"I Quit" match
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
An "I Quit" Match is a type of professional wrestling match format in which the only way to win is to make the opponent say the words "I quit" (usually into a microphone). Generally, whenever a wrestler knocks down his opponent with a move or inflicts a submission move, he will grab the mic and ask the opponent to say "I quit!", and the opponent (at least early in the match) will make some kind of retort. (Triple H once replied, when asked if he quit, "Suck It!").
The first "I Quit" Match was in the NWA/WCW at Starrcade on November 28, 1985 when Magnum T.A. defeated Tully Blanchard in a very bloody match (with a cage around the ring). Near the end of that match, Magnum used a piece of wood to pierce Blanchard's forehead. At that point, Blanchard screamed "YES! YES!" into the microphone, indicating that he was quitting the match. Since the match was also an NWA U.S. title match, Blanchard lost the title to Magnum T.A., who was also the previous champion.
The most famous "I Quit" Match in the World Wrestling Federation took place on January 24, 1999 at the Royal Rumble between The Rock and Mankind. The match lasted just over 20 minutes and was especially brutal, ending after Foley took ten unprotected and undeflected full-on chair shots to the head while his hands were handcuffed behind his back. The Rock eventually won the match, but it was later revealed that Foley was completely unconscious and The Rock had played a tape of Foley saying "I quit" over the PA system. During that time the Rock was the heel and Foley was the face. (The trick did not escape Foley's attention, however; in the buildup to his "I Quit" match with Ric Flair in 2006, Foley avoided saying the words "I quit" during any on-screen appearances or promo spots -- taking to instead spelling out the words -- to prevent Flair from taking advantage of his words the same way The Rock did.)
A later "I Quit Match" was held on October 19, 2003 at No Mercy between WWE owner Vince McMahon and his daughter (also then-SmackDown! GM and then baby-face), Stephanie McMahon, with Vince taking the win when then baby-face, Linda McMahon threw in the towel for her daughter. John Cena retained his WWE Championship by defeating John "Bradshaw" Layfield in an "I Quit" Match at Judgment Day on May 22, 2005. At SummerSlam 2006, Ric Flair defeated Mick Foley in an "I Quit" match by threatening Foley's valet (Melina) with a barbed wire bat, forcing Foley to quit. An "I Quit" match on the October 20 edition of SmackDown! between Rey Mysterio and Chavo Guerrero saw Rey Mysterio lose when Chavo Guerrero repetitively hit Mysterio's (legitly) injured left leg with a steel chair, forcing him to quit. This made Mysterio the first face to actually lose via (actually) saying "I Quit" in WWE history.
Contents |
[edit] "I Quit" Matches in World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment
| No. | Match | Event, Date and Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Bret Hart defeated Bob Backlund |
WrestleMania XI April 2, 1995, Hartford, Connecticut |
||
| II | Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Ken Shamrock |
WWF RAW is WAR October 20, 1998, Wichita, Kansas |
||
| III | The Rock defeated Mankind to win the WWF Championship |
Royal Rumble January 24, 1999, Anaheim, California |
||
| IV | The Rock defeated Triple H to retain the WWF Championship |
WWF RAW is WAR January 25, 1999, Phoenix, Arizona |
||
| V | Vince McMahon defeated Stephanie McMahon | No Mercy October 19, 2003, Baltimore, Maryland |
||
| VI | John Cena defeated John Bradshaw Layfield to retain the WWE Championship |
Judgment Day May 22, 2005, Minneapolis, Minnesota |
||
| VII | Ric Flair defeated Mick Foley | SummerSlam August 20, 2006, Boston, Massachusetts |
||
| VIII | Chavo Guerrero defeated Rey Mysterio | WWE Friday Night SmackDown! October 15, 2006 (aired October 20, 2006), Los Angeles, California |
||
[edit] "I Quit" Matches in World Championship Wrestling
| No. | Match | Event, Date and Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Bill Goldberg defeated Sid Vicious | Mayhem November 21, 1999, Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
||
| II | Roddy Piper defeated Creative Control (Gerald & Patrick) (Handicap Match) |
WCW Monday Nitro December 6, 1999, Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
||
| III | David Flair defeated Terry Funk | WCW Monday Nitro February 7, 2000, Tulsa, Oklahoma |
||
| IV | Dustin Rhodes defeated Terry Funk (Bullrope Match) | Uncensored March 19, 2000, Miami, Florida |
||
| V | Norman Smiley defeated M.I. Smooth to retain the WCW Hardcore Championship |
WCW Thunder August 22, 2000 (aired August 23, 2000) , Tulsa, Oklahoma |
||
[edit] "I Quit" Matches in Extreme Championship Wrestling
| No. | Match | Event, Date and Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Terry Funk defeated Eddie Gilbert (Texas Death Match) |
ECW Show January 23, 1993, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
||
| II | Tommy Dreamer defeated The Sandman | ECW Show October 1, 1994, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
||
| III | Shane Douglas defeated Pitbull #1 to retain the ECW World Television Championship |
ECW Hostile City Showdown March 15, 1997, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
||
| IV | Tommy Dreamer defeated C.W. Anderson | ECW Guilty as Charged January 7, 2001, New York, New York |
||
[edit] Variations
[edit] "I Respect You" Match
An "I Respect You" Match is similar to an "I Quit" Match - there are no countouts, submissions, disqualifications, or pinfalls; however, to win the wrestler must have his opponent say the words, "I respect you." The first "I Respect You" Match was made by Brian Pillman, who once wrestled in WCW, as a challenge to Kevin Sullivan, in which Kevin had won. A notable occurrence with this match is that Pillman said "I respect you bookerman!" and was fired for it because he broke kayfabe.
[edit] No Disqualification Submission Match
This term refers solely to the matches that took place at WrestleMania 13 between rivals Bret Hart and Steve Austin and between Bret Hart and Bob Backlund at WrestleMania XI (the term "I Quit" match had not yet been coined). It is merely an earlier form of the "I Quit" match, as the match had to be won through the submission of your opponent, though not through the use of exact phrase "I quit" (or over a microphone as in later versions of the match). However, weapons were involved and completely legal in the match. Bret Hart won at WrestleMania 13 after applying the Sharpshooter onto Steve Austin, who refused to submit and instead passed out from the pain and blood loss (Austin had begun bleeding earlier in the match when his head came into contact with the guard rail, though actually bladed).
- Note: The match between Hart and Austin at WrestleMania 13 received a 5 star rating (the highest rating a match can receive) from Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer, one of only four WWF/E matches to receive the rating.
