Paul Perschmann, better known to wrestling fans as Playboy Buddy Rose, was found dead by his wife at their home Tuesday in Portland, Ore., wrestlingobserver.com reported early Wednesday morning. His age is listed as 56 on imdb.com.

The cause of death is still unknown, although he had told people that he had been having blood sugar issues with his diabetes, according to wrestlingobserver.com.

During his heyday in the 1970s and ’80s, the rotund Rose was the ultimate example of not judging a book by its cover. Despite his flabby physique, Rose was actually a gifted worker. He could deliver a nice dropkick, was a proficient bump-taker and cut good promos.

Rose was the top heel for a number of years in the Portland territory, where he had legendary feuds with Roddy Piper and Jimmy Snuka. I first saw Rose wrestle in person in the early ’80s during his stint in the WWF. He and champion Bob Backlund had some entertaining matches together. I remember how surprised I was that Rose could keep up in the ring with Backlund, who was in incredible shape.

In 1985, Rose became the answer to a trivia question. Wearing a mask and billed as The Executioner, he wrestled in the very first WrestleMania match, losing to Tito Santana.

He later went to the AWA and won the tag team title there with Doug Somers. Rose and Somers had a heated feud with a couple of young upstarts known as The Midnight Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty). The two teams engaged in a memorable bloodbath on TV (at the time, the AWA was shown on ESPN) in 1986.

Rose came back to the WWF later in his career and worked as an enhancement guy. Severely overweight at that point, his gimmick was that he demanded to be announced as weighing 217 pounds. Fans from that era probably recall the campy “Blow Away Diet” infomercial spoof that Rose did.

My condolences go out to Rose’s family and friends.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (30)
        

The first episode of Raw in the (new) Age of Orton saw WWE champion Randy Orton’s venomous victory speech interrupted by an unlikely party crasher.

As Orton was cutting his promo Monday night, I kept waiting for Batista’s music to start playing. You knew someone was going to confront Orton, and Batista was the logical choice. To my surprise, however, instead of the opening strains of Saliva’s “I Walk Alone,” the sound of a ticking clock filled the arena and MVP appeared on the stage.

As usual, MVP was smooth on the microphone, and the crowd reacted to him. The verbal confrontation led to a non-title match between MVP and Orton later in the show. The match, which ended with Orton winning by disqualification due to outside interference, was pretty good.

I was happy to see that MVP did not get pinned. I wasn’t so happy to see Shane McMahon interfere in the match, however. More on that in a minute.

On his first night as an official member of the Raw roster, MVP came off looking like he can hang with the big boys. I just hope WWE follows up on it. With Shawn Michaels reportedly taking several months off and Triple H likely spending some time off TV as well, now is the time to give a guy such as MVP an opportunity.

Other thoughts on Monday’s show:

I groaned when Shane O’Mac did a run-in during the Orton-MVP match wielding a kendo stick and attacking Orton with it. It was later announced that a match between Orton and Shane was signed for next week on Raw. I just don’t want to see these two wrestle each other anymore. Plus, Orton having to sell for Shane weakens his character. ...

The way Michael Cole kept talking about what a tremendous upset it would be if MVP beat Orton, you'd have thought that MVP was The Brooklyn Brawler. Conversely, Jerry Lawler did a nice job of putting MVP over as a legitimate threat. ...

The Batista-Big Show main event was pretty dull until Cena, selling the injuries he suffered at Backlash, limped onto the stage at the end. The announcers kept saying all night that Cena wasn’t there, which, of course, meant that he was. I wonder why Cena didn’t answer The Miz’s challenge earlier in the show. Perhaps he did not arrive at the arena until later. Or perhaps he was there but he aggravated his injuries by laughing uncontrollably when The Miz called him out. …

The Miz was tolerable when he was teaming with John Morrison, but as a solo act, not so much. The longer his promo went on, the closer my hand got to the remote. He did get in one good line when he mocked Cena’s “You can’t see me” bit by saying that no one can see Cena because his movies aren’t in theaters long enough. I’m surprised WWE allowed that one. …

So let me get this straight: Raw is now the home to both The Miz and Hornswoggle. What did I ever do to deserve this? …

It looks as if Matt Hardy, who suffered a broken right hand Sunday night at Backlash, is going to be doing the Cowboy Bob Orton gimmick of knocking his opponents out with his cast. Wrestlingobserver.com reported that Hardy’s doctor told him that he’d be out four to six weeks, but it appears as if Hardy is going to try and work around the injury. …

The Kofi Kingston-The Brian Kendrick match was fun while it lasted. Kingston’s star is on the rise, so I agree with him going over, but I hate to see Kendrick in a glorified enhancement role. His talent would be put to much better use on ECW. …

Why does WWE even bother with these eight-women tag matches when half of the competitors don’t get tagged in? Mickie James, Kelly Kelly and Maryse were among those who never got in the ring (Rosa Mendes was the other). …

Just wondering: Why is Vickie Guerrero the only general manager that doesn’t have her own entrance music? If she ever does, naturally it should start off with her screaming “Excuse me!”

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (49)
        

WWE.com is reporting that Matt Hardy suffered a broken right hand during the match with his brother, Jeff Hardy, at Sunday night’s Backlash pay-per-view.

Matt will be required to wear a cast, according to the Web site. The story did not address how much time he would miss, but wrestlingobserver.com reported that the early estimation is four to six weeks.

Presuming the injury is not a work, the timing is unfortunate for Matt, who is coming off the most high profile program of his career and seemed to be slotted as the No. 3 heel on Raw behind Randy Orton and The Big Show.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 5:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

WrestleMania XXV perhaps fell a bit short of expectations three weeks ago, but Sunday night’s Backlash pay-per-view delivered in a big way.

All three major championships changed hands, and five of the six scheduled matches on the card were very good. The one that didn’t fall into that category – Kane versus CM Punk – wasn’t bad, nor was it anything special.

When all was said and done, former Rated RKO members Edge and Randy Orton were world champions, and two of WWE’s biggest stars – John Cena and Triple H – were carried out on stretchers. I believe the two world title belts now are exactly where they should be.

As expected, the show-stealer was the Last Man Standing Match between Edge and Cena. I find it utterly amazing that Cena consistently has strong matches on pay-per-view, yet there are still fans out there who don’t think he can work.

Here is a match-by-match look at the show:

Edge defeated John Cena in a Last Man Standing Match to win the world heavyweight title: This was an excellent, 28-minute match worthy of what was billed as the final encounter to this fantastic rivalry. The crowd was hot before these two even locked up, as both guys had intense facial expressions to play up the fact that it was their last match against each other. Cena was on offense much of the way, but no matter what he did, Edge kept getting up at nine. Cena had a look of disbelief a couple times when Edge got to his feet. In what appeared to be a pretty dangerous spot, Cena threw the steel steps over the top rope onto Edge, who was standing outside the ring. Cena also landed the Attitude Adjustment off the middle rope. Then, in a holy-you-know-what moment, Cena gave Edge an Attitude Adjustment while standing on top of the announce table, tossing Edge into the crowd. I hope all the fans that Edge landed on were plants (they’d have to be), because one guy wearing a Cena shirt was on the floor next to Edge looking out of it.

Cena and Edge then fought in the crowd, going all the way up to the concourse level before coming back down the steps, where Cena hit a bulldog onto the equipment area. Edge rebounded, but couldn’t put away Cena after an Impaler DDT on the stage and a chair shot to the back of his head. As Cena recovered, got Edge up on his shoulders and was about to hit another Attitude Adjustment, The Big Show (I called it!) suddenly appeared on the stage and chokeslammed Cena through a large spotlight, creating an explosion and a ball of fire on impact. This time, Cena did not get up, and Smackdown had a world champion again. Cena had his neck placed in a brace and was taken out on a stretcher. Even though Edge – now a nine-time world champion – needed Big Show’s interference to win, he comes out of this match looking strong because he took everything that Cena dished out and refused to lose.

Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes defeated WWE champion Triple H, Batista and Shane McMahon (Orton wins the title): The stipulation was that if any member of Triple H’s team was pinned, disqualified or counted out, Orton would win the title. The match got off to a hot start, as Triple H attacked Orton before the bell and they brawled to the back. Triple H quickly re-appeared, but Orton was out of sight for about six minutes before returning and blindsiding Batista outside the ring. They told a good story here, as Batista and McMahon were in for most of the match, which meant that Triple H was forced to watch from the apron with his fate in the hands of others. He finally got the hot tag at about the 20-minute mark. Triple H was setting up Orton for the Pedigree when he saw Batista outside the ring about to hit DiBiase with a chair. Triple H let Orton go and took the chair away from Batista, but when he turned around, Orton hit an RKO out of nowhere. That appeared to be the finish (the guy ringing the bell sure thought so), but Triple H kicked out. Orton then delivered a punt to Triple H’s head for the victory after about 22 minutes of action.

Triple H sold that he was unconscious as he was put in a neck brace and carried off on a stretcher. The crowd popped for Orton’s win and there was a small segment of the audience chanting, “Na, na, na, na, hey, hey, hey, goodbye” at the fallen Triple H. Batista had a look on his face after the match that conveyed his concern for Triple H as well as his disappointment that he had inadvertently cost him the title. It looks as if Triple H will take some time off to sell the injury, leaving Batista to challenge Orton. I think the seeds have been planted for Triple H to turn on Batista when he comes back.

Jeff Hardy defeated Matt Hardy in an I Quit Match: The blow-off match to the Hardy Boyz feud was good, but this program never lived up to the possibilities. Some solid back-and-forth action built to an entertaining finish. Jeff placed a weakened Matt on a table inside the ring, and then proceeded to duct tape his wrists and ankles before using a rope to tie him to the table. He then brought a ladder into the ring and prepared to dive off it onto Matt. Matt was great here as he begged Jeff not to do it. He even made a confession of sorts when he said, “I’m sorry about the accidents.” Jeff wasn’t buying it, so Matt attempted to save himself by saying “I quit” at about the 19-minute mark. Jeff, of course, hit a legdrop off the ladder onto Matt anyway.

Chris Jericho defeated Ricky Steamboat: I had my doubts going in about how good this match would be. Steamboat, 56, looked good during his brief time in the ring with Jericho at WrestleMania XXV and in a 10-man tag match the next night on Raw, but working a 12-minute singles match would be more of a challenge. Steamboat pulled it off, though, as the crowd was into the match and was chanting “You still got it.” Steamboat did all of his signature spots: a high crossbody off the top, crisp armdrags, skinning the cat and a plancha on the floor. “The Dragon” also did a belly-to-back suplex off the top rope for a two and a half count. After Steamboat got a few more near falls, Jericho caught him in the Walls of Jericho, and Steamboat tapped out. Steamboat got a nice hand after the match. The booking here was well done, as Steamboat showed that he can still go, and Jericho withstood everything Steamboat threw at him and ultimately scored a clean win.

Christian defeated Jack Swagger to win the ECW title: This was a strong opener with some good near falls. Swagger was dominating early with his superior strength and mat skills. At one point, he pressed Christian over his head and tossed him over the top onto the floor. In the end, the story was that the veteran won by outsmarting the bigger, stronger rookie. While the referee was trying to stop Swagger from undoing one of the turnbuckles, Christian was on the other side of the ring taking off a turnbuckle. Swagger charged at Christian, but Christian moved and Swagger hit the exposed buckle. Christian quickly followed with the Killswitch for the win. After the match was over, Christian walked back through the curtain and had a brief exchange with former partner Edge.

Kane defeated CM Punk: These two had a hard-hitting match, but I do not like the result at all. It’s perplexing that WWE has booked Punk to win the Money in the Bank Ladder Match two years in a row and then immediately killed his momentum. Punk got in a lot of offense, working mostly on Kane’s right arm and shoulder, but he eventually fell victim to a chokeslam after Kane blocked one of his kicks.

Santina Marella defeated Beth Phoenix: This impromptu “match” took place after some comedy between Santina and The Great Khali. Phoenix challenged Santina for the Miss WrestleMania crown, but Khali objected. Phoenix then cut a promo on Khali, who responded by giving her a light chop on the head and pushing her down. Santina then called for the bell to ring, and “she” covered Phoenix for the win. In the post-match, Santina had a wardrobe malfunction, as “her” bare chest was exposed. And here I thought the Attitude Era was over. The highlight of this segment was Santina saying that “she” couldn’t kiss Khali because “she” was in love with another man. When Khali demanded to know who it was, Santina thought about it, then blurted out “J.R.” Either Jim Ross is a tremendous actor, or else he had no idea that he was going to be the punch line. Michael Cole needled him by saying, “Come on, Mr. Barbecue Man.” Ross quickly shot back: “Who fed you that line?” Khali’s facial expressions throughout the segment had me cracking up.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (36)
        

Predictions for Sunday night’s WWE pay-per-view:

World heavyweight champion John Cena vs. Edge in a Last Man Standing Match: This figures to be the best match on the show, as these two play well off each other and always seem to have good matches together. Because Raw has two world titles at the moment and Smackdown has none, conventional thinking says that Edge will win. Here’s a guess for the finish: The Big Show interferes and costs Cena the match, setting up a program between them.

WWE champion Triple H, Batista and Shane McMahon vs. Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes: The stipulation is that if any member of Triple H’s team is pinned, disqualified or counted out, Orton wins the title. I have a feeling that a big angle is going to take place in this match, and that it’s going to be McMahon turning heel and costing Triple H the title. That would put an end to the Triple H-Orton feud and create two new programs in Triple H-McMahon (with Stephanie caught in the middle) and Orton-Batista. I wish Orton would win the title in a singles match, but it doesn’t look like that is going to happen. If he does capture the championship here, I hope he at least gets to pin Triple H.

Jeff Hardy vs. Matt Hardy in an I Quit Match: With Matt having been drafted to Raw, this apparently is the blow-off match to this feud. When the program began I would have bet anything that it was going to culminate in a TLC match. Oh well. Despite the speculation about Jeff’s contract status, I expect him to get the win after having already lost three times to his brother. If they are given enough time, this match could be really good.

Chris Jericho vs. Ricky Steamboat: It seemed as if Steamboat took his final bow when he was on the winning side in a 10-man tag match two weeks ago, so I’m surprised this match is even taking place. It wouldn’t make sense for Jericho, one of the top two heels on Smackdown, to lose to a 56-year-old man, and I don’t think he will. The only way I could see Steamboat going over is if there is outside interference by someone (possibly CM Punk or Rey Mysterio) to set up a new program for Jericho.

ECW champion Jack Swagger vs. Christian: It’s a good bet that Christian will win the title at some point, but the question is whether it will be at Backlash or sometime in the future. I have a hunch this will be Christian’s night.

Kane vs. CM Punk: It seems as if Punk is on the verge of receiving a significant push (hopefully that’s not just wishful thinking), so he’ll get the victory. The loss won’t hurt Kane, who always get the same pop from the crowd no matter how many matches he loses or whether he is a babyface or a heel.

NOTE: Santina Marella is booked to be on the Khali Kiss Cam. I’m not quite sure why this is on pay-per-view and not network television, but it will probably be good for a few laughs.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

If you missed the first segment of Smackdown Friday night then you missed the best part of the show.

Edge cut a money promo that really made we want to see his Last Man Standing Match against world heavyweight champion John Cena at the Backlash pay-per-view Sunday. In fact, I have more interest in this match than I did in the triple threat match between these two and The Big Show that took place at WrestleMania XXV three weeks ago.

With the arena dark except for a spotlight on Edge as he stood in the middle of the ring, he explained how his rivalry with Cena – which he sold as an epic battle that has gone on for several years and shortened both of their careers – will finally come to an end. The camera moved in for a tight close-up of his face as he projected intensity without yelling or overacting. He drove home the point that he’s a desperate man because this is his final shot at Cena’s title, and if he doesn’t win, he has nothing in his life that can replace being champion.

Edge’s promo capped off a week in which WWE did a very good of making this match feel special. It began Monday on Raw with Edge attacking Cena and putting him down for a 10-count after delivering a con-chair-to, and was followed by a strong promo from Cena on WWE Superstars Thursday.

Other thoughts on Friday’s show:

As the No. 2 heel on Raw behind Randy Orton, Big Show obviously needs to be booked strong, but I was still a little surprised at how he manhandled The Undertaker. …

WWE deserves credit for giving Matt Hardy a legitimate push since he turned heel. He made it 3-0 against his brother when he pinned Jeff in a tag team match that also involved Kane and CM Punk. Conventional thinking says that Jeff will win the I Quit Match at Backlash, but the fact that Jeff has yet to sign a new contract with his current one expiring in a few months could throw conventional thinking out the window. …

Jeff Hardy’s promo with the weird camera angles gets an “A” for effort for trying something different, but a “C” for execution due to Hardy’s over-dramatic delivery. …

The show-closing tag match that saw Batista and Shane McMahon defeat Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes was fine, but it didn’t do anything to get me excited about Sunday’s six-man match that also involves Triple H and Orton. …

I liked the Maryse-Gail Kim match. Maryse seems to get better in the ring every time I see her. When she was slapping around Kim – once the poster girl for the highly touted TNA women’s division – all I could think of were those TNA clips in which the knockouts would talk about how they were tougher than the divas. Something tells me that people behind the scenes in WWE remember those clips as well. …

I’m not sure what to make of some woman from The View getting involved in a WWE angle. I applaud WWE for trying to broaden its fan base, but I seriously doubt there will be much crossover.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (17)
        

With ZZ Top headlining the Preakness Infieldfest at Pimlico Race Course next month, it's only fitting that the former WWE diva who once used "Legs" as her entrance music should host the event.

Rosedale native Stacy Keibler was announced as the "celebrity host" for the festivities, which take place prior to the running of the Preakness on May 16. She will be introducing the performers and interacting with the crowd, according to a news release issued by The Maryland Jockey Club.

Stacy will probably feel like she's back in WWE when she looks out in the infield and sees all the brawls and half-naked women.

In addition to ZZ Top, Buckcherry and Baltimore's own Charm City Devils (fronted by John Allen, my old classmate at Dundalk High and Holabird Junior High) will be playing.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 7:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

I forgot to mention the debut of Jethro Holliday, formerly Trevor Murdoch in WWE, on TNA Impact Thursday night.

