http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/blog.php?5312-RomanFlare Wrestling News and Discussion - eWrestlingNews.com Community en Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:07:46 GMT vBulletin 10 http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/images/misc/rss.jpg http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/blog.php?5312-RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?42891-NWO-to-Summerslam-Booking-the-Road-to-Rome-(Part-1) Sat, 09 Jun 2012 20:16:35 GMT From No Way Out to Wrestlemania, Rome will be booking the 4 singles Mens titles at each PPV--I'll be listing each match and finish, with comments.

No Way Out

WWE Championship - Steel Cage Match: CM Punk (C) vs Daniel Bryan vs Kane
Punk hits the floor and escapes as Kane taps out to the Yes lock. Punk retains in the confusion, sets up for Punk-Bryan rematch.

World Heavyweight Championship - Steel Cage Match: Sheamus (C) vs Alberto Del Rio
Sheamus plants Del Rio in the ring and covers him for the 1-2-3. Del Rio carried out to sell beating by Sheamus.

Intercontinental Championship - Singles Match: Christian (C) vs Cody Rhodes
Christian retains by DQ as Rhodes smacks Christian with a steel chair.

United States Championship - Singles Match: Santino (C) vs The Miz
Our only title change of the night, Miz attempts to stabilize his career by defeating Santino for the title.

Money in the Bank

World Heavyweight Championship - Singles Match: Sheamus (C) vs Cody Rhodes
Cody earns the title match after beating Del Rio in a #1 Contender's Match. However, Cody gets fed to Sheamus, eating a Brogue Kick for the 1-2-3.

WWE Championship - 60 Minute Iron Man Match: CM Punk (C) vs Daniel Bryan
Trying to recapture the Main Event magic of last year's event, Punk and Bryan wrestle to a 2-2 draw. Big Johnny strolls down, in the name of People Power, sends the match into Sudden Death where Bryan locks in the YES! Locke and Punk taps.

Intercontinental Championship - Singles Match: Christian (C) vs Damien Shadow
Making a name for himself quickly, Shadow gets a title shot only two PPVs into his tenure. And while Christian retains here, this won't be the last we see of Shadow in this title picture.

United States Championship - Triple Threat: Miz (C) vs Santino vs Swagger
Rematch between Miz and Santino with the All American-American added for a mix. Santino eats a Swagger Bomb, but the Skull-Crushing Finale falls Swag and Miz retains.

MitB Winners:
Raw: Dolph Ziggler - After getting away from Vickie, things are looking up for the former Cheerleader.
Smackdown: Wade Barrett - He returns from injury to win, but will stick to the mic for an extra month (after the win) to make sure he's all squared to go.

Summerslam

World Heavyweight Championship - Six Pack Challenge: Sheamus (C) vs Randy Orton vs Cody Rhodes vs Del Rio vs Kane vs Henry
A returning Orton once again inserts himself into the title picture, as does the ever present Kane and Mark Henry. This is really nothing more than a ploy to cram as many stars into the match as possible (I'm trying to think like the WWE), but also a way to stamp Sheamus's power as the champion as he'll out out clean and still wearing gold. Tease at the end of a Wade Barrett cash, but nothing comes of it.

WWE Championship - Fatal Four Way: Daniel Bryan (C) vs CM Punk vs John Cena vs Big Show
History galore in this match. Big Show dominates in spots, but ultimately is the one who does the job by tapping to the YES! Lock. Both DB-Punk and DB-Cena are teased before Dolph sneaks in and Zig Zags Bryan. The WWE title picture gets ever murkier. Note: Big Show retires after this one.

Intercontinental Championship - Singles: Christian (C) vs Drew McIntyre
A Damien run in distracts Christian and he eats a Future Shock DDT. However, Damien jumps in and breaks the count, DQing Christian, but allowing him to keep the title. Damien then lays out McIntyre and poses for the crowd holding the Intercontinental Title.

United States Championship - Singles: Miz (C) vs Chris Jericho
Desperate for a spot on the PPV, Big Johnny offers Jericho a title shot. Jericho agrees, seals the deal, only to find out it's for the US title. Reluctantly Jericho participates. Quality match with Jericho putting over another young talent. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?42891-NWO-to-Summerslam-Booking-the-Road-to-Rome-(Part-1) http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?41313-Lesnar-Taping-the-leaks-of-the-dam Tue, 03 Apr 2012 17:05:04 GMT Woo! LESNAR! YAY! Doesn't it feel great to say his name? Isn't it great to see him on TV again!? Dagger-Chest! On WWE Programming!

