 Whipwreck in 2010 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | John Michael Watson (1973-06-04)June 4, 1973 (age 52) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Mikey Watson Mikey Wellbody Mikey Whipwreck Young Dragon #2 |
| Billed height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 187 lb (85 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | Buffalo, New York[1][2] |
| Trained by | Mick Foley[2] Sonny Blaze[3] |
| Debut | 1994[1][4] |
John Michael Watson[4] (born June 4, 1973), better known by his ring nameMikey Whipwreck, is an American semi-retiredprofessional wrestler. He is best known for his career withExtreme Championship Wrestling (ECW),[2] where he was anECW Triple Crown Champion. Whipwreck is a formerworld champion, winning theECW World Heavyweight Championshiponce.[5] He also became atwo-timeWorld Television Champion and athree-timeWorld Tag Team Champion in ECW.[6][7]
Watson began his professional wrestling career in ECW in 1994 and received thepush of an underdog, who quickly captured the Television Championship, his firsttitle in the company.[6] He would later form an on-and-off partnership withCactus Jack, with whom he held the World Tag Team Championshiptwice between 1994 and 1996.[7] A year later, Whipwreck captured the World Heavyweight Championship at age 22 and became the youngest ECW World Heavyweight Champion.[5] He would compete as a mid-carder in the company before leaving in 1998 but returned to the company in late 1999 after a short stint withWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW).[8][9] Shortly after his return, Whipwreck aligned withThe Sinister Minister and formed atag team withYoshihiro Tajiri calledThe Unholy Alliance and won his third World Tag Team Championship with Tajiri.[10] The team existed until ECW's closure in 2001.[11]
Before becoming a professional wrestler, Watson joinedEastern Championship Wrestling (ECW) as a part of their ring crew, who would usually work for free as long as they could have fun in the ring themselves before and after shows had finished.Joey Styles suggested to ECWbookerPaul Heyman to check him after watching Watson practice a variety of aerial maneuvers before a live show began. He was hired in ECW after being asked by Heyman to wrestle in the company. Watson was trained by futuretag team partnerCactus Jack and made his debut under thering name "Mikey Whipwreck" on the February 1, 1994 episode ofNWA Eastern Championship Wrestling, where he teamed with Keith Shearer in atag team match againstKevin Sullivan andThe Tazmaniac.[12][13] Whipwreck continued to make appearances as anenhancement talent for the next three months onEastern Championship Wrestling.[13]
On the May 17 episode ofEastern Championship Wrestling, Whipwreck defeatedThe Pitbull to win theWorld Television Championship, his first title in ECW.[6][14] Whipwreck was heavilypushed upon his debut as afan favorite underdogcharacter. He made his first televised title defense againstKevin Sullivan on the May 24 episode ofEastern Championship Wrestling, where Whipwreck won bydisqualification.[12][13] He made a successful title defense against911 by disqualification atWhen Worlds Collide.[15] Whipwreck soon entered afeud withJason after Jason interfered in Whipwreck's title defenses againstRockin' Rebel atHostile City Showdown[16] andChad Austin atHeat Wave[17] and assaulted him during his matches.[12] Whipwreckdropped the World Television Championship to Jason in ano disqualification match at theHardcore Heaven event on August 13 whenThe Pitbulls attacked Whipwreck.[12][18]
Two weeks later, at theNWA World Title Tournament, Whipwreck substituted forTerry Funk and won theWorld Tag Team Championship withCactus Jack by defeatingThe Public Enemy (Johnny Grunge andRocco Rock).[7][19] The duo held the titles untilNovember to Remember, where they lost the titles back to Public Enemy.[20] Whipwreck closed the year with a win overDon E. Allen atHoliday Hell in December.[21] He was named theRookie of the Year byWrestling Observer Newsletter in 1994.[22] Whipwreck continued his rivalry with Jason in early 1995 and formed a tag team withHack Meyers.[23] Whipwreck and Meyers lost to Jason and Paul Lauria in atag team match atReturn of the Funker on February 25.[24] The duo soon began a feud withRaven's Nest after Whipwreck defeatedStevie Richards atHostile City Showdown.[25] Whipwreck joined forces with Raven's Nest rivalTommy Dreamer to take onRaven and Stevie Richards in a tag team match atEnter the Sandman, which Whipwreck's team lost.[26]
