Sorry I'm late. Looks like I've missed my spot.
Get out of the past?
Good gods, it's a bloody
legends tournoment... the past is exactly where we should be looking.
Of course Thesz's matches look dull by today's standards (although if you'd care to look up the matches that 65-72 year old Lou Thesz had in Japan you'll see that he was perfectly capable of wrestling today's style), Thesz was wrestling in a time whan thats what people wanted.
Saying Thesz lacked ability because he didn't do what Stone Cold did is
exactly the same as being what of those crack pot idiots who clam Austin couldn't wrestle because he didn't have the technical ability of Brian Danielson. In other worlds, it's comical and idiotic.
To brush away some other misconceptions about Thesz, the man was not particularly bitter about the change in the nature of the business. He preferred the product from the old days, but find me a single name from that generation who didn't. The quote in my sig in from a column Thesz wrote for wrestlingclassics on the state of the buisness today, and if I present a couple of additional quatations, you'll see that the man had quite a pragmatical view on the industry.
So many people write to me and lament the passing of an era in pro wrestling. I appreciate their sentiment, but I know most of them shell out their money for the pay per views. It isn't a matter of "selling out" the old timers. It is a matter of buying a product you want, and it is the basis for capitalism.
I never had any illusions that it was anything but a business. As I said in my book, anytime you sell tickets, it is a business. However, I preferred to see professional wrestling as it was in the gym and in public workouts. I was naive enough to believe it could be that exciting and still involve the audience....and still sell tickets.
If you want further evidence, I'd say the fact that Thesz kept on wrestling, promoting, training and otherwise being involved in the industry right up until his death despite being very well off and being a veritable god in Japan (especially during the time Inoki was still in control of the industry down there), presents further proof that he was
not in fact a bitter old man who hated the TV industry.
Another claim that I'm... to be honest struggling to understand, is that Race could go over Thesz in a shoot fight. Lou Thesz was a hooker. If you ask any veteran of the business who the greatest hooker of all time was you'll get several dozen dirty jokes, and then you'll get Thesz's name. Thesz wrestled in a time when shoot fights were a daily occurrence and only came close to getting out hooked once (and as I said once, that was only a rumour).
Conversely, Race... well I'm not aware of much that can be used to back your claim up. A couple of anecdotes revolving around guys who didn't know what they were doing inside the ring. Certainly (unless something major has passed me by) nothing to justify the claim that he could match Thesz.
but anyway... this isn't supposed to be a round of "Gelgarin preaches to people who don't care", it's supposed to be a contest of legends, so I guess I might as well get to the point.
Both Thesz and Race gave their loves to the business. Both were top dogs during their own time. Both trained the legends who came after them. Both promoted and worked as agents with some success. Both will go down in history as all time greats.
Thesz did it all first.
Seriously, that's it. Oh I could go into some thousand word monologue on specifics regarding how Thesz had more of an impact internationally, or how Thesz's title reigns were more significant, or how Thesz stayed in shape his entire career... but at the end of the day, all that really needs to be said is that Harley Race led the business that Lou Thesz pioneered.
Ring Psychology, Heel tactics, Promos (I'm less sure on this front, I know Thesz cut heel promos in Japan during his feud with Rikidozan, I'm not sure if anyone else was doing it first) all the things that Rage has a reputation for being great at, were brought to the business by Lou Thesz.
Only one way to vote in this one.