How well do you people know me?

Lesnar. Yeah, I like Lesnar. I'm not an MMA fan, but I really do like the man. While he's not the most technically sound wrestler, that was years ago. He could very easily be better--who knows? I'm queuing up Lesnar v. Giant Bernard in Japan right now. The only thing that could've made me more excited about Raw (if the crowd wasn't chanting his name--Yes, hot crowds are great, but fuckin' spoilers, guys) would've been the surprise return of Lesnar's last opponent in a WWE Ring.

But one thing really worries me about Lesnar being back. It was worrying when Rock v. Cena was announced, though nowhere NEAR as much as Lesnar. While Lesnar is another man who will bring in non-traditional WWE/Wrestling fans, the Rock was the Icon. They could bill it as a Icon v. Icon, and they did. Lesnar v. Cena? Should we see who can dead lift or squat the most? No? 'Ight.

Lesnar is a stop-gap. He's not a fix, he's not a permanent fixture for years to come, although I expect to see him a lot over the next few months and maybe all the way to Wrestlemania 29. At least a lot more than the Rock. The Brock (see what I did there? Witty AND insightful.) feuding with John Cena is too soon. We're still in the afterglow of Wrestlemania and the Rock's win. So why did they bring Lesnar in this fast?

Creative and/or Vince have no idea what else to do. Cena is going to feud yet again with a man who hasn't been in a WWE ring with any real regularity for years (none in the case of Lesnar, but at least he wrestled in Japan). They could've easily gone the slow, woo-is-me heel turn angle, or had Cena come out and do his best impression of HHH on the Rock's back. They could've had Lord Tensai bowl over the man, though that's not much better than Lesnar.

The point is, Vince and/or Creative is trying to plug up the bad ratings with big names--when recent ratings have suggested it doesn't work for shit. The Rock didn't do much for weekly ratings and Survivor Series, so they're hoping Lesnar might improve it. I'm going to go out on a very, very sturdy limb and say it will increase for a week or two, then retract. Why? Because this isn't new. As much as humans seem to like old and classic, we strive even more for new. Rock isn't new. Lesnar isn't new. The Punk Pipe Bomb was an old flavour with a Pepsi Twist. Nexus Invasion was the same.

The WWE isn't producing new stars. Whether it's the new talent or Vince losing his genius is up to debate. If the WWE cannot produce more top tier characters, top tier HEELS, in the next year, they are in serious, serious trouble. Name the top heel (John Cena doesn't count) in the company right now. Chris Jericho? John Laryngitis*? While we all love Jericho, I don't see him sticking around past Wrestlemania 29. And Laryngitis isn't a wrestler! Who's next? Dolph Ziggler? Cody Rhodes? Both of those men had mid-card title matches in the last three days. While Cody may be on the up-n-up, Dolph seems to be slipping slightly in limbo.

Who else--Wade Barrett? Injured, a terrible shame. The Miz? Isn't even close to what he was a year ago. Mark Henry and Kane are aging. Del Rio? Del Rio, like the Miz, seems to be a shell of his former glory. Quite honestly, I've run out of heels I can name. The two biggest names in the WWE since the turn of the year have been John Cena and CM Punk. Faces will always be top, but when they don't have that many good heels to step over to the top, the product suffers.

WWE--Stop bringing back old talent for one, maybe two feuds, get your heads out of your asses, and remember how to make heels. When your go-to ratings gimmick is to bring back a former wrestler to dominate the FACE OF THE COMPANY--who then gets CHEERED and ADORED for doing so--You've. Fucked. Up.

*Laryngitis is actually really entertaining. He's a fresh take on the old "Evil Boss" character and it works. Funkasaurus is another new, fresh character. You can feel a heartbeat, but it still isn't very strong. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?41313-Lesnar-Taping-the-leaks-of-the-dam http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?41290-Kurt-Angle-has-Always-been-Right-About-Mania Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:35:42 GMT While I cannot find an exact quote from the master of Twatter, it goes something like this. "I won at Wrestlemania! That counts twice!" And Kurt Angle is correct if not underselling it. This quote symbolizes exactly how I feel about two of the best matches on the card last night--the Winner will forever be the better man. The losers of these matches will never, EVER be able to make the fans forget their loss, no matter how many times they go over. I am, of course, speaking of CM Punk vs Chris Jericho and Rock v. Cena.

