Paul Wight
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Paul Wight (born February 8, 1972 in Tampa, Florida), best known by his stage names of The Big Show or simply The Giant, is an American professional wrestler currently working for World Wrestling Entertainment on the SmackDown! brand.
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Career
World Championship Wrestling
Paul Wight became involved in professional wrestling when Danny Bonaduce introduced him to Hulk Hogan at a charity basketball event. Wight trained at Larry Sharpe's Monster Factory for seven months and then signed with World Championship Wrestling. He polished his skills at the WCW Power Plant, where at one point he possessed the ability to perform a Moonsault.
Wight debuted in WCW at the 1995 Bash At The Beach. He introduced himself as The Giant, claiming to be the son of the late André the Giant, and blaming Hogan for the death of his "father." He joined the Dungeon of Doom, who were at war with Hulk Hogan and his allies, and immediately began a heated feud with Hogan. At Fall Brawl 1995, Wight attacked Hogan while he was fighting the leader of the Dungeon of Doom, "Taskmaster" Kevin Sullivan, in a Cage Match. After Wight destroyed Hogan's Harley-Davidson Motorbike using a monster truck, Hogan challenged him to a "Monster Truck Battle" at Halloween Havoc, which was to be held, fittingly enough, in Detroit.
On October 29, 1995, the Battle took place atop Cobo Hall, with each man driving a monster truck and trying to force the other truck out of a circle, as in a Sumo Wrestling Contest. Hogan won the match when Wight descended from his vehicle and appeared to fall from the roof. Later that night, Wight came to the ring with The Taskmaster and challenged Hogan for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship in what would be his WCW in-ring debut. Wight was awarded a victory by disqualification after interference from Jimmy Hart, Hogan's manager. Hart then revealed that the contract Hogan had signed (which he had written) had a clause stating that the title would change hands on a disqualification, and, as Hart had intentionally caused a disqualification, Wight was the new World Heavyweight Champion. The title was held up one week later as a result of the controversial decision.
Wight tried to reclaim the title at World War 3 but was foiled by Hogan, and "Macho Man" Randy Savage won the vacant title. He teamed with Ric Flair to defeat Hogan and Savage at the 1995 Clash of the Champions, but was decisively beaten by Hogan in a Cage Match at Super Brawl.
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After a short feud with The Loch Ness Monster, Wight eventually became a face, winning the World Heavyweight Championship a second time by defeating Ric Flair. After Hulk Hogan turned heel by forming the New World Order, he defeated Wight for the Championship at Hog Wild 1996 following interference from Scott Hall and Kevin Nash. Wight would join the nWo eighteen days later, citing Ted DiBiase's money as his primary motivation. He feuded with Lex Luger and the Four Horsemen.
After being thrown out of the nWo on December 30, 1996 after asking Hogan for a World Heavyweight Championship title shot, Wight fought against the nWo along with Sting, Scott Hall and Lex Luger, winning the WCW World Tag Team Championships twice. In 1997 he began a feud with nWo member Kevin Nash, who constantly dodged Wight, failing to appear for their scheduled match at StarrCade 1997. In 1998 at Souled Out the two finally met in the ring, but Nash accidentally broke Wight's neck when he botched a Jackknife Powerbomb. When Nash left the nWo and formed his own stable, the Wolfpac, Wight rejoined the nWo to oppose Nash and his allies. Nash would eventually end Wight's WCW career when he defeated him following interference from Scott Hall and Eric Bischoff. He left WCW in 1999 for the WWF.
World Wrestling Federation
Wight signed a ten year contract with the WWF in early 1999. He debuted as a member of Vince McMahon's heel stable, The Corporation, at the February 1999 St. Valentine's Day Massacre event. During the McMahon versus Stone Cold Steve Austin Cage Match, Wight came from under the ring and attacked Austin. However, he cost McMahon the match when he threw Austin into the side of the cage and the cage broke, spilling Austin outside to the floor and granting him the victory. This meant that Austin would face The Rock at WrestleMania XV for the WWF Championship.
Wight was renamed The Big Show and acted as McMahon's bodyguard. McMahon wanted to ensure that Corporation member The Rock would retain his title at WrestleMania, so he faced Mankind at WrestleMania for the right to referee the main event. Wight incapacitated Mankind, but disqualified himself in the process, meaning that neither man would be referee. After a furious McMahon slapped Wight, he punched McMahon and was arrested, turning face. Wight concluded his feud with Foley in a Boiler Room Brawl before joining Mankind, Test and Ken Shamrock in a stable known as "The Union" who fought against the Corporation, then later the Corporate Ministry. Wight and Undertaker later formed an unlikely alliance against X-Pac and Kane, with Wight turning heel in the process. Wight and The Undertaker twice won the WWF Tag Team Championships.
