Figured we could use a fresh start and Oak27 wanted to lock in the prediction series' card on Thursdays. I can't imagine the card will change much since there are 11 matches scheduled.

Here's the google doc for the predictions:

http://tinyurl.com/hvdbotm

Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) vs. Randy Orton
Finn Bálor vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE Universal Championship
Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE World Championship
John Cena vs. AJ Styles
Rusev (c) (with Lana) vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE United States Championship
Sasha Banks (c) vs. Charlotte for the WWE Women's Championship; Dana Brooke is banned from ringside
The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) (c) vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson for the WWE Tag Team Championship
Enzo Amore and Big Cass vs. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens
The Miz (c) (with Maryse) vs. Apollo Crews for the WWE Intercontinental Championship
Cesaro vs. Sheamus, First match in Best of Seven Series
Carmella, Becky Lynch and Naomi vs. Natalya, Eva Marie and Alexa Bliss Six-woman tag team match

1. The other singles titles almost assuredly won't change hands.

2. They're really keen on Balor and I don't think they want the Demon K̶a̶n̶e̶ King losing in his debut.

3. Rollins can take the loss and look fine.


Still though, Rollins is their stalwart. You can have any face chasing him and it'll be fun. Balor could also have an even bigger moment if he wins it later, so they may want to delay his push just a little bit. I just think the Demon character and Finn himself need a lot more fleshing out on the big stage, but I don't think they see it that way. Plus if I'm starting a title lineage I want to go with a guy who is already on track to be an all-time great.

and I agree, I don't see any other title changes hands except the Tag belts. I can see Reigns winning but by DQ or count out or something.

and all the Raw-brand gold (and copper?) is basically held up in Rollins and the Club coming out of the show

>and all the Raw-brand gold (and copper?) is basically held up
>in Rollins and the Club coming out of the show

a lot of people think Rollins' "crosshairs" shirt was a signal he'd team up with the BC. that would take more long-term planning than they typically do though.

sidenote: i've always been a fan of the current tag belts, but a lot of people hate them. if they were in gold they'd be better, but i like the spartan helmet design.

>sidenote: i've always been a fan of the current tag belts, but
>a lot of people hate them. if they were in gold they'd be
>better, but i like the spartan helmet design.

One of the worst belt designs in history IMO.

>1. The other singles titles almost assuredly won't change
>hands.
>
>2. They're really keen on Balor and I don't think they want
>the Demon K̶a̶n̶e̶ King losing in his debut.
>
>3. Rollins can take the loss and look fine.
>
>
>Still though, Rollins is their stalwart. You can have any face
>chasing him and it'll be fun. Balor could also have an even
>bigger moment if he wins it later, so they may want to delay
>his push just a little bit. I just think the Demon character
>and Finn himself need a lot more fleshing out on the big
>stage, but I don't think they see it that way. Plus if I'm
>starting a title lineage I want to go with a guy who is
>already on track to be an all-time great.

I think we get one heel champ and one face for the two big belts. Good thing is...they can go about that in a few ways. But I'm currently guessing we get overpowered Demon Balor as face champ for a bit and a heel on smackdown to counter the allegedly super face authorities. Right now, I'm going with 'Ziggla cheats in some way to beat Ambrose' and shenanigans ensue. My alt is Ambrose starts pouring on more of the Indy crazy and turns heel on Ziggla. Aka Ziggla would just be a tool used to turn Ambrose and get us ever closer to that inevitable Shield reunion. Either one could be fun to me. And they both could use a turn to help them get around their shaky offense.

I THINK I added my entry to the Google sheet. Good looking out. I went a little heavy on the 'weird' picks but I have that feeling about this card. I'm guessing they'll skew new where they feel they can (except Crews).

New day is losing right? Right? There's no way they see the fall holidays still holding the titles, right? Right? They can totally say 'booty' and be absurd for crowd enjoyment without the belts. It won't kill their merch sales too much either I'd guess. Anderson and Gallows have been one wrong loss away from Vaudevillain/Ascension status for months now. If it's goin down, let's get it ova wit.

I still can't see Brock losing to Orton tho. I just don't see it. I see a slew of almost rko situations breaking up what is mostly another Brock beatdown. I'd love to see Orton suplex city it up on Brock for a piece of the match. That would be fun to see.

Roo Roo losing to Reigns is soooo possible but I don't want to believe that either. Rusev is the shit. I'll only be cool with it if he's somehow gonna end up in the big title picture soon.

>New day is losing right? Right?

i think so. it's time. they'll stay hot and possibly roll Big E back out to singles competition. I'm not usually a fan of putting the titles on someone to put them over, but it could help The Club. They got a decent rub from AJ and have been good on their own, but they need to look more dominating.

>I still can't see Brock losing to Orton tho.

I can see it, but I'm not ready to pick it. They like to punish PED users and an Orton win will help Smackdown's prestige. I don't think they have Brock lose to another old guy though.

>
>Roo Roo losing to Reigns is soooo possible but I don't want to
>believe that either. Rusev is the shit. I'll only be cool with
>it if he's somehow gonna end up in the big title picture
>soon.

I just refuse to think it's time for Reigns' big redemption. I think they get Lana involved so that Reigns doesn't eat a clean pin, but Rusev is such a force I'd like to see him win legit against a good opponent.

On top of the 11 matches we have 4 bonus questions to give a total of 15 picks, The 4 bonus questions are:

1) What will be the opening match of the main show? (Not sure if there is a preshow or not, but whatever the first match of the official SummerSlam event is what you are guessing)

2) Not including the Universal Title, how many titles will change hands?

3) Will a member(s) of the Wyatt's interefere in the match. Is so do they attack Dean, Dolph or both? (This is for DURING the match, bell to bell)
- No intereference
- Yes, Dean
- Yes, Dolph
- Yes, Both

4) How many RKOs will Randy Orton hit on Brock Lesnar during their match (bell to bell)

they teased an Orton/Bray feud the other day and that was something I didn't know I wanted until they had a stare down. I like how they're having the wrestlers interact with each other even when they're not directly feuding. it makes sense, it adds another layer to the match, and it makes sure your feuds don't become too stale before the PPV even happens. Even if he doesn't come into play I think having Bray on the fringes makes the title feud even better.

they will always need at least several people to be involved in multiple angles at once.

Kinda funny that they delayed Reigns' suspension to work around it (and possibly did the same for ADR this week) but she has a match in a few days and they don't care. Then again, she's a heel who keeps refusing to wrestle so it does play into her gimmick.

edit: I'm not one of those guys who thinks everything is a work, but it'd be hilarious if they did this just so she wouldn't wrestle for another month. Comes back in the fall and has new excuses. Draw this out for as long as possible cause I love the entrance and I don't care about seeing her in the ring.

where smoke... fire..

There's got to be a story about how Paige and ADR get popped at the same time that we won't hear until one of them retires and ghostwrites a book...

In my head it also helps to add Eva Marie to the scene.

he's ripped to the gills right now.

This could be the seeds being planted for a Shield reunion vs. Balor Club explosion at Mania.

*this is based on if the winner of RR can choose what belt to go after thus making wrestlers able to change shows and HHH is back and trying to gain power away from Foley*

-Rollins wins at SS and both look strong and tell great in-ring story.

-Rematches where Balor get close but no cigar and gets frustrated. Gets one win though, but by DQ. Rollins realizes Balor is legitimate threat.

-Gallows/Anderson shows off tag belts to Balor and extends favor. Balor refuses at first. G/A starts attacking Rollins and Balor doesn't condone it, but doesn't stop it either. This happens for weeks then Reigns makes the save finally. Rollins refutes Reigns the first time. The second time G/A was about to injure Rollins then Reigns makes save. Rollins softens up.

-Belt changes hands at Series with Balor Club forming and double turn succuessful. HHH comes back and tells Seth he isn't the future anymore. Title rematch on Raw, Balor retains with the help of G/A and The Authority. Reigns makes save.

-HHH vs Rollins HITC at RR. G/A interferes, Rollins beaten to bloody pulp. Reigns tries to make save but gets beat as well before RR match.

-In RR match Reigns is first and a now belt-less Ambrose is second. Still good friends they look out for one another in the match. When they are the last two left Aitch sends G/A out to take them out, but unsuccessful. Aitch starts walking to the ring and Rollins takes him out. Ambrose bests Reigns and says he'll make his decision on which belt "sometime next week".

-Aitch makes a 3 on 2 match the next night at RAW cause he knows Ambrose is gonna choose to go after the Raw Belt (I refuse to call it that tragic name) so he tries to beat it to the punch. Ambrose doesn't show up keeping the match at 3 on 2, but R/R wins.

-Ambrose chooses SD belt, but admits he liked what he saw and realizes his buddies need him but the chase for gold has consumed him. And wants his WM moment bad.

-Reigns/Rollins challenge G/A for the tag belts on Raw and win causing momentum to be on their side with WM coming up. Aitch will announce Balor's opponent later on Raw's final segment. Daniel Bryan is at Raw to "deliver a message to Foley". Foley sees message...thinks on it...shakes Bryan's hand and signs sheet of paper.

-Aitch lets G/A leave to calm down as they will get their rematch at the Feb. PPV leaving him and Balor only there to announce the opponent. Right when they're about to do it, the Shield's music hits and all three are coming out the crowd. They step in the ring and say only one of us are left with no belt and Aitch notes that Ambrose chose SD, then Foley and DB comes out. Noting how both of them had been screwed by HHH in the past they're returning the favor and made a trade sending Ambrose to SD for Cesaro and Neville and Ambrose is now the new #1 contender.

-Preferring not to wait Ambrose wants the match at the Feb. PPV and wins now setting up a six man tag main event at WM with Balor Club w/HHH in their corner vs. Shield w/Foley in theirs. Stipulation: Balor Club wins, belts change hands and Foley steps down and HHH has duel role as COO and commish. Shield wins HHH has no backstage say anymore (kayfabe of course)

Shield wins...breakup comes and we get the SummerFest triple threat that should have been this year.

I know its holes and stuff in there and things that didn't make sense as I was writing it lol, but I think it could work.

>Figured we could use a fresh start and Oak27 wanted to lock
>in the prediction series' card on Thursdays. I can't imagine
>the card will change much since there are 11 matches
>scheduled.
>
>Here's the google doc for the predictions:
>
>http://tinyurl.com/hvdbotm
>
>Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) vs. Randy Orton
>Finn Bálor vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE Universal
>Championship
>Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE World
>Championship
>John Cena vs. AJ Styles
>Rusev (c) (with Lana) vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE United
>States Championship
>Sasha Banks (c) vs. Charlotte for the WWE Women's
>Championship; Dana Brooke is banned from ringside
>The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) (c) vs. Luke
>Gallows and Karl Anderson for the WWE Tag Team Championship
>Enzo Amore and Big Cass vs. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens
>The Miz (c) (with Maryse) vs. Apollo Crews for the WWE
>Intercontinental Championship
>Cesaro vs. Sheamus, First match in Best of Seven Series
>Carmella, Becky Lynch and Naomi vs. Natalya, Eva Marie and
>Alexa Bliss Six-woman tag team match

Tna is at least mildly watchable again. It's still tna so don't get too crazy with expectations, but there's some decent stuff. Also, Matt and Jeff are absurd and hilarious. If they manage to make The Decay enjoyable, they should win awards.

NXT is in transition but they still can deliver with basic character building and high end rasslin.

CWC continues to be a grand thing that is going even better than I imagined it would go. Crazy good matches await us.

My current favorite champion lost his belt at the ROH PPV... Adam Cole kicked out after Lethal Injection...FOH

I knew it, and I was there at NXT Dallas for it live, but seeing it in Barclays instead of an NXT arena is the nail in the coffin.

Get him on the main roster and start making money, he has that natural charisma that will have him as their biggest star in no time.

They're singing this dudes theme music 10 minutes into the match still.

>I knew it, and I was there at NXT Dallas for it live, but
>seeing it in Barclays instead of an NXT arena is the nail in
>the coffin.
>
>Get him on the main roster and start making money, he has that
>natural charisma that will have him as their biggest star in
>no time.
>
>They're singing this dudes theme music 10 minutes into the
>match still.

Frank Ocean adjace showed up and played that intro and I knew it was even more on than I expected.

Nak is the shit man. He's already had a whole main event run in new Japan with a crazy catalog of killer matches. Him and AJ just went to town earlier this year for instance. And you awreddy know. AJ Styles is so dope right now that wwe mentioned tna on their air. Anyway, Nak may consider nxt a bit of a rest. But hey...it's clear they get how over he is. Now they just need to be ready for him to take over whenever they stick him on the main roster. He's just perfectly weird. And if anyone wants to front on him, it's over when the knees come out.

Those crowds at nxt specials are there for the rasslin and you can feel it. Oh and these shows are good even when there's dudes on the show who have gimmicks that aren't working.

Lazy side note: Steff 2016 is milfery. Steff around the early to mid 00s tho? Lawd. It's easy to forget.

Evolve always puts on a great show and they mix in people from all over. Catch them if they come to your area. Place was packed and muggy as hell but I always kinda love that. It makes the crowd go nuts. I was trolling Sabre Jr. hard. It was a blast. Cody's doing well btw. He's gonna be bigger in the indies.

I was nervous for NXT cause they had to live up to last year with a recently depleted roster, but they delivered. Ember Moon's finisher was insane. Those Shinuske and Roode entrances were so much fun. Main event felt a little cut short, but I can't complain with the results. Match of the night was the tag titles. I was really hoping for Ciampa to turn. They teased it so hard.

I was there yesterday at Barclays...my boys took me for my birthday

Nakamura set the crowd ABLAZE. Samoa Joe busted his ass, but I get why he had to drop the title

Roode vs. Cien match was good, Roode is hilarious, but his finisher was weak.

BOTH women's matches were great!

And like you said, the tag match was unbelievable

>Evolve always puts on a great show and they mix in people
>from all over. Catch them if they come to your area. Place was
>packed and muggy as hell but I always kinda love that. It
>makes the crowd go nuts. I was trolling Sabre Jr. hard. It was
>a blast. Cody's doing well btw. He's gonna be bigger in the
>indies.
>
>I was nervous for NXT cause they had to live up to last year
>with a recently depleted roster, but they delivered. Ember
>Moon's finisher was insane. Those Shinuske and Roode entrances
>were so much fun. Main event felt a little cut short, but I
>can't complain with the results. Match of the night was the
>tag titles. I was really hoping for Ciampa to turn. They
>teased it so hard.

Aw man sweet! I know that had to be fun. It seemed like the whole crowd was in the hands of the tag dudes. AKA they executed to perfection. The near falls were perfect without just doing the 'finisher kickout' thing that we're all basically numb to now.

I seriously need to catch a NXT special in-person. Those things are made for rasslin nerds like me.

he was messed up

they got me!

Brock and Conor...c'mon...

https://www.facebook.com/complexUK/videos/511443419065505/

...but maybe it was Conor

Good turnout so far with 8 completed predictions and a couple incomplete.

Won't stop tinkering with it

i made one last change to a different match (orton/lesnar) but yeah I've been back and forth for a few all week

or was it the opener of the main PPV?

Especially since they usually announce the preshow matches ahead of time anyway

Enzo/Cass v. Y2JKO is official Opener.

No way these 2 didn't open the show in NY for that easy pop

But figured they'd save the potential dethroning of the year long tag Champs for at least the middle of the night.

a couple of times...but if I change it and I was right the first time, I'd kick myself.

without nearly breaking their neck. Its time to nix that spot before one of them legitimately hurts themselves.

i love ya sasha, but you don't have to die. no more suicide dive. reign in the other stuff.

