Steamboat is one of the few wrestlers who actually retired as a normal person in comfort and not end up a broke drug addict like so many other pro wrestlers.
The NWA/WCW gave Ric Flair 2 1/2 months off right after he won back the world title from Steamboat at Wrestlewar on May 7, 1989. But Vince wouldn't let Ricky Steamboat have two weeks off to be with his newborn son and wife. I think that was a prick move on Vince's part.
Pity he could never hold onto a championship belt for longer than 3 months though. Every time he held a major championship and won it in style he then lost it! WWF Intercontinental Championship, NWA World championship, WCW World Tag Team Championship, WCW TV Championship, WCW United States Championship etc etc. It was always the same story with him. Could wrestle for a belt well enough in epic fashion, but don't expect him to be a great champion? Because he soon dropped the belt he always held way too quickly!
MGSBigBoss77 I’m not sure about why that was but I’ve read that Ricky was all about family first and to have held a title for a long time would’ve required him to have been on the road for long periods of time and that’s why he didn’t hold a major title for a long time originally McMahon had planned to keep Steamboat as IC Champion for a long time but then Ricky asked for time off to be with his newborn baby.
For the WWF Intercontinental Championship i understand as his kid was then born in 1987. But what were the pacific reasons why he couldn't hold onto other wrestling Championships past the IC belt though? He was injured after he won the WCW TV title in the 90's i understand, but why he'd drop the US and World titles when he was physically active however!
MGSBigBoss77 I don’t know why so many of his title reigns were short but I think that Jim Crockett, Jr. once said Steamboat wasn’t as willing to spend time on the road as other top wrestlers were and that would make it harder to have long title runs. Steamboat actually retired once while he and Jay Youngblood were NWA World Tag Team Champions he unretired and joined the WWF in 1984.
Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flairs rivalry in the 80s was some of the best wrestling ever. Sorry Honky Tonk you were nowhere near Steamboats level. Not to mention Savage vs Steamboat at WM 3 is one of if not the best matches in WWF/E history
Honky Tonk successfully defended at WM4. Savage LOST the I-C Title at WM3. Honky Tonk > Steamboat. Steamboat was scared to fight Honky because Steamboat knew in his heart Honky is a better athlete.
@@905JimRaynor Gtfo troll, you must have hit your ogre sized skull. HTM lost at WrestleMania 4 by DQ, I'd hardly call that a "successful defense ". Steamboat could wrestle circles around just about everyone in the WWF at that time.
The Dragon was my favorite as a 13 year old back in the 80s. Watching the A&E Legends show on him last night just cemented it even further. One of the best ever in the ring and he seems like such a down to earth guy. He's earned his happy retirement.
Steamboat was a tremendous athlete. In the ring very few guys, including HTM, could match him. But he didn't have an over the top personality. He was a much better fit in the NWA. Steamboat had many classic matches in the Mid Atlantic territory. In the WWF matches were usually shorter but Steamboat was one of the few guys that could do a 30 to 60 minute match and make it extremely entertaining.
LOL Imagine that you just walk down the hallway, there you see the boss and his top draw talking. All you want is to walk by and then suddenly they say: what about him? Your first thought: whats with me? have i done something wrong?. Their next sentence: you are the next IC champion get ready you win the belt tonight." ...Well ... ok ... if i really have to ...
Butch Reed had all the potential in the world to be a major star as "The Natural" Butch Reed, but he blew it. He managed to go on to tag team stardom in WCW along with Ron Simmons, but sadly, I think Simmons had the better singles runs after that. I loved the Natural character because it was different, not entirely original (as it was a take on Sweet Daddy Siki), but different for the time. Wow, Reed could have been the first black IC champ years before Ahmed Johnson took that honour.
This guy wasn't ever in Steamboat's league on his best day. For him and the interviewer to act like he was a better talent than Steamboat is a complete joke. Steamboat's matches with Flair (and Savage...and almost anyone else he ever wrestled) speak for themselves. Steamboat is probably one of the best wrestlers of all time...a true legend. It's too bad he was so underrated...
There's so much more to it than that. At the time I was surprised that HTM took the strap, but he proved himself. He drew serious heat. Honky was a great heel. And he was superb on the mic. Honky was a great IC champ.
All due respect, i think you need to re- watch this video. At no point did Honky say that. He said Steamboat wouldnt get the matches Honky did, as Steamboat was in the matches with the big super talents (ie. Hogan, Bundy, Andre etc) Honky was actually giving him kudos here
I remember watching that match on Saturday morning superstars. I was so upset that Steamboat lost. Now that u find out the back story, it's like ok I get it. Little did everyone know Steamboats fate was sealed with wwf.
