WWE Elimination Chamber 2012 Review and Thoughts

Elimination Chamber is that little awkward spot between the Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania. For my money, the Rumble and Mania are always the two events I anticipate the most and thus the Chamber PPV goes a little un-noticed. It takes place 6 weeks before the Granddaddy of them all and is usually a place to develop or help further along existing feuds for Wrestlemania, which sometimes results in a disappointing event. Was this the case in 2012? Lets take a look!

Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship featuring – CM Punk (C), Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler, R-Truth, The Miz and Chris Jericho

While I thought this match should have been the main event (the PPV is called Elimination Chamber after all) it served as the 'hot opener' and did so in unrelenting fashion. The Raw Chamber match had solid star power in comparison to the Smackdown counterpart and each unique superstar was utilised to maximise the amount of action that occurred throughout the match. Kofi Kingston and CM Punk kicked things off with some nice back and forth trading of pinfalls. The chamber structure allowed Kofi Kingston to shine and execute some nice variations to his high flying arsenal. R Truth took part for a brief moment and was the first to be eliminated after a quick flurry of offense. Dolph Ziggler bumped like a champion and had an opportunity to 'show off' by implementing the chamber into his shtick. The Miz, who has been floundering for weeks with his promo's and in ring technique, took a step on the road to redemption with a strong and convincing showing in the chamber match. Of course the big story is between CM Punk and Chris Jericho. When the two squared off, the crowd popped in anticipation of the two finally going one on one. However, WWE are saving this one till Wrestlemania as Punk eliminated Jericho in controversial fashion. A knockout kick sent Jericho tumbling to the floor, into a camera man and some sort of box, rendering him unable to compete. This was a nice way of getting Jericho out of the match and means that Punk doesn't hold a clean victory over Jericho heading into Wrestlemania. It is also a source of frustration for Jericho as he never lost the match and can be held over Punks head as a feud between the two heats up. A really good action packed chamber match.

****

Winner and STILL WWE Champion – CM Punk
 

Beth Phoenix (C) vs Tamina Snuka for the Divas Championship

Without a doubt, the playing up of Tamina as the daughter of Jimmy Snuka and the perception that she has become a legitimate threat in recent weeks helped this match. Hell, the fact that Kelly Kelly, Eve, Alicia Fox or The Bella Twins weren't involved helped this match. While not the greatest women's match ever, it was certainly better than any recent Divas ppv bout. Honestly, a decent match and the story of Beth avoiding Tamina's big blockbuster finish time after time before actually kicking out of the Superfly Splash was a nice touch. Sweet Dragon Sleeper by Phoenix too. I don't know where we go from here with the divas division because we've got to be getting Kharma vs Beth Phoenix at Wrestlemania. That's the best thing that can happen right now. Won't that render all this build for Tamina pointless though?

*3/4

Winner and STILL Divas Champion – Beth Phoenix

Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship featuring – The Big Show, Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Santino Marella, The Great Khali and Daniel Bryan (C)

Again, a really entertaining chamber match. The star power wasn’t as strong as the Raw chamber, but everyone involved made the absolute best of the situation and delivered a thoroughly enjoyable story. The Big Show looked like the monster he is and the ongoing feud with Daniel Bryan was furthered in the chamber. The unique moment went Show broke into Bryan’s pod from the top was a nice touch. Speaking of Bryan, he took some nasty looking bumps. Going through the (what Michael Cole was all too eager to tell us) ‘bullet proof’ Lexan, the powerbomb into the chamber and the door being rammed shut on his neck were particular highlights. The real star of the match, however, was someone no one even considered to be anywhere near the Elimination Chamber PPV, never mind a chamber match in itself. I have to give credit where its due and Santino was booked to look like an absolute fighter last night. Gone was the comedy jobber and instead we saw an underdog who absolutely refused to give up, despite being beaten down time after time. Sure, it’s a classic story but its classic for a reason… it works. The crowd were molten crazy for Santino the entire time match and reached fever pitch following his pinfall eliminations of both Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett. The final moments between Daniel Bryan and Santino are worth a re-watch. When Santino hit the Cobra on Daniel Bryan EVERYONE thought the impossible had been achieved. Moments later when Santino temporarily broke the Lebell Lock, that same thought crossed peoples minds once again. Eventually Santino tapped and Daniel Bryan heads to Wrestlemania as World Heavyweight Champion. Sit back and think a minute, though. A superstar who has become nothing more than a comedy jobber was booked to eliminate two men who are considered the future of the company. On top of that, Santino was one of the last two survivors and almost fought out of a deadly submission. That’s quite the push. Judging by crowd reaction last night, WWE would be foolish not to capitalise on Santino as he proved he could hang with upper level talent.

