Pinfall Recall
The Best Wrestling You’ve Ever Heard

CK may be without a co-host this week, but that doesn’t mean we’re not bringing the fire in our discussion of WWE Monday Night Raw from July 6th, 2009. This week’s show features 20 minutes of the finest wrestling analysis on the web. Highlights include Pinfall Recall’s continuing hatred of WWE’s handling of the Tag Team Championships, Teddy Dibiase acting like a 9 year old, CK’s desire for more Million Dollar moments, and excruciating foot and leg injuries, all brought to you with that PFRC heat you know and love. So fire up your media players, turn up your speakers, and prepare to have the knowledge dropped on your asses by the best professional wrestling podcast you’ve ever set ears upon.

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Hello and welcome to the return of the highly acclaimed As I See It series. It may only be highly acclaimed in my own mind but that’s neither here nor there because this marks a significant part of Pinfall Recall history. As we edge ever closer to the fourth anniversary of the creation of Pinfall Recall, I am pleased to return to your computer screens with my thoughts on the world of professional wrestling and, what’s more, I’m pleased to once again improve your lives by giving you something to read that can only be described as simply ‘Genius’.

Since Pinfall Recall began this journey about 4 years ago, we’ve all had to endure some pretty horrendous wrestling from WWE and TNA alike. However, I think there are definite signs that we are finally being rewarded for the years of disillusion as the WWE product at this point is pretty damn good. Well, to be honest, Raw is still quite terrible on most occasions but I really can’t speak highly enough of the other 3 shows that WWE puts out on a weekly basis. Smackdown really demonstrates some of the best wrestling programming that I personally have seen in quite a long time to be honest with you. ECW consistently puts out a solid hour of TV each week and the last episode of Superstars that I caught had John Morrison and Chris Jericho tear down the house.

Now whilst we’re finally being repaid for our years of loyalty to the product, the powers that be may not be so pleased as the sheer awesomeness of the aforementioned television shows is not portrayed in the slightest when it comes to the ever important ratings. And it is that fact alone that leaves me with a bit of trepidation going forward as I’m concerned that these really good shows will not be given the time to blossom before some change is inevitable. But for the time being, wrestling fans all over the World should join me in taking pleasure in the extremely high quality of the perceived “B” shows.

Now whether it’s down to the intriguing direction CM Punk is going or the great matches put on each and every week by the mid and upper card respectively, Friday Night Smackdown has been a joy to watch every week for quite some time now. I think it’s no real coincidence that the shows that have blossomed have been the shows that were left to their own creative devices without any array of McMahon influence. Touching back to the point I made a little earlier and with the under-performance in the ratings department, I am a little concerned that big ol’ Vinnie will feel the need to get involved and give it that extra special touch we all know and love…and by ‘love’ I of course mean ‘absolutely despise’. But that’s not something I want to delve too deeply into at this stage as, for the moment at least, we’re being treated to some damn good television.

Whilst on the subject of ratings, I wanted to take full advantage and take a cheap shot at TNA. That being the fact that WWE Superstars airs on the same night (albeit an hour earlier) to a fraction of the potential viewers that TNA iMPACT! reaches yet is only a 0.1 or 0.2 down in the ratings on a weekly basis. I don’t hate TNA by all means but facts like that should be made fun of, simple as that.

So what I’m getting at with this is that it is your duty as a fan of great wrestling that you watch Smackdown each and every week to show the powers that be within WWE that it is this type of show that we wrestling fans like to see. And I’m 100% confident that if you do watch the so called “B shows” (Smackdown in particular) then you will agree with me implicitly. In the past I’ve been first in line to take shots at WWE and I think that it should be noted and appreciated when they outperform the relatively low expectations that I have for their creative team.

I touched earlier on the direction that CM Punk is taking, which is another big factor that is keeping me drawn to Friday Night Smackdown each and every week. They’ve not turned him full on heel, they’ve kind of just let him linger and I really think that Punk is one of the few guys that can pull this off.

I really do think that the direction they are taking CM Punk has been quite genius in execution thus far. I’ve heard in some pockets of the IWC that Punk should attack Hardy for having a past riddled with drug problems whilst he has reached the top by completely clean and “straight edge”. In my opinion, this would be the wrong way to proceed. Don’t get me wrong, it would definitely add an intriguing aspect to the storyline but in it’s current form I think it would be detrimental to the progress Hardy has made to step up to the main event level. To focus solely on the somewhat shady and questionable past of our supposed hero would be a quite absurd thing to do in my opinion. Let alone the impact that it could have with regards the views of the parents of the WWE Universe by highlighting the drug addicted past of their youngster’s idol. What it boils down to is the fact that they haven’t put all their eggs in one basket by turning Punk heel straight away, they’re letting the crowd make their own minds up on him and to me that’s the best way to handle him. My only hope now is that they can give him some good storylines going forward to keep him at the top of the card and a fresh heel run may eventually the way to go with him.

