Jim Cornette on Why Junkyard Dog Was Never World Champion 

I met JYD when I was 5. He was my favorite wrestler at the time. I was at the dr's office in my hometown in Louisiana and he walked in to the office. I was so excited and ran up to him and started doing his dance. He was cool as can be. He picked me up and wrestled with me for a minute. My mom was horrified wondering why I was so excited and bothering a giant man. This was in 1985 and nobody had cameras in their pockets like they do now. I wish I could have got a picture,but he did give me an autograph. He didn't have to play with a kid, but he did. Good dude imo

Not everyone needed to be World Champion. It was a different time when the World belt wasn’t defended on a weekly basis.

Junkyard Dog is a legend. His charisma was something else. Sad that he had drug problems. May he rest in peace!

When Mr Wrestling 2 turned heel, and beat JYD for the NWA North American title with a Loaded Knee Pad, was one of the saddest days of my childhood.

Junkyard Dog did wrestle Ric Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at Clash of the Champions XI and won the match by disqualification, meaning he didn’t win the belt. As far as I know, that’s the only time JYD wrestled for a world title.

I started watching JYD as a kid when he was in WWF. When I got older and saw his early work, I realized I was only seeing 10% of what JYD used to be. JYD was hella popular with all the kids where I'm from. We didn't care if he had a belt.

I think the Mid-South version of JYD, where he was just ripped, could've had a short run with the title. Let him chase a top heel for like a year, JYD ultimately wins, then drops it back by some other up and coming heel to screw him out of the title. But you can't have him doing much for long.

He was never known for his wrestling ability. He literally oozed charisma. He didn't really have long matches but he made them fun with his taunting and power moves, kind of like the Ultimate Warrior .

“Vince brother, that brother just doesn’t work for me brother!”- Hulk Hogan (probably)

Andre was technically WWF champ for like 3 min. Before he sold the belt to Ted Debiase .

JYD was my first favorite wrestler, king of the head butt

Andre was wwf champion brief as it was because he was really suffering at the time and his career was almost over

I liked JunkYard as a kid.... he was like a bulldozer running over some of those guys with that tackle he had.

Here is a question : why Bad News Brown was not at least Intercontinental Champ?

JYD didn't need a title. He was so OVER that he was the "Hulk Hogan" of Mid-South Wrestling in the early 80's before going to the WWF.

Some wrestlers and their persona work in different spots. JYD was Intercontinental Champion material.

Plus it was the early 80s. They wasnt putting the belt on any black man back then.

Surprisingly JYD didn't even get that many shots at the title. Harley Race and Ric Flair didn't travel to Mid South all that often when JYD was on top. Flair vs Dog headlining the Louisiana Superdome would have been huge. Flair did wrestle Butch Reed numerous times so I don't know why he couldn't work with JYD.

He's not lying. I'm in Monroe Louisiana and I'm here by myself. My bill was $94 and the next month it was $184! And I'm gone in the daytime and I put my air on 80 when I'm gone.

From everything I know about his runs down South, I'm thinking JYD didn't need a World title. You look at guys like Andre, Roddy Piper, Ted Dibiase, Jake Roberts, Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard (singularly not as a team), none of them held a Main title, but they could all get over with one thing or another or a combo, like AA who had mic skills & in ring talent.

Loved Jyd. Another example of the genius of Vince Mcmahon. Dude had character and charisma. Kid friendly. Vince got all he could get out of him. Bill Watts was a genius booker and promoter but Vince took these dudes and made them primetime. And that's how it was back then. After Hulkamania exploded, WWF was on Nbc and had the Saturday night live spot with Saturday night's main event. And Dog was perfect for that cartoon rock and wrestling era.

I grew up watching his feud with the Big Cat in Mid South! Loved every match!

JYD could have been World Champion for a week or so. Put him over Flair, then have someone screw him out in the rematch. Flair leaves with belt.

My grandfather and myself when I was a kid in the 70s loved jyd watched him all the time

Before I watch I'm gonna guess he's gonna say JYD was so beloved that he didn't need the title.

Keep JYD Name Alive 💯💯💯💯🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

I always wanted to see JYD to win the InterContinental strap as a kid, but looking back, he was pretty much done as a bigtime performerby the time he got to the WWF.

The Junk Yard Dog , held the Unified World Champion back in 1992 in Memphis, Tennessee.

Wrong! Andre the Giant defeated Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Championship on Saturday Night’s Main Event and then sold the title to the Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase.

JYD was a lot like Hacksaw. Super over but too limited to be champ.

Yeah, but I want to hear what Jim thinks about Flair's last match?

Anyone else feel like they get Rick Roll’d by Stephen P. New ads in these clips?

