10 Smartest Decisions In Wrestling History
6. Shane Douglas Throws Down The NWA World Heavyweight Title
The rise of ECW was a stunning achievement.
With no national TV outlet, stars who did not look like stars as conditioned by the all-powerful WWF, and a cast of freaks and outsiders, Paul Heyman created a cult. Marketed astutely as the Nirvana antithesis to the unfashionable hair metal of the WWF and WCW, ECW was a pro wrestling revolution, and when Shane Douglas threw down the NWA World Heavyweight Title, this was the catalyst for everything - an inciting incident cinematic in its heft.
The timing was perfect, the audacity heroin for a set of fans aching to move away from the old way and to feel like a part of something. With this transgression, ECW solidified its fanbase and drew more through viral word of mouth. It was ironic; in throwing away its loyalty to the NWA, ECW cultivated loyalty amongst its ardent, taste-making hardcores. That fading Ten Pounds of Gold had retained just enough of its lustre to mark this as a sacrilegious act, but it also wasn't worth a sh*t. It was trash, and when Douglas trashed it at the close of the NWA Title Tournament, ECW used the iconic visual to position itself as the renegade outlier of the industry.
Including ECW in a list celebrating good business moves seems counterintuitive, but to even compete in the mainstream was a triumph.