Matt Weir / The Collegian
Fans line up to see favorite wrestling stars ‘Smackdown’
Masked fans, oversized championship belts and colorful signs crowed the entrances of the Save Mart Center Tuesday night, in anticipation of the professional wrestling entertainment WWE Smackdown.
Jordan McIntyre, 20, a student at UCLA drove four hours with his friend Anthony Guy, 20, a student at Long Beach State, to see their favorite wrestlers and proudly wear the World Heavyweight Championship belts they purchased on WWE̢۪s online store.
Both men have been watching professional wrestling for over a decade but said they leave the body slamming and power drives to the professionals.
“We stopped wrestling at home when we found out that wrestling is not fun,â€Â Guy said. “If you break your opponent’s neck, you get sued.â€Â
Matt Weir / The Collegian
Guy said his favorite professional wrestler is Edge, but not for the usual reasons.
“Everyone gives him a bad rap,â€Â Guy said. “He’s the ‘Rated R Superstar.’ He gives dividends every week. Plus his wife is hot. If you watch the show, you’d know I was joking.â€Â
Edge, the 6̢۪5 250 pound wrestler, originally from Toronto, made his debut in 1998 and has won eight championships since. He̢۪s known for his signature move: the spear.
Tre Nicolulis, 10, of Oakhurst, came to the event with his dad, Tommy, and said it̢۪s something he had been waiting a long time for.
“Wrestling is my favorite,â€Â Nicolulis said. “I love it when the wrestlers jump really high and break their necks. I’m hoping Jeff Hardy wins. He’s awesome.â€Â
Jeff Hardy is the 6’1 225 pound wrestler, originally from Cameron, N.C., and has been a star in professional wrestling since 1993. Aside from wrestling, Hardy’s world revolves around writing something he calls “emoetry,â€Â and recording alternative music.
Fun for all ages
Anthony Luevanos, 8, celebrated his birthday at the Save Mart Center event and came with his dad and two nephews, Joe Luevanos,11, and Jason Novella, 8. All of the boys wore wrestling masks and said they have been fans since they were young.
Joe Luevanos said that he likes the wrestling, but he̢۪s really there to watch the ladies.
“I like watching Kelly Kelly,â€Â Luevanos said. “She’s hot. She makes the wrestling more fun to watch.â€Â
Matt Weir / The Collegian
The event was listed as the last smackdown and ECU before the No Way Out match. The headline match was between the WWE Champion Edge versus Jeff Hardy in a steel cage match for the WWE Championship.
Also scheduled to appear was Mike “The Mizâ€Â Mizanan, who was first introduced to audiences as one of the seven strangers on the MTV reality show “The Real World: Back to New York.â€Â
Correction
ECW is the name of the T.V. wrestling show.
henry • Aug 12, 2009 at 3:28 pm
hi how are you? i hope every thing is okay.
henry • Aug 12, 2009 at 10:28 pm
hi how are you? i hope every thing is okay.
Spyke • Feb 14, 2009 at 8:41 am
Dear Drew: My information comes from well-known facts that could have been verified by simply going to the website of the organization that was being covered. And actually, I’ve had male friends named Erin. So this just shows that you’re, in fact, a moron.
I guess you’re also making fun of males with the names Ashley, Shannon, and Taylor.
My comment was regarding someone who is attempting to be a journalist. I am not. Therefore, it is the journalist’s responsibility to the readers to provide correct information about the subject matter said journalist is covering.
Spyke • Feb 14, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Dear Drew: My information comes from well-known facts that could have been verified by simply going to the website of the organization that was being covered. And actually, I’ve had male friends named Erin. So this just shows that you’re, in fact, a moron.
I guess you’re also making fun of males with the names Ashley, Shannon, and Taylor.
My comment was regarding someone who is attempting to be a journalist. I am not. Therefore, it is the journalist’s responsibility to the readers to provide correct information about the subject matter said journalist is covering.
Drew • Feb 13, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Dear Spyke: The author of the article is “Erin”, which is a female name. “Aaron” would be for males. I must point this out because you addressed the author as “Mr” when in fact she’s a female. I’ve included a website that will help YOU do a little research before you embarass yourself by writing inane comments that prove how you desperatley need to get a life.
http://www.behindthename.com/
Drew • Feb 13, 2009 at 7:45 pm
Dear Spyke: The author of the article is “Erin”, which is a female name. “Aaron” would be for males. I must point this out because you addressed the author as “Mr” when in fact she’s a female. I’ve included a website that will help YOU do a little research before you embarass yourself by writing inane comments that prove how you desperatley need to get a life.
http://www.behindthename.com/
Spyke • Feb 11, 2009 at 3:25 pm
Mr. O’Brien, you really need to iprove your research skills. “Smackdown” and “ECW” are the names of the TV shows that were taped that night. Second, the following statement is totally erroneous:
The event was listed as the last smackdown and ECU before the No Way Out match. The headline match was between the WWE Champion Edge versus Jeff Hardy in a steel cage match for the WWE Championship.
Smackdown should be capitalized. It’s ECW, not ECU. No Way Out is not a match. It is a pay-per-view, which, in this case, features five matches. The main event, or “headline match” as you put it, … Well, there are actually two! One is an Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE Championship featuring champion Edge defending against Jeff Hardy, The Undertaker, Triple H, Vladimir Kozlov, and The Big Show. The second main event is another Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship and features champion John Cena defending against Chris Jericho, Kane, Rey Mysterio, Kofi Kingston, and Mike Knox.
Please, try doing a little research before you embarrass whatever/whomever you’re covering, yourself, and your staff/school.
Thank you.
Spyke • Feb 11, 2009 at 10:25 pm
Mr. O’Brien, you really need to iprove your research skills. “Smackdown” and “ECW” are the names of the TV shows that were taped that night. Second, the following statement is totally erroneous:
The event was listed as the last smackdown and ECU before the No Way Out match. The headline match was between the WWE Champion Edge versus Jeff Hardy in a steel cage match for the WWE Championship.
Smackdown should be capitalized. It’s ECW, not ECU. No Way Out is not a match. It is a pay-per-view, which, in this case, features five matches. The main event, or “headline match” as you put it, … Well, there are actually two! One is an Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE Championship featuring champion Edge defending against Jeff Hardy, The Undertaker, Triple H, Vladimir Kozlov, and The Big Show. The second main event is another Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship and features champion John Cena defending against Chris Jericho, Kane, Rey Mysterio, Kofi Kingston, and Mike Knox.
Please, try doing a little research before you embarrass whatever/whomever you’re covering, yourself, and your staff/school.
Thank you.