Rob Van Dam: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox Wrestler |
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Moses akadac (better known as ROB VAN WHO GIVES A DAM OR FOR SHORT RVD) he was born the year 1101 is currently age (2000) and is better known for his appearance in Smokey mountain Wrestling, WWE, WCW, Japanese Pro Wrestling and TNA Moses Akadac is not very smart but acts to be a complete replica of Clawed van damn which is much better then rob van dam |
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|name=Rob Van Dam |
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|names=Robbie V<ref name="OWOW">{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/r/rob-van-dam.html|title=Rob Van Dam Profile|accessdate=2008-04-28|publisher=Online World Of Wrestling}}</ref><br>Rob Szatkowski<br>'''Rob Van Dam'''<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|image=Rob Van Dam at WonderCon 2005.jpg |
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|img_capt= |
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|height={{height|ft=6|in=0}}<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|weight={{convert|237|lb|kg|abbr=on}}<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|real_height=5 ft. 11.5 in. (182 cm)<ref name="height">{{cite web|url=http://www.celebheights.com/s/Rob-Van-Dam-1763.html|title=Celeb Heights - Rob Van Dam|accessdate=2001-10-05|publisher=Celebheights.com}}</ref> |
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|birth_date={{birth date and age|1970|12|18}}<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|birth_place=[[Battle Creek, Michigan]] <ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|death_date= |
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|death_place= |
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|resides=[[San Pedro, Los Angeles, California|San Pedro, California]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|billed=[[Battle Creek, Michigan]], |
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|trainer=[[Ed Farhat|The Sheik]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|debut=1990<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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|retired= |
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|}} |
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'''Robert "Rob" Alexander Szatkowski'''<ref name="OWOW"/> (born [[December 18]] [[1970]])<ref name="OWOW"/> better known by his [[ring name]] '''Rob Van Dam''' (frequently shortened to '''RVD'''), is an [[United States|American]] [[professional wrestling|professional wrestler]]. He is best known for his time in [[Extreme Championship Wrestling]] (ECW) and [[World Wrestling Entertainment]] (WWE). The day after Van Dam's WWE contract expired, he was in the United Kingdom on a promotional tour, and to record scenes for the wrestling documentary, [[Bloodstained Memoirs]]. He also took part in interviews for the [[BBC]]. <ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.prowrestling.com/article/news/8474 | title = prowrestling.com | author = pw }}</ref> <ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.myspace.com/sexandviolencemovie | title = Bloodstained Memoirs Official Source| author = BM }}</ref> Another venture that Van Dam produces is RVDTV, reality based programming looking at the life of Rob Van Dam.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.robvandam.com| title = RVD Official Source| author = RVD }}</ref> The name ''Rob Van Dam'' or ''Robbie V.'' was given to Rob by a promoter in Florida by the name of [[Ron Slinker]] in 1991.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wrestlingnewsdesk.com/WND/the_news/wrestling/rob_van_dam_speaks_out_200804141120.htm |
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|title=ROB VAN DAM SPEAKS OUT |
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|publisher=Wrestling News Desk |
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|author=Matthew Cooper |
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|date=2008-04-14 |
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|accessdate=2008-08-11 }}</ref> |
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==Career== |
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===Early career=== |
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Rob Van Dam debuted in 1990 after being trained by [[Ed Farhat|The Sheik]], wrestling his first match against Dango Nguyen in [[Toledo, Ohio]]. He wrestled in many independent promotions across [[Michigan]], including the [[United States Wrestling Association]] (USWA) and South Atlantic Pro Wrestling (SAPW). In SAPW, he won his first wrestling [[Championship (professional wrestling)|title]], the SAPW Tag Team Championship, in July 1992 with Chaz Rocco.<ref name="biouswa">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#uswa RVD's Career At USWA/SAPW (1992)]</ref> |
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He signed with [[World Championship Wrestling]] in late 1992 and was dubbed Robbie V upon his arrival. His WCW run was uneventful and largely unnoticed.<ref name="biowcw">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#wcw RVD's Career At WCW (1992)]</ref> He also wrestled in several independent promotions across America, and in [[All Japan Pro Wrestling]], where he challenged for the [[AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Championship]] on several occasions.<ref name="rvdindies">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#indy RVD's Independent Career (1993-1995)]</ref> |
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===Extreme Championship Wrestling=== |
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====1996–1997==== |
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In January 1996, Van Dam signed with promoter [[Paul Heyman]]'s Philadelphia-based promotion [[Extreme Championship Wrestling]] (ECW), defeating [[Axl Rotten]] in his debut match at ''House Party''.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996a.html#010596 House Party 1996 results]</ref> Van Dam's mannerisms were those of a [[cannabis (drug)#Stoner|stoner]], and he became a [[Face (professional wrestling)|face]] due to his laid-back attitude and unorthodox style. On March 30, he faced [[2 Cold Scorpio]] in a match for the ECW Television Championship. The match ended in a draw with 2 Cold Scorpio retaining the title.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996a.html#033096 ECW results - March 30, 1996]</ref><ref name="bioecw">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#ecw Rob Van Dam's ECW Career (1996)]</ref> |
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Van Dam gained attention following a series of matches with long-time rival [[Sabu (wrestler)|Sabu]], began with a match at ''Hostile City Showdown'', won by Sabu.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996b.html#042096 Hostile City Showdown 1996 results]</ref> After the match, Van Dam declined to show proper respect for his opponent, leading to a rematch at ''A Matter of Respect'', which was won by Van Dam.<ref name="bioecw"/> Per the pre-match stipulation, Sabu then offered Van Dam a handshake, but was again ignored. Instead, Van Dam left the ring and [[Turn (professional wrestling)|turned]] [[Heel (professional wrestling)|heel]] under the management of [[Bill Alfonso]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996b.html#051196 A Matter of Respect results]</ref><ref name="bioecw"/> At [[ECW Hardcore Heaven#1996|Hardcore Heaven]], Van Dam faced his rival Sabu once again, in a match to prove who was the better man. Sabu won the match.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996b.html#062296 Hardcore Heaven 1996 results]</ref><ref name="bioecw"/> The two faced each other yet again in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Container-based variations|stretcher match]] at ''The Doctor is In''. Van Dam lost the match after missing a [[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Plancha|Plancha]] to the outside, hitting the railing and falling onto the stretcher.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996c.html#080396 The Doctor is In results]</ref> He was quickly rolled out.<ref name="bioecw"/> |
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At ''Natural Born Killaz'', Van Dam defeated [[Doug Furnas]] in a match. Post-match, Van Dam offered Furnas a handshake, but Furnas instead punched Van Dam, starting a rivalry between the two.<ref name="bioecw"/> After his rivalry with Furnas expanded to also include [[Philip Lafond|Dan Kroffat]], Van Dam wanted a [[tag team]] partner of his own. After losing to long-time rival Sabu once again at ''Unluckily Lottery'', the two united and formed what was to become one of the most successful tag teams in ECW history.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996c.html#091396 Unluckily Lottery results]</ref> They feuded with Furnas and Kroffat defeating them at ''When Worlds Collide II'' and ''High Incident''.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996c.html#091496 When Worlds Collide II results]</ref><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996d.html#102696 High Incident results]</ref><ref name="bioecw"/> |
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RVD and Sabu next feuded with [[The Eliminators]] ([[John Kronus]] and [[Perry Saturn]]). On November 1, the two teams fought to a draw.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996d.html#110196 ECW results - November 1, 1996]</ref> RVD then feuded with [[Tazz|Taz]], to whom he lost at ''Holiday Hell'' via knockout.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1996d.html#120796 Holiday Hell results]</ref> Sabu and RVD continued to feud with The Eliminators for the ECW Tag Team Championship into 1997. At ''Crossing the Line Again'' and [[ECW CyberSlam#1997|Cyberslam]], the teams faced off for the ECW Tag Team Championship in a pair of matches, both of which were won by The Eliminators.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997a.html#020197 Crossing the Line Again results]</ref><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997a.html#022197 Cyberslam 1997 (February 21, 1997) results]</ref><ref name="ECW97">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#97 RVD's ECW Career (1997)]</ref> At CyberSlam, the two teams faced each other for the titles in a [[Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match]], in which The Eliminators again retained their titles.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997a.html#022297 Cyberslam 1997 (February 22, 1997) results]</ref> |
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At ECW's first pay-per-view event [[ECW Barely Legal|Barely Legal]], Van Dam defeated [[Lance Storm]] as a last-minute replacement for the injured [[Chris Candido]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997b.html#041397 Barely Legal results]</ref> Immediately following the match, RVD expressed his distaste for being chosen as a back-up for "some guy who couldn't even lace his boots". RVD delivered a speech directed towards Paul Heyman, and not being originally booked on the show was a point of contention between Van Dam and Heyman for a time.<ref name="ECW97"/> |
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In May 1997 ECW "invaded" the World Wrestling Federation's ''[[WWE Raw|Monday Night Raw]]'' television show, drawing the ire of color commentator [[Jerry Lawler]]. Lawler then promised he would show up at an ECW show in order to gain revenge, and when he did show up, he had ECW mainstays [[Sabu and Rob Van Dam|Van Dam and Sabu]] with him. Van Dam cut [[promo (professional wrestling)|promos]] about how he was too good for ECW and deserved to be in one of the "Big Two" (WWF or WCW) on one of their Monday Night programs ("Monday Night Raw" or "[[WCW Monday Nitro|Monday Nitro]]"), while Jerry Lawler dubbed Van Dam "Mr. Monday Night" on an episode of ''Raw''. Despite his arrogance and "betrayal" of ECW, over time Van Dam became applauded by fans recognizing his athleticism and unique maneuvers.<ref name="rvdwwf">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#wwf RVD: Mr. Monday Night]</ref> |
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Van Dam continued to team up with Sabu upon his return to ECW on June 13.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997b.html#061397 ECW results - June 13, 1997]</ref> Tazz's manager Bill Alfonso betrayed Tazz and joined Sabu and Van Dam. Van Dam started a new rivalry with [[Tommy Dreamer]], who wanted to gain revenge on Van Dam for his betrayal of ECW.<ref name="rvdwwf"/><ref name="ecwreturn">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#ecw2 RVD - Return to ECW (1997)]</ref> On June 21, RVD and Sabu earned a victory over Dreamer and [[Jim Fullington|The Sandman]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997b.html#062197 ECW results - June 21, 1997]</ref> Van Dam and Sabu emerged victorious against Dreamer and Sandman again at ''Orgy of Violence''.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997b.html#062897 Orgy of Violence results]</ref> At [[ECW Heat Wave#1997|Heat Wave]], Van Dam, Sabu and WWF's Jerry "The King" Lawler fought Dreamer, Sandman and [[Rick Rude]] to a no contest.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997c.html#071997 Heat Wave 1997 results]</ref> Van Dam and Dreamer faced each other in a hardcore match at ''Born to Be Wired'', won by Van Dam after he hit Dreamer with a [[Leg drop|legdrop]] on a trashcan.<ref name="ecwreturn"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997c.html#080997 Born to Be Wired results]</ref> At ''As Good as it Gets'', the team of Van Dam and Alfonso lost to Dreamer and [[Trisa Hayes|Beulah McGillicutty]] in a mixed tag team match.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997c.html#092097 As Good as it Gets results]</ref><ref name="ecwreturn"/> Van Dam and Sabu became partners while Dreamer teamed up with Tazz.<ref name="ecwreturn"/> At ''Fright Fight'', Van Dam lost to Dreamer in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Flag match|flag match]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997d.html#103197 Fright Fight results]</ref> At [[ECW Ultimate Jeopardy#1997|Ultimate Jeopardy]], Van Dam and Sabu faced Dreamer and Tazz, a match won by Tazz and Dreamer after Dreamer pinned Van Dam. At [[ECW November to Remember#1997|November to Remember]], Van Dam faced Dreamer in another flag match, which went to a no contest.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997d.html#113097 November to Remember 1997 results]</ref> At ''Better Than Ever'', Van Dam and Sabu faced Dreamer and Tazz in a rematch. This time, Van Dam pinned Dreamer to give the victory to his team and to settle their rivalry.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997d.html#120697 Better Than Ever results]</ref> Van Dam's final encounter with Dreamer came on December 26, when Dreamer teamed up with Tazz, Al Snow and Sandman to take on Van Dam, Sabu, Doug Furnas and Phil Lafon. Van Dam's team lost the match.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1997d.html#122697 ECW results - December 26, 1997]</ref> |
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====1998–2001==== |
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In 1998, Van Dam started a feud with [[Triple Threat]] ([[Shane Douglas]], [[Bam Bam Bigelow]] and [[Chris Candido]]).<ref name="ecw98">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#98 RVD's ECW Career (1998)]</ref> At ''House Party'', RVD defeated Bam Bam Bigelow.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998a.html#011098 House Party 1998 results]</ref> At ''Hostile City Showdown'', Van Dam and Sabu defeated Axl Rotten and [[Balls Mahoney]] by disqualification.<ref name="hostilecity98">[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998a.html#013198 Hostile City Showdown 1998 results]</ref> The two went on to win a [[Professional wrestling tag team match types#Elimination tag team match|fatal four way elimination tag team match]] later that night.<ref name="hostilecity98"/> At [[ECW CyberSlam#1998|CyberSlam]], Van Dam and Sabu fell to Shane Douglas and Bam Bam Bigelow.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998a.html#022198 Cyberslam 1998 results]</ref> |
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Van Dam's popularity increased when he got his first taste of ECW gold, on April 4 when he defeated Bam Bam Bigelow to win the [[ECW Television Championship]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998b.html#040498 ECW results - April 4, 1998]</ref><ref name="ecwtv">[http://www.wwe.com/shows/ecw/history/ecwtvtitlehistory ECW Television Championship official title history]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2007-12-29]]</ref> After winning the Television title, RVD became known as The Whole F'n Show.<ref name="ecw98"/> RVD made the first title defense on April 10 against Doug Furnas, a match won by Van Dam.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998b.html#041098 ECW results - April 10, 1998]</ref> Sabu also expressed interest in Van Dam's championship, leading to a title match between them. Van Dam defended the Television title against Sabu at [[ECW Wrestlepalooza#1998|Wrestlepalooza]]. The match was a time limit draw, resulting in Van Dam retaining his title.<ref name="ecw98"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998b.html#050398 Wrestlepalooza 1998 results]</ref> |
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At ''A Matter of Respect'', Van Dam and Sabu were forced to face each other in a tag team match as they both teamed up with ECW Tag Team Champions. Van Dam teamed with the one half of the champions, Lance Storm, while Sabu teamed with the other half, Chris Candido. Van Dam and Sabu reconciled and instead took out Storm and Candido making it a no contest.<ref name="ecw98"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998b.html#051698 A Matter of Respect 1998 results]</ref> Van Dam and Sabu started a feud with Storm and Candido in the next month for the tag team titles.<ref name="ecw98"/> On June 27, Van Dam and Sabu beat Storm and Candido to win the [[ECW Tag Team Championship]],<ref name="ecwtagteam">[http://www.wwe.com/shows/ecw/history/ecwtaghistory ECW Tag Team Championship official history]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2007-12-29]]</ref> which made Van Dam a double champion.<ref name="ecw98"/> On October 24, Sabu and Van Dam lost the titles to the [[Dudley Boyz]] ([[Mark LoMonaco|Buh Buh Ray]] and [[Devon Hughes|D-Von]]) after interference from Triple Threat.<ref name="ecw98"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998d.html#102498 ECW results - October 24, 1998]</ref> Van Dam decided to take revenge from his rivals. At [[ECW November to Remember#1998|November to Remember]], Van Dam and Sabu teamed with Taz to defeat Triple Threat.<ref name="ecw98"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1998d.html#110198 November to Remember 1998 results]</ref> On December 13, Van Dam and Sabu won the ECW Tag Team Championship for a second time by beating the Dudley Boyz in [[Japan]] at a [[Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling]] (FMW) show.<ref name="ecwtagteam"/><ref name="ecw98"/> |
