My Fav 5 08/24/11

My Fav 5 for this week

5. Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne(NA)-Let's see if this duo can breathe life into the tag team division.

4. Daniel Bryan(2)-Losses are starting to pile up, but fear not my friends the WWE has built previous Money In The Bank winners this same way. The Miz went through the same thing last year and you see where that took him.

3. CM Punk(1)-Punk has slipped from the #1 spot for the first time. His feud with Triple H & Kevin Nash is starting to heat up, but he needs to pick up some wins.

2. John Cena(3)-Cena is the number one contender and he has stepped his game up in both promos and in ring action. I've said all along that Cena has it in him, he just has been put in feuds with inferior talent.

1. Alberto Del Rio(5)-I'm not a huge fan of Del Rio, however I will give the devil his due. Since he won the title he has definitely looked like a champion.

What If...

Growing up I was a huge comic book fan, along with being a wrestling fan, and Marvel comics used to have a series called "What If?" and the basic premise was what would have happened if at key moments went a different way and the repercussions of that. I've decided to steal the idea and use it for my blog to basically give me something to write about creatively. For my first What If? blog the topic will be What If Bret Hart was the third member of the NWO?

The year is 1996 and WCW is trying to beat the kingpin of the wrestling industry the WWF. During the summer of that year two men who were huge parts of the WWF over the past few years arrived and threatened to take over and destroy the WCW. It started with Scott Hall showing up on Monday Nitro and basically making the declaration of war. A few weeks later Kevin Nash showed up and the two of them terrorized WCW until a match was set up between three representatives of WCW versus Hall, Nash, and a third mystery partner.  The rumors going around at the time were that Bret Hart would be the mystery man. Hart's WWF contract was expiring and it was believed he could be brought in at the right price. Hart remained loyal and stayed with the WWF and Hulk Hogan became the third man and the rest is history.What if instead of Hogan, Hart been the third man?

Leading up to Bash At The Beach everything was exactly the same build up wise. The match starts off with the three WCW guys Randy Savage, Lex Luger, and Sting coming to the ring followed by Hall and Nash without the third man. Just as in the original match Sting gets injured early leaving it a two on two match. During the match the crowd starts to rumble and out of the crowd comes Bret "The Hitman" Hart to join Hall and Nash. The trio lay waste to the WCW team and Hart puts an already unconscious Sting in the sharpshooter aka Sting's own finisher the scorpion death lock.  After the match "Mean" Gene Okerlund came into the ring to interview them when Hart grabbed the mic and said "Gene, I am sick and tired of not getting respect and being held down and now we are taking over" he paused for the fans to boo him and than continued to say "Gone are the days of the superhero and their over inflated ego's this is the dawn of a new era the era of the New World Order"

The next night on Monday Nitro the NWO showed up a few times attempting to attack Sting, Arn Anderson, and Randy Savage only to have security stop them. During the show a limo shows up outside the arena. After a commercial break Hulk Hogan is seen getting out of then limo. Hogan, who had not been seen on tv for several weeks, made his way to the ring. He grabbed the mic and laid down a challenge for the NWO "Listen brother I have been gone for a little while and I don't like what has been going on" he pauses for the fans to cheer and follows with "I'm laying a challenge out to the so called New World Order, any one of you three against me at Hog Wild if I win all three of you leave WCW and if you win Hulkamania is done I will retire, now what are you going to do when brother?" Monday Nitro goes off the air with the announcers in stunned silence.

The next week Eric Bischoff begins the show saying that the NWO have been invited tonight to answer Hogan's challenge. During a match between Rey Mysterio, Jr and William Regal the NWO hit the ring and attacked Mysterio while Regal backed away not wanting any part of the beat down. Nash grabs the mic and simply says "We accept" without mentioning who would be the one facing Hogan.

The night of Hog Wild arrives and the NWO has still not named their opponent for Hogan when Eric Bischoff comes out and announces that if the NWO doesn't announce their representative so they could officially weigh in the will forfeit the match, thus officially loosing the match and leaving WCW for good. the NWO come out and do an impromptu rock, paper, scissors which Hart wins making the match Hogan vs. Hart. The match begins and Nick Pattrick is the referee. Hart comes to ring by himself and the match is going well for Hogan and WCW when Pattrick  took a bump and Hall and Nash came down to attack. The Horsemen followed and Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, and Steve  McMichael chased off Hall and Nash while Chris Benoit checked on Pattrick. Hogan tapped Benoit on the shoulder only for Benoit to hit him, Benoit rolls out of the ring looking upset. Hart takes the opportunity and hits Hogan with a chain. He climbs on top of Hogan as Pattrick wakes up just in time to count the pin fall. The other three Horseman make there way down to the ring side area and question Benoit who hits Anderson  when Nash and Hall distract the Horsemen. The Pay Per View ends with Benoit in the ring with the NWO holding his four fingers upside down mocking the Horsemen and joining the NWO.

