WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog with some thoughts about Monday’s RAW, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:
Rising Stars Getting Exposure “For many it was a good night of exposure: Daniel Bryan, who just a few weeks ago was being eulogized by many of his fans, the Shield, who had multiple ‘moments’ throughout the broadcast, Cesaro, who is so good just ring the bell and watch him demonstrate the art form of in ring wrestling, The Wyatt’s, who are rapidly evolving as stars and who, along with the Shield, have the opportunity to turn even more heads coming up on PPV.”
Roman Reigns: “Roman Reigns winning with his spear over Mark Henry was big…no pun intended. If I had to pick an early favorite to either be the WWE World Champion at WM31 or to win the title there, it would be Reigns. How Roman Reigns is ‘built’ going forward is imperative to the long term success of WWE as it relates to constructing the next, major, WWE superstar.”
Cesaro vs. John Cena: “Loved the Cena vs. Cesaro match. One of the best matches that Cena has had in a while. Cesaro is on the cusp of breaking through. Got lots of feedback on why Cesaro did not win and certainly, as it is almost always, an argument can be made on the topic of who wins and who loses. With great commentary, the loser can come out of a great presentation better than when going into the match. I thought Cesaro was made whole after Cena pulled one out in the bottom of the 9th that could have gone either way.”
– There is no truth to the rumor that Vince McMahon is interested in purchasing a UK soccer team.
– WWE has re-named their weekly YouTube series “Backstage Fallout” to brand-specific names. From this point forward, the post-RAW and SmackDown shows will simply be called “RAW Fallout” and “SmackDown Fallout.”
Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III (RG3) has been tweeting today about his love for professional wrestling. RG3 spoke about being excited for the new WWE Network, and answered some questions from fans about his favorite wrestlers. Below are some recent RG3 tweets:
Big @WWE fan growing up. Looking forward to checking out @WWENetwork when it launches on Feb 24! #WWENetwork
– WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin praised the match between John Cena and Cesaro from Monday’s RAW. “The Rattlesnake” tweeted the following:
The following are highlights of a recent interview with former WWE Superstar Stevie Richards:
On his working relationship with Vince McMahon: “It’s tough to say, because it’s one of those things where he would call you in to give you the usual critique and say “You should have done this or you should have done that.” But the fact is, he’s so busy, that if he does take the time to pull you aside and talk to you, it’s usually not a very good thing. So I didn’t get that too many times, but I did everything to the best of my ability. Vince did pull me aside for good things. But most of the time, for bosses in general, if you do a good job, it’s not going to get the boss’ attention as much as if you really screwed up a plan that he or she has. The bottom line is this: I was contracted to do a job. When that contract ended, they didn’t owe me any money and I didn’t owe them any labor. That was it. Nobody stays in WWE forever. Everyone’s contract ends at some point. Sure they might come back, but nobody is there for 20-30 years. I think that’s a good thing because it keeps you sharp, it keeps you hungry and hopefully it will motivate you to save your money, because sooner or later, that money runs out.”
How he felt about his WWE run: “I’m one of those guys where as long as you tell me what you want in a match, I’m cool with that. When I was in WWF, the agents used to come up and tell me “We need Val Venis over in 8 minutes, do it however you want.” And to me, that’s very complimentary that they can trust me. That’s a very good stamp of approval to have from the office. They knew I was talented, but I think there was a point where someone said “This guy doesn’t draw enough money, let’s bring somebody else in who can bring something to the table.” But that doesn’t matter, because to me, the money looks the same. When I go to cash my check, the bank’s not going to tell me, “Oh you’re only making such and such dollars and you’re a jobber, we’re not going to cash your check.” One of things I wish I would have done was had the work ethic of Diamond Dallas Page, who’s one of the hardest workers I’ve ever known. And I wish I was business savvy like Kevin Nash. Now, I know that may not sound popular, but I think Kevin has a good perspective on business and he’s a really decent guy to be around. Now, I feel like I’ve learned from both DDP and Nash; it may be late, but I still learned.”
If he’d return to WWE or TNA again: “That’s a tough question. It would have to be financially worth it to go back to either company. I have a bunch of other stuff going on like DDP Yoga and my T4 website. If I went back to WWE, I would have to give that up because there would be no time for it. And I’m not sure how long I would be there, because a contract in wrestling is not really a contract. You can get cut at any time for any reason, so I don’t know if I’d be willing to make that leap of faith again.”
