reccomended match and hopefully this will be part of the deathvalley nomination list.

Bix, why do you think their was a big standard deviation on the Bass/Santana match? Do you or anyone else out their think their reputations as lower/mid card(at that point in time) workers hurt them in some of the voters eyes. I personally liked the match a lot. I ranked it #11 on my ballot. It's a strange little bout. I've been a Tito Santana fan for 16 yrs but I still couldn't rate the match that high. There was stuff I remember liking about it and stuff I didn't. If I remember correctly the flow of the match was off some. But I did rate Santana vs Macho Man very high. That was a terrific bout.

Anyone want to make a prediction and say what the biggest disputed matches will be in the 80s project?

Well, the first part of the deathvalley project is over. I was one of the voters as I think most people already know here. It was a blast watching all of the matches and seeing what people thought of them. I think Deathvalley made a mistake by posting the WWF results "buried" away in a DVDVR review but anyway. I can't wait to watch the rest of the series and see some of the Lucha which is seemingly still being discovered as well as some territories I'm not too familiar with. The most interesting part of the results in my opinion was not really who won but what matches had diverse opinions on them. Now you can get diverse opinions all the time but everyone who got the list had to be a WWF fan so there wasn't someone say going into an overall list and "screwing up" the results by being byist against lucha libre or shoot style for instance. So within all the hardcore fans it was very intriguing to see what people thought. And there were some surprises some pleasant and some not. Anyway, the diverse opinions from memory were really strong on these bouts -- Backland vs Hogan, Santana vs Bass, Hogan vs Macho Man and some others which I forget right now. Now obviously these matches contain elements that both appeal and detract certain emotions in the voters. This makes them an interesting study on what works, what doesn't and with who. So does anyone have any thoughts on these bouts? What makes Backland vs Hogan, Santana vs Bass or Hogan vs Macho Man give all sorts of different emotions to the deathvalley fans?

His singles match against Benoit at the beginning of Raw in 05 was great. That bout was actually similar to Bret vs Austin in that it helped propel Batista's career -- just like Austin's career. After that the fans who were already behind Batista really got behind Batista. The match was perfect timing. We can argue about what's best but I think it's undebatable that when you actually look back objectively at the scenario that it was actually Batista's most important match.

Here we go! The following was posted on Shawn Daivari's website: "Mania was awesome! You should know what happened by now. I've become an active wrestler in the WWE roster it seems. I hope I haven't disappointed anyone yet. Now I'm gonna tell you a quick horror story about myself in Europe. Chris Benoit and Rob Conway warm up before the matches by doing free standing Hindu squats. They usually do about 500 a piece. It took them some time to build up to that many. The average person can do about 20 before cramping up. Someone in decent shape can do about 75-100. I wanted to give it a try so I went for it and I did about 400...the last 75 were total crap with me using every ounce of my existence to get back up so I'll say 325. The next day I couldn't even walk! I was so sore and tense in my legs that I couldn't bend my knees past 45 degrees, and as the day went on my range of motion got less and less. Two days later was RAW and I couldn't even bend my legs at all! Don't ask me how, because I don't know, but adrenaline is a crazy thing and I ended up working a tag match which you saw on TV. I hobbled back to the locker room and took a piss and to my amazement it was red. The next day I was in even more pain and sick as hell. I puked about 5 times. I was managing Mohammad and got through another day. Came back to the locker room and my pee was blackish-brown. Like Dr. Pepper. Gave a sample to the doctor and he ran some tests on it and got back to me the next day turns out the red then eventually black was the actual muscle fiber in my legs! They had been broken down so much they traveled into my blood stream got to my kidneys and I ended up pissing it out. That's why i was so sick. Now I feel better after a couple days, just legs are really sore. And that was my trip to Europe!"

Thanks.

Do you happen to know if it's a rescent magazine? I'd like to check out the article myself. Does he talk about a lot of the wrestlers' routines?

It's a temporary order. I was looking through it myself and was questioning my own picks just the other day. It was like "Why do I have wrestler A over Wrestler B? I noticed that I don't have Rick Rude on there. I'm not sure how that happened at all. The one guy I am going to put on the list now is Jamie Knoble. I've been very impressed by his ROH work and in combination with his WWE work I feel he deserves a spot. Terry Funk I feel really bad about -- I like him a LOT more than what my placing dictates. He's probably going up higher especially if I manage to see the right stuff. Sano's placing is a result of me loving the Sano vs Lyger series that much. Steamboat's a hard, consistant worker who has tremendous selling. He brings a lot of stuff to wrestling that I personally like.

You know, that reminds of the Chuck Norris quotes except this one's even better. Can I use that as part of my signature on the wrestling boards? But the thing is, I can't even tell if you made that story up. Did you?? You know, I got to try that technique sometime. Those dirty cups can be a nuisance.

