Professional Wrestling (WWE, TNA, ROH, etc)

it wasn't that bad. it was a bit corny and completely irrelevant to what was going on (a wrestling show) and you could tell it wasn't really Barack like how they had "the Queen of England" on raw. would rather have a match, even a divas title match or something instead of that skit.

Starting in August, TNA is going to be doing tapings every other time on the road. So one week they tape 2 episodes in Orlando, 2 weeks later tape 2 on the road, PPV, and so on.

It'll be interesting to see how that works out.

Meanwhile, here's a new DVD project that sounds promising:

The HBK/Hitman DVD will be released worldwide this October and I have high expectations for the project. The two legendary, WWE stars sat side by side during the shoot facing yours truly who asked them a battery of questions.

This DVD will not solely focus on the Survivor Series in Montreal in 1997 but we obviously spend a significant amount of time discussing the 'Montreal Screw Job' and the months leading into the infamous event and how both men's careers fared after that infamous day in Montreal.

To be able to sit and talk to two WWE Hall of Famers such as Michaels and Hart who did have a bona fide rivalry at one time but also respected the other's work was a privilege for me. I'm honored to have been assigned this project and hope that it lives up to the expectations we all have for it. I know that both Shawn and Bret were very happy with the day.

For this project to strictly be about Montreal only would be a travesty because neither man's career can be solely defined by the events of the '97 Survivor Series.

Hopefully this project will lead to other similar DVDs in the future on where fans can see more of the human side of some of the biz's biggest personalities.

I'll tell you this, it takes a lot of courage and character to be honest to the core on these types of productions and Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels were definitely honest, open, emotional, and had some compelling things to say. My respect for both men, which was already immense, was elevated even higher after this DVD taping.

That was one of the best raws I have seen in a long time. A lot of matches, fantastic promo (shoot?) by Punk, wrestling matters

yeah nice to see a submission match, cage match, and a tornado match all in one show.

cm punk is great, loved the shots he took at everyone and i'm sure most of it is what he actually feels. very jericho-like on the mic. i hope he comes back after he takes a break from wrestling. funny how he used "wrestling" for the 2nd week in a row.

unfortunately, he didn't finish his story about vince and the bullying campaign mcmahon obviously pulled the plug on that

EDIT just read spoilers for next week's taped show

it would've been a very good cliffhanger if they showed Cole reading an email saying Punk has been suspended indefinitely.

but somehow they find a way to mess it up again, announce a new #1 contenders match (which is a good way to put over the storyline) only to F it up again with yet another Cena "fired" stipulation.

CM Punk.

Damn. Watched RAW for the first time in a while, that Punk promo in the end really left me speechles. At first I thought it was your usual "I'm the best in the world, why am I not the face of the company promo" but that turned ugly quick. Definitely looked like a shoot to me.
I don't know if it the plan was to let CM Punk leave with the strap at that time, but if it was, those plans certainly have changed now.

But how can you not agree with gim. Dude's so good in the ring and on the mic and had like 2 PPV wins over the last year and a half.

That exactly. Though I haven't seen Raw, I will find ways to at least catch HBK's and Punk's promos.

That exactly. Though I haven't seen Raw, I will find ways to at least catch HBK's and Punk's promos.

make life easy for me and post them here if yuo find them please. i missed raw last night also

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That first video I believe was when Shawn was first announced to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Man I've seen the CM Punk promo/rant/shoot. I kinda believe this isn't kayfabe and I had a feeling that if Punk will push through to the next PPV he'll literally steal the title. The promo had a lot to say and inadvertently berated everybody on live TV. The spot where I believed that it isn't a promo is when Punk mentioned "This company will only get better when Vince is dead."

That, or Punk is just too good on the mic.

If that ain't kayfabe, then this episode of Raw is the last time we'll see Punk on WWE programming.

EDIT: Seems like that's the case. But to be honest, Punk's got a point.

