Five Rungs
Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2016 4:05 pm
“… On Sunday, March 27th at Wrestlemania XV, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, I won't just show off. I'll back it up.”
The scene fades into a shot of a house show during the first days of Wrestlemania week. The crowd is roaring and excited for the ongoing show, as a match had just ended. After the competitors made their way backstage, “Here to Show the World” by Downstait played over the speakers, and “The Showoff” Dolph Ziggler made his way to the ring, to cheers from the crowd, he wore a black suit jacket over a white shirt, and a black tie with white skulls on it. He greeted and shook hands with a few fans on his way to the ring. Before getting in it, he reached underneath it and withdrew something from it. A ladder, which he slid into the ring. He then walked up the stairs, and stepped between the ropes. He got a microphone, and climbed all the way to the top of the ladder, sitting as he reached the top. The lights dimmed, and the music stopped. It was bright enough to see the crowd, but the brightest light of them all was shining on Dolph Ziggler.
“Hi, I’m Dolph Ziggler. These past few weeks I’ve been campaigning. It all started when yours truly challenged EBWF management to give me a shot at stealing the show at Wrestlemania. I told them to do their worst, and that’s what they intended on doing. They have placed me in a ladder match. AND, that ladder match is for the Intercontinental Championship. AND, it’s against some of the greatest competitors to step in an EBWF ring… And Shane Helms and Syxx are also there too, I guess.”
The crowd laughs at the sudden change in mood in the speech.
“In all seriousness, it’s no easy bout. I have my work cut out for me. Now, I know those other guys will probably climb their own ladders, and tell you that they will do the same on Sunday, I know how this stuff works. Here’s the difference though, they are just now climbing their ladder, literally. For years, I have climbed a metaphorical ladder, all the way up to a glass ceiling, which wouldn’t break. I have reached for all of the stars, and one by one they all burned down. Did I give up when I lost the World Championship? No! Did I give up when I saw my EBWF career almost end? No! So, I’ll be damned if I got so close to falling off the deep end, just to crash head first against another glass ceiling!”
The crowd pops for Ziggler’s determination.
“This Sunday, I’m in a ladder match against five other men…”
Dolph points down at the ladder, and it is shown that the ladder had a particular trait, it had five rungs. Dolph pointed at each rung, opened his hand to show five fingers, and pointed back down again, specifically at the bottom rung.
“If I can be metaphorical here, for a second, each of these rungs represent one of my opponents at Wrestlemania. First of all, there’s Shane Helms. I’m going to be the first to admit, I also have no idea why he’s in the match, I mean, people call me old, but he’s fair game? What’s next, Michael Hayes gets in the match? Seriously though, he’s a tough competitor, some say he’s one of the greatest cruiserweights of all time, though with his advanced age, I don’t know if he can go in the ring against me, he probably wouldn’t even las t six minutes…”
Ziggler appears to be thinking about something, as his right hand slowly points to the next rung on the ladder.
“Six minutes… Six… SYXX, just when I thought I was done with the age jokes, here comes Syxx, proving me wrong, by being older than Shane, and being the actual champion! I’m not sure how great of a champion he is, to be honest. I mean, this man walks around talking as if he’s a member of nobility, when he can’t even count? I mean, he went from The 1-2-3 Kid to Syxx, how did that happen?! He’s been bumped in the head way too many times, he’s gone mental, his lights are not all on upstairs!”
Without mentioning it, Ziggler pointed to the following rung on the ladder.
“Which brings me to Mankind. A guy who lost his championship to Tyler Breeze, which is no shame, Breeze can hold his own in the ring… Assuming he’s not taken out because he was in the general area where apples may or may not have been in the last few years. Mankind is definitely a legend of this industry, he’s historical… Which is sort of a nicer way to saying he’s the oldest guy in this match, and I bet people will STILL say I’m too old, despite being the second youngest guy in this match! Mankind has had many extreme moments, but this is my moment.”
As he finished his sentence, Dolph pointed the following rung on the ladder.
“Next up, Kevin Owens. I won’t lie, or act unimpressed. Owens is a threat, he’s got a size advantage on me, and he’s more athletic than a lot of guys wrestling here. But he’s got one major flaw, his big mistake is knowing how good he is. He’s brash, arrogant, and that gets him complacent. He’s been good for years; the thing is… So have I, and I keep getting better, but you’ll grow stale, if you don’t try self-improvement, Kevin. So, yeah, you are a threat, but you’re not THE threat, you’re not the greatest obstacle in my way. That obstacle is the very last rung, the one between me and the championship…”
Ziggler points to the last rung on the ladder, the one closest to the top.
“That’s Shinsuke Nakamura. Known as the King of Strong Style, he is the toughest opponent to beat in this match, but not impossible. He’s tough, and he knows how to find your weakness, he’s won multiple championships in Japan, but then again… In Japan, I wasn’t there to stop him. He’s going to have a hard time trying to exploit my weakness, to find out that I worked them out before hand, and got rid of them, just like I will get rid of all five of these men, on Sunday, to make it all the way to…”
Ziggler points to himself
“The top. Just like I stepped on these five rungs tonight, I will step on and walk over all five of my opponents on Sunday. Just like I sit before you guys tonight, on top of this ladder, I will make it to the top of the ladder at Wrestlemania. To show you guys what I’ve been saying, that I’ve worked hard my entire life to be the very best I could be, and, damn it, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again tonight, but on Sunday, March 27th at Wrestlemania XV, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, I won't just show off. I'll back it up.
“Here to Show the World” by Downstait plays again as Dolph Ziggler taunts from the top of the ladder. While he is taunting, the scene fades to black, ending the EBWF.net exclusive video.