Monday Nitro begins with the now four member NWO in the ring with a casket proclaiming that this is the funeral for Hulkamania. Benoit grabs the mic and and proclaims "When your hero calls, you listen. This man(pointing at Hart) and his family have given me everything thing I have in wrestling. The only thing I ever got being a Horsemen was my ass kicked defending the two fossils Arn Anderson and Ric Flair". Nash than grabs the mic and announces "With Hulkamania now dead and gone we are coming after all the gold and the power". Hall is next up and says "This is an open invite to anyone else ready to join the winners either you're with us or you're against us, Chris has seen the writing on the wall and he is now on the winning team. Open invites will be held next week try and impress us" Hart grabs the mic and says "Hogan for years you and Vince held me back, now you are finished and Vince is going bankrupt so it looks like I win in the end" Hart hands the mic back to Hall who closes with "Another one for the bad guys".

Ray Traylor is the first to try out for the team. He beats Super Calo breaking his leg on purpose. Traylor grabs the mic and says "That is what I bring to the table, I can be the man to do the dirty work". Hall and Nash walk to the ring clapping seemingly impressed by Traylor's actions. They enter the ring and shake his hand and give him an NWO shirt, as Traylor is putting it on Benoit sneaks up behind him and lays him out and the three spray paint NWO on him. Later during a match between the Horsemen combo of Arn Anderson and Steve McMichael vs. Harlem Heat a man that looks like Sting attacks the teams and runs to the back and jumps in a limo with the NWO. Tony Schiavone is heard saying "It looks like Sting has joined them....damn it!!" as the show ends.

The next Nitro has Eric Bischoff saying that tonight we will get to the bottom of the Sting situation. The Horsemen demand answers and they look for Sting's best friend Lex Luger. They catch up with Luger while "Mean" Gene is interviewing him. Flair questions him about his best friend and says "Come on Luger you know the truth" Anderson follows with "Luger if it looks like a duck and attacks like a duck than it is a duck" before Luger can answer Sting arrives and asks "So Lex buddy is this what you think? You of all people who i defend no matter what, you know the truth. Tell me Lex do you agree with them?" Luger says "I don't know what to believe anymore" and walks off. Later during the night 1-2-3 Kid is shown sitting ringside. During a match between The Giant and Scott Norton 1-2-3 Kid starts trying to gain attention of the camera he make a cutting motion across his neck and the lights go out. When they come back on he is standing in the with the NWO who have laid out The Giant and Norton and the man that looks like Sting is shown leaving through the crowd.

On the next weeks show the Horseman approach Luger again, this time asking him to be the forth member for their team at Fall Brawl. Luger accepts the invite. During the night The Giant cuts a promo calling out Hart for a title match at Fall Brawl as well. The NWO accept both matches. The NWO announce their team is Hall, Nash, 1-2-3 Kid who is now known as Syxx, and Sting. During Fall Brawl Steve McMichael is shown laid out in the back leaving WCW down a man. After the four NWO guys are in the cage including the NWO Sting and the WCW three the timer runs down and the announcers question who the forth man will be. The real Sting comes out much to the excitement of the announce team. When he enters the ring he attacks the NWO and just leaves. The numbers game catches up with the WCW team and the NWO win. The main event is next, The Giant vs. Bret Hart, Hart wins after another questionable call by Nick Pattrick.

Sting makes basically the same proclamation as he did with the Hogan led NWO and begins his turn to the Crow inspired version of himself. Over the next several months the NWO would gain power and add a few new members, not getting out of control like the original. The only guys that they add are Scott Steiner, Chris Jericho, and Konan while Syxx is released from his contract.

After a little over a year Sting returns for the big match against Hart at Starrcade 1997 during the build up Sean Michaels jumps to WCW after losing the WWF title to "Stone Cold" Steve Austin in controversial fashion at Survivor Series. Michaels calls the match right down the middle right until the end when he goes for Sweet Chin Music on Sting but Sting ducks and Michaels hits Hart. Michaels begrudgingly counts the pin fall.

