Jim Cornette on Ricky Steamboat
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- Опубліковано 19 жов 2024
- From Episode 333 of the Jim Cornette Experience
Artwork by Travis Heckel!
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I remember marking out like crazy for Steamboat against Jericho at WM XXV - the "You still got it" chants never been more appropriate
@C.Sauce: fuck yeah dude how awesome was that??? Ricky Steamboat out performed a few guys that night for sure 🤔🤔🤔all together now "You've still got it, you've still got it, you've still got it"
@@trevorhyde3139 could you imagine if he'd been in his prime during that match?
For those who knock Steamboat for being to "smooth", would you rather him be all goofy and stiff legged like Omega or doofy and no selling and overly flamboyant like the Bucks? Steamboat was a perfectionist. He was dedicated. His shit was smooth because he wanted the matches to have flow and look real.
Only an idiot would knock Steamboat being to smooth. Only time I have ever heard of knocking someone for being too good of a worker.
@@rolltide9547 *too
@Joe Greene who would you consider a great worker that was too smooth.
Steamboat was amazing, anyone who knocks him is clearly hallucinating. He was such a convincing seller, I thought he was near death when Savage hit him in the throat before WM 3. Respectfully, Kenny Omega is a proven money draw and a master storyteller. His matches with Okada reached heights that few others ever have. Both incredible talents- one doesn't have to knock one to appreciate the other, and vice-versa.
@@rolltide9547 Dolph Ziggler
My greatest memories of RICKY STEAMBOAT are:
1. Feud with FLAIR
2. Wrestlemania 3 against RANDY SAVAGE
3. getting DDT'd by JAKE ROBERTS on the concrete floor.
Why are you yelling all of the wrestlers names?! 😂🤣
Saw steamboat vs macho in Houston as a "rematch" little did I knew as a kid they traveled around the country as a rematch
@Steven DelGatto yeah. He gave him a double forehead.
@Steven DelGatto 1994 I think
My favorite is when he was Dustin Rhodes secret partner and they had one of the best tag team matches I've ever seen with Arn Anderson and Larry Zybisco at a Clash of Champions
One of the GOATs man. Steamboat was as fluid (smooth as silk) as anyone who ever stepped in a ring. Probably sold better than anyone, was a master story teller, and way, way ahead of his time.
If he ain't in your top 5.....
@@totallynotalpharius2283 Yeah, dont have to worry about that my guy. He's there.
@@totallynotalpharius2283
Bret
Steiner bro's
Arn
Steamboat
Savage? But man, I love 87-88 Barry Windham so damn much lol.
One of the best feuds in pro wrestling is the Ric Flair vs Ricky The Dragon Steamboat feud.
I don't understand their "Trilogy"; they probably wrestled each other one-on-one over a thousand times!
Steamboat once said. He and Savage had their match at Wrestlemania 3 scripted. This move would lead to this move.
With Ric Flair. Flair would ask Steamboat how long do they want the match to that night. Once they agreed on the length of time. They went out to the ring and figured it out.
Agreed.
Yep
@@bradpaton3927
In 89, the trilogy is 3 Pay per views of Flair losing the title to Steamboat, then hour draw, then Flair regained the title in the 3rd. There were countless matches that were house shows with no "tv" or video recording of the matches, that in many people's opinion were as good, or better than the "trilogy "
Cornette is totally on point here. Those Flair/Steamboat matches are really the last hurrah of the old territorial style of wrestling, where two main antagonists would work a program over several months and culminate it in a final match, followed by the company setting up a new series of bookings. It's also probably the last time that kayfabe was still strong enough that the fans could take the matches as serious sport, rather than just an entertainment enterprise.
Agree with Jim. Steamboat is one of the best to ever step into the squared circle. He was one of my first favorites as a kid. I finally got to meet him and it was an honor to get his autograph and shake his hand. He stood up from his table to take a picture with me. Class act.
This might be unpopular but,
Ricky Steamboat> Shawn Michaels
Yer darn tootin'!
TheJeffreyJJones Michaels looked positively decrepit (especially when he ran the ropes like a geriatric) in his comeback match, where as Steamboat looked like anything but during his comeback.
Til a mic gets put in front of him
@TheJeffreyJJones That comparison comes down to a matter of taste. I enjoy Steamboat but for me Shawn is better all around. He was just as Smooth as Ricky but he was a risk taker as well. Shawn exuded charisma, was great on the mic and was the leader of one of the greatest groups outside of the four horsemen. Ricky can’t top that in my opinion. Plus...Ricky ain’t called Mr. Wrestlemania, Shawn is.
