The Ultimate WWE Thread

[Dan]

I'd be so tempted to push Naomi off if I was sitting in the front row.

I forgot Candace was in WWE now too :drool:

[Dan]

Alicia Fox still has a job too, huh?

EDIT: Nevermind, I see where she stands now :D

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I hate Alicia Fox so much.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

If Kacy could put a bit of muscle mass on she'd be quality.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Zelina Vega coming out as Vega :wub:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I guess I was wrong.

Io :cool:

[Dan]

Io :cool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Yes, yes, yes.

Rhea is here.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

That was class by Kacy.

[Disco]

Fucking Hornswoggle.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

It's not a true Rumble unless Hornswoggle is there.

Perving on Zelina.

[Dan]

Really?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I think I'm more agile than Nia.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Took them long enough to bring Becky out.

[Disco]

Perfect tease.

[SvN]

Imagine the seethe if Nia instantly eliminated Becky.

[Dan]

Have we just got the other Rumble & Lesnar/Balor left?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Have we just got the other Rumble & Lesnar/Balor left?

Flat Earther against the Eco Warrior too.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Shane to come running in to take Becky's place.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Pretty predictable but I enjoyed the second half of that Rumble.

Also 1 bet down, 1 won. 2 to go.

[Dan]

Hey guys, eat breakfast okay?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

AJ with X-Pac tights.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Baroque/Finn is going to be squash city :(

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

You'd get more from a Saudi crowd than this.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Rowan? What the fuck? An eco warrior faction? I don't even.

[Disco]

Eric Rowan? Or rather about 1.5 Eric Rowans.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

This promo, Finn's entrance and Heyman's introduction.

Three things that will be longer than this match.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

It makes no sense that he's not going Demon here. His biggest match (in WWE) and he's not painting up?

Faces doing stupid face things again.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Surprisingly few F5s thus far.

[Pleb]

Woof.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

That was surprisingly good.

Bork actually cared and it had a great ending.

No F5s at all too which has to be a record.

[Pleb]

Actual heel turn? :drool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Double fucking J :drool:

[Dan]

Oh fuck :D Has he swapped to a gay gimmick since he fucked up Global Force & TNA?

They should roll out Honky Tonk Man again at 3 (assuming he's not dead).

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

He's wearing the worst ring attire ever but what scenes.

[Disco]

I was hoping for WCW levels of flour in the guitar.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

You Suck!

[Dan]

Yeah, see, this is what the womens' one is missing.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

They dumped Angle out way too quickly.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Johnny Wrestling :cool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I though Kofi had botched his spot.

Also, No Way being worse than Marella. Fucking hell.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Brusierweight is here :drool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Pete Dunne/Andrade 'Cien' Almas is a match I need to see.

And both of them against Aleister Black.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Fuck off Nia.

[Disco]

Nia Jax worse than Hornswoggle.

Plus she looks fucking tiny, officially ruined.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

It was fun when Ziggler, Randall and Rey fucked her up though.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

That was a good Rumble match but way too fast (sub 1 hour) and both of them had way too few surprise/legend entrances. Good PPV on the whole.

I also won quite a bit.

I had £5 on Becky to win @2.37, £5 on Ali to be the ironman @4.5 (loss) and £5 on Andrade to get top top 4 with Rollins winning @9.

[Gray Fox]

It's never good when there's not a proper surprise entry or big return, but was still enjoyable.

Their reluctance to push Strowman over the last part of the hill is a bit odd, but this is nicely almost full circle from when Seth cashed in back in the day.

I'd like to have seen Demon Balor get a rematch with Lesnar to kick it up a notch, but now we pretty much know the Mania main events already. There's only Elimination Chamber and Fastlane, which are both now pretty pointless.
We could in theory now have 5 chambers in one weekend. 1 for NXT and then 2 each for the womens and the mens titles.

[igor_balis]

Think I won my bet too, cheers Sir Andy Mahowry. Though I mostly picked based on odds tbf.

[SincereTheRebel]

They don't do intergender either so it would be a bit of a waste, he should come back and break Big Shows nose again.


Hold on. I seem to remember Stephanie McMann getting that work from The Rock and Stone Cold on multiple occasions. Has all that male on female entertainment stopped now? Given the climate we now live in as male and female are now more equal than ever. If it has stopped, it would be perfectly to bring it back.


Violence towards women was seen as crass and was axed probably around the PG-era starting.

I heard about last night and now I went to tune in :D

[phonics]

I got to 4am and they hadn't even started the mens rumble.

[Dan]

It was alright I guess. WWE haven't really changed the formula much in the last couple of years, so everything was still kinda predictable, but whatever. Forgot how good Aleister Black is though - his strikes look nasty.

