One week from today, WWE’s annual Money in the Bank pay-per-view will be held in Boston, Massachusetts. The event has quickly become one of the most anticipated programs of the year, as it provides exciting action and sets up the storyline for months by allowing a WWE superstar to stalk his prey while holding a contract for a WWE World Heavyweight Championship match.
There will be two Money in the Bank ladder matches this year. One will be held for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship, and the other will be a traditional contest for a shot at the title. The first contest will feature perennial title contenders such as John Cena, Randy Orton, Sheamus, and Alberto Del Rio, as well as up-and-coming stars such as Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt, and Cesaro.
It seems like John Cena is once again the favorite to leave Boston as the champ.
The second ladder match will feature Seth Rollins, with the rest of the lineup to be determined in a series of qualifying matches. Thus far, only three matches have been announced for the entire pay-per-view, and with only one week left before the event, one has to wonder how the WWE will tie everything together in such a brief period.
Other than the two ladder matches, a matchup between the Usos and Luke Harper and Erick Rowan of the Wyatt family is the only confirmed contest on the card. It seems apparent that Dean Ambrose will be one of the participants in the traditional ladder match. Potential options also include those who did not qualify for the championship ladder match, including Bad News Barrett, Dolph Ziggler, and Rob Van Dam.
The two ladder matches will soak up a large portion of the roster, meaning the midcard will have to pick up some slack in order to fill up the three hours of airtime. Rumored contests include Cody Rhodes and Goldust vs. RybAxel, Rusev vs. Big E, and a Divas Championship match involving Paige and all or part of the Funkadactyls.
WWE recently sent out a letter to all former contracted talents offering them assistance. The name of the program is “WWE Professional Development.”
Below is a copy of the letter that was sent out to talent, elaborating on some of the details of the program:
“WWE is pleased to announce a Professional Development Program available to former WWE talent, and in some cases, their family members. The Professional Development Program aims to provide guidance and support beyond your tenure with WWE. The first two initiatives are:Financial Education and Continuing Education.
Money Management International (MMI) is the largest non-profit credit counseling agency in the country and has partnered with WWE to provide financial education to WWE talent. Please see enclosed packet for more information. The use of MMI is free for you and your immediate family members. We encourage you to reach out to MMI for assistance.
WWE is now offering financial scholarships to former WWE talent in the amount of $5,000 per calendar year to be used for obtaining a college degree or completing a certificate program. In order to receive this scholarship, a former WWE talent must apply for the three annual scholarships that are available. Please note–the deadline for the 2014 award is Friday, 8/1.
To keep former WWE talent up to date with WWE news, we will be distributing via email an “Alumni Newsletter” on a quarterly basis. The newsletter will include information on WWE news, archives, wellness, professional development and more.”
The following are highlights of a new City Pages interview with Curtis Axel:
On the state of Minnesota producing many quality pro wrestlers: “If you look at the guys who have come out of our state — my dad, Rick Rude, the Road Warriors, and the whole AWA, really — we produce tough guys. We’ve got a good stock in Minnesota.”
On being a third-generation wrestler: “It’s always tough to live up to having a famous father and grandfather, but I’m not trying to be the next Mr. Perfect or Larry the Ax; I’m trying to be the first Joe Hennig. With a lot of third generation guys, their fathers are still around to give them advice. Unfortunately, my dad isn’t around anymore. I wish he was, and I still get good advice from my grandfather, but I think the fact that my dad isn’t around drives me even more to get out there and do it for myself.”
Check out the complete interview at CityPages.com.
It seemed as if the tag team division had been revitalized last year. However, almost as soon as fans started to become excited about the division again, half of the teams were broken up and it has been largely ignored.
The Usos are the current champions, and I think their pay-per-view exposure shows how confident the WWE is that the Uso brothers will draw. After all, they defended their tag titles on the pre-show at WrestleMania and did not appear in any capacity at Extreme Rules.
With that said, it would not take much effort to get the division back to where it was at the end of last year. Here are five current or potential tag teams that could help make the division relevant again (or at the very least, get it onto the pay-per-view card).
