https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PS-lmNw0Yk

Former, WWE, ECW and TNA star Taz said on his radio show that the fight between Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm at UFC 193 was fixed. He went into detail on his theory, saying UFC president Dana White used an age-old wrestling business strategy.

“Why are some people not seeing this? This has been done in the wrestling industry for years,” said Taz. “A guy or girl is going to take a break or go away, or has an injury that they have to tend to, whatever the reasons are, and they’re a champion – you take the championship off of them. You do not want your champion sitting home or making a movie, ‘Roadhouse 2′?, or whatever Rousey’s going to do, or just needs a personal break, which she’s earned. This girl’s earned it. But you don’t want that person sitting home for five, six, seven months with that championship. It’s bad for business! Take the belt off her!”

“If you look at the actual K.O. – now, she did get nailed, Rousey, with several shots before the finish of the fight. Nothing that was like ‘oh my god,’ but she got popped a few times. But if you look at the actual knockout, as Rousey, she went for kind of a lazy punch or something – not lazy but she kind of missed – and as she spun to turn around her back was kind of turned to Holm. And as she slowly turned, a high round kick, I believe it was the left foot, or left leg of Holm, catches Rousey, drops Rousey, and then Holm grounds and pounds for three shots – boom, boom, boom. Ref gets in the middle, fight’s over, new champion Holly Holm.”

“I’m telling you right now, that whole series, was the work. And I’m not sure who was in on it and who wasn’t but I know this much: the ref probably wasn’t in on it. Maybe he was I don’t know. Rousey was in on it – and again, this is all my opinion. Holm might not have been in on it.”

The Taz Show airs weekdays from 7 AM to 9 AM Eastern at play.it/the-taz-show/.

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Former WWE Superstar and TNA announcer Taz recently spoke with Sports Illustrated’s “Extra Mustard” blog to promote his weekly podcast, The Taz Show: Bodyslams and Beyond. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On winning a Gold Communicators Award this year and expanding his weekly podcast:

“The amount of my downloads were high. CBS asked if I could see myself doing more than one show per week. Then I did two shows per week. CBS said, ‘Your numbers are insane, your content is awesome, and we want to give you the opportunity to do this every day.’

“The timing was great. I was having some financial issues with TNA, my contract was coming up in two months, and I had no intention of resigning with them. I was ready to segue into a new career. So CBS set up a meeting, and I signed a full-time deal and have a full-time daily show, and that’s the origin of ‘The Taz Show.’”

On going to TNA in 2009 and his recent departure:

“I left WWE when I needed a break. At the time, TNA was a good alternative for me. It was refreshing at the time, and things were being run pretty good. It felt right. Then, after a couple years–and I’m not going to sit here and bash people–decisions were made that weren’t good decisions and the company started to go in another direction. There was a leadership issue, and I felt like it was the perfect time to segue into my radio career. I wanted to get out of there, and I did.”

On if he would ever return to WWE:

“I would go back to WWE, but I could not and would not leave my career with CBS Radio and my show. I have a very good relationship with WWE, I’ve never burnt a bridge with them, and we’ve always had a mutual respect. Time will tell, but my show is my number one priority.”

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CBS Radio has announced that Taz’s 2-hour weekday talk show The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond is now going to be streaming live video for each episode:

THE TAZ SHOW: BODYSLAMS & BEYOND LAUNCHES LIVE VIDEO STREAM

Daily Two-Hour Show Now Available for Viewing on TazShow.com

THE TAZ SHOW: BODYSLAMS & BEYOND, a daily two-hour show featuring pro-wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Taz is now available as a live video stream on TazShow.com.  Audio of the program was launched in September and can be found live and on-demand on the Play.it® podcast network.

THE TAZ SHOW is broadcast weekdays from 7:00-9:00AM, ET.  The program is among the most popular on Play.it, and features listener calls, interviews with wrestling experts, and commentary on a variety of sports and entertainment topics.

Check out the Taz Show now at TazShow.com.

