Couple of news and notes as we move ahead in this week of WWE action:

* Where's Y2J you may ask? Well, the company has held off his return, and it looks as if he is due on TV at anytime. As far as those chanting his name on the PPV and at RAW, you can bet that it's all due to the fact it leaked out way before people wanted it to. The company should have just quietly signed him, then hurried his rush back to TV right away. No one is buying the "Save Us" promos anymore that they are for anyone else, and the company is to blame for making people wait way to long and by the time he's on TV, the surprise will be ruined.

* As far as the return of Ric Flair, yes, he will be back on SmackDown soon as well. Flair has been gone for awhile, and there has been a lot of talk about him being upset with the company and that he would be walking away from the WWE. That's not the case. Flair said on Hot 97 in New York earlier today that he would be back. As far as in what role, no one knows. One thing that seems certain is that Flair will headline the WWE Hall of Fame in Orlando the night before WrestleMania 24.

* If you've been missing Chavo Guerrero, he's been suspended for the last 60 days, but that suspension is up, and he should be making his way back to TV soon. He was not at the TV tapings for SmackDown this past week, but likely will be back within the next two weeks.

* Check out the new Armageddon poster above. The first posted had Batista holding the World Heavyweight Championship. In this new poster, he is simply holding a gas mask. Could this be a possible spoiler that he will not have the belt when that December PPV in Pittsburgh rolls around? Stay Tuned.

Posted by Matt Loede at 8:21 PM | Permalink | Comments

Get tickets early before the general public onsale and see WrestleMania 24: Live at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando on Sunday, March 30, 2008.

WrestleMania 24 The annual sports-entertainment spectacular featuring World Wrestling Entertainment Superstars from RAW, SmackDown, and ECW, joined by athletes, entertainers, and tens of thousands of fans from around-the-world. This represents the first time in history that WrestleMania will be presented in Florida. It is expected that fans will converge on Orlando from all 50 states and more than 20 different countries.

Presale Information
Start: Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007 at 10am
End: Friday, Nov. 2 2007 at 5pm
Password: MOTA

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:58 PM | Permalink | Comments

Happy Halloween, ECW style ghouls and gals. Yes I know its a little cliche, but hey lets have some festive fun. ECW tonight gave us some tricks and treats in the form of a Monster Bash Battle Royal, hardcore rules match, number one contender match and a variety of costumes and freaks. Overall not a bad show. As I have mentioned before it looks like Elijah Burke is falling out of favor with the top brass. Tonight he had the chance to showcase his talents against Jimmy Wang Yang. At this rate Burke may even find himself out of any plans by the new year.

As one man falls another will rise, and it looks like the Miz is on the rise. From a title match at Cyber Sunday to the top contender match tonight. Yes I know he lost both, but I hate to admit it, he looked very good in each match. He did struggle on Smack Down but looks like he is finding himself in ECW. It should be interesting to see if he continues being a player in the companies plans.

Hey we got to see a hardcore rules match tonight. Yes it did have gimmicks like the wrestlers in costumes and pumpkin pies and a apple tub being used, but it good to see some extreme back in ECW. Granted this was no way near how it use to be, but Dreamer and Nunzio put on a good match. If the WWE is afraid to go back to the old days for fear of injury or the possibility of ECW outshining the other brands, then this match is a good way of keeping the extreme in ECW. I would love to see more matches like this in the future.

And finally the Monster Battle Royal. Just 4 big behemoths beating on each other for a couple of minutes. It may be the start of a Kane and Mark Henry feud on Smack Down as they were the final combatants. The question now is what happens to Big Daddy V. Its clear the title will be a rivalry of CM Punk and John Morrison, so that leaves V out of the picture. Does he now fall to the wayside like Burke and Kevin Thorn? Only time will tell. Personally feel V is doing a great job and would like to see him remain in the mix somehow.

Posted by JSX at 10:12 PM | Permalink | Comments

Well still no Chris Jericho arrival in the WWE yet, even though he follows the wrestling circus around for his book signings. I guess we will have to wait for Smack Down as I can't see them doing next Monday with Stone Cold set to appear. The only question is were will he fit in. Will it be a quick stay just to promote his book or will this be long term. I personally hope it will be long term as I enjoy that certain level of cockiness he brings to the ring. Lets relive the old days of when RAW was Jericho.

Another big factor also preventing a RAW appearance for him next week will be the not so surprising return of DX for "one night only" as Vinny Mac states. There were rumors that Survivor series would see the match of Orton/Umaga vs. DX. This may not happen as next week we will see that, and Vince gave HBK his rematch at Survivor Series. But as old Vince told Shawn tonight they call it Survivor Series for a reason. Look for a fatal 4 way between aforementioned combatants. On a side, good to see Triple H's shoulder looking alright as that would have been a major blow if he was out again for a significant length of time.

As for other developments there seems to be some heat a brewing in the Cade and Murdock camp stemming from Murdock helping Mickey James. Could this be the end of this tag team. I have to ask why as I can't see either man making it on his own. Murdock is to much of a fat slob to make any real noise as a singles wrestler. Lance Cade would also need a major make over of character if he were to do anything. Keep the rednecks together and start bringing back some strength to the tag divisions. Cade and Murdock work great together and give some solid matches. I'm tired of these stupid rivals as friends tag champions they keep giving us, like Cena/HBK and the current MVP/Matt Hardy combos. You have enough talent in tag teams to have the belts put on individuals who probably have no desire to be tag champs. Lets get some rivalries going and start defending tag belts on a regular basis at pay per views.

