When Ricky Steamboat
and Randy Savage locked up at Wrestlemania III, the two men had a
simple goal: They wanted to steal the biggest wrestling show in
history.
They did.
They did it so well,
in fact, that more than 15 years later, the match is still considered
one of the best in Wrestlemania's history.
How did they do it?
What made the match so unqiue? How did they upstage the two legends,
Andre the Giant and Hulk Hogan, who were in the main event?
In Part II of his
two-hour interview with Wrestling Perspective, Steamboat talks about
this legendary match in detail. He also discusses his final days in the
Mid-Atlantic territory, his icy relationship with then-Mid-Atlantic
booker Dusty Rhodes, and his decision to leave for the World Wrestling
Federation.
Ricky Steamboat,
wrestling's quintessential babyface, is among the most articulate
performers in the history of the business. Combine that with Wrestling
Perspective, which has earned a reputation as the place to find the
best shoot interviews in wrestling, and you can imagine what you'll
learn by reading the interview.
In Part II of this
candid interview, Steamboat discusses:
- The famous tag team
bouts he and Jay Youngblood had in the Mid-Atlantic territory with Sgt.
Slaughter and Don Kernodle, and the Brisco Brothers.
- How he had to
convince promoter Jim Crockett to book the matches.
- The response the
matches received in the Carolinas.
- Why he took a break
from wrestling in 1983 and how much money he walked away from.
- His problems with
Dusty Rhodes and why he quit the territory.
- How he was wooed by
the WWF.
- His early WWF
matches with Don Muraco.
- His martial arts
background - or lack thereof.
These
topics and many others are addressed by Steamboat in Wrestling
Perspective #108.
Click Here To
Order Issue #108 With Your Credit Card
Not sure you want
to own Issue #108 yet?
Then read these
excerpts below:
Steamboat on trying to get to a 1983
steel cage match that pitted himself and Jay Youngblood against
Slaughter and Kernodle in Greensboro: "I get off at the exit into Greensboro for the Coliseum, and
traffic is backed up down the ramp. I look over at Jay, and I say,
'Man, there must have been an accident.' I look at my watch, and say,
'Man, we're going to be late to the building.' So I started driving on
the shoulder up the ramp, around the overpass, going to the city of
Greensboro on the side roads, the side of the shoulder, on the
sidewalks just to get to the Coliseum. ... On a CB radio, the
state patrol was saying, 'If you want to go see the wrestling show in
Greensboro, it's sold out. Turn around and go home.' Traffic was backed
up for five miles. That was from the exit to the building."
Steamboat on what Jim Crockett had to
say about the sell-out card: "We get to the building, and (Jim) Crockett comes up to us
and says, 'You know, they've got the match with Harley (Race) and Ric
(Flair). But these people have come to see you guys.'"
Steamboat on working
with Jack Brisco: "Jack was so laid back. Your first impression
meeting him was: 'Wow, Jack Brisco. A world champion. What a legend.'
But five minutes of sitting and talking with the guy, he's so laid
back, very, very Floridish. Just eased the tension and throw that out
the window because he's very, very business-minded and very, very fair.
Had great, great matches with Jack and Jerry. Fun, fun matches. Many
times I'd be standing in the corner trying to cover my mouth up from
laughing; working with those guys."
Steamboat on Dusty
Rhodes: "He was using me to put himself over."
Steamboat on Nikita
Koloff: "He was very, very stiff, and very, very mechanical looking."
Steamboat on meeting
Vince McMahon: "Vince can be very convincing in his verbage and his
mannerisms. Even the look on his face, when he's talking to you, you
can walk out of that office saying to yourself, 'You are going to make
so much money with this company that you can retire early.' You have
that feeling. His vision, and the way he would put it across to you was
so convincing that there was no doubt in my mind that this company was
going to set new standards in the profession, and which it did."
Order Issue
#108 today.
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What
Else Will You Find In Issue #108?
- The Top 100 Wrestlers of All Time ... Well, sort of ... Actually,
that's a book and The Phantom of the Ring takes this book to task. He
explains where the editors went wrong with their selections, and their
selection process and he submits his own Top 25 list for scrutiny. The
Phantom's review will stir some debate among wrestling fans and
historians.
Order
Issue #108 today!!!
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