WCW Region, Osaka Subregion, First Round: (14)Booker T vs. (19)John Bradshaw Layfield

I did some research on this one, since I knew they had to have crossed paths on SmackDown. What I got was a bunch of information that didn't really help. They had exactly 1 singles match, for the WWE Championship at Survivor Series '04. JBL won, but only with a belt shot and Orlando Jordan interfering at every opportunity.

I think this one boils down to a couple things:

1. Do Booker's 4 reigns as World Champion in WCW hold up alongside his 2 reigns in WWE against JBL's run with the WWE Championship, the longest in SmackDown history?
2. Both were in famous tag teams, do Booker's 10 Tag Title reigns mean Harlem Heat was a better tag team than Bradshaw and the APA with their 3?

I think I'm leaning toward Booker at the moment, but I can probably be swayed to JBL's side.

 

I'm giving this to Booker. It wouldn't be an easy match but Booker is the clear winner to me.

In his prime (both WCW prime and WWE prime), Booker was a main event talent and serious threat to whoever was the champion. As much as I love JBL, he couldn't take Booker seeing as how he has about 1 clean win during his whole WWE title reign.

Winner: Booker T in a solid 10 - 15 minutes

 

That's nothing to hold against JBL. Nowhere does it say this has to be a clean win. Plus, heels aren't supposed to win clean. Feet on the ropes, grabbing the tights, sneaking in a belt shop, etc. are all okay here if they can get away with it. I know JBL's reign wasn't the greatest or anything, but you can't fault a heel for being a heel.

 

Booker T was an all around better and more accomplished performer. JBL had one nice run with the World Title but people forget that it was right after Brock Lesnar left and it was before Cena was ready to take the reigns as the top guy. Still an impressive run by JBL but it was when Smackdown was at its worst and everything else in his career was relatively unimpressive. He was a 1 time IC champion, 1 time US champion, 3 time tag champion, 1 time European champions, and then some irrelevant hardcore title reigns.

Just using WWE titles (a promotion where Booker spent much less time then JBL did) Booker was a 1 time World Champion, 1 time IC champion, 3 time US champion, 3 time tag champion, and you can throw in his KOTR victory. Then of course you look at the region this match is taking place, WCW. Booker was a 5 time 5 time 5 time 5 time 5 time WCW champion, a 10 time tag champion, 1 time US champion, and a 6 time TV champion.

If this was in the WWE region then JBL MAY have a shot but even then he would likely fall short. In WCW the victory goes to Booker T. The two only had one singles match and although JBL was victorious it was when he was at his absolute prime, Booker T was certainly not at his best, and it took tons of interference from Orlando Jordan. Booker T has had multiple primes where he was an elite, main event performer and in many of those cases he had people to interfere for him as well, so even that one advantage that JBL may have had is thrown out.

 

Through nefarious means or not, just look at who JBL defeated during his world title reign. Eddie Guerrero, Big Show, Booker T, Undertaker, Kurt Angle etc.

Both are mid-card talents who had relatively short runs on top. Personally I'd take JBL's year of domination over Booker's multiple world title reigns in a then nothing promotion and later on a dying Smackdown brand.

 

I have to choose Booker for this match because i feel his multi title reigns at tag,mid card and world level eclipse JBL. But only just

It will be a tight match but i gotta say Booker to hit the Book end for the win around 9 mins

 

And Booker T throughout his career has defeated the likes of John Cena, Goldberg, Sting, Bret Hart, Lex Luger, Kurt Angle, Benoit, Big Show, Jericho, RVD, Kevin Nash, Rey Mysterio, and Batista. And a lot of those victories came in world title matches or during his multiple championship reigns.

 

As world champion? I mean probably a few of them. Booker T has generally been lackluster when he's holding the big belt. Hey, if this is a tag tournament I'm voting for Booker T. But as this is a single one I'm going to vote for JBL who proved, when he held a title of significance, that he'd do absolutely anything to keep hold of it. In important matches he got things done.

 

But ideally, in terms of the tournament, this shows JBL's biggest con as a solo performer: his dependence on interference. I can understand dirty wins, but most, if not 99%, of his dirty wins came through outside interference, which lessens his kayfabe rank as a wrestler a bit. As this is a one-fall, no title WCW region match, Booker is not only in comfortable home territory, but there's just no clear winning scenario for JBL here, plain and simple.

 

There's definitely a clear winning scenario: He takes Booker's head off with the Clothesline from Hell. If you are going to devalue a wrestler because he had help from interference, you better not vote for Edge, Triple H, Ric Flair or a lot of the other heels in this tournament because they all won a bunch of matches through interference as well. You don't hold the WWE Title for almost 300 days without winning any matches on your own.