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Van Dam remained the Television champion for the rest of 1998, and he started 1999 by making successful title defenses against the likes of [[Matt Hyson|Spike Dudley]],<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1999a.html#010299 ECW results - January 2, 1999]</ref> Lance Storm at [[ECW Guilty as Charged#1999|Guilty as Charged]],<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1999a.html#011099 Guilty as Charged 1999 results]</ref> Balls Mahoney,<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1999a.html#011599 ECW results - January 15, 1999]</ref> and 2 Cold Scorpio at [[ECW CyberSlam#1999|CyberSlam]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1999b.html#040399 CyberSlam 1999 results]</ref><ref name="ecw99">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#99 RVD's ECW Career (1999)]</ref> |
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Van Dam and Sabu were scheduled to make a title defense of the Tag Team titles on April 17, but Sabu was suspended by ECW before the match occurred.<ref name="ecw99"/> Instead, Van Dam faced D-Von Dudley in a singles match and as a result of losing the match, Van Dam also lost the Tag Team titles to the Dudleyz.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1999b.html#041799 ECW results - April 17, 1999]</ref> After losing the Tag Team titles, Van Dam focused on defending the Television title.<ref name="ecw99"/> He entered into a rivalry with [[Jerry Lynn]] against whom he defended the Television title at [[ECW Hardcore Heaven#1999|Hardcore Heaven]] in a "no time limit" match. Van Dam retained the title, and the match was deemed so good that [[Paul Heyman]] aired it on ECW's debut on [[Spike (TV channel)|TNN]] in place of a [[Shoot (professional wrestling)|shoot promo]] about TNN that he was planning, but was not allowed to air, according to [[The Rise and Fall of ECW]].<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/1999b.html#051699 Hardcore Heaven 1999 results]</ref> Van Dam continued to defend the ECW Television Championship for the remainder of the year. |
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Van Dam began a feud with [[Terry Gerin|Rhino]] in the beginning of 2000. RVD made a successful title defense of the ECW Television Championship against Rhino on January 7.<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2000a.html#010700 ECW results - January 7, 2000]</ref> RVD got a big victory during a title defense against Sabu at [[ECW Guilty as Charged#2000|Guilty as Charged]].<ref name="ecw2000">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#00 RVD's ECW Career (2000)]</ref><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2000a.html#010900 Guilty as Charged 2000 results]</ref> Van Dam was scheduled to perform in a "champion vs. champion" pay-per-view main event against [[ECW Championship|ECW Champion]] [[Mike Awesome]]. This match potentially could have been the most lucrative pay-per-view main event in company history, and Heyman was depending on this mega-match to bring an influx of badly-needed cash but the match never occurred because Van Dam suffered a broken ankle during a successful title defense against Rhino on January 29.<ref name="ecw2000"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2000a.html#012900 ECW results - January 29, 2000]</ref> The injury also forced Van Dam to vacate the ECW Television Championship. |
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He returned to ECW at [[ECW Hardcore Heaven#2000|Hardcore Heaven]] and faced long-time rival Jerry Lynn. Van Dam was supported by his [[Legit (professional wrestling)|real-life]] friend [[Scotty Anton]] who eventually [[Turn (professional wrestling)|betrayed]] him when Van Dam was going to perform a [[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Frog splash|Five-Star Frog Splash]] on Lynn. Anton pushed him from the top rope, which helped Lynn win the match.<ref name="ecw2000"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2000b.html#051400 Hardcore Heaven 2000 results]</ref> Van Dam feuded with Anton and took his revenge at [[ECW Heat Wave#2000|Heat Wave]] by defeating Anton after a [[Dropkick#Corner-to-corner missile dropkick|Van Terminator]].<ref name="ecw2000"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2000c.html#071600 Heat Wave 2000 results]</ref> |
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Van Dam then attempted to exact revenge on Rhino for forcing him into injury. He got many opportunities to win the ECW Television Championship back from Rhino, but Rhino's allies usually attacked Van Dam, causing disqualifications and allowing Rhino to retain the title.<ref name="ecw2000"/> At [[ECW Anarchy Rulz#2000|Anarchy Rulz]], Van Dam faced Rhino for the ECW Television Championship but was [[List of professional wrestling slang#S|screwed]] when a heel referee made a fast count during a pinfall attempt made by Rhino.<ref name="ecw2000"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2000d.html#100100 Anarchy Rulz 2000 results]</ref> |
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Van Dam was not advertised and did not show for a large number of ECW events due to the large sum of money owed to him.<ref name="ecw2000"/> He appeared at ECW's final pay-per-view event [[ECW Guilty as Charged#2001|Guilty as Charged]], where he defeated Jerry Lynn.<ref name="ecw2001">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#01 RVD's ECW Career (2001)]</ref><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/ecw/results/2001.html#010701 Guilty as Charged 2001 results]</ref> This was Van Dam's last appearance in ECW, as ECW only held two more shows after the pay-per-view. |
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===World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment=== |
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====The Invasion (2001)==== |
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Several months after the closure of ECW, Van Dam was signed to a short term contract by the [[World Wrestling Entertainment|World Wrestling Federation]] (WWF). Along with fellow ECW alumnus Tommy Dreamer, Van Dam returned to WWF television on the [[July 9]] [[2001]] episode of ''Raw'' in [[Atlanta, Georgia]], attacking WWF wrestlers [[Glen Jacobs|Kane]] and [[Chris Jericho]].<ref name="alliance">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#alliance Rob Van Dam's Character In Alliance Storyline]</ref><ref name="Raw - July 9, 2001">[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/010709.html Raw results - July 9, 2001]</ref> Later that night, five wrestlers from WWF and five wrestlers from WCW took on ten ECW wrestlers, including Van Dam. The match never took place as instead the WCW wrestlers aligned themselves with the ECW wrestlers.<ref name="alliance"/><ref name="Raw - July 9, 2001"/> |
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Despite normally being a [[Heel (professional wrestling)|heel]], Van Dam was popular with the WWF fans, who were aware of his reputation in ECW. After defeating [[Jeff Hardy]] for the [[WWE Hardcore Championship|WWF Hardcore Championship]] at [[WWF Invasion|Invasion]],<ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/miscppvs2000s.html WWF Invasion results]</ref><ref name="alliance"/><ref name="hardcore">[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/hard WWE Hardcore Championship official title history]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2007-12-31]]</ref> Van Dam became one of the most [[List of professional wrestling slang#O|over]] members of [[The Alliance (professional wrestling)|the Alliance]], as a [[Tweener (professional wrestling)|tweener]]. He even challenged Alliance leader [[Stone Cold Steve Austin]] for the WWF Championship including a [[Professional wrestling match types#Basic non-elimination matches|triple threat match]] at [[WWE No Mercy#2001|No Mercy]] where Austin defended his title against Van Dam and Kurt Angle.<ref name="alliance"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/nomercy/history/2001/mainevent No Mercy 2001 main event]</ref> |
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Van Dam lost the Hardcore title to Hardy on the August 13 edition of ''Raw'',<ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/010813.html Raw results - August 13, 2001]</ref> but regained the title from Hardy at [[SummerSlam (2001)|SummerSlam]].<ref name="hardcore"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/summerslam07/history/2001/results SummerSlam 2001 official results]</ref> At [[Survivor Series (2001)|Survivor Series]] on November 18, Van Dam and four other Alliance members (Stone Cold Steve Austin, [[Kurt Angle]], [[Booker Huffman|Booker T]], and [[Shane McMahon]]) faced five WWF wrestlers ([[Dwayne Johnson|The Rock]], [[Chris Jericho]], [[The Undertaker]], Kane, and [[Paul Wight|Big Show]]) in a ''Winner Take All'' match. Team WWF won, and the members of the Alliance were fired; however, as he held the Hardcore Championship, Van Dam was able to retain his job.<ref name="alliance"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/survivorseries/history/2001/results Survivor Series 2001 official results]</ref> |
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====Hardcore and Intercontinental titles (2001–2002)==== |
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[[Image:Rvdwmx8@Commons.jpg|left|thumb|200px|Van Dam after winning the Intercontinental Championship at [[WrestleMania X8]].]] |
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RVD dropped the Hardcore Championship to The Undertaker at [[Vengeance (2001)|Vengeance]].<ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/vengeance/history/2001/results Vengeance 2001 official results]</ref><ref>[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#wwf2 RVD's WWF Career (2001)]</ref> On the February 4 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam defeated Bubba Ray Dudley. After the match, he was confronted by [[Dustin Rhodes|Goldust]] who hit him a [[neckbreaker]], starting a rivalry between the duo.<ref name="wwf2002">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#02 RVD's WWF Career (2002)]</ref><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020204.html Raw results - February 4, 2002]</ref> RVD defeated Goldust after a Five Star Frog Splash at [[WWE No Way Out#2002|No Way Out]].<ref name="wwf2002"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/nowayout/history/2002/results No Way Out 2002 official results]</ref> |
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RVD entered into a rivalry with [[Darren Matthews|William Regal]] over Regal's Intercontinental title.<ref name="wwf2002"/> On February 25 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam defeated Lance Storm and [[Paul Wight|Big Show]] in a triple threat match to become the #1 contender to the Intercontinental title.<ref name="wwf2002"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020225.html Raw results - February 25, 2002]</ref> At [[WrestleMania X8]], RVD faced Regal for the Intercontinental title and won the match after he hit Regal a Five-Star Frog Splash.<ref name="wwf2002"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/wrestlemania/history/wm18 WrestleMania X-8 official results]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/intercontinental/322704 Rob Van Dam's first Intercontinental Championship reign]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-01-01]]</ref> |
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When the WWF was divided into two "[[WWE Brand Extension|brands]]", [[WWE Raw|Raw]] and [[WWE Friday Night SmackDown|SmackDown!]] in 2002, Van Dam was [[WWE Brand Extension#March 2002 (Brand Extension: Raw and SmackDown!)|drafted]] to the Raw brand as the fourth pick.<ref name="rvdraw02">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#raw1 RVD's Raw Career (2002)]</ref><ref name="2002 Draft">[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020325.html Raw results - March 25, 2002]</ref> After he defended his title successfully against Booker T, [[Eddie Guerrero]] returned to the WWF and attacked Van Dam.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020401.html Raw results - April 1, 2002]</ref> He started a feud with Eddie Guerrero over the Intercontinental title. On April 8 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam faced The Undertaker in a non-title #1 contender's match for the [[WWE Championship|WWF Undisputed Championship]], but he lost the match after interference from Eddie Guerrero.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020408.html Raw results - April 8, 2002]</ref> At [[WWE Backlash#2002|Backlash]], Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Eddie Guerrero.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/backlash/history/2002/results Backlash 2002 official results]</ref> At [[WWE Insurrextion#2002|Insurrextion]], Van Dam and Guerrero had a rematch for the Intercontinental title. Guerrero was disqualified after hitting the referee with the Intercontinental title, as a result Van Dam won the match but not the title because a title cannot change hands by disqualification.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/ins.html#2002 Insurrextion 2002 results]</ref> At [[WWE Judgment Day#2002|Judgment Day]], Van Dam faced Guerrero in another rematch for the Intercontinental title, but was defeated .<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/judgmentday/history/2002/results Judgment Day 2002 official results]</ref> |
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On May 20 edition of ''Raw'', RVD faced The Undertaker in a match for the [[WWE Undisputed Championship]]. Van Dam had originally won the match when he hit Undertaker a [[Professional wrestling attacks#Rolling Thunder|Rolling Thunder]] and pinned him for the victory and the Undisputed title. However, Raw co-owner "Nature Boy" [[Ric Flair]] announced that Undertaker's feet were on the ropes so the match was restarted. Van Dam punched Flair and got distracted. Undertaker took advantage and hit him a [[Powerbomb#Elevated powerbomb|Last Ride]].<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020520.html Raw results - May 20, 2002]</ref> On May 27 edition of ''Raw'', RVD faced Eddie Guerrero in a [[ladder match]] for the Intercontinental title. RVD won the ladder match and his second WWE Intercontinental Championship.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020527.html Raw results - May 27, 2002]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/intercontinental/322712 Rob Van Dam's second Intercontinental Championship reign]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-01-01]]</ref> |
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After facing each other in the final round of the [[King of the Ring#2002|King of the Ring tournament]], Van Dam and Lesnar began feuding with each other. Van Dam defended his Intercontinental title against Lesnar twice and retained his title both times by disqualification.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020624.html Raw results - June 24, 2002]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/vengeance/history/2002/results Vengeance 2002 official results]</ref>On July 21, 2002, Van Dam [[Championship unification|unified]] the [[WWE European Championship]] into the WWE Intercontinental Championship after he defeated European Champion Jeff Hardy in a title unification ladder match.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020722.html Raw results - July 22, 2002]</ref><ref name="european">[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/euro WWE European Championship official title history]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-01-01]]</ref> As a result, the European title was abandoned. On July 29 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to ''SmackDown!'' superstar [[Chris Benoit]].<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020729.html Raw results - July 29, 2002]</ref> Benoit took the Intercontinental title to ''SmackDown!''. RVD defeated Jeff Hardy (with help from Jeff's brother [[Matt Hardy|Matt]] who hit Jeff with a [[Twist of Fate]]) to become the #1 contender to the Intercontinental title.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020812.html Raw results - August 12, 2002]</ref> |
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At [[SummerSlam (2002)|SummerSlam]], Van Dam won his third WWE Intercontinental Championship by defeating Benoit in a rematch for the title.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/summerslam07/history/2002/results SummerSlam 2002 official results]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/intercontinental/322720 Rob Van Dam's third Intercontinental Championship reign]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-01-01]]</ref> He brought the Intercontinental title back to ''Raw''.<ref name="rvdraw02"/> On August 26 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam also unified the WWE Hardcore Championship into the WWE Intercontinental Championship by defeating Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer in a hardcore title unification match. As a result, the WWE Hardcore Championship was also unified into the Intercontinental title and abandoned.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref name="hardcore"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020826.html Raw results - August 26, 2002]</ref> On September 9 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam became the #1 contender to the [[World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)|World Heavyweight Championship]] by defeating Chris Jericho, Jeff Hardy and Big Show in a #1 contender's [[Professional wrestling match types#Basic elimination matches|fatal four way elimination match]].<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020909.html Raw results - September 9, 2002]</ref> |
