The Wrestling 5 & 1 06.26.10: The Card Subject To Change Edition

BEFORE WE BEGIN…
Welcome, you will have no doubt noticed that I am not Ryan Merholz. Unfortunately Ryan has suffered a death in the family so he’s unable to be with us this week. I’m sure you’ll all join me and the rest of us here at 411 in wishing Ryan and his family our condolences at this difficult time.

So, I bet you’re all wondering who the hell this guy is? I’m your guest host this week (hey, I can’t be any worse than some of the crap Raw has had) Adam Hill. I write the 5 & 1 over in the Music Zone and don’t worry about me not knowing what I’m talking about. This may be my Wrestling zone debut but I read Small’s column this week and I figured I’d rip that off and use all his pictures – he’s totally cool with that sort of thing.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the concept of the 5 & 1 it was created by the always awesome Steve Gustafson over in the Movie Zone. We’ll be looking at five of the news stories from the last week, hopefully have a laugh and look at a bunch of hot wrestling ladies along the way, because, you know, it gets cheap hits.

Just so you know upfront, there will be no Worth Your Wealth analysis of Fatal Four Way this week. All that math makes my head hurt so I’m gonna leave that for when Ryan returns.

Right, ring the bell, let’s do this.

WHO SAID WHAT?
“Get in line, everybody and their dog wants to get into fighting. Next question. We’re talking about a heavyweight championship fight, not some wannabe.”

Brock Lesnar gave Batista a verbal F5 this week when he was asked what he thought about the rumors that The Animal was heading for the world of MMA.

Incidentally, isn’t it shame that Brock has been so successful in UFC? I can’t be the only one who would love to see him pitch up in TNA, it’d be worth it just to hear Tazz yell ‘Here comes the pain!’ all the time. Seriously though, Brock against Samoa Joe would be a pretty sweet match up don’t you think?

VS
Last week, Sarita beat the ever-living-snot out of Taylor Wilde with a crushing 46 – 21 victory.

Thanks for voting

This week, we’re kicking it old school with a match between two of the wrestling world’s most celebrated women. It’s Sunny Vs Sable. FIGHT!

Sunny vs Sable

VOTE BELOW

CELEBRITY TWITTER A-GO-GO
I didn’t bother looking for wrestling tweets this week but I reckon I can guess what was out there.

Matt Hardy made some random comments about how the WWE is keeping him down and will pay for it – people argued over if it was kayfabe or not.

Chris Jericho tweeted about Fozzy – not many people cared.

The Miz told everyone he was awesome – he is.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter:

411Mania
411Music
411Movies/TV
411Games
411Wrestling
411MMA
411Boxing

You can also follow Ryan, he’d appreciate that.

You can even follow me if you really wanted to, I don’t mind.

5 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT RICKY ‘THE DRAGON’ STEAMBOAT
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat is set to get back in the ring for the WWE at a Smackdown event in Newark, NJ. He’ll act as a special ref for the Big Show vs. Jack Swagger Steel Cage match. Now, having read this column before, I know you guys already know a heck of a lot about your favorite wrestlers but here we go, 5 things you (hopefully) don’t know about Ricky Steamboat.

1) Richard Henry Blood took his ring name as a nod to older Hawaiian wrestler Sam Steamboat

2) In 1989 The Wresting Observer awarded him 5 stars for each of his three matches with Ric Flair at The Chi-Town Rumble, Clash of the Champions VI and Wrestlewar respectively.

3). He won 24 professional wrestling titles during his time with Maple Leaf Wrestling, Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation.

4) In 1991, during his second spell with the WWF, he was undefeated on TV for the entire year yet only appeared at one PPV, Summerslam

5) After eight years of retirement, Steamboat played an important role in the genesis of TNA, where he was the referee of the first Gauntlet for the Gold for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

You learn something new every day.

VIDEO A-GO-GO!
Dixie Carter took part in a YouShoot interview the trailer for which is below.

