Wednesday, February 11, 2015

It’s a WWE World After All


I am sure I may have lost some people’s attention on the last edition, because I wrote a lot of information about the WWE Championship belts, but there was a reason why I did it. If you look closely at all the names on the lists, most of those wrestlers are well known famous Legends from the WWE.

In continuation, of the last edition I am going to share one of my favorite championship belts Eddie Guerrero won while in the WWE. Growing up in El Paso, TX across the river from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, it was very easy to become a fan of wrestling. Many World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer’s, began their careers in Mexico. Gory Guerrero was the man who expanded wrestling largely in the El Paso area. My father trained in the same gym where the Guerrero Family trained, and everyone would attend the gym just to go watch them. I always tell people, “I could have wrestled with Rey Mysterio, if my dad wouldn’t have quit wrestling.” I might have made it to the WWE or maybe I could have just wrestled in Mexico.

The third belt Eddie won was the WWE Tag Team Championship belt, which has undergone 5 name changes since its inauguration in 1971. Eddie won this belt with his nephew, Chavo Guerrero, on November 17, 2002 in New York City at “Survivor Series” under the tag team name Los Guerrero. They held the belts for a total of 114 days combined. Eddie also held this belt individually for 215 total days combine because he also won this championship on 2 other occasions. The first belts were awarded to Luke Graham and Tarzan Tyler on June 3, 1971 under the name WWWF World Tag Team Championship. These belts were awarded to tag team champions until April 26, 2010, when the name was changed to the WWE Tag Team Championship. Paul London and Brian Kendrick have the record of 331 combined days, but individually, Johnny Morrison, holds the record for 541 total days combined in 4 total reigns. The list below shows Legends that have held the Tag Team Championship belts.

Tag Team/Days Combined:
The Colons 280
Team Hell No 245
The Usos 245+
Cody Rhodes & Golddust 167
The Shield 148
The Hart Dynasty 146
Kofi Kingston & R-Truth 139
Primo & Epico 106
Rikishi & Scotty 2 Hotty 77
Eddie Guerrero & Rey Mysterio 57
D-Generation X 57
Eddie Guerrero & Tajiri 44
Rey Mysterio & Rob Van Dam 35
Big Show & Kane 34
Edge & Chris Jericho 28
Rey Mysterio & Batista 14
Rey Mysterio & Edge 12
John Cena & The Miz 1

In celebration of Black History Month, I would like to share another historic moment from the WWE. On November 15, 1983, The Soul Patrol, made up of Tony Atlas and Rocky Johnson won the tag team championship belts when they defeated The Wild Samoans, made up of, Afa and Sika. This popular duo became the first African American tag team to win the tag team title. Before Wayde Dougles Bowles aka “Rocky Johnson” won the championship belt, he had already married into the prolific Samoan wrestling family he had defeated for the belt. In Polynesian tradition when men become blood brothers, it is a way to bring alliance, and a way to build better tribal relationships. Amituanai Anoa’i the father of Afa and Sika, considered Peter Maivia a “blood brother”, which they regarded him as an extension of the Anoa’i clan.

Rocky married the High Chief’s daughter Ata Maivia, who he met during a tag team match on the independent scene. They had a son named Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson on May 2, 1972. The Anoa’i family has made history by producing 4 generations of wrestlers including; The Rock, The Usos, and the latest addition to the WWE roster Roman Reign. Prior to Johnson’s wrestling career, he sparred with boxing legends like Muhammad Ali and George Foreman during his boxing career.  Anthony White aka Tony Atlas was a 3 time “Mr. USA” champion during his body building career.

You may wonder, how does this have any connection to Eddie Guererro or latinos? Well, Eddie is one of the very few wrestlers that had held the same belts of two Legendary wrestlers from the same family lineage; Father ,”Rocky Johnson”, and his son “The Rock”. Eddie even wrestled against “The Rock” on July 22, 2002.

In closing, it is amazing how everything strangely connects in life. Many of us never dream of going to various places, and meeting people from distant lands with different cultures and languages. Still, one thing is for sure, and that is when we have a certain passion, that passion will take us to places we never dreamed of, and we will meet people we never thought we would meet. I will leave you with the 1964 well known Sherman Brothers song title, which holds to be true in our world and lives.

“It’s a small world after all"

 


Events:
February 17, 2015
Pitbull & Enrique Iglesias

No comments:

Post a Comment