The following are highlights of a recent WGD Weekly interview with Tully Blanchard:
On what it meant and still means to be a Horseman: “When it was happening, you had nothing to compare it to, so you really didn’t and couldn’t know the impact. As we got into it, the promotion company and the reason that it is so well remembered, is it was not a promoter’s idea. It wasn’t Crockett and Dusty and all the powers that be sitting around and saying, oh, we’re going to put these four guys together and call them the Four Horseman…It was great entertainment, we sold out buildings…it was impactful, but I think it hit me the most, when I was in the car, driving to the airport in Charlotte, North Carolina and I pulled up behind a school bus. In street clothes, in my car, whatever and one of the kids in the back of the school bus looking out the back window recognized me and you could see him turn around and get frantic. Then there must have been forty little hands stick out the school bus windows on the sides with the four fingers. I can remember sitting there…and I’m going, oh my, this thing is coming cultish…and it was just amazing because nothing in wrestling had ever done that. Maybe Lou Thez or Ed “Strangler” Lewis back in the 30’s or 40’s, but modern day, nothing had ever impacted like that…it was just amazing to be a part of.”
On how he came to be one of the original Four Horsemen: “It was the World’s Heavyweight Champion, it was Ole and Arn, the World’s Tag Team Champions, who were related, Flair was a cousin of the Andersons and me, because I was wrestling the booker and the booker wanted to be part of the show, I go to be involved, so I was the fourth, I was the World’s Television Champion.”
On the reason the later versions of the group failed to live up to the original: “Later on, as WCW tried to resurrect the Horseman and the eighty five guys they put in there, and all the talent they put in there and never resurrected it, just lets you know it was about chemistry, it wasn’t just about talent. The chemistry that Ric and Arn and I had, and your throw Barry in there or Ole or Luger, and J.J. and there was a tremendous chemistry that happened, and a magic that happened that not everybody, if though they were great performers, could not generate that kind of magic in the ring.”
On the incident between himself and JBL when he was going to return to WWE: “I’d gone up basically as an interview, you know to see and scope out, or as Vince told me to absorb, because the wrestling business had changed. They were getting ready to do the taping in St. Louis. I never really had actually remembered meeting JBL, and he started telling me from across the room that I was a fake preacher and I was this and I was that and I didn’t belong there and that I treated him bad when I was a star and he was just starting…it caught me very off guard, because…I didn’t treat people bad. If I didn’t like you, I just said hello, and I didn’t mess with you, that’s just the way I was. I didn’t remember it, so I told him, well it’s very possible that I did treat you poorly, and I hope you can forgive me. That’s all that was said on my part and we departed.”
On failing a drug test when he was planning to return to WCW: “Arn and I just made a phone call and they had offered us a large sum of money if we would leave the WWF and reform the Four Horsemen. That’s what we were going to do. In that process, my life ended up getting changed, because we had that agreement with WCW, then I flunked a drug test and Vince suspended me on November 2 of 1989, as their drug policy was. So, I got suspended and Arn went on to do the Survivor Series. We were supposed to start that Saturday after with WCW and they reneged on the deal with me and hired Arn back at a substantially less amount than they promised. That lets you know probably one of the reasons why they are out of business, because they aren’t stand up people…Anyway, in that process, when Flair called me on November 13, at one o’clock in the morning and told me they weren’t going to give me the contract, I was all of a sudden in eleven days, I was a world champion and promised three quarters of a million dollars to unemployed. At 35 years old, I didn’t quite know how to handle that.”
WWE RAW and Friday Night SmackDown might have a new home come October, as Variety.com reports that WWE and NBC Universal were unable to reach a new licensing deal during their exclusive negotiating period, which ended on 2/15.
WWE issued the following statement this week:
“WWE’s exclusive negotiating period with NBCU for our flagship television programs, ‘Raw’ and ‘SmackDown,’ has now expired. While we were unable to reach an agreement with NBCU during this period, we have certainly appreciated our long and productive partnership.”
“With year-round, live programming that is highly coveted by programmers, distributors and advertisers, we are extremely excited about our future. We look forward to engaging with potential partners who recognize the value of having the #1 show on cable and live content delivered 52 weeks a year.”
WWE will now start negotiating with other companies, with NBC Universal retaining the right to match any offer made to WWE.
Cesaro has finally won Vince McMahon over after his stellar match against John Cena last night on RAW.
According to a high-level source who was backstage at the show, Vince was “thrilled” with the match and has finally recognized Cesaro’s potential. Cesaro received a standing ovation backstage after his match against Cena.
