Demolition is–finally–headed to the WWE Hall of Fame
The iconic tag team has belonged in the WWE Hall of Fame since its inception
Contents for The Week in Wrestling:
Bill Eadie on Demolition getting inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame
An inside look at the past week in wrestling
Cody Rhodes… or Drew McIntyre?
Tweet of the Week
Bill Eadie on Demolition’s induction into the WWE Hall of Fame
WrestleMania VI marked the end of an era.
It was the spring of 1990, and the glory days that WWE enjoyed in the 1980s were about to fade to black1. The winds of change were blowing, and this would be the final WrestleMania for the iconic Andre The Giant.
With Andre’s health failing, he only wanted to work with a select few opponents. One was Bill Eadie, who starred all over North America and Asia before joining WWE–and teaming with Andre. Together they formed The Machines2, strengthening an already tight bond.3
Not only did WrestleMania VI turn out to be the final match for Andre at WWE’s signature event, but the same became true for Demolition. Despite winning the belts for a third time–who else was in awe of the term “three-peat”?–Demolition would quietly turn from crowd favorites to heels, reunite with Mr. Fuji and add a third member in Crush. By the time WrestleMania VII rolled around a year later, Eadie–who was Demolition Ax–had exited the company, and it was Smash–Barry Darsow–left teaming exclusively with Crush.
It was a forgettable finish in the legendary run of Ax and Smash. Demolition exceeded every expectation, though there was a rocky start. The team initially began in January of 1987 with Eadie partnered beside Randy Colley as Smash. That pairing did not last long. By the following month, an audible was called because Colley was so recognizable from his time in The Moondogs.4
Colley was replaced with Darsow, and Demolition5–despite sporting a strikingly similar look to the famed Road Warriors–forged their own identity. Incredibly, the face-painted, sometimes-masked behemoths did their best work as babyfaces, sporting a unique charisma that was beloved by fans.
That was never more visible than at WrestleMania VI, when Demolition beat Andre and Haku to reclaim the tag belts.
Nearly 40 years later, Demolition will take their rightful spot in the WWE Hall of Fame. Their omission was a blemish, largely due to being part of a class action lawsuit filed against WWE in 2016 that alleged wrestlers endured traumatic brain injuries during their time with the company–and that the risks of those injuries were concealed by the company. While the case was ultimately dropped, Vince McMahon held a grudge against those involved, which included Eadie and Darsow.
Yet the day has arrived where McMahon is no longer part of decision-making in WWE. That opened the door for Eadie and Darsow to sign Legends Contracts with WWE a year ago, and now they are receiving a long overdue induction into the WWE Hall of Fame during WrestleMania 42 weekend.
“It is great to receive acceptance from the wrestling fraternity to be recognized as a contributor to the history of the sport,” said Eadie. “To be considered good enough to be placed in a special position along with top talent in wrestling, that is very special.”
Demolition held the record for the longest run as WWE tag team champions from 1989 until the New Day surpassed their 478-reign in 2016. They had memorable feuds with Strike Force, The Hart Foundation, Powers of Pain, and the Brain Busters, as well as some outstanding matches with The Rockers.
Eadie, 78, and Darsow, 66, committed their lives to pro wrestling6. They work became revered by fans, many of whom remember Demolition as the premiere team in an unforgettable time for tag team wrestling. Reflecting on that period of life, when he was putting on the face paint more often than he was waking up in his own bed, Eadie went out of his way to extend gratitude to his family and fans.
“We owe our career to the fans and to the unselfish sacrifice of our families,” said Eadie. “As for fan support, we have always said that without their support, there is no drive to excel.
“The fans drive the sport. They give you a reason to do your best. They drive you to do your best. After all these years of support, we truly believe they were a great part of the decision making to induct us into the Hall of Fame.”
This past week…
I loved every part of the Roman Reigns-CM Punk segment, right up until the end. I don’t see how it benefits the story for Punk to insult Reigns’ father, the late Sika. If anything, it gives even more reason to believe Reigns will win at WrestleMania.
I appreciated how Seth Rollins wasted no time in attacking Paul Heyman. This didn’t take weeks, instead happening on Rollins’ first night back on Raw. And it shows how The Vision is unraveling, which means Heyman will unveil a new plan (and I’m still holding out hope that it’s with Sami Zayn).
LA Knight driving Heyman’s ambulance was an excellent touch.
For the first time in a long time, Raw felt unpredictable. We even saw the IC title change hands, with Penta winning the belt from Dom Mysterio (who was cursed earlier that night by Danhausen).
It is official: if Hangman Page doesn’t defeat MJF for the belt in a week at Revolution, he’ll never again be able to challenge for the AEW world title.
During New Japan’s trip to New Jersey last week, IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Yota Tsuji defeated Andrade. With Andrade working full-time in AEW, he’s now moving on to a feud with Bandido. 7
Jake Hager is headed to Power Slap. If I were him, I’d bring back the “Real American” gimmick.
Cody Rhodes… or Drew McIntyre?
I hope this isn’t the end for Drew McIntyre in the world title picture.
In the immediate future, I don’t see a path to WrestleMania for him as WWE Champion.
Cody Rhodes gets his rematch for the world title against McIntyre this Friday on SmackDown, and it is a safe bet that the powers-that-be in WWE would like a Rhodes-Randy Orton bout at WrestleMania. That leaves McIntyre as the odd man out, even though he has been fantastic with the belt.
Perhaps that was the goal all along. Get the title off Rhodes and freshen up programming with a spark by having McIntyre win it in January. In that case, mission accomplished.
It feels like we’ll see Rhodes crown himself champ for a third time on Friday. If so, the reign for McIntyre–even though it was short–was the right call.
Tweet of the Week
After a disastrous debut, Danhausen’s backstage segment on Raw hit all the right notes. And yes, he got his photo with Triple H.
Literally, as that was the preferred color of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s boots and trunks as Austin brought WWE to new heights.
Interviewed here in 1986 by “Mean” Gene Okerlund.
Andre became godfather to both of Eadie’s daughters.
In an interview from 2016, Eadie told me: “Randy was too recognizable. He was already a world tag team champion with the Moondogs, and we needed someone new. I’d worn a mask for so much of my career, so fans had no reference point for me, and we wanted to be fresh. But as soon as Randy and I walked out of the dressing room, all you could hear was people chant, ‘Moondog! Moondog!’”
More from Eadie: “I was considering going back to Japan, but Vince and I chose Barry. We’d met in Charlotte and I could tell he was an honest guy and wasn’t going to BS me. He liked to work out, he liked to eat, and he liked to stay in nice hotels. We ate good, we traveled good, and we had good matches. He’s not the type of guy looking to put himself over. He was team first, and we reaped the benefits from that. We never knew how big we’d be, and it’s rather humbling.”
Eadie: “We were on the road for years eating ham and cheese sandwiches on Thanksgiving. We worked all the holidays, so I’d celebrate Thanksgiving with my family the day before. The company would shut down from December 18 to December 24, and our travel day was Christmas Day, so we’d celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve.”
Doesn’t Andrade’s frame look like Randy The Ram from The Wrestler?