Oldschool
03-14-2009, 10:49 AM
The Shooting Range: Unsung Heroes of Wrestling #1
Posted by Michael Clancy on 03/08/2009 at 09:07 AM
The Shooting Range
Unsung Heroes of Wrestling #1
What is a hero? What makes a person’s deeds heroic? Can anyone truly be a hero in this cynical day and age? For some a hero is someone who dresses in outlandish outfits and fights crime; for others it is someone who does the right thing no matter what; while for some a hero may be a man who slaves away for 30 years in a job he hates just so he can feed his family. In the wrestling business however a hero must be regarded as a competitor who turns up night after night, giving everything they have in the ring and making sure the fans go away happy. It is the sad truth that often heroes like this are overlooked by their employers and may go their whole career without holding the top gold. To give the forgotten heroes of wrestling, past and present, the acknowledgement they so richly deserve The Shooting Range will be paying its respects to the unsung heroes of wrestling, beginning with the most underrated superstar in the WWE today…
Shelton Benjamin
Benjamin’s inclusion can come under immediate questioning. Can someone who is currently holding a championship really be considered unsung? When you compare the man’s abilities to his current standing in the company you have to answer yes. Everyone knows just how good Benjamin is; he has the speed and balance of a cruiserweight, along with an amateur wrestling background that make him one of the best in the business in terms of technical ability. And yet despite being with the WWE for some 7 years now he is yet to brake into the main-event picture.
Benjamin made a promising start in the WWE. Brought onto Smackdown in September 2002 as one half of ‘World’s Greatest Tag Team’, he and partner Charlie Haas were put instantly in the spotlight when the pair became part of Team Angle as the Olympic Gold Medallist feuded with Brock Lesnar. Benjamin’s first year on Smackdown was a good one. Working with Angle meant he was getting a taste of the spotlight without the pressure of having to be the centre of attention. He and Haas enjoyed success as a tag team too; winning the WWE Tag Team Championships just a month after debuting. They went on to successfully defend those titles at Wrestlemania 19, defeating Los Guerrerro and Chris Benoit and Rhyno in a triple threat tag match.
Benjamin embarked on his singles career in March 2004 when he has drafted to Raw. He made an immediate impact on the red brand when he scored an upset victory over Triple H, a feat he repeated twice more in the following weeks. It seemed like WWE were keen to put Benjamin over and make him one of the stars of the future. Later that year Benjamin captured his first singles title when he defeated Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental Title at the interactive pay-per-view Taboo Tuesday. Not only did his victory demonstrate the faith the WWE management had in him, being selected by public vote to compete in the match also showed just how over with the fans he was. His title reign lasted until June 2005 when he was pinned by Carlito, making it the longest Intercontinental Title run of the decade.
Once his initial hot streak on Raw ended, things started to cool down for the South Carolinian and arguably they have never heated up since. Benjamin was used more sparingly on Raw over the next few years; at one stage he was given the dreaded ‘losing streak’ storyline which saw his momma turning up on Raw to give him motivational pep-talks. Racial stereotypes aside Benjamin’s single career on Raw was going nowhere and to shake things up WWE did what WWE always do when they have no storylines for talented individuals, they stuck him in a tag team. The World’s Greatest Tag Team was officially reunited in December 2006 on Raw; it was a forgettable reunion marked only by an abysmal ladder match with the Hardy Boyz at One Night Stand. It was clear that this was not the direction Benjamin’s career deserved to be going and so to give his career to shove in the right direction the WWE went to their plan B for what to do when a career hits the skids, they moved Benjamin to ECW.
Benjamin’s move to ECW stands as a massive missed opportunity for the WWE. It was a chance for Benjamin to step up to the big time; there was the potential of truly classic matches with then ECW Champion CM Punk and former champion John Morrison. The timing was perfect for Benjamin to take his first steps into the main-event picture and cement his reputation as a force to be reckoned with. And what happened? Well that was the problem; not very much happened for Benjamin whilst in the Land of Extreme. He received no ECW Title matches, he had no classic matches and he was drafted to Smackdown after a mere 8 months. It will go down as one of the biggest missed opportunities in WWE history. They had forgotten to put any gold on the Gold Standard.