Several of Vince’s trusted advisors told him they think Cesaro can be one of the biggest stars in the company.
Cesaro has been over fans and colleagues with his unique move set and his impressive feats of strength, but it was only a year ago when Vince told the writers and producers that he saw nothing in the Swiss Superstar.
Following RAW, Cesaro’s ‘stock’ with Vince hit an all time high.
The latest episode of the Steve Austin Show podcast is now online with Stone Cold’s special guest, John Cena. Here are some highlights of what Cena talked about:
– He turns 37 in April and still feels like he can keep up with anyone in WWE.
“I’m doing the best I can. I feel great. I’ll be turning 37 in April. In your plea for longevity, you can’t be young in the ring all the time. So, I still feel as if I can keep up with anyone who comes through the door. I have a certain amount of stuff I do on a television basis, but every once in a while, I try to do some stuff that’s unique.”
– He admitted that WWE officials have created a “walking on eggshells” environment and wishes there was more positive reinforcement from management.
“A lot of this business is false motivation. They’ll pat you on the butt and go, ‘Oh, good match.’ Right when you come through Gorilla. I wish there was more motivational reinforcement. It’s just lack of confidence. The amazing thing is a lot of these guys are so confident once they’re in that box and the bell rings doing their thing. I’ve talked to a lot of guys – they have such great personalities.”
– Many WWE superstars are fearful for their jobs and are “not willing” to take the next step with their careers.
“It’s not that what we have isn’t good. I think we have a locker room full of very, very talented Superstars. But, I also think we have a locker room full of Superstars who are fearful for their employment. And, they’re not willing to take that one step. I don’t get a mad at a lot nowadays. What really frustrates me is when I see a guy with all of the tools or next to all of the tools who is afraid to take that leap of faith.”
– WWE is on the cusp of having a true all-star roster for the first time in a long time.
“I wish – and right now I’m very excited – we are on the cusp of getting a true All-Star line-up for the first time in a long time. I think you’ll see that (the chants) go away. And I’m objectively looking at it because when you have one dude and you’re trying to make Superstars off that dude, a majority of the audience only recognizes that one guy. It’s why when you have a feud with Daniel Bryan or The Rock, you don’t hear the ‘Let’s Go Cena / Cena Sucks’ as much. It’s cheer for one guy, boo the other guy. But, when it’s a one-man party out there, often times, the crowd gets attached to the one man.”
– There are big changes going on behind the scenes with how WWE will be presenting the product, moving towards more action and less talk.
– Cena talked about recently working with Cesaro at the Performance Center for a Muscle & Fitness photo shoot. Cena said he likes to get to know talents on a personal basis when WWE is ready to push them to the main event.
There’s much more to the interview, which you should absolutely go out of your way to listen at PodcastOne.com.
– Episode #2 of WWE’s “30 Years of WrestleMania” podcast is now online, with Renee Young interviewing WWE Hall of Famer Edge. Listen now at PodcastOne.com.
– WWE NXT Women’s Champion Paige and #1 contender Emma traded shots on Twitter during Emma’s appearance with Santino Marella Monday night:
Monday’s episode of WWE RAW from Denver, Colorado went off the air with participants of Sunday’s Elimination Chamber match, The Shield and The Wyatt Family brawling.
After RAW went off the air, John Cena, Daniel Bryan, Cesaro, Sheamus and Dean Ambrose were the last men left in the ring. Cesaro gave Ambrose the Cesaro Swing and got him around nearly 30 times before releasing him. A dazed Ambrose finally got up and got hit with a Brogue kick from Sheamus. Cesaro and Sheamus left the ring.
Ambrose got back up and Cena hit him with an Attitude Adjustment. As Cena left the ring, the crowd erupted with a Yes! chant for the final babyface left – Daniel Bryan.
Bryan hit Ambrose with his running knee and got a huge pop. The Yes! chant continued as Daniel Bryan celebrated with fans at ringside.
A new promotional photo has been released featuring Batista as Drax The Destroyer in Marvel’s upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie.
