The Triple Threat 5.06.07: The 47th Edition

Posted by Sean, David, Alex on 05.06.2007

Wow this column has lasted a whole year, and we are still in a state of shock. We talk about ROH, Backlash, and Randy Orton too. So don't miss this one folks.

Hello everyone, it is another week here in the wrestling world. WWE got a big blow after a very good PPV in Backlash. Undertaker is injured and now WWE has a problem to deal with, who to make World champion. We have some ROH talk since they got a PPV and VOD deal and even Randy Orton going somewhere, all on this edition of our one year anniversary of the Triple Threat.

Topic #1 WWE Backlash was last Sunday. What did you think of the show?


David Martell: I didn't get to see this.

Alex Mattis: I have not yet seen this PPV but from what I gather it seemed like a rather solid PPV that I wouldn't mind checking out, especially for the four way match.

Sean Garmer: I didn't get to see it, but from everything I've read it's PPV of the year at the moment. Every match was good and the main event delivered as well. Sadly, they don't seem to be going with HBK vs. Cena in favor of Khali vs. Cena (that just sucks) and with Taker's injury, Judgment probably won't be as good as this. I would recommend buying the DVD for sure.


Topic #2 There was only one title change at the show. Do you feel there should have been any others?


David Martell: The only title change I really wanted to happen was the WWE Title. I am kind of bored watching Cena with the belt each and would like to see a heel champ because to me, they are always more entertaining. The feuds are also better when the face is chasing the heel for the belt. I wasn't actually happy with Vince winning the ECW title but I wont lie, It is kind of interesting.

Alex Mattis: So Vince McMahon is the ECW Heavyweight champion...there are so many things wrong with that sentence, but I'm glad Batista didn't get the belt back, but it looks like he is going to anyway, and of course I was ecstatic the John "6 Moves" Cena retained his title. Not. I really shouldn't be hard on Cena though, the match he and HBK had on Raw blew my mind, it showed that if you watch long enough Cena can do something good.

Sean Garmer: I was expecting MVP to get the U.S. Title but WWE surprised us by having Benoit barely escape. This sets up for one final big match-up between the two at Judgment Day where MVP can get the title. Very happy to see Taker kept the belt, but sadly due to injury, he's going to lose it again. I expected Cena to hold the title and that he did in a very good four way match. Obviously, the biggest surprise was Vince winning the ECW title. I know a lot of people are pissed about this, but Vince knows it's not good for him to hold a title I expect him to keep it no longer than Judgment Day. He's probably doing this to keep the fans behind Lashley because they seem to lose him when he's in matches. I think this only becomes an issue if Vince keeps it longer than the next PPV. I wouldn't be surprised if he loses it to RVD on Tuesday to give him an incentive to stay with WWE. Last time Vince had the WWE title he vacated it after four days, Vince won't keep the ECW title too long either.


Topic #3 ROH finally got a PPV and VOD deal. How long do you think it's going to take them to get a proper TV deal? And with this ending all ties with TNA, what does do to TNA talent looking for extra money?


David Martell: This is defiantly great for ROH but bad for the wrestlers working for TNA. ROH will get the chance to gain more fans from all over the US, this is a good way to get there product out there and to gain money. On the other hand, this is bad for TNA wrestlers. A lot of wrestlers at TNA go to ROH regularly to make some extra money. It seems that soon TNA will make sure none of there wrestlers will do any indy shows. I feel bad for the young wrestlers because it seems as if they don't really make that much money.

Alex Mattis: YAY! I was very happy to hear this news. This is as big of a deal as when ECW had there first PPV, if not bigger. In addition I believe this is where KENTA-Danielson III is going to happen, that's enough to sell me. As far as a TV deal goes, I don't think their product would translate that well to a mainstream audience and they wouldn't change the product because then they would lose their hardcore fan base. TNA guys gone? Shit happens, but Gabe has been preparing for this, ever going as far as writing TNA guys out of ROH (Chris Daniels). The one who is screwed in all of this is Aries; he can't work in either promotion for 3 months now. AND TNA guys can no longer work PWG shows, which is bad. But like ROH, PWG has their own guys and the TNA guys are just seen as guys who come around once and a while. The independent wrestling scene is large so TNA guys won't have a hard time finding work. IWA-MS, JAPW, etc.