>i love ya sasha, but you don't have to die. no more suicide
>dive. reign in the other stuff.

Lawd yes. I get so scared for her every time I see a big spot brewing.

I was terrified of a flub when I got the feeling that the top rope rana was coming.

But man look here, these women's matches involving mostly the horsewomen are in a historic place for US soil rasslin. Sara Del Rey is on the scene bringing pride to people's families with what she has done.

I can't wait to watch them wrestle for the next decade.

Damn, that sucks. She's so good, but I can't always enjoy the matches as much because I'm scared she's going to get hurt. She's gotta cut some of the more dangerous stuff out.....she doesn't need it anyway. She can put on great matches without it, and it's her charisma that's special and really sets her apart.

Cena is incredible. That last shot of the armband seemed a bit weird, right? Like a "he's retiring" shot or something. He's not retiring right now, is he?

Never Give Up armband in ring?

>Never Give Up armband in ring?

Who knows...maybe something sneaky, deep, and/or awesome is coming. Or maybe not. Or maybe Jern is finna take some time off.

Cena showed a mountain of ass in that match for AJ. It was pretty damn sweet to see it happen. He gave more love to that big Super AA kickout than some folks have given to table spots.

Summerfest is the night for Cena putting folks over in some way shape or form. This is like 4 of the last 5-ish. Styles, Rollins, Brock, and Brian.

This is yet another spot where Cena could go into 'getting old but not cool with falling off just yet' mode and the grand heelery that could be a grand gift in our lives. But I'll stop. Dude laid down for AJ in a 90s All Japan way. AKA he got his entire offense kicked out of and then lost.

Super pumped that Nikki is back too. She brings some nice depth to the women's division on Smackdown, too.

They get how much people hate her and how bad she is in the ring, so why not build up her heat even more simply by never letting her wrestle.

It's just another of the little things they are doing recently that seem to show they all of the sudden get it.

>They get how much people hate her and how bad she is in the
>ring, so why not build up her heat even more simply by never
>letting her wrestle.
>
>It's just another of the little things they are doing recently
>that seem to show they all of the sudden get it.

There's part of me that really hopes she's been training like crazy and she's gonna come out and beat the living shit out of people when she does get in the ring. Like, if she was just wrestling like Nikki Bella all of a sudden, that'd be such a great payoff to this current storyline.

They get how much people hate her and how bad she is in the ring, so why not build up her heat even more simply by never letting her wrestle.

It's just another of the little things they are doing recently that seem to show they all of the sudden get it.

They capitalized on her shortcomings and the 'go away' heat for her brilliantly. No hyperbole there either; I think they've used her brilliantly. They could take a similar approach with Reigns and draw nuclear heat.

Anyhow, I digress. Eva and Heath are neck and neck for some of the best mid card material since New Day popped.

This is A+ work with both of them. My boy and I popped big for the Eva bit and my wife looked at us like we were crazy.

She got it once I explained. Her entrance is must see tv.

Women's title and Cena-Styles were early. Us Title after both World titles?

lit short for litter cause that shit is fucking trash

Good swerve.

It's like they're out of ideas with the guy. They barely even build an angle around him anymore.

Assuming that was the actual finish - wtf?

Its clear now WWE is saying Lesnar doesnt operate in that world. So there is no way Lesnar was eating an RKO and taking a loss. The Don of the Game Vinny Mac -(C) Conner McGregor is a geniushaving Lesnar TKO Orton especially with that wicked elbow. Brock winning by TKO has a chance to garner more headlines, it protects Orton is that Lesnar is a legit threat...and makes Lesnar look like he could legit win any match at any time

>It's like they're out of ideas with the guy. They barely even
>build an angle around him anymore.
>
>Assuming that was the actual finish - wtf?

He's supposed to be this loose cannon dangerous monster. I think they got that part of it right, so his matches having jackass endings doesn't bother me so much.

If there's a problem now it is that his matches are the same thing ovah and ovah and he's basically never gonna lose. AKA it is the Hogan problem re-casted.

But more than that, he's giving less and less to his opponents. Meanwhile, dudes are having to show hella ass for him in order for his matches to not be terrible affairs. At this point, even that is beginning to not be enough.

It just makes the whole issue of him basically never being around all the worse too. He's making money, WWE agreed to it, he's an attraction, WWE must think that it is worth it, blah, blah.

I'm guessing the long game is that he finally gets beat by someone and it 'makes them'. Right now, it needs to be Roo Roo, Rollins, or KO. Otherwise, folks are gonna shit all over it.

>It's like they're out of ideas with the guy. They barely even
>build an angle around him anymore.
>
>Assuming that was the actual finish - wtf?

But after a match order that didn't flow at all and a US title match that didn't even start, it didn't have the desired "oh shit" effect.

Thought I'd be ranking that among match of the year but it really didn't come off like I imagined.

Also kinda disappointed in Ziggler/Ambrose - thought they'd have a great outing too but again, I found it fell a little short.

Stunned that Charlotte won but I may have to give it to them for best match of the night - they were incredible and I can't wait to watch again, along with Cena/AJ.

Worst booking has to go to the tag titles - Jon Stewart's inclusion was weird and his interference at the end was ridiculous.

I genuinely can not believe that Ranallo has sat down and counted the amount of suplexes that Brock has delivered throughout SummerFests?!?! Has he counted them per PPV, per year... does he know how many suplexes Brock has delivered throughout his entire career?!? Stats gone crazy.

>Thought I'd be ranking that among match of the year but it
>really didn't come off like I imagined.

But idk if I can even properly judge a Balor match at this point. The first time I saw the entrance I was wowed, now I don't really care about the demon.

>Also kinda disappointed in Ziggler/Ambrose - thought they'd
>have a great outing too but again, I found it fell a little
>short.

Something about it was just flat from the beginning and they never recovered.

>
>Stunned that Charlotte won but I may have to give it to them
>for best match of the night - they were incredible and I can't
>wait to watch again, along with Cena/AJ.

I was too worried about Sasha to enjoy, but Cena/AJ deliver each time.

>
>Worst booking has to go to the tag titles - Jon Stewart's
>inclusion was weird and his interference at the end was
>ridiculous.

ugh. It's like they have a dartboard of things they think Brooklyn will pop for and they keep hitting Jon Stewart.

Read that the title change was booked a month ago.

What a weird last hour.

SummerSlam Correct Predictions (also current leaderboard)
Jimavel - 10
Oak 27 - 9
pretentious_username - 9
Af-1 - 9
Y2Flound - 7
Selassie I God - 7
Great1 2k7 - 5
Max_Ptah - 1

Most Predictable Match: Miz defeating Crews (7 out of 8 people guessed correctly)
Least Predictable Match: Heel divas defeating Face divas (1 out of 7 people guessed correctly, 1 left blank)

Next event: Backlash

I checked out the rest of your predictions and a lot of them were the same as mine and I legit sighed out a "fuck" out loud. 1 out of 14 is going to be tough to beat.

I just said fuck it and enjoyed the rest of Summerslam lol

This was one of the most unpredictable PPVs in a really long time - so many of those matches could have gone either way.

Makes sense.

Orton's had concussions before right? This company is so stupid, lol.

I'm just gonna focus on the Lesnar shit because that trickles down. It's like everything was horrendous- it never is- and maybe I'll post up about the other matches later, but there's just so much "blah" in this.

The match went exactly as expected until the finish. This was full blown parody. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, Brock is booked WAY too dominant and it hurts everyone involved. That includes Lesnar.

Lesnar destroying everyone in his path like they are child’s play not only makes his opponents look extremely weak, it makes him look like he’s fighting tomato cans and reinforces how weak WWE wrestlers are compared to ‘legit’ combat athletes.

To me Lesnar’s dominance looks more impressive if he has credible opponents who can give him a run for his money. That would send the message that he’s actually beating great competition instead toying with these fake sports entertainers and create genuine excitement and anticipation for a Lesnar match as opposed to a mere novelty act. I’m sure plenty of people enjoy watching him dismantle every potentially credible foe on the roster, but I think they’d enjoy it far more if a. every match wasn’t the exact same and b, he actually appeared vulnerable to another badass.

Randy Orton should have been booked to be that badass. I would have put Orton over after an intense hossfest with a plan fir the follow up, but that’s another problem: even if he went over, WWE booking would have put him over on a fluke after getting beaten halfway into a coma. Brock can win all these matches and still give these guys some shine in the process. Brock doesn’t need to lose in order to make guys look like something more than prison pussy. And no, sorry, getting an RKO on the table doesn’t change anything. Getting a brief hope spot doesn’t make this any less egregious and doesn’t count as giving Orton any shine. For the record, Orton could be anyone and the problem is the same.

Compounding this fuckery was the addition of Shane. Because, hey, if we need anything it’s MOAR MCMAHON. Seriously, I used to love Shane’s matches. Still love those old garbage matches and love his old high spots. That fit the chaos of the era and the McMahon Invasion made sense in the larger scheme of that particular product. Seeing him get involved in 2016 does exactly what Brock does: take the focus away from the actual workhorses and puts the spotlight squarely on a guy who doesn’t make anyone else better off for his presence.
Yeah yeah yeah, we got a brand split, new title, new indy smark champs, blah blah blah: Just like I said during the post-mania “New Era” refresh, the product is little more than a new paint job on the same creaky old house.

I can easily parlay my disdain for Lesnar into the Ziggler/Ambrose match. This is what happens when you spend years fighting the tide of fan favor with guys who aren’t the corporate pick: NOBODY GIVES A FUCK. I wanted a Ziggler win but even if that happened, so what? It would have been a lukewarm moment. They absolutely should have ran with him after Survivor Series and let Roman chill. Both guys would have been better off. That’s not hindsight either. It was crystal clear at the time.

I listen to all these podcasts about the WWE writing team and how grueling that schedule is and I wonder what the fuck everyone does all goddamn day, up to and including the master of that universe. What the fuck does Vince do all day? Because there’s no fucking way this is the end result of 70 hour work weeks. Does Vince have Brock come in and do the Brock Bounce all day? Does he call Reigns into his office to put on his contact lenses and cock his fist and howl for three hours straight? What the fuck do these guys actually DO?

I’ve heard so much about how these meetings go and the schedule and all that and everyone involved should be ashamed of their output. Hunter and WWE Stans can makethose cute little “how’s your promotion doing?” all day and twice when the subs come in, but any objective observer can see that this company is coasting on the fumes of past greatness and brand loyalty. Vince is basically Dixie Carter with a more opportunistic timeline.

There’s some good right now, some bad, but ultimately most of this is just plain “blah”. 12 man tag matches?

For those who say not to watch, to watch something else, why do I still watch, etc, I’ve already said it. Brand loyalty. There’s just enough to keep me coming back here and there and the 9.99 a month allows me to visit the Ghosts of Greatness past while I watch Vince bury that legacy in real time.

I said to myself "Cold Truth is throwing everything at his TV right now" lol


But yeah, Brock's schtick is getting old to me now. I'm wondering is that how the match really was supposed to end. Both seemed stiff and its almost like Brock was pissed Randy didn't let him set his legs on that DDT. And as mentioned early Randy wasn't helping Brock on those early suplexes. That match was all around sloppiness whether it was planned or not.

As far as all of SS, everyone not named Cena, Styles, Charlotte, and Banks did little to entertain me. Balor/Rollins was ok, but it didn't have what Cena/Styles had. And the dud after the build up of Zigs/Dean was a disappointment for me.

>I said to myself "Cold Truth is throwing everything at his TV
>right now" lol

lol shit I wish. I just sat there with the disappointed Ziggy face.

>As far as all of SS, everyone not named Cena, Styles,
>Charlotte, and Banks did little to entertain me. Balor/Rollins
>was ok, but it didn't have what Cena/Styles had. And the dud
>after the build up of Zigs/Dean was a disappointment for me.

My biggest pop was the Eva Marie bit. Such a perfect moment.

Does Vince have Brock come in and do the Brock
>Bounce all day? Does he call Reigns into his office to put on
>his contact lenses and cock his fist and howl for three hours
>straight? What the fuck do these guys actually DO?

lol

woulda been good to have brock do the favors, not a fucking bloody "TKO" squash on a made guy.

None of the booking was bad until it was all put together and they should've seen that. Enzo/Cass lose, okay maybe they're keeping people guessing or want to balance face/heel wins? Then the Women's title happens too early and also sucks the air out of the room. Cena/Styles was also too early and the 2 World titles took a backseat to the US Title and a recently disgraced fighter, with both of those matches ending weird. I think they both could've popped the crowd if they were on earlier. I know they were nervous about Balor's big win ending the show, but there's no other choice to me.

And it just occurred to me that they let NXT show them up for the 2nd year in a row AFTER they took half their talent. Embarrassing.

>And it just occurred to me that they let NXT show them up for
>the 2nd year in a row AFTER they took half their talent.
>Embarrassing.


I mean No Way Jose had what, the 4th best entrance of the weekend? lol, that cant happen.

You hear the greatness of the record, but the song order just didn't make sense and takes away from how good it could be. So you keep the songs as intended but fix the order so it could flow better. This was that case with SS.

i honestly got bored after the 87th false finish in cena vs AJ (hell, not just this match but every match)

c'mon son.

entertaining though to see cena's psychology sway the heavily smark NYC crowd from absolute vitriol to golf-clap appreciation after the finish.

other than that...

- i really like reigns in his current IDGAF mean-streak iteration, but boy was that ever a flat response during his intro. almost charlie haas/del rio levels of quiet. but...the crowd seemed to wake up at the end.

- too many titles is deluding being a "champion". i'm losing track.

- "Bad Ass Billy Gunn to HBK: the Dolph Ziggler Anthology"

- someone please give the new play-by-play guy a xanax.

Seth has bodies

I hope that ha referenced tonight

copying his in ring style and now relinquishing a title due to injury.

Or each wrestler gets a designated long break or two per year (Masked Man had an article about this a while back). These people go all out for 300 days a year. It's not healthy.

She's always so comfortable out there.

She radiates confidence and charisma in a way rivaled by very few in the WWE right now and everyone in that category is a well seasoned, heavily traveled vetwran.

Owens. Zayn. Rollins. She's in that class IMO.

Oh and Bayley has a real shot at being a truly transecendent figure. She could easily be built to headline a major ppv. I honestly wouldn't be shocked if her and Sasha headlined Summer Slam next year.

Conversely Dana Brooke is absolute fucking trash.

she's had rough spots along the way but now she can cut a damn convincing promo. The best heels are the ones who say shit that's true but makes you mad. We all love Sasha, but Charlotte IS the best athlete in the division and that title just looks like it belongs to her. I think she's making the Flair persona her own rather than just a straight carbon copy of her dad.

>
>Conversely Dana Brooke is absolute fucking trash.

Got promoted WAY too early. I was never a fan, but she was doing fine in NXT. She just needed more work. I'm mostly baffled at how she screws up interferences and saves. You have ONE job.

Will still have the network. Gonna miss my baseball tho

I can’t swipe right now but here’s the gist:

Jericho went to Hayes to find out how much of what went down was a work. Apparently Hayes either didn’t answer or shrugged it off or something along those lines. Jericho said “this is bullshit”.

Brock was walking by and told Jericho it was none of his business and shit escalated with Jericho grilling him on what happened.

Supposedly Jericho got in Brock’s face and Brock fucking kissed him on the forhead and told Jericho to kiss him back and called him a pussy… Brock pushed Jericho at some point and said “kiss me or hit me, bitch”.

Anyhow Triple H and Vince got involved and broke it up. I’m probably missing some details and paraphrasing others but that’s the basics of the situation.

