WWE takes Abu Dhabi
They came, we saw and they kicked ASS!!
by Saad Tariq Farooqi
Wrestling has always been as integral to my childhood as cornflakes, forced vegetables and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. So it was with a long-preserved sense of childhood that I sat with the thousands in attendance on the 10th February addition of WWERaw in Abu Dhabi. My greatest fear? The show won’t live up to twenty-eight years of fantasy and expectations.
But WWE hit this one out of the park!
John Cena doing what he does best
To say the show lived up to the hype is an understatement. Each match, each promo was delivered to perfection with the WWE superstars not pulling any punches. Michael McGillicutty, son of the late Mr. Perfect, in particular, took some punishing falls against Drew McIntyre. McIntyre himself, ever the heel (villain), played the role to perfection, trash-talking before and during the high-energy match. Of course, when it comes to trash-talking, virtually no one can top The Miz. Cutting a five minute promo before his match against R-Truth, “The Awesome One” was a pleasure to watch. He asked for pin-drop silence before saying his catch phrase. He screamed at fans to not interrupt him.
Chris Jericho and Kofi Kingston delivered a solid, fast-paced match that saw the crowd evenly split. John Cena and Kane, fought a gruelling no-DQ match, that saw everything from the ring bell to the steel steps being used as weapons. Finally, the main event was a championship match between Dolph Ziggler and CM Punk, that had the frenzied Abu Dhabi crowd unanimously behind “The Voice of the Voiceless” CM Punk. The match had fantastic spots. There was a short-lived push-ups contest that ended with Punk assaulting Ziggler. The referee was knocked out. Punk asked the crowd, in a particularly hilarious spot, what moves they wanted him to see at the expense of Ziggler. There was interference from David Otunga.
The crowning moment of the entire show, however, was the champ CM Punk being given the UAE headdress, gutra, as a show of respect and gratitude by the fans.
CM Punk at WWE
In fact, the fans for the sold-out event deserve a special mention. No other sport co-depends on its audience as much as wrestling does: it is the crowd reaction that determines the tone and intensity of the wrestling. To then hear the crowd responding to every segment, every move—from interrupting Drew McIntyre’s tirade with boos, to competing with The Miz in loudness, from duelling “Let’s go Cena!” and “Cena sucks!” chants to tearing the house down at CM Punk’s entrance and victory—watching the wrestler feed and fans feed off that energy was exhilarating. The crowd was so stellar, in fact, that CM Punk called it one of the greatest crowds he’s ever performed in front of after the show.
And that was no lie.
[facebook]
About the Author
- Related:
- catch phrase
- chris jericho
- John Cena
- wwe superstars