Steamboat was more reliant on his opponents than HBK. In ring, they're both in my top 5 easily. Two guys that could absolutely go.
Everybody talks about the trio of matches with Flair, and I agree they're great, and obviously the Randy Savage match from WM3, too, but if you haven't seen Ricky's Iron Man match with Rick Rude from 1992, you owe it to yourself to check that one out.
Agreed. The Rude/Steamboat matches & feud from '92 are so, so good.
1992 WCW is so underapreciated.
@@DayFul Absolutely. One of my favorite years in the history of wrestling. I'm a WCW/JCP & Mid-South mark though.
There was a solid match with Steamboat and Bret Hart at The Boston Garden. Was rumored to be one of the matches for WM 2.
Yes! That match vs Rude stole the PPV.
His match with Bret in 86 is a gem as is his match with Austin in 94.
Those Flair v Steamboat matches are Gold Standard for sure. Corny is spot on with finding the perfect balance in putting on great match.
Ricky The Dragon Steamboat is a living legend and he had great matches with Ric flair. Also he had great matches with Randy Savage too. Excellence in the ring and had a great arm drag and a dropkick from heaven.
Greatest scientific wrestler I ever saw in my 40 years of wrestling fandom.
Met Ricky at the Brian Pullman memorial show . Very cool and humble. He signed my program and we talked about him vs Flair .
Ricky Steamboat is a legit friend of mine and he has my artwork up framed in his house just like you, Jim! But I have been his fan all my life, and watching Steamboat is pure poetry in motion.
Unpopular opinion: I always thought the WM match with Mach' was pretty good, but their match one month prior (which led to the feud) was even better.
Excellent comment. Are there any videos of that available on youtube or elsewhere?
@@organicallypoweredlife1417 I don't know . I saw it on the Macho Man DVD.
@@fuscinula I think I found it!
Mach and Steamboat never had a bad match in my opinion. That's a bar set HIGH.
Ricky the "Arm-Draggin' " Steamboat
AMEN
Good call. The observation makes the pun. Steamboat worked so close to his opponents on those armdrags, he was practically inside the guy's trunks.
Hands down the best ever at that maneuver.
'DEEP Arm-Draggin'. ;)
The Steamboat arm drag was awesome.
I always found it funny that quite possibly the biggest babyface of all times real last name is Blood.
Dick Blood.
Dad's name was Sam Steamboat. He was a player in the legendary 1967 Florida vendetta between Eddie Graham and Boris Malenko (Dean and Joe's dad). Malenko gave Steamboat a beating after the bell had already sounded. Graham charged to his rescue. They set up a spot where Graham kicked Malenko in the mouth and knocked out his dentures. Graham then stomped the guy's teeth into dust on the mat! So was Graham a face because he put his heel to Malenko's face while Malenko was a heel or...😂B.W.
Absolutely! He was born and raised as Richard Blood in New York State. I apologize for getting the other details incorrect.B.W.
And I just realized something. Oftentimes, both Jim Cornette and Arn Anderson will use an expression that caught on in Crockett Promotions. When Vince and his guys signed a guy or a team from JCP the word went around that they had "gone to New York." So when Rick Steamboat was signed by The WWF on his first tour there he didn't just "go to New York." He came back home!😂B.W.
He was never a heel but it would have been good if he had had a heel persona of his real name Richard Blood and then vehemently deny they were the same person.
The writer was probably talking about his years in the WWF. He held the IC title for a month and nothing else.
Flair v. Steamboat is the best series of matches, a modern equivalent would be Okada v. Tanahashi.
Or Misawa vs Kobashi
@@4zafinc To be fair Misawa vs Kobashi was 17 years ago.
@@L2DaK2Dap True. But modern compared to Flair vs Steamboat I'd suggest.
No. There is no comparison. Wrestling isn't as popular, as believable or as compelling as it was back then. Even the WWF would love to have those "struggle" numbers the Clash and PPVs from 89 did.
Thank god someone said Okada/Tanahashi instead of that overrated Okada/Omega.
The most underrated wrestler of his era
Fucked over. More like it. He should have been given the opportunity to win the big one.
Lmao this guy is a former nwa champion and held every belt in the promotion how is he underrated?
Jim nailed it. Steamboat was the best! He sold like nobody else! Tip-top, mega-talent!
When corny burries someone, he remembers. Godbless him for that
Steamboat was an NWA World Heavyweight Champion.