No that was Davari who was urinating muscle fibers after the warmup. Benoit does 5 to 8 hundred free weight hindu squats as a warmup for his workout. I found part of the workout article here. If I find the whole thing I'll post it in its entirity. "Benoit does between 500 and 800 Hindu squats twice a week, and he runs or uses a step machine four to six times a week, depending on his schedule. He currently does 30 minutes of cardio after his weight training, but that varies from month to month." WP -- Note -- I've also seen reference to his cardio being sixty minutes "I'll take 10-pound dumbbells or 10-pound plates, and do just about every exercise in my routine," he says. "I'll do curls, triceps extensions, side laterals, front laterals, bent-over rows, bent-over laterals,a dn then I'll do some Hindu squats and strech my legs as much as possible. I also warm up my neck twice a week a day-once before I use free weights, and again before I wrestle. I do alot of isometric exercises for my neck. Basically, I just try to get the blood circulating through my whole body." WP -- Note -- That's a warmup and it's usually a good idea to warm up with lesser weight. On and given day, Benoit does 15-18 sets, comprised of 8-12 repetitions fro each bosy part (with the exception of biceps and triceps, which he'll do nine sets for each). And while no body body parts get special attention, Benoit says that he enjoys working shoulders the most. "I also enjoy working legs when I train with other people," he says. "They are such a big body part, so I really train them hard, and I challenge myself to make the other person [i'm training with] quit, or not finish their workout. I don't make them do extra sets. I still do 15 to 18, but I train really hard when I do legs, and if I;m training with someone else, I'll push myself that much more. It's fun to watch them quit or throw up. I get a real kick out of that." While Benoit does use heavy weights, he trains more for shape and conditioning than he does for strength. One of his main goals is getting his heart rate up, and maintaining that heart rate throughout his workout. In order to accomplish this, Benoit rests for no more than 30 seconds between sets, and moves quickly from one exercise to another. The Wolverine also doesn't beleive in "pyramid" workouts-starting with a low weight, working up to maximun weight, and working all the way back down. Instead, he opts to superset, working his muscles to failure. For example, when Benoit works his chest, after a set of 8 or 10 high-neck bench presses, he'll imediately grab dumbbells adn do a lighter set of bench-press flyes, working the same muscle group. "Consistancy is really the secret to maintaining a great physique," he says. "I prefer free weights, but depending on where I am with my travel schedule, sometimes I'll use (machines), and other times I'll use free weights. Also, because I train in so many gyms, I get to use all different kinds of equipment. I;ve probably used every single type of workout equipment that has ever been made, which is a real treat." Because Benoit works out in so many different gyms, I wonder how his workouts vary. Sometimes i find it hard to adapt to a gym I'm not familiar with (for example quite a few of the gyms around my area don't have many free weights). WP -- Note -- This is severe overtraining although there could be benifits to doing this in short bursts followed by periods of less intensity. Anyway that's not the point of posting this routine. It's no wonder Benoit has such good wind in the ring. Looking at his leg routine in particular -- he seemingly likes to take less than 30 seconds inbetween sets, do 15 to 18 sets of leg exercises done to FAILURE as well as stripsets immediatly afterwards. Guys and girls, I can explain what this is like on a computer but words really don't do it justice. It'd be somewhat equivalent to someone saying "Well, yeah I parachuted out of an airplane yesterday". Words just lose the effect. The leg routine is beyond insanity.

Benoit's training routine is the scariest thing I've ever read in my life. I'm very familiar with training and his routine is insane to the millionth degree. He was quoted as getting a kick out of people throwing up when working legs beside them. Yeah, he'd be a great wrestling trainer. WP -- Gets a kick out of torturing people as well.

