– In this edition of The JBL & Cole Show, Michelle Beadle stops by, fans find out how Michael Cole got a black eye, and Cody Rhodes leads the WWE roster in the first ever JBL & Cole Show World Championship Bowling Tournament.
– The latest issue of WWE Magazine (cover-dated January 2014) features the 2013 WWE Magazine Awards and the entertainment abilities of The Prime Time Players were recognized with the “Best Use Of The WWE App” Award.
“We take pride in being one of the most entertaining tag teams and personalities collectively and individually that this company has to offer. Our job is to bring it,” remarked Darren Young. “The PTP didn’t land on the WWE App, the WWE App landed on The PTP.”
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Noah Mark is back with his the latest installment of “The YES! & The NO! of WWE RAW.” Comment below and tell us if you agree with this week’s picks.
Complete WWE RAW Results (12/23)
WWE RAW (12/23)
Here are some quick thoughts about this weeks edition of Christmas Raw. Did you watch it?
The WWE Diva’s are awesome to look at. Not so awesome to watch wrestle.
12-diva’s Jingle Bells Match: The tag team division has been completely turned around. At one point it seemed like there was barely a tag team division. AJ Lee is the best women’s wrestler on the roster, why aren’t we seeing her in great matches. I guess I know why, because of Total Diva’s. That doesn’t mean there can’t be great woman’s wrestling. NO!
John Cena, CM Punk, and Big E. Langston victorious to end Christmas Raw
CM Punk John Cena & Big E Langston vs The Shield I enjoyed the match, Cena, Punk and Big E all out there. The end seemed silly though. Why would there suddenly be a disqualification, because the two illegal Shield members saved themselves from being pinned by Big E? It doesn’t make sense, but still the match was better than the Good Santa vs Bad Santa, which I thought for sure would close the show. Therefore it gets a YES!
The USOS vs The Prime Time Players: The match was fun to watch. Good tag team action YES!|
The USO’s and The Prime Time Players all celebrate after the match. Barf
The USOS & Prime Time Players Curtain Call Before the match Darren Young mistakenly refer to Austin Texas as Houston, to get some sort of heel heat, I didn’t have a problem with this. I did have a problem with after the match, The USO’s and The Prime Time Players all doing the Millions of Dollars dance. Here’s why I have an issue with it. This is starting to become a thing, with Superstars hugging after the match, we saw it a few weeks ago with the Michael Strahan, Miz, Titus O’neil segment. We saw it with Big Show, Rey Mysterio and The Rhodes. Forget about ruthless aggression, these guys are all becoming wimps! It’s OKAY for two fan favorites to dislike each other, and not hug at the end. I’m not saying they need to attack each other after the match… but I’m hoping it’s just a lighthearted Christmas episode thing, and not a growing trend. Although with the recent article of WWEshopping their television shows to TV Network’s including Disney. We might see everyone hug at the end of matches in the future. NO!
“Bad Santa’ full of Christmas Cupcakes
Good Santa Vs Bad Santa:It is what it is I guess. Mark Henry playing the good Santa, Damien Sandow playing the bad Santa with produced backstage segments contrasting the two. The announcers played it up as you would have expected. The whole concept is silly. Bah Humbug! NO!
Live Announcing: I would say it was a good thing that Michael Cole and JBL announced the show live from Stanford CT. (They had pre-recorded cut-in’s from the arena, but voiced most of Raw Live) it gave it a fresh feel, JBL made some topical references as he eluded to on twitter. The Batista announcement which clearly wasn’t scheduled for the show originally was added in, and the live commentary allowed for reaction from JB and Cole. Did you miss Jerry “The King” Lawler? I did not. YES!
@NEIL_MALONE@WWE@GoToBermuda pre taped? Not sure u noticed, our commentary was live. The Romo reference should have given that away.
“Santa Claus is an Illegal Immigrant” – Zeb Colter
The Real Americans vs Los Matadores: Another good tag team match on Raw. We saw the Antonio Cesaro swing, which if you haven’t’ seen live is an awesome thing to watch. With all the tag teams in the WWE, I think the WrestleMania pre-show match should involve all the tag-teams that one make it to the PPV. Perhaps the winner can face the champions. YES!
RAW OVERALL: NO! Call me scrooge if you will, but the over cheesy holiday wrestling show, should go on Smackdown! I think Raw looses it’s coolness by being lame. If Disney pony’s up the cash this could be what you see on RAW every week so get used to it! There was some good action on the show which I enjoyed, no real progression of WWE story lines but the big announcement of The Animal Batista, which was awesome to see.
– Part two of Chris Jericho’s new “Talk Is Jericho” interview with WWE Hall Of Famer Adam “Edge” Copeland is now available online. Fans interested in checking that out can do so at PodcastOne.com.
– As if you couldn’t tell just by watching the show and listening to the commentary, due to Monday’s RAW Christmas special being taped a week ago, and the fact that WWE decided to make the Batista announcement last night, among other reasons, Michael Cole and JBL did voice-over work for the show. According to JBL’s Twitter account, the two did the voice-overs live from WWE headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut on Monday night.
WWE.com has published the latest weekly sit-down interview between Michael Cole and Triple H.
The interview this week focuses on a few different topics, including Randy Orton’s low-blow of Daniel Bryan during the RAW main event. The Game joked that Bryan “came up on the short end” in the match.
He also addressed CM Punk’s comments about him on the show. Based on what we’re hearing, this is the start of a feud that will culminate in a match at WrestleMania.
You can check out the complete interview online at WWE.com.
– Former WWE Superstar Kizarny (Sinn Bodhi) is writing a new comedy action film that is set to star WWE Hall Of Famer Edge. The film, which will be called “Babies With Rabies,” will also feature Jake “The Snake” Roberts and actress Mindy Johnson.
– WWE has added a clip from the latest Triple H and Michael Cole sit-down interview to their official YouTube channel. The clip, which can be viewed below, is accompanied by the following description: “WWE COO Triple H calls the Champion of Champions bout between John Cena and Randy Orton at WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs the “biggest match ever”.”
– The final WWE NXT live event at the Tampa Arena in 2013 will take place on December 19th. For tickets, visit NXTTickets.Ticketforce.com.
– WWE announcer Michael Cole will be the special guest host for Booker T’s “Reality Of Wrestling Christmas Chaos” event on December 14th in Clear Lake City, Texas. Also scheduled to appear at the show are former WWE Superstars The Boogeyman and Shelton Benjamin. Former WCW star Stevie Ray is also scheduled to make a rare appearance and promises a special announcement.
– Apparently WWE’s recent Vintage Collection show featuring Bill Goldberg was done because the company still has interest in bringing him back for a match at WrestleMania XXX, and promoting his name through the show was a way to keep him fresh in the minds of the WWE viewing audience.
– WWE announcer Michael Cole recently posted the following tweet, which contains an Instagram link to a photo from inside the hangar where they are filming the WWE Tribute To The Troops special on Thursday evening. Make sure to check back here at the website on Thursday evening for full spoilers of the Tribute To The Troops show.
– Rey Mysterio turns 39 years old today. He was born on December 11, 1974.
– Jake Roberts noted on Twitter that he’s had no contact at all from WWE regarding a return at the Royal Rumble or a Hall of Fame induction.
– The latest JBL & Michael Cole radio show can be downloaded here. Topics discussed include the passing of Nelson Mandela, the World Cup, President Obama and unemployment.
– WWE is running a deal on “Living Social” December 26th live event at Madison Square Garden. For $85 you get one center 2nd level ticket. For $149 you get two 1st level tickets and a WWE goodie bag. There’s also a $199 package with four 2nd level tickets and two goodie bags. The goodie bags include a WWE DVD, a WWE kids’ magazine and a signed Superstar photo.
– WWE.com noted that the remaining Slammy Awards nominees and presenters will be revealed on Sunday morning. The categories that have yet to be announced are as follows:
“This Is Awesome” Moment Of The Year
Trending Now (Hashtag) Of The Year
Beard Of The Year
Breakout Star Of The Year
– WWE has added the latest edition of The JBL & Cole Show (episode #54) to their official YouTube channel. The video is accompanied by the following description: “In this edition of The JBL & Cole Show, The Bear visits Animal Resources and Kane is NOT happy about it. Also, Aiden English sings a song, Corey Graves transforms into #CoolCorey, and Xavier Woods finds one of the Renee Young’s “secret” tapes…”
Check out episode #54 of The JBL & Cole Show below:
The following are the official nominees for the “LOL Moment of the Year” Slammy Award, which will be presented by The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg and Billy Gunn) on Monday night.
– The Rock concert during the RAW 20th Anniversary show
– Vickie Guerrero getting fired as RAW General Manager
– Titus O’Neil throwing up on JBL, Michael Cole and Zeb Colter on SmackDown
– The Great Khali and Jinder Mahal attempting to charm Santino Marella’s “Cobra”
– WWE NXT Champion Bo Dallas is scheduled to defend his title against Adrian Neville at the WWE NXT live event on December 5th in Tampa, Florida.
– The Kentucky.com website has an article up promoting Mick Foley’s upcoming one man show at The Mall in Lexington Green on December 4th. You can check that article out online at Kentucky.com.
