The Triple Threat 9.18.11: The 251st Edition – WWE’s Night of Champions, Robert Roode, Cena & The Rock, More

Topic # 1 WWE‘s Night of Champions PPV is this Sunday. What are your thoughts on the card?

David Martell: This is kind of a mixed bag in my eyes. It doesn’t have the hype of the last two WWE ppvs and some of the build up for the matches are sub par. First off, we have Ted Dibiase vs. Cody Rhodes for the Intercontinental Title. I think it was obvious that Ted would turn on Cody eventually but I just cant see Cody losing the belt. Right now Cody is being built up to be in the main event. After a win against Orton on RAW this past week, I don’t see them cutting off Cody’s momentum. The Fatal Fourway for the US Title could be decent. I kind of wish it was just Ziggler vs. Swagger since the other two men in the match have no reason being in it. I guess this is an ok way to continue the feud without blowing off the eventual match. I think Swagger will win here pinning Riley or Morrison. Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix for the Diva’s title wont be anything special. I think Beth will get the win here and they can finally start building back the women’s division. Air Boom vs. Truth and Miz for the tag straps should be one of the better matches of the night. I am really digging Truth and Miz being a team. Their promos are good, they get good heat and they could make the tag belts look somewhat credible. With that said, I don’t see them being Air Boom at Night of Champions. With Bourne and Kofi teaming up, winning the titles, and getting a tag team name, I just don’t see them dropping the belts just yet. John Cena vs. Del Rio for the WWE title isn’t a match I care to much for. The build is awful, Del Rio looks weak and I absolutely hate it when John Cena says he is going to win. Just all around terrible. I hope by some miracle that Del Rio can pull this off so Cena can stay out of the title picture. I am looking forward to the Randy Orton vs. Mark Henry World Title match. I really enjoyed the push that Henry has been getting the past few months. The promo on the last Smackdown kind of showed how much a title win for Henry would really mean. I am hoping Henry will pull this off with some kind of Christian interference. I think Christian vs. Orton would be the best match Smackdown can have for the Hell in the Cell. Last but not least we have CM Punk vs. Triple H. This will probably be the best match on the card. There is going to be run ins here and I expect Kevin Nash to return. I am hoping that Nash helps Triple H win so Triple H can finally have a heel turn. I just think it would make everything more interesting if Triple H was a heel. Overall, the PPV could be decent but in my opinion its not a must buy.

Jacob San Antonio: I’ll be honest. I expect this to be the most forgettable PPV since Capitol Punishment. Matches with no build, matches with no heat, and ultimately a PPV that seems to simply fill in the gap between Summerslam and Hell in the Cell. Dolph Ziggler defends his US Title against Jack Swagger, Alex Riley and John Morrison. If Ziggler doesn’t retain, Swagger wins the belt. There’s no way this Swagger/Ziggler feud ends here. Ted Dibiase challenges Cody Rhodes for his IC Title, an attempt that will end in failure. That said, I think this could very well be a contender for match of the night. My expectations are simply that low for this PPV. Air Boom takes on The Miz and R-Truth with the Tag Team Championships on the line, and there’s no good reason for the belts to change hands quite yet. If anything, this should be a close match that leaves the door open for another showdown at Hell in the Cell. Kelly Kelly defends her championship against Beth Phoenix, and I really doubt we’ll see her luck out with another last minute roll-up this time. Randy Orton finally comes face to face with Mark Henry, another match that I think might steal the show. Orton’s going to keep his belt, but I think it’ll be a DQ finish. Either Henry goes nuts, or someone runs in. CM Punk takes on HHH, and there won’t be a winner. I’m 99% certain someone is going to run in and mess things up. Given the story behind the feud and the characters involved, I really think this match will disappoint. Punk can only carry a story so far. Finally, John Cena rapados his way to another uninspired title win that nobody really wants to see. They’ve been playing Cena really arrogant and aggressive lately, so I’d like to think he’s going to make some critical mistake against Del Rio. I’d like to think that, but it ain’t happening. Main event squash, rematch and second squash at Hell in the Cell, move on towards Survivor Series. From top to bottom NoC just doesn’t seem well booked. Feuds lack heat, even the ones that were built up week after week. Ultimately forgettable.