5. Rybaxel – At first, this team seemed like it would go nowhere. They had both just basically flopped while under the tutelage of Paul Heyman, so why would anyone believe that they would fare well without him? Surprisingly, both have improved since leaving Heyman, especially Ryback. He is hilarious on the microphone and can actually be pretty entertaining when he’s allowed to speak. I think the WWE still has plans to push both guys in the future, and a run with the Tag Team Championships could help elevate both superstars.
4. Damien Sandow and Dolph Ziggler – These guys have adopted similar personality traits in recent weeks, most notably because both guys seem disgruntled, annoyed, and displeased that their talents are not being properly utilized. Sandow and Ziggler would make a great team if paired together, as both are impressive in the ring and on the mic. There were rumors a while back of a possible stable of disgruntled superstars being formed, including Ziggler and the Miz, but a team of Sandow and Ziggler would work even better and could make the tag title picture exciting again.
3. Jack Swagger and Cody Rhodes – It is no secret that Zeb Colter has been trying to recruit a new member to the Real Americans since Cesaro betrayed him a few weeks back. With Cody being the son of the American Dream Dusty Rhodes, it would make sense for him to become a Real American. Cody and Goldust are definitely going to part ways soon, with Cody likely being the one to turn heel, so it would provide the perfect opportunity for Cody to align with Swagger and Colter afterward.
Fans were spared from having to sit through the same John Cena promo that we have all seen a million times last week on Raw. Instead, he was shipped to the WWE Network exclusive program Main Event in an attempt to increase viewership and attract new subscribers.
Since becoming a Network exclusive, Main Event has received a lot more attention. Prior to re-launching online, the program typically featured two matches that were nothing more than garbage, throwaway contests. However, since becoming a Network program, there have been a few title matches and they have at least made an attempt to have top stars appear (Cena and Hogan immediately come to mind).
The company has placed more emphasis on Main Event since making it a Network exclusive in a trend that will likely continue.
Although the immediate goal of placing more emphasis on Network-exclusive programs it to reach one million subscribers, I also believe there is a larger goal involved: the company is testing the waters to see if it can cut all ties with cable providers.
The idea of taking all WWE content to the WWE Network makes sense on one hand. It already appears this is going to happen in the near future with pay-per-views. Cable providers Dish and DirectTV declined to carry this month’s pay-per-view because they were undoubtedly upset that they were losing profits because the WWE chose to circumvent them by starting their own network. It is likely only a matter of time before the others tap out and wrestling fans are forced to subscribe if they hope to (legally) watch the pay-per-view each month.
Taking Raw to the Network would be a bit more challenging, however. Their contract with USA is expiring at the end of this year and a new deal has not yet been reached. If a new deal is not reached, one of the highest rated programs on television will be finding a new home come fall. They would definitely not attempt to move the program to the Network immediately, but if the next deal falls through, it seems hard to imagine that they would not at least consider doing so.
After all, there are already reports that they are going to advance storylines on both the Raw Pre-Show and Backstage Pass programs, essentially meaning that Raw has been extended to four hours, with one hour airing exclusively on the WWE Network.
On paper, last night’s card seemed like nothing to write home about. After all, Daniel Bryan was defending his title against a superstar who peaked a decade ago, Bray Wyatt and John Cena were meeting in a rematch from WrestleMania, and other than Evolution vs. the Shield, the rest of the matches seemed like they could turn out to be throwaway contests. The event was basically the furthest thing from a throwaway, however, as it was a well-executed pay-per-view that was filled with worthwhile matches.
The Hounds of Justice stole the show during the match of the night.
Evolution vs. the Shield was the clear highlight of the night, as expected. Each superstar involved in the match put on an excellent show, but the star of the match was without a doubt Seth Rollins. While Triple H, Randy Orton, and Dean Ambrose were battling in the crowd, Rollins dove from the top of the entranceway to take out his Evolution foes, allowing for Roman Reigns to handle Batista in the ring and secure a Shield victory. The match was perfectly executed and is an immediate match of the year contender.
The main event between Daniel Bryan and Kane greatly exceeded expectations. This one seemed like it could be forgettable, as the outcome was never really in doubt and Kane is not exactly a main event superstar anymore. However, both superstars performed well together and the backstage spots were something that resembled contests from the Attitude Era.
