Charlotte and Rousey had a great ‘I Quit’ match at WrestleMania Backlash 2022. And I was thinking about the great ‘I Quit’ matches in WWE history. There’s Rock vs Mankind, Cena vs Batista, Reigns vs Jey Uso (inside a Hell in a Cell, no less!). But a lesser-talked about one is perhaps the most ultraviolent. And that’s the ‘I Quit’ match between Ric Flair and Mick Foley. It’s not for the faint of heart…
They fought at Summerslam 2006. Foley had already fought in some of the most violent bouts of that year. His match against Edge at ‘Mania 22, and his six person tag with Edge and Lita against Terry Funk, Tommy Dreamer and Beaulah, involved barbed wire, fire, and buckets of blood. This bout with Flair starts off tamely with a trashcan…but less than two minutes in, barbed wire is introduced. Then a board with barbed wire. Then thumbtacks. Then a barbed wire baseball bat (‘Barby’ I think Foley used to call it). Oh, and of course, enough blood loss to cause anaemia.
Flair is the first to bleed, after suffering a barbed wire-wrapped fist to the head. And it’s not just a few drops; the blood is spurting out. Foley starts to bleed later in the match. His blood loss looks tame in comparison! Flair was famed for his blading, the red covering his platinum blond hair, but this particular blade job must be one of his best (or worst?!?!)
The feud between the two had been boiling since their days in the early 90s WCW. Flair referred to Foley as nothing more than a glorified stuntman. Foley had some choice words about Flair in his best-selling autobiography. The legitimate heat between the two had presumably cooled before they agreed to have a wrestling feud, but it leant an air of legitimacy to this blood-filled bout. Forget about getting the other quit, these two look like they want to kill each other! At one point, Flair threatens to rips Foley’s heart out…and you believe he means it. “You quit or I’ll kill you right here!” Flair screams!
And that’s what you want in an ‘I Quit’ match, isn’t it? To believe these wrestlers will stop at nothing to make the other scream ‘I Quit.’ Flair evens restarts the bout after Foley is knocked unconscious, saying that he wants to hear Foley say ‘I Quit.’ Unfortunately, the silly ending involving Melina almost undoes all their hard work. I’d completely forgotten Melina was involved in this feud, for some reason allied with Mick Foley. And I don’t think her involvement led to anything (or another bout between the two wrestlers!!!). It’s also on the shorter side, running a minute short of fifteen minutes. I was left wanting more ultraviolence! However, this is exactly what you want from an ‘I Quit’ match. It’s possibly the most violent one in WWE history…even more horrific than The Rock bashing Mankind over the head with a steel chair ten times in a row! Given five more minutes and a better ending, this would be a great ‘I Quit’ match. As it stands, it’s a very, very good ‘I Quit’ match, with plenty of ultraviolence!
Hammy’s Rating: **** (out of 5)
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