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====Main event push (2002)==== |
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Van Dam started feuding with the [[World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)|World Heavyweight Champion]] [[Triple H]] over the title. On September 16, 2002 edition of ''[[WWE Raw|Raw]]'', Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to [[Chris Jericho]] after interference by Triple H.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/020916.html Raw results - September 16, 2002]</ref> At [[WWE Unforgiven#2002|Unforgiven]], Van Dam faced Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. Due to [[Ric Flair]]'s interference, Van Dam lost the match.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/unforgiven/history/2002/rawmainevent Unforgiven 2002 main event]</ref> At [[WWE No Mercy#2002|No Mercy]], Van Dam took his revenge from Flair by defeating him.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/nomercy/history/2002/results No Mercy 2002 official results]</ref> At [[Survivor Series (2002)|Survivor Series]], Van Dam participated in the first-ever [[Elimination Chamber]] match for Triple H's World Heavyweight Championship. This match also included [[Shawn Michaels]], [[Booker Huffman|Booker T]], Chris Jericho and [[Glen Jacobs|Kane]]. Van Dam was the first man to be eliminated by Booker T after a [[Dropkick#Missile dropkick|missile dropkick]].<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/survivorseries/history/2002/mainevent Survivor Series 2002 main event]</ref> |
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Van Dam appeared on the World Heavyweight Championship scene and also formed a tag team with Kane in October 2002 against various heels.<ref name="rvdraw02"/> Van Dam defeated Chris Jericho and Booker T in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Basic non-elimination matches|Triple Threat match]] to become the number one contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/021118.html Raw results - November 18, 2002]</ref> On November 25 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam faced Shawn Michaels for the World Heavyweight Championship. Michaels was disqualified after Triple H hit RVD with a [[Facebuster#Double underhook facebuster|Pedigree]].<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/021125.html Raw results - November 25, 2002]</ref> On December 2 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam lost to Triple H in a #1 contender's match with World Heavyweight Champion Shawn Michaels acting as the [[Professional wrestling match types#Special referee|Special Guest Referee]].<ref name="rvdraw02"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/021202.html Raw results - December 2, 2002]</ref> |
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====Teaming with Kane (2003)==== |
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In 2003, Rob Van Dam continued to team up with Kane. The two faced Lance Storm and William Regal at [[No Way Out (2003)|No Way Out]] for the [[World Tag Team Championship (WWE)|World Tag Team Championship]] but failed to win the titles when Kane mistakenly chokeslammed RVD.<ref name="rvdraw03">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#03 RVD's Raw Career (2003)]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/nowayout/history/2003/results No Way Out 2003 official results]</ref> On March 31 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam and Kane defeated World Tag Team Champions Lance Storm and [[Sean Morley|Chief Morley]] and The Dudley Boyz in a [[Professional wrestling tag team match types#Elimination tag team match|3-way elimination tag team match]] to win the World Tag Team Championship.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/030331.html Raw results - March 31, 2003]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/worldtagteam/304454132112211 Kane and Rob Van Dam's first World Tag Team Championship reign]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-01-02]]</ref> At [[Backlash (2003)|Backlash]], Van Dam and Kane had a successful title defense against The Dudley Boyz with [[Sean Morley|Val Venis]] as the special guest referee.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/backlash/history/backlash2003/results Backlash 2003 official results]</ref> |
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Van Dam and Kane entered into a rivalry with [[La Resistance (Wrestling stable)|La Resistance]] ([[Rene Dupree]] and [[Sylvain Grenier]]). On May 26 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam lost a [[Professional wrestling match types#Flag match|flag match]] to Grenier.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/030526.html Raw results - May 26, 2003]</ref> As a result of losing to Grenier, Van Dam and Kane had to defend the World Tag Team Championship against Dupree and Grenier.<ref name="rvdraw03"/> At [[WWE Insurrextion#2003|Insurrextion]], Van Dam and Kane defended the World Tag Team titles successfully against La Resistance,<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/ins.html#03 Insurrextion 2003 results]</ref> before losing the titles to La Resistance at [[WWE Bad Blood#2003|Bad Blood]].<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/badd.html#2003 Badd Blood 2003 results]</ref> |
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Kane and Van Dam split up because Kane claimed that he didn't like RVD. The two started feuding with each other.<ref name="rvdraw03"/> On August 18 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam faced Intercontinental Champion Christian for the title, but Kane interfered in the match and kidnapped RVD to the backstage area where he handcuffed Van Dam and tried to burn him in backstage.<ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/030818.html Raw results - August 18, 2003]</ref> Their rivalry lead the two to a [[Professional wrestling match types#No Disqualification match|No Holds Barred match]] at [[SummerSlam (2003)|SummerSlam]], which Kane won.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/summerslam07/history/2003/results SummerSlam 2003 official results]</ref> On September 8 edition of ''Raw'', the rivalry ended when Van Dam faced Kane in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Steel cage match|steel cage match]] and fell to Kane once again.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/030908.html Raw results - September 8, 2003]</ref> |
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In September 2003, Van Dam started feuding with both Christian and Chris Jericho over Christian's Intercontinental title. On September 15 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam faced Chris Jericho in a #1 contender's match for the Intercontinental title. The match ended in a double disqualification when Intercontinental Champion Christian interfered and whacked both men with the title belts.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/030915.html Raw results - September 15, 2003]</ref> Raw Co-General Manager Stone Cold Steve Austin made the Intercontinental title match a triple threat match between Jericho, Van Dam and Christian.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref name="rvdoww">[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/r/rob-van-dam.html Rob Van Dam's OWW Profile]</ref> The match took place at [[Unforgiven (2003)|Unforgiven]], and Christian retained his title after he countered the Five Star Frog Splash by putting his title belt across his knees while the ref's back was turned, preoccupied by Jericho.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref name="rvdoww"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/unforgiven/history/2003/results Unforgiven 2003 official results]</ref> However, Van Dam defeated Christian in a ladder match on September 29 edition of ''Raw'' to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship for a fourth time.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/030929.html Raw results - September 29, 2003]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/intercontinental/322748 Rob Van Dam's fourth Intercontinental Championship reign]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-01-02]]</ref> |
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====Rivalries and tag titles (2003–2004)==== |
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Van Dam entered into a rivalry with Chris Jericho in October 2003. The two faced each other in several tag team matches.<ref name="rvdoww"/> On October 27 edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Jericho in a steel cage match when Eric Bischoff distracted the referee while Van Dam had caught the ropes but Jericho brought him into the middle of the ring. Van Dam submitted and Jericho became the new champion.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref name="rvdoww"/><ref name="Raw - RVD vs Jericho">[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/031027.html Raw results - October 27, 2003]</ref> Austin came out and immediately ordered Jericho to face RVD in a rematch for the title. Van Dam won the rematch and his fifth WWE Intercontinental Championship.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref name="rvdoww"/><ref name="Raw - RVD vs Jericho"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/intercontinental/322756 Rob Van Dam's fifth Intercontinental Championship reign]</ref> |
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[[Image:RobVanDam.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Rob Van Dam at a [[WWE Friday Night SmackDown|SmackDown!]] live event.]] |
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At [[Survivor Series (2003)|Survivor Series]], Van Dam participated in a survivor series match. He was a part of Team Austin which consisted of Van Dam himself, Shawn Michaels, Booker T and Dudley Boyz. Van Dam and Dudley Boyz pinned [[Mark Henry]] of Team Bischoff to eliminate him from the match. Van Dam was later on pinned by Team Bischoff's [[Randy Orton]].<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/survivorseries/history/2003/results Survivor Series 2003 official results]</ref> Orton and Van Dam started feuding with each other over Van Dam's Intercontinental title.<ref name="rvdraw03"/> Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Orton at [[WWE Armageddon#2003|Armageddon]] ([[Mick Foley]] was the special guest referee) after interference from Ric Flair.<ref name="rvdraw03"/><ref name="rvdoww"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/armageddon/history/2003/results Armageddon 2003 official results]</ref> Van Dam went on to feud with both Randy Orton and Evolution. On [[January 12]], [[2004]] edition of ''Raw'', Van Dam faced Orton in a rematch for the Intercontinental title but lost the match.<ref name="rvdraw04">[http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#04 RVD's Raw Career (2004)]</ref><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/040112.html Raw results - January 12, 2004]</ref> |
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Van Dam formed a tag team with Booker T. The two teamed for the first time on January 19 edition of ''Raw'' when they defeated Christian and Matt Hardy to qualify for a battle royal where the winner of the battle royal would get the #30 spot in the 2004 Royal Rumble match.<ref name="rvdraw04"/><ref name="2004 Royal Rumble #30">[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/040112.html Raw results - January 19, 2004]</ref> On February 16 edition of ''Raw'', Booker T and Van Dam defeated Evolution (Ric Flair and [[Dave Batista|Batista]]) to win the World Tag Team Championship.<ref name="rvdraw04"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/040216.html Raw results - February 16, 2004]</ref><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/worldtagteam/3044541321331 Rob Van Dam and Booker T's first reign]. WWE. Retrieved on [[2008-02-17]]</ref> At [[WrestleMania XX]], Booker and Van Dam defended the World Tag Team Championship in a fatal four way elimination tag team match against the Dudley Boyz, La Resistance and the team of [[Mark Jindrak]] and [[Lance Cade|Garrison Cade]].<ref name="rvdraw04"/><ref>[http://www.wwe.com/shows/wrestlemania/history/wm20/results WrestleMania XX official results]</ref> On March 22 edition of ''Raw'', Booker T and Van Dam lost the World Tag Team Championship back to Evolution.<ref name="rvdraw04"/><ref>[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/raw/040322.html Raw results - March 22, 2004]</ref> |
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On [[March 22]], Van Dam was [[WWE Brand Extension#March 2004 (Draft Lottery)|drafted]] from ''Raw'' to ''SmackDown!''.<ref name="rvdsd04">{{cite web|url=http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#sd|title=RVD's SmackDown! Career (2004)|publisher=Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> He made his ''SmackDown!'' debut on March 25 defeating [[Charlie Haas]]. RVD and [[Rey Mysterio, Jr.|Rey Mysterio]] began a feud with Dudley Boyz, defeating them at [[WWE Judgment Day#2004|Judgment Day 2004]].<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/judgmentday/history/judgmentday2004/results/|title=Judgment Day 2004 official results|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> In June, RVD left the tag team division and began a pursuit for the [[WWE United States Championship]]. On [[June 10]] edition of ''SmackDown!'', Van Dam faced US Champion [[John Cena]] in a match to decide that the man who would beat Cena in [[Professional wrestling match types#Beat the Clock match|5 minutes]], would receive a match against Cena for the title. Van Dam, Booker T and Rene Dupree, all of them failed to beat Cena in separate matches.<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/smackdown/040610.html|title=SmackDown! results - June 10, 2004|publisher=Online World of Wrestling|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> At [[The Great American Bash (2004)|The Great American Bash 2004]], Cena defended the title against RVD, Booker and Dupree in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Basic non-elimination matches|fatal four way match]] and retained his championship.<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/thegreatamericanbash/history/2004/results/|title=The Great American Bash 2004 official results|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> On [[July 1]] edition of ''SmackDown!'', RVD and Dupree lost to Booker in a #1 contender's triple threat match.<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/smackdown/040701.html|title=SmackDown! results - July 1, 2004|publisher=Online World of Wrestling|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> Four weeks later, Van Dam participated in an [[Professional wrestling match types#Basic elimination matches|8-way elimination match]] for the vacant US Championship, won by Booker.<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/smackdown/040729.html|title=SmackDown! results - July 29, 2004|publisher=Online World of Wrestling|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> |
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Van Dam began teaming up with Mysterio again in summer 2004, and feuded with Rene Dupree and [[Kenzo Suzuki]]. At [[WWE No Mercy#2004|No Mercy 2004]], RVD and Mysterio failed to win the Tag Team Championship from Dupree and Suzuki.<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/nomercy/history/2004/results/|title=No Mercy 2004 official results|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> In November, Van Dam and Mysterio joined Eddie Guerrero and [[Paul Wight|Big Show]] during their rivalry with Kurt Angle, [[Mark Jindrak]] and [[Luther Reigns]]. At [[Survivor Series (2004)|Survivor Series 2004]], Van Dam was a part of Guerrero's team, consisting of Guerrero himself, Van Dam, Big Show and John Cena (replacement for Mysterio) against Kurt Angle, Mark Jindrak, Luther Reigns and [[Carly Colon|Carlito]]. RVD was the only man to be eliminated from his team.<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/survivorseries/history/2004/results/|title=Survivor Series 2004 official results|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> On [[December 9]] edition of ''SmackDown!'', RVD and Mysterio defeated Dupree and Suzuki to win the [[WWE Tag Team Championship]],<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/smackdown/041209.html|title=SmackDown! results - December 9, 2004|publisher=Online World of Wrestling|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/wwetag/329982|title=Rey Mysterio and Rob Van Dam's first Tag Team Championship reign|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> and had a successful title defense against Dupree and Suzuki at [[WWE Armageddon#2004|Armageddon 2004]].<ref name="rvdsd04"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/armageddon/history/2004/results/|title=Armageddon 2004 official results|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> |
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In January 2005, Van Dam suffered a knee injury. To explain his absence, the [[Basham Brothers]] ([[Doug Basham|Doug]] and [[Daniel Hollie|Danny]]) defeated Mysterio and Van Dam for the Tag Team Championship, in a fatal four way elimination tag team match on [[January 13]], [[2005]] edition of ''SmackDown!'', "injuring" Van Dam in the process.<ref name="rvdsd05">{{cite web|url=http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#05|title=RVD's SmackDown! Career (2005)|publisher=Online World of Wrestling|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/smackdown/050113.html|title=SmackDown! results - June 13, 2005|publisher=Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> On [[January 27]] [[2005]], Van Dam underwent reconstructive knee surgery under Dr. James Andrews to repair a torn [[anterior cruciate ligament]] and [[Meniscus (anatomy)|meniscus]].<ref name="rvdoww"/><ref name="rvdsd05"/> |
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====Injury, One Night Stand and Money in the Bank (2005–2006)==== |