In the end, the match even involved a flaming table, although the crew botched this spot a bit by running in with the extinguishers before Kane was even on fire, but hey, what can you do? Overall, it was a great culmination to the night and certainly much better than I was anticipating.
Since the launch of the WWE Network, over 600,000 fans have subscribed to the service. While it’s a bit below the one million subscribers they were hoping for, it’s still an admirable number for a service that is still only available in the United States.
With live access to every pay-per-view and a vault containing every special event in WWE, WCW, and ECW history, it is safe to assume that most fans signed up in order to gain access to the special events, and at the reduced price of only $9.99 per month, who can blame them?
There is a lot more to the WWE Network than just a vault of old events and live access to each month’s pay-per-view, however. There is also a boatload of original content. Here is a list of some of the must-see original content on the Network.
5. Legends of Wrestling: Families – Watching a bunch of old-timers talk about the good old days is usually about as exciting as watching paint dry, but some of these are actually pretty entertaining. One of the best round-table discussions includes a panel consisting of Sergeant Slaughter, Jim Ross, Ted DiBiase, and James J. Dillon. The group discusses the importance and prevalence of families in the WWE. It is interesting to hear DiBiase discuss how having a father in the business influenced him to become a professional wrestler.
Daniel Bryan’s journey to WrestleMania is something most fans will be able to enjoy.
4. Journey to WrestleMania: Daniel Bryan – This is obviously one of the newest pieces of original content on the Network. It follows Daniel Bryan on his week leading up to this year’s WrestleMania and provides a number of exclusive interviews leading up to the event. It also discusses his rise to the top after initially being terminated from the company, with commentary from William Regal and Pat Patterson discussing how the company made a mistake in his firing. The most interesting parts of this documentary are the backstage scenes and hearing his fellow wrestlers praise him for his accomplishments.
After AJ Lee cut her version of a “Pipebomb” promo last year on Raw, it seemed like the WWE would finally spend more time developing in-depth plotlines for its Divas division.
After all, the elements were there for an intriguing Divas division: a fresh batch of competitors, a champion who was miffed at not gaining exposure, and a highly successful reality television show documenting every move along the way.
AJ Lee has been champion for nearly a year. Is it time for another Diva to take the title?
Instead, it seems as if the division has been on autopilot in recent months. AJ Lee has held the championship longer than any Diva in the history of the company, but her run has seemed stale recently. This is taking nothing away from Lee as a champion though. I think she is great and is certainly a worth champion.
It is instead creative’s fault for not doing anything worthwhile with her as champion. They have instead chosen to simply plug in a new challenger each month without building any sort of rivalry, with the challenger usually gaining a title shot by winning a random number-one contender’s match instead of actually engaging in a feud with Lee.
Bray Wyatt refers to himself as “The Eater of Worlds.” After his first few months with the company, he could also easily refer to himself as “The King of the Promo” and not many would object.
No character in recent memory has used the promo to build up his character as well as Wyatt. Starting with a series of haunting videos preceding the stable’s debut, the Wyatt Family were able to build the foundation that would allow them to become one of the top heel groups in the company.
After a perfect debut (minus the Husky Harris chants) and successful feuds with Daniel Bryan and the Shield, it was revealed that Wyatt would be entering a program with John Cena during the WrestleMania season.
http://youtu.be/x7QJruEbKL4
Many cringed at the thought of Wyatt battling Cena at WrestleMania. I personally thought the match would result in nothing more than the WWE further elevating its biggest star while taking one of the hottest superstars in the company down a notch.
After all, Cena isn’t exactly notorious for putting over stars at WrestleMania, although he has put over the Miz and the Rock in the past. I am not here to make predictions regarding the matchup, but to instead discuss how the two have used masterful promos to build the fight into possibly the most anticipated match on the card.
The Rock is the only man to ever pin Cena clean at WrestleMania? Will Wyatt be able to defeat Superman?
Cena has discussed how his legacy is at stake at WrestleMania, while Wyatt has criticized Cena for being primarily concerned with selling merchandise and achieving fame. This is certainly not a new line of criticism directed at Cena.
In fact, Daniel Bryan levied the same insults at Cena during their build-up to SummerSlam, where he said Cena was in the WWE for fame, while he (Bryan) was there because he loves to wrestle.
