Booker T in his prime was the most physically gifted and talented wrestler in history, point blank period. Size, speed, athleticism, great mat wrestler and a high flyer. He was also great on the mic, and knew how to work a crowd. The guy had no weakness in his game, Stevie Ray on the other hand, not so much 😂😂😂
To be fair, Booker T wasn't that good on the microphone. Stevie Ray was better on the stick. Want proof? Look at the interview from Spring Stampede 1997. It's far worse that either one of Sid's big blunders. Sid's mess-ups were done live. Booker T didn't even have the sense to request that the interview be done again (the pay-per-view was live, yet the interview was done beforehand). Even after Booker's blooper, Ray kept it together, the man didn't even flinch. Stevie Ray was somewhat underrated. Was he on the same level as his brother Booker? No, he wasn't. However, he made a good contrast with Booker in Harlem Heart. Stevie Ray is the type of wrestler sorely lacking in the major American promotions today, he looked and sounded credible. Additionally, I've never heard a bad word said about Stevie Ray by his colleagues, and I've never heard of him injuring anybody in the ring. Stevie was a true professional.
@@muckmuckthageneral2691 "Homie"? How old are you, 12? "Agree to disagree" is just nonsense. You either agree or you don't. Booker T was never especially good on the microphone. I never heard him cut one awesome promo as a singles wrestler in WCW. I thought Booker was excellent in the ring, yet some of the things he said on the stick were awful. When people talk about excellent talkers, Booker T is never mentioned.
I've made the Wrestle Me theme my alarm sound to wake me in the morning. It's loud, energetic, and annoying. It's perfect! No going back to sleep after that!
Harlem Heat are legends. Those guys walked into their roles knowing exactly what they were in for. No doubt they got called every racial slur imaginable infinity times, and just carried on with their Wednesday. Poking social issues is a really interesting feature of wrestling as an art form, and I admire the courage of the entertainers who take on these roles. I love that wrestling just presses the red button on hot contemporary social issues over and over again.
I am very thankful to Harlem Heat, not so much for their wrestling, but more for letting me see past racist rhetoric as a child. Grew up in a rather racist town as a kid, and went to school with one black kid, who was bullied by a lot of the other kids for being black. remember hearing stuff about black people, how they are all dirty and will steal your stuff. remember thinking as a kid, how could they all be bad. Harlem Heat were champs, cant be all bad if they are tag champions.
@@conway-jr4ceI grew up in a heavily black area and got a lot of shit for being white. That stopped once I became a giant, but my point is that anyone who is different from the majority (especially when they’re a tiny minority, I was the only white kid in most of my classes prior to getting into AP and honors courses) tends to be targeted by the majority for their difference.
@@EyeOfTheWatcher I'm not trying to suggest the crowd at Sturgis was in general. But, the SS and Confederate iconography was/is pretty out in the open in some biker circles.
Booker has said a few times that he liked performing in those places. His job is to get a reaction and get the crowd involved that's what he's doing regardless of racism. When you perform in front of racist people (granted I was playing football) I enjoyed crowd interactions. It made me better I have a point to prove even more. You might hate me but boy you know I'm good at what I do. 🤝
this has always been a misconception. The revenue generated from the road wilds sturgis ppvs more than exceed the costs and was profitable for wcw even with the free gate. in fact road wild 98 was wcw top 10 most profitable ppvs.
@@hardysa5257You know what would have made this show even more profitable? The extra million or so they could have made holding the ppv in an arena, instead of a cow field. I doubt there is a single fan who bought that ppv because it was in Sturgis, as opposed to Greensboro or Chicago.
@@lodi70005 Well, it is after all a rally/bikefestival, and the free gate is to attract as many bikers as possible to create the themed event. if you have a paid gated entry, and possibly only a tenth of the bikers turning up, it wouldnt be a spectacle and this in turn will affect the viewers impresssion and affect the ppv and future buys and in the wrestling business, impression is everything. In fact every year since 96 Road wild ppvs (220k) has annually did more ppv buy rates than other ppvs like Great american Bash and Slamboree.(160k). So from a business standpoint, it is a great decision.
@@lodi70005 Well, it is after all a rally/bikefestival, and the free gate is to attract as many bikers as possible to create the themed event. if you have a paid gated entry, and possibly only a tenth of the bikers turning up, it wouldnt be a spectacle and this in turn will affect the viewers impresssion and affect the ppv and future buys and in the wrestling business, impression is a big deal. In fact every year since 96 Road wild ppvs (220k) has annually did more ppv buy rates than other ppvs like Great american Bash and Slamboree.(160k). So from a business standpoint, it is a great decision.
@@lodi70005 You know WCW wasn't a PPV company, right? They mostly only did PPVs to take a chunk out of WWF's business. PPV was completely unnecessary for WCW to function. But you wouldn't know that, being a mark and all.
I just wanted to say, I adore you two. Not only are you informing me and giving me knowledge, you make me laugh along the way. I smile every time I get a notification from this channel. On a sidenote, massive respect to Booker and Stevie. I cannot begin to imagine how awful that event must have been for them... But they did it anyway! Can't help but respect their professionalism.
I wish that the bell had rang, Booker or Stevie laid down finger poke of doom style and then just left the ring. Also, it's insane seeing those bikers challenging Booker and Stevie to fight them as if Booker and Stevie wouldn't fold each and every one of them like lawn chairs. Booker especially was fucking huge!
most Harley guys are dweebs yes, but also most normal men would see that big loud toy and the little kid still alive inside of us wishes we could have one
Got to love the goofy old guys in the crowd who haven’t got regular exercise since grade school, taunting Harlem Heat like a fight between them could go their way. Real tough.
You think those outlaw bikers would fight fair? Or with fists? Harlem Heat would have been looking like Swiss Cheese before they made it close enough, and would have been dragged behind a parade of bikes until their limbs fell off. Literally.
I'm not gonna say for sure the biker with the iron cross isn't a racist but the iron cross is used by most bikers as a sign of rebellion (the same reason why skateboarders started using it).