CM Punk (C) vs Chris Jericho -- WWE Title Match

Starting with the one you have to read a bit into (and because I want to keep the polarizing match for later), I feel very strongly that in WWE Mythos, CM Punk will forever be better than Chris Jericho. No string of victories or title changes could convince me otherwise. Mark the date in history--on April 1st, 2012, CM Punk surpassed Jericho in everything but longevity.

And as my proof, I turn to the match itself. With the (sometime awkward) build up of the match, from Jericho's return and failures to win at the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber, and the great ability of the two talents in the ring, this match had all the makings for a classic. And it was a classic. With a weird late stipulation that only seemed to be there for some early drama, the match went back and forth. Technical prowess and counters ruled the day as the two went at it. But in the end, Punk outlasted Jericho--including a nasty suplex-powerslam hybrid from the apron to the floor, several Walls of Jericho, and a CodeBreaker spot (that is getting supremely dull, to be honest*)--and made Jericho tap to the Vise.

Wait, what?

Jericho tapped.

This is why CM Punk will forever be better than Chris Jericho. Jericho came back, basically aiming straight for Punk, and yet he tapped on the grandest stage of them all. In the current era of the WWE, tapping is rare. Submitting to your opponent is dozens of times worse than just getting pinned or KO'd. It means you consciously gave up. And because Jericho tapped on such a large stage and couldn't make Punk tap after all that back abuse, Jericho has a superior.


Rock vs Cena

I will reserve my ultimate judgement of the finish--I don't want to be another blog that spews shit one way or the other. I liked the match--I thought the pacing was fun, I thought they made a great move by having two finishes in the middle of the match and then continue almost like they never happened, and I thought both were shown pretty resilient and powerful. I'm even happy with Cena's ability to play the pseudo-heel of the match.

But John Cena is forever second banana to the Rock--End of Discussion. John Cena could whip and abuse the Rock for another year, then squash him in a 5 second I Quit match at next year's 'Mania, and the Rock would still be higher on the pantheon. All the talk about how he needed that win. But he couldn't do it. He lost to a Man in only his second wrestling match in years. He lost in his opponent's home town. And nothing can erase that memory. Nothing can erase that night.

Ladies and Gentlemen, John Cena's ceiling has been found. John Cena can never surpass the Rock. Ever.


*CM Punk corner springboard into counter has been used like crazy whenever CM Punk has a big time match. Randy Orton RKO'd him from it at last Mania--a spot featured in ALL THREE of their PPV matches--and I do believe John Cena countered it too. I know it looks cool, but it's boring me at this point. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?41290-Kurt-Angle-has-Always-been-Right-About-Mania http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?41000-If-WWE-Wrestlers-were-MLB-Franchises Wed, 07 Mar 2012 00:37:53 GMT Major League Baseball's spring season is in full swing, and I'm really bored, so I've decided to assign each WWE Wrestler (no Divas) to a MLB Franchise. The criteria are probably pretty vague and there might be times where I don't have much reasoning (gut calls). Without further ado:

American League

New York Yankees -- John Cena
Reasoning: I don't get why I have to reason this one. He's won a lot of championships and a lot of people hate him. They're perfect.

Texas Rangers -- CM Punk
Reasoning: Reigning Champion, easily one of the best teams in the entire league. Like the Rangers, Punk might be the most complete package right now.

Boston RedSox -- Chris Jericho
Reasoning: Has won titles, but has never been a long time "top" team. They're both aging, but they're both very capable of winning it all. Both are very, very dangerous.

Detroit Tigers -- Dolph Ziggler
Reasoning: Had one key attribute (talent/pitching) and has acquired the other (mic skills/hitting). Looks to have a fantastic year this year.

LA Angels -- Daniel Bryan
Reasoning: Not the team everyone expected to make big waves, but has always been one of the best in the entire league. Now both the team and DB are swinging at the top and capable of taking it.

Tampa Bay Rays -- Del Rio
Reasoning: I just wanted to put Del Rio on this list... I don't have a good reason.

Minnesota Twins -- Big Show
Reasoning: They'll be good and might get into important situations, but probably won't win and are kinda over the hill.

Washington Nationals -- Brodus Clay
Reasoning: Both will be (or were, in Brodus's case) better than expected this year. SOMEBODY CALL MY MOMMA!

Toronto BlueJays -- Jinder Mahal
Reasoning: Surprised to hear they're both from Canada!

Cleveland Indians -- The Rock
Reasoning: Better in the movies then they ever were on the field! BAZING! Couldn't help myself.

Kansas City Royals -- R-Truth
Reasoning: Gotta keep R-Truth down. CONSPIRACY!

Chicago White Sox -- Khali
Reasoning: Former world champion, but (in my opinion) never really that good to begin with. Fluke!

Baltimore Orioles -- Justin Gabriel
Reasoning: Get it? Because Justin flies? This might be a little unfair to Justin as he seems to be getting somewhere on Smackdown.

Seattle Mariners -- Tyler Reks
Reasoning: I got nothing. Neither are too good in their sport? Reks, of course, being not used at all on live TV.

Oakland As -- Sin Cara
Reasoning: Had one good year, now hasn't been on TV for months.

National League

Philadelphia Phillies -- Randy Orton
Reasoning: He's won titles and he's the most touted wrestler on his division, just like the Phillies.

Chicago Cubs -- Rey Mysterio
Reasoning: They won a title long ago and their best days are far behind them.

Cincinnati Reds -- Wade Barrett
Reasoning: This is self serving, but both are young and are looking to be major players this year. Both could be wearing gold come October.

St. Louis Cardinals -- The Miz
Reasoning: Was on fire last year, this year... not so good.

San Fransisco Giants -- Kane
Reasoning: Way too much hair. Plus they both play an important role and are still pretty damn good.

Arizona Diamondbacks -- William Regal
Reasoning: They can still go! Seriously, they're both great.

Atlanta Braves -- HHH
Reasoning: Use to dominate, now just kinda sits there.

LA Dodgers -- Mark Henry
Reasoning: Got good, then kinda disappeared o_o

Miami Marlins -- Cody Rhodes
Reasoning: They just keep getting better!

Milwaukee Brewers -- Santino
Reasoning: Is reving up to a good run! Definitely a fan favorite (or MVP, in Brewer's case).

Colorado Rockies -- Christian
Reasoning: Has been great in the past, but injures have hindered them the last few years, but still tasted gold (however short).

Pittsburgh Pirate -- Ezekiel Jackson
Reasoning: Had a few good spurts, but nothing ever really sustainable.

San Diego Padres -- Johnny Curtis
Reasoning: It took me a few minutes to remember both of them. I haven't seen them on TV yet, but that's my fault.

New York Mets -- Drew McInytre
Reasoning: Was once the "chosen one", but hasn't lived up to billing yet. Neither are being taken seriously at all right now.

Houston Astros -- Heath Slater
Reasoning: They're still playing/wrestling?



This list is for fun--debate freely. If I did this again, I'm sure they're be major differences outside of the top 5-6. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?41000-If-WWE-Wrestlers-were-MLB-Franchises http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40895-Wrestlemania-Season-Reality-Era Tue, 28 Feb 2012 18:57:51 GMT *Note: Credit to DUBS for the label "Reality Era".

Three of the four already announced matches are taking a noticable turn towards the same direction: Realism. I don't mean "no kayfabe", but more in the sense of "shoot" statements thrown into regular promos. Let's go example by example.

Chris Jericho vs CM Punk (C) for the WWE Championship
After watching Raw last night, in particular the opening segment, this idea was launched. And it was launched by CM Punk's belittling of Chris Jericho on the microphone. While Jericho's promo was great, Punk took it to an upper echelon that really made me think there was animosity between these two wrestlers. Let's look at his most vicious quote:

"You were never really the man like how I'm the man, were you?" ~ CM Punk

That quote right there, plus the rest after it, drives home this idea very clearly: CM Punk was talking about Chris Irvine. His writing, his game shows, his band--all poking at the fact that Chris Jericho has NEVER, EVER been the top dog in the company. Outside of when he was the Undisputed Champion, Chris Jericho has never held the WWE Title. Don't you think that eats at Jericho a little bit? Sure, he's won countless other titles and has been the World Champion something like 5 times--but never held the WWE Title? Maybe I'm over analyzing this, but Jericho's facing when he says that quote is absolutely priceless. Jericho made it look like CM Punk just shot his dog--and it was great.

Then CM Punk starts taking shots at Chris Brown, the Miz, and Jericho's jacket and was hilarious.