As for the post match, if this was indeed WWE signalling Sheamus vs Daniel Bryan is happening at Wrestlemania, I’d more than welcome it. A match between the two was bumped off last years card, this year they’d be co-headlining for the World Heavyweight Championship. Quite the story.

*** ¾

Winner and STILL World Heavyweight Champion – Daniel Bryan

Jack Swagger (C) vs Justin Gabriel for the United States Championship

A throwaway match. Honestly, what is with not advertising matches anymore? Swagger and Gabriel are currently struggling to get on Raw and Smackdown and the United States Championship has once again become worthless. A three minute match has no business being on a Pay Per View.

½ a *

Winner and STILL United States Champion – Jack Swagger

John Cena vs Kane in an Ambulance Match

Apparently, WWE feels the need to cheapen their ‘Elimination Chamber’ PPV by having anything but a Chamber match as the main event. Honestly, when the feud started I was all for it. Cena and Kane had never really had a high profile one on one feud and there was a refreshing feeling about the whole thing. The fact that Kane was once again donning his mask was a bonus. However, WWE felt the need to turn one of their fastest rising stars in Zack Ryder into a human punching bag. Ryder has been saddled with a romance storyline with Eve and been made to look like a complete idiot. Racking up approximately 500 injuries in the process. I can’t help but feel WWE is playing a sick joke on Ryder. They’re sending the message that if they didn’t make him, he isn’t going to be the star he could potentially be. Ryder's involvement initially added something to the story, but has since become more comedic than anything else. Meh. Anyway, the match. It was a rather timid affair but one can blame that on the nature of a PG environment on a hardcore style match. There was no doubt who was going to win heading into Wrestlemania but, both men went out there, hit a few impact moves, told their story and ended it. Cena was never going to take part in anything too brutal considering the risk of injury and the disastrous consequences that would have for the yearlong hyped match with The Rock.

I’m still hoping Zack Ryder gets his Wrestlemania moment in a one on one match with Kane, hopefully minus half a storm trooper outfit.

** ½

Winner – John Cena

So there we have it, two very good chamber matches, a decent Divas match and an OK ambulance match. All in all, an enjoyable pay per view that looked less than friendly on paper. It also helped set up the two potential championship matches at Wrestlemania between CM Punk and Jericho and Sheamus and Daniel Bryan. Sweet. Two live shows to look forward to this week, Raw as usual and Smackdown on Tuesday night.

Thanks a lot for reading and till next time, Lets Talk Wrestling

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These are the top five feuds of 2011

Here I am with the start of my end of year lists I promised to start… yesterday. Damn. Nevertheless, its here now. These are the top five feuds of 2011.

5. CM Punk vs Randy Orton

As we rang in the beginning of the year, Punk kicked Wade Barrett out of the Nexus and became its new leader. The initial segments showed some promise, with Punk being a vicious and unmerciful leader of the fallen group. While WWE was busy squandering the opportunity for something great to become of the ‘new Nexus,’ Punk entered a feud with Randy Orton. Storyline wise, the feud was executed brilliantly. For the first time in a long time, WWE acknowledged its past and set up the feud as Punk getting payback on Orton for costing him the World Heavyweight Championship back in 2008. In the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania, Orton destroyed the shredded remains of the Nexus, both in a storyline AND crowd reaction sense. Punk would have his payback however by going after Orton’s ‘wife’ and picking apart his leg with a steel pipe. During the feud, Punk established himself as the best heel in the company while the matches the two had were excellent, especially their Wrestlemania match. However, the feud was too one sided with Orton winning continuously, most likely due to Punk’s contract situation up in the air. A shame, because this feud could have been something really special.

4. Kurt Angle vs Jeff Jarrett

Having stopped watching TNA more or less all together (bar one or two shows) since August, it comes as a surprise that this feud is included on my list. Honestly, the feud looked disastrous on paper. TNA’s booking was continuing its way down the toilet and my hopes for the company were at an all time low. When Angle and Jarrett began their feud, my hopes were dashed even further. Two men in their 40’s with ego’s the size of planets, this is exactly what is ruining TNA. However, this is Kurt Angle we’re talking about, one of the absolute best of his generation and still close to the top today. Jarrett isn’t exactly a slouch in the ring either. Infact, the series of matches they had together were impressive on more than one occasion. Couple that with some entertaining TV segments, some great mic work AND an appearance by Chyna, and you’ve got a surprise contender for feud of the year.

3. John Cena vs The Rock

Ok, the two haven’t actually had a one on one match together, yet, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t one of the feuds of the year. I mean, fuck! After seven years, The Rock came back! Sure, he spewed a bunch of crap about never leaving, before disappearing for months at a time but still, it’s The Rock and how can you not be entertained by him? When Cena and The Rock set a date for a match a year in advance, many thought it would be executed poorly. However, both men have done a good job of keeping the feud alive both through social media and mentions on Television. We got a great return promo from The Rock as well as an old school rap from Cena and a better than anticipated return to the ring for Rocky at Survivor Series. With so many people talking about the feud, how can this not be included as one of the feuds of the year?