 

Booker T had a fairly long reign himself as world champion in WWE. He kept the title against Batista at Summerslam (lost the match but got himself dq'd so he could retain the title), he defeated Batista, Lashley, and Finlay in a fatal four way to defend his title, and he defeated John Cena and the Big Show in a triple threat match to become the "Champion of Champions," before finally losing the title to Batista at Survivor Series. Booker T and JBL actually had very similar reigns in WWE and both were at times where Smackdown was fairly awful. The difference is that his reign as King Booker wasn't Booker T's only great success. Even though it was at the end WCW Booker T was one of the top guys at the company for its last year and he carried the WCW title over to the WWE during the invasion where he cheated his way to title defense victories over the likes of Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho.

 

This one is genuinely a close call. Both found fame in the tag team ranks before going onto successful singles careers.

When I look at their careers as tag team wrestlers, I'm more impressed by Booker T. Harlem Heat dominated WCW's tag team ranks during the 90s and won the tag titles 10 times for a total of 470 days. JBL, as one half of the APA, was a 3 time tag champ but it came about in a time when titles had little meaning. Bradshaw & Farooq won the titles on 5-29-99 and held them for 35 days. The titles would change hands a dozen more times in 1999 alone. That's not to say that WCW didn't play hot potato with their tag titles, WCW was every bit as bad as WWE by the late 90, but the heat had a couple of substantial runs. Also, the APA became more of a comedy act during their glory days.

As a singles competitor, Booker T was a 6 time World Champion. Sounds extremely impressive on the surface but JBL's 1 run as WWE Champion lasted longer than all six of Booker's title runs, and Booker's came about when WCW was gasping its last breath.

I'm leaning more towards Booker T right now.

 

JBL's reign lasted 280 days and Booker T's 6 reigns lasted 379 days. Plus, you can't really blame Booker T for the "Vince Russo" booking, where world titles needed to change hands once a month.

 

I really do like both of these guys so this is a tough call for me. Throughout his runs in WCW and WWE Booker almost always could be considered pretty successful. Harlem Heat was a great tag team and he's a 4 time WCW champion. He went right into the WWE in a top spot and picked up two more WHC reigns. At the same time as Booker was succeeding in Harlem Heat, JBL was teaming with Faarooq. I was never a fan of the Acolytes but when they changed their gimmick to the APA I was hooked. Even then though, they were rarely serious players in the tag division. I guess what always bugged me about him is how quickly he became a high carder. He had little singles success but after splitting away from APA and picking up his rich Texan gimmick he was immediately in the title picture. This happens all the time in wrestling but it was weird for me to take Bradshaw seriously. He did go on to have a great run as top heel and had many memorable feuds.

I'm picking Booker in this one for two reasons:

1. I find his career as a whole more impressive. I think theres a lot more success for Booker evenly spaced out over his entire career while JBL's is on one big achieving couple year run.


2. I just like Booker more today :/

Booker T wins

 

John 'Bradshaw' Layfield. That's your man. Why? Because the dude dominated SmackDown for 10 months, defeating a long string of names that includes the likes of The Undertaker, Kurt Angle, The Big Show, Eddie Guerrero and some dude, what was his name? Oh yeah, Booker T. JBL held the gold as the top man on Smackdown, something Booker did a couple of years later for a shorter time period, defeating less opponents and stealing pins on guys like Finlay (2006 was a weird time folks).

Hell, JBL made Booker look great via commentary during his reign on top with over-the-top lines such as 'The Man! The Myth! The God!'. If not for JBL, Booker might not have been portrayed as so diabolical during his own run on top of SmackDown. I like booker T quite a lot, but JBL was at the top for longer and he did better so there we are. For for JBL.

 

This is a very tough pick. Both were tag team specialists who went on to become World Champion after years of wrestling as part of a duo. Both went on to become commentators also, so there is alot of similarities between the 2.

However, I am giving this to Booker. Harlem Heat is arguably one of the greatest tag team WCW ever had, and you cannot say that about the Acolytes in WWE. The Heat dominated the tag-team scene for years, while the Acolytes were only a minor team when the WWE tag team division was ruled by the Hardys, Dudleys in E&C.

As singles stars, Booker had a better run also, being at upper card or main event level for alot longer than JBL, although I am not looking at his 5 WCW title reigns as a deciding factor. JBL had 1 WWE title run, and it was almost a year long, while Booker's 5 WCW titles were over a very short period of time in a struggling company.

However, I just dont think 1 succesful year for JBL , however good it was, makes him a better pick than Booker's longer term singles success and his much better run as a member of a top level tag team.

It would be a good match, but Booker would duck the Clothesline from Hell and hit the Book End for a 1 2 3.

Winner= Booker T

 

JBL and Booker both have an impressive resume and each have a pretty long list of accolades. JBL, post the APA, and Booker T, post Halem Heat, were two amazingly gifted entertainers. Booker may have been more athletic in the ring, but Bradshaw could hold his own. JBL is my pick here. I liked the character better then any of Booker's past characters, King Booker included. I just feel like JBL should go over here. Long live the wrestling god!