Say what you will about Dixie, there is no doubt in my mind that this shoot interview will change the face of TNA Wrestling FOREVER.

Again.

Alright kids, tuck in with a snack because it’s time now for the legit Wrestling 5 & 1, that’s 5 tasty tidbits of news from this week, & 1 smokin’ hottie to send you all home happy!

All stories are taken from the 411 newswire.

WWE sued – nothing to do with toys or drugs
The big news this week has been the lawsuit filed by Owen Hart’s widow, Martha. She is suing WWE for continuing to use Owen Hart’s name and likeness “despite agreeing to stop upon his death.” His name was brought up during the Stu Hart Hall of Fame induction last year and Bret Hart has mentioned Owen on TV from time to time. WWE also used Owen’s name on a display at the WrestleMania AXXESS event dedicated to the Hart Family and he was also featured in the Hart & Soul DVD release. Owen matches are also scheduled to be on the upcoming RAW 1993-1994 DVD.

If you didn’t already see it, here’s the full press release on the lawsuit.

Widow of Deceased Professional Wrestler Owen Hart Files Lawsuit Against World Wrestling Entertainment, Vince McMahon & Linda McMahon

WWE continues to use Owen Hart’s Name and Image for Marketing more than 11 Years After he Was Killed in a WWE-sponsored Stunt; In Violation of Contract and Contrary to Family’s Wishes

HARTFORD, Conn., June 22 /PRNewswire/ — Martha Hart, the widow of the late Owen Hart, a professional wrestler who was killed in a May 1999 stunt orchestrated by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) today filed suit in the U.S. District Court here against WWE, Vince McMahon (current chairman and CEO) and Linda McMahon (CEO until 2009). The lawsuit alleges the WWE and the McMahons used Owen Hart’s name and likeness without right in dozens of commercial videos and other materials, violated a contract restricting the use of Owen Hart’s name, likeness and wrestling footage, and disregarded Martha Hart’s wishes against further association of her late husband’s name with WWE following his death. (Mrs. Hart and WWE settled a wrongful death lawsuit in 2000. Mrs. Hart established the Owen Hart Foundation later that year.)

“In the eleven years since Owen’s tragic and avoidable death, I have worked tirelessly to disassociate Owen’s name and likeness from anything related to WWE in order to protect our children from any reminder of the circumstances surrounding their father’s death, and to avoid any misplaced perception that I endorse WWE,” said Martha Hart in a statement.

“Unfortunately, even though WWE, Vince McMahon and Linda McMahon were and are well aware of my wishes and desire to shield my children from WWE and its activities, I was shocked to learn earlier this year that they have been using Owen’s name and likeness in videos, websites, television programs and print materials. Given this callous, insensitive and irresponsible behavior, one must question the moral character of Vince and Linda McMahon and the manner in which they conduct their business.”

According to the lawsuit filed today before the U.S. District Court in Hartford,

“Since Owen’s death, the WWE and McMahons have sought every available opportunity to further exploit Owen’s personality for their own commercial benefit. Their use of Owen’s name and likeness draws attention to the WWE’s ongoing violent and highly questionable theatrical activities that caused Owen’s death. Defendants’ use of Owen’s name and likeness is also in direct disregard of Martha’s and her children’s objections…The WWE’s wrongful use of Owen’s name and likeness, over Martha’s continuing objection to any association with defendants and in the absence of any legal right of use, creates the wrongful impression that Martha and the Estate now support, approve or condone the video (which they do not).”

The lawsuit seeks to enjoin the WWE from further use of Owen Hart’s name and likeness, and seeks unpaid royalties as well as damages for breach of contract, copyright infringement, unjust enrichment, accounting and unfair and deceptive trade practices.

Mrs. Hart is represented by the law firm Nixon Peabody LLP.

