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Former WWF/E referee and new author Jimmy Korderas joined Kayfabe Wrestling Radio Tuesday Night. In a nearly 30 minute interview, he discussed his recent media tour promoting his book, being noticed by fans as a referee, the confusing finish of the AJ/Natalya match from RAW and referee Mark Harris’ Facebook response, one of the biggest mistakes he made as a referee, would he have liked to have social media back when he was a full-time official, being there when Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson came into the WWE and possibly ushering in of an era, could/would the WWF have run with the Four Horseman stable, who had assigned officials to matches back in the day, SummerSlam being part of the ‘Big 4’ WWF/E pay-per-views, and much more.
On Mark Harris’ response on Facebook to the RAW finish: “Yes, I did watch the match up and I did make a comment on Twitter about it last night; it was more tongue in cheek as I, in my Twitter comments, try to make them light and whatnot. I really don’t have a doubt in my mind that the one part in there (Harris’ Fabebook response) where he referred to the ‘former, unemployed ref’ was directed, I think, towards myself but I could be wrong, unless another former ref commented that I didn’t see. If he was directing it towards me, contrary to popular opinion, I am employed; I do have a job actually, it’s just not refereeing in the WWE. You know what, the social media thing, I think, has gotten out of hand and people are using it for the wrong purposes; in this situation, regardless of whose fault it was, or who the blame was put on for what was obviously a messed up finish to that match, sometimes you just got to suck it up and say ‘Hey, chalk it up to experience’ and learn and move on. One of the biggest things you have to do in this business, especially from a referee standpoint, is be able to take criticism and know not everyone is going to like you, it’s just the way it is. And if you can’t take constructive criticism or a little playful ribbing or anything like that and you have to lash out on social media, maybe this business isn’t for you.”
If he ever had a memorable botched spot as an official: “Which time? I mean, we’re all human; we all make mistakes. It’s unavoidable, especially when you are working I don’t know how many hundreds of matches a year, there’s going to be a mess up here and there; it’s just inevitable. What you have to do, like I said, is learn from your mistakes, suck it up and move on. That being said, I remember many years ago there was a match between Lex Lugar and Crush (Brian Adams). The spot was I was taking a bump, I was supposed to be taking a bump in that match and it was basically very simple: Brian had Lugar in a headlock, Lugar shoots him off and Brian runs me over, essentially there’s the ref bump. I just had a brain cramp for some reason and I decided just as Lugar pushed Brian off, I stepped out of the way, kind of like a matador would with a bull. They both stopped and went like ‘What the hell just happened here?’ And I’m thinking to myself ‘Ooh, i supposed to be standing there taking a bump.’ And when I got to the back, I heard it; I got an earful but you work. Going forward I said to myself I’m going to make sure I keep my head above me and if it ever happens again you’ve got to think on your feet and not look like a deer in the headlights, which is basically what happened.”
The botched finish of RAW with Natalya and AJ Lee: “Going back tothe situation, it wasn’t that the mix-up happened, it was the reaction that occurred from it. If he was decisive in his call, regardless of what he called, that would be fine. But he looked confused and that’s what amplified the situation. I know Natalya let go of the Sharpshooter too early or AJ tapped a little late; I don’t know what you want to call it, but t the same time when Mark motioned for the bell, for some reason the bell didn’t ring obviously. I can’t speak as to why it didn’t ring but everybody looked really confused and there could have been an easy way out of it by either emphatically calling for the bell or motioning ‘No, this match continues’, but there was no motioning or reaction whatsoever so that led to more confusion; plus it doesn’t help when you’ve got two guys on commentary who you know are going to rip into you.
You can follow Jimmy through his Twitter (@jimmykorderas) or through his personal Facebook (www.facebook.com/jimmy.korderas) for the latest news and notes. You can also get Jimmy’s new book “The Three Count: My Life in Stripes as a WWE Referee” from ECW Press, which also contains a forward by Adam “Edge” Copland. Check with your local book retailer for availability or for ordering information. You can also hear Jimmy on air with Arda Ocal on their “Aftermath TV” show on the Score TV Network, check with your local cable provider for availability and show times.
Wild Talk Radio Network was founded in 2008 by Tim Stein and is the home of such programs as Wrestle Talk Radio (Sundays 10 pm ET/7 pm PT), RAW Post Show (Mondays 11:30 pm ET/8:30 pm PT), Kayfabe Wrestling Radio (Tuesdays 9 pm ET/6 pm PT), The Rack (11 pm ET/8 pm PT) and CB Radio (12 am ET/9 pm PT) The Wild Talk Radio Network offers a wide range of programming that covers Professional Wrestling, Video Games, Movies, Sports & Entertainment. Log on daily for new content at www.wildtalkradio.com.