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While recuperating, Van Dam made an appearance at the ECW reunion pay-per-view [[One Night Stand (2005)|ECW One Night Stand]]. Accompanied by his former-manager [[Bill Alfonso|Fonzie]] and sporting a knee brace, Van Dam delivered a scathing [[shoot (professional wrestling)|shoot]] [[promo (professional wrestling)|promo]], criticizing the way he had been [[List of professional wrestling slang#B|booked]] in WWE, until he was attacked by [[Terry Gerin|Rhyno]]. He was saved by Sabu, who defeated Rhyno in an impromptu match. Despite his injury, Van Dam got physically involved in the match, hitting Rhyno with a chairshot and giving him a [[#In Wrestling|Chair Surf]].<ref name="raw05">{{cite web|url=http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/vandam.html#raw3|title=RVD's Raw Career (2005)|publisher=Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster|accessdate=2008-02-18}}</ref> |
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On ''Raw'', Van Dam (still healing) was drafted back to the Raw brand in the [[WWE Brand Extension#June 2005 (Draft Lottery)|2005 draft lottery]]. He was introduced to ''Raw'' by [[Carly Colón|Carlito]], who insulted Van Dam before attacking him and assaulting his knee. Van Dam made his return to the ring over six months later at the [[Royal Rumble (2006)|Royal Rumble]]. He gained revenge on Carlito by eliminating him, but was in turn, and inadvertently, eliminated by Rey Mysterio. On the [[February 6]] episode of ''Raw'', Van Dam defeated Carlito in the first round of the 2006 Road to WrestleMania Tournament. One week later, he defeated [[Chris Mordetzky|Chris Masters]] in the tournament semi-finals. On the [[February 20]] episode of ''Raw'', Van Dam and Big Show were defeated by Triple H in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Basic non-elimination matches|triple threat match]] to determine the winner of the tournament and number one contender to the WWE Championship. |
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The following week, now out of the WrestleMania main event, Van Dam defeated [[William Mueller|Trevor Murdoch]] to qualify for the [[Money in the Bank ladder match]]. Van Dam went on to win the match, thus earning himself a guaranteed shot at either the WWE Championship or World Heavyweight Championship at any time within the subsequent year.<ref name= MitB>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/wrestlemania/history/wrestlemania22/matches/2220322/results/|date=2006-02-04|title=RVD wins the "Money in the Bank" Ladder Match|publisher=WWE}}</ref> Following the ladder match, [[Shelton Benjamin]] challenged Van Dam to put his Money in the Bank opportunity on the line in a match. Van Dam countered by requesting a match for Benjamin's Intercontinental Championship. One week later, both Van Dam and Benjamin picked mystery opponents for one another, with the loser placing their respective prize on the line in a bout at [[Backlash (2006)|Backlash]] on April 30. Benjamin lost to the returning [[Charlie Haas]], while Van Dam was defeated by all five members of the [[Spirit Squad]]. As a result, both the Intercontinental Championship and the Money in the Bank title shot were contested at Backlash. Van Dam went on to win both prizes, before dropping the Intercontinental title back to Benjamin on the May 15 edition of ''Raw''. |
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On the May 22 episode of ''Raw'', Van Dam informed WWE Champion [[John Cena]] that he would be cashing in his Money in the Bank contract at [[One Night Stand (2006)|ECW One Night Stand]] on June 11 for a WWE Championship match. |
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====ECW brand (2006–2007)==== |
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[[Image:Rvdecw.jpg|left|thumb|Van Dam competing for the ECW brand.]] |
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On May 29, Van Dam was selected by Paul Heyman to be [[WWE Brand Extension#June 2006 (Brand Extension: ECW)|drafted]] from ''Raw'' to WWE's new [[Extreme Championship Wrestling (WWE)|ECW]] brand. Upon being drafted, Van Dam became the new brand's flagship wrestler, mostly due to his prior history in ECW and his title shot against John Cena at One Night Stand. At One Night Stand, Van Dam defeated Cena to win the [[WWE Championship]], his first ever World Title. After two referees were knocked out, [[Adam Copeland|Edge]] appeared from under the ring and interfered to attack Cena, [[Professional wrestling attacks#Spear|spearing]] him through a table. Van Dam then hit a [[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Frog splash|Five Star Frog Splash]] and the pinfall was counted by Paul Heyman, who suddenly ran down the aisle. On the following episode of ''Raw'', Vince McMahon confirmed that the title change was official, due to the match being held under "extreme rules." For the past few weeks, Heyman had hinted that the WWE Championship would be "rechristened" the ECW World Heavyweight Championship when Van Dam won. On the debut of ''ECW on [[Sci Fi Channel (United States)|Sci Fi]]'', Van Dam was awarded the re-instated [[ECW Championship|ECW World Heavyweight Championship]] by Heyman. However, Van Dam decided to defend the WWE Championship separately and simultaneously, joking that "this one spins." Thus, Van Dam became the first wrestler in history to hold both the WWE Championship and the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, and the only one to hold them at the same time. |
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On the July 3 episode of ''Raw'', Van Dam lost the WWE Championship to Edge in a triple threat match that also featured John Cena. The next night, on the July 4 episode of ''ECW'', he lost the ECW World Heavyweight Championship to [[Paul Wight|The Big Show]] after Heyman [[List of professional wrestling slang#T|turned]] on him. Later on WWE.com, Heyman suspended Van Dam for 30 days without giving a reason; ([[Legit (professional wrestling)|in reality]], WWE suspended Van Dam for 30 days as a result of [[#2006 arrest|his recent drug possession arrest]]).<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.wwe.com/shows/ecw/news/rvdsuspended|title=WWE suspending Rob Van Dam for 30 days|publisher=WWE|accessdate=2006-07-04}}</ref> He returned to television on August 8, attacking both Sabu and [[Kurt Angle]] during a match. His return to the ring came a week later, in a losing effort to Sabu in a [[ladder match]] for number one contendership to the ECW World Championship. |
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Van Dam slowly worked his way back into the championship picture. In October, Van Dam defeated The Big Show in a non-title match to regain the number one contendership. Having the option to pick a date, Van Dam announced the title match would occur at [[December to Dismember (2006)|December to Dismember]]. Heyman, however, had the option of picking the match type and announced that the main event would be a six-man [[Elimination Chamber#Match history|Extreme Elimination Chamber]] match. At the event, following an [[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#diving elbow drop|elbow drop]] with a steel chair from [[Andrew Martin|Test]], Van Dam was the third participant eliminated. Later in December, Van Dam once again earned the No. 1 contendership to the ECW World Championship, but this time by a fan poll. Van Dam got three matches against ECW World Champion [[Bobby Lashley]], coming up short each time. |
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Rob Van Dam later joined the [[ECW Originals]] along with Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, and [[Jim Fullington|The Sandman]]. The ECW Originals began a feud with the [[New Breed (ECW)|New Breed]] ([[Elijah Burke]], [[Kevin Fertig|Kevin Thorn]], [[Monty Brown|Marcus Cor Von]], and [[Matthew Kaye|Matt Striker]]). The two teams faced off at [[WrestleMania 23]] in a match which the ECW Originals won. After Vince McMahon won the ECW World Championship at [[Backlash (2007)|Backlash]], RVD and the other ECW Originals made statements on WWE.com about Vince killing ECW. The ECW Originals all competed in a four way dance to decide who would take on [[Vince McMahon]] the next week on ECW in a title match, which Van Dam won after a five-star frog splash on Sandman. However, Rob Van Dam instead had to face Vince McMahon, [[Shane McMahon]], and [[Eddie Fatu|Umaga]] in a 3 on 1 handicap match, which Rob Van Dam was unable to win. |
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Rob Van Dam received a [[kayfabe]] concussion during a match with [[Randy Orton]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/articles/3960574/rvdupdate|title=RVD gets concussed}}</ref> Orton further attacked Van Dam after the match due to the comments Van Dam made on WWE.com about the lack of respect Orton displayed towards [[Shawn Michaels]], who also suffered a "concussion" at the hands of Orton. Van Dam once again faced Orton at [[One Night Stand (2007)|One Night Stand]], this time in a [[Professional wrestling match types#Container-based variations|Stretcher match]]. Although it looked as if Orton was going to win again, Van Dam gave a kick to his head, and was able to push the stretcher across the line for the win. However, despite winning the match, Orton continued to attack him, ending with an [[DDT (professional wrestling)#Elevated DDT|elevated DDT]] off the barricade and onto the concrete floor. After the match, he left the WWE for unknown reasons. |
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===Post-WWE=== |
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The day after Van Dam's WWE contract expired, he was in the United Kingdom on a promotional tour, and to record scenes for the wrestling documentary, [[Bloodstained Memoirs]]. He also took part in interviews for the [[BBC]]. <ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.prowrestling.com/article/news/8474 | title = prowrestling.com | author = pw }}</ref> <ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.myspace.com/sexandviolencemovie | title = Bloodstained Memoirs Official Source| author = BM }}</ref> |
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On [[December 10]] [[2007]], Van Dam made a special appearance on the [[WWE Raw|''Raw'']] [[WWE Raw#Special episodes|15th Anniversary special episode]], accepting a challenge made by [[Santino Marella]] and [[Squash (professional wrestling)|easily defeating him]] in less than a minute with a [[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Frog splash|Five-Star Frog Splash]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/results/5674900/|title=Van Damn!|date=[[December 10]], [[2007]]|author=Corey Clayton|accessdate=2008-01-09|publisher=WWE}}</ref> In a recent interview with the Baltimore Sun, Van Dam stated that while WWE would be the first choice and that he would definitely talk to them, he'd definitely consider [[Total Nonstop Action Wrestling]] if he returns full time in pro wrestling.<ref>[http://www.tnawrestlingnews.com/headlines/203136810.shtml TNA News: RVD On TNA: 'I Definitely Would Consider Them', More<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
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==RVD-TV== |
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Rob Van Dam officially announced on his website's blog that he is in the process of creating an online show entitled ''RVD-TV''. On this show, he will give his fans a glimpse at what his life is like outside of the wrestling business. A preview for this upcoming series can now be found on the homepage of his website. Some of RVD's friends will appear on the show, such as Samoa Joe, Chris Masters and Sabu. The show will be filmed at his home in California, where he has been spending most of his time since temporarily retiring. Rob is expected to announce some of his other future projects through the show, such as his upcoming DVD on stretching. |
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==In wrestling== |
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[[Image:Rollingthunder.jpg|thumb|right|Rob Van Dam performing his signature ''[[Professional wrestling attacks#Rolling Thunder|Rolling Thunder]]'' on [[Monty Brown|Marcus Cor Von]]]] |
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*'''Finishing moves''' |
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<!--Do NOT change the order of the moves, as they comply with Wikipedia's Manual of Style--> |
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**'''[[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#450° splash|450° splash]]''' - [[All Japan Pro Wrestling|AJPW]] |
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**'''''Five-Star Frog Splash'''''<ref name="OWOW"/> ([[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Frog splash|High angle frog splash]]) |
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**'''''Hollywood Star Press''''' ([[Extreme Championship Wrestling|ECW]]) / '''[[Moonsault#Split-legged moonsault|Split-legged moonsault]]'''<ref name="OWOW"/> ([[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]]) |
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**'''''Van Daminator'''''<ref name="OWOW"/> ([[Professional wrestling attacks#Spinning heel kick|Spinning heel kick to a steel chair held in front of the opponent's face]]) |
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**'''''Van Terminator'''''<ref name="OWOW"/> ([[Dropkick#Corner-to-corner missile dropkick|Corner-to-corner missile dropkick, usually with a chair]]) |
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*'''Signature moves''' |
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<!--Do NOT change the order of the moves, as they comply with Wikipedia's Manual of Style--> |
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**''Air Van Dam''<ref name="OWOW"/> ([[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Senton bomb|Diving somersault senton]]) |
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**[[Suplex#Northern Lights suplex|Bridging Northern Lights suplex]] |
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**''Chair Surf'' ([[Dropkick|Running dropkick]], driving a steel chair into the face of a seated opponent in the corner of the ring) |
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**[[Professional wrestling high-flying techniques#Flying thrust kick|Diving superkick]] |
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**[[Suplex#Inverted suplex slam|Inverted suplex slam]] onto the barricade followed by climbing onto an elevated surface and jumping off with a corkscrew leg drop to the back |
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**[[Professional wrestling attacks#Legsweep|Legsweep]] |
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**[[Moonsault]], sometimes while [[Moonsault#Springboard moonsault|springboarding]] or sometimes perceded by a [[Cartwheel (gymnastics)|cartwheel]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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**[[Professional wrestling throws#Monkey flip|Monkey flip]] to a standing or cornered opponent<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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**Multiple [[kick]] variations |
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***[[Roundhouse kick|Roundhouse]] |
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***[[Professional wrestling attacks#Spin kick|Spinning crescent]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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***''Windmill Kick'' (Van Dam catches the opponent's kicking leg and performs a [[Professional wrestling attacks#Spinning heel-kick|step-over wheel]])<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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**Multiple [[leg drop]] variations |
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***[[Leg drop#Discus leg drop|Corkscrew]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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***[[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Diving leg drop|Diving]] |
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***[[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Slingshot|Slingshot]] |
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**[[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Plancha|Pescado]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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**[[Professional wrestling attacks#Rolling Thunder|Rolling Thunder]], sometimes into a [[Professional wrestling throws#Monkey flip|monkey flip]], [[Professional wrestling attacks#Rolling Thunder|somersault senton]] or [[Professional wrestling attacks#Big splash|vertical splash]]<ref name="OWOW"/> |
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**[[Professional wrestling attacks#Crossbody|Running crossbody]], sometimes done while [[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Reverse crossbody|facing away from opponent]] |
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**''Steam Roller Slam'' ([[Professional wrestling throws#Fireman's carry slam|Rolling fireman's carry slam]]) |
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**[[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Diving clothesline|Springboard diving clothesline]] |
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**[[Professional wrestling aerial techniques#Springboard|Springboard]] [[Professional wrestling attacks#Leg lariat|leg lariat]] |
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**[[Professional wrestling attacks#Turnbuckle thrust|Two turnbuckle thrusts]] followed by a back handspring and finished with a [[Professional wrestling throws#Monkey flip|monkey flip]] |
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*'''[[Manager (professional wrestling)|Managers]]''' |
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**[[Bill Alfonso]] |
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**[[Paul Heyman]] |
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**[[Jerry Lawler]] |
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**[[Stephanie McMahon|Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley]] |
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*'''[[Nickname]]s''' |
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** Mr. Monday Night (if he was on [[WWE Raw|'''Monday Night''' Raw]] or ECW on TNN) |
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** Mr. Thursday Night (if he was on [[WWE Friday Night SmackDown|SmackDown!]]) |
