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Wrestling Thread Jan/Feb | 2/29 RAW - The Undertaker Returns to Respond to The McMahons
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body is ready
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...So
formerly beyondmeasure
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Former WWE referee JIMMY KORDERAS gives idea of what goes into a Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble is just days away and everyone has an opinion on how the WWE title situation could or should play out. Fantasy booking is the modern day wrestling fan’s favorite past time but that is not the subject of this week’s blog. Predictions and speculation about the outcome of the Rumble are everywhere but what is generally never discussed is the preparation by all involved that put on a match with this many working parts. So instead of going the traditional route and giving my crystal ball picks for the Rumble, I have decided to give readers a little peek behind the curtain.
There is so much preparation that goes into a match such as the Royal Rumble. Getting everyone from the superstars, referees, producers, camera men, guys in the truck etc. on the same page takes a group effort. I have had the pleasure and honor of officiating many Rumble matches in my 20+ year career as a WWE referee including the first ever Royal Rumble match, so I thought I would focus on what the Royal Rumble day is like for a WWE referee.
Arrival time at the venue for referees depends on which time zone the event is taking place. Regardless of location, referees are at the arena approximately 7-8hrs ahead of the start time. Once the production meeting ends, the guys in stripes find out their assigned matches for the evening. Referees selected to participate in the Rumble now have to attend a meeting with all the talent and producers to go over the match. Everything is discussed from order of elimination, who eliminates who and of course who is slated to win the Royal Rumble. The referees are given a list with all this information on it to go over throughout the day. This list must not be passed around to prevent any potential “leaks” such as surprise entrants and of course the winner.
I remember during the 2008 Royal Rumble that there was to be a huge surprise entrant at #30. So that afternoon, 29 superstars, 4 referees and the producers assigned for that match met in a conference room to go over the match. Once the discussion got down to the final 4, the 26 superstars that were scheduled to be eliminated up to that point were excused from the meeting. This left the producers, the refs and 3 of the final 4 in the Rumble. The fourth was a huge surprise which ended up being John Cena. Cena was out with a torn pectoral and was slated to miss the Rumble and most likely WrestleMania that year. Thanks to Cena’s Wolverine like healing powers, he had recovered in miraculous fashion enabling him to return much sooner than anticipated. Those of us who remained in the room were sworn to secrecy as to the identity of entrant #30. Not that it was necessary to have been told to keep it under our hats as we all knew what was at stake. The secret was kept and the MSG faithful erupted when Cena appeared. This was possible because everyone was on board with keeping the surprise to themselves.
Back to the roll of the referee in the Rumble match. The number of referees assigned to the Royal Rumble match has varied over the years. From as little as two to as many as four or five referees have been at ringside for this annual match. I believe that four is the standard number of refs currently so I will work with that figure for the purposes of this article. That number makes the most sense; four sides of the ring, one ref per side. If you recall back to the 1997 Royal Rumble, Mike Chioda and I were the only two assigned refs for the Rumble. While we were breaking up a fracas outside of the ring between Mick Foley and Terry Funk, we missed the elimination of Stone Clod Steve Austin by Bret Hart which allowed Austin to sneak back into the ring and go on to win the match. It worked for that Rumble for storyline purposes and you can make the argument that that is why there are now four refs at ringside. The referees will get together and decide amongst themselves which side of the ring they will be positioned.
Now on to the Royal Rumble match itself. The most important responsibility for the referee during the match is pass along time cues and when needed inform the talent who and when an elimination should take place. The easiest way for the talent to remember when they are scheduled to be eliminated is to know who is eliminated before them. The referees can help as they have the luxury of having an IFB or earpiece with the producer in his ear letting him know who is next to go. The trickiest part for the refs is to communicate this info to the talent without making it obvious they are relaying messages. Sometimes it is next to impossible but a good ref will make it work without making it to obvious.
Even though the referees are not in the ring, they still have to be able to help direct traffic. This is especially true when things do not go quite as planned. The best example of this was the 2005 Royal Rumble. That match will be remembered for a few reasons. Let me elaborate for those that are unaware of what happened. The final two superstars in the 2005 Rumble were Batista who represented RAW and John Cena representing Smackdown. After several near eliminations, both men were to tumble over the top with Batista hanging on to the top rope while Cena hits the floor thus being eliminated making Batista the winner of the Royal Rumble.
SPONSOR: WrestleRumble.com polls are open and remain up for entries until the start 8pm EST start of the event Sunday night.
Those who remember the match know that this is not exactly what happened. As both Batista and Cena went over the top rope, they kind of got tangled up and both men hit the floor at virtually the same time. The RAW refs almost immediately signaled that Batista had won because Cena hit the floor first. Within seconds, we were informed on our earpieces that a Smackdown ref raises Cena’s hand declaring him the winner which I did. This lead to a disagreement between the RAW and Smackdown referees. As the refs continued arguing about who won the match, we could hear in our IFBs that those at the Gorilla position were calling for the refs not at ringside to find Eric Bischoff and Teddy Long, the respective GMs of RAW and Smackdown. They were to continue the argument over who actually won then restart the match to get an eventual winner.