Yeah especially considering they featured a shot of Triple H riding a motorcycle with the iron cross on his elbow pads, something he’s used in his branding for like 30 years
I think it's pretty telling that when bikers want to show rebellion they go towards the Nazi shit and don't just use the humble Anarchy Symbole or the much more fashionable Hammer and Sickle.
@ Versuch mal einem Deutschen seine eigene Geschichte zu erzählen. Yes and the Swastika is a Buddhist symbol, however when I see a meth addicted redneck on a Hog having one as a patch, please forgive me, I am not going to assume he is a Buddhist.
@@KenFromHell You have to go back to the history of biker outlaw culture. A lot of the first outlaw bikers were WWII veterans. They took "trophies" from the war, including Nazi helmets, medals, and patches, and displayed them. Later bikers just a) accepted that as a part of their culture, b) used the Nazi iconography because they knew it offended people, or c) both. I'd go with c) being the most likely.
Harlem Heat performed at my podunk, nowhere, high school and my friend and I had the pleasure of briefly greeting them in the hallway as they were leaving. This place was prime racist, white person land, so I felt like so awkward for them. And they probably did this all the time, and was run of the mill for them. Respect alone for that. Anyone who's ever met and known those gentlemen said they were nothing but class. Honestly, i couldn't do it. I'd be throwing haymakers, so my hats (don't even think I own one, but nonetheless) off to them.
Ok Booker and Stevie are fucking jacked here. WCW Booker T was a different guy in WWE, and I didn’t know this bc I’m not a WCW guy, but seeing old WCW Booker T clips, makes me realize he should’ve been WWE Champion
@EyeOfTheWatcher what history? It's so annoying when people say shot like this, like every knows the same shit. If you're gonna call someone racist provide proof.
I always assumed the reaction was racial also, but it hadn't occurred to me that they didn't boo Ice Train. I wonder if it was more the attitude and persona of "Harlem" heat. The biker crowd may have taken more issue with the Harlem part of it, and the general cockiness of the Heat. That never occured to me until just now.
Halrem Heat was paid handsomly to antagonize the crowd! Calling them names & back & forth etc. > Its called A WORK! Cause they are being paid to provoke the crowd as heels, its A gimmick.
While there might've been similar situations at house shows in the south, I would assume that the sum of combined jail- and prisontime for assault and bodily harm in the audience might've been just a tad lower there... Even had to play up the "mandingo" aspect of the HH gimmick by not only having Southern belle Sherri (bless her) but also the Colonel with them. Craaazy to think any of this was a good idea or in good taste.
Sherri and Col. Parker were in a romantic relationship in the storyline. That's why he joined up with the three of them (Sherri managed them alone before).
@@Kaltagstar96 Let me give you a foreign perspective. I'm from Australia, I've still yet to visit Harlem, yet as a kid growing up in the '80s and '90s, to me, Harlem was synonymous with rough neighbourhoods, you don't mess with the people, and so on and so forth. Harlem folks were often painted as coming from the poor, rough side of New York. That's the perception that many people, inside America and outside of America, have about Harlem. I know that Bad News Brown _was_ born in Harlem, yet the thing about Brown is that he _played_ on it, he reminded you about it every 30 seconds. Brown's hometown had a reputation, so he worked it to his advantage. Did Bob Backlund remind you every 30 seconds that he came from Princeton, Minnesota? No. Did Randy Savage make a big deal about being from (his billed hometown) Sarasota, Florida? No, he didn't. Princeton and Sarasota don't have "reputations" engrained in popular culture. Harlem does. Same thing with The Road Warriors, they were formed in Minnesota, yet they were billed as being from Chicago, Illinois. Understand this, and you'll understand why they were called Harlem Heat.
Stevie has, the majority of the talent hatred working Road Wild because the crowd was so hostile. Foul language, throwing objects and putting cigarettes out on the wrestlers as they moved around.
This is potentially what happens when you book a wrestling show in a open public place where anyone can show up or at events that were meant for something else entirely like these one. The people watching wont hold back on what they want to say regardless of if you like it or not. They see it as they didn't show up for a wrestling show you just showed up to the event they happened to be at. Not making an excuse for them but these people were never going to turn up to a wrestling show normally and probably didn't again after.
1:35 or maybe, just maybe, it also had to do with the fact that it was 2 black guys being accompanied by a white woman, which in some parts of the country , is still "a thing"
Despite what haters says, wcws theme shows like road wild at sturgis and bash at the beach have always been unique and the crowd interaction was wild..
In late 2020 Greg Clarke stepped down as head of the FA for using the phrase coloured footballers. I thought phrases like this were outdated. In the world of art black and white are not considered colours, they are used as shades. We are all one race. The human race.
2:20 I’m 6’5” and 240 and I’ve been doing combat sports my whole life. I would never pick a fight with someone like Booker T, dude is yoked as shit and has nearly 20 pounds on me despite me being two inches taller. You’d have to be an idiot to pick a fight with Book and Stevie, those dudes are rough.
The iron cross isn’t necessarily nazi related, but it likely is in this context. But that cross is historically very important to a lot of Germanic organizations and kingdoms, from the goths on through to the crusaders like the Templars and such.
It’s not more difficult, I like riding motorcycles in good conditions so long as it’s not high traffic volume. But I ride an old fairly lightweight triumph that is very easy to handle and forgiving because of its light weight.
@@Thor-OrionI disagree here, and the symbolism of showing the iron cross wasn’t for the purposes of scaring black people once in a blue moon. I think Harlem Heat being who they are with the personality they had was the kicker. Not only are they black, they’re city blacks, which are the two things country folks and racist country folks can’t stand.
@@solidsnake8331 WWE Network is still available in several countries. When Netflix reported Raw's viewership numbers for the debut episode, they mentioned that WWE is NOT on Netflix and airs on a different platform in something like 90 countries.
arguably one of most disturbing wrestling matches to witness but are talented hosts give justice to the victims here ....funny but painfully true .....love you guys
Netflix should defintely not air an episode with Booker T wearing white face. That’s RACIST 😂. Also, HHH looked ridiculous riding the equivalent of a kids Big Wheel.
