ECW Toronto, Round 2, Match 4: #11 Christian Cage vs. #22 Stan Hansen

[Shocky]

The following match takes place in the ECW Region, under Extreme Rules, from Toronto, ON.

#11. "The Instant Classic" Christian Cage

vs.

#22. Stan Hansen

 

[klunderbunker]

Do the right thing and vote for a good wrestler. Christian is as overrated as they come. people come on here and scream about how great he is. WHAT HAS HE EVER DONE??? He won a world title in a secondary company. He never came close in WWE because Vince, the best mind in wrestling history, didn't think he deserved it. Vince has been in business longer than almost all other major promoters combined, but of coruse Christian still is beign held down. Give me a break.

Hansen may not be the best ever, but he's god compared to Christian. Vote for the Lariat.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

I'll say this first. It's sad that Stan Hansen will more than likely not move past this point. Christian's an OK wrestler who's been an NWA Champion, and I don't care if the NWA's not the same as it was before, but he's a recognized world champion.

HOWEVER! To put Christian in the same ring as Hansen will lead to destruction. This man has beaten up guys like Vader, Dr. Death Steve Williams, Terry Gordy, Abdullah the Butcher, Lex Luger in his prime, Andre the Giant, Antonio Inoki, Giant Baba, Terry Funk, and the list goes on and on. Hansen's also a recognized world champion with the AWA, has been a numerous times Triple Crown winner, and is known as one of the most famous non-Japanese wrestlers in Japanese wrestling history.

Christian shouldn't stand a chance with Hansen. As far as I'm concerned, Hansen wins this easily. You're seriously going to put Extreme Rules on a man who's wrestled every match under EXTREME RULES? Christian will put up a fight, a good one. But ultimately, Christian will eat the Lariat wrapped around his cowbell for the win.


HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

 

[Tenta]

Lariat.... I'm sure this will make you happy, man.

Stan Hansen is one of the strongest men this side of wrestling. Need proof?

[youtube]GzGSbMIxAz8[/youtube]

Why yes, that body slam is much better than Hulk's on Andre. Oh, and speaking of the Immortal One....


[youtube]b2G8AoX8ZCQ&feature=related[/youtube]


[youtube]hM2EIcSAxUA&feature=related[/youtube]


Pretty impressive for a guy most new school fans have never heard of, huh? This man took Hulk Hogan to the brink in a main event "dream match", giving him more trouble just about anyone ever had.

Look, this is the only man EVER to defeat Antonio Inoki AND Giant Baba in Japan for heavyweight titles. Read: No one else has ever done it. And certainly not Christian Cage.

He's defeated the likes of Jumbo Tsuruta, Terry Gordy, Tenryu, Riki Chosu, and went to no contests with Vader and Andre the Giant. That's a pretty good resume for most higher seeds, let alone someone seeded in the 20s.

Christian's Unprettier would be impossible to hit due to Stan's pure strength, as would most of his high impact moves. The best win Christian can attest to is an Intercontinental title win over Edge. For his NWA title wins, he defeated Jeff Jarrett and Abyss. Pardon me for not giving a rats ass.

Take Stan Hansen here. Christian's overrated here anyway, and finds himself caught against opponents he usually mightily struggles against.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

This could be an interesting match. Christian has proven in the past that he can get extreme when he has to though, to be fair, most of those times came about during TLC tag team matches. This is Stan Hansen's ballpark. He's not pretty, he's not flashy, he's just one stiff son of a bitch.

I wouldn't be surprised to see if Hansen doesn't go any further than this, unfortunately, but Hansen gets my vote. Christian will be a bloody pulp that won't be able to walk out of the arena under his own power. Hansen is simply too tough and much much too stiff for Christian.

 

[ZEUS]

As much as I love Christian, he doesn't match up well here. Stan Hansen is a legend, one of the toughest men in the history of the business. This one is almost a squash in the making. Stan Hansen wins.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

Christian is not over rated, but he's also not strong enough or tough enough to overcome Hansen in ECW. Facts are facts - Hansen is just a tough S.O.B., and Christian's hope ordinarily WOULD have been to look for Hansen to get DQ'd. That's out of the picture.

