WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley recently appeared on The Shining Wizards podcast to talk about a number of WrestleMania 31 related topics and promote his RAINN raffle. Below are highlights from the interview.
On WrestleMania 31: “I don’t think it’s a lackluster card. I think it’s a card with some question marks. We don’t have the three or four matches that are definitely going to deliver. That’s why I think it’s important that, outside the IC title, which everyone knows is going to be phenomenal, that the matches that otherwise might not be given the chance to shine, like the divas for example… those girls can go. I sense that the wrestling world is ready to accept good female wrestling. I really hope that they’re given the chance, so I’d love to see that one do well. I’m just interested to see the reactions, because Triple H was right when he said this was the reality era. The fans in some ways can make or break three of these matches with the unknowns. When Reigns and Lesnar are in there, can you imagine the crowd breaks for Lesnar? It could be phenomenal, the way they broke for him when he was against The Rock. The Rock was technically the good guy, ya know, years ago. So I think there could be a lot of excitement. It could be a letdown. It’ll be interesting for sure.”
On Sting at WrestleMania: “I thought there was only room on the card for one mystical, mysterious entrance, and that’s Undertaker. So I was really relieved when Sting made an appearance and it was the excited Sting. I think that got people talking.”
On Curtis Axel and Axelmania: “When something gets over with the boys, you know you’re on to something. One win in the right place could really launch Axel.”
As previously reported, WWE hired a local casting agency in San Francisco to cast “Russian soldiers” and “scarecrows” for entrances at WrestleMania 31. The soliders are for Rusev’s ring entrance, while the scarecrows could be for Sting or Bray Wyatt’s entrance, but most likely Sting’s.
As it turns out, WWE hired the same casting agency to book both roles and they will be using the same extras for both roles as a way to save money. They are looking for males between the ages of 24 and 33, with no facial hair. The casting agency will be paying extras $1,100 each for three days.
The extras that are hired must be available to train on March 27th and March 28th, then perform the day of WrestleMania 31 on March 29th. The first day of work will consist of costume fitting and a four-hour walk-through. They will then do a late night rehearsal after the WWE Hall Of Fame ceremony on Saturday night from 11pm until 3am. From there, they are simply required to be at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California all day and evening on Sunday.
Jim Ross updated the blog on his official website on Tuesday, writing about the Samoa Joe to WWE rumors, Sting’s performance on Monday’s RAW and some of the inductees in this year’s WWE Hall Of Fame class.
Below are some highlights from JR’s latest blog:
On Samoa Joe: “I had a great conversation Monday night with @SamoaJoe for a future podcast. Joe is one of the most intelligent and perceptive athletes that I’ve spoken with on our podcast and I certainly hope that WWE signs him as he could be invaluable in multiple areas for the wrestling side of the company IMO. It was the first time that we had talked in over a decade when I told him that, at that time, he wasn’t ready to be signed to a WWE contract to which Joe said motivated him and that he respected my honesty. Over the years I’ve become a big fan of his physical style but him getting trained in the Japanese style of wrestling helped him a great deal to become the star that he is today.”
On Sting: “Great seeing Sting on WWE TV which, for the longest time, I thought would likely never occur. Steve Borden is one of the best men in the biz and has always been a class act and one of my favorite people to work with over the years including his early days working in Mid South for Cowboy Bill Watts. I am beyond thrilled to see Sting finally get his ‘WrestleMania Moment’ this year as it is well earned and will be a moment that I will personally celebrate with The Stinger. Good things do often times happen to good people even in the wacky world of ‘rasslin.”
On Larry Zbyszko and Kevin Nash in the WWE Hall Of Fame: “Happy for Larry Zybszko going into the WWE HOF with Bruno Sammartino set to induct him. We all have our mentors and Bruno was Larry’s and the two Pittsburghers made money and had excellent matches together including the much ballyhooed Shea Stadium event back in the day. Larry was one of the more underrated broadcasters to work in the wrestling biz, too.”