Eric Bischoff knew exactly what he was doing with this card, he knew that the show would be teeming with racist bikers, and he played into it. Want proof? There was a match after which Madusa Miceli smashed a Japanese motorbike with a sledgehammer. Bischoff was in no way blameless, and this show could've ended _very_ badly for someone. Yet the show ended with Beefcake having the crap beaten out of him, which was a good thing.
I assume Sturgis before and after the motorcycle festival is a lot like what Lake Placid, New York is like before and 40+ years after it hosted the Olympics .
Fun fact: The "MJF, I dropped a quarter" sign was in reference to a promo by MJF where he said that people on his high school football team would throw quarters at him and demand he "pick them up, Jew Boy." So yes. That sign was blatant anti-semitism.
Anti-Semitism, my arse. Ever stop to think how often the Jews make fun of other cultures and get away with it? Peter Engel, Jewish television creator, makes fun of Saudi Arabia (jump to 19:08 in the video): th-cam.com/video/Mmk9h--PGZk/w-d-xo.html Notice how people still make Irish jokes? I went to school with a kid who made Irish jokes all the time. He was a very brown lad of Greek-Cypriot descent, both his parents were migrants. He thought that Irish jokes were hilarious, yet call him a greaseball, and he'd go to pieces. What's more, he recommended that I _not_ visit the house of a Pakistani student because he said the kid's house would be dirty and smell bad. I, a fair-haired, blue-eyed kid, ignored him and went anyway. It taught me a lesson. So-called ethnic minorities like to whine and moan about racism, yet they're often the quickest to indulge in it. Hollywood is full of movie and television shows that wallow in ethnic stereotypes, and if you read the credits, such shows are teeming with Jewish folks. Arabs, by the way, are Semites, so if Jewish folks make fun of Arabs, aren't they being anti-Semitic? Hilarious how the Jews think that anti-Semitic _only_ means anti-Jewish, like Jews are the only Semites. When C.M. Punk was in Australia and used the term "walkabout" against a local fan, was that racist? Was that anti-Australian? Seems like people are very selective as to what they view as "racist" these days.
Here in the states, statistics show you are 28x more likely to die in a motorcycle accident than a car accident. Darwin's still handing out awards it seems.
It was their gimmick (Harlem Heat carries racial overtones) and they were heels afterall, combined with the atmosphere. If WCW put on a PPV at some hip hop summer jam fest in, like, Baltimore and somebody like, say, The Dirty White Boy came out talking trash to the fans, he'd get a similar reaction.
But can you honestly tell me that they’d get a modicum of respect at that event if they were the baby faces? I have a bridge in New York I can sell you for a bargain if you think so.
@fishjones4618 We can what if all day if we want. If he came out smiling and bumping fists like a face, he may have got cheered. We can't say. But with Harlem Heat's bravado and attitude, and this is important, as heels in this environment, of course Booker and Stevie are going to expound on this and illicit an even more egregious reaction from those in attendance. Much like Goldust when, once again, he was a heel, he got a thousand F-word chants. And he would hype that up. He turned face, boom the chants stopped. I'm not saying that's the only reason. But let's not pretend them being "bad guys" to this crowd didn't play a part in the heat they got.
Sturgis takes place in a small town that in the entire year before and after Sturgis Rally takes place it probably only has less than 10% of the tourists or visitors that it gets during a day of Sturgis
I know somebody has kind of mentioned this but top of what was mentioned didn't The Caribbean Sunshine Boys aka Dave "Soul Man" Bond and Johnny Kincaid have another match in Southend which ended with the two chasing some far right supporters back stage!
WWE signed a deal with Netflix months ago that starts in January 2025. Monday Night Raw will air live on Netflix worldwide. Smackdown, NXT, and the monthly specials (Premium Live Events) will air live on Netflix in most of the world but not in the United States (where they will continue to air on USA Network, The CW, and Peacock respectively). WWE Network is supposedly going to close everywhere when the deal starts, and it hasn't been confirmed what the fate of the archives will be. We could see WWE Network re-branded to "WWE Vault" or "WWE Classics." The content might move to Netflix. Worse case scenario, that content will no longer be available on demand. We just don't know yet.
@@chrishh5777 I ripped everything classic from the network in the highest quality available. Every WCW nitro/thunder +ppv. Every WWE raw/smackdown +ppv. All ECW content. Plus Some territories like Mid atlantic and WCCW. Have more than 10 terabytes worth.
@@GDavis49 Yes, which is why Smackdown, NXT, and the PLEs won't be on U.S. Netflix in 2025, only Raw. However, WWE apparently plans to close the regular WWE Network at the end of 2024 but haven't said if old WWE, WCW, ECW, and all of the stuff is coming to Netflix or not.
@@chrishh5777 There's a WWE TH-cam channel called "WWE Vault" so it wouldn't surprise me if that was the name that WWE chooses to rebrand to that brand.
Why would this not be on TV? It's peacock WWF paper views and WCW is on anyway. Not some internet station at least not in our nation. It's awful that WWF Raw is on some internet channel only, and it's not even WWF network. So whatever. Of course this comes from a time when many of us are told endless bs from our own history so...whatever. It's how it is. You do not censor truth. What occured occurs , right or wrong, comfort able or not. Censorship is not good.
SS symbol, Iron Cross, and Swastika images date back to the earliest WWII war veteran motorcycle clubs that eventually became Hell's Angels Daytona Bike week would have been a better spot than Sturgis for a pro wrestling show I learned from being a person who is named after a British motorcycle Iron Cross is also a part of skateboarding history Midwest is surprisingly racist despite having Minnesota nice, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Chicago
I forgot about Harlem Heat's little rubber circle (maybe it wasn't rubber I don't know) thing on their tights. It was a unique look but I always really hated that. I don't know why, but that little circle offended me or something. I also disliked Booker T's nose strip thing. Like, why are you worried about snoring while you're wrestling, dude? I think I liked Booker T a lot more once he broke away from Stevie Ray. I also hated that Sherri was with them. Maybe because I just never liked the team that much, but Sherri was awesome and it seemed like a waste of her talent to me. Don't get me wrong though, I didn't HATE them, but something about them.. I think just their ring gear and stuff for whatever reason, made me not really like them a lot. I saw Booker T once much later live at a late WCW Nitro, in 2000 I think, and was happy to see him then.
