One of the most underrated champions of the last 20 years, Mike Awesome brought renewed credibility to the ECW title. A heavyweight with the agility and speed of a cruiserweight, Awesome was a tremendous athlete who could have, and should have, been one of the saviors of the promotion. At Anarchy Rulz 1999, Awesome made a stunning return to the promotion, interrupting a championship clash between Taz and No. 1 contender Masato Tanaka, leading to an unadvertised Three Way Dance. In shocking fashion, he not only was key in eliminating Taz, effectively ending his time at the top of the company, but also went on to defeat Tanaka for the gold. In the weeks that followed, Awesome and Tanaka would captivate the fans of the extreme company with a series of brutal, violent and stiff matches that not only rejuvenated the top of the ECW card but also reintroduced workrate to the main events. They would trade the title before Awesome moved on to the likes of Kid Kash and Spike Dudley, with whom he had an intensely personal battle with that was born of Awesome's attack on Spike's girlfriend that left her without teeth. Plans for a huge pay-per-view battle between Awesome and Rob Van Dam, the culmination of the latter's climb to the ECW Championship, were put on hold when RVD suffered an ill-timed injury. Shortly thereafter, Awesome's dominant reign atop Paul Heyman's company came to an end when he retreated to WCW, chasing after a big-money contract that earned him the scorn and hatred of the ECW locker room. He would never enjoy the type of success under Eric Bischoff, Vince Russo and Ted Turner that he did while working for Heyman in Philadelphia.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
