WWF Brawl for All

Bart Gunn, the winner of the only Brawl for All tournament.

WWF Brawl for All was a shootfighting tournament held in the World Wrestling Federation that lasted from June 29, 1998 to August 24, 1998. The creation of then-WWF writer Vince Russo, Brawl for All resulted in a number of legit injuries for WWF performers and was received negatively by some industry figures.

Inception

Throughout 1998, the WWF experienced a growth in roster size but due to limited amount of TV time a number of their more genuine "tough guys" were left without much to do. As a result, the idea for a legit tough guy tournament was bandied about as a way to both utilize some of these men and capitalize on the recent interest in Toughman Contests around the country.

According to John "Bradshaw" Layfield, Vince Russo came up with the idea when Layfield wanted to create a hardcore wrestling division in the WWF. Russo said he devised the tournament as a consequence of Bradshaw claiming he could beat anyone on the roster in a bar fight.[1] Jim Cornette also reported that it was Russo's idea.[2] Participation in the tournament was strictly voluntary.

Tournament events and injuries

Each match consisted of three one-minute rounds. Whichever wrestler connected with the most punches per round scored 5 points. In addition, a clean takedown scored 5 points and a knockdown was worth 10. If a wrestler was knocked out (decided by an eight-count rather than a ten-count), the match ended. The matches were scored by ringside judges including Gorilla Monsoon.

According to Jim Cornette, "Dr. Death" Steve Williams was the WWF's favourite to win the tournament, with the company looking towards a lucrative pay per view match between Williams and Stone Cold Steve Austin;[2] Bob Holly claimed that Williams had already been paid the $100,000 prize money before his second round fight against Bart Gunn.[3] During the fight, Williams sustained a hamstring injury and was knocked out by Gunn.[2] Bart Gunn went on to defeat Bradshaw by KO on the August 24, 1998 episode of Raw is War to win the tournament and $75,000. Bradshaw received $25,000.

The WWF's most prominent tough guys at the time, Dan Severn and Ken Shamrock, had little to no impact on the tournament. Severn defeated The Godfather in the first round but then withdrew from the tournament, stating he had nothing to prove. In a radio interview, Severn asserted that the WWF at first had not allowed him or Shamrock to compete at all and that they removed Severn from the tournament after his first-round victory over The Godfather.[4] However, Steve Williams recalls Shamrock "backing out" and Severn withdrawing because of his "frustration at the rules and the idea of having to wear boxing gloves".[5]

Along with Williams, a number of other wrestlers sustained legit injuries during the tournament. The Godfather was injured,[2] and Steve Blackman and Road Warrior Hawk were unable to work in usual WWF capacities for a while after. Savio Vega aggravated an old arm injury and would never work for the WWF again. Brakkus sustained injuries to his knee and shoulder that led him to retire in 1999.

Reception and legacy

Fans in attendance instantly voiced their disapproval of the tournament, with chants of "Boring!" and "We want wrestling!" audible during the fights.[6]

Then-WWF official Jim Cornette has described the tournament as "the stupidest thing that the WWF has ever done". He argued that the WWF misjudged the appeal that legit fighting would have to their audience, considering that the WWF had promoted the idea that their matches were merely entertainment. Furthermore, because the fighters were trained to work professional wrestling matches and not to fight, they risked both injury and the possibility that a defeat would hurt their marketability. Cornette also criticized the WWF for failing to use the tournament to promote Bart Gunn as a new star wrestler.[2] (Coincidentally, Gunn developed a following in Japan due to Steve Williams' reputation there as a legit tough man and Gunn having knocked him out.) In a shoot interview Cornette also stated that because the tournament failed to push Williams as a big star it shortened his run with the company and caused a rift in the friendship of he and long time friend Jim Ross (who at the time was in charge of talent relations).

In the WWE documentary The Attitude Era, Jim Ross stated that it was "one of those ideas that looked really cool on paper," but John "Bradshaw" Layfield added that the execution was "a bad idea". Layfield also stated that "nobody knew Bart Gunn was that good."[7]

Aftermath

Immediately prior to the Brawl for All, Holly (as "Bombastic Bob") and Gunn (as "Bodacious Bart") had been a tag-team called The New Midnight Express with Jim Cornette as their manager and as The New Midnight Express they had won the NWA World Tag Team Championship after defeating The Headbangers on an episode of Raw. After winning the tournament, Bart Gunn feuded with both Bob Holly, now known as Hardcore Holly,[8] and Steve Williams, both angry at having been beaten in the tournament, the latter masking himself and pushing Gunn off a stage.

Gunn was later matched against professional boxer Butterbean at WrestleMania XV in another legitimate Brawl for All match; Gunn was knocked out 35 seconds into the bout and was fired by the WWF afterward. Jim Cornette was critical of Gunn being placed in a match with a pro boxer.[2] Bob Holly claimed that Gunn's inevitable loss to Butterbean was a punishment for defeating the company's desired winner, Steve Williams.[3]

Most of the other participants departed the company within a year after the tournament; Steve Blackman and The Godfather left in 2002 and Bob Holly stayed with the company (now renamed WWE) until 2009.

Brawl for All tournament bracket

KO - knockout; TKO - technical knockout; Pts - points; Dec - referee's/judge's decision

First round Second round Semifinals Finals
            
Raw Steve Blackman Dec 1
6/29 Marc Mero
Raw Marc Mero
8/10 Bradshaw Pts
Raw Mark Canterbury
6/29 Bradshaw Pts
Raw Bradshaw Pts
8/17 Darren "Droz" Drozdov
Raw Brakkus
7/6 Savio Vega Pts
Raw Savio Vega
8/10 Darren "Droz" Drozdov Pts
Raw Darren "Droz" Drozdov 2 Draw
7/6 Road Warrior Hawk Draw
Raw Bradshaw
8/24 Bart Gunn KO
Raw Bart Gunn Dec
7/13 Bob Holly
Raw Bart Gunn KO
7/27 Steve Williams
Raw Quebecer Pierre
7/20 Steve Williams TKO
Raw Bart Gunn KO
8/17 The Godfather
Raw The Godfather
7/13 Dan Severn Pts 3
Raw The Godfather Pts
8/3 Scorpio
Raw 8-Ball
7/20 Scorpio Pts

1 Steve Blackman won the bout, but was forced to withdraw as he was injured. Mero was advanced to the next round.
2 Drozdov advanced as Road Warrior Hawk was injured.
3 Dan Severn won the bout, but he withdrew, saying he had nothing to prove. The Godfather was advanced to the next round.

References

  1. ↑ Oliver, Sean (director) (2016). Timeline: History of WCW – 1998 – As told by Vince Russo (DVD). Kayfabe Commentaries. [John 'Bradshaw' Layfield] started carrying on that he could take anybody in the company, or in the locker room, in a real bar fight... I pitched the whole idea of the Brawl for All.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Jim Cornette". Who's Slamming Who. March 16, 2009.
  3. 1 2 Holly, Bob. The Hardcore Truth: The Bob Holly Story. p. 121.
  4. ↑ "Dan Severn reveals Crazy Mexican underground fight he was offered". Submission Radio. Retrieved 2016-02-28.
  5. ↑ Steve Williams, How Dr. Death Became Dr. Life
  6. ↑ Martin, Fin (July 1998). "What's Going Down". Power Slam. SW Publishing: 5.
  7. ↑ WWE: The Attitude Era (DVD). WWE Home Video. May 22, 2013.
  8. ↑ http://www.pwwew.net/tv/raw/990215.htm
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