The sci-fi comedy’s first trailer will be broadcast tonight on Jimmy Kimmel Live and will also be in theaters this weekend. After Jimmy Kimmel Live airs, the trailer will be posted for 24 hours exclusively on Jimmy Kimmel Live’s YouTube channel. Here’s a 15-second preview for the trailer that will be released tonight:
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated the Q&A section of JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what he said about:
Cody Rhodes & Goldust Being “Downgraded”:
“Cody’s future at age 28 is as a singles wrestler. Goldust has received a really nice return to WWE and is an asset as well. Goldust would likely make a great coach. I see both Rhodes brothers and the Outlaws as transitional teams who both likely won’t be together long term and over the long haul. I have enjoyed both teams very much as supporting role acts.”
How Announcers Prepare For Matches:
“They use the internet and occasionally get help from the creative team who has more time to research specific items. It’s a great deal of work to do the job correctly.”
If Lita Be The Final Diva To Ever Be Inducted Into The WWE HOF:
“Absolutely not.”
What The Future Holds For The Real Americans:
“I see both Cesaro and Swagger having more value to WWE as singles wrestlers.”
Why It Was Necessary For John Cena To Beat Cesaro On RAW:
“Necessary? Of course not but that was the play that was called. Cesaro looked great in a losing effort. I’m not a win-loss guy but a performance guy and Cesaro had and has had great in ring performances in WWE often, especially recently. Cesaro isn’t fading.”
The Rack radio with Matt Goldberg
Hosted by Lindsey Ward and Sir Rockin
Audio interview available at Wildtalkradio.com
Award Winning independent filmmaker/producer, director of Cannes showcased films ‘Pope: Against All Odds’ and ‘Tarafied’, host of Wrestling Figure Wednesday and creator or ‘Crash Collision Wrestling’ Matt Goldberg joined “Multi-time Award Winning” the Rack Thursday Night. In a nearly 50 minute interview, he discussed his recent big news regarding the WWE, how he was discovered with WWE, if he gets any figures early now for his projects, what figures are on his must get list, what kind of feedback has he gotten from his videos from talent, what kind of work should we expect in the future and so much more.
His big news regarding himself and WWE: “I have signed with the WWE to produce stop motion animation content for them; two of the videos have already debuted and my first one that I did for them just broke 100,000 views, which was the most of all the animated videos they have. So, that was really neat. They told me they put that on their YouTube homepage and I don’t want to go into more details; I’m not sure how much I can talk about right now.”
How did this deal with WWE come about and how he was discovered: “One of my friends we contacted by them and I thought that was really cool, so I started chatting him up and I did my homework online and started talking with a guy, who’s not with the company anymore, but he said ‘We’ve been watching your work for a long time and we’d love to work with you’ and I was like ‘Wow, that so cool’ that they’ve been watching me and my friend and a much of other animators that I’ve grown up with over the years so any other animators hoping to get an opportunity just keep an eye out, you might get it. But, yeah I reached out to them and the relationship went on from there and told them my whole background with TNA and Lisa (Varon; WWE Diva Victoria) and Eric (Bischoff) and Jakks (Pacific) and Mattel. They just really liked me; I stared last month and I’m going to be animating even longer for them, so it’s really exciting.”
What does he think of a possible future Wyatt Family film idea, or should they stay solely an in-ring forum: “I think you could find a story to tell with them, just thinking back to their early promos, when the reporter went to their house; they have secrets, they have stories to tell. I think someone could easily write something into their past, maybe even how did they become the Family they are and what is the motivation for what they do.”
Since his videos have made their WWE debut, what feedback has he gotten from talent: “I haven’t gotten feedback from the talent with the video, but the funny thing that happened yesterday when I posted on Facebook about my WWE stuff, I got a private message from Tyson Kidd; we’re friends of Facebook and every year he wishes my Happy Birthday, which is really cool. He messaged me and said ‘You have a contract with the WWE?’ and I told him ‘Yeah, but I’m not wrestling. I just do videos’ and he replied ‘Oh cool! Who do you report to?’ and blah blah blah. So, I should him what I did for them so far and he thought it was really cool. It was really neat to see him take the moment and message me about it and just wish me luck with what I’m doing.”
What kind of videos can be expected on WWE from him (entrances, matches, etc): “The first video is Brock Lesnar superplexing Big Show off the top rope and destroying the ring, if you remember that from years ago. One I’ve been working on, these past few weeks, is a highlight video of Bret Hart versus Shawn Michaels from the ‘Screwjob’ match; I just picked little spots in the match to recreate with them. You can see raw footage of that on my Instagram (www.instagram.com/mbg1211), I post the raw footage on there for people to see, so if you want to see a little sneak peek, you can see it there. But, what I’m focusing on now is entrances, move-sets and classic moments. You’ll see some other classic moment; I don’t want to reveal them yet, but that’s mainly what I’m focusing on. It’s fun. My favorite though is probably entrances; I’ve always loved doing those. It’s just fun to show their personalities in figure form.”
