What if....Ahmed Johnson won the WWE title?

[KillBill]

I brought this up in another thread, but I decided to do a thread on it because I think it would have changed history. I thought I had heard that he was supposed to beat the Undertaker of all people to win the title back at an IYH ppv in '97. But he then got hurt and Vader took his place. But what if he hadn't gotten hurt? What if he won the belt?

I think it would have changed everything. Not only would he have become the 1st African American to win the belt, he would have done it by beating one of the biggest stars in WWE history. As a heel, the Nation could have backed him up like a gang of thugs, helping him win if need be, before eventually turning on him. Maybe Ron Simmons gets a shot, maybe he wins it, which would be beyond historical, since he had already won the WCW title. I think this would have helped Booker the most, I think it could have led to him becoming huge, and being one of the best of all time, and we wouldn't be sitting here debating if Vince is racist or not.

Thoughts?

 

[Poop Master Flex]

I'm not too sure it would of been too huge. Sure, the first african american to win the title is a big deal, but at the same time Ahmed Johnson was never a person I saw being WWF Champion (especially around that time, Taker, Austin, Hart and Michaels were all hugely over and Ahmed wasn't even in their league at the time) but I am aware he was scheduled to win it. I never felt Ahmed was the right person to be the 1st African American champ (he didn't have what it took IMO), personally I think Farooq could have been the right person to take that honor.

Also, I don't think it would of done too much for Booker T either as I don't think the race card was the reason he didn't become champ until the end of his run, I think the HHH card was the big reason there (just watching wrestling around that time, I saw superstars like RVD and Booker who SHOULD of had a title run around 02-03 but never did because HHH had a monopoly over the title back then). Vince at the end of the day is a business man and will do what he thinks is good for business, if he was racist I'm pretty sure the Rock never would of become champ.Even though I would of liked to see Booker T champ around 02-03, he wasn't because Vince thought HHH and Lesnar were his top 2 stars, not because he is racist.

 

[RicSpade]

If I remember correctly it was actually Farooq who replaced Ahmed Johnson at one point in time to face the Undertaker for the title, and I think Ahmed came in and hit the pearl river plunge after the match (I don't feel like digging through old tapes to confirm if that is right)

Anyways Ahmed may have been the breakout rookie of the timeframe he came in, I remember he won a slammy for it (does anyone remember the real slammy awards?) but you could tell he was still very green on promo skills, and the was a key to be a good champion at the time. Sid, Bret, Shawn, Farooq, Nash were all good on the mic and were considered main event or main event ready and honestly I think that is what done in Ahmed after his runs with the IC title. If Ahmed would've stayed injury free that would've helped him too, but I mean even when he tried coming back to wrestling in WCW he was a really really heavy athlete so he wouldn't have cut it now either.

I agree that Farooq could've been a good heel champion in this sense too, but there were alot more african american wrestlers before Ron Simmons even came to the WWF that I think if they would've had been more over Vince would've groomed them for a title run (Virgil was one of those failures, Bad News Brown was one who wasn't hated enough for a run with a title), but yeah just my opinion

 

[Loveless]

He was scheduled to win the title from the Undertaker at Canadian Stampede (which frankly I'm not convinced about) but was replaced by Vader when he got injured.
Looking at it logically, if Johnson wins the title, we don't get Undertaker/Hart at Summerslam, which leads to not getting Undertaker/Michaels in the cell, which possibly leads to not getting Montreal (assuming Bret doesn't win the title off Johnson) and from then on the whole landscape is changed.
I do believe the guy was supposed to get his shot at Shawn the year previous, as he was No 1 contender when he went down with his kidney problem.

 

[Doomsday Device]

Ahmed had the look, but he was missing pretty much everything else.

I remember him coming oiled up to the ring from head to toe. Having 3 kneepads on each leg.

I couldnt understand a word he was saying on the mic.

And he was a walking talking injury bag.

Farooq was a way better athlete all around, he was way better on his feet. More agility.

I know this is not a thread about comparing the two.

Ahmed didnt have what it takes to become world champion. And time proved that.

Ive always wondered why the Nation turned on Ahmed soon after he joined them. I remember Farooq giving an explanation as to why they did it but it still didnt make sense to me.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

They definitely had plans for him, I remember watching his debut on Superstars and JR flat out said he was a future WWF Champion...

Ultimately he didn't have the skill to hang as more than a short term attraction as champion... but he did at least have that chance... He was big enough that he could have just about convincingly beat Taker...

Where the whole thing would have gone is debateable... Bret would not have been happy to have Johnson as champ... so we would likely have seen him go straight to WCW rather than mess around with the negotiations... Shawn would have had more "lost smile" moments and been fired most likely...

Vader would have been his main challenger, along with Davey Boy Smith... who would have likely been the eventual guy to beat him... the last champ before they went out of business...

The Rock would definitely never have happened... Austin would have stayed heel far longer, Trips would have jumped to WCW at his earliest chance and WWF would likely have died in 1998...

 

[klunderbunker]

I think Johnson could have been a decent short term champion which would have been fine. He had a look and the occasional bit of skill, buit I think he needed a lot more seasoning before being given the belt. I remember some of his promos being so horrible I wanted to turn on WCW instead. I don't think he would have been incredibly successful, but I can't imagine him holding the belt longer than 2 months or so. He would have been exciting but without any real substance to him. Could have worked but probably better that it didn't happen.

 

[Tastycles]

Ahmed Johnson would have been a huge factor in the Monday Night Wars if he hadn't have been injured, but I'm not sure which way he'd have tipped the balance. He'd have been the Nation's main eventer, and therefore would have kept the Rock out of the limelight, and he wasn't the best on the mic, to say the least, which means he could have been a real dud as champion.

However, as stereotypical and borderline racist as it is, people like to watch their own race succeed. Don't believe me? Look how many Hispanic people watch whichever brand Rey Mysterio's on. This means that WWE could have gained a new audience from visibly pushing a black wrestler. Not to mention that Johnson's raw strength and look could have taken him to the top with a traditional wrestling audience. Johnson was black, which was new and fresh to the higher echelons of professional wrestling, but he was also very traditional in style and physical presence, and he could have been a real bridge between the past and the present in the atttitude era.

On the whole, I don't think we the audience have missed out by not having him as champion, but I do think he could have brought something to the table, and probably would have changed the course of wrestling history.