I made a comment about Sturgis, with each 'S' replaced by a lightning bolt. Seems like it's been censored in some manner. I guess it's okay for this channel to make jokes about Sturgis and show someone wearing the SS logo, but you can't mention it in the way I did. Anyway, I'm going with your description: Klan on the Sand.
It's the same, it's an iron cross. It isn't a racist symbol. It was originally an award given to German soldiers, before and after WW2. The one's for Nazi soldiers have a swastika on them. Bikers and skateboarders later adopted the cross as a sign of rebellion.
"I don't think anyone says, 'well that's just the way it is.' "
Welcome to America, lads...
Booker T in his prime was the most physically gifted and talented wrestler in history, point blank period. Size, speed, athleticism, great mat wrestler and a high flyer. He was also great on the mic, and knew how to work a crowd. The guy had no weakness in his game, Stevie Ray on the other hand, not so much 😂😂😂
To be fair, Booker T wasn't that good on the microphone. Stevie Ray was better on the stick. Want proof? Look at the interview from Spring Stampede 1997. It's far worse that either one of Sid's big blunders. Sid's mess-ups were done live. Booker T didn't even have the sense to request that the interview be done again (the pay-per-view was live, yet the interview was done beforehand). Even after Booker's blooper, Ray kept it together, the man didn't even flinch.
Stevie Ray was somewhat underrated. Was he on the same level as his brother Booker? No, he wasn't. However, he made a good contrast with Booker in Harlem Heart. Stevie Ray is the type of wrestler sorely lacking in the major American promotions today, he looked and sounded credible. Additionally, I've never heard a bad word said about Stevie Ray by his colleagues, and I've never heard of him injuring anybody in the ring. Stevie was a true professional.
@@markv1274 Agree to disagree homie
@@muckmuckthageneral2691 "Homie"? How old are you, 12?
"Agree to disagree" is just nonsense. You either agree or you don't.
Booker T was never especially good on the microphone. I never heard him cut one awesome promo as a singles wrestler in WCW. I thought Booker was excellent in the ring, yet some of the things he said on the stick were awful. When people talk about excellent talkers, Booker T is never mentioned.
@@markv1274 Agree to disagree means I disagree, HOMIE 🤣🤣🤣
😂😂😂 That's a joke
I've made the Wrestle Me theme my alarm sound to wake me in the morning. It's loud, energetic, and annoying. It's perfect! No going back to sleep after that!
Need the full version.
@jimibaboza It sounds like one of the tracks from the WCW vs The World PS1 game. I used to put it in the CD player and listen to the tracks.
It's part of one of the NJPW songs, I think it's called The Wrestler's Theme.
where can I listen to the full version? I love it. Reminds me of 80s Casiopea in the best way.
@@BossDD3 th-cam.com/video/bEy-BURCHYE/w-d-xo.html
Triple H looked like such a dork on that trike 🤣🤣🤣
Harlem Heat are legends. Those guys walked into their roles knowing exactly what they were in for. No doubt they got called every racial slur imaginable infinity times, and just carried on with their Wednesday. Poking social issues is a really interesting feature of wrestling as an art form, and I admire the courage of the entertainers who take on these roles. I love that wrestling just presses the red button on hot contemporary social issues over and over again.
I am very thankful to Harlem Heat, not so much for their wrestling, but more for letting me see past racist rhetoric as a child. Grew up in a rather racist town as a kid, and went to school with one black kid, who was bullied by a lot of the other kids for being black. remember hearing stuff about black people, how they are all dirty and will steal your stuff. remember thinking as a kid, how could they all be bad. Harlem Heat were champs, cant be all bad if they are tag champions.
@@conway-jr4ceI grew up in a heavily black area and got a lot of shit for being white. That stopped once I became a giant, but my point is that anyone who is different from the majority (especially when they’re a tiny minority, I was the only white kid in most of my classes prior to getting into AP and honors courses) tends to be targeted by the majority for their difference.
Actual Stevie Ray was hanging out with some of the bikers after the show, so not everyone there was racists.
@@EyeOfTheWatcher I'm not trying to suggest the crowd at Sturgis was in general. But, the SS and Confederate iconography was/is pretty out in the open in some biker circles.
Booker has said a few times that he liked performing in those places. His job is to get a reaction and get the crowd involved that's what he's doing regardless of racism. When you perform in front of racist people (granted I was playing football) I enjoyed crowd interactions. It made me better I have a point to prove even more. You might hate me but boy you know I'm good at what I do. 🤝
This was part of Bischoff's silliness. They didn't charge the bikers to see the show, WCW just did this show because Bischoff likes motorcycles.
this has always been a misconception. The revenue generated from the road wilds sturgis ppvs more than exceed the costs and was profitable for wcw even with the free gate. in fact road wild 98 was wcw top 10 most profitable ppvs.
@@hardysa5257You know what would have made this show even more profitable?
The extra million or so they could have made holding the ppv in an arena, instead of a cow field.
I doubt there is a single fan who bought that ppv because it was in Sturgis, as opposed to Greensboro or Chicago.
@@lodi70005 Well, it is after all a rally/bikefestival, and the free gate is to attract as many bikers as possible to create the themed event. if you have a paid gated entry, and possibly only a tenth of the bikers turning up, it wouldnt be a spectacle and this in turn will affect the viewers impresssion and affect the ppv and future buys and in the wrestling business, impression is everything. In fact every year since 96 Road wild ppvs (220k) has annually did more ppv buy rates than other ppvs like Great american Bash and Slamboree.(160k). So from a business standpoint, it is a great decision.