I’ve always regarded Jericho highly but that definitely elevates him for me. He don’t play. I know he had some beef with Goldberg back in the day and supposedly stretched him out.

Can’t wait for the fact and fiction of this to get sorted out though.

of Orton/Brock was a work so there was some confusion about it with the boys backstage. I think this one is on Vince and Co for not making it clear, but regardless, props to Jericho for standing up and being a true locker room leader.

TKO finish was planned but not the blood.

So my guess is Brock went harder than necessary. There’s no reason for bloodshed if you’re kayfabing those blows. Randy got a nasty ass cut in his head as a result. I doubt it was really supposed to go down the way it did.

Orton did tell Jericho he knew what was going to happen but I can’t imagine that hardway was planned with all the concussion issues, lawsuits, and the like.

Granted I’m pretty much done with Brock and see him as a net negative so I’m kind of pulling for Brock to fuck up and I want this to be a case where he fucked up. I also want to have my cake and eat it too because I hope Randy is ok.

they're a publicly traded company out in front on concussions and athlete well-being...

...except, like, sometimes?

If a guy like Frank Mir takes those elbows and gets gashed like that and finished, the Nevada State Athletic Commission shuts him down from competition for about 6 months.

Jericho is the phuckin man!!!


http://www.lordsofpain.net/news/wwe/Details_on_a_Backstage_SummerSlam_Incident_Between_Chris_Jericho_and_Brock_Lesnar.html

The finish to Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton at WWE SummerSlam went pretty much as planned but led to a big incident between Chris Jericho and Lesnar backstage.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, multiple sources report that Jericho came to the gorilla position as the match ended, apparently to find out exactly what happened and to see if Orton was alright. Jericho asked WWE producer Michael "PS" Hayes if that was the planned finish and Hayes wouldn't respond. Jericho then said, "That's bullshit."

Jericho's "bullshit" comment came just as Lesnar was returning backstage. Lesnar, thinking Jericho was talking about the match, called Jericho a "pussy," according to one version, or just said "shut up," according to another version, and for Jericho to mind his own business. They came face to face and had words. One version of the story says they were shouting at each other the whole time.

Lesnar reportedly pushed Jericho with his fingers. Jericho then did what was described as the "Rousey-Tate" forehead press. Another version of the story said Jericho shoved Lesnar into the wall. The two were then tangled up against the wall when Lesnar told Jericho to either punch him or kiss him. Triple H then jumped in and broke things up. The two went at it again but this time Vince McMahon broke it up. Jericho was then yelling about Lesnar and Vince told him that everything was a work, and to be professional.

Triple H reportedly told Vince that Lesnar started the fight, and that Jericho was just standing up for himself. No more words were exchanged but Jericho saw Orton's condition and got mad. It was noted that Jericho was concerned with Orton's health and safety, but Orton assured him that he knew what was going to happen.

the carnage!

this sounds like some shit simmering over. I thought it was ballsy of Ambrose to shit on Brock's work ethic, and this is ten times crazier!

He fought Sheamus and and one of the Vaudevillians and every report was that he whooped that ass. The phrasing used on the Vaudevillain was "more of a destruction".

I don’t know who the guy is but someone on the roster with legit hands needs to tag his ass up.
Shinsuke maybe?

if it's Hunico i understand but if it's Mistico then LOOOOOOOOOL

.

you were born a woman"

This is the 3rd time I have heard Chris Jericho stepped to someone literally 2 times his size and was taking no shit. Hurricane Helms and Christian have both said in interviews Chris Jericho fucked Goldberg up and I can't recall who it was he got into with back in the wcw days. One of those random muscle head goons that they had wrestling back then.

Anyway don't fuck with Chris Jericho.

when asked by Byron in the weekly jobber interview why he was fighting Braun he responded:

"Because I like big, sweaty men"

my first reaction was his friends goaded him into saying something ridiculous like that or that he realized this was his shot to try and get his 15 minutes a la the guy from the first week of Braun's squashes... either way I was thinking there was no way he was scripted to give that response.

http://www.cagesideseats.com/2016/8/23/12598090/rumor-roundup-brock-lesnar-vs-shane-mcmahon-roman-reigns-wwe-universal-title-winner-more

"WWE is working toward a Shane McMahon vs. Brock Lesnar match, probably for next year’s Royal Rumble."

That's a perfect storm of godawful dogshit and perfectly believable. They've had a solid track record with their rumor round ups. Not spotless but steady.

On one hand I don’t want to see McMOAR any. Fucking. More. No more. For the love of sweet white baby jesus, PLEASE, no. Fall back on the McMahon shit. Please.

On the other hand I don’t want to see anymore of this horrendous Super Sayain 3 Fusion Dance Super Sayain God Broly Lesnar bullshit.

On the other hand (can one of you lend me a hand for this one? I only have two.) IF I HAVE to deal with the McMOAR!!! Bullshit, goddamnit, at least let me watch one of them get beaten to a bloody pulp.

On yet another hand (seriously, I only have two. Can one of you spot me?) If they’re set on continuing their current pattern of SS3FDSSG Broly turning every alpha on the roster into his own personal prison pussy, goddamnit, at least let a McMOAR join the harem.

With any luck Brock will hurt Shane bad enough that he retires from wrestling forever, but not enough that he suffers any real loss of enjoyment of life and lives long and prospers for his family.

If there’s a wrestling god out there, Brock will fuck Shane up bad enough to get fired and we never have to see him in a new WWE program ever again.

This hope, of course, is due solely to the fact that WWE seems dead set on giving us heaping helpings of McMoar at least once per quarter and a double dose of SS3FDSSG Broly six times a year and show no signs of shifting course. They’ve left us no choice and they must be stopped.

So who’s with me in praying to based wrestling white baby jesus for this to go down? You know, where two or more are gathered and all that shit. Together we can make a difference.

For going through Randy Orton, a multi-time champion and lock HOFer, Brock must face the big boss...Shane McMahon?

Sigh.

At least Shane will take an epic ass kicking.

They just keep going back to those wells and show no signs of stopping.

What's worse about this is I think there's a good chance that Shane gets more offense in than anyone since Hunter.

just to see the reaction it got. they've been known to do that. for instance, I don't think they were ever serious about Taker vs. Bong Slothman. they are capable of making this match and thinking it's the cat's pajamas, but i wouldn't worry too much yet.

There are definite leaks but I doubt much is done with the specific intent to gauge the reaction.

By most accounts Vince and Hunter both think very little of the opinion of just about everyone outside their bubble.

They've got a Steve Jobs Limited Platinum Edition Reality Distortion field based most of what I've read and heard.

I saw several reports that said the extremely bad reaction to the ideas of Strow for Broly or Taker ultimately steered them away, but I doubt it was leaked with the expressed purpose of market research.

I'm not saying it isn't possible. I'm hoping you're right and this was a red herring to get someone else into the mix. Personally I'm riding the Nakamura or Joe train for the role of Broly slayer and I'm hoping Joe debuts on SD tonight.

I don't think they care about complaints after a thing happens (and they're really flippant about it), but paying attention to what the internet says is an obsession for them. Usually that's only to have Steph shit on the smark opinion on Mondays, but floating ideas for feuds is a relatively harmless way of both working people (so they don't expect the actual feud) and gauging interest in something they think is out of left field. More often than not it gets a "wtf?" reaction and they don't go with it.

Cageside runs the numbers on their own rumors btw and after 6 months approximately half come true. It's my go-to site since it's well-organized and they don't publish every garbage rumor that comes across their desk, but I still take it all with a grain of salt.

So stupid.

I wonder if they are just trying to isolate him from the full-time roster. IE: 'since he's on the payroll and he has to rassle someone, put him with Shane'.

I mean really tho...he's such an ass. He's somewhat obviously in it for himself (in a way that is off-putting). He's giving up less and less every time out in terms of selling, bumping, all of that. The drug test stuff. His low appearance count/agreement. The 'I'll have blood in a match whenever I want' thing. And he's pretty much gonna main event whenever he shows up. If you've been working with nicks and bruises and maybe even flat out injuries and then you have to fluff the crowd for a dude like that, how many times does it take before you're kinda done with him...especially if his existence isn't exactly yielding you more dollars?

It is all of the shit Phil was talking about when he was ticked off. It may be worse. Jericho is a much better example of how to pull off the 'I'm here sometimes' thing.

Now, to be clear...I'm with you on the Brock. I'm borderline done with him. And I can't help but think WWE is out on him too.

BUT

I don't exactly hate Shane rasslin occasionally. At least he's 'there', he gives up a gang of ass without endangering his opponent, and no matter what, he's still pretty much 'just crazy ass Shane' doing stunts that no one else is logically expected to duplicate in 2016. Logically is the word. I can't help it if idiots expect full-time dudes to be Shane-ing it up every night more than they already are. There's so many dives to the outside on a rando rasslin show nowadays. We should tally them up. I'm guess there's roughly half a dozen per show.

Foley, for a while, had a much bigger impact to the wrestling landscape by comparison. Another thing with Shane...it ain't like HE'S winning a world title and then falling off the face of the earth for months at a time with the belt.


>http://www.cagesideseats.com/2016/8/23/12598090/rumor-roundup-brock-lesnar-vs-shane-mcmahon-roman-reigns-wwe-universal-title-winner-more
>
>"WWE is working toward a Shane McMahon vs. Brock Lesnar match,
>probably for next year’s Royal Rumble."
>
>That's a perfect storm of godawful dogshit and perfectly
>believable. They've had a solid track record with their rumor
>round ups. Not spotless but steady.
>
>On one hand I don’t want to see McMOAR any. Fucking. More.
>No more. For the love of sweet white baby jesus, PLEASE, no.
>Fall back on the McMahon shit. Please.
>
>On the other hand I don’t want to see anymore of this
>horrendous Super Sayain 3 Fusion Dance Super Sayain God Broly
>Lesnar bullshit.
>
>On the other hand (can one of you lend me a hand for this one?
>I only have two.) IF I HAVE to deal with the McMOAR!!!
>Bullshit, goddamnit, at least let me watch one of them get
>beaten to a bloody pulp.
>
>On yet another hand (seriously, I only have two. Can one of
>you spot me?) If they’re set on continuing their current
>pattern of SS3FDSSG Broly turning every alpha on the roster
>into his own personal prison pussy, goddamnit, at least let a
>McMOAR join the harem.
>
>With any luck Brock will hurt Shane bad enough that he retires
>from wrestling forever, but not enough that he suffers any
>real loss of enjoyment of life and lives long and prospers for
>his family.
>
>If there’s a wrestling god out there, Brock will fuck Shane
>up bad enough to get fired and we never have to see him in a
>new WWE program ever again.
>
>This hope, of course, is due solely to the fact that WWE seems
>dead set on giving us heaping helpings of McMoar at least once
>per quarter and a double dose of SS3FDSSG Broly six times a
>year and show no signs of shifting course. They’ve left us
>no choice and they must be stopped.
>
>So who’s with me in praying to based wrestling white baby
>jesus for this to go down? You know, where two or more are
>gathered and all that shit. Together we can make a difference.
>
>

They were banking on Finn coming in and immediately being the top face. With him out the 2 biggest singles faces on Raw are Zayn and Cesaro. Zayn will not be chasing a title soon and Cesaro is tied up with Sheamus. Everyone wants to cheer Rollins and boo Reigns. They're already doing it pretty much.

Ideally I'd like a KO win, but I don't think they pull the trigger just yet. Short of that I'd like to see KO and Cass take each other out after Jericho and Enzo do the same at ringside (with those spinning off into singles feuds), Reigns wins and goes full heel. Maybe the turn doesn't happen next week cause a fatal 4-way is a chaotic time to do it, but it's gotta happen soon.

SMH @ the Smackdown Tag Belts...

and the women's title looks dope as well.

my only gripe is calling them the smackdown tag titles and smackdown women's title. but what are ya gonna do.

The women's title is dope though.

the ugliest belts are the tag belts on both shows and the Universal belt

https://streamable.com/yvwz

Miz storms Talking Smack set and says he should be featured...DB says he doesnt respect Miz as a wrestler, calls him a coward..The Miz responds with

Miz: Let me tell you about a coward. Let me tell you about a guy who tells his WWE fans, people that he loves that he will be back - he PROMISES THEM - “I promise you, I will be back in one year’s time to claim this title.” But you didn’t, Daniel, did you? But I’m the coward. I’m the one who doesn’t love the fans.

Bryan: If they would let me come back, I would come back.

Miz: Oh you would? You love that WWE ring, you love wrestling. You love being right in that wrestling ring and you love wrestling, right? Well why don’t you quit? Why don’t you quit and go to the bingo halls with your indie friends, Daniel?

Renee Young: I think you need to calm... Hey. Hey. That’s not what this show’s about.

Miz: Let me and the GM have this. This is a great show, Renee, but we’re talking here. I need to talk to you real quick because the fact is you’re the one who calls me the coward but you’re the one that doesn’t get in the WWE ring again.



No! Don’t you walk away from me, Daniel. Don’t you walk away! I’m the one that loves the fans. I’m the one who loves everyone and everything. You’re the one that gets up and walks... every single time! You’re the coward!

it was aight. it ran about 30 seconds long tho.

I love his classic heel shtick, he's so perfect for the IC champ right now. Happy he continually stuck with it cos a few years ago it looked like he hit jobber status. Bow down to the Miz. Wouldn't be mad to see him re-enter the heavyweight title picture too!

Great spot - thanks for sharing it!

Best current champ IMO

I never thought it was possible after his limpdick first run (not all his fault but lame nonetheless)

But this kind of fire? Whew.

Including an epic mic drop!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8d4SLA4HYp0

Shoot, work, worked shoot, it doesn't matter. Both guys spoke the truth, and both guys cut deep. There's so much loaded history in what each one said and it's refreshing to see.

With all the attention this is getting, it has to hit the main show proper, right?

but this shit right here was forreal glorious. Miz murked the hell out of Bryan right there. I'm guessing it is one of those things that was worked but worked VERY well because they are both pros. Their history makes it even more fun.

It was super important to have someone like Miz call Bryan out about having to retire. If we're being honest, his retirement WAS at least partially because he wouldn't quit working a jackass style that his head and body in general wasn't cool with. He's basically this generation's Mick Foley except he didn't make an entire main event roster look amazing at the most important time of the company's recent history. He DID help push WWE more towards the indy and Japan dudes who will carry WWE through the next decade, so it isn't like he's just a blip. But hey...dude could've done rando kicks and Joshi submissions and we still would've loved him.

Of course, now it is time to see if WWE can let the follow-ups be as 'pure-looking' and not sterile as this was and go from there with making Miz a straight up star, but forreal this time.

>https://streamable.com/yvwz
>
>Miz storms Talking Smack set and says he should be
>featured...DB says he doesnt respect Miz as a wrestler, calls
>him a coward..The Miz responds with
>
>Miz: Let me tell you about a coward. Let me tell you about a
>guy who tells his WWE fans, people that he loves that he will
>be back - he PROMISES THEM - “I promise you, I will be back
>in one year’s time to claim this
>title.” But you didn’t, Daniel, did you? But I’m the
>coward. I’m the one who doesn’t love the fans.
>
>Bryan: If they would let me come back, I would come back.
>
>Miz: Oh you would? You love that WWE ring, you love wrestling.
>You love being right in that wrestling ring and you love
>wrestling, right? Well why don’t you quit? Why don’t you
>quit and go to the bingo halls with your indie friends,
>Daniel?
>
>Renee Young: I think you need to calm... Hey. Hey. That’s
>not what this show’s about.
>
>Miz: Let me and the GM have this. This is a great show, Renee,
>but we’re talking here. I need to talk to you real quick
>because the fact is you’re the one who calls me the coward
>but you’re the one that doesn’t get in the WWE ring
>again.
>
>
>
>No! Don’t you walk away from me, Daniel. Don’t you walk
>away! I’m the one that loves the fans. I’m the one who
>loves everyone and everything. You’re the one that gets up
>and walks... every single time! You’re the coward!

