First Round: Los Angeles - Yokozuna vs. Steve Austin

[klunderbunker]

This is a first round matchup in the Los Angeles Subregion. The ring and arena are universal throughout the first round and the organization is not a factor. There is a 20 minute time limit. Vote using any criteria you like. Most votes in the poll at the end of the time period wins. In the case of a tie we will go off of the number of written votes. In the case of a second tie, both are eliminated.

Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California.

Yokozuna

Vs.

Steve Austin

Voting is open for 4 days.

 

[CH David]

Stone Cold, Stone Cold, STONE COLD!!!!!!!! Yokozuna's only chance against Austin is to fall/sit on him. Even after his broken neck, Austin was still pretty quick, certainly lightning fast compared to Yokozuna. This shouldn't really be a question of who was better. Austin wins with a stunner, maybe a second for good measure.

 

[D-Man]

In what I believe would be a very close match, I can only see Stone Cold going over here.

Austin has fought WARS against men of all shapes and sizes. He's defeated the best the sport had to offer, but then again, so has Yokozuna.

The way I see it, they aren't necessarily even, but many of their attributes cancel each other out.

Yoko is fat and slow, Austin is quick and agile.
Austin is technically sound, but Yokozuna has power and uncanny agility for a man his size.

The only way I can vote here is by choosing who I personally want to go through. I feel Austin would make better waves in this tournament, so I'm voting for him.

 

[GenMe]

Yokozuna has no chance of defeating Stone cold in this match. Stone cold is to quick for Yoko. Yokozuna was a strong fat power house, But other than that he didn't had any advantage of anything. So I say this vote goes to Stone cold. Stone cold gets the 1,2,3 after the stunner.

 

[D-Man]

Just for the record, before all of you dismiss Yoko because he was a super heavyweight, please remember that this was a guy that has wins over Bret Hart and Hulk Hogan under his belt. Not to mention that you can count on Mr. Fuji being at ringside.

I had to throw that in there just to keep this fair. Those factors are important and undisputable.

 

[Ferbian]

I think Austin is gonna pull a close one on this.

Both from a kayfabe view, I can see this match ending with Yoko screwing up from the top rope with his finisher, letting Austin capitalize with a stunner for the ages.

And on a non kayfabe view, it's quite so obvious who's gonna go over if it's for influence, while Yokozuna is certainly one to remember, Austin is many, many times more a name in the business, and Austin's influence on the business, the drawing power he had, and still with the great in-ring ability this guy had (while he wasn't a technical guy, but he still put on some great matches) you can't deny this guy, you just can't.

Edit: True D-man, but who didn't Austin beat? Shawn Michaels, The Rock, Triple H (while you could argue he wasn't in his prime, but it's still a name) the list goes on of greats he beat and wrestled, and he's held more world championships than Yokozuna (don't give me that "scripted" look) and was an overall better draw.
Oh and Fuji, sure he's one to count for, the salt and fireballs etc. I just don't see Austin getting caught by that, the only thing I see getting caught between those two would be a potential stunner after the match, or when Austin has Yoko slandering around outside the ring in a daze after being sent to the barricades, ring post or steel steps.

 

[JGlass]

Yokozuna is a formidable enemy to even the most talented of warriors, but this is Stone Cold Steve Austin.

While Austin hasn't really beaten anyone bigger (but who the hell is bigger than Yoko?) he has beaten many a super heavyweight. He's also beaten much, MUCH better than Yoko.

Mr. Fuji will almost certainly be standing on the ring apron, shouting words of encouragement to Yokozuna, and maybe getting some of his famous white powder into Austin's eyes, but if a broken neck couldn't stop him from beating Bret Hart, temporary blindness won't stop him from beating Yoko. Also, Mr. Fuji just seems like the kind of guy that Austin would love to hit with a stunner.

If this match were really happening, it would be close, and at one point it would seem like victory is only moments away for Yokozuna, but Austin isn't bowing out in the first round of any tournament, and he'd fight his way through to round two. Austin takes this one.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

This f'ing sucks. So many of you voted for the big name. Yoko in his prime would have squashed Austin like a bug. In 1993-1994, Yokozuna was beyond unstoppable. The guy who came the closest was The Undertaker, and he ended up losing his first casket match to Yoko at the Royal Rumble. Yokozuna dispatched Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 9, only to be blindsided and lose the title to freaking Hogan. 3 months later he squashed Hogan, kicking out of the leg drop and pinning him to win back the belt. He never lost clean to Lex Luger despite all the effort Lex put in, and only lost to Bret when he fell back on the ropes. Bret didn't BEAT Yoko - Yoko beat himself.