Posted by JSX at 10:14 PM | Permalink | Comments

Join Matt Loede and John Sefcik as they bring you the official Cyber Sunday PPV Postmatch show. The pair discuss each and every match that took place on the card as talk about each match in-depth, with news and rumors of what will happen next in the WWE. Click below and check out the show and give us your thoughts at mslprod@amertiech.net

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:57 PM | Permalink | Comments

Join Matt Loede and John Sefcik as they bring you the official Cyber Sunday PPV prematch show. The pair discuss the 7-match card, as well as talk about each match in-depth, with news and rumors of what is going to happen, as well as the return of two of the biggest stars in WWE history on the card. Click below and check out the show and give us your thoughts at mslprod@amertiech.net

Posted by Matt Loede at 1:41 PM | Permalink | Comments

Well tonight provided us with more exciting previews for Cyber Sunday. In the tried and true WWE tradition tonight featured tag and 3 way matches featuring major players in Cyber Sunday. Despite this tired old method to build hype for the pay per view, it actually worked. The tag match of champs Matt Hardy/MVP vs. Finlay/Mysterio turned into a great blood fest. Unfortunately it was on accident as Hardy cut himself on the forehead with Mysterio's knee brace. Give it to Hardy as he still hung in there and put on as great performance despite the massive blood lost. Of course Finlay would turn on Mysterio and hit him in the ribs with his shillelagh giving MVP the pin.

We also got a 3 way with the ECW title contenders. Another solid match between Morrison, Miz and Big Daddy V. This continues the "talent share" of ECW and Smack Down. The match had V pin the Miz but really shows why both brands need to merge. This match and the one listed above were the only highlights tonight. The infusion of ECW talent will help make every match worthy of taking the time to care about. This should put on end to seeing jobbers on major network TV and regulate them to dark matches where they belong.

So far there has been no more matches announced for Cyber Sunday. The only new development has been the announcement of a Divas Halloween costume contest. Good to see the WWE give us are obligatory shot of T and A. Yes I know some of you are looking forward to it, but for my money I'll take a pass. If we as wrestling fans want to be taken seriously and not looked at as a bunch of nerdy losers, these types of cheesecake moments really need to end. If you need to gawk at half naked women go to a local strip club or Hooters, please keep it out of my entertainment.

As far as any possible matches that could be added we may see a Jeff Hardy vs. Kennedy match. Both are involved in the vote to face Randy Orton fro his WWE title, but really don't have much of a chance against Shawn Michaels. They have been building this feud over the past few weeks and what a good way to kick it off. It would be prefect to have both spurned contenders face off against each other to prove their worth. As far as other match predictions I'm sure there will be some kind of tag match but I guess we will have to wait and see.

Posted by JSX at 9:17 PM | Permalink | Comments

What you need to know about WrestleMania XXIV

WrestleMania XXIV will mark the first time WWE's annual sports-entertainment spectacular will emanate from the Sunshine State of Florida. The event will feature WWE Superstars from Raw, SmackDown and ECW, as well as athletes, entertainers, and thousands of fans from around the world. It is expected that fans will converge on Orlando from all 50 states and more than 20 different countries.

WHEN: Sunday evening, March 30, 2008

WHERE: The Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida

TICKETS: Tickets go on sale beginning Saturday, Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. ET. Tickets can be purchased in the following locations:
-The Amway Arena Box Office in Orlando
-All Florida Ticketmaster outlets, including FYE stores
-Charge-by-phone at (407) 839-3900
-On-line at www.ticketmaster.com
-For groups of 20 or more, call (407) 849-2014
Note: Tickets WILL NOT be on-sale at the Florida Citrus Bowl

SPECIAL TICKET PRE-SALE: On Friday, Nov. 2 from 6-8 p.m. ET, there will be a special WrestleMania XXIV pre-sale at Ticketmaster ticket centers located in participating Florida FYE stores. Visit your local FYE store for details.

PRICES: Tickets will be $250, $150, $95, $55 and $40, including a $5 per ticket facility fee. A limited number of Platinum Ringside seats will also be available for $750 - sit ringside and keep your commemorative WrestleMania Ringside Chair!

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:25 PM | Permalink | Comments

Ah yes, another Diva who refused to do a storyline in the WWE has found herself on the unemployment line. Sources say that the release of Diva Kristal Marshall last week had to do with a storyline that would have involved her seducing SmackDown GM Teddy Long. PWInsider.com reports that the storyline would have involved Edge, and would have basically been Kristal screwing over Long and then joining forces with Edge much like Lita did when she did a one-over on Kane a few years back that led to that very successful tandem and the push that Edge got eventually leading him to being the WWE Champion.