That'll probably be me done until Mania, although the card doesn't seem like it's going to be that exciting. Are we going to get someone pissing HHH off in the next week or two so he can have another match?

[SvN]

I enjoyed it overall, but was disappointed by the lack of old school entrants other then JJ. It seems like they've decided to phase that out over the last few years, which is a shame, as it was always my favourite part of a Rumble.

[Browning]

I didn’t watch any of the world title stuff or Shane’s match because I just had no interest. Both women’s title matches were decent enough but suffered because there was no doubt who was winning either. I found both rumbles rather dull and predictable. I predicted the women’s rumble entirely once it was clear who was left (which was somewhere between 5 and 10 women left to enter). The only real shock was Nia entering the men’s (and perhaps a bigger shock... me wanting her to win a match for the first time in her career) but of course they went with the boring safe winner.

I really think a totally random midcarder needs to win a rumble. I’ve been saying that for years but the match is dying for me because it should be the one night anything can happen and yet for years now the winner has been the guy everyone predicted months before.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Women's Rumble last 1 hour and 12 minutes which is only 5 minutes short of the Greatest Royal Rumble.

[Browning]

Surely someone from NXT has to win a Rumble soon too? I would love to see the brands squabbling over him just for him to win a title and take it to NXT. They really need to make the brands mean more.

[SvN]

I reckon they've got an NXT invasion in their back-pocket and they're just waiting for the right moment to pull the trigger. It will probably end up in a Triple H v Stephanie feud though.

[phonics]

I reckon they've got an NXT invasion in their back-pocket and they're just waiting for the right moment to pull the trigger. It will probably end up in a Triple H v Stephanie feud though.

A shoot-seeming NXT-takeover a la the original NWO with HHH splitting from the McMahons ending in some sort of McMahons v Team Hunter for permanent control of the company would be GOAT shit if you could actually control the media that gets out to convince enough people it's not a work. I'm talking HHH getting kicked off the board, share price manipulation etc.

However, it would require 1) far too much competence and 2) Vince actually letting go and we all know that's not happening unless you shoot a Buried Alive match.

[Disco]

You would never convince people it's not a work, not in a million years.

[phonics]

You would never convince people it's not a work, not in a million years.

It'd have to be a multi year thing to the point of leaking divorce details to TMZ etc.

As I say you'd have to be ultra, ultra competent.

[Browning]

You could maybe convince people eventually that HHH and Stephanie were divorcing and he was being ousted from power.

You could never convince them that an outcome of that is the NXT mob banding behind him and Vince putting his company on the line.

[phonics]

You could maybe convince people eventually that HHH and Stephanie were divorcing and he was being ousted from power.

You could never convince them that an outcome of that is the NXT mob banding behind him and Vince putting his company on the line.

You have the shareholders, after the NXT takeover punks him, give Vince a vote of no-confidence so he has to relinquish control of the company. HHH at that point offers the match. Even if you know it's a work by this point, you're watching.

I'd be the greatest booker of all time.

[Disco]

No-one would believe it for a second because it wouldn't actually be happening.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

It's so much effort for so little gain because the vast majority would know it's a work.

[Ian]

Not a bad show on the whole but the Smackdown tag result is a travesty and the women's Rumble had too much unnecessary whatthefuckery.

Also WWE needs to stop driving it's feuds into the ground.


I really think a totally random midcarder needs to win a rumble. I’ve been saying that for years but the match is dying for me because it should be the one night anything can happen and yet for years now the winner has been the guy everyone predicted months before.

Especially now that there are two world titles for them to dick about with there's really no reason for them not to have a properly surprising winner.

[wullie]

I think predictability is necessary, there was the time Jericho was the obvious winner but then they gave it to Sheamus because nobody was predicting otherwise and just seemed to flub about until WM that year. I'd rather it be good and obvious than just surprising (ideal world good and surprising, but I don't trust them to be able to do that)

[Browning]

Predictable can work, but the best one that springs to mind is Benoit. That most of the recent Rumbles have been shit and lead to shit WM matches/storylines shows something really needs to change. Let's not forget HHH winning it.... Orton winning it and facing Bray fucking Wyatt.... Reigns winning it and leading to a terrible match with Lesnar only saved by the MITB etc etc. They could hardly do worse.

[SvN]

Last year was brilliant on paper. but it led to one of the most disappointing Mania matches I can remember.

