wrestling / Columns
Your News, My Views 4.08.08
~THE MUPPETS RULE~
Today in Wrestling History:
Births and Deaths:
Is it hot in here, or is it just Csonka?
WWE/ECW news, notes and happenings to the EXTREME:
Sunday Night on FOX 5 news in Atlanta, they ran a story of a man that recently bought a home from an unnamed WWE Wrestler. In the story, the man discovered shoeboxes filled with steroids and growth hormone in a crawl space/attic. Also found was a current copy of the wrestlers contract and a memo regarding changes in the dress code, from 2004. The wrestler’s name was not released yet as the news station has not made contact with him or her.
Of course this led to a TON of speculation on the matter. Some joking that we would be seeing editions of WWE: CSI and the like. Many names were brought up, people consulted Wikipedia to see if they could pinpoint, which wrestlers have lived or still do live in Atlanta. Everyone was a junior sleuth as they tried to crack the case. It was big shit kids. People wondering if it was a big name, and if it was a big name what kind of punishment it would be. But then everyone was let down when Wsbtv.com out of Atlanta reported that the stash of steroids hidden in the attic the house could belong to current WWE star Mike Knox. I mean Mike Knox. Yeah. You see Knox, real name Michael Hettinga, did live in the house at one point and paperwork in the boxes could link the steroids and HGH to Knox, but they did not confirm, likely because they hadn’t contacted Knox still.
So the question is this: What does it mean for Mike Knox if the stash is his? It depends. The memo on the dress code is reportedly dated for 2004. Now, if the steroids and HGH are dated for before the Wellness Policy, then technically they cannot punish him under the current policy. That would be the good news for Knox. We have to consider when the move took place. If it was in the last few months, you have an issue where the wrestler would likely have to be suspended but if he didn’t fail a test and was taking the drugs during that time, that is not good for the Wellness policy. There is evidence the policy was not exactly legit in some form due to the Signature investigation, and this wouldn’t help WWE in any way. Also if Knox illegally obtained the steroids and HGH, then he could be in legal trouble. And that is what could get him fired from WWE. You see, the Wellness Policy does state the following:
Any Talent who is arrested, convicted or who admits to a violation of law relating to use, possession, purchase, sale or distribution of prohibited drugs will be in material breach of contract and subject to immediate dismissal
That’s not good news for Mr. Knox. The WWE has released a statement which said at one time, “…four professional wrestlers resided at the Locust Grove address, only one of whom is currently an active performer under a WWE contract. This performer has denied to WWE officials, as well as to Henry County Police Department officials, that the items discovered in this home belong to him.” Now that is all fine and good, and MAYBE they aren’t his. BUT, the steroids were found in one of two shoeboxes. The other shoebox had pay stubs and a contract for Knox. That doesn’t look good to me, sure I am no legal expert, but on the surface, that looks bad. Two of the three other wrestlers have been reported as being former WWE developmental talents Ryan O’Riley and Derek Niekirk. Niekirk was released by WWE last year due to drug violations while O’Riley left the company because he didn’t want to be on the road all the time. With Niekirk in the fold now, an argument can be made that the stash was his and since he is NOT with the company any more and does have a history with drugs in the company, he is likely going to be the one they throw the heat on.
To close on this there is one last thing I want to discuss, and that is the matter of complete stupidity. How do you move and not only leave your stash behind, but paperwork that could link you to it? I mean really, was nobody thinking here? Knox, Niekirk, whoever the hell this belongs to, did you lose all brain function? You had this stuff and just left it there? Wow…just wow… Knox, if it is you and if you get fired over this it is your own fault. Wait, what’s that rumbling I hear?
Everyone run, the LOLCANO is erupting!
Climb aboard the ROFLCOPTER and fly to safety!
Your News: Ric Flair claims that he shot down an announcers role with WWE because he doesn’t think he’d be good at it. He will remain with WWE in a public relations role and will also now work on his Ric Flair Finance company in Charlotte.
My Views: Part of this saddens me. I say this because there is a part of me that thinks Flair would be great on commentary. That being said, if the man himself doesn’t feel that he can do the job, then we have to accept that. I also appreciate that he admits that he doesn’t think he would be good at it. It means that he doesn’t want to go out there and embarrass himself or the company. I still think that a public relations role will be good for him. Also I heard the best idea for Ric Flair finance. Someone mentioned that he should EBAY all of his boots and robes. That company would be set for a LONG time if he did that. The WrestleMania robe alone would be MANY BUYS!
Your News: Dusty Rhodes is set to take over booking in Florida Championship Wrestling and will transfer there full time soon, leaving behind the WWE creative team. Rhodes will be in charge of character development in FCW as well as the booking of FCW’s upcoming weekly TV show (will air locally). This is why Rhodes wasn’t on RAW last night for the Flair tribute, as he is already busy with his new job.
My Views: In many ways I am split on this move. In one way I am sad to see him off of the creative team, because he and Michael Hayes have been working very well together. But, ECW and Smackdown are basically the same thing and Hayes can handle it on his own. I am glad to see him moved to developmental because I think we can all agree that 90% of developmental guys that are brought up have no personality or defined character. I can’t think of anybody better than Dusty Rhodes to help with this issue. Also Dusty has a ton of experience booking TV, and while Keirn is a good guy to have working the “wrestling” part of the developmental, he doesn’t have the experience with TV. So again, this makes a lot of sense. Now, most in the company view the move as a good one since Rhodes won’t have to travel so much now and will be able to have a lot of influence on young wrestlers. Dusty turned down a top booking position due to age and the fact that he did not want to travel a lot. In the end I feel Dusty will probably be very happy doing this job, and he will do it well. Although I still disagree with the consolidation of the developmental system to one place, but that’s another argument for another time. One last thing, PLEASE let Dusty do commentary for FCW.
CLUBBERING BABY…TO DA PAY WINDAH IF YA WEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIILLL~!
Your News: The reason Arn Anderson wasn’t the one inducting Ric Flair into the WWE Hall of Fame on Saturday, its because Flair specifically requested that Triple H do it. During the ceremony, Flair did speak about his friendship to Arn, but that part of his speech didn’t air on the USA Network portion of the show.
My Views: There was a lot of drama about this last week, and I understand why. When you think about Ric Flair, you usually think of the NWA/WCW days and then of course of the Four Horsemen. And when you go there in thought, you go to Arn Anderson. He was a constant in Flair’s career and many have heard of the friendship that they shared. But over the years there have been rumors and reports that the friendship between Flair and Arn had become strained, and that they were not as close as they once were. Meanwhile, as Flair’s late career in WWE grew, he and HHH have become very close. Flair has said on many occasions that he sees HHH as the new him. So when you put all of this together, it makes sense that HHH would induct him. Would it have been great to see Arn up on stage doing the speech, yes it would have, but that is not what Flair wanted. Of course that doesn’t matter because people are looking for any excuse to bash HHH. Shit I do at times, but this is not one of them in my opinion.
Your News: Internally WWE was not happy with the Raw rating from Monday night. The company was expecting the show to do at least a 4.0 coming out of WrestleMania. The show ended up doing a 3.9 rating. WWE did not even have the rating sent out company-wide due to how disappointed they were with it. Usually WWE sends the RAW rating out to some members of the staff, but not this week.
My Views: Once again a story that has been getting a lot of attention, but probably shouldn’t. Now I understand that after Mania they want a big rating, and that the goal was a 4.0 or above. But it isn’t like they stayed at 3.5 or something, they drew a 3.9 and almost nailed the goal, it is nothing to be ashamed of. I figure that part of the problem is that WWE overall is not happy with their ratings for Raw. Let’s check the January comparison I ran a few days ago:
WWE Raw Ratings:
* Average Rating for January 2007 – 3.95
* Average Rating for January 2008 – 3.55
* Change: -10.1%
Obviously they are still making money and doing very well, but you never want to see any form of significant drop in the ratings. But there is one thing that should be considered. Late ratings are showing that when DVR viewers are factored in, that the average rating jumps 10%. So if you add a .39 to the Raw rating, they did get over a 4.0. And if you use the same math with the January ratings, they most likely aren’t that far off of the 2007 ratings. Basically, people are making more out of this than they should. Enough ratings talk!