HHH vs Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell
This one is great because of all the reasons HHH and Undertaker laid out. Going back to Raw Febtober 20th, the Undertaker really digs into HHH's skin. Saying he's afraid he can't do what his friend Shawn Michaels couldn't do. And then HHH snaps and starts yelling at the Undertaker before accepting his challenge, but not before making some weird suit-tie metamorphosis analogy.

Before this even happened, you had HHH bragging he ended the Dead Man--that the Undertaker couldn't even leave the ring by himself. That Taker had won the battle, but HHH had won the war. HHH humanized the Undertaker, he beat him to a bloody pulp but couldn't seal the deal. Then the Undertaker comes back, demands a match, and HHH blows him off. "Bad for Business". Then Taker starts playing dirty.

This rivalry isn't just about these two men or the "era" that HHH (and Jericho?) keep alluding too. This isn't just about the Streak. HHH is a man who was once at the top of his game, has aged, and has decided to take a desk job. Undertaker is a man who's aged even more so and really only has his legacy left--he can't leave without a shadow of a doubt that no one truly beat him at Wrestlemania. This match is the result of their two desires--Undertaker gets another chance to prove he's unbeatable at Wrestlemania and HHH gets to prove that not only is he still the man he use to be, that he can be greater then he ever was.

Rock vs Cena
Laying aside my personal feelings, this match represents the best of this idea. Cena's risen to fame while the Rock was gone. The Rock's biggest fans are Cena's biggest haters. This is a clash of eras, a clash of egos, and a clash of lifestyles.

Say what you will, in the end the Rock left for greener pastures because he felt he had nothing left to do in the WWE. Cena lives and bleeds the WWE and the fans. From a Cena fan point of view, this about the returning hero against the man who has held up the company for the last 7 or 8 years.

From a Rock fan point of view, this is the returning Hero set to put out the biggest flaw in the company. This is about the "Great One" returning to prove he is still the best the business has ever seen.

Conclusion
While the Rock-Cena example is much shorter because I don't want to let my personal bias seep into it, I feel this blog expresses my thoughts perfect--the three major storylines going into Wrestlemania are all very real, with a few shoot statements in them (from the looks of it) and I can't be more excited.

So yeah, World Title chase? Step it up D: ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40895-Wrestlemania-Season-Reality-Era http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40816-Cena-and-the-Great-One-by-the-Roman-One Thu, 23 Feb 2012 06:33:30 GMT "Ya know what? Vince is probably gonna fine me for this one, but the only reason he came back in the first place was to promote Fast Five and launch his twitter account."

Disclaimer: I'm not a Cena supporter--Nothing against the man but there are characters I'm more interested in on WWE shows. I'm also not an "Attitude Era Fan"--I watched WCW as a kid for awhile, then I didn't pick wrestling up again until sometime around JBL v. Cena at Wrestlemania 23.4 times Pi. Here's a fun fact: I've seen one Rocky match. Ever. I've seen hundreds of Jericho matches, hundreds of Punk matches, a shit ton of Cena matches--but 1 Rocky Match.

The Opinion: Cena should beat Rock clean.

The Rock has no business winning this match. The only people who can't see why are the kids--and they're pulling for Cena anyway. Lemme just flat out outline it:

1) Did you see the Survivor Series tag match? Did you see the "Rock return to his former glory?" Really? Really? Really? You know what I saw? An older wrestler who buried two men and his own tag partner in a matter of minutes and failed to live up to the hype. Ignoring the complete and utter burial of the entire WWE lockerroom since a man who hasn't had a match in YEARS upon YEARS can just waltz in a destroy two men (who just whip his 'face of the brand' tag partner)--he was AVERAGE. There was nothing special in his time in the ring. Brodus "Funkasaurus" Clay was more entertaining in his squash matches than the Rock was in his. And it really was a Squash Match--ring rust and all, the Rock completely obliterated Miz and Truth--so bad, in fact, the Miz is still feeling the after effects. Fun fact of the day: The Rock's Summerslam Role was "Super Cena"--same shit, different brand on the package.

2) Chris Jericho can still go. This may seem rather abstract, but Chris and the Rock were around for a long time--and apparently had some great matches together. But when I watch Jericho still go at it, then go back and watch the Rock at Summerslam, I have to wonder: "What in the hell do people see in this man?" Even Jericho's promos are better! The Rock walks in, throws a few insults at his designated targets of the night, makes sweet mouth love to the audience's ass, then leaves. Jericho doesn't even say anything and drops a better promo--and when he does speak, he has the audience in the palm of his hand, like the Rock is suppose to. The Rock is still using scripts from 2000 when Jericho has continued to evolve.