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** Mr. Tuesday Night (if he was on [[Extreme Championship Wrestling (WWE)|ECW)]]) |
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** Mr. Pay-Per-View ([[Extreme Championship Wrestling]]) |
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** Mr. [[Money in the Bank ladder match|Money in the Bank]] |
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** "Magic Soldier" Rob Van Dam ([[All Japan Pro Wrestling]]) |
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** '''RVD''' |
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** The Whole "Dam" Show |
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** '''The Whole F'n Show'''<ref name="ecw98"/> |
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** The Whole Fuckin' Show (used in [[Extreme Championship Wrestling]]) |
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** '''The Van Daminator''' |
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*'''[[Music in professional wrestling|Theme music]]''' |
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**Van Dam's [[music in professional wrestling|entrance music]] in the original ECW was "Walk" by [[Pantera]]. The song was covered by Kilgore for the ECW Extreme Music [[album]]; Van Dam briefly used this version as his entrance music when the album was released. |
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**Van Dam's entrance music in WWE was "One of a Kind" by [[Breaking Point]]. He appears in the [[music video]] for the song, in which he loses his car to the band's lead singer, Brett Erickson, in a [[Street racing|street race]]. At the end of the video, he spin kicks the keys to the car into his opponent's hands. The song appears on the ''[[WWF Forceable Entry]]'' album and Breaking Point's ''Coming of Age'' album. |
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**Van Dam's entrance music on the ''[[WWE Wreckless Intent]]'' album is "Fury of the Storm" by [[Shadows Fall]]. Possibly due to licensing issues with his "[[Breaking Point (band)|One of a Kind]]" theme, "Fury of the Storm" is used as Van Dam's theme in [[WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007]]. |
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==Championships and accomplishments== |
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[[Image:RobVanDam WWE-ECWChamp@commons.png|right|thumb|125px|Van Dam as both [[WWE Championship|WWE Champion]] and [[ECW Championship|ECW Champion]].]] |
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*'''All Star Wrestling''' |
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**ASW North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)<ref name=SLAM>{{citeweb|url=http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/Bios/vandam.html|accessdate=2008-06-24|title=Rob Van Dam Bio|publisher=SLAM! Sports}}</ref> |
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*'''[[Extreme Championship Wrestling]]''' |
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**[[ECW Tag Team Championship|ECW World Tag Team Championship]] ([[List of ECW Tag Team Champions|2 times]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ecw/ecw-t.html|accessdate=2008-06-24| title=ECW World Tag Team Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> - with [[Sabu (wrestler)|Sabu]] |
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**[[ECW Television Championship|ECW World Television Championship]] ([[List of ECW Television Champions|1 time]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ecw/ecw-tv.html|accessdate=2208-06-24|title= ECW World Television Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com</ref>'''(Longest Reign)''' |
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*'''International Wrestling Federation''' |
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**IWF Television Championship (1 time)<ref name=SLAM/> |
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*'''National Wrestling Council''' |
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**NWC Tag Team Champion (1 time)<ref name=SLAM/> - with Bobby Bradley |
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*'''Peach State Wrestling''' |
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**PSW Cordele City Heavyweight Championship<ref name= SLAM/>(1 time) |
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*'''[[Pro Wrestling Illustrated]]''' |
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**[[PWI Comeback of the Year]] (2001)<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwicome.htm|accessdate=2008-06-24|title=Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners Comeback of the Year|publisher=Wrestling Information Archive}}</ref> |
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**[[PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year]] (2001, 2002)<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwimpoty.htm|accessdate=2008-06-24|title=Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners Most Popular Wrestler of the Year|publisher=Wrestling Information Archive}}</ref> |
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**PWI ranked '''#1''' of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the [[Pro Wrestling Illustrated#PWI 500|PWI 500]] in 2002<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwi50099.htm|accessdate=2008-06-24|title=Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 - 1999|publisher=Wrestling Information Archive}}</ref> |
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*'''South Atlantic Pro Wrestling''' |
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**SAPW Tag Team Championship (1 time)<ref name=SLAM/> - with Chaz Rocco |
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*'''[[World Wrestling Entertainment|World Wrestling Federation | World Wrestling Entertainment]]''' |
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**[[ECW Championship|ECW World Heavyweight Championship]] ([[List of ECW Champions|1 time]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ecw/ecw-h.html|accessdate=2008-06-24|title= ECW World Heavyweight Title history|publisher-Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> |
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**[[World Tag Team Championship (WWE)|World Tag Team Championship]] ([[List of World Tag Team Champions (WWE)|2 times]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-t.html|accessdate=2008-06-24|title= WWWF/WWF/WWE World Tag Team Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> - with [[Glen Jacobs|Kane]] (1) and [[Booker Huffman|Booker T]] (1) |
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**[[WWE Championship]] ([[List of WWE Champions|1 time]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-h.html|accessdate=2008-06-24 |title=WWWF/WWF/WWE World Heavyweight Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> |
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**[[WWE European Championship]] ([[List of WWE European Champions|1 time]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-eu-h.html|accessdate=2008-06-24|title= WWF/WWE European Heavyweight Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> '''(Last)''' |
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**[[WWE Tag Team Championship]] ([[List of WWE Tag Team Champions|1 time]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/sd/wwe-sd-t.html|title=WWE (Smackdown!) Tag Team Title history|accessdate=2008-06-24|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> - with [[Rey Mysterio, Jr.|Rey Mysterio]] |
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**[[WWE Hardcore Championship|WWF/E Hardcore Championship]] ([[List of WWE Hardcore Champions|4 times]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-hc.html|accessdate=2008-06-24| title=WWF/WWE Hardcore Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> '''(Last)''' |
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**[[WWE Intercontinental Championship|WWF/E Intercontinental Championship]] ([[List of WWE Intercontinental Champions|6 times]])<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html|accessdate=2008-06-24|title=WWF/WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com}}</ref> |
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**[[Money in the Bank ladder match|Mr. Money in the Bank]] ([[Money in the Bank ladder match#2006|2006]])<ref name=MitB/> |
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**[[Triple Crown Championship#Official List of WWE Triple Crown Champions|Fifteenth]] [[Triple Crown Championship|Triple Crown Champion]] |
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**[[Grand Slam Championship#WWF/E Grand Slam Champions|Sixth]] [[Grand Slam Championship|Grand Slam Champion]] |
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==Filmography== |
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*''Superfights'' (1995) as "The Mercenary" |
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*''Bloodmoon'' (1997) as "Dutch Scholtz" |
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*''City Guys'' (October 23, 1999) in episode "El-Trainmania IV" as "Himself" |
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*''18 Wheels of Justice'' (August 2, 2000) as "Robert Laramie" |
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*''[[The X-Files]]'' (May 7, 2000) in episode "Fight Club" as "Burt's opponent" |
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*''[[V.I.P. (TV series)|V.I.P.]]'' (2000) in episode "Danger Island" as "Major Ving Talbot" |
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*''Spy TV'' (July 26, 2001) as "Himself" |
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*''Ultimate Revenge'' (December 2, 2001) as "Himself" |
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*''[[Black Mask 2: City of Masks]]'' (2002) as "Claw" |
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*[[The Backyard (film)|The Backyard]] (2002) as "Himself" |
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*''Rob Van Dam: One Of A Kind'' (2005; DVD) |
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==Personal life== |
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Szatkowski is married to Sonya,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBiosV/vandam_01sep05-can.html|title=SLAM! Sports Biography|accessdate=2008-02-08|publisher=[[CANOE]]}}</ref> She is an aspiring make up artist.<Ref>[http://www.myspace.com/makeupbysvd Sonya 'Van Dam's' MySpace page]</ref> During his wrestling career, Sonya often traveled on the road with Rob and appeared at ringside during events that Rob took part in. On [[April 23]], [[2008]], Szatkowski revealed that his wife is suffering from [[Colorectal cancer|colon cancer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wrestlingnewsworld.com/wwe-news/rob-van-dam-announces-his-wife-has-cancer.php|title=Rob Van Dam Announces His Wife Has Cancer|date=2008-04-23|last=Gray|first=Richard|accessdate=2008-04-23|publisher=WrestlingNewsWorld}}</ref> |
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Szatkowski is a trained [[Kickboxing|kickboxer]] and [[Martial arts|martial artist]]. In 1990, he placed second in the Kalamazoo Heavyweight Toughman Contest. Szatkowski is also an outspoken advocate of [[vitamin]]s and [[bodybuilding supplement]]s<ref name=endorser>{{cite web|title=Rob Van Dam big on his bodybuilding supplements|publisher=Muscle And Sports Science| url=http://www.musclemass.com}}</ref> and attributes this to his mother's influence. Van Dam participated in [[scholastic wrestling|amateur wrestling]] while in high school. He is the inventor of the ''Van Dam Lift'', a [[weightlifting]] technique that involves performing a split (which he took up in his early teens) between two benches and lifting a [[dumbbell]] from the floor to the waist. The lift was approved by the International All-Around Weightlifting Association in 1998, and Szatkowski holds the current record, 166.5 lb (76 kg). Growing up in Battle Creek, Michigan, Szatkowski studied martial arts at two local dojos. He received instruction in Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Aikido, Kendo, and Kickboxing. |
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Szatkowski was featured in an article in the March 1999 issue of ''[[High Times]]''. His signature symbol is the [[yin and yang|Taijitu]]; in an interview for WWE's "Invasion" DVD, he said he uses this symbol because it represents "the use of good or evil." |
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Van Dam used to own a comic book shop called "5 Star Comics". He, along with several other wrestlers, often showed up at the store to sign autographs. |
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===2006 arrest=== |
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On July 3, 2006, ''The Ironton Tribune'' reported that Szatkowski and [[Sabu (wrestler)|Terry Brunk]] (one of his colleagues known as Sabu) had been arrested on the previous evening on [[U.S. Route 52]] in [[Hanging Rock, Ohio]]. Szatkowski had been stopped for speeding by an [[Ohio State Highway Patrol]] trooper, who discovered that he was in possession of 18 grams of [[Cannabis (drug)|marijuana]] and five [[Vicodin]] pills, while Brunk was in possession of [[drug paraphernalia]] and nine tablets of [[Testolactone]].<ref name="Almanac">{{cite news | first = Hicks | last = Brady | title = 2006: The year in wrestling | work = PWI Presents: 2007 Wrestling Almanak and book of facts | publisher = Kappa Publications | id = 2007 Edition | page = 23 | accessdate = 2007-07-11 | language = English }}</ref> Both Szatkowski and Brunk were released after posting [[bail]], and were scheduled to appear in [[Ironton, Ohio|Ironton]] Municipal Court on July 6, 2006.<ref name=arrest>{{cite web|title=Wrestling stars busted in Hanging Rock|publisher=The Ironton Tribune|url=http://www.irontontribune.com/articles/2006/07/03/news/news437.txt|accessdate=2006-07-03}}</ref> On July 6, 2006, ''The Ironton Tribune'' reported that the court date for Szatkowski and Brunk was in limbo, as their attorneys had asked for and were granted continuances.<ref name=arrest2>{{cite web|title=Wrestlers’ court date canceled|publisher=The Ironton Tribune|url=http://www.irontontribune.com/articles/2006/07/06/news/news418.txt|accessdate=2006-07-06}}</ref> |
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According to the [[World Wrestling Entertainment#WWE Wellness Program|WWE's wellness policy]], a drug-related arrest can lead to that talent's immediate dismissal from the company. WWE Vice President of Talent Relations [[John Laurinaitis]] released a statement on WWE.com reporting that Szatkowski and Brunk were still eligible to compete on the ''[[WWE Raw|Raw]]'' and ''[[Extreme Championship Wrestling (WWE)|ECW]]'' tapings the following days while an investigation conducted by WWE was being undertaken. It was on those two shows that Van Dam dropped both his [[WWE Title]] and [[ECW Championship|ECW Title]] in succession. Van Dam was subsequently suspended without pay for 30 days, and an on-air segment on ''ECW'' was scripted to relay this to the fans.<ref name="Almanac"><ref name=rvdsabucharges>{{cite web|title=WWE investigating Rob Van Dam and Sabu charges| publisher=WWE.com|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/news/rvdsabucharges|accessdate=2006-07-03}}</ref> |
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On August 31, 2006, Szatkowski and Brunk appeared in court. Szatkowski plead guilty to possessing marijuana and was fined $140 USD, while Brunk was fined $1000 USD.<ref name=rvdcourt>{{cite web|title=WWE Superstar's Rob Van Dam & Sabu In Court|publisher =Lordsofpain.net|url=http://www.lordsofpain.net/news/2006_/articles/1157080377.php|accessdate=2006-09-01}}</ref> |
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==Notes== |
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{{reflist|3}} |
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==References== |
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* [http://www.pwheadlines.com/WWE_News/RVD_Calls_Chris_Benoit_A_Role_Model_s_Role_Model.shtml Rob Van Dam comments on Benoit Family tragedy (1)] |
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* [http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/5-31-2001-3475.asp An interview with Rob Van Dam, conducted by Ken Tuccio (1)] |
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* [http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/6-1-2001-3478.asp An interview with Rob Van Dam, conducted by Ken Tuccio (2)] |
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* [http://www.bodyslamming.com/wwe/rvd.html Rob Van Dam at Bodyslamming.com] |
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* [http://www.upw.com/casting/htmlresumes/robvandam.htm Rob Van Dam at UPW.com] |
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* [http://www.ukevents.net/wwepeter.shtml Rob Van Dam at UKEvents.net] |
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* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCO/is_3_2/ai_65858908 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCO/is_3_2/ai_65858908] |
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==External links== |
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{{Portal|Professional wrestling|break=yes}} |
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{{wikiquote}} |
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{{commons|Category:Rob Van Dam|Rob Van Dam}} |
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*[http://www.robvandam.com/ Official Website] |
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*{{myspace|5starcomics|Rob Van Dam}} |
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*[http://www.blogtalkradio.com/worldtalklive/2007/12/07/World-Talk-LIVE-Special-Guests-Rob-Van-Dam/ Rob Van Dam Interview with Brett Cohen on World Talk LIVE!] |
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*[http://www.wwe.com/superstars/wwealumni/rvd/ Rob Van Dam's WWE Alumni Page] |
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*{{imdb name|id=0885942|name=Rob Van Dam}} |
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*[http://www.cygywrestling.com/biographies/robvandam.html CygyWrestling.com - Biography - Rob Van Dam] |
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*[http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profile/robvandam Profile OWW] |
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Revision as of 05:10, 13 August 2008