I don't think he'll be challenging for the TNA world title anytime soon, but he is a solid mid-card guy. I liked him when he was teaming with Lance Cade in WWE and was surprised when he was released.

With his resemblance to the late Dick Murdoch and unathletic physique, he stands out, and I mean that in a good way. He is a throwback to a 1970s-style brawler and his look perfectly suits his character.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 6:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

New TNA world champion Mick Foley was all over Thursday’s night’s episode of TNA Impact. He cut a promo to open the show, sat in on commentary and did a post-match run-in to close it, and was featured in a number of vignettes in between.

If you’re not a big Foley fan, you probably hated the show. Fortunately, I like Foley and found most of it entertaining.

Until Foley’s chair shot on Jeff Jarrett at the end of the program, all of his appearances were played for laughs. That’s not the approach I expected coming off his title win over Sting in a bloody cage match Sunday at the Lockdown pay-per-view. I figured that Cactus Jack would deliver an intense promo on the show, but instead we had Foley playing insincere heel and making jokes.

I think it worked, though. The idea behind Foley’s character is that he isn’t in his right mind and you never know which of his personas is going to show up. That air of unpredictability keeps things interesting. For example, after Foley repeatedly made jokes at Jarrett’s expense while doing commentary on Jarrett’s match with Scott Steiner, he inexplicably saved him from a post-match attack by Steiner and Kurt Angle. Then he proceeded to whack Jarrett with a chair.

Bang! Bang!

Other thoughts on Thursday’s show:

Foley carrying the championship belt with him everywhere he went in the vignettes was pretty funny. My favorite bit was when Foley tipped his blind masseuse a dollar and told her it was a twenty. When she knew he was lying, he gave her a hundred and said that he can afford it now that he’s a champion. I also laughed when Foley was signing autographs at the airport simply as “The Champ,” and when he ran away from a female autograph seeker. …

The Steiner-Jarrett weapons match was fun for what it was. Can you believe in the same night on TV we had Finlay singing “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling” to Hornswoggle, and Steiner jumping on a pogo stick? I loved Foley’s reference to Mr. Pogo, which probably went over a lot of people’s heads. …

They are teasing that Bobby Lashley is coming in as a heel, as Angle smiles when he shows up while Jarrett looks worried. I’m not buying it. Lashley has to be a babyface. Hopefully someone can teach him to cut a decent promo. …

Where was Sting? It’s possible that I missed it, but was it ever acknowledged that he wasn’t there? …

The Beer Money-Lethal Consequences match was good, but I would like to have seen it go a few more minutes. …

A long-standing problem with TNA story lines is that it seems as if there is dissension within every team and faction, thus the impact is lessened in each instance. In a lot of cases, partners or groups haven’t been established long enough for anyone to care when they tease breaking up.

I can’t even keep track of how many times A.J. Styles and Samoa Joe have gone back and forth between being friends and enemies (Joe told Styles Thursday that he has no friends). And I have no idea why Sharmell doesn’t like Jenna Morasca. Sharmell said she was “tired of this” after arguing with Morasca. Tired of what? At least let it build for a while before they start trying to attack each other. Plus, do we really need more in-fighting in The Main Event Mafia? …

I like the possibilities of a feud between new TNA women’s champion Angelina Love and Awesome Kong. TNA has been searching for months for someone to replace Gail Kim as the top women’s babyface, and it turns out that it’s their No. 1 heel. To go all the way with Kong as a babyface, TNA should have Raisha Saeed turn on her. Kong then responds by destroying Saeed, who is never seen again. A month or two later, Cheerleader Melissa joins TNA as a new character and it is never acknowledged that she was Saeed. …

Having Sojo Bolt and Taylor Wilde wrestle in a ladder match for a shot at Love seemed incredibly random. Bolt isn’t over at all, but, in all fairness to her, it’s hard to get the audience to care about you when no one knows from week to week whether you’re a face or a heel.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

WWE issued a news release Thursday touting the fact that it beat American Idol in the 18-34 male demographic for the week of April 13.

Quoting statistics from Nielsen Media Research, the release said that WWE programming reached 2.3 million 18-34 males during the week, while American Idol reached 2.0 (April 14) and 2.1 (April 15) that week in the same demo.

Now I know that some know-it-alls in the media are going to say that WWE’s claim is misleading because the company is combining the numbers for Raw, ECW, Superstars and Smackdown and is not taking into account the viewers who watch more than one show, so the statistics do not reflect unique viewers. Plus, if the two episodes of American Idol were combined, its number would be 4.1.

Frankly, I’m not about to let facts stand in the way of this story. I am so sick of hearing about American Idol that whatever WWE has to do to manipulate the numbers so that it can say it beat the glorified karaoke show is fine by me.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

The first time I mentioned Kofi Kingston on the blog was two weeks after his WWE television debut in February 2008. I wrote: “I see something in Kofi Kingston. Although he’s a little green, Kingston is athletic, has some unique moves and showed a lot of charisma in his vignettes.”

Kingston has done nothing but get better over the past 14 months, and if he continues to have matches like the one he had with Edge Thursday night on WWE Superstars, the 27-year-old high flyer could end up being a big part of WWE’s future.

The match was a textbook example of how to get a main-eventer a quality win heading into a pay-per-view, while also getting over the guy doing the job. Kingston got in a lot of offense and he and Edge worked well together.

That was the highlight of the show. The lowlight was Tyson Kidd – another young wrestler with a lot of upside – getting pinned by Hornswoggle in a tag team bout.

The match, which pitted Finlay and Hornswoggle against Kidd and Natalya, was a two-minute squash and comes on the heels of Natalya losing to the little guy on ECW Tuesday. So much for the pink and black-clad duo having any momentum.

It was billed as Hornswoggle’s final appearance with his “father” Finlay before heading to Raw. After the match, Finlay serenaded him with his rendition of “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.” This family friendly stuff is starting to annoy me.

Other thoughts on Thursday’s show:

John Cena cut a very good promo talking about his rivalry with Edge and how it all ends Sunday with their Last Man Standing Match at the Backlash pay-per-view. …

Kane avenged his loss to CM Punk on Raw Monday by pinning him in tag match also involving The Big Show and Rey Mysterio. I like Punk but I can’t say I’m all that interested in seeing him wrestle Kane at Backlash.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
        

For those in the Baltimore area looking for a place to watch WWE's Backlash pay-per-view, Loafers Bar and Grill in Catonsville will be hosting a viewing party Sunday.

I haven't been out to watch a pay-per-view in years, so I just may show up.

There is a $5 cover charge. For more information, call 410-719-2121.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 2:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

New TNA women’s champion Angelina Love confirmed on her MySpace account that she did indeed suffer a concussion during the cage match against Awesome Kong and Taylor Wilde at the Lockdown pay-per-view Sunday.

It was apparent watching the match that Love was legitimately hurt. The concussion occurred when Wilde landed a crossbody off the top rope and her hipbone caught Love on the jaw, which she said “knocked me out clean.” Love added that she does not remember winning the match, and she thanked referee Rudy Charles for “practically carrying me to the back afterwards.”

It’s always scary when something like this happens, and it’s an especially precarious situation when the person booked to win the match is the one who suffers the injury. There is a delicate balance between trying to preserve the finish and ensuring the wrestler’s safety. The referee at that point has to assume control and call an audible.

In this instance, Wilde immediately covered Love and popped up at “two” because Love was too out of it to kick out. Wilde then put Love in a rest hold to buy her some time. Right after that, Love weakly covered Wilde for the win after Wilde was kicked by Kong.

The scene reminded me of similar situations involving Steve Austin (against Owen Hart at SummerSlam in 1997) and Brock Lesnar (against Kurt Angle at WrestleMania in 2003).

***
The highlight of Tuesday’s episode of ECW was the match between Evan Bourne and Paul Burchill. I was happy to see that they actually were given some time and Burchill wasn’t squashed. ...

The lowlight was Hornswoggle defeating Natalya. She is way too talented for this kind of slapstick. I figured Hornswoggle was going to win, but I thought another woman wrestler would interfere and hit her finisher, causing Natalya to lose and setting up a program. Natalya getting pinned by Hornswoggle’s weak-looking roll-up is ridiculous.

I’m tired of seeing Hornswoggle in general, although I do understand why WWE keeps him around. He definitely appeals to kids, and that’s a key demographic for WWE. Watching Hornswoggle, Finlay and kids from the audience skip around the ring was a glaring example of how far WWE has moved away from the Attitude Era and back into the Hulkamania family-friendly era.

***
The Maryland-based Eastern Wrestling Alliance will hold a free outdoor event Saturday at noon at JD Byriders in Glen Burnie. For more information, go to ewamaryland.com.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)
        

Jeff Hardy’s future in WWE has been a hot topic among the Internet wrestling community after pwinsider.com reported earlier this week that Hardy’s contract was expiring in the next two-to-four months and he had yet to accept WWE’s offer for a new deal.

According to the report, WWE wants to sign Hardy to a long-term contract. When he was not receptive to such a deal, the company then offered him a one-year contract with the hope of working out a longer deal later, but he has not agreed to that either.

If the report is accurate (pwinsider.com has a pretty good track record), it’s anybody’s guess as to what it all means. Hardy in real life is a lot like his wrestling persona in that he is something of an enigma.

Perhaps Hardy is burnt out on wrestling and needs to get away from it for a while. He certainly has been on an emotional roller coaster over the past year, as he received the biggest push of his career and finally won the WWE title, but he also was suspended for his second violation of WWE’s Wellness Policy and lost all of his possessions as well as his dog in a fire.

Unlike his brother Matt, Jeff Hardy does not seem to be consumed by wrestling. In an interview with me last year, Hardy said that he had lost his passion for the business when he left WWE in 2003. “It becomes a job and you do it so much and things get old,” he told me. Hardy said that his big singles push was largely responsible for him regaining his passion, but he also said that “there’s a lot of pressure and stress that comes with [it].”

WWE has done such a tremendous job of branding its name over the years that no one star is bigger than the company, but it still would be a blow to lose Hardy. He is incredibly popular with teenage girls and kids, and despite that fact, there hasn’t been a backlash among male fans. With Triple H having moved over to Raw in the draft, Hardy is currently slotted as Smackdown’s No. 2 babyface behind The Undertaker.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (57)
        

The main event on Raw Monday night was a no-disqualification match between Randy Orton and Triple H that featured several run-ins and ended with an Orton pinfall victory.

Now if only the WWE title had been at stake and the match had taken place at WrestleMania XXV two weeks ago, it would have been perfect.

Monday’s Orton-Triple H match was decidedly better-booked and more entertaining than their encounter at Houston’s Reliant Stadium, which came off as anti-climactic after such an intense buildup.

The Raw match had more brawling than the Mania match, as steel steps, chairs and trashcans were all used as weapons. And the outside interference that everyone was expecting but didn’t get at WrestleMania – from Legacy and at least one member of the McMahon family – took place.

Batista also interfered in Monday’s match. Imagine how much more impact Batista’s unannounced return would have had if he made a surprise run-in during the Orton-Triple H match at WrestleMania.

Of course, the main reason the Raw match was superior is because Orton got the win. While it’s WWE tradition to end WrestleMania with the babyface basking in the glory of victory, this was the year to do something different, and Orton was the guy to do it with. If WrestleMania XXV had ended with the match that took place on Raw, I don’t think most fans would have been disappointed.

Other thoughts on Monday night’s show:

Speaking of good matches, John Cena and Chris Jericho had one in what was billed as Jericho’s Raw sendoff. The match ended with Edge attacking Cena and knocking him out with a con-chair-to to build up their Last Man Standing match at the Backlash pay-per-view Sunday. …

During Jericho’s promo that opened the show, he said that he was going to be gone from Raw forever now that he has been drafted to Smackdown. I’m taking bets on just how many weeks constitutes forever. Plus, isn’t it possible that he could get drafted back to Raw in next year’s draft? …

I’m not even going to get into the fact that the draft took place last week and guys from Smackdown were still all over Raw. Supposedly the new rosters won’t take full effect until after Backlash. So why didn’t WWE just wait to do the draft until then? …

It amazes me that the announcers still play up the history between Triple H and Orton from their days with Evolution. If Triple H turning on Orton out of jealousy five years ago is the basis for their current feud, shouldn’t Orton be cast as the babyface seeking retribution? …

I loved how Big Show decided to hook the leg when he covered an unconscious Rey Mysterio. …

I was surprised that CM Punk defeated Kane so quickly, but I’m not complaining. The pin came out of nowhere, as Punk turned Kane’s chokeslam attempt into a small package. …

Why is Melina scoring pinfall wins over Beth Phoenix? …

Santino Marella interviewing Santina Marella wasn’t as entertaining as Mick Foley interviewing Cactus Jack, but it was a lot funnier. …

Considering his won-loss record as of late, perhaps Chavo Guerrero should just stick to wheeling around Aunt Vickie at this point.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (31)
        

I had a good time attending my first live TNA pay-per-view Sunday night at The Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. Overall, I thought Lockdown -- with its all cage-match format -- was entertaining, and taking a bus up to the event with fifty-some fans also helped make it a fun experience.

The big news is that Mick Foley defeated Sting to become the new TNA world champion, and former WWE star Bobby Lashley was revealed as the “world champion from another organization” who has signed with TNA. The best match on the show was the Philadelphia Street Fight that saw Team 3-D defeat Beer Money for the TNA world tag team title.

There was definitely a different vibe at the show than there is at a WWE pay-per-view event. Everything was smaller at Lockdown – the venue, the crowd, the set, etc. – but I don’t necessarily view that as a negative. It’s like comparing a big-budget movie with A-list stars to an independent film with some well-known actors and promising newcomers. Both of them can have merit.

TNA cannot compete with WWE when it comes to production values, star power and mass appeal, but it can fill a void as an alternative for wrestling fans. The key for TNA to succeed in that regard is to differentiate itself from WWE, which it seemingly is trying to do.

For example, while WWE has banned blading, TNA had four matches at Lockdown that had blood. As WWE has become more family friendly as far as language and raunchy content, TNA has gotten more risqué.

The WWE-TNA dichotomy reminds me of the philosophical differences between the WWF and Jim Crockett Promotions in the mid-1980s. You had Hulk Hogan playing the part of a superhero and Cyndi Lauper getting involved in story lines on WWE programming, while wrestlers were engaging in bloody brawls and attacking each other with baseball bats in parking lots on JCP shows. I enjoyed watching them both.

One thing TNA needs to do a better job of is creating TNA stars. Almost all of the guys on top right now made their names in WWE and/or WCW. That trend continued at Lockdown, as Foley and Team 3-D won titles and Lashley was given the star treatment in his debut. The positive is that Lashley is only 32.

Lashley got a big pop when he came out on the stage, which surprised me because he was never able to get over as a top-tier guy when he was in WWE. It will be interesting to see if TNA fans truly embrace Lashley once he debuts on television.

A lot of people – including me – thought that Tazz was going to be the mystery man. I’m not sure that Lashley’s stint as champion in the new ECW qualifies him as a former world champion, so it never crossed my mind that it could be him. I know that Booker T. had been trying to recruit Lashley since he left WWE, and Kurt Angle has been high on him going back to when Angle was in WWE and Lashey was in developmental.

Here is a match-by-match look at the show:

Mick Foley defeated Sting to win the TNA world title: It’s pretty amazing that Foley and Sting are wrestling for a world title on pay-per-view in 2009. Foley hasn’t held a world title since 1999 and he has had just one world title match since 2000 (he competed in a five-way WWE title match in 2007). I wouldn’t go so far as to say that this match was bad, but it was disappointing considering how good the build for it was on TV. Foley, playing his Cactus Jack character, started the match by repeatedly punching himself above the eye, which opened up a pre-existing wound. The crowd was somewhat divided, but Foley seemed to be getting more boos than cheers. The match had a methodical pace and fans started getting restless at about the 7-minute mark. Things picked up after Foley kicked a hole in the cage and took out a camera man. He reached out for his barbed wire baseball bat, but it was too far away, and a camera man (not sure if it was the same one Foley had just knocked down) handed it to him. That was pretty silly. The match ended when Foley made his way over the top of the cage and onto the floor seconds before Sting reached the floor. It was somewhat anti-climactic, as the fans seemed more surprised than anything that Foley won, and Foley’s tease on TV that he would perform a big move didn’t materialize (which is probably just as well).

Team Jarrett (Jeff Jarrett, A.J. Styles, Samoa Joe and Christopher Daniels) defeated Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Booker T., Scott Steiner and Kevin Nash) in the Lethal Lockdown match: The story line focused on whether or not Jarrett would turn on his teammates and join The Main Event Mafia. He didn’t. For the finish, Jarrett teased hitting Styles with the guitar, but he hit Booker instead and Styles pinned him for the win. After the match was over, Joe teased that he was going to hit Jarrett with the guitar, but he dropped it instead. The highlight of the match saw Styles dive through a gimmicked part of the cage roof onto several wrestlers below. There’s no safe way to do that spot. Styles’ body was out of control, but no one appeared to be seriously hurt. Before that move, Styles and Angle were fighting on the roof, teasing that one was going to throw the other off of it. When that didn’t happen, the fans booed. Sick Philadelphia freaks. Steiner continues to move a lot better than he did during his WWE stint, and he popped the crowd by hitting a Frankensteiner on Styles off the top rope. When the fans cheered the move, Steiner flipped them off. Classic Steiner. I’m not sure if the announcers addressed this in commentary, but Samoa Joe was late when it was his turn to enter the match. I also thought it was odd that Jarrett went right after Steiner and began bashing him in the head with a pan without even a hint of indecisiveness (unless I missed it). In the buildup to this match, it had been established that Jarrett and Steiner were friends.

Team 3-D defeated Beer Money in a Philadelphia Street Fight to win the TNA world tag team title: Thanks to the popularity of Team 3-D in Philly and a fantastic build on TV, the crowd was more into this match than any other. When all four guys brawled through the crowd, a loud “E-C-W!” chant broke out. For a second, I thought Jack Swagger had entered the building. There were some nice near falls and the crowd was popping for everything, especially the “Get the tables!” spot. At one point, the crowd chanted “We want fire!” Sick Philadelphia freaks. Team 3-D won by hitting the 3-D on Robert Roode after James Storm inadvertently slammed the cage door in Roode’s face. It will be interesting to see if Beer Money stays together and the program continues, or if Roode and Storm split up and feud with each other. If the latter happens, it appears that Roode would be the babyface. Last week, Kevin Nash put Roode over as a “natural babyface” in a radio interview with me.

