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Unpopular Wrestling Opinions

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les Habs said:
I'll throw out one that carried over from a draft discussion I was having. Ted Dibiase wasn't good in the ring. Great character and gimmick, but I can't find a match to suggest he was good in the ring.
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To be fair, DiBiase's in-ring ability was never his draw. He was certainly good enough for the time period at least, in-ring that is. I also suspect Vince had a lot to do with how DiBiase was in-ring, considering his previous babyface run pre-WWE often gets a good amount of praise.
Not to mention that back then heels worked as bad guys. As opposed to today where heels are the same as everyone else other than the occasional insult or claim of being "the future".
 
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Roode and Ziggler could actually be a good tag team if they had given them a proper story behind tagging up, rather than doing it randomly.
 
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HandsomeHollywood said:
To be fair, DiBiase's in-ring ability was never his draw. He was certainly good enough for the time period at least, in-ring that is. I also suspect Vince had a lot to do with how DiBiase was in-ring, considering his previous babyface run pre-WWE often gets a good amount of praise.
Not to mention that back then heels worked as bad guys. As opposed to today where heels are the same as everyone else other than the occasional insult or claim of being "the future".
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I looked at multiple matches, including UWF matches, and his repertoire was very limited. Of course that's not the only aspect of being good in the ring, but when you're that limited... Obviously not his draw, but IMO it definitely takes away from him.
 
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les Habs said:
I'll throw out one that carried over from a draft discussion I was having. Ted Dibiase wasn't good in the ring. Great character and gimmick, but I can't find a match to suggest he was good in the ring.
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Judging in-ring talent in the WWF of that era is fairly difficult.

With rare exception, we really didn't see exceptional, consistent in-ring performances on WWF television until the 1990s. That's why I think one can't underestimate the impact and influence of guys like Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels.

But if you were to judge DiBiase, Flair, Steamboat, and a host of others by the number of in-ring classics they had in the WWF during the 1980s and early 1990s, you'd end up with a suprisingly short list considering the talent we're talking about.

DiBiase's feuds including Hulk Hogan, an aging Dusty Rhodes, Virgil, and others talents that probably weren't going to blow anyone away from a technical standpoint.

But his matches with Savage, Bret Hart and Jake Roberts were all very good to excellent, especially when given more than 5 minutes on a pay per view. One of his most underrated performances might have been on Superstars against a 21-year-old Dustin Rhodes. Nothing against Dustin Rhodes, who would go on to become a hell of a performer himself, but DiBiase essentially wrestled himself in that match.

As for his UWF stuff, it was solid for its time. One of the challenges of looking matches from the 80s and earlier is that it's almost a completely different style. It's like watching hockey from the 80s --- look at how goalies flop around, how so many guys look like they're skating in sand, how defenseman are caught out of position in games that end with a 7-4 score. It's incredibly difficult to take that footage and then compare it to something from 2019.
 
I can buy that DiBiase wasn't noteworthy in ring. His stuff outside of WWF is probably better in ring, but he didn't seem great in All Japan or with Watts. There are a fair number of legends that get assessed based on the legend instead of their actual work as things get forgotten. Below is a short TV match that was the culmination of a one episode angle where DiBiase went from heel to beloved face after Dick Murdoch (not discussed often but good in ring and good outside of the ring as well) bloodied him. Seems like a regular DiBiase showing in a typical, if condensed, Flair match.



I do think that WWF DiBiase is great, as in ring work is only one part of the whole and DiBiase was good enough to get by in ring.
 
Not really a fan of matches that go over 25-minutes and despise the 40-minute main event match meme that has been a trend over the last 2-years.

TBH a lot of my all time favorite matches are usually in the 15-20 minute range. No filler.
 
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El Dandy said:
Not really a fan of matches that go over 25-minutes and despise the 40-minute main event match meme that has been a trend over the last 2-years.

TBH a lot of my all time favorite matches are usually in the 15-20 minute range. No filler.
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What about 4-minute main events?
 
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Edge said:
Judging in-ring talent in the WWF of that era is fairly difficult.

With rare exception, we really didn't see exceptional, consistent in-ring performances on WWF television until the 1990s. That's why I think one can't underestimate the impact and influence of guys like Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels.

But if you were to judge DiBiase, Flair, Steamboat, and a host of others by the number of in-ring classics they had in the WWF during the 1980s and early 1990s, you'd end up with a suprisingly short list considering the talent we're talking about.

DiBiase's feuds including Hulk Hogan, an aging Dusty Rhodes, Virgil, and others talents that probably weren't going to blow anyone away from a technical standpoint.

But his matches with Savage, Bret Hart and Jake Roberts were all very good to excellent, especially when given more than 5 minutes on a pay per view. One of his most underrated performances might have been on Superstars against a 21-year-old Dustin Rhodes. Nothing against Dustin Rhodes, who would go on to become a hell of a performer himself, but DiBiase essentially wrestled himself in that match.

As for his UWF stuff, it was solid for its time. One of the challenges of looking matches from the 80s and earlier is that it's almost a completely different style. It's like watching hockey from the 80s --- look at how goalies flop around, how so many guys look like they're skating in sand, how defenseman are caught out of position in games that end with a 7-4 score. It's incredibly difficult to take that footage and then compare it to something from 2019.
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If I recall correctly one of the matches I saw was against Hart and it illustrated the point. Again, being good in the ring isn't just about how many moves you can do, but he was really limited on that front.

I do agree with you that he most definitely wasn't the only guy I'd apply that too and that it was more a sign of the times. We've seen an evolution in wrestling where you have more guys who can perform at a high level in the ring. However when it comes to selling I find it less believable.

JackSlater said:
I can buy that DiBiase wasn't noteworthy in ring. His stuff outside of WWF is probably better in ring, but he didn't seem great in All Japan or with Watts. There are a fair number of legends that get assessed based on the legend instead of their actual work as things get forgotten. Below is a short TV match that was the culmination of a one episode angle where DiBiase went from heel to beloved face after Dick Murdoch (not discussed often but good in ring and good outside of the ring as well) bloodied him. Seems like a regular DiBiase showing in a typical, if condensed, Flair match.



I do think that WWF DiBiase is great, as in ring work is only one part of the whole and DiBiase was good enough to get by in ring.
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Pretty much agree with this.
 
Not sure how unpopular this is, but the sexiest body in wrestling history belongs to Jimmy Del Ray

UB11WyL.gif
 
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Matt Riddle bro said:
Bro, I heard you were looking for unpopular opinions...

The Bayley-to-Belly is a good finisher.
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Come on with this weak one. You want to throw some chum in the water with an unpopular opinion?

The Fiend is bland. It’s nothing more then a paint by the numbers monster heel in a Halloween mask that ruined Bray’s legitimately awesome original theme.
 
Sheppy said:
Before HBK/Taker at WM, there has never been a better match in WWE history than Walter/Bate.
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Amazing match. I would say Gargano and some others have had matches as good or better at Take Overs.
(
But yes great match and it is among the best.)
 
JackSlater said:
Not sure how unpopular this is, but the sexiest body in wrestling history belongs to Jimmy Del Ray

UB11WyL.gif
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I can still hear Gorilla Monsoon go “oh the gigilo” every time he came off the top rope or hit one of his maneuvers
 
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