That Guy

In the 80's Jim Crockett Promotions captivating the nation, at the same time Vince McMahon's empire was setting up and planning for the first ever WrestleMania. With stars like Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes captivating the wrestling world, there seemed to be no limit to their success. But there was one guy by the name of Magnum T.A. that everyone said was the "next big thing". Flair, Rhodes, Crocket, Jim Ross, and even VInce McMahon have mentioned how big a deal this guy Magnum was. And when you look at him, he looks exactly like an 80's superstar, so it's easy to see why he was on fire! And then his tragic car accident occurred, and retired the young star right before his first run at the World title.

What could have been?

In my personal opinion, I could have seen him move over to the WWF around the same time Flair did in the early 90's, by than Magnum would have faced everyone there is to face and done everything there is to do in the wrestling world besides enter the WWF, and Vince would have made him a great champion or at least a dominant heel chaser for the title.

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The GOAT One

From what I've read, he was going to be a HUGE star.

Such a shame.

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TomasThunder619

Watch Rise and Fall of WCW. He was supposed to be the next big star. He was about to be pushed for the main eventer role, just before his accident.

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Mascara de la Muerte in PWA

dave 1981

I think everyone knows Magnum T.A was being built up as the new top babyface and the main rival for Ric Flair and it's always been said he was next in line for the World title until the car accident forced his retirement. I must admit i haven't seen lots of Magnum T.A but i watched his feud with Tully Blanchard and their great matches, i still believe their I Quit match at Starrcade to be the best of that match concept outside of Flair/Funk.

I've also seen his matches with Ric Flair and Nikita Koloff which were also very good and it's a shame he didn't get to reach the main event level on a permanent basis as he was very popular from what i saw, good in the ring, good on the mic and believable. I've also always said though that i believe Sting would still have been where he was as the top babyface from 1989 onwards because he was so popular NWA/WCW could never have not pushed him which probably would have meant Magnum T.A would have been the number two babyface through the late 80's and early 90's had he have stayed in WCW but would have definitely been a World champion a good few times.

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BruiserKC

Magnum/Blanchard, IMHO, was THE best I Quit match ever...it even beats Flair-Funk.

One has to wonder that if Magnum was still wrestling in the late 80s and early 90s...Magnum vs. Sting would have been a huge match. Perhaps later, if he made his way to the WWF, Magnum vs. Bret Hart would have been something to behold, or Magnum vs. Mr. Perfect.

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The original heel commentators

tducey

One of the greatest what if's in wrestling history. I think had Magnum not gotten injured he could have been pretty big and one of the all time greats.

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The knowing Punk personally thread, while turning into a joke thread, had a lot of great stories in it, here are some of my Punk stories that didn't make the cut:

1) He's my postman
2) I'm the caretaker for his swimming pool when he's on the road
3) He lives in my basement
4) I taught him everything he knows about wrestling
5) He was in my high school math class but he got kicked out for cheating off me.

Moral of the story: Everyone needs to laugh every once in a while.

Fid

Magnum would of been one of WCW's top draws by the late 80s. He would probably had solid feuds with guys like Sting, Vader and Flair by at least 1991. Not sure what would happen to him if he ever would of jumped ship to the WWF. Probably would of been in the same boat as Mr. Perfect. A guy with some incredible talent, but never the WWF Champion. He would of held the WCW Championship a few times by the mid 90s. By the time the late 90s rolled around he probably would of started putting the younger talent over. Now a days I could of seen him being a road agent or trainer with occasional on screen appearances with TNA.

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Mike Zybyszko

"That's a bold statement."

I am a fan of Magnum TA, but I missed out on the I Quit match. Off to youtube I go...

Edit - As to the general topic, Magnum would have been in the spot Sting wound up occupying which means he would have been a multiple world champion, feuded with all time greats, and ended up HoF.

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"If anyone asks you if you've paid your dues, you tell 'em the check is in the mail."

Not removing until:

[ ] Hulk Hogan vs Hawk Hogan