Bob Sapp Upsets the Big Show

The Pepsi Center is still buzzing after the most improbable upset in the Super Heavyweight Tournament. Big Show (500 lbs) entered the ring as the overwhelming favorite, but left the arena with his first professional loss—and a massive dent in his ego.

[[ THE LOCKER ROOM FALLOUT: BIG SHOW IN SHOCK ]]

Backstage footage shows a distraught Big Show flipping over a catering table. He was dominant for 80% of that fight, treating Bob Sapp like a training dummy with superior wrestling transitions. But as the analysts are saying, in the WWF Underground, one lapse in concentration is all it takes.

BIG SHOW: (To cameras, while pacing) “A fluke! A 1-in-100 haymaker! I was out-wrestling him, I was out-classing him! He couldn’t even lift me! Did you see that? He tried to be Hogan, he tried to be Bruno, and he looked like a fool! But I let my guard down for one second… one second… and the ‘Beast’ gets lucky. This isn’t over. Sapp, enjoy the Finals, because when I catch you again, there won’t be a lucky punch to save you!”

[[ THE BRACKET FINAL: VADER VS. BOB SAPP ]]

With Vader outlasting Yokozuna in a grueling “Heavyweight Classic,” the Finals are now set. It’s the “Mastodon” vs. the “Beast.” * Vader (450 lbs): Moving on despite exhaustion. He proved his stamina is elite for a man of his size.

• Bob Sapp (329 lbs): The ultimate “Wildcard.” He is now 3-0 in the WWF, with wins over Tuli, Gonzalez, and now the Big Show.

THE ODDS: Microsoft’s rating software has adjusted the Final. Vader is the slight favorite due to Sapp’s lack of technical wrestling, but Sapp’s “Monster KO Power” makes him a threat to anyone—even a man who calls himself a Mastodon.

[[ LARRY MERCHANT’S FINAL THOUGHTS ]]

LARRY MERCHANT: “Jim, Lennox… look at the wreckage of this night. We started with a billionaire getting beaten by his son-in-law, and we ended with a Deadman winning in the blink of an eye. But the story for me is The Rock. He faced the man everyone said was ‘The Truth’ in Kimbo Slice, and he didn’t just win—he dominated. He proved that length, athleticism, and the Rock Bottom are a more reliable ‘Kill Switch’ than anything found in a backyard.”

JIM LAMPLEY: “And don’t forget Kim-Solo. Larry, that man is a ghost. To see him dismantle a veteran like Rey Mysterio… it was surgical. There are whispers in the back that he’s looking for a Top 10 scalp next. If I’m Kurt Angle or Ken Shamrock, I’m watching my back.”

LENNOX LEWIS: “The Super Heavyweights stole the show for me. Seeing Big Show fall was a shock to the system. Bob Sapp is dangerous because he doesn’t know he’s supposed to lose! He tried to lift 500 pounds! He failed, he got laughed at, and then he just punched the guy’s lights out. That’s a fighter’s mentality right there.”