4.22.2011
How would you draft?
It's that time a year again. It's "Time to shake things up," as Vince McMahon would say. It's obvious the draft was pushed up in a hurry due to Edge's retirement. That leaves Smackdown without a champion and short another main-eventer. So, how do you expect the draft to play out? Obviously, some big names are going to have to be shuffled around. Either that or the WWE is going to have to put it's faith in a mid-card or young wrestler and hope they can run with it. Maybe someone like Dolph Ziggler or John Morrison?
That being said, i do expect that a big name or 2 be moved. Smackdown needs some help and RAW has some main-eventers. In addition, i think it might be time for some people to step up. There is no reason that Kane or The Big Show shouldn't be able to main event or carry a title again. The WWE should be able to turn to veteran form champions in times like this to help bail them out. But they haven't, won't and can't. It's still a "Big Man" company, but if the fan can't see 72 abs and every vein in your body, you're not the right type of "Big Man."
So, who goes where? It's really hard to say, especially since the draft is being rushed. It was actually supposed to be delayed until after Summerslam at last report. It looks as if the WWE has hit the panic button here with Edge leaving. And... well, they should. Edge isn't going to be replaceable in-ring and in feuds. His ring savy, crowd control, performer skill and overall charisma is Hall of Fame material. That doesn't just get replaced. If someone could replace that internally, they would already be main eventing. The talent pool in the WWE is thinner than Jessica Alba.
Main event wise, RAW has John Cena, The Miz, C.M. Punk, Randy Orton, John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler and HHH. Morrison is a stretch, but he is in the main event for the next PPV and has been in Elimination Chamber main events as well. The problem is that every main-eventer i mentioned is in a feud with another main-eventer already on RAW with the exception of Dolph Ziggler. So, do these feuds get prematurely ended? Does Ziggler get sent back to Smackdown after just arriving on RAW?
I feel like a main-event face has to go to Smackdown, whether they are currently a face or if a wrestler has to switch. Dolph turning on Vicki has been hinted at in the past and could set him up to face Del Rio as a face. Does RAW really want to lose any of it's other stars of feuds? They've actually done a better job than usual in building some of these feuds. It would be a shame to watch them end prematurely.
But what do you think? Who would you draft to what show? Give me your lists! Your ideas! Post your comments in our "The Wrestling Genius" group on facebook!
I don't know how the WWE fills the hole that Edge left with his retirement. I don't know if they can. But i do know one thing. The WWE could use one person now more than ever. He "saved us" once and he could do it again.
Save us, Chris.
4.15.2011
The Wrestling World Has Changed.
Wrestling all around has had a tough week. I know we've had discussions about these topics in our Facebook group, but these are the types of issues that deserve further discussion. I'll throw some random notes in at the end too. Also, please feel free to invite any friends to the group. I enjoy the discussion.
Edge has officially retired from wrestling. He will never been medically cleared to wrestle again. I wonder what that's like. I wonder what it's like to be told that you medically can no longer do the one thing you love and know. The one thing you wake up for everyday. The one thing you've spent your entire life doing, learning and achieving. He said it himself, he knew he was wrestling on borrowed time. I doubt that makes it any easier though. Adam Copeland was one of the biggest and best the WWE has ever employed. They didn't produce Edge. Adam made Edge. The Rated R Superstar was his doing. Only a few get to make their own characters and angles and be successful. Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan and The Rock come to mind. You can add Edge to that list as well.