Matt Morgan defeated Abyss in a Doomsday Chamber of Blood match: As far as hardcore and weapons matches go, this was average at best. Near the end of the match, Dr. Stevie Richards – fresh off his appearance with Maryland Championship Wrestling last weekend – came down to the ring and was greeted by an “E-C-W!” chant before he physically stopped Abyss from using a chair and thumbtacks. With Abyss distracted, Morgan hit a tree slam on him into the tacks for the win. I thought a violent match such as this could really help Morgan get over if booked correctly, but I don’t think it did much for him at all.

Angelina Love defeated Taylor Wilde and TNA women’s champion Awesome Kong to win the title: The bookers didn’t do Wilde any favors, as she was made to look like a naïve babyface. She and Kong worked together against Love early, but then after Kong double-crossed her, Wilde still kept trying to befriend her. For much of the match, Kong was just tossing both of them around. The highlight was Kong missing a somersault splash off the top rope. Now that was impressive for someone her size. The set-up to the finish was pretty clever, as Love and Velvet Sky (who was outside the cage) tied Kong’s braids to the cage, leaving Love and Wilde to battle it out. Wilde hit a crossbody off the top onto Love, who must have landed hard on the back of her head because she appeared to be legitimately out of it. Wilde went for a cover, but then popped up at “two” without Love kicking out. They improvised at that point, and Wilde grabbed a sleeper. Wilde then went to check on Kong, but Kong kicked her and Love weakly rolled her up for the win.

X Division champion Suicide defeated Sheik Abdul Bashir, Jay Lethal, Consequences Creed and Kiyoshi in an Xscape Match: Lots of high spots here as expected. It came down to Suicide (I’m guessing it was Daniels) and Bashir. Kiyoshi came down to the ring to distract Suicide, who then did a spectacular dive off the top of the cage onto Kiyoshi and security for the win. While Suicide was still making his way up the ramp, an interview with Daniels and Styles appeared on the screen. That was a nice touch (if the placement was on purpose).

IWGP junior heavyweight tag team champions The Motor City Machine Guns defeated No Limit and LAX: I still can’t figure out whether the Guns are babyfaces or heels. There were some cool spots but also a couple botched ones, as it appeared that there were some communication problems. Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin hit a double sliced bread on Naito for the win.

ODB defeated Sojo Bolt, Madison Rayne and Daffney in a Queen of the Cage match: They all worked hard, but the crowd was really only into ODB, who pinned Bolt for the win. Perhaps it’s just me, but I don’t think Cody Deaner adds anything to ODB’s act.

PRESHOW MATCH

Eric Young defeated Danny Bonaduce: Well done for what it was. Bonaduce was in incredible shape and had a lot of heel heat. On his way to the ring, he began jawing with a fan in the front row. When the fan pointed at Bonaduce, he grabbed the guy’s finger and started biting it, and then slapped him hard in the head. The fan got up and tried to go after Bonaduce, but he was restrained by security and taken out. That had to be a plant. At one point, Bonaduce hit a modified Swanton Bomb. Young got the win with a sloppy small package after ducking Bonaduce’s attempt to hit him with nunchucks. They shook hands after the match, but Bonaduce attacked Young when he turned his back and began choking him with the nunchucks. Rhino made the save and hit a heck of a Gore on Bonaduce.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (19)
        

Predictions for Sunday night’s TNA pay-per-view, which I will be attending at The Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. All of the matches will be contested in a steel cage:

TNA world champion Sting vs. Mick Foley: The buildup to this match has been very well done; now we’ll have to see if the two veterans can pull it off in the ring. The fact that it is a cage match should work to their benefit. Foley, who will be playing his maniacal Cactus Jack character, has basically promised to do at least one crazy move. It would be fitting if Foley – in his Cactus garb – won the world title in a cage in Philly, but I think Sting will retain.

Lethal Lockdown: Team Jarrett (Jeff Jarrett, A.J. Styles, Samoa Joe and Christopher Daniels) vs. Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Booker T., Scott Steiner and Kevin Nash): The intrigue surrounding this star-studded match is whether or not Jarrett will turn on his teammates and join The Main Event Mafia. I’m guessing that he doesn’t and the babyfaces come out on top. I expect the “new” Samoa Joe to be showcased in this match.

TNA tag team champions Beer Money vs. IWPG tag team champions Team 3-D in a Philadelphia Street Fight: If I understand the rules correctly, the match will start in the cage but the door will be open and the teams can brawl all over the building. I think that defeats the purpose of a cage match, but TNA is trying to make all of the matches a little different and this does figure to be an entertaining brawl. A win by Robert Roode and James Storm in a street fight in Team 3-D’s old stomping grounds would be huge for them, and Team 3-D is probably bulletproof at this point in their careers, so it makes sense for Beer Money to go over.

Abyss vs. Matt Morgan in a Doomsday Chamber of Blood Match: This one most likely won’t be for the faint of heart. TNA seems to have pulled back on Morgan’s big push, but if he is going to be given another opportunity, a win here would go a long way in getting him over. I think Morgan will win, perhaps with interference from Dr. Stevie or maybe even Lauren.

TNA women’s champion Awesome Kong vs. Angelina Love vs. Taylor Wilde: Awesome Kong is great, but it might be time for her to be the hunter rather than the hunted, especially with her apparently doing a babyface turn. Wilde isn’t over enough to justify putting the title back on her, so I’m picking Love. She plays her character well, is a decent worker and cuts the best promos of any of the women in TNA.

X Division champion Suicide vs. Jay Lethal vs. Consequences Creed vs. Sheik Abdul Bashir vs. Kiyoshi in an Xscape Match: This is scheduled to open the pay-per-view, and it figures to get things off to a flying start. I expect Suicide to retain the title, but the real question is: Who is Suicide? Will Kaz return to don the costume or will Daniels be pulling double duty?

ODB vs. Daffney vs. Madison Rayne vs. Sojo Bolt in a Queen of the Cage Match: I’ve always been a big fan of Daffney’s and it would be nice to see her get a pay-per-view win, but I think ODB goes over here. Then TNA can do “comedy” skits with her as The Queen of the Cage and Cody Deaner as her royal subject.

IWGP junior heavyweight tag team champions The Motor City Machine Guns vs. LAX vs. No Limit: This has the potential to be awesome. Hernandez (listed at 285 pounds) holding a junior heavyweight title would be ridiculous, so that rules out LAX. Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin may be on the verge of becoming breakout stars, so I’ll go with them to retain.

PRE-SHOW MATCH

Eric Young vs. Danny Bonaduce: I’m actually looking forward to seeing this. Young is a talented enough worker that he can probably carry Bonaduce to an entertaining match. Plus, Bonaduce has presence and is in great shape for his age (49). I believe Young will win, but I wouldn’t totally rule out someone interfering and costing him the match to set up a program.

NOTE: Also on the pay-per-view, TNA will reveal the identity of the "former world champion from another organization" who has signed with the company. All signs point to it being Tazz.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (14)
        

There was a draft on Raw Monday, wasn’t there? You sure wouldn’t have known it by watching Smackdown Friday night.

Perhaps I missed the part where it was announced that the new rosters don’t take effect until next week, because Raw mainstays Randy Orton, Batista and Ted DiBiase were on the show, as were several wrestlers who had been drafted to Raw – Triple H, The Big Show, Maryse, MVP and Matt Hardy.

Smackdown’s top heel, Edge, was nowhere to be found, however. Neither were newly acquired Smackdown performers Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, Mike Knox and Alicia Fox.

I’ll say it again: If wrestlers are permitted to appear on any show they want, what’s the point of having a draft? Instead of WWE keeping up the pretense of three separate brands, I think it should combine the Raw and Smackdown rosters into one (like it was before 2002) and keep ECW as a distinctive brand featuring younger talent with some veterans sprinkled in.

Other thoughts on Friday night’s show:

The dramatic music playing in the background during the verbal confrontation between Triple H and Orton was corny and distracting. I’m all for trying something new, but I just don’t think it works. …

The Undertaker and Shelton Benjamin had another good match together. It’s the third time they have wrestled each other in the past three months, and once again Benjamin looked good in defeat. I’m curious to see if Benjamin’s strong showings against The Undertaker lead to more of a push for him. …

Another guy who looked good while losing was Ted DiBiase Jr., who put over Batista in a decent main event. …

The Big Show-Jeff Hardy match was dragging until Matt Hardy showed up. The finishing sequence was good and Matt generated a lot of heat for the post-match attack on his brother. …

Dolph Ziggler pinning MVP was a surprise. I see something in Ziggler and would like for him to get a push, but WWE needs to limit the number of jobs that MVP does. His character was weakened by the long losing streak and he needs to get on a serious roll for fans to view him as anything more than a mid-carder. …

Another result that I had mixed emotions about was John Morrison’s victory over R-Truth. Morrison has major star potential and definitely shouldn’t lose his first match since the draft, but I don’t want to see R-Truth end up in the role of jobber to the stars. …

It wasn’t perfect, but I enjoyed the Gail Kim-Maryse match. I’m not too impressed with Kim’s finisher, though. …

The Great Khali attempting to put a liplock on Santina Marella figures to be entertaining, but the standard Khaki Kiss Cam segments ran their course a while ago

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

If anyone in the Baltimore area still wants to go on WNST 1570 AM’s bus trip to Philadelphia for the TNA Lockdown pay-per-view Sunday, you shouldn’t wait too much longer to purchase the package. The number of seats left on the bus can be counted on one hand, according to WNST.

Along with transportation and a ticket to the show, the package includes a backstage meet and greet with TNA stars, as well as refreshments on the bus. There also will be some wrestling DVDs to watch on the way up.

To get on the bus, go to www.wnst.net.

This is my first time attending a TNA pay-per-view, and with the great job that the company has done of building it up, I’m really looking forward to it.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 1:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I don’t know how much Mick Foley has left as a wrestler, but there’s no doubt that he is at the top of his game as a performer.

Foley, who struggled to remain relevant during the latter part of his last WWE stint, just may be the most compelling character in the business right now. His split personality promo Thursday night on TNA Impact was nothing short of brilliant, and I’m willing to bet that it convinced some people who were on the fence to buy Sunday’s Lockdown pay-per-view, which features Foley and TNA world champion Sting in the main event.

In the segment, Foley interviewed his alter ego, Cactus Jack. When I first heard this was going to happen, I figured it was going to be done backstage using camera tricks to have both Foley and Cactus Jack in the shot. I recall Foley doing something similar with his Mankind, Cactus Jack and Dude Love personas in WWE about a decade ago.

Instead, Foley did a one-man show in a front of a live crowd, which was incredibly ambitious and potentially corny, but he pulled it off. I don’t think there are many other wrestlers who could have. The Foley character and the Cactus Jack character have entirely different mannerisms and speech patterns, but Foley seamlessly moved from one persona to the other during a heated exchange with himself .

It’s obvious that Foley is determined to prove that WWE underestimated how much value he still has. It also was apparent that the concept and dialogue for this angle came from Foley.

The theme of the promo was one that Foley has used before — that he has gotten soft and become something of a sell-out. In other words, the kind of guy that Cactus Jack would hate.

Drawing blood from above his eye after repeatedly punching himself made the scene all the more dramatic. Sting, who came out to confront Foley, also played his part well, as he kept asking him if this was all an act or if Foley had really lost his mind.

Great stuff.

Other thoughts on Thursday night’s show:

As far as go-home shows, this was definitely one of TNA’s better ones. The returning Christopher Daniels (well, actually, he never left) was revealed as the fourth member of Team Jarrett. He got a nice pop and then had a fantastic match with Kurt Angle. The finish was well-booked (Daniels got the three-count, but the decision was reversed by Jeff Jarrett when the replay showed that Angle’s shoulder was up and Daniels’ shoulders were down), as it made Daniels look strong while also furthering the story line of where Jarrett’s loyalties lie. ...

The Beer Money-Team 3-D angle, which saw Robert Roode and James Storm brutalize and bloody former ECW stars Balls Mahoney and Brother Runt (where was my man Axl Rotten?), was well done. The one drawback was that it took way too long for Team 3-D to make the save. Also, it was announced that the Beer Money-Team 3-D match at Lockdown is going to be a Philadelphia Street Fight, which means they can fight all over the building. Doesn’t that kind of defeat the whole point of a cage match? ...

The three-way between Homicide, Chris Sabin and Naito was entertaining. ...

Not-so entertaining was Cody Deaner’s wrestling debut. Somebody please make this guy go away. He’s the most annoying character since Eugene.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 12:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (15)
        

The WWE Superstars show on WGN America made a good first impression Thursday night, but judging by the debut episode, there might not be much in the way of can’t-miss angles on the program.

WWE’s fourth weekly prime time broadcast presented three matches involving some big names, including The Undertaker. It was not a recap show and did not have low-end mid-card matchups a la Sunday Night Heat.

All three matches – The Undertaker vs. Matt Hardy, Christian vs. Finlay and Shane McMahon vs. Cody Rhodes – were entertaining.

The most significant development was Christian defeating Finlay in the finals of the Elimination Chase to earn a title shot with ECW champion Jack Swagger at the Backlash pay-per-view on April 26.

I was pleasantly surprised that The Undertaker did not pin Matt Hardy, who got in a decent amount of offense before losing by countout (he intentionally walked away and then was attacked by his brother before being laid out by Undertaker).

In the main event, McMahon looked the best he has in the ring since the angle with Legacy began.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 7:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

I conducted a phone interview recently with Alex Shelley of The Motor City Machine Guns. Shelley and partner Chris Sabin will defend the IWGP junior heavyweight tag team title against LAX and No Limit in a three-way match at TNA’s Lockdown pay-per-view on Sunday.

You and Chris Sabin obviously have great chemistry in the ring whether you’re partners or opponents. Do you hang out away from the ring and travel together, and if so, does that help with that chemistry?

I think a big part of it is that we’re both about the same size and have the same strengths. And then wrestling each other, I think we got to understand each other’s styles. We had a lot of the same experiences, too, as far as training with Scott D’Amore and wrestling in Mexico and Japan. So you’re talking about two guys who basically match up perfectly with each other and have done the same things throughout their careers. And we’re also influenced by the same wrestlers, too, so we like the same style of wrestling. It just works out so much better that way because you’re talking about two minds that are on the exact same level and want to accomplish the same things and think about things the same way. But, yeah, we’re best friends in real life as well. Us and Petey Williams, we all live within about a 15-mile radius of each other outside Detroit, so we see each other quite a bit. And then we’re booked on the same shows all the time, too, so we’re always traveling together.

Who are some of those wrestlers that influenced you? I assume that you were a big fan growing up?

Yeah, I was a huge fan of wrestling growing up. Honestly, I think you can tell which guys were fans growing up and which weren’t by the way they wrestle and how they do things. Shawn Michaels I think was big influence for both of us. Bret Hart, Owen Hart. Jushin Liger. A lot of guys of that ilk. The first junior heavyweights, whether they competed as junior heavyweights or not in the United States or North America.

You and Chris and a number of the other X Division guys have some great TV matches, but you often get just two or three minutes for them. How frustrating is that?

The way I look at is a real fight can end in a minute or it can end in 25 minutes. I mean how many boxing matches have you seen that have gone 90 seconds? How many have you seen that have gone 10 rounds? From a creative standpoint, you just try to make the most with what you’re given. So if I’m given a piece of paper and I’m given three colors and I’m told to draw this landscape that has a multitude of colors, then I’m just going to do the best I can with what I have.

Sunday’s Lockdown pay-per-view consists of all cage matches. A cage match was always something special, but with a whole card of them, is it a challenge to make your match stand out from the rest?

It is and it isn’t. I think it depends on what kind of match you’re in. Luckily, we’re usually in the Escape Match, and this year we’ll be in the three-way dance, which is already a different kind of matchup as is. I think we have enough tag team combinations and we can do enough athletically that the cage is more just there if we need it, but we don’t necessarily have to rely on it, whereas there may some matches that are going to focus a lot more on it.

TNA has a nice mix of veterans and young talent on its roster. Do you take advantage of having those veterans at your disposal by seeking their advice?

Absolutely. It’s nice to have that mix, like you mentioned. The veterans I always go to are Sting, [Kevin] Nash – Nash has taught me the most out of all of them. Kurt Angle is someone who’s always willing to help out. And Jim Cornette helps out Sabin and me quite a bit, too, him being a tag team specialist and all. Those are the guys I always go to and I respect their opinion a lot. And they’re always very open-minded and give very constructive criticism as well.

What is the best piece of advice you have been given?

It’s tough to narrow it down, but I got to do a lot of interview work with Nash, and he basically told me that if you’re having fun doing your promos, then people can see that. And they can also see when something is forced, too, and when something is uncomfortable for somebody to do. So he said that you just have to find a way to make everything fun, and if you can do that, people can see that you’re enjoying yourself, thus they’re going to enjoy watching you.

You’ve had the opportunity to interact with Mick Foley on camera. What has that been like?

Actually, I feel really bad that I didn’t mention Mick Foley when you asked about which veterans we should go to for advice and what not. Mick’s definitely one of them as well and he’s helped us out a ton, even though he’s only been with the company about eight months or so. He’s been awesome to work with. He’s a legend, he’s made a ton of money and he appreciates every kind of wrestling that’s out there, whether it’s Mexican or Japanese or American. And it’s just nice to see that from someone who’s been on top. He’s been nothing but great to work with.

Can you describe what it was like to win the IWGP junior heavyweight tag team title in Japan?

It was a pretty special feeling. You’re talking about the junior heavyweight tag team titles in a company that’s the biggest in Japan right now, not to mention it was that biggest crowd I’ve personally performed in front of – around 40-45,000 in the Tokyo Dome. It was also our debut match for New Japan Pro Wrestling, who put a lot of faith in us by giving us that opportunity. Wrestling in Japan, whether it’s in front of 45,000 or 450 people, is always a pleasure. I really respect their style of wrestling and I’ve spent many, many weeks over there on tour before and I really enjoy myself when I’m over there.