Changing tact a little bit, has there ever been a bigger waste of our time than the Donald Trump storyline that lasted 7 whole days? I certainly can’t think of any in recent memory. I cannot see how that enhanced the product in any way shape or form. The whole thing was stupid and it actually resulted in them losing money as some retarded shareholders actually believed this shit to be real. I must admit, I’m not sure how I’d progress with Raw in terms of the management/authority figure but surely there was a more logical way than what we saw with this Trump fiasco. If, as rumoured, Ric Flair is to be the new general manager of Raw then I do not see the problem in having the Trump angle run a little longer but have Flair running the show for him and Donny would be seen rarely, if ever. I would much rather have seen something like that happen than what we were indeed treated to.

As it pertains to this Sunday’s ridiculously named Pay-Per-View “The Bash”, I think it has to the potential to be a fairly interesting show. Either way, it’s free to air in the UK on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports HD1 so I’m not fussed one way or the other. There’s definitely a few matches in there that I’m down for…and there’s the added bonus that as it stands three days away from the PPV, there is no Big Show to be seen on the card! I’m interested in seeing The Miz against Cena, purely as a result of the long (by today’s standards) drawn out development of this angle. The Tag Title match with Legacy against Carlito and Primo should be another exceptional contest in my eyes, especially since the Colons are easily one of the best teams I’ve seen in quite a while. So with a fairly stacked mid-card and a couple good main event matches on the card hopefully this year’s Bash will not be the joke that it has been in pretty much every year that the WWE has promoted the show.

So that’s that ladies and gents, the returning column from yours truly is in the books. I hope you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read and by all means get in touch either by commenting on the blog or posting on the forums or even sending me an e-mail at AK@pinfallrecall.com.

Thank you for reading and may the next week of wrestling viewing be a happy one!
-Andrew Kearney

WWE

Jeff Hardy contract update

- WWE is currently trying to sign Jeff Hardy to a new WWE contract. Jeff’s current contract is set to expire in the next 2-4 months. 

- Hardy has not been receptive to the long -term deals that the company has offered him, and in a rare move, WWE offered Hardy a one-year deal with the hopes of signing him to that, and then working on a longer-term contract.

- It is due to the current contract situation that the feud with Matt Hardy has been booked the way it has, with Matt winning. It is also why Matt was moved to Raw.

- The feeling is that Jeff isn’t looking to go to another company, but more that he just wants to live his life on his own terms. TNA sources have claimed to have no contact with Hardy.

Credit: 411mania.com

Discuss this news on the forums

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WrestleMania DVD extras

- The DVD Extras list for the Wrestlemania XXV DVD release on 5/19 are as follows:

*The complete 2009 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.

*Carlito & Primo vs. The Miz & John Morrison in a Lumberjack match to unify the WWE Tag Team and WWE World Tag Team championships.

*Video highlight packages of Wrestlemania 1 through Wrestlemania XXIV (the video packages that aired on WWE programming in the weeks leading to Mania XXV)

Credit: PWinsider.com

Discuss this news on the forums

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TNA

Paul London and Amazing Red to TNA?

- In an update to an earlier story posted by Bill Behrens, WrestleZone is now receiving word that former WWE Tag Team Champion Paul London may be debuting with TNA in the very near future. Sources are claiming that the two sides have spoken and that a deal is expected to be reached.

- Additionally, the earlier reported phrase of “Expect The Unexpected” was a tease that former TNA talent Amazing Red is rumored to be returning to the company. Sources close to Red have stated that he too has spoken with the company, and a deal is being worked out to bring him back to TNA Wrestling.

Credit: wrestlezone.com

Discuss this news on the forums

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Angelina Love update

- New TNA Knockouts Champion Angelina Love suffered a concussion at the TNA Lockdown PPV Sunday. This happened near the end of the Knockouts Title match as Taylor Wilde came off the top rope with a cross body block. Love is only expected to participate in “non-wrestling” segments at the TNA tapings this week.

Credit: 411mania.com

Discuss this news on the forums

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ROH

ROH Newswire for April 21st

- Thank you to the wonderful fans in both Montreal and Markham for bringing outstanding enthusiasm and passion during ROH’s latest return to Canada! Both crowds were great and treated ROH incredibly, and for that we can’t thank you enough! We return to Toronto on Saturday, July 25th at the Ted Reeve Arena, 175 Main Street, Toronto, Ontario M4E 2W2. The “Nature Boy” Ric Flair will be in Toronto for a special meet & greet autograph session. Tickets for the live event & the autograph session are now on sale at www.rohwrestling.com.

- The American Wolves had an absolute classic with Tyler Black and Bryan Danielson to close the event last Saturday in Markham. The 45 minute draw was a tag team classic and sent two very distinct messages to teams throughout Ring of Honor: Danielson and Black are not to be taken lightly, and that the Wolves are for real. Davey Richards was absolutely livid post-match, screaming at anyone within earshot. “We are the best in the world,” Richards said pointedly. “You ask Dragon and Tyler. They couldn’t beat us. They had to prod the fans into asking for 5 more minutes. Well, we do things our way – we answer to no one.” In Dayton on Friday, Richards will oppose Tyler Black in singles competition while Eddie Edwards, who shined in the match, will take on Danielson.

- This budding rivalry is far from over, because in addition to the singles matches taking place this weekend, a tag team rematch has been signed! In Edison on May 9th, it will be the American Wolves taking on Bryan Danielson and Tyler Black again! And if the Wolves escape the Midwest this weekend with the tag titles in tow, this will once again be a championship match!