That first video I believe was when Shawn was first announced to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

yep, I thought i hit the "sort by date" but I didnt, obviously I didnt watch it, or pay attention to the Del Rio thing

They turned the Mic back on for him to sing Chicago to the Vegas peoples, so its definitely "storyline" suspended. Still really good stuff, right up there with Rock's return promo.

Yeah that's why I'm conflicted whether its kayfabe or not. If it's not, it's perfectly worked by Punk. That's why I admire how he works in the WWE.

It was said (though I haven't checked) that his profile on WWE.com has been removed plus his match on MITB is cancelled.

I believe its "kayfabe" since Punk will be reinstated next week.

and in the taping for next week, Del Rio gets the #1 contendership, but Cena begs Vince to let Punk fight. Vince says OK, but if Cena loses the title to Punk, he's fired.


So, Punk could win, OMG Cena's fired?!?11 Then MiTB cash in, new champ. Cena stays, Punk still goes, etc etc.

Punk's fantastic promo was surely a worked shoot but it seems to be fooling a lot of people. Think about it though; is there any way that he'd be able to go on that long if he didn't have approval to do so? Notice that when he mentioned other promotions, he didn't mention TNA. If it were a true shoot, I doubt he'd censor himself to that extent. I guess a lot of the people who are sick of Punk's character going to waste wants to believe it's a shoot because they can take some delight in Vince and the company being run down on their own show but come on, as if they'd be powerless to stop such a rant going out live and forcibly remove Punk from the ring.

They cut that worked shoot promo at just the right moment and it's obviously worked because it's blurred the line between reality and storyline so effectively and planted that seed of doubt in the minds of the viewers. We're also not used to WWE doing anything this good as of late either, which certainly works to their advantage when it comes to leaving fans wondering whether it's a shoot or not (though they probably aren't thinking of it that way). It's a shame it takes a worker's contract expiring for them to come up with something like this though.

Of course, looking ahead to the spoilers, they might just have messed up and telegraphed the ending of the feud by throwing the "Cena gets fired" stipulation in. Not that they couldn't just bring Cena back as if nothing happened - again - but it does seem the outcome is clear. Cena keeps his job and the title while defeating Punk, who (in character) has to leave the company in disgrace. I'm sure they intended it to be another interesting twist and in a way it is, but it seems to have telegraphed an obvious ending.

It really caught me in, props to Punk for that.

But really now. I'm thinking of taping my forearms and put an X on my fists for this.

Best RAW in years and I don't give a shit whether CM Punk promo is a shoot or not. The only thing that matters is that it is entertaining to say the least

I'm shocked that anyone thought it was a straight shoot. I enjoyed it but it was kinda obvious that it was a work IMO.

he didn't mention TNA. If it were a true shoot, I doubt he'd censor himself to that extent.

He hates Hogan, so he'd never go there, so why mention it?

They're the largest promotion in the US aside after WWE. If he truly were shooting and trying to stick it to WWE, I figure he'd mention them anyway.

There's that.

Can anyone think of any circumstance in which having 'mystery opponent' on the roulette wheel isn't either redundant (as it was on Monday) or useless (as it would have been had it come up in, say, the Cena-Truth match)?

Yeah, that's a tough one.

On a more somber note, the toxicology report on Randy Savage:

TMZ is reporting that "Macho Man" Randy Savage died from a serious "cardiac event" he suffered moments before wrecking his vehicle last month in Tampa, Florida.

According to the medical examiner, Savage suffered from cardiovascular disease which caused the "cardiac event."

The toxicology report revealed that Savage tested positive for alcohol and hydrocodone at the time of his death but neither played a role in his death.

CM Punk legitimately leaving WWE after Money in the Bank

It could well be true, in which case the spokesperson handled the situation a bit poorly. Not that WWE hasn't kind of telegraphed the outcome of the angle anyway with the stipulation on Cena but still...

I've read suggestions that Punk will win the title but then a MITB winner will ultimately end up cashing in the shot and immediately winning it back to end the PPV. Seems a fairly likely swerve, if Punk wins and the PPV is running short I'd say it's almost guaranteed to happen.