Are there any plans in the works for future documentaries (like ‘Pope: Against All Odds’ and ‘Tarafied’): “You know, I don’t at least not right now, have plans for any documentaries. I actually just signed up today for a stop-motion course for next quarter; I’m really excited about that. It got canceled last quarter but I’m really excited for it. There could be some neat projects that come out of that. But, until I start to get into my narrative film classes, which won’t be until about next year or later this year I should say, when I come back from the summer. I’ve been coming up with some ideas, some thrillers and kind of horror-ish but I want to explore some genres that I’ve never done before.
I can tell you one thing I’m working on right now. For my screenplay adaptation class, I’m writing a screenplay on Hulk Hogan’s life. And the funny thing, back when I was with TNA, when Eric Bischoff introduced me to Hulk, and Eric told him about my documentary with Lisa, Hulk said he thought I should tell his story and I just think it’s funny that now, I’m doing that.”
How Lisa Marie Varon has helped him and his work: “It’s just funny how Lisa’s really helped me get things out there. I’m just so grateful to have her and Eric (Bischoff) as well; I mean, he changed my life, of course. It’s just funny how a tweet from (Lisa) can do all this.”
You can follow Matt through his Twitter (@MBGFilms), his Facebook (www.facebook.com/mbgfilms) or his YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/mbg1211) for the latest news about him and his upcoming projects including works with the WWE, Crash Collision Wrestling and Wrestling Figure Wednesday (Out every Wednesday and Friday, 4pm CT). You can also visit the Crash Collision Wrestling homepage (www.crashcollisionwrestling.mfbiz.com) or Facebook (www.facebook.com/CrashCollisionWrestling) for the latest on new episodes and matched updated constantly. You can also see his work as part of the WWE network of media platforms; go to www.wwe.com or www.YouTube.com/wwe for content and availability.
– TMZ.com caught up with Paul Heyman over the weekend, who was out in New York City with super model Ellie Gonsalves. Gonsalves is the winner of Heyman’s “#HustleBootyTempTats Top 25 Competition.”
Heyman commented on TMZ’s recent article about him chopping off his ponytail and revealed why you don’t see Brock Lesnar in Los Angeles too often.
– It’s been confirmed that JoJo will no longer be regular cast member of Total Divas when the show returns for a second season. She continues to train at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando.
– WWE has renamed the ‘Backstage Fallout’ Youtube series to ‘RAW Fallout’ and ‘SmackDown Fallout.’ Here’s the RAW Fallout video from last night featuring Big E:
On Monday’s RAW, two new matches were announced for Sunday’s WWE Elimination Chamber event:
* Titus O’Neil vs. Darren Young
* Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. Curtis Axel & Ryback (Kickoff Show).
With those matches set, here’s the latest card for Elimination Chamber:
Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
– Randy Orton (c) vs. John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus vs. Cesaro vs. Christian
Six-Man Tag Team Match
– The Shield vs. The Wyatt Family
Intercontinental Championship Match
– Big E (c) vs. Jack Swagger
– Batista vs. Alberto Del Rio
Tag Team Championship Match
– The New Age Outlaws (c) vs. The Usos
– Titus O’Neil vs. Darren Young
Kickoff Show:
– Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. Curtis Axel & Ryback
WWE Elimination Chamber takes place this Sunday from the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
– Sheamus vs. Christian has been announced for Friday’s SmackDown.
– WWE.com has published a feature looking at NXT star Sami Zayn’s quest to defeat Cesaro. The two will square off at next week’s NXT: Arrival live event on the WWE Network in a rematch of their 2013 Match of the Year candidate match.
– Here is the latest Black History Month video that aired on RAW highlighting the legendary career of Ron Simmons:
– WWE.com has announced that The New Age Outlaws will defend the tag team championships against The Usos at Sunday’s Elimination Chamber pay-per-view. The article states:
“Though The Usos have youth on their side, they have a fraction of the experience of their opponents, who are six-time tag team champions. As Road Dogg himself has pointed out on commentary, he and Gunn used to war with Rikishi. Is it possible that the Outlaws’ strategy is too proven, too battle-tested, for The Usos to beat?”
