The wind continued to pound on the building. Each drop of rain that hit the ground seemed to travel faster than the last. The flashes of lightning and the booms of thunder would not cease. Despite the harsh weather, seven thousand wrestling fans filled up the Araneta Coliseum on July 10, 2009 to witness the competition between World Wrestling Entertainment’s SmackDown! and Extreme Championship Wrestling superstars.
When the news spread early this year of the WWE superstars return, tickets quickly disappeared. All the Filipino wrestling fanatics were salivating at the thought of their favourite wrestlers facing off in front of them for the first time in three years. As soon as the merchandise stand opened, the fans swarmed the table as if each shirt would be the last one in stock. They pushed each other out of the way to get to the front of the line. Violence was in the air, and the matches did not even start yet!
The scent of buttered popcorn filled the arena as the anticipation rose. The lights dimmed as the fans grew restless. The distinct electric guitar riff from the SmackDown! theme song, “If You Rock Like Me” by Jet Black Stare, blared from the amplifiers. The deafening roar of the audience consumed the arena. This was the atmosphere that all wrestling events had. The ring, the competitors, the fans – these were the elements of a great professional wrestling event.
Throughout the next two hours, the fans were treated to classic wrestling scenarios. They watched the acrobatic match-up between John Morrison and Shelton Benjamin to the two David versus Goliath-like conflicts of Evan Bourne versus Mark Henry and Dolph Ziggler versus the great Khali. David versus Goliath is an appropriate term as Bourne faced a man who weighed over 200 pounds more and Ziggler faced a man who is seven feet three inches in stature. Even the women of pro wrestling competed in the ring as the tandem of Gail Kim and the Melina defeated Alicia Fox and the Women’s Champion Michelle McCool in a Divas Tag Team contest.
The final hour of the show consisted of three title matches. The first of which was a Triple Threat ECW Heavyweight Championship match between Jack Swagger, Christian and the champion himself, Tommy Dreamer. The match between the young amateur wrestler, the well-rounded veteran and the legendary performer respectively livened the audience. After Dreamer won the match, he brought a fan into the ring, let him hold the title belt and gave that fan the shirt off his back. Dreamer, a man who has wrestled for twenty years, has reached a point in his career where he gives back to the fans every time. On this night, he gave that fan an experience of a lifetime.
“You are all failures and hypocrites. You should all be thanking me for giving this God forsaken country a glimpse of success.” These were the words of the multi-time World Champion Chris Jericho. Widely regarded as the best wrestler in the WWE today, Jericho has the unenviable task of wanting to be hated by an audience that appreciates his talent. His opponent, the Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio, easily accomplishes his goal – exciting the crowd. Both have over a decade of experience from wrestling around the world and have competed in contests that are Match of the Year candidates. The fans expected an exciting and breathtaking contest. These two men exceeded those expectations as they stole the show in a twenty-minute epic match that ended with Mysterio retaining the title.
The final match of the night was a contest between the charismatic enigma Jeff Hardy and the World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk. Punk is known for his the straight edge lifestyle – abstinence from drinking, smoking and doing drugs. Punk seems like the ideal role model but the majority of the fans despise him due to his self-righteous demeanor. Unlike Punk, Hardy always comes out to the cheers of the fans due to his devil-may-care risk-taking style in the ring. Almost every fan adores this competitor.
Almost.
“Jeff, you’re a screw up! Are you high Jeff?!” were the words that one vocal fan shouted throughout the match. His fists were taped and marked with an X just like Punk’s fists were. This fan was one of the few that supported Punk and disliked Hardy. Kids who supported Hardy and their parents looked at this fan with a cold stare. This fan brought up Hardy’s past, his history of using marijuana recreationally. This was common knowledge to the hardcore wrestling fan base. But to kids who don’t even know that wrestling is scripted? This was startling news.
Punk and Hardy took each other to the limit. Any semblance of sportsmanship disappeared when Punk opened the ropes for Hardy only to kick him in the gut when he least expected it. Punk continued to use unsportsmanlike tactics to the delight of that obnoxious fan. Hardy made a comeback late in the match and was close to capitalizing on a stunned Punk but his pin attempt was countered and CM Punk retained the World Heavyweight Title.
Punk left with a huge smile on his face as Hardy lay in the ring. As he slowly stood up, he looked out to the audience and saw that same detractor who booed him. But this fan was no longer insulting him. This fan was applauding him. He shouted “Thank you Jeff! Thanks for coming!” which caused other fans to do the same. At the end of the day, professional wrestling is truly a fan’s show because they end up being as important as the in-ring competitors. Many fans brought home memories that night. There was the young man who got to step into the ring, the woman who caught Punk’s shirt. I know I’ll always remember something after that event.
If I ever compete in the ring, I hope I would not have to endure the verbal onslaught Jeff Hardy took from me on July 10, 2009.
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