– Monday’s WWE RAW scored 294,055 Trendrr.tv social media score, which was down 25% from last week’s show. Despite the fall off, RAW was the #1 most social show on all of television for the night, including broadcast and cable.
– Here’s an updated list of WWE’s DVD releases coming this year, courtesy of WWEDVDNews.com:
* The Best of WCW Monday Nitro Volume 2 – February 12th
* Royal Rumble 2013 – February 26th
* Bret “Hit Man” Hart: The Dungeon Collection – March 5th
* Elimination Chamber 2013 – March 19th
* For All Mankind: The Life & Career of Mick Foley – April 16th
* The Best of In Your House – April 30th
* WrestleMania 29 – May 14th
* Top 25 Rivalries – May 28th
* Extreme Rules 2013 – June 18th
* Best of War Games – June 25th
* TBD PPV – July 16th
* ECW Unreleased Vol. 2 – July 30th
* Money In The Bank 2013 – August 13th
* Best of MSG – August 27th
* Mid-South – September 10th
* SummerSlam 2013 – September 17th
* Triple H (Biography) – September 24th
* Goldberg (Match Compilation) – October 8th
* Night of Champions 2013 – October 15th
* Money In The Bank Anthology (Match Compilation) – October 29th
* Over the Limit 2013 – November 5th
* History of WWE – November 19th
* Hell in a Cell 2013 – November 26th
* Raw 20th Anniversary Box Set – December 3rd
* Survivor Series 2013 – December 24th
* Best WWE PPV’s – December 31st
WWE Superstar Chris Jericho called in on his own to Busted Open with Dave Lagreca and Mike Riker to discuss Bret Hart’s comments on Triple H. You can hear Busted Open every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on Sirius 92, XM 208 and online on Sports Zone.
Jericho on Bret Hart’s comments on HHH: “It was funny because when I saw that comment that Bret had said, I was kind of surprised because I think that Triple H has had a lot of great matches, dozens of great matches. I could think of two or three that I was in with him myself, so, maybe, I don’t know why Bret would say that, maybe it’s still a little bit personal or some bad vibes or taste in his mouth from what happened years ago. But I’ll tell you face to face that Triple H has had many great matches and I always enjoyed watching him work, even up to the match he had with Lesnar. I don’t know if that was a great match, it was definitely a very good one, so I would definitely never ever bury Triple H’s wrestling talent for sure I think he’s one of the best we’ve ever seen.”
What benefit does it have for Bret Hart to make those comments? “He’s saying it just because, old, old, old wounds die hard, or whatever the cliché is. You know, I’m sure Bret has made his peace with Shawn over the Montreal Screw Job; maybe he still has some lingering issues with Triple H as part of that. I don’t know, cuz I think Bret is very much one of my favorites of all time, one of my top two or three as a matter of fact, but maybe there’s a little bit of bias in this or something like that for him to say that Triple H has had no great matches. Cuz I don’t think anybody could ever say that he’s had no great matches. You might say “well this guy’s a jerk” or “I don’t like him personally” or “backstage I don’t like him” or “politically I don’t like him”, but there’s one thing you can never doubt with Triple H and that’s his wrestling ability, especially as a main event performer, like you said earlier, in the early 2000’s as the top heel in the company, I think you could throw any baby face’s name out there and you could probably match up a quote unquote great match that he had with that person, for sure. Triple H may be a little bit underrated as far as the amount of flak that he takes over the years, but, as a performer, I’ll tell you straight up he was definitely one of the best, from that era and even up until last year. The match he had with Undertaker, the match he had with Undertaker the year before, both Wrestlemania matches, were both amazing matches. Maybe not the same levels as the ones Shawn had with him but definitely in the exact same ballpark. Triple H is just one of those guys, he’s got it, he always has had it, he’s a great ring general, he’s very smart in the psychology of putting together his matches, believable when he works, so definitely definitely definitely. Like I said, I could give you 3 matches that I had with him, personally that I thought were great. The Last Man Standing that we had in Dallas, the title match we had at State College where I won the title, and then the tag match with me and Benoit versus Triple H and Austin. All of them were what I would consider to be some of my best performances, some of my best matches that I ever had for sure.”
Outside your matches with him, what do you think was his best match ever? “Y2J – It’s hard to say cuz there’s just so many eras, like you said, I would have thought of the Three Stages of Hell with Austin, was a great one. I think he had a 60 minute Iron Man Match that’s forgotten against The Rock where Shawn was the referee, that was great. I think the 3-way with Benoit and Shawn at Wrestlemania, whatever it was, was amazing. And I think the ones he had with Undertaker, both of those were great. But that’s the thing, when you get a guy who’s had as many great matches as he has, it’s hard to just say here’s one or here’s two, you know. There’s just so many. There’s this one there’s that one there’s this one and that one, I mean the Batista Wrestlemania match was great as well. That’s what makes a great worker, not just a short burst, but longevity of a career, 10-15 years of having great matches with a whole variety of different opponents and whole variety of styles. You know, that’s what makes a great worker to me.”
On his Royal Rumble appearance: “Y2J – Well it’s funny because, 2 things about that was, one, I was so happy that it didn’t leak. Like I thought for sure, sooner or later it’s going to leak on a website or dirt sheet or somebody would hear something and it would get out. But nobody knew that I was there until the moment that music played. And I think that was such a cool vibe, that we could still surprise people, still surprise guys like you who have your finger on the pulse and have spies or contacts or sources. And that’s what wrestling is all about. It’s all about the surprise element that takes you back to when you were a kid. When I was a kid, we had no internet or no dirt sheets. All we knew, all I knew, was what was coming by promotions. And that’s how we’d have a surprise. I think of when Dave Hebners evil twin brother Earl Hebner and they screwed Hulk out of winning the title. If you would have heard earlier today that Earl Hebners brother Dave was in the building and they’re identical twins, it would have killed some of that magic. And that was cool for us to be able to do that at Royal Rumble and have a complete surprise, legitimate surprise. And then number two was, I didn’t even think about it until afterwards, that I was in there for so long, like 48 minutes, or whatever it was. And Vince even asked me after “how did you stay in such good shape? I was like. I don’t know, I’m not sure.”