The GMs were nowhere to be found which led to an impromptu appearance by the chairman, Vincent Kennedy McMahon. Vince came out hotter than a firecracker, threw down his blazer and proceeded to charge to the ring. Then the unthinkable happened. VKM gained speed and went to dive under the bottom rope. As he attempted to stand up, his legs gave out and he hit the deck. We were all stunned as Vince just sat there with an angry look on face. He ordered the match to continue, slid under the bottom rope and slowly made his way to the back. The amazing thing about it is, as we later learned Vince had torn both his quads and still managed to make his way backstage. The man is a beast. The match continued, Batista won as was scheduled and most everyone watching live did not realize that there was a miscue of any kind. Sometimes, spontaneity comes across better than planned spots. With the assistance of the Gorilla position, this whole scenario could not have gone better if it was orchestrated (minus the quad tears).
Another responsibility a referee has when officiating a Royal Rumble match is to be aware of everything going on around them. You have to keep one eye on the action because you do not want to be in the way of someone flying over the top rope to the floor. Always be cognizant of your surroundings so you don’t get landed on. Jack Doan was the unfortunate recipient of a mild concussion after being taken out during one Rumble match when Phineas Godwinn was eliminated and took Jack with him. Not placing blame on anyone as this was just an unfortunate set of circumstances. This is just a reminder to all referees to be on their toes and mindful of what is going on around them. This is why I try to sit in and listen to as much of the match as possible. Most of the referees do.
With all those other responsibilities, to me the most important function of the referee not only in a Royal Rumble but in any match is the safety of the talent. With so many bodies in one match the risk of injury increases and referees should be able to recognize if a superstar is legitimately hurt. If an injury does occur, the referee must inform the ringside physician immediately. The doctor will then make the call whether or not the injured talent can continue with the match. The referee is the first line of contact between the superstars and the doctors.
I hope I was able to give you a little insight into the roll of a referee during Royal Rumble day. This year’s edition of the Royal Rumble should have some twists and turns that will invariably gives us insight into the plans for WrestleMania 32. I will be looking forward to that but I will also be keeping an eye on the referees as I always do. I can’t help myself. In the words of my old friend Mark Henry, “that’s what I do”.
Until next time, keep your shoulders off the mat and enjoy the Rumble!
There is so much preparation that goes into a match such as the Royal Rumble. Getting everyone from the superstars, referees, producers, camera men, guys in the truck etc. on the same page takes a group effort. I have had the pleasure and honor of officiating many Rumble matches in my 20+ year career as a WWE referee including the first ever Royal Rumble match, so I thought I would focus on what the Royal Rumble day is like for a WWE referee.
Arrival time at the venue for referees depends on which time zone the event is taking place. Regardless of location, referees are at the arena approximately 7-8hrs ahead of the start time. Once the production meeting ends, the guys in stripes find out their assigned matches for the evening. Referees selected to participate in the Rumble now have to attend a meeting with all the talent and producers to go over the match. Everything is discussed from order of elimination, who eliminates who and of course who is slated to win the Royal Rumble. The referees are given a list with all this information on it to go over throughout the day. This list must not be passed around to prevent any potential “leaks” such as surprise entrants and of course the winner.
I remember during the 2008 Royal Rumble that there was to be a huge surprise entrant at #30. So that afternoon, 29 superstars, 4 referees and the producers assigned for that match met in a conference room to go over the match. Once the discussion got down to the final 4, the 26 superstars that were scheduled to be eliminated up to that point were excused from the meeting. This left the producers, the refs and 3 of the final 4 in the Rumble. The fourth was a huge surprise which ended up being John Cena. Cena was out with a torn pectoral and was slated to miss the Rumble and most likely WrestleMania that year. Thanks to Cena’s Wolverine like healing powers, he had recovered in miraculous fashion enabling him to return much sooner than anticipated. Those of us who remained in the room were sworn to secrecy as to the identity of entrant #30. Not that it was necessary to have been told to keep it under our hats as we all knew what was at stake. The secret was kept and the MSG faithful erupted when Cena appeared. This was possible because everyone was on board with keeping the surprise to themselves.
Back to the roll of the referee in the Rumble match. The number of referees assigned to the Royal Rumble match has varied over the years. From as little as two to as many as four or five referees have been at ringside for this annual match. I believe that four is the standard number of refs currently so I will work with that figure for the purposes of this article. That number makes the most sense; four sides of the ring, one ref per side. If you recall back to the 1997 Royal Rumble, Mike Chioda and I were the only two assigned refs for the Rumble. While we were breaking up a fracas outside of the ring between Mick Foley and Terry Funk, we missed the elimination of Stone Clod Steve Austin by Bret Hart which allowed Austin to sneak back into the ring and go on to win the match. It worked for that Rumble for storyline purposes and you can make the argument that that is why there are now four refs at ringside. The referees will get together and decide amongst themselves which side of the ring they will be positioned.
