Retro Wednesday: A Diamond In The Rough... DDP Makes His WWE Debut

"Undertaker. Like the Diamond Cutter?you never saw it comin'." Ominous words from the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion, "Diamond" Dallas Page.

In March of 2001, the long, prestigious history of World Championship Wrestling came to an independent end, and was now under the umbrella of the World Wrestling Federation. Vince McMahon purchased WCW, and had the option to bring over the company's employees. While a number of wrestlers immediately were showcased on WWE television, certain stars were conspicuously absent.

Shortly after the WCW purchase, a series of vignettes were shown every week of someone using video to chronicle the stalking of the Undertaker's then-wife, Sara. The videos were very cryptic, and left the fans wondering who the person was behind them.

Finally, on an episode of Raw that aired June 18, 2001, Undertaker's theme song hits, and a motorcycle was driven to the ringside. However, this time, the Undertaker was not the one behind the handlebars. It was the masked perpetrator that promised to unveil himself as the stalker of Sara. Then, the lights dim, a hand is raised to create suspense, and the mask comes off to reveal none other than "Diamond" Dallas Page.

Page began to explain his motive?to use Sara for the greater purpose of defeating the Undertaker and becoming "famous." Unfortunately, the feud did not last long, and Page lost an unsanctioned match against Undertaker at King of the Ring 2001. After the loss, Page only experienced marginal success, winning the Tag Team and European championships.

Although it did not last long, this had to be one of the best "unveil" storylines in WWE history. Utilizing DDP in this capacity was not only suitable, but shocking and unpredictable. It could have been the launchpad for a main event run for DDP, but instead, we eventually saw a mildly relevant, "Positively Page" character that had a very small shelf life.

What are your thoughts of the DDP stalker angle? Sound off below.

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