Roundtable: King Of The Ring

Are you a fan of the King of the Ring concept?

Chad Gelfand: I love it. It’s a way to fill TV time up with matches that matter and, if done properly, several superstars can get over during the process of the tournament.

Matthew Smith: I love the King of the Ring concept. It’s a good way to let wrestlers showcase their in-ring ability instead of being used as a backstage comedy prop or in a 6-man tag match.

David Gibb: Yes! I am a nerd, and we all like tournaments. It’s a well-known fact. Kidding aside, I loved the King of the Ring when I was a kid, so it has some real nostalgia value for me.

Sam Gladen: I am when it’s done over the course of one night. When you spread it out the way that WWE has done this year, it cheapens the intensity of the tournament.

Steven Jackson: The King of the Ring is an awesome concept. But it does have a very troubled history. I always like the idea of tournaments and great matches. However, I often feel highly disappointed by rushed finishes and questionable booking.

John Corrigan: Absolutely. There should be more one-night tournaments in wrestling, especially to fill a random three-hour Raw.

Juan Bautista: When presented well and with a great field of wrestlers, it is great.

Jack Goodwillie: I’m a fan of the tournament concept in wrestling and in sports, period. Look at March Madness and all the interest and intrigue it’s able to draw out of fans (and even non-fans) of college basketball year in and year out. King of the Ring was especially great when it had its own PPV. Looking back on it, it was really the fifth “big” pay-per-view that has since been replaced with Money in the Bank, consequentially during the same time of year King of the Ring used to be held. Now, how do you get it over? Give fans something to look forward to by making it yearly so we know when to anticipate it. Also, please please PLEASE ditch the scepter and crown gimmick. When Baron Corbin put it on, it looked like he was wearing one of those Burger King paper crowns. TLDR: Give it meaning.

Have you been following its return on WWE TV the past few weeks?

Gelfand: I have and I’ve enjoyed the matches so far. The best have been Cedric Alexander vs. Baron Corbin and Chad Gable vs Andrade. Both matches used the scrappy underdog trope in different ways, but they were both effective.

Smith: Yes, it has actually been way more entertaining than I thought it would be. I do not like the quick exit of Drew because this guy should be running through guys on the roster instead of whatever they have going on with him. And the Joe/Ricochet was one of the better matches I’ve seen on Raw in a while. I was actually in New Orleans to watch the soon to be winner King Corbin (let’s hope I’m wrong).

Gibb: I’ve been keeping an eye on the bracket, but I’ve only watched the matches that were on the latest edition of SmackDown.

Gladen: I don’t watch RAW or SmackDown unless someone tells me there is a match that I have to see and none of the tournament matches have seemed to really cause that sort of uproar yet.

Jackson: I have been following the results of the King of the Ring since it was relaunched and watching matches that have grabbed my attention. In days gone by, I would have watched everything, but much like the G1 Climax, I find it easier to pick and choose.

Corrigan: I have no idea who is in it. I also don’t have much faith in WWE making it mean anything, ala the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

Bautista: I have been following it through highlights and news updates.

Goodwillie: From a distance. It’s been hard to juggle weekly wrestling programming with this being one of the busiest times of the year for me at my job, but from everything I have seen, these matches have for the most part delivered.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1sRdkmFq_Y

What’s your favorite wrestling tournament, if you have one?

Gelfand: I loved the Deadly Games tournament that culminated at Survivor Series 98 with The Rock turning heel on Mankind and joining The Corporation. The storyline throughout the night was great and it was coronation of The Rock as a main eventer.

Smith: When it comes to tournaments, the G1 is by far my favorite. A little confusing to new viewers, but it’s a tournament done right. It doesn’t feel rushed and the winner of the whole thing gets a chance at the company’s top prize.

Gibb: I don’t really have a favorite tournament, but the G1 is the most consistently well-put-together tournament year to year. I had a VHS copy of KotR ‘97 that I got out of a discount bin at Hollywood Video, so that’s probably the tournament I’ve watched the most.

Gladen: I have three that I love watching. NJPW’s Best of Super Juniors and NJPW’s G1 Climax are some of the most exiting months of wrestling in the modern era. Another that I really enjoy going back and revisiting is the NWA and Crockett Promotions’ Crockett Cup, which made its return this year after nearly 25 years. While not as storied or long running as NJPW’s tournaments, the Crockett Cup brings the best free agent tag teams in the world together to showcase their skill and is a wonderful way to find new favorites in professional wrestling.

Jackson: My favorite King of the Ring tournament is definitely 1994. While 1993 had Bret Hart’s classic trilogy, 1994 was Owen Hart’s true coming out party. Three fantastic matches, which were all different, exciting and timeless. Plus, the other matches from the tournament and the PPV were great as well (minus the terrible main event)!

