Stone Cold Talks Hogan v. Sting I will be watching

[obamartins]

I 100% agree with Stone Cold Steve Austin. Maybe some of you sterotypical jump on badwagon of popular IWC consensus will look at the subjects addressed from a person who knows what he is talking about differently now.

"I'll be honest, I hadn't heard about Hogan v Sting. That will be interesting too, I mean Hogan had back surgery didn't he?

"They are both great guys. I'm a fan of Sting's and he can still go with the best of them. I know Hogan well and he still has it when he needs it.

"It will be a very interesting night at the office that one and I will most certainly be watching Bound For Glory to see how it works out.

"I get annoyed when people say that such and such should retire, or they shouldn't compete due to injury or age.

"I know how it works and many of these guys find it hard to stay out of the ring. Hogan, for example, was put on this world to be there.

"There may often be money involved when guys step back in the ring, but it's more about their need to be there than the financial rewards.

"The other thing is that there are so few people coming up through the ranks who can match the success of guys like Hulk, Flair, Sting or myself.

"Cena may be the only one who has reached that level — I've yet to see another hit that peak yet."

Link - http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...ustin-Id-pick-CM-Punk-for-my-final-match.html


Hulk Hogan explains how he can wrestle again -

"Well it's a calculated risk, you know it's not like OMG he's an idiot with all the back surgeries he's gonna wrestle & if he get's knocked down he will be in a wheel chair.....it's not that story. If i do get in the ring it's a calculated risk, these guys are professionals & instead of getting bodyslamed......somebody can hit me in the throat, rake me in eyes, crumble down to the ring or i can take a bump on back of my neck & shoulders & not hurt my lower back"

Link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jScMYlvPtOE

My two cents - The veterans know that you never learn how to work until you work hurt. It's never been about wrestling in the US for Hogan it's always been about working! Hogan stills know how to work the crowd by interaction/facial expressions/mannerisms etc., read the crowd & change the flow of the match based on reaction of fans, he knows how to get heel heat & create sympathy for the babyface (Sting), he knows how to use psychology & tell at story in the ring, he is smart enough to realise his limitations & incorporate shortcuts such as blood & brawling to hide them.

 

[IT Factor]

While I respect Austin's opinion on this topic, I slightly disagree with his take on Hogan & Sting deserving to be in such a high-profile matchup @ BFG. Yes, Hogan & Sting are legends in the wrestling business. No one is disputing that fact at all. The problem is Sting & Hogan are mere shadows of their former selves and can't operate at the level that is accepted as good in-ring wrestling. They can still tell a story, but, that is irrelevant if their match is God-awful and botched. That taints their legacy and makes Impact Wrestling & TNA look bad for allowing the match to happen. You need look no further than the Ric Flair/Sting match from Impact 2 weeks ago to see what happens when you pair two legends who cannot carry matches anymore. That was a disgrace to TNA and an embarrassment to Flair and Sting to even be associated with that match. People will remember their final runs[if they retire soon] that way as well.

It's about more than "bandwagon jumping" or "IWC consensus". It's about being worthy of taking up a company's time and money in the ring. Impact Wrestling has a locker room full of young talents who could've all benefitted more and added more to BFG in that same spot on the card. I respect Hogan & Sting for what they have achieved and given the wrestling business through the years, but, their time has passed. Some would say decades ago. Perhaps once this abysmal failure of a match is over, Hogan will retire and Sting will start putting over new talent with what little star power he has left to pass on to others. That's doubtful given their past history, though.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Austin is entitled to his opinion like everyone else but I find his comments about how Hogan "still has it when he needs it" kind of laughable.

I know Austin is a veteran and a huge megastar that knows more about wrestling than I'll ever know. I freely admit that without the slightest bit of shame and I know that Hogan vs. Sting at BFG will almost certainly draw TNA some additional ppv buys. I don't hold that against TNA at all either.

That being said, Austin trying to sell this match as if it's going to be some competitive clash of titans is, in my opinion, kind of an insult to the intelligence of anyone that's watched Hulk Hogan wobble around the ring in TNA for the better part of 2 years. I'm loooooooong since over the nostalgia that a Hogan vs. Sting match will bring. I've seen these two men on TNA television a whole helluva lot in recent years and they don't generate the warm & mushy feelings of days gone by I might otherwise feel if I hadn't seen them so much. I'm past reliving thoughts & memories of these two and what they did back when I was in my youth. What interests me are wrestlers that are capable of going into the ring and physically delivering a high quality, competitive wrestling match instead of watching a couple of legends that can't pull that off. I'm more interested in the general hear & now and the future rather than guys who just can't let it go when they probably should.

 

[WWEIsLife2]

No disrespect to the Rattlesnake but I just don't see Hogan or Sting being able to generate that Big Match feel anymore that they could back in their heydays. This Match will no doubt be a trainwreck IMO and that Philly Crowd may turn on them in a heartbeat when that happens. I find it sad that TNA is putting all its eggs into this selling the PPV instead of the Kurt Angle/Bobby Roode World Title Match. Which you know should be the selling point of your Wrestlemania.