Christian's only remaining hope is to buy himself enough time to find and grab a ladder, set it up, climb it, set up his high spot, and then execute. I doubt he'll be able to get Hansen down long enough to do all of that - this isn't a tag team match where he's got a partner to buy him time.

Hansen FTW.

 

[Dungeon of Donavon]

I'd have to go with Christian in this one.. the only way he wins is because it is ECW extreme rules, and he has plenty of experience in extreme rules (TLC matches, ladder matches, a lot of his matches in TNA) he also is currently fueding for the ECW championship but that doesn't matter.

Stan is a huge beast of a man, and a tough house, but I would feel that a weapons match could take him down a notch, and give the speedy Christian an advantage. Christian will use his quickness and familiarity with extreme matches to get the win. Even if Stan hits a couple of big moves, Christian has the toughness to take a beating long enough to see his window to capitalize. He can slow Stan down with weapons to give him a chance to hit a big move in the end.

Toronto is also Christians hometown so he would definately have that advantage.

Christian wins with some sort of huge spot off of a ladder.

 

[justinsayne]

It's kind of sad that people only see Christian as a spot monkey and tag team wrestler, the guy has had plenty of success in singles competition, and could potentially have more in the next few years, now if only his fans weren't so damn annoying, but that's for another discussion..., I haven't seen much of Hansens work but I highly doubt as many people would be so quick to jump on the Stan Hansen bandwagon if it weren't for The Lariet, he seems to be doing for Hansen what IC did for Vader, so take that for what it's worth, not sure who to vote for here but I'll prolly go with Christian seeing as how I like him better, and feel that he is being greatly underrated in this match

 

[Shocky]

This is a tough ass subregion to call. You have legit badasses in Raven, Hernandez, and Stan Hansen that could really upset the flow of this thing, but you have Edge and Christian both in their hometowns. It's a virtual toss up.

Edge should have no problem getting threw Henry, and Honestly if Rogers gets by Raven it will be a shock. Edge is iin trouble here. Raven beat Andre in round 1 in the first Wrestlezone tournament under extreme Rules, and he very well could beat Edge. Raven made it all the way to the Elite 8 in year one, so Raven certainly has a chance of winning this.

The bottom half is a cluster fuck within itself. On one hand, you have the ultra babyface in ricky Steamboat, but he faces a purely powerful monster in Hernandez possibly in round two. You can knock Steamboat out, and that very well might happen. And then you have Stan Hansen, the guy that popped Big Van vader's eyeball out of it's skull. The guy is a legit bad ass, and he will thrive in an environment like this.

I'm looking at Raven vs. Hansen, and Stan Hansen may very well be the darkhorse of this years tournament.

That was from the end of February. So the Stan Hansen movement started long before the Lariat even showed up on the forums.

Now on the flipside, I believe that Klunder is very off base with the over rated statement of Christian. The guy took a chance, and became an NWA champion. A title that will be in existence long after the WWE implodes from the eventual McMahon Grandchild power struggle. He could have stayed in the WWE, and settled for being a midcarder, he didn't, and it worked out.

Christian is a damn good wrestler, and arguably the biggest star on his brand currently, and arguably would be the thrid most over face on Smackdown, and probably a top five face on Raw. The guy is incredible on the mic, and incredible in the ring. The guy simply doesn't have the steroid induced body that Vince McMahon gets the inevitable hard on for. And to call Vince the greatest mind in the business is stretching it. Everyone seems to forget that the guy nearly bankrupted his business 12 years ago, but I won't get too fra off topic.

When I look at this match, I pick the Lariat in a heartbeat. Stan Hansen has simply beat everyone the Japanese threw at him, he was a big star stateside when he did tours in the territory era. The guy is the most successful outsider in the history of Japan, and to be an American and be as over as Hansen was in Japan, considering how hard it is, is an accomplishment in itself.

I also believe that his owuld be a much closer match then what both sides are thinking. I think Hansen would probably dominate, but once Christian hit a move or tow, the big guy would be genuinely surprised. In the end though, Hansen moves on.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

Think about it like this...it's either this man



[youtube]xcc4gltns8E[/youtube]


Or this man.