Michaels begins the next nights Nitro apologizing to Hart for his mistake as Hart reaches to shake his hand Michaels hits Sweet Chin Music on Hart. The NWO hits the ring and Michaels looks scared Nash raises his fist only for the two to hug and Hall throws a NWO shirt to Michaels they proceed to attack Hart and kick him out of the NWO. Hart tries to gain the trust of the WCW wrestlers he has spent over a year fighting against. He fights against the NWO before being de-pushed to the mid card where he flounders around until his release just before Summer Slam 1998 where he mysteriously shows up ring side during the main event between Steve Austin and The Undertaker.

He goes on to have long feuds with Austin, Triple H, and the Rock helping to elevate them all before retiring in 2003 after loosing the WWE title to his former NWO ally Chris Jericho. He would go directly into the hall of fame the next year being inducted by his brother Owen who wins his first WWE championship the next night at Wrestlemania 19 against Kurt Angle in an Iron Man match that Dave Meltzer gives 5 stars and is widely considered the match of the decade. Hart would make sporadic appearances the last of which would be returning the favor for Owen and inducting him into the hall of fame in 2008 after Owen died in a freak car accident during the summer of 2007.

My Fav 5 08/18/11

My Fav 5 for this week

5. Alberto Del Rio(NR)-The push has begun, lets see if he can step up his game.

4. Kurt Angle(3)-Could be much higher if he wasn't in TNA.

3. John Cena(4)-I am interested to see if his feud with Del Rio can be as interesting after the CM Punk feud.

2. Daniel Bryan(2)-Thought about moving him down after poor showings recently, but I am giving him a chance to pick it back up.

1. CM Punk(1)-Punk had a little setback loosing the belt, but his feud with the establishment added some interesting twists.

The Tides Are Turning

There has been a lot written and spoken about since the CM Punk interview that shook the world about this being the beginning of a new era in wrestling, Punk himself has called this the "reality" era. In my mind there are a few things that I can see that would truly signify a new era. This article is about the main thing I see as being the turning factor for the true beginning of a new era.

It is time the WWE pull the trigger on a John Cena heel turn. The timing is perfect, the situation could not get much better, and the fans are ready for it. Much like Hulk Hogan in the early 90's his character has grown stale and the product has suffered because of it. He is still a major money earner among the pre teen demographic, however everyone else is turning on him. CM Punk's merchandise is currently flying off the merchandise counters and out of shop.wwe.com at a tremendous rate. With the popularity of Punk and the continued popularity of Rey Mysterio I believe any merchandising revenue lost turning Cena could easily be recouped.

There are a few ways that this could happen. The easy and obvious route would be to have Cena align himself with Triple H and continue the feud against Punk. Cena could be Triple H's corporate champion much like The Rock was for Vince McMahon. He could stop wearing the jean shorts in the ring and evolve his look to a more traditional wrestling gear, something along the lines of what he wore before the white rapper gimmick.  A change in music would be needed as well, something more like what Mark Henry uses if they want to keep it a rap song.

This could also seriously help build the Wrestlemania match between The Rock and Cena. It could be billed as the face of McMahon's WWE vs the face of Triple H's WWE and they could even be in the corners of each wrestler.  I imagine a version of Cena who is a little rougher around the edges who caters more to what he wants and his boss Triple H instead of trying to cater to the fans.

There have been a few subtle signs of a potential turn by Cena. The most obvious would be during the contract signing when he specifically named off the reasons the fans dislike him. He could easily build on this saying that he didn't turn on the fans, the fans turned on him.  The fans are largely siding with CM Punk during there feud and the WWE has to see the writing on the wall here.

The pay off ultimately would be after a few years of heel Cena the fans will be cheering for him much like Hogan at Wrestlemania X8, thus making it feel like the inevitable face turn seem more like a reaction to what the fans want and help build the business back to where it was ten years ago. 

My Fav 5 08/11/11

My Fav 5 for this week

5. Brian Kendrick(4)-The X division champion continues to impress me.

4. John Cena(3)-I smell the beginnings of a heel turn.

3. Kurt Angle(NA)-Finally a credible TNA champion.

2. Daniel Bryan(2)-In my opinion he is beginning to be a big name player deserving of being a Wrestlemania main eventer.

1. CM Punk(1)-Punk is the absolute cream of the crop right now. He is ushering in a new era of wrestling.

My Fav 5 08/04/11

My Fav 5 for this week

5. Zack Ryder(NA)-Finally getting tv time, now lets see what he can do with it.

4. Brian Kendrick(5)-Personally the most interesting guy in TNA for me right now.

3. John Cena(4)-I can not wait for the return match at Summer Slam.

2. Daniel Bryan(3)-He has taken the ball and ran with it since Money In The Bank, sky is the limit on what he can do from here.

