Ric Flair vs Big Daddy at Summerslam 92

[johnnyk9]

You think had Vince had more then 2 months to put this event together this could’ve happened? I mean Flair deserved a match and considering they once did Hogan vs Stan Hanson in Japan this might have worked. I know Big Daddy was in his 60s and at the end of his career but we all know Flair can get a decent match out of anyone. Flair could’ve fought Daddy early in the night and him and Perfect still could’ve gotten involved in the Warrior/Savage match.

Any thoughts on this? Do you think Vince would’ve every done business with Big Daddy? Do you think it would’ve help the Summerslam card or do you think Big Daddy would’ve taken the spotlight away from The Bulldog?

[J. Hova]

They didn't need Big Daddy to sell tickets, the match would have been abysmal even with 1992 Ric Flair, and Big Daddy would have taken the shine away from Davey Boy.

[Deleted]

Hogan vs. Hansen was for a Japanese audience.

No way in hell does he try to explain to the US fanbase who this old fat guy is and why they should care. This wouldn’t be like giving Dick Murdoch a spot in the rumble for ten minutes this would be a marketed match on ppv. Let’s they do it as a dark match and not even air it on the ppv, I don’t see Vince going for that either.

[Phosphor Glow]

Would anyone in America have understood who Big Daddy is? I mean you could argue that they could've done some build up with promo videos and stuff but I don't think you could really get across to the American audience just how big a deal that match would be. They'd never heard of him, so even if he was presented as "The Hulk Hogan of England", no one would've cared.

Also, Flair is capable of getting a good to great match out of almost anyone, but I don't know that Big Daddy would be among the people he could get a good match out of. I've watched quite a few of his matches to try and "get it", and well...I never got it.

[Deleted]

Jun 14, 2021 23:52:09 GMT -5 Phosphor Glow said:

Would anyone in America have understood who Big Daddy is? I mean you could argue that they could've done some build up with promo videos and stuff but I don't think you could really get across to the American audience just how big a deal that match would be. They'd never heard of him, so even if he was presented as "The Hulk Hogan of England", no one would've cared.

Also, Flair is capable of getting a good to great match out of almost anyone, but I don't know that Big Daddy would be among the people he could get a good match out of. I've watched quite a few of his matches to try and "get it", and well...I never got it.

Being a kid I hard enough time caring about Ric Flair.

[Phosphor Glow]

Jun 15, 2021 0:03:35 GMT -5 @uppitynerd said:

Jun 14, 2021 23:52:09 GMT -5 Phosphor Glow said:

Would anyone in America have understood who Big Daddy is? I mean you could argue that they could've done some build up with promo videos and stuff but I don't think you could really get across to the American audience just how big a deal that match would be. They'd never heard of him, so even if he was presented as "The Hulk Hogan of England", no one would've cared.

Also, Flair is capable of getting a good to great match out of almost anyone, but I don't know that Big Daddy would be among the people he could get a good match out of. I've watched quite a few of his matches to try and "get it", and well...I never got it.

Being a kid I hard enough time caring about Ric Flair.

Exactly. Ric Flair himself was barely presented as a "huge deal" in the WWE at the time. The only way you really would've understood him being in WWE is you followed both WWE and NWA. Adding Big Daddy to the mix would just be far too much. To the WWE audience, he would've seemed like just another big dude, and most would've assumed he'd conquer Flair before going on to fight Hogan.

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Jun 15, 2021 0:03:35 GMT -5 @uppitynerd said:

Jun 14, 2021 23:52:09 GMT -5 Phosphor Glow said:

Would anyone in America have understood who Big Daddy is? I mean you could argue that they could've done some build up with promo videos and stuff but I don't think you could really get across to the American audience just how big a deal that match would be. They'd never heard of him, so even if he was presented as "The Hulk Hogan of England", no one would've cared.