Whipwreck began to ascend the ranks, while also expanding his moveset in the meantime. He received his first majormain event push on the August 1 episode ofHardcore TV when he won abattle royal by lastly eliminatingMarty Jannetty to become the #1 contender for theWorld Heavyweight Championship. Later that night, he was unsuccessful in his title shot againstThe Sandman.[23] Whipwreck began feuding with Sandman over the title. He defeated Sandman in aSingapore cane match atWrestlepalooza.[27] AtGangstas Paradise, Whipwreck teamed with Public Enemy against Sandman,New Jack and2 Cold Scorpio in aGangstas Paradise match, which Whipwreck's team won.[28] On the October 31 episode ofHardcore TV, Whipwreck defeated Sandman in aladder match to win the World Heavyweight Championship,[23] becoming the youngestworld champion in professional wrestling history and aTriple Crown Champion in ECW.[5] Whipwreck successfully defended the title againstSteve Austin atNovember to Remember.[29] AtDecember to Dismember on December 9, Whipwreck defended the title against Sandman and Austin in athree-way dance, where Whipwreck was the first to be eliminated by Austin. Sandman won the title.[30]
Watson continued his championship success atHoliday Hell 1995 on December 29, when he defeated 2 Cold Scorpio in aWinner Takes All match to win Scorpio's World Television Championship and the World Tag Team Championship (which Scorpio held with Sandman),[31] with assistance by former tag team partner Cactus Jack, who delivered adouble underhook DDT to Scorpio and put Whipwreck on top of him for the pinfall. Whipwreck was dissatisfied with the title win but Jack chose himself as Whipwreck's other half of the World Tag Team Champions.[23] Whipwreck lost the World Television Championship back to Scorpio atHouse Party on January 5, 1996, after interference by Raven.[32][33]
Whipwreck and Cactus were unable to maintain a successful partnership due to Cactus's dirty tactics. The duo dropped the World Tag Team Championship toThe Eliminators (Perry Saturn andJohn Kronus) in February 1996 atBig Apple Blizzard Blast. After the match, Cactusturned on Whipwreck with the aid of Raven and Whipwreck began feuding with Cactus.[32] AtCyberSlam, Whipwreck cost Cactus, a match againstShane Douglas, setting a match between the former tag team partners atBig Ass Extreme Bash, which would turn out to be Cactus' farewell match in the company. Whipwreck was defeated following severalchair shots and apiledriver.[32][34]
AtCyberSlam, Whipwreck began a newangle withTaz by picking up a fight with him after Taz continued to assault his defeated opponent Joel Hartgood after the match, but Whipwreck was taken down with aTazmission.[32] Whipwreck lost to Taz in a series of matches including one atBig Ass Extreme Bash on March 8.[35] AtHeat Wave, Whipwreck attempted to regain theECW World Tag Team Championship fromThe Eliminators withSabu as his partner but failed to win the titles.[36] He captured the European Wrestling Association (EWA) European Junior Heavyweight Championship on August 2 by defeating The Dirt Bike Kid[37] and appeared with the belt on ECW television until losing it to Sabu inLondon,England in December.[38] Whipwreck appeared on the February 24, 1997 episode ofMonday Night Raw, taking place at ECW's home arenaManhattan Center where he lost to Taz as part of anangle between ECW and theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF).[39] This would be his onlyWWE match.[40]
He took a hiatus from ECW for the next few months until returning to television on the May 29 episode ofHardcore TV, where he andSpike Dudley lost toBig Dick Dudley andD-Von Dudley.[41] Whipwreck and Dudley began teaming together and got involved in a feud withPG-13. Whipwreck and Dudley lost to PG-13 atOrgy of Violence[42] but defeated PG-13 and Whipwreck's longtime rivalJason in ahandicap match at July'sHeat Wavepay-per-view.[43]
