wrestling / Columns
The Custom Made News Report 10.07.07
Welcome, one and all, to the Custom Made News Report. As is far too often the case these days, it appears that we’re dealing with an absolutely loaded week in the world of professional wrestling, with tons of news occurring across the globe.
We’ll get to that in a second, but, before we do, I wanted to take a moment to address last week’s column, in which I wrote a piece about WWE’s SAVE_US.222 video and Charlie Haas being the individual who the video was promoting. I got numerous e-mails letting me know that I was an idiot for thinking such a thing, so I just wanted to make it absolutely clear that the entire thing was a joke. The piece on Haas was meant to be satirical in nature, poking fun at individuals who waste far too much time ripping apart the sort of “viral” marketing in which WWE has engaged when the answers to their questions are right in front of their faces. I thought that everybody would be able to pick up on that, but apparently I was wrong.
With that taken care of, let’s move along to this week in wrestling.
Making a No Mercy Main
Of course, the big story in wrestling this week has been the torn pectoral muscle that John Cena suffered on Monday Night Raw as he made an attempt at hiptossing Ken Kennedy. This threw the main event of tonight’s No Mercy pay per view in to turmoil, as Cena was scheduled to defend his WWE Raw Championship against Randy Orton in a last man standing match and will no longer be able to do so. As a result, Cena was stripped of his title, and WWE has guaranteed that a new champion will be crowned at the pay per view. Much has already been said about this situation, and your good friend and mine John Meehan did a fine job of presenting the facts of the story earlier this week. As such, I’m not going to rehash the details of the injury. However, there have been a few recent updates about the No Mercy title match, so I thought that it would be best to pass along that information as well as taking a look at what WWE probably should do in regards to the matchup that they are attempting to put together for tonight’s card.
The most recent word from Dave Meltzer is that there are many possibilities for a potential title match and that virtually any of them could happen, including Randy Orton against a returning Chris Jericho. One thing that Meltzer did seem fairly certain of is that the company will not publicly announce their decision on the big match until the pay per view hits the airwaves. Bryan Alvarez of F4W Online recently noted in one of his news updates that, prior to Cena’s injury, the company had plans to position Orton as its top heel, which could be indicative of the second generation star walking away from the PPV with the belt.
Those two comments provide some limited insight in to what WWE might do . . . but what should they do? I think that there are a few key moves which must be made in order to make fans happy with the show’s outcome without shooting long-term booking plans in the foot. They follow:
1.) Don’t Involve Jericho: At this point, it’s all but definite that Chris Jericho has come to terms with WWE for a return and will be back on their television in the not too distant future. However, No Mercy would not be the proper time to bring Y2J back in to the company. Would it be a great surprise that makes the show more entertaining for most fans? Yes, it would. However, it would not be a good move for WWE’s business. Announcing Jericho’s return in advance would be enough to get several individuals to buy a pay per view event or, at the very least, tune in to Monday Night Raw. Giving his return away with no announcement whatsoever does not make WWE money off of pay per views, and it doesn’t even provide them with a higher than average rating that can keep them in the USA Network’s good graces. The only thing that it might accomplish is getting one single, solitary pop from a live crowd, and pops alone do not put money in to a wrestling promotion’s bank account.
2.) Don’t Give Away a Marquee Singles Match: The rationale behind this point is similar to the rationale behind not using Jericho. There is no reason to take what would otherwise be a first-time matchup between two stars or matchup that could potentially headline a future pay per view and give it away with no promotion whatsoever.
3.) Avoid Transitional Champions: Though it seems that WWE wants to protect the credibility of its titles in 2007 by giving champions longer reigns than those of the vaunted “Attitude Era,” there have been far too many situations recently in which major WWE championships have had to change hands out of necessity as opposed to because the company’s booking plans dictated it. Kurt Angle had to win a title in a battle royale after Batista was injured. Edge had to win a title in a one minute match after the Undertaker was injured. The Great Khali had to win a title in a battle royale after Edge was injured. Somebody will have to win a title at No Mercy because John Cena was injured. To stem the tide of changes due to necessity, I would prefer to see the company put the championship on somebody who they want to carry it for several months, not simply somebody who is convenient because they’re healthy now or because they might get the best reaction out of the Chicago crowd.
