What if Rick Rude had stayed in DX?

[Trill Co$by]

Way back in 1997, DX was born when Rick Rude, Chyna, Triple H, and HBK all cost Mankind a match on Raw. This team, or stable rather, would begin to use their outnumbering tactics as heels and gain a lot of heat. However, in November of 97, the man known as Rick Rude left the then WWF and joined WCW where he would go on to be a success.

Now, I ask you all. What do you think would've happened for Rick Rude and even the DX legacy had Rick Rude stayed with the group the entire time?

 

[wrestler36]

Honestly, I don't think he would've been in DX for too long. He was somewhat of a mouthpiece for them and from the get go, but I didn't think he really fitted in with them. DX represented youth and rebellion, and he was a couple years older, had an injured neck and wore a suit. I think Rick would have been better transitioning into a color commentator or the mouthpiece for someone who wasn't all that strong on the mic, like Steve Blackman.

 

[Charismatic Enigma]

Honestly, I don't think he would've been in DX for too long. He was somewhat of a mouthpiece for them and from the get go, but I didn't think he really fitted in with them. DX represented youth and rebellion, and he was a couple years older, had an injured neck and wore a suit. I think Rick would have been better transitioning into a color commentator or the mouthpiece for someone who wasn't all that strong on the mic, like Steve Blackman.

I think you pretty much nailed it, as you can see by his post WWE career his best days as a worker were already behind him. At some point as DX gained momentum they likely would've turned on him, and he would've transitioned to a commentator/manager/GM type role or he would've just retired outright. I really don't see where he would've fit in the WWE long term at that time period. He probably would've ended up with Val Venis or something.

 

[The Future Rises]

Well, one thing is for sure.. He would've been in the Hall of Fame already.

If Rude had stayed I think he would've been a good addition to DX. And his death would come in 1999 just two years after joining the group so he the WWE would've probably done a whole show just for Rude and pay a lot of tributes to him.

I know Ruder unexpectedly jump shipped to WCW and took shots at the WWE, DX, and Shawn Michaels. But when is he gonna get inducted into the HoF already? The man's a legend. And he's still mentioned on WWE TV sometimes. Why not induct him?

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

Rude was raunchy and had that campy sorta humor himself. His earlier character of The Ravishing One was a narcissistic, self-loving sex bucket and if eventually he was thrown back into the gimmick, he would have been just fine in DX.

But he had problems with how HBK conducted his business and his politicking and was well, not his biggest this side of Atlanta, so sooner or later he would've left because when Rude left, Micheal's shannanigans had just begun.

 

[byrnside]

If I'm not mistaken Rude was actually working to make a comeback at that point. It would've been cool to see him stick around and either have him turn on DX or vice versa. I think he could've finally gotten tired of DX trash talking Bret Hart and it would be revealed that Rude and Hart were real life friends. Maybe Rude could've joined up with the Hart Foundation or something. He and Brian Pillman would've made an awesome tag team in my opinion.

 

[hjq0023]

If Rude was in the WWF Atttude Era, there probably would have been no Val Venis. Lol. He would have been a perfect match for the Attitude Era.

 

[One to Remember]

He fit as much in DX as as he and Hennig did in the wolfpac. I always wanted val venis in dx though. DX would had turned on him. He was too old, too old school, and this was an Attitude Era group with a member who predated the WWF's New Generation. His late '90s comeback would had been best in WCW since they had already felt confident enough to try to make him the NWA World's champion.

 

[FlairFan2003]

Rude was a god talker but he couldnt wrestle, he was done after 94 -so essentially he would have just been a manager, he might have done well but I don't think it would have done much to rise his level of notoriety.

However, Rude does hold a special place in wrestling history, the first performer to appear on both RAW & Nitro the same night at the same time - Rude's WCW defection was absolute genius by Bischoff and company, totally pointing out how much more exciting a "LIVE" Nitro could be vs a taped RAW, plus it reallt was embarrassing having him trash WWE on Nitro at the same time he was appearing w/ DX on RAW.

Only way it would have been better was if he would have actually been able to get in the ring and perform, then it would have been epic, better than Luger showing up by surprise one night after main eventing SummerSlam. Personally, I thought it was about as good a "Gotcha" moment as either company had in the fued since Vince trotted out Bobby Heenan with the WCW Title belt to proclaim that "THe Real World Champion is coming to the WWF", especially since that giant gold belt was so linked in image to Ric Flair.

It was always odd to me that DX was fronted by two guys almost 40, one of which who had been wrestling for over a decade, and they were supposed to be the juvenile delinquents of wrestling - guess they couldn't find someone who might have been YOUNG to play the parts lol

As for Rude, staying in DX would have done little to help or hurt his legacy, he didn't accomplish much in WCW either but at least the jump itself was a priceless piece of wrestling history

 

[MrMojoRisin]

If I'm not mistaken Rude was actually working to make a comeback at that point. It would've been cool to see him stick around and either have him turn on DX or vice versa. I think he could've finally gotten tired of DX trash talking Bret Hart and it would be revealed that Rude and Hart were real life friends. Maybe Rude could've joined up with the Hart Foundation or something. He and Brian Pillman would've made an awesome tag team in my opinion.

It was later when he was in WCW that he was working towards his comeback. In fact, he was still working on that comeback when he died.

It's hard to say what would have happened with Rude if he stayed in WWE/stayed with DX. Logic would say that they would have turned on him since he really didn't fit the mold, and then put Rude with someone he could give the rub to that could fight DX for him (Owen Hart with the BlackHart gimmick actually would have been perfect here)... but at the same time due to his insurance claim from the injury that originally ended his career, he could not take a bump in the ring. It would have been hard to work Michaels/HHH turning on him without him being able to take a bump, or at least work it in any way that wouldn't have looked awful.

Likely one of two things would have happened. They would have either fazed him out of DX shortly after Montreal anyways (or at least once Waltman was hired and they had a new direction to take DX in) and put him either with another wrestler, or moved him to the commentary booth (remember he did pretty good as a commentator in ECW). Or they would have just released him. I'm guessing he would have been a commentator since he got a lot of cred for the ECW stint behind the table.

Fantasy booking wise, if he had stayed, I would have had him grow increasingly frustrated with Michaels in the weeks after Montreal, and turn on him at the Degeneration-X PPV in December where Owen Hart returned through the crowd. Then on RAW, have Rude shoot about his ties to the Hart family, his respect for them, and his disgust for how Michaels won the title. Then have him manage Owen for a series with Michaels, beginning with Royal Rumble 1998. The upside of that... Michaels is never in the casket match that wrecked his back and forced him into retirement, and Owen gets a chance to get over as a legit main eventer, and possibly change the course of his career so that he never becomes the Blue Blazer 18 months later and is thus still with us today.