When The Undertaker was sidelined with injuries, Wight set his sights on the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, turning face once more. He participated in the Six Pack Challenge for the belt at Unforgiven 1999, but failed to win. After Steve Austin was run-over at the 1999 Survivor Series, Wight was given his place in the Triple Threat Match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, where he defeated Triple H and The Rock to become champion.
At the same time, Wight feuded with The Big Bossman. After it was announced that Wight's father was terminally ill with cancer, Bossman had one of his crooked police colleagues inform Wight that his father had died. He then mocked Wight's tearful reaction. When it was announced Wight's father had "died" (in reality, Wight's father had passed away years before) Bossman first interrupted the ten bell toll, then later invaded the funeral and used a chain to couple the coffin to the hearse, towing the coffin away. He also visited Wight's mother and forced her to reveal that Wight father was a different man, leading Bossman to refer to him as a "bastard" on every possible occasion. At Armageddon 1999, Bossman faced Wight for the title, but even the presence of his protege Prince Albert did not offset Wight's considerable size advantage, and Wight defeated him to retain the title.
On the January 3, 2000, episode of RAW Triple H defeated Wight for the WWF Championship, using a title shot that he had won from Vince McMahon at Armageddon. Trying to regain the title, Wight participated in the 2000 Royal Rumble, and was the runner up, losing to The Rock. Wight was convinced that he had won, and eventually produced a video tape that showed The Rock's feet striking the ground first. He was given a match with The Rock at No Way Out, with the WrestleMania title shot on the line. Wight defeated The Rock when Shane McMahon interfered, knocking The Rock out with a chair shot. The Rock was desperate to reclaim his title shot, and eventually agreed to a match with Wight on the March 13 episode of RAW - if he won, the WrestleMania title match would become a triple threat match, and if he lost, he would retire from the WWF. Shane McMahon, now actively supporting Wight's bid to become champion, appointed himself guest referee. However, The Rock triumphed when Vince McMahon assaulted Shane and donned the referee shirt, personally making the three count following a Rock Bottom.
On the March 20 episode of RAW, Triple H agreed to defend the title against The Rock and Wight on the condition that the match would not take place at WrestleMania. Triple H managed to pin Wight, but Linda McMahon forced him to defend the title at WrestleMania in a Fatal Four Way Elimination Match, with Mick Foley as the fourth man. Wight was the first man eliminated from the WrestleMania 2000 Fatal Four Way Elimination Match after the other three competitors worked together against him.
After WrestleMania, Wight began to turn face once more. He would wrestle his matches while mimicking other wrestlers, lampooning Rikishi as Showkishi, The Berzerker as Shonan The Barbarian and Val Venis as The Big Showbowski. He faced Kurt Angle at Backlash 2000, and came to the ring dressed like his friend and role model Hulk Hogan. "The Showster" defeated Angle with ease.
Wight began feuding with his former manager Shane McMahon after Shane was shown mocking Wight as slow, stupid and highly suggestible. At Judgment Day 2000 on May 21, Shane defeated Wight in a Falls Count Anywhere Match folowing interference from Big Bossman, Bull Buchanan, Test and Albert. Wight returned two months later, apparently intending to gain revenge on Shane, but instead sided with him and formed a short-lived stable known as "The Conspiracy" with Shane, Chris Benoit, Edge, Kurt Angle and Christian. After Undertaker threw Wight through a table, he disappeared for some time (he was sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling to lose weight; WWF management was so unhappy with his inability to lose weight, that they did not include him in the Nintendo 64 game WWF No Mercy, replacing his character with that of Steve Richards).
Wight returned at the 2001 Royal Rumble, but was eliminated by The Rock. He then began competing for the Hardcore Championship, which he lost to Kane in a triple threat match which also included Raven at WrestleMania X-Seven.
Throughout the Invasion later that year Wight remained loyal to the WWF. He faced Shane McMahon, the onscreen owner of WCW, in a Last Man Standing Match at Backlash 2001, and was defeated following interference from Test. He was part of the victorious Team WWF at Survivor Series 2001, though he was eliminated early in the proceedings.
World Wrestling Entertainment
At the March 25, 2002 Roster Split, Wight was drafted to RAW by Ric Flair. He turned heel by betraying Steve Austin in the course of a match and rejoining the newest incarnation of the New World Order, but the stable disbanded after Kevin Nash was injured. Wight achieved little success on RAW after this, not wrestling at WrestleMania X8, and at one point even losing to the much smaller Jeff Hardy. He was eventually traded to SmackDown! in exchange for Ivory, Maven, D-Von Dudley and Val Venis. Wight immediately challenged WWE Champion Brock Lesnar, who he defeated at Survivor Series 2002 following interference from Lesnar's manager Paul Heyman, thus becoming a two time World Champion. He lost the title to Kurt Angle a month later.