4.) Maybe Give ’em a Gimmick: Of course, without big returns or without top level one-on-one matches, some fans who do buy the pay per view may feel cheated even if they do get to see a new champion crowned. As such, it may not hurt to have the championship change hands in a big gimmick match. Though it may be too late to alter the setup of the arena to facilitate something on the level of the Hell in a Cell cage or the Elimination Chamber, something similar to a well-executed ladder match could prevent fans from feeling ripped off.
Taking all of those points in to consideration, what would yours truly put together for the show if he were in charge? One of the things that WWE really lucked in to in this situation is that they had not announced very many matches leading in to the PPV, meaning that they have several top guys that they could slot in to a multi-man main event without having to shuffle the card. Therefore, I would go with:
Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Ken Kennedy vs. The Undertaker vs. Kane vs. Johnny Nitro in a one fall, six-way match.
Multi-man matches are generally poor choices to headline pay per views because, historically speaking, they haven’t done as well for business as singles matches. However, in this particular instance, WWE is banking on the crowning of a new champion selling the show as opposed to a particular match, so this is a fine opportunity to do a six-way instead of throwing away a singles match that could draw if properly promoted. Also, the allure of having an “interpromotional” match may take some of the sting away from the fact that the fans aren’t receiving a big return like Jericho, which some folks are going to expect no matter what the company does. Additionally, there are some interesting stories that can be told with this pairing of men, as both Orton and Kennedy have histories with the Undertaker, while Nitro and Hardy not only have feuded in the past but could also provide some spectacular maneuvers in what may otherwise be a less than high impact affair. Hardy is also the perfect individual for Orton to pin en route to taking the championship home, as he is over enough with fans that he won’t seem out of place in the match but is somebody that WWE will never legitimately promote as a title contender, meaning that a major star’s credibility will not be hurt if it’s Jeff that gets pinned.
Of course, what WWE will actually do remains to be seen. Hopefully whatever match they choose satisfies the majority of fans and provides us with entertaining programming heading in to the Survivor Series.
With the main event covered, up next is a detailed preview of the entire No Mercy card.
PPV Preview: WWE No Mercy
– This will be the ninth WWE No Mercy.
– No Mercy has taken place every October since 1999.
– No Mercy has played host to twenty-nine different title matches.
– Titles have changed hands in eleven of those twenty-nine matches.
– The Intercontinental and United States Championships are the titles that change hands most frequently at No Mercy. Each belt has changed hands twice.
– In the era of single-branded pay per views, No Mercy was a Smackdown show. This was the case from 2003 to 2006.
– No Mercy 2002 is the only other version of the PPV since the roster split to feature more than one brand. On this show was a rare instance of the Smackdown Title match going on last.
Candice Michelle (c) vs. Beth Phoenix for the WWE Women’s Championship
– This is only the third time that the WWE Women’s Championship has been defended at No Mercy.
– In the two previous defenses of the championship, there has been one title change and one retention.
– Despite the lack of title defenses, this is the fifth women’s match at No Mercy and the tenth in which there has been at least one female participant.
– In all ten No Mercy matches involving women, a brunette woman has never beaten a blonde woman.
– Both women are making their first appearance at No Mercy.
CM Punk (c) vs. Viscera for the ECW Championship
– Four different Ring of Honor alumni have appeared on No Mercy in five different matches since ROH was founded in 2002.
– In those five matches, only one victory has been earned by the ROH crew. (Brian Kendrick & Paul London defeating Idol Stevens & KC James in 2006).
– This is the first time that the ECW Championship has been defended at No Mercy.
– Both men are making their first appearance at No Mercy.
Fit Finaly vs. Rey Misterio
– Five different masked wrestlers have competed at No Mercy.
– However, masked wrestlers have only won twice at No Mercy.