“Sounds as if Kevin Nash will be the final inductee into the 2015 WWE HOF class and for that I’m happy. When Kevin couldn’t get the time of day when he first started in WCW, I used him my WSB Sunday night radio show and everyone soon found out that the former Tennessee Vol could talk and talk well. We’ve been friends ever since.”
– WWE developmental talent Leyvonna Zakari has been rehabilitating an undisclosed injury. She revealed on Instagram that the injury has prevented her from working out much as of late.
“I really haven’t worked out much since my injury. I’ve just been rehabing and trying to get back right. Well today, I went at it!” she wrote Monday. “I can’t feel my arms and I’m red in the face. I love this job!”
– As reported earlier today, Sting is in Des Moines, Iowa—the site of tonight’s Raw. The news broke when a fan saw him arriving at the airport late last night and posted this photo on Twitter.
– The “Quick Hits” section on the WWE Network was updated Monday with two music videos and clips featuring “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Bobby Heenan and Gorilla Monsoon. In one music video, Run DMC pays tribute to D-Generation X in the music video for their song “The Kings.” The other music video has “Rowdy” Roddy Piper singing a song called “I’m Your Man.” The song and music video were released in 1992 in the United Kingdom.
TNA star Ethan Carter III spoke with the Journey Of A Frontman website while at Tommy Dreamer’s “House of Hardcore VIII” event in Philadelphia last weekend. Below are highlights from the interview.
On working with top guys such as Sting and Kurt Angle: “Looking at it from the perspective as a fan growing up watching wrestling, it’s surreal to be in the ring with guys I considered heroes, guys I watched every week. From being a little kid to a teenager, I would see a thing Kurt Angle did in a match one time and pause the TV. Then I’d look to my dad and say, “Someday I’m gonna do that.” And he’s like, “Okay.” Then someday I’m doing it and I’m in the ring with a guy that inspired me. As a fan, that’s incredible. As far as a talent or performer, you only get better being in the ring with people that are better than you. The only way to improve is to be in situations you’re not accustomed to and being taught through hands-on training. Being in the ring with Sting, Bully, Angle, even all the other veterans in TNA like Eric Young, Austin Aries, Matt Hardy, Abyss, you’re always learning with all those guys. You always learn with everything you do. Guys that have been around longer have learned from some of the best too. It’s the trickle-down effect. Trickle-Down Economics, Ronald Reagan style.”
On having freedom with his character: “I think being locked into a verbatim script is hard for a wrestler because we’re not professional actors. If we were, we’d be getting paid not to get hurt. The thing about being a wrestler and a character is that it’s an extension of your personality. It’s hard for somebody to write who you are. It’s easier to be given a scenario and a situation where you can act in it. You get a script in both places, there’s a difference in that sense. In the sense of TNA, I’ve been able to take scripts and feel it out there. I’m not deviating from the important things, but I’ll put it in my own words. And I think that’s helped me greatly because I’m the best me that I can be and every talent is the best they can be. It’s also the talent’s responsibility to incorporate themselves into their character and not be apprehensive by saying that something sucks and they don’t want to do it. You have a segment on national television, take that as an opportunity to make it something special. Every time you have a chance, do something special.”
On the Bill DeMott controversy: “It’s an unfortunate situation that happened. There’s varied opinions. As far as wrestling training, it should be difficult a hundred percent. You’re in a place where you’re supposed to represent the best. During my time in developmental, I had some of the best coaches in the world. I had Dr. Tom Prichard, Steve Keirn, Norman Smiley, we had Billy Kidman for a time, Ricky Steamboat, and all these guys push you. They push you to be better constantly. I would be dead dog tired from those practices, but it was never at the expense of my humility as a human being, at the expense of being made an example of, it was to get better. I was pushed to get better. I firmly believe that fully. As far as that scenario, what’s come out are things that did happen and it isn’t a place for that. Not in 2015. Not in wrestling in general. It’s not bettering you as a wrestler.”
Sting is currently in Des Moines, Iowa and is scheduled to appear live on tonight’s episode of WWE RAW.
As of this writing, WWE has not announced Sting will be at the show.
The former WCW Champion will be there to hype his WrestleMania match with Triple H, which takes place in less than two weeks from Santa Clara, California.