1. CM Punk(1)-Still the most interesting wrestler in the world. The question now is how are they going to build on what he has been doing for the last few months.

Suspension of Disbelief

Watching wrestling the last few weeks has reminded me what draws fans in and keep them watching, suspension of disbelief. If what you see on your television is totally outside of the realm of plausibility it hurts the product overall. The one thing that bothers me on the past few weeks of WWE television is the fact that they insist there are two WWE champions. For the 25 plus years I have been a wrestling fan the rules have always stated that when a person is the champion they have up to 30 days to defend the belt, and yes i know they can change them at any time it's not a real rule book. Now with that being said CM Punk won the belt on July 17th and the very next night, without stripping Punk of the title, a tournament for the belt was started.

The tournament itself was made a farce by John Cena winning the belt from Rey Mysterio less than 2 hours after he won it himself, thus devaluing the tournament. Now don't get me wrong I'm not dissing Cena or Mysterio I have the utmost respect for both wrestlers, but that was a worthless tournament only to hand the belt to Cena without him going through the trouble Mysterio did to win it.

What happened following the Cena win was even more baffling, although highly entertaining. Punk made his triumphant return. Here in lies the issue I have, I find it outside of the realm of plausibility that 1. John Cena's character would accept the tittle this way 2. CM Punk should have been stripped if they were going to crown a new champion. 3. Even if you do not strip Punk he has 30 days to defend this all transpired within 2 weeks.

Look I'm not saying that I have been totally on board with every decision that has ever been made I just feel that when you bring up certain things as being rules for the last 25 years at least that you should stick with that or at least acknowledge that there has been a rule change so us fans don't have these issues.

My Fav 5 07/27/11

My Fav 5 for this week

5. Brian Kendrick(NR)-He is having a great run as TNA's X Division champ.

4. John Cena(3)-Not a huge fan of how he won the belt off of Rey Mysterio, but i understand why it was done.

3. Daniel Bryan(2)-He is finally getting the push to the top, time for him to take the ball and run with it.

2. Rey Mysterio(NR)-I wish the WWE would have kept the title on him. I think the win was to include him in the short list of wrestlers who have won both the WWE and world title.

1. CM Punk(1)-He continues to be the most interesting wrestler in the world right now.

My Fav 5 07/20/11

My Fav 5 for this week

5. The Uso's-With the addition of the Samoan war dance to their entrance it has made them instantly different than all the other wrestlers as well as tying them to their heritage and family lineage in wrestling.

4. Christian-People are saying they don't like how the title change went down. My question is why? The way his character is playing out it fits perfectly.

3. John Cena-I have long been a Cena supporter and this week he proved what he could do when put into a match with another great wrestler. The match with CM Punk is arguably match of the year so far, and alot of credit has to go Cena's way.

2. Daniel Bryan-Wow, all I can see is I was blown away by the fact that Bryan won the money in the back match. With the proper build up he could easily become this generations Bret Hart.

1. CM Punk-What can be said about Punk that hasn't been said already. The guy is truly the best wrestler in the world right now.

Top 20 Tag Teams

If you have been a reader of my blog you know i enjoy lists. The following is my list of the top 20 tag teams in wrestling history.

20. Money Inc-Two fantastic heels that were solid singles wrestlers, but better when teamed together.

19. America's Most Wanted-The faces of the tag team division in TNA's early years.

18. Hollywood Blondes-Austin and Pillman were absolutely  incredible as a team.

17. The Blackjacks-Often imitated but never duplicated, the original bad ass cowboy team.

16. Edge & Christian-The only reason they are are this low is they are overshadowed as a team by their single success.

15. New Age Outlaws-Billy Gunn and Road Dogg complimented each others strengths and weaknesses perfectly.

14. The Outsiders-They helped spark WCW into dominance over the WWF, but also helped destroy WCW.

13. The Hart Foundation-The pink and black attack ruled the WWF tag team division from the mid to late 80's.

12. Wild Samoans-They won everywhere they wrestled and held 21 tag team tittles during there career.

11. The British Bulldogs-Who doesn't love the British Bulldogs? Amazing talents that gelled well together.



10. The Steiner Brothers-Tag Team champions everywhere they wrestled. The best team of the early 90's.



9. The Hardy Boyz-Before becoming laughing stocks of the industry Matt and Jeff tore threw the WWF/WWE trag team division.