Word is that Marshall was opposed to doing the storyline, that it was too sexual for her, and that she wanted to be moved to RAW to be with her real life boy-toy - Bobby Lashley. Reports say that Lashley and Marshall have been pushing to be on the same show together for sometime. It will be interesting now that Marshall is gone how and if they continue the storyline wedding angle they did with Long and Marshall, or if they will just dump that and at somepoint down the road we'll see a recovered Long make his return if now GM Vicki Guerrero starts to go heel, which is what everyone seemed to think would happen once she got the position.

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:53 AM | Permalink | Comments

As already posted the ECW returns for another year on Sci-Fi. Since wrestling likes to give its stars catch phrases like What? for Stone Cold and the ever popular DAMN for Ron Simmons, I bring forth mine, Why? As in why continue with a brand that is nothing more than a former shell of its true self. The only thing extreme about ECW is how extremely boring it can be. Case in point tonight. There was a decent match between two of the big brawlers in Kane and Big Daddy V. Then they go and ruin it by having a run in by Mark Henry followed by The Great Kali. Henry and Kali have less agility then a heard of wounded Hippos and added nothing to what could be a decent feud. Then to top it off we get to see this gaggle of gargantuans next week in the Monster Bash battle royal. Need I say it again. Why?

Good to see Elijah Burke take a huge tumble in status also. From looking like a major player in the ECW and beyond around Wrestle Mania to now feuding with Nunzio. Once again Why? I feel Burke has way to much talent to be wasting his time taking on third rate jobbers like Nunzio. At least the main event once again was watchable. The tag match between Balls Mahoney and CM Punk vs. The Miz and John Morrison was the only redeeming match of the night. If this is all ECW can give us in one good, and I'm not talking great, match every night why continue with this? The decent talent is to thin to actually develop anybody unless they are in the title hunt. These gentlemen would be better served being absorbed into the other brands taking shots at the lesser belts like the US and Intercontinental titles. If the WWE is not willing to go extreme then please kill ECW and leave us with the good memories of the old days.

Posted by JSX at 10:05 PM | Permalink | Comments

The WWE will have its third brand - ECW on the Sci Fi channel through 2008. The company made the announcement today that ECW will stay on the channel through the year. This has to be a welcome sign for the company for those that wrestle in ECW, as there was much speculation that they would not renew the show past 2007. Last week the WWE announced that ECW would be streamed on their website, making many think that they were doing that just in case Sci Fi would no longer carry the show past this year. Below is a copy of the press release that the WWE sent out about the renewing of the show on Sci Fi.

SCI FI CHANNEL REUPS WWE®’S ECW® THROUGH 2008

New York, N.Y., October 23, 2007 - SCI FI Channel and World Wrestling Entertainment® today announced that the hit program, ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling®, will continue on the network through 2008.

WWE is also the producer of the No. 1 weekly basic cable TV series, “Monday Night RAW®” on USA Network.

This year (Jan-Sept), SCI FI has been the #1 cable network for men ages 18-34 in ECW's Tuesday 10pm time period.

For more information go to ECW.com http://www.wwe.com/shows/ecw/ and www.SCIFI.com.
SCI FI Channel is a television network where "what if" is what's on. SCI FI fuels the imagination of viewers with original series and events, blockbuster movies and classic science fiction and fantasy programming, as well as a dynamic Web site (www.scifi.com) and magazine. Launched in 1992, and currently in 85 million homes,

SCI FI Channel is a network of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies.

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media and entertainment company headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto and London. Additional information on the company can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com .

Posted by Matt Loede at 5:36 PM | Permalink | Comments

Monday night's RAW was complete with a build to Sunday's Cyber Sunday PPV, and on a scary note we saw one of the more disturbing injuries we've seen in quite sometime on TV, and it came in of all places - the 2 out of 3 falls Women's title match with Candice Michelle and Beth Phoenix.

If you missed it, I will saw try and catch the highlights on WWE.com or elsewhere, as the injury took place with Michelle down 1 fall to none, and she went to the top rope for a move, and appeared to have lost her balance and fell straight down. The finish was called for right away, and Phoenix pinned her, ending the match. The reports this morning were that Candice suffered a broken collarbone and possibly had a concussion. WWE says she'll miss 4 to 6 weeks.

As far as the rest of the night went, the build was on for Sunday, and it was rather entertaining show from that standpoint. They are trying to sell basically a match with Shawn Michaels and Randy Orton, but yet keep Mr.Kenndy and Jeff Hardy fresh and on TV as if they have a shot to win the votes and be in the match. Not going to happen. It will be HBK and Orton, and it should be an outstanding match. As for Hardy and Kennedy, their time will come, just not here.

The main was a tag with Michaels and Hardy taking on Orton and Kennedy, and it was an okay match with a solid ending as HBK once again Superkicked Orton, setting up much of the same in their match on Sunday in DC at the PPV.

They also did a long brawl with Umaga and HHH, building them as the semi-main event as they will do battle in either a first blood, street fight, or cage. My first thought here is a street fight, as I think you can basically throw out the first blood, as they can do that in a street fight, and cage matches are about a dime a dozen. That's why my vote is for the street fight.

RAW also saw the debut of Davey Boy Smith's son Harry, who we've been waiting to see for sometime. It was kind of a lame debut, as there was no ring music or anything, just him in the ring telling people who he was, and then he and Carlito had a match in which Smith won with his Dad's running power slam. Another thing, this kid does not exactly look in the greatest of shape. Maybe that's coming now that he's on the main circut, we'll see.