Former TNA World Champion AJ Styles recently appeared as a guest on The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond podcast at Play.it, and during the discussion, Styles spoke about the possibility of joining NXT.

“At this point in my career, I’m going to go do what’s best for my family and I want to do what’s best to provide for them,” said Styles. “So, the business that we’re in, [if] the business could be better somewhere else, then that’s where I’m going to go. That’s what I’m going to do. So, like I said, it’s a business plan. Wherever the plan takes me, that’s where I’ll go.”

Later in the interview, Taz asked Styles about the possibility of going to CMLL in Mexico to wrestle Rey Mysterio.

“I’d like to wrestle Rey, Rey Mysterio, before he retires,” said Styles. “I think we could have a pretty cool match and it would be a pretty big match, the two of us, so I’d probably get that done.”

Styles continued, “I would imagine you would have to come off the hip with some money for Rey, but it would be fun! It depends where we do it. The problem is he works for AAA and I work for New Japan and New Japan works for CMLL, or works with CMLL, so that’s the big dilemma. It would have to be an independent [show] for us to meet.”

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– ECW original and TNA agent Tommy Dreamer is the guest on the latest edition of Taz’s podcast, “The Taz Show — Bodyslams & Beyond,” which is available now. You can download the show at Play.it.

– World Wrestling Entertainment stock was up 0.92% earlier today, closing at $19.78 per share. The high for today was $19.87, while the low was $19.42.

– After being released due to racist social media posts from her past, former NXT Diva and Seth Rollins’ real-life girlfriend Zahra Schreiber will make her in-ring debut for the Dreamwave Wrestling promotion on November 7th in La Salle, Illinois. Dreamwave tweeted the following announcement:

BREAKING: The controversial @zahraschreiber will make her in ring debut at #SOTF15 on 11/7 in La Salle, IL. pic.twitter.com/aYN4CtZqRh

— Dreamwave Wrestling (@DWWrestling) October 19, 2015

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ECW Originals Taz and Tommy Dreamer were at WWE’s TV studios in Stamford, Connecticut this week recording material for future WWE projects.

The footage will be used for WWE’s upcoming Dudley Boyz DVD (due out in early 2016) as well as a “OMG! ECW’s Top 50 Craziest Moments” – a countdown of the craziest moments in Extreme Championship Wrestling.

Taz parted ways with TNA back in April. Shortly after leaving the company, he confirmed on his Human Podcast Machine show that TNA not paying their talent on time was one of the main reasons he left.

“My check was late, and I had to do what I had to do. The company was understanding in that. They understood my position. They were very professional, very kind, very understanding – business is business. This is how I pay my bills and I feed my family, for over 20 years.”

“It’s well documented – and it seems like they’re fixing that now – that my funds were not arriving to the house, and were very late. I did a service, I wasn’t paid for that service. I gave them a notice – they knew ahead of time that I wasn’t going to come, and they were awesome about it. They were apologetic about it.”

– Although the Dudley Boyz have signed multi-year deals to return to WWE on a full-time basis, the two will still keep their Team 3-D Training Academy running in Florida.

– Vince McMahon, who turned 70 this past Monday, wasn’t the only August 24th birthday celebrated in WWE. As it turns out, one of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon’s daughters shares a birthday with Vince.

– As noted, Taz has signed a deal to have his own CBS Radio Show. The former WWE and TNA announcer noted via Twitter that Jim Ross will be featured on his CBS Radio Show in a weekly segment. Taz tweeted the following.

https://twitter.com/OfficialTAZ/status/636628378393706496

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Since the news broke last Friday that Hulk Hogan had been removed from the WWE due to a racist rant, several people have shared their thoughts and feelings regarding the news.

On the latest edition of Human Podcast Machine with Taz the former ECW Champion decided to get a few things off his chest in regards to the comments made by Hulk Hogan.

Describing the whole thing as “very sad,” Taz revealed that in his opinion, this could be the very end of Hulk Hogan’s career in the world of professional wrestling.