I only remember Ricky best match was the Ironman Match with Rick Rude.
Great match!👍🏻
I have the upmost respect for Ricky. It really looks like everybody likes him and you never heard something bad about him. Of course his wrestling abilities doesn't even need to be mentioned.
"Remember, Jim san: turtle whacks on, turtle whacks off . . . watch your shoes."
I always thought it was "Wax!"
Someone needs to ask Corny about Heidenreich just so I can see Travis' artwork in the thumbnail lol
With the giant chocolate bar!
I'm glad Cornette mentioned how well Steamboat sold because I believe the Dragon is the greatest realistic seller of all-time, not the fake collapse face-first fall Flair did in almost every competitive match.
Ricky was my favorite when I was a kid. I had an assload of those big non-poseable WWF wrestling figures back then and Ricky was champ and never lost a match to any of them.
My Ricky Steamboat was 74-0 against Greg The Hammer Valentine. Imagine my horror as I watched WM4.
@@themedianman9712 I had Ricky regularly kick the crap out of King Kong Bundy because that dude scared me. lol
I'm amazed we survived between flying wwe figures an tonka trucks....kids these days are soft
Ricky Steamboat was so smooth in the ring had the best armdrags in pro wrestling had one of the best dropkicks in pro wrestling
I was watching Steamboat in the late 70's/early 80's while in college in Richmond Virginia.....it was the major mid-atlantic promotion...was great.
I agree 100% with Corny. I was able to meet Steamboat in 2013 at a fan fest and he was very nice and very humble. I told him that the best match I ever saw was him and Macho at Wrestlemania 3 and he said, "Really?", like he was surprised it would be anyone's favorite match. He was great in the ring and, in my experience, a good person outside the ring.
Definitely the most underrated American wrestler, his matches should be required viewing material in wrestling schools.
Steamboat is not underrated at all. He is top ten easily and I agree his matches should be viewed by every single person who wants to get in the business.
My favorite wrestler growing up hands down was Ricky Steamboat. Nice to hear Jim Cornette have the utmost respect and nothing but positive things to say about The Dragon; a true class act and living legend.
I love when these start with Brian cracking up!
In 1991 Steamboat returned to the WWF and was forced to wear a ridiculous dragon costume while breathing fire. And despite all his previous accomplishments, the announcers pretended they had no idea who he was and treated him like a brand new wrestler.
Jimmy the Dragon Corn-boat 🤣🤣
I enjoyed Ricky the Dragon Steamboat vs Ravishing Rick Rude myself. I thought those two had excellent chemistry together😊
One overlooked great match was on Bret Hart’s first dvd. One of his favorites I guess. It was him vs Steamboat in 86’
RICKY STEAMBOAT WOULD WATCH BOXING MATCHES TO PERFECT THE JELLO LEGS AND DREAM STREET STATE OF BEING WHEN HE WOULD BE IN A BEAUTIFUL BACK AND FORTH PUNCHING SPOT IT WAS INCREDIBLE.
one thing I've noticed from studying the art of Steamboat's matches is the subtle heelish spots he used to do and got away with in matches against Flair and other heels. He'd give cheap shots but because he was such a clean, good natured, face persona, people either didn't notice it or didn't care. He'd do stuff behind the refs' back....a master at the art of wrestling...those armdrags, just everything he did was a 10.
Never won World Title ? Must be a WWF/WWE mark. Steamboat won the NWA World Title. Probably one of the greatest baby face workers of all time Jericho sites him as his biggest inspiration for getting into the buisness.
Of course, as Piper always looked at it, that's a badge of honor because you could get the fans to care without needing it.
I would have really liked to see Steamboat vs. Kevin Von Erich, or if they were both around at the same time Steamboat vs. Bret Hart or Shawn Michaels.
Those would be great, don't get me wrong -- but I'd also want to see things like Steamboat/Lesnar, because Steamboat's babyface selling was unmatched. This would be a totally believable David and Goliath situation.
My favorite Wrestlemania match was Steamboat vs Savage. No match is even close.
Yeah
Wrestlemania 3 was gold. I heard steamboat got punished by vince just because ricky wanted time off for his wife's giving birth to his son.
What a Legend, matter of fact it’s Legendary to hear a legend talk about a legend! Love the Mouth of the South and Steamboat!!