– Amid speculation that Scott Hall will be part of the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2014, Hall is no longer scheduled to appear at the WrestleCon fan fest taking place in New Orleans the same day of the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.
This week’s RAW opens with Michael Cole welcoming us to the show (along with a quick production error) followed by John Cena’s theme music. Cena comes out and the Denver audience explodes with the usual mixed-bag reaction for the leader of the CeNation. We see highlights of the Cena-Randy Orton match from last week. Cena’s music finally dies down as he gets ready to speak.
Cena addresses the hot crowd right off the bat. He talks about the brutality of the Elimination Chamber match, which takes place this Sunday. He talks about the winner of the Chamber getting a guaranteed title shot against “The Animal” Batista at WrestleMania XXX. Cena talks about Orton being beaten by the participants for the Chamber during the past few weeks. Cena says the odds favor a new WWE World Heavyweight Champion being crowned this Sunday.
As Cena continues to speak, he is cut off by The Real Americans theme music. Out walks Cesaro and Zeb Colter. Colter says you’re looking at the next champion. Cesaro says he will not only become the new face of WWE but the new face of America. Cena says Cesaro beating Orton doesn’t mean he’s on a winning streak, it means Orton is on a losing streak. Cena talks about Cesaro having never been in a Chamber match.
As Cesaro tries to continue talking, Sheamus comes out. He says he’s been in an Elimination Chamber match twice. He says he’s going to kick both Cena and Cesaro’s teeth in this Sunday. As he continues to talk, Christian’s theme music hits. Out comes Captain Charisma. JBL dogs Christian on commentary as usual. Christian says he’s going to take Sheamus’ snaggle-tooth and plant it into the mat with his Killswitch. As he approaches the ring, Orton’s theme music hits and out walks the WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
Orton starts off by thanking The Authority for giving him the opportunity to beat everyone in the ring this Sunday at the Elimination Chamber PPV. Orton makes excuses for losing to each of the Chamber participants over the past few weeks. Orton says there’s a reason why The Authority has deemed him the face of WWE. As Orton goes to enter the ring, he is cut off by Daniel Bryan’s theme music.
The leader of the “Yes! Movement” makes his way to the ring to a huge ovation and a bunch of “Yes!” chants from the fans in Denver. Bryan talks about the importance of the Chamber match, as it leads to a main event at WrestleMania. as Bryan continues to talk, he is interupted by Kane’s pyro and theme music.
Corporate Kane makes his way to the ring. The fans break out in a big “you sold out” chant. It’s actually so loud that it shuts Kane up momentarily. Kane says The Authority has left him in charge of RAW tonight. Kane talks about tonight’s Orton vs. Sheamus match. He says in fairness to Orton, he’s going to put the rest of the Chamber participants in action tonight as well. Kane announces Cesaro vs. Cena and Christian vs. Bryan for later tonight. He says he will be at ringside to enjoy a bird’s eye view. He says those two will be in action right now, referring to Bryan and Christian.
Michael Cole announces a match between Roman Reigns and Mark Henry for later tonight. Jerry Lawler announces a six-man tag-team match featuring Los Matadores and Sin Cara vs. The Wyatt Family for later tonight.
Christian vs. Daniel Bryan
Christian attacks Bryan from behind while Bryan was distracted by Kane. Christian takes Bryan out to the floor and smashes him back-first into the barricade. Christian is working a pretty heelish type of match thus far. A loud “Daniel Bryan” chant breaks out in Denver as Christian throws Bryan into the ringside steps. We head to a commercial.
When we return from commercial we see the referee checking on Bryan’s shoulder. He asks Bryan if he’s okay to wrestle. Bryan says yes. The bell sounds to make this one official and Christian goes straight to work on Bryan’s arm. We see a shot of Kane looking on from outside the ring. Bryan starts fighting back. He knocks Christian out to the floor. He goes to do his trademark dive through the ropes, but Christian cuts him off. Christian gets back in the ring and goes back to work on Bryan’s shoulder.
Christian taunts the crowd as he continues his beatdown of Bryan. The crowd loudly boo’s Christian. We get another shot of Kane looking on outside the ring as Christian continues to work over Bryan’s hurt shoulder. A loud “Daniel Bryan” chant breaks out once again from the fans in Denver. Bryan reverses Christian into a half-Boston crab, but Christian quickly escapes. Christian regains control of the offense and continues to punish Bryan’s hurt shoulder. He again taunts the crowd in heel fashion.