Rob Van Dam | |
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![]() | |
Born | [1] Battle Creek, Michigan [1] | December 18, 1970
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Robbie V[1] Rob Szatkowski Rob Van Dam[1] |
Billed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1] |
Billed weight | 237 lb (108 kg)[1] |
Billed from | Battle Creek, Michigan, |
Trained by | The Sheik[1] |
Debut | 1990[1] |
Robert "Rob" Alexander Szatkowski[1] (born December 18 1970)[1] better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently shortened to RVD), is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The day after Van Dam's WWE contract expired, he was in the United Kingdom on a promotional tour, and to record scenes for the wrestling documentary, Bloodstained Memoirs. He also took part in interviews for the BBC. [3] [4] Another venture that Van Dam produces is RVDTV, reality based programming looking at the life of Rob Van Dam.[5] The name Rob Van Dam or Robbie V. was given to Rob by a promoter in Florida by the name of Ron Slinker in 1991.[6]
Career
Early career
Rob Van Dam debuted in 1990 after being trained by The Sheik, wrestling his first match against Dango Nguyen in Toledo, Ohio. He wrestled in many independent promotions across Michigan, including the United States Wrestling Association (USWA) and South Atlantic Pro Wrestling (SAPW). In SAPW, he won his first wrestling title, the SAPW Tag Team Championship, in July 1992 with Chaz Rocco.[7]
He signed with World Championship Wrestling in late 1992 and was dubbed Robbie V upon his arrival. His WCW run was uneventful and largely unnoticed.[8] He also wrestled in several independent promotions across America, and in All Japan Pro Wrestling, where he challenged for the AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Championship on several occasions.[9]
Extreme Championship Wrestling
1996–1997
In January 1996, Van Dam signed with promoter Paul Heyman's Philadelphia-based promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), defeating Axl Rotten in his debut match at House Party.[10] Van Dam's mannerisms were those of a stoner, and he became a face due to his laid-back attitude and unorthodox style. On March 30, he faced 2 Cold Scorpio in a match for the ECW Television Championship. The match ended in a draw with 2 Cold Scorpio retaining the title.[11][12]
Van Dam gained attention following a series of matches with long-time rival Sabu, began with a match at Hostile City Showdown, won by Sabu.[13] After the match, Van Dam declined to show proper respect for his opponent, leading to a rematch at A Matter of Respect, which was won by Van Dam.[12] Per the pre-match stipulation, Sabu then offered Van Dam a handshake, but was again ignored. Instead, Van Dam left the ring and turned heel under the management of Bill Alfonso.[14][12] At Hardcore Heaven, Van Dam faced his rival Sabu once again, in a match to prove who was the better man. Sabu won the match.[15][12] The two faced each other yet again in a stretcher match at The Doctor is In. Van Dam lost the match after missing a Plancha to the outside, hitting the railing and falling onto the stretcher.[16] He was quickly rolled out.[12]
At Natural Born Killaz, Van Dam defeated Doug Furnas in a match. Post-match, Van Dam offered Furnas a handshake, but Furnas instead punched Van Dam, starting a rivalry between the two.[12] After his rivalry with Furnas expanded to also include Dan Kroffat, Van Dam wanted a tag team partner of his own. After losing to long-time rival Sabu once again at Unluckily Lottery, the two united and formed what was to become one of the most successful tag teams in ECW history.[17] They feuded with Furnas and Kroffat defeating them at When Worlds Collide II and High Incident.[18][19][12]
RVD and Sabu next feuded with The Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn). On November 1, the two teams fought to a draw.[20] RVD then feuded with Taz, to whom he lost at Holiday Hell via knockout.[21] Sabu and RVD continued to feud with The Eliminators for the ECW Tag Team Championship into 1997. At Crossing the Line Again and Cyberslam, the teams faced off for the ECW Tag Team Championship in a pair of matches, both of which were won by The Eliminators.[22][23][24] At CyberSlam, the two teams faced each other for the titles in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, in which The Eliminators again retained their titles.[25]
At ECW's first pay-per-view event Barely Legal, Van Dam defeated Lance Storm as a last-minute replacement for the injured Chris Candido.[26] Immediately following the match, RVD expressed his distaste for being chosen as a back-up for "some guy who couldn't even lace his boots". RVD delivered a speech directed towards Paul Heyman, and not being originally booked on the show was a point of contention between Van Dam and Heyman for a time.[24]
In May 1997 ECW "invaded" the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw television show, drawing the ire of color commentator Jerry Lawler. Lawler then promised he would show up at an ECW show in order to gain revenge, and when he did show up, he had ECW mainstays Van Dam and Sabu with him. Van Dam cut promos about how he was too good for ECW and deserved to be in one of the "Big Two" (WWF or WCW) on one of their Monday Night programs ("Monday Night Raw" or "Monday Nitro"), while Jerry Lawler dubbed Van Dam "Mr. Monday Night" on an episode of Raw. Despite his arrogance and "betrayal" of ECW, over time Van Dam became applauded by fans recognizing his athleticism and unique maneuvers.[27]
Van Dam continued to team up with Sabu upon his return to ECW on June 13.[28] Tazz's manager Bill Alfonso betrayed Tazz and joined Sabu and Van Dam. Van Dam started a new rivalry with Tommy Dreamer, who wanted to gain revenge on Van Dam for his betrayal of ECW.[27][29] On June 21, RVD and Sabu earned a victory over Dreamer and The Sandman.[30] Van Dam and Sabu emerged victorious against Dreamer and Sandman again at Orgy of Violence.[31] At Heat Wave, Van Dam, Sabu and WWF's Jerry "The King" Lawler fought Dreamer, Sandman and Rick Rude to a no contest.[32] Van Dam and Dreamer faced each other in a hardcore match at Born to Be Wired, won by Van Dam after he hit Dreamer with a legdrop on a trashcan.[29][33] At As Good as it Gets, the team of Van Dam and Alfonso lost to Dreamer and Beulah McGillicutty in a mixed tag team match.[34][29] Van Dam and Sabu became partners while Dreamer teamed up with Tazz.[29] At Fright Fight, Van Dam lost to Dreamer in a flag match.[35] At Ultimate Jeopardy, Van Dam and Sabu faced Dreamer and Tazz, a match won by Tazz and Dreamer after Dreamer pinned Van Dam. At November to Remember, Van Dam faced Dreamer in another flag match, which went to a no contest.[36] At Better Than Ever, Van Dam and Sabu faced Dreamer and Tazz in a rematch. This time, Van Dam pinned Dreamer to give the victory to his team and to settle their rivalry.[37] Van Dam's final encounter with Dreamer came on December 26, when Dreamer teamed up with Tazz, Al Snow and Sandman to take on Van Dam, Sabu, Doug Furnas and Phil Lafon. Van Dam's team lost the match.[38]
1998–2001
In 1998, Van Dam started a feud with Triple Threat (Shane Douglas, Bam Bam Bigelow and Chris Candido).[39] At House Party, RVD defeated Bam Bam Bigelow.[40] At Hostile City Showdown, Van Dam and Sabu defeated Axl Rotten and Balls Mahoney by disqualification.[41] The two went on to win a fatal four way elimination tag team match later that night.[41] At CyberSlam, Van Dam and Sabu fell to Shane Douglas and Bam Bam Bigelow.[42]
Van Dam's popularity increased when he got his first taste of ECW gold, on April 4 when he defeated Bam Bam Bigelow to win the ECW Television Championship.[43][44] After winning the Television title, RVD became known as The Whole F'n Show.[39] RVD made the first title defense on April 10 against Doug Furnas, a match won by Van Dam.[45] Sabu also expressed interest in Van Dam's championship, leading to a title match between them. Van Dam defended the Television title against Sabu at Wrestlepalooza. The match was a time limit draw, resulting in Van Dam retaining his title.[39][46]
At A Matter of Respect, Van Dam and Sabu were forced to face each other in a tag team match as they both teamed up with ECW Tag Team Champions. Van Dam teamed with the one half of the champions, Lance Storm, while Sabu teamed with the other half, Chris Candido. Van Dam and Sabu reconciled and instead took out Storm and Candido making it a no contest.[39][47] Van Dam and Sabu started a feud with Storm and Candido in the next month for the tag team titles.[39] On June 27, Van Dam and Sabu beat Storm and Candido to win the ECW Tag Team Championship,[48] which made Van Dam a double champion.[39] On October 24, Sabu and Van Dam lost the titles to the Dudley Boyz (Buh Buh Ray and D-Von) after interference from Triple Threat.[39][49] Van Dam decided to take revenge from his rivals. At November to Remember, Van Dam and Sabu teamed with Taz to defeat Triple Threat.[39][50] On December 13, Van Dam and Sabu won the ECW Tag Team Championship for a second time by beating the Dudley Boyz in Japan at a Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling (FMW) show.[48][39]
Van Dam remained the Television champion for the rest of 1998, and he started 1999 by making successful title defenses against the likes of Spike Dudley,[51] Lance Storm at Guilty as Charged,[52] Balls Mahoney,[53] and 2 Cold Scorpio at CyberSlam.[54][55]
Van Dam and Sabu were scheduled to make a title defense of the Tag Team titles on April 17, but Sabu was suspended by ECW before the match occurred.[55] Instead, Van Dam faced D-Von Dudley in a singles match and as a result of losing the match, Van Dam also lost the Tag Team titles to the Dudleyz.[56] After losing the Tag Team titles, Van Dam focused on defending the Television title.[55] He entered into a rivalry with Jerry Lynn against whom he defended the Television title at Hardcore Heaven in a "no time limit" match. Van Dam retained the title, and the match was deemed so good that Paul Heyman aired it on ECW's debut on TNN in place of a shoot promo about TNN that he was planning, but was not allowed to air, according to The Rise and Fall of ECW.[57] Van Dam continued to defend the ECW Television Championship for the remainder of the year.
Van Dam began a feud with Rhino in the beginning of 2000. RVD made a successful title defense of the ECW Television Championship against Rhino on January 7.[58] RVD got a big victory during a title defense against Sabu at Guilty as Charged.[59][60] Van Dam was scheduled to perform in a "champion vs. champion" pay-per-view main event against ECW Champion Mike Awesome. This match potentially could have been the most lucrative pay-per-view main event in company history, and Heyman was depending on this mega-match to bring an influx of badly-needed cash but the match never occurred because Van Dam suffered a broken ankle during a successful title defense against Rhino on January 29.[59][61] The injury also forced Van Dam to vacate the ECW Television Championship.
He returned to ECW at Hardcore Heaven and faced long-time rival Jerry Lynn. Van Dam was supported by his real-life friend Scotty Anton who eventually betrayed him when Van Dam was going to perform a Five-Star Frog Splash on Lynn. Anton pushed him from the top rope, which helped Lynn win the match.[59][62] Van Dam feuded with Anton and took his revenge at Heat Wave by defeating Anton after a Van Terminator.[59][63]
Van Dam then attempted to exact revenge on Rhino for forcing him into injury. He got many opportunities to win the ECW Television Championship back from Rhino, but Rhino's allies usually attacked Van Dam, causing disqualifications and allowing Rhino to retain the title.[59] At Anarchy Rulz, Van Dam faced Rhino for the ECW Television Championship but was screwed when a heel referee made a fast count during a pinfall attempt made by Rhino.[59][64]
Van Dam was not advertised and did not show for a large number of ECW events due to the large sum of money owed to him.[59] He appeared at ECW's final pay-per-view event Guilty as Charged, where he defeated Jerry Lynn.[65][66] This was Van Dam's last appearance in ECW, as ECW only held two more shows after the pay-per-view.
World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment
The Invasion (2001)
Several months after the closure of ECW, Van Dam was signed to a short term contract by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Along with fellow ECW alumnus Tommy Dreamer, Van Dam returned to WWF television on the July 9 2001 episode of Raw in Atlanta, Georgia, attacking WWF wrestlers Kane and Chris Jericho.[67][68] Later that night, five wrestlers from WWF and five wrestlers from WCW took on ten ECW wrestlers, including Van Dam. The match never took place as instead the WCW wrestlers aligned themselves with the ECW wrestlers.[67][68]
Despite normally being a heel, Van Dam was popular with the WWF fans, who were aware of his reputation in ECW. After defeating Jeff Hardy for the WWF Hardcore Championship at Invasion,[69][67][70] Van Dam became one of the most over members of the Alliance, as a tweener. He even challenged Alliance leader Stone Cold Steve Austin for the WWF Championship including a triple threat match at No Mercy where Austin defended his title against Van Dam and Kurt Angle.[67][71]
Van Dam lost the Hardcore title to Hardy on the August 13 edition of Raw,[72] but regained the title from Hardy at SummerSlam.[70][73] At Survivor Series on November 18, Van Dam and four other Alliance members (Stone Cold Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, Booker T, and Shane McMahon) faced five WWF wrestlers (The Rock, Chris Jericho, The Undertaker, Kane, and Big Show) in a Winner Take All match. Team WWF won, and the members of the Alliance were fired; however, as he held the Hardcore Championship, Van Dam was able to retain his job.[67][74]
Hardcore and Intercontinental titles (2001–2002)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Rvdwmx8%40Commons.jpg/200px-Rvdwmx8%40Commons.jpg)
RVD dropped the Hardcore Championship to The Undertaker at Vengeance.[75][76] On the February 4 edition of Raw, Van Dam defeated Bubba Ray Dudley. After the match, he was confronted by Goldust who hit him a neckbreaker, starting a rivalry between the duo.[77][78] RVD defeated Goldust after a Five Star Frog Splash at No Way Out.[77][79]
RVD entered into a rivalry with William Regal over Regal's Intercontinental title.[77] On February 25 edition of Raw, Van Dam defeated Lance Storm and Big Show in a triple threat match to become the #1 contender to the Intercontinental title.[77][80] At WrestleMania X8, RVD faced Regal for the Intercontinental title and won the match after he hit Regal a Five-Star Frog Splash.[77][81][82]
When the WWF was divided into two "brands", Raw and SmackDown! in 2002, Van Dam was drafted to the Raw brand as the fourth pick.[83][84] After he defended his title successfully against Booker T, Eddie Guerrero returned to the WWF and attacked Van Dam.[83][85] He started a feud with Eddie Guerrero over the Intercontinental title. On April 8 edition of Raw, Van Dam faced The Undertaker in a non-title #1 contender's match for the WWF Undisputed Championship, but he lost the match after interference from Eddie Guerrero.[83][86] At Backlash, Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Eddie Guerrero.[83][87] At Insurrextion, Van Dam and Guerrero had a rematch for the Intercontinental title. Guerrero was disqualified after hitting the referee with the Intercontinental title, as a result Van Dam won the match but not the title because a title cannot change hands by disqualification.[83][88] At Judgment Day, Van Dam faced Guerrero in another rematch for the Intercontinental title, but was defeated .[83][89]
On May 20 edition of Raw, RVD faced The Undertaker in a match for the WWE Undisputed Championship. Van Dam had originally won the match when he hit Undertaker a Rolling Thunder and pinned him for the victory and the Undisputed title. However, Raw co-owner "Nature Boy" Ric Flair announced that Undertaker's feet were on the ropes so the match was restarted. Van Dam punched Flair and got distracted. Undertaker took advantage and hit him a Last Ride.[83][90] On May 27 edition of Raw, RVD faced Eddie Guerrero in a ladder match for the Intercontinental title. RVD won the ladder match and his second WWE Intercontinental Championship.[83][91][92]
After facing each other in the final round of the King of the Ring tournament, Van Dam and Lesnar began feuding with each other. Van Dam defended his Intercontinental title against Lesnar twice and retained his title both times by disqualification.[83][93][94]On July 21, 2002, Van Dam unified the WWE European Championship into the WWE Intercontinental Championship after he defeated European Champion Jeff Hardy in a title unification ladder match.[83][95][96] As a result, the European title was abandoned. On July 29 edition of Raw, Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to SmackDown! superstar Chris Benoit.[83][97] Benoit took the Intercontinental title to SmackDown!. RVD defeated Jeff Hardy (with help from Jeff's brother Matt who hit Jeff with a Twist of Fate) to become the #1 contender to the Intercontinental title.[83][98]
At SummerSlam, Van Dam won his third WWE Intercontinental Championship by defeating Benoit in a rematch for the title.[83][99][100] He brought the Intercontinental title back to Raw.[83] On August 26 edition of Raw, Van Dam also unified the WWE Hardcore Championship into the WWE Intercontinental Championship by defeating Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer in a hardcore title unification match. As a result, the WWE Hardcore Championship was also unified into the Intercontinental title and abandoned.[83][70][101] On September 9 edition of Raw, Van Dam became the #1 contender to the World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Chris Jericho, Jeff Hardy and Big Show in a #1 contender's fatal four way elimination match.[83][102]
Main event push (2002)
Van Dam started feuding with the World Heavyweight Champion Triple H over the title. On September 16, 2002 edition of Raw, Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Chris Jericho after interference by Triple H.[83][103] At Unforgiven, Van Dam faced Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. Due to Ric Flair's interference, Van Dam lost the match.[83][104] At No Mercy, Van Dam took his revenge from Flair by defeating him.[83][105] At Survivor Series, Van Dam participated in the first-ever Elimination Chamber match for Triple H's World Heavyweight Championship. This match also included Shawn Michaels, Booker T, Chris Jericho and Kane. Van Dam was the first man to be eliminated by Booker T after a missile dropkick.[83][106]