@@lodi70005 Well, it is after all a rally/bikefestival, and the free gate is to attract as many bikers as possible to create the themed event. if you have a paid gated entry, and possibly only a tenth of the bikers turning up, it wouldnt be a spectacle and this in turn will affect the viewers impresssion and affect the ppv and future buys and in the wrestling business, impression is a big deal. In fact every year since 96 Road wild ppvs (220k) has annually did more ppv buy rates than other ppvs like Great american Bash and Slamboree.(160k). So from a business standpoint, it is a great decision.
@@lodi70005 You know WCW wasn't a PPV company, right? They mostly only did PPVs to take a chunk out of WWF's business. PPV was completely unnecessary for WCW to function. But you wouldn't know that, being a mark and all.
"Speakin' of Bobby, there's a hot air balloon up there" that's gold from Dusty hahaha
If anyone resembled a hot air balloon, it was Big Dust.
2:06 spinaroonie into a super kick 😮
Why isn't Marc impressed with the spinaroonie?!
I just wanted to say, I adore you two. Not only are you informing me and giving me knowledge, you make me laugh along the way.
I smile every time I get a notification from this channel.
On a sidenote, massive respect to Booker and Stevie. I cannot begin to imagine how awful that event must have been for them... But they did it anyway! Can't help but respect their professionalism.
I wish that the bell had rang, Booker or Stevie laid down finger poke of doom style and then just left the ring. Also, it's insane seeing those bikers challenging Booker and Stevie to fight them as if Booker and Stevie wouldn't fold each and every one of them like lawn chairs. Booker especially was fucking huge!
@@Kaltagstar96umm. All heels would be challenged like that, no matter where they were....
Absolute balls of steel on Harlem Heat for walking in to this open air den of racists.
Most people who own Harley's think every else thinks they are cool, but nothing could be farther from the truth
most Harley guys are dweebs yes, but also most normal men would see that big loud toy and the little kid still alive inside of us wishes we could have one
@@rickylahey9248 go tell a real biker he is a Dweeb and please let know where and when 😅😂🤣
As a Harley owner I can assure you that everyone does think we are cool.
@HereIsRick
lol. No
Harleys are really cool.
Got to love the goofy old guys in the crowd who haven’t got regular exercise since grade school, taunting Harlem Heat like a fight between them could go their way. Real tough.
You think those outlaw bikers would fight fair? Or with fists? Harlem Heat would have been looking like Swiss Cheese before they made it close enough, and would have been dragged behind a parade of bikes until their limbs fell off. Literally.
@ yeah I’m saying those goofs only look tough because they are the majority. One on one, no weapons, none of them could take Booker or Stevie Ray.
Booker probably could have eaten up all those guys just by himself.
@@williamrockwell9705 and we're really impressed by your edgy racism! Just tell us your dick is tiny. No reason to hide it.
@@williamrockwell9705 what black worship? The Steiner’s would have also destroyed anyone in that crowd.
Imagine if the final was booker t vs Goldberg? They'd be so confused.
@@williamrockwell9705 You have a problem, deal with it.
Underrated comment 🤣
I'm not gonna say for sure the biker with the iron cross isn't a racist but the iron cross is used by most bikers as a sign of rebellion (the same reason why skateboarders started using it).
Yeah especially considering they featured a shot of Triple H riding a motorcycle with the iron cross on his elbow pads, something he’s used in his branding for like 30 years
I think it's pretty telling that when bikers want to show rebellion they go towards the Nazi shit and don't just use the humble Anarchy Symbole or the much more fashionable Hammer and Sickle.
@@KenFromHell It's not a nazi symbol, the iron cross is an award given to German soldiers...started far before the nazis.
@ Versuch mal einem Deutschen seine eigene Geschichte zu erzählen.
Yes and the Swastika is a Buddhist symbol, however when I see a meth addicted redneck on a Hog having one as a patch, please forgive me, I am not going to assume he is a Buddhist.
@@KenFromHell You have to go back to the history of biker outlaw culture. A lot of the first outlaw bikers were WWII veterans. They took "trophies" from the war, including Nazi helmets, medals, and patches, and displayed them. Later bikers just a) accepted that as a part of their culture, b) used the Nazi iconography because they knew it offended people, or c) both. I'd go with c) being the most likely.
Harlem Heat performed at my podunk, nowhere, high school and my friend and I had the pleasure of briefly greeting them in the hallway as they were leaving. This place was prime racist, white person land, so I felt like so awkward for them. And they probably did this all the time, and was run of the mill for them. Respect alone for that. Anyone who's ever met and known those gentlemen said they were nothing but class.
Honestly, i couldn't do it. I'd be throwing haymakers, so my hats (don't even think I own one, but nonetheless) off to them.
Ok Booker and Stevie are fucking jacked here. WCW Booker T was a different guy in WWE, and I didn’t know this bc I’m not a WCW guy, but seeing old WCW Booker T clips, makes me realize he should’ve been WWE Champion
Dillinger could've packed the whole crowd up if he wanted.
Let be honest, Dillinger would be joining them in yelling racial stuff given his history.
@EyeOfTheWatcher what history? It's so annoying when people say shot like this, like every knows the same shit. If you're gonna call someone racist provide proof.
U're delusion on racism is crazy
You guys are extremely witty and knowledgeable. Great show!
There is a term from a South Park episode that fits perfectly for Harley riders.
Wrestling has always been about racism, sexism, elitism, etc. This is quite tame compared to places like Puerto Rico.
Come for the Harlem, stay for the Heat. HH's physicality and athleticism is undeniable, and Booker T is the ultimate, entertaining troll.
i live in sturgis , and these bois arent wrong. Triple H had an iron cross on his gear for his entire career
I always assumed the reaction was racial also, but it hadn't occurred to me that they didn't boo Ice Train.
I wonder if it was more the attitude and persona of "Harlem" heat. The biker crowd may have taken more issue with the Harlem part of it, and the general cockiness of the Heat.
That never occured to me until just now.
Halrem Heat was paid handsomly to antagonize the crowd! Calling them names & back & forth etc.
