The Triple Threat 4.15.07: The 45th Edition

Posted by Sean, David, Alex on 04.15.2007

My goodness can it be CM Punk a heel? Actually, yeah. Also come see what we think about Hogan vs. Big Show, WWE Music on I-Tunes, TNA's ring, and more.

Hello everyone, happy Jackie Robinson Day to you all, as baseball honors the man responsible for breaking the color barrier, we talk about the important stuff in wrestling this week. CM Punk has decided to join the New Breed, a change to Hogan vs. King, some injury bugs and more. Here's our newest edition of the Triple Threat.

Topic #1 CM Punk has finally chosen a side and he chose to turn heel and go with the New Breed. What do you think of Punk's turn? And, will this help him in the long run?


David Martell: I actually think this is a great idea mainly because I have seen a lot of his ROH stuff and he was a great heel. I think he is going to end up one of those heels that everyone loves but boos anyways such as Kennedy and Carlito back in the day. This could also lead to great matches with RVD or Sabu. This is going to be very interesting and it is keeping me coming back every week to watch ECW.

Alex Mattis: Well I knew eventually Punk would turn heel, because he is such a good one, but I felt this came too soon. His heel turn wasn't important enough, because he wasn't monster over yet. However, I have a feeling this won't last too long, either he'll double cross the New Breed and join up with the Originals or branch off and do his own thing. On the plus side, now that he's heel, he can bust out one of my favorite lines, "Straight Edge means I'm better than you!" By the way, did anyone else find it funny when RVD told Punk that they were just alike? I did.

Sean Garmer: I wasn't expecting this to happen so soon, it kind of came as a shock to me as I was watching the show on Tuesday night. I thought that Punk would pull a double swerve and act like he was going to join the New Breed and then attack them, only to actually join the Originals. I wouldn't be surprised at all if what Alex said does happen, that he just did this to end up on his own or with the Originals. He's been a heel before and his character developed further while he was on the darkside. Whether he stays heel or not will have to be seen but whatever he does, he does it well, and I hope WWE continues to have faith in him.



Topic #2 the World Tag Team titles will be defended by a real tag team against Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch at Backlash. Do you think they should have picked a different tag team to face the Hardyz?


David Martell: If it were up to me they would have the WGTT vs. the Hardyz at Backlash but I am defiantly not complaining. I am exited to see any established tag team go for the titles. This will be an interesting bout and we will get a quite entertaining match. Maybe things are starting to look up for the Tag Division. I am just hoping they will keep having the tag titles showcased at every PPV.

Alex Mattis: Well I think it's nice that the E is giving another tag team a shot at the gold on a PPV, I would have rather the World's Greatest Tag Team be in their spot, but I digress. The problem with this is that Cade & Murdoch have been job out soooo many times on Raw, to John Cena, Khali, etc. Jobbed out hardcore, like not getting any offense...at all, and tapping out to STFU's. So I feel that some fans are going to say "well there is no way that Cade and Murdoch are going to win so why should this match interest me?" Which may be unfortunate, because for as much shit I give the Hardyz I know that at times they can deliver, and Cade and Murdoch aren't that horrible, so this match may lift some eyebrows. The ideal thing to do would have Cade and Murdoch come out the week before Backlash and cut a "We're not a joke!" promo, and then squash some local jobbers. Make them look as some what of a threat heading into the PPV. On a side note, who saw the lariat that Cade delivered on Raw? Jesus Christ! I mark for lariats and this hellacious one was no exception.

Sean Garmer: I think WWE knows they have a money feud with Hardyz vs. WGTT and they may be building to that in the coming months, not that they really need to build up the Hardyz as a tag team. However, using Cade and Murdoch gives them a heel tag team to wrestle against. If the match is good enough on PPV, they may extend it another month building up that team as credible. Then they can start a feud with WGTT. If they did the money match right off the bat, it makes the tag division all about those two teams. If some other teams are built up it helps the division, and gives WWE an opportunity to involve multiple teams together. They have two weeks to make Cade & Murdoch look dominant and like they have a possible chance at beating the Hardyz. Either way, it would be a shock at the PPV if they won. I'm just happy to see the World Tag titles defended on a PPV, and the match could be a good one too.



