The Wrestling News Experience: 11.10.08

Posted by Stephen Randle on 11.10.2008

The Main Event Mafia overruns Turning Point, and we've got the results. Plus, an exclusive preview of a Raw once more on the edge of chaos, video games, arrivals and departures, and excuses, excuses, and more excuses.

Monday, November 10th, 2008

From 411Mania's Canadian offices in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, this is The Wrestling News Experience, with Stephen Randle!



Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Experience. I am Stephen Randle, and I'm so glad that racism is dead now that America has its first Black president. Of course, Canada is still way ahead of you guys, as we just re-elected our first robot president.

And my girlfriend has demanded Wii Fit for Christmas. But I don't wanna use my video games to exercise. Ah well, I get Wrath of the Lich King on Wednesday (see you at Future Shop in Waterloo at midnight, nerds), so I'll be quiet.

Two more weeks.

Moving on.

PPV In Review - TNA Turning Point 2008

Eric Young won an X Division Elimination Match to become #1 Contender to the TNA X Division title

This match was fought under "lucha tag" rules, which I believe (I'm sure someone will correct me) means that if you leave the ring, someone else can come in as the new legal man.

1. Volador eliminated Sonjay Dutt (pinfall, super-rana)
2. Jimmy Rave eliminated Volador (pinfall, Rock the World)
3. Doug Williams eliminated Jimmy Rave (pinfall, Chaos Theory)
4. Homicide was ruled unable to continue after overshooting a suicide dive to the floor.
5. Petey Williams eliminated Consequences Creed (pinfall, Canadian Destroyer)
6. Tanahashi eliminated Petey Williams (pinfall, Frog Splash)
7. Jay Lethal eliminated Tanahashi (pinfall, small package)
8. Eric Young eliminated Doug Williams (pinfall, wheelbarrow suplex neckbreaker)
9. Eric Young eliminated Jay Lethal (pinfall, Northern Lights suplex)

Roxxi and Taylor Wilde defeated Riesha Saeed and Awesome Kong (Wilde pinned Saeed, German suplex)

Rhino defeated Sheik Abdul Bashir (pinfall, Gore)

Beer Money, Inc defeated The Motor City Machine Guns to retain the TNA Tag Team titles (Roode pinned Sabin, DWI)

DWI = powerbomb/suplex/cutter combo, according to Larry

Booker T defeated Christian Cage to retain the TNA Legends title (pinfall, official finisher of the X Division). Cage must join the Main Event Mafia

Kurt Angle defeated Abyss in a Falls Count Anywhere match (pinfall, big fall off a scaffolding through a table)

Kevin Nash defeated Samoa Joe (pinfall, low blow)

Sting defeated AJ Styles to retain the TNA Heavyweight title (pinfall, side roll)

Well, the Main Event Mafia swept all four of their matches, which…I agree with. Sure, Joe losing again sucks, but you have to establish the big bad stable as being both big and bad before you can have the good guys fight them off. Of course, WCW forgot about the second part of that last sentence, but a little faith can't hurt.

Also, I would note that this PPV seemed to involve quite a lot of good wrestling that fit with meaningful storylines. What a concept.

What's On Tap - 411 Exclusive Raw Preview for November 10th

Last week, in a shocking series of events, Raw was left with not only a new World Heavyweight Champion, but also once again without a General Manager.

First of all, Chris Jericho defied the odds and defeated former champion Batista in a Steel Cage Match to regain his precious belt. But Jericho is not even close to out of the line of fire, as Shane McMahon decreed that Jericho will defend his belt at the Survivor Series PPV against the returning John Cena. Oh yeah, and the PPV is in Cena's hometown of Boston. Things look bleak for Jericho, but he has spent much of the past year thriving on adversity. How will the new champion respond to this latest challenge tonight?

And what of Batista? His title reign lasted just over a week, and with Cena next in line, it seems that there is no rematch in The Animal's immediate future. It would be safe to say that Batista will not take these latest events lying down.

However, Batista may find it difficult to have his thoughts heard, as with the departure of Raw GM Mike Adamle last week, Raw is once again without a guiding hand at the helm. Will the ship be allowed to sail freely for a while, or will Shane and Stephanie remain in an active role? Are these nautical analogies working for you?