 

[BigPoppaPunk]

I gotta agree with others here so far and respectful disagree with Austin's comments. Although I can definately see his POV, putting on a Sting/Hogan match means TNA is desperate to cash in on wrestling's past. Usually, a big match on the biggest show of the year is an honor that is earned, not given b/c of former greatness. TNA has several talented young wrestlers who should be occupying that top spot. All this match will do is prove definitively why guys who are past their primes shouldn't wrestle. Geez, seeing the Sting/Flair match was awful enough without getting a second part to it. Why TNA would build their biggest PPV of the year around two has beens is beyond me. Especially in light of the fact that neither guy is putting the younger talent over.


Austin is clearly biased in his area, since he too is an older guy who can't wrestle anymore. Even though I wouldn't put him in the Sting/Hogan category, he probably has sympathy with their situations based on his own problems. Just b/c you want to get back in the ring doesn't mean you should. When you can't deliver in the ring, it's embarrasing to the fans and yourself. It's simple as that for me.

 

[snoopy]

I totally agree with austin! I just think people are jumping the gun calling this a main match! This is going to be nothing but a attraction match with the main storyline attached to it, only to put the spotlight on the stipulation going into the match! These guys are probably not going to wrestle to long until the story starts to take place within the match.I expect alot of run ins, Swerves and possibly some surprises. And that's all this match will be. Pure storyline!

 

[xGotTheEdgex]

I both agree and disagree with Austin on this. Sting can still go. Is he getting old? Yes. Is he as good as he was even just five years ago? No. But he is my all time favorite wrestler, so I still enjoy watching his matches and glad he is still in Impact Wrestling. Hogan on the other hand...does "he still have it when he needs it?" No, I don't think so. He looks like he is in pain when he is just walking to the ring. However, Hogan doesn't need to take a lot of bumps in this match. He knows how to work a crowd. That is what Hogan has always been good at. Sting will carry this match, if it does happen.

Does this match need to happen? No. Should it happen? Probably not. But it looks like it's going to happen one way or the other. That's fine. The main positive I see coming out of this match, is the fact that it looks like Hogan is on his way out of Impact Wrestling.

Just take this match for what it is if it happens and don't expect it to be great. In fact, expect it to be a lot worse then their match from Starrcade '97.

 

[RicoLen]

In the case of Steve Austin, I was never a big fan of his while he was wrestling full time. I was a WCW guy. However, since retiring, he's done many interviews over the years about his views about wrestling, and slowly but surely he won my undying respect. I don't think there's a better educated man about the world of wrestling than Steve Austin, I would give a runner-up shout-out to Kevin Nash.

That said, Steve Austin is ALSO one of those aging and/or injured legends like Hogan, Hitman, Sting & Flair. When Austin faces CM Punk at wrestlemania (if the rumor mill is to be believed) he will be 47. He may not be in his 50's like The Hitman, Sting, & Hogan, or in his 60's like Flair, but it's also got that broken neck that damn near paralyzed him. Wrestling for guys like them, is an addiction. It's a lifestyle they got used to, and they can never leave because they can't function properly away from that life.

So when he says stuff like "I get annoyed when people say that such and such should retire, or they shouldn't compete due to injury or age." I'm not surprised in the least that he would say that, but I disagree. This is because there's really something to be respected about guys that step out on top of their game, instead of turning into Ric Flair, where seeing him in the ring is just embarrassing and sad to see such a legend & badass turn into such a flat flabby slob.

I WOULD however, if I had money to burn, gladly watch Bound for Glory to see Hogan vs Sting, but I wouldn't expect much out of it in terms of it being a wrestling match. It should be pretty entertaining though in much the same way Rock vs Austin #3 was even though in terms of wrestling all it was was punches, signature/finishing moves & a whole s**tload of flipping each other off. It still managed to be, in my book, the most entertaining match of the three.

My advice would be to go in with low expectations, with some hope that entertainment/storytelling-wise it could be decent, and then if it gets above that you won't be disappointed.

 

[T2KFreeker]

No disrespect to the Rattlesnake but I just don't see Hogan or Sting being able to generate that Big Match feel anymore that they could back in their heydays. This Match will no doubt be a trainwreck IMO and that Philly Crowd may turn on them in a heartbeat when that happens. I find it sad that TNA is putting all its eggs into this selling the PPV instead of the Kurt Angle/Bobby Roode World Title Match. Which you know should be the selling point of your Wrestlemania.

TNA seems to be doing a decent job building up the Angle VS Roode match. My biggest look at this is if the match is the last on the card or they close the show out with Hogan VS Sting. Not to say I HATE the idea of the match, although I am not thrilled. It is possible that it might be an okay match as any wrestler on any given day can just have that moment. However, I still don't want to see this close out the show. As long as it goes on before Angle and Roode, things should be okay.