As announced on Monday, Bruno Sammartino will finally be entering the WWE Hall of Fame on April 6th from the site of his most memorable matches, Madison Square Garden. The story was broken by ESPN, which featured some interesting comments from Bruno about why he decided to bury that hatchet with WWE and accept the honor.
“Being inducted into the Hall of Fame at Madison Square Gardens is the biggest thing in my life,” Sammartino said in an exclusive interview with ESPN. “Anytime that people feel that you accomplished enough to enter into a Hall of Fame, of course this is a tremendous, tremendous thrill for me. I had a lot of my success due to appearing at the Garden. I wrestled there over 200 times, it’s where I won the title, and it’s where I picked up 630-plus pounds of Haystacks Calhoun.”
The article notes that despite Sammartino’s decades-long feud with Vince McMahon, it was Triple H who stepped in and finally got the deal done.
“In talking to Paul Levesque, I made it clear, I’ve had issues with WWE and wrestling in general, because there were other organizations,” Sammartino said. “I didn’t like the direction they had taken. It was bothersome to me. I’m an old-school guy. I spent 25 years in this business. But after talking to Paul, and him explaining to me the changes they’ve made in their program, and how they’ve hired a doctor like Dr. Maroon, who is a world-renowned neurosurgeon, who also operated on me, and now that he has been put in charge of the company’s wellness program and their drug testing, that impressed me. I know what kind of a man he is, and he is a giant in that field, so I take my hat off to WWE because they took such huge steps to make things better for the wrestlers themselves and making sure they are healthy to perform. That was very, very important.
“But as Paul explained to me, WWE made a lot of other changes. There’s no more profanity, there’s no vulgarity in the current product, and that stuff had bothered me as well. When Paul first spoke to me and told me all the changes, I started watching it again, and I was very convinced that they are doing amazing things. I see the wrestlers and all the changes they made. There’s no profanity, there’s no vulgarity, and it’s a family-friendly program. That’s what it used to be, and that’s a huge role in the whole factor.”
Sammartino will be joined by Mick Foley, Bob Backlund and Trish Stratus in what’s easily one of the strongest Hall of Fame classes ever.
– WWE announcer Renee Young made her debut as a backstage interviewer at RAW during a WWE App exclusive video. Young, who has been working WWE’s PPV pre-shows as well as the Bottom Line, Experience and Vintage Collection shows, took part in a segment with Matt Striker and Zack Ryder.
– Also on the WWE App, John Cena challenged The Shield to a six-man match at Elimination Chamber, with Cena’s partners being Ryback and Sheamus.
Shield member Seth Rollins responded to the challenge via Twitter:
– John Cena will be appearing at the upcoming SXSW 2013 Convention to discuss WWE’s award-winning integration of social media. The WWE panel will be called, “Get Ready To Rumble! How WWE Is Crushing Social TV” and will take place on March 9th at 11AM from the Sheraton Austin Capitol hotel. From the press release:
The panel will feature a candid discussion with WWE Superstar John Cena, the third most followed U.S. athlete on Facebook and Twitter with more than 17 million fans combined, and provide insight into how the 10-time WWE Champion utilizes social media to extend WWE’s brand and connect with fans.
WWE recognizes the tremendous opportunity that social media presents to extend storylines, deliver exclusive content and develop new characters, while enabling fans to connect directly with their favorite Superstars and WWE. With more than six hours of domestic weekly programming, 300 live events each year and broadcast in more than 145 countries, WWE is in a unique position to unite the web, mobile, television and live audience experiences under an integrated digital strategy, with the goal of building the ultimate interactive experience for fans.
Visit BusinessWire.com for the full announcement and additional details.
– There were a lot of people in WWE who were against the decision to break up Team Rhodes Scholars, according to f4wonline.com.
– The following is the latest Backstage Fallout video from Monday’s RAW:
In this Raw edition of “Backstage Fallout,” Chris Jericho explains to the WWE Universe that he still has it despite being away for lengthy period of time. Also, a reinvigorated Jack Swagger boasts about his victory over Santino Marella and Cody Rhodes, well, he’s unleashed and he means business.
– The Iron Sheik is teasing on Twitter that will be at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony in Madison Square Garden this year to support his “best friend” Bruno Sammartino.
– Former WWE Diva Eve Torres returned to her high school this past weekend to be the keynote speaker for the 20th anniversary of the Cherry Creek Diversity Conference. Eve was part of the Cherry Creek Diversity committee when she was in high school.
– Bonnie Hammer, one of WWE’s strongest allies at NBC Universal, has gained even more power in NBC U as a result of a recent corporate restructuring. In addition to her previous duties, Hammer is now also in charge of Oxygen, Bravo and Telemundo
– Chris Jericho posted the following photo of the chop marks that CM Punk left on his chest during their match on RAW:
– Kofi Kingston will be appearing at the National Guard Gala in Washington, DC on February 26th at 6pm.
– Zack Ryder’s “Hoeski” single broke the Top 100 Pop chart on iTunes the first day it was released. The song, which sells for $1.29, currently has a 4.5/5 star rating. Various WWE superstars, including John Cena, have been encouraging fans on Twitter to download the song.
– Tamina Snukka spoke to Matt Striker backstage at Monday’s RAW for the WWE app and said last week’s Vegas Showgirls match was a joke. Tamina added that she’s not our average Diva and that WWE has a huge problem. Tamina said next time she’s one-on-one with Kaitlyn, she’s going to make a statement.