2. CM Punk vs WWE/John Cena

Lets set the record straight. I’m counting this feud from the ‘shoot’ promo Punk cut on the WWE to the title vs title match with Cena at Summerslam. When Punk cut the now legendary ‘shoot’ promo on the WWE, fans were abuzz with theories and speculation. It got everyone talking. Hell, it even got Punk on many end of the year lists for ‘making wrestling cool again.’ For a time, that was absolutely true as the WWE became edgy and unpredictable for those couple of months with Punk as the rebel champion. Reality and kayfabe blurred as both casual fans and smarks alike were clueless as to what would happen next. Amongst the hullabaloo, Punk and Cena had a genuine five star match at Money In The Bank and a great follow up rematch at Summerslam. After that, Triple H was re-introduced to TV and buried the Punk saga behind his bulbous snout. Nevertheless, ‘the summer of Punk’ was damn entertaining while it lasted.

1. Randy Orton vs Christian

A feud that lasted longer than a month? Holy crap! While I still don’t agree with how WWE handled Christian as World Heavyweight Champion (surely he deserved a longer reign) his series of matches and confrontations with Randy Orton were something special. Easily the best series of matches of the year, it felt like everytime they faced each other it just got better and better. What made the feud unique was that it was all about the world title. Two guys fighting over and over to either win or defend a championship that they want more than anything else in the world. Overall, a great feud and one that established Christian as a main event star while additionally adding some lost credibility to the world title. Bravo guys.

Honourable mentions: Mark Henry vs Big Show,  John Cena vs The Miz, Rey Mysterio vs Cody Rhodes

Keep a look out for more end of year lists coming your way in the next few days.

Thanks for reading.

Let me know your feuds of the year!

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WWE Summerslam 2011 review and thoughts.

Off the back of my prediction’s posted yesterday, I couldn’t have been more wrong about the match outcomes. I did, however, predict the style of each match correctly AND Del Rio cashing in, I might add. I guess that’s something to drag about… Last month’s Money In The Bank PPV was an absolute blinder in terms of match quality and Summerslam was no different. Yet, as entertaining as the matches and segments were, a few contentious booking decisions had me (and others) shaking their head a little. Lets get on with the show…

Rey Mysterio, Kofi Kingston & John Morrison vs. R-Truth, The Miz & Alberto Del Rio

The writing was on the wall really. Each man involved had been feuding with each other, with the exception of Del Rio. In terms of storyline, Dolph Ziggler (feuding with Kofi Kingston, sorta) should have been the 3^rd heel. With Alberto Del Rio included, WWE would expect us to be lulled into thinking we weren’t going to see the Mexican Aristocrat appear again. Smart move really. In terms of the PPV, it made sense for these guys to be included. They’re the entire upper-midcard/cusp of the main event on Raw at the minute and not having them involved on the ‘second biggest show of the year’ would do little for interest and investment into the product’s superstars, especially heading into the dreaded ‘Monday Night Football’ season. The match was a solid ‘hot opener’ and had a good amount of athleticism and nice little spots. It served its purpose as the bout excited the crowd and kicked things off in flying fashion. The face team got the win after Mysterio hit the 619 and splash, which makes sense leading into his title shot on Raw.

Winners: Rey Mysterio, Kofi Kingston & John Morrison

** ½

First shocker of the night, Stephanie McMahon. A nice little segment ensued which ended with Stephanie wishing CM Punk good luck and offering him a handshake. His response? "I would, but I know where that hand's been." CM Punk is money.

Mark Henry vs. Sheamus

WWE had a bit of a conundrum heading into this match I feel. Both men are on the receiving ends of a push. Mark Henry has been booked to look like an unstoppable monster with destruction laying in his wake. Sheamus has JUST turned into a ‘badass’ face. Who needs legitimising more? To their credit, both men told a fantastic story in this match, with Sheamus trying to take down Henry but falling short each time. The two made sure to beat the living hell out of each other and some of the welts on Sheamus were visible and looked brutal. Essentially, neither competitor should have won cleanly with the possibility of derailing the loser’s momentum. In the end, Henry plowed Sheamus through the barricade and won on a count out. It made a lot of sense, with Sheamus proving too tough to pin and only in having received so much punishment could he be out for the count.

Winner: Mark Henry 

** ¾

Cee Lo Green comes out in a glittery bin bag. The divas dance. Alicia Fox has a sailor’s hat on. Yeah.

Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix for the Diva’s Title

Honestly, one of the better divas matches on PPV in a long time. Kelly Kelly showed that she has a small amount of wrestling ability hidden away somewhere. I think the fact that she was working with someone skilled and strong in Beth Pheonix helped a lot. She could bust out some offence that some of the other divas just wouldn’t know how to handle. The finish? Lame. Does anyone really think that a stick like Kelly Kelly can beat Beth Phoenix? I was preparing for Beth and Natalya to take over the role that Kharma was beginning… the annihilation of the ‘bimbo’ divas. Much to my chagrin, I was wrong. Kelly Kelly walked out victorious with the pink, shiny butterfly belt in tow.

Winner and STILL Divas Champion: Kelly Kelly

* ¾

Wade Barrett vs. Daniel Bryan

A really nice technical, back and forth match from these two. I thought the chemistry might have been lacking but both men put on the match of the night so far. Daniel Bryan showed once again that given a PPV opportunity he can deliver a really good midcard match. Barrett was impressive too and had his best match since his feud with Cena last year. I thought the match was booked perfectly, until the ending. I thought Daniel Bryan could use the victory more here. If his storyline aspirations really are to cash in his Money In The Bank briefcase at Wrestlemania 28, the WWE are going to have to work hard to legitimise him. Either that or (as some have predicted) have him be the first man to lose his Money in the Bank briefcase cash in or the briefcase altogether. Barrett has main evented PPV’s and had WWE Title shots, he should have been booked to be the first person to put Bryan over. As it is however, at least Bryan looked very strong in defeat.

Winner: Wade Barrett

*** ¼

Christian vs. Randy Orton in a No Holds Barred match for the World Heavyweight Championship

This was advertised as the ‘final match’ between the two but honestly, they could be on the next PPV for all I care. Four PPV match’s in a row and they can still deliver a fantastic spectacle. Christian and Randy Orton just ‘click.’ The little intricacies they throw into their matches and the air of unexpectedness is a sign of a great feud. To no one’s shock Edge came out, not to help Christian however, but to call him a ‘whiny bitch.’ That’s not very nice. Anywho, the match had it all, kendo sticks, garbage cans, Spanish announce tables and… blood! It’s a rare occasion we get one of these types of matches in the WWE nowadays and the audience ate it up. It was a nice mixture of wrestling and hardcore moments, seamlessly interchanging between the two. Christian pulled a few moves to suggest that he’s not out of it yet, the key moment coming at the very end with the RKO from the ropes onto the stairs. My only gripe with the match is that the WWE can’t have paid too much attention to that ratings plummet when Orton was champion and the ratings rise when Christian won back the title. Either that or… they just dislike Christian, hur hur. Christian deserves a lengthy title run to prove that he can be a long term main eventer, if he hasn’t done so already (did you hear that duelling Christian chant… Cena style?), and solidify that in the eyes of the WWE Universe. I really wouldn’t mind another match at Night of Champions but I think Mark Henry might be next in line.

Winner and NEW World Heavyweight Champion: Randy Orton

****

John Cena vs. CM Punk to become the Undisputed WWE Champion

Again, an excellent match between the two. The seemless transition and fluidity of moves was better than their Money in the Bank match and given more time to work with could have transcended to another 5 star quality match. The crowd, while not as uniquely vocal as the Chicago crowd were by no means dead. Far from it infact as the chanting was relentless and split, maybe slightly in favour of Punk about 55% - 45% … on my TV anyway. Cena played to the crowds reactions in perfect fashion. A moronic section started a ‘You can’t wrestle’ chant and you know what? Cena busted out chain wrestling, reversals and submissions time after time, causing them to sit down and shut up. The finish fell a little flat in my opinion, with Cena’s foot clearly on the rope and Triple H counting the 3 anyway. I felt the audience (and myself) were left thinking, ok… is that ACTUALLY it? I thought the match was going to be restarted and Punk get a legitimate win…

Winner and NEW WWE Champion: CM Punk

**** ¼ 

Of course that’s not how it went down. Kevin Nash came through the crowd and delivered a jacknife powerbomb to Punk before Del Rio runs down the ramp and cashes in his Money in the Bank to become the new WWE Champion.

Now, I have a number of problems with Punk being the one to be cashed in on. CM Punk IS the hottest thing in wrestling right now and could in a few months be a bigger draw than John Cena. However, this has de-railed that momentum in my opinion. In fact, ever since Triple H’s arrival I feel he’s begun to cool off again. Maybe R-Truth’s conspiracy theories are right? Punk certainly shouldn’t be caught off guard and get destroyed by a 52 year old man, that’s for sure. Further, I just don’t think Alberto Del Rio is ready yet. If you’ve watched his promo’s and segments, the crowd have been silent during them as of late. He’s a talented in ring performer and a good character but the audience doesn’t seem to be buying into him at the moment. I feel the only reason he’s WWE champion (if reports are to be believed) is because of the upcoming tour and TV tapings in Mexico. Really? WWE, Really? You’re going to sacrifice potentially millions of dollars in favour of a champion of the same nationality as your TV tapings later in the year. Maybe it’s just sour grapes in my part because I’ve been a fan of Punk for so long. His World Title run’s were abysmal and de-railed due to his locker room disrespecting of The Undertaker one time, pathetic. I’ve seen a host of outcries from fans voicing the same opinion, so at least I’m not alone.

