SEScoops Mailbag for January 21st
Got a Question? Submit it with your name to: SEScoops@gmail.com
Q: After SmackDown was moved from MyNetwork TV to SyFy in 2010, did WWE tell or threaten MyNetwork TV to not allow any MMA or wrestling programming on their channels? The reason that I am asking is that my local MyNetwork TV affiliate, KCOP Channel 13, doesn’t carry a single drop of wrestling or mixed martial arts programming. – Luis Alejandro from Los Angeles
A: There was no threat made. Once their agreement ended with MyNetwork, they would have had no influence over their programming decisions anyway. If your channel has no wrestling or MMA, that’s their choice.
Q: Do you think WWE would be stupid enough to put Stone Cold against [John] Cena instead of CM Punk? Also, how come WWE hasn’t brought in amateur wrestlers like Brock Lesnar or Kurt Angle lately because they could put on brilliant matches. – Gareth from Ireland
A: Cena is the company’s biggest star right now. He did record-setting business with Rock at Mania last year. Why would they be stupid to want to put the two of them together? I would rather see Austin against Punk if he were to wrestle another match, but they would do big business with either of those matches. As for amateur wrestlers, they just signed former Oregon State wrestler Clayton Jack, who was recruited by Gerald Briscoe. He will report to NXT later this month.
Q: I was watching the John Cena vs. Big Show match from WrestleMania 20 and when Michael Cole was talking about Madison Square Garden, he mentioned Big show retiring Hulk Hogan from the Garden the previous year, that being 2003. I checked Wikipedia and could only find Hogan having a falling out from WWE that year, but does not mention Big Show. Could you please explain what Cole is talking about? – Adrian from Australia
A: At a Smackdown taping from MSG the previous June, Big Show pinned Hogan (under a mask doing his Mr. America gimmick) in a six-man tag match, which turned out to be Hogan’s final appearance at the time. After that, Big Show was billed as the man who retired Hulk Hogan.
Q: With the rumored matches for WrestleMania, I wonder if you think WWE is going in the right direction with the main events? We’ve already seen Rock vs. Cena and Brock vs. Triple H. With Punk vs. Undertaker, we all know who is going to win, so it doesn’t make sense to me to feed one of their hardest working and most dependable guys to someone who only shows up once or twice a year. It seems to make more sense to [go with] Brock vs. Undertaker since they’re both part time performers and can feed off the publicity from their UFC confrontation. – Travis
A: The publicity from Undertaker and Brock’s UFC run-in ran its course long ago. I’d like to see the match, but apparently, WWE worries that Taker’s physical state is such that it would be too much of a risk to put him in the ring with the hard-hitting Lesnar. Punk vs. Taker only makes sense if you make it Streak vs. Title, but I doubt Punk keeps the title through Mania. As for Rock vs. Cena, the match made more money for them than any other in history. Why wouldn’t they want to book a rematch? They do it in boxing all the time.
Q: Was the finish for the main event at Starrcade ’97 supposed to be what we saw on TV or was Sting supposed to kick out at two? – Ricardo
A: Referee Nick Patrick was supposed to fast count Sting, leading to Bret Hart coming down and saying he would not allow such an injustice to occur. Of course, Patrick didn’t fast count Sting and Bret Hart looked like a bully when he punched Patrick in the face.
Q: I just watched Zack Ryder’s [Hoeski] music video. This guy has over a million Twitter followers and if used right, he can get over with fans as proven before. What would you do if you were WWE Creative to revive his career? – Rabbi Lucky
A: After watching the video, I’m not sure I’d want to revive his career.
Keep those questions coming to sescoops@gmail.com and remember to include your name!