Another loud “Daniel Bryan” chant breaks out as Christian stomps away at Bryan’s arm. Christian yells out “I should be the champ” and the crowd boo’s him yet again. Christian again taunts the fans, but this time it allows Bryan to throw him out to the floor. Bryan goes for his big dive through the ropes and this time he connects. Bryan sells the fact that he hit his shoulder on the barricade during the dive spot. Both guys are down as Michael Cole takes us to a mid-match commercial.
When we return from commercial, Christian is working over Bryan’s shoulder as Bryan begins to fire up and make his comeback. The fans rally behind Bryan, encouraging him to finish Christian off. Lots of loud “Yes!” chants as Bryan fires away at Christian with repeated “Yes!” kicks. Bryan goes for a dive off the top rope onto Christian but Christian gets his knees up. Christian is now back in control of the offense, as he goes to work on Christian in the corner.
The fans break out in yet another “Daniel Bryan” chant as Bryan starts fighting back, blasting Christian with kicks. Christian cuts Bryan’s offense momentum short as he blasts him with a flying back-elbow off the middle rope. Out of nowhere, Bryan slaps Christian in the “Yes! Lock.” Christian quickly escapes. Christian goes for the Killswitch but Bryan reverses into a roll up. 1-2-3. Bryan wins.
Winner: Daniel Bryan
Kane vs. Daniel Bryan
Kane gets on the mic outside the ring and sarcastically compliments Bryan on a hard-fought victory. He says he neglected to inform him that he still has another match tonight. That match is against him. Kane vs. Daniel Bryan is apparently taking place right now. Kane enters the ring and Bryan fires away at him with punches. Kane quickly gets the better of Bryan and throws him out to the floor. Bryan lays on the floor selling his shoulder as we head to another commercial.
When we return from commercial, Kane is laying the boots to Bryan on the mat, focusing on his hurt shoulder specifically. Kane is in a tank-top and dress pants as he continues to stomp away at Bryan. JBL and Michael Cole argue like children on commentary as Kane continues to punish Bryan. Kanes suplexes Bryan down with a vengeance and is dominating the leader of the “Yes! Movement” with relative ease. Kane throws Bryan shoulder-first into the turnbuckle. Another “you sold out” chant breaks out directed at Kane.
A loud “boring” chant breaks out as Bryan finally starts showing some signs of life. Bryan hits a big missile dropkick off the top to Kane. Bryan starts lighting Kane up with “Yes!” kicks. He goes to the well one too many times, as Kane clotheslines Bryan out to the floor. Kane goes out after him and smashes him shoulder-first into the barricade. Kane has Bryan’s arm wrapped around the ring post now and is wrenching away at it. He refuses to break the hold so the referee calls for the bell. Kane has been disqualified.
Winner via DQ: Daniel Bryan
After The Match
Kane continues his attack on Bryan, again focusing the majority of his attack on Bryan’s shoulder. Kane slams Bryan shoulder-first into the ringside steps. Kane beats up Bryan a bit more and then hops on the mic. He says “yeah, I know. I’m disqualified.” Kane’s music hits. Several referee’s attend to Bryan on the floor as Kane leaves.
Renee Young Interviews The Shield
We see some highlights of last week’s U.S. Title match between Dean Ambrose and Mark Henry, specifically showing Roman Reigns spearing Henry after the match. After that, Renee Young is with The Shield backstage. She talks about Reigns going one-on-one with Henry later tonight. Dean Ambrose talks about beating Henry last week. Reigns laughs at him and says you lost to Henry last week. Ambrose tells Reigns that he probably thinks he can do better than he did. Reigns says he knows he can. As Renee continues to talk, Seth Rollins cuts him off and says he can appreciate what she’s trying to do, but The Shield is on the same page. Ambrose talks about the mind games of The Wyatt Family not working against them. Reigns closes by saying “believe in The Shield.” They touch hands in Shield-fashion as we fade off and the announcers hype The Shield vs. The Wyatt Family this Sunday at the Elimination Chamber PPV. We head to another commercial.
– Former NBA star and part-time WCW performer Dennis Rodman is scheduled to appear at The Big Event 6 in Einhurst, New York on March 8th. Rodman is advertised as “appearing in nWo gear.” Also scheduled for the event are AJ Styles, Harley Race, Buff Bagwell, Sunny, King Kong Bundy, Jimmy Hart, The Honky Tonk Man and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine.
– Former WWE Superstar Chris Jericho spent the weekend at the Morrisound Recording Studios in Tampa, Florida doing vocal work for his new “Fozzy” album.