Nevertheless, I suspect Kevin Nash will return as a bodyguard/goon for Triple H and Alberto Del Rio (oh, the irony) and Triple H will (thank god) turn heel and maybe we’ll get an Austin/McMahon situation with Punk/HHH?

Summerslam poses a lot of intrigue heading into tonight’s Raw.

-         Why were Kevin Nash and Stephanie McMahon there?

-         Will Alberto Del Rio’s reign be short lived?

-         What’s next for Punk and Cena?

-         Did Triple H screw Cena?

So much intrigue... WWE has upped the excitement levels tenfold in recent weeks. Until next time, thanks for reading.

What were your thoughts on Summerslam? Leave me a comment below!

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WWE Summerslam 2011 Predictions.

WWE’s ‘second biggest PPV’ is upon us once again. This years event has had its fair share of critics due to only 5 feature matches being announced, including a Divas match. Summerslam has seemingly been built around one match and one storyline… the situation with the WWE championship and while that’s all well and good, it would have been nice to see a little more thought put into the rest of the card.

A saving grace however, is the fact that the card is intriguing. Each match is hard to predict as all the participants either need a win or deserve a win. Anyway, no more wasting time…

Daniel Bryan vs Wade Barrett

The intrigue starts. Having won the Money in the Bank, it was clear Daniel Bryan was going to need a solid couple of months in order to be built up in the average WWE fan’s eyes. Daniel Bryan was a tremendous independent wrestler and has had some fantastic matches in the WWE with the likes of Dolph Ziggler and The Miz. However, to be a contender for the World Championship, he’s going to need some legitimisation. Wade Barrett set the WWE on fire with the original Nexus invasion and his main event run with John Cena but his hot streak was doused with his draft to Smackdown and his ‘just there to fill the void’ run with The Corre. I would argue that both men need the win here and both men COULD come out with victory. However, I think Daniel Bryan needs it more and Wade Barrett is the one to begin his legitimisation. This has the potential to be a great ‘hot opener’ with the hopes of a solid, technical, back and forth match. After multiple near falls, I’d look for Daniel Bryan to get the win in an incredibly hard fought victory.

Winner: Daniel Bryan

It must really suck to be WWE’s midcard right now. I really do think that we’ll get a Cody Rhodes vs Ezekiel Jackson rematch OR a Dolph Ziggler vs Kofi Kingston – United States Title match thrown into the mix. The question is, why the hell weren’t they announced? Way to treat your titles, WWE.

Sheamus vs Mark Henry

This isn’t going to be pretty. It’s not going to be full of finesse and technique. What it is going to be is an out and out brawl between two monstrous men. What I like about this match is that Sheamus can actually move, unlike Henry’s previous PPV opponent The Big Show. This is another match where both men need the win. Sheamus has begun a fresh face turn and needs the win to solidify the turn. Mark Henry on the other hand has been booked to be a dominant monster heel who destroys everything in his path, a loss here could dent that. Personally, I think Sheamus gets the win whether it be by disqualification or by pinfall. Mark Henry will pull some sort of stunt after the match, either by beating down Sheamus or someone/something else to gain back some heat.

Winner: Sheamus

Kelly Kelly vs Beth Phoenix for the Diva’s Title.

Kudo’s go out to the WWE for their Phoenix and Natalya heel turns and for making me care just a little bit for a Diva’s match. Honestly, I hope Beth annihilates Kelly Kelly and ushers in a new era for the Diva’s where wrestling ability and technique counts for something. Sure the Diva’s may be great to look at, but once they’ve made their entrances, no one gives a crap. Beth Phoenix needs and deserves the win.