“I just think it’s sad – I think it’s sad,” Taz explained. “I think it is sad especially for folks that he offended heavily, namely anyone that was a fan of his that maybe is African American or wrestlers that are African American.”

Taz went on to explain that he believes Hogan is “done” and that it’s a “sad way to go out” and while he wants to say he feels bad for him, he’s not sure how you can.

“I mean, he said this. You can hear it on tape. It’s like, how do you feel bad for the guy? You can’t! He said it. It was years ago and he [has] changed, I guess, and whatever, but it doesn’t matter. It’s reprehensible comments and it’s just not cool.”

You can listen to the rest of this episode by clicking on this link.

– RollingStone.com has published their review of last night’s Elimination Chamber PPV, appropriately titled, “Win Owens Win.”

– Steve Austin is encouraging fans to submit their questions for tonight’s Stone Cold Podcast featuring Paul Heyman.

Got a good question for @HeymanHustle send it to questions@steveaustinshow.com. @wwe

— Steve Austin (@steveaustinBSR) June 1, 2015

– Taz’s latest podcast is now available, featuring a review of last night’s WWE Elimination Chamber PPV and a detailed breakdown of John Cena vs. Kevin Owens.

https://twitter.com/officialtaz/status/605385140777447425

– Triple H tweeted this photo with Kevin Owens after his win over John Cena last night at Elimination Chamber:

The Champ Is Here! @FightOwensFight #WWEChamber pic.twitter.com/7BHAwJX28l

— Triple H (@TripleH) June 1, 2015

– Tonight’s edition of TNA Impact Wrestling will be called by Josh Mathews by himself. TNA is still in the process of finding a replacement for Taz.

– According to one source, TNA is planning on giving Ethan Carter III a big push in the near future.

– TNA President Dixie Carter noted on Twitter recently that while Eddie Edwards is out with an injury, his tag-team partner Davey Richards will be looking to pursue the TNA X-Division Championship.

– AAA has confirmed that there will in fact be a “Team TNA” in their Lucha Libre World Cup, which takes place on May 24th in Mexico. As of right now, Matt Hardy is the only confirmed member of the team.

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Former TNA announcer Taz spoke about his departure from the company on the latest episode of his Human Podcast Machine podcast. 

Taz said he asked for his release and it was granted. They parted ways mutually and professionally, wishing TNA nothing but success. 

“My contract was ending in the summer of this year. I was looking to do other things and move on. I felt like I accomplished a lot in TNA, and TNA accomplished a lot with me. In defense to them, they wanted me to stay.”

Taz said he was happy with the money he was making in TNA an wouldn’t have stuck around so long if they weren’t taking care of him. He “absolutely” felt like he should have been making more, but everybody feels that way.

Taz has had a rocky relationship with Josh Matthews over the years, but said that had nothing to do with why he left.

“Did we have a fallout? Yes we had a fallout. Did it have anything to do with me leaving TNA? No. Why can’t two guys have an argument, or disagree, or end a friendship and people gotta speculate that’s why they left?”

“I’ve wrestled guys that hated me, personally. And I’ve hated some of them. And we went out and had magic, and wrestled and drew money, and busted our ass and took care of each other. I’ve wrestled many guys that didn’t like me. It’s called business. While I was working with Josh I had zero problems with him.”

As for the reports of TNA not paying talent and employees on time, Taz confirmed that TNA was in fact behind on paying his salary, which was one of the main reasons that led him to cut ties with them.

“My check was late, and I had to do what I had to do. The company was understanding in that. They understood my position. They were very professional, very kind, very understanding – business is business. This is how I pay my bills and I feed my family, for over 20 years.”

“It’s well documented – and it seems like they’re fixing that now – that my funds were not arriving to the house, and were very late. I did a service, I wasn’t paid for that service. I gave them a notice – they knew ahead of time that I wasn’t going to come, and they were awesome about it. They were apologetic about it.”