Plus, Randy Orton is back on the active roster and much like the theme to Survivor Series, he seems to be spoiling for a fight, and it doesn't particularly matter who with. After putting Ted Dibiase on a stretcher last week, will Dibiase's associates be seeking vengeance tonight?

All this and more, on tonight's edition of Raw!

Around The Horn

WWE released their third quarter financial results, and there's good news, we have a couple new reason for why WWE is doing poorly. So, let's check the board:

- lack of competition
- the war on terror
- unexpected failure of the XFL
- unexpected failure WWE New York
- unexpected failure of WWE Films
- competition from Monday Night Football
- there are no problems, don't be silly

And now, new for this quarter…

- unexpected failure of the American economy
- competition from the Summer Olympics

Yes, that's right, because in WWE, the staleness, repetitiveness, and general boredom with our product is everyone's fault but ours!

Meanwhile, WWE, through spokesmannequin Linda McMahon, managed to inadvertently refer to TNA as "competition", causing hundreds of TNA fans to simultaneously wet themselves with glee. At least, I hope it was glee. Okay, really, she responded to a question about TNA by lumping them in with the entire entertainment industry as their competition, so everyone can calm down again. Or we could just start laughing about the fact that someone at WWE really thinks that they're competing with the rest of the entertainment industry. Because if they are, and if it's really true that competition is what inspires Vince, then he should be coming up with the wrestling storyline equivalent of the next War and Peace, because he's getting his ass kicked.

I completely forgot, but Smackdown vs Raw 2009 was released this week. Probably because the 2008 version sucked so hard that I considered leaving it behind in my old apartment when I moved. I'm hoping it still has trade-in value for when I get 2009, because I'm one of those people who won't give up on a franchise no matter how many times it kicks you in the crotch. But you already knew I was a Leafs fan. Anyway, the roster list is easy to find, and of course, a bunch of people have been released, and another bunch aren't in the game, but they did throw you a bone and finally put London and Kendrick in. Of course, that explains why London got released two days ago.

The Great Khali fulfilled his very first Make-a-Wish request this past week. I didn't know Jeff Small had a fatal illness. Now I have to send a card.

At a recent Creative meeting, it was revealed that Vince McMahon doesn't know who Kimbo Slice is. Of course, in another week or so, neither will anybody else. This isn't exactly Vince not recognizing Pirates of the Caribbean, one of the most profitable movie franchises in history, is all I'm saying.

Gail Kim has indeed signed with WWE, and has been backstage recently. I was kind of hoping she'd be the sixteenth Diva in the match last week. I mean, it's great that Mae Young can still stand upright, but really, would any smart Diva tag her instead of the other five members of the team? Oh wait, now I see the flaw in my reasoning.

It was a horrible week for WWE ratings, by the way, but in their defense, ECW went up against the Presidential Election, Smackdown was on Halloween during prime candy-looting hours, and Raw…was an hour too long for the content they had written.

And before I leave this segment, Scott Keith's long-awaited book Dungeon of Death was released this past week, and I'm willing to review it for you all if someone can provide me with either a) a free copy, or b) a really, really compelling reason to read it without financial reward, or c) financial reward.

The Injury Bug Bites

Inactive List as of 11.03.08

WWE Raw

- Dolph Ziggler, out 30 days as of October 10th (Wellness violation)
- John Cena, out until Survivor Series as of August 27th (neck)
- Hardcore Holly, out indefinitely (rehab)
- Melina, out indefinitely as of June 23rd (fractured heel)
- Randy Orton, out 4-8 months as of June 1st (broken collarbone, re-injured August 15th)

WWE SmackDown

- Hurricane Helms, out indefinitely as of May 17th, 2007 (neck surgery)
- Mr. Kennedy, out 6 months as of August 4th (dislocated shoulder)
- Umaga, out indefinitely as of August 20th (PCL)

ECW

- Evan Bourne, ECW, out 4-6 weeks (torn deltoid)

TNA

- Jimmy Rave, TNA, day-to-day pending diagnosis (back injury)
- Kaz, out 4 months as of October 1st (triceps)
- Moose, out 6 months as of July 7th (broken femur)

Transactions

- Chuck Palumbo, RAW, released from his contract

- Mike Adamle, RAW, resigned as GM

Well, that was money well spent. No wonder they need to cut 20 million dollars.

- Nikki Bella, SD!, revealed on November 7th Smackdown

Twins, Basil. Twins!