If you could work with any tag team, past or present, who would it be?

Our very first tag team match together we worked a team called Skull and Bones, a team in Japan – Hidaka and Fujita. They quit teaming right after that. We beat them for the tag team titles in Zero-One. I would love to have a rematch with them. As far as classic tag teams go, I would love to work with Midnight Express – the Stan Lane and Bobby Eaton incarnation. I thought they were awesome. Jim Cornette actually gave us a Midnight Express packet of about a hundred matches of theirs about two years ago. We studied that rigorously for a while and just picked up as many tricks from them as we could.

When TNA first came about, a lot of people didn’t think it would last a year, but here it is seven years later and the company continues to grow. What has been the key to TNA’s success?

I think a lot of it has to do with luck, to be honest with you. All the right things have to fall into the right places at the right times for any of this stuff to happen. That said, there a lot of people in the office who work extremely hard and a lot of the wrestlers work extremely hard. You see guys take risks in TNA that you won’t see on any other product. And I hope the fans appreciate that. On top of that, it is an alternative product. Nobody is going to argue that we’re the biggest company in North America, because we’re not. However, we’re different. You buy a TNA pay-per-view, you’re going to see matches that you’re won’t see anywhere else, at least not in the States, that’s for sure. Having that alternative product, I think that’s something a lot of fans were looking forward to to fill the void from the companies that got bought up a few years back. I think seeing wrestlers from different companies in new ways is one of our attributes as well.

The Motor City Machine Guns have some interesting entrance music. What are your thoughts on it? Did you have a hand in selecting it?

Without saying anything negative, I can tell you that we had absolutely no hand in creating that music whatsoever. You can draw from this what you will, but there are no fingerprints of ours on that music whatsoever. That music was completely given to us.

Being from Detroit, it seems like there are a lot of things you could play off of with the music – maybe something resembling “Detroit, Rock City” or a Ted Nugent riff. If you could pick the music, what would it sound like?

Well you’re absolutely correct in the fact that Detroit has a super, super rich rock and roll history. If we could actually pick our music, and hopefully we’ll be able to do something like this, Chris Sabin, Petey Williams and myself have a band with two other guys – we’re called The High Crusade – and we would play our own music. We would go in the studio and figure out something. I think the best way to figure out what theme music would be best for yourself is to have something that comes out of your own brain

Who plays what in the band?

We have a guitarist and a drummer from another band called Idol and the Whip. Petey has played guitar since he was a kid – he’s been in bands for a long, long time. Sabin plays bass and I do vocals.

What are your plans for The High Crusade? Are you playing gigs? Recording?

We actually just had our first show [last week] in Detroit at a punk rock club. We just started practicing about six months ago. We’d like to do something with the music, but again, we just started practicing six months ago and we just had our first show. We made a really rough scratch demo in about two days and it’s up on our MySpace at www.myspace.com/thehighcrusade. If everybody could check out the band’s MySpace it would mean a lot to us.

Photo courtesy of tnawrestling.com

Posted by Kevin Eck at 9:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Q&As
        

Here are some excerpts from TNA star Kevin Nash’s appearance on Ring Posts Live with me and Nestor Aparicio Wednesday afternoon on WNST 1570 AM.

Nash will team with fellow Main Event Mafia members Kurt Angle, Booker T. and Scott Steiner against Jeff Jarrett, Samoa Joe, A.J. Styles and a mystery partner in the Lethal Lockdown match at TNA’s Lockdown pay-per-view on Sunday.

On the staph infection in his elbow: "It looked like a gunshot wound even a month ago. It just looked the thing was never going to heal. We have a young surgeon that helps us at TNA, and about a month ago at TV he said, 'I can close that.' A week ago Thursday he surgically went in and put the thing back together. I won't be a hundred percent, but I'm definitely wrestling on Sunday."

On the Main Event Mafia clicking with viewers: "Whether it's The Horsemen, the nWo, the Main Event Mafia or DeGeneration X, it always seems like a faction, especially a heel faction, seems to work. The problems the babyfaces always have is that they're always fighting amongst themselves, and you get four or five guys that have a common goal to be the deterrent to them, I think storyline-wise it's easy for a wrestling fan to go, 'OK, that doesn't insult my intelligence. Five guys beating two makes sense.' "

On TNA using veterans on top while also trying to build new stars: "A couple weeks ago, we did a thing where The Motor City Machine Guns came down and interacted with The Main Event Mafia, and I thought [Alex] Shelley came in and was brilliant on the mic. I just think that the more that we interact with them [the better]. I think the biggest problem booking-wise is that the young guys are so athletically gifted and -- I'll just use me as an example -- they have to work around me. I'm not ashamed to say it. I'll be 50 in July. You know, I'd love to pass the torch, to be that first generation of guys that makes stars. And we've got some guys that are ready."

On the next generation of TNA stars: "I think Robert Roode is a really, really talented guy. I think he's a natural babyface, although he's working heel right now. He's just solid. He's a combination of Rick Rude and Curt Hennig. He's a real good technical wrestler and everything he does is solid. Motor City Machine Guns -- I watched them do 25 minutes in the Tokyo Dome in January and was just amazed at how athletic and what an incredible pace that those two guys go. You got 'Black Machismo' Jay Lethal, a really fiery young babyface, a lot of athleticism. There's Samoa Joe. You have A.J. [Styles]. I don't think there's really a better athlete in the business right now than A.J. Some of the things he can do reminds me of Shawn [Michaels] in his peak years, as far as athleticism."

To listen to the entire Ring Posts Live segment (Nash comes on about 13 minutes in), including Nash's comments on Vince McMahon paying for Scott Hall and Sean Waltman's rehab, go to the audio vault on the wnst.net home page.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Hulk Hogan's estranged wife, Linda, made a statement in a news release Thursday in response to Hulk's remark that he could relate to O.J. Simpson.

The statement was pretty much what you would expect. In my opinion, both parties are embarrassing themselves with their behavior during their divorce proceedings. But no matter what anyone may think of Linda, Hulk set himself up to look bad by referencing murders in an interview. It doesn't matter what context he was putting it in, either.

Here is the news release, verbatim:

“Hulk thinks he can do whatever he wants, to whomever he wants, whenever he wants. He is your classic narcissist who demands total control and will go to ANY extent necessary to get it. His violent and scary mood swings have been my nightmare for too many years. I hope for the sake of our kids that he gets the psychological help for himself and the safety of others," states Linda Hogan.

“For those who buy his claim the comment was taken out of context, read the rest of Rolling Stone and determine for yourself if his suicidal tendencies coupled with the use of drugs and alcohol make him a danger. His actions in the past years have been very disturbing. Linda wants all of this to be over so she can move on with her life,” states Linda’s rep Gary Smith.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

Twenty-four WWE stars changed shows during Wednesday afternoon’s draft. The biggest name on the list is Mr. Kennedy, who is back on Raw after an injury-riddled stint on Smackdown. The other significant move is John Morrison going from ECW to Smackdown.

Here’s a look at each brand’s acquisitions and my take on them:

RAW
Mr. Kennedy (from Smackdown): If he remains a babyface, this is a bad move because Raw already has John Cena, Triple H, Batista and Shawn Michaels. However, Kennedy would be in a good position if he turns heel. After Randy Orton, the top heels on the roster are The Big Show and Matt Hardy.

Carlito and Primo (from Smackdown): The undisputed tag team champs could be headed for a showdown with Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes.

Chavo Guerrero (from Smackdown): With his Aunt Vickie now the Raw general manager, Guerrero gets to keep playing his role as her lackey.

The Brian Kendrick (from Smackdown): Not a good move for him. I wouldn’t expect TBK to be anything more than enhancement talent, which is a real shame. He and Ezekiel Jackson had a lot of potential as an odd couple. It’s too bad TBK wasn’t drafted to ECW.

Festus (Smackdown): He will likely get some TV time because he is a novelty act, but I don’t like former tag team partner Jesse’s chances as a singles wrestler on Smackdown.

Brie Bella and Nikki Bella (from Smackdown): The twins recently reunited in an angle that was a WWE Mobile exclusive. The fact that it wasn’t on TV probably says something about where the Bellas stand in the pecking order.

Hornswoggle (from ECW): I have no idea what value Hornswoggle has if he isn’t part of Finlay’s act.

SMACKDOWN
John Morrison (from ECW): It initially looked as if The Miz had made out better than his more-talented partner when he was drafted to Raw Monday night while Morrison was left on ECW. Looking at the Raw and Smackdown rosters, however, Morrison has more of an opportunity to shine on Smackdown than Miz does on Raw. He has a shot at becoming the brand’s No. 3 heel (behind Edge and Chris Jericho) and potential foes in Intercontinental champion Rey Mysterio and Jeff Hardy.

Mike Knox (from Raw): Seems like a lateral move to me.

Dolph Ziggler (from Raw): Like Kendrick, his best chance to make an impact is on ECW.

Cryme Tyme (from Raw): I don’t have a strong opinion on this one.

Alicia Fox (from ECW): D.J. Gabriel did not come with her, so her dancing gimmick might be over. I sure hope not. Watching her get her groove on is one of the highlights of my week.

Ricky Ortiz (from ECW): He goes from having Tiffany as a love interest on ECW to most likely being a jobber to the stars on Smackdown. The rally towel just became a crying towel.

Candice Michelle (from Raw): She has never been able to regain the momentum she had before being injured in 2007. Her impact at this point is probably minimal.

Charlie Haas (from Raw): Another lateral move.

Layla (from Raw): Her pairing with William Regal did nothing for either of their careers. She’s lost in the diva shuffle.

ECW
Hurricane Helms (from Smackdown): I like this move a lot. Helms was never going to be more than a mid-carder on Smackdown, but he has a chance to be one of the top guys on ECW.

DH Smith (from Raw): The rumors of Smith joining Legacy can officially be put to rest. There most likely is something to rumors of him forming a stable with Tyson Kidd and Natalya, however.

Natalya (from Smackdown): I thought she was already on the ECW roster.

Ezekiel Jackson (from Smackdown): I hate to see his alliance with Kendrick end, but Jackson could wind up being a star on the “C” show.

Zack Ryder (from Smackdown): He’s still in WWE?

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (28)
        

We’ve all seen movie trailers that were great and then been disappointed with the movie. That’s the way I felt after watching the E:60 piece on Vince McMahon on ESPN Tuesday night.

It wasn’t a bad piece, it just didn’t live up to the hype. Of course, it’s hard to do justice to someone as complex as the WWE chairman in 15 minutes.

If you’re a wrestling fan, there wasn’t any significant new ground broken. The stuff about Vince’s stepfather abusing him was chronicled in the book Sex, Lies and Headlocks.

The tease of ESPN’s unprecedented access into the inner workings of WWE’s creative process ended up being just a short glimpse of a production meeting in which McMahon, the writers and producers were going over a script. The biggest reveal for casual fans probably was that Triple H sits in on those meetings, but, again, “smart” fans already knew that.

I thought the silliest thing about the segment was Stephanie not wanting to reveal the identities of the writers, like it’s top secret information. When Jeremy Shaap pressed her, she said that they had people “from Conan” and “from Hollywood.” God forbid she should say one of the head writers (Michael Hayes) was a famous pro wrestler.

It wasn’t a total puff piece, as Schaap did ask McMahon questions about Chris Benoit and steroids, and Bret Hart and Mike Mooneyham (co-author of Sex, Lies and Headlocks) certainly didn’t praise McMahon. You know you can always count on Hart when you need a bitter ex-wrestler to make a negative remark, although some of his comments are not without merit.

***

Tuesday’s episode of ECW was good, thanks to entertaining matches between John Morrison and Evan Bourne and a triple threat between Christian, Finlay and Tommy Dreamer that was part of the Elimination Chase.

The Morrison-Bourne match – which Morrison won – was especially good. It was great that they were given nearly 20 minutes to do their thing instead of it having to be a rushed spotfest.

The triple threat was well-booked. Eliminating Dreamer and having it come down to a singles match between Christian and Finlay (which will take place on the debut episode of WWE Superstars Thursday night on WGN America) was the right call.

Other thoughts on Tuesday night’s show:

It seemed as if new ECW general manager Tiffany was flirting with ECW champion Jack Swagger. Stinks to be Ricky Ortiz, who was sent to Smackdown in the supplemental draft.

Josh Matthews sounds nervous and tentative doing play-by-play. Then again, I’d be nervous, too, if I was a young guy doing commentary on live television with Vince McMahon screaming at me in my ear. ...

Matt Striker made several jokes about Matthews’ nosebleed on Raw. I thought blood was banned in WWE.

***

NOTE: I’m running a little behind, so my thoughts on the WWE supplemental draft won’t be up until later Wednesday night.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 8:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (21)
        

A representative of Hulk Hogan clarified Hogan’s remark to Rolling Stone that he could relate to O.J. Simpson.

In regard to Hogan's comment about his divorce that he "could have turned everything into a crime scene, like O.J., cutting everybody's throat," the rep told ETonline.com that “Hulk in no way condones the O.J. situation. As part of a larger conversation, he referred to it to exemplify his frustration with his own situation.”

Whatever. Hogan also used the “larger conversation” defense on Larry King’s show last year in an attempt to explain his insensitive comments during a taped conversation between him and his son Nick while the latter was serving time for felony reckless driving.

I get it that Hogan is incredibly angry seeing, as he told Rolling Stone, “a 19-year-old boy driving your Escalade, sleeping in your bed, with your wife,” but it still sounds as if he is saying that his wife would deserve it if he went off the deep end and killed her.

Hogan had to say something in response to the negative publicity he has received over the O.J. comment, but, really, there is nothing he can say to make this situation better.

Here's some unsolicited advice: Hulk, lie low for a while and stop granting interviews.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 6:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
        

Hulk Hogan has stuck his foot in his mouth again with some reprehensible comments, only this time he made them on the record rather than in a taped conversation that he thought was private.

Speaking to Rolling Stone about his messy divorce, Hogan said: “I could have turned everything into a crime scene, like O.J., cutting everybody's throat. ... I totally understand O.J. I get it.”

I’m sure that he was being facetious, but that really isn’t the point. Rationalizing murder, even if not meaning it literally, is beyond idiotic and insensitive, especially to the families of Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman. Save those remarks for conversations with your drinking buddies.

It’s not very smart either to say you can understand how someone could kill their wife while your divorce proceedings are still ongoing. To make it even worse, a wrestler – Chris Benoit – actually did murder his wife and son less than two years ago.

As a Hulk Hogan fan before it was trendy (he instantly became my favorite wrestler when he debuted as a heel in the WWF in 1979) and someone who has had positive experiences whenever I interacted with him, it saddens me to see what a complete disgrace he has become.

Last year, taped conversations between Hogan and his son, Nick, while the latter was serving time for felony reckless driving were made public, revealing Hogan speaking negatively about the young man who was critically injured. He also talked about helping his son broker a deal for a reality show that would chronicle Nick trying to get his life in order after serving his sentence.

NOTE: I will post my thoughts on the WWE supplemental draft and Tuesday night's episode of ECW later today.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
        

TNA star Kevin Nash will be calling in to Ring Posts Live around 4 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday afternoon on WNST 1570 AM.

The weekly pro wrestling segment (which is being moved back an hour this week from its usual 3 p.m. time slot) is hosted by myself and WNST’s Nestor Aparicio.

You can listen live at www.wnst.net.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Aside from the “drama” surrounding the draft picks Monday night on Raw, the most significant thing on the show was the match and backstage interaction between world heavyweight champion John Cena and ECW champion Jack Swagger.

Swagger, who appeared well on his way to becoming a breakout star just a couple months ago, was left off the WrestleMania XXV card amid reports that WWE management had lost confidence in him after his disappointing match against Finlay at the No Way Out pay-per-view in February. If those reports are true, penalizing Swagger for one sub-par match after he had several very good matches against Christian and Finlay on television is ridiculous.

Based on Monday’s show, it looks as if WWE is getting behind Swagger again. Having him more than hold his own against Raw’s biggest star on a special episode of the highest-rated show is a positive sign. Some of the fans were behind him, as well, as a “Let’s go Swagger” chant broke out at one point.

Although he lost to Cena, Swagger was in control for the majority of the match and he looked good. There was one botched spot when Swagger attempted a float-over DDT, but it looked to me like Cena dropped down too early, so I don’t think that was Swagger’s fault.

Cena did a nice job of giving Swagger a rub, not only by allowing him to get in so much offense, but also by his post-match facial expression, which conveyed that Swagger had earned his respect. In a backstage verbal confrontation before the match, Cena initially made fun of Swagger but then he got serious and told Swagger that he was good.

If Swagger is given the opportunity to continue to work his way up the card, we just might be seeing Cena versus Swagger on a bigger stage in the near future.

Other thoughts on Monday night’s show:

I didn’t care for the main event of Triple H, Batista and Shane McMahon against Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes. First and foremost, I thought DiBiase and Rhodes were made to look like jobbers. Even with their opponents fighting among themselves, DiBiase and Rhodes were still no match for them. I didn’t quite follow the logic here, either. Why were the babyfaces undermining each other so that they could be the one to face Orton next week? Aren’t they all going to get their hands on him in the six-man at Backlash on April 26? ...

I liked the fact that Triple H did not make the save when Edge attacked Cena even though he was standing on the stage when it happened. It’s consistent with Triple H’s character not to help a potential threat. ...

I have made this point before, but I will keep saying it as long as WWE keeps having the same format for its drafts: Why do the wrestlers involved in the matches that determine which show gets the pick care about adding wrestlers to their roster? Wouldn’t a heel especially not want a top babyface to join his show? It would make more sense if there was some incentive, such as the winning wrestlers getting a big bonus. ...

I thought CM Punk was hurt badly when he landed face-first on a reverse powerbomb by Matt Hardy. He seemed to be OK, though. ...

I enjoyed the Christian-Shelton Benjamin and Rey Mysterio-Evan Bourne matches, but both were too short. ...

Todd Grisham had the line of night. After Tommy Dreamer was referred to as a legend, Grisham said: “If Tommy Dreamer is a legend then so is The Brooklyn Brawler.” That was an exaggeration, obviously, but so is calling Dreamer a legend. ...

