Return of the Funker
Encyclopedia
Return of the Funker was a professional wrestling
event produced by the Extreme Championship Wrestling
promotion
, which took place on February 25, 1995 at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
had attacked Sabu after he and his partner, the Tazmaniac
, had just captured the ECW Tag Team Titles from Public Enemy at Double Tables
. Benoit had promised to teach both men a lesson in humility and pain with his tag team
partner Dean Malenko
as they challenged them for the titles.
before the tag team titles match. Rocco Rock
is in a wheelchair and says the fans know they beat Sabu and the Tazmaniac
even if the referees didn't see it. Johnny Grunge
declares the belts will be coming back to the hood while Rock insults Chris Benoit
and Dean Malenko
by saying that they are looking at the "two cripplers and two shooters".
Benoit and Malenko soon appear ringside where Grunge further agitates the situation by saying Public Enemy is coming after Benoit. This leads Malenko to spit in Grunge's face and a fight breaks out. Benoit clotheslines Rock out of the wheelchair in the aisle only to put him back in it and run him into the guardrail. After they lay out Grunge with a chair in the ring, Sabu and the Tazmaniac come to the ring and the match starts.
A springboard leg lariat on Malenko and a belly-to-belly suplex on Benoit earns a pair of two counts. After that, Benoit and Malenko attempt to isolate the Tazmaniac in the ring. When Sabu gets back in, Malenko executes two brainbusters
for a nearfall. They follow that up with a Doomsday Device bulldog to take Sabu out of the match for the time being.
Tazmaniac battles back with suplexes to both men but Malenko chops the back of his leg while he has Benoit up in the electric chair. Malenko applies a leglock
while Benoit keeps Sabu at bay. Tazmaniac finally manages to get free to the outside but can't stand so he is carried to the back by 911.
Alone against his two opponents, Sabu is quickly double teamed but manages to put a fight with a series of high-flying moves including a springboard moonsault onto Benoit near the guardrail and a chair-assisted dive onto both men outside the ring.
Back in the ring, Sabu sets up a table on the top turnbuckle
and then puts a chair on top of it but Benoit shoves him off before he can execute whatever he was planning on Malenko. While Paul E.
hits Malenko with his phone, Benoit powerbombs
Sabu off the table on the top turnbuckle and pins him for the titles.
Benoit says they are now the true champions and calls out Public Enemy, who answer the challenge even with Rock showing signs of abdominal bleeding. 911 brings Tazmaniac back out to the ring as now all three teams brawl in the ring, then to the outside and finally to the back. Meanwhile, 911 chokeslams
the referee twice in succession.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
event produced by the Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
promotion
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
, which took place on February 25, 1995 at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Storylines
Chris BenoitChris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
had attacked Sabu after he and his partner, the Tazmaniac
Tazz
Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz...
, had just captured the ECW Tag Team Titles from Public Enemy at Double Tables
Double Tables
Double Tables was a professional wrestling event produced by the Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion, which took place on February 4, 1995 at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
. Benoit had promised to teach both men a lesson in humility and pain with his tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
partner Dean Malenko
Dean Malenko
Dean Simon is a retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Dean Malenko. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling , New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling...
as they challenged them for the titles.
Results
| # | Results | Stipulations | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Pitbulls The Pitbulls The Pitbulls were a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of "Pitbull #1" Gary Wolfe and "Pitbull #2" Anthony Durante. They were best known for their tenure in Extreme Championship Wrestling, where they were one-time World Tag Team Champions... def. Chad Austin & Joel Hartgood |
4:23 | |
| 2 | Jason Jason Knight Ronald Jason Knight is an American professional wrestler and manager. He is best known for his stints in Eastern / Extreme Championship Wrestling, where he was a one time World Television Champion.-World Wrestling Federation :... & Paul Lauria def. Mikey Whipwreck Mikey Whipwreck John Watson , better known by his ring name Mikey Whipwreck, is a retired American professional wrestler best known for his career with Extreme Championship Wrestling where he became the third ECW Triple Crown Champion.... & Hack Meyers Hack Meyers Donald Haviland is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Hack Meyers. A mainstay in Florida independent promotions during the 1990s, he is best known for his time in Extreme Championship Wrestling from 1993 to 1996.-Career:Haviland made his wrestling debut as Bronco... |
15:00 | |
| 3 | Too Cold Scorpio def. Hector Guerrero Hector Guerrero Héctor Manuel Guerrero Llanes is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, better known simply by his paternal name, Héctor Guerrero... |
11:20 | |
| 4 | Axl Rotten Axl Rotten Brian Knighton is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Axl Rotten.-Early years:After watching a professional wrestling match on television, Knighton decided to become a wrestler... def. Ian Rotten Ian Rotten John Benson Williams is an American professional Wrestler better known by his ring name Ian Rotten. He has wrestled in Global Wrestling Federation , Extreme Championship Wrestling , and his own wrestling promotion IWA: Mid-South.-Early career:After becoming a fan of Dusty Rhodes and "Superstar"... |
Barbed Wire Baseball Bat Match | 12:20 |
| 5 | Shane Douglas Shane Douglas Troy Alan Martin is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name "The Franchise" Shane Douglas. In the course of his career, which has spanned nearly three decades, Douglas has wrestled in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling and briefly... (c) def. Marty Jannetty Marty Jannetty Frederick Marty Jannetty is an American professional wrestler, best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation as part of tag team The Rockers with partner Shawn Michaels, and later as a singles competitor. While in the WWF, he became a one time Intercontinental Champion and a one time... |
ECW Title ECW World Heavyweight Championship The Extreme Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment... |
18:19 |
| 6 | Chris Benoit Chris Benoit Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide... & Dean Malenko Dean Malenko Dean Simon is a retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Dean Malenko. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling , New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling... def. Sabu & The Tazmaniac Tazz Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz... (c) |
ECW Tag Team Titles | 10:28 |
| 7 | Cactus Jack Mick Foley Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he... def. DC Drake DC Drake Don Clyde "DC" Drake is a former American professional wrestler. He became the Heavyweight Champion for the National Wrestling Federation and Tri-State Wrestling Alliance which later became Extreme Championship Wrestling.-Training:... |
4:06 |
Event summary
Public Enemy are interviewed at ringside by Joey StylesJoey Styles
Joseph Carmine Bonsignore better known by his ring name Joey Styles, is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator and former professional in the field of advertising sales...