 

I didn't want to do this but I've been left with no choice,

Booker T is so popular 7-11 stores everywhere were sold out of Booker T cups. Selling out 7-11 > JBL



Booker T is a fucking Jedi master. JBL can't fuck with that.

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Booker T is a master of his environment whether it be in the ring or at church. JBL wishes he had the smarts of Booker T.



Booker T is a ladies man. You won't find JBL's fat ass getting with any fine women.



There you have it. Booker T is more popular, a Jedi, adapts better to his surroundings, and is better with the ladies. Plus he called Hulk fucking Hogan the N word. The man is ruthless.

 

Reason1 I am voting for JBL:

JBL beat up an inflatable dinosaur after getting hit with a tranquilizer dart. That was more entertaining than Booker being in some skits where Goldust was funnier than he was.


Reason 2:

The Clothesline from Hell. No flashy kick or fancy spinning break dance moves needed. Just a vicious clothesline. Goodnight Booker.


JBL- better finisher, better title run, funnier moments, better American.

 

So last time JBL visited Japan, he beat Godzilla. "JBL stands for just beat a lizard" is absolute gold.

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I've been back and forth on this match a lot in the past hour. I think I've come to the conclusion that JBL would go over. Here's why.

I think overall their careers are pretty close, Booker's is probably slightly better. I'd put JBL's reign on Smackdown significantly over Booker T's four in WCW, for sure. JBL dominated a brand in a major federation for a huge time - I mean look at the names he feuded with during that reign. He beat Eddie Guerrero clean, who was off the back of the run of his career going over Brock Lesnar (#1 or #2 guy in the federation at the time with HHH) and retaining against Kurt f Angle at Wrestlemania. He defended twice against The Undertaker. He defended against the Big Show in a cage, and won a fatal fourway. And yes, he beat Booker T. Compare that to Booker rising to main event on a depleted WCW roster against the likes of Scott Steiner, Jeff Jarrett and Kevin Nash. Only Nash is a cemented star on that list.

However, Booker T did well inside WWE too. Main eventing Summerslam Vs The Rock, a title shot at Wrestlemania with HHH, and a lengthy reign defending against Batista, Mysterio, Cena and Big Show.

Thing is, here we are asked to pick between two stars in their prime. I'd say Bookers prime was as King Booker in the aforementioned title reign, with JBL's being his. So rather than looking at career Vs career, you gotta judge reign vs reign and I think JBL's was better.

I see the match going as such - JBL gets mad heat from the crowd as he switches to full on douche American heel/anti-japanese. This effectively makes Booker the face in the match despite being in King Booker heel mode. As such, Booker dominates and JBL does what he did so well during his reign - find a way, any way, to go over. He doesn't have to resort to cheating as he showed in his title win against Eddie Guerrero, but he probably will.

So yeah. I vote JBL. If you want to vote on who had the best career, I'd probably suggest Booker. For prime vs prime, I'm taking JBL.

 

I'm taking Booker T. I don't get why everyone is arguibg this one so passionately. Both were mediocre champions who have a place in the HoF simply due to their longevity and the fact that they haven't murder-suicide-d their families. Neither of them were all that great other than a few flashes here and there. I'm taking Booker because he's had a few more moments of glory.

Basically, who gives a shit? They'll both be gone after the next round.

 

If we're arguing who's funnier (which it seems we are, it's an interesting new way to pick a winner I'll grant you):

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Plus if you ever happened to hear Booker T do commentary on Smackdown, the answer should be obvious. THAT'S the connection, I was trying to think. Both guys have done commentary. Booker wins on sheer entertainment value of course.

 

I was a WCW guy back in the day and I loved the Booker T story, from carrying Stevie Ray in Harlem Heat to making the TV Title look prestigious through the US Belt to one of the few genuine good moments if the WCW's death throws when he finally won the Big Gold Belt. Booker T and DDP where home grown heroes in a time of big time dominance.

Justin 'Hawk' Bradshaw? Blackjack Bradshaw? That guy with Ron Simmons?

For me JBL's single long run vs Booker T's multiple shorter reigns isn't even a consideration. Book earned every accolade he ever got, JBL 'earned' his by kissing up to Vince (and in particular his support for the Republican Party).

Booker earns my vote here.

 

JBL was dominant in his prime as WWE champion and World Heavyweight champion. Any and all comers fell to JBL one way or another and to boot, he was a damn powerful guy... whereas Booker was a 5 time WCW champion when the belt was given to just about anyone with a pulse and his reign as King Bookah pales in comparison to JBL's reign at the top.

I'm sure they've wrestled an actual match as well and in any given match, JBL would pull out a win over Booker T.

Vote JBL.. the WRESTLINGAHHH GODDDD!