6 Ups & 4 Downs From Vader's Legendary Wrestling Career
Ups...
6. Dropping Bombs
WWE.com
The last truly outstanding act Vader contributed to the company during his up-and-down WWE career, a Vader Bomb delivered to The Artist Formerly Known As Goldust with the former Intercontinental Champion's main squeeze Luna on his back made for a visually sensational conclusion to an otherwise ordinary Royal Rumble opener between the pair.
The audience erupted as Luna bounced briskly from the broad back of the Rocky Mountains resident, dangerously despatched as she was along with irksome new heel Goldust after months of abuse dished out by the pair to the rapidly-tumbling 'Mastadon'. The careless and wanton destruction of Vader was an echo of his past-life, even in a battle as profoundly unimportant as this one.
It paid off their rivalry, though it was Goldust who remained in better shape following the battle. His and Luna's WrestleMania match with Marc Mero and Sable showed where the attention of the company lay despite the spectacular spot.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