Who the fuck saw that coming?

I sure as hell didn't.

Go on, name something better on WWE tv than those three. I'll wait.

AJ? He may be phenomenal but he's no Heath Slater, BABAY!

Nah.

Broken Balor? We saw the *real* demon shove a nuclear truth bomb up Daniel Bryan's ass last night.

Nah.

The Boss? Bayley? Natural Selection? They totally pwn most of the male roster let alone the women, but nah.

All Red Everything, bitches. Even in her absence.

In fact.... holy shit. Eva and Heath. All Red Everything. Make Kane their enforcer. Hook 'em up. Make them a faction. That's a painfully awkward comedy combo for the ages.

Rock & Sock Connection? Sorry.

Glamazon & Santino? Honorable mention, but Nah.

ALL RED EVERYTHING.

I'm a genius. Make it happen, Vince, and I'll forgive you for this Brock Vs McMOAR bullshit. Seriously, that's genius. Brilliant. Glowing red brilliance.

PLEASE make that shit happen. It's genius.

I'm thinking going in the direction of someone who clearly could not get Eva in real life, that thinks Eva loves him, but clearly Eva is just using.

shit, how about a fellow man in red (sorta) in Erick Rowan? have him basically be her man slave, the ultimate friend zone, who she keeps making so her bidding while promising to "return the favor" but never does.

I dig the idea of an oddball All Red Everything faction where Eva is the "straight" player in the mix but that's a great idea for Rowen.

None of this would have happened if there had been no split (maybe Eva would actually?)

On top of those 3, Dolph was in a WHT match at SummerFest, Becky and Nattie are genuine contenders for their championship too. Good things, good things.

but the writing for Smackdown has been miles better than Raw so I can't complain.

Such an easy concept that they dropped the ball on.

World, IC, US, Tag and Womens champ show up on both shows, have feuds going on both shows. In a month where Ambrose is fighting a Raw wrestler at the PPV, SD has a #1 contendors match and next month Ambrose fightss that guy.

Same with all of the titles. It makes the champs seem more important, plus it also allows for mixing up rosters at anytime simply by having someone drop the belt and replace that wrestler on the roster. American Alpha beats the New Day, now New Day is on SD and Alpha goes to both shows. Then they lose to Enzo and Cass and are on Raw as Enzo and Cass go to both shows.

Nope, instead we have 15 titles and no idea which matters more.

We've seen it now where four (!!!) recent champs have had to relinquish belts because of injury: Daniel Bryan, Seth Rollins, Finn Balor and Sasha Banks. Forcing overworked champs to appear on both shows while juggling the creative teams just doesn't make sense... then why have a brand split at all?

It's a lot of belts all at once so it's a bit jarring, but ultimately this is what we wanted, right? Raise the ceiling so we can develop a ton of talented people all at once (and not be stuck with the depleted roster where Cena and Orton rotated the main event for months on end).

With the brand split (and appropriate titles for each) we get "competing" promotions that will hopefully raise each other's game. This also brings added value to the Network by introducing brand-specific PPV's. Shit-ton of programming aside, it's a pretty solid value for the cost and definitely a pioneer in this era of a la carte entertainment.

Like I said, they can have a Raw feud for a month or 2 while SD figures out the contender. Then after the PPV the champ shows up on SD and we see him there for a month or two.

I just think with the Tag and women's especially there is going to be such a drop off

I love American Alpha but Alpha vs Usos for the tag titles is not New Day vs The Club

I love the women on SD, but Carmella feuding with Alexa Bliss is not Sasha vs Charlotte.

It's great those people get the time on SD to get over, develop feuds etc...that's why the split exists. But I don't need to see multiple tag champs.

is that the rosters aren't fixed. There's enough women and tag teams to carry feuds until more NXT heads get called up. Carmella vs Alexa Bliss isn't Sasha vs Charlotte but Nikki and Becky are at the top and they are more than capable of putting on solid feuds. And the Usos are bland, but match quality won't be an issue with Smackdown's tag teams.

If they start blending the two brands now, that's going to set another lame precedent. There are two creative teams at work, let them do their thing with their own talent. Because we know that if they start blending Women and Tag Teams that Raw is going to get priority over Smackdown.... so again, why the brand split?

(rhetorical)

we just had a 4-hour summerslam, 3-hour RAW and 2-hour SD over three consecutive days.

that's a ton of programming to FFWD through to get to the good shit you mention. i watched an hour of RAW and it felt like three. i turned it off and went back to shark tank.

what am i saying? keep my attention with qualitative and concise programming, vince.

SD has all three of the aforementioned as well as American Alpha, where you can see a guy who is potentially the next big-time babyface to run the place ©, Jason Jordan.

This bit with DBry seems to have been huge on the internet so they have to capitalise on this. How would you do it?

because in this scenario, Bryan, the authority figure, is the one who wants "revenge" on Miz for his comments, but it's hard to book authority v. wrestler in that regard when the authority if the face. the only way to go about it is for bryan to keep trying to screw over miz so much that you start to sympathize with miz and turn on bryan, but bryan is the LAST person you are going to be able to pull that off with.

Is his situation that he can never actually wrestle another match? I've been wondering if this promo was about elevating Miz or paving the way for Bryan's one-off comeback match?

>Is his situation that he can never actually wrestle another
>match? I've been wondering if this promo was about elevating
>Miz or paving the way for Bryan's one-off comeback match?

He wanted to, and they basically paid him not to head out to the indies and kill himself. They can't be seen as caving to his desire to wrestle either, even of it's - pretty safe situation. Not with the lawsuits they have.

Many ppl don't mention the great work Shane Douglas did in ECW, but it was great, he was the ultimate heel insulted the ECW fans, other wrestlers, and claimed he was the best in wrestling.

So first I would move away from the A list actor stuff, keep the IC belt on him.

Next promo Have him list the names of the greats that have held the IC title, then say he is better than all of them. A he has done single more for the belt in x days (however days his reigns has been) that anyone has done in 20 years.

Another promo could is how he is living the dream of the fans and that is why they hate him, he started out as a fan, modeled himself into a headlining wrestler, married a hot wife and now is the greatest IC champ.

He could touch on some of that "safe soft wwe style" and flip and build off how it enabled him to live the dream for 10 years and counting.

That was a money promo and anyone familiar with Bryan beyond the show knows how scathing that truly was. Bryan cracked that door open and Miz kicked his fucking face in.

Bryan had a valid criticism but Miz had the perfect counter:

I do what I do in that way because it helps ensure I can do it every day.

Which translates not so loosely to:

“HOW THE FUCK DID YOUR APPROACH WORK OUT FOR YOU, MR. BRAVE AND BOLD? WHO IS STILL WORKING IN THAT RING EVERY NIGHT AND WHO IS PLAYING A SECOND FIDDLE AUTHORITY FIGURE?

WE’RE THE SAME AGE AND I’M STILL GETTING VALUABLE TICK BECAUSE I WORK THE WAY I WORK.

YOU’RE HALF A FUCKING INVALID WHO ISN’T ALLOWED TO WORK BECAUSE YOU’RE A LEGAL AND FINANCIAL LIABILITY BECAUSE YOU WORKED LIKE YOU WERE TRYING TO GET OVER LONG AFTER YOU GOT OVER AND WERE TOO STUBBORN TO TONE IT DOWN AND TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AND And and an………..”

And, well, he’s right. Love Miz or hate him, he’s one hungry motherfucker and managed to make himself valuable to WWE in several ways and has set himself up for longevity in a way that most guys don’t. Bryan freely admits to lying to his doctors over the years just so he can be cleared to wrestle that same style.

The problem with something like this Miz promo though: Bryan gave a hungry dude with a bat (ahem: great mic ability) an slow pitch softball and that dude smashed an out of the park homer.

We’ve seen Miz do quality mic work throughout his career so this wasn’t a surprise to me. In fact I was cool with his title run because I was such a big fan of his mic work.

The key here is whether or not they can capture what he did and bottle it without such a perfect pitch down the plate. On one hand, if it was a true shoot, they need to just give him a live mic. I think Vince trusts him immensely but if that was a true shoot Vince might be a little hesitant so who knows.

If it was a worked shoot or a work that got out of hand they probably already have something in mind for a follow up. I was thinking and realized Bryan has been taking shots at Miz on air since the draft so this could be 100% worked.

Still, I’d open with him and see how the crowd responds and have two plays set depending on the response. If they cheer him I’d have a worked shoot prepped with bullet points and take no prisoners. I don’t think you take this situation and just run with it, I think you feel out the crowd response and take a measured approach to work the crowd the right way.

My favorite thing about this is I genuinely don’t know if this is a work or not and really, is there anything more blissful as a smart wrestling fan than becoming a mark again? For now they can just take my money on the next Miz segment and I’m excited about that for the moment.

"Coward? F you and your crippled ass. I'm still here." <-- the gist of it

Bryan calling him a "coward" was the pitfall. Then he doubled down like "I used to use you as the example of bullshit." WOOPS.

If I recall, Miz really started to ascend as a top guy when he would come out and talk right before a commercial then he'd still be talking coming out of commercial. Obviously they trusted him then.

This is THE example of the kind of magic you can get when you just employ talent who's equipped with the right skill set. No scripts or dumb catch phrases.

It's exciting to see where this could all go. I like the idea of starting next Smackdown with Bryan in the ring giving a standard (non-Miz related) address and then Miz's music plays out. I imagine the crowd would go crazy. If they don't... then fail.

> My favorite thing about this is I genuinely don’t know if this is a work or not and really, is there anything more blissful as a smart wrestling fan than becoming a mark again? For now they can just take my money on the next Miz segment and I’m excited about that for the moment.


Yup. I've also said to both wrestling fans and non fans that wrestling is at its best when you don't know if it's real. I've been in and out the past couple years but holy shit it's been incredibly intriguing (again) lately.

2. Miz keeps insulting him regularly, pretty much every time he talks.

3. DB tries to find a challenger that will beat Miz and be an honorable champ for their brand. Miz beats each of them. Maryse cheats. He cheats. He just keeps finding a way to hang on to the belt. Goes on for a few months.

4. Bryan seemingly gives up. Shane starts booking the IC title matches.

5. Miz continues to insult him, saying he proved Bryan was the real coward.

6. A couple weeks before Rumble or Mania, Bryan says he's gonna have a mystery opponent that is his perfect surrogate. Someone he's scouted for a while rather than just throwing into the fire because he was pissed. The surrogate finally takes the title away. I'd book an undersized guy who can tell a story in the ring like Johnny Gargano*. Actually a few of the cruiserweights they have coming in would be good choices, but they're probably heading over to Raw.


*2 in 1: Gargano & Ciampa can debut on Smackdown as a tag team in a couple months. That'll give them both a chance to build. Once Johnny wins the IC title, Ciampa can turn on him. Everyone's already anticipating the turn. People will go nuts.

This is kind of nitpicky, but IMO, for them to have a segment to say goodbye and not mention ECW at all, claiming that WWE is home and without WWE there would be no Dudley Boyz is weak as hell. I could see it if WWE didn't own ECW, but c'mon...especially in NY...only way that it would be worse is if they were in Philly. Mention the Hardys but not ECW?

They call the fans their "Hardcore Family" but no actual namedrop for Paul. E or ECW when both are part of the "WWE Universe".

>This is kind of nitpicky, but IMO, for them to have a segment
>to say goodbye and not mention ECW at all, claiming that WWE
>is home and without WWE there would be no Dudley Boyz is weak
>as hell. I could see it if WWE didn't own ECW, but
>c'mon...especially in NY...only way that it would be worse is
>if they were in Philly. Mention the Hardys but not ECW?

I remember the Dudley's debuting in ECW...but WWE made them household names and they were retiring from WWE

So, we've got out final eight. Who do you think is gonna win it? Is it still looking like Ibushi or Sabre Jr.?

I was pleasantly surprised TJ Perkins advanced. I really like what I've seen of him during the tournament. And I like Rich Swan quite a bit.

Kota probably is the best but he's not signing, Americans in general aren't gonna get with Zach's style right away.

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

I got Kota but am pulling for Swann. I just watched some PWG stuff with him and he's so good.

I remember him and Tanaka, then him and Mr Saito. True legend...

Muraco was one of my favorite wrestlers of all time.

I could even deal with RomanCena...but not Cass

and for a second, I thought Owens won the belt. It was a great second.

>and for a second, I thought Owens won the belt. It was a
>great second.

A tremendous match on Raw for the Heavyweight belt. One where we will see a champion crowned and they are going all out with a PPV caliber match?

This is something that hasn't happened in so long, like a legit great title match on Raw that isn't just being used to have some dusty agenda finish*

*hopefully

The match was totally amazing until then...didn't ruin the match, but it was unnecessary IMO.

Only other way is to team him with Reigns which they wouldn't do

Just tired of Vince-esque influence

Who cares if it needed HHH to get involved, he did it in a way I never saw coming and that's all you really ever ask for from a great match.

God dammit I love it

>Who cares if it needed HHH to get involved, he did it in a
>way I never saw coming and that's all you really ever ask for
>from a great match.
>
>God dammit I love it

And of course I was doing a fantasy football draft instead of screaming like a jackass at Raw down the skreet. I'm the heavyweight champ of missing dope wwe shows. I'll never forget missing mania 17 due to general post-college brokenness.

Bs aside, whoooooooaaaaaaaa!

AGREED

Bravo to the WWE for that one

Make it fucking happen, guys.

Cause if that's the case I'm done hating on Vince because I fucking get it now.

Stale homoerotic imagery aside this is a mark the fuck out moment. Actually this whole week has been a Mark Out Week.

Shinske and Joe?
Balor winning the strap as the Demon?
Bayleys debut?
KEVIN STEEN winning the strap a week after Finn?

Oh and uh.....The fucking Miz of all people spitting a nuclear promo on Bryan in a way that made people excited for MIZ?

Yeah this is a good ass week.

BE MAD
____________________

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

He can be overly harsh at times, but if CT is gonna be this complimentary then we can't THEN pick on him. And in response to all of his points? Well, he's right across the board.

I HATE the continued cycle of low common denominator laziness they've been in for the last five years.

I loathe the over-reliance on trying to build The Guy at the expense of a really talented roster. I can't stand their inability and/or refusal to make everyone seem important the way they did back in that precious attitude era.

Example?

Shamus is one of the best big men they've had in ages. He's a Hoss of Hosses in terms of ring work and was just about the closest thing they had to a true strong style wrestler until Swag showed up. Him and Cesaro actually have dann good matches together.

They gave him an intense entrance worthy of such a wrestler. And yet the man is a goddamned joke. Dolph Ziggler? Ditto. And there's a long ass list after that.

They've finally pulled the trigger on some things and pulled then off well and I'll always pop for that. I love feeling worked. I like having to figure out how the pieces fit going forward and they pulled several golden rabbits out of their ass this week.

I'll applaud that as the such as I'll bitch and moan about McMOAR VS Super Saiyan God Broly Lesner.

____________________

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

his tweener steez in the ring and towards the boos is pretty good.

Most people want to like Reigns and agree that he is the future, but it was the shoving him down our throats, making him the new super Cena and ignoring the backlash that was making people so mad.

Some time in the upper midcard is the perfect thing for him, people will get back on board with him over time and be begging for him eventually.