– This is the fifth time that a No Mercy match has pitted a European wrestler against North American wrestlers.
– In the four previous matches involving European wrestlers facing North American wrestlers, only one European victory has occurred.
– Rey Misterio’s record at No Mercy is 1-5.
– Fit Finaly’s record at No Mercy is 0-1.
Triple H vs. Umaga
– Umaga is the third Samoan wrestler to appear at No Mercy.
– Samoan wrestlers have a combined record of 1-2-1 at No Mercy.
– Umaga is making his first appearance at No Mercy.
– Triple H’s record at No Mercy is 3-0.
Punjabi Prison Match: Dave Batista (c) vs. The Great Khali for the WWE Smackdown Championship
– This is the third time that the Smackdown Championship has been defended at No Mercy.
– In the two previous defenses of the championship, the champion retained.
– This is the fifth time that a title has been defended in a gimmick match at No Mercy.
– In the five prior gimmick match defenses of the championship, only one title change occurred (Chyna defeating Jeff Jarrett for the Intercontinental Title in a “Good Housekeeping Match” in 1999.)
– Batista’s record at No Mercy is 1-1, with one successful title defense.
– The Great Khali is making his first appearance at No Mercy.
WWE Raw Title Match
– This is the seventh time that the Raw Championship has been decided at No Mercy.
– The Raw Championship has only changed hands once at No Mercy (Kurt Angle defeating the Rock in 2000).
– This is the first time that the Raw Championship has been vacated and later decided on a pay per view event since 1999.
– This is the first time that WWE has promoted a pay per view match for a major championship without releasing the identity of at least one of the participants.
Historic Match Signed
A first for professional wrestling will be taking place this coming Tuesday, though it’s not getting that much attention due to the venue in which it is taking place. On Tuesday of this week, WWE developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (who recently opened their official website here) will play host to the first ever match between two female third-generation wrestlers. Though there have been numerous male third-generation stars who have faced off against one another – including the Rock, Randy Orton, Dave Taylor, Harry Smith, and Chavo Guerrero Jr. – a woman who is part of such a wrestling dynasty is a rare thing indeed.
Who are these competitors? The first is Nattie Neidhart, the daughter of Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart and granddaughter of legendary wrestler Stu Hart. The second is Lacey Von Erich, daughter of “Texas Tornado” Kerry Von Erich and granddaughter of Fritz Von Erich. The women’s fathers locked up with one another in the WWF of the early 1990’s, and their grandfathers, in addition to being wrestlers, were both promoters of successful territorial promotions, with Fritz being the brains behind Texas’ World Class Championship Wrestling and Stu handling business in Calgary’s Stampede Wrestling. Oddly enough, Stu Hart is credited with training Fritz Von Erich, and that relationship is mirrored in their granddaughters’ matchup, as Nattie has been part of the pro wrestling industry since 2003, while Lacey is a true rookie within the industry. Neidhart will no doubt look to teach Von Erich a thing or two on Tuesday night, although their relationship will not be quite as cooperative as the one engaged in by their grandfathers.
Double J and K.A. Battle for Control?
An interesting note came out of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter this week, as journalist Dave Melzter reported that there is a backstage power struggle brewing in TNA wrestling. According to Meltzer, Kurt Angle and Jeff Jarrett are currently on a collision course. Double J is a part-owner of TNA wrestling and has been since its inception. He is also one third of the creative team alongside Vince Russo and Dutch Mantell. However, Angle has recently been encroaching on Jarrett’s territory, making no bones about the fact that he ultimately wants to control the company alongside Dixie Carter, the current TNA president who has become close personal friends with Angle and his wife Karen. The former Olympic gold medalist also reportedly has strong ties with Vince Russo and provides Russo with plenty of feedback when it comes time to book Angle’s segments.
