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War of '09: Match #3 - bigcal vs. Starrcade vs. Ownage

559 views 3 replies 4 participants last post by  Starrcade 
#1 ·
Fans always decide the champion.​

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#3 ·
Fans always decide the champion.
I don't know about my opponents but personally I wasn't too pleased when I saw this topic. Reason being that up until today I didn't know which direction my debate was going to go in. You could easily make an argument for or against but after careful deliberation I've decided that yes, the fans do always decide the champion.

At the end of the day what World Wrestling Entertainment all boils down to is business. It's a business. Of course the wrestlers want to carve out their legacies with their in-ring performances and have their workrate praised by Meltzer and whoever else but at the end of the day Vince McMahon only really cares about one thing; the money. And that money is only going to come from one place - the fans.

The fans are the reason why Edge is already an 8-time World Champion because TV ratings have always been solid with him at the top. The fans are the reason why Triple H has been a perennial main eventer for the past decade because PPVs that he headlines draw good numbers. The fans are the reason why Hulk Hogan is the most recognizable figure in professional wrestling as opposed to in-ring greats like Bret Hart and Eddie Guerrero.

Speaking of Eddie Guerrero, there's a match on his new DVD (go buy it, it owns) against Chris Jericho from SuperBrawl 1997. Great match, as good a display of technical wrestling as you could ask for and you know what? The crowd didn't give a shit. Seriously, go watch the match. The chain wrestling, the selling, the spots, the execution, all of it was great but the crowd didn't give a fuck. They couldn't care less about what they were seeing and that's why Eddie and Jericho were fighting over the US title that night and not a World Championship. They both went on to hold the World Title and it's not because they got any better in the ring (Eddie was like the best in '97), it's because they got the fans to care.

Another great example is Jeff Hardy. A couple years ago most people would've laughed at the thought of him being the WWE Champion but it happened, the fans made it happen. Now you're probably thinking of some examples of champions who the fans didn't approve of. In recent memory who held one of the main belts despite not being one of the most over guys on the roster? Immediately The Great Khali comes to mind but you can bet your ass Vince wouldn't have put the gold on him if Khali didn't have appeal in a market WWE wanted to target (India). Name me one recent champion who either wasn't over, didn't help merchandise sales, or draw in some form. You can't. If you say Mark Henry you'd be wrong there too because his ECW title reign was the most successful ratings wise since 2007.

In summation there may be other aspects that influence who wears the gold but the fans are in my opinion the most prevalent factor in determining the champion.
 
#2 ·
Fans always decide the champion

Simply put, no. I would never say that fans ALWAYS decide the champion; however, I do feel they play a big part in who is champion more often than not.

Look at guys like Jeff Hardy for example. It’s arguable that he became champion mainly because of the fans. He is one of the most popular superstars in the company right now, and no doubt sells a ton of merchandise too. So while he was only champion for around a month, I firmly believe he was champion at all because the fans essentially decided he should be. They cheered him no matter what, they bought his merchandise, and they made Vince money in the process.

Then there is the other side of this, where fans decide a champion who is a heel. If a heel is out there generating so much heat that fans will pay to see someone they like beat the hell out of him and take the title, then that is going to make money too. Then if the heel retains his belt, fans will continue to hate him when he enters another feud with someone else they would pay to see try and beat the champion.

So when the fans get firmly behind someone, whether they love or hate them, if Vince can see a potential money making opportunity by putting the title on them and essentially giving the fans what they want, then there is no doubt he will do it, and has done it in the part.

But as I stated at the beginning, I don’t believe that fans ALWAYS decide the champion.

The best example of this would be The Great Khali winning the WHC. He wasn’t over with the crowd at all, he was barely getting any responses in his matches, yet he still won the belt. At the time, numerous top stars on SD were injured, and they needed someone to place the belt on. They had other talent, who WERE over with the crowd, who the fans would have MUCH preferred to carry the belt, but instead they threw it on Khali and did their best to make him the big heel champion that people would pay money to see get beat. I don’t quite think it worked out like that though, as this was more of a case of the fans simply wanted the belt off him, but didn’t care if they saw the match or not.


With all of that said, my stand on this statement is that the fans DO decide who is champion some of the time. If Vince can make money from it, he will agree with the fans and do what they want him to do. However, sometimes it seems Vince doesn’t give a damn what the fans want and who they want as champion, and just goes with whoever HE wants, and hopes everything will work out.
 
#4 ·
Fans Decide Champions

Yes fan decide champions. Why? Well every superstar who has won the championship will have their own respective fan base no matter how big or small the number is. However I think the question is deeper than that and to back up my point further, I will now talk about a few superstars define this declarative.

Jeff Hardy

He was on class A drugs for many years and went completely off the rails. He even made a sort stint in TNA but was none other than a glorified spot monkey. He did however come back to the WWE and was an immediate fans favourite. In 2007 he was split up with his brother and slowly started gaining a push. However, Jeff wouldn’t be pushed to hell and back if the fans didn’t lick his arse so much. People might call this complete and utter bullshit but the man was banned for the second time but management still decided to push the guy and even put the belt on him because he is that over.

Chris Jericho

No doubt Chris Jericho is one of the best wrestlers in the business falling behind a few superstars. In 2002-2005 despite losing his passion for the business the crowd were not that into the guy. Regardless of his match at WM XIX management never actually have faith in him to go that extra mile and hit the main event scene. Why? The fans didn’t feel him. They didn’t understand him and for many years, he was just…there. When he came back, the crowd came warm to him. When he heel turn developed so did the crowd. Despite Michaels giving him a lot of momentum the crowd was behind him despite him receiving heat. Management (it’s not as if they didn’t want to) had no choice but to push him to the main event scene and beyond. The guy one a slammy and is so over, he was in talks to fight Austin at Mania. That’s what a crowd can do.

Christian

This has nothing to do with fans make champions as he has only just returned but this is a chance to reiterate my point. I have read reports that Vince McMahon (and he has the final say) regretted giving Jericho the title and wouldn’t again back in 2002. Duh, look what happened now. He won the title twice last year. Why? The crowd. Now, if Christian continues to do what he is doing, I feel he will be in the same situation as Jericho. It’s clear that McMahon doesn’t think Christian wasn’t main event material, but he also thought that The Wrestler was a pile of shit till it one Baftas and was nominated for Oscars. The guy can easily work the crowd, he’s great on the mic, solid wrestlers etc. etc. If the crowd start to love him as much as the IWC, so will Vince.

Rob Van Dam

I’m personally not the biggest fan of this guy. However the fans really got behind him in 2006, probably because of his innovative spots and the rebirth of ECW. Anyway, he won all 3 titles and that wasn’t for nothing. It was the crowd. Why? Well as soon as he smoked dope, he lost all three titles and hasn’t won anything since. The crowd love Rob Van Dam and that grew fonder at this years Royal Rumble. There was speculation that he was returning and the IWC went wild. If he did return, the fans alone would put the belt around his waist.

Do Fans ALWAYS Decide Champions?

No. Other factors are apparent to make good business. The Great Khali, probably the most hated wrestler in 07 was champion for a few months. Why? Gain a wider target audience stretching to India and beyond. After all Vince McMahon did say ‘It’s all about the money.’
 
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