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In January 2003, Wight lost a Royal Rumble qualifying match to Lesnar. He then began feuding with The Undertaker, leading to Wight and his partner A-Train losing to The Undertaker and Nathan Jones at WrestleMania XIX. He then began a feud with Eddie Guerrero, who he defeated for the WWE United States Championship. Wight became an associate of Brock Lesnar, but abandoned Lesnar immediately before WrestleMania XX. At WrestleMania XX, Wight dropped the United States Championship to John Cena.
On the April 15, 2004 episode of SmackDown!, Wight promised to quit if he failed to defeat Eddie Guerrero that night. He lost to Guerrero, and, believing that Torrie Wilson had laughed at him for losing, upended her car and threatened to throw her off a ledge. Kurt Angle ascended to the ledge to try and talk some reason into Wight, but Wight chokeslammed him from the ledge, concussing Angle and breaking his leg. He was fired as a result.
In mid-2004, Wight was reinstated by new General Manager Theodore R. Long, and at No Mercy 2004, Wight, once more a face, fought Kurt Angle. In the weeks before the match, Wight claimed to have "lost his dignity" when Angle tranquilized him in the middle of the ring using a dart gun and shaved his head (in reality, Wight was beginning to go bald).
In 2005, Wight began pursuing the WWE Championship once more, challenging John Bradshaw Layfield to a Barbed Wire Steel Cage Match at No Way Out 2005. After Wight Chokeslammed Layfield through the ring, Layfield managed to crawl to the outside, winning the match and retaining his title.
On April 3, 2005, at WrestleMania 21, Wight faced Sumo Wrestling Grand Champion Akebono in a worked Sumo Match that was added to the show to attract a strong pay-per-view audience in Japan, where Akebono is considered a sporting legend. In the weeks preceding the match, Wight pushed over a jeep driven to the ring by Luther Reigns to show that he was capable of moving the marginally heavier Akebono. Wight jobbed to Akebono in a match poorly received by many fans.
In May 2005 Wight suffered "injured ribs" after Carlito Carribean Cool's bodyguard Matt Morgan used the F-5 to drive him through the announcer's table. Along with John Cena, Wight has since faced Cool and Morgan in a number of tag matches. On June 16, Wight and Morgan fought in a singles match. Following a distraction by Carlito, Morgan was able to knock Wight out of the ring. He then attempted to drive Wight through the announcers' table after getting a steel chair shot to the back from Carlito, but Wight reversed his F-5 and shoved Morgan into Carlito before he chokeslammed him through the table, gaining a measure of revenge.
Finishing / Signature maneuvers
Previous Managers
Personal life
- Wight is well-known behind the scenes and in the media for his easygoing, affable nature and his sharp sense of humor.
- In October 2004, Wight made a well-publicized cameo appearance as an alien slave trader in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Borderland."
- Wight is married, and his wife, Tess, is of average height.
Trivia
- Unlike his famous predecessor, André the Giant, Wight does not have acromegaly or "gigantism." He is simply a very large man; however, he does suffer from the same condition that was to eventually claim Andre the Giant's life. He underwent successful surgery in the early 1990s on his pituitary gland, which halted the progress of this condition.
- By the age of twelve, Wight was 6'2" (188 cm), 220lbs (100 kg) and had chest hair.
- In 2005, Wight leased a bus and a bus driver because of the practical problems his size presents to air travel and car rental.
- Paul Wight won his first WCW World Title in 1995 at the age of twenty three, becoming the youngest man to become world champion in either WWE or WCW.
- He has never won at WrestleMania, losing each of his six matches.
Titles and Accomplishments
- 2-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion
- 2-time WCW World Tag Team Champion (1-time with Scott Hall, 1-time with Sting)
- 2-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion
- 1-time WWE United States Champion
- 3-time WWF Hardcore Champion
- 2-time WWF World Tag Team Champion (with The Undertaker)
- PWI ranked him as the 137th Best Singles Wrestler of the "PWI Years" in 2003.
- PWI Rookie of the Year Award (1996)
- PWI Wrestler of the Year Award (1996) - The first rookie to be named Wrestler of the Year.
| WWE Championship | ||
| Preceded by: Triple H |
First reign | Followed by: Triple H |
| Preceded by: Brock Lesnar |
Second reign | Followed by: Kurt Angle |
External Links
WWE Profile (http://www.wwe.com/superstars/smackdown/big_show/index.jsp)
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