His speech on RAW was sincere, to the point and emotional. It was nice that JR was there that night and that Edge could personally thank him for recruiting him 14 years ago. He explained everything to the fans and made sure we knew it wasn't a work or an angle with his tears. In a wrestling world where stars a few and far between, it's hard to watch one walk away so early. It's hard to watch one walk away when the company needs him so bad. It might be hard to watch, but i am glad he is doing it. Edge made the toughest decision of his life on Monday and yet, maybe it was the easiest. He doesn't want to spend the rest of his life in a wheel chair or hospital bed. If anything, he is grateful the WWE had him go for tests twice so that he knew how serious it actually was. He'll miss the cheers, the boos, the pyro and the adrenaline rush from performing. He'll miss wrestling and it will miss him. I don't think he'll leave the WWE. He is an excellent on screen character that i think the WWE will want to utilize and i think Edge will still want to be involved. Even the WWE website mentioned a possible GM role for him
Edge, if anything, is an inspiration now. He achieved his dream in life and did it at the highest level possible. His last match in the WWE was a successful World Title defense at Wrestlemania. There aren't many that get to go out on top. There aren't many that get to retire as a champion. Edge did. I couldn't be happier for him. Thank you, Edge. Thank you, Adam.
Here is the video of Edge's retirement speech from RAW. After the speech, there are some videos and awesome match clips highlighting his career. I did not make this video. All credit goes to the creator:
Another bit of news that hit the wrestling world was Indy wrestler Larry Sweeney died this week at the age of 29. Now, if you're not familiar with the Indy scene or Ring of Honor then you may not be familiar with Larry's work. I've had the pleasure of seeing him work numerous times for IWC. He was a phenomenal character wrestler. He could do a gimmick match as good as the likes of Chris Candido or Santino Marella. He also had the skill and ability to put on an entertaining wrestling match. At first report, Larry's cause of death was self inflicted. He has had a history of mental illness and was thought to be recovering. It appears he had everyone fooled. He was at the top of the Ring of Honor talent and angle pool while managing Chris Hero. He left ROH in 2009 because of his mental illness. It was reported at this time that he was actually holding wrestling matches on cement in back alleys. He returned to ROH part-time with the help and support of his friends. Unfortunately, something was still wrong and now the wrestling world has lost another. My condolences go out to the friends and family of course. I know i'll miss "Sweet and Sour" Larry Sweeney.
Here is a video of some of Larry's work. Again, i didn't make this. The credit goes to the creator:
Quick news/opinions:
- I watched TNA Impact last night for the first time in a few months. What an absolute train wreck. It's unfortunate to see talent like AJ Styles, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelly, Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe be wasted. TNA either hits a home run or strikes out. Right now, they are 0-50 at the plate.
- The WWE has back to back shows in June scheduled to be three hours. This is before Summerslam and is right around when the WWE likes to hold it's draft. I, personally, love the draft. I like how each show earns their pick by winning matches. The WWE hasn't said anything about a draft, though.
- Anyone else miss JR on commentary? I've had it with Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler fighting when they should be calling the match. Either be characters or be commentators. JR and Josh Matthews would suit me just fine. Huge Josh Matthews fan, by the way. Can't wait till he takes Cole's job.
- Only 351 days until The Rock vs John Cena! ...yay...
- Sin Cara looked fairly impressive in his debut even with Primo messing up the One Man Spanish Fly finisher. Sin Cara does his high spots with ease and precision. I look forward to his future matches and hope the WWE uses him properly.
- Yes, the video with the person flicking the head off the doll was for Awesome Kong. The WWE divas devision is gonna be pancaked. I hope they make her wear a snow suit. No one wants to see any of that..
- C.M Punk > Randy Orton
If you get a chance, be sure to watch Smackdown. I can't believe i just said that. Anyways, Edge will be forfeiting the title and it should definitely be interesting to watch. You will also get to find out who takes Edge's spot at PPV title match.
Edge has officially retired from wrestling. He will never been medically cleared to wrestle again. I wonder what that's like. I wonder what it's like to be told that you medically can no longer do the one thing you love and know. The one thing you wake up for everyday. The one thing you've spent your entire life doing, learning and achieving. He said it himself, he knew he was wrestling on borrowed time. I doubt that makes it any easier though. Adam Copeland was one of the biggest and best the WWE has ever employed. They didn't produce Edge. Adam made Edge. The Rated R Superstar was his doing. Only a few get to make their own characters and angles and be successful. Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan and The Rock come to mind. You can add Edge to that list as well.