Frankly, when I read about this situation, I can’t help but hope that Angle’s backstage influence increases to the point that Jarrett is ousted from power. Though such a scenario would certainly be horrible for Jeff, who has invested much time and money in TNA since it was first created five years ago, it may wind up being the best scenario for professional wrestling fans. The Jarrett/Mantel/Russo triumvirate has been in power for roughly one year now, and, in that year, TNA has managed to consistently produce some of the most wretched television programming that I have seen in my fifteen plus years as a fan. ANY change would be a welcome change at this point in time. Though Angle has no track record when it comes to booking a promotion, I sincerely doubt that he could do any worse than the current creative crew, plus recent incidents show that he does have at least some clue of how to put together a wrestling show. For example, it was not that long ago that Jay Lethal defeated Kurt Angle for the TNA Championship. Initially, the match was scheduled to include a run-in by Chris Daniels. Angle, however, lobbied to get the finish changed to a clean pinfall, which he felt would help to legitimately make Lethal in to a star. Angle was angered when he saw a segment later in the evening in which Samoa Joe easily dispatched Lethal, feeling that it undid much of the good that was done by putting the youngster over in the X Title match. Though this is not indicative of Angle having a grasp of how to successfully book an entire promotion, it is an indication that he has a grasp of at least one important aspect of the business, namely making men in to stars. Given that the current regime has failed in most facets of promoting wrestling – including that one – I wholeheartedly endorse Kurt becoming a bigger creative influence on TNA.
Impact Rating: Disappointing?
TNA finally had its long-awaited two hour debut for Impact on Thursday night, and the rating for the show came back at a 1.1. If you want my full thoughts on the show, they’re available (as always) in the Impact Crater . . . but, for the time being, I’d like to focus on the rating itself.
Some people were surprised at the number. They thought that for a show which had received so much hype online that surely the number would have to be higher. Even if it didn’t set a new record for the company, they figured that it would at least have to tie the old record of a 1.2. In fact, according to individuals like Bryan Alvarez at F4W Online, SpikeTV executives were asking for predictions about the rating before the show aired and were surprised when many individuals told them that they expected nothing greater than a 1.1 for the first two hour show.
Frankly, I don’t think there was any reason to be surprised by the 1.1. Though it is true that TNA and SpikeTV did more to promote this episode of Impact than they do most editions of the program (including taking out local advertising in major markets during the prior Monday’s Raw), the fact of the matter remains that there was little to no opportunity for individuals outside of TNA’s current fanbase to learn about the show. As a matter of fact, I’m surprised that the number for the show wasn’t below average, simply because when Monday Night Raw does a three hour special, the overall number normally dips a bit because fans skip an hour of the show, perhaps because they’re not used to the format or perhaps because they have better things to do with that chunk of time. The fact that enough fans were able to stay tuned in for the entire 120 minute period and produce a rating that is on par with what the promotion had been doing is a victory, not a defeat. (Although it’s certainly a relatively small victory.)
What will actually be interesting to look at are the quarter-hour ratings if they are ever released. In my personal opinion, which is shared by many others who watched the show, the first hour of the program was absolutely atrocious, or, at the very least, not nearly up to the standards set by the second hour. What I’m interested in knowing is whether the quality of hour one turned off viewers. If the quarter hours decline throughout that first hour and don’t pick back up for hour two, it will vindicate the criticisms that I and many others had about that portion of the show and (hopefully) send a message to TNA that certain parts of their booking philosophy need to change ASAP.
In this segment of the column, I attempt to review wrestling DVDs in three hundred words or less, with the idea being that I enjoy reviewing shows but don’t have the time to make them as long as I otherwise would. The three hundred word limit begins . . . now.
TNA/UWF House Show – 8/12/2006 (Buy It).
Spike Dudley vs. Petey Williams: Petey is shorter than Spike. They did more of a heavyweight style than you’d normally see out of Williams. Plenty of finisher reversals, with Spike hitting the Acid Drop to win.
Chris Sabin/Jay Lethal vs. David Young/Elix Skipper: There were a couple of botches early (Skipper’s fault). Heat was on Lethal until Sabin ran wild and won with the Cradle Shock. Heel Sabin is better, but this was fine.
Ron Killings vs. Abyss: Basic squash. Abyss killed him with the Bossman Slam.
Eric Young vs. Road Dogg: Billy Gunn jumped Young before the bell and stayed in Road Dogg’s corner. The best part of the match was the mics picking up his snide comments. Young got an upset win after a Flair Flip/Savage elbow combo.
Samoa Joe vs. Bobby Roode: Roode went to the floor early and used the rails to score offense on Joe. Cool finish as Joe turned a rolling reverse cradle in to the choke at eight minutes.
AJ Styles/Chris Daniels vs. The Naturals: In TNA, the Naturals tried to do complicated moves and often screwed them up. Here they kept things basic and did an acceptable job. There was an odd bit towards the end with referee Brian Hebner being attacked by daddy Earl, and that took away from the finish. However, it was still a very good contest.
Overall: This is a house show. The matches aren’t spectacular. Several guys weren’t working as hard as they would on TV. It still would have been a very good show to attend live, but the excitement doesn’t translate to DVD. This isn’t worth your money when there are so many excellent indy events in the DVD market.
Kobashi Sets Return Date
For all of the negative news that permeates the American wrestling scene these days, it’s good to hear that there is some very positive news coming out of Japan.
Since the middle of last year, puroresu legend Kenta Kobashi has been out of action due to a battle against cancer. Kobashi, who debuted in the sport in 1988, was part of the main event scene in All Japan Pro Wrestling in the mid-1990’s, which many folks who follow wrestling consider to be one of history’s greatest periods for in-ring performances. His clashes with the likes of Toshiaki Kawada, Mitushara Misawa, Jun Akiyama, and Akira Taue are all the stuff of legend, and he is a three-time holder of AJPW’s prestigious Triple Crown Championship. He was also a top tier name in Pro Wrestling NOAH, defeating old rival Misawa in order to gain the group’s GHC Heavyweight Championship. Of course, American fans have had their most exposure to Kobashi as a result of Ring of Honor, which promoted a “dream match” between the Japanese legend and Samoa Joe in 2005. The DVD featuring that contest remains ROH’s hottest seller of all time.
Obviously, fans have been hoping for a Kobashi recovery ever since news of his condition first broke. This was not necessarily because they needed to see him in the ring again, but rather because they wanted to see the man who had captivated them for so many years live a long and prosperous life. However, Kobashi has now exceeded many fans’ expectations by not only beating his cancer but by also setting a return date for in-ring competition. The legend will be wrestling on NOAH’s December 2 show, which emanates from Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan. Opponents for Kobashi’s return match have not yet been announced, and several more cynical fans have already started to complain that a forty year old cancer survivor will not be able to offer much in the ring. However, this match isn’t about Kobashi’s opponents, and it certainly isn’t about guaranteeing a ***** affair. It’s about a man fighting for his life, winning, and returning to the profession that he loves, even if it is only for one night. This will be a magical moment, one that I am truly looking forward to.
Dragon Gate Foreigners Announced
Popular Japanese wrestling promotion Dragon Gate just announced that three big foreign names will be competing on their upcoming shows. Everybody’s favorite British wrestler PAC (whose involvement with DG has been discussed previously in this column) will be staying on with the group, wrestling there for the entire first half of October. When PAC leaves the October tour, he will be replaced by Jorge Rivera. Rivera, who until March of this year wrestled under a mask with the name of Skayde, has long been a trainer associated with Ultimo Dragon, which means that he helped several competitors in Dragon Gate cut their teeth on the professional wrestling industry. As such, his style meshes well with theirs despite the fact that he is many years the senior of most roster members.