Three other matches that were just fillers included: Brian Kendrick, Paul London and Mickie James beat Trevor Murdoch, Lance Cade and Melina, Cody Rhodes beat Shelton Benjamin, and Ron Simmons beat Santino Marella via DQ. They are building up towards Hardcore Holly and Rhodes being a team, and likely next week we'll see that twosome battle Benjamin and Charlie Hass. As for Marella, he continues to call out Steve Austin, so just give that time and it's coming.

All in all, not a bad way to start the week, they will push more on ECW tonight, along with who C.M. Punk will take on Sunday, and much of the same for Friday Night's SmackDown which will tape this evening.

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:04 AM | Permalink | Comments

Matt Loede and John Sefcik are back with another edition of Turnbuckle Talk! The pair speak of the upcoming Cyber Sunday, the on goings in the WWE, the SmackDown title picture, the release of Booker T. and the Kristal Marshall situation. Check out this latest edition of Turnbuckle Talk!

Posted by Matt Loede at 1:53 PM | Permalink | Comments

Tonight on Smack Down more matches for for Cyber Sunday were announced. The Finlay/Mysterio will either be a Shillelagh on a pole, no DQ or stretcher match. This rivalry seems to be turning away from the number 1 contender for the Heavy Weight Championship and may be headed towards taking on the US champ. Finlay faced Jeff Hardy with MVP interfering to give Hardy the win. Then Finlay interfered in the MVP/Mysterio match. These 4 gentleman could stir some good heat for the US title. AS for the Cyber Sunday stip it should be good any way the fans vote. Finlay and Mysterio are great performers and can carry a good match that will feature a good old fashion brawl.

Speaking of Hardy and MVP their Cyber Sunday match will choose either a boxing, mixed martial arts or wrestling. Hopefully the wrestling match wins as recent history of wrestlers going outside of their genre has been very poor to say the least. Wrestling is what they do best and let's leave it at that. Dumb stip matches only cheapen the event and insult the fans who paid their hard earned money to watch it.

It also seems we now are having the first official rivalry between ECW and Smackdown has begun between Kane and Big Daddy V. This will only make both shows stronger as we have seen already on ECW. As it appears the WWE is ready to kill off ECW it best they begin to integrate the talent now. This will only make the WWE's second brand stronger.

Posted by JSX at 9:03 PM | Permalink | Comments

Posted by Matt Loede at 4:31 PM | Permalink | Comments

Plans may be changing for a WWE Diva, as Kristal Marshall's profile has been removed from the SmackDown page on WWE.com. The Diva was recently involved in the storyline with GM Teddy Long, where the two were to get married before just saying "I do" Long had a "heart attack" and has been off TV since. In real life, Kristal is dating Bobby Lashley, who currently is trying to make it back after having surgery to repair his arm. With Lashley on the RAW brand, there is a thought she might be making the switch to the WWE's franchise show.

As far as bringing Long back and how they will explain Kristal not being on the show anymore, that is still up for discussion. The plan all along was for her to turn on Teddy, much like Lita did a few years back turning on Kane and joining up with then real-life boyfriend Edge. The pair went on to have a successful run in the company before Lita left the WWE for good. One would think if she was going to join up with Lashley, they would have to come up with some storyline, as Lashley is a face and it would be tough for her to just drop Long's storyline with her upon his return.

Posted by Matt Loede at 6:08 AM | Permalink | Comments

The news for fans (if there are any) for the ECW brand continues to get worse, as now the WWE has announced that ECW will be streamed on their website in full. What the breakdown on this basically means is that the company is concerned that Sci-Fi will not renew the contract to air ECW past this year, when the deal runs out. From a fan's perspective it appears that the ECW brand is heading towards a close. The company tried to do what it could to re-create the buzz that ECW had in the mid 90's, but truly it never came close.

By trying to bring back the original stars of ECW and water them down with regular matches, less violence and silly storylines with people like Kelly Kelly, Matt Striker and others, the brand was and still is on some nights very hard to watch. There have been a few bright spots, like C.M. Punk, the comeback of Steven Richards, what they have done recently with Big Daddy V, and even the Miz, who has gotten a push within the company since his bomb on SmackDown.

The real beginning of the end came last year in my opinion, when the company tried to put on an ECW only PPV - December to Dismember. It was by far the worst PPV the company has put out in years, and it was right after that they decided that Paul Heyman's services were no longer needed. In speaking to Tommy Dreamer after a house show here in Cleveland in December, he said he wouldn't be surprised to see Heyman return, but to date he is nowhere to be found.

What they will do with the ECW Title remains to be seen. I always thought that the brand would be a solid starting point for other wrestlers to move to SmackDown and then eventually RAW, but in looking at the way the company is running right now, it looks as if they are going to put the brand to a slow, crawling death.

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:41 AM | Permalink | Comments

So the seeds of a ECW/Smack Down merger begins. Its about f'n time to paraphrase old EC dub lingo. Since its rebirth the ECW was been a sad, emasculated shell of its former self. The only thing extreme about it has been how extremely boring it is. It gave us the worst pay per view in history with the 06 December to Dismember and its champs have hardly set the wrestling world on fire. I believe my 20 seconds getting my picture taken with the ECW belt at Wrestlemania 23 had more of an impact than any current or previous champ. To put it short ECW has only disappointed recently.