> Its called A WORK! Cause they are being paid to provoke the crowd as heels, its A gimmick.
At the risk of sounding super inconsiderate to a recently deceased man, but imagine being so dull, not even racists care about you.
While there might've been similar situations at house shows in the south, I would assume that the sum of combined jail- and prisontime for assault and bodily harm in the audience might've been just a tad lower there...
Even had to play up the "mandingo" aspect of the HH gimmick by not only having Southern belle Sherri (bless her) but also the Colonel with them. Craaazy to think any of this was a good idea or in good taste.
Was there ever a reason why they were called HARLEM Heat and not Houston Heat? It's not even like you can say "It's for alliterative purposes"
Sherri and Col. Parker were in a romantic relationship in the storyline. That's why he joined up with the three of them (Sherri managed them alone before).
@@Kaltagstar96 Let me give you a foreign perspective. I'm from Australia, I've still yet to visit Harlem, yet as a kid growing up in the '80s and '90s, to me, Harlem was synonymous with rough neighbourhoods, you don't mess with the people, and so on and so forth. Harlem folks were often painted as coming from the poor, rough side of New York. That's the perception that many people, inside America and outside of America, have about Harlem.
I know that Bad News Brown _was_ born in Harlem, yet the thing about Brown is that he _played_ on it, he reminded you about it every 30 seconds. Brown's hometown had a reputation, so he worked it to his advantage. Did Bob Backlund remind you every 30 seconds that he came from Princeton, Minnesota? No. Did Randy Savage make a big deal about being from (his billed hometown) Sarasota, Florida? No, he didn't. Princeton and Sarasota don't have "reputations" engrained in popular culture. Harlem does.
Same thing with The Road Warriors, they were formed in Minnesota, yet they were billed as being from Chicago, Illinois. Understand this, and you'll understand why they were called Harlem Heat.
3:55 the iron cross is okay now because Zelenskyy wears it and Ukraine are definitely not Nazis at all. Definitely not nazis.
Has Booker talked about this match at all?
Stevie Ray has
th-cam.com/video/NRlSiEE7WdI/w-d-xo.htmlsi=hVChaC6KnrMZxrfr
Stevie has, the majority of the talent hatred working Road Wild because the crowd was so hostile. Foul language, throwing objects and putting cigarettes out on the wrestlers as they moved around.
Banya bringing in the Stone Cold footage, baybeeee
This is potentially what happens when you book a wrestling show in a open public place where anyone can show up or at events that were meant for something else entirely like these one. The people watching wont hold back on what they want to say regardless of if you like it or not. They see it as they didn't show up for a wrestling show you just showed up to the event they happened to be at. Not making an excuse for them but these people were never going to turn up to a wrestling show normally and probably didn't again after.
The entire Marc’s dad “going mad” arc is pretty legendary
*…and now I’m here. Just give me a bike.*
Ahhh I’m being dragged along😂
Very funny shows guys. Keep going, it'll catch on
1:35 or maybe, just maybe, it also had to do with the fact that it was 2 black guys being accompanied by a white woman, which in some parts of the country , is still "a thing"
I'm a South Dakotan. Yes, it is that racist here. Totally normal. No surprise at all. I hate it.
Like living in Aintree during National season. An absolute nightmare.
Harlem Heat were a great tag team. Kinda sad it took a match dealing with these bikers for you to think, now I respect them as wrestlers.
The crowd turned heel
That is not a swastika at 2:47. It is an SS logo which is still nazi related.
Thanks for the distinction! Not even close to equal, right???
@carlrice1774 yeah, they aren’t the same thing.
Fun fact: The Harris Twins would sometimes wear SS shirts when they worked.
Whole lotta sister-wives and uncle-fathers in that crowd...
"I've Never Seen fans throw Bottles in the ring", You Don't Know American Wrestling!
Despite what haters says, wcws theme shows like road wild at sturgis and bash at the beach have always been unique and the crowd interaction was wild..
Sturgis kinda reminds me of the town that features in the climax to that 2nd Client Eastwood film with the Orangutan
Every which way but loose..2
I always get Every Which Way But Loose and Any Which Way You Can out of order, which is odd because I love both movies lol
@@samspurgeon4222 - "...Can" is the 2nd one.....
@airfixx_8952 gotcha....thank you for that👍
My favourite scene in Stone Cold is when Bosworth says 'I'll take you with me' erotic guitar solo starts, girls says 'You'll take me with you?'
Such A good movie. Free on YT right now. _Lance_ & _Forsythe_ are the perfect biker antagonists.
I can only imagine the shit that Harlem Heat caught at this match. True professionals IMHO.
In late 2020 Greg Clarke stepped down as head of the FA for using the phrase coloured footballers. I thought phrases like this were outdated. In the world of art black and white are not considered colours, they are used as shades. We are all one race. The human race.
Additionally, everyone is coloured, so the term "coloured person" is redundant.
Pete having his Coolish ice cream is some lovely podcast multiverse.
2:20 I’m 6’5” and 240 and I’ve been doing combat sports my whole life. I would never pick a fight with someone like Booker T, dude is yoked as shit and has nearly 20 pounds on me despite me being two inches taller. You’d have to be an idiot to pick a fight with Book and Stevie, those dudes are rough.
The iron cross isn’t necessarily nazi related, but it likely is in this context. But that cross is historically very important to a lot of Germanic organizations and kingdoms, from the goths on through to the crusaders like the Templars and such.
It’s not more difficult, I like riding motorcycles in good conditions so long as it’s not high traffic volume.
But I ride an old fairly lightweight triumph that is very easy to handle and forgiving because of its light weight.
@@Thor-OrionI disagree here, and the symbolism of showing the iron cross wasn’t for the purposes of scaring black people once in a blue moon.
I think Harlem Heat being who they are with the personality they had was the kicker. Not only are they black, they’re city blacks, which are the two things country folks and racist country folks can’t stand.
Netflix won’t be showing that because it won’t be showing any match for that matter…..only Monday night raw
So what happens to the wcw and ecw shows? People watch that. Are they taking them down?