After ECW finally got its first pick after Raw and Smackdown were piling them up, Matt Striker’s reaction was hilarious. “We got one!” he yelled giddily. “How about John Cena! Make it good, please!” When Vladimir Kozlov was announced as the selection, I was waiting for Striker to say, “Are you kidding me?” But he actually acted like it was a great pick. ...

Kofi Kingston seems to be getting over more with every passing week. His match against Miz had a few rough spots and dragged in the middle, but Kingston’s incredible athleticism saved it. ...

Why did The Miz attack John Morrison after learning that he had been drafted to Raw? Shouldn’t he have been happy? It is the “A” show, after all. Then again, Miz will probably be staring at the lights a lot on Raw. ...

It was played up in the commentary that Edge and Chris Jericho are longtime friends. Really? They might be friends in real life, but not in the story line. ...

Kane squashing The Brian Kendrick in less than a minute was disappointing but predictable.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 7:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (40)
        

Here is an interview I conducted with former WWE diva Debra last Saturday at the Maryland Championship Wrestling show in Dundalk.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)
Categories: Video interviews
        

The biggest surprise on Raw’s three-hour draft special Monday night was that no one attempted to snuff out Vince McMahon this year.

The draft itself was basically a repeat of last year’s version in that stars from Raw and Smackdown switched places, while ECW garnered just one pick. At least one world champion always seems to change shows, and this time it was WWE champ Triple H, who – as most expected – moved back to Raw after a 10-month stint on Smackdown.

The addition of Triple H to a roster that includes world heavyweight champion John Cena means that Raw now has both world champions. That situation will be rectified if Smackdown’s Edge defeats Cena for the belt at the Backlash pay-per-view on April 26.

After U.S. champion MVP was drafted to Raw and women’s champion Melina was sent to Smackdown, it was predictable that Intercontinental champion Rey Mysterio would then go to Smackdown and divas champion Maryse would end up on Raw.

Chris Jericho going to Smackdown was a no-brainer because he’s done about all he can do on Raw.

A lot of people saw the John Morrison/Miz split coming, but I’m a little surprised that Miz is the one who got promoted to Raw while Morrison is staying put on ECW. A move that I didn’t see coming was Matt Hardy leaving Smackdown for Raw. Since the Hardys feud is still going, that doesn’t make sense to me.

Overall, I think Raw made out the best. While the brand lost Jericho, it gained Triple H, which means that money players Triple H, Cena, Randy Orton, Batista and Shawn Michaels are all on the same show. Raw also picked up another main-eventer in The Big Show.

The top of Smackdown’s card now has Edge, The Undertaker, Jericho and Jeff Hardy. Money in the Bank winner CM Punk, who comes over from Raw, could be in line for a nice push. Also moving from Raw to Smackdown are Rey Mysterio and Kane. Those two, along with Umaga, fit in somewhere between the upper mid-card and main event levels.

Although ECW landed just one pick (Vladimir Kozlov), it only lost one (The Miz), so the brand wasn’t weakened. I thought for sure ECW was going to lose Christian, but it appears that he is staying put. Of course, we won’t know everything for sure until after the supplemental draft is completed Wednesday. That’s when ECW will most likely acquire some talented mid-carders who are currently lost in the shuffle on Raw and Smackdown.

Once all the drafting is over, I will be interested to see if WWE stops having wrestlers appear on shows other than their own.

Here’s a look at each brand’s acquisitions Monday night:

RAW
Triple H (from Smackdown)
The Big Show (from Smackdown)
MVP (from Smackdown)
Matt Hardy (from Smacldown)
The Miz (from ECW)
Maryse (from Smackdown)

SMACKDOWN
Chris Jericho (from Raw)
Rey Mysterio (from Raw)
CM Punk (from Raw)
Kane (from Raw)
Melina (from Raw)

ECW
Vladimir Kozlov (from Smackdown)

NOTE: I will post more thoughts on Raw later on Tuesday.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (36)
        

I watched the tremendous Undertaker-Shawn Michaels match again and it got me thinking: Who will be Undertaker’s opponent next year at WrestleMania?

There aren’t that many big-name stars left for the man with the 17-0 record at WrestleMania to face. In addition to Michaels, Undertaker has already been matched up with Triple H, Randy Orton, Batista, Edge and Big Show.

I can only think of two main-event-level stars on the current roster who haven’t wrestled The Undertaker at WrestleMania. One is Chris Jericho, but I’m not sure anyone would be able to suspend their disbelief enough to think there was even a slight chance that Jericho would win.

So that leaves John Cena.

While Cena and Undertaker have faced each other a few times, they have never had a program together. It has to happen at some point, so why not on the biggest stage of them all?

I have a feeling that Undertaker is going to retire with his undefeated streak in tact, but could you imagine how much heat Cena would have if he turned heel and ended the streak? That would be one of the most memorable WrestleMania moments ever.

As for Michaels, the same question about who is left to work with at WrestleMania also applies to him. I think he and Rey Mysterio could steal the show, as could he and Edge. John Morrison would be a long shot, but it would be a great rub for him to face Michaels at WrestleMania.

However, if next year’s WrestleMania is Michaels’ last, as has been rumored, his opponent would have to be someone special. Triple H immediately comes to mind. Given their long history together, the story line almost writes itself. It's been a few years now since they faced each other, and there also would be a good chance that Triple H could finally get his WrestleMania moment.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (42)
        

With the WWE draft taking place on Monday night’s three-hour edition of Raw, I figured I would make some predictions about who will be switching brands. According to wwe.com, 12 “superstars” will be drafted.

As I started making my list, however, I realized that I’m not really sure who is on which show anymore. There have just been way too many instances of wrestlers showing up on brands other than their own. And if someone who writes a wrestling blog and never misses an episode of Raw, Smackdown and ECW can’t keep it straight, then what’s the point of having a draft and separate brands?

So I have decided not to even attempt to guess who the 12 draftees will be and where they will land. I will just say that I think Smackdown’s Edge and Raw’s Chris Jericho will change places, and Christian will join Edge on Raw. I also would like to see R-Truth, Hurricane Helms and The Brian Kendrick drafted to ECW. Those three talented performers are lost in the shuffle on Smackdown, and while ECW is less prestigious, at least they would have prominent roles on that show.

Oh, I do have one more prediction for Monday night’s show: Immediately after the final draft pick is announced at the end of the program, Vince McMahon will appear on the stage and spontaneously combust.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (27)
        

The feud between Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy is finally starting to click. The adversarial brothers highlighted a very good episode of Smackdown Friday night, as Matt opened the show with a solid promo, and an exciting stretcher match between the two closed the show.

I have never been a big fan of stretcher matches, but thanks to Jeff’s innovative use of the stretcher and high-risk maneuvers, I enjoyed this match more than their extreme rules bout at WrestleMania XXV last Sunday.

Among the highlights were Jeff surfing on the stretcher down the ramp and hitting a crossbody off it onto Matt, and Jeff attempting – and missing – a Swanton Bomb from the top rope onto the stretcher outside the ring. Thankfully, Jeff landed perfectly on the stretcher.

While Jeff had the more impressive moves, Matt also shined on this show. He seems to be getting more comfortable on the mic and he is garnering legitimate heel heat.

It was a smart booking decision to have Matt win the match to go 2-0 against his brother. It gives Matt credibility and also makes fans even more fired up to see him get his comeuppance. I’m hoping we get a couple more pay-per-view matches out of this program. You have to believe it will culminate in a TLC match.

Once the feud is over, it will be interesting to see what’s next for Matt. I hope he gets a career boost out of this. WWE needs some new people competing for world titles, and I think Matt has earned the opportunity.

Other thoughts on Friday night’s show:

The other highlight was the verbal confrontation between Edge and John Cena. Watching this “Cutting Edge” segment made me wish that these two had faced each other in a singles match at WrestleMania as the culmination of a story line that was all about the world heavyweight title and their hatred for each other. It would have been better than the Vickie Guerrero-Big Show-Edge love triangle.

Both guys delivered great performances, especially Cena, who showed tremendous intensity. If there was more of that from Cena and less goofy comedy, he probably wouldn’t have so many detractors. …

One nitpick on Edge-Cena: I know WWE is trying to entice fans to buy the Backlash pay-per-view, but Cena saying that their rivalry is the greatest in sports entertainment history is getting a little carried away. …

There was a lot of talk about the upcoming draft that will take place on Raw Monday, but the fact that Raw stars Cena, Legacy, Kofi Kingston and Santino Marella were all on Smackdown really makes the whole thing seem pointless. …

New broadcast partners Jim Ross and Todd Grisham had a solid debut, but it will take time to develop chemistry. I was really hoping that Matt Striker would get the seat next to J.R. …

It was nice to see Kofi Kingston get some mic time, and he wasn’t bad at all. I’m also glad that his impressive performance in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania was acknowledged. …

The contrasting styles of Kingston and Big Show made for a fun match. Kingston got in a decent amount of offense before losing. …

The Colons and Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes had a good match. Then again, when was the last time the Colons didn’t have a good match? …

It’s great to have Gail Kim back on TV on a regular basis. I’m relieved that she didn’t job to Michelle McCool. …

Marella’s hilarious delivery and The Great Khali’s gibberish and facial expressions made their “confrontation” quite entertaining.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (30)
        

The ESPN newsmagazine E:60 will air an in-depth profile of WWE chairman Vince McMahon Tuesday at 7 p.m. that looks like a can't-miss piece for wrestling fans.

According to an ESPN news release, correspondent Jeremy Schapp and crew were granted unprecedented access into the creative process behind the scenes in WWE. In addition, McMahon speaks on such topics as Chris Benoit and being physically abused as a child.

To view a trailer of the show, click here. It may take a few seconds to load.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 8:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

The Mick Foley-Sting match at Lockdown has received the strongest build for a TNA pay-per-view main event since last year’s Lockdown match between Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe. Thursday night on Impact, Foley and Sting again did a great job of making people want to pay to see them fight.

I can’t say enough how impressive Sting has been on the mic over the past several months. He delivered a good promo on this episode and was even more effective when he did a sit-down interview with Mike Tenay. Sting telling the story of being there in Germany when Foley lost part of his ear was a really nice touch and once again got the message across that Foley is a psychopath. (Here’s an idea for a Foley t-shirt based on his new character: Since Foley’s original ring name was Cactus Jack Manson because of his resemblance to murderous cult leader Charles Manson, TNA could use an image of Foley to recreate the infamous Life Magazine cover of a crazed-looking Manson. They also could play off the headline Rolling Stone used for its Manson cover story: The Incredible Story of the Most Dangerous Wrestler Alive.)

Foley did some good mic work as well, and I thought the handicap match between him and The Motor City Machine Guns was entertaining and well-booked. The show ended on a high note with a good pull-apart brawl between Sting and Foley.

Other thoughts on Thursday night’s show:

To add to the drama at the top of the card, Jeff Jarrett’s loyalties are now being called into question, as he is teasing that he is considering joining The Main Event Mafia. Trying to figure out who is a babyface and who is a heel in TNA can give you a headache, so I’ve decided to just check my brain at the door and go with it. …

As much as I enjoy Kurt Angle as a performer, I do think that he often is overexposed on Impact, so it was refreshing to see his role downplayed for at least one episode. …

The two “Rough Cuts” segments with Team 3-D talking about their wrestling school and their legacy were well done. …

I know he’s nowhere near what he used to be in the ring, but I always enjoy watching Scott Steiner. He and James Storm had a decent match. …

I love the ODB character and I think her interview segments are hilarious, but the worst part of this episode by far was the vignette showing her on a date with “fan” Cody Deaner. I’ve just never thought redneck humor (Larry the Cable Guy, Jeff Foxworthy, etc.) was very funny. …

I’m thankful that TNA decided to greatly tone down the feud between Tenay and Don West. Instead of non-stop bickering between them throughout the show, West, now playing a subtle heel announcer, and Tenay pick their spots. That actually works well. …

West said that The Governor was so traumatized by having her hair snipped by The Beautiful People that she now goes by the name “Daffney.” I guess no one told him that she was Daffney long before she was The Gov. …

I can buy Awesome Kong as a babyface, but the Raisha Saeed character is a tough sell, if that is the direction TNA is going in. If Kong truly is turning, it would be best if Saeed is written out of the storyline, and Cheerleader Melissa debuts as an entirely new character with no hint that she was Saeed. ..

I’ve probably written this before, but it’s worth repeating: Velvet Sky’s entrance never gets old.

NOTE: I conducted a phone interview Thursday with Alex Shelley of the Motor City Machine Guns. The Q&A will be posted as soon as I can get the interview transcribed.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (24)
        

Whenever I hear former WWE diva Debra’s name mentioned, I immediately think of Jerry “The King” Lawler giddily yelling “Puppies!”

I suspect a number of Maryland wrestling fans will be experiencing a case of puppy love Saturday night, when Debra makes an appearance at Maryland Championship Wrestling’s Extreme Measures show at The New Green Room in Dundalk.

The card is headlined by an MCW title match between champion Ruckus and Josh Daniels. Other matches include Christian York versus Stevie Richards, Sugar Mask versus The Bruiser, Van Hammer versus Champ Champagne and an Extreme Rumble (a Royal Rumble-style match with weapons).

The action is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. For more information, go to marylandwrestling.com.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The announcement of Tiffany as the interim ECW general manager (she replaces Teddy Long, who will be the new Smackdown GM) Tuesday night was a surprise, but I like the choice. It’s nice to see a fresh face in the mix and, judging by her performance on the mic on Tuesday’s episode of ECW, it looks as if she can talk. Plus, she looks great in a business suit.

The other change on ECW was former Tough Enough contestant Josh Matthews replacing Todd Grisham as play-play-announcer. I have read good things about Matthews’ work in Florida Championship Wrestling, but I thought his performance was a little uneven in his ECW debut. As I said, however, fresh faces – or voices – are certainly welcome.

As far as in the in-ring action, I enjoyed the six-man that saw Evan Bourne and The Colons defeat John Morrison, The Miz and Tyson Kidd, as well as the fatal four-way, which was the opener of the Elimination Chase for the right to face ECW champion Jack Swagger at the Backlash pay-per-view on April 26.

I like the format of the chase. It begins with a four-way, and whoever gets pinned is eliminated. So next week there is a triple threat and then a singles match. I didn’t expect Mark Henry to be the first man out. I thought for sure it would be Tommy Dreamer. I really don’t want to see Dreamer get the shot. I’m hoping it’s Christian.

NOTE: I need to thank a few more people who helped me out during WrestleMania weekend in Houston. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Brian Fritz, who does the popular Between the Ropes show out of Orlando, Fla. Quite simply, there would have been no live blogging from WrestleMania without him. My laptop was acting up and he was kind enough to let me borrow his. Also want to thank my longtime friend and videographer Chris Dolan for his effort – as well as putting up with my occasional crankiness. And last but not least, thanks to Adam Hopkins of WWE for all that he did to make covering WrestleMania a pleasurable experience.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 6:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

TNA tag team champion Robert Roode of Beer Money will be calling in to Ring Posts Live around 3 p.m. Eastern time today on WNST 1570 AM.

The weekly pro wrestling segment is hosted by myself and WNST's Nestor Aparicio. We'll also be recapping WrestleMania XXV weekend in Houston.

You can listen live at www.wnst.net.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Ricky Steamboat fields questions from the press Sunday at Houston's Reliant Stadium before WrestleMania XXV.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Raw ended Monday night on a high note with the return of Batista, but I was a little disappointed that Randy Orton didn’t get some of his heat back after doing the job to Triple H at WrestleMania XXV Sunday.

Instead of Orton gaining a measure of revenge on Triple H, he got slapped around a bit by Vince McMahon before eventually gaining the upper hand on the 63-year-old chairman. Then Super Shane O’Mac made the save and pounded on Orton with his horrendous-looking punches.

I know in the story line that Batista was injured by a kick to the head from Randy Orton in December – he actually was out with a torn hamstring – and it makes perfect sense for “The Animal” to target Orton upon his return, but I’m not sure if this hurts or helps Orton’s chances at getting the WWE title, which needs to happen at some point.

It was announced that Orton, Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes will face Triple H, Batista and Shane McMahon at the Backlash pay-per-view on April 26, and the stipulation is that if anyone from Orton’s team pins anyone on Triple H’s team, Orton wins the title. The conspiracy theorist in me wonders if this is a way for Triple H to drop the belt to Orton without actually putting him over. It wouldn’t be the first time something like that happened with Triple H as champ. He dropped the title to The Rock in a six-man match at King of the Ring 2000 when Rock pinned Vince McMahon. ...

As much as I love Orton as a heel and think Triple H’s heel act gets old fast, I’m starting to think those who have suggested a double turn might be onto something, because the Triple H-Orton saga certainly could use a new twist. You could have heard a pin drop when Vince McMahon was beating on Orton at the end of Raw.

In a double turn, Triple H and the McMahons would be cast as the establishment, abusing their power to keep down Orton, who would make a compelling anti-hero. As long as Orton’s character doesn’t soften and he doesn’t pander to the fans, the angle could get over big.

Other thoughts on Monday night’s show:

It was cool to see Ricky Steamboat take a final bow, which he did not get the opportunity to do when his career ended unceremoniously 15 years ago. ...

So Vickie Guerrero is now the official Raw general manager. I am a big fan of Vickie’s character, but I’m upset if that means Stephanie McMahon will not be appearing on my television screen on a regular basis. It will be interesting to see who gets the vacant Smackdown GM gig. Perhaps JBL?

It seemed like Vickie forgot to mention that the Edge-John Cena match at Backlash had a Last Man Standing stipulation, so she had to come back out after her promo to announce it. That’s live TV for you. No one would have been the wiser had it been a Smackdown taping. ...

The three-hour draft special is next week. It’s hard for me to get too excited about shaking things up when it seems as if wrestlers can appear on any show whenever they please. A big deal was made about tag teams possibly having to split, but I remember Matt and Jeff Hardy being tag team champs when they were on separate shows. By the way, judging by what has happened at the past two drafts, I’d stay home if I were Vince McMahon. ...