Snatch the pebble from my hand. Corvette is hilarious
A premier Baby Face. Another outstanding worker overlooked by the Bookers. Glad to see the world strap on him. Every young wrestler should watch the Flair vs Steamboat match! Steamboat was a perfectionist pre-fight and post-fight. Rick was a wonderful person to know. I just wished his son had not been injured. Richie could have carried the legacy of his family and the true form of wrestling. Rick knew every aspect of the business, from the finances, the promotions, the angles, to the finishes, and more. Thank YOU, Rick, for your meritorious years of service.
My favorite wrestler growing up in the 80's...
Saw steamboat vs macho man in Houston as a kid
Jim and brian, keep up the great work!!!👍
It would have been interesting if Ricky Steamboat had ever turned Heel in a compelling storyline 'swerve'
It's so cool to hear that Corny loves Steamboat. You can tell he genuinely is a huge fan.
Based On Steamboat 's athletic ability he could compete in any Era. I never heard anything bad about his carefulness in the ring he was so agile
Steamboat was amazing and loved his matches with Flair in ‘89. Had a chance to meet him and was first class all away!
Right on Jim. Ricky is still my favorite of all time, The greatest ever.
Ricky Steamboat fought ninjas who were wearing converse. He’s tough LOL
for anyone who is not old enough to remember Ricky Steamboat I have sympathy for you because you missed one of the greatest. Steamboat and Flair or Steamboat and Savage were 2 of the greatest matches of all time. J. C was right in saying he really was the dragon
Steamboat was one of the most talented wrestlers of all time. That guy could work his ass off. I have his DVD, 1 of the nicest people in this industry. Wasn’t ego driven like most of the wrestlers in the business.
One of my all time favorite wrestlers.
Steamboat vs. Flair in 1978-1979. Some of the greatest matches ever.
I met Ricky in 1986 while working out at my local Golds gym in Mississauga, Ontario. He was in town to wrestle at Maple Leaf Gardens. He was doing donkey calf raises with his wife sitting on his back. Nice guy.
I use to go to a golds gym at Rockwood mall back in the day in mississauga its long gone now...damn I would of love to meet steam boat
Ricky Steamboat's tag team with Jay Youngblood is the most underrated unit in the sport's history. Another few years together in one or more territories and they are top 5 all time. That said Steamboat was a great tag team wrestler and a great singles star that quite frankly should have been given a second run with a World Title. The matches with Rude in the 90s were awesome and as a fan who hated the heels, Steamboat was a guy you never worried about turning which made him one of the best ever in my book. And, the cherry on top, was that though it seemed like Flair won more against Steamboat, when I went back and looked at their overall records, including house shows, Steamboat leads by a pretty hefty margin. I always knew The Dragon was better than Flair.
I love Steamboat but this question must have been from a younger fan. They didn't just give away WWF world title runs back in those days the way they do today. Hogan was the golden goose and that belt was staying right there until someone got to his level or Hogan stopped drawing.
Yeah, growing up I would've never thought of Steamboat or Dusty as being more than (frankly bad) mid-card guys, little did I know what they were before the WWF.
Steamboat possibly could of had Macho Man's spot at WM4, but Steamboat wanted time away to be with his Mrs after the birth of their child. Vince ain't down with that, hence Steamboat having 50/50 booking once he came back.
He was probably just a WWF fan . He probably didn't know he went to wcw
Steamboat and Savage were both beyond Hogan's level. I've heard that Hogan was behind Steamboat getting fired and I believe it. The Mega Powers meant Hogan was always in the picture during Macho Man's title run.
Wuttamark Stop bsing. Hogan wouldn’t drop the belt to anybody
Steamboat’s “smoothness” was a revelation at the time: so few workers were smooth at all. It made Steamboat stand-out. But he didn’t make it look like ballet.
Backlash 2009? Was it jericho vs steamboat ? Very underrated classic from his later years.
You guys should check out Jericho vs Steamboat in 09 Backlash. It’s crazy how Steamboat was moving around in his 50s.
My all-time favourite.
Steamboat didn't work enough to keep the company behind him
Ric Flair, Randy Savage and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin have all named Ricky Steamboat as their favourite opponent.
One of my favorite wrestlers. I wish he could have been used well in the industry.
Would have loved to have seen Steamboat turn heel just once.
I believe he had said that it was his only regret.
Steamboat was COOL to me too! Except during the "Family Man" bits! I first saw he and Flair in the mid 70s during a trip to the Carolinas!
Steamboat was one of the best,if not the best when I started watching rassling in 86,he was magnificent.
"goddam body of a greek god" don't know why that made me laugh
Jim mocks the fan for not knowing about Ricky's WCW World Title.