- Kevin Steen and El Generico were set to regain the World Tag Team Titles this Saturday in Chicago, but now there is a cloud of doubt hanging overhead. El Generico has suffered another injury to the same knee that Davey Richards targeted back in Orlando at “Proving Ground 2009-Night Two”. He was unable to compete in Markham last Saturday, and went to a suburban Montreal hospital for evaluation on Sunday. He, along with Kevin Steen, is awaiting the results of an MRI which will indicate how severe the injury is. Should Generico not be able to appear this weekend, Kevin Steen has already informed ROH officials that he has a replacement ready to go. Everyone at ROH wishes Generico a speedy recovery.

- Signed for Edison on May 9th is a 3-Way-Dance that may involve more athleticism than most entire cards. “Lightning” Mike Quackenbush. Kenny King. El Generico. Need we say anything more? Should Generico’s knee force him out of action for this event, King and Quackenbush will lock up in a singles contest.

- A tag team bruiser has also been signed for Edison on May 9th. The Dark City Fight Club made a splash at “Proving Ground 2009-Night Two” in one of the hardest hitting ROH six-man tag team matches in some time. Now they’ll face 2/3 of the team they fought in Orlando. It will be Erick Stevens and Brent Albright taking on the DCFC in Edison! Both teams will need ice packs after this one!

- Dave Prazak and Mike Hogewood began voiceovers on the second 6 weeks of “Ring of Honor Wrestling on HDNet” yesterday in Denver. Prazak informed us that HDNet has fixed the lighting and crowd noise issues for this round of tapings and that the show “looks incredible”. The next set of ROH on HDNet tapings take place on May 29th and 30th back at the Arena in South Philly. Already signed: Ambassador to ROH “Nature Boy” Ric Flair and KENTA! Tickets are on sale now at www.rohwrestling.com starting at $10 each.

- Two days remain in the Big Ten Sale at ROHWrestling.com. This offer features over 100 DVD’s priced at only $10 each. You can also general admission tickets for upcoming shows in Dayton, Chicago, Boston, & Edison for $10. On top of that, save 10% off your next order. For a complete list of all items included in the sale plus the 10% off discount code click here: http://www.rohwrestling.com/news/article.aspx?id=860. New and in stock now at ROHWrestling.com is “Eliminating The Competition” from February 27th in Danbury, CT. This event features World Champion Nigel McGuinness defending his title against Tyler Black, Jimmy Jacobs, & Jerry Lynn in an Elimination Match; Necro Butcher vs. Brodie Liee in an Anything Goes Street Fight; Chris Hero & Eddie Edwards vs. Jay Briscoe & Kevin Steen; Bryan Danielson vs. Delirious; Brent Albright vs. Claudio Castagnoli; plus more.

- We’ll be back tomorrow with more match announcements for Boston and Edison, and hopefully we’ll have an update on the condition of El Generico.

Credit: 411mania.com

Discuss this news on the forums

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Other

Lashley vs. Sapp set in stone

- Fanhouse.com is reporting that Bobby Lashley has agreed to fight MMA veteran Bob Sapp on June 27. Lashley (2-0), who won a decision over Jason Guida in his last bout in March, signed the bout agreement late last night. It will be Lashley’s first time taking on a much bigger fighter, as Sapp is 6′5″ and weighs around 350lbs, which gives him about a 100 pound weight advantage over the former WWE superstar. 

Sapp holds an MMA record of 10-3-1, with his most notable fight coming against Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira in which Sapp was submitted in the second round. He was last seen on the FieLDS Dynamite!! show, where he won by TKO in the first round. 

The report goes on to note that while Lashley did appear on TNA Wrestling’s “Lockdown” PPV on Sunday, there are currently no plans for him to wrestle with the company.

The bout will take place on an event promoted by an as-of-yet announced MMA upstart MMA promotion and will air on PPV. 

Credit: 411mania.com

Discuss this news on the forums

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Taz to make return to wrestling on May 30th

- To read a press release regarding Taz’s return to wrestling go here

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/article/taz-confirmed-for-wrestling-related-return-on-may-30th-75475

Credit: wrestlezone.com

Discuss this news on the forums 

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That’s all for today’s Wrestling News Digest. Be sure to come back tomorrow for another easy to digest batch! Or, subscribe to our blog feed to get the latest Wrestling News, as well as our columns and podcasts, delivered right to your favorite feedreader. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact the Pinfall Recall team on the forums or by emailing them directly through the links below.

Cliff Karklin (CK) - CK@PinfallRecall.com

Joshua George (JG) - JG@PinfallRecall.com

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Danny Charisma (DC) - DC@PinfallRecall.com

WWE

Randy Orton Interview

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/2008/11/20/7482571.html

Maybe being the youngest heavyweight champion in WWE’s history went to Randy Orton’s head.

Maybe hearing a symphony of boos and cheers from thousands of people every night affected his perspective.

But Orton needed a reality check. And two years ago, he got it from Vince McMahon, who happens to sign the paycheques.

“I wasn’t thinking before I was saying things,” says Orton, who seems to have matured through the humbling process. “I was taking the heel persona a little too seriously. I was told, ‘This isn’t going to work for you. That’s what the ring is for. This is a publicly traded company and you’re not a kid anymore.”

