The Same Old Wrestling Thread? It's Never Done That Before!

[Hunter Rider]

He's pretty green, but when he's used for certain spots(big man hot tags), he's fine. I would certainly take him over Daniel and Rolles Gracie "wrestling." Good grief....

As for Devitt painting himself like that, I guess it's for the presentation more than anything else. I know him painting himself like Carnage and having the entrance he had added to the pageantry and spectacle of the Tokyo Dome/Wrestle Kingdom show.

Heh! So he's younger than he looks? Do you think he'd add to Devitt's act in the WWE?

Ah I see, I thought maybe he had gone through some sort of character change, but it was just about showmanship?

 

[TheNextNolan22]

I think he would add to Devitt's act in WWE if Devitt is able to show off some personality.

 

[Hunter Rider]

When was that? WTF?

Terri Runnels is in the gif so that gives you a time frame of late 90's to early 2000's.

Those Alex Shelley gifs, where are they from?

That's Prince Devitt and they are from a recent NJPW show.

 

[Kaleb]

 

[The Apocalypse]

That's Prince Devitt and they are from a recent NJPW show.

Thanks

 

[TheNextNolan22]

 

[Hunter Rider]

Thanks

I see there are now some Alex Shelley BTTF gifs so maybe I go the wrong ones lol.

I think he would add to Devitt's act in WWE if Devitt is able to show off some personality.

Well the gun finger thing will not be allowed but he needs to keep that nasty, sneaky streak in tact, the worst booking I can see is him coming in as Sheamus cousin or something cheesy like that.

 

[The Sage]

- Booker T recently did a live interview with PWKGW. Here are some highlights:

Sting coming to WWE: “Ya know I would hope so, I really think it’s something he should’ve did some years ago, he had his reasons why he didn’t, he’s a religious man, I don’t know if that’s why he hasn’t yet, he was a cornerstone of WCW. He deserves to be mentioned as such.”

His upcoming book: “Well yea it’s going to chronicle my time in WCW, to WWE, to the Hall of Fame, so many people wondered what was going through my mind at this time or that time.. Like when WWE showed up in Florida to take over WCW. What really happened years ago between Sid Vicious/Arn Anderson, what went wrong here or there. A lot of stuff like that people want to know more about.”

His advice to CM Punk (who he doesn’t say by name): “Well it’s real simple, the advice I would give that person you were talking about, if we are talking about the “kid” who worked my PWA show years ago, and saw how good he was and how much potential not to mention the talent he already possessed years ago, ya know it reminds me of something my mother used to tell me when I was a boy, if your 99% about something you keep your mouth shut, if your 100% about something speak up 100% time! It’s really hard to say when someone is speaking up 100% and their integrity is on the line, you deal with the consequences, if your only 99% you keep it shut.”

http://dailywrestlingnews.com/booker-gives-advice-cm-punk-talks-sting-coming-wwe-next-book/

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Kane52630]

Angle slam on LEGOs

 

[cabel]

Angle slam on LEGOs

I guess that's one way to tell someone to hit the bricks.

 

[SuperBatman]

Been Falling behind watching WWE as of late haven't seen Raw yet but I got to say the match between Bryan and Cesaro on SD was awesome.

 

[the_ultimate_evil]

Even though I despise valentines day.....good god

 

[The Sage]

- After a week where the CM Punk talk has started to die down, people within WWE are looking ahead to the March 3rd RAW from Chicago. There is a lot of concern about how that show will play out. With The Undertaker and Hulk Hogan scheduled to return at the February 24th RAW, they could be brought to the Chicago RAW as a way to counter the Punk chants.

There was less concern this past week because while there were Punk chants at live events, they didn’t pick up or last that long. The feeling is that with nothing major happening with the Los Angeles crowd at RAW on Monday, it’s pretty much a done situation with the possible exception of Chicago.

Going into the Los Angeles RAW this week, officials feared fans would hijack the show and ruin the John Cena vs. Randy Orton main event. The idea was to bring Daniel Bryan out twice, including right before the main event, have him go over strong and get the chants out of the way.

There remains mixed feelings within the company regarding Punk’s status. Virtually nobody agrees with him when it comes to walking out 30 minutes before a live TV shoot. Many have sympathy for some of his concerns but they argue that Punk was legitimately the #2 guy in the company for a while. On a related note, it’s acknowledged that Punk was very popular but the belief is that he was not a ticket seller to live events and only on occasion was he a difference maker in pay-per-view business. At the same time, Punk was the #2 merchandise seller.

- Batista will start wrestling live event matches this coming weekend.

- Regarding the name changes for Big E and Cesaro, that is a Vince McMahon decision.

- Shane McMahon currently owns 1,541,224 shares of WWE stock, which is worth more than $35 million. After selling a lot in the past year, Stephanie McMahon currently owns 661,678 shares worth more than $14 million.