I remember first coming across JYD on the WCW Worldwide shows that they used to run at 3 a.m. on a Saturday morning around 1989/90 in the UK [after the 'world chess championships' which was not exactly riveting TV and you had to be absolutely dedicated to wanting to watch wrestling to stay up for it!] and honestly wondered what all the fuss was about him. Year later when the internet really took off and everyone had computers I was able to see why he was such a big deal! But at first I really didn't get it as we over here back then had no idea he was at the end of a legendary career.

Andre did win the world title. He immediately gave it to The million dollar man

I loved JYD when he was on wwf TV when I first started tuning in on purpose.

There’s more to being a world champion than just being popular. JYD was incredibly popular but he couldn’t have worked a world champion’s schedule for any company (let alone the WWF).

Back in the territory days, especially, in the N.W.A., wrestling ability and the ability to draw were paramount to be World Champion. JYD had a lot of the latter, and little of the former.

Junkyard Dog was the type of psychopath you would have wanted on a Viking raid, but he couldn’t have been the face of a big promotion

For the time of his career where JYD was actually over enough that fans would buy him as world champ he would have had Ric Flair blocking him for the NWA title and then later Hulk Hogan for the WWF title. Even if JYD had world champion level wrestling ability how would he make more sense to be champion than those two?

Wonder if Jim's ever going to discuss Ric Flair's final match.

... but, and this is completely off topic, but that Stagger Lee could absolutely work!!!

with the wwf championship comes a lot of money and one a star has it , it’s hard to let go .especially when one really believes in their gimmick

I love the idea that behind the scenes Brian and Jim have a game they play where they know what ad spots are involved in the show but no actual plans on where the spots are located after which moments and they just call it in the ring so to speak. They haven't written the whole thing out like Macho would, so Brian has to feed Jim in a way so that Jim has to hit his ad spot with the correct one. The easy ones are like the sue people line or the sleep line for helix. Makes me giggle thinking of it and listening to Brian trying to hit his marks.

When JYD was on top in Mid South 1980-1982 Watts pulled out of NWA but was still loosely associated with them. It wasn't until 84/85 before Flair showed up at the Dome here in New Orleans, but JYD was gone by then. It would've been awesome for us here for that to happen, but I understand why that would've never happened. Still Love JYD he was our hero in New Orleans. During that time frame he was untouchable!!

Where in Illinois? I don't believe it one bit

He did hold the Mid South title many times as well as the USWA world title once.

The man in Louisiana. He had a gas station right down the street from my Karate school.

The Stephen P New theme song is the greatest thing ever 🥳🤘🏿🤘🏿🤘🏿🤘🏿

Love him or hate him, when Jim is gone we've lost an American treasure😮‍💨

The NWA Champion then traveled the world and put other guys over and like Jim said - go long with some guys. JYD was not the seller or worker to do that and he would never be trusted to be in that position.

I always get a kick out of the "thump" on the back of his trunks

London Kentucky loves ya.

Steven P new gives me Saul Goodman vibes .

Come on Jim I wanna hear your thoughts on rics flairs match😭😭

The commercials are getting more and more annoying wow what an annoying ending. I would never contact that lawyer.

Stephen P New needs to come to Michigan.

I do wonder if he would have won the UWF title had he stayed down there, but I agree he never could have been champ anywhere he actually worked.

That’s horrific pumping an attorney commercial

Off subject, but anyone know why Jim hasn't covered anything in relation to Flair's last match? I could be mistaken, but I haven't heard him make one mention of it.

Limited wrestling skills but caristma and super star power popularity. JYD was an old school power wrestler. He tossed 300 pound men around the ring like rag dolls. When he made the big comeback after the heel got some heat on him it would literally drive the audience insane. Usually ended the match with The Big Thump power slam and it was all over to thunderous applause. The dog was a wrestling God in the Mid South Territory. I think he would have made a fine world champion but not for long stints. He was a great North American Champ.

Just looking at the thumbnail and reading title im like “Oh thats simple..COCAINE, COCAINE, AND OH YEAH COCAINE TOO”..

Trust. If you can’t trust that your world champ won’t miss dates and won’t be arrested in some crack house in New Orleans and it ends up in the news, he shouldn’t be world champ.

That NWA belt is gorgeous.

JYD left mid-south 8/10/1984 Ric Flair didn't start doing NWA title defenses in mid-south until 8/24/84 with the exception of one match against Bruiser Brody in January 1984. Harley Race never did any title defenses in mid-south as far as I can tell. Neither did Dusty Rhodes. The NWA title just wasn't defended in mid-south in the early 1980s when JYD was at his peak.

Did Orndorf ever held a belt?

Go jim

I need Brian to sing the Stephen P New jingle

Is Jim not gonna review Flairs last match??