3) The final and most important: A Rock win does nothing. Literally nothing. He's just going to be gone until he has another box office pile of shit he needs to hype to break even. It's another high profile win on his resume--like the time he beat the Icon of the Era before him, Hulk Hogan. Oh, I should correct myself--a Rock win does one thing: buries the entire locker room. Again. If a man who hasn't had a singles match in forever (he's ancient history in Professional Wrestling time frames) can waltz in, with one tag match as warm up, and defeat the man who has often been booked as the best in the company--you're saying this one man is better than anyone in the locker room. You're saying that the era the Rock came from, that locker room, is better then the current. That's completely ape shit stupid. A Cena win is a passing of the torch--the Icon of the "Attitude Era" to the current era. With HHH and Taker looking to completely disappear from the squared circle, this is literally the WWE's last chance to prove they can get over the past. Let HHH and Taker go out in a bang--they're living legends. But don't let an ember of the era gone by defeat the icon of this current era*. Cena losing to Rock would be the final nail in the coffin--he will never win back the haters anyway. Don't go heel turn and swap the adults for the kids. Give Cena the win, like you gave the Rock, then in 15 years, job Cena out to the new Icon.

Tl;dr -- The Rock is just SuperCena with a new coat of paint--actually, an old coat of paint. A coat of paint that's been around for close to a decade. Maybe 2. Put the Rock under and let him come back for Wrestlemania 29 to get his HoF induction and promote "Fast Six: Why are you still buying this shit? Oh, right--because you never grew up."

*Chris Jericho, while from the same era, has also been around during the "PG Era", and thus is a trans-era performer. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40816-Cena-and-the-Great-One-by-the-Roman-One http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40716-The-Smackdown-Chamber-What-No-Orton-means Thu, 16 Feb 2012 03:51:04 GMT Spoilers, spoilers: Randy Orton is out of the Chamber because of an injury suffered during/after his match with the Big Show on Monday Night Raw--and... Spoilers, spoilers: Randy Orton is out of the Chamber because of an injury suffered during/after his match with the Big Show on Monday Night Raw--and he's already been replaced via a Smackdown show. So the new roster is:

Daniel Bryan (C)
Wade Barrett
Cody Rhodes
Big Show
Santino
Great Khali

What a chamber, right? If you can't tell, the roster is listed in chances of making it out with the title. Let's go in reverse order in reason:

Great Khali - No chance in hell. He's been back for roughly a month, has no right to wear a title anytime soon.

Santino - While it may be more of a joke entrant at this point, I like this a lot better than Mark Henry. Henry would've been the third big man--two too many. Santino has no real chance to win this. At all. Just slightly more likely than Khali.

Big Show - Rumored match with O'Neil, so this is a big no. Still more possible than Santino.

Cody Rhodes - My expected "MVP" of the PPV, I expect Cody to have a big, BIG impact. I honestly think he'll go from first two to last two. He's a great wrestler and this will be his final stepping stone to dropping the intercontinental title and arriving at the main event. Still, he's already holding a title and having him hold two of different value seems like a dumb idea heading to Wrestlemania.

Wade Barrett - If Bryan doesn't leave with the title, it'll be this man who takes it from him. While I'm a Wade Mark, I think this is the best option for Wrestlemania. I know no one will expect him to drop the title at 'Mania, which is why I think Bryan is the favorite, but I doubt anything is really in the works for Wade at 'Mania and a triple threat for the WHC would be GREAT! It'd be the best way for the "new guys" to show they're here to stay.

Daniel Bryan - The champion! Always favor the champion unless Cena is involved. Hopefully DB shows his mean streak, but don't count on that. I expect him to be #5 or #6 in this match, because Vince doesn't think he could enter in the top 2 and "realistically" retain. But the biggest reason for me thinking DB will walk away with the title still around his waist is simple: A title change here makes a Sheamus victory at Wrestlemania seem a lot less likely. Sheamus sure as hell won't take on the WWE champion, so DB retaining the title to drop it to Sheamus at Wrestlemania is the most likely option thinking from a creative perspective. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40716-The-Smackdown-Chamber-What-No-Orton-means http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40395-Where-are-they-now-PPV-Main-Event-Winners Sat, 14 Jan 2012 00:14:21 GMT Going from the Royal Rumble to TLC, I'm going to look at the Main Event Winners from each 2011 PPV and look in on where they are now and how I feel so far removed from the PPVs. Main Event means Last Match on the Card.