- Both Layla and Richie Steamboat are still under contract to WWE. There were reports that Richie had been cut but he’s still out with a back injury that could be career-ending. It’s been speculated that Layla is out due to medical reasons or some kind of injury but The Wrestling Observer reports that she’s dealing with personal issues.

- Regarding Sting not signing a deal with WWE yet, it’s more because WWE is dragging their feet. We noted before that WWE officials are in no hurry to get Sting signed for a WrestleMania XXX match but word is that Sting himself was hoping for a match against The Undertaker at this year’s event.

Since Sting lives in the Dallas area, he is willing to meet up with The Undertaker and work out the match in private at Undertaker’s gym, over and over, to get it right, which is what Undertaker’s opponents have done for the past several years. That’s one of the reasons the matches have gone over so well. There was some concern that Brock Lesnar, who is in it because he makes big money for a limited amount of work and only has a certain number of dates on his contract, may not be willing to spend several extra days working with Taker to get the entire match worked out.

- Jake Roberts noted on Twitter that he will announce his WWE Hall of Fame inductor soon. Jake said it “should be obvious” who the inductor is, leading fans to speculate that Diamond Dallas Page will be doing the honors. In regards to wrestling another match for WWE, Jake said “never say never” but nothing is planned as of now.

- When the WWE Network officially launches on February 24th at 11:05pm EST, it will kick off with a live RAW post-show. As noted, fans can begin signing up and viewing Network content at 9am that morning.

- As noted, WWE launched their first podcast earlier this week with Renee Young interviewing Shawn Michaels about WrestleMania. Officials are looking at doing more podcasts with the success of Steve Austin and Chris Jericho’s projects. The company is also looking at doing touring talk shows in comedy clubs after the success Mick Foley has had.
- Lisa Marie Varon noted on Twitter that Matthew Goldberg of MBG Films has signed with WWE. No word yet what he’s signed for but his IMDB page says he’s a director, writer and cinematographer. He produced two short documentary projects for TNA on The Pope and Tara (Varon). His Twitter bio reads like this: “Award winning filmmaker specializing in live-action and stop-motion animation. Had documentary short films in Cannes 2012-13.” Eric Bischoff tweeted about the news:

“Anxious to hear more about @mbgfilms signing w @WWE. Matt is a great young man with the talent and determination to be a great asset.”

- It appears that Tensai is done as a wrestler for WWE, for the time being at least, and is being groomed for an announcers job. Besides working on NXT commentary lately, Tensai has been involved in all RAW and SmackDown pre-show and post-show trial runs that WWE has been doing for the Network recently.

- Ric Flair has signed a new contract with WWE. All of his appearances and business deals have to be cleared by WWE from here on out. Flair can be booked outside of WWE but in every deal, there is a clause that if WWE calls and needs him for anything, he has to cancel the other booking.

- Wrestling legend Bobby Eaton has made a significant turn for the better. He’s lost a lot of weight and is the healthiest he’s been in a long time. Eaton has a pacemaker in his heart so it’s unlikely that he will be able to wrestle again.

- There has been talk of indie stars Kevin Steen and Michael Elgin being invited to one of the upcoming WWE developmental tryouts. Steen has known about this for some time and the feeling is that if he shows up out of shape, officials will look down on him a lot.

- Former WCW United States Champion and Japanese wrestling legend Kensuke Sasaki announced his retirement in Japan earlier today. Sasaki had a 28 year career and has been suffering from some neck issues recently.

- Cody Rhodes reportedly has some MCL damage in his right knee, possibly from the steel cage moonsault two weeks ago. Also, Ryback may have hurt his hand in the tag match on this past Monday’s RAW.

- The WWE live event on March 16th at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas is facing a potential attendance problem. In the same building the night before, UFC 171 will take place. That event is almost sold out with 14,000 paid and a $2.2 million first weekend advance.

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

http://dailywrestlingnews.com/taker-hogan-counter-punk-chants-mixed-feelings-punks-status/
http://dailywrestlingnews.com/shane...hos-behind-name-changes-layla-richie-batista/
http://dailywrestlingnews.com/sting-hasnt-signed-wwe-yet-potential-undertaker-match/
http://dailywrestlingnews.com/whos-inducting-jake-major-new-projects-wwe-network-launch-plans/
http://dailywrestlingnews.com/career-change-tensai-flairs-wwe-status-wwe-signs-film-director/
http://dailywrestlingnews.com/steen-elgin-wwe-bobby-eaton-update-ring-future-attendance/
http://dailywrestlingnews.com/ryback-injured-former-us-champ-retires-wwe-ufc-dallas-cody/

 

[The Sage]

- Courtesy of WrestlingDVDNews.com, below is the full content listing for WWE’s “WCW: Greatest Pay-Per-View Matches Vol. 1″ DVD and Blu-ray that comes out on March 11th. Blu-ray exclusives will be revealed soon.