Tonight we actually did not have to suffer through a Kevin Thorn vs. some nondescript jobber match, nor watch Mike Knox give another sad performance in the ring. By infusing Kane along with Jessie and Festus taking on some of the few talented members of the ECW crew we actually had a decent show. Now its not close to Smack Down and has a long way to go to match RAW, but its still can entertain on a late Tuesday night. I was actually surprised how fast the show seemed to go tonight as I usually strain to stay interested until the main event on most nights.

As for the show itself, nothing much happened other than the preview of a possible merger, or talent share as the WWE is calling it. CM Punk teamed with Kane to take on his Cyber Sunday Rivals with Punk and Kane getting the win. Then later John Morrison took on The Miz with Big Daddy V interfering. Wait, I totally forgot, it looks like Balls Mahoney and Kelly Kelly are going out. Check that, like I said above, nothing much happened.

On a final note I would like to say good by and good luck to King Booker. Its sad to see a good performer leave as I feel he still has much to give. His reign as the World Heavy Weight Champ in my opinion was one of the best title reigns in recent times. So for one last time, All Hail King Booker!!!!!!!!

Posted by JSX at 10:07 PM | Permalink | Comments

On the heels of the company finally pulling the plug all together on ECW, it appears that a storyline will save the WWE's third brand after all. Reports state that the WWE is going to once and for all combine ECW and Smackdown together, and make it one large brand. The WWE's website is using it as a storyline, stating that there are "meetings" between Armando Estrada and Vickie Guerrero with the idea that the respective General Managers of ECW and Smackdown are close to a business agreement.

That deal would see talent from both brands compete on both ECW on Sci Fi and Friday Night Smackdown. Don't forget this is not a big deal from a logistic standpoint, as already the crews travel together, so putting a guy like a Rey Mystero on ECW would really be no big deal. The WWE realizes that ECW is by far and away the lesser of the third brand, and they want to try and save some of the talent over there and make it more interesting for the viewers. And in thinking about that, they should do whatever it takes to make both Tuesday nights and Friday nights better.

The other big news of the day is the release of three WWE stars. First the biggest name of all - King Booker. It's been known for sometime that Booker and the company did not see eye to eye, and he was upset over the treatment of his wrestling promotion in Texas. The last we heard of Booker he was on the RAW brand, and there was a lot of talk at him getting a title program with John Cena at the time, but it never happened. Of course with the release of Booker we also get the release of Sharmell, his real life wife.

Later in the day we had yet another release, this time Davari, who reportedly asked to be let go. Davari was not involved in many programs in his tenure with the company, and other than a couple of cruiserweight title matches, he was mostly a jobber that would lose to much bigger and over opponents.

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:30 PM | Permalink | Comments

Well RAW promised us 3 matches tonight featuring the champ Randy Orton against his potential Cyber Sunday foes. Unfortunately it was not as good as the 3 former champ Triple H had to face at No Mercy. Not that much should have been expected since the WWE was in England and usually nothing major happens when the boys aer overseas. All the matches ended with interference from one of the other Cyber Sunday candidates.

It definitely looks like they are setting up a feud between Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy, which is good since neither have a chance in wining the voted to face Orton. This is great in my opinion as its time to give Kennedy a push for some type of WWE gold. And since the WWE championship is a little crowded with Shawn Michaels, Triple H and Orton this is the best rout e for Kenndy. This will also help Jeff Hardy as it gives him some top level competition and let him prove he is a great singles wrestler.

I was a bit disappointed in Michaels return match as it ended very quickly in a disqualification due to Kennedy running in. It makes sense though, why give the fans a good return match for free, when Vinny Mac can sell it to us in 2 weeks. Its great to see Michaels back as it will not be the Triple H/Randy Orton show over and over again for the title.

The only other good thing to mention about RAW was the stipulation vote announced for the Triple H and Umaga match. Finally the fans get to have a vote that may take some decision making. The match can either be a street fight, first blood or steel cage match. This to me is a very hard choice because these men can put on one hell of a show in any of these stips. I personally would love to see a first blood match as these 2 monsters could do some serious damage. This could have the makings of the Cactus Jack/HHH Hell in the Cell match.

Posted by JSX at 10:09 PM | Permalink | Comments

On the heels of Sunday's PPV as well as RAW and ECW this past week there is quite a bit to talk about in terms of movement in the WWE. First off, the big news of the week is the return of Shawn Micahels to TV. Micahels comes back and will get involved in an angle with current WWE Champ Randy Orton, who "put Shawn out of action" a few months ago, even though Shawn left for much needed knee surgery.

The return of Micahels is a much needed boost for the company right now. He really does open the door for them to do a number of things. For one, he can team at any point and time (and trust me, he will) with Triple H for a quick series of matches as DX with Orton and Umaga. It's important to the company to keep the DX thing alive and well, as they still sell tons of merchandise with the DX stuff all over it, and would like to keep that going.

