The Triple Threat 8.23.09: The 153rd Edition - Summerslam, Kurt Angle's Arrest, Knockout Tag Belts, More

Posted by David Martell on 08.23.2009

This week we preview Summerslam, talk about Kurt Angle's arrest, TNA bringing in Knockout Tag Belts, Taz taking over commentating duties from Don West, and William Regal creating a stable on ECW. Dolph Ziggler is our Superstar Highlight. Please enjoy!




Topic # 1 Summerslam is this Sunday. What are your thoughts on the card?

David Martell: This is probably the best Summerslam card I have seen in quite some time. The only match on the card that looks to be bad is Kane vs. Khali. Usually big man vs. big man doesn't work and this is possibly the worst combination. It should be terrible and I bet it will be the match between the two title bouts to calm the crowd down. Other than that, the card looks pretty solid. The Legacy vs. DX has the potential to be good unless they decided to let DX squash The Legacy. That would be the usual case but I have a feeling that things are going to be different this time around. With the need to put over new stars on RAW I could see a swerve here. Of course that is very unlikely. I see DX winning here but not in typical squash fashion. MVP vs. Swagger could be great if given time but I have a feeling it wont get that time to shine. Swagger is a future world champ and there is no better time than now to make him look good. Once again, RAW needs to build new stars and what better way to do that then to let MVP and Swagger have a long solid match. Swagger will win here and soon enough he will get a shot at the US title. Big Show and Jericho vs. Cryme Tyme should be a lot of fun and I bet we are going to see a lot of false finishes. I know they are going to make Cryme Tyme look great hear but I don't think they are going to win. I have a feeling Jericho and Big Show will be facing DX at the next PPV. Dolph Ziggler vs. Rey should be another solid match for the both of them and I have a feeling Dolph is going to break out here. I don't know exactly if he is going to win but he will at least come close. Regal vs. Christian for the ECW title should be good if given the proper time. Regal actually looks like a threat here with his new found friends on ECW and I wouldn't be surprised if he won because of that. John Cena vs. Randy Orton is a big match even though the main event on RAW has been stale. It seems like WWE might take the strap off of Orton which wouldn't exactly be a bad idea. Orton is one of my favorites but his run with the title has been pretty awful. They havent really given him the chance to win clean and it is sad to say that John Cena might be the more interesting champion at this time. CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy for the World Title in a TLC should be fantastic. No doubt this will be the best match on the card. CM Punk will win here in what should be a slobber knocker! The only thing I want more is for Undertaker to return. The card looks great and is a must buy.

Zach Brown: Summerslam is pretty hard to resist this year. But am I missing something? Where is Kofi Kingston? He's all over the poster and the commercials, but no US Title defense? It's a little odd. But let's get into the card. Christian vs. Regal could be one of the sleeper hits of the night. I expect it to be good, but I don't expect WWE to give them a whole lot of time to shine, which would be too bad. Swagger vs. MVP is another decent offering that could be one of the best matches on the card. I'll be pulling for Swagger to win and end up being the #1 contender for Kofi Kingston. The Great Khali vs. Kane is a match that I can't understand at all. Why is this match on the card? It's going to be awful, plain and simple. DX vs. Legacy could be somewhat decent, but I think it's pretty obvious that a returning DX will win. Cryme Tyme vs. Big Show and Jericho should be a great match and it looks to be the beginning of a pretty good feud. I expect Jeri and Show to win here, but with the use of heel tactics. Hardy vs. Punk should be the best match on the card. This is definitely a top contender for best feud of 2009, and I think this will be the best match between the two. If Hardy really is taking a break after Summerslam, I expect him to pull out all the stops for this match, and to be written off TV with a pretty sick spot. And lastly, I have no idea if Cena vs. Orton will be all that great, but it is arguably WWE's top face vs. their top heel. And if that doesn't have marquee value, I don't know what does. I've wanted a full blown feud between these two for a while now, so hopefully this match will kick off a fantastic feud. Overall, Summerslam looks to be one of WWE's best cards of 2009. I expect that both big belts will get new champions, and it is a definite must buy in my eyes.


