wrestling / Columns

411 Fact or Fiction Wrestling: Do You Want to See a Triple H vs. Batista Feud?

May 14, 2017 | Posted by Larry Csonka
Batista - Chris Jericho

Welcome back to the latest edition of 411 Fact or Fiction, Wrestling Edition! Stuff happened, people loved/hated it and let everyone else know. I pick through the interesting/not so interesting tidbits and then make 411 staff members discuss them for your pleasure. Battling this week are 411’s Mitch Nickelson and Kevin Pantoja!

  • Questions were sent out Monday.
  • Participants were told to expect wrestling-related content, as well as possible statements on quantum physics, homemade pharmaceuticals, the Turtle Total Trip Theorem, pizza and hydroponics.

    1. WWE adding a UK Title match to the Takeover: Chicago event is a smart idea.

    Kevin Pantoja: FACT – Hell yes. I’m all for this. Though TakeOver events always deliver, they’ve had some lesser cards and builds in recent months. This is a match that will have hype behind it and some build, considering the finals of the UK Tournament. I have that match at ****1/2, and considering how well these two know each other, you can expect something great again. This should also work as a way to re-introduce the UK Title just before the weekly UK show runs on the Network. Lots of people watch NXT, but maybe not as many watched the UK Tournament, so this could help with viewership.

    Mitch Nickelson: FACT – WWE’s UK division is about ready to become its own thing, so it’s smart to book this match on this big NXT show. That’s good exposure. TakeOver cards pretty much always deliver and it’s pretty much a guarantee that the crowd will be hot. The UK brand will get a rub from this opportunity, for sure. Can we also start booking 205 Live Championship Matches on TakeOver shows? I’d love to see Neville vs. Aries on this Chicago show.

    2. What is your current level of excitement for the Ring of Honor product?

    Kevin Pantoja: 2 out of 10 – I just can’t bring myself to get excited about ROH. I haven’t enjoyed most of the company since Gabe left and Delirious’ booking style just hasn’t clicked with me. I got back into the company for a while in 2016, but then Global Wars came and I hated the way that show ended so much that I stopped watching the company for the rest of the year. I’ve seen a few shows this year that were solid, but outside of Marty Scurll, I don’t care for their roster.

    Mitch Nickelson: 6 out of 10 – I don’t want to be too negative on ROH but it’s pretty far down my order of required weekly viewing. It lacks a tremendous amount of buzz from when it was in its heyday and I’m not sure if they can ever get back to that. With that being said, there’s still tons of talent to keep an eye on. Dalton Castle is fun. The Young Bucks are still a hot commodity. Dang, I forgot about Marty Scurll until now. He’s been doing good work and I usually look forward to any show that I hear he’s on. I originally wrote 4 as my excitement level but now that I’ve remembered The Villain, I’ll bump it up 2 points. I’d say that he’s that valuable to them right now.

    3. You would be interested in Batista returning to WWE to work a program with Triple H.

    Kevin Pantoja: FICTION – Please don’t mistake this for my interest in a Batista return in general. I’d love to see Batista come back. Once he turned heel in his 2014 return, he was a blast to watch and I’ve always liked Batista. My issue with this topic is that it talks about working a program with Triple H. I’m all for Triple H the businessman now, but I haven’t enjoyed much of his ring work or feuds in recent years outside of Daniel Bryan and the short Dean Ambrose run. Give me a Batista return where he works fresh matches and I’d be all for it.

    Mitch Nickelson: FACT – Batista has become an incredibly endearing person (in the eyes of many wrestling fans – he’s probably been endearing for while) since his awkward return during the height of the Yes Movement. Because of Daniel Bryan, big Dave was the victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time with incredibly wrong booking. Nobody was going to accept him in that role. Since then, he’s become a gigantically huge movie star. He also is very forthright in his thoughts towards WWE. He’s taken jabs at the McMahons and encouraged the Titus brand to quit and it all comes from a place that WWE fans can relate to. Anything he might do on a return would be received well at this point. His suggestion of doing a program with Triple H also makes a ton of sense because of their history. With the overwhelming success of Guardians of the Galaxy, it’s perplexing why WWE hasn’t beaten down his door already, begging for a return.

    SWITCH!

    4. The Broken Hardys gimmick will never see the light of day in the WWE.

    Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – We’ve already seen bits and pieces of the Broken gimmick but I guess that’s not what everybody truly wants. Full-on Broken Matt is what the people need and until Impact’s legal case sees some resolution, we won’t get it. I do believe that Matt will become Broken again regardless if they use those specific words. And even if they literally cannot say the word “Broken” due to Impact’s insistence on not letting wrestling fans be happy, WWE should just encourage Matt to go ahead and become whatever the next evolution of his constantly progressing character he wants to be next.

    Kevin Pantoja: FICTION – This is just a matter of time, right? The Hardys are fighting a legal battle that I can’t see them losing. TNA has gone about pretty much everything involving the Hardys in the wrong way. Matt Hardy continues to play a fractured version of Broken Matt, throwing in mannerisms and such of the character without going all the way in. The nostalgia of the Hardys themselves will wear off, especially since the big appeal of them recently was the broken gimmicks. Bringing that in once the legal stuff is over should extend their shelf life.

    5. What is your current level of excitement for the WWE’s UK TV show on the WWE Network.

    Mitch Nickelson: 8 out of 10 – I probably would’ve answered 5 or 6 if they would’ve taped this show before or after Raw or SmackDown like 205 Live. Instead, they taped this before an actual British crowd while on their overseas tour. These guys are going to wrestle in front of people that are genuinely excited to see them perform. That’ll be a real treat to watch at home. Plus, there’s just a ton of talent. This has a chance at being a more wrestling-focused show and that’s rad.

    Kevin Pantoja: 8 out of 10 – I love this idea in theory. The UK Tournament was a ton of fun. I’ve followed RevPro and PROGRESS for a while now and I’ve become fans of several guys involved. I just dig the British style of wrestling and, unlike the Cruiserweight division, I think this legitimately offers something different for viewers. The talent is there but my only worry is that they could flub parts of it like 205 Live. One of the things that made the UK Tournament cool was that it felt and looked different from the rest of WWE television. Make sure the weekly show also does that and I think you’ve got a winner.

    6. Kenny Omega pinning ROH Champion Christopher Daniels at a War of the Worlds event, when he’s not locked into any more ROH dates this year, was poor booking.

    Mitch Nickelson: FACT – It is a little shocking that anybody would get a pin on the ROH World Champion without any receipt on the horizon, but that’s exactly what happened recently. Daniels even had Frankie Kazarian on his team in what was a 6-man tag match so there’s no reason that he needed to eat a pinfall. I’ll hold out hope that maybe there’s some unscheduled dates for Omega that haven’t been broadcasted and we’ll get something not yet made official. However, there may end up being more ROH dates and they’re keeping those under wraps for some surprise.

    Kevin Pantoja: FACT – Duh. But it’s ROH and almost everything they do would be considered poor booking. Delirious always books Gedo’s guys as far superior to his ROH guys, so I get Kenny Omega, the top gaijin in NJPW, winning in this match. However, he didn’t have to pin Christopher Daniels. Kazarian was RIGHT THERE to eat the pin. Even if you aren’t booking Daniels to be a strong champion, this was a pointless time for him to lose. I could understand if Omega was going somewhere with ROH afterwards, but he’s not scheduled to. It’s just dumb.