Gail Kim is just not being treated as anything special. WWE is dropping the ball on her. Did they outbid TNA for her services just to try and prove that the one-time leader of TNA’s women’s division isn’t really all that? ...

Santino Marella was absolutely hilarious as Santina. The guy is truly talented. Two nitpicks: I know this whole angle is a joke, but should Beth Phoenix really have been pinned that easily? Also, why exactly does Santino want to be Miss WrestleMania? It would make more sense if he helped Beth win the “honor.” ...

It was another good match between Carlito and Primo and John Morrison and The Miz. I’m still shocked that Morrison and Miz didn’t win the title unification match.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 9:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (45)
        

Mickey Rourke fields questions from the press Sunday at Houston's Reliant Stadium before WrestleMania XXV. Check back later for video of Ricky Steamboat at the news conference.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 7:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Ric Flair fields questions from the press Sunday at Houston's Reliant Stadium before WrestleMania XXV. Check back later for video of Ricky Steamboat and Mickey Rourke at the news conference.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 6:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Before getting into some more discussion on WrestleMania, I first wanted to say thank you to everyone who expressed concern after the hit-and-run car accident I was involved in Friday night in Houston. My back and neck were hurting for a couple days and I’m still a little sore, but I’m OK. I consider myself and my friend fortunate that we were not hurt worse. It’s a good thing we had our seat belts on.

I also wanted to say thank you for making my first attempt at live blogging a huge success. It generated the most one-day traffic for Ring Posts since the blog’s inception. As much as I enjoy doing this blog, it wouldn’t have any value if people weren’t reading it. I appreciate everyone who took the time to do so and all of you – well, most of you (there are always a few wise guys out there) – who posted comments.

Two more quick notes: I’ll post my thoughts on Raw later today, and I will also have some video up from Sunday’s WrestleMania pre-show news conference with Mickey Rourke, Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat.

***

There has been a lot of talk since Sunday about Triple H and his reluctance to put people over. I think it’s a fair argument, but I can see both sides of it.

The fact is that Triple H’s win over Randy Orton Sunday in Houston was his first victory at WrestleMania since 2003. He dropped the world heavyweight title to Chris Benoit in 2004 and Batista in 2005, and then tapped out to WWE champion John Cena in 2006. After missing 2007’s show with an injury, Triple H did not win the triple threat against Orton and Cena last year.

To put it in perspective, while Benoit was never meant to be more than a transitional champion, I think it’s legitimate to say that Triple H made Batista and he cemented Cena’s superstar status.

The other side of the coin is that Triple H has never really put Orton over. In fact, all three of Orton’s title reigns have been ended by Triple H. And there is no question in my mind that Orton should have left WrestleMania XXV with the belt.

The two other guys I think Triple H should have put over in the past but didn’t are Chris Jericho and Rob Van Dam.

***

For the critics out there who think people such as me have gone overboard in our praise of the Undertaker-Shawn Michaels match at WrestleMania, I can only speak for myself when I say that it’s not hyperbole and I wasn’t just caught up in the moment. Nearly 48 hours later, my opinion of the match hasn’t changed.

When people talk about the greatest matches ever at WrestleMania, this one will be near the top or at the top of most lists. There were reporters in the press box at Reliant Stadium sitting near me who were not big wrestling fans, and even they recognized that they were watching something special.

***

Steve Austin sure seems to have closed the book on his time in pro wrestling to pursue an acting career. If he were ever going to wrestle again, it would have been Sunday, the day after he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. And judging by Austin’s induction speech, I wouldn’t expect anything more than a rare cameo appearance in WWE from this point forward.

I wonder how Austin’s decision sits with Cena.

***

I’m surprised at how many people hated Kid Rock’s participation at WrestleMania. I admit that I am a bit biased because I am a fan of his and have seen him live before, but, in general, I think having bands perform live at wrestling shows on occasion is fine, especially at an event with all the pomp and circumstance of WrestleMania. A couple years ago, I attended a Smackdown taping in Baltimore in which Ozzy Osbourne performed, and it was the highlight of the night.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 5:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)
        

The two matches that people were talking about prior to WrestleMania XXV are the same two matches that people are talking about after Sunday night’s event at Houston’s Reliant Stadium.

I agree with the consensus that the Undertaker-Shawn Michaels match more than lived up to the hype, and the Triple H-Randy Orton encounter fell short of expectations.

The Undertaker-Michaels match was so incredible that I didn’t want it to end. It was billed as the Undefeated Streak vs. Mr. WrestleMania, and when the smoke cleared, Undertaker still had his streak and Michaels proved yet again why he has that moniker.

As good as Michaels’ performance was, however, it’s important to note that Undertaker was right there with him every step of the way. I actually believe that Undertaker is a better worker now than he was 10 or 15 years ago, which means he truly is a phenom.

As for the Triple H-Orton match, I am disappointed that it didn’t feel more special after some great angles on TV. And I do think the wrong guy went over. Even though Orton has been world champion several times already, this felt like it should have been his official coronation as the top guy in the company.

I am interested to see what the next development will be in this feud. I believe Triple H’s glorious moment will be short-lived and Orton will be getting the WWE title sooner than later. So it might all work out in the long run, but Triple H ending the historic show with the belt raised in the air is still something of a bitter pill.

***

In contrast to the WWE title match, the triple threat match for the world heavyweight title between John Cena, Edge and The Big Show did not have the greatest build, but it came off better than expected.

Newly crowned champ Cena is compiling quite an impressive WrestleMania resume. He has participated in six matches at WrestleMania, all of which have been for titles, including five for world championships. He improved his record at Mania to 5-1 with Sunday night’s victory.

***

I like CM Punk, but I’m a little disappointed that he won the Money in the Bank ladder match. I was really hoping that MVP would get the briefcase and the push that comes with it. After Sunday night, however, I have all but given up on my belief that MVP would one day be a world champion. As for Punk, I wouldn’t be surprised if he becomes the first MIB winner to fail to capture one of the world titles.

***

A WWE representative pointed out that the attendance for WrestleMania XXV (72,744) was higher than the attendance for the Super Bowl (70,774) last February in Tampa. Since people always say that WrestleMania is the Super Bowl of wrestling, does that mean that we now should call the Super Bowl the WrestleMania of pro football?

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 5:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (65)
        

Mickey Rourke confirmed that he was interested in wrestling Chris Jericho at WrestleMania XXV but was talked out of it by his agents because they thought it would be detrimental to his acting career.

At the WrestleMania pre-show news conference Sunday afternoon at Reliant Stadium in Houston, I asked Rourke whether a match between him and Jericho had been discussed.

“After I got done with the movie, I really started liking this sport a lot,” Rourke said. “And I believe it was through Vince [McMahon’s] people who said, ‘Would you like to come and do WrestleMania and wrestle?’ And Jericho’s name came up and I said, ‘Yeah, I want to do it.’ To be real honest with you, because I had left acting for six years to go back to professional fighting, my agents said it would be detrimental to my career. If I took time off at this point in my career and did the wrestling, I wouldn’t be taken seriously in the acting world again.

“I’ve always enjoyed sports a lot more than I have acting, but they just advised me not to do it. I was kind of disappointed.”

I will have video up of the news conference with Rourke, Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat it its entirety within the next day.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 3:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

Triple H retained the WWE title in a match that was fine by normal pay-per-view standards, but for a WrestleMania main event that had such an intense build, it fell a little flat for me.

While the referee was down, Triple H took out Orton with a sledgehammer. He then hit a Pedigree, the ref recovered and Triple H got the win after approximately 24 minutes.

I'm disappointed WWE didn't think outside the box here and put Orton over rather than having the traditional babyface pyro moment to close the show.

Still a good show overall. The announced attendance was 72,744. The live gate was $6.9 million, making it the highest-grossing live gate in company history, according to a WWE representative.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (50)
        

These guys had the unenviable task of following Undertaker-Michaels, but they worked hard and the crowd got more and more into it as the match went on.

Cena, who came out with an army of his followers, regained the world heavyweight title after hitting the Attitude Adjuster on Big Show and Edge in succession, making the winning pin on Show after about 15 minutes of action. Before delivering the moves, he had both Big Show and Edge on his shoulders at the same time.

After the match, the 2009 Hall of Fame class was recognized. Steve Austin, dressed in his black suit, appeared onstage with the other inductees and then headed to the back. Moments later, Austin's music hit and he drove down the aisle in an ATV. Now wearing his Austin 3:16 t-shirt, Austin had a beer-drinking celebration in the ring before driving back up the ramp and off into the sunset.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 9:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
        

The show has officially been stolen.

The Undertaker and Michaels more than lived up to the hype, putting on an instant classic and adding to both of their legends. The two veteran superstars took the sold-out crowd on an unbelievable roller coaster ride that culminated with Undertaker improving his WrestleMania record to 17-0 by scoring the pinfall after approximately 31 minutes.

They say there's no cheering in the press box, but I and my fellow journalists were marking out like crazy in the Reliant Stadium press box for this match. This was one of the best -- if not the best -- matches that I have ever seen live. The atmosphere was amazing, as a "This is awesome!" chant broke out at about the 28-minute mark.

The drama here was off the charts, even though deep down everyone knew that Undertaker was winning. Both guys kicked out of each other's finishers time and again. Michaels survived the Last Ride and a Tombstone piledriver, before succumbing to a second Tombstone when Undertaker caught him after an attempted moonsault.

The scariest spot of the match saw Undertaker attempt a dive over the top onto Michaels on the floor. Michaels pushed the cameraman in front of him at the last second, and Taker nearly landed right on his head.

In a not-so-subtle example of symbolism during the entrances, Michaels, clad in white, descended upon the stage from above, while The Undertaker, all in black, came up through the stage.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 8:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (32)
        

Mysterio was wearing a mask that I think was supposed to make him look like The Joker, but it looked more like Doink The Clown to me.

Mysterio won the Intercontinental title after a quick flurry of offense in 21 seconds. JBL announced after the match was he was quitting.

So much for JBL going out on top.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 8:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)
        

In an extreme rules match, Matt, wearing his new Hollywood Hogan-like tights, scored the biggest victory of his career after hitting a Twist of Fate on Jeff with Jeff 's neck in a chair in about 13 minutes.

It was the spotfest we all expected, but I'm surprised it didn't go at least 20 minutes. Because it didn't go longer, I would say it was good but not great. Since this feud is far from over, perhaps the ensuing matches will be given more time.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 8:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)
        

This went exactly as expected. Jericho won the elimination match in about nine minutes and then was KO'd by Mickey Rourke after the match.

It looked ridiculous when Jericho had to sell for Piper and Snuka, but once they were out, he and Steamboat had a good four-minute match. Steamboat has lost a step or two and his moves weren't quite as crisp as they were in his prime, but he was doing all of his trademark spots. This had to be a thrill for Jericho, who was a big Steamboat fan growing up.

After several near falls, Jericho defeated Steamboat with the codebreaker. He took out Ric Flair after the match with the codebreaker as well. Jericho then challenged Rourke to get into the ring. Rourke accepted, took a boxing stance and knocked out Jericho with a left to the jaw.

I was a little disappointed there was no "Ram Jam."

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 7:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)
        

Kid Rock performed a smokin' set prior to the divas coming out.

Not much of a match, of course, but the post-match was pretty entertaining. Santino Marella got his Wrestlemania moment. Disguised as his twin sister "Santina," he dumped Beth Phoenix and Melina out of the ring to be crowned Miss WrestleMania after about six minutes of "action." Santina, with a sash and a crown, performed a victory dance that was laugh-out-loud funny.

The former divas being brought back was totally underplayed, as no one got a ring introduction. Gail Kim, who I thought would either win or be one of the last to be eliminated, went out surprisingly early.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 7:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (19)
        

Another surprise here, as CM Punk wins the Money in the Bank for the second straight year, in about 15 minutes.

Anyone who thought this year's ladder match wasn't going to be as good as those from past years was proven wrong. The presence of bigger competitors such as Mark Henry and Kane did not take away from the match at all. In fact, Henry's strength was used to create some innovative spots.

Speaking of innovative, you can always count on something new and spectacular from Shelton Benjamin. He delivered the first big spot of the night: A headfirst flip dive off a ladder on the floor onto a group of guys. In another cool spot, Benjamin and Christian both teetered off the ladder and appeared to be going over the top rope together, but Christian manged to catch himself on the top rope and re-balance the ladder.

One of these years, Benjamin needs to be rewarded for all his talent and risk-taking with a win in one of these matches. The other guy who really stood out was Kofi Kingston.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 7:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
        

This is a lumberjack match to unify the tag team titles.

We must be in store for some long matches, because this bout was moved from the main show to the dark match. I feel bad for these guys losing their well-deserved spot on the pay-per-view.

Some nice fast-paced action early. Carlito has his working shoes on tonight. Morrison goes for a suplex, but Primo gets behind him and hits a back-stabber out of nowhere for the win in about nine minutes.

Not the result I expected. I'm also surprised that the Bella Twins did not get involved in the match.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 6:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

Predictions for Sunday night’s WWE pay-per-view:

WWE champion Triple H vs. Randy Orton: I keep going back and forth on this one. Triple H as a babyface seeking revenge seems like the logical choice to go over. That would allow for the traditional babyface confetti celebration to close WrestleMania, and Orton could always win the title at a future pay-per-view. Orton is so hot right now, however, that I think WWE will break with the norm and book Orton to stand triumphant with the belt at the end of the show. No matter the result, this feud is only just beginning.

World heavyweight champion Edge vs. John Cena vs. The Big Show: I think everyone is ruling out Big Show, which makes me wonder if WWE will have him go over as a swerve. I don’t think so. I’m going with Cena.

Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker: As is usually the case with a Michaels match at WrestleMania, expectations are high. I’m betting that the match delivers, and not just because of Michaels. Undertaker can still go in the ring despite all the years of abuse his body has taken. It makes no sense for The Streak to end this year and for Michaels to be the one who ends it. Undertaker goes 17-0 and Michaels perhaps gets another Match of the Year award on his resume.

Jeff Hardy vs. Matt Hardy in an extreme rules match: If these two are given time, this should be quite a spectacle. I think Matt will win, which allows the feud to continue beyond WrestleMania.

Chris Jericho vs. Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat and Jimmy Snuka: While this match is not what most of us were hoping for with Jericho, I do think it will be entertaining on some level. It could be ugly when Piper and Snuka are in there, but I’m betting that Steamboat can still work a decent short match. Jericho will win and then continue assaulting the legends until Ric Flair and Mickey Rourke make the save. The post-match climax sees all of the legends landing their finishers on Jericho, and then Rourke channeling his character from The Wrestler and hitting the “Ram Jam” on Jericho. The actor then takes a bow with the legends as the flashbulbs go wild.

Money in the Bank ladder match (Shelton Benjamin, Christian, Finlay, Mark Henry, Kane, Kofi Kingston, MVP and CM Punk): I wouldn’t be surprised if Christian won, but I’m picking MVP, although that might just be wishful thinking. I don’t think it will happen, but it would make story line sense if Kingston won and then cashed in at some point down the line if/when Edge is champion as payback for Edge taking him out of the elimination chamber match at No Way Out.

Intercontinental champion JBL vs. Rey Mysterio: This match reportedly is opening the show. That leads me to believe that JBL will win the match (by cheating, of course) and then announce that he is retiring to become the new Smackdown color commentator. He’ll then take a seat at the announce table and become the first man to retire as IC champ and the first to wrestle and announce at WrestleMania. I am not the first to suggest this scenario, but I think it makes a lot of sense.

Carlito and Primo Colon vs. John Morrison and The Miz in a tag team title unification lumberjack match: Not sure exactly how the lumberjacks will come into play, but I see Morrison and The Miz emerging as the undisputed champs.

25 divas battle royal: Santino Marella will end up in the match and probably be either the first or next-to-last person eliminated. If Mae Young is involved, she’ll have to win because she should not be taking a bump over or through the ropes. If Mae isn’t participating, I’m going with Gail Kim. Hopefully the fact that she was the top female star in TNA won’t be held against her by the WWE booking team.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 2:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)
        

HULK HOGAN

1 (1985): Along with Mr.T, defeated Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff
2 (1986): Defeated challenger King Kong Bundy in a Steel Cage match to retain the WWF title
3 (1987): Defeated Andre the Giant to retain the WWF title
4 (1988): Wrestled to a double disqualification with Andre The Giant in the quarterfinals of the WWF title tournament
5 (1989): Defeated Randy Savage to win the WWF title
6 (1990): Lost the WWF title to The Ultimate Warrior
7 (1991): Defeated Sgt. Slaughter to win the WWF title
8 (1992): Defeated Sid Justice by disqualification
9 (1993): Along with Brutus Beefcake, lost to WWF tag team champions IRS and Ted DiBiase by disqualification; defeated Yokozuna to win the WWF title
18 (2002): Lost to The Rock
19 (2003): Defeated Vince McMahon

Non-wrestling appearance

21 (2005): Did a surprise run-in to save Eugene from an attack by Muhammad Hassan and Daivari

Comments: Shawn Michaels made his name by stealing the show at WrestleMania, but if it wasn’t for Hogan, there would be no show to steal. … Wrestled in seven of the first eight WrestleMania main events and competed in six world title matches. … Thanks mostly to his much-hyped tag match with Mr. T against Piper and Orndorff, the inaugural WrestleMania – on which WWE chairman Vince McMahon risked everything – was a huge financial success. … Body slam of Andre in epic match at WM 3 is perhaps the most famous spot in wrestling history. Victory over the “undefeated” Andre took Hogan from superstar to legend. … Even though he did not wrestle in the main event at WM 4, his interference in the WWF title tournament final helped Savage win the championship. … Memorable year-long story line with friend-turned-foe Savage concluded at WM 5 with Hogan becoming just the second man in WWE’s 26-year history at that point to regain the title. … Match against Ultimate Warrior at WM 6 had electric atmosphere and the in-ring action exceeded expectations. Hogan’s tearful salute of The Warrior as he exited the ring in defeat somewhat overshadowed Warrior’s historic victory. … Became the first three-time WWF champion at WM 7. … After wrestling in a tag match earlier on the show at WM 9, Hogan returned at the end of the evening and won the WWF title from Yokozuna, who had issued an impromptu challenge just minutes after defeating Bret Hart for the belt. … Icon versus Icon showdown with The Rock at WM 18 rivals Hogan’s match with Andre at WM 3 for “The Hulkster’s” greatest WrestleMania moment. … Memorable brawl with McMahon at WM 19 pitted the two men most responsible for the success of WrestleMania against each other.