DISC 1

The Evolution to Pay-Per-View

Steel Cage Match for NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Ronnie Garvin vs. Ric Flair
Starrcade • November 26, 1987

United States Championship Match
Barry Windham vs. Dusty Rhodes
Great American Bash • July 10, 1988

​Tag Team Championship Match
​The Road Warriors vs. Sting & Dusty Rhodes
Starrcade • December 26, 1988

Hall of Fame Rivalry

NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match
Ric Flair vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat
Chi-Town Rumble • February 20, 1989

​United States Championship Match
​Lex Luger vs. Brian Pillman
Halloween Havoc • October 28, 1989

​NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match
​Ric Flair vs. Sting

Great American Bash • July 7, 1990

DISC 2

Everything to Gain

Steel Cage Match for WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Lex Luger vs. Barry Windham
Great American Bash • July 14, 1991

Light Heavyweight Championship Match
Jushin “Thunder” Liger vs. Brian Pillman
SuperBrawl II • February 29, 1992

​War Games
​Sting’s Squadron vs. The Dangerous Alliance
WrestleWar • May 17, 1992

Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal

Texas Death Match
Vader vs. Cactus Jack
Halloween Havoc • October 24, 1993

​​United States Championship Match
“Stunning” Steve Austin vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat
Bash at the Beach • July 17, 1994

​Career vs. Career Steel Cage Match for WCW World Heavyweight Championship
​Hulk Hogan vs. Ric Flair
Special Referee: Mr. T
Halloween Havoc • October 23, 1994

DISC 3

The Hostile Takeover

The Outsiders vs. Sting, Lex Luger & “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Bash at the Beach • July 7, 1996

​​No Disqualification Match
Diamond Dallas Page vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Spring Stampede • April 6, 1997

​​Mask vs. Cruiserweight Championship Match
Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio
Halloween Havoc • October 26, 1997

​Bret “Hitman” Hart vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Special Guest Referee: “Rowdy” Roddy Piper
Slamboree • May 17, 1998

​Cruiserweight Championship Match
​Chris Jericho vs. Juventud Guerrera
Special Guest Referee: Dean Malenko
Road Wild • August 8, 1998

WCW ​World Heavyweight Championship Match
​Goldberg vs. Diamond Dallas Page
Halloween Havoc • October 25, 1998

Opportunity Knocks

​​WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
​​Jeff Jarrett vs. Booker T
Bash at the Beach • July 9, 2000

​Ladder Match for #1 Contender to Cruiserweight Championship
​3 Count vs. Jamie Knoble & Evan Karagias vs. The Jung Dragons
Starrcade • December 26, 2000

​Falls Count Anywhere Match for WCW World Heavyweight Championship
​Scott Steiner vs. Diamond Dallas Page
Greed • March 18, 2001

A Legendary Era

http://dailywrestlingnews.com/full-content-listing-wwes-wcw-greatest-ppv-matches-vol-1-dvd/

 

[The Sage]

WWE Hall of Famer "Stone Cold" Steve Austin offered a "State of WWE" evaluation on the latest edition of his "Unleashed" podcast following a visit to Raw in Los Angeles on Monday. Austin was mostly positive about WWE happenings, but offered some constructive criticism.

Austin also discussed WWE CEO Vince McMahon's frame of mind heading into the Network launch.

Austin said McMahon seemed "a bit pre-occupied" when he talked to him backstage at Raw. "I think he's got a lot on his plate and a lot going on," Austin said.

Austin discussed recent booking decisions, such as placing babyface Rey Mysterio in the #30 spot at the Royal Rumble when the crowd wanted to see Daniel Bryan.

Austin said he joked with Rey backstage at Raw that he must have heat with someone for being given the #30 spot in the Rumble. "I still don't understand that booking decision," Austin said, adding that it would have been a good spot for a heel like Wade Barrett to get even more heat. "Common sense booking there," he said.

Austin's "State of WWE" address included a message to younger wrestlers to make some noise and force management to give them a top spot, especially when top acts like John Cena, Randy Orton, Triple H, Daniel Bryan, and C.M. Punk (if he returns) are "looking for new dance partners."

Austin said he could sense that a lot of wrestlers are walking around on eggshells because WWE is the only game in town, but he encouraged the roster to take chances.

"Now, it's true that the Powers that Be do not believe in certain people. It's up to the talent to make management believe in them," Austin said.

"There is a pretty thin roster of talent in that locker room. There's a lot of guys and gals. But, when talking about the cream of the crop, you're talking about the best... The doors are wide open."

Austin noted that he did four new podcast interviews while WWE was in town - John Cena, Big Show, Zeb Colter (Dutch Mantell), and William Regal. Austin's take-away from the Cena podcast was (a) Cena wants new opponents and (b) Cena wants someone to be in contention for top dog status. Austin described Cena as an Alpha Male who wants to fight for his spot and wants competition.

