It was expected, but still. Well, he was looking pretty tired lately.
--K
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Former ECW World champion Sabu is gone from World Wrestling Entertainment, according to several sources. Sabu arrived hours late for tonight's scheduled Smackdown/ECW taping in Baltimore, Maryland and didn't even have his ring gear with him. I am told he was sent home from the taping and has been/will be released by the company.
Eh, when was the last time they actually did anything with him? And I mean him, not him as part of the ECW Originals stable.
I wouldn't want to be there either. If you ask me, it's long since past time to end the ECW experiment. ECW died in 2001 with one hell of a comeback show in '05 but that should have been the end of it.
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I agree that Sabu's behavior was unprofessional and he deserved to get fired for what he did. But WWE hasn't done jack shit with him individually since, hell-- he was jobbing matches left and right to The Big Show shortly after Show won the ECW Title. In fact the only ECW Original to really get any time in the individual spotlight has been RVD, who was the only "name" of all of those guys who had been wrestling with WWE prior to the restart.
Which is one of many, many things wrong with "Vince McMahon presents ECW" which would no doubt be the start of an entirely different thread. So suffice it to say, it was a bad situation, I can't blame Sabu for wanting out, and who knows if there was another reason we didn't hear about that made him do this instead of just quitting? Ultimately I guess it really doesn't matter-- whether he quit or did something to get fired, he probably wanted to leave anyway.
"Thank you for calling Smarty Mart. For customer service, press one. For job opportunities, press two. To demand an enormous amount of money for the safe return of our founder, press three." --Smarty-Mart Automated Answering Machine, Kim Possible
Five-Time W of the Day (5/27/02; 7/3/02; 7/30/04; 8/28/04; 12/16/05)
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It is sad, because Sabu was quite motivated in TNA before he signed with Vince. That motivation was gone within weeks of the launch of the brand. Up in smoke, if you will.
Speaking from experience, a shitty job sucks the life out of you, and sometimes it is all you can do to just show up. I am sure Sabu, and many other "Originals" are disgusted by this pathetic version of ECW, as are most die hard ECW fans. Hopefully they, like me, stopped watching it long ago. It was just too painful. I mean, how do you think Dreamer feels about that show? He can't possibly think of it as more than just a job. How can he even show his face at the White Castle in Yonkers?
That being said, if you have a job, even if you half ass it, bring your gear. He may as well have worn a t-shirt saying "Fire me".
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Hey, it's not like there's much hope for the ECW Originals anyway. This ECW is such a bastardization that sticking around would have been a total waste, anyway. And honestly, I'm wondering if the declaration of "Vince McMahon: ECW Champion" was what made Sabu just decide to stop giving a shit.
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Originally posted by kentishIt is sad, because Sabu was quite motivated in TNA before he signed with Vince. That motivation was gone within weeks of the launch of the brand. Up in smoke, if you will.
Ahahahahaha get it he smokes WEED you're so clever
Speaking from experience, a shitty job sucks the life out of you, and sometimes it is all you can do to just show up. I am sure Sabu, and many other "Originals" are disgusted by this pathetic version of ECW, as are most die hard ECW fans.
Or OR maybe they enjoy getting regularly paid! (Which I believe was not the case towards the end of the "classic" ECW)
Hopefully they, like me, stopped watching it long ago. It was just too painful. I mean, how do you think Dreamer feels about that show? He can't possibly think of it as more than just a job. How can he even show his face at the White Castle in Yonkers?
Oh...are you being ironic? I've wasted my time. Sorry.
I thought that he would be ok after they didn't fire him after his drugs bust. I do wwonder fi he will be fired up when he moves back onto the indies/tna scene. Perhaps he will team with Rhino in TNA
I remember when you used to bake bread with me Stu.
Great ... now another WWE release that TNA will go after.
I really have no problem with the originals now being used as enhancement guys (well, maybe not RVD). I mean, let's face it ... are Sandman, Tommy Dreamer & Ball Mahoney really want you want as the face of your company (or brand)? I don't feel sorry for those guys as I'm sure they're making a nice check each week.
Originally posted by kentishIt is sad, because Sabu was quite motivated in TNA before he signed with Vince. That motivation was gone within weeks of the launch of the brand. Up in smoke, if you will.
Ahahahahaha get it he smokes WEED you're so clever
Speaking from experience, a shitty job sucks the life out of you, and sometimes it is all you can do to just show up. I am sure Sabu, and many other "Originals" are disgusted by this pathetic version of ECW, as are most die hard ECW fans.
Or OR maybe they enjoy getting regularly paid! (Which I believe was not the case towards the end of the "classic" ECW)
Hopefully they, like me, stopped watching it long ago. It was just too painful. I mean, how do you think Dreamer feels about that show? He can't possibly think of it as more than just a job. How can he even show his face at the White Castle in Yonkers?
Oh...are you being ironic? I've wasted my time. Sorry.
