Backstage Fights

Here's the list of what we have so far. Any contributions you make are greatly appreciated. Please contact us with any information you have on any fight not yet listed here.

Disclaimer: Take these stories with a grain of salt. Most of these are hearsay, and their veracity cannot always be confirmed. We are certain some stories here are either untrue or greatly exaggerated. Do not trust any of them as true. Nonetheless, backstage fights do happen, and there is at least some degree of truth to most of the stories here. Plus, they’re fun to read.

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Noah Thomas vs. Marlon Sims

In episode 8 of Ultimate Fighter 5 (Coach Penn vs. Coach Pulver), all the guys are sitting around a fire, drinking and shootin' the breeze. Sims, as usual, was bragging about how tough he was, despite getting choked out in his fight on the show. Thomas made a point of bringing that up. Sims didn't take too kindly to that, shoved his chair over, and it was on. Allan "Monsta Lobsta" Berube pretended to be John McCarthy and said "Let's get it on!" Sims dared Thomas to hit him, and before long both were rolling around on the ground. Keep in mind there was a fire, which could've gotten really ugly if the fight got out of hand. It was a technical fight, but they stopped after a bit. As they were walking back to the house, more words were exchanged, and Thomas threw a high kick at Sims and it was on again. The fight spread to a concrete walkway, where Sims shoved him down and threw a soccer kick. Thomas had an armbar locked in, and Sims lifted him up and slammed the back of his head on the concrete... twice. This ended the fight rather quickly, with Thomas bleeding from the back of his head and complaining how it was unfair he slammed him on the concrete (who knew there were rules in a street fight??). Sims walked into the house, followed by Thomas who offered a handshake and that they'd settle it in the finals. Both came off as heels, and if you think there are lines you don't cross in a friendly street fight, then Sims should not have slammed Noah's head. Well, Noah was trying to break Sims' arm, so whatever. Thomas couldn't possibly continue with the head injury and offered his hand to save face. The other guys did nothing to break up the fight, and actually encouraged it. They were laughing afterwards, calling it the funniest fight ever because it was so technical. Dana White saw the video and was furious. He came to the house and kicked Sims, Thomas, and Berube off the show. It was the right thing to do. After this episode aired, Spike TV announced the two would fight at the Ultimate Fighter Finale. Shortly after the announcement, White cancelled the fight, which was also the right thing to do (signing the fight would send a message to future participants that if you start a fight, you'll be rewarded). White deserves credit for how he handled the situation.

Nate Diaz vs. Karo Parisyan

After Manny Gamburyan won his last fight during the season of Ultimate Fighter 5, he was in the locker room with his cousin Karo Parisyan and Nate Diaz. I'm still not sure what started it, but Karo was all fired up and had words with Diaz. Karo had to be held back, and came off like a total bully (Karo fights one weight class above Diaz). No one was reprimanded, but by the end of the show I was salivating for a tag-team fight between Nate/Nick Diaz against Karo and Manny. In the 70s, that match would've sold out all the arenas, and even today, it would do business. But this is MMA, not wrestling.

Booker T vs. Batista

This fight took place awhile ago, but at first we thought it was a work so we never reported it. Tension had been brewing for awhile between Batista and the entire SmackDown locker room. Batista had gotten a big head, boasting about his drawing power and how some guys on the SD roster weren't into their jobs (maybe if he had been buried by HHH like they all had, instead of hand picked by HHH to be the one guy he'd ever put over, he'd think differently). Booker's wife Sharmell was also not on good terms with Melina, whom Batista was friends with. Finally Booker and Batista decided to go into a room and settle it. Rumor has it that when Booker went to shut the door, Batista sucker punched him. No one saw what happened afterwards, but sounds of fists hitting flesh could be heard outside the door, and when the guys burst inside the room after awhile, they found Booker on top of Batista doing some ground and pound. It was broken up, with Batista yelling at people to let them finish the fight. Booker was shouting back that he was an "OG" (original gangster). Keep in mind these two men are at or near 40 years old, acting like teenagers after school. Sharmell and Melina may have also gotten into it. After this incident, Batista lost a lot of respect among the boys in the back, and even Vince McMahon never looked at him the same. The two never got along after this fight, but they were able to work with each other without problems.

Cryme Tyme vs. Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch

Not sure what started it, but there were problems as the two were putting together their match backstage. Someone made a comment to the other that they'd settle it in the ring. The ref stopped the match early, which wasn't what Cryme Tyme were expecting. They attacked the ref in a manner that wasn't planned, being extra stiff with him. Backstage, they continued to harass the ref until John Cena told them to lay off. When Vince got word of what happened, he was already in a bad mood and made the decision to fire Cryme Tyme. Can you imagine working your whole life to get a shot in WWE, you finally make it, your gimmick is finally starting to get over, and then you blow it like this?

Jerry Lawler vs. Sal Corrente

This one even made it to court. Corrente alleged that Lawler suckerpunched him during a post match angle, and sued Lawler over it. Lawler claimed it was part of the show, and to the general public, they wouldn't know the difference. The case was dropped, as Lawler has a history of doing well in court.

Dennis Rodman vs. Hulk Hogan

This wasn't a fight, but it was one of the few times Hogan, who has no shooting background, has ever threatened someone physically. Chris Kanyon told this story on the Howard Stern Show. He said Rodman showed up wasted (this was the day of the Rodman/Hogan vs. Malone/DDP match), and Hogan was furious. He cut a promo on Rodman, telling him if he didn't shape up he was going to make him look really bad in the ring. Hogan had latched onto Rodman in the weeks leading to the match, knowing it was going to get a ton of media attention, which it did. He wasn't about to be embarrassed in such a high-profile moment. Normally we wouldn't believe a story like this, but Kanyon put it over as legit and said Hulk scared the sh*t out of Rodman, and that even Kanyon was scared and shocked. And for those of you who remember the match, Rodman was basically asleep the whole time, resting on the turnbuckle as Hogan, Malone, and especially DDP did their best to have a decent match.