He was super over in the Shield because he'd say "Believe in the Shield," and then nothing else until it was time to wreck shop. Strong, silent types can do big business. Just ask Matt Damon.

If he was super over, he would be right back in the main event, we've seen guys come back from violations and go right back to their spot, we've also seen them be fired after. It's all about what you're worth.

I think there is some punishment aspect to losing clean more than he ever had, but I also think it is part of the bigger message they are sending that they are listening to their viewers. In a world where Finn and KO get to be champ and Ziggler gets world title shots at PPV, it makes sense that Reigns is suddenly spending less time at the top.

The suspension just made it easy

Made man for life. Rollins MUST beat Hunter with the Pedigree.

I didn't watch but wish I had. Glad they did something legitimately unexpected.

The main belt on the flagship show of the biggest wrestling promotion in the world

1. Finn Balor
2. Kevin Owens

When they announced the name of the belt..everyone laughed and joked..then they unveiled the title..boos everywhere..in less than a month later..WWE got the ppl going gaga over the title.

are they wiping Finn clean from the history books?

They have people in the history books when they held the belt for 4 minutes

usually when something like that is mentioned multiple times in a night it's deliberate (for instance, they changed WWE World Heavyweight Champ back to WWE Champ overnight), especially from someone like Steph. I don't think this title lasts past 5 years, but it's still a little embarrassing for the first title reign to be less than a day.

That's absolutely amazing
____________________

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

Oh, and CM Punk I guess counts too.

The who's who of early-aughts Indie darlings has been a major part of WWE programming for a few years now. It's hard to believe and at times hard to remember given how bad the show can be. But yea it is unreal.

if you told me 5 or so years ago that that group of people would be doing anything important in wwe, i would have said there was no way of that happening.

on one hand, props to hunter or whoever else got the fed past the indie stigma.

on the other hand, this shows how watered down the shows are. if you boiled it down to a good 2 hours, maybe 3 if you want to include nxt, per week, you have some solid, classic wrestling.

I've been PPV show only for months. No Raw or Smackdown. So Ambrose won the title. And then they just created a new title and made it the "main title", and the existing title got demoted?

They are working to make both shows equal and in an ideal world they would be, but Raw generally just carries more respect to it

I'm so happy for KO! I really hope he gets a good run.

but i did.

nice swerve.

i just needed HHH to GTFO of the ring after the pedigree. don't hang around and co-celebrate to close the show. walk up the ramp, stare back at the ring/rollins, and disappear into the back. kinda usurped KO's deserved shine.

Woof, that was bad. I didn't even know what the goal was.

one of the rare times a Heyman segment was a miss

...Story line is HILARIOUS.....Money.....Keep it going.....

New sheet is up to date with the card so far https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RZgRvUsyrRwPDsnlMGaeo3ymxXn0duAuyi0Soi5Urnc/edit?usp=sharing

We the children of the Light, you know what I mean?
That's why I'm hating on the darkness like Paula Deen
Cause in my hood they masked up like it's Halloween
We going hard for the Rock, but we not some fiends
- Andy Mineo

at the end the winner will be decided between two people, the person with the most points and the person with the best guess percentage. all you gotta do to quality for the latter is participate in at least 6 of the 9 PPVs between SummerSlam and WrestleMania. i figured there would be people who had a busy weekend or just forgot to fill in their guesses any given month so to keep everybody "in it" I gave some wiggle room for those scenarios.

Sorry Max...LOL <<< makes it OK

I remember when I used to wait for the issue to come out *yes, I'm old).

This year's top 500 in wrestling came out according to Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) and the top spot was.....Roman Reigns.

After recovering from my astonishment, I checked down the list...as usual, some surprises, some disappointments. Take a look...

http://www.profightdb.com/pwi-500/2016.html

Top 10;

Reigns
Okada
Balor
Styles
JAY LETHAL!!!!
K.O.
Nakamura
Rollins
Ambrose
sigh...Cena



It also lets you look back at past years.

Roman was a 3 time champion in the world's top promotion, he's the only right answer.

if anyone is consuming wrestling news or journalism they don't want it in a kayfabe POV.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7oMBq1vkCM

i could use this at the gym.

almost a shame they wasted it on a veteran

I thought he was like 27 or 28. If Kota is 34 then Shinsuke must be 55 at least.

I've only seen the matches on the RAW shows so far, but I'm not getting the hyper over that she seems to be. Super sappy sweet personality I guess appeals to the crowd, but in ring I see nothing that makes me care. Is it that she hasn't done it here yet, that she in NXT was way better than what she's shown?

The one from NXT Brooklyn and then the ironman rematch

She has it in the ring

>The one from NXT Brooklyn and then the ironman rematch
>
>She has it in the ring



This^^^^^^

She's got that ability to make the fans care. She knows how to break their hearts when she comes up short, and thus they get even more behind her and she got great reactions on her title build and title win over Sasha. She was impressively able to retain it through a long title reign too. She's got it. Her, Sasha, and Charlotte are all the total package of wrestling and charisma. Emma is too, IMO.

That was the side of her in NXT that people didn't like either.

We love friendly, underdog Bailey, that worked. But the I'm just living my dream and being here makes me giddy makes it feel like she doesn't belong.

Sasha is bordering on the same issue. She may be my favorite wrestler on the roster, but I want to see her be the Legit Boss, not the smiling bright eyed girl just happy to be here.

He was the basically the same character as heel or face. The only difference was who he wrestled against. He was generally a heel, but could be a great face for short runs too.

To me, that's Sasha's lane character wise. They aren't too far off with her, but she's probably been a little too "nice".

Bayley....it's early. No reason they can't get it right. It took Charlotte awhile after coming to the main roster to find her character.

It has to take some time, probably won't happen until closer to Rumble or even Mania, but they are at their peak vs each other.

Their gimmicks and style just complement each other so well.

I like the path of Charlotte beats Sasha and continues her run. Bayley feuds with her for a while and then Sasha costs her the title at the Rumble on some if I can't be the one to beat her, nobody can stuff.

Sets up a perfect Mania match that doesn't even need the title if you don't want it to.

Won't be how they go probably but that allows for 2 womens matches that matter from Raw at Mania

Though I also wouldn't be mad if Bayley took the title in the coming months, and then Sasha went heel on her and they wrestled for the title at Mania. Charlotte is probably good enough and big enough at this point to make a non title feud matter too.

The longer they make her wait for the title the bigger megastar she will become.

I liked her run as NXT champ, but really once she got the belt it was just a plateau for her character from there. Of course she earned it and you can't NOT give her the title, but now we get to start over again.

I wouldn't be mad if she has to wait for a whole year or even longer, it will just make her so beyond over when she wins it.

perspective....as I still think she's the best they've got. A heel Sasha taking the title next spring, while fully tapping into frustration and jealousy from losing the title so quickly this summer and then coming up short trying to get it back, then passed over by Bayley.....that could be ideal for her. But yeah, that might not be the best route for Bayley.

That Old Day thing is one of the worst segments in recent memory.

they're coming off some of their first missteps (the Matanza angle, the Pentagon loss, the Son of Havoc/Dario thing) but this is still the best product out there.

this is a reminder that Dario has committed murder btw. not "have my brother fuck them up" murder, but like actual murder... with his fucking bull statue. I'm pretty sure they kept showing that thing just to drop a Breaking Bad-esque clue. Maybe that's giving them too much credit, but even when I disagree with some moves the writing is fantastic.

Heel Rollins was great, don't get me wrong. But Babyface Seth Rollins is his finally arriving as the new Shawn Michaels. So obviously better than everyone, despite having real horses on the roster too like Owens and Ziggler and Reigns and Zayn and Cesaro. Seth Rollins is a mile ahead of them all - and they're all great.

great look
Good on mic
Best in ring

Just lacked a real reason to be empathetic towards him

Well that's over now. Now he's out for blood and everyone wants to see him get his. Now JUST DONT SHOTGUN IT VINCE.

Do this right, slow burn it, and watch babyface Seth Rollins become the mega good guy you wanted Reigns to be.

And it's a good one for all the reasons you said

He doesn't need it right now, let him claw his way to the top as a good guy. Go through HHH and whatever goons get thrown at him, perhaps win the Rumble and get the belt again at Mania.

Meanwhile you keep the belt on KO for a while, get a cheap win at NOC, feud with Cesaro after his comeback vs Sheamus for a bit and everyone will be happy.

I wonder what the plan would have been if Balor didn't get hurt. Was the HHH turn on Rollins a last minute trigger they pulled now that they hadn't planned to? I feel like it had to be, no way they were turning Balor heel that fast.

Seems like they were hotshotting American Alpha to the tag titles.

Now you have Rhyno/Slater and no real opponent for Sunday. Bryan suggested they'll have a match between Usos/Hype Bros as they were the last 2 teams out then the winner fight Rhyno and Slater, but what a shitshow.

Really shows the tag division was not ready for 2 belts. Outside of Alpha and the Usos who we are all sick of there are no legit teams on SD that people can get behind. I think they should have spent a few months building the division and some rivalries before just adding titles.

Overall it's not the end of the world, but shows how thin the division is when 1 injury leads to a ridiculous tag title match.

I'm sorry for being a mark with that previous post. I actually just saw a report on Wrestlezone and didn't realize it was a storyline.

Forget everything I said, they are indeed developing rivalries out of this.

The Usos clearly turned heel immediately, then the match was finished in like under a minute. Clearly they had designs on the storyline.


(As a sidenote, I think it's just another example of how much better SD has been over Raw lately).

Link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RZgRvUsyrRwPDsnlMGaeo3ymxXn0duAuyi0Soi5Urnc/edit?usp=sharing

Backlash card:
WWE World Championship: Dean Ambrose (c) v. AJ Styles
Randy Orton v. Bray Wyatt
Intercontinental Championship: The Miz (c) v. Dolph Ziggler
SD Women's Championship Six Pack: Becky Lynch v. Nikki Bella v. Natalya v. Carmella v. Alexa Bliss v. Naomi
SD Tag Team Championships: Heath Slater & Rhyno v. The Usos or The Hype Bros
Tag Team Tournament Semi-Final: The Usos v. The Hype Bros

Bonus Questions:
1) What match will be the longest?
2) Who takes the pinfall/submission in the Women's Chanmpionship match?
3) Does (a member of) American Alpha interfere in the tag team title match? (Yes or No)
4) Over/Under: Dolph Superkicks during match: 2.5
---- Guess Under if you think Dolph hits less than 2.5 Superkicks on during match
---- Guess Over if you think Dolph hits more than 2.5 Superkicks during match

I was talking about it at work and he said he'd be interested, can I slide him the link to the spreadsheet? His name is Jeff....



We the children of the Light, you know what I mean?
That's why I'm hating on the darkness like Paula Deen
Cause in my hood they masked up like it's Halloween
We going hard for the Rock, but we not some fiends
- Andy Mineo

she's been lost in the mix for a while, even before 3 of the 4 horsewomen debuted, but I was really looking forward to her feuding with all those ladies and they didn't do much with that. She had a million face/heel turns to the point that women were literally saying "I don't know why I'm trusting you, but I guess we're partners now." Her AJ feud went in the worst direction and it looks like she's been mailing it in since she lost the title. That being said, her moveset is still great and she can play a damn good heel if they actually allow her character to develop. But they treated her as a precursor to the revolution rather than a part of it. Now she might be done after she JUST turned 24.

so she might be able to put on a show there.

OR she goes to the Temple with El Patron, and gets to wrestle Sexy, Ivelisse, Taya or even Rey.

>so she might be able to put on a show there.
>
>OR she goes to the Temple with El Patron, and gets to wrestle
>Sexy, Ivelisse, Taya or even Rey.

I don't know how she fits into that style but I'd love to find out. Dirt sheets kept saying ADR wanted to try his hand at MMA finally but who knows.

While the brand split has definitely helped some people (Dolph, Heath), there's also the NXT contingent that is going to hurt others: people like Paige, Usos, Sheamus... who are just kinda floating in between stages at the moment. They're obviously trying to give Usos a shot in the arm - for their sake I hope they don't become the next Vaudevillains or Ascension as a result - but it'll be interesting to see if they can survive over the next few months.

Sadly for Paige, I think in the wave of the Horsewomen (and the pending arrival of Asuka), she would possibly have fallen into that category as well.

... sounds like he went out on his own terms, and speaks of Vince glowingly here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/51yl9z/full_alberto_del_rio_press_conference_transcript/

The main objective of this press conference is to notify Mexico - the place where I was born, where my career started and where it's going to end – that I was tired of the work pace.

I wasn't comfortable anymore, I felt that they weren't doing stuff with me and I decided to move. I understand that they weren't going to give me more exposure; I understard their motives and we reached an agreement. The negotiation was so good that McMahon didn't apply the 90 day clause. I've come here completely free.

I have many projects: I want to be sports announcer in the US and also I'm starting a new facet as entrepeneur here in Mexico.
It's important for me to be here and clear up the Internet rumours. I'm thankful with every directive, specially Vince. My economy is excellent and I want to enjoy mi family.

I've won everything in WWE. My father said to me: do you want to live your entire life under the spotlight, like your uncle, Mil Máscaras? Or do you want to enjoy your life?

Tomorrow I'll have meetings with mexican owners (promoters), I don't want to be exclusive. I'll talk to all of them: Dorian Roldán (AAA), Paco Alonso (CMLL), with Liga Elite. If they want to have Alberto, I'll work only dates. I've learned from my mistakes and I won't be a exclusive talent.

I don't want to keep taking bumps too much, so I'll work in a few amount of shows.

The main reason of my decision was seeing my kid hiding my bags to stop me from traveling. I want to enjoy my family and also, I wasn't comfortable with my second tenure with WWE.

I spoke with my father, who's the one that always give me great advice and that same day I decided to talk with the board of directors.

I don't regret my second tenure with the company. They gave me everything I asked for, and my decision wasn't set because of the lack of championships: that's irrelevant in this stage of my career. I left the company because I couldn't keep up with their work rhythm. Making an assessment of my second tenure, I'd say it's a 50/50.

Talking with Vince about why I was leaving, he told me that with the brand extension, Alberto del Rio would be who he was before.

I love this sport, it's been my dream since the day I opened my eyes, but I'm losing the passion. Every time I took a plane I felt angry, and I don't want to be a sour wrestler... that's what I said to Vince: I don't want to lose my passion for pro wrestling.

We had such a good understanding that I told him: 'Don't rule out a call from me someday'.

Everybody knows my fees and what I need to work. I'm a guarantee and I'm here to be hired. I have two years left as a wrestler before I retire. I'm not doing more than 60 dates around the world. I won't give more.

I'll definetely like to come back to Arena Mexico but at the end of the day I'll go with whoever has money to pay me.

Alberto started negotiations with an MMA company (probably Combate Americas) to be part of the board of directors and also to be an announcer.
“I' probably won't use the mask again, I respect tradition. Someday I might use it to go out to the ring, but I wont be a masked performer again'
I don't care who I face. Many want to face me, but only Rey Mysterio can be compared to me.

Whoever wants to work with me knows I'm a guarantee for spectacle. Vince said it: I've been the best heel in the last few years.
Everything I am is because of WWE, but unfortunately that has a high price: your life. I was in the top, I won everyting and I couldn't get any higher.

I'm happy about my father returning to Arena Mexico, but I won't be there. I won't have problems with any company.

My last two years will be in Mexico and San Luis Potosí with mi dad, brother and with Mil Máscaras.

Undoubtedly, AAA is the company, that in my judgment, is doing the best stuff thanks to it's relationship with TV. They are farther ahead. Arena Mexico is down in marketing and in many things. I don't know about Liga Élite. I'm going to talk with my brother who works with them.

