Dance With Who Brung Ya: The Effy and Mance Warner Feud

A good feud is the backbone of professional wrestling or at least like, a kidney. To tell a truly compelling story, you need a battle between opposing forces. Sure, not every wrestling match requires a story any deeper than “these two people are wrestlers and wrestling is what they do.” Indeed, wrestling is full of these matches, as it should be. A great many truly world class matches have occurred simply because two talented people who worked really well together stepped into the ring and wrestled their asses off. These matches are not any less incredible or enjoyable to watch. But it would be a farce to pretend that there wasn’t something deeply intriguing about a good old-fashioned feud.

Because while not every match requires a complex backstory, when we look back over the history of wrestling, the things that really stand out are moments. And moments become moments because of the way they make us feel. Yes, one-off matches can make us feel things and provide big moments of their own. But close your eyes and think back to the moments in wrestling that stand out to you the most. The moments that had you on the edge of your seat, or made you jump out of it in excitement or scream at your TV in frustration. The moments that made you squeal with joy. The moments that made you cry. Those big moments are most often the culmination of weeks, months, sometimes years of storytelling. And while sometimes the opposing forces are not two people but rather, one person against an intangible concept like self-doubt or time, arguably some of the greatest moments, the most enduring stories, are those where two people stood face to face for one last battle. 

But to get to that last epic battle and that final moment where one wrestler, one character, emerges battle-worn but victorious while one lies beaten and broken, first you need a feud to lead them there.

Wrestling history is full of incredible feuds. And in art as in life, people feud for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes it’s the rebel battling against “the man” or sometimes one person is jealous of another’s success. Sometimes it’s as simple as two people who just hate each other. All of these can and have led to some classic feuds with big moments that have stood the test of time.

But the feuds that really stick with you, the ones that have risen to the very top of the list of greatest feuds in wrestling history? The ones that have given us the moments that are etched indelibly on the collective wrestling consciousness? Those are the ones driven by emotions that everyone can relate to. Stories of betrayal and loss. Stories where two friends, two brothers, become enemies. And for most of my life as a wrestling fan, no feud exemplified the brothers-turned-enemies story quite so perfectly as Hulk Hogan versus Randy Savage. 

I know a lot can be said about Hogan nowadays, but that’s not what this piece is about so stick with me.

I grew up watching wrestling basically from birth. When I was too young to even remember, I sat front row at WCCW shows watching the Von Erichs and Ric Flair wrestle. I was obsessed even then. But the first feud I actually remember being absorbed by was the feud between Hogan and Savage. I was a little kid, they were my favorite good guys, and when they became the Mega Powers, it was like a couple of superheroes had joined forces. Miss Elizabeth just added to the magic. She was like a princess and while I really wanted to be Randy Savage, I thought being Miss Elizabeth might be pretty cool too.

I was a little kid who still very much believed that all of this was real, so when my favorite duo started to crumble, I was devastated. I would play make believe in my bedroom, pretending I was their friend and somehow, I helped them mend fences and saved the day. Man, I was so damn invested.

As an adult, watching back some of that old footage, it can be hard to remember why it seemed so real and so serious at the time. After all, it’s so over the top, so soap opera-like. Be that as it may, that feud had a lasting impact on me as a wrestling fan. I didn’t realize it then, but that storyline was teaching me that wrestling was more than just cool moves by good guys and bad guys. It was a story. It had heart. It made you feel. There are few more human stories than that of love turned to hate, and that is the story that Hogan, Savage and Elizabeth were telling. It’s a story that others have tried to tell to varying degrees of success through the years. They’re still my favorite stories to watch. But none of those subsequent stories had ever made me feel quite the way I felt as a kid watching those two turn on each other. 

That is, until Mance Warner turned on Effy. As part of SGC, Effy and Mance were not just stablemates, they were brothers. They didn’t just team up in matches. They traveled the road together, talking about their futures in the business and making plans. For years, they were family. So when Mance hit an unsuspecting Effy from behind with a steel chair after their tag team match at GCW’s Highest In the Room 2, it was a betrayal of the highest degree. In promos afterwards at events and on social media, the story became clear. Mance Warner felt that the friends Effy had surrounded himself with and dedicated himself to helping were only serving to hold Effy back and in turn, by remaining tied to Effy, Mance Warner was being held back too. Mance wanted that GCW title and Effy’s way wasn’t going to get that for him, so Mance was going to do things his way now. For his part, Effy called Mance out as scum for attacking him from behind instead of face to face. He admitted he’d gotten comfortable, but Mance’s betrayal had now lit a fire in him. 

So when Mance attacked him from behind yet again, this time costing Effy the win at the Do Or Die Rumble and a shot at the title, it became war. 

As the weeks went on, watching these two once close brothers fight in ever-increasing bouts of violence brought back those same feelings I had felt as a kid. I wasn’t just watching wrestling, I was watching the ultimate story unfold. The story of love, betrayal, heartbreak. Despite being set in the world of professional wrestling, in situations most people will never even remotely be in, they were telling a universal tale. Because while you may never know what it feels like to take a light tube to the top of the head, you probably know how it feels for someone who once loved you to turn their back on you. Or how it feels for the love you once had for someone to slowly turn to hatred because of the pain they’ve put you through. These are very real emotions and for a wrestling story to conjure those feelings so vividly, well, I’m no wrestler but I’m going to assume that those kinds of emotions are what most wrestlers hope to one day elicit from fans. 