– As noted on Wednesday, longtime TNA color-commentator Taz has officially parted ways with the promotion. On Wednesday evening, shortly after the news became official, TNA President Dixie Carter addressed Taz’s departure from the company. Dixie tweeted the following:

You are such a talent, an amazing family man and a legend inside the ring @OfficialTaz. Wish you all the very best always.

— Dixie Carter (@TNADixie) April 15, 2015

– Speaking of confusion over the status of current TNA talents, TNA performer Havok tweeted the following earlier this week regarding her status with the company.

– In the following video, James Storm discusses “Tag-Team Gold” and opponents for the upcoming edition of TNA Impact Wrestling.

https://youtu.be/rtImfveItA4

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There continues to be a lot of turmoil behind the scenes in TNA. Morale hit a real low last week in light of many wrestlers and employees being way behind on getting paid.

TNA’s top stars have contracts where they’re supposed to be paid a salary on the first of every month, with the other talent working on per-show deals. As of last week, several of TNA’s biggest names were behind on pay and it’s now becoming a major issue. Some of the wrestlers who are scheduled to be paid monthly were over 30 days behind on pay while the others were even more in arrears.

Earlier this week, Matt Hardy tweeted photos showing that he received 5 checks from TNA at once. While it was probably done as a sincere gesture to show that TNA talent is in fact being paid, the subtext is that Hardy was one of the many performers who was owed significant money by the company.

Taz announced this week that he has parted way with TNA and thanked the company for the years of employment. In reality, Taz was way behind on pay and actually refused to fly to Nashville earlier this month to do post-production commentary because of the situation.

TNA recently moved their payroll office from Nashville to Dallas (where Panda Energy is located), which some people used as a possible excuse as to the payment ‘confusion.’ This argument really doesn’t hold up, since TNA has been sending checks out of Dallas for quite some time.

Regarding TNA’s relationship with Destination America, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter says “the honeymoon is pretty much over.” Discovery signed TNA as an experiment, hoping to bolster Destination America’s lineup. While TNA is by far the highest rated show in the history of the network, Discovery is very disappointed with TNA’s inability to generate ad revenue. The commercials that air during Impact Wrestling speak for themselves.

The network was expecting a much larger portion of the Spike TV audience to find Impact’s new home. Destination America is available in 61.7% of the homes that Spike TV is, yet the first-run episodes of Impact are drawing 30.2% the viewership that Impact was doing last year. Even factoring in the Impact replay, the show is still doing less than half the viewers it was doing on Spike TV in early 2014.

Longtime TNA announcer Taz has officially parted ways with the company this week.

After rumors of significant pay issues within the company, the TNA color-commentator confirmed his departure on social media on Wednesday. Taz tweeted the following:

https://twitter.com/OfficialTAZ/status/588450023613988864

Additionally, TNA’s head of talent relations, John Gaburick, tweeted the following about Taz’s TNA departure:

After 5+ years TNA & Taz have mutually decided to part ways. A champ in the ring & on the mic, we wish him nothing but success! @OfficialTAZ

— John Gaburick (@JohnGaburick) April 15, 2015

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– TNA will hold a double-taping of TNA Xplosion matches, along with eight TNA One Night Only pay-per-view tapings in Orlando, Florida from February 12 through February 16th. Three of the One Night Only themes will be Knockouts Knockdown 3, World Cup 3, and Joker’s Wild 3.

– The latest edition of Taz’s “Human Podcast Machine” show, which features former WWE announcer Jonathan Coachman, is now available at Play.it. Later this month, Taz will interview Sabu.

– In the following video, TNA announcer Josh Mathews talks about the bad bump that Jeff Hardy took off of the steel cage at the TNA Lockdown show on Friday. He also talks about Matt Hardy appearing on next week’s edition of Impact Wrestling from Glasgow, Scotland.

http://youtu.be/s37rfNi5FuU

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The following matches are confirmed for tonight’s edition of TNA Impact Wrestling on Destination America.