Also, Flair is capable of getting a good to great match out of almost anyone, but I don't know that Big Daddy would be among the people he could get a good match out of. I've watched quite a few of his matches to try and "get it", and well...I never got it.

Being a kid I hard enough time caring about Ric Flair.

Ric Flair’s original WWE is one of those things fans prop up like it’s amazing because it’s Flair.

-Months of Heenan saying he’s coming.
-Nothing
-Nothing
-Bullshit Survivor Series finish
-Nothing
-Wins Rumble 92, people only talk about Heenan
-Feud takes place almost entirely in the magazine
-Mania 8
-Nothing x 10
-Loses to Bret
-Nothing
-Loses to Perfect

[I'm Team Bayley and Indi]

his singles matches never went over a few minutes, you could argue to keep him strong but he couldn't go any longer (phrasing) and 1992 is past his peak. Most of his matches tended to be tag matches where a younger more skilled wrestler did all the work and he would come in and get the glory at the end.

He basically spent most of his career in the same promotion, booked by his Brother and never ventured to other countries as far I am aware, I think he knew this was the best for him

also this is a match against his most heated rival Giant Haystacks from 1981

[Mozenrath]

Jun 15, 2021 2:19:14 GMT -5 Cranjis McBasketball said:

Jun 15, 2021 0:03:35 GMT -5 @uppitynerd said:

Being a kid I hard enough time caring about Ric Flair.

Ric Flair’s original WWE is one of those things fans prop up like it’s amazing because it’s Flair.

-Months of Heenan saying he’s coming.
-Nothing
-Nothing
-Bullshit Survivor Series finish
-Nothing
-Wins Rumble 92, people only talk about Heenan
-Feud takes place almost entirely in the magazine
-Mania 8
-Nothing x 10
-Loses to Bret
-Nothing
-Loses to Perfect

Right. The Rumble was cool and all and a big deal, but Vince hated the promo he cut and people didn't seem terribly interested in him versus Hogan. I feel like it'd have helped if he had the Horsemen, sure, but as it was, WWF fans weren't biting.

[Futureraven: Beelzebruv]

Jun 15, 2021 2:56:52 GMT -5 I'm Team Bayley and Indi said:

his singles matches never went over a few minutes, you could argue to keep him strong but he couldn't go any longer (phrasing) and 1992 is past his peak. Most of his matches tended to be tag matches where a younger more skilled wrestler did all the work and he would come in and get the glory at the end.

He basically spent most of his career in the same promotion, booked by his Brother and never ventured to other countries as far I am aware, I think he knew this was the best for him

also this is a match against his most heated rival Giant Haystacks from 1981

Dear God, I knew it'd be bad, but...

Though props to Haystacks for going over the top and through a table at his size.

[Mozenrath]

Jun 15, 2021 3:56:38 GMT -5 Futureraven: Beelzebruv said:

Jun 15, 2021 2:56:52 GMT -5 I'm Team Bayley and Indi said:

his singles matches never went over a few minutes, you could argue to keep him strong but he couldn't go any longer (phrasing) and 1992 is past his peak. Most of his matches tended to be tag matches where a younger more skilled wrestler did all the work and he would come in and get the glory at the end.

He basically spent most of his career in the same promotion, booked by his Brother and never ventured to other countries as far I am aware, I think he knew this was the best for him

also this is a match against his most heated rival Giant Haystacks from 1981

Dear God, I knew it'd be bad, but...

Though props to Haystacks for going over the top and through a table at his size.

Yeah, of the two, he's definitely the better worker here. Not, uhh, saying a ton, but still.

[Futureraven: Beelzebruv]

Jun 15, 2021 4:30:15 GMT -5 Mozenrath said:

Jun 15, 2021 3:56:38 GMT -5 Futureraven: Beelzebruv said:

Dear God, I knew it'd be bad, but...

Though props to Haystacks for going over the top and through a table at his size.

Yeah, of the two, he's definitely the better worker here. Not, uhh, saying a ton, but still.