Zach Brown: Honestly, I’m not very excited about Night of Champions. I don’t think many fans will walk away from this PPV happy at all. There are a few things that are going to be decent, but the rest will disappoint. First of all, the Fatal 4-Way for the US Title could be excellent if given time, but I doubt it will be. I think it’s too early for Alex Riley, John Morrison winning would be out of nowhere, and it’s likely that Dolph Ziggler will drop the title. I’m willing to bet that Jack Swagger picks up the title to become the long overdue All American American United States Champion, and to further his feud with Dolph Ziggler. Hopefully they let these guys really go out and tear the house down. Air Boom vs. Miz and R-Truth…this match could be exciting as well if done right. Or it could just be TV quality if they just don’t give a crap. I want R-Truth and Miz to win it because they are looking good right now, but I could see WWE giving Air Boom the win just to ride out that ridiculous name for another month. Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix could be as good as a divas’ match can be, but they better pull the trigger on Beth Phoenix winning the title. It’s time to give the Divas of Doom the run they deserve. CM Punk vs. Triple H will be a decent match, but it has screwy finish written all over it. I’m expecting Nash to run in and attack Punk obviously. As if Triple H is going anywhere as COO. That storyline is here to stay, and Triple H will probably find some way to bury Punk just to teach him a real life lesson. If CM Punk doesn’t win, it will be sickening, and he won’t, so it will be. Randy Orton vs. Mark Henry…it just doesn’t match up well. Who honestly wants to see this match? Sure, they have built up Mark Henry well, but these two will not have chemistry. It could be a hard hitting and brutal match, but Orton will have to work to make Henry look good here. I sense a double count out or a DQ finish to protect Orton and drag it out longer. And finally, Alberto Del Rio vs. Cena. How will ADR get past Cena? He just won the title, so he deserves to retain, but WWE has done an awful job of making ADR look like a credible champion for the last few weeks. So how does he get past SuperCena realistically? Either there is some kind of screwy finish, or he doesn’t, plain and simple. Alberto winning clean is highly unlikely in this scenario, unfortunately. Del Rio shouldn’t be facing Cena so immediately. The storylines are all mixed up. Del Rio should be facing Punk right now, and Cena should be nowhere near the title for more reasons than I can count. But none of that matters and WWE took the storylines the way they wanted to take them, not where the fans wanted to see them go. WWE has been severely out of touch concerning what the fans wanted to see CM Punk do for the past month, and this PPV is the result of that. What we are getting is CM Punk wasting his time with Triple H when he should be focusing on the title, and Cena getting a completely undeserved title shot, but it’s happening anyway because he’s John Cena. The setup for this PPV should be enraging to anyone that loved what WWE was doing Pre-Summerslam. They made huge mistakes in booking this PPV, and what we will get will be very lackluster. I just hope the undercard can carry NOC because the main events certainly aren’t going to. This one is an obvious pass for me.

Topic # 2 What are your thoughts on Claudio Castagnoli being signed by the WWE?

David Martell: Well this is good news. Claudio is an extremely talented wrestler and fit’s the build that WWE usually likes to see. Its weird to see him get signed without Chris Hero but I imagine that Hero will be signed sometime soon. I would love to see the Kings of Wrestling in the WWE because we all know how bad they need tag teams right now. I’m actually surprised how fast they he got a new name. Antonio Cesaro actually isn’t that bad of a name. I have a feeling he wont be in FCW to long. Maybe he could even pop his head up in the CM Punk storyline some how. We can only hope that he doesn’t have “visa issues” this time around.

Jacob San Antonio: We’re one step closer to seeing the Kings of Wrestling in the WWE, and I seriously can’t wait. I’ve got my fingers
crossed that both Castagnoli and eventually Hero get brought into the WWE and pick up the style quickly. From the few tag teams the E currently has, it’s hard to say if they’re serious about revitalizing the tag team division. If Castagnoli and Hero manage to reach the WWE roster quick enough, I think we might see the spotlight once again shine down on tag teams. It’s not so much that I think this one tag team is better than the others, as it is the gesture itself of bringing a well known tag team to the WWE. I’m happy to hear about this development deal; my only concern is how long Castagnoli will be in FCW and when we’ll see Chris Hero get the same deal.

Zach Brown: Umm, well, where is Chris Hero? Is Chris Hero coming too? God, I hope so. But seriously, Claudio Castagnoli is a fantastic wrestler. But why can’t we let the guy keep his name? Or just alter it slightly? Is Antonio Cesaro honestly a better name to have than Claudia Castagnoli? At least give the guy something with a ring to it, like you know, his ACTUAL NAME. But anyway, I’m glad that Claudia is finally coming to WWE. It sucked when it didn’t work out for him last time, so I’m happy to know that Claudio has gotten a second chance. And I’m glad he is going through FCW as well. It seems to rarely work out when guys pass by developmental and move up immediately to the main roster *coughsincaracough*. But in due time, I’ll be happy to see Claudio bringing those patented European uppercuts to the masses.

Topic # 3 What are your thoughts on Robert Roode winning the Bound For Glory Series?

David Martell: I like Robert Roode as much as the next guy but I honestly think this was a bad turn out for the BFG series. No offense to Roode, but Angle vs. Roode for the TNA World Title isn’t really a main event I would see drawing. I think it would have been a lot more entertaining if some how both members of Beer Money were apart of the main event in a triple threat match for the World Title. We would then have a good storyline going up to BFG with tag team partners forced to face each other. Its almost always a good storyline when you have partners feud. I just didn’t see the point of the whole BFG series. They build up Crimson like he’s the next big thing and then he’s out of the competition. Samoa Joe takes out some of the competitors but it leads to nothing. I am happy for Robert Roode though, and I would be very happy to see him become the TNA World Champion. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t look good as a main event for TNA’s biggest show of the year.

Jacob San Antonio: If anyone had to win, I’m glad it was Roode. Unfortunately for him, I just don’t see him beating Angle at Bound for Glory. Even so, this is a good opportunity for Roode and his singles career. It gives him a month to stand in the spotlight at the top of the card, and it’ll be interesting to see what kind of effect this will have on him in the long run. Between Roode and Storm, I’ve always felt like Roode had more potential to be bigger. It shouldn’t come at the cost of sacrificing Beer Money Inc, but it can’t hurt to see what Roode’s capable of on his own. I’m going to enjoy this next month, if only to watch and see what Roode goes through and how well he rises above it. Even if he does lose to Angle at BFG, a close and competitive match could do wonders for Roode.

Zach Brown: I actually like that Robert Roode was the winner of the Bound for Glory series. I initially wanted Crimson to win this and become the breakout star in TNA, but Roode is a good choice as well. A friend of mine recently complained to me about the Robert Roode decision, and I don’t see the argument of why Robert Roode doesn’t deserve it or how he isn’t already built up enough to face Kurt Angle. The man has constantly delivered for years in Beer Money. He is one half of arguably the biggest tag team that TNA has ever had. And in Robert Roode’s time as a singles wrestler, I think he was very underrated both in the ring and on the mic. Roode is very much like wrestlers of the 80s. He reminds me of Arn Anderson or Barry Windham on any given day and is in better shape than either man in their prime. I honestly think that Roode can hang with Kurt Angle in the ring. Stranger things have happened. I mean Angle has been forced to work with far worse in TNA. Remember his matches with Scott Steiner? I really think that Angle can bring Roode to a 4 star match, put him over clean and convincingly, and we will have a new main event star come Bound For Glory. Give Robert Roode a chance. TNA might actually make a new main event star for once. Crazy thought, right?

Topic # 4 Austin Aries recently won TNA‘s X Division Title at No Surrender. Your thoughts?

David Martell: He is definitely a better champion than Brian Kendrick. I have always been a fan of Austin Aries. The guy has it all. He is a good wrestler, he has tons of charisma, and he can cut decent promos. During his last run in TNA, his Austin Starr gimmick was great. I never understood why they didn’t do more with him then. Hopefully this time around they build him up better and he can become a part of the World Title scene. Just look at his work as the RoH world champion, this guy can hang with the big dogs. But really, that’s the problem with TNA. Can they put new people in the main event? Only time will tell but for now, we can expect good things for the X Division with Aries as champion.