They also as stated above will push a series of matches with Micahels and Orton, starting with HBK being the overwhelming choice to take on Orton at Cyber Sunday in about three weeks. Micahels and former WWE Champ John Cena had two of the best matches of the year back when they fought at WM 23 and again on RAW in London about a month later. Micahels still has what it takes to give anyone a good match, and Orton has looked strong as of late, so I expect nothing less than a solid round of matches between HBK and Orton.

The remainder of RAW to me was a bit lackluster, as any time I have to sit through matches with the following wrestlers, I'm pretty much bored - Val Venis, the Highlanders, and then they threw us a six-womens tag match to boot. Too much jobber like wrestling here, despite the fact I did enjoy the Jeff Hardy-Ken Kennedy match, and was entertained by the end segment with Micahels coming out and going after Orton, that was very well done.

On to ECW, where the story of the week was the TV return of John Morrison, who I guess creative still loves because it took him one whole night on TV to beat the ECW Champ C.M. Punk clean with a reverse superplex. I have no idea as to why they do stuff like that. First off, how about starting him out against someone that him beating would be totally passable - such as Tommy Dreamer or Ballas Mahoney? Then why would you allow him to pin the champ clean? If nothing else, make it a double DQ with a pull apart for fans to want to see more, not a clean pin of a champ that gets less push than any I think I have ever seen.

They will announce the ECW title match for Cyber Sunday at noon today, and one would think you'll have either Big Daddy V or Morrison vs Punk with "extreme rules" as one of the stips and the one the fans will want to see picked for the match.

Posted by Matt Loede at 5:50 AM | Permalink | Comments

The passenger critically injured in an August car crash involving reality star Nick Hogan may need medical care for life. According to court papers obtained by the "St. Petersburg Times," the family of 22-year-old Marine and Iraq war veteran John Graziano can only hope that he will open and shut his eyes periodically. Graziano was the passenger August 26th when, according to police, Nick Hogan's Toyota Supra, quote, "inexplicably left the roadway," in Clearwater, Florida, jumped a median and slammed into a palm tree. The crash is under investigation. Nick Hogan suffered minor injuries as a result of the accident. The Hogan family star on the VH1 reality show "Hogan Knows Best."

Posted by Matt Loede at 4:56 AM | Permalink | Comments

Posted by Matt Loede at 5:57 AM | Permalink | Comments

The latest pay-per-view offering from the WWE will go down to me as one of the more bizarre, yet in the end more fulfilling PPV's we have seen in awhile. It had a solid range of emotions, from the stupid (pizza eating?!) to the strange endings (Finley vs Mysterio) to of course one of the best matches we have seen at a PPV in awhile, possibly the best since Michaels vs Cena at WrestleMania 23 in Randy Orton vs Triple H in a "Last Man Standing" match for the belt. All in all, the PPV took on another feel from the open when they gave Orton the belt, only to have him lose it, to, in the end, have him regain it right back.

I cannot argue with the WWE's ultimate decision to give Randy a title reign. While he has his moments of boredom to me, the crowd eats him up, and his heel persona right now is tops in the business, with only Edge comparing once he returns. If you are going to go with a heel champion on RAW, you really have no choice than to go with Orton. So for that, I think the WWE did the right thing. This PPV was a great indication that you can have a successful promotion without John Cena, and his injury might in the end be a shot for others to truly step up.

I give the upmost props to Triple H for doing what he did last night. I applaud him for being talked into getting the belt (I'm sure that part wasn't hard) but then as well for dropping it in an outstanding match that again, should get some consideration for Match of the Year. I will fully admit that I totally groaned at the start of the show when it was announced he and Orton would go at it for the strap, because you knew that he (HHH) would win. Then he beats Umaga clean, which took on the tone of H being a one man wrecking crew. Then though they did the right thing with his loss in the main event.

It sets up what should be a "Hell in the Cell" rematch for Cyber Sunday, and will lead to a series of matches between the two. Basically what it does is push ahead the program that was originally slated for early 2008 leading up to WrestleMania 24. Also don't dismiss those backstage love sessions between Batista and HHH, as that easily could lead to them having the main event or part of the main event mix at Mania.

The remainder of the card was crap for the most part. I encourage you to check out our "No Mercy Post Match" show for complete details on the remainder of the card as well as our announcement on the winner of our contest for a 2007 SummerSlam DVD and No Mercy T-shirt.

Posted by Matt Loede at 5:47 AM | Permalink | Comments

Matt Loede and John Sefick are back with an exciting review of WWE’s No Mercy from October 7th. The pair talk about each match in detail, as well as give their views on what went right, wrong, and what the WWE will look to do at Cyber Sunday coming up later in the month. The pair also announce their winner of the No Mercy Prediction contest. Sit back and enjoy this look back at No Mercy.

Posted by Matt Loede at 10:51 PM | Permalink | Comments

Join Matt Loede and John Sefcik as they take you through the entire card of No Mercy, complete with predictions, rumors, and tidbits around the WWE. Don't miss this exciting look at the upcoming WWE PPV - No Mercy! Click below to hear Matt and John and the complete preview!