8. The Rock 'N' Roll Express-Innovators of a more fast paced tag team style that evolved during the 80's .



7. Demolition-Originally thought of as a Road Warriors clone Demolition went on to be extremely successful in the own right.



6. The Midnight Express-A great heel team that played the perfect opponents for the Rock 'N' Roll Express



5. The Fabulous Freebirds-One of the most influential groups in history. Inverted the "Freebird" rule where any of the three men would be able to defend the tag tittles. Had a legendary feud with the Von Erich clan.



4. Harlem Heat-The most successful team in the history of WCW. The glue that held the tag team division together for years in WCW



3.Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard/The Brainbusters-One of the few teams to successfully conquer the NWA and WWF. The workhorses of both the Four Horsemen and Heenan Family groups. Put up great matches regardless of the competition.



2. The Duddley Boyz/Team 3D-The Duddley Boyz have been the top team in wrestling for the last 15 years. They have held more tag team belts than anyone in the history of wrestling.



1. The Road Warriors/Legion Of Doom-The greatest team of all time. Dominated the competition in the AWA, NWA, WWF, WCW, and in Japan. No team has ever been a more successful draw than the Road Warriors.

My Fav 5

Ok so i stole this idea from Booker T but i have wanted to make a weekly list of my favorite wrestlers during the week. This has really nothing to do with wins or losses, just who interests me at the time

5. R Truth- this may be the only time he ever appears on this list but i find the little Jimmy catch phase funny personally

4. Austin Aries- Aries won a TNA contract over the weekend, if given the opportunity he could be a major player in the x division

3. Davie Richards- finally broke through and won the ROH title

2. Colt Cabanba- one of the hottest properties in wrestling right now, mainly due to our #1 guy giving him the rub on raw a few times

1. CM Punk- was there any question it would be him? he has set the wrestling world on fire and has made raw must see tv again

The Top Ten Foreign Objects

The tittle of this blog pretty much speaks for itself. This is my opinion of what the ten best foreign objects in wrestling history. I have been watching wrestling since the early 80's so it is mostly based on that time frame. I have not included the normal things that most wrestlers use at one time or another ie: tables, ladders, chairs, and ring bells. What I have included can be more linked to specific wrestlers. Before I get to the top ten here is the best of the rest: Triple H's sledgehammer, Big Boss Man's nightstick, Terry Funk's branding iron, Junk Yard Dog's chains, Saturn's friend Moppy, Gangrel's chalice, The Mountie's cattle prod, William Regal's brass knuckles, and The Undertaker's urn. Now on to the top ten.





10. Sting's bat- When the nWo took over WCW one man stood against them, Sting. Sting would use the bat to ward off the seemingly endless nWo drones that would come after him.




9. Al Snow's friend Head- Al Snow for the most part of his career was a jobber, until he struck gold with picking up a mannequin head and seeming to take orders from it. He never reached the world title picture, however if it wasn't for Head he would be remembered as Leif Cassidy the New Rocker.



8. The Sandman's Singapore cane- I know earlier i said i wouldn't include weapons that everyone uses, this is the one exception. The Sandman had very limited in ring skills, add to that the fact his gimmick involved him getting sloppy drunk during the match and you have a problem. Enter the Singapore cane, originally it was brought in as a stipulation in a match he had with Tommy Dreamer cashing in on the Michael Fay caning controversy.  The Sandman took the cane and never looked back becoming one of the faces of the original ECW.



7. Jeff Jarrett/Honky Tonk Man's guitar- In the 80's Honky Tonk man used the guitar to aid him to the longest Intercontinental Title reign ever, when the belt was arguably the third most important belt in the US. In the 90's to the present day Jeff Jarrett has carved out quite a nice career for himself by bashing people over the head with the guitar. Originally he had the guitar in part of a horrible country music singer gimmick. He continued to use it while becoming a multiple time Intercontinental, WCW heavyweight, and NWA world champion.



6. Jimmy Hart's megaphone- The mouth of the south got his nickname for screaming insults through his microphone at the faces and fans. Hart never shied away from using the microphone to help the wrestlers he managed win. 