[youtube]P5jbo7lxPqc&feature=related[/youtube]


Your witness.

 

[NSL]

I'm a big fan of Christian. He's a good wrestler, and has more ahead of him, than anything he's already accomplished, which says something. Stan Hansen still takes this though. He's a legti tough guy, and has beaten guys bigger than Christian, and more technically cound than him. I think it'll be a good match, and Christian will put on a good show for the homecrowd, but Hansen will win.

 

[RVDgurl]

This is a very interesting match up. In any other region I would vote Christian without hesitation. However, the fact that Stan Hansen would be set free in an ECW ring with no rules makes this a tougher decision. Hansen was one bad motherfucker. he would have been a shining star in a promotion like ECW. However, Christian has the experience in hardcore style matches. He has the edge in all areas of ringwork.

Christian will endure one hell of a beating, but is able to get his hands on enough tables, ladders and chairs to sqeeze out a victory.

 

[Tastycles]

I'll say this first. It's sad that Stan Hansen will more than likely not move past this point. Christian's an OK wrestler who's been an NWA Champion, and I don't care if the NWA's not the same as it was before, but he's a recognized world champion.

Yes, he is a two time world champion, in a second rate promotion, which is similar to Hansen's record in America, and like Hansen, the title was stripped from him rather than being beat in it, so we're even so far.

HOWEVER! To put Christian in the same ring as Hansen will lead to destruction. This man has beaten up guys like Vader, Dr. Death Steve Williams, Terry Gordy, Abdullah the Butcher, Lex Luger in his prime, Andre the Giant, Antonio Inoki, Giant Baba, Terry Funk, and the list goes on and on.

Those guys have one glaringly obvious thing in common: they are all bigger men than Christian. With the exception of Inoki, they are all at the heavy end of the heavyweight spectrum or Superheavyweights, while that is admirable, it doesn't give any indication of his credentials against smaller, faster wrestlers. There are plenty of these in Japan, so if anyone could tell me which guys who are a big deal and smaller and faster than him he has beaten, I'd appreciate it. To me though, he is looking like a giant killer, which is fine, but useless in a match against Christian.

Hansen's also a recognized world champion with the AWA, has been a numerous times Triple Crown winner, and is known as one of the most famous non-Japanese wrestlers in Japanese wrestling history.

His AWA reign is comparable to Christian's NWA reign. It was a title in a small time promotion. The difference is is that Christian defended his regularly against the big names in the company, and beat the biggest name in the company, Sting in the match to win it off Abyss, and the biggest acheiver ever in the company, Jeff Jarrett to win it in the first place. Hansen beat Martel for the title, but I'm not sure he ever defended it except against Martel, like at Superclash.

As for Japan, here's my problem. There are a few American wrestlers who have gone to Japan and been a big deal. However, with the exception of Vader I can't think of any who have returned to America with much fanfare. Take someone like Steve Williams: huge in Japan, but he totally bombed in the WWF. I don't think it is unfair to put American wrestlers down for only being big in Japan when they have the oppurtunity to in America, unlike the Japanese wrestlers, who don't in reality. I'm going to say that Hansen never really acheived very much in North America, where this match is, and Christian did, and this is in his hometown.

This is Stan Hansen's ballpark. He's not pretty, he's not flashy, he's just one stiff son of a bitch.

It actually pisses me off that people put Hansen's stiffness on him as a good thing. Part of being a good professional wrestler is making sutre that your opponent is safe throughout the match, something Hansen is abysmal at.

He has broken necks, and he made Vader's eye pop out, but while apparantly "cool" it's actually very dangerous. Is D'Lo Brown cool for what he did to Droz? No, and neither should Hansen be, because the potential for him to do the same is there. This is likely why the only promotion that ever gave him a decent shot in America was one dying on it's arse after WWE had begun poaching it's top talent.


Here's my summing up. I've never seen Hansen beat anyone significantly quicker than him, which Christian is. His runs in the US were always abortive, which I personally believe is down to his being unsafe in the ring. That isn't important, what is is the fact that he relies on a move which is quite easy to counter, you just duck, which is something Christian is fast enough to do.