His speech on RAW was sincere, to the point and emotional. It was nice that JR was there that night and that Edge could personally thank him for recruiting him 14 years ago. He explained everything to the fans and made sure we knew it wasn't a work or an angle with his tears. In a wrestling world where stars a few and far between, it's hard to watch one walk away so early. It's hard to watch one walk away when the company needs him so bad. It might be hard to watch, but i am glad he is doing it. Edge made the toughest decision of his life on Monday and yet, maybe it was the easiest. He doesn't want to spend the rest of his life in a wheel chair or hospital bed. If anything, he is grateful the WWE had him go for tests twice so that he knew how serious it actually was. He'll miss the cheers, the boos, the pyro and the adrenaline rush from performing. He'll miss wrestling and it will miss him. I don't think he'll leave the WWE. He is an excellent on screen character that i think the WWE will want to utilize and i think Edge will still want to be involved. Even the WWE website mentioned a possible GM role for him
Edge, if anything, is an inspiration now. He achieved his dream in life and did it at the highest level possible. His last match in the WWE was a successful World Title defense at Wrestlemania. There aren't many that get to go out on top. There aren't many that get to retire as a champion. Edge did. I couldn't be happier for him. Thank you, Edge. Thank you, Adam.
Here is the video of Edge's retirement speech from RAW. After the speech, there are some videos and awesome match clips highlighting his career. I did not make this video. All credit goes to the creator:
Another bit of news that hit the wrestling world was Indy wrestler Larry Sweeney died this week at the age of 29. Now, if you're not familiar with the Indy scene or Ring of Honor then you may not be familiar with Larry's work. I've had the pleasure of seeing him work numerous times for IWC. He was a phenomenal character wrestler. He could do a gimmick match as good as the likes of Chris Candido or Santino Marella. He also had the skill and ability to put on an entertaining wrestling match. At first report, Larry's cause of death was self inflicted. He has had a history of mental illness and was thought to be recovering. It appears he had everyone fooled. He was at the top of the Ring of Honor talent and angle pool while managing Chris Hero. He left ROH in 2009 because of his mental illness. It was reported at this time that he was actually holding wrestling matches on cement in back alleys. He returned to ROH part-time with the help and support of his friends. Unfortunately, something was still wrong and now the wrestling world has lost another. My condolences go out to the friends and family of course. I know i'll miss "Sweet and Sour" Larry Sweeney.
Here is a video of some of Larry's work. Again, i didn't make this. The credit goes to the creator:
Quick news/opinions:
- I watched TNA Impact last night for the first time in a few months. What an absolute train wreck. It's unfortunate to see talent like AJ Styles, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelly, Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe be wasted. TNA either hits a home run or strikes out. Right now, they are 0-50 at the plate.
- The WWE has back to back shows in June scheduled to be three hours. This is before Summerslam and is right around when the WWE likes to hold it's draft. I, personally, love the draft. I like how each show earns their pick by winning matches. The WWE hasn't said anything about a draft, though.
- Anyone else miss JR on commentary? I've had it with Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler fighting when they should be calling the match. Either be characters or be commentators. JR and Josh Matthews would suit me just fine. Huge Josh Matthews fan, by the way. Can't wait till he takes Cole's job.
- Only 351 days until The Rock vs John Cena! ...yay...
- Sin Cara looked fairly impressive in his debut even with Primo messing up the One Man Spanish Fly finisher. Sin Cara does his high spots with ease and precision. I look forward to his future matches and hope the WWE uses him properly.
- Yes, the video with the person flicking the head off the doll was for Awesome Kong. The WWE divas devision is gonna be pancaked. I hope they make her wear a snow suit. No one wants to see any of that..
- C.M Punk > Randy Orton
If you get a chance, be sure to watch Smackdown. I can't believe i just said that. Anyways, Edge will be forfeiting the title and it should definitely be interesting to watch. You will also get to find out who takes Edge's spot at PPV title match.
4.08.2011
Really, WWE? Really? Really?