Also in the podcast, Austin shared an anecdote about each wrestler or talent he encountered backstage at Raw, including Cena, Show, Dean Ambrose, Vince McMahon, Mark Henry, Rey Mysterio, Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt, Lilian Garcia, Goldust & Cody Rhodes, Batista, Dolph Ziggler, and the Divas.

"(An) interesting atmosphere backstage," Austin said. "High degree of professionalism, but afraid to speak up and piss someone off. Hopefully these cats will start taking chances - or taking chances within reason."

http://pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/WWE_News_3/article_76329.shtml#.UvzYkLSa9kE

 

[H.U.S.T.L.E.]

There remains mixed feelings within the company regarding Punk’s status. Virtually nobody agrees with him when it comes to walking out 30 minutes before a live TV shoot. Many have sympathy for some of his concerns but they argue that Punk was legitimately the #2 guy in the company for a while. On a related note, it’s acknowledged that Punk was very popular but the belief is that he was not a ticket seller to live events and only on occasion was he a difference maker in pay-per-view business. At the same time, Punk was the #2 merchandise seller.

I call BS - at this point, I don't think there's any ONE person who could be a "difference-maker" in selling tickets & PPVs. This notion that one person has to be "the guy" is so maddening because the business has changed so much, yet they still think the way they did in the 80s and 90s. Even during the boom periods, you could make the argument that the "top guy" was only as good as the players around him. And in today's WWE, the "other guys" aren't given enough consistent booking to move the needle anyway. They perpetuate all this nonsense and it's frustrating to see that decision-makers don't move along with the times.

- Regarding the name changes for Big E and Cesaro, that is a Vince McMahon decision.

Of course it is, because they make zero sense. Vince has done a lot for the pro wrestling business, but it seems like he has more bad ideas than good ones these days.

- There has been talk of indie stars Kevin Steen and Michael Elgin being invited to one of the upcoming WWE developmental tryouts. Steen has known about this for some time and the feeling is that if he shows up out of shape, officials will look down on him a lot.

Good for Steen & Elgin... not sure about their chances though because they're both stocky dudes, hopefully they get an opportunity though. I see Steen having a little more success due to his mic skills, but Elgin could certainly do well as a Rusev-like power man. Minimal talking, dominant in the ring would be the right way to book Elgin.

 

[bullets]

I'd be interested to hear Austin's thoughts on Orton. I think Cesaro could move up the ladder and be a great opponent for Cena.

That's interesting news about wrestlers training with Undertaker in his gym. I have no doubts him and Sting could pull off a great match as Sting apparently is willing to put all the time and effort into it. What happened to Brock's quest for the title. Is he suspended kayfabe for the assault on Big Show.

 

[Lobo]

Question, I expect the Wyatt's to go over the Shield at EC to facilitate the break up as well as keep Bray strong for his match at Mania with Cena. Now, do you think Bray should or will defeat Cena at Mania? That would mean at 3 consecutive ppv's Bray Wyatt went over Daniel Bryan, The Shield, and John Cena. His main event status would be cemented.

Cesaro is just too good to not move up the ranks. As for who is most likely to move up into the CM Punk spot on the card, I'm not sure.

 

[The Sage]

I call BS - at this point, I don't think there's any ONE person who could be a "difference-maker" in selling tickets & PPVs. This notion that one person has to be "the guy" is so maddening because the business has changed so much, yet they still think the way they did in the 80s and 90s. Even during the boom periods, you could make the argument that the "top guy" was only as good as the players around him. And in today's WWE, the "other guys" aren't given enough consistent booking to move the needle anyway. They perpetuate all this nonsense and it's frustrating to see that decision-makers don't move along with the times.

Bingo, my friend. Well put. The only person who's booking has been consistent is Cena. You can look at Punk from the time of the pipebomb to now and see the hot and cold approach, as well as the momentum stealing moments. And despite all of this, the man still remained popular. Just as Bryan now.

 

[Pink Ranger]

Cesaro is just too good to not move up the ranks. As for who is most likely to move up into the CM Punk spot on the card, I'm not sure.

The workers most poised to benefit from Punk's departure are Bryan, Rollins and Tamina, IMO. I add in Tamina because I don't see Punk's relationship with AJ Lee not impacting her career, for some reason that separation between personal and business just doesn't happen in wrestling, and Tamina is the only natural successor right now to be top heel in the divas division.

 

[TheNextNolan22]

Angle slam on LEGOs

Then, Younger was slammed on candy in that same match.

 

[X Knight]

so the Sting deal isn't done yet??

 

[The Batman]

I can't wait for that Austin/Cena podcast, and I can see why Ziggler and Bryan aren't getting better pushes. They need to fight back the way that Punk did.