Sean Garmer: This is good for ROH because they are the best Indy promotion around and they deserve a deal like this. I hope this continues to allow them to be successful, so they can get a television deal. I think within a year or two we could see a third national promotion on the horizon. If you don't think this worries TNA, you must be kidding yourself because their fan base is very similar. TNA talent now have to go somewhere out of the country or not as big to make themselves some extra money. As Alex mentioned, Austin Aries isn't helped by this at all as now he can't go back to his old stomping grounds to work either. Again, good job ROH.



Topic #4 Undertaker tore his bicep in his match with Batista and will be out six to eight months. A title match has been set for next week in a cage. Should WWE keep the title on Batista or have Kennedy use his MITB that same night?


David Martell: Even though I am not a big Batista fan I want him to carry the title because I really want Kennedy to turn in his title shot at Wrestlemania. If it was up to me I would let Batista carry the title till Undertaker gets back, let Undertaker win it back and then let Kennedy beat Undertaker at Wrestlemania. I want Kennedy to go to the top and the best way to do this is to beat the Undertaker for the title at Wrestlemania. Not only will this make him huge it will also make him remembered forever in wrestling history. This moment would be a true Wrestlemania moment I just hope it happens.

Alex Mattis: Well this sucks, I was looking forward to a dominant title reign from the dead man. Taker seems to be quite prone to injury. I hate to say it, but I would rather see Batista win it than Kennedy for the simple fact that I think it is genius to have Kennedy have the long road to WrestleMania, I love long-term booking.

Sean Garmer: Yeah this does suck big time, because SmackDown's main event scene got significantly smaller. The problem now becomes what do you do? Because right now all they have is Batista, Kennedy, and Finlay. Batista vs. Kennedy already happened twice, so that feud won't be very fresh, and Batista vs. Finlay is not too fresh either. This is why they need to have Benoit lose the US title and raise him to the main event to at least give you a core of four people. This sure makes me miss Rey Mysterio and King Booker right about now. As much as this sucks for Undertaker, I hope he comes back safe and better than ever. Look, I know WWE is doing this countdown to Wrestlemania with Kennedy, but WWE knew about the injury on Monday Night when Kennedy came out to say he wasn't going to pull an "EDGE" and take the belt after a big match. However, a Cage match sure sounds like a similar position for Kennedy, especially because WWE doesn't seem to be too high on Batista right now. EDGE actually said the same thing when he won the MITB, and I don't expect Kennedy to go to Wrestlemania without cashing that in either.


Fun Topic of the Week: If ROH did have a TV deal, do you think it could equal TNA's ratings rather quickly?



David Martell: This would be hard to determine because it would all determine on what channel it was on and how well the channel is promoting it. Even with all of that I still believe that TNA would get better ratings because they are more known to the non-wrestling world. I am all for ROH being on TV I hope it happens one day.

Alex Mattis: Absolutely. The TNA audience I think would like the ROH product, and even a few E marks may have their heads turned.

Sean Garmer: Yes, totally because like I mentioned before they have the same audience. They could in fact eclipse it with the hardcore ROH fans and the fans that TNA killed when they changed the format of their show to more story and less wrestling. The thing is, they won't change their product to fit more of a television style so that might be their downfall. However, you can't pronounce them dead before they even have the chance to have a say.


Topic #6 With Taker's injury there has been speculation that Randy Orton will be sent to SmackDown as punishment and to put someone notable on SmackDown. Should WWE do this?


David Martell: This might be a good idea for the fact that they are lacking some of their big names. I wouldn't mind this because they could always make a feud out of Batista and Orton. We really have to wait and see what happens.

Alex Mattis: I wouldn't be too fond of this right now, but when Triple H comes back it might be a smart idea for Randall to work on Friday nights. He won't go anywhere on Raw once Hunter Hearst Hitler returns. But with Taker gone this is a perfect opportunity for the E to make some new stars on Smack Down, and I don't mean Deuce & Domino.