Shocky showed the match recently of the only time Yoko and Austin faced each other. Yoko DOMINATED Austin the entire match, and set Austin up for the Banzai splash. At the time 600+ lbs, the ropes snapped under Yoko's weight and he fell to the ground only to be pinned by Austin.

The 505-lb machine who ran the WWF for over a year wouldn't have snapped the ropes. He's have beaten Austin within an inch of his life.

Yokozuna would squish Stone Cold like a bug, but you people are all voting chalk. It's a damn shame and it makes me sick.

 

[Tastycles]

This is not as much of a foregone conclusion as people are making out, but Austin wins, and it comes down to one thing, and one thing alone, and that is resilliance. The way to beat Yokozuna, if you aren't a powerhouse, is by surviving a war of attrition. Even in his height, this has shown to be the case, as shown here.



Here we see an aging Savage beat Yokozuna, not by beating him down, but by outlasting him. Savage beats him by disqualification, but not before he has levelled him and managed to hit his finisher. There has never been anyone in the history of professional wrestling more capable of taking a beating before going on to win than Austin, look to his 2001 Royal Rumble win for evidence of this. Don't underestimate the impact Yoko had, but the right vote is for Austin, it's just a shame some people come to that conclusion for the wrong reasons.

 

[Little Jerry Lawler]

Yokozuna is a formidable enemy to even the most talented of warriors, but this is Stone Cold Steve Austin.

While Austin hasn't really beaten anyone bigger (but who the hell is bigger than Yoko?) he has beaten many a super heavyweight. He's also beaten much, MUCH better than Yoko.

Mr. Fuji will almost certainly be standing on the ring apron, shouting words of encouragement to Yokozuna, and maybe getting some of his famous white powder into Austin's eyes, but if a broken neck couldn't stop him from beating Bret Hart, temporary blindness won't stop him from beating Yoko. Also, Mr. Fuji just seems like the kind of guy that Austin would love to hit with a stunner.

If this match were really happening, it would be close, and at one point it would seem like victory is only moments away for Yokozuna, but Austin isn't bowing out in the first round of any tournament, and he'd fight his way through to round two. Austin takes this one.

So Yokozuna beating Bret Hart and Hulk Hogan is worse than anybody Austin has beaten? What happened at Survivor Series in 1996 between Hart and Austin? Hart won and the same thing happened at WM 13 so don't give me that bullshit about Austin beating much better competition than Yokozuna. You seemed to forget that Austin beat Hart by DQ which doesn't mean much in this situation. All Fuji has do is to blind him for a second and Yoko will be right on top of him.

 

[shattered dreams]

Shocky showed the match recently of the only time Yoko and Austin faced each other. Yoko DOMINATED Austin the entire match, and set Austin up for the Banzai splash. At the time 600+ lbs, the ropes snapped under Yoko's weight and he fell to the ground only to be pinned by Austin.

The 505-lb machine who ran the WWF for over a year wouldn't have snapped the ropes. He's have beaten Austin within an inch of his life.

Yokozuna would squish Stone Cold like a bug, but you people are all voting chalk. It's a damn shame and it makes me sick.

I guess that is one way to spin that match. However, the bottom line is Stone Cold squashed Yokozuna in less than two minutes. That was even before Austin's prime. In Yokozuna's prime maybe he makes a match out of it but no way a guy like that goes over Austin when he was at the top of his game.

 

[Thriller Ant]

I'm voting Yoko. I don't have too much to back this up, though. Yoko was huge and could probably legitimately squish Austin, plus a heel manager at ringside is always a huge advantage. But mostly, I think Austin is overrated. He got over as a gimmick and not as a wrestler, and is the Attitude Era incarnate, which I really don't get the appeal of. So yeah, Banzai FTW.

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

I'm sorry IC but Yoko lost to Austin before Austin was in his prime, in Austin's prime he beat everyone. I know Yoko lost that match more than Austin won it but a win is a win.

 

[JGlass]

So Yokozuna beating Bret Hart and Hulk Hogan is worse than anybody Austin has beaten? What happened at Survivor Series in 1996 between Hart and Austin? Hart won and the same thing happened at WM 13 so don't give me that bullshit about Austin beating much better competition than Yokozuna.

I must not have been clear in what I meant. I didn't mean Austin had better competition than Yokozuna. They have both faced some pretty epic competition, and it would be hard for me to say Austin has faced anybody as devastating as a Hulk Hogan in his prime.

What I meant was Austin has beaten better wrestlers than Yokozuna. The Rock, Triple H, The Big Show (I suppose this is debatable, but I'd put Show over Yokozuna), Undertaker, etc.

Tooootally forgot Owen was the one who broke Austin's neck, not Bret. My bad in that case.

Like I said, Yokozuna is tough competition for any superstar, but Austin would still go over him.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

I'm sorry IC but Yoko lost to Austin before Austin was in his prime, in Austin's prime he beat everyone. I know Yoko lost that match more than Austin won it but a win is a win.

Yoko lost to Austin before Austin was in his prime, but that was WAY after Yoko's prime. When Yoko was 600-someodd lbs like he was in that match, he was slow and sluggish. Same thing with his match with Shawn Michaels, when he was pushing 700 lbs.

The 505-lb Yokozuna was fast, sudden, powerful, and above all, ruthless. He charged the corner turnbuckle like a train. He could hit the high thrust kick under an opponents chin with a split second opening. His Belly to Belly suplex was a risk any man took when they got close to him. He once kicked out of a "pin attempt" by Randy Savage at the 1993 Royal Rumble by bench pressing the 250+ lb Savage OVER THE TOP ROPE.

If you want to feed me the "Austin wasn't in his prime yet" bullshit, I say fine, he wasn't in his prime as a CHARACTER, but as a wrestler, he was actually BETTER because Owen hadn't broken Austin's neck yet. But make this a two way street - the Austin / Yoko match was after Yoko's career had started to decline as a result of his size. You go put 150 lbs on and tell me if you're as quick, agile, or have the stamina you have now...

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

Yoko lost to Austin before Austin was in his prime, but that was WAY after Yoko's prime. When Yoko was 600-someodd lbs like he was in that match, he was slow and sluggish. Same thing with his match with Shawn Michaels, when he was pushing 700 lbs.

The 505-lb Yokozuna was fast, sudden, powerful, and above all, ruthless. He charged the corner turnbuckle like a train. He could hit the high thrust kick under an opponents chin with a split second opening. His Belly to Belly suplex was a risk any man took when they got close to him. He once kicked out of a "pin attempt" by Randy Savage at the 1993 Royal Rumble by bench pressing the 250+ lb Savage OVER THE TOP ROPE.

If you want to feed me the "Austin wasn't in his prime yet" bullshit, I say fine, he wasn't in his prime as a CHARACTER, but as a wrestler, he was actually BETTER because Owen hadn't broken Austin's neck yet. But make this a two way street - the Austin / Yoko match was after Yoko's career had started to decline as a result of his size. You go put 150 lbs on and tell me if you're as quick, agile, or have the stamina you have now...

I'm not saying Yoko wasn't a freakin beast in his prime because he was unstoppable, but Austin's prime lead to IMO the greatest time in pro wrestling with Austin as the face of it, during that time no one could stop Austin either, not even the man that owned the company with all his henchmen. I do think Yoko lost the match more than Austin won it in 96, but Austin always found a way to win in his prime when it counted.

 

[Theo Mays]

I'm going Yoko here. No doubt that Austin is a legend, but I just don't see him beating Yoko in his prime. Yes I know he defeat Yoko once before, but that was past Yoko's prime and he was just a guy on the roster. I'll cancel out Austin's victories over Triple H and Rock with Hogan's victories of Savage and Hogan. Both men have victories over Hart and Taker. So they are pretty equal in my mind, but Mr. Fuji tips the scale (pun intended) for Yokozuna and gets him the victory here. On throw of that salt or powder (whatever the hell it was) into the eyes of Austin and he will be in the clutches of a belly to belly followed by a Bonzai drop.

 

[ZeroVX]

Yeah, definitely voting Austin here. Yoko was very good for his size, and could play the dominant heel well. Plus, he can say that he was the man to effectively end Hulkamania. But did Yoko become the face of the company and revolutionize it as well? No. Austin did. And before his neck injury, he was an excellent technical wrestler. His promos were solid and effective, and he could fire up a crowd like no other. No doubt that Austin wins here.