As noted on Thursday, WWE has hired a local casting agency in the Bay Area of San Francisco in an attempt to find males to work as “marching Russian soliders” for a special Rusev ring entrance at WrestleMania 31.
Additionally, we can confirm that the company is also looking to hire some extras to play the part of scarecrows at WrestleMania.
While it’s not confirmed at this point, early speculation is that the “scarecrows” would likely be used for a special ring entrance for Sting or Bray Wyatt, with Sting being the more likely of the two.
This week’s episode of Raw was held in the greatest city in the world: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Brock Lesnar made his return, the Viper finally decided to strike, and Bray Wyatt received an answer regarding his challenge to the Undertaker. Here are the pros and cons from this week’s episode of Raw.
Pros
Paul Heyman’s promo was the highlight of the night, and boy was it a highlight. In what was quite possibly one of the greatest promos of all-time, Heyman put just about everyone within a thousand-mile radius on blast. He criticized the Reigns video package that aired before he entered the ring, calling it, “nothing short of sheer propaganda” while calling Reigns’ father “one generation removed from cannibal.” He also addressed the Lesnar UFC controversy, saying that no one will take the title from Lesnar and that the Beast would gladly unify the WWE and UFC Championships over the summer if he chooses to do so. He later mentioned the Montreal Screwjob and said that anyone who tries to screw over Lesnar would not leave the arena alive. In all, the promo was a borderline shoot that perfectly blurred the line between fantasy and reality. He really did everything he could to put the main event at WrestleMania over, and he definitely succeeded.
Daniel Bryan vs. Bad News Barrett was a good match with both guys displaying strong fundamentals. Bryan hit the running high knee from out of nowhere for the win after failing to put away Barrett with a backslide. Bad News got the upper hand on Bryan after the match, however, hitting him with a Bull Hammer before being laid out by Dean Ambrose. It was a solid opening contest and a good way to further hype the ladder match at WrestleMania.
Connor “The Crusher” Michalek will be inducted into the Hall of Fame as the first recipient of the newly created “Warrior Award.” This company gives fans plenty of reasons to complain, but even the most cynical fan can’t help but praise them for this move.
Dean Ambrose squared off against Stardust in the second match of the night. The action was largely uneventful, with Ambrose picking up the win after a big clothesline and Dirty Deeds. This goes into the “Pros” column largely due to the post-match brawl, with all of the competitors in the Intercontinental Championship ladder match getting in on the fun. It’s nice to see the company making this into a big deal, and Barrett getting duped by a phony IC strap was also somewhat amusing.
Rusev quickly squashed Curtis Axel and then proceeded to talk some smack on the good ‘ole US of A. Cena had warned him beforehand not to do so in a nationalist rant prior to the match, but the Russian decided to press his luck. Cena absolutely destroyed Rusev, causing him to pass out twice in the STF. Lana granted Cena his rematch in an attempt to call off the dogs. Cena then stood up with an absolutely evil glare on his face, which was actually a nice change of pace. I’d like to see a darker, more ruthless side of Cena as they head into their rematch at WrestleMania.
The opening segment was pretty entertaining, all things considered. Noble sounded like a fool, leading Rollins to declare that they are “J&J Security, not J&J Public Speaking.” Orton was the star of this segment, however, as he went down the line and ripped everyone a new one. He said what we’ve all been thinking for months by calling Kane the “Devil’s Favorite Dumbass,” and continued by insulting Big Show, Rollins, and J&J. It was a solid opening to the show and the crowd seemed to be into it.
The Divas make an appearance in the “Pros” column this week after a solid match between AJ Lee and Summer Rae. They were given about five minutes and the match featured some decent action, with AJ eventually picking up the win with the Black Widow. It didn’t set the world on fire, but it’s definitely an improvement over what we’re used to in the main roster Divas division. I also thought the Bella Twins’ Flintstones outfits were kind of cute.
And, in a shocking turn of events, the Divas are back for an encore. Naomi and Natalya weren’t given much time at all, but the action was solid, with the highlight being Naomi’s excellent counter of the Sharpshooter. I wish this one would have been a little longer, but it served its purpose by advancing the tag team feud and getting the Divas more exposure.