Whipwreck was next placed in a rivalry with the undefeated newcomerJustin Credible, who was beingmanaged by Jason. Whipwreck faced Credible in a match atNovember to Remember, which Whipwreck won by pinning him after aWhipper-Snapper, ending Credible's televised winning streak.[41][44] Whipwreck disappeared from television and returned at theLiving Dangerously pay-per-view on March 1, 1998, where he helpedTommy Dreamer in beating Credible.[8] Whipwreck lost to Credible in a rematch at May'sWrestlepalooza.[45] He competed againstRob Van Dam for theECW World Television Championship atIt Ain't Seinfeld, where the match ended in a no contest after Sabu interfered and attacked Van Dam.[8][46] Whipwreck would then compete against Sabu in a series of matches throughout the year. His last rivalry in the company was againstJerry Lynn. He defeated Lynn in the opening match ofUltraClash on September 19.[47] His last televised match in ECW was a loss to Lynn on the December 17 episode ofHardcore TV.[8]
Watson left ECW forWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW) in late 1998. He made his surprise WCW debut at theUncensoredpay-per-view in March 1999, unsuccessfully challengingBilly Kidman for theWCW Cruiserweight Championship.[48] He made only three more pay-per-view appearances. He would lose toScotty Riggs atSpring Stampede[49] andVan Hammer atThe Great American Bash.[50] His final WCW pay-per-view match was aJunkyard Invitational atBash at the Beach.[51] He left WCW after several months, disillusioned by his lack of apush. While in WCW, he generally wrestled in thecruiserweight division or competed against fellow ECW alumni in thehardcore division, which made him have second thoughts about staying in WCW. His last match was adraw againstChase Tatum on the August 23 episode ofMonday Nitro.[9]
Watson returned to the ECW in October 1999 atRe-enter the Sandman (televised on the October 31 episode ofECW Hardcore TV). He was brought back to the company byLou E. Dangerously and facedMike Awesome for theWorld Heavyweight Championship but lost.[52] Whipwreck unsuccessfully challengedRob Van Dam for theECW World Television Championship on the December 26Hardcore TV.[52] In 2000, Whipwreck facedC. W. Anderson in a losing effort atGuilty as Charged.[53]
Whipwreck competed as a mid-carder, aligning himself with theSinister Minister, during which hischaracter was changed from alovable loser to apyromaniac. During this time, he began competing against lighter wrestlers in thecruiserweight division.[11] He competed inelimination matches at May'sHardcore Heaven[54] and July'sHeat Wave pay-per-views.[55] During this time, he frequentlyfeuded withLittle Guido and joined forces withYoshihiro Tajiri.[11] Whipwreck and Tajiri formed atag team called theUnholy Alliance.[10]
In August 2000 atMidtown Massacre, the Unholy Alliance won a one-nighttag team tournament for the vacantECW World Tag Team Championship. They defeatedFull Blooded Italians (Little Guido andTony Mamaluke) in the quarter-final round,E. Z. Money andJulio Dinero in the semi-final round and the teams ofJerry Lynn andTommy Dreamer andSimon Diamond and Johnny Swinger in the final round, a three-way dance to win the vacant titles.[7] Unholy Alliancedropped the belts to the Full Blooded Italians on the September 8 episode ofECW on TNN.[11] The Unholy Alliance unsuccessfully challenged the Full Blooded Italians for the tag titles atAnarchy Rulz.[56] The duo got another opportunity for the titles atNovember to Remember, where Whipwreck was injured in the match and was replaced bySuper Crazy.[57]
This marked the beginning of a brief alliance between Super Crazy and the Unholy Alliance, which ended after the trio lost to Hot Commodity (E. Z. Money, Julio Dinero, andChris Hamrick) in asix-man tag team match on the November 19 episode ofHardcore TV. Unholy Allianceturned on Crazy when Whipwreck helped Tajiri defeat Crazy in a match by delivering aWhipper-Snapper to Crazy, allowing Tajiri to get the win. The duo becamevillains in the process.[11] The Unholy Alliance began feuding with Crazy and the duo defeated Crazy and his partnerKid Kash in a tag team match atMassacre on 34th Street.[58] The Unholy Alliance defeated Crazy and Kash and Full Blooded Italians in a three-way dance at ECW's final pay-per-viewGuilty as Charged on January 7, 2001.[59] This was Whipwreck's final match in ECW as the company folded down due to bankruptcy shortly after holding its final event on January 13, 2001.