– Following his return to WWE on RAW, Mark Henry spoke to WWE.com and says he’s charged up and ready to make his mark on the WWE Universe again. Henry said he’s been beating people up for 17 years and anybody that gets in the ring with him will be destroyed.
– It was announced on RAW that Jack Swagger’s ankle lock submission finisher will now be known as the Patriot Act.
– Vickie Guerrero announced on RAW that she is the reason Brock Lesnar is back on WWE television. She revealed that she re-signed Lesnar to impress Vince McMahon, hoping that he would make her the permanent General Manager of RAW again.
– Celebrities in attendance for last night’s WWE RAW in Atlanta included TLC singer Chili, rapper Lil’ Scrappy, singer Bobby V and Carolina Panthers Armond Smith and Byron Bell, who were there as guests of Titus O’Neil.
– WWEShop.com is now selling the new “Groomed For Perfection” mustache t-shirt Cody Rhodes was wearing on RAW.
– CM Punk tweeted the following about the technical difficulties WWE experienced with fan voting on the WWE mobile app:
Shocked people are tweeting that the voting on the wwe app isn't working correctly. Shocked.
According to WWE sources, the fan voting for CM Punk’s opponent was legitimate. WWE was planning for Punk to wrestle Randy Orton, but fan voting showed that Chris Jericho was a much more popular option. Despite being a potential opponent for Punk in the poll, WWE did not expect Rey Mysterio to win and had him booked against Daniel Bryan before the show began.
– According to the Wrestling Observer, Bruno Sammartino’s new working relationship with WWE will include more than just a Hall of Fame induction. Sammartino, who finally agreed to join the Hall after years of claiming he would never agree while Vince McMahon was still around, will appear on WWE television at some point and will take part in DVD interviews and other projects.
– Here is the video that aired on RAW looking back on the legendary career of the one and only Bruno Sammartino:
After Monday’s RAW from Atlanta went off the air, the advertised dark match main event took place, featuring John Cena and Ryback vs. CM Punk and Dolph Ziggler (with AJ Lee and Big E. Langston). Prior to the match, Punk cut another promo saying that he can’t suck because he isn’t from Atlanta. He also stated that the match would be an Australian Tag match.
John Cena & Ryback defeated Punk & Ziggler. The match went back and forth, with Punk and Ziggler working to isolate Ryback for several minutes. At one point, AJ slapped Cena in the face and Big E. laid out Ryback with his running body tackle. The referee ejected AJ and Langston, which got a huge pop from the crowd. Ryback eventually made the hot tag to John Cena, who hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle and an Attitude Adjustment on Ziggler for the win.
Following Monday’s episode of RAW, here is the updated card for WWE’s Elimination Chamber 2013 pay-per-view:
WWE Championship Match
The Rock (c) vs. CM Punk
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Big Show
Elimination Chamber Match Winner gets a World Heavyweight Championship shot at Wrestlemania 29
Daniel Bryan vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Randy Orton vs. TBA vs. TBA vs. TBA
The Elimination Chamber pay-per-view will take place Sunday, February 17, 2013 from the New Orleans Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana.
WWE RAW opens up with a look back at some of the events from last week – The Shield beating down John Cena, Ryback and Sheamus plus Vince McMahon being attacked by Brock Lesnar.
– We’re live from the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia as CM Punk makes his way to the ring without Paul Heyman. Punk takes a fan sign and rips it up. Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler are on commentary.
Punk makes Justin Roberts come in the ring and announce him as The People’s Champion. Punk is more calm than he was last week. Punk still disses the fans and says he reacted like a normal person would last week because he was screwed out of the WWE Title. Punk says The Rock doesn’t pay the price and doesn’t deserve what it means to be the champion. Punk brings up the video of Paul Heyman, Brad Maddox and The Shield that was shown last week. Punk asks fans at ringside and Cole if they saw him in the video, which we did not. Punk says if Heyman says it wasn’t Heyman in the video, then it wasn’t. It was somebody else. Punk brings up Vince McMahon and starts ripping him. Punk says Vince got what he deserved when he was laid out last week. Punk says Vince just had hip surgery today and Brock Lesnar broke his hip. Punk says that’s karma and Vince deserved it. Punk goes back to ripping the fans. He says he will get back the WWE Title in just a few weeks. Punk says Rock may have the physical belt but he’s the real champion. Punk says Rock will get what he deserves also. Punk goes on and is interrupted by Booker T.
The SmackDown General Manager botches his lines and Punk tells him to get off his show. Booker says Vickie Guerrero wanted Booker to come out and decide on Punk’s fate but Booker is going to leave it up to the fans. Booker says Punk should face some of his previous WrestleMania opponents – maybe Rey Mysterio, Randy Orton or Chris Jericho. Booker tells the fans to download the WWE App and vote on Punk’s opponent.
– Cole and Lawler plug the WWE App and tease Bruno Sammartino’s Hall of Fame announcement for later tonight.
Ryback vs. Antonio Cesaro
We go to the ring and out comes Ryback. We go to commercial.
Back from the break and we see a WWE App video of Randy Orton talking about facing CM Punk at WrestleMania 27 and wanting to face him tonight. Ryback is in the ring as his opponent WWE United States Champion Antonio Cesaro comes out.
Back and forth to start. Ryback beats Cesaro down in the corner but is told to back off. Cesaro with a cheap shot but Ryback slams him and hits a hip toss. Ryback goes on and gets a 2 count. Ryback turns Cesaro upside down in the corner and stomps away as the crowd chants “feed me more.” Cesaro rolls to the floor but Ryback follows him and brings it back in the ring. Cesaro catches him and stomps away.
Ryback with a Thesz Press before slamming Cesaro’s head into the mat several times. Ryback tosses Cesaro into the corner but misses a clothesline. Cesaro clotheslines Ryback in the back of the head as we go back to commercial.
Back from the break and Ryback runs over Cesaro. Ryback with a big slam and the crowd pops. Cesaro goes back to the floor and starts leaving. Ryback stops him and beats him back towards the ring. Ryback brings it in but Cesaro drops him over the top rope and then knocks him to the floor. Cesaro rams Ryback into the ring post and then the steel steps. Cesaro comes back in the ring as the referee counts. Ryback makes it back in at 9 but Cesaro unloads in the corner. Cesaro with a nice knee drop from the corner and a 2 count. Ryback counters with a knee to the gut and a clothesline. Ryback with a big back drop and the Meathook clothesline. Cesaro rolls back to the floor and tries to leave through the crowd but Ryback rolls him back in. Cesaro meets him with a boot to the face. He misses the next one and Ryback powerbombs him. Ryback with another Meathook and Shell Shocked for the non-title win.
Winner: Ryback
– More hype for the WWE App and CM Punk’s opponent.
– We get a look back at last week where Royal Rumble winner John Cena announced he will face the WWE Champion at WrestleMania before being attacked by The Shield. They show Ryback and Sheamus also getting beat down by The Shield. Up next, we will get an in-depth look at The Shield. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and we see Chili of TLC fame sitting at ringside.
– We get a WWE App video from Rey Mysterio talking about CM Punk. They are really pushing the WWE App tonight.
– Cole talks about The Shield and leads us into a video package looking at what Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns have done since debuting at Survivor Series.
– John Cena is shown backstage and is met with a mixed reaction. Vickie Guerrero says she heard Cena is going to the ring to call out The Shield. Vickie asks if he has a death wish. Cena mentions WrestleMania but thinks The Shield needs to be stopped first. Cena says they need to be stopped tonight and walks off.
– Cole talks about the 2013 WWE Hall of Fame and leads us into the video package for Trish Stratus. Cole teases Bruno’s announcement for later.
– More hype for the WWE App and Punk’s opponent. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and we get a WWE App video from Chris Jericho, also talking about CM Punk. Jericho wants to know who the best in the world is and tells the fans to make it happen.
Santino Marella vs. Jack Swagger
We go to the ring and out comes Santino Marella. Booker T is out on commentary. Out next comes Jack Swagger in his return to RAW.
Swagger dominates early but Santino tries to make a comeback. Swagger hits him with a knee to the gut and a Swagger Bomb out of the corner. Swagger with the ankle lock for the win.
Winner: Jack Swagger
– After the match, Swagger goes to the announce table and asks Booker if he’s impressed yet. Swagger wants a spot in the Elimination Chamber.
– Even more hype for the WWE App. Voting is now open for CM Punk’s opponent. We go to commercial.
– Back from the break and Cole says too many people are trying to vote at once so there’s a problem with the WWE App. They are extending the voting and opening it at WWE.com.
Alberto Del Rio vs. Cody Rhodes
We go to the ring and out comes World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio. We see some of the recent events between he and Big Show. Out next comes Cody Rhodes.
Cody strikes first and goes to work on Del Rio. Del Rio turns it around and kicks Cody in the head. Cody smacks Del Rio but gets backed into the corner with kicks and punches. Del Rio with a big running kick to the shoulder and a 2 count. Cody turns it around and works on Del Rio’s knee and arm now. Cody with a headbutt and more offense in the corner. Cody charges but misses. Del Rio with clotheslines and a backbreaker. Del Rio with a big kick to the face and another 2 count.
Del Rio misses the cross arm breaker and Cody hits the Disaster Kick. Cody with a 2 count. More back and forth. Del Rio gets the armbreaker locked in for the win.
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
– After the match, Del Rio says he stands here a different person. He used to look down on everyone but he knows he was wrong. Del Rio says Big Show tries bullying him like he bullies everyone else. Del Rio says he appreciates the fan support and says they made him open his eyes. Del Rio says he is World Heavyweight Champion for the people who fight and work everyday to put food on the table. Del Rio says Big Show will pay for what he did to Ricardo Rodriguez. Big Show interrupts on the big screen. Show says he’s in a secure location at a hotel. Del Rio calls him a coward and says he has no balls. Show says he wants a rematch at Elimination Chamber. Show tells Del Rio not to try and find him in the hotel or it will be bad. Show tells Del Rio to send a contract for the rematch and his music hits.
– Jerry Lawler reveals that CM Punk’s opponent for tonight will be Chris Jericho with 57% of the vote.
– Still to come, MizTV with Paul Heyman plus John Cena will call out The Shield. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and we see footage of Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara defeating Kane and Daniel Bryan in a non-title match on SmackDown.
– Kane and Daniel Bryan are backstage arguing. Bryan doesn’t want his chances to get in the Elimination Chamber ruined by Kane so he asks Kane to stay in the back tonight. Bryan storms off.
Rey Mysterio vs. Daniel Bryan
We go to the ring and out comes Rey Mysterio. Out next comes one-half of the WWE Tag Team Champions Daniel Bryan.
Back and forth to start the match. Rey with knees to the face and a kick to the shoulder. Bryan catches him and drops Rey’s gut over his knees. 2 count for Bryan. We see Teddy Long and Booker T watching backstage. More back and forth. Bryan knocks Rey off the top and turns him upside down in the corner. Bryan charges with a shoulder but Rey moves and he hits the ring post. We go to commercial.
Back from the break and Bryan throws Rey to the mat and stomps on his elbow. Bryan continues working on the arm now. Bryan with kicks against the ropes. Bryan sends Rey out to the floor and goes for a suicide dive but Rey stops him with a forearm. Rey comes back and goes to the top. Rey with a seated senton and hurricanrana. Rey with another but gets stopped. Rey rolls through with a kick to the head and a 2 count. Rey knocks Bryan into the ropes but Bryan blocks 619. Bryan goes for the No Lock but Rey counters with a pin attempt. Bryan goes for a powerbomb but Rey turns it into 619 and nails it. Rey goes to the top but misses the headbutt. Bryan applies the No Lock for the win.