Bray Wyatt finally got his answer after weeks of provoking the Undertaker. After cutting a nice promo, the lights went out and ‘Taker’s music hit. From there, a message appeared on the big screen that said, “At WrestleMania, the man comes around.” Lightning then struck Wyatt’s chair, causing Wyatt to laugh maniacally as it burned. It was the perfect way to have the Dead Man accept Wyatt’s challenge without giving fans too much.
Triple H recently spoke with the Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Snowden to promote his induction into the International Sports Hall Of Fame this weekend. Below are highlights from the interview.
On when it felt like he really made it in WWE: “It’s funny, because it was actually when I was working with Marc Mero that I felt, “OK, clearly they must like me.” Because they had just put a lot of money into bringing Marc Mero in.
I remember George “The Animal” Steele came to me at the TV where Mero made his debut. He worked a dark match and Steele said, “Did we make a mistake bringing this guy in here?” It was just bad.
They put me with him on the road to work with him and get him up to speed. And I thought “if they’re reaching to me to handle this guy and get him going, wow.” It was kind of a confidence boost for me.”
On if he relates to wrestlers today with the same mindset that he had when he was coming up: “As far as the talent goes, when you see somebody who’s really hungry, and talented and has a bright future, you are willing to allow them to spread their wings and try things. And sometimes they are going to make mistakes and you’re going to have to reel them in and control them. And if it gets too bad, you have to really step in.
I have the ability to look at this differently because I went through it. If you’re smart with it, and I think this is how Vince (McMahon) was with us, he allowed us to go through all that without crossing a line that was too much for him. He controlled us but allowed us to expand our wings and grow.
Seth Rollins and I went through a similar thing. He’s so talented, and he was very cocky. Like we were. We were so full of ourselves and thought we knew more than we did. We thought we knew better and were going to show the world.
Some of that is a good thing. You don’t want to squelch that. You want to almost embrace that. But you have to protect those kids from hurting themselves. I could see how much talent Seth Rollins had, but he was manifesting that self-destructively. And I was trying to help him point that in a positive way.
I was trying to help him. And we had to have some pretty stiff conversations about it. We had to get there. But I never tried to hold him back as a talent from growing and trying things. And even using that, using those feelings. If I’m pissing him off and he feels I’m holding him back slightly, use that as a character tool and get that out of him.
He and I have talked about this a lot, from when he was in developmental to today. You have to work with talent no different than you do your kids. You’ve got to let your kids do things and experiment with their lives. And they are going to fall. But you have to be there for when they are really going to cross a line to say “no, not that step.”
On if he feels his matches with Mick Foley helped him to become “The Game”: “Absolutely. And one of the things that working with Mick did, was show people “wow, this guy will go through anything too.” I earned a different level of respect.
I think for Mick and I, through all the different versions of us working together, we’re both trying to prove ourselves. Mick had worked with Undertaker and worked with Shawn (Michaels) and worked with Steve (Austin) when they were the top guys, but he was kind of the guy who was with them. I was a guy trying to come up too.
I remember having a conversation going into the Royal Rumble in 2000, because we were the main event. We were the title match and headlining. It was a big moment for both of us. We both had something to prove that night. It was a step forward. We weren’t working with someone else who was a megastar. We both came alive that night.”
On getting back in the ring to face Sting at WrestleMania 31: “Listen, it’s a lot of pressure. I haven’t wrestled since last year. Sting hasn’t wrestled in God knows how long. We were talking about how I’m getting up there—he’s 10 years older than me.
I don’t know what I’ve got. I don’t know that he knows what he’s got. So, we’re going to see. I guarantee you this though—we will leave it all out there. We’re going to have 75,000 people giving us a lot of motivation to do it.
I know for him, this has kind of been a dream he thought was never going to happen. Both stepping into the WWE ring and going to WrestleMania. I’m glad that we could make it work out for him—and for the WWE Universe.
I think it’s something our fans are really going to enjoy, no matter how it goes physically, just being there and sharing that moment. Witnessing Sting at WrestleMania is huge for them.”