 

[X]

Blah blah blah Yoko is big and fat and his manboobs will squash Austin blah blah blah.

There, I've summed up IC's argument for all of you too busy to actually read it. Yoko "dominated" (if you consider cheating to win a "dominating") during the lowest point in WWF history, when they quite literally had no one left to put the belt on besides a big fat guy or Bret. That's quite literally the only reason the man was a champion. Poor worker to say the least, and easily outclassed by a true legend like Stone Cold Steve Austin who has won more titles and beaten more big men than Yokozuna could imagine.

Sorry IC, but Yoko doesn't stand a chance against a real legend like Austin. Mainly because Yoko isn't even 1/10th of the professional wrestler that Austin was. Literally, any capacity you can judge a professional wrestler, Austin is superior to Yoko in. Unless of course you count "density of man boobs" as a statistic, in which case I surmise Yoko would win.

Austin takes fat Yoko out with a stunner in about 10 minutes.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

I'm not saying Yoko wasn't a freakin beast in his prime because he was unstoppable, but Austin's prime lead to IMO the greatest time in pro wrestling with Austin as the face of it, during that time no one could stop Austin either, not even the man that owned the company with all his henchmen. I do think Yoko lost the match more than Austin won it in 96, but Austin always found a way to win in his prime when it counted.

Austin's character and attitude had more to do with the greatest "time" in pro wrestling than his kayfabe "wrestling ability." Hell, Mr. McMahon had more to do with the greatest "time" in pro wrestling that either Austin's or McMahons wrestling ability did.

Would you tell me that Billy Gunn is better than Bret Hart because Billy Gunn played a very significant role in the wrestling boom as a major part of DX? Would you tell me that Marcus Alexander Bagwell should go over Triple H because in 1997 Bagwell was a fair peice to the nWo puzzle while Hunter was getting DX going?

No, you wouldn't.

In a kayfabe tournament, Austin's ability to drink beer and flip the bird is null and void. He is left to his faculties - his toughness, his resilience ( a point that was made that I cannot refute), and his physical and mental stamina. I don't feel that is enough to overcome the sheer size, power, and overall physical ability of Yokozuna. To pull off a stunner, Austin has to get so close to Yoko that he risks being caught by the Belly to Belly.

But I admire your attempts.

 

[gd]

Ugly as expected. I think Austin is a favorite to win this whole thing. He was the cornerstone of the attitude era and certainly has a lot of fans on here and he hasn't won before.

However, I voted for Yokozuna. Firstly, I like the guy. Just look at him, what's not to like. Not many characters like him nowadays. Secondly, kayfabe wise, he definetly matches up with Austin. He's a multiple time world champion and Austin brawling offense may not work as well against a guy as massive as Yoko. It wouldn't be ridiculous for Yoko to win here. But like I said earlier, Austin is damn good and very well may win this whole thing.

 

[The Doctor]

Actually, I could see Yoko win this one.

You see, Austin is tough. He has stamina and has a move that can be hit from nowhere. However, Yoko is fat. I mean, he's more than fat. He's like Fat Albert crossed with the sumo wrestlers from the Eggo Pancakes commercials crossed with Christian Battlez. When he went to the movies, he took up seven rows. If Austin even tried to get close enough to Stunner Yoko, he'd get lost within the mounds and mounds of flesh that Yoko has and starve to death. Or, Yoko could get gassed just walking around the ring and collapse on Austin, flattening him. Austin may be tough, but I don't think even he can withstand 600 pounds of Samoan on top of him. Besides, Yoko has Mr. Fuji and his salt. Salt makes anything taste good. Austin would not only have obscured vision after Fuji attacks, he'd also be seasoned and ready for Yoko to eat him.

Yoko wins here, by way of a Fatality.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

BANZAI!!!

Yea, that's the extent of my argument for Yokoonozuna here. Stone Cold didn't earn the moniker of being one of the greats in this business by letting himself be squashed by the Samoan Eating Machine. Austin can put anyone down with the Stunner and can do that to Yoko.

One thing to notice about Yoko is his clumsy nature. Even at his peak, he was clumsy. He let Mr. Fuji throw salt into his eyes. He let ropes break under his power and just wasn't a thinker in the ring. Austin was. And should beat Yoko here.