Van Dam appeared on the World Heavyweight Championship scene and also formed a tag team with Kane in October 2002 against various heels.[83] Van Dam defeated Chris Jericho and Booker T in a Triple Threat match to become the number one contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.[83][107] On November 25 edition of Raw, Van Dam faced Shawn Michaels for the World Heavyweight Championship. Michaels was disqualified after Triple H hit RVD with a Pedigree.[83][108] On December 2 edition of Raw, Van Dam lost to Triple H in a #1 contender's match with World Heavyweight Champion Shawn Michaels acting as the Special Guest Referee.[83][109]
Teaming with Kane (2003)
In 2003, Rob Van Dam continued to team up with Kane. The two faced Lance Storm and William Regal at No Way Out for the World Tag Team Championship but failed to win the titles when Kane mistakenly chokeslammed RVD.[110][111] On March 31 edition of Raw, Van Dam and Kane defeated World Tag Team Champions Lance Storm and Chief Morley and The Dudley Boyz in a 3-way elimination tag team match to win the World Tag Team Championship.[110][112][113] At Backlash, Van Dam and Kane had a successful title defense against The Dudley Boyz with Val Venis as the special guest referee.[110][114]
Van Dam and Kane entered into a rivalry with La Resistance (Rene Dupree and Sylvain Grenier). On May 26 edition of Raw, Van Dam lost a flag match to Grenier.[110][115] As a result of losing to Grenier, Van Dam and Kane had to defend the World Tag Team Championship against Dupree and Grenier.[110] At Insurrextion, Van Dam and Kane defended the World Tag Team titles successfully against La Resistance,[110][116] before losing the titles to La Resistance at Bad Blood.[110][117]
Kane and Van Dam split up because Kane claimed that he didn't like RVD. The two started feuding with each other.[110] On August 18 edition of Raw, Van Dam faced Intercontinental Champion Christian for the title, but Kane interfered in the match and kidnapped RVD to the backstage area where he handcuffed Van Dam and tried to burn him in backstage.[118] Their rivalry lead the two to a No Holds Barred match at SummerSlam, which Kane won.[110][119] On September 8 edition of Raw, the rivalry ended when Van Dam faced Kane in a steel cage match and fell to Kane once again.[110][120]
In September 2003, Van Dam started feuding with both Christian and Chris Jericho over Christian's Intercontinental title. On September 15 edition of Raw, Van Dam faced Chris Jericho in a #1 contender's match for the Intercontinental title. The match ended in a double disqualification when Intercontinental Champion Christian interfered and whacked both men with the title belts.[110][121] Raw Co-General Manager Stone Cold Steve Austin made the Intercontinental title match a triple threat match between Jericho, Van Dam and Christian.[110][122] The match took place at Unforgiven, and Christian retained his title after he countered the Five Star Frog Splash by putting his title belt across his knees while the ref's back was turned, preoccupied by Jericho.[110][122][123] However, Van Dam defeated Christian in a ladder match on September 29 edition of Raw to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship for a fourth time.[110][124][125]
Rivalries and tag titles (2003–2004)
Van Dam entered into a rivalry with Chris Jericho in October 2003. The two faced each other in several tag team matches.[122] On October 27 edition of Raw, Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Jericho in a steel cage match when Eric Bischoff distracted the referee while Van Dam had caught the ropes but Jericho brought him into the middle of the ring. Van Dam submitted and Jericho became the new champion.[110][122][126] Austin came out and immediately ordered Jericho to face RVD in a rematch for the title. Van Dam won the rematch and his fifth WWE Intercontinental Championship.[110][122][126][127]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/RobVanDam.jpg/200px-RobVanDam.jpg)
At Survivor Series, Van Dam participated in a survivor series match. He was a part of Team Austin which consisted of Van Dam himself, Shawn Michaels, Booker T and Dudley Boyz. Van Dam and Dudley Boyz pinned Mark Henry of Team Bischoff to eliminate him from the match. Van Dam was later on pinned by Team Bischoff's Randy Orton.[110][128] Orton and Van Dam started feuding with each other over Van Dam's Intercontinental title.[110] Van Dam lost the Intercontinental title to Orton at Armageddon (Mick Foley was the special guest referee) after interference from Ric Flair.[110][122][129] Van Dam went on to feud with both Randy Orton and Evolution. On January 12, 2004 edition of Raw, Van Dam faced Orton in a rematch for the Intercontinental title but lost the match.[130][131]
Van Dam formed a tag team with Booker T. The two teamed for the first time on January 19 edition of Raw when they defeated Christian and Matt Hardy to qualify for a battle royal where the winner of the battle royal would get the #30 spot in the 2004 Royal Rumble match.[130][132] On February 16 edition of Raw, Booker T and Van Dam defeated Evolution (Ric Flair and Batista) to win the World Tag Team Championship.[130][133][134] At WrestleMania XX, Booker and Van Dam defended the World Tag Team Championship in a fatal four way elimination tag team match against the Dudley Boyz, La Resistance and the team of Mark Jindrak and Garrison Cade.[130][135] On March 22 edition of Raw, Booker T and Van Dam lost the World Tag Team Championship back to Evolution.[130][136]
On March 22, Van Dam was drafted from Raw to SmackDown!.[137] He made his SmackDown! debut on March 25 defeating Charlie Haas. RVD and Rey Mysterio began a feud with Dudley Boyz, defeating them at Judgment Day 2004.[137][138] In June, RVD left the tag team division and began a pursuit for the WWE United States Championship. On June 10 edition of SmackDown!, Van Dam faced US Champion John Cena in a match to decide that the man who would beat Cena in 5 minutes, would receive a match against Cena for the title. Van Dam, Booker T and Rene Dupree, all of them failed to beat Cena in separate matches.[137][139] At The Great American Bash 2004, Cena defended the title against RVD, Booker and Dupree in a fatal four way match and retained his championship.[137][140] On July 1 edition of SmackDown!, RVD and Dupree lost to Booker in a #1 contender's triple threat match.[137][141] Four weeks later, Van Dam participated in an 8-way elimination match for the vacant US Championship, won by Booker.[137][142]
Van Dam began teaming up with Mysterio again in summer 2004, and feuded with Rene Dupree and Kenzo Suzuki. At No Mercy 2004, RVD and Mysterio failed to win the Tag Team Championship from Dupree and Suzuki.[137][143] In November, Van Dam and Mysterio joined Eddie Guerrero and Big Show during their rivalry with Kurt Angle, Mark Jindrak and Luther Reigns. At Survivor Series 2004, Van Dam was a part of Guerrero's team, consisting of Guerrero himself, Van Dam, Big Show and John Cena (replacement for Mysterio) against Kurt Angle, Mark Jindrak, Luther Reigns and Carlito. RVD was the only man to be eliminated from his team.[137][144] On December 9 edition of SmackDown!, RVD and Mysterio defeated Dupree and Suzuki to win the WWE Tag Team Championship,[137][145][146] and had a successful title defense against Dupree and Suzuki at Armageddon 2004.[137][147]
In January 2005, Van Dam suffered a knee injury. To explain his absence, the Basham Brothers (Doug and Danny) defeated Mysterio and Van Dam for the Tag Team Championship, in a fatal four way elimination tag team match on January 13, 2005 edition of SmackDown!, "injuring" Van Dam in the process.[148][149] On January 27 2005, Van Dam underwent reconstructive knee surgery under Dr. James Andrews to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus.[122][148]
Injury, One Night Stand and Money in the Bank (2005–2006)
While recuperating, Van Dam made an appearance at the ECW reunion pay-per-view ECW One Night Stand. Accompanied by his former-manager Fonzie and sporting a knee brace, Van Dam delivered a scathing shoot promo, criticizing the way he had been booked in WWE, until he was attacked by Rhyno. He was saved by Sabu, who defeated Rhyno in an impromptu match. Despite his injury, Van Dam got physically involved in the match, hitting Rhyno with a chairshot and giving him a Chair Surf.[150]
On Raw, Van Dam (still healing) was drafted back to the Raw brand in the 2005 draft lottery. He was introduced to Raw by Carlito, who insulted Van Dam before attacking him and assaulting his knee. Van Dam made his return to the ring over six months later at the Royal Rumble. He gained revenge on Carlito by eliminating him, but was in turn, and inadvertently, eliminated by Rey Mysterio. On the February 6 episode of Raw, Van Dam defeated Carlito in the first round of the 2006 Road to WrestleMania Tournament. One week later, he defeated Chris Masters in the tournament semi-finals. On the February 20 episode of Raw, Van Dam and Big Show were defeated by Triple H in a triple threat match to determine the winner of the tournament and number one contender to the WWE Championship.
The following week, now out of the WrestleMania main event, Van Dam defeated Trevor Murdoch to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match. Van Dam went on to win the match, thus earning himself a guaranteed shot at either the WWE Championship or World Heavyweight Championship at any time within the subsequent year.[151] Following the ladder match, Shelton Benjamin challenged Van Dam to put his Money in the Bank opportunity on the line in a match. Van Dam countered by requesting a match for Benjamin's Intercontinental Championship. One week later, both Van Dam and Benjamin picked mystery opponents for one another, with the loser placing their respective prize on the line in a bout at Backlash on April 30. Benjamin lost to the returning Charlie Haas, while Van Dam was defeated by all five members of the Spirit Squad. As a result, both the Intercontinental Championship and the Money in the Bank title shot were contested at Backlash. Van Dam went on to win both prizes, before dropping the Intercontinental title back to Benjamin on the May 15 edition of Raw.
On the May 22 episode of Raw, Van Dam informed WWE Champion John Cena that he would be cashing in his Money in the Bank contract at ECW One Night Stand on June 11 for a WWE Championship match.
ECW brand (2006–2007)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0f/Rvdecw.jpg/220px-Rvdecw.jpg)
On May 29, Van Dam was selected by Paul Heyman to be drafted from Raw to WWE's new ECW brand. Upon being drafted, Van Dam became the new brand's flagship wrestler, mostly due to his prior history in ECW and his title shot against John Cena at One Night Stand. At One Night Stand, Van Dam defeated Cena to win the WWE Championship, his first ever World Title. After two referees were knocked out, Edge appeared from under the ring and interfered to attack Cena, spearing him through a table. Van Dam then hit a Five Star Frog Splash and the pinfall was counted by Paul Heyman, who suddenly ran down the aisle. On the following episode of Raw, Vince McMahon confirmed that the title change was official, due to the match being held under "extreme rules." For the past few weeks, Heyman had hinted that the WWE Championship would be "rechristened" the ECW World Heavyweight Championship when Van Dam won. On the debut of ECW on Sci Fi, Van Dam was awarded the re-instated ECW World Heavyweight Championship by Heyman. However, Van Dam decided to defend the WWE Championship separately and simultaneously, joking that "this one spins." Thus, Van Dam became the first wrestler in history to hold both the WWE Championship and the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, and the only one to hold them at the same time.
On the July 3 episode of Raw, Van Dam lost the WWE Championship to Edge in a triple threat match that also featured John Cena. The next night, on the July 4 episode of ECW, he lost the ECW World Heavyweight Championship to The Big Show after Heyman turned on him. Later on WWE.com, Heyman suspended Van Dam for 30 days without giving a reason; (in reality, WWE suspended Van Dam for 30 days as a result of his recent drug possession arrest).[152] He returned to television on August 8, attacking both Sabu and Kurt Angle during a match. His return to the ring came a week later, in a losing effort to Sabu in a ladder match for number one contendership to the ECW World Championship.
Van Dam slowly worked his way back into the championship picture. In October, Van Dam defeated The Big Show in a non-title match to regain the number one contendership. Having the option to pick a date, Van Dam announced the title match would occur at December to Dismember. Heyman, however, had the option of picking the match type and announced that the main event would be a six-man Extreme Elimination Chamber match. At the event, following an elbow drop with a steel chair from Test, Van Dam was the third participant eliminated. Later in December, Van Dam once again earned the No. 1 contendership to the ECW World Championship, but this time by a fan poll. Van Dam got three matches against ECW World Champion Bobby Lashley, coming up short each time.
Rob Van Dam later joined the ECW Originals along with Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, and The Sandman. The ECW Originals began a feud with the New Breed (Elijah Burke, Kevin Thorn, Marcus Cor Von, and Matt Striker). The two teams faced off at WrestleMania 23 in a match which the ECW Originals won. After Vince McMahon won the ECW World Championship at Backlash, RVD and the other ECW Originals made statements on WWE.com about Vince killing ECW. The ECW Originals all competed in a four way dance to decide who would take on Vince McMahon the next week on ECW in a title match, which Van Dam won after a five-star frog splash on Sandman. However, Rob Van Dam instead had to face Vince McMahon, Shane McMahon, and Umaga in a 3 on 1 handicap match, which Rob Van Dam was unable to win.
Rob Van Dam received a kayfabe concussion during a match with Randy Orton.[153] Orton further attacked Van Dam after the match due to the comments Van Dam made on WWE.com about the lack of respect Orton displayed towards Shawn Michaels, who also suffered a "concussion" at the hands of Orton. Van Dam once again faced Orton at One Night Stand, this time in a Stretcher match. Although it looked as if Orton was going to win again, Van Dam gave a kick to his head, and was able to push the stretcher across the line for the win. However, despite winning the match, Orton continued to attack him, ending with an elevated DDT off the barricade and onto the concrete floor. After the match, he left the WWE for unknown reasons.
Post-WWE
The day after Van Dam's WWE contract expired, he was in the United Kingdom on a promotional tour, and to record scenes for the wrestling documentary, Bloodstained Memoirs. He also took part in interviews for the BBC. [154] [155]
On December 10 2007, Van Dam made a special appearance on the Raw 15th Anniversary special episode, accepting a challenge made by Santino Marella and easily defeating him in less than a minute with a Five-Star Frog Splash.[156] In a recent interview with the Baltimore Sun, Van Dam stated that while WWE would be the first choice and that he would definitely talk to them, he'd definitely consider Total Nonstop Action Wrestling if he returns full time in pro wrestling.[157]
RVD-TV
Rob Van Dam officially announced on his website's blog that he is in the process of creating an online show entitled RVD-TV. On this show, he will give his fans a glimpse at what his life is like outside of the wrestling business. A preview for this upcoming series can now be found on the homepage of his website. Some of RVD's friends will appear on the show, such as Samoa Joe, Chris Masters and Sabu. The show will be filmed at his home in California, where he has been spending most of his time since temporarily retiring. Rob is expected to announce some of his other future projects through the show, such as his upcoming DVD on stretching.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- 450° splash - AJPW
- Five-Star Frog Splash[1] (High angle frog splash)
- Hollywood Star Press (ECW) / Split-legged moonsault[1] (WWE)
- Van Daminator[1] (Spinning heel kick to a steel chair held in front of the opponent's face)
- Van Terminator[1] (Corner-to-corner missile dropkick, usually with a chair)
- Signature moves
- Air Van Dam[1] (Diving somersault senton)
- Bridging Northern Lights suplex
- Chair Surf (Running dropkick, driving a steel chair into the face of a seated opponent in the corner of the ring)
- Diving superkick
- Inverted suplex slam onto the barricade followed by climbing onto an elevated surface and jumping off with a corkscrew leg drop to the back
- Legsweep
- Moonsault, sometimes while springboarding or sometimes perceded by a cartwheel[1]
- Monkey flip to a standing or cornered opponent[1]
- Multiple kick variations
- Roundhouse
- Spinning crescent[1]
- Windmill Kick (Van Dam catches the opponent's kicking leg and performs a step-over wheel)[1]
- Multiple leg drop variations
- Pescado[1]
- Rolling Thunder, sometimes into a monkey flip, somersault senton or vertical splash[1]
- Running crossbody, sometimes done while facing away from opponent
- Steam Roller Slam (Rolling fireman's carry slam)
- Springboard diving clothesline
- Springboard leg lariat
- Two turnbuckle thrusts followed by a back handspring and finished with a monkey flip
- Nicknames
- Mr. Monday Night (if he was on Monday Night Raw or ECW on TNN)
- Mr. Thursday Night (if he was on SmackDown!)
- Mr. Tuesday Night (if he was on ECW))
- Mr. Pay-Per-View (Extreme Championship Wrestling)
- Mr. Money in the Bank
- "Magic Soldier" Rob Van Dam (All Japan Pro Wrestling)
- RVD
- The Whole "Dam" Show
- The Whole F'n Show[39]
- The Whole Fuckin' Show (used in Extreme Championship Wrestling)
- The Van Daminator
- Theme music
- Van Dam's entrance music in the original ECW was "Walk" by Pantera. The song was covered by Kilgore for the ECW Extreme Music album; Van Dam briefly used this version as his entrance music when the album was released.