Note to Editors: A copy of the complaint can be found at www.marthahartsueswwe.com

Information on the Owen Hart Foundation can be found at www.owenhart.org

Since it was filed the WWE has made an official statement where lead attorney Jerry McDevitt claimed the lawsuit was the first time WWE has heard from Martha Hart since both sides settled Owen Hart’s wrongful death lawsuit in 2000. He also stated that “WWE has the right to use its own copyrighted material.”

McDevitt then contradicted himself the following day when he stated that several months back, Hart filed an injunction to try and prevent the Canadian release of the Hart & Soul documentary and DVD set. Ontario courts denied the injunction. McDevitt also stated “We own the copyright (to footage featuring Owen Hart) and we believe we’re fully within our rights under the contract to do exactly what we did.” McDevitt “insist[ed] that there is no provision in the 2000 settlement agreement” that would have led to WWE giving up its rights to the footage.

Now, every man and his dog who has even a passing interest in wrestling has had an opinion on this but the most sensible comment on the whole matter came from Owen’s brother Ross who said “If (WWE) exploited (Owen’s) name negatively…I can understand, but this really was a documentary about the whole family. It was done in pretty good taste, even by WWE standards.” He also stated that “Wrestling is really what made Owen famous and successful and such a legend and you can’t erase that. As tragic and wrongful as his death was, you can’t erase his legacy and what he accomplished in wrestling.”

It is worth pointing out that there is no suggestion that Martha is doing this for money, she just seems to genuinely want to remove all association her immediate family has with WWE. That said I have to agree with Ross here. The WWE have never been anything but respectful towards Owen and have never overtly tried to make money off his name – the occasions listed at the top of this piece where he has been featured or mentioned were in relation to the Hart family as a whole. It’s not like when Randy Orton announced that the recently deceased Eddie Guerrero was in hell during an angle with Rey Mysterio and it’s certainly not like WWE are marketing Owen Hart abseiling equipment or something.

It has also been suggested by some that WWE should effectively delete Owen from their history to appease Martha and respect her wishes. The problem is, that isn’t really respectful to Owen, he loved to wrestle and it was in his blood and his soul. To pretend it never happened would be a greater insult than making money off his name 11 years after his death.

What do you think?

Please don’t sue me for using this picture

Just say no to fur – and choking ring announcers with neck-ties
Daniel Bryan has found support from the most unlikely of sources as PETA Director Dan Shannon has written to Vince McMahon calling for the former NXT superstar’s re-instatement. Why have PETA come out in support of Bryan? Here’s the letter.

On behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and the WWE fans among our more than 2 million members and supporters, I’m writing to toss our name into the ring as yet another proponent of the push to bring back Daniel Bryan (Bryan Danielson). I might not personally carry the same clout as other Bryan supporters like John Cena or Shawn Michaels (although I do consider myself “The Showstopper of PETA”), but I am, along with many of my colleagues, a huge Daniel Bryan fan, not only because he humiliated the Miz and Michael Cole a few weeks back on Raw but also because he’s vegan.

Lots of athletes, including baseball slugger Prince Fielder, the NBA’s Raja Bell, MMA fighters K.J. Noons and Mac Danzig and Olympic Legend Carl Lewis, show that vegetarians often leave meat-eaters in the dust, gnawing on their greasy chicken wings as they wonder what hit them. But Bryan represents the quintessential vegan badass. He knows that unlike WWE superstars, animals beaten to a pulp by the meat industry don’t want to be there. The worst Hell in a Cell match is nothing compared to what animals in slaughterhouses go through, such as having their throats cut and being scalded alive and dismembered, often while still conscious. Even Mick Foley couldn’t withstand that kind of abuse. Just by being vegan, Bryan saves more than 100 animals a year, a feat far more impressive than any of Jack Swagger’s “accomplishments.” Savvy athletes go vegan for the health benefits, too, as they slash their risk of heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

So what do you say, Mr. McMahon? Bring back Bryan and let him prove that he belongs. And maybe there could even be a storyline romance between Bryan and the gorgeous vegan diva Tiffany! (Who, in your PETA fans’ opinion, deserves another shot at Layla.)