TNA Knockouts Championship
– Taryn Terrell vs. Gail Kim vs. Madison Rayne

Monster’s Ball Match
– Jeff Hardy vs. Abyss

Tag-Team Match
– Mandrews & Rockstar Spud vs. Ethan Carter III & Tyrus

TNA World Heavyweight Championship
– Bobby Lashley vs. MVP vs. Bobby Roode vs. Austin Aries

Below is the official video promo, as well as a video of TNA announcers Josh Mathews and Taz previewing tonight’s show.

http://youtu.be/HhBwwYeohnw

http://youtu.be/C9gR31HAyi4

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With TNA’s move to Destination America, the company is in the process of changing a lot of things about the Impact Wrestling show as well as the overall philosophy of the company.

As part of this new era, TNA officials are working on several changes to the product in an effort to position themselves as a true alternative to WWE.

TNA President Dixie Carter has said in recent interviews that the changes to Impact will be rolled out over the next several weeks, so the show will continue to evolve and will eventually have a very different feel than it did on Spike TV.

(Information from PWInsider.com was used in this report)

– As noted, the first edition of Taz’s new weekly podcast premiered this week, with special guest, WWE Hall Of Famer Edge.

Taz’s next three weeks worth of guests are Rob Van Dam (week two), Matt Hardy (week three) and MVP (week four). The show is available via Radio.com and iTunes.

– The next guest on WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross’ weekly “Ross Report” podcast, which drops next Tuesday night at 9pm EST., will be masked wrestling legend Len “The Grappler” Denton, who will be appearing to promote his new book, “Grappler: The Diary of a Masked Madman.”

After Denton, JR will interview former WWE Diva Victoria (Lisa Marie Varon) on January 20th, WWE Hall Of Famer Terry Funk on January 27th and Ring Of Honor star Adam Cole on February 3rd. All of those shows will be available at the official home of the Ross Report show, which is located online at PodcastOne.com, as well as iTunes.

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– TNA commentator Taz launches his new official weekly podcast today. The first guest on Taz’s show is WWE Hall Of Famer Edge. You can listen to the show by going to Radio.com.

– TNA President Dixie Carter is featured on the latest edition of Jim Ross’ weekly “Ross Report,” which is available now. The official description for the show reads as follows:

TRR – Ep47 – TNA’s Dixie Carter

“JR has TNA President Dixie Carter! She’s talking all about their new TV deal with Destination America and the debut of their new TV show tomorrow (Wed) night! They also discuss Bobby Lashley, AJ Styles, Vince Russo, the Impact name and brand, live touring vs TV, and the state of the wrestling biz today. It’s an interesting and insightful conversation!”

You can download the show right now at PodcastOne.com.

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– The first guest on Taz’s new “Human Podcast Machine” on January 7th will be none other than WWE Hall of Famer Edge.

https://twitter.com/OfficialTAZ/status/547213927822950400

https://twitter.com/OfficialTAZ/status/547224065627672576

TNA issued the following today …

Josh Mathews To Join Impact Wrestling Announce Team

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (December 18, 2014) – TNA, today, announced seasoned broadcaster Josh Mathews will join Taz to form the new IMPACT WRESTLING announce team. With Mathews doing play-by-play and Taz color-commentary, the new IMPACT WRESTLING announce team will debut during the LIVE broadcast of IMPACT WRESTLING on Destination America from New York City on Wednesday, January 7 at 9/8c.

“Josh Mathews is a dynamic talent who brings great energy and experience to commentating,” said John Gaburick, TNA’s Executive Vice President of Television. “I’ve had the pleasure to work with Josh for many years and know he, alongside Taz, will captivate fans and enhance the viewing experience.”

Raised in Indiana, Mathews moved to New York as a teenager to pursue his professional wrestling career and quickly established himself as a leading voice in sports entertainment and professional wrestling.

“I was amped up when I heard the news Mathews would be joining me to announce IMPACT WRESTLING on Destination America,” said Taz. “Our goal is to be the best announce team in wrestling today, combining Mathews’ work ethic and experience with mine alongside the best roster in wrestling. I am looking forward to sitting next to my friend and new announce partner on January 7 in New York City.”

