On RAW, the crowd made the difference for the show to be a winner, ultimately, which I suspect and hope will remain a tradition as the so-called “hardcore” smarks stick around for it. Will that many of them stick around for Smackdown? I’d like to think so… but this “thing” is still a new “thing.” Only one way to find out, and you know what that means. Into the back of the closet and into Narnia, kiddo, we’re hunting wabbits. Hopping time! (a.k.a. Beer will make this better).
BoredWrestlingFan Radio Episode 43 kicked off with the original Doink The Clown, Matt Borne! In the interview, Matt chastises Joe for not doing his homework and threatens to hit him with the Whoopie Cushion if they ever meet in person. Aside from that, he talks about his influences for the Doink character, his thoughts on some other evil clowns, what he would have done differently if he were the guy playing Doink when Dink was introduced, the transition from Big Josh in WCW to Doink in WWF, his relationship with the late Art Barr, and much more.
Afterward, the BWF Radio crew talk wrestling news, including Batista’s MMA debut, Chris Jericho’s WWE future, Shaul Guerrero’s employment status, and much more. Will John Cena be ready for Hell In a Cell? If not, is Ryback a suitable replacement? What’s the status of The Undertaker for WrestleMania 29? Where did Shawn Daivari learn to choke a guy out like he did to an unruly passenger on a train? Did Hulk Hogan finally answer The Rock’s WrestleMania 18 question of whether or not he still has a Hulka-strudel? Tune in to find out!
With all the Wrestlemania stuff going on this week, it’s easy to forget that other wrestling programs are still on and are even trying to compete with WWE this weekend. One of the is ROH who if you haven’t heard is having their Showdown In The Sun this weekend in Florida too. But before we get to that, we have this weeks edition of ROH Wrestling to go: (more…)
I guess I should explain what I’m doing. I won’t really do a linear recap. You’ll be able to find many great recaps. These are just my meditations and reflections of the weekend that was.
-First and most important lesson. Do NOT ever do a weigh-in outside in North Texas on June 17th. It had to be 108 degrees out there. You could tell that most people there were hungry for MMA, but then there were some blood-thirsty fame-seekers, too.
-Shirts not to wear at an MMA weigh-in: this or this.
-One of the most popular personalities there by far was Jacob Stitch Duran. The man was treated like a god, and many people wanted their picture taken with him. He was just out in the crowd, standing with the people.
-When you are speaking to a fighter or an MMA personality, show some respect. If you are trying to get somebody’s attention, start with their nickname. And if they don’t respond, start with their last name. Especially if they are as old as Stitch.
-After the weigh-in my dad and I were walking to the car, we saw, walking the other direction, Renato “Babalu” Sobral (who was cornering Marco Almeida). After having a minor freak-out moment, a group of guys behind us spotted him, too. They asked him for a picture. He didn’t have much time but took one anyway. I thought that was classy.
-The actual event was fun even though the fights pretty much blew. There was a tool who went apes*** over the fact they didn’t open the door at 5:59:30. He got the officer to open the door to tell him to shut up (we think).
-We had floor seats and they were very well-guarded so there weren’t any scrubs paying $12 and then finding a floor seat. I really hate it when that happens.
-There were some fight sponsors giving out their t-shirts for free. I felt they needed a plug. http://www.feartappingout.com/
-Those of us on the floor were kind of like a double-decker tour bus taking a Hollywood tour of homes. Every new body that came out, it was like “Who is that?” We found Bas Rutten and Michael Schiavello pretty early in the night. When he was able to, Bas took pictures with whomever he could. I was shocked how little Mauro Ranallo and Jimmy Lennon Jr. were bothered. Miesha Tate was spotted in the crowd, as was Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Herschel Walker and Michael Irvin were also in the crowd. Miesha and Bigfoot were very accessible and took a lot of pictures with whomever they could.
-I had a 13-year-old girl Justin Bieber moment when I first saw Miesha Tate. I squeed like a girl when I saw her. I gave her a new nickname that night-“Gina who?” I tweeted, “Just saw @MieshaTate in person. Or as I call her, ‘Gina who?’ Camera does not do her justice.” I was actually responded to by her. “@justinruff Lol thanks! I don’t think Im very photogenic lol”. I’ve been tweeted by some celebrities before. I think that was one of the biggest for me.
-The first fight was Brian Melancon vs. Isaac Valle-Flagg. This was the first of the bulls*** decisions from the judges. Melancon looked great in the cage, and I hope he gets several opportunities. Nothing against Isaac (who had Keith Jardine in his corner), but it was 29-27 Melancon at best.
-During the first fight, we had the ring girls stand ringside. At first the one in front of us looked hot and athletic and stuff. And then I realized. The poor thing has never eaten. The great Sir Mix-a-Lot could not have said, “Red beans and rice didn’t miss her.” I again tweeted “Somebody get the ring girl some food. Give me @Mieshatate any day.” I was responded with a “Hahaha lmao” from the lovely Ms. Tate herself.
-Nah-shon Burrell was great in his fight, and even though Joe Ray tried to put him under every submission imaginable, Burrell fought back. I wrote that Burrell does not feel pain.
-Conor Heun took on Marco Almeida. While I am happy that Heun got the win, I started out the fight as a fan of Heun and ended up a fan of both by the time it was over. There was no way Heun got that decision.
-Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante is a man who cannot catch a break. His last fight was a decision that even the winner said “There’s no way that was 30-27.” And then an accidental eye poke. Love JZ. Wish him lots of luck, because the guy has no good luck at all.
-Chad Griggs looked great against Valentijn Overeem. The crowd was definitely “Team Overeem.” I was just glad to see a finish.
-Apparently they forgot to tell Jeff Monson he could hit too. It was a pretty disappointing fight.
-KJ Noons-Jorge Masvidal was my fight of the night choice. What was so surreal was that I was watching the moment where Masvidal punched Noons and the cut happened. That this fight lasted a round was a small miracle. I have to say that after this round, Stitch is the greatest miracle worker in humanity.
-Josh Barnett had a great submission victory against Bret Rogers.
-You’ll hear 30,000 different opinions on Overeem-Werdum. It was just such a styles clash. To compare, it was like AJ Styles having a pro wrestling match against Mad Man Pondo. Or the Dallas Mavericks playing the Green Bay Packers in baseball. I think that Werdum is going to get a lot of flack. All he wanted to do was fight his style. It was a pretty awful main event. I’m just glad Overeem won.
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Holy crap I am tired… barely slept last night, and now I am going to watch some iMPACT. This is probably the best mindset to hit good ol’ Crash TV in… let’s see what the little promotion that couldn’t served up for us tonight! The only thing I’m privy to remembering is that Karen Angle-Jarrett tells her story about what happened with her and Kurt. And they call wrasslin’ a soap opera….
Hey folks, I’m ThinkSoJoE, and I’ll be your host for our TNA Final Resolution 2009 roundtable. Ready? Let’s go!
TNA World Heavyweight Championship match: AJ Styles (C) vs. Daniels
Drowgoddess: AJ retains after the possible match of the night, and some skullduggery on the part of Daniels. AJ/Daniels can continue to build for a while, and Daniels shouldn’t get the win and title just yet. Additionally, AJ is the ideal face of the company, and during this time of major upheaval, taking the belt off of him would be an incredibly foolish move.
chjpacheco: Daniels wins via DQ
JT: AJ Styles over Daniels
ThinkSoJoE: We’re treading water until Hogan shows up, look for Styles and Daniels to steal the show but for Styles to retain.
Three Degrees of Pain:Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe
Drowgoddess: Desmond Wolfe wins in the third match after considerable treachery. The matches between these two have been fantastic, and the feud should not end yet. Angle pulled out a last-second win at the last ppv, and Wolfe needs one here to keep the momentum and the feud going. A loss here will not hurt Angle at all.
chjpacheco: Wolfe wins only reason i say that is because of Kurt’s neck
JT: Wolfe over Angle
ThinkSoJoE: I think Wolfe will take this one. I’d actually like to see more of Wolfe vs. Daniels, but I’ll take a continuation of Wolfe/Angle any day.
Last Man Standing Match: Bobby Lashley vs. Scott Steiner
Drowgoddess: I really don’t care about this match at all. I’d like to see Steiner win because Lashley is a complete waste of space. However, until TNA decides what to do about Lashley’s MMA career, they’ll likely try to keep him as strong as possible. Steiner holds the only victory over Lashley in TNA right now, so Lashley will probably win here. Kristal will help.
chjpacheco: Steiner because if Bobby as his wife at ring side she will be a distraction
JT: Bobby Lashley over Scott Steiner
ThinkSoJoE: Lashley is likely going to pick up the win here. I’d love to see Steiner win, but I just can’t see it happening for some reason.