As the weeks rolled into months and the story deepened, so too did the themes found within. While their mutual friends initially tried to find middle ground between them and keep the peace, they quickly became victims of Mance’s violent attacks themselves. What began as betrayal and animosity between two people quickly began to affect everyone around them. In wrestling as in life, hatred, like love, has a way of spreading and touching everything around it. Again and again, the concept of friendship versus personal gain came into play. Was it worth betraying your friends in order to get what you wanted if it meant you would end up alone? Was it worth never reaching your full potential if it meant you were surrounded by love? What exactly is the true measure of success?

While the story they were telling asked us to define success in one of two ways, the story itself was perhaps the ultimate measure of success - people using their skills, talents, and minds to collaborate, create, and elevate. Effy and Mance didn’t just tell a story of two people fighting. They told a story that entertained, resonated and invited introspection, and they told it damn well. And while the story asked whether success is measured in personal gain or in what you do to help others, the reality of it illustrated exactly how collaboration and personal success go hand in hand. Because while Effy and Mance were telling a career defining story, they were also using this moment to elevate those around them. No one close to them was left out of this story.

Time and again, 1 Called Manders and Dark Sheik would come to the rescue during this story, with Manders initially trying to keep peace between Effy and Mance. But eventually, Mance faced off in violent matchups with both Manders and Sheik as he sought to put down everyone who called Effy a friend.

As Effy’s tag partner in Bussy, we naturally saw Allie Katch featured prominently in this feud as well. She not only took it to the limit in the ring against Mance in an absolutely brutal match of their own, she helped facilitate some of the more emotional moments throughout this story. Who can forget a tearful Allie begging Mance to stop and taking the gas can from him? When Effy and Mance faced off for an “I Quit” match, it wasn’t any harm or threat to himself that made Effy finally utter those two words. Indeed, it had become clear that Mance would have to put Effy down for good before he would ever say those words. That is, until Allie came to Effy’s rescue and found herself at the business end of a power drill wielded by Mance, the (presumably) same drill used to rip hair from Effy’s scalp just a month before. While self-preservation was not more important to Effy than this blood feud, saving his partner, his sister, still was. 

Two other standout matches in this feud placed the spotlight on two of GCW’s brightest young talents, Cole Radrick and Alec Price. As friends of Effy, they each found themselves in Mance’s crosshairs and each in turn put on incredible, intense matches with Mance Warner. These matches not only showcased their in ring abilities but also their abilities to tell emotionally driven stories. Who can forget Cole Radrick dazed, barely standing, arms reaching out while Effy looked on helplessly. At this point in the story, Effy couldn’t touch Mance Warner before their match at Cage of Survival lest he not only lose the match but also face suspension. Watching Effy agonize over saving his friend and nearly giving in just in time for Manders, Allie and Sheik to intervene was a moment made all the more poignant thanks to Radrick’s performance. 

The very next night would find a conflicted Effy once again agonizing over his inability to save a friend. In one of the best matches to come out of this feud, Alec Price not only showed an athleticism and skill that few possess, he showed an emotional intensity to match. His passion had the crowd not just rallying behind him but physically helping bring weapons to the ring. But it was his emotional performance at the end of match that made this final showdown between Effy and Mance ahead of Cage of Survival the most heartbreaking yet. While Alec Price screamed out in agony, a sadistic Mance Warner made sure to hold the mic close to him so that there was no way Effy could miss those cries. Effy was more conflicted than ever, not wanting to miss his chance to end Mance’s reign of terror at Cage of Survival, but not willing to sacrifice his friend. Brett Lauderdale, who had joined Effy on commentary, served as the voice of reason, reminding Effy what was at stake. In the end, Effy entered the ring to save Alec but managed not to put his hands on Mance and the show ended with Effy and Mance face to face, inches apart, each seething with hatred. In this moment, it was easy to forget that this was a story. You truly believed these two hated each other.

In reality, though I don’t know them as people, I assume these two are still great friends and doing this together is part of the dream. Within the context of the story though, they were at this point six months into a bitter blood feud, hating each other to the bone and yet unable to escape each other, intrinsically intertwined. Maybe that’s just another way that love and hate are one and the same - either way, as the saying goes, you dance with who brung ya and dance they fucking did. 

Their final showdown, their ultimate battle, came June 2, 2024 at Cage of Survival. Bathed in blood, fire and shattered glass, they pushed each other to the absolute limit in their most intense, violent meeting yet. The match was filled with plenty of “holy shit” moments, a gleefully gruesome match befitting the end of a war that had lasted half a year. But it was the end of the match that held the biggest payoff, because that is where chants and cheers for blood gave way to emotion. Effy won the match but at great physical cost. See, in a war this brutal, there may be a victor, but no one truly wins. So Effy got the pin, but he was as battered as Mance by the end. The difference was that he had friends there to help him. The friends who had stood by his side and fought for him all these months now helped him celebrate his victory and make a hero’s exit while Mance lay defeated in the ring, bloody, beaten and alone. Now that is storytelling. 

Of course Mance Warner did go on to win the title later that night, but not without an assist from some new friends. He got what he wanted, but he might have proven himself wrong. Still, he stood in the ring, championship in hand. So in the end, Effy and Mance both won. But it was us, the fans, who won the greatest prize. The chance to bear witness to the greatest feud in wrestling history. Because while wrestling has had a lot of epic feuds - intense, long-lived, exciting, violent - very few have tapped into raw emotion the way this one did, and that is what elevates a feud into another echelon. Telling a very human story, filled with heart, takes a wrestling storyline from great to legendary. So yes, to my mind, this goes down as the best feud in wrestling history. It’s bittersweet to have witnessed it come to an end.

Then again, is any story ever really over in wrestling?