I’ve seen Skayde and PAC in Dragon Gate before, so their names came as no surprise. However, there was one new face who managed to catch my eye. A wrestler based out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada named Hornet will be making his debut with the promotion on October 9 and staying on for all of their October shows and much of the November schedule. Though I believe that this is the Hornet’s first trip to Japan, he has already worked extensively in Mexico despite his relatively young age of twenty-three. While south of the border, he has worked for CMLL and various projects that tie him to the Ultimo Dragon Gym, in addition to periodically coming up to California to work in the Los Angeles-based Inoki Dojo. The youngster’s background certainly seems impressive, and I’m interested to see what he manages to bring to the table in Dragon Gate. Success there could be key to his career, as it would not only allow for him to gain more Japanese bookings, but it would also open the door for appearances in major US indies given that both PWG and ROH have strong ties to Dragon Gate.
If you’re interested in learning more about Hornet, you can check out his MySpace or watch the video below of a 2006 match that he had against current WWE developmental talent TJ Wilson.
October 13 SHIMMER Preview (Part 3)
Welcome to Part 3 of my preview of the big October 13 event from SHIMMER: Women Athletes. The promotion is one of my personal favorites, and it should be a favorite of anybody who enjoys women’s professional wrestling. The big show will be held in Berwyn, Illinois and will see Volumes 15 and 16 of the company’s popular DVD series being taped, which will include a much-anticipated SHIMMER Title match between champion Sara Del Rey and the Amazing Kong. In order to turn my excitement for the event in to something positive, I’ve been previewing the event by running down some of the talent who will be involved on the show. I’m going to continue that process in just a second, but first I wanted to remind everybody who may want to attend the show that tickets are available at SHIMMERwrestling.com. As of Friday, only twenty-two tickets remained, so if you wait to buy them at the door, you may be out of luck!
Fighter Name: Daffney
SHIMMER Record: 0-1
Career Highlight: Former WCW Cruiserweight Champion
SHIMMER Background: Daffney first appeared as a guest commentator in SHIMMER, filling in for Allison Danger on color while Canadian athlete took to the ring. It wasn’t until Volume 9 that fans finally learned why the former WCW Cruiserweight Champion had made her way to the promotion. It was there that Daffney let everybody know she would be managing in SHIMMER, a role in which she had been successful in the past. Her first signee turned out to be MsChif, with the self-proclaimed “goth goddess” being a natural fit for ‘Chif’s unorthodox style of wrestling. Though she was content to simply manage, a large number of last-minute cancellations at V14 created the opening for Daff to make her in-ring debut with SHIMMER, and she jumped at the opportunity. Unfortunately, a chronic knee injury resulted in her debut being a loss to veteran Lexie Fyfe. After the bell, Fyfe and her tag team partner Malia Hosaka continued to unload on the scream queen’s battered limb until MsChif eventually made the save. Though it is unclear whether Daffney is going to continue wrestling in SHIMMER or whether she is going to return to MsChif’s corner, either way she’ll no doubt be looking forward to getting back at the Experience.
Goals: Revenge.
Fighter Name: Alexa Thatcher
SHIMMER Record: 0-2
Career Highlight: Ranked in the Wrestling Clothesline’s Top 50 Independent Women Wrestlers
SHIMMER Background: Young New Jersey wrestler Alexa Thatcher made her debut at SHIMMER Volume 9 and followed that up with an appearance on Volume 10. Though injuries and scheduling conflicts have kept her off of subsequent shows, Thatcher was impressive in her first two outings, taking Ariel to the limit in a very good match at V9 and coming close to winning a four corner survival match at V10. Though she will need to begin winning matches in order to stay on the SHIMMER roster, Alexa will have plenty of opportunities to do just that beginning on October 13. She is definitely a student of the game, having learned her craft well from many wrestlers who also got their start in New Jersey, including current TNA X Division Champion Jay Lethal. Thatcher will no doubt be trying her hardest to put that knowledge to good use at Volumes 15 and 16, though it remains to be seen whether other competitors’ experience will give them the edge over her.
Goals: Making a name for herself.