@ peacock app still
@@solidsnake8331 WWE Network is still available in several countries. When Netflix reported Raw's viewership numbers for the debut episode, they mentioned that WWE is NOT on Netflix and airs on a different platform in something like 90 countries.
arguably one of most disturbing wrestling matches to witness but are talented hosts give justice to the victims here ....funny but painfully true .....love you guys
@@williamrockwell9705he means what was said. We don’t want to hear about Owen, Guerreros tragedies anymore let alone new jackass.
Netflix should defintely not air an episode with Booker T wearing white face. That’s RACIST 😂. Also, HHH looked ridiculous riding the equivalent of a kids Big Wheel.
Glad this is back up 🎉
By all accounts the Mexican Guys like Guerrero and Rey Mysterio JR apparently got the same treatment on these shows!
No sht! They know where Mexicans really are before they were crossbred by Spain
The hot air balloon line was actually pretty good. What an absolutely bonkers show.
Imagine how much more depressing this would have been at The Bulldog Bash...
Eric Bischoff knew exactly what he was doing with this card, he knew that the show would be teeming with racist bikers, and he played into it. Want proof? There was a match after which Madusa Miceli smashed a Japanese motorbike with a sledgehammer. Bischoff was in no way blameless, and this show could've ended _very_ badly for someone. Yet the show ended with Beefcake having the crap beaten out of him, which was a good thing.
Just glad they were not hurt at that event. No security no metal detectors thats a risky situation 😬
This match is the reason why I have a very low opinion on Sturgis, fuck em.
Harlem Heat is one of the Greatest Tag Teams in my opinion
Wait the thieves RETURNED Marcs bike lmfao. Didn’t just ditch it, they figured giving it back would be worse. 😂😂😂
I can’t wait for them to start taking about how smashed Bobby Heenan was for this show! 😂
Impotent Grizzled Old Bastards is a good tag team name tbh
Impotent Grizzled Old Bastards is the name of my band.
I assume Sturgis before and after the motorcycle festival is a lot like what Lake Placid, New York is like before and 40+ years after it hosted the Olympics .
Imagine New Jack and Mustafa at this event
Harlem Heat started in Global in Texas and had to put up with way worst than what was shown here.
I hate that they don’t say “wrestle me Mark. Wrestle me Peter.” Anymore 😂
It makes sense, given the name of the podcast
you guys always make me laugh when im having a bad day keep it up 🙂
Best WrestleMe ever. Every episode should end with a five-minute diatribe against motorbikes.
Fun fact: The "MJF, I dropped a quarter" sign was in reference to a promo by MJF where he said that people on his high school football team would throw quarters at him and demand he "pick them up, Jew Boy." So yes. That sign was blatant anti-semitism.
Yeah...noone cares
Oh no
Anti-Semitism, my arse. Ever stop to think how often the Jews make fun of other cultures and get away with it?
Peter Engel, Jewish television creator, makes fun of Saudi Arabia (jump to 19:08 in the video):
th-cam.com/video/Mmk9h--PGZk/w-d-xo.html
Notice how people still make Irish jokes? I went to school with a kid who made Irish jokes all the time. He was a very brown lad of Greek-Cypriot descent, both his parents were migrants. He thought that Irish jokes were hilarious, yet call him a greaseball, and he'd go to pieces. What's more, he recommended that I _not_ visit the house of a Pakistani student because he said the kid's house would be dirty and smell bad. I, a fair-haired, blue-eyed kid, ignored him and went anyway.
It taught me a lesson. So-called ethnic minorities like to whine and moan about racism, yet they're often the quickest to indulge in it. Hollywood is full of movie and television shows that wallow in ethnic stereotypes, and if you read the credits, such shows are teeming with Jewish folks.
Arabs, by the way, are Semites, so if Jewish folks make fun of Arabs, aren't they being anti-Semitic? Hilarious how the Jews think that anti-Semitic _only_ means anti-Jewish, like Jews are the only Semites.
When C.M. Punk was in Australia and used the term "walkabout" against a local fan, was that racist? Was that anti-Australian? Seems like people are very selective as to what they view as "racist" these days.
If there was any question about it you guys made sure we know what kinda men yall are. BETA
Here in the states, statistics show you are 28x more likely to die in a motorcycle accident than a car accident. Darwin's still handing out awards it seems.
Human societies are dynamic. It's always changing. Must have felt like "The Green Book" for Harlem Heat at the time.
It was their gimmick (Harlem Heat carries racial overtones) and they were heels afterall, combined with the atmosphere. If WCW put on a PPV at some hip hop summer jam fest in, like, Baltimore and somebody like, say, The Dirty White Boy came out talking trash to the fans, he'd get a similar reaction.
Yes. All racism is bad
But can you honestly tell me that they’d get a modicum of respect at that event if they were the baby faces? I have a bridge in New York I can sell you for a bargain if you think so.
@fishjones4618 That's why I said combined. Ice Train didn't get the same heat.
Because he either faced forward or looked at the camera. Had he engaged the audience, it’d been a different story. And that’s history telling me that.
@fishjones4618 We can what if all day if we want. If he came out smiling and bumping fists like a face, he may have got cheered. We can't say. But with Harlem Heat's bravado and attitude, and this is important, as heels in this environment, of course Booker and Stevie are going to expound on this and illicit an even more egregious reaction from those in attendance.
Much like Goldust when, once again, he was a heel, he got a thousand F-word chants. And he would hype that up. He turned face, boom the chants stopped. I'm not saying that's the only reason. But let's not pretend them being "bad guys" to this crowd didn't play a part in the heat they got.
Sturgis takes place in a small town that in the entire year before and after Sturgis Rally takes place it probably only has less than 10% of the tourists or visitors that it gets during a day of Sturgis
I'm from the Kansas City area. Don't wish this on me and my people.
Harlem heat was one of the best tag teams in wcw you crazy
Yes Dusty. A Hot Abbaloon indeed.