“I’m elated to join TNA and be the new voice of IMPACT WRESTLING alongside my friend and three-time World Champion Taz,” said Mathews. “I’d like to thank Dixie Carter and John Gaburick for this incredible opportunity. Mike Tenay is a legend in this business and I am humbled to build on the body of work he has established over the past 12 years on IMPACT. To have my voice attached to the amazing athletes who do what they do better than anyone in the world is a dream come true.”

IMPACT WRESTLING debuts on Destination America with a special LIVE broadcast on Wednesday, January 7 from 9-11 PM ET, televised from New York City’s legendary Manhattan Center. IMPACT WRESTLING will move to its permanent time slot on Fridays from 9-11 PM ET beginning January 16 on Destination America. And, IMPACT WRESTLING: UNLOCKED with Mike Tenay premieres in its permanent time slot on Saturdays from 10 AM-Noon ET beginning January 17.

– TNA ran ads in the local New York City market during Monday’s RAW for their upcoming Impact Wrestling television tapings in January. The ads featured Taz telling fans to come see a “true wrestling experience.”

– TNA star Kurt Angle celebrates his 45th birthday today. Angle was born on December 9, 1969.

– TNA President Dixie Carter posted the following on Twitter regarding some of the TNA Knockouts being voted as Playboy’s “Hottest All-Time Women of Wrestling.”

Congrats to @hemmepowered @TheTarynTerrell & @VelVelHoller for making @Playboy’s Hottest All Time Women of Wrestling! http://t.co/AZQ8MHKsed

— Dixie Carter (@TNADixie) December 8, 2014

As we have noted in the past, when TNA makes the move from Spike TV to Destination America in January, it is expected that former WWE announcer Josh Mathews will be replacing Mike Tenay as the play-by-play man for Impact Wrestling.

This news has since been pretty much confirmed on Twitter by both Mathews and Taz. Below are some of the recent tweets about the subject.

“@BUTTERBEAN2019: I miss @realjoshmathews in #WWE #Raw”. January, my friend. @DestAmerica @IMPACTWRESTLING

— Josh Mathews (@realjoshmathews) December 2, 2014

.@OfficialTAZ "vast high octane" lol! I'm gonna have the best analyst in the biz, who can beat up every other analyst across all platforms.

— Josh Mathews (@realjoshmathews) December 3, 2014

As we have noted in the past, TNA is planning on a complete and total overhaul for the company when they officially relaunch their promotion during their Impact Wrestling television debut on their new cable home — Destination America — in January.

One of the major changes in terms of television presentation is the way the company plans to handle their announce team.

It’s believed that the longtime commentary team of Mike Tenay and Taz will cease to exist when TNA launches of Destination America, as one source claims the “new and improved” TNA will be going with a two-man announcing team that will consist of Taz and former WWE announcer Josh Mathews.

As far as Mike Tenay is concerned, it is believed that he will still remain in an on-air role in some capacity.

E-C-W! E-C-W! E-C-W!

The chants can still be heard today. In fact, WWE still capitalizes on those three letters to this very day.

For example, last Monday night after RAW, WWE premiered “ECW Exposed” on the WWE Network as part of a full “ECW Week” theme for their digital subscription service.

Next Tuesday night, a second edition of “ECW Exposed” is scheduled to air on the WWE Network.

Hell, this weekend, Tommy Dreamer will be presenting the seventh “House Of Hardcore” event, which is considered by many to be a show with the old “ECW feel” to it.

My question is this, why do we see so many ECW reunion shows, but no WCW reunion shows? I’m assuming it has a lot to do with dollars and cents.

For an ECW reunion show to be held, you need at least some of the following guys: Paul Heyman, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, Taz, Bully Ray, Devon, Terry Funk, The Sandman, Rob Van Dam, Raven and Shane Douglas. Sure, there are many other names you can go with, but you need at least a few of those guys on the event for it to feel like a legitimate ECW reunion show.