Your News: The reason why Roddy Piper was not at Raw Monday night for the Ric Flair retirement ceremony was due to him filming a new movie in Winnipeg. He couldn’t get to Orlando in time.
My Views: When the ceremony went down, I was wondering where he was. Part of me was wondering if he was “left off of the guest list” as it were. Thankfully it was just Piper having a previous commitment that he couldn’t get out of. It would have been great to have Piper there, but the good news is that the ceremony was still excellent without him. He just would have been icing on the cake. 
Mmmm…icing…
Your News: Paul Heyman has a new article up on the Sun UK website and while he mostly puts over WWE’s Ric Flair send-off, he did find things to criticize about the RAW ceremony:
But watching Flair cry because Chris Jericho says thank you? Hey, here’s John Cena. And he’s saluting Flair. Whooop de freakin’ do. Yeah yeah, this is basic Thugonomics. What the hell does it have to do with anyone’s favorite Flair memories? Cena? Jericho? Where’s Fifi the French Maid?”
My Views: Now before I discuss this, I do want to point out that Heyman was, for the most part, very complimentary of the ceremony. I also do not care about his comments about music, they mean nothing but I do want to discuss the Jericho and Cena comments, because a lot of people have been discussing this. In my opinion the ceremony was designed to include people that had been a major part of Flair’s career, or people that he is currently close to. HHH is currently his best friend. The Horsemen, Race, Valentine, Steamboat and Malenko are self-explanatory as to why they were there. Flair has said on many occasions that he “lives through Batista” and that they are close friends. Batista has said on many occasions that Flair is a mentor to him. It makes sense. Now we come to Jericho. While it may not be publicized, Jericho and Flair have known each other for a long time, going back to WCW. They may be great friends backstage, and I am sure we could say that Jericho admires Flair. Maybe they made a list and Flair said, “Don’t forget Jericho.” We don’t know, and while it may not have “made sense” to some of us, the point is that we don’t know, so let it go. But then when John Cena came out, I KNEW that the shit would hit the fan. The Cena hate was flowing. Once again we do not know their relationship that they have, but Flair has put over Cena numerous times as the guy that is carrying the company. Someone in the comment section actually had a great line when they said, “You know, when Cena came out, Flair looked like a proud father.” And if Flair looked that happy, then it is good enough for me. Basically, people need to stop looking to deep into this and remember that this was about Flair, and it was great.
Your News: Jim Ross had to go to the hospital yesterday as he was having issues with his colon again. Ross had a colonoscopy as well as three or four benign polyps removed.
My Views: Damn, that sucks for JR. Apparently he was having issues WrestleMania weekend and worked through them for Mania and Raw, and then went home and got it all taken care of. Talk about working through the pain. Much respect for JR, and I hope that this is just a minor deal as he stated and that he is back with little to no problems.
Your News: Former TNA and ROH star Matt Bentley reported to Florida Championship Wrestling this week and will be taking part in a one-week tryout for WWE. Bentley is a former TNA X-Division Champion and wrestled (and lost) to Vladimir Kozlov on Smackdown last week.
My Views: While Bentley would be a solid addition to the roster, I don’t see where he could be used. I would say that he would be great for a tag team guy, but WWE doesn’t effectively use tag teams. They could toss him on ECW with a bunch of other guys, but again, I just don’t see him being used as anything more than job fodder. It would be cool to see a young group of guys forming a stable on a show like ECW. Cade, Spanky, London, Bentley. All trained by HBK, all thinking that they are the shit and all being cocky douche bags. But I doubt that would happen. Oh well, I wish him luck and if he gets a job, more power too him. I just want to see the Bentley Bounce again, although it will not be the same without Traci’s “Bounce.”
Intermission kids, let’s party!
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~NASH WACKINESS~
TNA stories, scuttlebutt and rumors:
Your News: During an appearance on the Showgram radio show in Sacramento earlier this week, Kurt Angle made some bold, bordering on insane statements again…my thoughts in BOLD!
*He said that TNA will be in a ratings war with WWE in 2-3 years.
Well they are in a ratings war with ECW, and are losing. But they are in a war. If they keep growing their 4% a year, and Raw keeps losing their 10% a year then sure, in theory they could be in a war in 2 to 3 years. Now listen, I know I sound hateful here and like I am bashing TNA, but the bottom line is this. If TNA doesn’t change the way they run their shows and learn how to publicize their events better, the ratings will never move. But good try Kurt.
*He said that he will fight Brock Lesnar if the money is right.
Well shit, I’LL FIGHT Brock Lesnar is the money is right. Seriously, who wouldn’t?
*He said he and Randy Couture have signed on with a promotion to have their submission fight but wouldn’t reveal which promotion.
BULLSHIT. Now, there is interest on both sides for this fights, there are promotions interested and Mark Cuban will air the fight if it happens. But Couture can’t be signing contracts because he is still under contract to Zuffa. Nice try there Kurt.
*He said Sting told him he is the best wrestler he’s ever faced.
Well, I cannot say if this is true or not. But I do have a hard time believing that Sting would say that Angle was better than Flair. Flair made Sting, and they always have shown a ton of respect for each other. I am sure he told Angle that he was “one of the best” he ever faced, but I doubt the best. But hey, I could be wring.
*He put over Ric Flair’s career.
He better have.
*He said he is currently training two days a week for his fight with Couture and will increase that as the fight gets closer.
You better step that shit up if you want to compete with someone on the level of Couture.
*Said he wants TNA to make their California debut in Sacramento within the next few months.
I think that it would be great for TNA to expand out more and hit some new markets. If they do a show out there, that would also be a good time to bring in some Lucha guys.
Your News: TNA’s June tour of the UK will be the company’s most successful house show swing yet. The June 13th event in Liverpool has sold out the 1,700-seat venue and another show has been added for June 12th. The June 14th show in Coventry has sold 2,000 tickets and the June 15th show in Brentwood has sold 1,600 tickets.
My Views: A lot of people have been mocking the TNA ticket sales. “Oh wow, they sold 4,000 in Kentucky, who cares.” While I have many issues with the way that TNA does things booking wise and PR wise, you do have to start somewhere. In Pikeville they drew more than Smokey Mountain ever did, that is a big deal. They sold well in New York and after several problems trying to book a swing in Mexico and other places where they had to cancel shows, they finally are on a roll. The UK sales have to be a good sign, especially since they had to add another show for Liverpool. If they sell that one out, that’s over 3,000 for two nights in the same town. It’s not WWE, but it is a start. Basically they will not be a success overnight, they have to start somewhere and after many false starts, they finally are rolling and that does make me happy. If you have the chance to go to a TNA house show go, because I hear nothing but good things about the TNA house shows.
Your News: A camera crew followed around Kurt Angle over the weekend in Florida for what will apparently be a reality show pilot. Not much is known about it other than the fact that the production company approached Angle about it.
My Views: Cook stole the obvious Impact joke from a conversation we had last week, but that’s cool because it was funny. All I have to say is that if he actually gets a show I will watch it for the obvious train wreck possibilities it will provide. This could be awesome for all of the wrong reasons.
Your News: Sara Lee, who was the famous ticket-taker in Nashville for generations even into the TNA days, passed away this week.
My Views: Sara Lee was actually one of the top female wrestlers in the 50’s and 60’s, mainly in Tennessee ad the surrounding areas. She competed for promoters Nick Gulas, Roy Welch and the Jarrett family. In fact, Lee worked closely with Christine Jarrett (grandmother of Jeff Jarrett), who promoted events with Gulas and Welch and also appeared in the excellent documentary “Lipstick & Dynamite.” If you haven’t seen that film, you really should. Many will remember Lee from the early days of TNA, where she was the “ticket taker,” and often referred to as a legend in the area along with husband Corsica Joe. Lee performed at the Fairgrounds during her career, and stayed a part of the business locally for many years. She was married to Corsica Joe for 46 years at the time of her death. She even once got involved in a match where she attacked the Dupps with a broom, which popped the local crowd. It is always sad to see someone pass, but she led a full life and that is something to celebrate. RIP Sara Lee.
~The HOTTNESS of Rebecca Knox~
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Independent News
Your News: Low Ki was backstage at the ROH shows in Orlando over the weekend. He didn’t have any talks with the promotion about returning. He is currently recovering from a torn MCL. He was also backstage at the Impact tapings.
My Views: A lot of people were speculating that Ki was there looking for a job, which may have been the case, I will not rule it out. But more than likely he was just visiting friends. As the report mentions he is recovering from a torn MCL. With a lot of his friends in Orlando, he was likely just in town to catch up with people he hasn’t seen in a while.
Your News: ROH is looking to book more TNA talent. ROH is still allowed to book TNA talent for shows that aren’t used for PPV broadcasts or national DVDs.
My Views: To me this is an odd situation. If they cannot use them on DVD or PPV, then they are spending a lot of money to bring them in. What I figure is that they are hoping that using TNA talent that are on national TV may help with ticket sales at live events. Also, it makes for a good angle since they are using the Machineguns and have used Rain (Miss Banks). It makes for a good angle explanation.
Your News: ROH ended up drawing 1,300 fans to their Friday show in Orlando and 1,500 fans to their Saturday show. Internally, ROH was very happy with how the shows went, especially the Saturday show. DVDs for the ROH Orlando shows over the weekend are in the works. ROH plans to return to Florida on 10/10 in Coral Springs and to Orlando on 10/11.
My Views: If I were ROH I would also be pleased by drawing nearly 3,000 fane for the two shows. Many shows average between 500-700 so doubling the average attendance is not only good for the bottom line, but good for the morale of the wrestlers. If they can average close to 1,000 a show on their return, they may have a new market to run, which again is nothing but good for the company.
Your News: Sean Waltman is scheduled to be released from rehab at the end of April.
– Jake Roberts has finished up his stay in rehab, and was scheduled to wrestle in Orlando on March 29th.
– Scott Hall signed himself out of rehab early. He stated that he wanted to go to the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. His friends have reportedly convinced him to return for further treatment.
My Views: Hopefully Waltman’s stay in rehab was a successful one. He was in bad shape with the suicide attempt, which led to Kevin Nash stepping in to get him into rehab. I wish him nothing but the best.
Roberts reportedly did wrestle in Orlando after his release. People that met with him said he was in good spirits and seemed like he had himself together. Again, I wish him nothing but the best.
The news of Hall leaving rehab is sad news to me. The man apparently knew he needed help and was seeking it so that he could see his children again. If this is the case and he did leave, it wasn’t a good idea. I really hope that he can get himself together.
Your News: Terry Funk’s role with Big Vision Entertainment will be as a face of their advertising and a host of sorts for a DVD club the company is starting. Funk will also be working with Big Vision on a non-wrestling project Funk is attached to that has been going around Hollywood for a while and was optioned by Sony at one point. Funk will appear at Big Vision’s XPW reunion show in May.
My Views: I think that this is a good thing. First of all it gets Funk back into wrestling in a way that he doesn’t have to be in the ring. His whole life was wrestling, and it is never easy to leave. Wrestling is the Hotel California, you never can truly leave and if you do it is a rare thing. Secondly, Big Vision Entertainment is putting out some good products and having Funk involved is a good business move to give a seal of approval so to speak. Good luck Terry, have fun and stay retired.
Your News: Former WWE star Andrew “Test” Martin was arrested for DUI Sunday morning in Pasco County, FL. He was stopped on State Road 54 at roughly 10:30AM ET. The officer who pulled him over noticed his speech was slurred and his eyes were glassy, leading to his arrest for DUI and driving with a suspended license.
Martin refused to submit a urine test and was therefore taken to the Land O’ Lakes Jail. The officer noted that Martin kept falling asleep in the cop car on the way to jail.
My Views: Oh my, where to begin here kids? First of all dude was busted at 10:30am. Damn, I do some drinking and all but still, 10:30am? That’s messed up. Secondly, the idiot was driving with a suspended license. He should NEVER be issued a license again. Seriously, pieces of shit like this piss me off. Not only driving drunk, but doing so on a license that was already suspended? Fuck you dude. Finally, they took him to the “Land O’ Lakes” jail? The butter jail, seriously? SERIOUSLY? That shit just writes itself. That is awesome. And let’s not forget this glorious mug shot…
Not HD Compatible…
And I’m out of here!
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