Scott Steiner TRIBUTE - The Early Years

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• published: 31 Aug 2015
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Ahead of his time, Scott Steiner was an amazingly gifted athlete, who not only popularised manoeuvres such as the Dragon Suplex & Tiger Driver in the United States but also innovated manoeuvres such as the Frankensteiner, Steiner Screwdriver, Standing Moonsault Slam, Tilt A Whirl Slam, Standing Double Underhook Powerbomb, Pump Handle Slam, T-Bone Suplex, Top Rope Overhead Belly To Back Suplex, Super Samoan Drop & various tag team manoeuvres such as the Electric Chair Top Rope DDT & Electric Chair Top Rope Diving Bulldog. During his tenure the Indianapolis-based World Wrestling Association in 1987, Scott also innovated the 450 splash which at the time was known as the “1 ½ Superfly”. Before Scott Steiner went pro he was a noted collegiate wrestler for the University of Michigan where he became a three-time BIG 10 runner-up & as a senior in 1986 he became an NCAA Division 1 All American placing sixth in the United States at 190lbs. Prior to becoming a Genetic Freak, Scott revolutionized & dominated tag team wrestling alongside his older brother Rick. It's no exaggeration to say the The Steiner Brothers rise through the tag team ranks was meteoric, they chewed up & spat out one tandem after another. Rick's brazen, smash mouth style of power moves combined with Scott's reckless & unorthodox array of Suplexes & breathtaking Frankensteiner quickly earned them a reputation as the most feared & hard-hitting tag team in the game. On November 1, 1989 The Steiners downed The Freebirds for their first WCW World tag team titles. The new golden boys of the organisation; The Steiners battled the likes of Doom, The Wild Samoans, The Midnight Express & The Skyscrapers over the coming months - they even faced & cleanly defeated The Road Warriors at Starrcade 1989. After capturing the WCW United States tag team titles from the Midnight Express on August 24, 1990 The Steiners engaged in an explosive feud with The Nasty Boys whom they defeated at Halloween Havoc 1990 & although the feud came to a premature end, The Steiners momentum continued when they toppled the Great Muta & Masa Saito in the finals of the Pat O' Connor memorial tag team tournament at Starrcade 1990. The first half of the 1991, saw The Steiners rise to a new plateau. First they defeated The Freebirds to win their second WCW World tag team title. Then they travelled to the world famous Tokyo Dome for a crack at the IWGP tag team champions Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki - the bout, held before a sold out crowd of 64,500 was the jewel of the night - voted 1991 MOTY by Wrestling Observer Newsletter - Scott scored the pinfall after hitting his famed Frankensteiner. Finally The Steiners defeated the superstar tandem of Lex Luger & Sting in a classic - voted 1991 MOTY by PW Torch Newsletter & Pro Wrestling Illustrated - to retain their WCW World tag team titles at SuperBrawl on May 19. Combined The Steiners amassed x1 NWA United States tag team titles, x7 WCW World tag team titles, x2 IWGP tag team titles & x2 WWF World tag team titles. Other accolades include being voted Tag Team of the Year by Wrestling Observer Newsletter (1990), PW Torch Newsletter (1990, 1991, 1997) & Pro Wrestling Illustrated (1990, 1993). From 1989 to 1998, from WCW to NJPW to WWF to ECW, from Starrcade to the Tokyo Dome to WrestleMania to Madison Square Garden to 190,000 fans in Pyongyang, North Korea & everywhere in between - wherever The Steiners went, they came, they saw & they conquered & were unquestionably the number one tag team of the 1990's...maybe of all time. Scott innovated the sport & became a darling of the "workrate geeks" who marvelled at his great moves & matches. Injuries not steroids effected Scott's athletic prowess. When the wear & tear of wrestling for 12 years began to catch up, Scott in order to prolong his career SUCCESSFULLY reinvented himself by changing his look, persona & his ring style. Big Poppa Pump was born: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pc1sSfVWe0 Now boasting one of the most incredible larger than life physiques in history of the the business, Scott became one of the most believable, controversial, entertaining, & memorable characters of his era & went on to attain TV, U.S. & World Championship success in singles competition. Scott was everything the "workrate geeks" wanted him to be & then he became everything they despise. He went from Chris Benoit to Hulk Hogan. In the rest of the world, changing to prolong your career & wealth is applauded. In the IWC...in Scott Steiner's case...it's often ignorantly ridiculed.