Professional Wrestling (WWE, TNA, ROH, etc)

[Andrew]

Uhh, Mysterio won last year's Rumble. And as far as I know, the Rumble prize is to be in the main event of Wrestlemania.

As shadowgrin said, the Rumble winner gets a shot at either heavyweight title at Wrestlemania; of course, before the brand split this meant a place in the main event as well. Whichever title match the WWE considers to be the marquee attraction will be the main event and last year that was Cena/HHH, even though Mysterio won the Rumble.

[[Q]]

Uhh, Mysterio won last year's Rumble. And as far as I know, the Rumble prize is to be in the main event of Wrestlemania.

As shadowgrin said, the Rumble winner gets a shot at either heavyweight title at Wrestlemania; of course, before the brand split this meant a place in the main event as well. Whichever title match the WWE considers to be the marquee attraction will be the main event and last year that was Cena/HHH, even though Mysterio won the Rumble.

well they used to do it so that the person that they wanted in the main event would win the royal rumble. that would obviously make sense. to have rey win and not want him to be in the main event is pointless.

i remember one year (I think 97 or 98) my cousin and i "drafted" wrestlers from the field of 30 and the one who picked the winner would get a dollar. I think her third pick was Stone Cold and mine was Rocky Maivia. She offered to trade me Stone Cold for Rocky but i refused. Stone cold won that one.

[Andrew]

well they used to do it so that the person that they wanted in the main event would win the royal rumble. that would obviously make sense. to have rey win and not want him to be in the main event is pointless.

Perhaps it would be more fitting if the main event featured the Rumble winner but the WWE is going to go with what they perceive will be the better match, as well as the one that's likely to go 20+ minutes.

[Lean]

Putting 'Taker and Batista's match BEFORE Ashley and Melina's match seemed to be odd. I thought they dubbed this World Heavyweight Championship match as "one of the most anticipated Matches in Wrestlemania history".

It's not just I hate Cena. But as BZ said, maybe anything that's not RAW is not deserving to be on the main event.

[BZ]

Putting 'Taker and Batista's match BEFORE Ashley and Melina's match seemed to be odd. I thought they dubbed this World Heavyweight Championship match as "one of the most anticipated Matches in Wrestlemania history".

It's not just I hate Cena. But as BZ said, maybe anything that's not RAW is not deserving to be on the main event.

That's pretty much WWE's philosophy. Honestly, if I was in attendance, I would've left after Taker's match. All I needed was the MITB and the World Heavyweight Championship match. The rest are of no interest whatsoever. If I was Undertaker or Batista, to be placed before a disaster like the Women's Championship match, I would've taken it as a slap in the face. But then again, I was only interested in WWE these days because I read that Undertaker's streak was in jeopardy. Now that's all said and done, I'll go back to Puroresu wrestling again.

[Matthew]

Just because the match wasn't one of the final 3 doesn't mean it wasn't a "main event". Wrestlemania seems to always have 3 main events after the brand splits, and its a way to spread the excitment.

[Andrew]

I thought the Undertaker/Batista match was a little early in the card but I think you need a bit of a buffer between main events and matches that are likely to steal the show. That's why it was a good move to put Kane/Khali as the second match of the night since there was a good chance anything coming straight after the MITB match was going to feel anti-climactic and pale in comparison. Except perhaps for the title matches but those wouldn't appear so soon on the card anyway.

[Lean]

World Heavyweight Championship rematch to be held at Backlash. Looks like they are going to get rid of brand-exclusive par-per-views.

[Andrew]

It was reported about a month ago they were looking to do that. I'm not that optimistic that they'll go the next step and can the brand split altogether but it's definitely a good move. The big pay-per-views will retain their prestige even though matches from both brands (and I'm assuming a few interbrand matches as well) will be featured at all events and roster weaknesses will be less glaring since the top talent of both brands will be on hand.

[K0beStar]

I dont watch the WWE anymore for two reasons: WWE sucks period. The wreslters today dont have much talent liek the ones in the WWF. I missed WWF days those were so fun when i was younger. I used to watch Raw is War and couldn't wait for thursdays for Smackdown. Number 2, reason is two words. The Rock. Best wrestler ever. He brought charisma, cockiness like ever before. Not only was he talented in the ring but i really like what he did on the mic. He could trash talk and be hilarious. When he was a heel that was his best days, then he turned face and everyone loved him and he was also the best. I miss the Peoples Elbow and the Rock Bottom. Nobody today that i can thnik of in the WWE brings entertainment to the ring like he did. One question i do have is does anybody know if he will make a comeback, if so when? Hes an awesome actor in my opinion but i dont know why he left his MILLIONS AND MILLIONS of rock fans. Most likely for money. But the WWE was so good for him.
If yaa smmmeeeeelllllll what the Rock is.. cooking!

[Andrew]

I wouldn't say that today's wrestlers are completely devoid of talent in the ring and on the mic, particularly those who were around in the Attitude Era (and earlier). What hurts the product these days in my view is overbooking, reliance on outlandish or nonsensical angles, plots that simply aren't good ideas and to a certain extent the brand split in general.

