"The Million Dollar Man" with some million dollar answers.
WWE Hall Of Famer "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase Sr. spoke at the 91st Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival's Sports Breakfast over the weekend. During the panel discussion that was a part of the event DiBiase Sr. touched on what drew him into the sport of professional wrestling and also discussed having the awareness to adapt and adjust to the vibe of a crowd.
Quotes by way of 'The Winchester Star':
“When I walked in the ring, I knew how [the match] was going to end, because that’s the hook, that’s what gets you back to the next show,” DiBiase said. “But everything before that, you do it on the fly. You’re telling a story." He continued, “I remember when I was young, asking questions of a lot of wrestlers. ‘Why did you do this, why did you do that?’ I remember [being told], ‘You feel it. You learn to develop an ear for the crowd.’ Say if you wrestled in Baltimore, and you wrestled a guy, and you do something and it goes over very well. You might go to New York and try to have the same match, and it doesn’t go over well. People are different, so when they’re not buying what you’re doing, you’ve got to think on your feet and shift gears.”
The first-ever WWF North American Heavyweight Champion portrayed a dastardly heel during his tenure with the company. DiBiase Sr. stated that adults who watched him when they were children come up to him now and share that they hated his guts when he was a in-ring performer.
“I get this from fans all the time: ‘Mr. DiBiase, don’t be offended, but I hated your guts when I was a kid,’” DiBiase said. “I say, ‘Thank you, that just means I did my job well. In our business, bad guys are bullies. They talk real big, but then they get confronted, they become cowards. They do everything underhandedly, but they run their mouth all the time. You never get tired of seeing a guy like that get his butt kicked.”
"The Million Dollar Man" also reflected on a storyline he was involved in where he attempted to buy the WWF World Heavyweight Championship from Hulk Hogan, and more. To read more comments from the WWE Hall Of Famer, click here.
