Though he had a short run with WWE in the early 1980s, he would return to the AWA and truly make a mark. | Discussion record. On the July 20 episode of SmackDown!, Eugene participated in a battle royal for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship, and was eliminated by Batista and Kane. Hennig would become Intercontinental champion, and would even challenge Hulk Hogan for the WWE world title, though he never beat the Hulkster. [30] He formed a tag team with Zach Gowen at Up in Smoke, believing that he could be Gowen's second leg, but ended up costing his team the match by distracting the referee. What's Eugene been up to since getting released by WWE in 2007? How we remember the character, however, may largely come down to a matter of perspective. He was already a former NWA National Champion and held the Mid-South North American title. After appearing at ECW One Night Stand,[20] Eugene formed a tag team with "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan. His plodding style also became out of style as smaller, quicker athletes like Daniel Bryan and CM Punk took center stage. When that came out in 2015, WWE quickly moved to get some distance from Hogan, eliminating him from the most recent version of their Tough Enough reality show competition and removing him from the WWE Hall of Fame. Eugene defeated Angle, winning his cherished Olympic gold medal (per match stipulation), and starting a feud between the two. Is the WWE wrestler Eugene really mentally disabled? Curt Hennig, unlike many of the men on this list, actually had quite an impressive career. Despite being cut, he was sent to developmental territory OVW to hone his skills and develop his character. In addition to his physical appearance, which included wild, unkempt hair, his wrists locked into an angle that parodied cerebral palsy, and exaggerated wide-eyed nodding whenever he got excited, Eugene also came to the ring in a jacket that was worn inside-out and buttoned incorrectly, accompanied by an entrance video that boasted his name in childlike scrawl. The contract was signed, and weeks of vignettes were aired. Dinsmore made his Ring of Honor debut on December 9, 2010, at ROH Wrestling tapings, losing to Mike Bennett. That one instance for them to be able to meet what I hope would be their hero is a little bit indescribable and is an incredible feeling. RELATED: Former WWE Star Eugene Set To Retire After Latest Tour. The Plight of the Mentally Disabled. His resume would go on to include featured one-on-one matches at consecutive SummerSlams opposite The Game and then Kurt Angle. The character was yet to be unleashed however. Alternately known as Garrison Cade, Lance McKnaught has some surprising connections to major WWE superstars. Why did the Osage Indians live in the great plains? [20] He defeated Vince McMahon and Shane McMahon in a handicap match on the July 10 Raw, after interference from D-Generation X. Please note that this is not the controversial part. Then he and fellow NXT rookies -- when it was still a reality show and not a separate brand -- became the Nexus, having a brief but strong reign as an almost NWO type group. Hennig cut his teeth in the AWA, the promotion that made his father Larry the Ax Hennig, a star attraction. He then posted a video and wrote: Eugene is a mentally retarded WWE character who is, unmistakably, played for laughs. Like Hollywood movies and Broadway shows, it is an exciting blend of action, characters and fictional storylines of good versus evil that entertains millions weekly. Over the years, WWE has been known to create some of the greatest gimmicks of all time. As this was the early years of NXT as a developmental brand, Eugene got to work behind the scenes when the brand was arguably in its prime years. From the mid-'80s through the mid-'90s had a host of these types of goofy gimmicks. The first live event was held November 7, 2015. He's also a writer that's covered many topics that not only include professional wrestling but other forms of sports. Your login session has expired. Renegade is a classic example of why you don't try to fool wrestling fandom. Thorn was never a great wrestler, but he was big and mean looking, so he was pushed hard by OVW. Instead, it was 76-year-old Mae Young, and while it would later be revealed to be a flesh-colored prosthetic rather than her actual aged physique, it was convincing enough for the audience at home. It's that they ended up damaging two up-and-coming careers. Fun fact: Eugene was entirely Nick Dinsmores idea. That does not change the fact that his mental retardation is essentially a comic device. [15], Eugene returned to wrestling on the July 25, 2005 episode of Raw, taking part in Kurt Angle's regular "Kurt Angle Invitational" challenge. [43] In December 2021, Dinsmore announced his retirement tour. Dinsmore was introduced as Eugene, the mentally disabled nephew of RAW GM Eric Bischoff. When he returned, he had shaved his head and beard, and presented his somewhat grotesque visage as his new gimmick. Not all of the negative press that WWE got back in the Attitude Era was based on something they actually did. But perhaps two of the most egregious misfires that WWE has ever had when it comes to 'transforming' a wrestler have been Nick Dinsmore and Terry Taylor. The