Bryan’s rebukes never really felt personal though, largely due to the fact that he had to hold back because he was a face. Wyatt, on the other hand, has not held back one bit, criticizing Cena for living in a castle with his plastic girlfriend during his latest promo (seen above), which is also quite possibly his best yet.
Daniel Bryan, winning three Slammy Awards competing in a match, appearing in the Championship Ascension Ceremony, was without question the star of the show. His hometown crowd chanting YES! YES! YES! and DANIEL BRYAN! throughout the beginning of the Championship Ascension Ceremony. Going back earlier in the night to his first Slammy win for Superstar Of The Year. On stage The Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels. He announces the Superstar of the year is Daniel Bryan. We were all expecting fireworks to occur during that interaction. HBK even exited stage right a perfect set-up for a “surprise” superkick from out of nowhere! But there was no Sweet Chin Music. Just a humble acceptance speech by Bryan for his Slammy Award which he refereed to as The “HB Swizzle” award, Michaels naming it that just before presenting the award. Bryan did mention if it wasn’t for Shawn he wouldn’t be in the WWE. Likewise if it wasn’t for his interference at Hell-In-A-Cell he would be the WWE Champion. Although there was no physical interaction here, that wouldn’t be the last time these two interacted on the show.
See this is why I can’t shake off fighting the Daniel Bryan cause, he belongs in the main event. Heck this article uses his YES! and NO! and lord help us all if Daniel Bryan ever appears in a “NO!” portion of this article. Some people might say, he was in his hometown and had an extra kick of support. There may be a bit of truth to that, but I feel that there are just some hot wrestling towns. Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and apparently Seattle. After what transpired later in the show who knows what will happen the next few months. I’m excited! YES!
Championship Ascension Ceremony
John Cena showing why he is in fact the face of WWE.
Former World Heavyweight and WWE Champions appeared all in the ring for the Championship Ascension Ceremony. As I said earlier the crowd was going crazy for Daniel Bryan. While Triple H was talking up the match, and the championship, the Seattle crowd chanted YES and Daniel Bryan to the point where Triple H gave them what seemed like at least a minute of chanting and Yessing and clapping. This crowd was on fire for Daniel Bryan. Triple H introduced both Orton and Cena. The crowd did not want to hear what Orton had to say. There were boos and boring chants. Then Cena took the mic. More boos and cheering mix. Then Cena begins to speak and prove why he is the face of the WWE. These days with everything being very planned and scripted, Cena played to the crowd and included Daniel Bryan in the conversation, he compared Randy Orton’s rise to success to Daniel Bryan’s. The idea was Bryan didn’t have a father and grandfather to get him in to the WWE, he did it by working. Cena turned practically the entire crowd around and behind him., shouting out his past opponents, HBK, CM Punk, and putting over that the only fair shot Daniel Bryan had was the one with him. Brilliant, this is why he is where he is. The end was something I haven’t seen in the WWE in a long time. It was an awesome chain of events excuited perfectly. Cena and Orton shake hands as the World Heavyweight Championship and WWE Championship are hoisted up. Orton gets in a cheap shot, the two are down on the mat fighting. Orton and Cena get pulled apart to their corners. CM Punk gets shoved by Orton causing CM Punk to start attacking Orton. Triple H throws down CM Punk, who retaliates with a knockdown of his on on The Game. HBK Superkicks CM Punk, setting up Daniel Bryan to
The Authority and John Cena look over A fallen Randy Orton. A great segment to end raw.
WWE Reminding us what they are capable of, a Powerful and compelling end to Raw.
deliver his running Knee on HBK. Orton tries to RKO Bryan but instead gets shoved into Stephanie McMahon knocking her down. Triple H runs to Stephanie’s aid, and then gets up and pedigrees Randy. The show closes with The Authority and John Cena looking disappointed over Randy Orton on the mat. What a great segment. This is what WWE used to do on a regular basis. Twists and turns, these chain-reaction action segments. YES!
Quick Mentions
Dean Ambrose vs CM Punk – Ambrose vs CM punk was a Pay-Per-View quality match with a great dissension in the ranks tease when Dean Ambrose wanted Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins to head to the back so he could finish the job by himself. Punk gets the win shortly after that exchange, although Punk loses out to the numbers game and gets a great spear from Reigns. YES!