Since returning to Smackdown Benjamin’s career has picked up from where he left off on Raw, holding the brand’s second tier title whilst competing week after week without ever actually feuding with someone or indeed defending the title on a pay-per-view. For a man of his immense skill and talent it is a real shame to have him as a warm-up act to Vladimir Kozlov. But the real question is why has his career stalled in such a mediocre way? The main criticism of Benjamin, in fact really the only criticism of him stems in his inability to cut a decent promo. Benjamin has never been as comfortable on the mic as he has been in the ring. The one good thing about his time on ECW was he was given a chance to speak and there is no denying his promos have improved because of this but he still has a long way to go before he can match the monotone monologues of Randy Orton or the over-confident boasts of MVP. Blaming his current situation on a lack of microphone savvy is short sighted however. Others have managed to reach the top in the WWE without being blessed with great mic skills. Batista and Bobby Lashley are two modern examples of guys who have held top gold but not been great talkers but looking back over the years WWE’s history is full of top guys who haven’t had the gift of gab.
With this in mind it is the sad possibility that perhaps Benjamin isn’t competing for the top prizes in WWE because he isn’t a couple of inches taller and a few dozen pounds heavier. Vince McMahon is famous for liking his giants and it’s obvious that Lashley and Batista didn’t become world champions on the back of their charisma so it is not unreasonable to suspect that Benjamin hasn’t received the push he deserves because he is not got the physical presence. This of course is terribly cynical; Benjamin is by no means a small man and there have been scores of champions of his size both past and present. However if you combine Benjamin’s lack of charisma with the fact that he isn’t a 7-foot, 300lb monster then you may just have your explanation as to why Benjamin has thus far avoided the main event scene.
It would seem that Benjamin is never destined to be a WWE Hall of Famer. He’ll probably never star in a WWE made movie either and it is unlikely that his merchandise will ever be a best-seller in the WWE shop. What he is destined for, provided he keeps himself healthy is a long and reasonably successful career in the industry. Benjamin is the type of wrestler who may be given one brief world title run in years to come, probably once he has past his prime as a way to thank him for his years of hard work. But that sums Benjamin up all over; often overlooked, even taken for granted, yet can always be relied upon to give 100% every time he steps in the ring. For these reasons The Shooting Range proudly welcomes Shelton Benjamin into the ranks of unsung heroes of wrestling.
Agree? Disagree? Want to nominate a candidate for Unsung Heroes of Wrestling? Get in touch at shootingrange69@aol.co.uk
Posted by Michael Clancy on 03/08/2009 at 09:07 AM
The Shooting Range
Unsung Heroes of Wrestling #1
What is a hero? What makes a person’s deeds heroic? Can anyone truly be a hero in this cynical day and age? For some a hero is someone who dresses in outlandish outfits and fights crime; for others it is someone who does the right thing no matter what; while for some a hero may be a man who slaves away for 30 years in a job he hates just so he can feed his family. In the wrestling business however a hero must be regarded as a competitor who turns up night after night, giving everything they have in the ring and making sure the fans go away happy. It is the sad truth that often heroes like this are overlooked by their employers and may go their whole career without holding the top gold. To give the forgotten heroes of wrestling, past and present, the acknowledgement they so richly deserve The Shooting Range will be paying its respects to the unsung heroes of wrestling, beginning with the most underrated superstar in the WWE today…
Shelton Benjamin
Benjamin’s inclusion can come under immediate questioning. Can someone who is currently holding a championship really be considered unsung? When you compare the man’s abilities to his current standing in the company you have to answer yes. Everyone knows just how good Benjamin is; he has the speed and balance of a cruiserweight, along with an amateur wrestling background that make him one of the best in the business in terms of technical ability. And yet despite being with the WWE for some 7 years now he is yet to brake into the main-event picture.
Benjamin made a promising start in the WWE. Brought onto Smackdown in September 2002 as one half of ‘World’s Greatest Tag Team’, he and partner Charlie Haas were put instantly in the spotlight when the pair became part of Team Angle as the Olympic Gold Medallist feuded with Brock Lesnar. Benjamin’s first year on Smackdown was a good one. Working with Angle meant he was getting a taste of the spotlight without the pressure of having to be the centre of attention. He and Haas enjoyed success as a tag team too; winning the WWE Tag Team Championships just a month after debuting. They went on to successfully defend those titles at Wrestlemania 19, defeating Los Guerrerro and Chris Benoit and Rhyno in a triple threat tag match.
