bpapa

Posted on 4/27/08 10:18 AM

This week I'm going to be going on vacation. I'm going to have very limited internet access during this trip. What this means is that site updates are going to come very slowly, if at all. By "site updates", I mean that there probably won't be a new Poll of the Day added, and that RAW, Smackdown, ECW, and Impact will all be added for Match Ratings later than usual. Also, the "Blogger of the Month" poll for April won't be up until next weekend.

On the plus side, the Match Ratings section as a whole is going to be entirely revamped after I come back. It's going to be a lot easier to find matches from all promotions or specific shows.

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Posted on 4/25/08 5:50 PM

World Title: Undertaker(c) vs. Edge - I definitely see Taker retaining here. I guess the question will be whether or not we see another rematch for the next PPV, perhaps in a Cell match, or a Buried Alive match, or a Casket match, etc.

WWE Title Elimination 4-Way: Randy Orton(c) vs. Triple H vs. JBL vs. John Cena - The fact is that Triple H is due to win the title very soon. All along it was planned for the Game to win the gold at WrestleMania, but it was changed last minute when WWE feared that the Top 4 matches on that show were too predictable. Now, personally, since I'm a Randy Orton fan and I feel that the Age of Orton is just getting started, I would have Orton retain here but at the same time set up a one-on-one match with HHH for a future PPV (perhaps even the next one).

Big Show vs. Great Khali - Easy to predict for 2 reasons. First, WWE is super high on Big Show now and want to push him. Second, Khali is taking off a month anyway. Show wins it here.

Shawn Michaels vs. Batista w/ Special Guest Referee Chris Jericho - Originally it looked like WWE was trying to turn Batista heel in this program, but since Chris Jericho was shoe-horned in as a heel it seems like that might not be the case any longer. Originally I would have said Batista wins via heel tactics to set up a rematch at the next PPV, but now I'm not so sure. To me this might be the hardest match on the card to pick.

ECW Title: Kane(c) vs. Chavo Guerrero - I mean, nobody really cares, right? I guess Kane retains.

US Title - MVP(c) vs. Matt Hardy - Is it FINALLY Matt Hardy's time? I'm not so sure. With the way WWE has booked things the past few years, I wouldn't be surprised to see MVP retain and then have a rematch at the following show.

12 Divas Tag Match - I'd say the heel time may as well win here, just to keep Beth Phoenix (and maybe Natalya Neidhart) looking strong.

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Posted on 4/21/08 6:47 PM

Since I live in New York City I'm no stranger to seeing celebrities on the street. Sometimes it's a huge name like Rosario Dawson or Kate Hudson. Sometimes smaller names like Michael Rappaport or Charlie Murphy. Once I even met my favorite athlete as a child, former NY Knicks Guard John Starks. No matter the level of fame, all of these encounters have one thing in common - I get nervous, red in the face, and talk like a blithering idiot as if asking a girl to go with me to the prom.

So that didn't change this afternoon, as I was walking across midtown Manhattan. Somewhere along 27th street, I saw a man sitting on a doorstop fooling with his Blackberry. I did a double-take and - WOAH! It's Paul Heyman!

I asked the man for a picture, and the picture shows exactly what a fail our meeting was - you can't even see me in it. I did however mention wrestlingmarks and although he had (of course) not heard of it, he did appreciate it when I told him he had many fans here.




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Posted on 4/16/08 12:59 AM

If I was put in charge of who would be in the King of the Ring, who would win, and how it would all go down, here's what I'd do...

First off, I'd want to have a goal in mind. Since this is just a free thing on RAW, I think it'd be best to do my damndest to try and sell some extra buys for Backlash. And thus, I'd want to put over one of the guys in the top matches on the card. So that'd mean the guys in the WWE and World title matches, HBK, Batista, The Big Show, or the Great Khali. To me, out of all of those talents, the one who stands to gain the most from a King of the Ring victory is... WOAH WOAH WOAH wait a second. If I give away the winner now, why bother reading on?

RAW opens up BIG, with John Cena making his way out for the first match of the tournament. As Cena enters, JR explains that all matches in this tournament are under a strict 10 minute time limit, with the exception of the final 4. If the time limit is reached, it's a draw and a bye will be awarded to the next rounds opponent. A quick look at the brackets shows that not only will John Cena be facing Randy Orton in a first round match, but JBL will take on Triple H in the first round of the opposite bracket. JR teases that we could see a Backlash preview in the KOR finals. Orton comes out and cuts a promo about how after tonight, the Age of Orton will become a royal age. These two go all out for close to 10 minutes, and finally Cena looks to have victory in hand as he locks Orton in the STFU. But Randy is saved by the bell, and the match is called a draw. Cena argues with the referee, allowing Orton to get back to his feet and nail Cena with an RKO to leave him laying.