AUSTIN WINS THE GOLD! STONE COLD! STONE COLD! STONE COLD!

 

[FunKay the Inevitable]

I voted Yoko here. Yoko was a great super-heavyweight in his prime and he could beat the best o em'. He took out Hogan, he took out Bret, he took out The Undertaker. Austin is without a doubt the second biggest if not the biggest name in wrestling history but he's done for if he gets a Banzai Drop. This is Yoko's biggest challenge for a while so see him through it and think logically and Vote Yoko

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Yoko in his prime would have squashed Austin like a bug.

Yoko in his prime would've been a tough opponent for Steve Austin. But would he really squash Steve Austin in his prime ''like a bug''?

In 1993-1994, Yokozuna was beyond unstoppable.

Not really, Bret Hart, Lex Luger & The Undertaker all won their feuds against him. Luger in 1993 & Undertaker & Bret hart in 1994.

The guy who came the closest was The Undertaker, and he ended up losing his first casket match to Yoko at the Royal Rumble.

Was it a dozen people who helped him? I forget.

Yokozuna dispatched Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 9, only to be blindsided and lose the title to freaking Hogan.

Bret Hart had him in the Sharpshooter before Mr. Fuji temporarily blinded him.

3 months later he squashed Hogan, kicking out of the leg drop and pinning him to win back the belt.

Who was that camera man?

He never lost clean to Lex Luger despite all the effort Lex put in,

Maybe he didn't, but Lex still won and the only person I remember Yoko beating clean was Virgil.

and only lost to Bret when he fell back on the ropes. Bret didn't BEAT Yoko - Yoko beat himself.

But Yokozuna still lost, right?

Shocky showed the match recently of the only time Yoko and Austin faced each other. Yoko DOMINATED Austin the entire match, and set Austin up for the Banzai splash. At the time 600+ lbs, the ropes snapped under Yoko's weight and he fell to the ground only to be pinned by Austin.

Dominated but still lost, reminds me of the Stoke vs. Bolton game I saw on Saturday.

The 505-lb machine who ran the WWF for over a year wouldn't have snapped the ropes. He's have beaten Austin within an inch of his life.

But in all likelihood, Austin wouldn't have defeated him, Yokozuna would've defeated himself.

It's a damn shame and it makes me sick.

Yokozuna and his overhang make me sick. The only way he beats Austin is because he sits on him and Austin's face is buried into one of the places he can't reach to wash.

Yoko lost to Austin before Austin was in his prime, but that was WAY after Yoko's prime.

''WAY'' as in two years?

When Yoko was 600-someodd lbs like he was in that match, he was slow and sluggish. Same thing with his match with Shawn Michaels, when he was pushing 700 lbs.

He wasn't lightning quick when he was 470lbs.

The 505-lb Yokozuna was fast,

Fast for a fat man, it's like being smart for a down's syndrome man.

powerful,

Was it that very same power that made him Yoko beat Yoko, not Bret beat Yoko?

He charged the corner turnbuckle like a train.

One that was carrying too much cargo. I think it was probably a train delivering paint, the tins, the liquid, that's be a really sluggish train.

He could hit the high thrust kick under an opponents chin with a split second opening.

So?

His Belly to Belly suplex was a risk any man took when they got close to him.

Surely it's the same with any wrestler. Get near him and he might hit you with one of his patented moves.

He once kicked out of a "pin attempt" by Randy Savage at the 1993 Royal Rumble by bench pressing the 250+ lb Savage OVER THE TOP ROPE.

Shows how stupid Savage is. Phoniest looking elimination ever.

If you want to feed me the "Austin wasn't in his prime yet" bullshit, I say fine, he wasn't in his prime as a CHARACTER, but as a wrestler, he was actually BETTER because Owen hadn't broken Austin's neck yet.

But people liked Austin more post-neck break and he had more classic matches from 1998-2001?

But make this a two way street - the Austin / Yoko match was after Yoko's career had started to decline as a result of his size.

Not due to wrestling politics, but because Yokozuna was a slob who didn't have the discipline to lose weight, which as a result paid a factor in him dying.

You go put 150 lbs on and tell me if you're as quick, agile, or have the stamina you have now...

Depends if I put on muscle or fat, surely.