My friend and I grabbed the 2015 BOLA dvds and it was one of the best decisions. I really hope to get to one of these someday if I move out west. I love those tiny humid venues with cheap beer. If the production quality was better this would become my go-to for showing non-wrestling fans how awesome this stuff is. It's a spotfest, so if that annoys you it won't be for you, but to me it's all the best the indies have to offer coming together for a weekend. Each matchup is nearly impossible to predict too.

Also they continue Brian Cage's weakness for roll-ups here and that entertains me to no end. He will just beat the living hell out of someone while barely blinking at his opponent's offense, and then get rolled up pretty easily. It's almost like he has too many muscles and doesn't know how to use them in that position. Hilarious.

>My friend and I grabbed the 2015 BOLA dvds and it was one of
>the best decisions. I really hope to get to one of these
>someday if I move out west. I love those tiny humid venues
>with cheap beer. If the production quality was better this
>would become my go-to for showing non-wrestling fans how
>awesome this stuff is. It's a spotfest, so if that annoys you
>it won't be for you, but to me it's all the best the indies
>have to offer coming together for a weekend. Each matchup is
>nearly impossible to predict too.
>
>Also they continue Brian Cage's weakness for roll-ups here and
>that entertains me to no end. He will just beat the living
>hell out of someone while barely blinking at his opponent's
>offense, and then get rolled up pretty easily. It's almost
>like he has too many muscles and doesn't know how to use them
>in that position. Hilarious.

I need to get woke on this. I'm somewhat confident that I'd like it.

Great start to the brand specific PPVs! Seriously though, who thought a single brand (SmackDown especially) could carry an entire PPV, especially 3 weeks after SummerSlam?

>Great start to the brand specific PPVs! Seriously though, who
>thought a single brand (SmackDown especially) could carry an
>entire PPV, especially 3 weeks after SummerSlam?

Horrible. How could this be? They can't even count on Randy to remain available for two ppvs in a month. Crazy.

And who requested a Kane match? Cmon now.

Scumbag question for Oak: do folks still get their point for calling a Wyatt wi...just kidding. You gotta throw that out too.

but I'll take a Kane Win as an Orton win

>but I'll take a Kane Win as an Orton win

That's what I thought too, since there was no match, but apparently not

*shrug*

it's on the books as Wyatt def. Orton by forfeit, but yeah, no match, no points.

Will a Wyatt family member lose a match to an unscheduled opponent?

So far I believe the Talley is at 2

What a sign that we are about to watch a PPV that is way too thin to exist on its own.

Guess that ruins the one question in the prediction series.

Not to mention really f's with the question of longest match. Did they always say it was elimination, or was that how they are gonna make this PPV last long enough now?

Went nuts for Naomi when she got the first pin, then booed mercilessly when it kept going

It was very unclear. Shane said something like "there will be 6 women, and then there will be 5, etc... until there is only one" but that was it.

this isnt right.

Rusev
Miz
Kevin Steen
and now...

A J STYLES!!!!

Pretty sure that eith Rusev or Miz will lose soon, but for now I am in WWE heaven

Fair amount of boos coming his way. Great match otherwise and am very happy for AJ!

Very happy for Becky too! Someone needs to have a word with Naomi for the worse sell of a Sharpshooter I've ever seen.

Appreciate that Orton was injured but Wyatt really should have left with the win against Kane last night.

Not a bad PPV all round though.

I think people really wanted to see AJ get the belt which was a huge factor.

I think also WWE fans have a very short what have you done for me lately attention span these days with all of the cool stuff happening. At this rate I kind of worry they are going to burn through everyone they love and be in trouble by post Mania. You know as soon as Nakamura gets called up they'll demand he wins the belt and boo KO or whoever is champ at that point.

I think part of that is WWE also not striking while the iron is hot on people. Dean was red hot a year ago and they waited a long time and have nothing to write for his character. Rollins came back white hot as a face but instead they forced him as a heel and then turned him face 2 months later confusing people.

They are writing a lot of top stars in ways that the crowd doesn't know what to do with them and in a world where we seemingly can demand whoever we want get pushed and see it happen that's bad news for established stars.

I thought Ambrose had a strong enough following to weather him through that but the AJ love is strong right now.

>I think part of that is WWE also not striking while the iron
>is hot on people. Dean was red hot a year ago and they waited
>a long time and have nothing to write for his character.

At one point I really thought that out of The Shield, Dean would have the best and most successful run as world champ. By the time he won it I was over Dean. Still glad he won it, but after about a month I started to sour on him and I still can't put my finger on why. I think they should have turned him full heel in the angle with Zigs.

But I got to give it to you guys on here, I never saw much in Rollins while he was in the Shield. I started to understand what you all saw in him right before the breakup. That dude is one of my favorites in the company.

if you're gonna be funny as a main event talent then you also have to look legit. His offense just isn't strong enough to get away with the goofy antics. Not to mention those goofy antics are sold as him being a "lunatic."

"Oh wow, he's squirting mustard all over a guy and wearing a big old hat! What a crazy person!"

He got more serious during the Dolph feud and it worked a little better, but it's still not all there and I'm glad they gave it to AJ. He can have a good match with anyone and that'll help immensely over the slow Fall months.

I think they've written him more like Piper. I think they SHOULD be writing him like an Austin/Pillman/Piper hybrid but all I see is piper with an ever so slight Stone Cold edge.

>Fair amount of boos coming his way. Great match otherwise
>and am very happy for AJ!
>
>Very happy for Becky too! Someone needs to have a word with
>Naomi for the worse sell of a Sharpshooter I've ever seen.
>
>Appreciate that Orton was injured but Wyatt really should have
>left with the win against Kane last night.
>
>Not a bad PPV all round though.

I had to laugh hearing that "part timer" jab Cena used to throw at Rock come back to bite him on the ass. Solid exchange!

AJ's so over he's getting cheered against anyone, but when Cena turned Ambrose around people were ready to give him the typical Cena boos. Then he says what everyone's thinking and gets cheered. Then Dean hits him with the part-timer comment and kinda wins the fans back. If this is the start of an Ambrose heel turn I'm all for it, either way they have some interesting dynamics here.

The cool thing about Ambrose is that he's one of those rare guys on the roster where face/heel turns don't really apply. He's always had that "I-don't-give-a-s##t' attitude and people can cheer it or boo it. I thought this was the height of his popularity but as interesting as the responses to their face-to-face exchange were, the boos he got when he dropped Cena at the end were really interesting too. It was definitely perceived as the a##hole move but, against Cena, people still normally cheer it. They didn't this time though.

as the top guy but it was clearly underwhelming. The Ziggler feud was doing well but the match killed all of the good work they did. Then the match with AJ was good but I don't remember anything about the feud cause he was doing goofy comedy stuff and I just tuned out. When that combines with a newer guy wowing everyone and the most reliable vet coming back into the picture it makes sense that no one wants to see Dean win.

Kind of a clusterfuck of an event with the Women’s match suddenly being elimination thus fucking up one of the bonus questions, and Randy Orton being pulled last minute. Out of an 8 possible points magilla vanilla netted 7, the most for this event.

Backlash Correct Predictions
magilla vanilla - 7
Selassie I God - 6
KCPlayer21 - 6
Af-1 - 5
Jimaveli - 5
Max_Ptah - 5
pretentious_username - 5
Y2Flound - 5
Oak 27 - 4
Great1 2k7 - 2
im_freshhh - 1

Most Predictable Match: Miz defeating Ziggler (10 out of 11 people guessed correctly)
Least Predictable Match: Rhyno/Slater and Becky winning their respective titles (3 out of 11 people guessed correctly)


Current Leaderboard:
Jimaveli - 15
pretentious_username - 14
Af-1 - 14
Oak 27 - 13
Selassie I God - 12
Y2Flound - 11
Great1 2k7 - 7
magilla vanilla - 7
Max_Ptah - 6
KCPlayer21 - 6
im_freshhh - 1

Next event: Clash of Champions https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RZgRvUsyrRwPDsnlMGaeo3ymxXn0duAuyi0Soi5Urnc/edit?usp=sharing

I need to stop predicting with the old mentality of "nah they won't give it to that person yet"

I'm mad I didn't pick AJ for the win. It should have been obvious coming off the strong Cena victory but I thought the build wasn't strong enough to make me believe it would happen. They were capitalising off of it like they did Brock coming off the Streak-ending match and I missed it.

But time seemed right for Slater - he's picking up momentum with the crowd, and the payoff for that angle had to be him getting the contract.

I was legit shocked AJ won though.

I think you have a born title feud in Usos vs Alpha which could have gone for a while

I also think you have Rhyno/Slater with nothing to do as champ and no real rivals that make sense.

Plus, I think the Slater storyline was fantastic, the loss would have still catapulted him as people would have wanted him to be signed to both shows so bad after that loss (especially if it was by cheating or something). I think they gave up on that storyline now, and everyone will be back to not caring about Slater in a month or two, especially when they drop the belts.

I think they might support two storylines each for the women and tag team then the rest of the time is varied singles feuds.

Rhyno and Slater can feud with either Vaudeville or Breezango with no problem. They don't need "real" rivals because the hold the belts.

Then the Usos and Alpha can continue their blood feud and put on amazing matches without needing a storyline revolving around the titles. Alpha also doesn't look weak because they didn't lose to Slater (and his great storyline).

They turned the Usos and got genuine sympathy for AA. I hope they keep Jason Jordan onscreen while they sell Gable too.

Building Slater and Rhyno is a good thing and I'd be good with a feud with Breeze and Fandango or find a way to make VV more serious and less gimmicky. I think they can actually build a respectable division right now with AA and the Usos locked in a blood feud with the title picture run by Slater and Ryno.

I like that they didn't try to stretch to 3 hours. They have their limits and work well inside of them. Talent-wise they will always be the B-show and that hurt the excitement leading in, but the writing is still on point. The Miz match told a fantastic story. AJ's gonna be a great champ. I would've preferred The Evil Usos start out with the title, but it's always fun to pull for Slater (they may have just used it as a device to sign Slater. Wouldn't be surprised if the Usos grabbed them on Tuesday and they pivot to Alpha right away). Outside of the usual sloppiness that comes with a multi-women match they did what they needed to do. The only real negative here is that the booking for Wyatt continues to be one of the most puzzling things about the company.

Every time they do a closeup, you know a sneak attack is coming from off screen...it's tiring and spoils the drama. When Sasha had the Bank Statement on Dana and they went in tight, who didn't know Baylee was gonna break it up? Same with guys and outside interference...can they just let things happen without spoiling the moment every time?

Or am I just an old curmudgeon?

Nobody.

Sorry Enzo....but nah.

Charlotte is a beast right now.

>Nobody.
>
>Sorry Enzo....but nah.
>
>Charlotte is a beast right now.

She has become a damn good Heel.....

First match was really great.

Ibushi-TJP up now.

Match of the tournament so far? Maybe. It's up there.

This Raw cruiserweight division is gonna be nuts.

Metalik-TJP. Winner gets the trophy and the new cruiserweight title belt. Should be dope.

Love how the participants in the final wasn't what anybody in the world expected.

The first champ for the new division on Raw has to be someone who can cut decent promos, a luchador or Japanese wrestler who can't speak English would make it hard for them to really get the division over on Raw I think.

Raw audience is much different than CWC audience.

I was expecting ZSJ/Ibushi in the final (as I figure everyone was) so based on what you said, I figured ZSJ would take it.

Fascinated by how the division will play out on RAW.

He probably would have won and been the face of the division to start it if he did.

I think he is still sticking on the indy scene

I just looked it up and, you're right, he hasn't signed - apparently they couldn't agree on terms.

And that belt is beautiful.

I think I was the only person still pulling for ZSJ in the finals... TJP is probably my least favourite of the 4, but he'd won me over by the end.

Major props to the E for some proper traditional storytelling in the matches... especially TJP ditching the dabs in the finals and proper respect given to finishers all round. Whole thing felt fresh, exciting and like there was something genuinely at stake.

More of this kind of thing.

More or less.

http://nodq.com/wwe/475976232.shtml

To the hardcore, die-hard, internet wrestling community I must ask when is enough, enough. I know my brother Bret has taken the lead in this topic, but I truly do not feel this is getting enough attention. Seth Rollins is an absolute danger to the business. Reports are coming out that a wrestling student has died while training at Seth Rollins school in Illinois. I have trained students for over 40 years and my family has trained some of the most well-known superstars of all time for more than 70 years and never has a student even been seriously injured let alone died. This is after numerous reports of his unsafe work in the ring. In the last year Rollins has critically injured in the ring John Cena, Sting, Finn Balor and even himself. Yet the hardcore audience stand by him as some sort of folk hero. Why? This "performer" has limited charisma, limited personality and absolutely minimal psychology. Does he do fantastic highspots? Yes. And is he a magnificent crossfit athlete? Absolutely. But he is an absolutely horrible professional wrestler. The goal in professional wrestling is to make it look real without hurting anyone. But Rollins manages to do the opposite as he makes it look fake while critically injuring talented wrestlers. Take this buckle bomb which is the cause of many of these injuries. A logical, rationale human being would know that it would be physically impossible to "shoot" that move on anyone, let alone anyone 3 times the size of him, which most professional wrestlers would be. Perhaps he should follow his buddy CM Punk into the UFC to try shooting that move onto a Mickey Gall and see what happens. Their is zero logic into his moveset, just high spots for the sake of high spots and it is injuring people, ending careers and now killing people. I understand that little is known about this death as it is in the early stages. Likely it was more cardiovascularly related. But there in lies another issue. Rollins is a fantastic crossfit athlete that trained for years to have the conditioning that he does. He can't logically expect everyone off the street to have that same conditioning right away and logically would need to implement a more graduated conditioning system. But beyond that why would anyone want to train under someone who has proven to be so reckless? With as many proven qualified wrestling schools and trainers in the world like Lance Storm, Santino Marella, Team 3D, Dory Funk, Tom Prichard or Booker T, why would you waste your money and your health training under someone who has a higher risk of injuring you than advancing your career. And finally to Seth Rollins, if you read this. Take consideration of the people you are working with and learn to work safely or give up and find another profession.

because these bitter old hacks have taken too many shots that he's been good enough to let slide. But he's the best guy in the business by a mile right now and he doesn't need this bullshit

nevermind the fact that they got into the ring with dudes who were coked up and all sorts of nonsense. I'm not completely absolving Rollins for all the injuries*, but it's completely irresponsible to comment on this story with accusations without knowing the details yet (if it's even true). For all they know the students could've been doing something that was banned there. Rollins also doesn't directly run his school. I mean he can't really. He's always on the road.


*I like how he labelled all of them as critical injuries when Cena missed zero time and Rollins' definitely was a freak thing. Shit, come to think of it, couldn't you just as easily accuse Kane of bad positioning? It's not true, but neither is Rollins being at fault.

...in about a three-year span. None of them were, technically, her fault. She never got cited for anything, no points on the license, other guy's insurance always paid. Yet somehow, they were all her fault.

>I'm not completely
>absolving Rollins for all the injuries*

there's some debate about whether finn or sting took it wrong, but i think that's beside the point. it just seems tough to plan for in general. plus if you take a move wrong you should wake up with bruise or two, not a major injury. i don't particularly blame old-timers for saying traditionalist stuff like "no one should ever get hurt", i just wish they wouldn't be so cranky and knee-jerky about every injury or act like every past wrestler was perfect. each one of them has had a freak inury at SOME point.

whatever the case is with this story, weighing in on a kid's death when rollins presumably wasn't there is totally reckless. they just want to win the argument, and using this as a "see? we were right!" example is baseless and classless.