Winner: Daniel Bryan
– After the match, Mark Henry makes his return and lays Bryan out at ringside. Henry enters the ring and slams Rey with a big running powerslam. Henry drags Rey to the corner but out comes Sin Cara. Cara springboards in but Henry catches him and hits a World’s Strongest Slam. Henry goes back to Rey. Rey tries to fight back but also catches a WSS. Henry drags Rey back to the corner and yells that’s not enough. Henry with a big splash from the second rope on Rey. Henry tosses Cara out of the ring and continues yelling as his music plays.
– Back from the break and Bryan catches up with Kane backstage. Bryan asks why Kane didn’t stop Mark Henry. Bryan wants an apology. Kane mocks their friendship and walks off laughing.
– Cole shows us video from last week where Brock Lesnar returned and attacked Vince McMahon.
– We see Big Show at his hotel. He’s on the phone with Booker T wondering where the contract is. Someone knocks on the door and Big Show hands up. Show opens the door and instead of a courier with a contract, it’s room service. Show signs the bill and makes the waiter leave without a tip.
Sheamus vs. Kane
We go to the ring and out comes Sheamus. His opponent is one-half of the WWE Tag Team Champions Kane. We go to commercial.
Back from the break and Kane makes his way to the ring. Back and forth action to start the match. Kane with a big sideslam for a 2 count. Kane keeps control and stomps on Sheamus. They brawl on the floor before Kane brings it back in. Sheamus fights back from his knees and hits an Irish Curse backbreaker. Sheamus makes a comeback and sends Kane to the floor but he lands on his feet. Sheamus catches Kane on the apron and hits him with forearm shots to the chest. Kane interrupts the count and climbs to the top. Kane rolls through and blocks a Brogue Kick. Sheamus blocks a chokeslam. Kane counters White Noise but Sheamus blocks a Tombstone. Kane hits a big DDT and waits for a chokeslam. Daniel Bryan runs down and distracts Kane from the apron. Kane grabs him by his throat and pushes him off the apron. Kane turns around to a Brogue for the win.
Winner: Sheamus
– Still to come, Cena will call out The Shield and MizTV with Paul Heyman. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and The Miz is int he ring for MizTV. He talks about Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman but is interrupted by Heyman. Heyman says he will introduce himself to Miz in his face right now. Heyman says he won’t let someone like Miz to soil his name. Heyman offers his best wishes to Vince McMahon. Miz interrupts and says nobody believes Heyman cares about Vince. Heyman says he didn’t know Lesnar was in Las Vegas and didn’t know he would be attacking Vince. Heyman says he’s sorry it happened but it did.
Heyman rants about Punk and The Rock. Miz says he’s changing the subject. Heyman says he will answer questions from The Miz as soon as he answers his. They come face to face and out comes Vickie Guerrero. She says the bickering has to stop. Vickie says Heyman is telling the truth – he had nothing to do with Lesnar returning last week. Vickie says she did. Vickie says she has been secretly negotiating with Brock for a while because he was an elite free agent. Vickie says re-signing Brock was a chance for her to impress Vince so she could be promoted to permanent General Manager. Vickie says she had no idea he was going to attack Vince. She feels bad about it and cries on Heyman’s shoulder.
Heyman says he believes Vickie. Heyman suggests we have a moment of silence for Vince. Vickie says we all should pray for his well being. Miz starts the “really?” chant and interrupts their prayer. Miz calls them bottom feeders. Vickie reminds Miz she is his boss. Miz says it’s a matter of time before Vince fires them both. Miz goes on until Brock Lesnar’s music hits and out he comes.
Vickie and Heyman scramble from the ring as Lesnar makes his way down and Miz waits. They have a staredown as Lesnar enters the ring. Heyman watches from the apron now. Miz shoves Lesnar. Lesnar runs over him with a big clothesline. Lesnar tosses Miz out of the ring and starts tearing apart the MizTV set. Lesnar tosses chairs out of the ring at Miz and the couches out of the ring. Miz comes in and attacks Lesnar from behind. Lesnar takes him out with knees to the face and then a big F5. Heyman gets Lesnar to back off Miz as the crowd boos. Lesnar exits the ring as we go to replays. Heyman and Lesnar leave together as Miz tries to recover in the ring. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and we see a replay of Brock Lesnar beating up The Miz.
Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett
We go to the ring and out comes Randy Orton to a big pop. Out next comes his opponent WWE Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett.
We get a side video of Bo Dallas talking about Barrett. We see footage from SmackDown of Barrett attacking Dallas backstage. Orton and Barrett go at it now. Barrett beats Orton down in the corner. Orton with a Thesz Press and several right hands. Back and forth until Orton hits the clothesline out of the corner. Barrett goes to the floor but Orton follows and slams him into the apron. Orton with a back drop over the fan barrier. Orton brings it back in the ring for a 2 count. Orton stomps away now.
Barrett turns it around with a clothesline and sends Orton out to the floor. Barrett follows and works him over. Barrett brings it back in the ring for 2. Barrett with a headlock now. Orton fights out and blocks a kick. Orton with a pair of clotheslines and a powerslam. Barrett rolls to the apron and Orton brings him back in with the second rope draping DDT. Orton gets a big pop as he waits on Barrett to get up. Barrett rolls to the floor but Orton brings him back in. Barrett catches Orton with Winds of Change for a 2 count. Barrett scoops Orton on his shoulders but Orton fights out. Barrett blocks a RKO but misses a big boot. Orton with a RKO for the non-title win.