Triple H is once again the guest on this week’s sit-down interview with Michael Cole, which you can watch above.
Michael Cole asks whether or not Sting is starting to get under Triple H’s skin. HHH says Sting is good, just like he was in WCW. He mentioned his “firing” of Booker T on RAW and spoke about how no one in WCW could control Sting. He says there’s a reason Sting never came to WWE, and that’s control. He said sometimes you have to show that you still have control.
Cole asked HHH about the problems within The Authority, noting that he appears to be preoccupied as of late. HHH says that when you’re a parent, sometimes you have to let the kids battle things out among themselves. He said when RAW went off the air this week, everyone seemed to be getting along and he doesn’t have a problem letting them work out their issues by themselves.
When asked about WWE and NXT going to Ohio for the Arnold Classic this coming weekend, HHH spoke about his International Sports Hall Of Fame induction and said it’s an honor and having Arnold Schwarzenegger induct him is huge.
– Several NXT stars worked this week’s WWE television tapings. Tyler Breeze worked the post-show dark match, teaming with Bo Dallas, losing to fellow NXT stars The Lucha Dragons. NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks also worked the taping, losing to Natalya in a pre-show dark match.
You can read full WWE Main Event spoilers for this week by clicking here.
– The official WWE website has a new article up with comments from several stars who worked with Sting in WCW in the past. Below are some excerpts.
Big Show on Sting’s heroics: “To fight evil, sometimes you have to become evil. That was a brilliant move to embrace that darker side. You still knew the good Sting was there, the guy you grew up with and cheered for, the guy with the big smile. But you saw this other guy that had all this anger toward the nWo; he really exemplified a character that, in a superhero kind of way, could stand up at the plate and take everyone on by himself. A lone wolf kind of deal. And with the unique ways he would enter the ring, dropping down from the ceiling or blackouts before he would show up, he kept the element of surprise. I think the thing about Sting today is he hasn’t changed. Though his character has developed, the core value of who he is and what he represents hasn’t changed. He’s got a fan base from so many years of being someone you can depend on, kind of like John Cena. He’s been through so many trials and tribulations, and been able to stick to his guns. That’s what we respect in a hero.”
Booker T on Sting’s aura: “He’s an enigma. He’s mysterious and lurked in the shadows for many, many years. It’s an aura that draws you to him. Guys like that, they’re one of a kind. People have wanted to see him here in WWE for many years. I think people are intrigued by him. I think Triple H knows what he’s in store for. He’s conquered the business, putting himself in power as COO of a money-making company. That right there says a lot about his drive and determination. I don’t think he’s going to underestimate Sting. It’s going to be a knock-down, drag-out fight. However, I know since 1998, when DX invaded Nitro, Sting has wanted to get even. WrestleMania’s going to be a war.”
You can check out the complete article at WWE.com.
– This WrestleMania 31 poster that surfaced last week featuring The Undertaker and Sting, among others, is legitimate. WWE launched this banner ad campaign on Monday promoting the event on the WWE Network featuring a variation of the artwork.
– Lilian Garcia is scheduled to sing the National Anthem on Friday, March 13 the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona before the Phoenix Suns vs. Atlanta Hawks game.
Michael Cole’s latest weekly sit-down video interview features WWE executives Arn Anderson and Michael Hayes.
Anderson and Hayes spend several minutes talking about their own personal history with Sting, and then discuss the upcoming in-ring debut of “The Icon.”
Check out the video above to watch Anderson and Hayes break down the upcoming Triple H vs. Sting match at WrestleMania 31.
On Monday’s RAW, we saw another throwaway Divas match, with The Bella Twins defeating Paige and Emma in 30 seconds. Shortly after the match, #GiveDivasAChance was trending on Twitter – and it still trending on Tuesday afternoon more than 12 hours later.
WWE’s Bella Twins made headlines recently after their comments a Wizard World Comic Con panel about WWE Divas deserving more time in the ring. They said the women at NXT get much more leeway to practice their craft and entertain the fans, even saying that if they were NXT women’s wrestlers, they wouldn’t want to join the main roster.
