John Hennigan began his stint with the WWE when he co-won the third season of the reality show, Tough Enough. Initially he grabbed spotlights as one-third of the successful tag team, MNM, with Joey Mercury and ex-girlfriend Melina, capturing the WWE Tag Team Championships on three occasions. Nitro also achieved some singles career success, for he held the Intercontinental Championship twice and the ECW Championship once.
It was when he took Chris Benoit’s place against CM Punk at the 2007 pay-per-view, Vengeance: Night of Champions, that Morrison became a household name. Just a few weeks after winning the ECW Championship, Johnny Nitro had transformed into John Morrison. His gimmick was changed to become even more arrogant and conceited, dubbing himself the monikers ‘The Shaman of Sexy’, ‘The Guru of Greatness’, and ‘The Tuesday Night Delight’. His look was modeled after Jim Morrison, the deceased singer from The Doors, whom Hennigan bears a startling resemblance to. It was during his time in ECW, when John Morrison was heavily pushed, feuding with the fan favorite of the company, CM Punk, as ECW’s main villain. Fans would easily recognize Morrison from his sharp-dressed ring attire to the famous chiseled six-pack he proudly boasts till this day.
Morrison’s status in the WWE continued to escalate in the tag team division as well, when he and fellow wrestler The Miz paired up to form one of the most memorable tag teams in the history of the company. In their first match as a tag team, they captured the WWE Tag Team Championships from MVP and Matt Hardy, holding the belts for a whopping 250 days, the second longest reign in history of the titles. During their reign as WWE Tag Team Champions, they were given a streaming segment on WWE.com, titled The Dirt Sheet, in which they mocked other wrestlers and other facets of pop culture. In real life, both Morrison and The Miz co-wrote their scripts; Hennigan credits the success of the popular web show from studying film in college. John Morrison and The Miz was perhaps Morrison’s most memorable tag team, for they not only captured the tag team championships twice, but they also won two Slammy Awards (one for Best Tag team and the other for Best WWE.com Exclusive) and a Wrestling Observer Newsletter Award in 2008 for Tag Team of the Year. Sadly, Morrison and The Miz would go their separate ways when both were drafted to Smackdown and RAW respectively.
The Shaman of Sexy’s singles success came when he was drafted toSmackdown as part of the 2009 Supplemental Draft. After a face turn where he brawled with Chris Jericho backstage, Morrison began rising to the top of the brand, becoming one of Smackdown’s top faces. He battled main eventers of the brand such as Jeff Hardy, Edge, and Chris Jericho, and even received several shots at the World Heavyweight Championship. Despite unsuccessful attempts to win the Smackdown exclusive world title, Morrison defeated Rey Mysterio on the September 4 edition of Smackdown to win the Intercontinental Championship, his third in his career and his first as Morrison. As Intercontinental Championship, Morrison became the secondary face ofSmackdown, holding a successful title reign and defending it against the likes of competitors such as Eric Escobar and Dolph Ziggler. However, Morrison would lose the title to rival Drew McIntyre at the December 2009 pay-per-view,TLC: Tables, Ladders, and Chairs. That match would turn out to be his last as a defending champion.
After several failed attempts to win the World Heavyweight Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the Unified Tag Team titles with R-Truth, Morrison was drafted to RAW on the 2010 WWE Draft. His stint on RAW greatly contrasted his appearances on Smackdown. Overshadowed by the top faces of the company, John Cena and Randy Orton, Morrison was lost in the shuffle of the mid-card, though he appeared to have risen close to main event status when he began a feud with Sheamus for the #1 Contender’s Spot for the WWE Championship. Unfortunately, Morrison’s pursuit of the WWE Championship quickly fell in early 2011.
2011 could be described as a disaster year for the Guru of Greatness. Not only was he out for a few months due to a pinched nerve in his neck, as a result of being influenced to give respected veteran Trish Stratus backstage, Morrison was punished, and onscreen, everyone could clearly see that Morrison was in the doghouse. Jobbing week after week to the likes of Christian, Mark Henry, and Wade Barrett, JoMosapiens were on the edge of their seats, biting their nails nervously as they awaited the fate of the man who wowed the WWE Universe with his innovative, parkour-influenced, high-flying wrestling style. His losing streak finally ended when he defeated Dolph Ziggler in a non-title match on an episode of RAW. Coincidentally, around this time, Morrison had split from real life girlfriend Melina, who was released two months before he broke his losing streak. But Morrison’s luck did not change from that one night.
At Survivor Series, Morrison lost what could have been his final match, against Dolph Ziggler for the United States Championship. I, along thousands of fans across the globe, were heartbroken, realizing this was, indeed, the end of John Morrison’s WWE career. Though early reports said he was negotiating a new contract with the WWE, several more sources reported that he was done with the WWE, nor will he jump ship to TNA. Acting is apparently going to be his top choice in the future.
Therefore, today I will only reblog and post anything to do with John Morrison, in dedication to the career that he had with the WWE.
Though I’m super depressed about JoMo’s future departure, a small part of me is happy that he’s finally going to stopped being used as shark bait week after week. It’s painful to watch the guy who was once the #1 Contender to the WWE Championship jobbing to other wrestlers and making him look weak. On my part, I believe the WWE’s decision to use JoMo as a jobber simply because they don’t like him for what his ex-girlfriend did was just immature. You don’t judge people for who they’re involved with, Vince McMahon, and I disrespect you for that. I look back at what I said two years ago about wanting to be a part of the WWE. Well, now I’ve changed my mind, seeing how management handles their performers and treats them.
Thank you John Morrison for everything. Thank you for making me fall in love with you and wrestling. Thank you for wowing the WWE Universe with your unique style and charismatic presence. You may be leaving the company soon, but we’ll never forget you. Though the least successful of the two (the other being The Miz), you’ll be the most memorable. When I watch Spider Man and ninjas, I’ll think of you, John Hennigan. Thank you for everything.