[K0beStar]

I havent seen any wrestlers today that have fought in the ring or spoke on the mic that didnt make wrestling seem fake. Wrestlers are supposed to be somewhat actors. Mankind was a dare devil, a legend, me watching him i thought wrestling was real and someone could die a la the late Owen Hart. John Cena? Are you serious? nuff said.

[BigKaboom2]

I always viewed both The Rock and Cena as parodists of the great promo guys in the past. They aren't always concerned with staying in character if they can have a little fun with it. I find them both very entertaining. If you're saying that the only moves that can be properly sold and are thus "believable" are huge bumps like Mankind took, I would disagree with that. I would point to Kurt Angle as someone who almost always causes me to forget the "fake"ness.

[Lean]

Owned right there, BK

[Andrew]

I would suggest Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle as two current performers who are capable of wrestling a style of match that makes professional wrestling seem very real. Their match at Wrestlemania 21 was an instant classic with their mix of brawling, traditional wrestling moves and ring psychology. I think you'll find that most old school wrestling fans appreciate that style more than an elaborate spotfest that is basically a string of "Holy Shit!" moments, though there's a place for those matches too.

In any event, if you want to really scrutinise any wrestling match you can break it down into parts that are quite clearly fake because that is the nature of the business; smoke and mirrors to make it seem like these guys are beating each other senseless when they are really working together to put on a show. The moves haven't really changed that much in the past eight years or so and one reason they do hold off on some of the more extreme spots they were doing is the simple fact that every year, a lot of professional wrestlers die or get seriously injured in the ring and they don't want that to happen. Besides, it reduces the impact of those spots when they're pulled out all the time.

[Andrew]

For some reason, FOX8 isn't showing Smackdown this week. Hopefully it's not a permanent arrangement.

[KIG1]

For some reason, FOX8 isn't showing Smackdown this week. Hopefully it's not a permanent arrangement.

I think it's on Sunday in Austrailia. Check your listings.

[Andrew]

There's always a repeat on Sundays but it's usually shown first on Friday afternoons. A glance ahead in the schedule suggests it was a one-off, no doubt for reasons best known to Foxtel.

[3.14159]

Do you think Kennedy will cash in the briefcase in backslash?

Seeing that the stipulation on the Taker vs Batista match is Last Man Standing it will be a great opportunity for Mr. Kennedy to cash it in after the match. I know theres alot of rumors saying that Taker will have a long reign but in my observation, Taker is not fond of holding a title for a long period. Dont get me wrong, im a Taker fan and i love to see him hold the belt at least 6months to a year.

[Andrew]

I don't think it's a case of Mark Callaway not wanting to hold the title belt, it's a character that's never needed a title to get over as being a dominant force thus they've never looked to invest in long title reigns for the Undertaker. As long as he's healthy and willing to spend time on the road I think the reign will prove to be a long one. I think the WWE would better off having Kennedy wait a little longer before cashing in his MITB shot anyway, perhaps around Summerslam at the earliest.

[BigKaboom2]

I don't think they've built up Kennedy nearly as much as they ought to before he reaches World Title status. I can't imagine the Undertaker jobbing to him cleanly either. Seems like Finlay would be involved given the events of recent weeks

Also, did anyone watch HBK vs. Cena on RAW? Orton got sent home from the European tour, apparently for trashing a hotel room, so they used almost the entire second hour of the show for this match to make up for Edge vs. Orton, and it was unbelievable.

[[Q]]

apparently for trashing a hotel room

must be the 'roid rage.

[3.14159]

I don't think it's a case of Mark Callaway not wanting to hold the title belt, it's a character that's never needed a title to get over as being a dominant force thus they've never looked to invest in long title reigns for the Undertaker. As long as he's healthy and willing to spend time on the road I think the reign will prove to be a long one. I think the WWE would better off having Kennedy wait a little longer before cashing in his MITB shot anyway, perhaps around Summerslam at the earliest.

Well i really do hope he will hold the title longer this time. Im just curious why they made it a "Last Man Standing Match" and Kennedy aint in the card at Backslash. And yeah, Taker is waaay over even without the belt.

About Orton, I read somewhere that he is very drunk that night. Orton always screw himself whenever he gets push. So does it mean we will still see "Superman" Cena retain the title?

[Andrew]

Well i really do hope he will hold the title longer this time. Im just curious why they made it a "Last Man Standing Match" and Kennedy aint in the card at Backslash. And yeah, Taker is waaay over even without the belt.

Probably so Batista doesn't have to do the job by pinfall again.

[BZ]

I don't know, but I feel (kayfabe wise) that it would be a perfect opportunity for Kennedy to cash in his Money in the Bank after Taker/Batista's main event at Backlash. The LMS match should be really intense and it'd seem ideal. But I doubt the WWE would pull off something creative as that, Taker probably wants to hold the title for a good month or so.