If he'd gone and gotten some proper training, I think he could have actually been decent in the 70s /early 80s rather than the "fat lads bump into things" style.

This is a huge part of why British wrestling turned into a desert for about 20 years.

['Foretold' Joker]

There is no plus side to putting Big Daddy in Summerslam 92, the guy was barely mobile in the 80s, never mind in 1992.

Kendo Nagasaki, Giant Haystacks or Pat Roach would be better in a cameo appearence.

[dav]

Jun 15, 2021 6:02:05 GMT -5 'Foretold' Joker said:

There is no plus side to putting Big Daddy in Summerslam 92, the guy was barely mobile in the 80s, never mind in 1992.

Kendo Nagasaki, Giant Haystacks or Pat Roach would be better in a cameo appearence.

If the latter shows up with the Auf Wiedersehen, Pet cast in character, I'd be up for it.

[crashmatsbazz]

when i was a kid i very much wanted to see Big Daddy vs Hogan, just cos i knew Daddy would have won.

[James Fabiano]

What would Blanche Devereaux think?

[mrbananagrabber]

Man, the older Brits who hear me say “I watch wrestling” and say “huh huh Big Daddy lol” would have loved that.

[Clash, Never a Meter Maid]

Jun 14, 2021 23:52:09 GMT -5 Phosphor Glow said:

Would anyone in America have understood who Big Daddy is? I mean you could argue that they could've done some build up with promo videos and stuff but I don't think you could really get across to the American audience just how big a deal that match would be. They'd never heard of him, so even if he was presented as "The Hulk Hogan of England", no one would've cared.

Also, Flair is capable of getting a good to great match out of almost anyone, but I don't know that Big Daddy would be among the people he could get a good match out of. I've watched quite a few of his matches to try and "get it", and well...I never got it.

It’s in his theme, “we shall not be moved.” He’s The Blob from Marvel, except he’s a good guy. The formula was he’d ram into people and they bounce off him, so in tag matches he teams with a smaller technican like a young Akira Maeda, and he makes the save by being a human boulder.

[Milkman Norm]

Jun 15, 2021 3:05:10 GMT -5 Mozenrath said:

Jun 15, 2021 2:19:14 GMT -5 Cranjis McBasketball said:

Ric Flair’s original WWE is one of those things fans prop up like it’s amazing because it’s Flair.

-Months of Heenan saying he’s coming.
-Nothing
-Nothing
-Bullshit Survivor Series finish
-Nothing
-Wins Rumble 92, people only talk about Heenan
-Feud takes place almost entirely in the magazine
-Mania 8
-Nothing x 10
-Loses to Bret
-Nothing
-Loses to Perfect

Right. The Rumble was cool and all and a big deal, but Vince hated the promo he cut and people didn't seem terribly interested in him versus Hogan. I feel like it'd have helped if he had the Horsemen, sure, but as it was, WWF fans weren't biting.

I'm in the minority in that I like but don't love the 92 Rumble match. To me it's 60 minutes of Flair bumping and looking like a chump before a weak finish. And Brain & Gorilla, while funny, do nothing to put over Flair as a legit threat as the match progressess.

[jason1980s]

Jun 15, 2021 0:03:35 GMT -5 @uppitynerd said:

Being a kid I hard enough time caring about Ric Flair.

I imagine most kids thought the same thing. He looked to be about 60-70 in 1990. He's what I would called a WCW guy and in the 1990s WCW guys wouldn't do well in WWF for the most part. I think it's been even mentioned before that most WWF fans saw WCW as the secondary league so Flair coming in on top and winning the title so quickly probably didn't set well with fans. Some of his run was also bad booking, WWF didn't really know how to book him plus the flop of the Hogan house show matches. Some think the buildup to the Macho Man WM 8 match was great but even as a kid I didn't get it. I know "stuff happens" but I don't see Flair and Elizabeth's lifes/careers intersecting before 1991 to where they could have had a long time relationship.