WWE: 5 Great Fantasy Matches

4. Rob Van Dam vs. Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat

Wwe 13 A Today, so many pro wrestlers use MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) techniques in their ring work that it's gotten so that even the clumsiest wrestler will still put on the occasional Kimura Lock, or even haphazardly launch a Spinning Heel Kick in his opponent's direction. However, back in the 1970's, martial arts were still a novelty and wrestling audiences, high on Bruce Lee movies and the notion that a "karate chop" was quite possibly the most devastating move of them all, eagerly bought into the prospect of any martial arts themed wrestler (hokey or otherwise). A lot of the early martial arts gimmicks were eye-rollingly dreadful, but by the mid 1980's, a wrestler had arrived who took the martial arts theme and then beat the living hell out of it. If there was a Mount Rushmore of wrestling, this guy would probably be one of the faces, but you'd have to single-handedly beat up a gang on ninjas in order to climb it... Ricky Steamboat was of mixed American/Japanese heritage and his impossibly handsome, chiselled face was exotic enough to imply mystery, adventure and martial arts prowess (remember, this was the 1970's), but all-American G.I. Joe-looking enough to make him the perfect babyface. At least, that's what the fans saw. Whenever a promoter looked in Steamboat's direction, all they saw were dollar signs, I'm sure. Oh yeah, he was a bodybuilder in his spare time, meaning that he had one of the all-time best physiques in pro wrestling history. The guy just looked great. Pure, athletic, golden. In the ring, Steamboat was as good a performer as there has ever been. Some may claim to be as good as Steamboat, but nobody can ever say that they were better. Even Ric Flair has said that Steamboat was the best opponent he ever stepped in the ring with. With his good looks, amazing in-ring talent and a bulletproof gimmick, Steamboat was born to be a star. Starting out in the old AWA before becoming a star attraction in the NWA, Ricky Steamboat was the perfect babyface. Vince McMahon's WWF added The Dragon gimmick and he was all set...for a disappointing mid-card run in the Hogan-dominated WWF. Yeah, he got the IC title (in a classic match with Randy Savage), but he could have gone much further. Unlike a lot of wrestlers, however, Steamboat fared very well in WCW, where he again feuded with Flair, as well as Rick Rude and eventually a not-yet-Stone Cold Steve Austin. Though he only held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship once, Steamboat is still a hugely respected figure in wrestling. The Dragon may not have been a marquee name like Hogan, The Rock or Steve Austin, but he is pretty well loved by 99.99% of wrestling fans. If you've never seen a Steamboat match, go to YouTube or Dailymotion (or whatever) and type in "Flair vs Steamboat", then sit back and enjoy poetry in motion. And now, the challenger...Rob Van Dam will forever be known as the last great ECW headliner. A free thinker and a restlessly creative individual, Van Dam's matches are breathless demonstrations of impossibly acrobatic high-impact offence. Rob Van Dam's aerial attacking moves actually veer closer to parkour, and his unique style meshes everything from Mexican high flying lucha libre to gymnastic, dreamlike Ju-Jitsu. A born main-eventer, the young and eager Rob Van Dam had to wait his turn in a WWE full of bona-fide industry stars. The result has actually seasoned Van Dam and made him a better in-ring competitor (as if that was actually possible). Mid-card runs with greats like Eddie Guerrero, Chris Jericho and William Regal (for those who wish to read more of my fandom for Mr. Regal, as well as my petition to put a WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt around his waist before he retires, read my other article here) demonstrated Van Dam's prowess, both as a performer and as a big money draw. Following a fairly forgettable spell in TNA, Rob Van Dam was welcomed back to WWE with open arms earlier this year, this time as a genuine main event level talent. He instantly engaged in a blistering Match of the Year contender with his old rival Chris Jericho and, after all was said and done, he was as over with the fans as he had ever been, picking up right where he'd left off. Van Dam is the only wrestler to have held the WWE Championship, the (actual) ECW Championship and the TNA Championship, so he knows a thing or two about big-money matchups and, baby, they wouldn't come much bigger than this! This would have to be a classic face vs. face match, because Van Dam is so over with fans around the world it's untrue, and Steamboat never once wrestled as a heel a day in his career (it's true, look it up). Rob Van Dam represents the 21st century wrestler in excelsis, as happy with death-defying high spots as he is with a supple array of kicks and stretches, but five minutes in the ring with Steamboat would prove that there's no school like the old school. Van Dam is all about spectacle and explosive offence, which would probably require Steamboat to rely more on his mat-skills and holds as he tried to keep Van Dam down. Although Steamboat's own offence would be equally impressive, I think he'd rely on it a little less. I imagine, at about one minute into the match, Van Dam landing on his feet after a trademarked Steamboat arm drag. The roof would fly off the building. Both men are supremely conditioned athletes, with Steamboat being a prime example of a wrestler who, in his prime, was every bit as fit as anyone who ever stepped into the ring (including today's fitness freaks). The match would be energetic, exhilarating and probably contain the greatest offensive displays ever seen. The closest comparison I can think of would be Steamboat's Iron Man match against Ravishing Rick Rude back in his WCW days. Blistering. This fight would be a classic give-and-take contest. Steamboat would lead the match and probably spend his time trying to ground the high-flying Van Dam. Ultimately, Steamboat would emerge as the victor, but they'd shake hands at the end. WINNER: Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
 
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I am a professional author and lifelong comic books/pro wrestling fan. I also work as a journalist as well as writing comic books (I also draw), screenplays, stage plays, songs and prose fiction. I don't generally read or reply to comments here on What Culture (too many trolls!), but if you follow my Twitter (@heyquicksilver), I'll talk to you all day long! If you are interested in reading more of my stuff, you can find it on http://quicksilverstories.weebly.com/ (my personal site, which has other wrestling/comics/pop culture stuff on it). I also write for FLiCK http://www.flickonline.co.uk/flicktion, which is the best place to read my fiction work. Oh yeah - I'm about to become a Dad for the first time, so if my stuff seems more sentimental than usual - blame it on that! Finally, I sincerely appreciate every single read I get. So if you're reading this, thank you, you've made me feel like Shakespeare for a day! (see what I mean?) Latcho Drom, - CQ