JAFO's NEWS - the FUN in FunKo: 2014-04-06

A lot of people will be blogging and reporting about the Warrior's death,

but it's not how some one dies it's how they lived that really matters.

I have been through many many phases of my

love/hate relationship with Professional Wrestling.

I remember all to well around the mid-80's when I went through

a resurgence living for a short time down in Florida I started to watch

some more of "Other" wrestling circuits.

AWA

GCW

NWA

MCW

CCW

AWF

Mid-South Wrestling

and of course my favorite ..

GLOW
Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling

I remember seeing Sting & Warrior before they were even called that.

Back then most wrestlers looked like the "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes.

These guys were monsters, and the face paint to prove it.

Of course I preferred the guys that looked real, and worked at it.

Ivan Putski - Polish Power

Superstar Billy Graham

Superfly Jimmy Snuka

The Blade Runners

Steve Borden and Jim Hellwig originally teamed as part of Powerteam USA, a group of four wrestlers who debuted in 1985 after being trained by Red Bastien and Rick Bassman. In addition to Borden and Hellwig, the group consisted of Garland Donoho and Mark Miller. The team was managed by Bassman as they tried to break into the wrestling business. After only a short time in the business both Donoho and Miller quit due to lack of success and business savvy. Manager Rick Bassman would eventually become a pro wrestler himself and a wrestling and Mixed Martial Arts promoter in California where he founded and runs Ultimate Pro Wrestling. Hellwig and Borden remained, teaming together as they traveled to Jerry Jarrett's Continental Wrestling Association and later on to Bill Watts Universal Wrestling Federation.

Initially, they wrestled as The Freedom Fighters (Hellwig was known as Justice and Borden was called Flash) in Memphis' Continental Wrestling Association under manager Dutch Mantel. Because they were essentially bodybuilders and lacked thorough training, the team was raw and brutal, easily hurting opponents with their stiff maneuvers which led to their stay in Memphis being a short one.

The team began working for Bill Watts' Mid-South Wrestling (renamed the Universal Wrestling Federation shortly after) in early 1986. In Mid-South, they became known as The Blade Runners (Hellwig was called Rock and Borden became Sting). The Blade Runners were managed by "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert and as part of "Hot Stuff International, Inc." the team feuded with Ted DiBiase and Steve Williams.

Less than 6 months after arriving in Mid-South, Hellwig and Borden split up with Hellwig moving on to World Class Championship Wrestling, where he became known The Dingo Warrior, laying the foundation for his famous Ultimate Warrior gimmick in the WWF.

Sting remained in Mid-South and under the tutelage of Eddie Gilbert for a while before turning face.

They reunited, although not officially under the Blade Runners name, for one match on WCW Monday Nitro on October 11, 1998 against Hollywood Hogan and Bret "The Hitman" Hart of nWo Hollywood. Since the two had become very popular on their own and in entirely different promotions, during this event, Mike Tenay referred to them as "teaming up for the first time since 1985." The match was initially boasted as one of the biggest tag team matches in Nitro history; however, it featured little variety or in-ring use of Warrior. Sting and Warrior won the match via disqualification due to interference from the nWo.

Still I have always been a fan of a gimmick,

if the gimmick is good it works for me.

Can you say BODY BAG MATCH ??

Could be why I love Undertaker so much, he keeps re-inventing himself.

These guys had both going for them.

I have never been a fan much of Sting, in fact I don't like him at all really.

Warrior is a different story.

I liked this guy. He had it. He knew it. He brought it.

Some people don't get wrestling, it takes not only practice but a lot of ring time to get it all right. If you are lucky you won't hurt someone badly while learning how to get it right, but it's a sport like any other.

Some people say .. "Ohh it fake."

I say get in the ring with the Big Show and you tell me it's fake then.

Wrestlers do what they have to do like athletes in any other sport,

they do whatever it takes to keep going.