No, actually I feel sorry for Tommy, as well as Sabu and others, in that they have few choices left, other than to work for "ECW".
Yes, getting a pay check is nice, but some of those guys lived and breathed ECW, and stuck with it even while basically working for free. To simply go through the motions to just get paid, while Vince parades around with the belt has to break some of their hearts, as it does mine. That is very sad to me. Have you never had a job that you had to go through the motions, CRZ? I apologize if my attempts to sprinkle some light-hearted humor into a sad situation fell flat with you.
Dean! Have you been shooting dope into your scrotum? You can tell me! I'm hip!
Originally posted by kentishthose guys lived and breathed ECW, and stuck with it even while basically working for free.
Tommy Dreamer lived and breathed ECW. As for the rest, I'm not so convinced that they stuck with it - it was more like they had nowhere else to go. WWE sure didn't want most of the ECW crew until they launched their own ECW - and they fired most of the guys just as quickly. And I can't say that I really miss them.
Originally posted by kentishTo simply go through the motions to just get paid, while Vince parades around with the belt has to break some of their hearts, as it does mine. That is very sad to me.
The whole idea of Vince McMahon as ECW champion was to try and inspire this exact reaction. Unfortunately for them, you're the only person I've seen who actually still cares about ECW.
Originally posted by kentishHave you never had a job that you had to go through the motions, CRZ?
Yeah, EVERY JOB I'VE EVER HAD. But fortunately I have exciting hobbies like....running a message board - hmm, maybe I SHOULD try harder to make a play for public sympathy!
Sabu's problem here isn't hating the situation, it's acting like an adult and quitting rather than being unprofessional like this.
I'm fairly sure quitting would mean a breach of his contract and thus he would lose the 90 days of pay that comes with a release and any royalties due to him for previous shows (which might still include Wrestlemania, likely the biggest payoff Sabu has seen in quite a few years).
Being unprofessional was likely the quickest way to get out of the contract without losing any money.
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Originally posted by CTXI'm fairly sure quitting would mean a breach of his contract and thus he would lose the 90 days of pay that comes with a release and any royalties due to him for previous shows (which might still include Wrestlemania, likely the biggest payoff Sabu has seen in quite a few years).
Being unprofessional was likely the quickest way to get out of the contract without losing any money.
Are we 100% certain he WANTED to be released? We can talk all day long about how awful ECWWE (WWECW?) is now and how far away they've strayed from what ECW used to be, but I've seen/read/heard no signs that he wanted out.
For all we know, maybe this isnt the first time he's shown up hours late for a show, or maybe he's shown up "in no condition to wrestle"? I know I know, I just made that up, but I'm saying we just dont know what all lead up to his release, and I think it's a bit of a stretch to jump to the conclusion that "ECW sucks and all of the originals are disgusted with it, this must be why he intentionally arrived hours late to the arena so he could get himself released"
Originally posted by CTXI'm fairly sure quitting would mean a breach of his contract and thus he would lose the 90 days of pay that comes with a release and any royalties due to him for previous shows (which might still include Wrestlemania, likely the biggest payoff Sabu has seen in quite a few years).
Being unprofessional was likely the quickest way to get out of the contract without losing any money.
Are we 100% certain he WANTED to be released? We can talk all day long about how awful ECWWE (WWECW?) is now and how far away they've strayed from what ECW used to be, but I've seen/read/heard no signs that he wanted out.
For all we know, maybe this isnt the first time he's shown up hours late for a show, or maybe he's shown up "in no condition to wrestle"? I know I know, I just made that up, but I'm saying we just dont know what all lead up to his release, and I think it's a bit of a stretch to jump to the conclusion that "ECW sucks and all of the originals are disgusted with it, this must be why he intentionally arrived hours late to the arena so he could get himself released"
I've no idea. I was just giving a reason as to why he wouldn't flat out quit if he wasn't happy.
Having said that, it's definitely not the first time he's pulled something like this. Prior to this incident it's been reported he turned up late at least once before, and at least twice turned up without his gear (once for quite an important TV match IIRC, where the in-house seamstress had to make a pair from scratch in a matter of hours). Maybe he's just really forgetful, but that doesn't sound like someone who particularly cares about his position.
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Originally posted by MayhemGreat ... now another WWE release that TNA will go after.
I thought Sabu looked a lot better during his last TNA run than in this ECW run. Maybe it's because TNA played to his strengths -- here's some barbed wire! -- while WWE expected him to actually wrestle in wrestling matches. Maybe it's because Sabu didn't care anymore -- he looked awful in ECW, at times barely competent. Maybe it's just my own biases.
I wouldn't mind seeing him back in TNA, but I don't care if he never shows up, either.
--K
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Well, Edge marks SHOULD hope for a heel turn. The classic formula for a new superstar usually involves one. Think Rock, Angle, HHH making their marks as heels.