Topic # 2 What are your thoughts on Kurt Angle‘s arrest?

David Martell: How unfortunate for him and TNA. When I first heard of this incident I couldn't believe how stupid Kurt Angle was being. After I watched his news interview about the situation I changed my mind. I am not going to say that Kurt Angle's side of the story if completely true but he sure is convincing. TNA is in a very bad position right now and Kurt Angle's life just seems to be getting worse. With the Jarrett/Karen Angle fiasco, Sting on his way out and Kurt Angle having problems with the law, TNA is in a bad state. With all that said, what better time to start building new stars. They really have no choice at this point. I feel awful for Kurt's situation but it going to be awhile for things to be back to normal for him. Only time will tell when all this gets settled and hopefully when its all said and done, Kurt can come back better than ever.

Zach Brown: I think this is terrible news. First of all, I recommend everyone go watch Kurt Angle's interview about this. There's a link to it on the The MeeThinks Friday FreeThinks. Meehan has some good points on it, and it's worth both reading and watching. When this story first broke, it's hard not to think that it was just the latest in Kurt's downward spiral. But the interview really makes you remember that Kurt Angle is a human being just like anyone else. If what Kurt's saying is true, then Rhaka Khan is a pretty spiteful person. I can't help but feel bad for Kurt throughout all of this. I don't think Kurt deserves any sort of ridicule for this. Even if he bears any guilt (which I honestly don't believe he does), the only reason people pounce on a guy like Kurt is because he is famous. Successful people like him are always under scrutiny from the media and public opinion in general. When an average person spends a night in jail, the entire world doesn't judge them for it, and it's really not fair that anyone does it to Kurt either. I just hope that Kurt was completely honest in the interview. And hopefully, he is actually using HGH to treat his neck. After all, a technical wrestler like Kurt Angle does not need to be big. All in all, I expect Kurt Angle to bounce back from this, and start turning his life around as a result.

Topic # 3 What are your thoughts on TNA having Tag Team belts for their womens division?

David Martell: Well they have the women's division to do this but I really think TNA is getting kind of bloated with titles. The WWE has eight titles between three different brands and TNA will have seven on one brand if you count the IWGP tag belts and the added addition of the Knockouts tag belts. That's way to many title belts to go around. Soon enough everyone on the show will be holding some kind of gold. Even though I believe that TNA has an excellent women's division, is it really necessary to have tag straps? Is there really enough women's tag teams around to have such a title? Just seems a bit unnecessary.

Zach Brown: This is pretty interesting. Aside from SHIMMER, has any other promotion had a women's tag team championship? Hopefully, TNA will call up some people from SHIMMER to help round out their women's division. But the obvious first choice to hold these new belts would be The Beautiful People. I would expect them to have it for a good stretch of time. The success of this division would definitely rely on the booking and simply how into it the crowd will be. Considering how lukewarm most wrestling crowds are towards women's matches, it could end up being a failed experiment. And for a single 2 hour show, they certainly have a lot of belts. A Heavyweight title, the X Division title, the Tag Titles, occasionally the IWGP tag championship, the Legends title, a Women's title, and now a Women's tag title? Having to keep up with 7 championships and lesser feuds could make Impact seem more crowded than it already is. I honestly don't have the answer for how TNA can make this work, but I hope it ends up being a strong division nonetheless.

Topic # 4 How do you feel about Taz taking over commentary for Don West in TNA?

David Martell: This is not really a big surprise to me and it will make their announce team so much better. I always thought Don West was god awful and his voice would never stop during every match, just got annoying. Taz, on the other hand, is a great color commentator and will fit perfectly in this position. With that said, I really don't understand why he left the WWE. I am sure he was getting paid way more to do the same job in the WWE. Supposedly he is happy in TNA so I guess that's good enough for me. I believe Don is going to be playing more of a back stage role which is great for him. Just because I didn't like the guy commentating doesn't mean he has nothing to offer the company because at this point they need all the help they can get.