5. Paul E. Dangerously's cell phone- Long before Paul Heyman became the cult leader of ECW he was one of the top managers in both the AWA and WCW. For any one under 20 years old that is a cell phone in his hand, back in the late 80's that was what they looked like. You see his character was a play off of the yuppie culture of the time, Paul E. was the self proclaimed psycho yuppie. P.S. that is Stone Cold Steve Austin with the bleach blonde hair.



4. Hacksaw Jim Duggan's 2x4- Hacksaw was the quintessential mid card face of his era. While never having runs with any major title, he did manage to stay near the top of the card in an era filled with stars. While the 2x4 wasn't used often as a weapon it was a major part of his gimmick.



3. Jim Cornette's tennis racket- Cornette was the manager for a slew of great tag teams, the biggest being the Midnight Express. Cornette would fan the flames in the legendary Midnight Express/Rock N Roll Express feud by constant outside interference in his teams matches. The tennis racket was deadly and would often spell disaster for anyone hit by it.



2. Abdullah The Butcher's fork- Abdullah was been carving up helpless foes since the 60's with his trusty fork. When I was a kid Abdullah was one of the wrestlers I thought was legitimately psychotic. The Mad Man from the Sudan has run wild all over the world earning a spot in the WWE Hall of fame.



1. Mick Foley's Mr. Socko- What started as a throw away joke on an episode of Monday Night Raw where Foley as Mankind visited Mr. McMahon in the hospital to cheer him up only to have Vince make him leave and than look into the screen and say "Mr. Socko" became the calling card for one of the most popular and legendary figure of the last 20 years. Foley would use Mr. Socko over his hand while applying the mandible claw, adding insult to injury.

10 Steps I Would Take To Fix Impact Wrestling aka TNA

As wrestlings fans we have all thought about what we would do if in charge. I decided to share with the world 10 ideas on how to take Impact Wrestling from a joke to a legitimate second company.

1. No more rapid fire heel/face turns. It is hard for a casual fan that doesn't tune in every week to follow if wrestlers are turning too often. As fans we want to know who is the face and who is the heel.

2. Do not hire wrestlers just based on previous fame. Look I am a huge fan of Mick Foley, Team 3D, Rob Van Dam, Ric Flair, and Sting but they are all past their primes. Can they be valuable assets of coarse, but it is hard to suspend disbelief and have someone like Sting who looks terrible as the world champion.

3. Less talk more action. The catch phrase they are using is "Wrestling Matters" yet the show is filled with segments that don't involve wrestling. I understand that promos, interviews, and things of that nature are needed to build feuds and fan interest, however the mix should be 70% wrestling to 30% other if you want fans to believe "Wrestling Matters"

4. Get rid of the blue motif. To me the overall look of Impact Wrestling seems too much like WWE Smackdown. Do something totally different. I would suggest a retro look with red, white, and blue ropes and some simple yet effective graphics and logos.

5. Cut the fat. Right now there are 42 male wrestlers on the roster. Way too many wrestlers for just one show. Trim the roster down to about 24-30 male wrestlers. This way it is easier to follow feuds and story lines.

6. Shock value only works if you don't do it to death. This kind of goes hand and hand with number 1. Run ins, swerves, surprise appearances, and gimmick matches can equal huge ratings and pay per view buys, but the more you see hardcore matches with no reason behind it or the monthly biggest surprise ever the more it becomes like the boy who cried wolf.

7. Recognize the talent and utilize it. The one thing that really successful promotions and bookers have is a knack for putting the right people in the right position. To quote Brock Lesnar "Make chicken salad out of chicken shit" Paul Heyman was the master of this.

8. Stop trying to beat the WWE. At this point the WWE is the only wrestling organization that most Americans know. It is ok to be the number 2 company, if you build your fan base and give fans a product they can believe in the word of mouth will eventually put you exactly where you want to be. Throwing rocks at the tank that is WWE only gets you killed.

9. Make the championships mean something. You really want to be revolutionary in 2011 have long title runs with only serious contenders going for the belts. Ring Of Honor does an excellent job of this concept. In ROH all the titles are extremely important because they don't change hands that often.

10. Feature tag team wrestling. The one thing that could really set them apart from the WWE is featuring the tag team division. Wrestling fans enjoy tag team wrestling. There are some excellent teams in Impact Wrestling and making them a focal point would help bring in some of the long time fans that miss that style of action. 

