PWTorch.com

5+ HOURS: Definitive all-new Eric Bischoff "Torch Talk" available exclusively to PWTorch VIP members

Sat, 02 Oct 2010 13:03:07 PST

Eric Bischoff [photo by Wade Keller (c) PWTorch]

Yesterday, PWTorch editor Wade Keller completed the "Torch Talk" with Eric Bischoff in a second session that topped the first session in length, making the total interview a monumental five-plus hours in length.

It's one of the longest, most in-depth "Torch Talk" interviews in our 20-plus year history of newsmaking historical interviews. Many people thought Bischoff, after what he had written and said in the past, would never speak to a "dirt sheet" for an insider interview. Bischoff, though, did, and he put no restrictions on questions. Bischoff addresses drug use and excessive partying in WCW, controversial decisions he made as head of WCW, shocking and revealing observations about how Vince McMahon runs WWE, and many topics he didn't address in his book.

Two installments of the interview have already been published along with 40 minutes of audio. The entire five-plus hour interview will be made available in coming weeks in BOTH transcript format and audio format.

Now is a great time discover all of the benefits PWTorch VIP members enjoy including the weekly PWTorch Newsletter (over 1,100 weekly issues published and counting), back issues from 5, 10, and 20 years ago published each month in PDF format, over 50 (and sometimes over 75) exclusive VIP Audio shows (including the Wade Keller News Hotline, the Bruce Mitchell Audio Show, Vintage Torch Talks, and much more), ad-free access to PWTorch.com articles, VIP Forum access, and much more.

PWTORCH VIP SIGN-UP INFO

IPHONE APP USERS: Cut & Paste this URL into Safari or visit us on the web and click on the "Sign-Up" button under our logo on the top of each webpage:

http://www.pwtorch.com/torchsubmainpg.shtm

This is an interview that will be devoured by virtually every major player in the wrestling industry and cause quite a bit of controversy as Bischoff speaks his mind about topics he never has before in such depth. He was determined to clear the air, reply to critics, admit some faults, explain some mysteries, and even shake down a few egos. Be the first to read and listen to what will be seen by many as the hands-down Interview of the Year. Subscribe today!

WWE News: WrestleMania 26 tickets officially on-sale today

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:01:01 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE will officially put WrestleMania 26 tickets on-sale this morning at 10:00 a.m. MST (12:00 p.m. EST).

Tickets are being sold through Ticketmaster and the University of Phoenix Stadium box office in Glendale, Ariz., which is the site of next year's WrestleMania on March 28, 2010.

Ticket prices are ranging from a "family-friendly" $25 to $755, which are the premium ringside seats and include a commemorative PPV chair.

Link: Ticketmaster Ticket link.

WWE News: WWE books Intercontinental Title match for next week's Smackdown, adds match to the Survivor Series PPV

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 23:50:44 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

-- WWE announced Intercontinental champion John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler in an Intercontinental Title match on next week's edition of Smackdown.

Ziggler has been booked in several IC Title match losses against Rey Mysterio and Morrison the past three months. The match was announced on tonight's Smackdown after Ziggler and the Hart Dynasty beat Morrison and Cryme Tyme on the show.

-- WWE also added a multiple-divas tag match to the Survivor Series PPV on tonight's Smackdown. Women's champion Michelle McCool is captaining the heel team and former champion Mickie James is captaining the babyface team.

FURTHER READING: Greg Parks's complete Smackdown TV Report

[Dolph Ziggler art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

SMACKDOWN POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/6 Smackdown if you saw the show?

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:52:28 PST

11/6 Bruce Mitchell Audio Show: Why Vince McMahon said WWE isn't a family business, Hulk Hogan-TNA analysis, Dixie Carter's last-gasp speech (65 min.)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:48:11 PST

VIP-exclusive Bruce Mitchell Audio Show 11/6: Torch asst. editor James Caldwell fills in for Torch editor Wade Keller hosting the Bruce Mitchell Audio Show with a discussion of the WWE financials announced this week, including Vince McMahon's comments that WWE isn't a family business. Plus, a look at WWE PPV changes and the poor Summerslam PPV buys. TNA discussion focuses on Hulk Hogan's latest comments on TNA, his role in the company, whether he's working TNA president Dixie Carter, and a brief look at Hogan's book. Finally, analysis of Dixie Carter's "Hail Mary" last-gasp speech on Impact.

