It was only a matter of time before these two General Managers would end up facing each other in a match. In fact, it’s a wonder these two haven’t formally clashed sooner. Although their rivalry began to intensify around WWE Homecoming, this was a natural rivalry ever since Theodore Long took over as General Manager of SmackDown in 2004. It only makes sense that Bischoff wants the superior brand and vice versa.

But the fuel was really added to the fire when it was announced that RAW would be going home to the USA Network. To kick off the move back to USA, RAW planned to put on a three-hour extravaganza the likes of which had never been seen. While this seemed perfect for Bischoff, Long wanted in on some of the action as well. After all, with all the hype behind WWE Homecoming, there would be a ton of national exposure.

So, Long visited Eric Bischoff on RAW and asked if SmackDown could be a part of WWE Homecoming. Bischoff wanted no part of what he felt was the inferior brand, but it just so happened that Mr. McMahon was also around that night. The Chairman felt that having SmackDown at Homecoming was a great idea, and he allowed Long to make one match to showcase his SmackDown talent. Long and his SmackDown Superstars arrived at Homecoming ready to show the RAW audience their extraordinary talents. But there was one problem. Mr. McMahon had already left for the night after being embarrassed by Stone Cold Steve Austin, so Bischoff took it upon himself to leave SmackDown in the dark – literally. He turned off the lights just as the SmackDown six-man tag match was about to begin. SmackDown got the last laugh, though, as they stormed the ring after the main event as an all-out RAW vs. SmackDown battle ensued.

Over the next couple of weeks, members from RAW and SmackDown began invading each other’s turf. Something had to be done. So, in an effort to settle the score, a RAW vs. SmackDown tag team match was set up for Taboo Tuesday. RAW’s team ended up consisting of Snitsky and “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters, and the fans voted in Matt Hardy and Rey Mysterio to represent SmackDown. Mysterio and Hardy proved to be the better team and scored the huge victory on a RAW pay-per-view.

Just days later, Bischoff showed up on SmackDown and told Long that enough was enough. In an effort to totally settle the score once and for all, they agreed to have a 5-on-5 elimination match at Survivor Series. Bischoff seemed content with that plan, but Long had another idea for the RAW GM. In addition to the elimination match, Long challenged the karate black belt to a RAW GM vs. SmackDown GM Match as well. An enraged Bischoff accepted the match, while Long seemed very happy with himself thuggin’ and buggin’ in the ring.

Bischoff showed up on SmackDown again the following week, this time uninvited. Long went to the back and asked Bischoff to leave. While Long had his attention turned towards Bischoff, “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters appeared from out of nowhere and blindsided the SmackDown GM and put him in the Master Lock. JBL, Rey Mysterio, Matt Hardy and Lashley came to the rescue but the damage had been done.

Will Bischoff’s karate background give him the edge, or will it be Long making Bischoff holla, holla, holla when it’s all said and done?