Now on to the Royal Rumble match itself. The most important responsibility for the referee during the match is pass along time cues and when needed inform the talent who and when an elimination should take place. The easiest way for the talent to remember when they are scheduled to be eliminated is to know who is eliminated before them. The referees can help as they have the luxury of having an IFB or earpiece with the producer in his ear letting him know who is next to go. The trickiest part for the refs is to communicate this info to the talent without making it obvious they are relaying messages. Sometimes it is next to impossible but a good ref will make it work without making it to obvious.
Even though the referees are not in the ring, they still have to be able to help direct traffic. This is especially true when things do not go quite as planned. The best example of this was the 2005 Royal Rumble. That match will be remembered for a few reasons. Let me elaborate for those that are unaware of what happened. The final two superstars in the 2005 Rumble were Batista who represented RAW and John Cena representing Smackdown. After several near eliminations, both men were to tumble over the top with Batista hanging on to the top rope while Cena hits the floor thus being eliminated making Batista the winner of the Royal Rumble.
SPONSOR: WrestleRumble.com polls are open and remain up for entries until the start 8pm EST start of the event Sunday night.
Those who remember the match know that this is not exactly what happened. As both Batista and Cena went over the top rope, they kind of got tangled up and both men hit the floor at virtually the same time. The RAW refs almost immediately signaled that Batista had won because Cena hit the floor first. Within seconds, we were informed on our earpieces that a Smackdown ref raises Cena’s hand declaring him the winner which I did. This lead to a disagreement between the RAW and Smackdown referees. As the refs continued arguing about who won the match, we could hear in our IFBs that those at the Gorilla position were calling for the refs not at ringside to find Eric Bischoff and Teddy Long, the respective GMs of RAW and Smackdown. They were to continue the argument over who actually won then restart the match to get an eventual winner.
The GMs were nowhere to be found which led to an impromptu appearance by the chairman, Vincent Kennedy McMahon. Vince came out hotter than a firecracker, threw down his blazer and proceeded to charge to the ring. Then the unthinkable happened. VKM gained speed and went to dive under the bottom rope. As he attempted to stand up, his legs gave out and he hit the deck. We were all stunned as Vince just sat there with an angry look on face. He ordered the match to continue, slid under the bottom rope and slowly made his way to the back. The amazing thing about it is, as we later learned Vince had torn both his quads and still managed to make his way backstage. The man is a beast. The match continued, Batista won as was scheduled and most everyone watching live did not realize that there was a miscue of any kind. Sometimes, spontaneity comes across better than planned spots. With the assistance of the Gorilla position, this whole scenario could not have gone better if it was orchestrated (minus the quad tears).
Another responsibility a referee has when officiating a Royal Rumble match is to be aware of everything going on around them. You have to keep one eye on the action because you do not want to be in the way of someone flying over the top rope to the floor. Always be cognizant of your surroundings so you don’t get landed on. Jack Doan was the unfortunate recipient of a mild concussion after being taken out during one Rumble match when Phineas Godwinn was eliminated and took Jack with him. Not placing blame on anyone as this was just an unfortunate set of circumstances. This is just a reminder to all referees to be on their toes and mindful of what is going on around them. This is why I try to sit in and listen to as much of the match as possible. Most of the referees do.
With all those other responsibilities, to me the most important function of the referee not only in a Royal Rumble but in any match is the safety of the talent. With so many bodies in one match the risk of injury increases and referees should be able to recognize if a superstar is legitimately hurt. If an injury does occur, the referee must inform the ringside physician immediately. The doctor will then make the call whether or not the injured talent can continue with the match. The referee is the first line of contact between the superstars and the doctors.
I hope I was able to give you a little insight into the roll of a referee during Royal Rumble day. This year’s edition of the Royal Rumble should have some twists and turns that will invariably gives us insight into the plans for WrestleMania 32. I will be looking forward to that but I will also be keeping an eye on the referees as I always do. I can’t help myself. In the words of my old friend Mark Henry, “that’s what I do”.
Until next time, keep your shoulders off the mat and enjoy the Rumble!
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^^ That's a pretty interesting read...
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Where could the GMs possibly have gone
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Why do you continue to insinuate that I'm a racist?..Shts getting a little old..
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late nite ntwt 
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KO with a 450..
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Update on the Royal Rumble pools and Prediction Contest coming in the morning.
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Wonder who I get this yr.
13-Y2J
14-Forgot who I got
Last yr-Big E
13-Y2J
14-Forgot who I got
Last yr-Big E
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I got Heath Slater one year I believe
JBL when this dude was on commentary
JBL when this dude was on commentary
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The font didn't turn red with a hyperlink when I tried to tag you so I hope it still works. If not, no big.
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[Video][/Video]
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If embed dont work heres the link :
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late nite ntwt
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I had bad news last year.
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I had Ezekiel Jackson the first year I entered..Think it was me and Esgar that had the same person last year..
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I had Primo, JTG, and an USO in 3 of the last 4 years. I don't even remember the legit person I had the other year
6 Rings G.O.A.T.
Supporter
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Had the #1 last two years.. 
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Pretty sure I ended up with Bubba last year but I'm always too drunk to remember that **** when the Rumble hits
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I just want the Social Outcasts to dominate the rumble.
...So
formerly beyondmeasure
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