Christian wins this, probably after being severely roughed up, and maybe receiving legitimate injuries, but not as part of the match. I'm not going to vote yet, because if Hansen has beaten faster people enough times, I may change my mind, but those are my views right now.

 

[klunderbunker]

It actually pisses me off that people put Hansen's stiffness on him as a good thing. Part of being a good professional wrestler is making sutre that your opponent is safe throughout the match, something Hansen is abysmal at.

99% of the time, this is true. However, this isn't a normal wrestling company. This is ECW. It's not always about putting on an entertaing match. Several people in that organization couldn't successfully a tackling dummy yet they were stars in ECW. In ECW, a lot of the style was about who could be the most violent. After seeing what I've seen of Hansen, this is perfectly suited to his style. In ECW, Christian's pretty boy image will be booed out of the building, even in Toronto. Those fans are insane, and Hansen would eat Christian alive.

 

[Theo Mays]

This match should be a doozy. Hansen is one tough SOB and Christian is no slouch either. I don't think Christian is overrated and I think he could hang with Hansen, but I don't think he would win. Lansen hits the Lariat and Captain Charisma is out for the 1,2,3.

 

[Dungeon of Donavon]

Think about it like this...it's either this man



[youtube]xcc4gltns8E[/youtube]

Alright, so you proved Stan can hit a clothesline haha, you should show some of Christian in his extreme matches... or at least wrestling, then the videos would be credible.

 

[Ptd]

Agreed with Justin, I think Christian works very well as a singles competitor. Previously, I've never seen anything with Stan Hansen in it before, so I looked up some videos on youtube. The guy should in no way be taken lightly, but I just don't see him taking the Christian of today. It'll be a close one, but Christian takes it.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

Yes, he is a two time world champion, in a second rate promotion, which is similar to Hansen's record in America, and like Hansen, the title was stripped from him rather than being beat in it, so we're even so far.



Those guys have one glaringly obvious thing in common: they are all bigger men than Christian. With the exception of Inoki, they are all at the heavy end of the heavyweight spectrum or Superheavyweights, while that is admirable, it doesn't give any indication of his credentials against smaller, faster wrestlers. There are plenty of these in Japan, so if anyone could tell me which guys who are a big deal and smaller and faster than him he has beaten, I'd appreciate it. To me though, he is looking like a giant killer, which is fine, but useless in a match against Christian.

He's beaten some of the smaller Japanese wrestlers. Besides Baba, Jumbo, and Inoki, he's beaten mostly smaller, quicker Japanese wrestlers. The Dynamite Kid was about the same height and as quick as Christian. Lariat took him down.

As for Japan, here's my problem. There are a few American wrestlers who have gone to Japan and been a big deal. However, with the exception of Vader I can't think of any who have returned to America with much fanfare. Take someone like Steve Williams: huge in Japan, but he totally bombed in the WWF. I don't think it is unfair to put American wrestlers down for only being big in Japan when they have the oppurtunity to in America, unlike the Japanese wrestlers, who don't in reality. I'm going to say that Hansen never really acheived very much in North America, where this match is, and Christian did, and this is in his hometown.

I can agree with that. But that was by choice. He was simply making too much money in Japan. And didn't have the politics he did in the States

It actually pisses me off that people put Hansen's stiffness on him as a good thing. Part of being a good professional wrestler is making sure that your opponent is safe throughout the match, something Hansen is abysmal at.

Hansen couldn't see. Back then, contact lenses were rare if even heard of back then. Hansen did the best he could with what he had. Not many complained because they were stiff right back with him.

He has broken necks, and he made Vader's eye pop out, but while apparantly "cool" it's actually very dangerous.

Vader is just as stiff and the neck breaking of Bruno was all on Hansen. Give you that one.

Is D'Lo Brown cool for what he did to Droz? No, and neither should Hansen be, because the potential for him to do the same is there. This is likely why the only promotion that ever gave him a decent shot in America was one dying on it's arse after WWE had begun poaching it's top talent.

D'Lo wasn't stiff, he was clumsy. Big difference. Hansen wouldn't try a move he wasn't faithful in doing.

Here's my summing up. I've never seen Hansen beat anyone significantly quicker than him, which Christian is. His runs in the US were always abortive, which I personally believe is down to his being unsafe in the ring. That isn't important, what is is the fact that he relies on a move which is quite easy to counter, you just duck, which is something Christian is fast enough to do.