before the tag team titles match. Rocco Rock
Rocco Rock
Theodore James Petty was an American professional wrestler better known as "Flyboy" Rocco Rock, one half of The Public Enemy.-Career:...
is in a wheelchair and says the fans know they beat Sabu and the Tazmaniac
Tazz
Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz...
even if the referees didn't see it. Johnny Grunge
Johnny Grunge
Michael "Mike" Durham was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Johnny Grunge...
declares the belts will be coming back to the hood while Rock insults Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
and Dean Malenko
Dean Malenko
Dean Simon is a retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Dean Malenko. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling , New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling...
by saying that they are looking at the "two cripplers and two shooters".
Benoit and Malenko soon appear ringside where Grunge further agitates the situation by saying Public Enemy is coming after Benoit. This leads Malenko to spit in Grunge's face and a fight breaks out. Benoit clotheslines Rock out of the wheelchair in the aisle only to put him back in it and run him into the guardrail. After they lay out Grunge with a chair in the ring, Sabu and the Tazmaniac come to the ring and the match starts.
A springboard leg lariat on Malenko and a belly-to-belly suplex on Benoit earns a pair of two counts. After that, Benoit and Malenko attempt to isolate the Tazmaniac in the ring. When Sabu gets back in, Malenko executes two brainbusters
Brainbuster
A brainbuster is a professional wrestling throw in which a wrestler puts his/her opponent in a front facelock, hooks his/her pants, and lifts him/her up as if he/she was executing a vertical suplex. The wrestler then falls onto his/her back so that the opponent lands on his/her head while remaining...
for a nearfall. They follow that up with a Doomsday Device bulldog to take Sabu out of the match for the time being.
Tazmaniac battles back with suplexes to both men but Malenko chops the back of his leg while he has Benoit up in the electric chair. Malenko applies a leglock
Leglock
A leglock is a joint lock that is directed at joints of the leg such as the ankle, knee or hip joint. A leglock which is directed at joints in the foot is sometimes referred to as a foot lock and a lock at the hip as a hip lock...
while Benoit keeps Sabu at bay. Tazmaniac finally manages to get free to the outside but can't stand so he is carried to the back by 911.
Alone against his two opponents, Sabu is quickly double teamed but manages to put a fight with a series of high-flying moves including a springboard moonsault onto Benoit near the guardrail and a chair-assisted dive onto both men outside the ring.
Back in the ring, Sabu sets up a table on the top turnbuckle
Turnbuckle
A turnbuckle, stretching screw or bottlescrew is a device for adjusting the tension or length of ropes, cables, tie rods, and other tensioning systems. It normally consists of two threaded eyelets, one screwed into each end of a small metal frame, one with a left-hand thread and the other with a...
and then puts a chair on top of it but Benoit shoves him off before he can execute whatever he was planning on Malenko. While Paul E.
Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, commentator and journalist. He is also an occasional actor in film....
hits Malenko with his phone, Benoit powerbombs
Powerbomb
A powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted up and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a standing headscissors position...
Sabu off the table on the top turnbuckle and pins him for the titles.
Benoit says they are now the true champions and calls out Public Enemy, who answer the challenge even with Rock showing signs of abdominal bleeding. 911 brings Tazmaniac back out to the ring as now all three teams brawl in the ring, then to the outside and finally to the back. Meanwhile, 911 chokeslams
Chokeslam
A chokeslam refers to a type of body slam in professional wrestling in which the wrestler grasps their opponent's neck, lifts them up, and slams them to the mat. It is common in televised wrestling because it is simple and relatively safe, yet looks powerful on camera...
the referee twice in succession.