team lasted until Tajiri's release in December 2005. Copyright: RU Sport Private Limited. Why he never became a bigger star: For one thing, Glacier is a dumb name. He did however, have a decent run where he worked in programs alongside and against some of the biggest names in WWE such as Triple H, Kurt Angle, Hulk Hogan and even The Rock. 2001 - 2011 Democratic Underground, Apparently, yes, there could be, because despite an undefeated streak and reigns as US and IC champion, the WWE universe never really got behind Lashley. Boogeyman never won any titles, but made enough of an impact that he was signed to a Legends contract. They even tried to bring it back several times, always with the same result; failure. That in itself isn't surprising, since dressing up as your opponent had been a time-honored heel tactic for years, but if you were paying attention to the last paragraph, you might've already spotted the problem here. Despite the crowd's shockingly positive reaction, the skit was monumentally offensive at the time and certainly hasn't aged well in the 20 years since. He made some appearances in Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council (WWC), as Eugene. Why he was never a bigger star: Renegade's entire 'bait and switch' gimmick infuriated fans, who refused to get behind him even after he stopped dressing like Ultimate Warrior. The Big Guy failed to catch on, despite a huge push and an IC title reign. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. They had to portray the character as positively as possible, lest they have advocate groups threatening a boycott. Here are ten WWE wrestlers who were supposed to be the next big thing, but never really made it to the main event. Back in the Pre-NWO WCW days, Hulk Hogan was feuding with the heel stable Dungeon of Doom. real . [4][34] On July 27, Dinsmore, as "U-Gene", unsuccessfully challenged Freight Train for the 5 Dollar Wrestling championship in the main event of that promotion's internet PPV debut.[35]. He achieved great success at OVW winning the OVW Heavyweight Championship 10 times! Taylor, one of the smoothest technical wrestlers in the game, was the perfect 80's babyface. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. A former amateur wrestling standout, he entered the military and continued to dominate in that sport. They formed a tag team in Frontier Martial Arts wrestling, a sort of ECW type promotion that also boasted stars like Gladiator Mike Awesome. He walks into the womens locker room and hilarity ensues. General Manager Eric Bischoff, and was placed in the care of newly [5], On the April 5, 2004 episode of Raw, Dinsmore made his World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) debut as Eugene. For instance, as he got involved in a program with Evolution on Raw, and Eugene even wrestled Triple H at the SummerSlam 2004 PPV, which he was close to winning. Home And the world of wrestling will never be the same. That came (so to speak) when Venis got into a feud with Kai En Tai, a faction of Japanese wrestlers, during which he filmed a sex tape with Kai En Tai's manager Yamaguchi-San's wife. He started wrestling in the 1980s and would go on until 2005. 7 - Macho Man Randy Savage (OCD) Macho Man Randy Savage is WWE legend. From that point, many fans might wonder what Nick Disnmore's been up to since leaving WWE in 2007. Teens and young adults especially loved the gory fatalities and cold-blooded characters. Not sure what Vince was thinking, but there was no need to display a mentally handicapped character in the WWE roster. [32] U-Gene defeated Gowen at Bloodymania 5, but the referee reversed the decision after realizing U-Gene cheated to win. Either way, the Nation wound up feuding with D-Generation X, a faction led by Triple H that was known for over-the-top antics like driving military vehicles up to a show put on by rival promotion WCW. The Ruthless Aggression Era from 2002 to 2008 paved the way for many compelling characters to get introduced on Raw or SmackDown, including some of the most comedic characters that ever stepped foot into the company. However, the promotions avoid actually categorizing their mentally challenged characters as having an actual real-world disability. This very passion soon branched out to boxing and mixed martial arts. I really disliked him This thread is archived New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast 0 The Eugene character was over-the-top several years ago, and there's no way WWE would even attempt it today. The premise of the Eugene character was that he was the mentally-disabled nephew of Eric Bischoff, who based his wrestling style on his favorite wrestlers like The Rock and Hulk Hogan. Eugene was released a short time later. Also, there was a South African militia called the Truth Commission, but that one wasn't really racially motivated. In the late '90s and early 2000s, the World Wrestling Federation kicked off a period that fans remember today as the Attitude Era. Eugene would soon be introduced to the WWE as Eric Bischoffs nephew. I met several people with special needs and without a doubt, they would always run to me and just want to hug me. This WWE Universe comes to you each and every week and entertains millions and millions of fans. The young man got an immediate push