WWE Draft Fallout

As a follow up to my last blog previewing the draft I figured I would post my thoughts on what actually happened. It's been 2 days since the annual WWE draft and 1 day since the supplemental draft and in total 30 roster moves were made, including John Cena being drafted to Smackdown and then right back to Raw. I have seen some reviews going either way on what happened, some have loved it some have hated it. This is my take on what happened. I will brake it down pick by pick, so this may be a rather long post. Since my last post was my take on what I would do I will put a * next to picks that I predicted correctly. 

Live Draft Results

1. John Cena to Smackdown- While watching the show live I was legitimately shocked when this happened, only to have the pick basically reversed later in the night. Cena belongs on Raw that is his show, he has helped build it to what it is for better or worse.

2. Rey Mysterio to Raw- Mysterio hasn't done well the previous times he has been on Raw. A feud with The Miz could be entertaining if done properly. 

3. Randy Orton to Smackdown*- This is the move that made the most sense to me. Putting Orton on Smackdown filled the void that Edge retiring left. This also lets Orton become the top face of the show instead of 2nd fiddle to Cena.

4. Mark Henry to Smackdown- This move was made alot more interesting with Henry turning heel in the main event. Henry is a credible high mid card heel for guys like Orton and Christian to feud with.

5. Sin Cara to Smackdown- He was moved to Smackdown so he could be kept away from feuds with Mysterio and Alberto Del Rio. I love this move for a few reasons: first I don't think he is ready for the big name feuds with either of the two I mentioned, secondly he has been prone to botching moves since his debut and with Smackdown being a taped show that could be edited out.

6. Big Show to Raw*- With Big Show being a tag team champion he will most likely be on both shows any way so this is kind of a ho hum type pick. I would like to see him feud with The Miz after The Miz and Cena are done with their feud. They have history to build on being former tag team champions together.

7. Alberto Del Rio to Raw- Del Rio has been on Raw since the beginning of the year anyway so this isn't as big of a move as it seems to be. Rumors seem to point to Del Rio vs Cena at Sumer Slam.

8. John Cena to Raw- Did the WWE pull out a Dusty finish for the draft? 

Supplemental Draft Results

9. Daniel Bryan to Smackdown*- Smackdown is known for being the show with more actual wrestling on it so this move fits perfectly.

10. Jack Swagger to Raw- Wasn't he already on Raw? Much like Del Rio this move has less impact since he has been on Raw so frequently recently.

11. The Great Khali to Smackdown*- As I pointed out in my previous post the WWE likes to have the two giants on different rosters, so this was more of a reactionary move to Big Show going to Raw.

12. Jimmy Uso to Smackdown- Would have been a more intriguing move if his brother wasn't moved later.

13. Kelly Kelly to Raw- Most of the diva's are interchangeable, should be an early victim for Kharma aka Awesome Kong.

14. JTG to Raw- Could be interesting if he is paired with R Truth, but I don't see him being anything more than a Superstars wrestler/occasional Raw jobber. 

15. Alicia Fox to Smackdown- Another who cares type pick. I actually had to look three times to see what roster she was on before posting this.

16. William Regal to Smackdown*- This move is one I am really looking forward to. If given the tv time Regal could be a big player on Smackdown. At the very least he could replace Booker T as an announcer since Booker has been underwhelming at the job. 

17. Yoshi Tatsu to Smackdown- He definitely could use this change of brands. Interesting match ups with Bryan, Cara, Christian, and other lightweight type wrestlers on Smackdown could be the boost he needs. 

18. Drew McIntyre to Raw*- His character has gotten really stale, new feuds with the Raw roster may help make him interesting again.

19. Natalya to Smackdown- It would have been nice to have her on the same roster as Kharma, but maybe keeping them apart will help build an eventual feud between the two.

20. Curt Hawkins to Raw- The only thing that may be interesting is a potential reunion with Zack Ryder.

21. Chris Masters to Raw*- Another wrestler who will be used as a Superstars wrestler/occasional Raw jobber.

22. Jey Uso to Smackdown- See Jimmy Uso above

23. Kofi Kingston to Raw*- Much like McIntyre he has grown stale, would like to see him be more like he was while feuding with Orton.

24. Ted DiBiase to Smackdown*- A feud with Cody Rhodes playing up their history in Legacy could be interesting. He needs to step his game up before he is future endeavored. 