So basically, being a vegan outweighs chocking a man with his own tie? That’s good to know for all you vegans out there. There’s no word yet on whether this letter has made any difference at all in the whole Daniel Bryan saga (it hasn’t) but if I was Bryan, I’d be worried that PETA might use this as a way to get me to take part in one of their publicity shoots. They’re usually done in the nude.

I’d rather choke a fool with his tie

Animal wants a cage
As mentioned above, since he left WWE speculation has been rife that Batista is going to try his hand at MMA. Apparently he has been training for MMA and did talk to Strikeforce CEO Steve Coker after the Wednesday Strikeforce show. According to TMZ the major issue standing in the way of a deal between The Animal and Strikeforce is money.

Another potential problem is Batista’s availability as he’s apparently in demand for both movie and TV deals. Personally, I think it’s too late for Batista to make the switch to Mixed Martial Arts. He’s too old and his body is too prone to injury, he may be willing to fight anyone but I don’t think he’d last too long. Stick to acting big man and then you can use your awesome promo skills instead – oh, wait.

Angle to book TNA with a broken freaking neck
Kurt Angle was featured in this week’s TNA Today videos and spoke about what his future holds. Angle stated he would like to stay in TNA as an agent and creative team member when his in-ring days are through.

“Yes, I will be a part of TNA when I retire. Yes, I will be an agent. Yes, I will help out the writing team. I’ll do as much as I can for TNA,” he said. “I’ve always been able to put matches together and structure them…I take pride in that. That’s what I have to teach the younger guys.”

Yep, that’s exactly what TNA need right now, another member of creative. I could totally go for Angle as a road agent though. He is exactly the sort of guy you’d want in the locker room teaching your young superstars about psychology and ring craft. Maybe keep him off the topic of the merits of drug use though.

TV news
Sticking with TNA, their plan to have four hours of TV on Thursday’s appears to have suffered a significant blow as Spike.com has removed all mentions of TNA Reaction from their schedule. Episodes of the reality show Jail are now listed instead.

Chris Jericho’s new game show, Downfall, did a 2.0 rating and drew 5.9 million viewers for its debut episode. Word is if it can keep at that kind of level then ABC will likely stick with it. However, the show had a lot of negative signs, as it didn’t come close to keeping the lead-in show’s audience (Wipeout drew 9.5 million viewers) and lost viewers from start to finish.

The good news is that even with the relative success of Downfall, Jericho has no intention of leaving WWE any time soon. He recently did an interview for AOL Fanhouse where he discussed his contract status.

“Yeah, it’s coming up fairly soon, it’s coming up very soon. It’s one of those things we’ve been talking about for a while to get it rolling again. Like I said, to me, I’ll leave the business when I’m ready to and I’m not ready yet. I still want to continue to work. I still have some things that I can offer. I still think I’m among the best in what I do, if not the best just because of the fact I have 20 years of experience which is a rare thing nowadays. You can’t teach experience. You can teach someone to do a promo kind of, you can teach someone to do a move but you can’t teach someone experience.”

Finally, this week’s edition of Half Pint Brawlers did a 0.5 rating, with 585,000 viewers. That makes sense when you think about it, the wrestlers are half the size of TNA’s so they get half the rating.

Right enough bobbins, onto the hotness.

This week Maria Kanellis‘ song “Fantasy” was made available for download on iTunes and that’s reason enough for a little Wrestling Zone – Music Zone crossover. She was once your darling but now she belongs to me and my Music loving cronies. Gentlemen I present Maria as your &1 Model of the Week

Here’s a little bonus for you all, Maria’s song – “Fantasy”. Enjoy.

And with that, I’m outta here. Ryan will hopefully see you in seven.