No class in bringing up the kid's death. None at all.

But as for Rollins, if guys keep getting hurt, that's not good pro wrestling. But it's not just Rollins, not at all. The trend toward constant high spots and risky moves has been going on for a long time.

I could go full Jim Ross here, but I won't.

after reading Bret's book I can't stress enough how much of a piece of shit the majority of his brothers are, and as much as it pains me to admit it, if it weren't for Bret being one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, he'd be just another bitter old man at this point.

Sasha turning full heel on Baylee at the Clash, leading to Charlotte retaining the belt...then as Charlotte, Dana and Sasha celebrate in the ring post-match, Dana catches a beatdown from the other two, Sasha and Charlotte leave together, making Dana a sympathetic face.

Any shot of that??

That could all happen, and I think eventually we'll see Charlotte and Sasha team up, but I don't know if they'll do it yet.

I think they have to really delay the Sasha turn on Bayley to get the most out of the story.

I think we may see Charlotte vs Dana to kill the next few months and keep the title off of Sasha/Bayley for now, but I'm not sure where that leaves the 2 of them.

Maybe Nia Jax and someone else can be involved with sasha and bayley for a bit.

Well, him and Charlotte. Had no cable from March to Sept. Watched the PPVs and a couple parts of Raws well after the fact(they aren't on there until they're roughly a month old).

I laugh my ass off every time Jericho is on. It's like the old days, just in a much different way.

and I hope it's not them. They were doing alright with AJ for a second, but have sunk into complete indifference from the audience without him. If this doesn't prove AJ is the MVP of the year I don't know what does.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> WWE Gallows and Anderson.

I think the fact that they can't do the "real" Bullet Club stuff is what is keeping them down. Can't do the gunfire intro ob PG rated WWE tv. The wildness that Bullet Club is known for can't really happen here. I stil prefer them to New Day, but I know I'm in the minority.

At least I hope so

Very good wrestlers.

Boring creative.

RAW has been about Steph and Mick since the split. KO is champ and that's dope as fuck in a vacuum..... But he's not the story. MickMahon is the story.

Rollins is dope.but he's not the story. MickMahon is the story.

Rusev and Reigns? Good shit....except, you know, MickMahon is the vessel for their story.

I like Mick. Steph is good at her role.

I've said it before though: as long as there's such an emphasis on the authority figures the wrestlers will be a step down by default. Doing the dual authority figures only makes that worse because now we have to watch that dynamic play out.

To me that comes at a premium price. It's a creative crutch that in itself isn't all that compelling and yet anchors the show from start to finish.

There are very good characters right now. Some people are hitting homeruns creatively in *spite* of very little creative.

Enzo.
Charlotte.
Jericho.

All shining in their roles despite bland and mediocre storyline material. Jericho is an exception here since his role as sidekick to KO is absolute gold.

Enzo pops because of his charisma. He lives and dies by those in liners but his charisma and the greatness of the act carries the day.

Charlotte is a promo clinic every week despite an uninspired, boring, and tired angle with...Dana Brooke?

New day is just zzz zzz at this point. The Club is piss break status for me.

I know, I know, I'm an asshole smart fan who thinks he knows it all and could write circles around this stuff from the comfort of my couch. But this shit is NWO wolfpac era status right now. There's a ton of talent but they've got their crutch material on cruise control.

Because they are trying things, giving people time who don't normally get it and surprising you week in and week out.

Raw does that once a month but other than that just relies on being the flagship show

All of these things can be booked without hearing Mick and Steph go back and forth about it with everyone on the roster. Why does this need to happen for every angle?

>
>Rusev and Reigns? Good shit....except, you know, MickMahon is
>the vessel for their story.

What happened to "2 guys keep beating the shit out of each other and that's what drives the whole thing"? That would work here. Now we have to have public meetings with everyone in charge to figure out what happened, why it happened, what to do about it, and what everybody's motivation is. Shane may stumble over every line he's given, but at least he's saying "here's what's going on" and then disappearing. They will keep Bryan on screen as much as possible, but Shane has realized his limitations I think. I couldn't care less about this Mick/Steph stuff. Cut thrm snd add more cruiserweight angles.

>Very good wrestlers.
>
>Boring creative.
>
>RAW has been about Steph and Mick since the split. KO is champ
>and that's dope as fuck in a vacuum..... But he's not the
>story. MickMahon is the story.
>
>Rollins is dope.but he's not the story. MickMahon is the
>story.
>
>Rusev and Reigns? Good shit....except, you know, MickMahon is
>the vessel for their story.
>
>I like Mick. Steph is good at her role.
>
>I've said it before though: as long as there's such an
>emphasis on the authority figures the wrestlers will be a step
>down by default. Doing the dual authority figures only makes
>that worse because now we have to watch that dynamic play out.
>
>
>To me that comes at a premium price. It's a creative crutch
>that in itself isn't all that compelling and yet anchors the
>show from start to finish.
>
>There are very good characters right now. Some people are
>hitting homeruns creatively in *spite* of very little
>creative.
>
>Enzo.
>Charlotte.
>Jericho.
>
>All shining in their roles despite bland and mediocre
>storyline material. Jericho is an exception here since his
>role as sidekick to KO is absolute gold.
>
>Enzo pops because of his charisma. He lives and dies by those
>in liners but his charisma and the greatness of the act
>carries the day.
>
>Charlotte is a promo clinic every week despite an uninspired,
>boring, and tired angle with...Dana Brooke?
>
>New day is just zzz zzz at this point. The Club is piss break
>status for me.
>
>I know, I know, I'm an asshole smart fan who thinks he knows
>it all and could write circles around this stuff from the
>comfort of my couch. But this shit is NWO wolfpac era status
>right now. There's a ton of talent but they've got their
>crutch material on cruise control.

Yep. Real life got real over the last month so I'm basically skimming the weekly shows now. I'm usually still in on the ppvs within a day of them happening, and I still enjoy those. Of course, as we mostly agree, the roster is ridiculously good in-ring no matter what the Hart fam says and no matter how shaky the weekly tv is.

But I'm am almost back to where I don't even try to fully watch Raw. The flaws are ever present and obvious. The pace is mostly brutal. And...real talk...Mick is a terrible trope GM.

Anyway, I spend that time on smackdown (AJ! Slater!) and making sure I'm aware of what Broken Matt is doing. He's my favorite character on any wrestling show in a walk...and this is with almost 100% certainty that I'm not dying to see any 'normal' Hardy match. But I'm all in on the pretaped shenanigans. The lead-ins and aftermaths of the battles are all just so well-done and true to the first stuff. And there's no amount of shaky deliveries from Jeff that can ruin it. Jeremy Borash is a supreme documentarian. In between all of the cheesiness, it is a glorious piece of wrestling storytelling. And I'm a sucker for hilarious wrestling tomfoolery. Vanguard1 is the best lackey this side of Arn anderson.

>New day is just zzz zzz at this point.


Nope....New Day is doing EVERYTHING right....They r entertaining...Their gimmick is working...And they still have a real, legit pop....

Not their fault that creative has no idea how to match them up against a foil that actually works....

Besides....I have NEVER seen black wrestlers have this much fun on their own terms (without all the racist, Vince-stamped bullshit)...

Let them be great....

Because having two separate matches tonight to setup a #1 contenders match next week on the go home wouldn't make infinitely more sense

but I completely understand your confusion as I'm pretty sure it was said in the opening segment that we were 2 weeks away from Clash, or someone said something along the lines of "in 2 weeks..."

plus there's one every 2 weeks now. this shit is getting difficult to keep track of.

Well then.

In that case they should have opened the show with that segment and setup a three match tourney for the evening, making the #1 contender match the semi main.

I'm not a fan of guys having to pull double duty like that but given the stakes it would have framed the title with some importance going into the Clash and actually showcased the division better than a four way.

That would have been a great way to build anticipation for the Cruiserweight match at Clash. I'm guessing more people watch Raw than saw the CWC so maybe those were all new faces for a lot of people(?). That mini-tourney could have made for a great Raw being honest.

Also, this is what I feared about the Cruiserweight division - one match on a 3-hour show doesn't really constitute a division.

That and the SD tag straps are the business.

I think you'll either love it or hate it. Personally, I love it - I think it's gold whenever they're on his show. I laughed out loud a number of times so it's definitely worth a listen:

http://www.podcastone.com/pg/jsp/program/episode.jsp?programID=593&pid=1676997

Link to Google Sheet: http://tinyurl.com/okpwpredictions

Clash of Champions Final Card:
WWE Universal Championship: Kevin Owens (c) v. Seth Rollins
WWE United States Championship: Rusev (c) v. Roman Reigns
Raw Women's Championship: Charlotte (c) v. Sasha Banks v. Bayley
Raw Tag Team Championships: The New Day (c) v. Gallows & Anderson
Sami Zayn v. Chris Jericho
Best of 7, Match 7: Cesaro v. Sheamus
WWE Cruiserweight Championship: TJ Perkins (c) v. Brian Kendrick
Pre-Show: Alicia Fox v. Nia Jax

Bonus Questions:
1) What will be the opening match of the main show? (Pre-show does not count)
2) How many Superman Punches will Roman Reigns connect with against Rusev during their match? (Bell to bell)
3) Who takes the pinfall/submission in the Women's title match?
4) Over/Under: Length of Kevin Owens v. Seth Rollins: 22.5 minutes
----Guess Over if you think the match goes longer than 22.5 mins, Under if you think goes less

I've been slacking off on watching the weekly TV. I've been up on thangs via Stroud and them. I also duck my head in when I'm home during the shows, but I'm still missing the 'temperature' of how some of these might go. We'll see how badly this time-saving method of experiencing WWE hurts my 'premoneeetions'.

But this looks like another 'storylines be damned, the rasslin is super' type show.

I'm certainly in on face Rollins. He clearly has the chops to be an absurd spot machine face. I don't love that he's jumping off of so much stuff already, but I get it...they are trying to make it clear that he's the face.

I'm overjoyed to be mostly missing out on Foley being horrible in his role.

I'm sad that Cesaro has been strapped to Sheamus. They both seem to be sooooo ice cold right now. Cesaro needed to be on Smackdown so badly. Imagine him being a Luger-like power wrestler for AJ to run from and eventually tear down hella houses with. Maybe next year. Or just sometime these bros get too old.

Jimaveli

>Link to Google Sheet: http://tinyurl.com/okpwpredictions
>
>Clash of Champions Final Card:
>WWE Universal Championship: Kevin Owens (c) v. Seth Rollins
>WWE United States Championship: Rusev (c) v. Roman Reigns
>Raw Women's Championship: Charlotte (c) v. Sasha Banks v.
>Bayley
>Raw Tag Team Championships: The New Day (c) v. Gallows &
>Anderson
>Sami Zayn v. Chris Jericho
>Best of 7, Match 7: Cesaro v. Sheamus
>WWE Cruiserweight Championship: TJ Perkins (c) v. Brian
>Kendrick
>Pre-Show: Alicia Fox v. Nia Jax
>
>Bonus Questions:
>1) What will be the opening match of the main show? (Pre-show
>does not count)
>2) How many Superman Punches will Roman Reigns connect with
>against Rusev during their match? (Bell to bell)
>3) Who takes the pinfall/submission in the Women's title
>match?
>4) Over/Under: Length of Kevin Owens v. Seth Rollins: 22.5
>minutes
>----Guess Over if you think the match goes longer than 22.5
>mins, Under if you think goes less

They've put on good matches and people have been into it. The winner gets a title shot, so we're likely to get Cesaro vs Owens at the next Raw PPV which is kind of a dream main event.

____________________

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

Good matches, but yeah I'm not sure what this is leading to or why and it's been a bit disjointed and obvious so far. Cesaro's comeback match wasn't even televised.

For one thing, if it's for the US title that'll be bullshit. But also the Universal Title became vacant and they didn't get to compete in the tournament because they're tied up with this. Kayfabe they are both better choices for the tournament and finals than Big Cass.

One wrench they could throw into the mix is if they worked out a deal for them to fight for one of the Smackdown singles titles. Even if it's just the IC it would work for Cesaro to match up with Miz and then possibly get traded to SD and win a belt he's never won before.

3 matches with 100% picks on one side and another 2 with only 1 person varying from the group.

Granted I'll be busy for at least half of it, but this shit is getting confusing.

if they insist on doing brand specific PPVs then just do one per month and give brands 2 months to promote.

>if they insist on doing brand specific PPVs then just do one
>per month and give brands 2 months to promote.

but greed is once again compromising the product...

They don't need to break up, but they just need something new. Give Xavier a US title run or something.

Just such a total failure to build up anyone who can take the titles from New Day, had a chance with Gallows/Anderson and couldn't get them over enough.

this entire feud is so confusing.

He will get over as US champ, just depends on if they want him to be face or go further heel.

He brings prestige to the belt and he gets to be important without being crammed down our throats and shoved into main events that nobody wants him in.

Some of the results are just ...ugh. New Day winning forever is tiring. Reigns getting the belt with a round of boos by shitting on Rusev's finisher...ugh...that's a great punishment for the suspension. IMO, a couple of the matches weren't that great. The women's match could have been better. Cruiserweights were average at best for me. Just ....ugh.

to give them a 400-day celebration segment on Raw tomorrow, which will be just the same shit they've one the last half dozen New Day celebration segments.

Just a very minimum effort PPV

Main event was decent, Y2J/Zayn was good... the women's triple-threat wasn't what I hoped it would be though as you say.

2 years ago this would have been one of the best PPVs of the year.

There were good matches for sure, it was just mostly unmemorable. It was a placeholder PPV pretty much, nobody really brought their A game outside of maybe Cesaro/Sheamus, and they botched that ending bad in my opinion.

It was a solid B or B- PPV which is fine enough, just kind of left me wanting more

They are putting on good matches, but it's clear the whole point of it is because they have nothing to do with either of them. Now instead of ending it and moving them forward we drag it on longer.

I don't know that at the end either of them are more over or look any better than they started. A good clean win for someone after a great match would have been a way better look.

I'm guessing it isn't over but the crowd were into the match so hopefully the indecisive finish will raise expectations for a final showcase?

i don't mind the dusty ass finishes, but they were sloppily planned and/or executed. I'm fine with New Day winning cause I think it should mean something when they lose and G&A just aren't it right now. A brief heel run to put over Enzo/Cass is how I'd go. Rusev/Reigns was lame, but we have to be resigned to some Reigns wins we don't like in order to keep him strong.

They gotta figure out how to present these Cruiserweights though. With not enough hype the crowd couldn't care less. When that's coupled with the matches having a different look it can make it look bush league rather than the new, different thing that they're intending.

edit: oh wait, that Cesaro/Sheamus ending was bullshit, and that was my favorite match of the night

I actually dig the presentation.

Problem is when he talks he exhibits nothing to support that energy.
You got me doing some soul searching though.

I don’t want to hate Filipinos. Just TJ Perkins.

I also hate dabbing but the entrance was cool.

>I'm fine with New Day winning cause I
>think it should mean something when they lose and G&A just
>aren't it right now. A brief heel run to put over Enzo/Cass is
>how I'd go.

I'm with u.....

I'll say it again.....Let New Day do their thing...This is unchartered waters for a black wrestling outfit....

They need a good foil to go against....And I think u may be on to something with Enzo/Cass....That would be brilliant.....

But some of this New Day bashing I'm seeing on board is coming a little too soon for my taste...

Let 'em rock...

They have had the belt for 400 days and in that time they haven't had one really great feud, they are just constantly up against the team du jour.