Topic #3 After all this hoopla, was made about Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. Hulk Hogan in Memphis. WWE has denied Memphis the opportunity by removing King and all other WWE talent from the show. Now the match will be Hulk Hogan vs. Big Show. Do you think this will still draw?


David Martell: I think that it will draw some people in but I doubt a lot of people will even care too much about this show. To me, it just seems that Hogan is full of himself and thinks that he is so good that he can bring the masses just to see him compete. I honestly hope that his show fails. I bet you could find a better wrestling show in the area with indy talent.

Alex Mattis: No offense to the Big Show but this match will be worse than Hogan-Lawler. Will it draw? Yes. As much as I detest him, its Hulk Hogan, he will always draw.

Sean Garmer: Well Hogan has wanted to have this match in WWE for a while, so he finally gets to have it under his rules at an Indy show. This will probably still draw and the match could end up better because it is another Hogan vs. big man match. I understand WWE's problem here, Hogan decided to burn the bridge between the two and WWE is just getting him back. He deserves it too for all the things he's done over the years. I don't expect this to be a sell out but it will probably do well. I just hope this doesn't give Hogan ideas of joining TNA to get back at WWE. Honestly, if Hogan joins TNA it will do nothing for them, and just lead them one step closer to being WCW. Regardless of what Kurt Angle says, Hogan will pop a rating, but other than that not much else.



Topic #4 Stone Cold says that for TNA to compete against WWE, for starters they need to get rid of the six-sided ring. Do you agree with his statement?


David Martell: I honestly never cared for the six sided ring. Yeah, it is something different and new but it is nothing special. I don't think that the ring is holding TNA back from competing with the WWE. They first need to concentrate on getting a two hour time slot so they can make a wrestling show that is worth watch and hopefully have more wrestling. They have to build stars and make better storylines. There's a lot of things TNA has to do but changing the ring doesn't really affect anything.

Alex Mattis: A lot of people agree with this, and I have had this told to me many times, but I tend to disagree. When someone watches TNA for the first time they automatically know they are watching something different, until the talent comes out...But the 6-sided ring have offered some cool advantages, most often displayed by the X-Division, and in the 6 Sides of Steel. I can see pro's and con's on both sides of the argument, I heard Scotty Riggs and a radio show say "They've got good wrestling, but it looks like it's in circus with that ring." Or something along those lines. If TNA changed their booking, and starting producing a good and different TV show in addition to the 6 sided ring, then they could truly proclaim themselves as the alternative.

Sean Garmer: I'm a traditionalist and I prefer the four sided ring myself. However, the six sided ring is used in Lucha and it helps TNA make itself look different from WWE. The six sided ring does provide a couple of different angles that you can do moves from, but basically, you can do anything in a four sided that you can do in a six sided. Again, all the six sided does is make them look different, and that's something that is helpful. Well, until people notice all the ex WWE talent on that show. Anyway, the ring is not the problem with TNA, and these two pretty much described it's issues, so I don't think it needs to be restated.


Fun Topic of the Week: WWE released their WWE Music Volume 7 exclusively on I-Tunes and not on a CD. Does this show that WWE lacks confidence in it's merchandise selling?



David Martell: I don't think they are lacking confidence I just see this as WWE trying to get into the I-pod thing. CDs aren't really as popular these days and downloading music is the big thing. Who knows, they might be able to make more money this way.

Alex Mattis: In the wrestling business the money is in the merchandising, and the E is banking off of T-Shirts and DVD's so I don't think they have lost any confidence.

Sean Garmer: Well if you look at the list of songs there are no big stars listed that they could use to sell the CD. They don't have anyone that would make it appeal to the broad audience, since this is mainly for the WWE faithful anyway, it is probably better that they put this on I-Tunes. David also has a point about CD's not being as popular, and that downloading singles are all the rage. I think it's a little bit of both, but maybe if the singles sell well, we will see the next installment on CD once again.