In early 2001, Whipwreck announced his intention to retire in May 2002 if he was not hired by the World Wrestling Federation or BRC in the interim, expressing an interest in pursuing a career inpyrotechnics. By June 11 he had decided to retire by September of that year, as his wrestling style had begun resulting in several nagging injuries, including two herniated discs, damaged knees, a damaged right shoulder, and a jaw cracked to the point of not even being able to eat hard food. In tribute to Whipwreck,Border City Wrestling hosted "The Mikey Whipwreck Retirement Bash" on August 29, 2001, at the Cicciaro Club inWindsor, Ontario and featured several prominent ECW performers, such asTommy Dreamer andSabu. Whipwreck wrestled his American retirement match on October 20, 2001, defeating Little Guido.
Whipwreck broke his retirement before long, returning in 2003. He wrestled in several different promotions, such asRing of Honor, where he would often team with or against some of the wrestlers he has trained. He also made a one-time appearance inTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he teamed with The Sandman at one of TNA's weekly pay-per-views againstThe Gathering (CM Punk andJulio Dinero) in a losing effort. He later appeared atHardcore Homecoming, an ECW reunion tour organized by fellow ECW alumShane Douglas, in mid-2005. On theExtreme Reunion portion of the tour, he teamed withChris Chetti to defeatSimon Diamond andC. W. Anderson on June 10. Two days later at the first-everECW One Night Stand, Whipwreck,Yoshihiro Tajiri andThe Sinister Minister reunited for one night only as Whipwreck and The Minister stood in Tajiri's corner during his three-way dance against Little Guido andSuper Crazy.
During April 2006, Whipwreck worked as an agent for Liberty States Wrestling. At thesecond ECW One Night Stand pay-per-view on June 11, 2006, Whipwreck was seen on camera celebrating with other ECW wrestlers afterRob Van Dam won theWWE Championship.
On February 21, 2008, in his final New England wrestling appearance, Whipwreck was set to team withThe Blue Meanie to challenge for theNECW Tag Team Championship atNew England Championship Wrestling's Genesis 8 event inQuincy, Massachusetts, but due to car troubles, Whipwreck was unable to attend the event, causing The Blue Meanie to pick a replacement.[citation needed]
On September 11, 2010, Whipwreck and Scyther defeated Big Time Rush (Tony Burma and Ryan Rush) to win the New York Wrestling Connection Tag Team Championship.[60]
On May 24, 2012, Whipwreck made his debut for his former partner, Tajiri's newWrestling New Classic (WNC) promotion inTokyo. He teamed with Tajiri in a tag team hardcore match, where they defeatedJado & Gedo.[61] Two days later, Whipwreck and Tajiri defeatedYo-Hey andYusuke Kodama in another tag team hardcore match inOsaka.[62] Whipwreck's tour of WNC concluded on May 27, when he, Tajiri andKana were defeated in a six-person main event byAkira,Dave Finlay andSyuri.[63] Whipwreck returned to WNC on August 30, when he, Kana and Tajiri were defeated in aBarbed Wire Board Deathmatch by Akira,StarBuck and Syuri, with Akira pinning Whipwreck for the win.[64][65] Whipwreck, Kana, and Tajiri were also defeated in a rematch the following day in Osaka.[66] On September 1, in the third and final Barbed Wire Board Deathmatch between the two teams, Whipwreck pinned StarBuck to win the match for his team.[67]
On March 12, 2015, Watson announced his intention to "let Mikey Whipwreck fade into the past".[68]
On September 14, 2015, it was announced that Mikey Whipwreck would be a playable character in theWWE 2K16 video game.[69]
,Internet Wrestling Database