The next match is another Backlash preview, as MVP takes on Matt Hardy. The winner gets a bye into the third round. MVP gets the duke here, to plant the seeds that he will perhaps retain the title against Matt at the PPV.

Edge and co. come out next for his match. Edge takes the mic and says that he's won the King of the Ring before and has nothing to prove by winning it tonight. Besides, the Undertaker isn't entered into this tournament, so why should Edge bother to weaken himself by marching through a grueling one-night tournament to claim victory? So, he gives his slot in the tournament up to Chavo Guerrero. Chavo is all smiles, and CM Punk's music hits. It's a WrestleMania repeat, as Punk comes in from the crowd, surprises Chavo from behind, and then hits him with the GTS for an 8 second victory.

Umaga vs. The Big Show is the final match of this side of the bracket. The Great Khali trots out, and a ref bump leads to him being able to strike the Show with a chop to the head. Umaga gets the pin to advance.

Up next Shawn Michaels takes on Kane. HBK is in trouble at the five minute mark, and Kane sets up for the chokeslam. But then Chavo Guerrero comes out with his crew. Kane leaves the ring and winds up getting counted out while brawling with Bam Neely.

Mr. Kennedy gets one over on Finlay despite constant interference from Hornswoggle. Kennedy advances and then commands the mic to drop, at which point he says he'll be KING Kennedy... KENNEDY!

Batista vs. Chris Jericho is next. The purpose here is to try and hammer home the fact that Y2J has no loyalty to either Batista or HBK at Backlash. Dave gets the win here with a Batista bomb.

In the final first round match, JBL takes on Triple H. Some brawling on the floor and HHH winds up going for a Sledgehammer, and the referee DQs him before he can even use it. While The Game is arguing with the ref over the decision, JBL surprises HHH with a Clothesline from Hell.

Before the first second round match begins, we see MVP backstage watching from a monitor. He's earned a bye and will face the winner of CM Punk vs. Umaga in the next round. Punk gets the pin here (why not, it's not like Umaga really has anything going for him now) to pull off the upset victory. However, Punk really looks worse for wear after this one.

In the next match, HBK gets the win over Kennedy after some Sweet Chin Music.

JBL/Batista ends when Chris Jericho comes out and distracts Batista. JBL is able to get a roll-up with tights for the victory.

Backstage, Jericho is interviewed by Maria. Maria wants to know how Jericho could be an unbiased official at Backlash after seeing how he just helped cause Batista to lose. Jericho doesn't really have an answer for her.

Semi-finals time now, as MVP takes on CM Punk. MVP dominates, but Punk manages to get the win. Punk leaves clutching his ribs, two straight brutal matches taking a toll on him.

On the other side of the bracket, JBL wins after MORE interference from Chris Jericho. The idea is that Jericho is "proving" that he is unbiased by interfering in HBK's match just like he did Batista's. After the distraction JBL hits a Clothesline from Hell for the win.

Tired of seeing another screwjob, Regal and Vickie Gurrero agree that if anybody interferes in the finals of the KOR they will be suspended until after Backlash.

It's finals time, as CM Punk takes on JBL. Punk is battered and bruised, and JBL takes full advantage, dominating. Punk winds up with a comeback, but it's for naught as JBL regains control and hits a Clothesline from Hell for the victory. So, your 2008 King of the Ring, John "Bradshaw" Layfield.

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Posted on 4/1/08 8:56 PM

The year's a quarter of the way over, so I figured why not give out some quarter year awards? A lot of people do half year awards, so I figured I'd go the extra mile (or quarter, I guess) and get that much further ahead of the game. These awards are those seen on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards ballot.

A couple of things to keep in mind here - for one, I've barely watched TNA, and I've distanced myself from Ring of Honor as well. So, this is going to be VERY WWE heavy.

Lou Thesz/Ric Flair award (2007 - John Cena)
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Randy Orton. This is the wrestler of the year award, so I have a few different criteria that I keep in mind. First, the guy has to be in one of the biggest promotions. Since there only has been ONE big promotion the past 7 years, I'm always giving this to a WWE guy. Second, he's got to be a guy with a monster push, and most likely a champion. Finally, he's got to at least be great in the ring and have a lot of good matches. To me the person that best fits the criteria right now is Randy Orton. He's without question the best heel in the WWE right now (and not just because Edge is on Smackdown, Orton is outclassing him in every aspect as a performer) who has held the title all year and has had some great matches. I'd say other contenders right now are guys like the Undertaker, John Cena, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H, but Orton stands out from the pack.