It was a chat with McMahon and subsequent suspension that had an impact.

“Vince said he couldn’t have somebody who was a loose cannon. He said if any person was going to stop Randy Orton from succeeding, it was Randy Orton.”

So why didn’t one of the other wrestlers, one of the veterans, give the third-generation star a reality slap?

“I’m sure Triple H was probably thinking it. He probably had a hundred of those conversations with me,” says Orton.

He says internet reports at the time accused him of trashing a hotel room, something he says just wasn’t true.

“I came home early from a show in Germany and the night before I flew out, a couple of the other wrestlers, who I won’t name, got out the fire extinguishers and had a war in the hotel. There was thousands of dollars worth of damage. Everybody thought it was me because I flew home right after. There were signs in arenas: ‘Randy Orton destroyed my hotel room.’”

Orton says he’s looking forward to tomorrow’s Survivor Series, where Team Orton will take on Team Batista.

“Being part of it is awesome,” he says. “My goal this show and every time I got out there is to steal the show.”

At age 28, Orton says he’s still on the rise.

“You look at the talent and you’ve got a lot of the veterans getting to the age where they have to slow down … lighten up their schedules, maybe do some movies,” says Orton. “You’ve got a big crop of second- and third-generation wrestlers. And you’ve got a lot of new guys with limited experience. There are very few wrestlers at the level I’m at. There are going to be a lot of things for me to do down the road, movies and sponsorships, but my goal is to be the No. 1 guy here.

“As long as I’m kicking ass and taking names, the titles will find me.”

Orton was recently ranked the No. 1 wrestler by Pro Wrestling Illustrated, but he says he doesn’t pay much attention to those accolades.
“If I’m first or 60th, it doesn’t really matter to me,” he says. “But when my wife sees the magazine at Walgreen’s … she’s like, ‘That’s so cool!’ “They can hate me. I would love for all of them to hate me. It really means nothing to me.”

Since he’s The Legend Killer, does he see himself as a future legend?

“I’m a future Hall of Famer,” he says. “I’m already a three-time champ. Age is on my side. Nothing is going to stop me.”

But what about the injuries, the broken collarbone he got in June’s One Night Stand match against Triple H, a setback that sidelined him until early this month?

“If I tear a muscle, I’ll come back. I’ll keep coming back. Doctors now, they fix you up better than ever. I’ll definitely be a household name if I’m not already,” says Orton.

And what about August’s motorcycle accident that could have killed him?

“I was 3-4 weeks from returning to the ring, maybe not even that long,” he says. “I was going up a hill at night. A car swerved into my lane and I had two options — to slide into the wall or try to make a turn. If I’d slid into the wall at 30 miles an hour, I would have been pretty messed up. I didn’t have enough road, (hit a curb), and landed a couple of hundred feet away. I was wearing a helmet or I would have been dead. I really got lucky. We’d just had the baby. I got to stay home some more and spend time with the baby.”

He’s back riding again.

“The first time back I was a little nervous, but that went away,” he says. “The accident wasn’t my fault. I just learned how to ride. Before the injury, I wasn’t that experienced.”

So what’s next?
“Batista’s in my sights. [John] Cena tore his pec before we could wrap up our feud. And I want to prove to everybody I’m better than Rey Mysterio. We had a run on Smackdown!, but I’d like to have a good run with him.”

It’s been well documented that Orton is the son of Cowboy Bob and grandson of Bob Sr., but what about his uncle Barry O, who was also a wrestler?

“When it comes to wrestling stats, he’s not up to par with my father and grandfather,” says Orton. “He’s not a big part of our family. My wife and I had a baby girl (July 12) and I never got a call from him. I did everything I did by myself. My dad helped me get my foot in the door, just like his dad helped him get his foot in the door.”

It’s obvious Orton still is brash and bold? So how has he softened? How has he turned into a better person?

“We were just in Scotland, Ireland, Germany and Italy … and Tampa before that,” he says. “After being gone so long, when I got home, I walked into our house and my daughter and wife were sleeping. They looked so beautiful, so peaceful. I just watched them for a bit. I knew then what I had with my wife. She’s one of a kind.

“My daughter (Alanna) was so happy to see her dad. She remembered me. I’m very lucky, there’s no doubt.”

See, it’s hard to hate the guy now. Within the heel, there’s a big heart. 

Discuss this interview right here!

Ken Kennedy Apologizes For Mistakes

IT is often said that you should never meet your heroes.

Ken Kennedy had been in WWE a wet weekend when FT was blown away by the Green Bay Grappler.

He swaggered into global superstardom like it was his birthright. 

He was charming, opinionated, humble and witty, and also a fantastic wrestler, and we spoke a few times as his career rocketed towards the very heights of WWE.

We cheered along in person for his high point: victory in the Money in the Bank Ladder match at Mania 23 in Detroit.

Then Kennedy had some bad luck: a minor tricep injury was misdiagnosed as serious, costing him his briefcase, and things went downhill from there.

His European media tour in August of 2008 was a farce, during which he told FT and everyone who would listen that he didn’t use steroids, and had been clean for a year, no less.

He was promptly suspended by his employer a mere two weeks later.

To say your trusty correspondent was less than impressed would be as mild as a DDT from my nan.