[Browning]

Yea, last year was probably the right winner, but the fact that the dream match was so bad ruins it. I mentioned Benoit because it's probably the last time I can remember that the Rumble win/mania build/mania match were all incredible. There's probably been 1 or 2 in there that I'm forgetting that were decent, but there's far more like the ones I named above, Sheamus, Del Rio.... yea, they get it wrong a lot more than right.

[wullie]

If it turned out Batista winning was all part of the plan to eventually have Bryan end WM30 that'd be a great one but they stumbled into that against all intentions really.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

They should get a legitimate NXT star to win it which leads to their call up.

[Disco]

The issue is less the 'predictability' and more that their general output is bad.

Also, on surprise entrants, who would have been on people's wishlist? We're at a point where all the big Attitude Era names are retired/moved on which leaves you with returning wrestlers from the last 10 or so years. Get out of your seats for MVP and The Boogeyman!

[wullie]

Dean Ambrose is meant to be on his way out soon, which explains his complete load of nothing at the rumble. If he's joining AEW, hopefully the threat of this will shit WWE up into doing stuff with people again, like for instance Mojo Rawley shouting at a mirror is the best/only thing he's done in a year.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Yeah, Ambrose's contract runs out after WM and he's refusing to sign a new one.


He will not be missed.

[Browning]

If Ambrose leaves, does that mean 10 years of Reigns Vs Rollins, only interrupted for brief moments when they team up? Or will they finally have a feud with someone who wasn't in the Shield?

[SvN]

I can't believe how badly Ambrose's heel turn has gone. I think some time away from the company would actually do him good, he's been stale for years now.

[wullie]

I hoped he'd be a bit different when he came back and him battering Rollins the same day their pal had to leave with leukemia was ace, but then he just wore a fur coat and said the crowd were stinky doo-doo heads or whatever it was and it was the same as before.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

You forgot him saying that THE ALMIGHTY GOD hated Roman too.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

We're going to get Double J against Elias, probably in a guitar on a pole match, at Wrestlemania aren't we?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Ronda's promo was sloppy as hell, she was clearly pissed off about the fans.

I can see her leaving soon because she wanted universal love.

[Lewis]

Dea Nambrose was always crap. FACT.

[Disco]

Ronda's promo was sloppy as hell, she was clearly pissed off about the fans.

I can see her leaving soon because she wanted universal love.

She's off after Wrestlemania.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

She's off after Wrestlemania.

Well I have heard this but I've also heard that she has a contract until 2021.

I highly doubt she'd have signed such a long term deal though.

[Browning]

She’s pretty much denied being done after mania.

[bruhnaldo]

Ronda bombing last night was probably the highlight of my first Raw in years

[bruhnaldo]

What else would she even go do, though? She's not gonna go back into real fighting. She doesn't have the charisma to be a pundit for MMA or anything of that nature. She's a shitty actress. I mean shit idk fam she might stick around for a decade.

[SvN]

She's said for a while now she wants to start a family. She won't completely severe ties with WWE, but she won't be full time forever.

[Disco]

Why does Baron Corbin wrestle in a shirt and trousers? I mean both why do it in the first place and more importantly why is he still doing it?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Yeah, her and her woman beating husband have a farm.

[Baz]

Botchamania Guy is gonna have to get special priveleges off the Internet gods to upload a video long enough to fit all the women’s rumble ones in, my god!

[Pleb]

We're going to get Double J against Elias, probably in a guitar on a pole match, at Wrestlemania aren't we?
Yes and your going to love it :drool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Only if it includes another rendition of Be My Baby Tonight.

[Browning]

WWE have confirmed Ambrose is off.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

:sherlock:

I'm starting to think it's a work.

When was the last time they announced someone would be leaving at the end of their contract?

[Pleb]

CM Punk.

[Queenslander]

That was a work wasnt it his real firing was a surprise?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

There was a work with Punk where he was going to leave on MITB with the Championship.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

The fact that it seemed he was about to pour his soul out/break character/confirm the rumour only to be interrupted by Nia on RAW also points to a work.

[wullie]

https://i.imgur.com/k9z9TgX.jpg

Incredible

[Queenslander]

Best angle they have done in a decade.

[Gray Fox]

Punk was actually leaving if I remember right, they only agreed a new deal within days if not the day of the PPV.

[Ian]

It does seem odd to announce it rather than just quietly run him into the ground for a few months as they normally do but I'm not sure what they'd gain out of it for a work either l. The Nia thing on Raw was a bit odd though.


https://i.imgur.com/k9z9TgX.jpg

Incredible

Is this something they've done? Not watched SD yet but I was saying on Sunday they need to give him a unique, veggie-friendly belt.

[wullie]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=vPjArk_p-vY

[Queenslander]

Kevin Owen chasing it would be fun.

[SvN]

Ambrose is definitely jobbing to Nia Jax at some point.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Itami has changed his Twitter name to Kenta and posted thank you.

He's done.

[SvN]

He's spent most of his time in WWE injured, and he looks like a right fat bastard these days. He won't be missed.

[Baz]

He's well older than I thought.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Seems to be official now.

Asked for his release and granted.

Says a lot at this time considering how hesitant they are for AEW to get talent from them.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Watching SD and Truth got a good deal out of the whole Nia thing.

We'll take you out of the Rumble and give you a title the next night. I'd take that.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I genuinely thought that Shane was going to turn on the Miz in the celebration when he was talking about how Miz will never forget this day.

This whole story is shit and pointless.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Oh and I love that new Daniel Bryan belt.

Looks brilliant and really unique.

[Disco]

What the fuck is this half time thing they keep banging on about. Half time of what?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

What the fuck is this half time thing they keep banging on about. Half time of what?

The Super Bowl.

[Disco]

Why not just say that then, or are they deluded enough to think they're a competitor of the NFL.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Probably because in their biggest market, it is well known that this Sunday is the Super Bowl.

I doubt all the Saudi princes know though but they barely give a shit about wrestling that is happening live in front of them.

[Shindig]

They used to counter-programme it all the time.

[Browning]

That would make sense if they had an event on Sunday (other than at Half Time) that was competing with the Super Bowl, but they don't. The only event they have on is literally named in a way that advertises the Super Bowl.

[Ian]

Sunday Night Heat, though. :cool:

[igor_balis]

Why not just say that then, or are they deluded enough to think they're a competitor of the NFL.

i think you're just about the only person who needed that clarifying in fairness mate

[Disco]

Probably (I'm a liitle bit pleased about it too) but it still isn't very good advertising.

[SvN]

I'm pretty sure that half time heat has the highest rating of any WWE show ever.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Then why have they only ever done one?

[SvN]

They've done two. And I'd imagine they cost a fortune.

This one's on the network though, so doesn't really count.

[SvN]

Actually, my previous post was nonsense, as it was shown on USA - their TV network at the time. I'd imagine they don't do it anymore because the TV network thinks they can get better ratings with other content.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

The second doesn't really count though.


featuring highlights from The Hardy Boyz taking on The Dudley Boyz as well as the bikini contest, both from that year's Royal Rumble. It concluded with an Interview with Jim Ross and Stone Cold Steve Austin, which discussed an injury update and his engagement to Debra McMichael

[Ian]

Talk that Bork is going to explore his options with AEW. Probably just as a means of getting an even more ludicrous deal from Vince (more money, even less effort, perhaps he gets to hold both world titles now and still never defend them?) but man, if AEW thought he'd pull in numbers and WWE get lose him. :drool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Would AEW want him on some part-time wankathon though?

He's just trying to leverage Vince into giving him a million a week or something stupid to sit on his sofa.

[Disco]

He doesn't seem like the right fit for them but if he puts bums on seats then it might be worth doing, although this could just be Bork using the flavour of the month for leverage yet again.

[Ian]

I think it's just to get more of that sweet Saudi oil money but he'd be an interesting propisition in AEW if they were incentivising him to actually put some effort in where Vince clearly has no interest in doing that.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

1090721968033316868

Makes Daniel Bryan's mince meat chest look tame.

[Queenslander]

Walter is going to have an epic monster heel run

[Ian]

I watched the match and it was very stiff but surely you don't get such a perfect outline of a hand, with the finger creases, etc.?

[Queenslander]

Probably a freshly waxed chest.

[Disco]

Someone find the picture of it landing, it's even more ridiculous.

[Ian]

Watching NXT. "Sky Pirates" as a name for Sharai and Sane. :face:

Although if their double-team move means we get multiple Insane Elbows per match I am entirely in favour.

Duke and Shaffir have a long way to go. Does them being an actual named tag team lend any credence to the idea that they might use the womens tag titles across shows including NXT, I wonder? Or are they just limbering up to give NXT its own set?

[wullie]

They should be terrifying like Shayna Bazsler, but at the moment they seem more like the Mean Street Posse to her Shane.

[Queenslander]

Someone find the picture of it landing, it's even more ridiculous.

Check out @WWE’s Tweet: https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1090708432145895425?s=09

[Ian]

They should be terrifying like Shayna Bazsler, but at the moment they seem more like the Mean Street Posse to her Shane.

I think they're just having to think about literally everything rather than getting it enough to go with it. They got better as the match went on but early doors Shaffir was halfway through her bump before Shirai's dropkick even connected.