Zach Brown: I think this is incredibly disappointing. I've never thought Don West has been the absolute best at commentary, but he's certainly put in his time in TNA. Don isn't exactly JR when it comes to commentary, but I think Don West is far better than Mike Adamle or Michael Cole. He doesn't deserve to be removed from the commentary table simply because TNA signed Taz. For lack of a better term, it's just not fair to Don. The guy has been there for several years. Is Taz arguably a more talented commentator? Sure. But Don West recently adopted this heel persona of his, and if anything else, it shows he cares about his job. Taz is just in it for the pay check. It's just sad because clearly TNA values marketability far more than loyalty. I hope Don finds another job in TNA that will suit him well, because I honestly don't want him to leave the company.

Topic # 5 It seems that a stable is being form by William Regal on ECW that include Koslov and Big Zeke. Your thoughts?

David Martell: It is not every day that a stable gets formed and this one is quite intriguing. Although the stable isn't formed of the best group of wrestlers, they sure do look intimidating. It seems that Regal is actually a threat for the ECW title now and with two big meat heads on his side who is going to stop him from taking the strap? I am almost confident in saying that Regal might actually win the belt at Summerslam. If not there, he will definitely win at Breaking Point. I wonder if at some point Regal's lackeys will get a shot at the tag straps. I guess it is a bit too soon to think that but the more tag teams going for the straps the better. It seems like fun and it sure is keeping me interesting in the ECW brand.

Zach Brown: What is WWE going to call this group? The Squashers? All kidding aside, these are some of the most physically threatening wrestlers in WWE. So it makes sense that they band together. But really, who could stand a chance against a team like this? I'd like to see what WWE could do with a storyline with stables on a one hour show. Sure, we had the New Breed vs. The ECW Originals, but we all know how well that turned out. Hopefully, this run with stables will be more successful. With Regal being their mouthpiece, and Koslov and Zeke killing everything in sight, I'll probably find this stable pretty entertaining.



Superstar Highlight

Dolph Ziggler


Our thoughts on Dolph Ziggler.

David Martell: It is crazy to think that Dolph Ziggler is still around because when he started it was almost like he was destined to fail. Shaking the hands of every wrestler backstage as a gimmick was terrible but he took the gimmick by the horns and turned it into something legit. Dolph Ziggler has showed me that he is a pretty damn good wrestler and he a pretty damn good heel. Playing the cocky heel is perfect for him and he also has the type of character that could easily turn face at any time. I think his match with Rey at Summerslam is going to be a break out match for him. He is destined to win the IC belt at some point. Working with wrestlers like Rey Mysterio and Chris Jericho will give him the opportunity to become a better worker and a legit title contender. WWE has been plastering him all over Smackdown lately so it seems that WWE also has faith in Dolph. Dolph is still very green but has the potential to even one day hold the big belt. We all have to wait and see.

Zach Brown: This is a prime example of a wrestler being given a shitty gimmick and making the most out of it. The Spirit Squad was doomed for failure, but good ‘ol Dolph knew he was destined for greater things. After a solid 3 months of simply shaking everyone's hand and becoming a joke character, Dolph is being given a much more serious run nowadays. And I'm pretty glad to see it happen. He is a talented heel, and I tend to really like his matches. And I think his finisher is cool as well, whatever the hell that thing is. That…back jumping… make the opponent fall down…move…But whatever it is, it's pretty inventive and fresh. His program with Rey is building steam, and I think he definitely has an IC title win in his near future. I think the best thing to happen to Dolph was his move to Smackdown. If this kid was on Raw, he wouldn't see the light of day. Hell, even Kofi Kingston has trouble getting screen time on that show. So I'm glad that Dolph was given some time to grow on Smackdown. This kid has a bright future. And with other solid guys like John Morrison and Tyson Kidd coming up the ranks, we will have an exciting main event scene in the next decade or so.


That is all for this week. Have a great week in wrestling and leave us feedback at the bottom of the page if you like. CYA!