10. Oklahoma Insults Jim Ross And Ruins Cruiserweight Division
The Cruiserweight division was one of the beacons of light on the WCW landscape. For years, the more high-flying wrestlers in the company had been taken seriously by management. The appointment of Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara as chiefs of the writing team changed all of that. Russo cared not a jot for the importance of the titles, they were merely props to be used. Late-1999 bore witness to the birth of a new character for the promotion. Shockingly, it was played by Ferrara himself, and was nothing more than an attempt to poke fun at Jim Ross. The character's name was Oklahoma, and Ferrara made light of JR's health problems, catchphrases and general mannerisms. WCW fans were not amused, but that didn't stop the persona from becoming Cruiserweight Champion. At the Souled Out Pay-Per-View in January, 2000, Oklahoma defeated Madusa to bag the belt. As if enough damage hadn't been done to the title's linage by her reign, Ferrara's pretty much killed any enthusiasm for the thing. Quite why this was considered a good idea is really anyone's guess. People were dispirited by the character in the first place, and saddened that it destroyed a well-received title.
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
