Fantasy Booking: Fictional King of the Ring Tournaments 1990, 1992, 2003-2005

Fantasy Booking: Fictional King of the Ring Tournaments 1990, 1992, 2003-2005

September 7, 2014

By Ryan Porzl

So after completing my fantasy booking regarding KOTR winners. I was suggested to do King of the Ring winners for years that didn't happen. As a result, I will do that. Once again, the rules are the same. Can only use wrestlers employed by the WWF/E and I can't pick anyone that's injured. Also keep in mind that the months will change becauseI'm using the month that held the last real King of the Ringtournament. For example, the 1989 KOTR was held in October so the 1990 one will also be held in October. The 1991 was held in September so 1992 will also be held in September. Finally, 2002 was held in June so the 2003-2005 tournaments will be held in June.

The 1990 King of the Ring would take place in October 1990. My choice for the winner will be Mr. Perfect. What can I say that hasn't been said about Perfect? He was an incredible wrestler, great athlete, great talker, great charisma, and great look. He had the ingredients of someone who could be a megastar. In his prime, he was what he said he was, which was, perfect! Given Perfect the win would also be important since he just lost the intercontinental title to “Texas Tornado” Kerry Von Erich so this would be a bounce back for him. At the same time, there was still a lot of plans for him as he regained the intercontinental championship a few months later. Other wrestlers to consider are Rick Rude and the Barbarian. Rick Rude was coming off failing to win the WWF Championship at Summerslam so this could help him regain momentum and show he's still a threat. Unfortunately, Rude was on his way out by this point due to a falling out. The Barbarian had become a singles wrestler after the Powers of Pain broke up earlier in the year. I know it sounds like a weird choice but Barbarian was a very underrated talent. He was not only a big, powerful wrestler but he was also a wrestler who was agile and can go to the top rope to do moves. He likely would never be WWF Champion but he could be a good intercontinental title challenger. However, Perfect would be the best choice as he probably had the best potential. My finals would be Mr. Perfect vs. Jake Roberts. I feel this would be a good match and Roberts didn't have a feud at the time as his feud with Bad News Brown had ended while his one with Rick Martel had yet to begin.

The 1992 King of the Ring would take place in September 1992 and my choice to win would be Shawn Michaels. While Michaels was still green as a solo performer and began his singles career less than a year earlier, the potential was there for him to be a star. The company also had plans for him as he won his first intercontinental title a month later so this would help him move up the ladder. This year didn't feature many choices. My second choice would be Tatanka as he came off as someone with potential and was around for nine months by this point. Outside of this, there's no other options. The British Bulldog just won the intercontinental title, was in the main event for Summerslam 1992, and wasn't going to go farther as he wasn't WWF Championship material. Bret Hart just lost the IC title but he would win the WWF Championship a month later so he didn't need it. Crush just got repackaged and Razor Ramon just made his WWF TV debut. Rick Martel and Big Boss Man were talented but didn't have any direction and the WWF didn't have any plans for them. Ted Dibiase and IRS were good but were in the Money Inc. tag team so that wouldn't make sense. Finally, Yokozuna had yet to debut. My finals would Michaels vs. Crush. My hope would be to elevate both with Michaels taking that next step while Crush shows potential and someone to look out for in the future.

The 2003 King of the Ring would be held in June 2003 and my choice for King of the Ring would be Rob Van Dam. Van Dam would win since this could breath new life into his career. After being the hottest act from half of 2001 and most of 2002, Van Dam's career took a downturn after failing to win the World Heavyweight Championship from Triple in September and suffered other big losses. A King of the Ring win could revitalize his career and help him regain momentum. Van Dam was a talented wrestler, had a style & move set most weren't doing in the WWE as well a lot of charisma and was one of the most popular wrestlers. If you can jump start his momentum with this King of the Ring then you have to do it. As far as other options go, I would also consider Matt Hardy and Sean O'Haire. Hardy was very over and doing very good for the past few months. However, he didn't have the same potential as RVD and he was lobbying to go to the RAW brand during this period to be with girlfriend Lita. Ultimately, Hardy would move to but it damaged his career as the RAW creative team didn't have any plans for him. O'Haire would be my second option as he had a lot of potential especially with his devil's advocate gimmick and lost momentum when paired with Roddy Piper. However, I still feel Van Dam needed it more especially since he was ready to be a main eventer at that moment while O'Haire could be rebuilt slowly and could win a future one when he was ready. Randy Orton is someone most would probably go for and he would be a good pick but he was just coming off an injury so that was out. My finals would be Rob Van Dam vs. Rey Mysterio. It's a match I don't think had been done at this point (at least at a major event). They have the same high flying style so it should be a fun encounter.

The 2004 King of the Ring would take place in June 2004 and I would have Shelton Benjamin win the tournament. At the time of this event, Benjamin would be just coming off his huge upset win over Triple H which solidified him as a major singles competitor. While Benjamin lacked mic skills and didn't have the most charisma, he was an amazing athlete and wrestler who could steal the show at anytime. My hope would be that his athleticism and in-ring skills could make up for whatever he may lack in other areas like Chris Benoit and Dean Malenko before him. Other options would be the obvious ones like John Cena and Batista since the WWE clearly saw a lot in them. However, Cena was already the United States champion and would win it two more times that year so he really didn't need the King of the Ring tournament. Batista had potential but he wasn't quite there just yet. By this point, he was just starting to come into his own and no one had any idea that his meteoric rise would come sooner than expected. My finals would be Shelton Benjamin vs. Batista. This would be one of those finals where I'm hoping to create two stars. Anytime you can put Batista with a great wrestler and allow him to improve then it's a win. Benjamin already had history with Evolution anyway with his upset win over Triple H so there is a story there. Finally, this finals would also help Benjamin get that boost to the next level but tell fans that Batista is a star to look out for and he'll have his time, just not yet.

The 2005 edition would take place in June 2005 and my choice for the winner would be Matt Morgan. Morgan was a wrestler with the whole package. He was a big, athletic wrestler who had a good look, was young, and could cut a main event promo. He was a star in the making. I would also choose him since he was cut a month later in a spring cleaning period. I don't know if they already planned in June to cut him but if they did then hopefully by giving him the KOTR that it would prevent the WWE from making that mistake. I don't have many other options since no one seemed to be in the right place at the right time. Randy Orton could be my second choice as it could help him regain momentum after his run as a fan favorite failed and he lost at Wrestlemania to the Undertaker. However, he was just coming back from an injury. My finals would be Matt Morgan vs. Chris Benoit. With this match, Morgan gets to beat a very credible name and former world champion as well as having a great match to get him over with the crowd. Benoit was the kind of guy who could go out there and make a young up and comer look like a star.