[Disco]

They're both awful, one of them looks like she's made entirely of elbows.

[Ian]

So seemingly Angle getting to do nothing in the Rumble wasn't because he's old and shit and really needs to just give up but because they subbed him in for Ryder at the last knockings and didn't bother changing the layout of that part of the match.

Is that worse? For him, I mean.

[Lewis]

Check out @WWE’s Tweet: https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1090708432145895425?s=09

Get that man a singlet.

[Queenslander]

Get that man a singlet.

The man boob champion.

[Queenslander]

Pentagon and Rey Fenix have both signed exclusive deals with AEW.

:drool:

[7om]

Queenslander, Disco

Suzuki vs Sanada tonight. Shit's going to be wild.

[Queenslander]

Oh shit I havent been following since my WK meltdown. Thanks!

[Disco]

Awesome, I'll be watching that later then, for some reason I thought it on next week.

[Disco]

Walter is immediately the best thing on UK NXT.

[Queenslander]

Probably my biggest man crush in wrestling atm. I would pay good money to see him knife edge chop the top blokes and sheilas on Raw and Smackdown.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Half time heat about to start on Youtube/WWE Network.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Velveteen's ring attire is superb.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

This match is just one big beautiful sprint with Rick O'Shea just going absolutely batshit.

[Ian]

Halftime Heat was good fun.

I'm watching what bits of this Worlds Collide tournament they've bothered to put on the Network. They've put some properly unappealing stuff in and not put in much better-sounding matches like Cole vs. Lee.

This is barely a spoiler but I suppose to be on the safe side:
Is it only me who doesn't get their love of Jordan Devlin?

[Ian]

And as for the final:
Wth the sort of relentless predictablility you expect from WWE's "lesser" brands, Dream vs. Bate was really good.

I largwly skipped everything before the semis and I did feel a bit like in the three matches I saw like stuff was being held back but they were all still good matches.

Velveteen Dream is gonna be great, we just have to hope Vince isn't in charge by the time he's cursed with a main roster call-up.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Becky to win the title at WM, start a feud with Stephanie and then drop the title to her at Summerslam? Jesus.

[Gray Fox]

Steph to insert Charlotte into the match at WM because it's what the WWE Universe really wants. Charlotte then makes Asuka tap with Becky out of the ring and we come full circle since last years WM.

[Ian]

That DQ to end the main event on Raw is one of the best bits of selective application of the rules I've seen in ages because the thing he got DQ'd for has happened in literally every tag match for the last however many decades.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Going back to Saudi Arabia on May 3rd for that OIL MONEY.

[Queenslander]

Kicking goals.

http://i64.tinypic.com/2469sw5.jpg

[Queenslander]

2003 Goldberg in Japan.


https://youtu.be/1Vwa5xi6DHQ

[Ian]

wullie Somebody I know just saw this and thought of me, because of a running joke.

I in turn thought of you, as I know you have excellent taste when it comes to WWF European Champions.

https://i.imgur.com/zqhBhXg.gifv

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

He'd also take a bullet for D'Lo.

[Disco]

Romes favourite son.

[Ian]

I'm still holding out for D'Lo vs Regal to determine the first ever FIVE! TIME! European champion.

[Queenslander]

Watching the AEW live stream atm and Kenny Omega has just shown up.

[Queenslander]

Omega v Jericho at Double or Nothing. :drool:

[Mike]

Awesome

[Queenslander]

Holy shit!

[Ian]

...?

[Queenslander]

Jay White is the New IWGP Heavyweight Champion.

[Disco]

Bit too soon for Knife Crime Jim in my opinion but I guess they didn't have a lot of options. Hopefully this means they're going to let Naito unite the belts. :drool:

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

https://wrestletalk.com/news/exclusive-aew-multi-show-schedule-revealed/

If true I might look into tickets for Royal Albert Hall.

[Queenslander]

Bit too soon for Knife Crime Jim in my opinion but I guess they didn't have a lot of options. Hopefully this means they're going to let Naito unite the belts. :drool:

Way too soon.

[Shindig]

That Fighting With my Family trailer makes me realise how much Rock's going to stick out in that.

[Browning]

After that dross on RAW this week my money is firmly on Linda returning next week to champion Michelle McCool, leading to a McMahon in every corner at Mania (with HHH counted as a McMahon because Shane is too good for that shit now).

[7om]

Holy shit!

Yeah, I'm shocked.

If they wanted White with the belt I'm just not sure why Tanahashi was Omega's opponent at WK. why not just go straight to Omega - White and play off the Bullet Club storyline? I like Jay but this feels really rushed and almost smells of desperation in trying to make a new foreigner after Omega left.

He's gone from returning from excursion one year ago to Heavyweight champ. Holy shit.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I read that they were hoping Kenny would sign, he'd win at WK and then drop to Okada later.

Plans changed when Kenny wasn't though obvs.

[Disco]

The plan was for Omega / Tanahashi to be a program through part/most of this year. They also weren't willing to carry it on with Omega on the wrong end of a talent share (if it even happens) so sticking it on White does make some sense as a stopgap. I would guess they'll now work towards Naito / Okada in some form, maybe at Dominion or WK.

[Queenslander]

I would have prefered a G1 Climax rematch with Ibushi.

[bruhnaldo]

Supposedly Kenny can still work with NJPW tho

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Some stunning refereeing and shifting of the rules in the tag match on RAW.

Clearly John Cone is looking at Balor's foot and then for the only time ever a ref runs out to tell him to restart the match.

Edit: Lol at Corey saying that Nikki has Spastic Energy.

[Queenslander]

Supposedly Kenny can still work with NJPW tho

It makes sense to allow Kenny to continue if Jericho is signed up.

[7om]

I can't see why New Japan would invest in Omega now though. Presumably he will not be available anywhere near as much as on a New Japan contract, so how do they fit him in? I can imagine him coming in for one off special matches but I just can't see them putting any real effort into him now. I'd love to see Omega - Ibushi, though. It simply has to happen.

[Queenslander]

I agree Ibushi is the only match left for him in NJPW at this stage.

[Ian]

I haven't watched it yet but apparently Kofi put in a cracking performance in a gauntlet match on Smackdown last night. Even if it's a bit lol that they've replaced Ali by going "Right, who's most likely to jump off things?"

[Disco]

I can't see why New Japan would invest in Omega now though. Presumably he will not be available anywhere near as much as on a New Japan contract, so how do they fit him in? I can imagine him coming in for one off special matches but I just can't see them putting any real effort into him now. I'd love to see Omega - Ibushi, though. It simply has to happen.

This. They aren't pushing anyone not signed to them very far as evidenced by them having one of the best wrestlers in the world making appearances but not actually doing very much. It may well happen outside of NJ, neither guy is signed to anyone exclusively so if they want to do it it can happen.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I haven't watched it yet but apparently Kofi put in a cracking performance in a gauntlet match on Smackdown last night. Even if it's a bit lol that they've replaced Ali by going "Right, who's most likely to jump off things?"

Just finished it.

I assume that Ali was going to the stretch and they decided Kofi could keep his run when he had to come in and he did a fantastic job. Really like the emotion he showed when Styles came in too.

Gauntlet wasn't as good as RAW's last year but I hope this becomes a regular thing before Elimination Chamber because it's brilliant.

[Queenslander]

Double or Nothing sells out in record time for a wrestling show in Vegas.

[Ian]

Just finished it.

I assume that Ali was going to the stretch and they decided Kofi could keep his run when he had to come in and he did a fantastic job. Really like the emotion he showed when Styles came in too.

Gauntlet wasn't as good as RAW's last year but I hope this becomes a regular thing before Elimination Chamber because it's brilliant.

The whole thing was really well done (though they've had Joe lose to that exact pinfall more than enough times now) with the Styles bit in particular being handled excellently.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

The next Takeover isn't not going to be called Brooklyn V. They've called it Blacklist.

I wonder if that means they're going to have some sort of special match. Wargames is the only non geographical one.

[Disco]

Sort of, they all used to have bespoke names.

[Ian]

Thing I saw said that's something else it's still going to be NXT Takeover: New York. Is that confirmed as not being the case?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

https://www.mandatory.com/wrestlezone/news/1056337-jimmy-uso-arrested-incident-police-detroit

TMZ is reporting Uso—real name Solofa Fatu—was with wife and fellow WWE star Naomi when they were pulled over near downtown Detroit. According to police, the couple was pulled over after Naomi was seen driving the wrong way down a one-way street. Once pulled over, cops claim the 2018 Dodge Journey the couple was driving ‘reeked of booze’ so they ordered Naomi to step out of the car. It was then that Jimmy got out of the car despite being asked by police to remain seated, and he then took off his shirt and ‘squared up’ as if he was ready to fight.

The police officer drew his taser due to concerns for his safety, but Jimmy ultimately complied with police before he was handcuffed and arrested for disorderly conduct and obstruction.

Derp.

[SvN]

Taking off his shirt :D You're not at a gay club, mate.

[Ian]

Or literally any Scottish street when the sun is out for more than 5 minutes while the temperature is about 10 degrees.

[Ian]

So I see Mark Henry said on a podcast that people thanking Vince 'for the opportunity' (or variants thereof) is one of Vince's pet peeves. He wants talent to be confident in their abilities, etc.

Which is fucking rich given the amount of talent he does everything to belittle and the way people are effectively punished for getting over organically.

[Disco]

Watched a bit of this weeks Raw and I really don't get the hype around the Becky Lynch stuff. The evil authority figures sound perfectly reasonable and the woman everyone is cheering comes across as a childish twat.

Who am I supposed to be rooting for here?

[SvN]

If you haven't followed the story then it's not reasonable to expect to jump in and "get it" right away.

[Queenslander]

Stone Cold Becky Lynch.

[Ian]

Austin / McMahon kicked off as a feud because Austin had a strop about Vince bigging up a Raw special guest as any sane TV show would do so y'know.

[Disco]

What's to get? They even did a recap.

She was injured at the RR and was asked (not unreasonably) to have it looked at by a doctor. Her reaction was to punch her boss in the face and when asked to apologise for that had a hissy fit. I know it's wrestling but you'd be immediately sacked for that in most jobs. I fail to see how this makes her the sympathetic character in this.

[Ian]

You would have a very, very thin list of sympathetic high profile babyfaces any time in the last couple of decades if you pull on that particular thread though.

[Lewis]

Yes you're right John Cena is the best.

[Disco]

I think we should also ban comparisons between now and anything Stone Cold ever did. Of course it worked when he did it, he was one of the greatest wrestlers of all time working against one of the greatest heels characters of all time. You can't just redo that stuff with anyone you like and expect it to work.

Same goes for The Rock, he could have read the phone book and made it work, that doesn't mean it's a good idea for Baron Corbin (to pick someone modern and boring) to do the same.

[Lewis]

It strikes me as fundamentally difficult to sell any anti-authority angle in an age where wrestlers get sacked for all sorts of trivial stuff. But yeah love stick one on your boss.

[Disco]

Having the promotion/company itself portrayed as the heel has worked once and that's WWE around 97-99 and it only worked because they had the biggest stars in the history of the business at a time when wrestling was super popular. It's much harder to sell matches and events when you're an evil company who has to work against the interests of its fans.

[Ian]

And even then it was already starting to get a bit tired by the time Foley came in and was a brilliant authority figure for the 8 months or whatever that they let him do it.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Catching up on NXT and I really hope Gulak (he should stay on NXT) and Riddle have a proper rivalry.

That was a quality match.

[Ian]

Is that the one from last week or have they had another? The first one was ace.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

The other week.

The counter dropkick that Gulak hit Riddle with was cracking.

[Disco]

Last week was Gulak vs the next Adam Rose.

[7om]

The Honor Rising two day card looks quality. Particularly looking forward to Cobb - Goto and Ospreay - Dalton.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

He went a bit too far but this kid has talent:

1095856475891814400

The height he got is unreal. Oh and Montez Ford mocking Ohno before the match got a lol from me.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Corey Graves' soon to be ex-wife has said that he's been fucking Carmella.

[Queenslander]

I would imagine he would be palming off ring rats buy the dozen.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I'm surprised he hasn't dipped his wick into Mandy Rose.

[Queenslander]

Probably dipped in her as well?

[Queenslander]

Stone Cold Becky Lynch getting escorted out in hand cuffs...

[Shindig]

Okay, so that's Cass, Cena and Graves that Carmella's laid down for. Proper ring rat.

[Mike]

Wasn’t going to watch any WWE until ‘Mania but I’ve got the week off so starting it with Elimination Chamber with sausage on toast.

[Browning]

That main event was great.

[Mike]

It really was!

[Ian]

It had a reaaaaaaly slow start but once Kofi got rid of Keith I was the most invested I've been in ages, even though I didn't really think he'd win. But they sold the hope spots really well.

With that and the gauntlet match Kofi deserves more, especially given his chances at an increased singles run probably died that time Keith had a strop at him. Cunt.

genuinely no idea what the WWE title picture looks like for the next month or two though.

[Pharad]

Now that the Royal Rumble has ended and all, do you guys think there will be anyone from the NXT debuting after wrestlemania, as is often the case? If yes, who should debut?

[Ian]

They've announced a new Shake-up post-Mania right? There'll definitely be some call ups but given the particularly shabby way the most recent ones were called up I don't really want them bringing up any of the people I like.

[Disco]

Ciampa, Gargano, Rich O'Chet and Black all announced as new call ups.

[Ian]

At least they're leaving Velveteen Dream alone.

[Disco]

That main event was great.

I agree with this by the way, really enjoyed it. The rest of the card I can take or leave.

[Disco]

At least they're leaving Velveteen Dream alone.

When you think there's still him, Hand-gesture United, Keith Lee, Mat Riddle etc it's still a really strong roster. Probably benefits from those other guys moving on.

[Ian]

Yeah NXT will be fine as there are a bunch of guys to move up. It's anybody being shunted up to the main roster I fear for.

[Disco]

Oh yeah they're fucked.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Finally watching some of Elimination Chamber.

Cruiserweight match was quality as per usual (Buddy Murphy is a fucking star) and despite some sloppiness here and there I thought the Tag Chamber was quality (the IIconics pin on Naomi was brilliant) with the right team winning.

Also, they finally nailed Ronda's attire with the MK inspired gear and no shitty eye makeup. I don't know why they plug Ruby into title matches now and then when she's shit (I think Logan and Morgan are both better) with a crap gimmick and everyone knows she isn't a threat.

I'll pick up the rest tomorrow but what's come so far has been fairly good.

[Ian]

Riott is better than that and better than WWE treat her. She's not top level but she didn't deserve to be squashed.

[Queenslander]

I always thought she was solid enough wrestler. Odd choice to squash IMO.

[Disco]

I don't know what you're watching if you think Riot is a bad wrestler. Badly used maybe.

[Ian]

And the Riott Squad's gimmick in itself is fine too, they just use it in a way that makes them look like dorks.

[Ian]

I've watched none of Raw (read the results) and half of Smackdown and I already despise how they're using the NXT call ups.

O'Shea vs. Young uis an especially mesmeric bit of booking.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I don't know what you're watching if you think Riot is a bad wrestler. Badly used maybe.

It's probably the gimmick (same with all of them with the whole WE CAUSE CHAOS BY TRASHING ROOMS bullshit) that makes me gloss over her abilities. Shit was a bit harsh but I think she's more of a mid-carder really and you could say that about 90% of people are badly used.

Finished off EC and the main event was great. Had some really great spots in it (the Swanton to AJ was a cracker) and the Kofi/Bryan stuff was brilliant.

Haven't watched any of RAW/SD yet but I really hope that the NXT 4 aren't proper call ups because I love them all and they're going to be so badly used. Apparently Vince barely knows them and just wanted a bit of freshness due to the ratings slumps.

Tye Dillinger has requested his release as well, which is a bit shocking in that I had no idea he was still with the company.

[Ian]

Like everything since WE BECAME THE AUTHORITY most of what they've done has been like somebody reading the top line of posts or articles criticising them and then taking it at face value.

Based on Raw and Smackdown DIY's nuanced story seems to have ended with a really abrupt and not mentioned full-on reunion and they've immediately beaten two of the best tag teams on the main roster clean on back to back nights, so they're also instantly babyfaces.

EDIT: Meltzer said that HHH wasn't even aware these four were being called up until, presumably, not long before he was shunted through the curtain to announce it on Raw. It's a pity Vince is too much of a swivel-eyed loon to realise that he is a lot of the problem now.

[Queenslander]

I watched the last Smackdown Live and fuck me what a roster.

[Baz]

Thor is gonna play Hulk Hogan in a film about his life. :wtf:

https://variety.com/2019/film/news/chris-hemsworth-hulk-hogan-netflix-1203144357/

[Queenslander]

The coked up, ring rat sex scenes! :drool:

[Ian]

Happy to see Velveteen Dream get his hands on the NA title but I assume that wasn't meant to happen for at least another month or so until Takeover New York... if at all.

[Disco]

All very last minute apparently.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b87Cx9vkMQg&t=0s

[Shindig]

The coked up, ring rat sex scenes! :drool:

Vince and Hulk re-writing No Holds Barred in a hotel room on all of the world's coke. :drool:

And whoever gets to be Ed Leslie.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Happy to see Velveteen Dream get his hands on the NA title but I assume that wasn't meant to happen for at least another month or so until Takeover New York... if at all.

I heard that they taped two endings for the episode. So they could change their mind if they wanted to.

[Ian]

Yeah I saw that after I finished the match. That's proper bullshit for the live crowd, how do they even do that?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Probably went down better than having to watch Jackson Ryker fail to hit his finisher twice the other month.

[Pleb]

So I saw the WWE title chamber match.

That was something. Kofi set in stone for a full blown singles run then starting at Mania?

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

https://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/article/roman-reigns-raw-return-leukemia-update?sf208164814=1

Roman will be on RAW with an update on his leukaemia battle.

There have been rumblings that Vince wants him back for WM as well.