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, as a wrestler and as a man, had it all over HTM, and Vince too. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, "Nature Boy" Ric Flair and Randy "Macho Man" Savage went onto big things after fighting Steamboat (I know Flair was a great before their series as well), and all three men named him as their greatest opponent, and he was their opponent in their greatest ever matches. I wonder if Vince got upset with Steamboat taking time off to see his son being born, because Vince might have felt guilty that he was working when Shane and Stephanie were born.
Probably a true story in HTM becoming IC Champ, as Butch Reed said recently on a shoot he was considered for the IC Championship but do to missing some small show dates WWF brass went another route.
I knew Elvis used to wrestle back in the day. He even beat Bruce Lee with his karate if I remembered correctly. Becoming the ic champ. It's all coming back to me.
That's basically it. There wasn't a very good mid-card in 1987-1988. Savage was meant for the world championship. Hogan was too big for the IC Title. Andre wasn't able to hold up (and was meant for bigger things when he could hold up). Jake was unreliable to say the least. Brutus was never going to be big. Guys like Bret and Shawn were still in the tag team division and weren't ready for it (well Bret probably was but was busy holding up another division). And of course Steamboat didn't value wrestling as much as he did his family. So yeah... HTM was able to hold the title because he was the best of very very very few options and once they got a better one he was done (and for a while those better options included Rick Rude, and The Texas Tornado... yeah...).
@@endersdragon34 ...Rick Rude could've been bigger than mid-card(my opinion - yet maybe not...well not on Vinces world at least! "Not big enough"), other than that your comment is spot-on.
I agree but you have to HTM a lot of credit for his run.Considering all the big names in the business he did well for himself with a gimmick that was pretty quirky. Whatever the reason even if it only came about for because of a no show and a guy wanting time off. he had feuds with biggest stars and we are still talking about him today. He did an amazing radio interview with a plastered Ric Flair calling in... Link to the radio show ruclips.net/video/QFLnfk1w56Y/видео.html
@@alanndrake2619 people loved to hate H.T.M. They didn't come to see or expect a great wrestling match. Ricky had awesome matches with ric flair, macho man and most anyone eles he got in the ring with..What was H.T.Ms big match?..only way H.T.M drew was because of who he was up against, they came to see him get his ass kicked..People like Hogan kept his career going
I liked Steamboat and Honky's matches. They suited each other. Not sure why Honky is so down on him here. And while I think Honky was great IC champion, length of tenure is not the real issue. It's all about impact. Both he and Steamboat made it.
the steamboat match was totally unreal ... it looked like a screwjob I'll always remember the Saturday nights Main Event with Macho Man... when SNME came on it was like watching ppv it had that saturated quality in the production whereas Superstars and Wrestling Challenge seemed like it was a lot of smoke in the air... lol
Steamboat is still my all time favorite to this day. He was a straight up beast in every single way. He had a mat game, he could fly with the best of of him, this technical abilities, body, look, and showmanship was second to none. He never got the push, or credit he truly should have. I am still pissed to this day, that they gave the belt the the Honky Tonk man over Steamboat, and I like the Honkey Tonk man, but no way he was a better champion that Steamboat, and even the Macho man was still a close second.
I think Ricky Steamboat had just enough flash that it enhanced his character, without it distracting from the fact that in the ring, he was one of the very best, he's like Bret Hart in a way, where his gimmick was essentially being the man in between the ropes.
+FallicIdol When HTM won the belt, Savage was the first one to congratulate him in the locker room. Savage didn't turn face until a couple months later. So technically, at the time Vince took the belt from Steamboat, Steamboat likely was the second most popular face.
@@WLUgradSavage R.I.P. didn't become a good guy until more than a couple of months later. About 9 months later Jake had been turned good, but he wasn't as established w/ the fans as a good guy, so Ricky probably was 2nd behind Hogan most likely.
And funny how hogan gave the endorsement for it. From what's been said he was pissed ricky and randy stole the show at wm 3. What better way to get back at a true talent than give it to one with no in ring talent and let him run with it for longer than Savage did. Then get squashed in about a minute to the warrior lol
I have heard numerous interviews where they call it the WWE when talking about the 80s. I remember it as the WWF back then, and I wondered what was going on. I looked it up. It wasn't called the WWE until well after the 80s. I think they're just saying WWE because that is what it was called when the interviews took place.
In a legit match, HTM could never out wrestle or out fight Steamboat. HTM never impressed me as a wrestler. I remember Steamboat's matches against Flair in the old NWA, and his win over Savage at WrestleMania 3. I've never seen HTM wrestle and move like Steamboat, but that stupid Vince McMahon ruined it for a great wrestler like Steamboat and he ruined wrestling in general.