– WWE has added a nearly four-minute clip on YouTube from the latest Michael Cole and Triple H interview from WWE.com. The clip focuses on Triple H revealing that he wants there to be one undisputed champion in WWE. You can watch the clip below:
It appears as though WWE has gone back and forth on their plans for the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship ever since the conclusion of the WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view earlier this month.
When Survivor Series ended, the plan, despite how it appeared on television, was not to have a unification match. On RAW the next night, WWE apparently went out of their way not to say the words “unification match,” but they are now apparently leaning towards having only one World Champion following Triple H’s latest sitdown interview with Michael Cole.
There has been speculation that the finish at the WWE TLC pay-per-view could see John Cena walk away as the WWE Champion and Randy Orton as the World Heavyweight Champion, with the two basically just reversing roles as far as their championship status is concerned. Whether or not WWE runs with that finish remains to be seen.
– It was revealed this week through social media that former WWE Divas Champion Kaitlyn got engaged to bodybuilder boyfriend PJ Braun, who reigns as President of Prime Nutrition and Blackstone Labs. Speaking to WWE.com, the 27-year-old discussed his unexpected wedding proposal and the beginning of this exciting new chapter in her life.
Braun first noticed Kaitlyn when she was competing on the bodybuilding stage years ago, but they did not date until recently.
“We always joked that we would probably end up together someday,” said Kaitlyn, while also noting that their busy schedules and personal lives prevented them from taking things “to the next level.” “We didn’t start dating until this summer, which is funny because he lives in Florida and I was living in Florida for three years. I finally moved back home to Houston, and we started dating shortly after that. We lived a few hours from each other for three years!”
Braun popped the question following Tuesday night’s WWE SmackDown taping at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. However, that wasn’t his original strategy.
“He was planning on asking me today [Friday] while we were in New York City, but when he got to Connecticut, he lost the ring in the airport,” Kaitlyn said. “So he sits me down in the big suite after SmackDown and we’re laughing and hanging out [with his family] and he’s telling me this ridiculous story about how he lost it and eventually found it. After that, he knew he had to ask me the very next time he saw me. I had no idea it was coming.”
Kaitlyn also discusses her ring and why her wedding ceremony will be anything but conventional. To read the full article, click here.
– John “Bradshaw” Layfield, who turns 47-years-old today, receives the ultimate happy birthday on the latest edtion of The JBL & Cole Show. Plus, Aksana asks JBL a question, Andy Kaufman stops by to say hello and “#CasualCole” does some green screen improv.
The following are highlights from the latest sit-down interview between Triple H and Michael Cole from the official WWE website:
On the goal behind unifying the belt at the WWE TLC PPV: “The goal is one champion. The goal being one champion at the end of the night. One Undisputed WWE champion. Let’s face it – with the brand extension no longer in effect, there is no need for two champions; we only need one… I want there to be one Undisputed WWE champion; the championship that was held by all the greats. Bruno Sammartino, (Bob) Backlund, Bret (Hart), (Hulk) Hogan, Shawn Michaels, Rock, (Steve) Austin, myself, Cena. All the greats. I want there to be one champion who represents this company going into the new year.”
On CM Punk’s dig at him on RAW this past Monday: “I didn’t happen to see C.M. Punk’s promo Monday night because I was a little bit busy creating the biggest match in WWE history. That being said, C.M. Punk says a lot of things; he runs his mouth a lot. It doesn’t make a difference to me. It’s irrelevant to me. He can say whatever he wants. I’m not phased by it. All I care about is C.M. Punk shows up and does his job.”
Check out the complete interview online at WWE.com.
There was a pretty big error during the conclusion of the Divas Elimination Match at Sunday’s WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view involving both the commentary team and the ring announcer.
Near the end of the match, the Survivor Series broadcast team of Michael Cole, JBL and Jerry “The King” Lawler consistently referred to Natalya as the only member of her team remaining in the match. Nikki Bella, who was outside the ring selling, was actually still active in the match. Natalya ended up putting AJ Lee in the Sharpshooter to gain the win for her team, and was announced as the “sole survivor” of Team Natalya.
After the match, Lilian Garcia announced Natalya as the sole survivor, as did the announce team, when in fact Nikki was a survivor as well. Later in the show, Michael Cole acknowledged the fact that they had made the mistake, and informed fans that both Natalya and Nikki Bella survived in their match.
The special one-year anniversary edition of The JBL & Cole Show has been added to the official YouTube channel of WWE.
The show this week features a number of guest appearances, including Dolph Ziggler, Santino Marella, Josh Mathews, Road Dogg, Damien Sandow, Renee Young, Hornswoggle, Big E. Langston, John Cena, Daniel Bryan and John Cone.