Winner: Randy Orton
– Back from commercial and we get a vignette for Fandango.
Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk
We go to the ring and out comes Chris Jericho to a big pop. Out next comes CM Punk without Paul Heyman.
The match starts and fans chant for Jericho. They lock up and Punk strikes first. Punk with a knee and some chops. Jericho comes back with chops into the ropes. Jericho drops Punk with an elbow and kicks him down in the corner. Jericho with a big suplex as the fans chant for both men now. Jericho drops a knee and covers for a pin attempt. Punk turns it around and kicks away at Jericho on the mat. Punk with a chop and a knee to the gut. Punk with a pin attempt now. Punk with a submission now. Jericho turns it around again. Punk runs into a big boot. Punk goes for a tornado DDT but Jericho blocks it and sends him to the floor. Jericho slide kicks Punk back into the announcers table. Jericho springboards but Punk turns it around as we go to commercial.
Back from the break and Punk back drops Jericho. Punk with a leg drop to the back of the head and another. Punk drops another and covers Jericho for 2. Punk with another hold on the mat. More back and forth. Punk springboards in with a clothesline but misses it. Jericho makes a comeback and comes off the top. Jericho with a bulldog. He goes for a Lionsault but Punk gets his knees up. Punk blocks Walls of Jericho but misses the high knee in the corner. Jericho climbs up with right hands. They crash to the mat and Jericho covers for a 2 count. Punk stops another Lionsault. Jericho slides out of GTS and goes for Walls of Jericho. Punk turns it into a roll up for 2. Jericho with a 2 count. Punk with a swinging neckbreaker for 2. Punk hits the knee in the corner and a clothesline. Punk goes to the top but misses the big elbow drop. Jericho hits a Lionsault and covers for 2. Punk with a superkick for another close 2 count. Punk locks in the Anaconda Vise but Jericho makes it to the bottom rope. Punk takes his time breaking the hold.
Jericho goes to the top but Punk cuts him off. Punk scoops Jericho for GTS but Jericho counters and locks in the Walls. Punk makes it to the bottom rope and breaks the hold. Punk goes for GTS again but Jericho goes for the Walls again. Punk blocks it and throws Jericho into the ring post. Punk nails GTS for the win.
Winner: CM Punk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f-73Qm73f4
– We get a Hall of Fame video for Bruno Sammartino.
– Still to come, Cena will call out The Shield. Back to commercial.
– Matt Striker catches up with CM Punk backstage and asks where his head is at. Punk calls The Rock a thief for walking around with the WWE Title. Punk says he will prove he’s the best in the world again at Elimination Chamber.
– Cole leads us into a video on The Rock’s WWE Title win.
– John Cena is backstage with Josh Mathews. He’s back and he’s focused, smack in the middle of whoop-ass season. Cena says he’s going to the ring to call out The Shield. Cena says The Shield pushed last week but he pushes back tonight. We go back to commercial.
– Big Show is at his hotel again, on the phone. He answers the door and it’s someone with the contract. The man tries to tell Show something but he hushes him while he looks at the contract. Show signs the contract and gives it back to the man to take to Booker T. Show opens the door and Alberto Del Rio is standing there. Del Rio pulls Show into the hallway and beats on him. Show hits a body blow and turns it around. Show throws Del Rio through a piece of furniture and kicks him around the hall. Show breaks the leg off a table but turns around to a fire extinguisher spray. Del Rio lays Show out with a big shot from the fire extinguisher to the skull. The elevator opens and Del Rio says Show had some bad Mexican food. Del Rio hops on the elevator and leaves Show laid out.
– We come back to the arena and Brad Maddox is in the ring.
Maddox says Paul Heyman used him and preyed on him. Maddox says he’s an innocent victim. Maddox says he’s the one who gave Vince McMahon the footage. Maddox says he’s the hero now so it will be him and not John Cena who will teach The Shield about justice. Maddox calls Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns to the ring.
The Shield’s music hits and here they come through the crowd. Ambrose says they don’t need an invitation. Ambrose calls Maddox a rat. Rollins talks to Maddox about what justice really is and threatens him with a beating he deserves. Maddox says to come give it. The Shield are at ringside now as Reigns says they are going to enjoy it this time. They hit the ring and Maddox strikes Ambrose first. The Shield beat Maddox down and hit the triple powerbomb.
John Cena’s music hits and out he comes through the crowd. Ryback’s music hits next and here he comes through another part of the crowd. Sheamus is next and he’s also coming through the fans. Cena, Ryback and Sheamus surround the ringside area but Shield leaves the ring and go up the ramp. The WWE locker room, led by Randy Orton, comes out and backs them back into the ring. Cena, Sheamus and Ryback hit the ring and all six Superstars brawl. Sheamus and Reigns, Ryback and Rollins, Ambrose and Cena go at it. The Shield gets sent to the floor and escape through the crowd. RAW goes off the air with Cena, Ryback and Sheamus standing tall in the ring.
– Mark Henry made his return on tonight’s WWE RAW from Atlanta. Henry laid out Daniel Bryan at ringside before beating up Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara in the ring.
– The following matches were for this week’s WWE Superstars taped prior to Monday’s RAW from Atlanta, Georgia:
* Zack Ryder vs. Heath Slater
* Justin Gabriel vs. Damien Sandow
– Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio and Daniel Bryan were confirmed for the SmackDown Elimination Chamber match on Monday’s RAW. The winner will face the World Heavyweight Champion at WrestleMania 29.
– The Rock has once again addressed the WWE locker room on Twitter in response to reports that there are several wrestlers who resent that he’s back with the company in such a big way:
Thank U @WWE Superstars for the awesome welcoming me back & getting the "big picture" plan. You're true locker room leaders! #RoadToMania
– Last week’s WWE SmackDown averaged 2.97 million viewers, which is down from 3.03 million the previous week.
– WWE has reportedly pulled Terry Funk from an appearance for Pro Wrestling Syndicate during WrestleMania 29 weekend, according to PWInsider.com. Funk will be doing an autograph signing at the WWE AXXESS fan fest and is rumored to be Mick Foley’s Hall of Fame inductor.
As previously reported, the Vince McMahon did undergo hip surgery last week, which is why WWE had Brock Lesnar give him an F5 at the end of last week’s RAW. The surgery, which took place last Friday, was a success and the WWE Chairman is already back to work.
Vince McMahon is backstage at tonight’s WWE RAW and is getting around with the help of crutches. Vince was working with the creative team throughout the day and was working on some production material for the new Fandango character, of all people, according to PWInsider.com.
Hell has frozen over. ESPN.com broke the story and now WWE.com has confirmed it – Bruno Sammartino has agreed to join the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2013. The following is WWE’s official announcement on the matter, including quotes from Triple H and Bruno Sammartino:
At long last, Bruno Sammartino will come home to Madison Square Garden on the night before WrestleMania 29 to take his rightful place as a WWE Hall of Famer. (
The longest-reigning WWE Champion of all time was announced Monday as the fourth inductee for the Hall’s star-studded 2013 class. Sammartino will join fellow former WWE Champions Mick Foley and Bob Backlund and former Women’s Champion Trish Stratus in sports-entertainment’s most hallowed hall on April 6, 2013. But for all the greats who have been and will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, only Bruno lays claim to being the one true “Living Legend.”
Sammartino’s induction has long been anticipated by a generation of WWE fans who grew up idolizing the Italian strongman. In an exclusive interview, Bruno revealed to WWE.com why he felt 2013 was the right time to finally enter the WWE Hall of Fame.
“Triple H contacted me and started telling me all the things that had changed and everything that was going on with WWE,” Bruno said. “I started watching it after talking to him and when I saw it, I was very, very impressed.”
For Triple H, the hall was incomplete without The Living Legend.
“I love the history of this business,” Triple H said. “Without the history, there is no tomorrow. To look back on the history of WWE, one of the most important figures in the long story of where this all came from wasn’t recognized. And that was Bruno.”
Born in a small mountain town in Italy, Sammartino immigrated to Pittsburgh at age 15. After breaking world weightlifting records as a teenager, Sammartino was noticed by Vincent J. McMahon, who encouraged the impressive athlete to pursue a career in professional wrestling. He became an overnight sensation and on May 17, 1963, defeated “Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers in the old Madison Square Garden to become the second WWE Champion in history. Sammartino held the title for nearly eight years, by far the longest reign of all time — not just in WWE, but with regards to any sports-entertainment organization.
Bruno Sammartino became a household name throughout the 1960s and ’70s by turning back rivals including Killer Kowalski, Gorilla Monsoon and George “The Animal” Steele. In early 1968, he headlined the first-ever wrestling event at the new and current Madison Square Garden. In all, Bruno sold out the building on an astounding 187 occasions and is partially responsible for it becoming The World’s Most Famous Arena. It was there on Dec. 10, 1973, that Sammartino became the first-ever two-time WWE Champion and he held the title for an additional three-and-a-half years. On Aug. 9, 1980, Bruno main-evented an epic event in front of more than 35,000 people at New York City’s Shea Stadium that broke box-office records.
“Arguably the biggest name ever in the history of the business is Bruno Sammartino,” Triple H said.
For many longtime fans, the WWE Hall of Fame was simply not complete until the beloved Bruno Sammartino was inducted. Now it will happen at the building where he achieved his finest moments. Tickets for the Induction Ceremony are on sale now and available at the MSG box office, online at Ticketmaster.com and various Ticketmaster outlets, or charge by phone at 800-745-3000. Ticket prices range from $50 to $150.
Future WWE Hall of Fame inductee Mick Foley held a comedy show in Adelaide, Australia over the weekend and spoke to the audience about a few wrestling-related items, including whether we’ll ever see him in the ring again and why his off-air feud with Dean Ambrose ended somewhat abruptly.
After feuding with Dean Ambrose on Twitter last year (and having a face-to-face confrontation with him during WrestleMania 28 weekend), Foley there were plans for them to wrestle at SummerSlam. Foley said he pitched the idea for him to wrestle Ambrose as Mankind, with a fake “Dude Love” coming out and attacking Ambrose during his entrance while Mankind would come through the ring, a gimmick he cleared with the Undertaker.
The plans had to be dropped after he got a diagnosis from his neurologist saying he should not be in the ring.
During their social media war last year, Foley said he felt Ambrose went too far by making personal remarks about his family. When Foley told him to lay off his family, Dean kept bringing up his wife and kids, thinking that Foley’s request to stop was part of Foley “working” the angle.
Q: With Rock’s current contract limitations, and the fact they’re just using him for another big payday at WrestleMania after which he will be gone promoting movies, could he be considered a paper champion? – Ernesto
A: If your definition of a paper champion is more of a transitional champion, then yes. Rock is only expected to be champion for a limited period of time and get the title back onto John Cena. However, if by paper champion you mean someone who is not deserving of the title or someone who lacks respect, then I disagree. Of course, it’s silly to even use such a phrase in pro wrestling because no one ever really “wins” a title.
Q: I was watching Armageddon 2005 and was wondering what the deal was with the Tim White suicide storyline? – Tom B.
A: Just some dumb fun to amuse the writers, or Vince himself I would imagine. Tim White was forced to retire from officiating because of a chronic shoulder injury and they just wanted to give him something to do. Was it in poor taste? You bet. Suicide isn’t something to make light of (especially in the wrestling business). But for what it was, I actually thought he and Josh Mathews were pretty funny in those skits.