You think Christian can put Hansen in the Unprettier?

Christian wins this, probably after being severely roughed up, and maybe receiving legitimate injuries, but not as part of the match. I'm not going to vote yet, because if Hansen has beaten faster people enough times, I may change my mind, but those are my views right now.

Rick Martel, Dynamite Kid, most of the Japanese wrestlers, Z-Man. Those are some quick guys.

 

[Tastycles]

He's beaten some of the smaller Japanese wrestlers. Besides Baba, Jumbo, and Inoki, he's beaten mostly smaller, quicker Japanese wrestlers. The Dynamite Kid was about the same height and as quick as Christian. Lariat took him down.

I need names for said Japanese people, not because I don't believe you, but because I want to know how good they are. I watched a Hansen vs. Dynamite Kid match, and Kid lost because he tried to start Irish whipping Hansen and taking him down with blocks, something I don't envisage Christian doing, because he doesn't really do that.

I can agree with that. But that was by choice. He was simply making too much money in Japan. And didn't have the politics he did in the States

I'm not sure about this. I think that if he was good, he'd have earned more in the US than he would in Japan, otherwise I'm sure that most of the big names in 80s wrestling would have fought in Japan more often than they did.

Hansen couldn't see. Back then, contact lenses were rare if even heard of back then. Hansen did the best he could with what he had. Not many complained because they were stiff right back with him.

That's no excuse. If he can't see, he shouldn't be in the fucking ring. If people who weren't usually stiff were stiff back to him, then that presents an added danger in itself. I'm not going to hold stiffness against him in deciding who'd win this match, but I will refrain from singing his praises as a result.

Vader is just as stiff and the neck breaking of Bruno was all on Hansen. Give you that one.

But Vader has far more to his game than stiffness. As far as I can see, Hansen's popularity rests soley on his stiffness, which the Japanese fans love. Vader was impressive because he was an agile fat man.

You think Christian can put Hansen in the Unprettier?

No, I don't. But then, I wouldn't expect him to lock it in against anyone, yet he manages to somehow. I expect that if Christian won this it would probably be by using a chair. I know anyone can use a chair, but it develops magical powers when he uses it, like a table does for the Dudley's and a ladder for the Hardys etc. As I said, I'm not decided yet, but if Chrstian did win, that's how he'd do it.

Rick Martel, Dynamite Kid, most of the Japanese wrestlers, Z-Man. Those are some quick guys.

With all due respect to the AWA, Rick Martel has not reached the levels that Christian has in singles wrestling. Neither has Zenk nor Kid, and I've already explained why I think the Kid's defeat shouldn't count against Christian.

 

[Captain America]

Christian is as tough as they come and always seems to pull out the victory when everyone least expects it. In his debut match this man captured the WWF Light-Heavyweight title despite being the underdog, this man won ladder match after ladder match with his tag team partner Edge despite the fact that they were usually the underdogs, this man won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship just months after signing with TNA defying the odds once again.

Christian is as clever as they come and always has an ace up his sleeve. Christian would find a way to overcome the strength advantage of Stan Hansen and would eventually pull out the win. Christian's no stranger to facing men who are physically stronger than him. Despite usually being outsized the man has accomplished all that there is to accomplish, with the exception of winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The man is a former European Champion, former Hardcore Champion, former Intercontinental Champion, former Light-Heavyweight Champion (a title he won in his very first WWF match no-less.), a former 9 time WWE Tag-Team Champion, and a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion. The Instant Classic would find a way to win this matchup after taking a huge beating from Stan Hansen, because that's how he rolls.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

I'm not sure about this. I think that if he was good, he'd have earned more in the US than he would in Japan, otherwise I'm sure that most of the big names in 80s wrestling would have fought in Japan more often than they did.

This is an uncharacteristically ethnocentric comment from you, Tastycles. I'm shocked and dismayed!

Some legends like Hogan, Vader, Inoki, Flair, and Andre became legitimate Hall of Famers in both the US and Japan, independent of that they did in the other country. Nobody will deny that. Even the Steiners. Same goes for El Canek in Japan and Mexico.

But aside from those 6, there are VERY few wrestlers to managed to get as over in Japan as they did in the US, and vice versa, and that is because the different countries value things differently. That is to say, some characters and gimmicks that could get over in Japan may not have fared so well in the US, and Vice Versa.

So we'll take Stan Hansen. In the US, he could work a load of shoots in front of some decent houses and get some heat as a #2 or #3 heel is he was lucky. But we wasn't terribly over with the American fans, because he's contrary to what the American fans found entertaining.

In Japan, however, people went wild. So he stayed there, because the fans demanded him. He worked more shoots. Bigger rooms. More money as a result. Plus, there is something to the idea of working in front of a crowd that appreciates you more.

So to say that Hansen didn't make more $$$ in the US means he's not that good - errant logic. And to say that if the money was better in Japan, why didn't more guys from the US Wrestle there? Well, they probably couldn't get over with those fans the way they could here.

 

[Tastycles]

This is an uncharacteristically ethnocentric comment from you, Tastycles. I'm shocked and dismayed!

I think you've misunderstood me, I wasn't being sincere, I was pointing out that the real reason Hansen was there wasn't for the money, but because he couldn't have gotten over in the US. It was a rhetorical question for the purpose of arguing.

Some legends like Hogan, Vader, Inoki, Flair, and Andre became legitimate Hall of Famers in both the US and Japan, independent of that they did in the other country. Nobody will deny that. Even the Steiners. Same goes for El Canek in Japan and Mexico.

Agreed, and with the possible exception of Canek and the Steiners, I'd put those guys over Christian.

But aside from those 6, there are VERY few wrestlers to managed to get as over in Japan as they did in the US, and vice versa, and that is because the different countries value things differently. That is to say, some characters and gimmicks that could get over in Japan may not have fared so well in the US, and Vice Versa.

This is my point. Christian probably couldn't get over in Japan, but Hansen couldn't get over in North America, where this match is held.

So we'll take Stan Hansen. In the US, he could work a load of shoots in front of some decent houses and get some heat as a #2 or #3 heel is he was lucky. But we wasn't terribly over with the American fans, because he's contrary to what the American fans found entertaining.

Exactly this.

In Japan, however, people went wild. So he stayed there, because the fans demanded him. He worked more shoots. Bigger rooms. More money as a result. Plus, there is something to the idea of working in front of a crowd that appreciates you more.

Not denying this whatsoever, it's why all of the great luchadors stayed in Mexico for the majority of their careers, only Mil Masceras was over enough to consistently wrestle elsewhere before the 80s.

So to say that Hansen didn't make more $$$ in the US means he's not that good - errant logic. And to say that if the money was better in Japan, why didn't more guys from the US Wrestle there? Well, they probably couldn't get over with those fans the way they could here.

It doesn't say that Hansen isn't that good, you're right. It does say that Hansen wouldn't have the crowd on his side, especially considering the match is in Christian's home town.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

C'mon Tastycles, ease up on the sermons. Stan Hansen carved out his own niche in pro wrestling and he did it on his terms. So the guy was stiff, big deal. If a guy can't take at least a couple of stiff shots, he has no business putting his ass in a wrestling ring. This match takes place in ECW. Being stiff, being hardcore, not being afraid to take some stiff shots was part of what ECW was all about. If there wasn't blood all over the canvas back in the old ECW, then the fans went home disappointed. I've always like Stan Hansen, it's not had anything to do with the presence of The Lariat, Hansen's a guy that simply doesn't get his due.

Christian is a good wrestler, he's had a lotta success in the tag team ranks and as a singles wrestler. He can get extreme when he has to, but Hansen is in another league. Not saying Christian wouldn't give a good go of himself, but the old ECW is a place where a young Stan Hansen would have thrived. Sometimes, fans do want to see wrestlers get hurt a little. That was what drew some fans to ECW to begin with. They didn't want to see a display of aerial athleticism by Luchadores, they didn't wanna see a scientific display of holds, they didn't wanna see who was the strongest or the fastest. They wanted to see two guys come in, give everything they had, and leave a little bloodier and more worn out than they were when the night began.