Royal Rumble: Alberto Del Rio (Royal Rumble Match)
Then: Royal Rumble winner! IT IS HIS DESTINY TO GO ON TO WRESTLEMANIA!

Now: Wrestlemania loss, Money in the Bank winner, 2 WWE Title runs in the year--pretty good. But right now? Sidelined with a groin injury.

Elimination Chamber: John Cena (Elimination Chamber Match)
Then: Won the Raw WWE Championship #1 Contender Elimination Chamber Match for a shot at the title at Wrestlemania.

Now: WWE Title reigns in 2011 (although he lost at Wrestlemania), continued rivalry against the Rock, now feuding with Kane. Average year for Cena, really.

Wrestlemania: The Miz (WWE Title Defense over John Cena)
Then: BIG Win for the Miz at 'Mania.

Now: Feuding with R-Truth after a pretty good year for the Miz, just getting back into the WWE Title Race after a rivalry with A-Rye drug him through the mud.

Extreme Rules: John Cena (WWE Title Victory over Miz (c) and John Morrison)
Then: Goddamnit. Another Cena reign.

Now: Feuding with Kane and The Rock. Not as bad as it seemed when it first happened.

Over the Limit: John Cena (WWE Title Defense against the Miz--I Quit)
Then: DA DA DUUUUN! SUPER CENA!

Now: What a terrible booking, even now. At least Cena is out of the title picture with Kane.

Capitol Punishment: John Cena (WWE Title Defense against R-Truth)
Then: Lame, terrible match.

Now: Cena is out of the picture, but R-Truth is on the rise! Might actually be a better match now.

Money in the Bank: CM Punk (WWE Title Victory over Cena)
Then: Holy Shit! What a match, what a moment!

Now: The current reigning champion, albeit with a break in the middle. Looks like he could defend his title successfully at Royal Rumble.

Summerslam: Alberto Del Rio (WWE Title Victory over Punk--Money in the Bank Cash-in)
Then: Del Rio finally fulfills his destiny!

Now: I don't like the decision to have him win it anymore. It was a terrible reign and did nothing for him--and now he's injured so he can think about it for weeks.

Night of Champions: HHH (No-DQ over CM Punk)
Then: What? So much lame in such a small finish.

Now: HHH isn't on TV much anymore, so I still don't understand the point of this match anymore.

Vengeance: Alberto Del Rio (WWE Title Victory over Cena--Last Man Standing)
Then: Super Cena goes down, Del Rio gets second shot.

Now: Again, a kinda shitty reign for Del Rio.

Hell in a Cell: Alberto Del Rio (WWE Title Defense over Cena/Punk--Hell in a Cell)
Then: Okay match--the post-match was the most important part.

Now: Forgettable match, Del Rio injured, Punk holding the title, Cena out of the title picture. Nothing good really came from the match itself.

Survivor Series: Rock and Cena (Over Miz and Truth)
Then: The Rock looked good!

Now: He hasn't been around since. I still think this took away some of the aura around Cena-Rock.

TLC: CM Punk (WWE Title Defense against Del Rio and Miz)
Then: Great match!

Now: Punk is still the champion, though that is to be expected since this was the last WWE PPV.

Total Main Event Wins:
Del Rio - 4
Cena - 5
CM Punk - 2
HHH - 1
Rock - 1
Miz - 1

6 men won a combined 14 PPV Main Events (1 tag match). Del Rio and Cena won 9 themselves, Punk only had 2 (although he beat Cena at Summerslam, but it wasn't the "last match"). ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40395-Where-are-they-now-PPV-Main-Event-Winners http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40175-My-Take-on-the-WWE-Ratings-Problem Mon, 26 Dec 2011 16:39:45 GMT I'll make this short and sweet--the WWE is missing something hard to notice, but monstrous problem when you do see it. A few clues to see if you can notice it.

• HHH was one of the better ones.
• Nexus and Wade Barrett SHOULD have been this.
• Mark Henry was almost there, but his groin pull might've stopped him.

Figure it out?

Unstoppable Heel. HHH as a heel was unstoppable--he buried faces on PPV cleanly and moved on. Nexus was just laying people out and did it for awhile. And Mark Henry was getting there--he was strong and pretty unstoppable, but I don't know if I can say he lasted long enough.