Wrestlemania is behind us and so is the RAW that followed. I don't even know where to begin. I will channel my "inner Miz" for this...
A good couple months were spent building up Daniel Bryan. I don't mind him losing his belt. I don't mind him losing matches. However, the United States Title was not even defended at Wrestlemania. It was bumped to the pre-show, made a lumberjack match and then turned into a non-title battle royal. So, instead of making the US title worthwhile at Wrestlemania, we had an 8 man tag match that people couldn't care less about with The Corre. To top it all off, the actual title match took place on RAW and it was a squash by Sheamus. Really, WWE? Really?
Speaking of the Corre... nice match. Another 2 minute match and the Corre LOST. The Tag Team Champions, the Intercontinental Champion and a brute of a man get destroyed. Those titles were also not defended Wrestlemania. How do you not have all of your titles defended at the biggest pay per view of the year? And, assuming you don't for whatever absurd reason, why would you make them mean nothing? Really, WWE? Really?
The Snooki match was all of 10 seconds. I was happy she was there because it gave WWE prime exposure all across entertainment. But... 10 seconds? Did Dolph Ziggler even hit a move? And, again, we had this instead of the US title, Tag Team titles and IC title being defended. Don't misinterpret me, though. Dolph Ziggler and John Morrison deserve to be at Wrestlemania. I find them both entertaining in the ring and both are on the brink of breaking that "Main Event" barrier. So.. this was the best way to use them? Really, WWE? Really?
The people finally get what they want! They people finally get their dream match! It's all about what the people want and how we're finally going to get it from the WWE. The main event of all main events is set! Everyone is all fired up for The Rock vs. John Cena!... in a full calendar year. This entire thing was a set up for something a year away? Really, WWE? Really?
However, the WWE did some things well, too.
The ending to the Orton/C.M. Punk match was nice. The entire match was good and it had an excellent finish. It is nice to see that the feud is continuing, too. This was one of only a few good moments from Wrestlemania and this past RAW.
A surprisingly entertaining match was the Cody Rhodes/Rey Mysterio match. It was the right length of time and helps build the rivalry and Cody Rhodes more. Kudos to Rey for choosing to work with Rhodes and trying to help jump start his career.
The match the WWE got 100% right was Undertaker/HHH. I know everyone is talking about it and it did, indeed, steal the show. It was an old-school, brutal, beat-down of a match with a lot of exciting near falls and OMG moments. The ending was superb and the after-match carting of The Undertaker to the dressing room made it feel like HHH did achieve something even though he didn't get the win.
So, what do we have to look forward to?
The Miz and John Cena will continue their feud. If The Miz would actually have a match and beat John Cena legit, i would be more interested. It's been all sucker punches and blindsides. That's all good to help build the feud and The Miz's character, but eventually he has to win clean or lose clean. I also wouldn't mind if someone killed Alex Riley. He's only slowing down The Miz's growth.
Randy Orton and C.M. Punk will continue their feud as well. I am looking forward to how this culminates at the next PPV and to see what kind of brutal match they will have. It's been entertaining enough and C.M. Punk has really risen as a star in the company. Watch your back, Miz.
Alberto Del Rio will challenge Edge at the next PPV as well. I was actually kind of happy Del Rio didn't win at Wrestlemania. Edge deserves a huge win and title defense like that at the biggest PPV of the year. I would expect Del Rio to win the title at the next PPV, though. If Del Rio would get rid of his ring announcer, i could probably be a fan. I hate the ring announcer with the fire of a thousand suns.
We also get the best, unbelievable, most wanted, super-duper, insane, magical, unprecedented, never before seen, blockbuster, epic, high-profile, main event in the history of mankind... in one year. Yep, John Cena vs. Dwayne "Don't call me The Rock" Johnson settle their heated rivalry in just under 365 days. Can you feel the excitement? The Electricity? I can't. I don't give a
crap.