IMO JYD could have held the WWF title in 83/84 before Hulkamania hit. He was in better shape and right before his decline

I feel like I don't need to watch the video to know the answer to this but I'm going to watch it anyway

Andre did when the heavy weight championship 80s WWF

So u mean to tell me Jim of all people ain’t gone review flairs last match ?

Hey Corny, grab them cakes 🐕

Lol the questions people ask sometimes

It is a shame JYD never had a match with Harley Race.

In 1990 He Challenged Ric Flair For The Nwa World Heavyweight Title

Looking back at it...i rather watch JYD in Mid South...than that goofball run in WWF....having such meanless matches..

Love JYD!!

And look at all the people who ended up eventually wearing the 10 pounds of gold after they broke away from WCW.

JYD was a great attraction and the Big Thump was so cool back in that day. Cornette is spot on about why JYD was never the World Champ.

Stephen P New🤣🤣🤣

Why are you not talking about the flair match?

What reaction Rock Twitter on facing Roman Reigns

NWA loved heel champions.

Sorry Jim but Andre the giant technically didn’t he win the wwf world title and give it to Ted dibase but dibease weren’t recognized but Andres was then they vacated the title because of it ?

Seems like this was answered a long time ago ah well

This generation get there flowers. Just to put their names in the record books. JYD was popular enough to hold the NWA title, like Dusty did in 86. Bill Watts put the wcw title on Ron Simmons without a technical move set!

REALLY? Half the video is commercial. That's ridiculous. Jim was right about the JYD, though. Over like rover in Mid-South- had runs with Tag title, LA title, and North American title (all 3 at once for a bit, and his partner had the MS title, too.)

The man was surely over with the fans

Andre won the wwf title but had it forfeited to set up wrestle mania 4 tourment

I feel like people who ask questions like this really expose how little they know about how wrestling works.

Except Andre the Giant DID win the WWF World Title on February 5, 1988 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Granted it was one of the shortest title reigns in history, if not thee shortest, but he did win the title, the win is recognized, and that’s how you get it off him.

To be a long term NWA World Champion, you had to be a heel (or babyface who can be a heel if needed) elite technician who can put asses in the seats. So when you look at it like that, JYD DIDN'T fit that criteria at all. His in ring ability ALONE wasn't get enough for the gig. In terms of drawing power, OF COURSE he was worthy. :Plus JYD's peak was in Mid-South. And Mid-South WASN'T an NWA member. So that certainly didn't help as well. BUT if you weren't an ELITE technician, they you were AUTOMATICALLY eliminiated from long term NWA World Title reign consideration back in the day! Dusty was SO OVER that he got two short reigns. THEN he got a very short one when JCP was trying to go national in '86. But in terms of old school travelling NWA World Title criteria guys like huge draws like Andre, Dusty, JYD, Brody, etc. DIDN'T FIT in that template.

JYD Funk was a great feud. JYD was a Colorful character.

Because he didn't need it. Its not like today where the title makes the wrestler instead of the other way around. Where people like Liv Morgan and Adam Page are less without the belts that are gifr wrapped to them.

JYD should have been NWA/WCW TV Champ

Workrate is Wrestling Observer , pro ric flair vs Hulk Hogan 80s argument as to some "objective' verification of Flair as the better wrestler. (nwa adopted the real rasslin; not like up north, as a way to compete with WWF.) NJPW80s and 90s is known by cornette like the back of his hand. Cornerte is an Observer tape trader guy. bottom line is that the "workrate" didnt make thr match look real; it was that they put on longer matches in the house shows Ric flair Notoriously did the same match with the same bumps for his entire late 80s NWA title run. Scott Hall + HBK adopted Kurt Hennig's ring style of getting over as a herl by overselling the babyfaces offense when scott hall live watched Summerslam with HBK vs Hogan: from the first sell ; Scott hall said "Vince booked the 80s vs 90s with the 80s winning; but shawn is making sure u know that he is really the better one of the 2. So HBK is full on trying to bury Hogan by overselling every move to the point of absurdity right????? I dont agree. basically : Shawn worked the traditional style 80s heel vs baby main event ppv match. because really; those supposed "Oversells' are done by Shawn; Kurt Hennig and Razor in every major match they were in

JYD couldn't have been an NWA World's Champion. He wasn't a good enough in ring wrestler. He was a big star and became a touring attraction like the NWA World Champion but the NWA World's Champion needed to be a good in ring wrestler because the point was that the NWA World's Champion would come in and still retain but make the territories top babyface or heel look even better. People can answer this back with Kerry Von Erich, but Kerry wouldn't have won the belt if David didn't die because he wasn't good enough in the ring like a Harley Race or Ric Flair.

My boy Savage always ran away from JYD!

Andre did win the WWF title for 5 minutes