Fighter Name: Malia Hosaka
SHIMMER Record: 2-5 (singles), 5-1 (tag team)
Career Highlight: Former NWA Women’s Champion
SHIMMER Background: With almost twenty years in the professional wrestling business under her belt, Malia Hosaka is the single most experienced wrestler on the SHIMMER roster. In fact, she’s been part of the wrestling industry for twice as long as Lexie Fyfe, who is the next most experienced wrestler in the promotion! Though Hosaka has yet to translate her experience in to a consistent winning record in singles competition, she has been quite successful in the tag team ranks with Fyfe, as the duo has the highest winning percentage of any other regular duo in the company. On top of that, Hosaka has proven that she can never be taken lightly in one-on-one action, as she shocked many observers by defeating odds-on favorite Allison Danger in the first round of the SHIMMER Title tournament with the figure four leglock and then scored a second victory over the much younger and much stronger Josie at Volume 13. As previously discussed, Fyfe and Hosaka may have to deal with some stiff competition in the form of MsChif and Cheerleader Melissa, and Hosaka’s recent track record shows that she’s more than ready to take care of them.
Goals: Making sure that the younger generation still respects her accomplishments.
Fighter Name: Cheerleader Melissa
SHIMMER Record: 6-5 (singles), 2-1 (tag team)
Career Highlight: Winner of Cauliflower Alley Club’s “Future Legend” Award
SHIMMER Background: Cheerleader Melissa came in to SHIMMER as one of the company’s more recognizable and respected performers, though she was upset right out of the gate on Volume 1 by MsChif. This resulted in a massive blood feud breaking out between the two ladies, with falls count anywhere and last woman standing matches spilling plenty of blood in the Berwyn Eagles Club. Though MsChif emerged as the victor in the feud, Melissa has remained dominant in other aspects of SHIMMER competition. She defeated Daizee Haze in the main event of Volume 7, and, since that time has downed Lacey, Rain, and Ariel in singles matches, as well as teaming with her former adversary MsChif to deal the Experience their first loss in tag action. Also, though she came up on the losing end, Melissa absolutely pushed Sara Del Rey to the limit in the main event of SHIMMER Volume 9, unequivocally proving that she could beat the current champion on any given night. Though Melissa too could get sucked in to the brewing rivalry between MsChif, Daffney, and the Experience, many more fans hope that she can rack up some big wins on the October 13 show in order to earn another crack at the Death Rey.
Goals: Reestablishing herself as a title contender.
Hart Foundation, Outsiders Reunite
It’s interesting to note that two legendary tag teams have recently reformed on the independent circuit. The first is the Outsiders of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, who appeared this past Thursday on a show promoted by a group named Phenomenal Wrestling Legends in Little Rock Arkansas. In the main event of the show, Hall and Nash defeated the unlikely duo of “Birdman” Koko B. Ware and Brian “Grandmasta Sexay” Christopher when Hall pinned Christopher after Nash powerbombed Jerry Lawler’s kid. Also on the show were Jimmy Hart, Kamala, and Abdullah the Butcher. It supposedly brought in 500 fans, which is a respectable crowd for an independent promotion, although I’m wondering if it was enough to offset the cost of bringing in so many major names, particularly Hall and Nash. I believe it was at this show that Hall stated he would soon be heading down to work for the AAA promotion in Mexico, which was something both parties had attempted to put together a few weeks ago.
Also back together are the original Hart Foundation, who will be hitting the convention circuit on November 10 of this year. All three members of the group (Bret Hart, Jim Neidhart, and Jimmy Hart) will be at Times Square that day, appearing at an event promoted by RingsideFest.com. Oddly enough, this news comes on the heels of rumors that Bret has been in touch with World Wrestling Entertainment about doing an angle to introduce a “new generation” of the Hart Foundation, most likely including his nephew Teddy Hart, the British Bulldog’s son Harry Smith, and Neidhart’s daughter Nattie, all of whom are currently under WWE developmental contracts.
And that does it for the first Custom Made News Report of October. I’ll see you all next week, and, until then, be sure to check out my MySpace blog, which has recently been updated with DVD reviews and match suggestions for new fans wishing to get in to World Championship Wrestling. While you’re there, you can also add me as a friend to receive notifications every time that I post new content here on 411. Enjoy!