Winner: Beth Phoenix

Christian vs Randy Orton in a no holds barred match for the World Heavyweight Championship

This feud has been great. It reminds me of old school feuds, you know, where rivalries actually lasted longer than a couple of weeks! This will be the 4^th PPV they’ve had a one on one encounter and I’m expecting a similar level of quality from this match. It’s interesting to note that ever since Orton won the title from Christian, the Smackdown ratings (in the US) went down, down, down. However, since Christian won back the title, the ratings have risen to heights usually seen around the time of Wrestlemania. Coincidence? Maybe, but it would be interesting to see what would happen if Randy Orton won back the title once more. Again, this is hard to predict. Do WWE want to play it safe and put the title back around the waist of their supposed Smackdown golden boy, or, do they want to give Christian what he deserves? A title reign that lasts longer than a month! There is a lot of speculation surrounding Christian's comments to end this week's episode of Smackdown, where he said he just found something out, and all of a sudden went from being really worried about the match to being really confident about it. He then said that he has the "best thing going." Does this mean we’ll see Edge help out either Orton or Christian at Summerslam? I’m HOPING for a Christian win and a feud with Sheamus in the future. Fingers crossed.

Winner: Christian

CM Punk vs John Cena (w/ special referee Triple H) to become Undisputed WWE Champion.

This is the match everyone will be ordering the PPV for. CM Punk’s meteoric rise to well deserved prominence has (in my opinion) took the WWE by surprise. According to reports, their creative plans for the foreseeable future have been changed and re-drafted and Punk has become a huge face superstar. The Money in the Bank match the two had was a fantastic five-star match. Give them 35-40 minutes to work with once again. They have more than proved they have some great chemistry together and can put on a classic match. The only gripe I have with this match is the fact that Triple H is the special referee. Ever since his introduction as ‘Chief Operating Officer’ he’s been all over. Hogging up at least 20 minutes of Raw with his dull announcements, sometimes longer. Hogging Smackdown. It’s eerily reminiscent of his early 2000’s days. The match screams SCREWJOB. You can see it coming, but you don’t know who’s going to be on the receiving end. One outcome that CANNOT happen is John Cena winning cleanly, more or less destroying any momentum that CM Punk has built up. In a similar vein, I don’t think WWE will have CM Punk win cleanly over John Cena. This reinforces the screwjob theory, Triple H will get involved in someway and cost one of the two men the title. My prediction? Through hook or crook, CM Punk gets the win.

Winner: CM Punk.

Will Alberto Del Rio cash in? My gut feeling says yes.

I think the opening game of Man Utd’s premier league season affected the latter half of this blog’s coherence. Hopefully you got the gist though. As one of WWE’s ‘big four’ I’ve ordered this PPV live, I hope I won’t regret it like I did with WM 27.

Let me know your predictions in the comments, on facebook (www.facebook.com/richard.mcmaster3) or twitter www.twitter.com/crapminitweets

Thank You for reading and join me tomorrow for a full Summerslam review and thoughts.

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17 years... A little creative keyfabe writing.

I had a dream… it was stolen for me.

17 long years…

I started on the Canadian independent circuit. Everyone knows a wrestler has to pay their dues, and I paid them. Five years touring school gyms. Five years touring broken down bingo halls Five years touring dirty warehouses. Were they packed to the rafters? Like hell they were. Fifty people if we were lucky. Zero reaction. Still, I was pursuing a dream, a dream I had since a small child. Touring the indie’s wasn’t all bad, I gained valuable experience and a friend… no… more than that, a brother.

17 years…

My potential was recognised and I signed to a dream promotion. My head dizzy from ecstasy, I was too high on life to recognise my potential being squandered. A vampire? Lets be realistic, the brood wasn’t the highlight of my career.

17 years…

At last…a realisation of my true talent. Brothers in arms, Adam and me fought alongside each other once again. We became a history making tag team. I had captured gold before but capturing the tag titles with Adam felt like a real sense of accomplishment. We innovated and re-invented tag team wrestling. Scratch that, we set the bar for tag teams of the future. No one has topped our legendary TLC matches… tag teams seized to exist after us.

17 years…

My brother, apparently, was destined for greater things. Meanwhile, I’m stuck with a frustrating gimmick and wallowing in the mid card. I screamed, desperate at management to allow me to fulfil my potential. If only they let me. They pleaded with me to sign a new contract with them. I declined. I wanted to leave gracefully and with dignity while treating them with more respect than they deserved.

17 years…

A new chapter began, a fresh start. The ‘Instant Classic’ they called me…I felt appreciated. Many thought I was getting the recognition I deserved in TNA. Dixie Carter awarded me with a World title, or two. It felt sweet but left a bitter aftertaste in my throat.  As good as it felt to be on top, this wasn’t my dream. I was considered one of the best workers in the world and I had yet to achieve what I had set out to those long years ago in the independents. Meanwhile back in titan land, my brother was achieving stratospheric levels of success. I’d never let it known to him but, he only attained that success by fucking Lita. If he hadn’t fucked Lita and capitalised on the scandal by becoming ‘the Rated R Superstar,’ he’d be nothing.