Topic #6 King Booker and Hardcore Holly are both being written off shows for now, due to nagging injuries. Do you think they will be missed?


David Martell: Of course these guys will be missed. Hardcore Holly was a great addition to ECW, and had some of the better matches on the shows run and King Booker is just awesome. They will both be missed but I don't think they will be gone for to long. We are just going to have to wait for their return.

Alex Mattis: It's always good for wrestler's to do this so they can get back to 100%, as for them being missed, Booker wasn't doing much lately, but with the way he was written off it looks like he may be going for the gold when he returns. Holly wasn't over, so I don't think people are going to care too much, I personally like Holly, so get well soon Sparky Plug.

Sean Garmer: King Booker will be missed because his character is awesome and he is a good wrestler as well, that can get a good match out of most people. I do hope he gets to go for the belt again when he returns. Hardcore Holly is a veteran that's been around a while. I'm sure many won't miss him, but I hate to see anyone go down due to injury. Hardcore Holly is still a guy that can put on a decent match and he likes to beat the crap out of people. Get well soon guys.



Topic # 7 TNA Lockdown is on Sunday. What do you think of the card?


David Martell: The card looks to be decent but I am not very excited about this PPV at all. I think the blind fold match and the electric cage match are ridiculous and should be removed. The Team Cage vs. Team Angle match has potential and I hope that in the end it's good. I am also looking forward to the Starr vs. Senshi match. Looks like a decent card but it could also end up a disaster.

Alex Mattis: TNA has been in a slump of not producing the great PPV's they are known for, but with this card, and the fact that it is taking place outside of Orlando (that makes a big difference to me) I feel they may pull themselves out of this slump. Let's break the show down match by match.

VKM Vs. Hemme's Team - Unless Kip does some more male shovanistic things, this is a snack break. My prediction: VKM

Austin Starr Vs. Senshi - One of the best feud's TNA has right now, and their match last month was very good even with that stupid stipulation, and this is just a regular match, exclude the cage, so they may tear the house down. When they had a one-on-one match on iMpact I thought to myself "Why on free TV?" but they then realized it was to show that neither Senshi nor Starr is cool with Backlund as the ref that was actually kind of smart for TNA. Anyway, yea this should be great. My prediction: Austin Starr

Gail Kim Vs. Jackie Moore - This women can wrestle so this may be a pleasant surprise, either way should be really short and don't expect anything spectacular. My prediction: Gail Kim

Robert Roode Vs. Petey Willams - Could and should be an awesome match, but what is most likely to happen is the match is going to be over booked with a bunch of meaningless garbage thrown it, I begging to be proven wrong though. My prediction: Robert Roode.

Jerry Lynn Vs. Christopher Daniels - It's going to be interesting to see if Daniels wrestles a different style to fit his new character, I saw that he brought the Last Rites back...Fuck Yeah! I love that move! But yeah, Daniels is about to feud with Sting and looks like a badass and for those two reason and those two reasons ONLY CD will get the W. My prediction: The Fallen Angel

Chris Harris Vs. James Storm - If this wasn't a blindfold match it might have been good. For this match I would recommend driving to Wendy's and trying the new 4-Alarm Spicy Chicken sandwich, it's so fuckin good. My prediction: Deliciousness

X-Division Xscape Match - The first two Xscape matches were bad and had even worse endings. Each of those matches had people that didn't belong and this one isn't an exception...Shark Boy? COME ON! This should be a fun spot fest though. Hopefully this year will have a good finish, with Alex Shelley hold the title above his head. Putting aside being fanboy for Shelley, I think he actually has a shot of winning, if not him then Sabin retains. My prediction: Alex Shelley or Chris Sabin

LAX Vs. Team 3D - Dear lord Jesus, I can not wait for this feud to be over. The match should be ok the Dudley's are pretty terrible these days so it's hard telling what kind of performance we will get, LAX will bring it, the rest is in Team 3D's hands. The "electrified" gimmick is pretty dumb, seeing as how a 5 year old knows you can get killed from being electrocuted, so I don't know who is buying into this one. A way to save it would be to go the FMW route, when someone gets thrown into the cage the whole ring blows up. Oh, man that would be sweet! My prediction: LAX

Lethal Lockdown - Should be a fun brawl. This match has got some serious name power in it, for TNA at least. The hype for this one is there, I just hope it doesn't disappoint. Expect blood, weapons, Samoa Joe killing someone, and hopefully AJ does something insane like last year. The main thing I could see going wrong with this match, is Jeff Jarrett getting the pin over Christian and getting the title shot...man would that suck. My prediction: Team Angle

Overall, expect a good show.

Sean Garmer: Oh Alex, you should go work for Wendy's telling everyone to go buy that sandwich ha ha. Lethal Lockdown was great last year, and we should see a repeat here, Jerry Lynn vs. CD could be another one, along with Senshi vs. Starr. Other than that, an electrified cage and blindfold matches? If Jake Roberts is not under the blindfold, they should not be having one of those. Either way this could turn out good or terribly bad. Let's hope for TNA that it's the former.


Match of the Week Nominees: Mickie James & Candice vs. Melina & Victoria, Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels (RAW), Chris Benoit vs. MVP, Kennedy & Finlay vs. Taker & Batista (SmackDown).

Explanation: Since we talk about the PPV's every time they happen. We thought it would be a good idea to recognize the best TV match every week. So the only things under consideration for Match of the Week are RAW, ECW, TNA Impact, and SmackDown. If we happen to all attend an Indy show then we might mention it on there as well, but, this will mostly be based on matches you see on television.

David Martell: Chris Benoit vs. MVP

Alex Mattis: Shawn Michaels vs. Randy Orton

Sean Garmer: Chris Benoit vs. MVP



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Our Indy Scene

Alex Mattis: I was pretty disgusted with what happened at the CZW show last weekend. To start Chris Hero lost the "Loser Leaves CZW" match against his archrival Eddie Kingston, which we all saw coming, seeing as how he is on to bigger and better things, thus writing the final chapter in their near three-year feud. After the match Zandig came out and was apparently was suppose to slap King, but King left the ring. Zandig then proceeded to publicly fire Eddie Kingston. I thought it was a work, but it turns out it was legit. This was fucked up on so many levels. First off, I HATED Eddie Kingston when I first started watching him, but eventually came to the realization that yeah he's no Bryan Danielson in the ring, but his passion, charisma, and often excellent promo's cover up his short comings in the rings, and he isn't that bad in the ring. In addition, his color commentary is quite entertaining; one of my all time favorite calls was in the Joe-Necro match following a sick Ole Ole kick from Joe to Necro, Kingston screams "He done kicked him right in the fuckin neck!" Ahhh classic, so back to my original point, Kingston gave everything to CZW, he's not a death match worker and worked sick death matches for Zandig. And even putting all that aside, the Kingston-Hero feud has been on the best feuds on the indy's it the past few years, and I'm not just saying that as a Hero mark. I've heard some compare it to the legendary Raven-Tommy Dreamer feud. I don't know if I would go that far, but any feud that goes three years and doesn't grow stale, has something special. Hero and King had some great matches together, and I heard this final one was the best so I can't wait to see it. This is just classic Zandig though, possibly the biggest feud CZW has had, the biggest win perhaps of Kingston's career and you want to come down and steal the spotlight. Then publicly fire someone who has given you some much? Egomaniac, things got weirder when Zandig went off about how there are "five fans" talking shit about CZW's booking on CZW's fan forums. Well there are much more than just "five fans" talking shit, and to shoot on fans from your FAN FORUM, pretty dumb because now some of them are boycotting the CZW product. I knew that the Combat Zone most likely was going to be around much longer, but this may have sped up the phasing out process. When you go from drawing 1000 fans to 250-300 per show, I think there are more than "five fans" not satisfied with your product. The same night all this happened Jigsaw left the company as did CZW's booker, who is close with Kingston. The something rare, someone show loyalty in the wrestling business. The unfortunate part of all this is that it is the wrestling business, and this could all be just a work...which in turn would disgust me even more. For the mean time King, I wish you all the luck in the world.