FT is the only place in the British national print media pro-wrestlers can be heard and we print their comments in good faith. If they lie, we all look stupid.

So you can bet your inflated wallet-wasting mortgage that I was looking forward to talking to Kennedy again. 

I got my chance this week. We got to the point. Why did Kennedy talk out of his backside when last we met?

He says: “Overall I made a mistake. I’m sorry for it, I’m trying to move on and get past it. 

“I would love to sit down with you for two or three hours and explain things.

“I was on a time schedule, so I would omit certain parts that I did not deem necessary. There is a lot more to it than what was said.

“It’s something I feel passionately about. I believe wrestling has changed, and of course it’s still apparent because I hear stories about the past, and how things were in the 80s. They are funny now, but at the time it was horrific, what happened on the road, and all the unethical things people did.” 

But Kennedy adds: “I stand by the fact that I stopped taking steroids for cosmetic reasons.

“If you simply look at pictures of me, there’s a huge difference from when I started to now.

“When one partakes in those substances … at the time I thought I was impervious, invincible.

“I ran into some of those situations, and you don’t quit cold turkey – there are health risks.

“What we do is not ballet, it’s an inevitability of our job, and people get hurt.”

Kennedy is off on the long term-sick, having dislocated his shoulder and undergone surgery. 

He estimates he’ll be back in another two or three months. 

There are positives on the horizon: his first acting venture, Behind Enemy Lines, has been a blast. Injury has allowed him the time for filming. 

Mania 26 in Houston is on Kennedy’s mind for a spectacular return. A certain Stone Cold Steve Austin, friend and mentor, will be joining him on a card that’s bound to be stellar.

Kennedy says: “He’s always maintained he could come back and wrestle any time.

“Steve put in his time, and he still puts it in. He has a tremendous wrestling mind.

“It wasn’t just a case of the right place at the right time. You can’t bottle that, you can’t teach that, he just had that God-given talent.”

credit: http://www.dailystar.co.uk/inthering/view/59529/Ken-Kennedy-sets-the-record-straight-/

What do you think of Kennedy’s return? Discuss here!

TNA

Releases To Come

- In recent weeks that has been talk among TNA officials about parting ways with some of the undercard wrestlers not being used. Since September or so, TNA hasn’t felt the need to use everyone at every set of tapings, so a lot of talents are going unused. There has been talk on this for a while, but discussions have increased lately, reports PWInsider.com. Basically, the reason why TNA hardly ever fires people outright WWE-style is because Jeff Jarrett & Dixie Carter have soft spots and really doesn’t like firing people. So far this year, with the exception of Pat Kenney & Glen Gilberti (although their contracts were up), no one’s been outright fired. Everyone that left either left on their own accord, or their contracts were up, or they were on a pay-per-appearance deal and no longer being used. They have yet to fire someone in the middle of a contract (Karen Angle’s status with TNA still remains unclear).

credit: rajah.com

Discuss here!

ROH

Updated PPV Card

Below is the lineup for tonight’s ROH PPV taping:

* ROH Title Match: Nigel McGuinness © vs. Bryan Danielson
* I-Quit Match: Austin Aries vs. Jimmy Jacobs
* SHIMMER Title Match: MsChif © vs. Sara Del Rey
* Roderick Strong,  and Brent Albright vs. Chris Hero, Go Shiozaki and Davey Richards
* Delirious vs. Rhett Titus
* Four Corner Survival Match:: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Sami Callahan vs. Silas Young vs. Alex “Sugarfoot” Payne
* Non-PPV Match: Samoa Joe vs. Tyler Black

credit: 411mania.com

ROH fan? Discuss in our ROH section!

Other

Former WWE Diva Wins Ms. Bikini America

- Former WWE Diva Krystal Marshall won Ms. Bikini America today. She not only won her height class, but also the overall championship as she beat out more than 400 contestants. Marshall recently had a child.

credit: 411mania.com

Discuss here!

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WWE

Smackdown House Show Result

The following results are from the Smackdown house show in Berlin, Germany. The results are courtesy of PWInsider.com:

WWE Tag Team Championship Match
Carlito & Primo Colon (c) b. The Miz & John Morrison via Backstabber

WWE Diva´s Championship Match - Special Guest Referee: Maria
Michelle McCool (c) b. Maryse via Roll Up

The Great Khali b. Ryan Braddock via Chokebomb

WWE United States Championship Match
Shelton Benjamin (c) b. R-Truth via Roll Up

Matt Hardy & Finlay (w/ Hornswoggle) b. Chavo Guerrero & Mark Henry (w/ Tony Atlas)
via Twist of Fate to Chavo Guerrero

The Brian Kendrick (w/ Ezekiel Jackson) b. Kung Fu Naki via The Kendrick

Jeff Hardy b. Vladimir Kozlov via DQ after a chair shot from Kozlov

WWE Championship Match
Triple H (c) b. The Big Show via Pedigree

credit: wrestlezone.com

Discuss the results right here!

WWE.com Article Takes Shot At UFC

WWE.com has an article up commenting on last night’s UFC 91 PPV which aired last night. The article takes quite a few shots at UFC and the MMA business itself, at one point saying the PPV bouts were ending quickly “leaving UFC producers scrambling to fill the three-hour event with content.”

