Marvez: Delaney knows winning isn't everything

If World Wrestling Entertainment produced a greatest hits video package for Colin Delaney, he would be on the receiving end of all of them.
Delaney was grappling's version of a Timex watch during his eight-month stint in WWE's Extreme Championship Wrestling (10 p.m. Eastern, Tuesdays, SciFi Network). He took a licking and kept on ticking.
At 5-10 and a lean 172 pounds, Delaney was tossed like a rag doll by much larger performers such as The Big Show, Mark Henry and The Great Khali. Delaney -- who often came to the ring wrapped in medical tape because of the beatings he suffered -- says he can count his total number of WWE victories "on one hand."
He isn't kidding. Delaney was triumphant in just four matches - three of which were in tag-team situations -- compared to 30-plus losses before his WWE release last August.
But even at age 22, Delaney already is wise enough to know that winning isn't everything in pro wrestling.
"A big part of what we do is making the other person look good," Delaney said last week in a telephone interview. "If you can do that, you make yourself look good. There are plenty of guys in this business who have made a living off doing that."
After spending several years working for independent promoters in the Northeastern U.S., Delaney's big WWE break came in December 2007 in his hometown of Rochester, N.Y. A friend who was working backstage as an extra called and said WWE matchmakers needed someone to serve as "enhancement talent" for a televised match against Shelton Benjamin. Delaney fit exactly what WWE was seeking in taking a lopsided trouncing.
Delaney was so impressive that WWE gave Delaney a character molded after other underdog performers like Sean "1-2-3 Kid" Waltman and Mikey Whipwreck. For months, Delaney was pummeled in match after match until finally upsetting figurehead ECW commissioner Armando Alejandro Edstrada to "earn" a WWE contract.
Delaney received hands-on tutoring from ECW legend Tommy Dreamer, who also played his on-screen mentor. Delaney also said he made significant in-ring strides even though he didn't get to execute much offense.
"When I watch myself now, I've grown so much as a performer and entertainer," Delaney said. "Things like my facial expressions are significantly better. Tommy was a lot of help on most everything.
"I had a blast while I was there. I don't regret one second of anything. I dreamed of doing this as a kid."
That dream, though, ended when Delaney was abruptly released just months after signing a three-year WWE contract extension.
"I was really surprised and everyone one (in WWE) that I talked to was also," Delaney said. "Everything seemed to be going well, but once budget cuts came around, I was the lowest man on the totem pole. I don't take it personally. WWE has cut 50 or 60 guys and probably a lot more to come. It's not just me."
Delaney immediately returned to working for independent promotions and currently holds the single and tag-team championships (with partner Mean Marcos) for the NWA Empire promotion in Western New York. Delaney also has upcoming matches against 20 fellow ex-WWE stars like Jimmy Snuka and James "Nunzio" Maritato.
Delaney's WWE stint did have one drawback. After being cast in a losing role for so long, Delaney is working as a heel to try and establish himself as more than cannon fodder.
"I have to get over being looked at as the guy who still gets beat up all the time," Delaney said. "I was a bad guy when I left WWE, so now I'm the guy who thinks he's hot because he was in WWE. It's easier to get people to hate you than like you."
Delaney hopes WWE will like his work enough to someday give him a second chance.
"It really is the ultimate goal for any pro wrestler to be in WWE," he said. "If anyone tells you any differently, they're either lying or fooling themselves."

*- For information on Delaney's bookings for independent shows, email National Wrestling Alliance promoter Bill Behrens at showbis@aol.com.

(Alex Marvez writes a syndicated pro wrestling column for Scripps-Howard News Service. E-mail him at alex1marv@aol.com.)

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