Here is a highlight video of the newest WWE superstar, Sin Cara. He went by the name Mistico. HHH recruited him. He's pretty amazing. Check it out:
A good couple months were spent building up Daniel Bryan. I don't mind him losing his belt. I don't mind him losing matches. However, the United States Title was not even defended at Wrestlemania. It was bumped to the pre-show, made a lumberjack match and then turned into a non-title battle royal. So, instead of making the US title worthwhile at Wrestlemania, we had an 8 man tag match that people couldn't care less about with The Corre. To top it all off, the actual title match took place on RAW and it was a squash by Sheamus. Really, WWE? Really?
Speaking of the Corre... nice match. Another 2 minute match and the Corre LOST. The Tag Team Champions, the Intercontinental Champion and a brute of a man get destroyed. Those titles were also not defended Wrestlemania. How do you not have all of your titles defended at the biggest pay per view of the year? And, assuming you don't for whatever absurd reason, why would you make them mean nothing? Really, WWE? Really?
The Snooki match was all of 10 seconds. I was happy she was there because it gave WWE prime exposure all across entertainment. But... 10 seconds? Did Dolph Ziggler even hit a move? And, again, we had this instead of the US title, Tag Team titles and IC title being defended. Don't misinterpret me, though. Dolph Ziggler and John Morrison deserve to be at Wrestlemania. I find them both entertaining in the ring and both are on the brink of breaking that "Main Event" barrier. So.. this was the best way to use them? Really, WWE? Really?
The people finally get what they want! They people finally get their dream match! It's all about what the people want and how we're finally going to get it from the WWE. The main event of all main events is set! Everyone is all fired up for The Rock vs. John Cena!... in a full calendar year. This entire thing was a set up for something a year away? Really, WWE? Really?
However, the WWE did some things well, too.
The ending to the Orton/C.M. Punk match was nice. The entire match was good and it had an excellent finish. It is nice to see that the feud is continuing, too. This was one of only a few good moments from Wrestlemania and this past RAW.
A surprisingly entertaining match was the Cody Rhodes/Rey Mysterio match. It was the right length of time and helps build the rivalry and Cody Rhodes more. Kudos to Rey for choosing to work with Rhodes and trying to help jump start his career.
The match the WWE got 100% right was Undertaker/HHH. I know everyone is talking about it and it did, indeed, steal the show. It was an old-school, brutal, beat-down of a match with a lot of exciting near falls and OMG moments. The ending was superb and the after-match carting of The Undertaker to the dressing room made it feel like HHH did achieve something even though he didn't get the win.
So, what do we have to look forward to?
The Miz and John Cena will continue their feud. If The Miz would actually have a match and beat John Cena legit, i would be more interested. It's been all sucker punches and blindsides. That's all good to help build the feud and The Miz's character, but eventually he has to win clean or lose clean. I also wouldn't mind if someone killed Alex Riley. He's only slowing down The Miz's growth.
Randy Orton and C.M. Punk will continue their feud as well. I am looking forward to how this culminates at the next PPV and to see what kind of brutal match they will have. It's been entertaining enough and C.M. Punk has really risen as a star in the company. Watch your back, Miz.
Alberto Del Rio will challenge Edge at the next PPV as well. I was actually kind of happy Del Rio didn't win at Wrestlemania. Edge deserves a huge win and title defense like that at the biggest PPV of the year. I would expect Del Rio to win the title at the next PPV, though. If Del Rio would get rid of his ring announcer, i could probably be a fan. I hate the ring announcer with the fire of a thousand suns.
We also get the best, unbelievable, most wanted, super-duper, insane, magical, unprecedented, never before seen, blockbuster, epic, high-profile, main event in the history of mankind... in one year. Yep, John Cena vs. Dwayne "Don't call me The Rock" Johnson settle their heated rivalry in just under 365 days. Can you feel the excitement? The Electricity? I can't. I don't give a
crap.
Here is a highlight video of the newest WWE superstar, Sin Cara. He went by the name Mistico. HHH recruited him. He's pretty amazing. Check it out:
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