WWE went on to say “The dearth of hearty competition left many viewers to watch less prestigious undercard fights and only served to bolster claims that UFC pay-per-view events can often be a “crap shoot” in regards to filling the full three hours.”

credit: wrestlezone.com

UFC fan? Let us know in our forum!

TNA

TNA Congratulates Brock Lesnar On Victory

- TNAwrestling.com has an article up congratulating Brock Lesnar on his UFC Title victory last night. The article also hypes the release of the Kurt Angle DVD, where they tease Angle following his former opponent into the world of MMA. You can check out the full article here: http://www.tnawrestling.com/content/view/1165/84/

credit: 411mania.com

What’d you make of Lesnar’s victory? Let us know!

ROH

Former ROH Booker Comments On Departure

The former RoH booker breaks his silence and comments on his departure from ROH…

- Former ROH booker Gabe Sapolsky has decided to make some comments since being dismissed from Ring of Honor last month. Here are some of the highlights…

On His Departure: “I’ve had a little over three weeks to reflect, think about things and get out of the ROH bubble. It’s funny how you don’t realize you are in the bubble until you are out of it. It is actually amazing the conclusions you come to and the things that become clear about yourself and business once you are removed from a situation. I’ve come to a lot of realizations in the last few weeks. First of all, while I won’t admit that I agree with the decision to dismiss me, now that I’ve thought about things I certainly can’t disagree with it. There are several reasons for this all relating to me and my behavoir, but that is for another time if I ever decide to even publicly talk about it.”

On ROH owner Cary Silkin and ROH as a company: “Cary Silkin put a lot of faith and trust in me, more than I could ever hope or ask for. He deserves much more than a huge thank you from me, but it is all I can offer at this time. Cary is the man. I still have nothing but love for ROH and everyone there. It is full of hard-working, professional, intelligent people and the pro wrestling business needs what ROH offers. Most importantly, it is full of good people and that includes the entire office and the locker room. I am looking forward to seeing how the company grows and what direction it takes now. It is a fun time for ROH with everything so fresh and exciting.”

On the ROH Driven PPV: “That said I just want to put over Kevin Steen, El Generico, Jimmy Jacobs and Tyler Black for the main event of the current PPV. This is one of my favorite matches in ROH history. It is now extra special for me because it meant that the final show I was involved with in Boston ended with a resounding bang. I saw Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger in that complex in 1989 and now was able to produce a great PPV from the same location. That is very special to me. Steen, Generico, Jacobs and Black deserve all the credit for putting together and executing what I believe is truly a perfect match. I have nothing to gain by plugging this. I’m not a shill for ROH anymore. I just want people to see it because these four deserve for it to be seen. Thanks guys for giving me that memory too.”

credit: 411mania.com

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JR Posts New Blog

Former WWE Champion Brock Lesnar won the UFC Heavyweight Title Saturday night in Las Vegas with a 2nd round TKO over UFC legend Randy Couture. Perhaps now MMA purists will acknowledge Lesnar’s athletic abilities and not hold his tenure in the entertainment world of the WWE against him. But somehow I doubt it….at least not for now.

The pro wrestling bias has never been more prominently displayed than by what I perceive to be a vocal minority of MMA fans against Lesnar simply because he signed with the WWE after an outstanding amateur wrestling career that was topped off by winning a NCAA Heavyweight Title in 2000 after finishing 2nd in the NCAA’s in 1999 while wrestling for the University of Minnesota.

When my fellow WWE officials first saw Lesnar,  it did not take a Mensa member to ascertain what an amazing physical specimen that he was. As the head of the WWE Talent Relations department at that time and ultimately responsible for finding, signing, and monitoring the training of future WWE stars, signing Brock was a no brainer. He flourished in the Louisville based training camp and was one of the great amateurs like Danny Hodge and Jack Brisco to make a virtual seamless transition from the amateur world of wrestling, the world’s oldest recognized sport, to the world of entertainment/show biz  featuring great athletes aka pro wrestling.

Brock’s journey to the main roster in the WWE wasn’t without its bumps in the road but collectively we got through them and Lesnar progressed in rapid fashion to the main talent roster of the WWE. Lesnar was earning 7 figures faster than any rookie I ever signed in my role in the talent department in the WWE and that includes such stars as Dwayne ‘The Rock” Johnson and Kurt Angle.

Unfortunately Brock hated the amount of travel that it took to be a main event star in the WWE and earn the type of money that came with his “spot.” He left the WWE primarily due to travel issues and embarked on another adventure as Brock tried to earn a roster spot with the NFL’s  Minnesota Vikings.

When the NFL did not work out, Brock turned back to his long time roots and parlayed his grappling skills and amazing athletic gifts by signing with the UFC. Lesnar’s name identity that he developed globally with the WWE made Brock marketable from day one but it also came with a pre-conditioned identity. Lesnar was a former pro wrestler and that stigma made the South Dakota farm boy a marked man from day one by many UFC fans.

UFC promoters discovered what many successful pro wrestling promoters had known for years and that is their fan base would pay big money to see someone get their ass beat if that individual represented what the majority of the fan base disliked which could come in a variety of incarnations.  In the annals of pro wrestling, that could mean an evil  “German”, a diabolical “Japanese”, a menacing “Masked Man”, or a flamboyant “Loud Mouth” among many personas.