It's left them in a spot where nobody has made them look better other than themselves, and not 1 other team has been elevated to their level for more than a month or two.

So now here we are 400 days later and we've seen the group dynamic run its full course and nothing on the tag team horizon changed at all. I'd be way more interested in seeing New Day struggle against someone, lose the belts and have to regroup and chase them down for a while. Or maybe Xavier gets bored just basically managing and being the extra man and does something like go for a title himself.

My issue, is they don't really matter anymore, they are champs of a division that basically doesn't exist. They aren't an important stable like Evolution or even the Shield who held a bunch of titles and made a major impact, they're just 3 goofy dudes with nobody to fight.

This is 98% on the WWE, not on them, but it doesn't make me less bored by it at this point.

they had their goofiness, but still had a meanstreak. nowadays they are a glorified comedy act so I don't see them as intimidating in the least bit.

They just have not gotten one and basically are doing what Cena was doing a few years ago making fart jokes at the persons expense and winning the feud by making the crowd not respect the opponent.

They r mega baby faces.....They don't need to change...The writers need to do a better job with finding them a true nemesis...

I said something has to change, the issue isn't their performance it's that in the 400 days nothing has happened but them run over a bad division.

I'm not telling them to lower their level to meet everyone else, but WWE has to get some other teams to matter if they want New Day to stay exciting.

Dude nearly broke his own neck. A man of his size can dive through the ropes but it looked like he tried to cannonball at the last second. Has he done that before?

First, he’s a fucking cornball. His hair. His face. He probably owns the entire Glee discography and likes to do Flo Rida accapellas. He’s probably “good” at it too, in as much as anyone can be “good” at that godawful, uh, genre of music.

Seriously though, he’s fucking corny. What a mechanical ass promo. Is he a fucking robot? No personality. None. Holy shit was that like watching paint dry.

His eye movements too, where he’s facing the camera but his eyes are glancing at the correspondent. His work is whatever. Grand Metalic should have got that but I digress.

I’m pretty sure he’s what happened to the frog that got away in Master Blaster, like the frog made its way to the biological experiments lab from Gremlins 2 and his consciousness got mistakenly transferred to some corny ass gamer from Irvine during his noon shift at Hotdog On A Stick. Some magic happened, his uniform got remixed and TJ Perkins was born.

In fact, they just need to retcon his backstory to my annoyed little stream of consciousness rant. I’m pretty sure I’d have an easier time getting behind the mind of the frog from Master Blaster after being transferred to the body of the privileged cornball son of an Irvine lawyer.

Bet he can B-Boy like a motherfucker though. Probably has a fine as girlfriend too. Can’t hate on either but fuck is he boring.

> His hair. His face. He
>probably owns the entire Glee discography and likes to do Flo
>Rida accapellas

>I’m pretty sure he’s what happened to the frog that got
>away in Master Blaster, like the frog made its way to the
>biological experiments lab from Gremlins 2 and his
>consciousness got mistakenly transferred to some corny ass
>gamer from Irvine during his noon shift at Hotdog On A Stick.

>I’m pretty sure I’d
>have an easier time getting behind the mind of the frog from
>Master Blaster after being transferred to the body of the
>privileged cornball son of an Irvine lawyer.

>Bet he can B-Boy like a motherfucker though. Probably has a
>fine as girlfriend too.


No challenge here, just gonna say I probably love him for all the reasons you hate him, lol

I've known some cool ass Filipinos in my time and, no lie, one of my close friends is Filipina.

And come to think of it, fuck me, I think you may be right. They all exhibit similar qualities to some degree.

I dunno, should I edit now? Do I just hate Filipinos?

I did work at Abbot Laboratories and had a monster of a Filipina supervisor. Perhaps I harbor resentment toward them because of her?

On the other end there was a Filipina family who took me in as a teen in Mo Val.

I dunno. Can't call it.

I may need sensitivity training on this one.

I'm proud to be Filipino but at the same time I'm not a typical Filipino

There's a lot of mayabang (big headed) idiots out there

We can be generous, warm and welcoming

We can also be arrogant, appropriating and close-minded


I know next to nothing about TJ Perkins though as I wasn't following the CWC, so my sole exposure to TJ was just last night. I agree though, his mic skills need a lot of work still and he's lacking charisma.

Not gonna lie though, as soon as I saw that sun on those ridiculous pants I was a fan, haha

He won me over with his last 2 matches of the CWC, but as soon as I saw his entrance from last night and the fucking dabbing I started hating him for all the reasons CT listed above lol.

I blame the colonial mentality for my self-hate lol.

Tonight on Raw they're gonna show TJP entering the arena like wearing all of this https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CduzxirUUAAh-IP.jpg

I've met plenty of white dudes and Mexican dudes who fit his mold perfectly. Shit even Indian dudes.

Like I said earlier I do see a lot of him in other Filipinos I've known over the years but I've seen enough of it in other races that I never thought it was that particular among Filipino males.

Hell when I lived in Lake Elsinore all the Filipinos I knew were gangsters.

Anyhow are there any major cultural links between Filipinos and frogs?I'm trying to see if I just have an underlying bias because these guys fucking annoy me.

Pick a culture and you got Filipino posers

On that same note, it's also a big reason why Filipinos tend to get along with anyone.

*starts singing karaoke*

seeing that promo for the network with Flair...the REAL Nature Boy, before he became a cartoon character in WWE...THAT gave me chills. The NWA champion, Horsemen leadin', Limousine ridin' Jet flyin' wheelin' dealin', kiss stealin' son of a gun...THAT is the greatness of Flair. I hate what became of him in WWE after the "Real World Champion" angle

I'm the best, everybody wants to be me. My opponent's a poor bastard, watch me beat him.

In, out, done.

Just really, really awful.

Horrendous even. Dreadful.


I like Naomi's entrance but that backstage promo with Nikki was corny as hell.

I can't believe Raw got Charlotte, Sasha AND Bayley. We can only hope Paige comes over to SD but recent reports makRAWe me think she'll wind up on RAW.

Frankly Dolph's story has been the best since the brand split. They've built Miz up to be very strong and he's done the IC strap proud. This has become the best program in the entire company.

No fuckery. No unnecessary bells or whistles. No heavy authoritarian presence.

Just a good, slow build.

Perfect? No.
Effective? Fuck yeah.

SD is a damn good show.

The tag division has been very entertaining and actually matters.

The women's division has been very uneven BUT that shit will turn around the second Diva Marie returns in all her all red everything glory.

This is a good ass pro wrestling show.

I'm cool with the Bray/Orton stuff. It's nothing eye popping but they've built it slowly and it's coming along well. Neither guy is hot right now but it works so far IMO.

Corbin is a dick and everything a heel should be.

The main event picture isn't bad owing the lid off things but it's an intriguing dynamic. Personally I'd rather see Cena in another program right now with, I dunno, a certain Samoan right now, but there aren't any other heels ready for him.

No bring up Joe, bring in Paige, and keep Corbin a royal prick. Keep pushing talking smack. Shit is solid.

It's not just the third hour that's killing Raw. Smackdown is just written and presented much better. They can also use Talking Smack to make sure the main show isn't bogged down by talking, which Raw often is. There's always gonna be a couple things I'm only half-invested in, but that describes most of Raw so...

Essential viewing.

got my son tickets for his bday in August. Last night was the night. Small minor league hockey venue, maybe seats 8k max. They only sold tickets to the lower bowl. That was only about 80% full. But man the fans were nuts. Ive been in that arena for playoff hockey and it was never that loud. Dolph Ziggler vs Miz opened up the night. Great match. Miz is really really good at what he does. I think the booing for him was louder than the cheering for Ziggler.

Then we had a Divas 2 on 3 match. Didnt realize how many little girls were in attendance until Nikki Bella's name was announced. Also that match was fucking awful. It was Nikki and the current women's champ something Belcher I think. Versus Jim The Anviel Neidhart's daughter and these 2 blonde chicks. Neidhart and Bella were decent the rest were pretty weak. Unathletic and didnt sell very well. But Nikki Bella is fine as shit. so I didnt mind much.

We had a few mid roster matches. Apollo Crews wrestled some no name. Dude is athletic as shit. But that match was pretty weak. Then that We The People guy. He actually lost to some guy I never heard of. Some good moves but the match was just okay. You could tell the thing holding them back is putting together a solid match. Watching their matches versus top guys there was a big difference. They were just stringing together moves with out building the drama.

Then there was a 4 on 4 tag team. American Alpha and the Hype Bros vs Vaudeville Villains and two other guys I could care less about. One of the cats from Hype Bros was hilariously hype. Fun match.

Then a surprise appearance by Kane. Place went nuts when his theme dropped. His name wasnt mentioned on the web site or anything. Then this guy with the selfie stick was his opponent. This was one of the highlights of the night. Selfie played scared and gets on the mic. Kane we arent going to fight. I just want a selfie. He works the mic for a few minutes and slowly walk up to Kane to take the selfie. He was hilarious. Then as he gets in Kane choke slams him and pins him and walks out. Nice way to work in an appearance with a big name who probably needed a rest. But everyone loved it.

Then a tag team championship match between Heath Slater and Ryno and The Usos. Really good match. Of course the belt wasnt going to change hands on an untelevised match. But entertaining as hell.

Then we had Bray Wyatt vs Randy Orton. Bray Wyatt's intro was really fucking cool. Im sure you all know about the cell phone lights in the stands. Everyone was so excited to see him come out. Until Orton's intro played. This was a good match. It was hilarious how fast Bray went from fan favorite to a piece of shit. We got an RKO and everyone was happy about that.

Main Event was a three way match for the belt. AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, and John Cena. REALLY good match. Man the place went fucking nuts on Cena's entrance. Ambrose and Styles were already in the ring and they let everyone just marinate for like 2 minutes to build up. Once those trumpets came in I thought my son was going to pass out. But yeah once again belt aint changing hands on in a dark match. But you know they arent going to let Cena get pinned. So Styles pinned Ambrose.

Great night. Plus we had great seats and the tickets only cost $30 each. We are definitely going to check it out next time they are in town. We had a lot of fun.

Tickets don't cost a fortune. Sometimes they go all out cause it doesn't matter. The main event is usually the same match they've been working on for a couple months, so it's really smooth and entertaining. Cena and Styles were putting on a clinic every night for months. It's worth it just for them.

....Is COOKING.....

At this point Sasha is 2-1 over Charlotte in 1 on 1 title matches.

Just because 2 were on Raw doesn't mean I'm going to have my mind blown when she finally does it on PPV.

I get that they love having those stats to push, but at this point I won't view Sasha as an underdog chasing Charlotte because she has already beaten her twice for the title cleanly.

Now if the goal is to set up that Bayley finally ends her PPV streak at Mania I can see that, I just don't think they plan that long in advance.

to the point that it's not even a special moment when they fight.

They can have a rivalry for the next decade just like KO/Zayn, Rock/Austin, Orton/Cena etc but you have to break it up, it can't be non stop.

I'm guessing from here we get a face turn by Dana and some time with her and Charlotte and Sasha starts to turn heel toward Bayley soon

Emma is due to return to RAW soon so I'm guessing Dana realigns with her and turns on Charlotte. Charlotte is the ultimate heel so I'm hoping that doesn't necessarily happen.

They r only doing what the male wrestlers have done for decades....Create a back and forth rivalry as the fans eat it up...

I have no issue with that what so ever.....Sasha and Charlotte r some damn good performers. To most of the folks who haven't seen all their matches in NXT, their battles have been pretty damn entertaining....I'm not ready to dive into cynicism when female wrestlers, who have been shitted on for a minute, are just now getting a much deserved spotlight as a closing act....

http://www.inquisitr.com/3561509/former-wwe-superstar-alberto-del-rio-stabbed-prior-to-no-showing-aaa-event-graphic-photos/

After not appearing for his scheduled bout for Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) this past Sunday, Alberto El Patron (fka Alberto Del Rio) issued a graphic statement on Monday, showing he had been attacked.
The former WWE superstar claimed that shortly after he ate and was prepared to get on a flight last week, he was stabbed outside of a restaurant, suffering multiple lacerations. Below is the full statement, which appeared on all of El Patron’s social media accounts.

"Mr. Rodriguez (“Alberto El Patron”) shortly after eating a meal before his flight was assaulted by a criminal with a knife outside the restaurant. Mr. Rodriguez suffered multiple lacerations on his arm and other parts of his body defending against the criminal as Police were called by witnesses. Mr. Rodriguez received medical attention and went back to the Police Department and was unable to make his flight. Mr. Rodriguez has spoken with the ownership of Lucha Libre AAA World Wide and given them documentation of the incident. Mr. Rodriguez greatly regrets not being there yesterday for his fans in Mexico and promises to everyone he will make this up as soon as possible. Despite the graphic lacerations Mr. Rodriguez will not miss any of his shows for the remainder of the year and is ready to compete this weekend in the UK."

In addition to the statement, El Patron posted graphic images of his lacerations.

As El Patron mentioned, he has spoken to AAA about the incident and missing Sunday’s event. The company issued the following statement — which has been translated from Spanish to English — regarding the incident:
"Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide has been officially notified of the incident. The victim was Alberto “El Patron,” and why he could not be present during the function of Heroes Immortals X, held yesterday in the city of Monterrey, N.L.
We deeply regret publicizing the plight of the victim, Alberto, who risked his health and personal integrity.
We wish him a speedy recovery and hope that he will soon be back in the ring to continue his successful career as one of the leading Mexican and international fighters."
Prior to El Patron issuing a statement, it was reported that he had simply no-showed another wrestling commitment. Last Sunday’s tag team would have featured El Patron teaming with Psycho Clown to face Dr. Wagner Jr. and Pagano in the main event. He even promoted the event on his social media up until Thursday, when he went silent for several days prior to Monday’s statement.
There were reports that El Patron had been spotted in the Orlando area, leading to speculation that he was poised to debut for TNA at Sunday’s Bound for Glory event. However, when El Patron did not appear for TNA, AAA had little reason to doubt El Patron had skipped the show for any other reason than that he had simply decided not to go. They put out this statement — also translated — about El Patron.
Lucha Libre AAA WorldWide announced that, for reasons outside the company, Alberto “El Patron” was not present for the function of Heroes Immortals X, which took just this afternoon. This despite having confirmed his attendance for the event in advance and even this morning.

"We regret the lack of commitment from Alberto, as he fails the Mexican public that has supported him throughout his career, turning him into one of the leading figures of wrestling in Mexico and internationally.
For Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide, it is important to offer the best shows of international quality, in addition to strengthening the Mexican wrestling that is the best in the world and is a fundamental part of the culture of our country."

As Chris Featherstone of SportsKeeda wrote, the last time El Patron worked for AAA, he refused to drop their top Championship when he re-signed with WWE in October 2015. The article also mentions El Patron’s brief stint in Lucha Underground, where he decided not to return to the promotion, co-owned by AAA, due to creative issues.
However, this time, El Patron’s absence is documented, and his well-being has been confirmed.

much of what's going on with modern-day pro wrestling but figured for any who were into the squared-circle theatrics back in the mid-to-late-80's, might as well shamelessly plug this story I put up last night on my site involving King Kong Bundy might give you a chuckle:
http://www.somethinginthewudder.com/home/2016/10/3/story-time-with-bomb-phl-mania-edition-young-bambino-vs-king-kong-bundy

Also this music-related bagpipe post from late last week has zero to do with wrestling but did use the late great Hot Rod's likeness for the cover: http://www.somethinginthewudder.com/home/2016/9/28/the-five-spot-five-bona-fide-bangers-that-utilize-bagpipes

Hope all is well with y'all. peace.