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD

Bruce Mitchell Audio Show directory - VIP members access to latest Mitchell Audio

-VIP members can access all earlier Audio Updates (October 2009 and
earlier) by CLICKING HERE

-If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.

-PWTorch App visitors, please check out our VIP sign-up info on a PC at our regular website, www.pwtorch.com, where you can get over 50 VIP-exclusive PWTorch podcasts each month including top shelf news, conversation, analysis, and interviews.

-APP USERS: Be sure to do a search for "PWTorch" in iTunes and listen to our free weekly podcasts with about an hour of highlights of our VIP Audio Shows. We're the no. 1 podcast in iTunes in the pro wrestling category and would welcome you as a regular listener! Also, as a VIP member, you can log into your account and get more than 50 audio shows each month on the go on your phone or ipod (or other smart phone).

PARKS' WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 11/6: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of the show, including Batista vs. Hardy

by Greg Parks, PWTorch.com Contributor — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:00:34 PST

WWE Smackdown review
November 6, 2009
Taped 11/3/09 in Providence, R.I.
Aired on MyNetwork TV

-WWE Open.

-Smackdown Open.

-As fireworks fired up the crowd in the arena, Todd Grisham and Matt Striker plugged the big match on tap for tonight, Batista vs. Matt Hardy.

-The Undertaker’s music hit and he slowly made his way to the ring. Taker talked about his Survivor Series debut many moons ago and basically said he thrives at that event. He referred to the World Championship as the “holy grail” for all that step foot in the ring. Taker said Big Show betrayed an entire team for that opportunity. But all he won was an opportunity to be extinguished at the hands of the dead man. As for Chris Jericho: He said there are few things that bring joy to his dark heart, one being fighting with his brother Kane, the other being fighting AGAINST his brother Kane. But Jericho took that from him last week. He said Jericho’s soul will be his at Survivor Series. That brought out Jericho for an interruption, clad in a brown suit-and-tie combo this week.

Jericho said the WWE Universe has been waiting for ten years for the two of them to tangle horns. Jericho said he is the true Phenom, using the Webster’s dictionary definition, not Taker. He accused Taker of brainwashing the fans for years, enabling him to pretend to be something he’s not. He called Taker out for not being a dead man, just a man. Uh-oh. Jericho said he’s on the role of his career and that he can beat anybody he chooses at this point. He said he’d be World Champion for a sixth time and that Taker doesn’t intimidate him one bit. He said there’s not a man on this planet that he’s afraid of. Jericho got a little too close, and Taker reached out for Jericho’s throat. Jericho broke free with some rights, but ran into a big boot from Taker. Jericho fled the ring, holding his mouth. Good angle for Jericho to take on the mic, anyway. Should make for some more good promos from him in the next few weeks.

-Grisham and Striker talked on camera, slightly distracted by Jericho recovering near them, then showed Batista and Rey from Bragging Rights two weeks ago, as well as their confrontation last week on Smackdown.

[Commercial Break]

-Grisham talked about Jericho’s search for Parts Unknown on WWE.com. Striker said he grew up there.

1- DOLPH ZIGGLER & THE HART DYNASTY vs. JOHN MORRISON & CRYME TYME

They aired clips of Morrison on “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” Kidd and Morrison traded offense to start and Morrison came up holding his ribs, after what happened between him and Ziggler last week. As Kidd took a break in his corner, the show went to break.

[Commercial Break]

Ziggler had JTG in a chin-lock out of break. D.H. Smith interfered to take JTG down as Natalya was distracting the ref. Striker called Smith, “the baby bull.” They began to isolate and work over JTG, as in every previous Cryme Tyme vs. Hart Dynasty match in the history of man. Necktie back-breaker by JTG and both men were down, but Dolph Ziggler was able to make the tag. Morrison tagged in as well and tagged Kidd with rights and a clothesline. David Hart Smith got Morrison up for a running powerslam, but Morrison got out and gave him a Flying Chuck. He had to fight off Ziggler and tagged out to Shad. It was his first entrance into the match. Smith sold an elbow weirdly, then took on in the corner from Shad. Blind tag made to Ziggler, and as Shad got ready to finish Smith, Ziggler Zig-Zagged Shad for the finish.

