Sycho Sid

Sid Justice

In 1989, Sid signed with World Championship Wrestling as **Sid Vicious**. He made his televised debut in WCW by defeating DeWayne Bruce on the June 17, 1989 episode of *Pro*. Originally slated as a singles wrestler, Sid was eventually paired with Danny Spivey to form The Skyscrapers. Managed by Teddy Long, The Skyscrapers feuded with The Steiner Brothers and The Road Warriors. During this time, he incorporated the *Powerbomb* as his finishing move. However, the team was short-lived; Sid was replaced by "Mean" Mark Callous after suffering a broken rib and a punctured lung during a match with The Steiner Brothers at the November 1989 *Clash of the Champions IX*.

Following his recovery, Sid was introduced on the May 11, 1990 edition of *WCW Power Hour* as the newest member of Ric Flair's Four Horsemen, and he was billed by the ring announcers as being from "wherever he damn well pleases". Sid was the "muscle" of the group and initially brought in to counter-act the strength of RoboCop at Capital Combat. His first televised match back was a 26-second loss to Lex Luger on *Clash of the Champions XI: Coastal Crush*, in which the referee performed a fast three count. As one of the Horsemen, Sid feuded with Paul Orndorff and the Junkyard Dog. He attacked WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting following the champion's title match of *Clash of the Champions XII*, setting up his first feud as a singles wrestler. At Halloween Havoc, a fake Sting (Barry Windham), in collusion with Sid, let Sid pin him after switching places with the real Sting in order for Sid to win the belt. However, they were thwarted when the real Sting came out and beat Sid to retain the title.

Sid's association with the Horsemen became tenuous following this episode, and he began a quasi-face run in November 1990 when he faced The Nightstalker at *Clash of the Champions XIII: Thanksgiving Thunder*, which Sid won. However, was attacked post-match by the debuting Big Cat, in response of which Sid recruited former partner Danny Spivey for a short-lived reunion of the Skyscrapers at Starrcade in December, where the two defeated The Big Cat and The Motor City Madman. Following this match, Sid made an abrupt return to heel status, ending Trucker Norm's WCW run in January 1991 and squashing Joey Maggs at *Clash of the Champions XIV: Dixie Dynamite* later that month. He returned to full-fledged Horsemen activity and participated in the WarGames match at WrestleWar. The Horsemen amicably split in April 1991. Before departing WCW, he had a short feud with El Gigante that ended with his loss to the giant at SuperBrawl I.

At a *WWF Superstars* taping on May 28, 1991, Sid made his World Wrestling Federation debut in an untelevised segment attacking The Mountie following Mountie's open offer. He defeated Ted DiBiase in his first WWF match at a non-televised event in Calgary on July 8. On the June 8 episode of *Prime Time Wrestling*, vignettes began airing promoting his WWF debut and introducing him as **Sid Justice**. On the July 20 episode of *Superstars*, Sid debuted on WWF television and was announced as the special guest referee for the main event of that year's SummerSlam, where The Ultimate Warrior and the WWF Champion Hulk Hogan teamed up against The Triangle of Terror (Sgt. Slaughter, Col. Mustafa, and Gen. Adnan) in a 3-on-2 handicap match. Later that night, Sid saved Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth from an attack at the hands of Jake Roberts and The Undertaker at the newly-wed couple's reception. During this time, Sid defeated Kato in his first televised match on the September 21 episode of *Superstars*. In a match with Roberts, Sid injured his biceps and was forced to miss the Survivor Series pay-per-view.

Sid returned at the Royal Rumble, which had a special stipulation: the winner would win the vacant WWF World Heavyweight Title, which had been stripped from Hulk Hogan. Sid entered at number twenty-nine and was among the final four wrestlers, along with Hogan, Randy Savage, and Ric Flair, before he eliminated both Savage and then Hogan, leaving himself and Flair in the ring. Hogan, who was still at ringside after being eliminated, grabbed Sid's arm and tried to pull him over the top rope, giving Flair the chance to grab Sid's legs and throw him out to win the match and become the new WWF Champion.

Less than a week later, on the January 25 episode of *Superstars*, WWF President Jack Tunney held a press conference to announce who would face Flair for the WWF Championship at WrestleMania VIII. Before Tunney even announced who the number one contender would be, Sid stood up as if Tunney called his name. Yet to Sid's annoyance, Tunney chose Hogan. Sid clutched the stack of papers he fanned himself with earlier and gave a menacing glance in Hogan's direction. After the press conference, Sid said what Jack Tunney did was "bogus." Sid later issued an apology to Hogan, which Hogan accepted. Sid and Hogan then teamed up to face The Undertaker and Flair on *Saturday Night's Main Event XXX*. During the match, after he double clotheslined Undertaker and Flair, Hogan reached to Sid for a tag. However, Sid refused to tag in and walked out of the match. Despite this, Hogan won the match by disqualification.

On February 23 on an episode of *Wrestling Challenge*, Sid appeared as a guest on Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake's *The Barber Shop*. Knowing that Hulk Hogan (Beefcake's long-time real-life friend) was not in the arena, Sid threatened Beefcake and chased him off the set before destroying the Barber Shop with a chair. Later that night, it was announced that Hogan would battle Sid (and not WWF Champion Ric Flair) at the main event of WrestleMania VIII, resulting in Flair facing Randy Savage for the WWF Championship instead. A week later, Sid hired Harvey Wippleman as his manager. Sid also began a post-match gimmick where he would further "injure" his defeated opponents with one or more powerbombs (his finishing move), and sometimes — after the defeated wrestler placed on a stretcher — following this up by grabbing the stretcher and running it into a fixture, such as a ring post or guardrail.

At WrestleMania VIII, Sid lost his match to Hogan by disqualification when Papa Shango interfered on Sid's behalf, allowing the two to double-team Hogan until the returning Ultimate Warrior stormed the ring and saved Hogan. Nearing the end of the match, Sid kicked out of Hogan's trademark running leg drop. Sid was disqualified when Wippleman quickly jumped into the ring to get involved. Sid competed on the WWF's European tour in April 1992, then began his feud with Warrior in the United States. They wrestled on two house shows, with Warrior winning twice by disqualification. After wrestling Warrior in Boston, Massachusetts on April 26, Sid left the company. The WWF replaced Sid with Papa Shango in the feud with Warrior.

Justice, under his **Sid Vicious** ring name, returned to WCW in May 1993 as a mystery competitor of Col. Robert Parker against Van Hammer at Slamboree. Sid defeated Hammer in a stretcher match. That summer, he teamed with Big Van Vader and reignited his feud with Sting. At Fall Brawl, Sting's team (Sting, Davey Boy Smith, Dustin Rhodes, and The Shockmaster) defeated Sid's team (Sid, Vader, and Harlem Heat) in a WarGames match. At Halloween Havoc, Sid faced Sting in a rematch of the same pay-per-view three years previous, but was beaten via a roll-up. The following week on television, Sid turned on Rob Parker and became a babyface. Sid was released from WCW soon after.

On the February 20, 1995 episode of *Raw*, Sid returned to the WWF under the ring name **Sycho Sid**, where he became the bodyguard of Shawn Michaels. Along with Jenny McCarthy, Sid accompanied Michaels to ringside for Michaels' WWF Championship match against then-champion and Michaels' former bodyguard, Diesel, at WrestleMania XI. Michaels had the match won after hitting his signature *Superkick*, but Sid stood on the ring apron and distracted referee Earl Hebner, allowing Diesel time to recover and pin Michaels after a *Jackknife Powerbomb* to win the match and retain his title. The next night on *Raw*, Michaels expressed dissatisfaction with Sid's interference and gave him the night off for his rematch against Diesel at the first-ever In Your House pay-per-view. In response, Sid replied to Shawn, "You don't give me the night off!", and attacked Michaels from behind before hitting him with a powerbomb three times, turning Michaels into a face again. Diesel came to Michaels' aid and clotheslined Sid over the top rope. Michaels claimed to have sustained a legitimate back injury as a result of the attack and was sidelined for six weeks, thus taking him out of the title match.

Two weeks later on the April 17 episode of *Raw*, Ted DiBiase announced Sid as the newest member of the Million Dollar Corporation after Bam Bam Bigelow left the Corporation. After joining, Sid challenged Diesel to a match for the WWF Championship at In Your House, which Diesel accepted. Diesel won the match via disqualification, and thus retained his title, when Tatanka interfered. After the match, Sid and Tatanka continued to double-team Diesel until Bam Bam Bigelow came out to save him. At the King of the Ring, Diesel and Bam Bam Bigelow defeated Sid and Tatanka. Sid faced Diesel once again at In Your House 2: The Lumberjacks for the WWF Championship in a lumberjack match, which Diesel won to end the feud. Following this, Sid moved on to a feud with Shawn Michaels and was scheduled to face him at SummerSlam, but was replaced by Razor Ramon at the request of WWF President Gorilla Monsoon, with Ramon challenging for Michaels' Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match as Sid was seen watching on the backstage television monitors. On the September 5 episode of *Raw*, Sid faced Michaels for the title, but lost after being hit with three superkicks. Sid then started a brief feud with Henry Godwinn, culminating in a victory over Godwinn at In Your House 3: Triple Header.

On the November 13 episode of *Raw*, Sid faced the Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon in a non-title match, with Ramon's friend The 1–2–3 Kid as the special guest referee. Razor was about to deliver the *Razor's Edge* on Sid, but The 1–2–3 Kid helped Sid avoid it, allowing Sid to pin Ramon after a powerbomb, with the Kid making a fast count. After the match, the Kid turned heel and joined the Million Dollar Corporation. In the first elimination match at Survivor Series, Sid and Corporation leader Ted DiBiase helped The 1–2–3 Kid pin Marty Jannetty to win and become the sole survivor for his team. Later in the event, Sid was randomly teamed up with his rival Shawn Michaels, Ahmed Johnson, and The British Bulldog to face Yokozuna, Owen Hart, Razor Ramon, and Dean Douglas in a "Wild Card" Survivor Series match. Sid was eliminated by Razor Ramon after Michaels hit Sid with superkick. After his elimination, Sid powerbombed Michaels. At In Your House 5: Seasons Beatings, Razor Ramon and Marty Jannetty defeated Sid and The 1–2–3 Kid. Sid and The 1–2–3 Kid teamed up the next night to participate in the first-ever *Raw Bowl*, which The Smoking Gunns won. Shortly after, Sid suffered a serious neck injury and left the WWF.

Sid would not be seen again until the July 8, 1996 episode of *Raw*, when he was announced as the replacement for The Ultimate Warrior (who left the WWF) for the six-man tag team match, teaming with former rival Shawn Michaels and Ahmed Johnson against Vader, Owen Hart, and The British Bulldog in the main event of In Your House 9: International Incident, effectively making him a face. However, Sid's team lost the match.

The next night on *Raw*, Sid started a feud with The British Bulldog, whom he faced at SummerSlam on August 18 and pinned Bulldog with the powerbomb. At In Your House 10: Mind Games on September 22, Shawn Michaels hit Mankind with *Sweet Chin Music* and went for the pin to retain the WWF Championship, but Vader came out, broke up the count, attacked Michaels, and got Mankind disqualified. After the match, Mankind and Vader double-teamed Michaels until Sid came out to make the save. He and Vader fought their way backstage, starting a feud between the two. Sid fought Vader at In Your House 11: Buried Alive on October 20 in a match where the winner would face Shawn Michaels for the WWF Championship at Survivor Series on November 17. As Sid was about to powerbomb Vader, Vader's manager Jim Cornette got on the ring apron to distract him. Michaels responded and pulled Cornette off the apron before hitting him with *Sweet Chin Music*. Sid then pinned Vader with a chokeslam to win the match and to become the number one contender for the WWF Championship. After the match, Sid celebrated his victory with Michaels. At Survivor Series, history repeated itself. Sid grabbed a camera from the camera operator and prepared to hit Michaels with it. Michaels' manager, Jose Lothario, got on the ring apron and told Sid to put the camera down, but Sid refused and hit Lothario in the chest with the camera instead. Although this was the act of a heel, the audience cheered wildly for him and booed Michaels, just as they had done, in Sid's favor, four and a half years earlier against Hogan at the Royal Rumble. Sid dropped the camera, and as soon as he turned around, Michaels hit him with *Sweet Chin Music*; however, Michaels went outside the ring to check on his manager instead of going for the pin. Sid hit Michaels in the back with the camera, then threw him back in the ring before hitting him with the powerbomb to win the WWF Championship.

At In Your House 12: It's Time on December 15, Sid defended the title against Bret Hart in a match where the winner would defend the title against Shawn Michaels at the 1997 Royal Rumble on January 19. Hart made Sid tap out to the *Sharpshooter*, but the referee was knocked out and unable to witness the submission. As Michaels was commentating at ringside, Sid and Hart left the ring and started fighting right beside him. After Sid had pushed Michaels and then climbed into the ring with Hart, Michaels went to hit Sid but Sid threw Hart into him. Sid then pinned Hart with the powerbomb to retain the title. At the Royal Rumble, Sid lost the title to Michaels. During the match, Sid hit the chokeslam on Michaels and repeatedly powerbombed him outside the ring. Later on in the match, Jose Lothario got on the ring apron, and Sid approached him, but before he could do anything to Lothario, Michaels hit Sid in the back and the face with the camera, knocking him out in the process. Michaels went for the pin, but Sid managed to kick out. Michaels then hit Sid with *Sweet Chin Music* to become the WWF World Heavyweight Champion for the second time. Michaels soon forfeited the title due to being unable to wrestle. At In Your House 13: Final Four in Chattanooga, a four corners elimination title match was held for the vacant championship belt between Bret Hart, The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Vader. Hart won, and was scheduled to face Sid the following night, on the February 17, 1997 episode of *Raw*. During that match, Hart had Sid trapped in the *Sharpshooter* submission when Stone Cold Steve Austin, whom Hart was feuding with, came to the outside of the ring and hit Hart with a steel chair, allowing Sid to hit Hart with the powerbomb to win the WWF Championship for the second time.

At WrestleMania 13 on March 23, Sid lost the title against The Undertaker when Hart interfered during the match, allowing The Undertaker to hit the *Tombstone Piledriver* and pin Sid to win the WWF Championship. The next night on *Raw is War*, Sid made one more appearance after Bret Hart attacked an injured Shawn Michaels in the ring after a face to face promo about Hart turning on the fans. Following this, Sid was kept off of television until the May 12 episode of *Raw is War*, where he returned as a face. He competed against Owen Hart and defeated him to become the partner of The Legion of Doom in their feud with The Hart Foundation. At King of the Ring on June 8, Sid and The Legion of Doom faced The Hart Foundation (Owen Hart, The British Bulldog, and Jim Neidhart) in a six-man tag team match, which The Hart Foundation won when Owen pinned Sid with a roll-up. On June 9, Sid defeated Owen on *Raw* before disappearing from television for over a month. His last match was a loss to Owen in a house show in Toronto, Canada. He returned on the July 14 episode of *Raw*, making a brief final appearance before leaving the WWF once again to recover from a neck injury that would require surgery.

Sid debuted in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) in January 1999, where he had matches with The Dudley Boyz, John Kronus, Skull Von Krush and Justin Credible. He left ECW in May.