Jacob San Antonio: What a pleasant surprise. For a guy who just recently returned to TNA, I thought Aries winning the X Division title was still a ways away. That said, his winning speaks wonders of the confidence TNA has in Austin. Hard to say what happens next, though. The dude’s got a ton of talent, but I couldn’t tell you who his next challenger will be. With how long Aries’s chase has been, I don’t think we’ll see another Kendrick match. These next few weeks are going to be critical for the X Division champion. I’ve always felt a champion is remembered primarily for the matches he had, so if Aries can single out a new challenger and crank out some good matches with him, it’ll do wonders for his reputation in TNA. It’s not so much that I didn’t think Austin Aries was ready for the X Division title, mind you. I simply thought we’d see him establish himself more with other talent before taking the gold. This isn’t always a bad thing, though. All you can really do is wait and see.

Zach Brown: This is the comeuppance that Austin Aries deserves. I liked Kendrick as X-Division champion because quite frankly he deserved it for constantly not getting pushed throughout his career. But hey, Austin Aries is who he is and he deserves it as well. And I like that he is not Austin Starr in TNA anymore. That was a fun gimmick for what it was, but Austin Aries is much better as himself. Honestly, Aries deserved a title even back when he was Austin Starr. The fact that he didn’t win one even back then was a crime because he did great things in his last run in TNA. He even had a great run as ROH World Champion, and this is just the next step in the evolution of his career. Hopefully he can bring some much needed prestige to this title. I hope Aries holds the title for a good stretch of time, and uses it to propel himself further up the TNA pipeline in due time. He could make a great TNA World Champion one day, and hopefully TNA gives him good things to do while he is X-Division champion so that he can prove himself.

Topic # 5 The WWE has confirmed that at Survivor Series, John Cena will team up with The Rock. How do you feel about this?

David Martell: This is a terrible idea. Really, what is the point of teaming The Rock and Cena together? It would have made a ton of more sense if it was Team Rock vs. Team Cena. Who will they be fighting against that they would have to be on the same team for? Either some type of team is going to be forming in the next month or so or they are just doing these to save any altercations between the two for Wrestlemania. Team Rock vs. Team Cena actually makes sense. It would be fun to see The Rock teaming up with some of the old school guys like Mick Foley, Triple H, Kane and the Big Show vs. John Cena with top stars of today like CM Punk, Randy Orton, Del Rio and Sheamus. Something like that would make tons of money for the WWE and would be something everyone would want to watch. Old School vs. New School. Of course WWE doesn’t always like making money. Yeah, I will still want to see Survivor Series because the Rock will return to the ring, but we could have had something way better to watch.

Jacob San Antonio: If ever you wanted proof that the WWE is getting desperate, here you go. The Rock/Cena showdown and subsequent hype for Wrestlemania was entirely due to the Rock’s return to the ring. His big come back being against John Cena right out of the gate…it sells tickets and shows cause it’s never been seen; Rock wrestling hasn’t happened legitimately in well over five years. It makes absolutely no sense to put him in the ring before Wrestlemania, unless they want to shoot themselves in the foot. Moreover, nobody wants to see the “reluctant team-up” angle that’s only been done since the dawn of time. It doesn’t further the feud. It is, at its core, a desperate ploy by the WWE to bolster sales for Survivor Series, a PPV that’s been on the chopping block for the past few years. It’s sad, and it’s just another reminder that the WWE hates planning long term.

Zach Brown: The Rock and John Cena teaming up…cats and dogs, living together…MASS HYSTERIA! Well it’s definitely stupid and nonsensical at this point. Why would The Rock and John Cena team up? Who would even want to see that? What sort of opponents would challenge them both to the point that they would need to join forces? Why would we be interested in seeing a glorified squash match? Honestly, a much better booking would have been Team Cena vs. Team…Bring It…I guess. I mean that’s a match that sells Pay Per Views, and doesn’t blow their load for Wrestlemania because it’s not 1 on 1. If they really wanted to save the good stuff for Wrestlemania, they could have only had Cena and Rock be facing off against each other for less than a minute in a Survivor Series match if they wanted. But instead, here we are, stuck with this lame pairing. Who would challenge them? The Miz and R-Truth? And I’m sure that some lower level heels and faces would round out the teams, but no one really cares about that. And as if TheMiz and R-Truth (or whoever WWE would pick) has a chance of winning at all. They could play up that Cena and Rock don’t get along and that could cause them the match, but sorry, who is on the poster? Who would be selling the PPV? Who are two of the biggest stars WWE has ever had? Psh, yeah, they could lose alright. And Bucky Larson was a great career choice for Nick Swardson. (Sorry Nick, I love ya buddy, I really do. But damn.) Needless to say, I’m not thrilled with the sight of this poster. Even if WWE tries their best to explain why Rock and Cena would team up, it’s already announced before the storyline even exists. So they are just doing it to do it, regardless of what makes sense to the fans. Wake me up when it’s Wrestlemania.