WINNERS: Ziggler & The Hart Dynasty, at 8:50. Just a way to continue to build Ziggler up for a re-match against Morrison, without having him get a clean victory over someone of Morrison’s stature.

-Next, an “up close and personal interview” with Rey Mysterio. How “up close and personal” can an interview be if the dude doesn’t even take off his mask?

[Commercial Break]

-Mysterio was sitting down backstage for an interview with Josh Mathews. You knew it was up close and personal because Mathews talked softly and slowly. He asked what state of mind Rey was in. Rey said he felt like a family member walked out on him. Rey addressed the camera when Josh asked if he had a message for Batista. He said he knows Batista is listening and noted that Batista decided to throw away their friendship and the memory of Eddie Guerrero. He said he doesn’t know what got into Batista, but he’ll get it out of him. He said he’d show Batista a sid of him that the Animal didn’t think existed. Good, slow burn for this feud.

2- BETH PHOENIX vs. BRITTANY CARTER

No weight (or hometown) for the jobber this week. Striker said Carter had an extensive background in dance. Beth picked Carter up and drove her back-first into the turnbuckle. Then the opposite one. One-armed pick-up and a back-breaker. Beth dragged Carter around by her hair, then gave her a back-breaker after a bit of a spin. Glam Slam finished it.

WINNER: Phoenix, at 1:56. Crowd got into late thanks to Beth’s impressive move-set.

-We’ll hear from Batista next.

[Commercial Break]

3- DREW MCINTYRE vs. JIMMY WANG YANG

Yang’s first appearance on the show in quite some time. As Yang went to the middle rope to salute his fans and do his lasso hand signal, Drew attacked him from behind and knocked him to the floor. McIntyre got the mic after disposing of Yang. He said this party can not even begin to get started until he gets some competition worthy of a future World Champion. Yang got in the ring as McIntyre started leaving. Yang insisted the ref ring the bell and he did. McIntyre heard it as he was walking up the ramp and came back to the ring. Yang caught him off-guard with some kicks, but McIntyre caught one and clotheslined him down. He pelted Yang with lefts and rights on the mat, then hit him with what Striker referred to as a Kobashi DDT for the win.

WINNER: McIntyre, at :47.

One more kick for good measure, then McIntyre left the ring area.

-Batista was walking backstage when Mathews approached him. He simply asked, “why?” Batista said he wasn’t here to make friends, but to be World Heavyweight Champion. He accused Rey of robbing him of the title at Bragging Rights. As for Hardy, he said Matt should’ve left his big nose out of his business. If it means he has to hurt Rey, Matt or anyone on Smackdown to be World Champion, then he’ll do it.

-Rey was walking elsewhere in the arena, as he’s up next against Mike Knox.

[Commercial Break]

4- REY MYSTERIO vs. MIKE KNOX

Striker intimated that all Knox does is sit up in his cabin in the mountains in Arizona and read books on the human anatomy. This was billed by the announcers as a match to prepare Rey for his one-on-one contest with Batista. Knox got out of a 619 early and Knox gave him a cross-body on the outside. Lateral press inside the ring, but Rey kicked out at two. Knox sent Rey chest-first hard into the buckle. Bearhug by Knox- Rey got out, but Knox stayed on offense. Abdominal stretch by the mountain man. Rey fought back with some of his signature offense, including a bulldog for two. Seated senton, but he couldn’t capitalize as Knox clotheslined him for a near-fall. Shoulder in the corner missed and Rey set him up for th 619. It connected and was successfully followed up by a springboard splash for the win.

WINNER: Mysterio, at 7:15. Good enough win for Rey, but sadly, Knox hasn’t meant much the last few months.

-Later tonight: Batista vs. Matt Hardy.

[Commercial Break]

-Striker thanked Art of Dying for “Get Through This,” the official Survivor Series theme song.

-Just announced for next week’s Smackdown: Dolph Ziggler vs. John Morrison for the Intercontinental Championship.