Lesnar was none of these but he did have the “distasteful” pro wrestling stigma attached to him that will be a part of his UFC bio until the day he retires. Never mind that the guy was a superb amateur wrestler long before his short albeit successful stint in the WWE. “Dammit the guy was one of those pro ‘rasslers and those guys have no business in any form of MMA.”  Wrong.

Simply being billed as a former WWE Champion was enough to make some MMA fans “hate” the 6′3″-275 pounder from day one. By the boos I heard Saturday night on PPV,  many UFC hardcore’s still despise Lesnar and perhaps even more so now that Lesnar is “their” heavyweight champion and more specifically because Brock defeated “Captain America”, the beloved, and deservedly respected, Randy Couture in such a dominating, no questions asked fashion. BTW Couture is a class act and a credit to the UFC. Hopefully, Couture will go down in weight and continue to fight as one can’t help but love his passion and warrior spirit.

However, now the UFC can promote Lesnar vs. virtually any qualified, MMA born and bred heavyweight they choose and the fans will be on board in the hopes of seeing Brock humbled and, more pointedly, beaten to a pulp.

The same pro wrestling methodology that has been around for decades is now exactly what MMA hardcore fans are buying into.

Of course, according to some of the MMA vocal minority, I, being a proud member of the pro wrestling community for many years,  have no business writing about a sport of which I am a huge fan on a website that our company owns. Shame on me.

The pro wrestling bias isn’t new nor is it going away any time soon. Some former wrestlers have reluctantly had to distance themselves from the genre to become successful in other fields. That’s not because these individuals don’t respect the fans or the wrestling business but it’s because the decision makers of their new endeavors don’t want to be associated with the wrestling biz.

That’s sad.

Brock Lesnar will likely never earn the full respect of the die hard, MMA, hard core fans. That’s their loss. Lesnar is not without his faults, the same as any other human, but no one with a modicum of common sense can deny Brock’s God given athletic gifts and the fact that because of his upbringing and his amateur wrestling background that Lesnar has a work ethic, and an ego, that will drive him to be the best in his field.

I have seen this first hand but of course my opinion, being that of a ‘rasslin announcer, means little.

Brock Lesnar was “The Next Big Thing” at one time in the WWE and he is definitely “The Next Big Thing” today in the UFC. I expect Lesnar to continue to improve his MMA skills with his burning desire to be the best in his field.  The self proclaimed purists of the MMA world can like it or not but for sure they will keep buying tickets and pay per views to see one of their own destroy Lesnar.

credit: jrsbarbq.com

Talk about JR’s post right here!

Brock Lesnar’s Wife Is Pregnant

If you missed the UFC 91 PPV last night, then you didn’t see Brock Lesnar congratulated by his wife, former WWE Diva Rena “Sable” Mero. Following the bout, Sable hit the ring and Lesnar gave her a kiss and then kissed her stomach. Sable is pregnant with the couple’s first child.

Following last night’s PPV, UFC handed out several bonuses based on the results of the card. Here’s how the bonuses break down:

Knockout of the night was given to Jeremy Stephens for his uppercut on opponent Rafael Dos Anjos.

Submission of the night went to Dustin Hazelett for his armbar submission to Tamden McCrory.

Fight of the night went to Jorge Gurgel vs Aaron Riley after both competitors fought through all three rounds.

And as we reported earlier, Brock Lesnar will receive a huge bonus for defeating Couture.

credit: wrestlezone.com

Discuss right here!

WWE

*Non-Spoiler* Smackdown match listing for tonight

-The following matches/segments are confirmed for tonight’s edition of Friday Night SmackDown on MyNetwork TV:

Big Show announces the 3 potential stipulations for his match with The Undertaker at Cyber Sunday

Carlito & Primo Colon vs. Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins

R-Truth vs. MVP

Ezekiel Jackson vs. Super Crazy

Undertaker vs. The Great Khali

“Las Vegas Poll Match” with Maria, Victoria, Natalya, Maryse and Brie Bella

Jesse & Festus vs. Kenny Dykstra & Brian Kendrick

Jeff Hardy vs. Vladamir Kozlov with Triple H doing guest commentary

credit: wrestlezone.com

Discuss this week’s edition of Smackdown with members of the Pinfall Recall Community right here.

Steve Austin Set to Film New Movie

- Steve Austin is set to resume work on his next movie today in Vancouver. The film, titled Damages, is about a recently paroled convict (Austin) who is forced into the illegal world of underground fights. Austin is also still scheduled to appear at the Cyber Sunday PPV.

credit: 411mania.com

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Umaga’s Return Being Advertised

- Posted on the Izod Center website in East Rutherford, NJ is the main event for the Smackdown/ECW taping on December 30th. It lists Triple H, Undertaker, & Jeff Hardy VS Big Show, Vladimir Kozlov, & Umaga

credit: wrestlezone.com

How do you feel about Umaga’s impending return? Let us know right here

TNA

Backstage Changes to TNA’s Creative Process

- The buzz at the iMPACT taping on Tuesday was that the agents have been given more control over laying out the matches and finishes. In the past, the TNA creative team did the bulk of the work and the agents basically conveyed their direct orders to the talent. The general feeling is that TNA’s house show matches have been better than their televised matches because the agents had more input.

