Crowbar On Why He Doesn't "Get" The WWE 24/7 Championship, Talks AEW's Deathmatches
Crowbar was a one-time holder of WCW's version of the Hardcore Championship and the successor to that title is WWE's 24/7 Championship. He revealed what he thinks of that belt when he joined The Wrestling Inc Daily.
"It seems to be used more as a comedy thing, so I don't get it. It's not a wrestling match you look forward to," stated Crowbar. "I think R-Truth, who holds the belt here and there, is extremely funny and entertaining. But I also know he's an incredible athlete. I would love to see him wrestle more.
"It's not one of those things I tune in to see but it's also not gonna make me change the channel. Out there, there's someone watching that says, 'Oh let's see what's gonna happen with the 24/7 Championship this week.' There are people looking for that. It's not me, but who am I to say it's wrong? There's all different flavors and different strokes for different folks. I'm not gonna not watch a show because I don't like the 24/7 Title."
AEW has embraced death match wrestling in their short existence including several high-profile matches involving Jon Moxley. Crowbar was asked about the controversy that these types of matches generate and if it's a good thing for pro wrestling.
"If there's that much controversy, hype and publicity, then they did something right especially for a new company," Crowbar said of AEW before noting that the Moxley vs. Joey Janela unsanctioned match was wild.
"There's a lot of people that are critical of a lot of stuff going on in wrestling. You have this extreme stuff with the thumb tacks and going through a table upside down. You have intergender wrestling which is something many people are critical of. Some people are gonna be fans of this stuff and some are not. But there are people out there that want to see it and will watch it."
He then talked about the need for variety in pro wrestling and what made WCW work was the combination of cruiserweights, Luchadors, solid mid-carders and the main eventers.
"If a show offers something for everybody, that's how you win," stated Crowbar. "You're inevitably gonna have segments that turn people off, but if your show as a whole offers something that every fan can appreciate then I think you're gonna be successful."
Crowbar will be appearing at 80s Wrestling Con in mid-April and he discussed how that came about.
"I've known Tommy Fierro forever. I'm still a huge fan of mid-to-late 80s wrestling and I've done other interviews where people ask me about my workouts. I do cardio and 8 out of 10 times I'm watching Savage-Steamboat or something of that genre," revealed Crowbar. "Today's style is awesome and the athleticism is off the hook. But I think a lot of the stuff that used to make wrestling fun is lost and I get that fix from watching 80s and early 90s wrestling on The Network.
"I've known Tommy. I'm from New Jersey and [80s Wrestling Con] is in New Jersey so every star that needed to align aligned here."
Crowbar mentioned his love of 80s wrestling and that time was the era of the big men. Bigger guys then went away for a while but it seems as though the business is swinging back in that direction. Crowbar was asked if he thinks we're coming upon another era of bigger wrestlers.
"Yes and no. I think for a while it seemed that bigger guys were almost taboo. If you had a big guy out there, you assumed he sucked or he couldn't work. You've got some big guys out there that are athletes and are characters," said Crowbar.
He then cited Lord Steven Regal in 1994-95 as an example of someone with a great character who can also work. He put over Regal's outfit, music, side kick and everything else but notes that when he shed all that he was a great wrestler.
"At that time, I had just started getting involved in training but at that time I knew that he had a great schtick. He has this great presentation but when the smoke and mirrors come off, you're gonna see a great match. I think there is a demand for great athleticism these days, but you can wrap that athleticism up in a great character and I think you will see more of that now," stated Crowbar.
Crowbar will be appearing at 80s Wrestling Con on Saturday April 18th in Freehold, NJ. For more info please visit https://80swrestlingcon.com/.
Crowbar's full interview with Wrestling Inc aired as part of a recent episode of our podcast, The Wrestling Inc. Daily. Subscribe to get the latest episodes as soon as it's released Monday – Friday afternoon: by clicking here. The full interview can be heard via the embedded audio player below: