Wrestling's Greatest Moments

by Michael Rickard

Every fan of professional wrestling remembers the moment that captured their heart forever and hooked them for life. Whether it was Ric Flair regaining the NWA Championship from Harley Race at Starcade, the Freebirds turning heel on Kerry Von Erich, Mick Foley flying off the cage at King of the Ring, Jake Roberts DDT-ing Ricky Steamboat on the concrete, Samoa Joe’s epic trilogy with CM Punk in Ring of Honor, or the premiere of WCW’s Nitro: these are the matches and moments that thrilled, terrified, or outraged — overwhelming you with real emotion. Mike Rickard’s Wrestling’s Greatest Moments brings you all the most memorable and controversial moments from modern wrestling history. It’s an insightful and essential compendium of thirty years’ worth of groundbreaking matches, angles and interviews. From Hulkamania to the Montreal “screwjob,” from the NWA to the nWo, you’ll rediscover what really occurred in arenas and on the air worldwide, and learn all the backstage and behind-the-scenes secrets that made these highlight-reel moments possible from the men and women who were there. Whether you watched Stone Cold Steve Austin point a gun at WWE honcho Vince McMahon’s head, or stood outside the building as D-Generation X “invaded” WCW; whether you look back with nostalgia to “The King” slapping Andy Kaufman silly on Letterman or believe wrestling was better when Bruno sold out Shea; whether you were one of the Philadelphia “bingo hall” faithful who made ECW “extreme” or a casual observer of the Monday Night Wars; whether you’re reliving these moments or discovering them for the first time, Wrestling’s Greatest Moments will enthrall you with the exploits and extravagance, the tragedies and triumphs of the sport of kings.

238 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Michael W. Rickard II is a former attorney and retired bank robber. He is the author of the books, Wrestling's Greatest Moments, Laughing All the Way to the Bank (Robbery): How an Attorney Survived Prison, Flunky: Pawns and Kings, Don’t Call Me Bush Beans: The Legend of a Three-Legged Cat, and Don’t Call Me Bush Beans 2: I’m Not a Scaredy Cat. Millions have viewed his articles at the wrestling sites Ten-Bell Salute and the YouTube channel WrestleLamia. He is a contributor to Wrestling Merchandise and Memories and The Mid-Atlantic Gateway. He has also written for Pro Sports Extra.

He received a Bachelor of Arts in English literature and writing (with a minor in film studies) from Buffalo State College in 2017. In 2020, he completed his Master's in English from Buffalo State College. He can be reached on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and at www.michaelrickard.com. He lives near Buffalo, New York with his three-legged cat, Chester.

Reviews

[Mmiller400m · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been watching/following wrestling off and on for the last 20 years. Now that the WWE Network is a thing and I can be selective and go back and watch individual matches and storylines it's helped to bring me back in the fold a bit. This book helps provide a nice overview of some of the most important aspects of professional wrestling. It's nice because it covers things like ROH and TNA which you don't hear much about if your main source is the WWE. It was a tad confusing in spots because it would slip into and out of kayfabe which means it would treat feuds and events as being real one moment and then treat it like a scripted show the next. All in all I motored through this on my Oyster app. 3/5.

[Optimus · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a hog.Its hard to get through.It just has so much about wrestling history.From matches to brawls,to just plain moments..A wrestling fan really has to read this.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would certainly recommend this to people who want to learn about different historic moments in wrestling, it doesn't cover everything but I feel like it's enough to provide a general overview for somebody who wishes to learn about some of the moments that helped shape the industry. I've watched wrestling for years but never really looked into the older days of wrestling, so this book taught me a bit about the days of territories.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome book.