To view the entire list, click here.

Photo courtesy of WWE

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 1:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
Categories: Top 25 WrestleMania stars
        

Saturday night’s WWE Hall of Fame ceremony at Reliant Center in Houston is best summed up by two words: nice and efficient.

WWE addressed the biggest complaints about last year’s event in Orlando – that the show dragged on too long and the crowd was unruly – by imposing time limits on the speeches and putting up signs that said that catcalling the wrestlers on stage was prohibited and would result in ejection.

Except for the inductions of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Ricky Steamboat, speeches by the inductees were limited to five minutes, and speeches by the person inducting them were held to three minutes. The time was counted down on a large screen at the back of the arena.

The whole event lasted just under 2 hours and 25 minutes. Last year, Ric Flair’s induction speech and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s monologue alone lasted nearly two hours. Personally, I love hearing these great story tellers tell their stories, so I would have been fine with the speakers getting some more time (within reason).

I do applaud WWE for recognizing that the disrespectful behavior of the crowd last year took away from the event. The Hall of Fame ceremony is supposed to be a classy affair and the wrestlers are mostly out of character, but many fans last year acted as if they were at a house show.

For the most part, the audience in Houston was well-behaved. Predictably, John Cena was lustily booed whenever his face appeared on the screen, and there were several “What?” chants, but overall it was a huge improvement over Orlando.

The main event of the evening, obviously, was the induction of “Stone Cold.” What has always impressed me about Austin is that there is no pretense with him. At the hotel bar after the ceremony, Austin – who had changed from his suit into a t-shirt, shorts, flip-flops and baseball cap – mingled with fans and WWE talent while double-fisting some beer. When fans had chanted “One more match!” during his speech, Austin didn’t even bother teasing that he would come back. “Ah, I don’t know about that,” he said.

Steamboat gave a very heartfelt speech, and he also provided the first WrestleMania moment of the weekend for me when he and archrival Ric Flair did a collar-and-elbow lockup on stage.

Other observations from Saturday’s event:

I said earlier that the wrestlers were mostly out of character at the Hall of Fame. The major exception was Chris Jericho, who remained seated for standing ovations for Flair and Steamboat. During Steamboat’s speech, “The Dragon” went into kayfabe mode and called out Jericho, who stood up and smirked. …

One wrestler who rarely breaks character in any setting is The Undertaker. As has become the norm, he did not attend the ceremony, as WWE likes to keep a certain aura surrounding the character. …

Terry Funk had some humorous lines. The best was:” They say you’re only as old as you feel. Well I feel 105 and I’m ready to go.” He then talked about participating in a battle royal in heaven someday. “In heaven, every seat is a ringside seat. … And it’s BYOB.” …

Koko B. Ware came across as a really likable guy and very appreciative of the honor. As usual, though, he may have been upstaged by Frankie, who kept trying to snatch Koko’s notes. …

Former Freebirds leader Michael Hayes works behind the scenes these days, but he still knows how to entertain. Despite being older and heavier, the dapper Hayes still strutted onto the stage and moonwalked to “Badstreet, USA” before inducting Kevin Von Erich. …

Von Erich, the lone survivor of the five Von Erich boys who wrestled, delivered a moving speech that hit the right note. When talking about the deaths of his brothers, he said that he was still part of a brotherhood with his fellow wrestlers, who supported him in tough times. …

Howard Finkel was well aware of the time constraints on his speech, as he zipped through it. This honor obviously means a lot to Finkel, so I felt a little bad for him that he couldn’t just take a deep breath and truly savor every second he had on the podium. …

Bill Watts went over the allotted time on his speech, but he was on a roll and, thankfully, no one gave him the hook. He did create an awkward moment when talking about how much he and Bruno Sammartino used to bench-press back in the day. “And we didn’t even know what a steroid was,” he said. I doubt that will make it onto the DVD.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 8:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)
        

I arrived in Houston on Friday and it's been an interesting 24-plus hours to say the least. Spent most of Friday at the WWE Fan Axxess event at Reliant Center. That was the one of the highlights of the day.

The lowlight was getting rear-ended in a hit-and-run accident after coming out of Denny's at 3:30 a.m. If the driver who fled the scene happens to be a wrestling fan and is reading this, all I can tell you is that you might think you got away with it, but you could be in for a surprise.

But I digress. I'm about to jump in the shower and head over to the Toyota Center for the Hall of Fame induction ceremony. I will have a report up of the event either late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

I also will post my WrestleMania predictions on Sunday as well as the final entry in the Top 25 WrestleMania stars countdown. Can you guess who is No. 1?

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 5:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

I recently conducted a phone interview with former WWE diva and Playboy cover girl Torrie Wilson to discuss her wrestling career and what she has been doing since retiring from the business due to a back injury. The interview was done prior to Wilson, a Houston resident, agreeing to participate in the 25-diva battle royal at WrestleMania XXV .

Can you talk about your back injury and why you decided to leave WWE?

It’s kind of a freak thing. I never thought it was a bad back injury. Every once in a while for the year leading up to when it started really getting bad, it would lock up on me and I’d be laying on my floor, on my bed, wherever, for 30 minutes at a time because I physically couldn’t even move. I was in tears. I just let it go, let it go, and it got to a point where, when I had matches I was really, really scared that it would lock up while I was wrestling and I wouldn’t be able to move in front of a crowd. The last straw was when I had a match, I think it was on Smackdown, and I actually went to Vince [McMahon] and Johnny Ace and said, “Look, I don’t think I can wrestle. My back’s been hurting me and I’m afraid it’s going to lock up and I’ll look like an idiot out there. And so they sent me home and I went to a specialist, who couldn’t find anything at first. And then I was going to a chiropractor for about nine months. I was getting epidural shots. You name it, I tried it. It got to the point where I couldn’t even bend over to pick my dogs up or tie my shoes. I ended up finally meeting this new surgeon who has this new surgery where they go through your side, and they realized that one of my discs was completely collapsed. So no matter what I was doing to try to ease the pain, nothing was going to help it unless I replaced the disc. So that’s eventually what I did in May. It was shortly after that where I was getting so tired of traveling. At that point I had already opened my clothing store. I knew I wasn’t going to be wrestling any more. There was no way I was going to risk hurting myself again knowing how it felt to be so crippled. I just sat back and really thought long and hard and said, “You know what, I don’t think I want to do this anymore.” And they completely understood. They were great about it.

How are you feeling now?

I don’t think the pain is ever going to go away completely. I think I was kidding myself thinking it was. I finally started running again, which is a huge passion of mine. So it’s a step for me.

When you first got into the business in WCW it was as a valet – they still had valets back then. I’m guessing that you never thought you would actually be a wrestler.

Never. When I first got into wrestling I hadn’t ever really watched wrestling. I didn’t have cable where I grew up [in Boise, Idaho] and I didn’t really know much about it. I was just kind of offered a job and I thought, “Heck, why not? I’ll try it. It sounds fun.” And it just really snowballed. Wrestling – physically wrestling – was the last thing on my mind. They sent Stacy [Keibler) and I and bunch of us down to the training facility in WCW and tortured us (laughs). I really got a sour taste in my mouth for it then. But when I joined WWE and I started doing it and learning probably the correct way of working, it became a little more fun. And then when I got to actually have matches in front of the crowd and they started getting into it, of course it was even more fun.

You talked about learning the ropes in WCW. So what was it like training under Madusa?

Oh my God. It was pathetic. When I think back now, I was just a young kid that was scared of everybody and never really spoke my mind. I just think, what nerve she had to be dropping us on our heads and making us miserable and not wanting to wrestle. Looking back, I feel for her. She was bitter. All these new young girls that had no clue about wrestling were coming into the business and taking her spot, but I just thought she went about it all the wrong way.

Was Fit Finlay the main person who worked with you in WWE?

He worked with me a lot. Eddie Guerrero also worked with me a lot when I was on Smackdown. Billy Kidman, my ex-husband, worked with me a lot. A lot of the cruiserweights were very helpful with the girls. Arn Anderson. But Fit Finlay was probably the main person. You know, it still took a while. For a long time I had no interest whatsoever in wrestling because of the bad experiences I had and how much it hurt in the past. Of course I really appreciate what these guys are doing all the time, but I don’t think I really got into it until I started actually having decent matches and being OK with what the crowd saw that night [laughs].

With your back issues, do you think you’ll ever get back in the ring again?

Today, while I’m sitting here driving in my car, there’s no way I would ever get in the ring again and take bumps. Do I want to go back to wrestling? No. But would I like to have another match? Yeah, of course I’d like to have another match. When I left I just kind of fizzled away. I didn’t have a goodbye match. I don’t even remember what my last match was. It would be a great experience. I do miss being out in front of that crowd a lot.

That was my next question, actually. Has it been a tough adjustment after being in the spotlight for years and hearing the roar of the crowd to step away from that world?

It’s funny, because I love to entertain, but I am actually a pretty shy person and I don’t like a lot of attention to begin with [laughs].

Now I know people will be surprised by that.

They would, because they see me on TV, but that’s a character. My own boyfriend always says, “I don’t understand how you got in a bikini in front of all those thousands of people.” I own a clothing store and I’m not a salesperson whatsoever. I don’t like coming up to strangers [laughs]. There are many things about it I miss. I love doing the photo shoots and I did love being in front of the crowd. That wasn’t me in front of that crowd – it was a character. Do I pine away and wish that I could have all that attention? No, not really.

Going back to the shy thing. When people hear that, I’m sure they’re thinking: “But you appeared in Playboy twice, so how can you be shy?” Was posing nude hard for you?

[Laughs] It was pretty hard for me. I’m not shy with my body. I work out extremely hard, and so I am proud of what I work for. Definitely being nude was quite an experience for me and it was not what I expected. I thought I would be a little more confident, but I wasn’t. What the fans don’t know is that I was the bikini contest girl and all that stuff, but there were many, many times that I would come backstage from doing those bikinis and just ball my eyes out because I felt so degraded.

You mentioned your clothing store. Tells me about the store and your clothing line.

I started my own clothing line called Jaded, and my store is also called Jaded. We have our own line of men’s and women’s T-shirts and sweat suits right now. We sell upscale, trendier men’s and women’s clothing that you would see on Melrose in L.A. We’re in Houston and doing really well. We actually just opened our second, larger location, and we’re working on two more locations here in the next two years. So I’m becoming quite the businesswoman.

Any other irons in the fire at this point?

Yeah, I’m still doing photo shoots here and there and I’m still going out to L.A. and having meetings and stuff like that, working on a couple of projects that I don’t want to jinx by talking about. I’m hoping to not disappear completely out of the entertainment industry.

You did a promotional thing with JBL for his energy drink not too long ago, correct?

Yeah, I did. It was a great time. He just called me out of nowhere and asked if I’d be interested. I actually love the energy shot. It has Advil in it, so it helps with your joints and easing the pain a little bit, as well as giving you a little boost. We shot a commercial and then we went and shot a bunch of photos for ads and different health and fitness magazines.

With WrestleMania taking place in Houston, will you be making an appearance?

I definitely will be there cheering everybody on. I have spoken to someone briefly about possibly doing something. It’s kind of all up in the air right now, but I would love to do something with them. I miss everybody.

Do you still watch wrestling?

I hadn’t watched for the longest time, and I just recently started watching here and there a little bit a few months ago. It was hard for me to watch for a long time. I felt like I was missing out on everything.

Do you still keep in touch with many of the people you worked with?

Gosh, now that Victoria quit [pauses]. Michelle McCool and Carlito I’m still really good friends with. And Chavo Guerrero. But really not very many. It seems like everybody’s disappearing.

I know some of your old WCW friends are working in TNA. Would you have any interest in doing anything with them?

No. Nothing against TNA, but WWE is where you would want to be in that industry. And, you know, I get anxiety going to visit my mom on a plane now because I was just traveling so much before [laughs]. So the thought of being gone even one day a week doesn’t sound like something I want to do.

So you’re not even taking any wrestling bookings at all these days – appearances at indy shows or autograph signings?

I’ve gotten a lot of phone calls and I’ve done a couple of autograph signings, but I’m really just taking a step back. Like I said, I’m just not really into that travel right now. And after watching the movie The Wrestler, I don’t think I’ll be doing any indy appearances any time soon [laughs].

Well I doubt they’d ask you to go in the ring and do a weapons match or anything.

[Laughs]. When I watched that it made me nostalgic for wrestling, but also just so sad because that is so many people I know.

You never had to go through the indy scene, you just kind of walked right into the business, as you said. Did you ever get any heat from people because they felt like you didn’t pay your dues and wrestle in high school gyms for $20?

Oh yes, of course [laughs]. I just think it’s so hilarious that people brag that they practically broke their necks for $20. I commend that people work their way up and you have to get experience and everything, but any one of the people who wanted to give me crap when I first joined WCW, I can’t say that they would have turned down the same opportunity, and they would have said, “No, I really want to go to Mexico for $20 a night.” [laughs]. I never did any indy appearances or anything like that, but we did do a couple fundraisers for the older wrestlers, so I did get a peek of that world.

How was it in the locker room coming over to WWE after having been in WCW? I remember talking to Stacy [Keibler] at the time and she said she got a chilly reception. Did you have the same experience?

Yes. But for me it wasn’t nearly as hard as when I got into WCW, because I didn’t know anybody and people were just awful. I had no clue what I was getting into at WCW. With WWE it was much easier because I had my friends. Stacy and I were inseparable, and I could rely on her to walk down the hall with and not have to worry about people being mean to me for walking down the hallway by myself. I think a lot of people felt their jobs were being threatened, so of course they’re not going to be extremely welcoming.

One of the first things you did in WWE was have some racy scenes with Vince McMahon. Was that uncomfortable?

Extremely. That was the first day I was actually on the show. The guy made me nervous anyway. I didn’t know him very well at all. He was very intimidating, and I had to make out with him in front of his wife. And his wife is telling me to grab him more and harder. It was just a very weird experience [laughs]. To top it all off, I didn’t have a chance to tell my husband at the time [Billy Kidman] everything that I had been doing that day, so he actually saw it all at the same time as everybody else.

Do you think that was an initiation of sorts?

I think so. I just think it’s very odd how Vince has had a bevy of girls make out with him when they first come in. I guess if you’re the boss ... [laughs].

I’m sure you probably get tired of answering questions about your dad, Al Wilson, but was it your idea to have your real dad play your dad in the story line?

Yeah, and I probably kicked myself a little bit for that later. Paul Heyman gave me the story line idea and he said, “We could use your real dad or get an actor.” I said, “No, let’s use my real dad. He did plays when he was younger.” And of course my dad loved the limelight. He just had no clue about the wrestling industry and was asking Vince McMahon for rides in his limo to the building and just doing various uncouth things. After a few months of that, I was just ready to boot his butt home [laughs].

So what did you think of his performance as a corpse?

[Laughs]. I just found it all very humorous. It was funny to see all the wrestlers get so mad that he was getting so much air time, but he was literally getting the highest-rated segments of the show.

Do you have any good road stories or ribs that either you were involved in or that you saw that you can tell on a family Web site?

I’m horrible at remembering great stories. I can say that I have some great memories traveling with WWE. It was somewhat like a circus but I got to see the world and I have some of the best friends. How many people get to travel four or five days a week with four of their closest friends on a constant road trip? The overseas trips were the best, and seeing some of the ribs that were played on some of the guys, I just can’t believe guys do that to each other, but I guess it’s a frat boy thing.

So did they pretty much leave you alone?

Yeah, they did leave me alone. You know, there were a couple girls who really believed their own hype. I used to travel with my dog Chloe, and she went to the bathroom one time in the locker room, and I was feeling extra frisky and mean, and there were two girls that I just did not like very much that were very mean to me, and let’s just say some of their stuff had dog poop on it [laughs].

What’s your favorite moment from your wrestling career?

As painful as it was, the best story line I had was the one involving my father. It was the one time during my whole career that I knew that every single week I went to work I was going to do something. I wasn’t going to sit in the back and wonder if I was going to have a match or a story line or a pre-tape segment. It was exciting to follow the whole story line and be a part of it. And I go so into it that during that time I truly did hate Dawn Marie. I was believing the story line and into it so much. That was probably the most fun time for me as far as working. Not the best matches, but story line [laughs].

Your dad must have loved working so closely with Dawn Marie?

Oh yes, he did, believe me. He still talks about it [laughs].

Do you have a Web site or anything that you want to tell people about?

The Web site for my store is called officiallyjaded.com. My MySpace is myspace.com/torries_space.

Handout photo

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 3:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Q&As
        

SHAWN MICHAELS

5 (1989): Along with Marty Jannetty, lost to Akeem and The Big Bossman
6 (1990): Along with Jannetty, lost to The Orient Express by countout
7 (1991): Along with Jannetty, defeated The Barbarian and Haku
8 (1992): Defeated Tito Santana
9 (1993): Lost to challenger Tatanka by disqualification. Michaels retained the Intercontinental title.
10 (1994):) Lost to Intercontinental champion Razor Ramon in a ladder match
11 (1995): Lost to WWF champion Diesel
12 (1996): Defeated Bret Hart less than two minutes into overtime of a 60-minute Iron Man Match to win the WWF title
14 (1998): Lost the WWF title to Steve Austin
19 (2003): Defeated Chris Jericho
20 (2004): Lost to Chris Benoit in a world heavyweight title match. Champion Triple H also was in the match.
21 (2005): Lost to Kurt Angle
22 (2006): Defeated Vince McMahon in a No Holds Barred match
23 (2007): Lost to WWE champion John Cena
24 (2008): Defeated Ric Flair in a match with the stipulation that Flair had to retire if he lost

Comments: Thanks to his spectacular wrestling skills, he has stolen the show on the grand stage more than anyone. … His 15 WrestleMania appearances are second only to The Undertaker (16). … Has competed in five world title matches at WrestleMania, four of which went on last. … Although it wasn’t his greatest match at WrestleMania, Michaels’ victory over Flair in the latter’s final match created one of the most memorable WrestleMania moments – Michaels mouthing, “I’m sorry, I love you,” before delivering the decisive superkick to his idol. … First show-stealing performance was at WM 10, when he and Ramon competed in the first ladder match on a WWE pay-per-view. … Victory over Hart to win his first WWF title at WM 12 is the longest match (nearly 62 minutes) at WrestleMania. … Working with a severe back injury, Michaels put on a gutsy performance in dropping the WWF title to Austin at WM 14. It would be Michaels’ last match for more than four years. … Michaels, Benoit and Triple H competed in a tremendous triple threat match at WM 20. … Matches with Jericho (WM 19) and Angle (WM 21) were both outstanding. … Carried 60-year-old McMahon to an entertaining brawl at WM 22.