The Wyatts – With a chip on my shoulder because of Daniel Bryan’s demotion, I don’t think I appreciated Bray Wyatt’s amazing performances over the last few weeks. They are great, and compelling. YES!
Hit up Page 2 below for the “NO!” of this week’s WWE RAW:
SESCOOPS.COM reader Neal Jones sent along the following:
Recap of “Mad Dog” Vachon tribute on In Your Head Wrestling Radio, 11/27/2013 by Vic Schiavone
Hosts Jack E. Jones and One Inch Biceps paid tribute to the late Maurice “Mad Dog” Vachon, who passed away on November 21, 2013. Several associates of the Mad Dog shared their memories of working with him.
Highlights included the following:
Baron von Raschke (former tag-team partner):
“Our tag team clicked immediately…the people would go crazy. And usually, the Mad Dog loved heat; so he kept letting it build and letting it build and letting it build. And I didn’t know any better, so I kept helping him build it and build it. For three months during the summer, the first summer I was there, we had a riot every night wherever we were. The matches always ended in a riot; we had to fight our way out of the ring. We even had a cage match…and they put up the cage and the babyfaces got in the cage. We started to come toward the ring, and before we got to the ring the people got so excited they tore the cage down…We had a lot of heat in that territory.”
Danny Hodge:
“He was mad and terrific…I would put him right up at the top. He was a heck of a wrestler; a heck of a guy…he was a tough cookie…He had strength, he had knowledge, he had conditioning; he was there for the fight.”
Ox Baker:
“One of the true gentlemen in wrestling, and a legend, was Mad Dog Vachon…In the ring, he was surpassed by nobody.”
Nick Bockwinkel:
“He set his own tempo, and he cut his own path…He was respected without any question as far as his talent; his style and his class was all his own. I can’t deny him one ounce of space, because if you wanted a complete rugged SOB he would be the man.”
The Destroyer (Dick Beyer):
“I’m wrestling the Mad Dog in his hometown…and he was a babyface. So when he got in the middle of the ring, the Mad Dog says to me, ‘We got to give them a barnburner here. They expect that we’re going to knock the hell out of each other.’ So we started out the match wrestling, and then all of a sudden it was kick, stomp, throw out of the ring…Mad Dog came out, he hit me with a chair, and out the aisle we went. We ended up in the dressing room fighting, and I yelled… ‘Mad Dog, there’s no people here! It’s just the boys; let’s get the hell out in the arena!’ So we finished off the match…we gave them what Mad Dog wanted; he wanted a barnburner and we gave them a barnburner. Mad Dog I think carried it a little bit too far.”
“Mean Gene” Okerlund:
“Mad Dog was probably the consummate interview guy. Whether it was behind the cage or it was in a workshop trying to construct a coffin, or whatever it happened to be, he was a classic in every sense of the word…I think what everybody has said about him is what it is. He was kind of a favorite of mine and I think he was a favorite of the boys in the locker room, and certainly even though the fans at one time or another probably hated him vehemently, he ended up being kind of the guy that they loved to hate.”
Former AWA World Tag-Team Champion Doug Somers claimed during a recent Undisputed Wrestling Show interview that he plans to refile his lawsuit against WWE over alleged unpaid royalties he feels he is owed.
“I am refiling,” Somers said of the lawsuit. “He [Vince McMahon] is not going to get away with it. He bought my lawyer. To be that conquerer in any business or sport, you have to be a low-life son of a bitch, and he [Vince McMahon] is.”
During the interview, Somers also spoke about how he is suffering from amnesia and Parkinson’s Disease due to multiple concussions he suffered in the ring during his pro wrestling career.
You can check out the complete Doug Somers interview online at BlogTalkRadio.com.
-WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley will be doing a stand-up show on Wednesday, October 30th at the Orlando Improv. Former WWE Superstars Nick “Eugene” Dinsmore and Scotty 2 Hotty will be appearing with him for a Q&A segment during the show. For more information, visit RealMickFoley.com.
-WWE has added a profile page for former AWA World Heavyweight Champion Stan Hansen on their Alumni section.
-The following is a new Diabolique Magazine interview with WWE Superstar Kane: