Topic: Wrestling discussion

[ThePerm]

how many times has Shawn Michaels retired? My entire run of watching wrestling spanned like 5 years and he was gone the majority of that time. Or at least it seemed that way.

[TJ Spyke]

Twice, though the first one was because he suffered a severe back injury that prevented him from competing. The current one was because he chose to retire. He retired after dropping the WWF Championship to Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV in March 1998 (though he suffered the injury in a casket match against The Undertaker at the 1998 Royal Rumble). He returned at SummerSlam 2002.

[ThePerm]

how long was he an active Wrestler, or just Commissioner Michaels?

[Shaymin]

He was active in WWE from about 1988-1998, and then 2002-2010. His Commissionership was late 1998 to early 1999, and then he did a couple of guest referee spots, but other than that...

[Chozo Ghost]

Sting deserves to be in the WWE Hall of Fame.

[TJ Spyke]

I have no doubt he will be once his career in TNA is over (yes I know Ric Flair has confirmed he will be on stage at the Hall of Fame ceremony when the Four Horsemen get inducted). Supposedly he was close to a deal with WWE last year but ended up re-signing with TNA because he was worried about how WWE would treat his character.

[Adrock]

Supposedly he was close to a deal with WWE last year but ended up re-signing with TNA because he was worried about how WWE would treat his character.

I would have believed that explanation if Joker Sting didn't exist...

He probably could have negotiated some kind of creative control. Vince McMahon probably would have let Sting do whatever he wanted (though Sting is known for being a consummate professional) just to have Undertaker vs. Sting on the WrestleMania card. That said, Sting's supposed apprehension walks the line of paranoia. WWE really couldn't have done worse to the Sting character than TNA and not because WWE is so great (for most of the show, it's not) but because TNA is so bad. Still, not having a major name like Sting dominating allowed someone like CM Punk to emerge from the ranks so maybe it was for the best.

[Adrock]

So, the WWE built up Jericho's return for like 6 weeks, then had him not do anything for 3 weeks only to... lose the Royal Rumble. That was a slow build to nothing. It kind of reminds me of this past summer where the whole Punk, HHH, and Nash thing culminated in the storyline just fizzling out. It started off interestingly enough then dropped off. I'm a little curious what they plan on doing now. I suppose this frees up Jericho to lose to the Undertaker at Wrestlemania, maybe with Shawn Michaels as special guest referee.

[BranDonk Kong]

I knew Y2J was going to be #29, but was expecting Undertaker (or even John Cena) as #30. They wasted some build-up by having Big Show #30, and including Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler in the Rumble. Pretty weak PPV by all accounts. Hopefully Y2J does something interesting tomorrow night and Cena finally turns heel.

[BeautifulShy]

Well that Raw was interesting. By the sounds of things Taker is back and he wanted to face Triple H again at Wrestlemania again but it sounded like HHH declined so I guess the storyline for Taker will be finding an opponent for Taker before Wrestlemania which is about 2 months away. Jericho is a possible candidate but he is tied up with the WWE title and CM Punk title so that may not be possible unless he loses. Any other possible choices?Also Take is 19 and 0 at this point so it kinda has to be special.

[TJ Spyke]

I am sure it will still be Triple H, but it will be like 2 years ago when Michaels took weeks to get Undertaker to agree to a re-match.

[ThePerm]

Sting vs Undertaker? I made this happen in my copy of WWF attitude lol.

[Adrock]

The creative team might throw a swerve because the IWC already assumed Triple H vs. Undertaker is happening. Apparently, the same thing happened with the Rumble. Jericho was so clearly set up to win to set up a feud with Punk which judging by Raw is still going to happen. It just took an extra night to do so though he could have just ran-in a Punk match 4 weeks ago so 11th hour changes to storylines tend to lead to sloppy fixes.

I've read that the WWE is thinking about combining the WWE Championship Title and the World Heavyweight Championship Title which makes sense since the brands barely mean anything anymore with Smackdown superstars on Raw now. It also makes sense to involve Jericho in such a storyline since he was the first Undisputed Champion and it goes along with the "End of the World" (Heavyweight Championship title) gimmick. A Vengeance 2001-esque tournament to combine the titles at Wrestlemania would be cool and it would be a good time to revamp the WWE Championship Title Belt.

Anyway, if Triple H doesn't face/lose to Undertaker at Wrestlemania (and I hope he doesn't), I don't know who should. Kane is a possibility but I don't want to see Kane vs. Undertaker again.

[TJ Spyke]

Actually, the reports are that Orton was originally gonna win the rumble until his injury. He did come back in time, but they had already changed the plans.

The unification rumors has existed for years, I will not believe it until it happens.

[Adrock]

Actually, the reports are that Orton was originally gonna win the rumble until his injury. He did come back in time, but they had already changed the plans.

Depends on the report, sir. I've read everything from Jericho just winning to Orton and Jericho going into overtime to both of them winning. Not that it matters at this point but I'm just sharing what I've read. Still seems pretty odd to hype up Jericho's return just have him lose but they did that back in 2007. In any case, if the swerve rumors are true, the creative team just needs to let it happen. That's why storylines exist. If they're predictable, write better ones.

The unification rumors has existed for years, I will not believe it until it happens.

I'm more inclined to believe it this time considering the WWE basically reunited the brands with the Raw Supershow. I'm a fan of the Big Gold Belt but there's really no reason for it to exist. There are just too many titles, especially if WWE plans on having one brand moving forward.

[BranDonk Kong]

I think Jericho attacking Bryan and Punk might be setting up a triple threat for the Undisputed Championship. That could easily go down as the best triple threat match ever. There have been some classics over the years, like Austin/Angle/RVD and HHH/HBK/Benoit..and every triple threat match my friends and I used to play in Wrestlemania 2000/No Mercy.

[TJ Spyke]

Jericho didn't really attack Bryan though, just push him out of the way so he could get to Punk and Bryan was happy because it meant he technically won the match. Also, Sheamus has a title shot at WrestleMania, so at the very least it would need to be a fatal four-way if Jericho was involved too.

[Adrock]

Not if Sheamus puts his title shot on the line at Elimination Chamber and loses. That's how Rey Mysterio lost his shot after winning the Royal Rumble. Sheamus could also "cash" his title shot at a different event like Cena previously did but Sheamus already said he's going to challenge for a title at Wrestlemania.

[BranDonk Kong]

I liked Sheamus better as a heel (and Randy Orton while we're at it), but I think he would actually be a good addition if they went with said match and made it a Fatal Four Way. He's a solid wrestler and he'd be the only powerhouse in the match, but a Fatal Four Way (and really even a Triple Threat) don't seem that WrestleMania-ish, at least not for the championship.

Back to other things - I don't think WWE has any choice but to make Cena turn heel before WrestleMania. You could put Jesus in the ring against the Rock in Miami, and they would boo the living hell out of him. I wasn't sure what to think of this whole Kane thing, but it has potential, I think they should have started it a little earlier though. Perhaps a Cena and Kane vs The Rock and Zack Ryder match will take place before WM?

[TJ Spyke]

I don't think Rock would wrestle on Raw, and they seem to be gearing for a Kane/Cena re-match at Elimination Chamber (which local ads in Milwaukee are also saying). WWE seems to be reluctant to pull the trigger on heel Cena, though they have been slowly moving towards it. I could see them doing it in-between EC and WM though. Cena needs to never do that angry/constipated face again though.

And did Ryder piss of the wrong person backstage? He is one of the most popular wrestlers in WWE and was US Champion, then they had him lose the title and be out for at least a few weeks with a injury angle.

[Adrock]

WWE would probably feel more comfortable turning Cena heel if he had more universal appeal. Turning him heel kind of just makes everyone in general hate him then his merch sales suffer. WWE also currently doesn't have a face that can match Cena. It's not like 10 or so years ago where they could turn Triple H heel because The Rock, Steve Austin and Mankind were so over with fans. All of those guys could turn repeatedly over the course of the year. The guys the WWE has today like CM Punk and Orton are better at drawing heat and none of them are as good and profitable as faces as Cena. Jericho has that universal appeal but he'll never be as popular as Austin or The Rock and who knows when he'll leave again anyway. He's clearly supposed to be a heel but people were still cheering for him after he attacked Punk on Raw. He's good at drawing heat but he needs someone really over to get the audience to buy it. With the current roster, it's going to be hard to keep Jericho heel because of his fanbase. He should punch Shawn Michaels' wife in the face again. Or the creative team can use Jericho's marketability to turn Cena heel.

Otherwise, I think they can get away with Cena being a lesser-face until after his feud with The Rock. It's kind of like when the WWE goes to Canada and guys like Bret Hart and Edge were untouchable whether or not storylines had them as heels while guys like HBK (post-screwjob) would always be booed there.

[BranDonk Kong]

Cena was getting nothing but cheers when he was going off on Kane. I expect a total reversal of fans/haters for Cena if he turns heel. The people that hate him don't just hate him in general, they hate the boyscout that he plays on TV. Just like when the Rock was a face originally - the fans liked him, then hated him so he hated him back - he turns heel and the fans go crazy for him, which carried over to when he turned face again. This is exactly what Cena needs to do - especially if The Rock is going to "pass the torch."