The WWE needs a heel that ascends to the top and holds that title forever. I truly believe the WWE Universe prefers to hate than to love--Cheering someone is okay, but making the crowd HATE you makes you a star to them. Plus, when a heel holds a title, we get to watch faces (who we feel more attached to chasing the dream) take on the heel and try to be the one to upset them.

WWE Heels are sad. Pathetic. They're almost all cowards--no, sneak attacks aren't cowardly, they're smart. But a strong heel isn't going to turn tail and run without taking a hit--a strong heel stands his ground until the face starts getting it on him, thumbs his eye and retreats. The current WWE heels are underdogs the way they act. That should NEVER BE THE CASE. Bad WWE! BAD!

The Heel needs to be unstoppable. He needs to go cleanly over the faces on PPV for the majority of his title run, with few DQ or Screwjobs--unless the point is to make the stable or team the top wankoffs (Evolution, Nexus). The point is the crowd should believe that the Heel Champion is Goliath and the Face is David. Crowds. LOVE. Underdogs. And I have a perfect example of this style of champion and challenger that has been on fire the last month or two.

Zack Ryder and Dolph Ziggler. Ziggler has held the title for awhile and has looked fantastic. He's defeated Ryder multiple times on PPV with the title on the line. And when Ryder finally won? The place went NUTS. People LOVE Ryder and HATE Ziggler (and Vickie). People were so damn excited to see Ryder finally win over the dominating Ziggler. And, to be honest, the storyline was PERFECT by the WWE. People will say "Punk v. Cena" or "Orton v. Christian", but I believe "Dolph v. Zack" was, in fact, the best Storyline and Execution the WWE put out all year and it's not done.

So, to recap:

The WWE needs a strong heel that goes over faces cleanly. The Fans need to believe the face winning is an upset. ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40175-My-Take-on-the-WWE-Ratings-Problem http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40138-Only-Viable-Cena-Turn Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:57:23 GMT Since you actually clicked this, I can safely assume that you didn't just roll your eyes at another "Cena Heel Turn" blog. Bare with me on this one as I think it is actually a great way for Cena to turn heel and actually shows that, if the WWE did do this, they are well aware of their own faults.

1) Put the WWE Championship Match, containing Champion Punk, after The Rock vs Cena.
This is UNFATHOMABLE. Rock v. Cena is the biggest match in awhile and it truly deserves top billing, but I have both logic and reason for this. Logic: Hogan vs Rock was actually 3rd to last at X8--Jericho vs HHH for the Undisputed Title was last. Reason: It plays into the heel turn.

2)Long Title Reign by Punk.
We're talking Survivor Series at the worst. He has to hold that title for a long time and be booked rather strongly--Cena esque, if you will.

3)Continue increasing Punk's air time while decreasing Cena's after Wrestlemania.

4)Book Cena vs Punk
This should happen around Summerslam. Cena has to go under here and go under by tapping. And the less of "Super Cena" we get, the better. I'm not saying "try for an average match", I'm just saying "Book Punk clearly stronger".

5)Have Cena start getting ignored by heels and figureheads.
Faces can still interact with him, but unless their in a match with him, Heels should look at Cena and laugh.

6)Cena runs in on a CM Punk match and smacks him with a chair. This happens multiple times.
Carbon Copy of what happened earlier this year when Punk was on commentary and would attack Cena.

7)Have Punk call out Cena after a few beatdowns and have Cena drop a fantastic promo.
At this point Cena reveals his reasoning for attacking Punk--He's jealous. He's jealous of Punk's ability and charisma. He's jealous of how much the fans love Punk, how much merchandise he sells, how the locker room likes him. He's wants his spot as the face of the company back. And when Punk says "no", Cena flys off the handle and beats him down again. Have Cena just explode--tearing up the ring, attacking Jerry at ringside, even throwing water in the face of a plant in the audience.

And voila: Heel Cena. It takes time, months, decreases our exposure to Cena and provides a realistic point for his turn: He misses his spot. A man who's been the face of the company for so long couldn't just sit there and watch someone else be the face. And it creates a hungry, vicious heel character for Cena to play rather than this "Erbody hates me but I'm cool with it" PseudoHeel character he has now (based on fan reaction). ]]> RomanFlare http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?40138-Only-Viable-Cena-Turn