Here are some of the tweets from the #GiveDivasAChance movement:
– Sting is not scheduled to appear on Raw tonight in Nashville, Tennessee as he was due to fly home to Dallas, Texas after appearing at the inaugural Fastlane pay-per-view last night, PWInsider.com reports. The event, which emanated from Memphis, Tennessee and its FedEx Forum, saw “Stinger” issue a challenge to Triple H for a match at WrestleMania 31.
– Former WWE World Heavyweight Champion The Great Khali attended a state government event in Uttarakhand, India this past weekend. During the event, Khali talked to The Times of India about opening a wrestling school in the state.
“There is a lot of craze for wrestling in the state and we are going to organize a wrestling championship very soon in Uttarakhand,” Khali said.
Khali parted ways with WWE in November after his contract expired and company officials chose not to renew it.
– WWE.com issued this poll asking fans which WWE star made the biggest statement at Fastlane. Sting is currently leading the poll.
WWE Fastlane was held in Memphis last night at the FedEx Forum. It was a fitting venue, seeing as they pretty much mailed it in for most of the night. After a night of action, we now have a pretty clear idea of what WrestleMania will look like in five weeks. Here are the pros and cons from last night’s WWE Fastlane pay-per-view.
Pros
After a night of non-finishes and botched endings, the main event between Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns was an absolute treat. These two guys started off a bit slow, but once they got going, they really gelled well. Bryan’s wrestling style went so well with the brawling style of Reigns, and it was nice to see both guys getting support from the crowd.
A few of the highlights included Reigns countering Bryan’s dive to the floor into an overhead belly to belly suplex, Bryan countering the spear into a beautiful small package, and also Reigns turning a potential hurricanrana into a brutal powerbomb from the top rope. These two also employed some solid in-ring psychology due to Reigns selling Bryan’s kick to the liver as he tried to hit a Superman punch. Overall, it was an exciting match, both guys looked great, it ended clean, and it’s always nice to see a main event end in a handshake.
The tag team match was a close second for match of the night. These two teams have so much chemistry and it’s really a pleasure to watch them do their thing. Cesaro’s half crab Cesaro swing was cool, as was the combination of Cesaro’s suplex from the apron into a springboard from Kidd.
The Usos looked good as well, teaming up for a double team Samoan drop that I don’t recall seeing them bust out before. In the end, new champions were crowned after Kidd picked up the victory with a swinging fisherman suplex. After their victory, it was nice to find out that they are “still the new WWE Tag Team Champions” (perhaps suggesting the outcome was changed last minute, as the odds shifted after the “smart money” was in).
The Bray Wyatt segment was enjoyable. He had the crowd going nuts in anticipation of the Phenom, only to shatter their dreams by popping out of the coffin. Wyatt called himself “the new face of fear,” and said: “At WrestleMania, I will claim the soul of the Undertaker.” This feud should be entertaining, but it would have been nice to see Wyatt play up the fact that fans weren’t getting ‘Taker, as the company needs more dislikable heels right now.
I’m not totally sure how I feel about the Sting and Triple H segment, so I’ll go ahead and put it in the pros section. Triple H of course continued to bury a long dead company, stating: “My legacy is putting your legacy out of business.” He also threatened Sting with the Benoit treatment, saying he would wipe him from the history books if he didn’t cooperate. It was cool to see Sting use his signature black bat though, and Hunter was very intense throughout the segment. Overall, it could have been better, but it was a decent setup for their match at WrestleMania.
Finally, the Rusev and John Cena match was far from perfect, but it worked out well. There was some hard-hitting action throughout, including a big spinning side slam from Rusev. The action was slow-paced and methodical, but it was entertaining for the most part. It of course ended in another non-clean finish, but it worked well in this case. I have to say, seeing Cena stagger out of the arena was pretty satisfying, even though it means he will definitely get redemption at WrestleMania.
– Sting challenged Triple H to a match at WrestleMania 31 at the WWE Fastlane pay-per-view on Sunday night. During the “face-to-face” confrontation between the two, Sting pointed to the WrestleMania sign with his bat over and over again until Triple H started to agree. Ultimately, Sting took Triple H out with a bat and left him laying, with the announcers hyping a match between the two at WrestleMania.