Final Note:
This one goes to Matt Serra, HOLY SHIT man, way to go. Congratulations. Possibly the biggest upset in MMA history, but now comes the hard part, keeping the title.

Now! Time for Feedback


Our first feedback this week comes from Blues Ux He wanted to state his opinion on the Cena vs. HBK match from Mania 23.

hi, my name is blues, long time reader. so, i just read this weeks column, and im glad im not the only one here who thought the main event of wrestlemania was disappointing. everyone is praising it and all that crap, and they are entitled to their opinions and blah blah blah, but that match sucked. i was yawning so many times the first 15 minutes but when the counters started, that was cool. i didn't really pay attention to Cena selling the knee, maybe i should watch again to check it out, but the ending was the worst finish, especially since they did the same lasy year!! i dont know what match everyone was watching, but the match in total, the ending, the result and even Cena's damn entrance was crap. taker/batista was better, money in the bank was cool as hell. so yeah, thats pretty much all i wanted to say, good columnn this week fellas, later...


David Martell: I agree with everything you said. I thought the match was very disappointing and it left me with no excitement after the PPV ended. I still enjoyed this year's Wrestlemania it just didn't end with the right match. Thanks for writing.

Sean Garmer: I agree that the ending ruined the match some because they couldn't be original with it. The match itself, the pacing could have been better, but I wasn't bothered by the way it was done with the big build up. I liked Cena's entrance it was kinda cool with the car crashing into the glass. Thanks for reading man, and I hope to see you write to us again.


Our last feedback comes from our loyal follower John Bryant Bateman

Anyway onto my Dream match. It's my version of Lethal Lockdown. infact it's TNA VS WWE(what does Linkous have a copyright?). Staring for Team TNA: Krazy Kurt,Christian Cage,Scott Steiner,Jeff Jarrett & Samoa Joe. vs for Team WWE: MR. Kennedy,Chris Benoit,EDGE,Bobby Lashley,CM Punk and Marcus Cor Von. now the only difference in this match is that i'm taking the concept of Lethal Lockdown and mixes it with the rules of the old school Survivor Series match. which means pinfalls and Submissions are only allowed when the roof is lowered. but eliminations occur until one team's entire 5 man team is eliminated.


Sean Garmer: This is a nice match concept, except I'm going to remove Marcus CorVon because that would make WWE's team have six members. The first person eliminated would have to be Scott Steiner since he's the most inept out of all these guys. I have feeling that Mr. Kennedy would be the first to go from team WWE. Jeff Jarrett finds a way to screw CM Punk, but then gets the crap beat out of him by Bobby Lashley. Angle eliminates Benoit by making him tap out to the Ankle Lock. However, EDGE decides to take out his "brother" Christian out of jealousy of him being NWA champ. However, Christian doesn't leave quietly and allows Angle to eliminate EDGE too. Lashley is left against Joe & Angle. Looks almost impossible right? Well, not when Marcus Cor Von is waiting in the wings to give Samoa Joe a pounce through a table. Lashley vs. Angle to end this thing, as hard as Lashley tries, he can't keep Kurt down, and Angle gets the pin after a crazy 15 minutes with Lashley.



Well that is all for this week folks. Thanks everyone for reading. Well let us know what your opinions are with some feedback. It's always good to have someone else to argue with besides these guys. Thanks everyone for the feedback, it's greatly appreciated, and let's us know, people read this column on 411. I'm sorry for not linking, I didn't have time, I promise I'll have it next week. See everyone here next week. Ciao Triple Threaters.


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