- Van Dam's entrance music in WWE was "One of a Kind" by Breaking Point. He appears in the music video for the song, in which he loses his car to the band's lead singer, Brett Erickson, in a street race. At the end of the video, he spin kicks the keys to the car into his opponent's hands. The song appears on the WWF Forceable Entry album and Breaking Point's Coming of Age album.
- Van Dam's entrance music on the WWE Wreckless Intent album is "Fury of the Storm" by Shadows Fall. Possibly due to licensing issues with his "One of a Kind" theme, "Fury of the Storm" is used as Van Dam's theme in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007.
Championships and accomplishments
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/RobVanDam_WWE-ECWChamp%40commons.png/125px-RobVanDam_WWE-ECWChamp%40commons.png)
- All Star Wrestling
- ASW North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[158]
- Extreme Championship Wrestling
- ECW World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[159] - with Sabu
- ECW World Television Championship (1 time)[160](Longest Reign)
- International Wrestling Federation
- IWF Television Championship (1 time)[158]
- National Wrestling Council
- NWC Tag Team Champion (1 time)[158] - with Bobby Bradley
- Peach State Wrestling
- PSW Cordele City Heavyweight Championship[158](1 time)
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI Comeback of the Year (2001)[161]
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2001, 2002)[162]
- PWI ranked #1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2002[163]
- South Atlantic Pro Wrestling
- SAPW Tag Team Championship (1 time)[158] - with Chaz Rocco
- World Wrestling Federation | World Wrestling Entertainment
- ECW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[164]
- World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[165] - with Kane (1) and Booker T (1)
- WWE Championship (1 time)[166]
- WWE European Championship (1 time)[167] (Last)
- WWE Tag Team Championship (1 time)[168] - with Rey Mysterio
- WWF/E Hardcore Championship (4 times)[169] (Last)
- WWF/E Intercontinental Championship (6 times)[170]
- Mr. Money in the Bank (2006)[151]
- Fifteenth Triple Crown Champion
- Sixth Grand Slam Champion
Filmography
- Superfights (1995) as "The Mercenary"
- Bloodmoon (1997) as "Dutch Scholtz"
- City Guys (October 23, 1999) in episode "El-Trainmania IV" as "Himself"
- 18 Wheels of Justice (August 2, 2000) as "Robert Laramie"
- The X-Files (May 7, 2000) in episode "Fight Club" as "Burt's opponent"
- V.I.P. (2000) in episode "Danger Island" as "Major Ving Talbot"
- Spy TV (July 26, 2001) as "Himself"
- Ultimate Revenge (December 2, 2001) as "Himself"
- Black Mask 2: City of Masks (2002) as "Claw"
- The Backyard (2002) as "Himself"
- Rob Van Dam: One Of A Kind (2005; DVD)
Personal life
Szatkowski is married to Sonya,[171] She is an aspiring make up artist.[172] During his wrestling career, Sonya often traveled on the road with Rob and appeared at ringside during events that Rob took part in. On April 23, 2008, Szatkowski revealed that his wife is suffering from colon cancer.[173]
Szatkowski is a trained kickboxer and martial artist. In 1990, he placed second in the Kalamazoo Heavyweight Toughman Contest. Szatkowski is also an outspoken advocate of vitamins and bodybuilding supplements[174] and attributes this to his mother's influence. Van Dam participated in amateur wrestling while in high school. He is the inventor of the Van Dam Lift, a weightlifting technique that involves performing a split (which he took up in his early teens) between two benches and lifting a dumbbell from the floor to the waist. The lift was approved by the International All-Around Weightlifting Association in 1998, and Szatkowski holds the current record, 166.5 lb (76 kg). Growing up in Battle Creek, Michigan, Szatkowski studied martial arts at two local dojos. He received instruction in Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Aikido, Kendo, and Kickboxing.
Szatkowski was featured in an article in the March 1999 issue of High Times. His signature symbol is the Taijitu; in an interview for WWE's "Invasion" DVD, he said he uses this symbol because it represents "the use of good or evil."
Van Dam used to own a comic book shop called "5 Star Comics". He, along with several other wrestlers, often showed up at the store to sign autographs.
2006 arrest
On July 3, 2006, The Ironton Tribune reported that Szatkowski and Terry Brunk (one of his colleagues known as Sabu) had been arrested on the previous evening on U.S. Route 52 in Hanging Rock, Ohio. Szatkowski had been stopped for speeding by an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper, who discovered that he was in possession of 18 grams of marijuana and five Vicodin pills, while Brunk was in possession of drug paraphernalia and nine tablets of Testolactone.[175] Both Szatkowski and Brunk were released after posting bail, and were scheduled to appear in Ironton Municipal Court on July 6, 2006.[176] On July 6, 2006, The Ironton Tribune reported that the court date for Szatkowski and Brunk was in limbo, as their attorneys had asked for and were granted continuances.[177]
According to the WWE's wellness policy, a drug-related arrest can lead to that talent's immediate dismissal from the company. WWE Vice President of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis released a statement on WWE.com reporting that Szatkowski and Brunk were still eligible to compete on the Raw and ECW tapings the following days while an investigation conducted by WWE was being undertaken. It was on those two shows that Van Dam dropped both his WWE Title and ECW Title in succession. Van Dam was subsequently suspended without pay for 30 days, and an on-air segment on ECW was scripted to relay this to the fans.Cite error: A <ref>
tag is missing the closing </ref>
(see the help page).
On August 31, 2006, Szatkowski and Brunk appeared in court. Szatkowski plead guilty to possessing marijuana and was fined $140 USD, while Brunk was fined $1000 USD.[178]
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "Rob Van Dam Profile". Online World Of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
- ^ "Celeb Heights - Rob Van Dam". Celebheights.com. Retrieved 2001-10-05.
- ^ pw. "prowrestling.com".
- ^ BM. "Bloodstained Memoirs Official Source".
- ^ RVD. "RVD Official Source".
- ^ Matthew Cooper (2008-04-14). "ROB VAN DAM SPEAKS OUT". Wrestling News Desk. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
- ^ RVD's Career At USWA/SAPW (1992)
- ^ RVD's Career At WCW (1992)
- ^ RVD's Independent Career (1993-1995)
- ^ House Party 1996 results
- ^ ECW results - March 30, 1996
- ^ a b c d e f g Rob Van Dam's ECW Career (1996)
- ^ Hostile City Showdown 1996 results
- ^ A Matter of Respect results
- ^ Hardcore Heaven 1996 results
- ^ The Doctor is In results
- ^ Unluckily Lottery results
- ^ When Worlds Collide II results
- ^ High Incident results
- ^ ECW results - November 1, 1996
- ^ Holiday Hell results
- ^ Crossing the Line Again results
- ^ Cyberslam 1997 (February 21, 1997) results
- ^ a b RVD's ECW Career (1997)
- ^ Cyberslam 1997 (February 22, 1997) results
- ^ Barely Legal results
- ^ a b RVD: Mr. Monday Night
- ^ ECW results - June 13, 1997
- ^ a b c d RVD - Return to ECW (1997)
- ^ ECW results - June 21, 1997
- ^ Orgy of Violence results
- ^ Heat Wave 1997 results
- ^ Born to Be Wired results
- ^ As Good as it Gets results
- ^ Fright Fight results
- ^ November to Remember 1997 results
- ^ Better Than Ever results
- ^ ECW results - December 26, 1997
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j RVD's ECW Career (1998)
- ^ House Party 1998 results
- ^ a b Hostile City Showdown 1998 results
- ^ Cyberslam 1998 results
- ^ ECW results - April 4, 1998
- ^ ECW Television Championship official title history. WWE. Retrieved on 2007-12-29
- ^ ECW results - April 10, 1998
- ^ Wrestlepalooza 1998 results
- ^ A Matter of Respect 1998 results
- ^ a b ECW Tag Team Championship official history. WWE. Retrieved on 2007-12-29
- ^ ECW results - October 24, 1998
- ^ November to Remember 1998 results
- ^ ECW results - January 2, 1999
- ^ Guilty as Charged 1999 results
- ^ ECW results - January 15, 1999
- ^ CyberSlam 1999 results
- ^ a b c RVD's ECW Career (1999)
- ^ ECW results - April 17, 1999
- ^ Hardcore Heaven 1999 results
- ^ ECW results - January 7, 2000
- ^ a b c d e f g RVD's ECW Career (2000)
- ^ Guilty as Charged 2000 results
- ^ ECW results - January 29, 2000
- ^ Hardcore Heaven 2000 results
- ^ Heat Wave 2000 results
- ^ Anarchy Rulz 2000 results
- ^ RVD's ECW Career (2001)
- ^ Guilty as Charged 2001 results
- ^ a b c d e Rob Van Dam's Character In Alliance Storyline
- ^ a b Raw results - July 9, 2001
- ^ WWF Invasion results
- ^ a b c WWE Hardcore Championship official title history. WWE. Retrieved on 2007-12-31
- ^ No Mercy 2001 main event
- ^ Raw results - August 13, 2001
- ^ SummerSlam 2001 official results
- ^ Survivor Series 2001 official results
- ^ Vengeance 2001 official results
- ^ RVD's WWF Career (2001)
- ^ a b c d e RVD's WWF Career (2002)
- ^ Raw results - February 4, 2002
- ^ No Way Out 2002 official results
- ^ Raw results - February 25, 2002
- ^ WrestleMania X-8 official results
- ^ Rob Van Dam's first Intercontinental Championship reign. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-01-01
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x RVD's Raw Career (2002)
- ^ Raw results - March 25, 2002
- ^ Raw results - April 1, 2002
- ^ Raw results - April 8, 2002
- ^ Backlash 2002 official results
- ^ Insurrextion 2002 results
- ^ Judgment Day 2002 official results
- ^ Raw results - May 20, 2002
- ^ Raw results - May 27, 2002
- ^ Rob Van Dam's second Intercontinental Championship reign. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-01-01
- ^ Raw results - June 24, 2002
- ^ Vengeance 2002 official results
- ^ Raw results - July 22, 2002
- ^ WWE European Championship official title history. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-01-01
- ^ Raw results - July 29, 2002
- ^ Raw results - August 12, 2002
- ^ SummerSlam 2002 official results
- ^ Rob Van Dam's third Intercontinental Championship reign. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-01-01
- ^ Raw results - August 26, 2002
- ^ Raw results - September 9, 2002
- ^ Raw results - September 16, 2002
- ^ Unforgiven 2002 main event
- ^ No Mercy 2002 official results
- ^ Survivor Series 2002 main event
- ^ Raw results - November 18, 2002
- ^ Raw results - November 25, 2002
- ^ Raw results - December 2, 2002
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s RVD's Raw Career (2003)
- ^ No Way Out 2003 official results
- ^ Raw results - March 31, 2003
- ^ Kane and Rob Van Dam's first World Tag Team Championship reign. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-01-02
- ^ Backlash 2003 official results
- ^ Raw results - May 26, 2003
- ^ Insurrextion 2003 results
- ^ Badd Blood 2003 results
- ^ Raw results - August 18, 2003
- ^ SummerSlam 2003 official results
- ^ Raw results - September 8, 2003
- ^ Raw results - September 15, 2003
- ^ a b c d e f g Rob Van Dam's OWW Profile
- ^ Unforgiven 2003 official results
- ^ Raw results - September 29, 2003
- ^ Rob Van Dam's fourth Intercontinental Championship reign. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-01-02
- ^ a b Raw results - October 27, 2003
- ^ Rob Van Dam's fifth Intercontinental Championship reign
- ^ Survivor Series 2003 official results
- ^ Armageddon 2003 official results
- ^ a b c d e RVD's Raw Career (2004)
- ^ Raw results - January 12, 2004
- ^ Raw results - January 19, 2004
- ^ Raw results - February 16, 2004
- ^ Rob Van Dam and Booker T's first reign. WWE. Retrieved on 2008-02-17
- ^ WrestleMania XX official results
- ^ Raw results - March 22, 2004
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "RVD's SmackDown! Career (2004)". Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "Judgment Day 2004 official results". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "SmackDown! results - June 10, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "The Great American Bash 2004 official results". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "SmackDown! results - July 1, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "SmackDown! results - July 29, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "No Mercy 2004 official results". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "Survivor Series 2004 official results". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "SmackDown! results - December 9, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "Rey Mysterio and Rob Van Dam's first Tag Team Championship reign". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "Armageddon 2004 official results". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ a b "RVD's SmackDown! Career (2005)". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "SmackDown! results - June 13, 2005". Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "RVD's Raw Career (2005)". Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ a b "RVD wins the "Money in the Bank" Ladder Match". WWE. 2006-02-04.
- ^ "WWE suspending Rob Van Dam for 30 days". WWE. Retrieved 2006-07-04.
- ^ "RVD gets concussed".
- ^ pw. "prowrestling.com".
- ^ BM. "Bloodstained Memoirs Official Source".
- ^ Corey Clayton (December 10, 2007). "Van Damn!". WWE. Retrieved 2008-01-09.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|date=
(help) - ^ TNA News: RVD On TNA: 'I Definitely Would Consider Them', More
- ^ a b c d e "Rob Van Dam Bio". SLAM! Sports. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "ECW World Tag Team Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ {{citeweb|url=http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ecw/ecw-tv.html%7Caccessdate=2208-06-24%7Ctitle= ECW World Television Title history|publisher=Wrestling-titles.com
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners Comeback of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners Most Popular Wrestler of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 - 1999". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "ECW World Heavyweight Title history". Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite web}}
: Text "publisher-Wrestling-titles.com" ignored (help) - ^ "WWWF/WWF/WWE World Tag Team Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "WWWF/WWF/WWE World Heavyweight Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "WWF/WWE European Heavyweight Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "WWE (Smackdown!) Tag Team Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "WWF/WWE Hardcore Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "WWF/WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title history". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ "SLAM! Sports Biography". CANOE. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
- ^ Sonya 'Van Dam's' MySpace page
- ^ Gray, Richard (2008-04-23). "Rob Van Dam Announces His Wife Has Cancer". WrestlingNewsWorld. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
- ^ "Rob Van Dam big on his bodybuilding supplements". Muscle And Sports Science.
- ^ Brady, Hicks. "2006: The year in wrestling". PWI Presents: 2007 Wrestling Almanak and book of facts. Kappa Publications. p. 23. 2007 Edition.
{{cite news}}
:|access-date=
requires|url=
(help) - ^ "Wrestling stars busted in Hanging Rock". The Ironton Tribune. Retrieved 2006-07-03.
- ^ "Wrestlers' court date canceled". The Ironton Tribune. Retrieved 2006-07-06.
- ^ "WWE Superstar's Rob Van Dam & Sabu In Court". Lordsofpain.net. Retrieved 2006-09-01.
References
- Rob Van Dam comments on Benoit Family tragedy (1)
- An interview with Rob Van Dam, conducted by Ken Tuccio (1)
- An interview with Rob Van Dam, conducted by Ken Tuccio (2)
- Rob Van Dam at Bodyslamming.com
- Rob Van Dam at UPW.com
- Rob Van Dam at UKEvents.net
- http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCO/is_3_2/ai_65858908
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Wikiquote-logo.svg/34px-Wikiquote-logo.svg.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)