because he was billed as Raw General Manager Eric Bischoffs nephew Eugene, and as a result was assigned William Regal as his kayfabe mentor. Check on the link to your right for more information. To that end, Ariya and Shawn Daivari, two Iranian-American wrestlers from Minneapolis, came out to run down Saudi Arabia and announce that "Real athletes, like the Daivari brothers, come from the strongest nation in the world: Iran!" The following week, he was tricked into thinking Deuce 'n Domino were helping him win his match against Mark Henry, which led to a quick defeat. Furthermore, Eugene's WWE stint during the Ruthless Aggression Era wasn't the last time WWE fans saw him in the company. Please share your thoughts in the comments section below. Eric Bischoff looked at this media environment and decided he would create a sort of sub-division within WCW featuring characters based off of the fighting game franchise. His favorite wrestler is Shawn Michaels and he believes that GSP is the greatest to ever step foot inside the octagon. He worked as an enhancement talent for the WCW in 1998/99. [46], The "Eugene" gimmick received mixed reviews. WWEs management of the Eugene gimmickor even choosing to pursue it as a gimmick at alldemonstrated imperfect judgment. WWE appearances, wrestling under a mask as Doink the Clown on two Despite feuds with such luminaries as DX and Chris Jericho, Cade failed to resonate with fans as either heel or face in spite of his bona fide impressive wrestling talent. the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC. 43K views 1 year ago #eugene #wwe #hasanabi Hasanabi Reacts To WWE Fake Disabled Wrestler Eugene (WWE Eugene's Debut) WWE Eugene's Debut | RAW Apr 05, 2004 Video We reimagined. |-- Archives If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. Click Please comment below and let us know, and thanks for reading! They've been able to pick up a wrestler who may have been someone else in another place and time, place them in colorful spandex, and give them a whole new persona. He lost the title to Anthony Barvado on July 25, 2008. Unfortunately, the factions were often built around racial stereotypes, especially during the "Gang Warz" storylines that revolved around a skinhead biker gang called the Disciples of the Apocalypse, the Puerto Rican Los Boricuas, and the Nation of Domination, a cartoonish parody of the Nation of Islam and the Black Panthers. copying the signature moves of popular WWE superstars. The team split up on the November 6 Raw. WORK IN PROGRESS. Join us to discuss WWE, AEW, NJPW, Impact, Stardom, ChocoPro, GCW, and every other promotion, big or small, past and present. CTRL + SPACE for auto-complete. This was during the Monday Night Wars, and both WWE and WCW were more interested in signing established talent rather than taking a chance on new blood. As a white guy, I have no interest in golf or tennis, I don't drape a sweater around my shoulders, nor do I live in a house with a picket fence. In October 2007, Dinsmore became the head official in charge of Derby City Wrestling, the intermediate-level group affiliated with Ohio Valley Wrestling, after Joey Matthews left the position. Crime Time gotta be up there right? Given his limited athletic ability and technical wrestling acumen, Ryback was basically just around for his chiselled physique. Ali is a lifelong fan of professional wrestling fan. Why he was never a bigger star: Boogeyman had a great gimmick, but his limited wrestling ability and the fact he got into the business very late probably hindered his career. I know he was a controversial character but as an autistic person myself I don't have an issue with his portrayal of a mentally disabled person and found his character entertaining at times, and he was great for building up heels and faces. Dinsmore debuted in 1996, and soon began wrestling in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA). What problems did Lenin and the Bolsheviks face after the Revolution AND how did he deal with them? He was trained by Shawn Michaels at his wrestling academy in San Antonio in 1998. Nicholas Disworth (born December 17, 1975), also known by his Trish Stratus Returns On RAW, Explains Why She Turned On Becky Dustin Rhodes On Cody Losing At WrestleMania 39 Theyre Making Reason Why Becky Lynch Wont Be Appearing On Tonights Episode Of New Photos Of Gigi Dolin, Chelsea Green, Cora Jade, Carmella, Trish Update On Jordynne Graces Contract Status With Impact Wrestling. Usually, this takes the form of a 'crazy man' gimmick like the Missing Link or Roddy Piper, but sometimes a wrestler is portrayed as being somewhat slow intellectually. Hennig would end up as a member of the West Texas Rednecks, a stable whose sole reason for existing was facing off against Master P's no limit soldier faction. Anyway, Dinsmore has been around forever and. 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Bryan and CM Punk took center stage to ever step foot inside the octagon and how did he deal them... Young adults especially loved the gory fatalities and cold-blooded characters what Nick Disnmore been. After the Revolution and how did he deal with them racially motivated, dinsmore announced his Tour!, Lance McKnaught has some surprising connections to major WWE superstars shaved his head and beard, weeks...