17 years…

I enjoyed ample prosperity in the ‘second’ promotion but that’s where the problem lied, it was always going to be the ‘second’ promotion. I departed as misuse was again plaguing my career. Ex-WWE members started to clog up the roster and I didn’t want to become ‘just another face.’ I made my return to WWE on its ECW show. It was the ‘C’ show which led me to question their actions once again. I earned an ECW title reign. It meant nothing to me; it was a sham title on a sham reincarnation of a legendary promotion.

17 years…

To nobodies surprise, ECW was cancelled and I earned a call to the Raw roster. Raw… so long since I had been here… so much had changed… but not with my treatment. No matter how many brain cells I had to loose, how many bruises and the extent to which my body was battered, I could do nothing to be appreciated round here. Fans across the globe had been calling for me to be recognised as a main event performer for years, and I felt I deserved that… I wanted, NEEDED to achieve my dream. A torn pectoral would be a setback.

17 years…

Another return, this time from injury. Injury… a bittersweet word. Adam had been diagnosed with a career ending injury. Sorrow. Guilt. Sick pleasure. Three words I’d use to describe my feelings when I heard the news.

17 years…

I was finally given a WWE World Title shot. My dream was hanging, literally, inch’s above me. I climbed, exhausted, body aching, a bevy of emotion soaring round my clouded mind. Was this it? Had I finally achieved my dream? I looked out across the arena and saw the crowd; cheering, deliriously happy yet, I couldn’t hear them. My ears as if filled with water were not processing sound. My stomach lurched, twisted and knotted. I steadied myself and grasped the cool, solid gold belt. As I stared at my reward, relief spread across my body like a cool anaesthesia. My frustration, envy, jealousy all washed away with tears. After 17 years, my dream had finally been achieved and I was glad I could share that emotional moment with Adam.

2 days…

Two days.

It makes me sick. The company I’ve dedicated over a decade to. Blood, sweat, tears, injuries and flesh have been given to this company. Countless days and hours spent travelling on the road with no sleep. Performing night after night for thousands of fans across the globe. My talent has put over stars far less deserving than me into the main event. Two days is all I get to spend to live my dream?

This is me proclaiming, I won’t take it ANYMORE. Fuck the company for making Adam the star and not me. Fuck the fans for not voicing their opinion more. Especially fuck Randy Orton. If I catch wind of him playing any political mind games, then he’s over. I mean it, I will end his fucking career. He will be a draw regardless of his position; it is MY time to be the king. I have a new dream. A dream to prove the naysayer’s wrong, handle my career on my terms and show this company who just who the real draw is. Fuck Edge and Fuck Randy Orton.

17 years…

I have a dream. To become a nightmare.



Thanks for reading
I thought I'd have a little go at creating a potential storyline for a Christian heel turn by telling his story as a psychotic, frustrated Christian could possibly see it.


Bare in mind it's my first venture into something like this, so be kind :)


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Was Christian cheated or is it a sign of bigger things to come? Smackdown and Impact thoughts

Was Christian cheated or is it a sign of bigger things to come?

After coming across some spoilers (mainly thanks to Randy Orton tweeting it…dumbass) I was utterly SHOCKED and PISSED off to find out that a mere TWO DAYS… TWO FUCKING DAYS after Christian had finally ‘broken the glass ceiling’ and obtained the World Heavyweight title that he had dropped it to Randy Orton.

WWE, Are you serious!? I think it was obvious that Randy Orton was going to get the title eventually. As the golden boy and face of Smackdown, no one expected it to be a long time until he was hot-shotted the belt however, two days is utter bullshit and total blasphemy. I despise short title reigns, particularly World Title reigns… even Edge didn’t lose the title this quickly. I can’t believe that WWE didn’t trust Christian even a month to be the World Champion and maybe lose it at the Over The Limit ppv. Apparently not, it’s safe to say I was pissed.

At face value, it’s a fucked up situation. Christian is one hell of a worker, great on the mic and one of the most underrated talents in WWE history. You might argue that Christian isn’t a proven draw and Orton is. Invalid. The Miz is coming off one the longest WWE title reigns in recent history and he is by no means the highest drawing member of the Raw roster. John Cena is, and will probably be the most marketable superstar for years to come. Orton may shift merchandise but, does that mean that no one apart from proven draws such as Orton, Cena or Undertaker can be champion? NO! No it certainly doesn’t. They will be proven draws regardless of whether they’re champion or not and is not a valid reason for Christian dropping the title to Orton. If no one else gets the opportunity to be champion then WWE will never build new stars.

Perhaps politics are at play. It’s no secret that Orton has played his fair share of political mind games and jibbery joo in the past. Most recently, he was reportedly unhappy with his feud with The Miz and wanted a re-working of his feud leading into the Royal Rumble. Perhaps WWE gave him the title to appease him after being traded to the ‘B-Show.’ It’s not out of the question, but of course, I’m just speculating.