- Paul London, RAW, released from his contract

- Randy Orton, RAW, returned to in-ring action on November 3rd Raw

I know I have a vendetta against him and all, but seriously: those tattoos look awful, especially since Orton seems to have turned into some sort of thin, gangly ape of some sort

- Super Crazy, ECW, released from his contract

Who's Holding Gold

So, after John Cena's year-long title reign came to an end at No Mercy last year, would you believe that since then, the major title on Raw has changed hands an amazing 8 times within just over the same time frame as Cena's entire reign, and looks likely to switch again at Survivor Series, back to…John Cena.

Okay, granted, 3 of those title changes were in one night due to Cena vacating the title, but still…that's 5 additional reigns, and Randy Orton held the belt for nearly half of that time period.

WWE

WWE Champion: Triple H
- 197 day reign, defeated former champion Randy Orton, JBL, and John Cena in a Fatal Four-Way Elimination Match on April 27th (Backlash PPV)
- Next title defense: vs Vladimir Kozlov, Survivor Series PPV

**NEW** World Heavyweight Champion: Chris Jericho
- 7 day reign, defeated Batista in a Steel Cage Match on November 3rd (Raw)
- Next title defense: vs John Cena, Survivor Series PPV

ECW Champion: Matt Hardy
- 63 day reign, defeated former champion Mark Henry, The Miz, Finlay, and Chavo Guerrero in a Scramble Match on September 7th (Unforgiven PPV)

WWE Intercontinental Champion: Santino Marella
- 85 day reign, with Beth Phoenix, defeated Kofi Kingston and Mickie James in a Winner Take All match on August 17th (Summerslam PPV)

WWE United States Champion: Shelton Benjamin
- 113 day reign, defeated Matt Hardy on July 20th (Great American Bash PPV)

World Tag Team Champions: CM Punk and Kofi Kingston
- 14 day reign, defeated Cody Rhodes and Ted Dibiase on October 28th (Raw)

WWE Tag Team Champions: Carlito and Primo Colon
- 45 day reign, defeated Curt Hawkins and Zach Ryder on September 26th (Smackdown)

WWE Women's Champion: Beth Phoenix
- 85 day reign, with Santino Marella, defeated Mickie James and Kofi Kingston in a Winner Take All match on August 17th (Summerslam PPV)

WWE Diva's Champion: Michelle McCool
- 113 day reign, defeated Natalya Neidhart on July 20th to win the newly-created title (Great American Bash PPV)
- Next title defense: vs Maria, undetermined date

TNA

TNA Heavyweight Champion: Sting
- 29 day reign, defeated Samoa Joe on October 12th (Bound For Glory PPV)

TNA Tag Team Champions: Beer Money Inc
- 92 day reign, defeated LAX on August 10th (Hard Justice PPV)

TNA X-Division Champion: Sheik Abdul Bashir
- 57 day reign, defeated former champion Petey Williams and Consequences Creed in a Triple Threat match on September 14th (No Surrender PPV)

TNA Knockouts Champion: Awesome Kong
- 18 day reign, defeated Taylor Wilde on October 23rd (Impact)

TNA Legends Champion: Booker T
- 18 day reign, introduced new title on October 23rd (Impact)

Links For Fun And Nonprofit

Lansdell and Prag have the weekend news reports.

The 411 Staff has Instant Analysis of Turning Point.

The Triple Threat likes fat chicks.

Bond has Against The Grain.

Rodriguez has For The Record.

Short has The Navigation Log.

Ari has Column of Honor Part One and Part Two.

And Sforcina has Evolution Schematic.

The Gab Bag

Friend of the Experience Ralf Wall has more information about Paul Lazenby, the MMA fighter who had his nose broken by Steve Austin on a movie set.

Paul Lazenby actually worked here in Kitchener with me at "Stages Nightclub" (now Dallas) back in the mid 90s as a bouncer. He left to go train with Lance Storm and get into wrestling... (then got into some TV acting/MMA). He's actually a pretty decent guy who could serious mess you up.

Hey, I've been described that way, too.

And One To Go On

411 will have live coverage of Raw tonight starting at 9 pm EST.

Remember, if you love poker, and are in the Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo area, check out Player's Poker League.

Larry's in tomorrow, I'll be back next week.

That's our show, I'll try and do it better next time. Here it is, a very special moment of Zen.




They shall not grow old,
As we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun, and in the morning,
We will remember them.