25. Tyson Kidd to Smackdown- I like what i am seeing with some of the Smackdown moves, they could build a strong under card with the wrestlers they have either kept or gained. Since they seem to have alot of lightweight wrestlers maybe bringing the cruiserwieght title back would be a good idea.

26. Tamina to Smackdown- I don't understand this one, her role as Santino's love interest was somewhat entertaining. i don't see her making much of an impact.

27. Tyler Reks to Raw*- The kid has potential, now is the time to let it show through.

28. Alex Riley to Smackdown- This is a big move in the career of Riley. He could either take off and become a star or fail miserably. It should do him well to be on his own and develop his own character. 

29. Beth Phoenix to Raw- Phoenix is an extremely gifted diva and the eventual meeting of her and Kharma should be epic. 

30. Sheamus to Smackdown- Interesting that both the US title and intercontinental title would be on the same show. I would love to see him gradually build his way back into main event status. I think his first run as champion was a little rushed, but if given the proper build up he could be a big star. 

WWE Draft: What I Would Do

The WWE has decided next week to hold it's annual draft and shake up the rosters. This year it seams a little rushed as a reaction to Edge's retirement. I have personally seen any spoilers or rumors as to who will go where so this will just be a list of what I would do if I was in charge. I am going to base the picks off of last years format since ECW had been involved in previous drafts. Both rosters got 4 picks each on the main draft show and on the supplemental draft Raw got 5 more picks and Smackdown got 6 more. I do think Smackdown will get the better of the draft, so I am going to make my selections based on that

Raw Main Picks:
Big Show- He seems to get moved often during the draft and I could see him as being the biggest name heading to Raw
Ezekiel Jackson- I would use this opportunity to split up The Corre. The group is not getting over and without it's muscle it would make it easier to split them
Drew McIntyre- He seems to have gotten stuck in a rut on the Smackdown brand a move to Raw with new opponents may help further his career
Tyler Reks- Another wrestler who seems to be lost in the shuffle on Smackdown.  Depending on who is moved on Raw he could be put into a group like Nexus or as an associate of Michael Cole

Smackdown Main Picks:
Randy Orton- Would easily fit into the main event hole left by Edge. Opens up a spot on Raw for Guys like John Morrison to move up into the main event picture
David Otunga- I would remove him from Nexus were he has been 2nd in command since it's inception. Give him a chance to break out on his own. Could easily join a revamped Corre or feud against Wade Barrett over the intercontinental belt
Daniel Bryan- He has also been in a rut since loosing the US title to Sheamus. A move over to Smackdown and placement into the intercontinental title hunt would help revitalize his character.
Ted DiBiase- Another guy I would use to bolster the mid card roster. He has shown flashes of brilliance at times and working programs with wrestlers like Christian and Rey Mysterio might bring the best out of him

Raw Supplemental Picks:
Cody Rhodes- His feud with Rey Mysterio has elevated him to a top mid card, sometimes main event wrestler. Bring him to Raw and have him in the mix with guys like John Cena and The Miz and he will be a legitimate main event player
Kofi Kingston- Kofi has grown extremely stale on Smackdown. Maybe some fresh feuds would help the fans get back into his character  
Chris Masters- A throwaway type pick who I'm not sure why he has not been future endeavored. Helps fill spots any time they have a battle royal
Hornswoggle- Personally i think his gimmick fits better on Raw than Smackdown, so that is why i would move him back to Raw
Layla- Instead of teasing the break up of Lay-Cool maybe they could fast track the split. Layla could finally start winning on Raw making Michelle McCool upset and eventually attacking Layla setting up a match at Sumer Slam

Smackdown Supplemental Picks: 
Evan Bourne- A fan favorite that could use a change of scenery. A move to the blue brand could create some interesting matches for him
Zack Ryder- If given more air time Ryder could develop into a solid mid carder. He has shown the it factor on his YouTube show, he just needs to bring that to the WWE. I'd give him a segment like Piper's Pit
Nikki Bella- The Bella that isn't the Divas champion. The WWE like to split teams up during the draft and what would be a bigger shock than breaking up twins
David Hart Smith- Smith has yet to break out. I would consider this sink or swim time for him and if he can't get over he may be in danger of heading to TNA
The Great Khali- Khali much like Big Show seems to get moved often during draft time. Since I have Big Show moving to Raw I don't see both giants on one show, so it would be natural for him to move to Smackdown
William Regal- Currently he is just being used as a commentator for NXT, could be used to help put over the younger Smackdown talent and help build for the future