Sean Garmer: Orton always seems to get lucky. Just when it seems like WWE can do without him and truly punish him for his mistakes, he gets a break. WWE suddenly needs him again, so they couldn't let him go if they wanted. Still, I don't really know if this is such a good idea because Triple H is still injured so that would leave the main event scene consisting of John Cena, EDGE, and HBK. I'm not counting Khali because he's incompetent on all levels and Umaga kinda sticks with Vince wherever he goes so you don't know how long this thing with Lashley is going to last. This is where a built up Carlito, Johnny Nitro, or Shelton Benjamin would help the cause. Unlike SmackDown where they can move up Benoit, RAW has no one they can trust to go towards the main event. SmackDown also can't afford to lose Kennedy at the moment either because of Taker's injury. Sounds like WWE's main event scene is in a hole, unless WWE decides to move Lashley temporarily to RAW to fill the void then they could move Orton to SmackDown and kill two birds with one stone there. Other than that, they should probably keep Orton where he's at.


Topic # 7 Should TNA have kept the main event of their next PPV Christian vs. Sting or do you like the Triple Threat addition with Kurt Angle?


David Martell: I am alright with the triple threat but I wish they would give some home grown TNA talent some title shots. It seems like its always just old WWE guys and old WCW guys getting the chance at the top. The match does seem like it would be interesting though.

Alex Mattis: AHHH damn you TNA's writing team! I have wanted to see Christian Vs. Sting since Hard Justice back in August; I guess they will never have to one-on-one match I so badly want to see. I love Angle in the ring but I feel it would have made a lot more sense to have Angle-AJ one-on-one for the number one contender spot. By the way, where is Samoa Joe in all of this?

Sean Garmer: Yes, they should have, mainly because Kurt Angle has no reason to be in the title picture. He didn't earn a title-shot, he's just been complaining about not getting one. So, on that reason he gets in? Well does that mean if Shark Boy complained, he'd get one too. Since JJ is involved in a smaller feud, as he works his way up the ladder to ultimate facedom. Kurt Angle can't face Samoa Joe (who seems absent from TNA at the moment), Steiner and Tomko are now in the tag division (which is probably a smart move), and Rhino and Truth are out of it. So I guess Angle is in this because they had nothing else for him to do. Still, they could have actually given him a reason for being in the match. They also took too long to get to announce the main event itself.


Match of the Week Nominees: Randy Orton vs. EDGE, Umaga vs. RVD (RAW), #1 Contender Extreme Rules Fatal-4-Way RVD vs. Sabu vs. Sandman vs. Tommy Dreamer (ECW), Matt Hardy vs. Mr. Kennedy (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: Randy Orton vs. EDGE

Alex Mattis: Randy Orton vs. EDGE

Sean Garmer: Randy Orton vs. EDGE



Shout Outs to our 411 Wrestling Crew



Ari's Column of Honor Is the place to go for all of your ROH needs.

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Truth B Told Bayani Domingo has those Asian girls looking good. He furthers on what I talked about last week how a European international brand could work for WWE. He also explains on the two reasons why it won't, I'm willing to bet Vince's ego is one of them. Truly this was a very informative and entertaining read, and should go check it out now.

Remember that Hidden Highlights is out there too. Go read JT & JP's column that show's you all the little details of a wrestling show. I can't link them because they come out at the same time I need to turn this column into the system. So there is a link here in spirit.

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Don't forget about High/Low Road Sat & Uncle Trunx discuss the Fatal-4-Way match from Backlash

Shining the Spotlight Michael Weyer discusses DVD's that should be. Wrestlers that are long overdue for DVD's such as Booker T, Macho Man, Ricky Steamboat, and even Sting. Who else are included and what matches and things could they talk about? You should read this to find out.

Top Ten Julian Williams is here with his Top Ten Upset Victories


Special shout out to the Andy Clark who's doing the Shimmy on Monday.



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I guess one thing you may not know about me (Sean) is that I love Soccer. So I feel it necessary to give links to our soccer compatriots here at 411.

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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. See everyone here next week. Ciao Triple Threaters.


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