Good Call on the Bad Guy

Razor Ramon
Photo Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

Razor Ramon joins an already superb class of 2014 for the WWE Hall of Fame.  I like the choice, but I'm a bit surprised they're inducting him as Ramon and not Scott Hall.  Of course his biggest wave of success in the WWE and perhaps in his career was under the Razor Ramon moniker, so in that regard it makes sense.

I have followed Scott Hall pretty much his entire career.  I can remember when he was Starship Coyote along with Danny Spivey as team called American Starship.  I watched Coyote and Eagle team together at an NWA house show in St. Louis in 1985.  I was always impressed with his size and ability to get in the ring and wrestle.  When he went to the AWA and wrestled under his real name, I thought for sure he'd become the world champion there.

The Diamond Studd
Courtesy: WWE

Confession time: When Hall went to the NWA again and became The Diamond Studd, I had no idea it was him.  In my defense, he had lost the puffy brown hair and Tom Selleck mustache and looked more rugged, and was a bad ass.  He finally shed that goodie too shoes gimmick I felt he had in the AWA.  I was disappointed though that NWA didn't really do anything with him.

Wrestlemania X win
Photo courtesy: WWE

It wasn't until 1992 and his appearance in a vignette on WWF programming that I thought we'd finally see something good in Hall's future.  Now he was Razor Ramon, and he oozed machoism.  He feuded pretty instantly with former WWF champion Randy "Macho Man" Savage, beating him at a house show in attended while in college at Southeast Missouri State University.  He got a pretty good push, eventually facing, but losing to Bret Hart at the 1993 Royal Rumble.  Hart was the champ at the time, but Ramon had a good showing, but really shocked me when he beat Bob Backlund at Wrestlemania IX.

Long story short, Ramon shot up the ladder (literally) becoming the a good guy and winning the Intercontinental title.  He remains one of my favorites to hold that title. There was just something so cool about Razor Ramon.  His matches and feuds with Savage, Hart, Shawn Michaels, Jeff Jarrett, and Goldust all stick out to me. 

The Fake Razor
Photo courtesy: WWE

I HATED it when he left for WCW and formed the Outsiders (I know I'm in the minority).  Of all the personalities, including his own, Razor has always been my favorite.  I assume that it is the Scott Hall version of Ramon going in and not this guy --------->

We all know Scott Hall the man, has been battling lots of demons in the past.  I think with the help of Diamond Dallas Page he's on the road to recovery.  I look forward to hearing more from him on April 5 in New Orleans.