Sid returned to WCW under the **Sid Vicious** ring name at The Great American Bash in June 1999, joining Randy Savage's heel stable Team Madness. Upon his return, he took the nickname of "The Millennium Man" and faced the WCW World Champion Kevin Nash on the July 5, 1999, episode of *WCW Nitro*. Sid was dubbed as undefeated having a winning streak much like Goldberg had previously; although, the majority of this streak was due to Sid coming to the ring and power bombing wrestlers already in a match or immediately following their match and thus "defeating" them.

On September 12, 1999, Sid won his first and only WCW United States Heavyweight Championship from Chris Benoit at Fall Brawl. He then began a feud with Goldberg, who challenged him for the United States Heavyweight Championship at Halloween Havoc. Earlier that night, however, their backstage fighting led Sid to require stitches, though he refused to be treated, which led to Sid bleeding openly the entire night. After brawling with Goldberg, a weary Sid lost the match due to excessive bleeding, awarding Goldberg the United States Heavyweight Championship against his opponent's will. Sid lost again to Goldberg in an "I Quit" match at Mayhem, effectively ending their feud and Sid's "streak."

After the "Millennium Man" gimmick ended, Sid became a face and started to contend for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. He was placed in a match at Souled Out in January to fill the suddenly vacant title after Bret Hart was forced to relinquish it due to a concussion. Sid would lose the match to Chris Benoit, but the title was again vacated as Benoit left for the WWF the next day. The on-screen explanation was that Sid's foot was under the rope during his submission loss. The next week, Sid was presented with a challenge by Nash, who had become commissioner of WCW. If he could beat Don and Ron Harris in a match on *Monday Nitro* that night, he would face Nash for the championship that night. Sid managed to defeat the Harris Brothers and eventually Nash himself to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Two nights later on *Thunder*, Nash stripped Sid of the championship due to him not beating the legal Harris brother in the match on *Nitro*. A rematch between Sid and Nash was set up, but Sid again defeated Nash on *Nitro* to win the title for a second time. He later successfully defended the title at SuperBrawl 2000 in a three-way match against Scott Hall and Jeff Jarrett.

At Uncensored, Sid defended his title against Jeff Jarrett thanks in part to help from a returning Hulk Hogan, which set up a match for the following night's *Nitro* pitting Sid and Hogan versus Jarrett and Scott Steiner. During the course of the match, Sid turned heel and attacked Hogan, due to his being incensed that the fans were chanting Hogan's name. He chokeslammed Hogan and forced the referee to count Hogan being pinned, although the official result was a no contest. This apparently might have been to set up a match for the upcoming Spring Stampede pay-per-view in April. However, shortly after this, WCW began its New Blood angle and Sid (along with all the other WCW champions at the time) was stripped of his championship. He did not play a large role in the angle that followed, and was kept off of television for several months.

He returned late in the year as a challenger for Scott Steiner's WCW World Heavyweight Championship, but Sid failed to defeat Steiner in their title match at Starrcade. On January 14, 2001, at the Sin pay-per-view in Indianapolis, Sid faced Steiner, Jeff Jarrett and Road Warrior Animal in a four corners match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. During the match, however, he suffered a near career-ending injury. During the match, Sid suffered a leg fracture following his leap from the second turnbuckle in an attempted big boot on Steiner. This had him awkwardly landing on one foot while kicking with the other, severely fracturing the leg he landed on. The injury forced a plot change in the SuperBrawl Revenge event. The main event was supposed to be Kevin Nash, Diamond Dallas Page, and Sid against Scott Steiner, Jeff Jarrett, and Road Warrior Animal, but was rewritten as Kevin Nash versus Scott Steiner. WCW would then be purchased by the WWF the following month, ceasing any possibility of Sid's return to the company.

On the June 25, 2012 episode of *Raw*, Sid made his return to WWE as **Sycho Sid** in a match against Heath Slater, where he defeated Slater as part of the ongoing celebration building up to WWE's 1000th episode of *Raw*. It was his first appearance on *Raw* since the July 14, 1997 episode and his first match on the show since June 9, 1997. Sid would reappear on the actual 1000th episode on July 23, where he and other WWE Legends helped Lita take down Slater.