It was when he took Chris Benoit’s place against CM Punk at the 2007 pay-per-view, Vengeance: Night of Champions, that Morrison became a household name. Just a few weeks after winning the ECW Championship, Johnny Nitro had transformed into John Morrison. His gimmick was changed to become even more arrogant and conceited, dubbing himself the monikers ‘The Shaman of Sexy’, ‘The Guru of Greatness’, and ‘The Tuesday Night Delight’. His look was modeled after Jim Morrison, the deceased singer from The Doors, whom Hennigan bears a startling resemblance to. It was during his time in ECW, when John Morrison was heavily pushed, feuding with the fan favorite of the company, CM Punk, as ECW’s main villain. Fans would easily recognize Morrison from his sharp-dressed ring attire to the famous chiseled six-pack he proudly boasts till this day.
Morrison’s status in the WWE continued to escalate in the tag team division as well, when he and fellow wrestler The Miz paired up to form one of the most memorable tag teams in the history of the company. In their first match as a tag team, they captured the WWE Tag Team Championships from MVP and Matt Hardy, holding the belts for a whopping 250 days, the second longest reign in history of the titles. During their reign as WWE Tag Team Champions, they were given a streaming segment on WWE.com, titled The Dirt Sheet, in which they mocked other wrestlers and other facets of pop culture. In real life, both Morrison and The Miz co-wrote their scripts; Hennigan credits the success of the popular web show from studying film in college. John Morrison and The Miz was perhaps Morrison’s most memorable tag team, for they not only captured the tag team championships twice, but they also won two Slammy Awards (one for Best Tag team and the other for Best WWE.com Exclusive) and a Wrestling Observer Newsletter Award in 2008 for Tag Team of the Year. Sadly, Morrison and The Miz would go their separate ways when both were drafted to Smackdown and RAW respectively.
The Shaman of Sexy’s singles success came when he was drafted toSmackdown as part of the 2009 Supplemental Draft. After a face turn where he brawled with Chris Jericho backstage, Morrison began rising to the top of the brand, becoming one of Smackdown’s top faces. He battled main eventers of the brand such as Jeff Hardy, Edge, and Chris Jericho, and even received several shots at the World Heavyweight Championship. Despite unsuccessful attempts to win the Smackdown exclusive world title, Morrison defeated Rey Mysterio on the September 4 edition of Smackdown to win the Intercontinental Championship, his third in his career and his first as Morrison. As Intercontinental Championship, Morrison became the secondary face ofSmackdown, holding a successful title reign and defending it against the likes of competitors such as Eric Escobar and Dolph Ziggler. However, Morrison would lose the title to rival Drew McIntyre at the December 2009 pay-per-view,TLC: Tables, Ladders, and Chairs. That match would turn out to be his last as a defending champion.
After several failed attempts to win the World Heavyweight Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the Unified Tag Team titles with R-Truth, Morrison was drafted to RAW on the 2010 WWE Draft. His stint on RAW greatly contrasted his appearances on Smackdown. Overshadowed by the top faces of the company, John Cena and Randy Orton, Morrison was lost in the shuffle of the mid-card, though he appeared to have risen close to main event status when he began a feud with Sheamus for the #1 Contender’s Spot for the WWE Championship. Unfortunately, Morrison’s pursuit of the WWE Championship quickly fell in early 2011.
2011 could be described as a disaster year for the Guru of Greatness. Not only was he out for a few months due to a pinched nerve in his neck, as a result of being influenced to give respected veteran Trish Stratus backstage, Morrison was punished, and onscreen, everyone could clearly see that Morrison was in the doghouse. Jobbing week after week to the likes of Christian, Mark Henry, and Wade Barrett, JoMosapiens were on the edge of their seats, biting their nails nervously as they awaited the fate of the man who wowed the WWE Universe with his innovative, parkour-influenced, high-flying wrestling style. His losing streak finally ended when he defeated Dolph Ziggler in a non-title match on an episode of RAW. Coincidentally, around this time, Morrison had split from real life girlfriend Melina, who was released two months before he broke his losing streak. But Morrison’s luck did not change from that one night.
At Survivor Series, Morrison lost what could have been his final match, against Dolph Ziggler for the United States Championship. I, along thousands of fans across the globe, were heartbroken, realizing this was, indeed, the end of John Morrison’s WWE career. Though early reports said he was negotiating a new contract with the WWE, several more sources reported that he was done with the WWE, nor will he jump ship to TNA. Acting is apparently going to be his top choice in the future.
Therefore, today I will only reblog and post anything to do with John Morrison, in dedication to the career that he had with the WWE.
Though I’m super depressed about JoMo’s future departure, a small part of me is happy that he’s finally going to stopped being used as shark bait week after week. It’s painful to watch the guy who was once the #1 Contender to the WWE Championship jobbing to other wrestlers and making him look weak. On my part, I believe the WWE’s decision to use JoMo as a jobber simply because they don’t like him for what his ex-girlfriend did was just immature. You don’t judge people for who they’re involved with, Vince McMahon, and I disrespect you for that. I look back at what I said two years ago about wanting to be a part of the WWE. Well, now I’ve changed my mind, seeing how management handles their performers and treats them.
Thank you John Morrison for everything. Thank you for making me fall in love with you and wrestling. Thank you for wowing the WWE Universe with your unique style and charismatic presence. You may be leaving the company soon, but we’ll never forget you. Though the least successful of the two (the other being The Miz), you’ll be the most memorable. When I watch Spider Man and ninjas, I’ll think of you, John Hennigan. Thank you for everything.
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