– The team of Cesaro and Tyson Kidd defeated The Usos in tag-team action at the WWE Fastlane pay-per-view to become the new WWE Tag-Team Champions.
– WWE is running a poll on their official website asking fans who they think Bray Wyatt is referring to in his recent promos on television. With over 70-percent of the vote, fans went with The Undertaker. Following him was “A Superstar We Haven’t Seen Yet” and Sting.
– Darren Young rebelled against WWE again, posting the following tweet shortly after WWE posted on their official Twitter account their backing and support of Floyd Mayweather in the boxing super-fight with Manny Pacqiuao:
I guess there's no such thing as an honest opinion these days. I hope Manny handles Money on May 2nd. Period. Pass a long and move on. :)
The Road to WrestleMania will become a lot clearer after Sunday’s pay-per-view. Fastlane is available for free to all new WWE Network customers, and even those who previously cancelled their account and re-subscribed, so there’s really no reason to miss out on the action. Here is how I expect the event to play out.
Goldust vs. Stardust
Man, they really should have saved this one for WrestleMania, but I guess there is only room on the card for one tag team breakup storyline, and it looks like that’s going to be Miz and Mizdow. Expect these guys to put on one hell of a match, as they have been lobbying for it for what seems like years. After a solid ten-minute contest with a number of near-falls, Stardust will pick up the win with Cross Rhodes.
Result: Stardust via pinfall
Rusev (United States Champion) vs. John Cena
These guys have done a pretty good of building up this match over the past few weeks, and it genuinely seems like Cena is interested in winning the United States Championship, which is always a plus. It’s almost guaranteed that this feud is going to continue into WrestleMania, so I expect Rusev to pick up the win, but certainly not clean.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHA5g_T227k
Lana will become involved at some point, possibly distracting Cena long enough for Rusev to pounce and pick up the win via the deadliest finisher in all of wrestling (the distraction roll-up), or by using the title as a weapon to knock out Cena while the Ravishing Russian distracts the referee. This will set up a rematch at WrestleMania where Cena will most likely go over.
Result: Rusev via pinfall
Nikki Bella (Divas Champion) vs. Paige
Paige is the most popular diva in the entire company by far right now. They are going to want her to capture the title at WrestleMania. Nikki wins with help from her sister before dropping the title to Paige next month.
– After lending his expertise to I Believe In Wrestling’s Team Vision Dojo in Orlando, Florida on Wednesday, WWE Hall of Famer Scott Hall dropped by the Performance Center on Thursday. Hall tweeted on Friday morning:
– In this article, the official WWE website looks at the fourteen most important moments of Sting’s career.
– Dolph Ziggler and Paige appear at the Wizard World Cleveland Comic Con this Saturday in the Cleveland Convention Center in Cleveland, Ohio. Both will be signing autographs and posing for photos beginning at 11:00 a.m. before participating in a Q&A session at 1:30 p.m. Details on their appearance are available here.
– Sting is in Orlando, Florida this week for WWE business-related reasons. It’s believed that he is working on his segment with Triple H scheduled for this Sunday’s WWE Fastlane pay-per-view.
– There continues to be an expectation among many within WWE that Brock Lesnar will actually end up staying with the company after his current contract expires following this year’s WrestleMania.
– Hollymood Entertainment has just released another new trailer for the marijuana documentary featuring Rob Van Dam. The documentary is titled, “The Emperor, The President & The King” and is scheduled to be released late in 2015. You can watch the new trailer below, and can subscribe to the Hollymood Entertainment Youtube channel at Youtube.com/slowdive626.
The latest weekly sit-down interview between Michael Cole and Triple H is now available.
On this week’s interview, the focus was this Sunday’s WWE Fastlane pay-per-view event. Cole asked HHH about some of the top matches. Regarding the Daniel Bryan vs. Roman Reigns main event, “The Game” pointed out that the leader of the “Yes! Movement” might be the best wrestler in WWE right now, however he questioned if that will be enough to overcome Reigns’ brute strength and power.
