Thursday, April 10, 2014

The Ultimate Warrior Dying

Like many fans all over the world I was shocked and saddened to hear that the Ultimate Warrior passed away. It just seemed so shocking that a man that was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on Saturday and appear on Monday Night Raw on Monday would pass away on Tuesday. It seems like the Warrior made peace with everyone including Hulk Hogan and the McMahons. I actually did a double take when I saw on my local news Wednesday morning a crawl that said that he passed away. I actually did a double take for a minute. I didnt think it was true until the story was picked up on other news stations and outlets. I think its too early to speculate how he died but lets remember him for his memories as The Ultimate Warrior and most importantly as a husband and a father.


Its funny I dont remember Jim Hellwig when he teamed with Sting. I didnt get the UWF back then but I do remember him in WCCW as the Dingo Warrior. Believe or not, before he had "little warriors" he was a villian or a bad guy. Soon after he became a good guy feuding with I believe, Matt Borne and Buzz Sawyer. Soon after that, he went to the WWE. He caught on like wildfire and a moment to this day that I watch over and over again was when he beat the Honky Tonk Man at Summerslam 88 to win the Intercontinental Championship. From when his music hit, to the quick win and the crowd going crazy at Madison Square Garden, its one of my personal, favorite Ultimate Warrior moments.

Another one of my favorite Warrior moments is at the Royal Rumble 1990 when he faced off against Hulk Hogan. The crowd was going crazy and that was a huge matchup. Also the very fact that two babyfaces or "good  guys" facing off was unheard of back then. There encounter was brief but it did lead to WrestleMania 6 at the Skydome where Warrior beat Hogan for the WWE Championship. A couple of things came out of that match. First, it was the first time two babyfaces headlined WrestleMania against each other. It was always a good guy vs. a bad guy. Second, its one of the best WrestleMania matches of all time. Just a great match all the way around. Finally, Warrior winning meant that he was a double champion. He was the WWE Champion as well as the Intercontinental Champion. The image of Warrior holding both belts as fireworks shot off in the Skydome is an iconic WrestleMania moment.

His match the following year against the legendary "Macho Man"Randy Savage at WM 7 is fantastic as well. A career ending match, meaning who lost had to retire, Savage and Warrior put on a hell of a match including Warrior kicking out after 5 elbow drops from the Macho Man. Now, we all know Warrior then left the WWE in the summer of 1991 only to return at WM 8 in the main event. His music and him running down to the ring at WM 8 was another WrestleMania moment. As a closelined Papa Shango, you could feel the power of the warriors going crazy because he had come back.


Everytime, the Warrior came back, the fans WANTED him back. They would go crazy. I had the pleasure of being in Hartford, CT., the night of August 17, 1998, when he debuted on WCW Monday Nitro. Again, the fans WANTED him back as he got a huge ovation. Nobody can doubt his charmisa and appeal. I think he's one of the best characters in the history of sports entertainment and pro wrestling. To have people just go crazy for you night after night, year after year is outstanding.


Now, I have to admit, I didnt watch the Hall of Fame. I only saw snippets of what aired on USA Network and what I've read online. I did however watch Raw and saw his last interview.  I dont know if he knew it was over but again, the fans went crazy for him. Hey look, people are going to have opinions about him. But I'd rather remember him as The Ultimate Warrior and the guy who was accompied by his daughters onstage to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

To the friends and family of the Ultimate Warrior, my thoughts and condolences go out to you during this obviously tough time. To have a character like that and even better being a husband and a father makes your life, well, Ultimate. RIP.