Posted by Matt Loede at 2:08 PM | Permalink | Comments

Will peace prevail or will another legend be destroyed in the hollows of No Mercy? Find out when primal rage takes over as WWE Champion Randy Orton, Triple H, Batista, Rey Mysterio and Undertaker collide at WWE No Mercy on Sunday, October 7th, live at 8pm ET/5pm PT, only on Pay-Per-View. A World Wrestling Entertainment Production. Go to wwe.com for more details.

Listen to the Prematch No Mercy Podcast on Saturday for details on prizes and the giveaway!

Posted by Matt Loede at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Now just two days away from No Mercy, the WWE is still deciding on what to do with the WWE Title picture. For sure they are going to go with Randy Orton in the main event in some regard, and after that, the opponent is still up in the air. Right now there seems to be two options being bantered about. The first is which taking the Triple H and Umaga match and adding Orton, making it a main event triple threat for the title. The other is using the return of Chris Jericho, which appears to be for sure happening from reports I am hearing, and simply throwing him in the match and then giving him the title. Putting the belt on a returning Y2J is not that far fetched, and would likely give a bit of a ratings boost right off the bat.

As far as option one, I have stated over the past few days and will state again that I don't like the prospect of putting the belt on Triple H right now. I am confident we will see him with the strap, likely at WrestleMania 24, but to throw it on him now as a way to simply draw some quick ratings or to make the fans happy for awhile is a bad decision. HHH is getting some of the bigger pops without the belt, so like most people agree on - he does not need it to get over.

On another topic, we posted last night the 2007 WWE Survivor Series poster featuring what we are hearing is a returning Edge. The premise for Sunday and for Survivor Series is that Edge will interfere in the Batista-Khali match, and that will lead to something between Edge and Batista for the Survivor Series. I have no idea about why he is holding a chainsaw, but some have stated it could mean he'll do something to the Punjabi Prison structure, but I'm not really buying that one. Posters for PPV's are a dime a dozen, and I don't think that him holding a chainsaw has any real effect on what will happen on that show.

This weekend we will have No Mercy Pre and Post shows on the site. Be sure to check back all weekend long for all the breaking news, as well as our thoughts and predictions for the event. The prematch show will post Saturday, while the post match show will be online soon after the event ends on Sunday night.

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:32 AM | Permalink | Comments

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:51 PM | Permalink | Comments

With the scramble mode now in full effect for the WWE, the company is moving ahead with trying to get ready for Sunday's No Mercy PPV in Rosemont, IL. The company announced two more matches for Sunday, they are C.M. Punk vs Big Daddy V for the ECW strap, and for the SmackDown tag belts, MVP and Matt Hardy vs Undertaker and Kane.

Now with Cena on the shelf, as stated yesterday there are a number of wrestlers that can move up the ladder in a hurry if the company wants to push them in that direction. WWE over the past 6-7 years has lost stars, but none of them have quite had to carry the company like Cena. When Rock or Steve Austin would be gone, you'd always have the other picking up the slack. Back in the late 80's when Hulk Hogan left to film "No Holds Barred" you put Randy Savage in his place for a year. And of course through a lot of months in the 90's you always had the superstar duo of Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart to get ready for.

But with this situation, it's going to be tough to move forward, at least right away. Figure that John Cena was the headliner for the past two WrestleMania's (I don't count 21 as that was actually Batista vs HHH), and I can't remember the last PPV that Cena was not at the top of the card. That is what will make Sunday interesting, as they move forward and try to establish someone at this point to take over as champ. I threw out a few names yesterday, and here is a quick breakdown of what it looks like in terms of trying to move someone else to the top of the company.

* Ken Kennedy - This is the first and most obvious choice as many are just waiting for him to take over and be a main eventer in the company. They teased a face turn months ago, and if you wanted to, you could surprise everyone and make him a face again and he would be hugely successful. He has the mic skills, the wrestling skills, and he has "it" to be a major star in the WWE.

* Randy Orton - Of course with already being in the main event Sunday Orton could be the choice almost by default. He has that killer heel in him that makes a crowd react(unless he's fighting Cena and getting cheered by all the men in the audience). Since the Europe incident sometime ago, he has appeared to be on the path of behaving, and I think he could carry this thing for awhile till Cena returns.

* Umaga - Another guy they teased with a face turn, then came the switch back to heel and then a suspension. There is good in him (ala Darth Vader), as they use him as a heel and a face, like Monday, going after Triple H, then teasing going after Carlito. I don't know about putting the belt on him, but if they did, I think he could actually do the job. The question would be do you do it as a heel, face, or mix?

* Triple H - I gave some reasons yesterday why I do not want to see this at this time. In talking to my podcast co-host John Sefcik about this situation last night, he brought up a good point - H is much more effective going after the belt then when he has it. This does not mean he could not carry the load, as I know he could. I still think they will keep him as secondary main event guy until we get closer to Mania.

* Undertaker - This to me is the most interesting choice both for Sunday and the long term. If you throw him with Orton Sunday and he wins the belt, it actually would create a buzz and make sense. First, it makes sense due to the fact that Taker and Orton have a history. Then it makes sense as you would have the excitement of moving Taker back over to RAW. Also we all know that he is still a great worker and could carry this thing for more than a few weeks. He's the Nolan Ryan of the WWE - put him in and he's sure to give you a solid outing and everything he's got.