But I lived in Australia, and we only got WWF late at night ("WWF Superstars Of Wrestling") at 1.30am in the morning.
This was in 1987, 88, and my brothers and I taped WWF on VHS.
My only exposure to WCW was from wrestling magazines which was six months old by the time they arrived in Australia.
My point is, WCW wasn't in a lot of countries, and there was no internet, so very easy to miss Steamboat's WCW Title reign.
My nephew called him Ricky steamdragon
Smooth was part of his appeal. I always thought that made him better than others
Loved their best of three falls match on Clash of the Champions.
One big factor why Flair and Steamboat were so good together and smooth was because they trained at the same camp together growing up
Ricky Steamboat won the NWA title in 1989. One of the greatest all-around wrestlers of all time. Youngblood and Steamboat were a great team. Steamboat and Snuka could have been one of the greatest tag teams of all time.
I didn't know what happened to him after he left WWF, we didn't get NWA, or WCW, whatever it was called then, in my area. I only found out a few years later through magazines that he had a series of bangers with Flair. He was my fav WWF guy, then he just vanished.
He didn’t have to say “to me” at the end
What was the name of Ricky's entrance theme during his mid 80s WWF run?
The 🐉’ Snatch The Pebble from my hand ‘ Grasshoppa’ Wo-Woooooooo-Wo
Ricky Steamboat was a top notch wrestler.
You give me a Steamboat, Hart, Angle, Benoit Bryan, Henning early Austin and Styles with no interviews I would be happy
Steamboat was great. He really was.
Like Brian Pillman, a life stolen by a horrible wife.
I was a fan of RS when he was in the WWF.
Didn’t give a poop about the wife and son gimmick.
Yes, I know they really were his family. I just thought the idea stunk.
Aftrr watching AEW talent, I just can't imagine how anything can be wrong with being too smooth
3:30 Where did Jim rescue these films from?
Loved his matches with Flair and Randy Savage
I groaned when I heard that part of the question regarding a world title. S.M.H.
Simple fact...the Flair/Steamboat matches are still considered my many the greatest 'in ring' matches WCW ever saw...while the Savage/Steamboat match at Wrestlemania 3 is considered by many to be one of the greatest matches of all time. There's one common denominator there...and that should tell you all you need to know about how GREAT of a wrestler Ricky Steamboat was.
I think his most impressive match was the handicap against Jericho where Piper and Snuka were the other guys and they were pretty well blown up after the first two minutes so Ricky had to carry that match for the oldsters.
To the best of my knowledge, he is one of the few who never received a Four Horsemen beatdown.
You take your Austins, Hogans and Rocks, give me Bret, Owen, Steamboat, Dynamite, Benoit, Henning and Bryan.
You can have Benoit, and I will throw in Superfly for free
Yes, you can take your list of Bret, Benoit, etc and have 1000 empty seats in your 1500 seat high school gym.
@Joe Greene Yeah that shows how people respect wrestling.
@@handsolo1209 Well at least those would be the fans who respect and love true technical wrestling.
@@ichneumon2776 *Translation* - "Well at least those would be the marks who think this shit is real, and who hate people who could draw money with charisma, and people who were tall and had muscles, so they cheer for charisma vacuum midgets who do a shit gymnastic display because it reflects who they are themselves as they can always look like a Young Buck and talk like Dean Malenko, but never look like Lex Luger or have charisma like Hulk Hogan."
Steamboat was at his best against Ric Flair in 1989. I wish the NWA would have given him a second run with the World title. He's one of only a few wrestlers I can recall that never turned heel.
I most remember Steamboat's feud with Jake the Snake. That was some cool stuff. On another note The Polish Hammer Ivan Putski is one of my favorite wrestlers even though I know little about him and have hardly seen any footage of him so if I was to ask a question on him it might sound like this guys.
@Marshall W you could very well be right. It's been awhile since I saw those old black and white matches. I remember Polish Hammer. His finisher was the Polish Hammer maybe that's where I got that.
@Marshall W I agree! I just looked up his wiki it said he went by both "Polish Power" and "Polish Hammer". I liked him cause he was basically a little big man and the Polish Hammer move was he bounced off the ropes and came down with a double hammer smash. Simple but believable. In Goldberg's book he said "you've got to be able to do your finisher on anybody" and this definitely worked for anyone no matter how big. Ivan was wrestling dudes like Billy Graham and Jesse Ventura so big guys. They have Putski at 5'8".
@Marshall W I'm 5'8" too. That's pretty tall for a dwarf!