Benjamin embarked on his singles career in March 2004 when he has drafted to Raw. He made an immediate impact on the red brand when he scored an upset victory over Triple H, a feat he repeated twice more in the following weeks. It seemed like WWE were keen to put Benjamin over and make him one of the stars of the future. Later that year Benjamin captured his first singles title when he defeated Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental Title at the interactive pay-per-view Taboo Tuesday. Not only did his victory demonstrate the faith the WWE management had in him, being selected by public vote to compete in the match also showed just how over with the fans he was. His title reign lasted until June 2005 when he was pinned by Carlito, making it the longest Intercontinental Title run of the decade.
Once his initial hot streak on Raw ended, things started to cool down for the South Carolinian and arguably they have never heated up since. Benjamin was used more sparingly on Raw over the next few years; at one stage he was given the dreaded ‘losing streak’ storyline which saw his momma turning up on Raw to give him motivational pep-talks. Racial stereotypes aside Benjamin’s single career on Raw was going nowhere and to shake things up WWE did what WWE always do when they have no storylines for talented individuals, they stuck him in a tag team. The World’s Greatest Tag Team was officially reunited in December 2006 on Raw; it was a forgettable reunion marked only by an abysmal ladder match with the Hardy Boyz at One Night Stand. It was clear that this was not the direction Benjamin’s career deserved to be going and so to give his career to shove in the right direction the WWE went to their plan B for what to do when a career hits the skids, they moved Benjamin to ECW.
Benjamin’s move to ECW stands as a massive missed opportunity for the WWE. It was a chance for Benjamin to step up to the big time; there was the potential of truly classic matches with then ECW Champion CM Punk and former champion John Morrison. The timing was perfect for Benjamin to take his first steps into the main-event picture and cement his reputation as a force to be reckoned with. And what happened? Well that was the problem; not very much happened for Benjamin whilst in the Land of Extreme. He received no ECW Title matches, he had no classic matches and he was drafted to Smackdown after a mere 8 months. It will go down as one of the biggest missed opportunities in WWE history. They had forgotten to put any gold on the Gold Standard.
Since returning to Smackdown Benjamin’s career has picked up from where he left off on Raw, holding the brand’s second tier title whilst competing week after week without ever actually feuding with someone or indeed defending the title on a pay-per-view. For a man of his immense skill and talent it is a real shame to have him as a warm-up act to Vladimir Kozlov. But the real question is why has his career stalled in such a mediocre way? The main criticism of Benjamin, in fact really the only criticism of him stems in his inability to cut a decent promo. Benjamin has never been as comfortable on the mic as he has been in the ring. The one good thing about his time on ECW was he was given a chance to speak and there is no denying his promos have improved because of this but he still has a long way to go before he can match the monotone monologues of Randy Orton or the over-confident boasts of MVP. Blaming his current situation on a lack of microphone savvy is short sighted however. Others have managed to reach the top in the WWE without being blessed with great mic skills. Batista and Bobby Lashley are two modern examples of guys who have held top gold but not been great talkers but looking back over the years WWE’s history is full of top guys who haven’t had the gift of gab.
With this in mind it is the sad possibility that perhaps Benjamin isn’t competing for the top prizes in WWE because he isn’t a couple of inches taller and a few dozen pounds heavier. Vince McMahon is famous for liking his giants and it’s obvious that Lashley and Batista didn’t become world champions on the back of their charisma so it is not unreasonable to suspect that Benjamin hasn’t received the push he deserves because he is not got the physical presence. This of course is terribly cynical; Benjamin is by no means a small man and there have been scores of champions of his size both past and present. However if you combine Benjamin’s lack of charisma with the fact that he isn’t a 7-foot, 300lb monster then you may just have your explanation as to why Benjamin has thus far avoided the main event scene.
It would seem that Benjamin is never destined to be a WWE Hall of Famer. He’ll probably never star in a WWE made movie either and it is unlikely that his merchandise will ever be a best-seller in the WWE shop. What he is destined for, provided he keeps himself healthy is a long and reasonably successful career in the industry. Benjamin is the type of wrestler who may be given one brief world title run in years to come, probably once he has past his prime as a way to thank him for his years of hard work. But that sums Benjamin up all over; often overlooked, even taken for granted, yet can always be relied upon to give 100% every time he steps in the ring. For these reasons The Shooting Range proudly welcomes Shelton Benjamin into the ranks of unsung heroes of wrestling.
Agree? Disagree? Want to nominate a candidate for Unsung Heroes of Wrestling? Get in touch at shootingrange69@aol.co.uk