When viewing the new Smackdown roster, there isn’t a great deal of main event level competitors – Orton, Sheamus… that’s about it. If you’re WWE, you can’t be too picky with who you consider to be a main eventer if you’re roster is rather thin. You need to build someone up who has a great deal of experience and can handle a title reign… That is exactly what should have happened with Christian. Losing your title in your first defence a mere two days after you win it makes you look absolutely pathetic, ruins your credibility and destroys any chance of you looking like a great main event level talent. In my opinion, WWE absolutely screwed the pooch with Christian and I’m pissed about it.

I suppose I should look at the opposite side of the fence. If you look deeper than face value, then this may all be part of a storyline to make Christian a main event heel. I mean, he was visibly emotional when he won the title and rightfully so. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that he'd be upset. Upset that he lost the title. Upset that he wasn't prepared for a match with Randy Orton on Smackdown this week. Upset enough that he just might have to act on his emotions.

Going on to a heated feud with Randy Orton definitely helps his cause, much more than defending his World Title against the likes of Mark Henry and Sheamus would. After all, he did defeat Alberto Del Rio, not a former World Champion, so his win didn’t allow him to be seen as ‘legit’ in the eyes of many people. Smackdown is in dire need for a main event heel and a long feud with Orton may allow Christian to be twice as big as he is now.

There are potential problems with this feud though. With as dominant as Randy Orton has been booked to look in the last few months… beating an entire faction all by himself, dominating the feud week after week after week… does anyone really think that will change against Christian? If he can easily beat guys like Mason Ryan, David Otunga and Husky Harris, what would the sense be in losing to a guy considerably smaller than even Orton?

In the interest of fairness (McMahon reference) I suppose we’ve got to sit back and see what happens. If Christian is turned heel and he begins a meteoric rise to the top, then fair do’s. If he plummets back down to doing nothing in the mid-card… then its time to feel utterly fucked over. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not happy about this situation at all. How unhappy in the long term however, is yet to be determined.

I wanted to say something short about Impact. If you don’t know I’ve been with TNA since the beginning. There used to be a channel on Sky known as ‘The Wrestling Channel,’ needless to say as a huge pro wrestling fan it was probably my favourite channel on the whole of the subscription service. It showed ROH, CMLL, 1PW, New Japan, CZW and most importantly TNA… from the beginning. Yes that’s right, I had the privilege of watching this organisation grow and grow, from its weekly pay per views at the Nashville Asylum, to moving into the Impact Zone. The world X cup’s, the amazing feud between AJ Styles, Samoa Joe and Daniels and everything in between. After my 1 and a half year/ 2 year (I’m not really sure how long it was… I watched Wrestlemania’s and other odd bits… I was a bit burned out) hiatus from wrestling, I switched on TNA in around February of 2010 to find out that Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff had joined and were promising change.

After watching, waiting, it became clear that Hogan and Bischoff were just there to prolong their dead careers and massage their ego’s by being in front of the camera. A plethora of ex-WWE talent either past their peak of past the point of caring about the business began to dominant the storylines. Excellent original TNA talent barely got TV time and the ratings showed absolutely no sign of change. This is where I began to fall out of love with TNA Wrestling.

Fast forward to next week’s Impact. Mick Foley is revealed as the ‘Network’ member who has been calling the shots over Hogan and Bischoff in recent weeks. Ignoring the fact that this gives TNA ANOTHER authority figure, and makes absolutely no fucking sense (cos a wrestler gets to call the shots at TV networks) it is pretty interesting. Foley claims that TNA Impact will simply be known as ‘Impact Wrestling’ and will be all about wrestling. Wow! Wouldn’t that be great? The X-Division picked some beef with Bischoff aswell. Wow! Maybe we’ll get wrestling AND X-division prominence on Impact from now on. As with anything TNA does though, I wouldn’t get too excited. Impact has been nothing BUT talking in recent months. One recent episode had less than 15 minutes of in ring action on the entire show. That’s disgusting. Furthermore, as with a lot of things TNA does nowadays, it’s probably just a shot at WWE and there recent re-branding policy to be called simply ‘WWE’ to avoid the cliché of being purely a wrestling company. Sure enough, TNA bring back Chyna to ruin any excitement I had. Chyna in the ‘Attitude Era’ had a completely unique look. She has lost a ton of muscle mass since then. Moreover, she's been an absolute mess since leaving the WWE in 2001 (maybe 2002). She’s hit rock bottom a couple of times due to alcohol and drugs. Chyna wasn’t a great worker when she was in the WWE and it seems as if TNA are just bringing in another drug-addicted has-been to try and capitalise on fame they had nearly 10 years ago. It just sickens me. I hope to god TNA move forward with this wrestling initiative and prominently feature talent of the PRESENT, not the PAST.

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