Tony Atlas/CM Punk Incident in OVW in 2007

[The Rick Jericho]

In case you missed our report over the weekend, there was an altercation between ECW Champion CM Punk and WWE Hall of Famer Tony Atlas last week. Atlas was sent to developmental to so some mentoring and help the talents if he could with advice and other needs. While there, Atlas rubbed many the wrong way as he constantly put himself over and only said that the talents were doing stuff wrong. Atlas made a comment to CM Punk who was working the tapings, that he wore his wrist tape oddly and looked like he had broken arms. Punk basically shrugged off the comments.

After the tapings, they had the normal post meeting. This is the time where Al Snow and other WWE veterans critique what the developmental talents do right and wrong during the show. Atlas started with his critique, and every time he said something negative he would stare down Punk. After a while, Punk asked why he was looking at him and Atlas tore into Punk and stated, “With an attitude like that you’ll never be called up to TV.” It was then that Atlas’s credibility was shot. Punk asked if he watched ECW or even knew Punk’s name, to which Atlas admitted he didn’t. They argued for a reported 20-minutes.

John Laurinaitis found out about this and was not only upset that it happened, but that OVW management allowed it to happen. OVW owner president Danny Davis was not present when this happened but Al Snow and Robert Gibson were there.

After the meeting, Atlas DaBone; an OVW talent went to Atlas to apologize for Punk. The rest of the developmental talent didn’t like this as they felt no one should talk for Punk and that DaBone was trying to watch out for himself. The locker room views Punk as a hero for standing up to Atlas and is a good source of morale in developmental, which has been down as of late. Many OVW performers have started to feel that the main goal isn’t to help them improve but to mentally beat them down for everything they do “wrong.” It is being called a miserable place to be.

What the hell was this disaster. First off, who thought it was a good idea to send Tony Atlas down there? Seems before NXT their farm system was a disaster.

What were the reactions like around here at the time?

[Dub H]

As much nowdays there is Punk is a dick moments,there is legit moments where Punk just called out stuff like that which I really enjoyed.

[chronocross]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCJDqo95jg0

It looks like Atlas apologized to Punk afterwards about it.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Bullshit like this is why ovw deserved to lose the developmental relationship during that era.

One of the so called experts they brought in to teach the guys didn’t even watched the shows.

Tony Atlas was paid to talk to the guys about the dangers of drug addiction, instead he just showed up with his shitty poster of him slamming Hogan and claiming that he should’ve been bigger than Hogan.

[SHAKEMASTER TV9 is Don Knotts]

The winner of this situation was Atlas DaBone because he's now married to Layla.

[KobashiChop]

They covered this on Something Else To Wrestle on the Network.

Prichard basically says it was just a misunderstanding that went round in circles. Atlas asked why he had the tape up like he does, Punk just said it was different and he liked it. Atlas just couldnt comprehend that as an answer. According to Prichard it never became a full argument.

Although after the Table for 3 with Bischoff and JBL, plus his WWE ass-kissing, I can see him being full of shit.

[TGM]

Ricky Ortiz trying to get everyone to Rally Up Around CM Punk

[Rave]

Aug 26, 2018 9:09:20 GMT -5 The Rick Jericho said:

Seems before NXT their farm system was a disaster.

No 'seems' about it. Before Triple H took it over, the developmental system was pretty damn dire. Some of the stories about DSW in particular...SMH.

[darbus alan]

The carny indie feds that acted as WWE outsourced developmental were pretty awful. DSW was even worse than OVW and FCW only started becoming worthwhile after WWE took it wholly over and turned it into NXT and the WWE Performance Center.

Tony Atlas was a meme for awhile around here after this incident though.

[Final Countdown Jones]

Aug 26, 2018 16:14:48 GMT -5 KobashiChop said:

They covered this on Something Else To Wrestle on the Network.

Prichard basically says it was just a misunderstanding that went round in circles. Atlas asked why he had the tape up like he does, Punk just said it was different and he liked it. Atlas just couldnt comprehend that as an answer. According to Prichard it never became a full argument.

Although after the Table for 3 with Bischoff and JBL, plus his WWE ass-kissing, I can see him being full of shit.

I honestly don't think CM Punk could go in circles for 20 minutes saying the same thing without it getting more heated and argumentative, this sounds like Prichard Pricharding.

[The Heartbreak TWERK]

Your choices are argue with Tony Atlas, or eat ass donuts with Bill DeMott.

You tell me what's worse.

[Deleted]

Aug 26, 2018 18:50:51 GMT -5 The Heartbreak TWERK said:

Your choices are argue with Tony Atlas, or eat ass donuts with Bill DeMott.

You tell me what's worse.

At least Tony was a draw once.