WP, I'll be releasing a 4-5 disc Lawler best of set at the end of the month. I am only waiting for his AWA matches and it will be ready. If you look at Lawler's run from late 70s to early 90s, the man was phenomenal. Lawler had great runs/matches with... Bill Dundee Dutch Mantell Austin Idol Harley Race Ric Flair (best ten minute time limit draw I have seen w/ a great angle) Kimala (Yeah, friggin Kimala!) Randy Savage Kerry Von Erich Koko Ware (which I am having a hard time finding a good copy of) Bob Sweetan Nick Bockwinkle Curt Hennig That doesn't even include the feuds that he got over. That is strictly on in-ring work. Interesting, I think I might have seen the Flair match but I remember just thinking it was okay. Where did it take place at? I manage to see a Lawler match here and there yet they never appeal to me but of course my mind is open. There've been a couple of wrestlers from the past that I unfortunately somehow managed to see all their worse stuff first only to see their better stuff afterwards. It could be the same with Lawler. Goodhelmet, I might just have to get a bunch of stuff off you some day because you have some nice comps made up. Here's my extreamly temporary list which is actually over 100. I've gotten lazy on doing my research however. I should be rewatching a lot of matches Dynamite Kid Chris Benoit Kenta Kobashi Bret Hart Mayumi Ozaki Jumbo Tsuruta Manami Toyota Jushin Lyger Akira Hokuto Ricky Steamboat Aja Kong Jaguar Yokota Nakio Sano Johnny Smith Stan Hanson Dynamite Kansai Takada Kawada Toshiyo Yamada The Destroyer Misawa Hiroshi Hase Chigusa Nagayo Koboyashi Eddie Guerrero Ric Flair Tatsumi Fujinami Masami Kyoko Inoue Shinya Hashimoto Steve Williams Owen Hart Vader Shinjori Ohtani Mima Shimoda Etsuko Mita Dan Kroffat (2nd) Rey Mysterio Jr. Mariko Yoshida Terry Gordy The Cobra Bull Nakano Sakie Hasegawa Brian Pillman Steven Regal Steve Austin Shawn Michaels Mr. Perfect Curt Henning Ben Basserb Barry Whindam Macho Man Randy Savage Momoe Nakanishi Tiger Mask Marc Rocco Mimi Hagiwara El Samurai Ultimo Dragon Chris Jericho Gran Hamada Sgt. Slaughter Dean Malenko Jun Akiyima Scott Norton The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith Villano III Terry Funk Megumi Kudo Meiko Satomura Akira Taue KENTA Sting Kurt Angle Adrion Adonis Lioness Asuka The Great Sasuke Brock Lesnar Andre the Giant Booker T Debbie Malenko Hulk Hogan Hikari Fukuoka Lightning Kid 2 Cold Scorpio Biff Wellington Kikuchi Pat Tanaka Masa Chono Bob Backland Rip Rogers Dump Matsumoto Nikita Koloff Raven Mikey Whipwreck Masato Tanaka Rick Martel Dustin Rhodes Scott Steiner The Rock Keiji Mutoh Ron Simmons Bad News Allen Fit Finlay Harley Race Brad Armstrong Ricky Morton American Dragon Bigelow Arn Anderson Gary Albright Yumiko Hotta Ted Dibiase Gama Singh Sabu Taka Michinoku Rhonda Singh Lo Ki Reggie Bennett Cactus Jack People I'm not sure where to rank at right now *El Hijo Del Santo Jumping Bomb Angels Koboyashi Atlantis Yuki Ishikawa Battlearts Kazou Yamazaki Koshinaka Fuerza Guerrera JIm Breaks Blue Panther Volk Han Fantastics Midnight Express

What's Univision? Is it a new channel.?

You're tempting me to put down my own list. I'm feeling guilty about leaving some guys off though that should be on because of limited footage. So in saying that if anyone wants to make me comps of the best of lucha libre and various US territories for free feel free to do so. Why's Lawler currently so high? What matches am I missing?

Tully was a real good wrestler and he was an important part of the WWF and WCW but I just can't see the WWF worrying about his importance that much in the overall scheme of things. I can see it happening though. From what I hear it sounded like Blanchard had some serious troubles.

Manami Toyota/Toshiyo Yamada vs. Combat Toyoda/Megumi Kudo FMW Joshi puroresu matches are the hardest matches to review. AJPW, WCW, ECW, WWF or NJPW tend to be a lot easier. The reason being is that so much action and emotion happen in joshi puroresu that it would take forever and a day to comment on it all. This here is one of those matches. Action filled from start to end there's never a moment to catch your breath. It's go, go, go and go until someone can't go anymore. That being said this match depsite going 100 miles an hour always has some kind of focus. There's a real nice build to it and it has lots of smart wrestling moments in it in particular some really good false teases of a lot of stuff. Of course it's full of the typical awesome offence you'd expect in joshi puroresu and there's a real nice moment here at the end of the match where Yamada realises Toyota is in trouble and just goes crazy beating up Kudo and Toyota complete with a barrage of boos from the crowd. There's not too much negative about this match at all. In fact, it's a lot better than the Dreamslam match between the two teams so don't let that deter you from automatically making a judgement call on the quality of this match. My main gripe watching this is that I just wasn't yonger watching this for the very first time. I envy anyone doing so. Terrific match, make sure to give it a watch.

What...you mean putting the not so talented Hart family members over other more talented workers? Owen I always bought as the best in the promotion. Bruce? Not so much. And the other brothers? Yikes. Well, at least Bruce wasn't nearly as bad as HHH political wise. The booking also had too many skullduggery match endings. I'm not sure who I bought as the best in the promotion once the restart started. Owen was always spectacular at initial sight but I think Benoit was more conisistent match quality and had more juice on some of his moves. Wellington when he was on was as good as Owen and I think Johnny Smith's overall shtick surparassed Owen in 1988 though it's not too fair to compare since they were playing different roles(Owen was a better face than Smith). If it was up to me I probably would've booked Owen at the top too. He just had way too much "wow" factor as he was amazing. Basserb I'm a big fan of too. Owen, Benoit, Basserb, Johnny Smith, Hase and Wellington. I think it's pretty hard to rate one guy over another. It's like Benoit vs Eddie or Owen vs Bret.

I'm Canadian too so I grew up with World Grand Prix Wrestling,the WWF, just a touch of NWA. and a couple of other Canadian organisations. Stampede was my favourite territory when they were at their best even though their booking bothered me at times.

Yes, a Punchout avatar!

This is why we need stricter parents in society.