You can check out episode 52 of The JBL & Cole Show below:
– As we have previously reported numerous times, WWE Superstar Ryback is said to be dealing with a decent amount of heat from WWE management. In addition to the reasons we have explained in the past, apparently Ryback gained additional heat recently due to performing typical Goldberg spots in a match, including the Jackhammer and the spear, without getting permission from WWE to do so ahead of time.
– The latest edition of the sit-down interview series between Michael Cole and Triple H has been posted on the official WWE website. In this week’s edition, HHH talks about this Sunday’s Survivor Series, the perception from fans that he is manipulative and more. You can check out the video online at WWE.com.
– Ryback appears to be turning babyface after Paul Heyman dismissed Ryback as a potential “Paul Heyman Guy” on Raw on Monday. We can now confirm that WWE creative plans call for Ryback to feud with Brock Lesnar, with a match likely taking place at January’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The storyline will be that Paul Heyman will enlist Lesnar to destroy Ryback, since he blames Ryback for CM Punk putting him in a wheelchair.
Meanwhile, while WWE officials would like to have Ryback face Goldberg at WrestleMania XXX, sources within the organization don’t expect the former World Heavyweight Champion to come on board since he would almost certainly be asked to job. Goldberg stated in an interview earlier this year that he would not return to the company to lose.
– This week’s edition of The JBL & Cole Show features never before seen bloopers, outtakes, and footage from the show. Renee Young hosts.
– WWE has issued a statement regarding Reddit user Dolphins1925, who has been posting his monthly WWE pay-per-view predictions with astonishing accuracy. Mathew Altman, WWE’s Director of Communications, told Motley Fool this week:
“WWE believes in First Amendment rights, so anyone has the right to predict outcomes.”
The article also notes that WWE has made “no attempt” to discover the identity of Dolphins1925, which seems highly unlikely.
– WWE’s new Director of Operations Kane stood in for Triple H this week for the weekly WWE.com interview with Michael Cole.
WWE “Director Of Operations” Kane filled in for WWE COO Triple H in the latest sit-down interview with Michael Cole on WWE.com this week.
The focus of the interview this week was Kane’s character change from “The Big Red Monster” to a member of The Authority who now wears a suit and tie. Kane mentioned that he is still capable of unleashing “The Monster” if and when the situation calls for it.
“Mr. Cole, there is a monster deep inside all of us. The difference is for 17 years, I chose to allow mine to run amok, to promote chaos. But, make no mistake, I was always in control,” said the WWE’s new “Director Of Operations.” Kane continued, “Unlike you and everyone else, I accept the bestial side of my nature. Indeed, I relish in it. But, it is simply one facet of my personality. A tool, if you will, but not the only tool at my disposal. So, when the appropriate situation arises, The Monster will be utilized.”
You can check out the complete video interview online at WWE.com.
– A YouTube user has recently uploaded some leaked behind-the-scenes WWE footage. Below are the videos. The first video features Josh Mathews, Dolph Ziggler, The Miz and Big E. Langston preparing for a segment on the WWE App.
http://youtu.be/Z4fvuREjf70
– The second video features WWE announcers Michael Cole, Jerry “The King” Lawler and JBL preparing for the WWE RAW broadcast from Greenville, South Carolina.
– While shooting footage for The JBL & Cole Show, Michael Cole suffered a black eye. The injury occurred while the WWE announcer played rugby at Huddersfield Stadium in West Yorkshire, England with professional player Eorl Crabtree. John “Bradshaw” Layfield posted this image on Twitter of Cole’s accident.
– WWE Hall of Famer Tammy “Sunny” Sytch recorded this message today promoting her upcoming appearance at the Classic Grand Rock Club in Glasgow, Scotland taking place this Thursday. The event will feature a Q&A session and meet and greet. Event details are available here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCNRQax5PzE
– WWE Superstar JTG reunited with his former partner in crime, Shad Gaspard, this weekend in Venice Beach, California.
– With John Cena capturing the World Heavyweight Championship from Alberto Del Rio at Hell in Cell, it will once again be portrayed as equal to the WWE Championship. According to F4WOnline.com today, Cena and Randy Orton are expected to remain as champions through at least Elimination Chamber, and will be portrayed as equals.
– In this edition of The JBL & Cole Show, Renee Young takes fans on wild ride through some of the best, funniest and most outrageous moments from the past 49 episodes of the show.
-It was announced at the WWE SmackDown television taping on Tuesday night in Charlotte, North Carolina that John Cena will be defending his World Heavyweight Championship in a rematch against Alberto Del Rio at the upcoming WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view on November 24th. The match had been expected for a while, but was not official until the announcement at SmackDown.
-As previously reported, Triple H announced that the new “corporate Kane” has been named the “Director Of Operations” for WWE. The announcement came as part of the latest sit-down interview that “The Game” did with Michael Cole for the official WWE website. You can check out the complete video interview online at WWE.com.