Our thoughts on Ricardo Rodriguez.

David Martell: Most of the time, Ricardo Rodriguez is the guy that makes Alberto Del Rio interesting. He plays the lackey role perfectly. He’s hilarious to watch and his in ring introductions are always great. The funny thing is, Ricardo is actually a wrestler. I cant really see him ever being a legit wrestler in the WWE but I imagine at some point the will leave Del Rio’s side. He really is a comedy character. His facial expressions, him constantly yelling out Del Rios name, his back stage segments, everything is meant to be funny. He is basically a new age Virgil but a lot less serious. Without Ricardo, Del Rio loses a lot of his character and would be come a lot more bland. Not that Del Rio cant stand on his own, but he is a much better persona with Ricardo Rodriguez by his side.

Jacob San Antonio: I do not mean this as a knock against Alberto Del Rio at all, but without Ricardo Rodriguez at his side Del Rio would be far less memorable. Sure, the driving out in fantastic cars and belittling the poor establishes some of Del Rio’s character, but without the pompous act of his own personal ring announcer you get that extra something to hate him for. Ricardo isn’t exactly the most talented guy in the ring, but he makes up for it with a gimmick he embraces wholeheartedly. It really shows that he enjoys the work he does for Del Rio, and sometimes that’s the difference maker in getting certain things over with the crowd. Every entrance by Del Rio is enhanced by Ricardo’s announcement, and it’s really amazing to see the crowd take to it as well as they have. I’m fine leaving Ricardo as a ring announcer. He’s done a great job, and I just don’t think he’s anywhere near ready for a real WWE match.

Zach Brown: Well Ricardo Rodriguez does do wonders for Alberto Del Rio’s character. The idea of having a personal ring announcer that only announces you in Spanish is pretty unique and well thought out. And now it seems like Ricardo is essentially Alberto’s lackey. We have gotten some genuinely funny moments out of Alberto throwing Ricardo to the wolves, I will admit. And I legitimately laughed out loud last week when Ricardo did pushups back stage and the numbers he was calling out were deliberately not making sense. But how long will this last and can Ricardo make a transition to being a wrestler on his own? I know that Ricardo is an actual wrestler and kind of working in FCW on the side while he manages Alberto Del Rio. But will that really help him? Honestly Ricardo just looks like a kid compared to the other wrestlers in WWE. I don’t know if he has a good enough look to cut it in WWE. He really has no physique to speak of, and his hair just makes him look juvenile. He may have some good mic skills because he is obviously talented at announcing Del Rio to the ring, even though it’s all in Spanish. I look at it as: as long as Alberto Del Rio is wrestling, Ricardo could have a decent career being his manager. If he’s looking to strike out on his own in WWE at some point, he really has to overhaul his look and his physique to really make it. Or else we will forever know him as Alberto Del Rio’s announcer guy. But hey, the guy is still super young at 25 years old. He might have some time to change things up for his future career.

That is all for this week. Fell free to comment at the bottom of the page and have a great week in wrestling. CYA!

– Listen to the latest edition of the 411 on Wrestling podcast! On the show, 411’s Larry Csonka is joined by co-host Steve Cook for a special interview with Martin Casaus from WWE Tough Enough! Martin discusses his independent wrestling career, his time on Tough Enough, who he thought should have won the show, possibly working with ROH, keeping in contact with WWE, some stories from his time on the independents, his next big match and more!

From there, Cook and Csonka discuss the latest episodes on IMPACT Wrestling and WWE Smackdown, take some calls, quickly breakdown the WWE Night of Champions PPV and then go into 30+ minutes of overtime to discuss Week One of the NFL season, fantasy football and more!

You can listen to the show on the player below, or you can download the show here.

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