The creative team will obviously still determine who wins and loses, with Jeff Jarrett having the final say, but the feeling among wrestlers is that this was a much-needed move by the company. The wrestlers believe they can talk over their concerns with the agents more, and even lobby for positive changes in the match layouts. Whereas before, the agents had no choice but to stick to the script they were given by the creative team, even if they agreed with the ideas the wrestlers were giving them.

The wheels started going in motion on this at the Bound For Glory PPV. There isn’t expected to be a major noticeable difference at first, but it is a move the wrestlers are happy with.

credit: wrestlezone.com, prowrestling.net

Friday TNA Tidbits

- TNA’s storyline about Kurt Angle attacking staff last night during Impact is that he was fined $10,000 for it.

- The TNA Impact replay will be airing at 9AM on Saturdays for the next few weeks.

- TNA Impact did a 1.1 rating last night.

credit: 411mania.com

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Eric Bishoff’s Wrestlezone Interview

-On the goal of Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling: “It would achieve two things, one, as you know, there’s a big audience for good reality television, but the reality that works has a very distinct and unique kind of formula and format. So our goal is two fold, is to produce a wrestling show that would really appeal to those fans that are reality fans but at the same time satisfy the wrestling audience by showing them not necessarily anything new but maybe giving them a look inside the world of pro wrestling…we want to take them inside the art form of pro wrestling.”

- On the rumors that he and Hogan might be starting a new promotion together: “I’m happy to answer in one sense but reluctant to in another because every time I do an interview like this inevitably some internet writer somewhere is going to take a bit or a piece of what I’m going to say and then misconstrue it and turn it into something completely different. I recently read on-line all kinds of different stories that were born out of interviews that I’ve done. Here’s where we’re at really. I’ve said this before, I have no real interest in starting a wrestling company or a promotion, if you will, unless we can figure out a way quite honestly to come up with an interesting business model. Meaning, to do it differently not only from a creative point of view but from a business model point of view, to do it differently than one would expect you would launch a traditional wrestling promotion.”

- When asked if there was any truth to the idea that Jerry Jarrett may have been responsible for the NWO idea: “Jerry lives in a creative matchbox. He knows Memphis wrestling and that’s all he’s ever known and for him or for anybody to suggest that Jerry Jarrett came up with the idea for the NWO quite honestly is pretty damn laughable. Listen, I’ve heard so many people try to take credit for the NWO and all of the positives, and here’s the interesting thing about looking back and having the perspective I do, because I know exactly how it came to be. I know exactly who I talked to about it because I didn’t talk to too many people about it…like Kevin Nash and Scott Hall didn’t really have any idea what I was doing as I was doing it, they didn’t know up until the day before that Hulk Hogan was going to be the third man, they didn’t find out really until the morning of. But I’ve listened to, I’ve heard Terry Taylor try to take credit for it, I’ve heard Kevin Sullivan try to take credit for it, I can’t even remember the number of people I’ve heard try to take credit for the good things that happened during that time.”

- On Hulk Hogan vs Steve Austin: “Do I think it would be a great match? I think on paper anybody who’s a wrestling fan would love to see that. On paper. But in reality, in today’s environment unless the match was part of an ongoing, slow build that played itself out on television, you know in kind of a longer way built up over a period of a couple months, on Raw, I’m just not sure it would make any sense creatively. I don’t think in today’s environment you can take two guys as big as Steve Austin is and as big as Hogan is and as big as those names are, I just don’t think you can throw two big names in a big match and expect it to have the kind of impact that one would think that kind of match would have. I think it would take, as big as those names are, it would take a lot of great storytelling and a lot of build up and a lot of exposure to get people really excited about seeing it and really buying into that story. That’s number one. Number two, do I think it will ever happen? No, I really don’t. And I don’t think it will happen for a couple of reasons, one is neither one of these guys need it, they don’t need it financially, and they don’t need it, and when I say ego wise, I don’t mean ego to sound negative, but both of these guy have been to the mountain top, a couple of times, in Hogan’s case, quite a few times. And at this stage in their lives, in order to make the kind of commitment and in order to pull off something of this magnitude, they would both have to be really excited to do it and really feel the need to do it, just from a performers point of view, and I don’t think either one of them are there. ”

- On Hogan’s desire to get back into the ring: “We have talked about it and we continue to talk about it and I think if the right situation presented itself, and I don’t know what that situation is by the way, I’m not trying to hide anything. I think anybody, whether you’re a rock star or a wrestler or a boxer, anybody that’s been a performer, been in the limelight, nobody ever wants to look at themselves and go “you know what, that portion of my life is completely over.” So there’s always a part of people who are competitive people who have been there, people who have that drive to get them there in the first place, there’s always a desire to do it one more time. But there’s also the realization that if you’re gonna do it one more time it has to be for the right reasons and it has to be the right situation. And we continue to talk about what that right situation is, so I wouldn’t rule it out for Hulk. He’s the type of guy that if he makes up his mind that he’s gonna get back in the ring he will get himself in shape. He has been working out pretty hard lately he will do the things that he needs to do to be able to get in the ring and put on a show. Do I think it’ll ever happen again? I think there’s a possibility, but again there has to be an exact right situation.”

credit: wrestlezone.com

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