Crappler El 0 M
Dalek
Never Forgets an Octagon
I'm a good R-Truth.
Posts: 58,479
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Post by Crappler El 0 M on Aug 22, 2018 12:17:39 GMT -5
Reportedly, former NWA/WCW wrestler Christopher Ashford-Smith who competed as Chris Champion of the New Breed tag team in the '80s and as Yoshi Kwan in the '90s has passed away. He still competed a bit on Southern indies in recent years, sometimes even portraying the Yoshi Kwan character. As Chris Champion (left)  As Yoshi Kwan  |
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Post by joesposto on Aug 22, 2018 12:30:43 GMT -5
Really bummed to hear this. The New Breed was a tag team WAY ahead of their time, from the look, music, promos and in ring. They were slated for a program in NWA against the Midnight Express that would have been killer
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Post by WoodStoner1 on Aug 22, 2018 12:50:49 GMT -5
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Post by Stone Coke Miami Watson 🥃 on Aug 22, 2018 13:13:39 GMT -5
Rest in peace to a guy who could go in the ring and one who was able to do a total transformation gimmick-wise to the point of being unrecognizable.
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chazraps
Wade Wilson
Better have my money when I come-a collect!
Posts: 28,083 
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Post by chazraps on Aug 22, 2018 13:33:18 GMT -5
RIP
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Post by 2coldMack is even more baffled on Aug 22, 2018 14:56:35 GMT -5
Yoshi Kwan was one of those...."yikes" gimmicks, but from what little I've seen of the New Breed, the dude clearly had talent. RIP.
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Post by Seth Drakin of Monster Crap on Aug 22, 2018 15:18:21 GMT -5
RIP
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Post by The 1Watcher Experience on Aug 22, 2018 15:46:29 GMT -5
The New Breed could’ve been a bigger deal. They had a lot of potential. Yoshi Kwan was definitely different. Can’t say I was a big fan of the gimmick but I didn’t hate it either. I was impressed that he could reinvent himself the way he did. RIP.
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Post by kidtamagotchi on Aug 22, 2018 15:59:33 GMT -5
I still remember the match he had against Ricky Steamboat in WCW as Yoshi Kwan.
(I loved the Yoshi Kwan name so much back then, I named a wrestler after him in my toy federation)
Rest in peace.
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Post by jason1980s on Aug 22, 2018 16:12:38 GMT -5
Yoshi Kwan was believable to me as a kid. He scared me and I was scared for his opponents. I liked watching him and wondering what would happen but he didn't last too long. WCW always seemed to have cool gimmicks for guys that didn't stick around too long. While the shelf life of a WWF crazy gimmicks seemed to linger on for years, WCW guys left after a year or even a few months.
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Post by Joe Neglia on Aug 22, 2018 16:52:26 GMT -5
Chris was also Kowabunga the Wrestling Turtle in Memphis (not to be confused with the similar gimmick over in Smokey Mountain), and was in a great tag team with his brother Mark Starr, called WildSide. I had the privilege to see WildSide perform at a live show back in '89.
Champion was an extremely talented guy at one point, with a lot of demons and baggage following him. It's a shame he didn't amount to something bigger in the business.
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Post by chronocross on Aug 22, 2018 17:03:02 GMT -5
I still remember the match he had against Ricky Steamboat in WCW as Yoshi Kwan. (I loved the Yoshi Kwan name so much back then, I named a wrestler after him in my toy federation) Rest in peace. I liked the Yoshi Kwan gimmick myself, I remember him having a decent match with 2 Cold Scorpio on Saturday Night in late 93. I was catching up on some old NWA stuff and it looked like the New Breed were getting ready to feud with the Midnights when Chris got injured. |
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Post by grungesmurf on Aug 22, 2018 18:02:13 GMT -5
The New Breed were great even with the short run they had in the NWA.
They did tag moves I hadn’t seen at the time instantly making me a fan.
They were the inspiration to my create a wrestler too.
Tell president Dusty Rhodes hello Chris!
RIP
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El Pollo Guerrera
Grimlock
His name has chicken in it, and he is good at makin' .gifs, so that's cool.
Status: Runner
Posts: 14,803
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Post by El Pollo Guerrera on Aug 22, 2018 18:30:01 GMT -5
Condolences to the family and friends.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2018 19:10:22 GMT -5
RIP
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2018 20:54:22 GMT -5
RIP Chris Champion/Yoshi Kwan.
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