10 Huge Bust-Ups Between Wrestlers And Bookers
1. Paul Heyman Vs. Sabu
Sabu popularised the enduring table spot in North America, but time travel was beyond him.
In 1995, ahead of a signifiant ECW show (Three Way Dance), he took a colliding date with his paymaster New Japan Pro Wrestling. Had he travelled back to the U.S. from a private jet departing from the arena, he'd still have arrived in Philadelphia 10 hours later. So this was dumb.
Paul Heyman was incensed; Sabu was presented as a bigger star in ECW than he was in New Japan, but New Japan paid him a better and more consistent cheque. Sabu had figuratively smeared the motel in blood and sh*t, and there was no way to clean up the mess. Sabu could have reneged on the ECW date, advising Heyman in advance, thus allowing him to book an alternative card, but he was still adamant that - this bears repeating - he could travel through time.
Since he couldn't, Heyman revealed the truth on the night itself, engaging in full carny mode to get the audience on board. Chris Benoit called Sabu a "pussy", and the ECW faithful - a cult, essentially - cheered their leader with "F*ck Sabu" chants over an exhilarating and super-over wrestling star.
Who was in the right?
Heyman. Time travel is not possible.