For a WCW reunion show to be held, you need at least some of the following guys: Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair, Sting, Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Diamond Dallas Page, Lex Luger, Sid Vicious, Jeff Jarrett, Scott Steiner and Rick Steiner. Again, many names are missing, but the fact remains, the price tags of the key guys needed for an ECW reunion show versus the price tags for a WCW reunion show are world’s apart.

WWE has at different points in time had enough of the aforementioned WCW names under contract, and certainly has enough money to secure the stars they didn’t have at a particular point in time, to put together a legitimate WCW reunion show.

Outside of the financial side of putting together a reunion show for the former two biggest rival promotions to WWE, there is the financial side of how much these shows would generate.

When you compare the amount of DVDs sold between “The Rise & Fall Of ECW” and “The Rise & Fall Of WCW,” again you will notice that they are world’s apart.

When ECW went out of business in 2001 they were still a beloved promotion that just didn’t have the financial backing or television exposure to stay afloat. When WCW went out of business in 2001 they barely had a pulse.

The fan-base for ECW was a rabid, cult-like fan-base that loved their home-promotion dearly. The fan-base for WCW by the time the company folded in 2001 was practically nonexistent.

Still, it feels like there is enough WCW nostalgia for a reunion show to work. Anytime rumors circulate that claim WWE is in negotiations with Goldberg, Sting, or any of the other major names wrestling fans associate with WCW, there is a huge buzz. Fans are excited at the prospect of these guys coming into the current fold and squaring off against today’s crop of WWE Superstars.

Currently, there is a lot of interest in a Sting vs. Undertaker match at WrestleMania. There has been buzz in the recent past about a possible showdown between Goldberg and his modern-day carbon-copy Ryback. There’s even been a lot of interest in “The Hulkster” lacing up his red and yellow boots once more.

If WWE were to sign all of these guys, or ever considered the idea at any point in time, why is it out of the realm of possibility that a WCW reunion show would be a success? Personally, I think it would work, however, I think WWE wants the WCW legacy buried and forgotten, and wants the fans of today to only remember history the way Vince McMahon and company choose to portray it.

Ever watched the “Monday Night War” documentary series on the WWE Network? Right there is a perfect example of the WWE-version of history being told.

The fact is, ECW was never a close second to WWE. They definitely provided a template on how to change the wrestling product into something more modern that fans of that generation soaked up in droves. The fact remains, however, that WCW was kicking WWE’s ass for a lengthy period of time.

Prior to that, when WWE was the top dog, WCW was always nipping at their heels. NWA before WCW was at times a close-second to WWE, and for a long period of time was considered to have the better talent roster. Additionally, NWA would beat WWE in television ratings on a somewhat regular basis before fans really paid attention to TV ratings or considered them any legitimate measure of success, as was the case when the ratings became the focal point of the WWE vs. WCW “Monday Night Wars.”

Outside of WrestleMania once a year, WWE puts on pay-per-views that for the most part feel the same. Nothing seems special or different about them anymore, and the entire idea behind a pay-per-view is to put on an event that feels bigger and more unique than a typical weekly wrestling television program.

Unfortunately, current WWE pay-per-views just feel like a slightly better version of a solid edition of WWE RAW and/or WWE SmackDown, when the company should be striving to put on pay-per-views that feel like “must see” or “can’t miss” programming.

Something tells me if WWE were to book a WCW reunion pay-per-view, if they booked the right guys, it would generate a ton of interest and likely draw a solid buyrate. It would garner interest from fans who escaped the wrestling bubble and moved on with their lives back in 2001 when the only alternative to the WWE-style of wrestling went out of business.

Picture it guys — WCW One Night Stand!

I’d fork out $44.95 and spend three hours of a Sunday evening to watch it.

And something tells me many others would as well.

How about you? Would you be interested in buying a “WCW Reunion” pay-per-view event? Let us know by posting your feedback in the “Comments” section below. You can also connect with me directly on Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBooneWZR and/or on Twitter @MBoone420.