[The Heartbreak TWERK]

Aug 26, 2018 19:02:30 GMT -5 @irontyger said:

Aug 26, 2018 18:50:51 GMT -5 The Heartbreak TWERK said:

Your choices are argue with Tony Atlas, or eat ass donuts with Bill DeMott.

You tell me what's worse.

At least Tony was a draw once.

When they say Tony Atlas draws, they mean literally

[Deleted]

Punk probably also shouldn’t have been wearing the fur coat and gold chains either, at least Tony overlooked that!

[Celexa Bliss]

Aug 26, 2018 19:15:09 GMT -5 @akeemresurrection said:

Punk probably also shouldn’t have been wearing the fur coat and gold chains either, at least Tony overlooked that!

What's the background on the fur coat and gold chains story? I've seen it referenced, but I've never heard the original story behind it.

[SHAKEMASTER TV9 is Don Knotts]

Aug 26, 2018 19:06:00 GMT -5 The Heartbreak TWERK said:

Aug 26, 2018 19:02:30 GMT -5 @irontyger said:

At least Tony was a draw once.

When they say Tony Atlas draws, they mean literally

[Final Countdown Jones]

Aug 26, 2018 19:26:56 GMT -5 Celexa Bliss said:

Aug 26, 2018 19:15:09 GMT -5 @akeemresurrection said:

Punk probably also shouldn’t have been wearing the fur coat and gold chains either, at least Tony overlooked that!

What's the background on the fur coat and gold chains story? I've seen it referenced, but I've never heard the original story behind it.

The dirtsheets used to love making up stories of CM Punk getting NUCLEAR HEAT because they were easy to make up, believable because Punk's Punk, and the dude would always drive clicks any time his name showed up. One particularly egregious one talked about how he showed up backstage wearing gold chains and a fur coat, and I want to say it involved people getting mad because he was "dressing like a champion" when he wasn't champ, but that might be another newz story I'm getting it confused with.

[Celexa Bliss]

Aug 26, 2018 19:39:32 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

Aug 26, 2018 19:26:56 GMT -5 Celexa Bliss said:

What's the background on the fur coat and gold chains story? I've seen it referenced, but I've never heard the original story behind it.

The dirtsheets used to love making up stories of CM Punk getting NUCLEAR HEAT because they were easy to make up, believable because Punk's Punk, and the dude would always drive clicks any time his name showed up. One particularly egregious one talked about how he showed up backstage wearing gold chains and a fur coat, and I want to say it involved people getting mad because he was "dressing like a champion" when he wasn't champ, but that might be another newz story I'm getting it confused with.

Lol that is the most random thing I've ever heard. Gold chains, I could believe, but a fur coat? It's friggin' CM Punk!

[kingoftheindies]

Aug 26, 2018 16:36:27 GMT -5 Rave said:

Aug 26, 2018 9:09:20 GMT -5 The Rick Jericho said:

Seems before NXT their farm system was a disaster.

No 'seems' about it. Before Triple H took it over, the developmental system was pretty damn dire. Some of the stories about DSW in particular...SMH.

OVW was fine for awhile, but they had had a strained relationship once Johnny Ace took over as Talent Relations. OVW was it's own company and not owned by WWE, but they would get wrestlers the WWE liked under JR, but Johnny Ace caused a lot of issues by just doing whatever he wanted without telling Cornette or Danny Davis. Of course, once they replaced Lance Storm with Al Snow as the trainer that is when it went down hill (Nova talks about how much Trips hated Al)

But any interview Trips does he even says how he felt that developmental was hurting and that the wrestlers aren't ready to work on tv. Plus, he also said that people were trained for a certain style to the point where nobody stuck out. That's why as proud as Trips is of NXT his baby is truly the Performance Center as they have a lot of resources and seminars that are used to help guys develop characters and styles that work for TV or house shows.

[Rave]

Aug 26, 2018 21:14:14 GMT -5 kingoftheindies said:

Aug 26, 2018 16:36:27 GMT -5 Rave said:

No 'seems' about it. Before Triple H took it over, the developmental system was pretty damn dire. Some of the stories about DSW in particular...SMH.

OVW was fine for awhile, but they had had a strained relationship once Johnny Ace took over as Talent Relations. OVW was it's own company and not owned by WWE, but they would get wrestlers the WWE liked under JR, but Johnny Ace caused a lot of issues by just doing whatever he wanted without telling Cornette or Danny Davis. Of course, once they replaced Lance Storm with Al Snow as the trainer that is when it went down hill (Nova talks about how much Trips hated Al)

But any interview Trips does he even says how he felt that developmental was hurting and that the wrestlers aren't ready to work on tv. Plus, he also said that people were trained for a certain style to the point where nobody stuck out. That's why as proud as Trips is of NXT his baby is truly the Performance Center as they have a lot of resources and seminars that are used to help guys develop characters and styles that work for TV or house shows.