I will count down the top 25 stars in WrestleMania history every day through Sunday.

To view the list through today, click here.

Photo courtesy of WWE

Q&A with Shawn Michaels (March 21, 2008)

Q&A with Shawn Michaels (Nov. 15, 2007)

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 2:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (34)
Categories: Top 25 WrestleMania stars
        

I’m not sure what to make of Mick Foley’s character right now – and that’s what makes him so compelling.

Foley continued his entertainingly erratic behavior Thursday night on TNA Impact, going back and forth between playing an insincere version of his lovable character and a crazed Cactus Jack-like figure.

Since Foley’s last stint in WWE saw him teaming with Hornswoggle and making bad jokes at the announce table, it’s easy to forget sometimes just how great of a performer he is. Despite looking broken down and out of shape, Foley still manages to come across as a dangerous threat because he plays his character so well.

Of course, in a little over two weeks at the Lockdown pay-per-view, the talking will end and Foley and Sting will actually have to wrestle. Foley’s physical condition and Sting’s age (50) raise concerns about whether the match can live up to the build. Foley has all but promised that he will do something crazy during the match, which excites me and saddens me at the same time.

Other thoughts on Thursday’s night’s show:

Scott Steiner delivered one of his best promos in a long time, and it wasn’t one of those Big Poppa Pump so-bad-it’s-good promos. I just wish we could leave Jeff’s Jarrett’s young daughters and deceased wife out of story lines. …

The Sting-Samoa Joe main event wasn’t much of a match, but it served its purpose as far as getting over Joe’s new ultra-violent persona. With Joe’s abduction of Sharmell, we can now add kidnapping to attempted murder on his rap sheet. I know a lot of people don’t like the new Joe, but TNA had to go in this direction with him after he had been booked as a gullible, whiny babyface for so long. …

I like Stevie Richards but I have not been a fan of the Dr. Stevie segments. The two on this show were perversely entertaining, however. Stevie’s beat-down of Abyss – who squealed like a wounded animal – came out of nowhere and at least grabbed my attention. The second segment featured Daffney, who – thank God – finally is done with The Governor gimmick. I’m surprised TNA actually took the time to come up with some sort of explanation as to why she was impersonating Sarah Palin. …

The Beer Money/Team 3-D story line, in which the heels are constantly telling the babyfaces that they respect them, reminds me of the Lance Cade-Trevor Murdoch/Hardy Boyz angle from a while back. …

Right before a commercial break, Taylor Wilde ran to the back to avoid getting her hair cut by The Beautiful People, and Madison Rayne took off after her. After the break, Wilde was already in her bathrobe when the BP broke into her dressing room. How did she get undressed so fast? …

Knowing how Steiner feels about Ric Flair, it has to irritate him every time the crowd yells “Wooo!” after he delivers a chop to the chest. …

Kevin Nash delivered the line of the night when he was about to leave the building with Jenna Morasca: “I can leave whenever I want. I’m Kevin Nash.” …

When Jim Cornette said, “All we need is two more big-mouth Italians,” was that a shot at his pal Vince Russo or his pal Santino Marella?

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 6:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

THE UNDERTAKER

7 (1991): Defeated Jimmy Snuka
8 (1992): Defeated Jake Roberts
9 (1993): Defeated Giant Gonzalez by disqualification
11 (1995): Defeated King Kong Bundy
12 (1996): Defeated Diesel
13 (1997): Defeated Psycho Sid to win the WWF title
14 (1998): Defeated Kane
15 (1999): Defeated The Big Bossman in a Hell in a Cell match
17 (2001): Defeated Triple H
18 (2002): Defeated Ric Flair
19 (2003): Defeated The Big Show and A-Train in a handicap match
20 (2004): Defeated Kane
21 (2005): Defeated Randy Orton
22 (2006): Defeated Mark Henry in a Casket Match
23 (2007): Defeated Batista to win the world heavyweight title
24 (2008): Defeated Edge to win the world heavyweight title

Comments: “The Streak” has become a major part of WrestleMania. Putting his unblemished record at the signature show on the line is like having another title match on the card. … Holds the record for most WrestleMania appearances (16). … Has won the world title three times at WrestleMania, including the past two years. … Has always been a featured attraction at WrestleMania, but he was often matched against big lumbering guys, so not all of his WrestleMania matches have been good. That hasn’t been the case in recent years. Matches with Triple H (WM 17) and Flair (WM 18) were quite good, and matches against Orton (WM 21), Batista (WM 23) and Edge (WM 24) were excellent. … Return to his “Dead Man” character to face Kane was one of the top attractions at WM 20.

I will count down the top 25 stars in WrestleMania history every day through Sunday.

To view the list through today, click here.

Photo courtesy of WWE

Posted by Kevin Eck at 1:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (44)
Categories: Top 25 WrestleMania stars
        

For those of you in the Baltimore area who have inquired about a restaurant or bar that is showing WrestleMania XXV on Sunday, I have some news.

Loafers Bar and Grill in Catonsville is hosting a WrestleMania viewing party. A replay of the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will be shown at 5 p.m., with the WrestleMania pay-per-view beginning at 7 p.m.

The event will be hosted by swimsuit model and Maryland Championship Wrestling personality Lana Takaya. Others stars from MCW also will be in attendance.

In addition, vintage WWE T-shirts and 25 autographed 8x10 photos of Batista will given away, as well as merchandise from the new Jason Statham movie, Crank: High Voltage. There is a $5 cover charge.

For more information, call 410-719-2121.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 8:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

STEVE AUSTIN

12 (1996): Defeated Savio Vega
13 (1997): Lost to Bret Hart in a submission match
14 (1998): Defeated Shawn Michaels to win the WWF title
15 (1999): Defeated The Rock to win the WWF title
17 (2001): Defeated The Rock to win the WWF title
18 (2002): Defeated Scott Hall
19 (2003): Lost to The Rock

Non-wrestling appearances

20 (2004): Was guest referee in the Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar match
21 (2005): Was a guest of Piper’s Pit
23 (2007): Was guest referee in the Donald Trump-Vince McMahon hair stipulation match

Comments: Took a major step toward becoming the top guy in the company when he and Hart pulled off a double turn in a classic match at WM 13. … Officially became the leader of the Attitude Era with his victory over Michaels at WM 14 that featured Mike Tyson as special enforcer referee. … The company was on fire when Austin beat The Rock for the WWF title at WM 15 in a match that was an extension of the legendary Austin-McMahon feud. … In a battle of the two biggest superstars in the business at the time, Austin again won the title from Rock at WM 17, only this time Austin turned heel at the end of the match and joined forces with McMahon. The post-match handshake between Austin and McMahon was something no one saw coming. … Lost to The Rock at WM 19 and has not wrestled since. … Even though his in-ring career was over, Austin provided a WrestleMania moment at WM 20 when he delivered stunners to Lesnar and Goldberg after their match.

I will count down the top 25 stars in WrestleMania history every day through Sunday.

To view the list through today, click here.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 6:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)
Categories: Top 25 WrestleMania stars
        

I conducted a phone interview recently with Edge, who defends his world heavyweight title against John Cena and The Big Show in a triple threat match Sunday at WrestleMania 25.

For a guy like you who grew up loving wrestling and was a fan in the audience at WrestleMania VI, what was it like to headline WrestleMania last year?

Oh, geez. I can’t say that I get nervous before matches, not to sound like a big tough guy or anything, but I’m more excited than nervous. So, I was really excited (laughs). I was over-excited, I think. I actually was so amped up that I lost feeling in my arms on my way down to the ring. I don’t know whether it was adrenalin or what. Basically, it was 30 years of buildup to that point for me – maybe not quite 30, but a while – and I just remember being in the ring, looking around and pyro’s going off, I’m wearing the heavyweight championship, and it was all very surreal. You always want that moment but you never necessarily know if that moment’s going to come. When it actually does, I lose feeling in my arms (laughs). You can see me shaking them out as I’m coming to the ring, because I’m thinking, “I can’t work a match here without feeling in my hands.” Thankfully, it came back.

Not only did you wrestle in the main event last year, but you did so against a legendary figure such as The Undertaker. Can you describe what that experience was like?

Amazing. He and I thankfully have very good chemistry together in the ring. I’ve always kind of likened it to Batman and The Joker or Green Goblin-Spiderman. It always just kind of worked, and I was always trying to think of different ways to counter his moves. And for him to counter my counter, and then me to counter his counter to my counter. It was really fun for me to try and figure out ways to do that. When I wrestle a big guy that can go, I think it ends up being my ideal opponent, although I consider a guy like Jeff Hardy an ideal opponent, too. I guess it’s just a matter of different styles and being able to click with a person. You never know if you’re going to or not until you get in there. That was our second singles match ever, at WrestleMania. We had one other singles match down in Chile, and with that I said, “I think we’ve got something here.” And from that point forward, I was really happy with everything we did. To be able to get in there with a guy like that and be happy with it, and to do it on the grandest stage, yeah, it’s pretty cool.

You have certainly had your share of WrestleMania moments. Besides losing feeling in your arms last year, what moment stands out for you?

(Laughs). I have a few. The first time that Christian and I won the tag team championship, standing on that table at WrestleMania 16 was the culmination of a lot of work that him and I put in together, so to do that together was really my first special moment at a WrestleMania. So there’s that one. Even though we were wrestling over a shampoo endorsement, waking out at SkyDome to wrestle at the same place that I sat there 12 years earlier, that was really special. Spearing Jeff in Houston – the super spear I think it’s now been deemed – that was crazy, because who knew if it was going to work? My main concern was Jeff. Once we hit I was a little dizzy, so I can imagine how he felt. Just the relief after that and watching it back. What was really cool for me and made it very rewarding is that it looked like the entire audience bounced. I watched it back and we were like, “Look, look, they just bounced up in the air with it.” (laughs) It shocked them. The big one – and I guess the stupidest one – was the spear [on Mick Foley] through the flaming table.

Who suggested that spot, and you have any trepidation about doing it?

Stupidly, it was my suggestion (laughs). There’s no way Mick would suggest me to go face-first through a flaming table. That was all me. I was just in a mode at that point where I really wanted to show everyone that I felt I deserved to be champ, so I was going to do whatever it took to do that. I think in hindsight that maybe my character needed to show that, “Yeah, OK, I can do the thumb tacks, the barbed wire and the flaming tables stuff, or I can be in there with Eddie Guerrero and try to go hold for hold – may not do it, but I’ll try. I didn’t really realize until after the fact that no one had ever [gone through a flaming table] without a shirt on (laughs), and nobody had gone through face first. I ended up with burns all over my arms, scorched all of my hair off. Looking back, I don’t know if I would do that one again. But at the time it felt like the right thing to do.

As far as taking big bumps, have you made a conscious effort to tone things down a bit and work smarter as you've gained experience and risen up the card?

Well, you definitely have to. I honestly think that’s part of the reason why I got higher on the card. That’s one of the things that I was told right from the beginning. I remember Steve Austin saying, “Yeah, you have to pick and choose. You have to be careful.” And I just thought I was indestructible. So that’s why at No Mercy you would have Edge and Christian against the Hardys just trying to break every boundary that hadn’t been broken yet. But looking back and feeling it when I wake up in the morning, I get it, I understand it. And I really started to understand it once I started garnering more of a reaction from the stuff that I’m doing now as opposed to trying to flip and fly everywhere. I don’t know when it clicked, but when it did, I went, “Huh, so this is how you do it.” (laughs) It’s giving the people time to react, and a lot of it has to do with story line and getting invested in your character and having more speaking time. But along with that, you have to adapt your style. It may be different at the top of the card in Japan, I don’t know, but where I work, if you do too much crazy stuff to where the people can’t keep up, you’re going to lose them. I think for me, Rey Mysterio is awesome because he has all these incredible high-flying moves, but he knows where and when to do them. And he’ll ugly it up with kicks and forearms in there – and I mean that in a good way. To me, it is kind of a dance, but it shouldn’t look like a dance. It’s supposed to look ugly and it’s supposed to look mean, and if you keep that in perspective and always remember to try and keep that part of in there, I think you’re going to be more successful. Plus, I’m kind of midway in size, and I’m not a high-flyer. I never was. I tried to be. I can catch a guy and take the moves, but for me trying to do them may not be the best idea, especially with all the injuries I’ve compiled over the years.

With your longtime friend Christian back in WWE, is it just a matter of time before your paths cross -- either as friends or foes?

I’m hoping they do. I think at some point they have to. I think the audience wants to see it. I always said it’d be cool whenever the day is that one of us or both us of retired to kind of do a little reunion tour before we did. Just because we grew up together and we have been best friends for 25 years, so it would just be a lot of fun to do. It’s been awesome having him back because we ride together again. And we’re just a couple of idiots, so it’s a lot of fun to travel and ride the roads with your best friend.

I want to ask you about another person who was a friend of yours -- Andrew Martin (Test), who died recently. I know that you guys came up around the same time and trained together. What are your thoughts on him, both personally and professionally?

I’ll always laugh – that’ll be my first thought – and think of his voice, and his cooking skills strangely pop into mind, too, because he would always cook for us. Me and Jay [Christian] and Andrew lived in a basement in Calgary for a little while, and he’d always cook. To me, he was always a little underrated as a talent. I always said if I could put my brain in Andrew’s body he’d be a 20-time world champ (laughs). With the right opponent, he could have a really good match. From a personal standpoint, as a friend that I’ve known for a long, long time, it was just very disappointing, disheartening. But what I try and dwell on are the good memories I have.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 4:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Q&As
        

I can’t say that I’m upset over the news that the contract of Smackdown color commentator Tazz is not going to be renewed. In my opinion, Tazz, whose last appearance will be on Friday’s episode, was serviceable as a color guy, but nothing special.

Naturally, Tazz’s exit has led to speculation about who will replace him. My first thought was JBL, who many believe will retire (again) after his match against Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania. One scenario that someone brought to my attention was that JBL, who has promised to do something historic at WrestleMania, would become the first to wrestle a match and do color commentary at the same WrestleMania. Sounds plausible to me.

My other thought in regard to the Smackdown announcing vacancy was to move Matt Striker over from ECW. Striker’s commentary is one of the highlights of ECW every week, and I think he and Jim Ross would work well together – assuming, of course, that Ross does not go back to Raw in the upcoming draft.

As for Tazz, I wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up in TNA in some capacity. Perhaps it’s just a coincidence, but Brother Ray used Tazz’s catchphrase during his interview on Impact last week. Plus, TNA’s next pay-per-view, Lockdown, is in Philadelphia, Tazz’s old stomping grounds.

***

I was thinking recently about Chris Jericho’s match at WrestleMania and what could have been. After the deal with Mickey Rourke fell through – if there actually was one – and WWE was scrambling for a Plan B, I wonder if Vince McMahon wished he still had Mick Foley on the roster. Foley, playing the role of the broken-down, aging veteran who can’t walk away, would have been the ideal opponent for Jericho. Foley is terrific at playing a sympathetic character, and Jericho would probably have even more heat than he has now.

I don’t recall these two superstars ever wrestling each other, so that alone would have made it special. And can you imagine the promos these two would have cut to build up the match?

***

WWE.com posted a story Wednesday morning announcing that Vickie Guerrero is pregnant and raising the question about who the father is. It sounded like a typical wrestling story line to me, although I thought it was odd that the “news” was revealed on the Web site and not on Raw or Smackdown. As it turns out, it was an April Fool’s joke, supposedly masterminded by John Cena.

I’m disappointed, because I think a “who’s the daddy?” story line would have been entertaining. I could have seen it going something like this: Everyone assumes that either Edge or Big Show is the father, but in a swerve, it ends up being … Hornswoggle! The story is that she got drunk at Finlay’s St. Patrick’s Day party and was looking for a “little” action while Edge and Big Show weren’t around.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 2:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

To view a photo gallery from WWE's news conference Tuesday at The Hard Rock Cafe in New York, click here.

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THE ROCK

13 (1997): Defeated challenger The Sultan to retain the Intercontinental title
14 (1998): Defeated Ken Shamrock by reverse decision to retain the Intercontinental title
15 (1999): Lost the WWF title to Steve Austin
16 (2000): Lost to WWF champion Triple H in a fatal four-way match. Mick Foley and The Big Show also were in the match.
17 (2001): Lost the WWF title to Steve Austin
18 (2002): Defeated Hulk Hogan
19 (2003): Defeated Steve Austin
20 (2004): Along with Foley, lost to Randy Orton, Ric Flair and Batista in a handicap match

Comments: His storied rivalry with Austin resulted in three WrestleMania matches between the two superstars during the glory years of the Attitude Era. ...Even though Rock and Austin had wrestled each other a number of times, their match at WM 17 was the first meeting in which they both were babyfaces. The intense back-and-forth match reached a crescendo when Austin shockingly turned heel and aligned with longtime rival Vince McMahon. ... His most memorable – and surreal – WrestleMania match was against Hogan at WM 18. The atmosphere in that match was off the charts. ... After going 0-2 against Austin at WrestleMania, Rock defeated “Stone Cold” at WM 19 in what turned out to be Austin’s last match. ... Wrestled his final match in WWE at WM 20, teaming with Foley against Evolution. While the match was not promoted as one of the main events, it was one of the most anticipated matches on the card.

I will count down the top 25 stars in WrestleMania history every day through Sunday.

To view the list through today, click here.

Photo courtesy of WWE

Posted by Kevin Eck at 6:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (24)
Categories: Top 25 WrestleMania stars