Corrigan: I actually enjoyed the ECWA Super 8 Chickfight more than the traditional Super 8. By next year, the Garden State Invitational could end up being my favorite.

Bautista: I don’t have one, but a top contender is the G1 Climax and possibly the Battle of Los Angeles.

Goodwillie: Nowadays, BOLA: Battle of Los Angeles is the only one that really embraces the tournament concept. In many ways, it’s equivalent to what winning the RoH World Championship used to mean. To be the champion means you are truly the gold standard of independent wrestling. G-1 is not really a tournament, but a cool concept nonetheless. King of Trios is also fairly prestigious. I liked the concept of the Super 8 this year and I’m sure AEW will have a yearly tournament, hopefully in March. As far as individual tournaments go and how you should look to book them, three of my favorites have to be the WWF Championship Tournament at WrestleMania IV, the No Way Out 2005 #1 Contender’s Tournament and the original NXT U.K. Tournament that crowned Tyler Bate as the promotion’s inaugural champion. I’ll even throw the Cruiserweight Classic in there for good measure.

Who was the worst King of the Ring ever?

Gelfand: Billy Gunn. His win and subsequent push was a dud and before long he was back to just being a tag team wrestler.

Smith: Wade Barrett. His win did nothing for the tournament or him. The King of the Ring that year was pushed hard on the WWE Network and produced some really good match-ups. Neville should have been crowned king that year, but seeing how WWE used him and Barrett, I don’t think it matters who won the match.

Gibb: In terms of where their career wound up, you’d have to say Mabel.

Gladen: The worst King of the Ring is one who did not seem to gain anything from having the king gimmick, possibly because of a lack of commitment on his part or on the part of WWE. That’s Sheamus.

Jackson: “Mr. Ass” Billy Gunn was the worst King of the Ring. It was a completely wasted opportunity and you could tell that in 1999 the WWF had no time for the tournament.

Corrigan: Bad News Barrett. At least Mabel main evented SummerSlam and Billy Gunn entered a feud with The Rock. Poor Barrett had his phenomenal “Bad News” gimmick replaced with the lame cape, crown and scepter. The rechristened King Barrett was DOA.

Bautista: 2015 was the worst King of the Ring. Nothing really came of it.

Goodwillie: Sheamus or Bad News Barrett, take your pick. One could argue neither should have necessarily even won King of the Ring, but it’s tough to blame them as the clear slant here was for WWE to saddle either guy with a “king” gimmick because of the thought both were stale at the time (Sheamus was, Barrett was NOT). However, the concept was also brought back on both occasions for the sole purposes of giving each guy a new gimmick, and there were no other ramifications to the tournament, weakening the appeal for all the other participants as well. And if memory serves, neither King Sheamus nor King Barrett lasted more than three or four months.

Who was the greatest King of the Ring ever?

Gelfand: It has to be Stone Cold Steve Austin because King of the Ring 1996 is the invention of Austin 3:16 and that helped send Austin and WWE into the stratosphere.

Smith: Stone Cold Steve Austin and that’s the bottom line.

Gibb: Haku looked the best in the toy crown being carried out in the throne, but I can’t give him the nod because he didn’t actually win the tournament. The greatest King of the Ring is, was and always will be Bret Hart.

Gladen: Harley Race and Booker T. Both men benefited greatly from the creative freedom that their victories in the tournament gave them with their characters and were able to revitalize somewhat dwindling careers to renew their longevity. However, without a King Harley Race, there would not still be a King of the Ring. Therefore, Harley Race is the greatest King of the Ring.

Jackson: Without a shadow of a doubt Owen Hart. “The King of Harts” had the best tournament performance ever, the best coronation ever and most important of all, kept his moniker throughout the majority of his WWF career. He never shunned or overlooked his victory, which made it just that little bit more special.

Corrigan: King Bookah! The five-time WCW Champion revitalized his career by going “all in” with the royalty gimmick and ruling SmackDown for a large part of 2006.

Bautista: It probably has to be 1996 when Stone Cold Steve Austin won.

Goodwillie: Bret Hart may have won it twice, Steve Austin may have used it as a vehicle to launch the Stone Cold persona, but in the end, it was Booker T who really embraced becoming the King and then REALLY became the King. What was Booker the king of, exactly? I don’t know, but the King Booker character was unique in that it was hilarious to see Booker trying to use the King’s English before reverting back to his, well, normal voice whenever he’d snap. He was also a great heel and once this character got in the ring, he was hardly a laughing matter. I know he sort of… squashed the sentimental Rey Mysterio world title run in summer ’06, but Batista needed a fresh heel to work with BADLY upon returning and Booker fit the bill. He went on to use the character until his eventual departure from the company.