I know we still crack jokes about the OVW cloning machine from time to time.

Decided to dig up the LOLWWE entries regarding developmental, there's some pretty ridiculous stuff. Quoting below...

As Head of Talent Relations, Jim Ross used to liaise with the booker of OVW (the developmental territory at the time), Jim Cornette. When John Laurinaitis (note the name, he appears quite a few more times on this page) took over, those liaisons stopped completely, so much so that talent was being called up to television without Cornette's permission. Notable examples:

At one point, Randy Orton got booked for an OVW show while on the main roster. Ace never told Orton about it and Randy took a vacation at the time. Cornette found out Orton would be missing the show through Tommy Dreamer and Ace claimed he wasn't the one who was supposed to tell him.

Ace also hired the wrong one-legged wrestler and was mocked on a Raw episode by Vince McMahon on the air years after the fact. The story goes back to when WWE was looking to sign Zach Gowen to a contract. Vince McMahon instructed John Laurinaitis to sign the then nineteen-year-old Zach Gowen to a WWE deal. Unfortunately, Laurinaitis offered a contract to a different one-legged wrestler, who at the time was 37 years old. At the time, Tom Prichard was working for WWE, and had already sent a plane ticket and contract to Zach Gowen, and when he arrived to WWE Headquarters, John Laurinaitis had no idea who he was. McMahon then scolded him for offering the wrong one-legged wrestler in his late thirties a WWE contract.

Doug Basham was the main champion of OVW at the time and had long messy hair. WWE Creative, obviously not familiar with how imagination works, told him to shave his head completely so they could see what he looked like bald. Again, Cornette wasn't informed and went ballistic. To quote Cornette, he came back looking like a "Forty year-old truck driver".

During this time, Heyman got to work with CM Punk, a guy who was not wanted by WWE. In fact, John Laurinaitis wanted CM Punk to be released at this time! Paul Heyman was repeatedly told through mails and different staff members to "finish him up," but Punk was kept in OVW, and was eventually called up to ECW.

Deep South Wrestling was a WWE developmental territory from 2005 to 2007. It gained a negative reputation among anyone involved with it due to Bill DeMott (the head trainer of the territory) and the style of their product.

To the unfamiliar, DeMott ran a high intensity boot camp style conditioning program that the wrestlers hated. He was seen as trying too hard to “break” the wrestlers and make them “pay dues” in an “old school” way to the point that trainees grew disgruntled. Some quit and others suffered injuries severe enough to require hospital visits because they were so fatigued before their in-ring lessons.

DeMott was also criticized internally for being overly harsh verbally toward trainees, jumping on them for any mistakes. It got so bad that WWE brass in Stamford, Connecticut had cameras installed at the training facility so they could monitor his training sessions.

Despite this, for whatever reason, the WWE office would back him up when talent complained.

There were also problems with the owner, Jody Hamilton, but Johnny Ace (yep, him again) protected him but only for a while.

In August 2006, Simon Dean took over Tommy Dreamer's role of being in charge of WWE's developmental program. Dean wanted a trainer that he was more closely associated with, and so Bill DeMott was released in January 2007...officially speaking. According to Kenny Omega (a former DSW wrestler), it turned out that DeMott kept coming to DSW afterwards, but Jody Hamilton never told the office. Omega even mentioned that there was talks of breaking into Hamilton's office on the day DSW was getting shut down to see if his guns were there, and check if they were loaded.

On April 2007, DSW talent was addressed by John Laurinaitis and Simon Dean. The talent was informed that the WWE office was not pleased with the DSW product, and that DSW was hereby closed for good. DSW talent had to assist with the removal of all WWE property from the building, and they were all very happy to do so. Before this, Hamilton was told by Laurinaitis that he was shutting them down and Hamilton told him his lawyers were going to talk to him, to which Laurinaitis said "f*** your lawyers" and that WWE had better ones. He then told Hamilton to stay in his office while he talked to DSW talent. Reports from Kenny Omega and Curt Hawkins confirm that John Laurinaitis was pissed off on the day DSW was shut down, as he didn't want to be involved with the territory anymore.

There was also a disgusting story coming from this territory known as the "naked jelly donut stinkface" story. There's a picture of this online. The story is that Luke Gallows (Drew Hackinson, Festus, Fake Kane) was naked in the ring for a long period of time giving alternate naked stinkfaces to both Zack Ryder and female wrestler Melissa Coates while Bill held jelly donuts over their faces. According to Bruce Prichard, the talent could vote on this happening somehow and the idea was that if you went through this, you'd get out of regular training for the day. Despite these events, Bill DeMott returned to WWE in 2011 for Tough Enough and would become the head trainer of WWE developmental territories (FCW, then NXT). To see how that went, jump to the beginning of the 2015 section of this page.