Q: If you can, go back and watch the Royal Rumble match between The Rock and CM Punk around the end. I notice at times you can catch the wrestlers calling out spots and it looks to me like MAYBE CM Punk was supposed to kick out [after the People’s Elbow]. Of course, it’s hard to tell exactly what is being said, but what do you think? Do you think CM Punk was supposed to kick out, but decided not to? – Avery T.
A: I’ve heard nothing to suggest the finish was anything other than what they had planned. If you watch some of Rock’s matches, he has a tendency to say something to his opponent before he covers them for the finish. I can’t make out what it is, but I’ve seen him do it before. CM Punk did not change the finish on the fly. Perhaps he should have though because using a Rockbottom would have been more effective in ending a 434 day title reign than a simple People’s Elbow.
Q: How do you think CM Punk is really feeling about the possibly of missing out on the WrestleMania main event again? The man was champion for well over a year and once again, it’s looking like “Dwayne” and Cena will headline the event. To me, it’s an odd equation because you could argue that Punk wouldn’t have been champion for nearly as long as he did without the Rock match set in stone for the Rumble. I really think the only thing that would match the Cena/Rock main event would be a Punk/Austin match, which won’t happen. But, if I was Punk, I’d feel like I’d taken a nice girl out for a date, got her back to her place, gone upstairs, gotten in her bed, [only for her to turn around and tell me to] go f*ck myself. – Jake from the U.K.
A: If you’ve watched his DVD, I’m sure he’s not thrilled about it. At the same time, he’ll still be featured in a prominent role and will make a ton of money. Hard to feel too badly for anyone like that. Who knows, if Undertaker bows out of the show this year, Punk may yet end up in the main event after all.
Q: CM Punk commented on the January 7th Raw that Daniel Bryan had been reduced from being a dangerous man to a guy that needs a catchphrase to get over. From a mega-mark’s point of view, that’s true. But it’s also not the worst thing in the world. Take a look at Kurt Angle. Angle was a goofball the first 2 1/2 years of his WWE career. Then Vince McMahon wanted him to go bald and be more serious; and while Angle still had goofball moments and the “You suck” chants, he was a no nonsense “Wrestling Machine” until he left for TNA in 2006. That could still happen for Daniel Bryan down the line. The bottom line is that after Bryan won the U.S. title, he became boring and vanilla. If he didn’t run with the popularity of “Yes!” after WrestleMania, he’d be nowhere. He’s got to be a goofball now for his long-term survival. – Cliff
A: You’re right, it’s not the worst thing in a world. He has a role on the show and is over with the audience. But I disagree that he *has* to be a goofball now to ensure his long-term survival. If he dropped his shtick tomorrow, shaved the beard and went all serious, he would be just fine. The man is talented enough to make either role work. The comedy stuff is fine for now, but at some point, it gets old.
Q: Do you remember back in the 90’s when Tammy Sytch gave Elmo a “Sunny day” in that skit on Shotgun? I can’t remember if they showed it here across the Atlantic or not and it was only brought to my attention during an interview I listened to on YouTube. She swapped a Tickle-Me Elmo for a Fondle-Me Elmo! – Andrel from Northampton, England
A: Thank you for the lovely visual.
Keep those questions coming to [email protected] and remember to include your name!
– Paul Heyman’s Heyman Hustle website has published exclusive photos of Heyman’s match against Ryback at December’s Madison Square Garden live event. Yours truly was at the show in person and the atmosphere during the special attraction match was unique to say the least.
Without giving too much away about the match result, let’s just say that Mr. Heyman got introduced to a table the hard way.
– The opening segment of tonight’s WWE RAW will see The Miz hosting Miz TV with his special guest .. Paul Heyman.
– WWE officials have been impressed with announcer Tony Dawson’s work as of late and there are plans to give him a more prominent role on television soon.
– With Team Rhodes Scholars announcing on Friday’s SmackDown that they will no longer be teaming together, it appears another WWE tag team could be splitting up soon. There has been talk of Titus O’Neil breaking off on his own, with Vince McMahon a big fan of his. Where this would leave his Prime Time Players partner Darren Young remains to be seen.
– With Rey Mysterio still making only rare WWE television appearances, Sin Cara teamed up with the Great Khali over the weekend, defeating Epico and Primo at live events over the weekend.
– There is still some buzz that Goldust could finally get his WrestleMania match against brother Cody Rhodes this year. Vince McMahon has always turned down the idea of the brother vs. brother match, but the huge reaction Goldust got at the Royal Rumble could sway things in his favor.
– Fandango worked this weekend’s WWE SmackDown live events, defeating Yoshi Tatsu.
– Also at this weekend’s (RAW) live events, CM Punk demanded to be demanded to be announced as “The People’s Champion,” and obvious shot at The Rock. There’s a good chance we’ll see this carry over on to WWE television.
– Here is this week’s WWE Backstage Fallout for Smackdown featuring Damien Sandow, Jack Swagger and more:
New WWE champion The Rock wasn’t at Sunday’s NFL Super Bowl from New Orleans, but he did have several connections to the big event, including commercials that aired during the show and a former college football teammate winning the big game. The Rock tweeted the following about Ray Lewis winning a Super Bowl championship during his final NFL game:
As Miami teammates Ray Lewis told me he'd become the greatest linebacker ever to play..
When the power went out at the Super Dome for nearly 35 minutes during the third quarter, The Rock responded to a fan that the game could use the most “electrifying” man in Sports Entertainment:
On my way..RT: @Glassjaw13: U know @TheRock could bring power back on. He's the most ELECTRIFYING MAN in ALL of entertainment #SB47"
A trailer aired during the game for The Rock’s upcoming Fast 6 movie (opening May 24th), which you can view below. Around the 37-second mark, you’ll notice The Rock delivering a Doomsday Device to a jabronie:
