10 Reasons Why DDP Was The Original People’s Champ Of Wrestling
Throw up the "Self High Five" and feel the BANG with a Diamond in the rough.
In the sport of pro wrestling, The Rock will forever be recognised as “The People’s Champ” in WWE’s slanted version of history; however, for fans of WCW, there’s only one man that can stake a claim for that title.
Simply put, Diamond Dallas Page was the living embodiment of WCW. Having been there from 1991 until the company closed its doors in 2001, DDP saw it all; from the unparallelled highs of ratings supremacy to the extreme lows of eventual closure and sale to the competition.
In a career that spanned almost the entirety of the company’s existence, DDP grew from non-wrestling performer to World Heavyweight Champion before the fans’ very eyes. His in-ring work got better and better and his fanbase grew and grew in the process, making him a true champion of the people.
A deserving WWE Hall of Famer, Diamond Dallas Page showed the world that he truly loved professional wrestling and the fans loved him right back for it. In a mutual relationship of gratitude, DDP was the original “People’s Champ” of wrestling and look no further than the following pages for proof of just why.
10. The Diamond Cutter
Perhaps one of the most over parts of DDP’s overall presentation was his finishing move, the legendary Diamond Cutter.
Introduced to the sport by Johnny “Ace” Laurinaitis, Page managed to evolve Ace’s version of the move - The Ace Crusher - by applying the hold using a neck grovit to hook the opponent’s head in a ¾ face lock. The result looked devastating and the Diamond Cutter was born, voted “Best Wrestling Maneuver” for 1997 by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Page has gone on record as saying his mentor, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, personally congratulated him for his development of the move, stating that the impactful face plant was reminiscent of Jake’s own legendary finisher and subsequently congratulated Page for “reinventing the DDT”.
The move was adopted by Randy Orton in 2002, rechristened the RKO and has gone on to become arguably the popular finisher in WWE today.