[TJ Spyke]

Adrock, Punk is actually #1 in merchandise sales now (better than even Cena). He is also mega over with the fans. He may not be the pipebomb he was last summer, but I blame that more on WWE having him basically feud with Laurinaitis.

With Jericho, I think it's more that when someone returns after a long time away the fans cheer them. For example, in 2001 Triple H was a big heel as part of the Corporate Ministry and tag team partners with Steve Austin. He then got injured (and missed out on the entire invasion angle) and returned in January 2002 to a massive pop from the crowd. Jericho got the same thing when he first returned and didn't really turn the crowd against him until he attacked Shawn Michaels.

[TJ Spyke]

Random wrestling news of the week:

John Hennigan (John Morrison in WWE) became the first WWFX (World Wrestling Fan Experience) Champion in a mega-card in the Philippines that also featured former WWE stars Melina, Shelton Benjamin (who Hennigan beat), MVP, Carlito, Chris Masters, Luke Gallows, Daivari, Jimmy Wang Yang, Snitsky, Shane Helms, Rhino, Billy Gunn, and Jillian Hall.

Brodus Clay was in a match against Heath Slater taped at the SmackDown tapings, but the match was not aired for unknown reasons.

The Rock, via Twitter, has endorsed current TNA World Heavyweight Champion Robert Roode

Musician Kris Kristofferson's son Jody Kristofferson is under a developmental contract with Florida Championship Wrestling (WWE's developmental league). TMZ says that WWE officials believe he can be a break-out star and the trainers at FCW were impressed with his work this week.

Sting says he was very close to signing with WWE last year before re-signing with TNA. He says he would like to compete at WrestleMania before his career is over though and that The Undertaker is the top opponent he has never wrestled that he wants to.

Syfy says that the next live episode of SmackDown will be on February 21 (with a replay in its normal timeslot of February 24). This will be the first episode after the Elimination Chamber PPV, and will result in 7 hours of live WWE programming over 3 days.

WWE is considering airing 3D versions of select PPV's beginning with SummerSlam 2012, it won't be ready before WrestleMania XXVIII.

Matt Hardy's court date for his various arrests last summer have been stayed until March 1. His charges include: (1) Driving While Impaired & Exceeding Safe Speed. (2) Felony "Possession with intent to distribute," Felony possession, and Felony maintaining a vehicle/dwelling for drugs. (3) Misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. (4) Misdemeanor Violation of Court Order.

THQ reported that WWE 12 has shipped 2 million copies (they said shipped, which does not mean sold) so far, which is what they expected.

Kurt Angle and Don Curtis will be inducted into the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame this year. Road Warrior Animal will also receive the Frank Gotch Award, which is given to a professional wrestler who brings positive recognition to the sport through work outside the ring. Dan Severn will receive the George Tragos Award, which is given to an exceptionally competitive wrestler who has adapted his wrestling skills and competitive nature to excel in Mixed Martial Arts. John "Bradshaw" Layfield will receive the Lou Thesz Award. Wrestling journalist Bill Apter will receive the Jim Melby Award.

"Invincible" by Machine Gun Kelly was confirmed as the official theme song of WrestleMania XXVIII.

CM Punk announced on his friend Colt Cobana's podcast that WWE will be releasing a 3-disc DVD set on his career and life. He will have pretty much total control over it, picking the matches on it, who gets interviewed, even the music that is used.

WWE Legends House will air on Syfy. It was supposed to air on WWE Network, but the launch of the network has been pushed back to later in 2012. The show will be taped at the Harpo Marx estate in California and will finish on March 31 (the day before WrestleMania). Principal filming will take place in the home, but the Legends will also "eat, drink, and play" throughout the region and take one golf and hot-air balloon outing.

Mick Foley and his wife appeared on an episode of the ABC show Celebrity Wife Swap that aired on Monday. They switched with actor/model Antonio Sabato, Jr.

Territory League (a new promotion created by Rikishi) will hold the First Annual Rodney Anoa'i Championship Cup to honor the late Yokozuna (whose real name was Rodney Anoa'i). Confirmed participants include Rikishi (who was related to him), Snitsky, Brian Christoper, Gangrel, and Scotty 2 Hotty. They will be in a team-based format that is based on results from the past 9 months.

Kharma returned at the Royal Rumble after being out for the past 10 months on maternity leave. She gave birth to a son named Jamie on December 31.

[BranDonk Kong]

I read that Cena is using that song for his entrance instead.