@Mongoose 1980 Smarks don't know anything about wrestling. They think being able to do a pretty dropkick or top rope stuff makes you good, they don't understand the best wrestlers are the ones who can put guys over, which HTM did very well.
Honestly it wasn't even a few months. I spoke with Ricky personally and he only wanted 3-4 weeks at best off yet the company wanted the title on TV still. Ricky was very upset at the decision and one of the factors which eventually led him to the NWA and his run there.
@@Skiddy622 for the best, WWF would have never given him a real run. They valued big guys with big personalities. Ricky was a smaller guy with a decent sized personality. They didn't care that he could fight better than anyone else they had.
Steamboats departure started with him asking for two weeks off to be with his wife or the birth of their child. Vince immediately forced him to drop the belt to the Honky Tonk man, which prompted Steamboat to tell WWE he was going to take six months off. Once he came back towards the end of 1987, WWE treated Ricky like a complete jabroni and gave him no push at all. After they made him job out to Greg Valentine at WM4, which prevented a Steamboat/Savage PPV rematch, he left right after. Ricky made the right decision.
Had Steamboat been more of Vince's type of team player HTM would have never had the strap. Not knocking HTM but that's the truth. Steamboat was going to be given a huge push. HTM was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time.
Ricky my understanding went to Vince and wanted to spend more time with his family. So Vince said you just won it we will need you around but didn't work out that way . So Honky is correct.
I'll preface this question by saying that I know wrestlers in and our of the ring are tremendous athletes. And for them to give these consistent shows without getting seriously hurt is nothing short of amazing. But I've never understood why wrestlers that are giving non kayfabe interviews still site belts and championships as signs of how good they were. How can they do that when the results of matches are predetermined?
“[Steamboat] succumbed to the pressures of family life.” This is one of the dumbest sentences I’ve ever heard anyone speak. What kind of idiot tries to put a negative spin on the idea of being a grown man who puts his family first. Unreal.
"They remember who I lost to, but not who I won [sic]" That's because in your entire run as IC champion you didn't have a single match worth paying attention to, despite the legends you shared a ring with. If it wasn't for Hogan telling Vince to run with you, you'd have lost the belt in a matter of weeks as the worthless transitional champion you were. Nearly every title defense you had ended in a DQ which showed just how little the creative team believed you could have clean wins over super stars in a good match. HTM was a great promo, and he knew enough about the business to have good in ring psychology... but considering he is the longest reigning IC champ ever, you'd think someone would be able to recollect one great match he had.
Now I really wished that "The Natural" Butch Reed was around. He could have been the 1st black intercontinental champ. What a missed opportunity! Where was he? The Slickster could've finally had a champion in his stable. Damn.
This is unfair on Steamboat. Steamboat could have been a huge star in the WWE if McMahon hadn’t been so petty. He wanted some time off - understandably - the timing wasn’t ideal as he was IC champion but he could been brought back and quickly move back up the card.
He says that Steamboat gave in to "the pressures of home life". Well, I would HOPE SO. Nothing is more important than family. If Steamboat allowed his family to fall apart just to keep the title, ... (hell, I don't even need to finish the sentence, do I?) I have watched a lot of HTM's interviews, and he seems like a reasonable person. But really, what's more important? Job at pretending to fight, or real life family? I loved to watch Steamboat in the ring, and I intentionally NEVER watched a single HTM match, because I felt his gimmick was so very weak. I would just turn the channel. There you have it.
You know what. His son was interviewed, and his son talks glowingly about his father, and was really stoked that his dad gave up glory to see him be born.
Wayne Farris was a joke as a wrestler. His character was a clown, designed to draw as much heat as possible. Farris couldn't work, he had limited moves, but he drew heat. In the Mid-South and Memphis areas he was a fantastic heel.
I remember his time in Memphis as one-half of the Blond Bombers and their feud with Bill Dundee and Jerry Lawler. The concession stand fight in Tupelo, MS in 1979 is legendary in the business.
Right. Thanks. That match was a title defense. Okay, then the lumberjack match had to be on the MSG channel. I may have also been thinking of the George "The Animal" Steel vs Savage lumberjack match that took place on SNME and got them mixed up.
Steamboat is one of the few wrestlers who actually retired as a normal person in comfort and not end up a broke drug addict like so many other pro wrestlers.
Yep. Ricky was a solid wrestler and a solid family man. He is normal.
Yep. Way smarter than they are.
@@josephpeeler5434 ✅
Tito Santana also managed to make a good life after wrestling.
5 wives is kind of wild but agreed
Nothing but respect for steamboat placing his personal life over his professional one.