Art Barr vs. John Rambo

In the 90's when Art Barr was a big star in Mexico, he would come home to Portland Oregon to wrestle for his dad Sandy Barr in Championship Wrestling USA. One night he was wrestling a wrestler named John Rambo. Rambo didn't want to sell for Art, so Art hits him a few times, kicks him, then got a shoot small package for the pin. It almost continued backstage but Bruiser Brian got John out of there. (thanks to Keebler)

Haku vs. 4 men

In the Powers of Pain shoot wrestling interview DVD released by RF Video, wrestlers Warlord and Barbarian talk about how Haku once knocked out four men single-handedly at a night club after the men would not stop taunting him with disparaging racial remarks. (thanks to Sparrow)

Vader vs. Bassam Al-Othman

Vader was arrested, convicted of assault and insulting the host, and detained in Kuwait. He was finally released and ordered to pay $166 in costs after the incident which Vader claimed was scripted (Gerry Brisco had told Vader, "Leon, do exactly what I tell ya") in which he grabbed the tie of the host of a Kuwaiti television show and fired insults after being asked if wrestling is fake. Real Winner: The Rock (for not having to drop the Intercontinental title to Vader) (thanks to Sparrow)

Vader vs. Harley Race

As Vader's manager, Race was often critical of Vader's stiff style, and told him, "Leon, lighten up or you're not going to have anyone to work with." Normally, Vader would listen to Race's advice, but sometimes he'd hit back with, "Hell with it, if they can't take it, they can get out of the business." After a few beers in a North Carolina hotel, Vader said something similar to Race. To quote Harley, "Soon enough, we were rolling around the floor in a brawl that was half serious and half fun. Together we were 700 pounds of flesh rolling around in the living room area of the hotel. Of course, tables, chairs and everything else in the way were getting steamrolled in the process. Did we worry about the hotel manager banging on our door? Nope, the manager, a friend of Flair's, was already in our room drinking with us. He's the one who broke us apart by screaming at us. The next day we were all on good terms again, but he billed us for the damage: $600 each." Real Winner: The hotel manager ($1,200). (thanks to Sparrow)

Vader vs. Harley Race (Part 2)

Part 2 of Vader-Race occurred due to the time it took Vader to get showered. "Goddamn it Leon, shut up, and get in the car," Harley would yell. "Yeah, yeah Harley," came the reply. Harley yelled even louder, "GET IN THE GODDAMN SHOWER!" Harley then pulled out a 50,000 watt taser and zapped the naked Mastodon right on the thigh. After that, Vader said he "Got in the shower so quick, I was the first to go." Real Winner: Harley Race (don't ever cross paths with the King) (thanks to Sparrow)

Vader vs. Scott LeDoux

At the time, Vader was wrestling as Bull Power. Former heavyweight boxer, Scott LeDoux, was also part of the AWA locker room, challenging future AWA World Champion, Larry Zybsko around the country in some painfully average boxer vs. wrestler bouts. An argument pursued after a card, where Vader refused to sign autographs. Scott demanded he sign for the kids, and Vader made some comment about Scott getting beaten up in boxing all the tie. Scott responded by knocking Vader's NFL career. Marty Jannetty tried to diffuse the situation as Vader and Scott were getting ready to go at it. Finally Shawn Michaels was able to calm them down.
The next day, the AWA stars had a flight to catch; Vader and LeDoux were jawing at each other again. That night in the dressing room, Scott was screaming, as his and Vader's Gucci bags had been locked together perfectly, and the two had to walk through the airport resembling a couple. Real Winner: Curt Hennig (greatest ever ribber?) (thanks to Sparrow)

Vader vs. Chavo Guerrero

The Vader-Chavo incident happened at The Bash At Beach '95 after-show party (the card featured the final Vader-Hogan match in the cage, where Vader got injured). Both men were drunk, Chavo was being typically belligerent; Vader had the upper hand in the brief skirmish. When Dave Meltzer was asked what happened, he replied that two men with hot tempers who think they're tough, and for that matter, are tough, drank too much. The Guerreros are fearless, but their judgment on who to take on isn't always the best. "Vader is an idiot," an unbiased Chavo recalls. "I was talking to Bischoff and Vader just happened to be there when I wanted to talk to Bischoff. I wanted to leave, and Bischoff said 'Well hold on, come and see me in five minutes.' And I went to go see him, and Vader was there and he came into me. He tried to punch me but I'm still here, I don't think he's that tough. Vader, you didn't do anything to me dude.' (thanks to Sparrow)

Vader vs. 8 officers and 2 dogs

Vader's third arrest for drunk driving and the most dramatic. Vader was claimed to have crashed his vehicle into a bush, suffering a cut to his head in the process. When the police were called to Vader's house, they found him rather worse for wear. According to the police report, Vader shouted "I will and can kick all of your asses! Let's fight." When the dogs were called for protection, the report claimed Vader "Stared the animals down and said he would kill them." He also "Picked up two rocks the size of baseballs and clenched them in his fists," before calming down. And what was Vader's excuse? He was looking for bullfrogs and catfish in a pond. (thanks to Sparrow)

Haku vs. a cowboy

In Arn Anderson's book, Arn cites an event where Meng/Haku pushed a cowboy through 2 sets of doors with one hand - and a conversation with The Barbarian about who was tougher. The Barbarian just shook his head when Anderson asked who would win in a fight between him and Meng and stated "Meng's the man."