I know somebody has kind of mentioned this but top of what was mentioned didn't The Caribbean Sunshine Boys aka Dave "Soul Man" Bond and Johnny Kincaid have another match in Southend which ended with the two chasing some far right supporters back stage!
I didn't know Netflix showed wcw content. When did Netflix obtain the rights to the wwe video library?
WWE signed a deal with Netflix months ago that starts in January 2025. Monday Night Raw will air live on Netflix worldwide. Smackdown, NXT, and the monthly specials (Premium Live Events) will air live on Netflix in most of the world but not in the United States (where they will continue to air on USA Network, The CW, and Peacock respectively).
WWE Network is supposedly going to close everywhere when the deal starts, and it hasn't been confirmed what the fate of the archives will be. We could see WWE Network re-branded to "WWE Vault" or "WWE Classics." The content might move to Netflix. Worse case scenario, that content will no longer be available on demand. We just don't know yet.
I believe the Peacock deal goes until 2026
@@chrishh5777 I ripped everything classic from the network in the highest quality available. Every WCW nitro/thunder +ppv. Every WWE raw/smackdown +ppv. All ECW content. Plus Some territories like Mid atlantic and WCCW. Have more than 10 terabytes worth.
@@GDavis49 Yes, which is why Smackdown, NXT, and the PLEs won't be on U.S. Netflix in 2025, only Raw.
However, WWE apparently plans to close the regular WWE Network at the end of 2024 but haven't said if old WWE, WCW, ECW, and all of the stuff is coming to Netflix or not.
@@chrishh5777 There's a WWE TH-cam channel called "WWE Vault" so it wouldn't surprise me if that was the name that WWE chooses to rebrand to that brand.
Top wrestling review channel. Keep up the awesome job! I always thought it sounded like a bad idea tk give away PPVs free like this.
Our family purchased this ppv and my family and I noticed what u guys pointed out and we some felt uncomfortable..
I swear this entire ppv reminds me of the south park harley riders. Lmao. Also Harlem heat were the heels in the match. Just saying
But can you honestly tell me that they’d get a modicum of respect at that event if they were the baby faces? Please!
There's nothing racist about an iron cross goofballs
A metal used by the nazi army in ww2
I must scour the internet to see if someone has the original broadcast for sale...
Sure, Triple H was covered in the Iron Cross. Does that make him a racist 😮
No, but other things do.
Easily my favorite wrestling channel on YT right now.
Why would this not be on TV? It's peacock WWF paper views and WCW is on anyway. Not some internet station at least not in our nation.
It's awful that WWF Raw is on some internet channel only, and it's not even WWF network. So whatever. Of course this comes from a time when many of us are told endless bs from our own history so...whatever. It's how it is. You do not censor truth. What occured occurs , right or wrong, comfort able or not. Censorship is not good.
Gotta love the commenters here bending over backward to defend racism. Just bend forward like you usually do.
@@williamrockwell9705 Wow, you're barely literate. Not surprising.
how can you not like booker t? he was awesome look what he did spinaaroonie to a kick so awesome and flawless
It's like WWE bringing women to perform in Saudi Arabia?!
SS symbol, Iron Cross, and Swastika images date back to the earliest WWII war veteran motorcycle clubs that eventually became Hell's Angels Daytona Bike week would have been a better spot than Sturgis for a pro wrestling show I learned from being a person who is named after a British motorcycle Iron Cross is also a part of skateboarding history Midwest is surprisingly racist despite having Minnesota nice, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Chicago
2:04 that #spinaroni was one of the best ever!
I forgot about Harlem Heat's little rubber circle (maybe it wasn't rubber I don't know) thing on their tights. It was a unique look but I always really hated that. I don't know why, but that little circle offended me or something. I also disliked Booker T's nose strip thing. Like, why are you worried about snoring while you're wrestling, dude?
I think I liked Booker T a lot more once he broke away from Stevie Ray. I also hated that Sherri was with them. Maybe because I just never liked the team that much, but Sherri was awesome and it seemed like a waste of her talent to me.
Don't get me wrong though, I didn't HATE them, but something about them.. I think just their ring gear and stuff for whatever reason, made me not really like them a lot.
I saw Booker T once much later live at a late WCW Nitro, in 2000 I think, and was happy to see him then.
Sturgis is in South Dakota. I highly doubt anyone there has ever bought anything from Japan ever. Even their Nintendos were 100% made in the USA.
*ᛋturgisᛋ, South Dakota.*
How about not having a wrestling show at sturgis
They should show it anyway. It wasn't the wrestlers fault the audience acted stupid.
Should have mentioned the Carribbean Sunshine Boys and that match in Croydon 1978.
Also Harlem Heat started as Kane and Kole, two "slaves"
I'll always remember this PPV as Klan on the Sand
*BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAH!*
ᛋturgiᛋ, South Dakota.
I made a comment about Sturgis, with each 'S' replaced by a lightning bolt. Seems like it's been censored in some manner. I guess it's okay for this channel to make jokes about Sturgis and show someone wearing the SS logo, but you can't mention it in the way I did.
Anyway, I'm going with your description: Klan on the Sand.
Look at the cross on Hunters elbow pad when he's riding down to the ring, looks very similar to the cross on the back of that dudes bike at sturgis 🤔
It's the same, it's an iron cross. It isn't a racist symbol. It was originally an award given to German soldiers, before and after WW2. The one's for Nazi soldiers have a swastika on them. Bikers and skateboarders later adopted the cross as a sign of rebellion.
@@marcespinoza6068 - This doesn't mean adopting it wasn't a terribly ill-judged idea.
@@airfixx_8952 So anything the nazis ever used is off limits?
Well...that explains Lashley's and the hurt business issue with him.
We get it we get it you are the good guy's holy crap
No views in 36 seconds? Falling off.
7 minutes after the video was posted and only 5 comments? You're right; this channel used to be great, but it's clearly falling off hard
@@sethyeaton6185liberal wrestling fans judging wrestling history with today's soy boy eyes is only entertaining to effeminate men.
The constant limp wristed whining and virtue signaling has finally driven me off.