TNA World Tag Team Championship: The British Invasion (C) vs. Motor City Machine Guns
Drowgoddess: Oh. Sweet. Mother. Of. God. This match has gotten zero attention, zero hype, and precisely one promo pointing out the lack of attention given the match. The promo war between Alex Shelley and Brutus Magnus could have been GOLD! That’s as may be. Give the MCMG the tag team title run that they have so richly deserved for the past two and a half years, already!
chjpacheco: MCM i hate the british invasion they need NOT to have the belts
JT: Machineguns w win the titles
ThinkSoJoE: You guys are kidding yourselves. The British Invasion are not losing those titles tonight, not in a completely underhyped match with zero real buildup against a team that, despite quite possibly being the best tag team in the world, hasn’t been pushed like one.
TNA Knockouts Championship: ODB (C) vs. Tara
Drowgoddess: Tara wins. ODB’s heel turn and recent losses on “iMPACT” have weakened her enough that she would be better as the resentful ex-champ chasing her title.
chjpacheco: Tara its her time to shine
JT: No title change here
ThinkSoJoE: I’ve got to go with Tara. ODB is definitely in line for a heel turn, and the tactics she’s been using definitely lend themselves toward a title chase. Tara will overcome ODB and walk out as Knockouts Champion.
Mick Foley & Abyss vs. Raven & Dr. Stevie
Drowgoddess: Raven and Dr. Stevie win. Foley will not be focused on this match, and won’t really care what happens. Abyss takes the fall here.
chjpacheco: Raven and Dr. Stevie i have a feeling that an old friend from ecw is going to show up
JT: Raven and Dr. Stevie win
ThinkSoJoE: Raven and Dr. Stevie are really the first victims of Hogan coming in, aren’t they? They haven’t gotten a lot of TV time over the past couple of weeks because one of their opponents is too busy worrying about Hogan. That’s also going to be Foley’s downfall, as he’ll be too concerned about Hogan to worry about actually winning this match.
Team 3D, Rhino, and Jesse Neal vs. D’Angelo Dinero, Matt Morgan, Suicide, and Hernandez
Drowgoddess: Hernandez lasts the first five minutes against the entire heel team, but will be eliminated after his team enters. The babyface team will get down to either Matt Morgan or “The Pope.” The heel team will outnumber the last babyface. Either Morgan or “The Pope” gets the win for his team.
chjpacheco: Team 3D, Rhino, Jesse Neal..just cuz they’re better
JT: Morgan and Suicide surivive!
ThinkSoJoE: There’s something strange going on, and I can’t quite figure out what it is. It’s got to do with Suicide. I’m picking Team 3D, Rhino, and Jesse Neal, simply because I have a feeling in my gut that something will happen with Suicide.
Feast Or Fired: Samoa Joe, Beer Money Inc., Kevin Nash, Eric Young, and Sheik Abdul Bashir vs. Kiyoshi, Homicide, Jay Lethal, Consequences Creed, and Cody Deaner
Drowgoddess: Samoa Joe gets the X-Division title shot, and is furious. He will go on a rampage over this.
Kiyoshi gets the Tag Team title shot for himself and Bashir against the new champs, the MCMG.
I thought that Rob Terry was in this match, and I was calling him to get the World Heavyweight title shot, but since that doesn’t seem to be true, Robert Roode gets it.
Either Cody Deaner or Eric Young will get fired, but Young will be reinstated by Kevin Nash.
chjpacheco: Cody Deaner gets fired just because he isn’t being used and he sucks feast will be Kevin Nash because he has the money
JT: Eric Young gets fired, James storm gets the title shot, Roode gets the X-division shot and cody deaner gets the tag shot.
ThinkSoJoE: Deaner’s getting fired, I think that’s pretty obvious. Storm is going to grab the Tag Team Championship shot, Homicide the X division title shot, and finally, Samoa Joe the World Championship shot. No reason for the picks, just really not sure.
Who’s right? Who’s wrong? Find out tonight as TNA Wrestling Presents Final Resolution!