Posted by Matt Loede at 6:28 AM | Permalink | Comments

Posted by Matt Loede at 6:55 AM | Permalink | Comments

Think of the Cleveland Cavaliers losing LeBron James for a season with an injury. Or the Dallas Cowboys losing Tony Romo, or the New York Yankees losing Alex Rodriguez. That's how big the latest WWE injury to now former champion John Cena is.

Yes, I know that there are plenty of fans out there that are thrilled that Cena is gone for the next six months to a year, but trust me when I say that losing Cena is not a good thing for the business of the sport and for the WWE. As stated last night, like him or not, Cena was the wrestler on the current WWE roster that could carry that roster. And now, just like that, he's out.

As far as Sunday goes, the obvious thought is that Randy Orton will take on someone one-on-one after seeing what ended up being a very somber Vince McMahon make the Cena announcement last night on ECW. Right off the bat the name that comes to mind is Triple H, but of course, he already has a match with Umaga planned. The other thought would be to shift Undertaker over to RAW, since he has a history with Orton, and have him win the belt. Other than those two, your guess is as good as mine as to what they might do.

You could see the nature of the injury on McMahon's face last night, and rightfully so. McMahon knows that losing a champion mid-stream like this is a killer, and while the company was able to make due with losing the Taker and Edge on SmackDown, this does not compare. Cena was the biggest crowd reaction the past two years at WrestleMania, on both a positive and negative side, and always was the one guy that carried house shows over the last two years as well. Now with him down, there does not appear to be anyone on the roster that can carry the torch quite like Cena.

The one wrestler that everyone will pine to want to try and carry the torch left behind is Triple H, and I do see how that could be an answer, but I think long-term that could be a mistake. We all know that if there is one wrestler that tends to get a bit high on the ego trip when things are going his way, it's H, and with a belt around his waist and the title of "company savior," I think that things would go from okay to bad in a hurry. Don't also forget that like it or not, HHH is much better as a heel, and he likes being heel, so a long run as a face champion till Cena returns is unlikely.

Look for the company to scramble around, and to try and find a few guys that could carry the weight of Cena. They need badly to inject some new talent and life into the roster with Cena gone, and I can see wrestlers like Matt Hardy, Mr.Kennedy, MVP and Umaga getting even bigger pushes throughout both brands, while a returning Shawn Michaels, a possible comeback from Chris Jerhico, and a comeback of Edge should help things get back to normal is some way, shape or form.

Labels: john cena injury, new wwe champion, triple h wwe champ

Posted by Matt Loede at 6:50 AM | Permalink | Comments

The longest WWE Title run since Hulk Hogan has come to an end.

Love him or hate him, the latest WWE injury to a major superstar may be the most devastating in years, as current WWE Champion John Cena will miss the next six to eight months with a complete tear of his right pec. The injury took place last night here in Cleveland, as Cena took on Ken Kenndy in the main event on RAW. Cena gutted out the match, which ended with a tap out of Kennedy.

The latest word from the WWE is that Vince McMahon will make an announcement on ECW tonight, and will tell fans how the No Mercy PPV will go Sunday in terms of the main event. The scheduled main event of Randy Orton vs Cena in a Last Man Standing match will be changed.

Stay tuned to www.letswrestle.blogspot.com for all the latest in this major WWE storyline development.

Posted by Matt Loede at 7:35 PM | Permalink | Comments

Posted by Matt Loede at 9:17 AM | Permalink | Comments

The WWE will hold its collective breath today as champion John Cena will be undergoing an MRI after a major injury in the main event of RAW on Monday night here in Cleveland. Reports are going around that it is believed that Cena suffered a torn right pec muscle during his main event match with Ken Kennedy. Being the competitor that Cena is, he was able to gut out the match, and even take the post-match beating from Randy Orton to further push Sunday's main event "Last Man Standing" match at No Mercy in Rosemont.

The current vibe for Sunday was that Cena was going to beat Orton, and move on to another feud. Now with this possible development, there is no clear idea where the angle will go. If Cena is going to have to miss a large amount of time, or even 2-3 months for that matter, then they will have to move the belt, no question. The obvious choice is for Orton to win in some sort of gimmick angle on Sunday to put Cena on the shelf for awhile, or if Orton can work the match depending on his status, then they possibly could hot shot the belt onto someone else Monday night at RAW.

If it's not Orton, then who? My few guesses would be Ken Kennedy, who lost to Cena last night, Triple H, which I think they would avoid to do that slow build to get him the strap back, how about the ultimate swerve and Chris Jericho, who is rumored to be making his return on Sunday? Another possible selection could be Umaga, who made his return last night and has been in the main event type of mix since his WrestleMania program with Bobby Lashley.

The remainder of RAW was a build to No Mercy, with the angle with HHH and Umaga moving forward, as well as the woman's title angle with Beth Phoenix and Candice Michelle (PLEASE GET RID OF THAT MUSIC). Looks to me that Bob Holly and Cody Rhodes will eventually kiss and make up and be a tag team from the tease from last night, and more comedy from Hornswoggle and Melina, which keeps us remembering each time that they don't want to forget that it's all in just and we can't get too serious at any point and time.

Posted by Matt Loede at 6:20 AM | Permalink | Comments