Regarding Sting, HHH said he first wanted to apologize to Ric Flair for pushing him down on Monday’s RAW. He blamed it on passion and Sting and said what Sting is trying to do will only get done over Triple H’s “dead body.”
You can check out the complete Cole and HHH interview above.
As the entire northeast freezes under a mountain of snow, the WWE decided to dip down to Orlando in an attempt to heat things up heading into Sunday’s Fastlane pay-per-view. The show featured eight matches, as well as appearances from Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes. Without further ado, here are the pros and cons from this week’s episode of Raw.
Pros
Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler was pure gold. Before the match, the two engaged in a hilarious back and forth, with Rollins laying down some burnsauce by telling Ziggler: “I know you fancy yourself a comedian but the only thing funny about you is that joke you call a career.” It was also hilarious to hear Ziggler question whether J&J getting him the wrong chocolates ruined his Valentine’s Day. Something tells me his Valentine’s Day was ruined for other reasons… As for the match, it was fast paced, full of spots, and exactly what you’d expect from two of the best workers in the business. Other than the J&J interference and non-finish, this was pretty much perfect on every level. I suspect a match between these two will be added to Fastlane after Smackdown. Here’s to hoping they give these guys 15 minutes and let them tear the house down. Highlight of the night by far.
I enjoyed the Dusty Rhodes backstage segments. The match between the New Day and Gold and Stardust was also nice, as it served as a nice juxtaposition between the brawling opening contest between Ambrose and Harper. Following the match, Stardust attacked his brother and called Dusty a “polka-dotted freak of a father.” I’ll admit, they’ve dragged this out forever and I wasn’t too excited at first, but I’m now getting into it.
Roman Reigns was the man last night. He sounded like a completely different person during his backstage interview before his match with Kane. His calm, confident, and collected demeanor is a stark contrast from the nervous guy we saw out there a few weeks ago talking about beanstalks while stumbing over every other word. His match with Kane was actually decent too, with Reigns winning via countout after hitting a big Spear. Daniel Bryan was on commentary during the match, with he and Reigns playing off of one another very well. It was also humorous to hear Michael Cole state: “Daniel Bryan is trying to steal Roman Reigns’ thunder. Roman Reigns just beat Kane, guys!” That means about as much as beating the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2015.
For a comedy segment, the Paige bit was actually hilarious. The outfit was funny, it actually served some sort of purpose in furthering her feud with Nikki Bella, the fans seemed to be enjoying it, and the match with Summer Rae was good for the time they were given.
The Dean Ambrose “weekend update” promo, where the Lunatic Fringe was parked at a desk looking like a shady used car dealer, was also entertaining. His match with Luke Harper featuring some nice, brawling action and was a good opening contest. JBL’s “we’ve got an air psycho” line had me cracking up, and his plot to force Barrett to sign the contract for Sunday was perfect. Nobody in the midcard deserves the IC Title more than Ambrose, and it looks like he’s going to find a way to capture the gold on Sunday.
Bray Wyatt’s promos are starting to become a bit repetitive, but I still enjoyed his work this week. He once again attacked the Undertaker, stating: “You’re an empty shell, and any fear that I once of you has turned into nothing more than putrid, hateful pity.” I can’t wait to see this program.
WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair is currently scheduled for tonight’s WWE RAW from Orlando, according to a report at PWInsider.com.
Flair is booked for a segment with Triple H to hype Triple H’s meeting with Sting this Sunday at WWE Fast Lane. The idea is for Flair to talk about his own storied history with Sting in hopes of convincing Triple to take him seriously.
The decision to bring Flair in was made over the weekend.
As always, join us here tonight for Live Coverage of WWE RAW.
– Bray Wyatt suffered a busted nose after taking a bad dropkick from Dolph Ziggler during this past Monday’s edition of WWE RAW in Columbus, Ohio. Wyatt was fine afterwards, and even worked the WWE SmackDown television taping the next night in Dayton, Ohio.
– The man who was dressed up as Sting during the segment with Triple H at this past Monday’s RAW was veteran independent wrestler Cody Hawk. Hawk has worked in the indy wrestling scene in Ohio for quite some time.