The NWA/WCW gave Ric Flair 2 1/2 months off right after he won back the world title from Steamboat at Wrestlewar on May 7, 1989. But Vince wouldn't let Ricky Steamboat have two weeks off to be with his newborn son and wife. I think that was a prick move on Vince's part.
@@stevendrumm4957I believe it was 6 weeks. But yeah in those days, Vince didn’t care
Ricky Steamboat was a serious talent, in some of the best matches ever.
Pity he could never hold onto a championship belt for longer than 3 months though. Every time he held a major championship and won it in style he then lost it! WWF Intercontinental Championship, NWA World championship, WCW World Tag Team Championship, WCW TV Championship, WCW United States Championship etc etc. It was always the same story with him. Could wrestle for a belt well enough in epic fashion, but don't expect him to be a great champion? Because he soon dropped the belt he always held way too quickly!
MGSBigBoss77 I’m not sure about why that was but I’ve read that Ricky was all about family first and to have held a title for a long time would’ve required him to have been on the road for long periods of time and that’s why he didn’t hold a major title for a long
time originally McMahon had planned to
keep Steamboat as IC Champion for a
long time but then Ricky asked for time
off to be with his newborn baby.
For the WWF Intercontinental Championship i understand as his kid was then born in 1987. But what were the pacific reasons why he couldn't hold onto other wrestling Championships past the IC belt though? He was injured after he won the WCW TV title in the 90's i understand, but why he'd drop the US and World titles when he was physically active however!
MGSBigBoss77 I don’t know why so many
of his title reigns were short but I think that Jim Crockett, Jr. once said Steamboat
wasn’t as willing to spend time on the
road as other top wrestlers were
and that would make it harder to have
long title runs.
Steamboat actually retired once while he
and Jay Youngblood were NWA World Tag
Team Champions he unretired and joined
the WWF in 1984.
when Jake the snake slapped that ddt on steamboat on the concrete was most memorable match for me
I loved Ricky Steamboat....I still do
Steamboat had the best arm drag in the business.
Yeh man *deep arm drag*
But got to give Jack Briscoe his due as that where Ricky got it from. But yeah Ricky's is legendary.
ovbviously
He would be in mid air when he did his arm drags.
Factual
Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flairs rivalry in the 80s was some of the best wrestling ever. Sorry Honky Tonk you were nowhere near Steamboats level. Not to mention Savage vs Steamboat at WM 3 is one of if not the best matches in WWF/E history
Even though it's not Honky's fault, I still don't like him for winning the title from Steamboat.
watch some of Honky Tonk's matches. Seriously he was a great technical wrestler
Honky Tonk successfully defended at WM4. Savage LOST the I-C Title at WM3. Honky Tonk > Steamboat. Steamboat was scared to fight Honky because Steamboat knew in his heart Honky is a better athlete.
@@905JimRaynor Gtfo troll, you must have hit your ogre sized skull. HTM lost at WrestleMania 4 by DQ, I'd hardly call that a "successful defense ". Steamboat could wrestle circles around just about everyone in the WWF at that time.
HONKY TONK MAN was pretty damn popular and highly entertaining
Steamboat was an awesome talent. Fun to watch. I still to this day feel Steamboat vs Savage (Wrestlemania 3) stole the show.
The Dragon was my favorite as a 13 year old back in the 80s. Watching the A&E Legends show on him last night just cemented it even further. One of the best ever in the ring and he seems like such a down to earth guy. He's earned his happy retirement.
Steamboat was a tremendous athlete. In the ring very few guys, including HTM, could match him. But he didn't have an over the top personality. He was a much better fit in the NWA. Steamboat had many classic matches in the Mid Atlantic territory. In the WWF matches were usually shorter but Steamboat was one of the few guys that could do a 30 to 60 minute match and make it extremely entertaining.
He’s one of those guys that looked old when he was young but never aged and now that he’s old he looks young
LOL Imagine that you just walk down the hallway, there you see the boss and his top draw talking. All you want is to walk by and then suddenly they say: what about him? Your first thought: whats with me? have i done something wrong?. Their next sentence: you are the next IC champion get ready you win the belt tonight." ...Well ... ok ... if i really have to ...
Steamboat and Superfly were two of the most underrated talents in wrestling. They never got their flowers. SMH.
Butch Reed had all the potential in the world to be a major star as "The Natural" Butch Reed, but he blew it. He managed to go on to tag team stardom in WCW along with Ron Simmons, but sadly, I think Simmons had the better singles runs after that. I loved the Natural character because it was different, not entirely original (as it was a take on Sweet Daddy Siki), but different for the time. Wow, Reed could have been the first black IC champ years before Ahmed Johnson took that honour.
Honor
Agreed I thought the natural was going to be really big in wwf back then
Ricky The Dragon Steamboat! Fantastic!
This guy wasn't ever in Steamboat's league on his best day. For him and the interviewer to act like he was a better talent than Steamboat is a complete joke. Steamboat's matches with Flair (and Savage...and almost anyone else he ever wrestled) speak for themselves. Steamboat is probably one of the best wrestlers of all time...a true legend. It's too bad he was so underrated...
There's so much more to it than that. At the time I was surprised that HTM took the strap, but he proved himself. He drew serious heat. Honky was a great heel. And he was superb on the mic. Honky was a great IC champ.
All due respect, i think you need to re- watch this video. At no point did Honky say that. He said Steamboat wouldnt get the matches Honky did, as Steamboat was in the matches with the big super talents (ie. Hogan, Bundy, Andre etc) Honky was actually giving him kudos here
He wasn't underrated he was just boring
No way man! Honky rules! He's just tellin it like it is (was). Wiki was just a Hawaiian Tito Santana
Agreed 🏆.
I remember watching that match on Saturday morning superstars. I was so upset that Steamboat lost. Now that u find out the back story, it's like ok I get it. Little did everyone know Steamboats fate was sealed with wwf.
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, as a wrestler and as a man, had it all over HTM, and Vince too.
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin, "Nature Boy" Ric Flair and Randy "Macho Man" Savage went onto big things after fighting Steamboat (I know Flair was a great before their series as well), and all three men named him as their greatest opponent, and he was their opponent in their greatest ever matches.
I wonder if Vince got upset with Steamboat taking time off to see his son being born, because Vince might have felt guilty that he was working when Shane and Stephanie were born.
I love the way this guy tells stories, I could listen to him talk about the old days for hours
HTM wouldn’t put over Jesus Christ if he was the world’s top babyface.
“He was a magnificent wrestler, but those sandals slowed him down in the ring.”
He might if it was worth it to him and the money was right...H.T.Ms problem is he thinks Hes better than Jesus
@Dante Carroll well they are cousins big heads must run in the fam
@Dante Carroll fair enough Dante that's very moving✌️✊☮️
Lord Jesus Christ doesn't have to face anyone. He would easily win. He is the Almighty God.
@@thespaceram2879 I pray to Joe Pesci
Still that match with ricky vs savage, we're still talking about it today. It's a pity ricky never fulfilled his purpose with the IC belt.
Ricky dragon truly one of greatest
if your asking questions please mic yourself. it would be nice to know what question he is answering.
exactly!
Ham and egger's gonna ham and egg.
This a decade ago and you could just put on headphones.😐
@@dmike7339 A decade is 10 years. Even still, there were plenty of good microphones available 10 years ago.
as a 35 year old Ricky is one of my 10 favorite of all time
Probably a true story in HTM becoming IC Champ, as Butch Reed said recently on a shoot he was considered for the IC Championship but do to missing some small show dates WWF brass went another route.
I knew Elvis used to wrestle back in the day. He even beat Bruce Lee with his karate if I remembered correctly. Becoming the ic champ. It's all coming back to me.
I'm starting to think that HTM held the I.C. title so long because Jake the Snake was all fucked up in rehab for crack.
That's basically it. There wasn't a very good mid-card in 1987-1988. Savage was meant for the world championship. Hogan was too big for the IC Title. Andre wasn't able to hold up (and was meant for bigger things when he could hold up). Jake was unreliable to say the least. Brutus was never going to be big. Guys like Bret and Shawn were still in the tag team division and weren't ready for it (well Bret probably was but was busy holding up another division). And of course Steamboat didn't value wrestling as much as he did his family. So yeah... HTM was able to hold the title because he was the best of very very very few options and once they got a better one he was done (and for a while those better options included Rick Rude, and The Texas Tornado... yeah...).
@@endersdragon34 ...Rick Rude could've been bigger than mid-card(my opinion - yet maybe not...well not on Vinces world at least! "Not big enough"), other than that your comment is spot-on.
I agree but you have to HTM a lot of credit for his run.Considering all the big names in the business he did well for himself with a gimmick that was pretty quirky. Whatever the reason even if it only came about for because of a no show and a guy wanting time off. he had feuds with biggest stars and we are still talking about him today. He did an amazing radio interview with a plastered Ric Flair calling in...
Link to the radio show
ruclips.net/video/QFLnfk1w56Y/видео.html
@@isaacsilverman5249 That was off the rails, Mr. Silverman😂 lol.......Slick Ric!!
@@michaelvaughn8864 it is incredibly funny but kind of sad too.
The dragon was NWA champ! Who cares how long he held the IC belt...
roberto bravo held it for only a couple of weeks
vince...apparently
@@imreadytoberuledbyap over 2 months actually as ic champ
When wrestling was fun and incredibly entertaining. Nothing against today's wrestlers i just cant get into it.
That's actually really sad, the last line that is.
Erlyk Dalkien When I heard that, man my heart dropped.
I see many of the comments dogging on Honky Tonk Man........ but think about it...if you WANTED to see him lose the belt, you'd buy a ticket.
H.T.M comparing himself to Ricky lmao. H.T.M could have held the belt for 10 years and wouldn't have ever been as good as steamboat
He was a good heel champ people hate him. Him as a heel champ did well. Steamboat might been a bigger draw but he was not commit to the business.
mike dow Gimme a fuckin break, Steamboat was NEVER the draw that HTM was..🤣
Honky was funny and he could sell but he didnt have any great moves like the dragon
@@alanndrake2619 people loved to hate H.T.M. They didn't come to see or expect a great wrestling match. Ricky had awesome matches with ric flair, macho man and most anyone eles he got in the ring with..What was H.T.Ms big match?..only way H.T.M drew was because of who he was up against, they came to see him get his ass kicked..People like Hogan kept his career going
Jesus Christ, he wasn't saying Steamboat was bad. He was saying Steamboat did not accomplish anything in the WWF.
Honky Tonk Man was Awesome!! Love his interviews as well.
The Rodney Dangerfield of pro wrestling.. salute!
Wery intrested to hear whats going on in BS wrestling. I love it it was a real good show.
I liked Steamboat and Honky's matches. They suited each other. Not sure why Honky is so down on him here. And while I think Honky was great IC champion, length of tenure is not the real issue. It's all about impact. Both he and Steamboat made it.
I loved both Ricky and Honky. As a kid
Steamboat and Dynamite in his prime years) will go down in history as probably the top workers who have a major influenced on today's pro wrestling.
the steamboat match was totally unreal ... it looked like a screwjob
I'll always remember the Saturday nights Main Event with Macho Man... when SNME came on it was like watching ppv it had that saturated quality in the production whereas Superstars and Wrestling Challenge seemed like it was a lot of smoke in the air... lol
Work a couple independent wrestling shows with HTM. So laid-back and real.
I feel wwe should go back to WWF cause that was real word.
Julio Stadtler legal reasons...
Macho defeated Tito February 8 or 9th 86 ..hed hold it all the way through to WM 3 where hed drop it to Steamboat at the end of March 87
I remember Ricky the dragon hanging by his karate belt from the top rope
Say what you want about Steamboat but his match with Savage in wrestle mania 3 was the best of all time
His matches vs flair 1989 were better
But yet Hogan and Andre drew more money so who had the better match?
Steamboat is still my all time favorite to this day. He was a straight up beast in every single way. He had a mat game, he could fly with the best of of him, this technical abilities, body, look, and showmanship was second to none. He never got the push, or credit he truly should have.
I am still pissed to this day, that they gave the belt the the Honky Tonk man over Steamboat, and I like the Honkey Tonk man, but no way he was a better champion that Steamboat, and even the Macho man was still a close second.
I think Ricky Steamboat had just enough flash that it enhanced his character, without it distracting from the fact that in the ring, he was one of the very best, he's like Bret Hart in a way, where his gimmick was essentially being the man in between the ropes.
Steamboat lost the belt because of circumstance's, not because he wasn't over. He was the 2nd most popular babyface at the time after Hogan.
New Here Macho Man was a face by then, so I'd say Steamboat was 3rd or 4th.
+FallicIdol When HTM won the belt, Savage was the first one to congratulate him in the locker room. Savage didn't turn face until a couple months later. So technically, at the time Vince took the belt from Steamboat, Steamboat likely was the second most popular face.
@@WLUgradSavage R.I.P. didn't become a good guy until more than a couple of months later. About 9 months later
Jake had been turned good, but he wasn't as established w/ the fans as a good guy, so Ricky probably was 2nd behind Hogan most likely.
I was a big fan salute 💪🏽
It was not credible when Steamboat to put Honky over back then. I liked HTM's character, but he still had no business beating Ricky.
I think Butch Reed might've been a better choice
By far. He would have brought the "raw era" sooner.
Jesus no, lol
Pure Carney to the bone.
The IC belt just fell into HTM lap. Steamboat was ten times in the ring
Steamboat was better but he was not commit to the business. How u make money if with him.
WWF did the right thing put the belt on HTM.
Perry Ball it was two weeks only. Have him out with a injury. A satellite or pre recorded segment for TV in that time or something. And that's all.
And funny how hogan gave the endorsement for it. From what's been said he was pissed ricky and randy stole the show at wm 3. What better way to get back at a true talent than give it to one with no in ring talent and let him run with it for longer than Savage did. Then get squashed in about a minute to the warrior lol
vince should have treated his top tier a lot better ! ricky deserved time he was a much bigger draw than brock the crock lesnar !!
Honky just walking by as Hogan and Vince deciding who to put the IC belt on!!! He’s the Forrest Gump of the WWF!!😂😂😂😂😂
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat = 🐐
@@TheSirVtec yeah...you spelled GOAT wrong buddy.
Aww man, just found out Butch Reed passed away a few days ago. RIP
Sad may he rest in peace. Legends were the best
I have heard numerous interviews where they call it the WWE when talking about the 80s. I remember it as the WWF back then, and I wondered what was going on. I looked it up. It wasn't called the WWE until well after the 80s. I think they're just saying WWE because that is what it was called when the interviews took place.
Memo to WWF Intercontinental Champs: NEVER get married. Yet.
I think now you can pull it off because the WWE doesn't care about house shows anymore. Back then, yeah they needed house shows.
In a legit match, HTM could never out wrestle or out fight Steamboat. HTM never impressed me as a wrestler. I remember Steamboat's matches against Flair in the old NWA, and his win over Savage at WrestleMania 3. I've never seen HTM wrestle and move like Steamboat, but that stupid Vince McMahon ruined it for a great wrestler like Steamboat and he ruined wrestling in general.
cac123ish - As HTM says himself. He’s an entertainer who happens to be a wrestler. He’s not a fighter. He never pretended to.
So what? Being flashy and athletic doesn't make you a good wrestler.
@Mongoose 1980 Smarks don't know anything about wrestling. They think being able to do a pretty dropkick or top rope stuff makes you good, they don't understand the best wrestlers are the ones who can put guys over, which HTM did very well.
Steamboat held the title for 65 days.
I remember when Macho Man hit him in the throat with the bell and he had to have a trach
I would have loved to have seen more matches between Steamboat and Savage.
They would have done an awesome ladder match, for example.
@@dhenderson1810 Savage-Steamboat could've been a great rivalry. I certainly thought that after their legendary WM III match.
@@dhenderson1810 though of course ladder matches didn't become a think in the WWF until years after he left.
Saw a picture of HTM in the locker room after he won the title. Butch Reed was standing next to him..
yea, after he finally decided to show up lol
There was NOTHING wrong w/ Ricky Steamboat wanting to spend time w/ his son (Richie) for a couple months.
Honestly it wasn't even a few months. I spoke with Ricky personally and he only wanted 3-4 weeks at best off yet the company wanted the title on TV still. Ricky was very upset at the decision and one of the factors which eventually led him to the NWA and his run there.
@@Skiddy622 for the best, WWF would have never given him a real run. They valued big guys with big personalities. Ricky was a smaller guy with a decent sized personality. They didn't care that he could fight better than anyone else they had.
@@Skiddy622from The Dragon's own mouth, he asked for 2 weeks
I just realized how much he looks like Steve Spurrier.
Htc was one of the best entertainers in this business.
Lol succumbed to the pressure of home life.
Steamboat vs flair in 86 was the best match ever.
Didn't happen in '86
Steamboats departure started with him asking for two weeks off to be with his wife or the birth of their child. Vince immediately forced him to drop the belt to the Honky Tonk man, which prompted Steamboat to tell WWE he was going to take six months off. Once he came back towards the end of 1987, WWE treated Ricky like a complete jabroni and gave him no push at all. After they made him job out to Greg Valentine at WM4, which prevented a Steamboat/Savage PPV rematch, he left right after. Ricky made the right decision.
Was not fond of him, but he seems like a really good guy
Had Steamboat been more of Vince's type of team player HTM would have never had the strap. Not knocking HTM but that's the truth. Steamboat was going to be given a huge push. HTM was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time.
The best damn intercontinental heavyweight champion of all times.
Probably the biggest upset In wrestling history was when Honky Tonk beat Ricky for the IC championship .
Steamboat gave UP THE BELT TO HONKY CUS WWF WOULDNT GIVE HIM 2 WEEKS OFF FOR HIS NEWBORN!!!. HONKY KNOWS THIS!! STOP BEING SALTY😂😂
Ricky my understanding went to Vince and wanted to spend more time with his family. So Vince said you just won it we will need you around but didn't work out that way . So Honky is correct.
I'll preface this question by saying that I know wrestlers in and our of the ring are tremendous athletes. And for them to give these consistent shows without getting seriously hurt is nothing short of amazing. But I've never understood why wrestlers that are giving non kayfabe interviews still site belts and championships as signs of how good they were. How can they do that when the results of matches are predetermined?
Was that a shot at Warrior at the end?
Shake, rattle and roll...
“[Steamboat] succumbed to the pressures of family life.”
This is one of the dumbest sentences I’ve ever heard anyone speak. What kind of idiot tries to put a negative spin on the idea of being a grown man who puts his family first. Unreal.
Paul Roma told something peculiar that happened during a match with Steamboat
Shame Steamboat never worked with Dynamite Kid either in wwe or Japan, could have been something special
"They remember who I lost to, but not who I won [sic]"
That's because in your entire run as IC champion you didn't have a single match worth paying attention to, despite the legends you shared a ring with. If it wasn't for Hogan telling Vince to run with you, you'd have lost the belt in a matter of weeks as the worthless transitional champion you were. Nearly every title defense you had ended in a DQ which showed just how little the creative team believed you could have clean wins over super stars in a good match.
HTM was a great promo, and he knew enough about the business to have good in ring psychology... but considering he is the longest reigning IC champ ever, you'd think someone would be able to recollect one great match he had.
He was a heel. Thats what they do. Also, he was very good in the ring.
@@theforgottenorg He was garbage in the ring...Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig was very good in the ring, please don't get it twisted.
@@cwell510 he wasn't technical but he was a great seller. He was a ton more technical than Hogan, the salesman of the decade.
I don't remember any matches between his win and loss. His title reign seems the template for Kurt Angles first title reign.
HTM is the shit. I want my wife and daughters to have the children of HTM, and I want to watch.
I remember the win
Now I really wished that "The Natural" Butch Reed was around. He could have been the 1st black intercontinental champ. What a missed opportunity! Where was he? The Slickster could've finally had a champion in his stable. Damn.
wonder how the IC title landscape would have played out had things went according to plan
Hogan didn't like the idea of a black champ lol
people always think htm is full of it but his stories always turn out to be more or less the truth.
If the IWC existed when HTM beat Steamboat for the IC Title they would have had a collective aneurism.
I'm still angry about it, all these years later.
Awesome anecdote about how he got his shot to run with the IC strap.
Who knew that a snap decision would lead to a 15-month title run?
Yep and way more successful defenses than Gunther
Thumbs up.
This is unfair on Steamboat. Steamboat could have been a huge star in the WWE if McMahon hadn’t been so petty. He wanted some time off - understandably - the timing wasn’t ideal as he was IC champion but he could been brought back and quickly move back up the card.
He says that Steamboat gave in to "the pressures of home life". Well, I would HOPE SO. Nothing is more important than family. If Steamboat allowed his family to fall apart just to keep the title, ... (hell, I don't even need to finish the sentence, do I?)
I have watched a lot of HTM's interviews, and he seems like a reasonable person. But really, what's more important? Job at pretending to fight, or real life family? I loved to watch Steamboat in the ring, and I intentionally NEVER watched a single HTM match, because I felt his gimmick was so very weak. I would just turn the channel. There you have it.
You know what. His son was interviewed, and his son talks glowingly about his father, and was really stoked that his dad gave up glory to see him be born.
I'm cool,I'm cocky,I'm bad
I remember HTM winning the title, was glad to see him get a chance. Was not a fan of the ultimate warrior, so was not happy when he took title.
Who was he talking about at first?
Hogan
This dude strikes me as a bitter mid Carter for life.
Ricky steamboat was a robot, he had the skill as wrestler, just couldn't tell a story in a match and didn't have interview skills.
This clown couldn't hold Steamboat's jock. As Ricky once said in a promo. LOL
Wayne Farris was a joke as a wrestler. His character was a clown, designed to draw as much heat as possible. Farris couldn't work, he had limited moves, but he drew heat. In the Mid-South and Memphis areas he was a fantastic heel.
I remember his time in Memphis as one-half of the Blond Bombers and their feud with Bill Dundee and Jerry Lawler. The concession stand fight in Tupelo, MS in 1979 is legendary in the business.
Cuz you lost it in 33 seconds
That was more because Warrior could not do long matches.
That was perfectly booked, protected both guys.
Holding the belt has nothing to do with athleticism.
HTM and Steamboat had a rematch on Saturday Night's Main Event. If I recall correctly, it was a lumberjack match.
WarriorSmurf Nope. Steamboat's last appearance on SNME was in May 1987 vs. Hercules
Right. Thanks. That match was a title defense. Okay, then the lumberjack match had to be on the MSG channel. I may have also been thinking of the George "The Animal" Steel vs Savage lumberjack match that took place on SNME and got them mixed up.