– John Cena will be Steve Austin’s guest on Tuesday’s episode of the Steve Austin Show on PodcastOne.com.
– Ring of Honor’s Chief Operating Officer Joe Koff appeared on the Live Audio Wrestling show with John Pollack on Sunday and made some pretty stunning comments about Matt Hardy and Reby Sky’s recent arrests after a domestic violence incident:
“It did appear on TMZ and it did happen. Of course, it happened so much earlier than it was finally reported. You know, I gotta tell you something, John, there was really not a lot about it. I saw the stuff on TMZ and I saw a couple of Facebook comments about Matt wrestling in Philadelphia. I think it was really not a big deal. I don’t have a position on that. I think that charges were dropped.
“You never want to get involved in domestic spats and domestic relationship and domestic disputes, but if a court of law or the judicial system could find no fault with it, I don’t feel that’s something we necessarily have to take a stance on. I’m not sherking that. I think the fact that C.M. Punk said he wasn’t going to wrestle for WWE or when that story came out right around that same time, I think it kind of overshadowed it… I think had the outcome had been different from a judicial standpoint or a charge standpoint, I can’t say, but really it was a domestic battle that got… You know, they’re two wrestlers, they’re probably two physical people.”
– Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella celebrated their third anniversary as a couple this past weekend. As previously reported, the two will be getting married this April.
– Speaking of WWE couples, the following is a video of The Miz and Maryse at the Hall Of Game Awards this past weekend:
– Former WWE Superstar Val Venis was backstage at the WWE live event in Phoenix, Arizona on Saturday. Venis lives in the Phoenix area and brought his daughter to the show.
– Soon-to-be WWE Hall Of Famer Jake “The Snake” Roberts will make his in-ring return in a six-man tag-team match for Maryland Championship Wrestling (MCW) on March 22nd. Roberts will team with Adam Flash and Ronnie Zukko to take on the trio of Aziz Daniels, Mitch Miller and Paul White for the company’s “Tag Wars 2K14” event.
The following are highlights from the latest online blog by WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On tonight’s RAW: “WWE really needs to hit a home run on RAW this week to build some much needed momentum for the Elimination Chamber. During a three hour RAW broadcast there is SO much info disseminated that it’s challenging for any viewer of the three hour broadcast to leave the show at signoff and remember every thing that has been thrown at them. 15 commercial breaks doesn’t help matters but that’s simply the way it is and is not WWE’s fault.”
On CM Punk: “Many have asked but I’m unaware of any new, @CMPunk news. I’m still hopeful that a mutually agreed upon resolution can be worked out sooner than later. I’d love to see Punk steal the show at WM30 and then chill for as long as it takes to get him back on WWE TV in a win-win scenario. If Punk wanted to take off until WM31, simply plan for it. The guy is too talented, has had a tremendous amount of TV time, etc invested in him and the roster is too thin to not see Punk back at some point.”
“I know if I ever do a show in Chicago I’d LOVE for CM Punk to be my special guest/MC and grill me with questions. Maybe we could take in a Cubs game and eat at Lisa Varon’s Squared Circle eatery while in the Windy City.”
“As I’ve said Punk is a favorite of mine and I’d have loved to see him back in the day as one of Cowboy Bill Watts bookers.”
On the WWE Network: “Although I am no longer affiliated with WWE, I can’t logically understand why any wrestling fan, unless they simply can’t afford the approximate 35 cents a day, wouldn’t want to try the WWE Network for 6 months at a cost of $9.99 per month. I’m ordering it w/o question. I don’t have copies of all the WCW PPV’s that I did that I’d like to go back and listen to again.”
On Gerald Brisco scouting for talent: “Gerald Brisco is in Columbus, Ohio scouting for WWE at a major amateur wrestling event. Gerald and I are attending the NCAA Division 1 Nationals in OKC in March….GB as a WWE scout and me as a fan. BTW it was in Columbus, Ohio that I was ‘grilled as in BBQ’ed’ by Kane AND had a cinder block busted over my head in another losing effort to Eric Bischoff which left me defeated and bloody. In other words, a normal in ring outing for Ol J.R. :)”
On E:60 at the WWE Performance Center: “The ESPN E60 piece that is going to air soon re: the WWE Performance Center should really be good. ESPN had virtual, unlimited access on multiple days of shooting at NXT. ESPN has hours of footage to utilize.”