Most Outstanding Wrestler (2007 - Bryan Danielson)
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Shawn Michaels. Simply put has probably had the most good to great matches so far this year. As CM Punk gets higher on the card I wouldn't be surprised to see him get some strong consideration in this category. And then there are the stalwarts like HHH who will be strong choices.

Feud of the Year (2007 - Undertaker vs. Batista)
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Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair. I'd say Mayweather/Big Show is in 2nd place. Obviously as the year wears on this could easily be replaced as the front runner, because the feud is already over.

Tag Team of the Year (2007 - The Briscoes)
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The Miz and John Morrison. Although I like to consider visibility of the promotion in this award much like in the Thesz/Flair award, I had no problem naming the Briscoes as the top team with the way that ROH was pushing them as a main event act. The fact that WWE and TNA was doing nothing of note with tag teams helped as well. This year it's another story though, as Miz and Morrison are doing awesome on both ECW and Smackdown, having a lot of great matches and a number of programs (albiet short programs) built around them. They are one of my favorite heel tag teams to come down the pipe in a long time.

Most Improved (2007 - Jeff Hardy)
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John Morrison. I never was a huge fan of Morrison even though for years people called him the next Shawn Michaels. He simply seemed average to me. But this year, I've finally taken note with the phenomenal heel he's become. He carries every segment that he is in. He does amazing things in the ring. And his interviews are finally getting to where they need to be. I think Miz deserves credit for this as well, as Morrison does a great job of playing off of his partner.

Best on Interviews (2007 - Kurt Angle)
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Ric Flair. Obviously will not win the award with 3/4 of the year left in 2008 and him already retired, but he was the top dog the first part of the year. The one to watch on this for the remainder of the year is John Cena.

Most Charismatic (2007 - John Cena)
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Jeff Hardy. Got over like gangbusters in the feud with Orton, and was so popular that many were sure he would win the title at the Royal Rumble.

Best Technical Wrestler (2007 - Bryan Danielson)
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Shawn Michaels. My Outstanding Wrestler vote is also a winner of either this award, the brody award, or flyer. Since HBK is more of a technician he gets the nod here.

Brusier Brody Award (2007 - John Cena)
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Undertaker. Although he's introduced more MMA into his style, he is still, at heart, a brawler. Has been WWE's best so far this year, but the fact that a guy like Cena is MORE of a brawler than Taker is makes him likely to be a better pick as the year goes on.

Best Flying Wrestler (2007 - Jeff Hardy)
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John Morrison. This year, Jeff Hardy is even more grounded than he was in 2007. Stuff like a moonsault with a ladder is proof that Morrison is the front-runner in this year's early going.

Most Overrated (2007 - The Great Khali)
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Big Daddy V. This one is push vs. ability, and will probably come down to guys like Snitsky, V, Mark Henry, and Khali. So far this year, Snitsky's done just fine, as has Henry (not to mention the fact that both men haven't been pushed as much), while Khali is still getting a pretty good push but is also doing a little bit better in the ring. V, who I would have said was the best of these four a year ago, now stinks up the ring every time he's in there.

Most Underrated (2007 - Petey Williams)
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Brian Kendrick. I wouldn't vote in London or Kendrick last year since they were tag champs for a chunk. This year they have pretty much been jobbers, but now might be headed back into the spotlight after the tease of a breakup.

Match of the Year (2007 - Cena vs. HBK WrestleMania 23)
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Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels - WrestleMania 24. Told a great story, we've seen better from both, but this was a great way to end a good angle for the greatest wrestler of all time.

Best Announcer (2007 - Jim Ross)
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Jim Ross. Easy pick.

Worst Announcer (2007 - Don West)
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Jonathan Coachman. Easier pick. Coach is so bad and he and Cole are a god-awful announce team, dragging down Smackdown as a whole and making it a hell of a lot less fun to watch.

Best Show (2007 - WrestleMania 23)
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WrestleMania 24. Could be topped but it'll be tough. Should do huge business as well which is another thing to consider.

Best Move (2007 - MVP's Playmaker)
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Undertaker's "That submission hold" (aka the gogoplata). Let's get a name for this one.

Best Gimmick (2007 - MVP)
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Santino Marella. No explanation needed.

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