A wrestling superstar has issued a serious smackdown to South Africa, cursing the country after his luggage was pilfered.
The Grand Arena at GrandWest was packed to capacity last night as the WWE Superstars kicked off the Cape Town leg of their world tour bringing crowd favourites like Randy Orton and Kane to perform in front of a fanatical audience.
It wasn’t all fun and games, though: one wrestler, Christian, was particularly angry that his luggage had been broken into somewhere between the US and South Africa, and used some of his time in the ring to condemn SA.
“I step off a plane, my baggage is broken into – you rip off the locks and you steal my clothes,” he yelled at the crowd just before his loss to Orton in a heavyweight title bout.
“Is this what this country is all about? Then shame on you!”
The crowd jeered and booed at his comments and later cheered when he lost to Orton.
Other wrestlers showing off their athletic – or acting, depending on your attitude to the sport – skills last night included the 140kg Ezekiel Jackson, who emerged from behind a dark curtain and stalked to the ring while cameras flashed around the arena.
His tag team partner, Kane, weighing a massive 147kg, was a crowd favourite, and his arrival was greeted with whistles and shouts of joy.
The pair’s opponents, Wade Barrett and Sheamus, were far less welcome: every time Kane and Jackson got the upper hand, the audience cheered; when they fell on tough times, the crowd booed.
All ended well for Kane and Jackson’s fans, as the pair emerged victorious, leaving the ring 15 minutes after their match started to cheers of “Kane! Kane! Kane!”
Wrestler Jindra Mahal infuriated the crowd when he grabbed the announcer’s microphone and referred to South Africa as a “miserable country”. When he won his match against Daniel Brian, the crowd booed.
Cape Town-born Justin Gabriel was well received when he squared up against Sin Cara. Their bout became a tag team match after it was interrupted by Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase. Gabriel and Cara won, much to the delight of the crowd.
The Superstars return to the ring at the Grand Arena tonight. - Cape Argus