5- C.M. PUNK vs. R-TRUTH

Scott Armstrong was the referee for the match. Shoulder tackle by Truth. Striker demanded Grisham prove there was a conspiracy. “As a teacher, I demand that you prove your work.” I think he’s my idol. Truth and Punk traded ground attacks and reversals. After a headbutt, Punk hit the ropes, only to be met with a hip-toss. Truth took him to ringside, where he flew onto Punk over the top (almost hitting his head on the floor in the process). Match went to break a little under 3:00 in.

[Commercial Break]

Grisham, upon return from break, noted that this is the first time these two men have squared off in singles competition. Punk kept Truth grounded and really stretched him. Punk clapped for himself, taunting the fans. Truth began to come back, but ran right into a leg lariat for a two-count. Punk was a bit cheesed off at what he perceived was a slow count from Armstrong. He demanded Armstrong count faster. Because he was distracted, Truth rolled him up for, yes, a fast three-count from the referee.

WINNER: Truth, at 10:30. Too bad this win isn’t going to mean what it should for Truth, since the story is Punk being upset and things unraveling around him. In the end, it really helps neither man.

-Mickie, Layla and Michelle all met up backstage after Mickie finished talking to the makeup person. The heels taunted Mickie, and Michelle said Layla better be careful, since Mickie is the captain of the team for Survivor Series. McCool said no one likes Mickie, so she should just leave. Mickie said she’s not going anywhere, and that her team will beat Michelle’s team at the PPV. Mickie said if she and “Scary Spice” (Layla) think they can intimidate her, they’re sadly mistaken. After James walked off, Michelle noted they need to make Mickie’s life a living hell. This is the first I’ve heard of such a match.

-Clips aired of Matt Hardy trying to talk some sense into Batista last week, and Batista attacking him for his services. The two face each other in a match later tonight.

[Commercial Break]

-The Raw Rebound aired.

-Josh Mathews (earning his money this week) was backstage with Matt Hardy. He asked Matt what prompted him to get involved with the issue. Matt said that we all make mistakes, and he thought that was the situation with Batista. He talked about things that happened between him and Jeff, and he didn’t want Batista and Rey to have to go through that. He said he just wanted to help Batista. He said the big man has changed and tonight, he’s going to get a reality check. Matt then walked away from the interview set and started getting ready for his match, in a change to the regular format.

-The announcers briefly talked on camera about Hardy, until Matt’s music hit and he made his entrance. The main event is next.

[Commercial Break]

6- MATT HARDY vs. BATISTA

Matt fought out of the corner against Batista, but Batista nearly took his head off with a clothesline. Probably a 0.7 on the Desmond Wolfe scale of clothesline bad-assery. Batista did some choking of Hardy on the middle rope, then missed a corner charge. Hardy didn’t have the muscle to roll him up (thanks to Batista hanging on to the top rope), and the Animal was able to come out on top in that battle. Batista was having his way with Hardy, as they went to break about 3:10 into the contest.

[Commercial Break]

Camel Clutch applied by Batista out of break. He was really working over the back of the elder Hardy brother. Striker called Matt “the Sensei of Mattitude.” Vince must not be on the headsets during this one, based on what Striker has gotten away with tonight. Body-scissors by Batista. Crowd was kind of sitting on their hands at this point. Matt was able to fight away, but Batista hammered him wiht a forearm to the back. Matt wiggled out and landed a version of a neck-breaker. Both men slowly got to their feet, where Batista was met with a boot from Matt. Hardy went low, then pulled out a DDT. Moonsault by Hardy but Batista moved- not far, as Hardy’s face and chest still hit Batista’s legs. Twist of Fate (Grisham proclaimed “that’s gonna do it!,” so you knew it wouldn’t) and sure enough, Batista grabbed the bottom rope. He came back with a spinebuster and choked Matt with his boot. On the outside, he threw Hardy into the barricade, then into the announce table. He took out the monitor from the announce desk, and hit Hardy in the back of the head with it. DQ time, and Striker referred to it as “a foreign object some would call it, an international object....”

WINNER: Hardy, via DQ, at 13:39. Batista as a heel does not make for a great match. Most of it was keeping Matt on the mat.

After the bell sounded, Batista took Hardy into the ring, took his elbowpads off, and set up for a Batista Bomb. Instead, he just shoved him off. After a replay, the camera stayed on Batista as he went up the ramp and did one final yell to close things out.

Greg Parks has been covering Smackdown for PWTorch.com since January of 2007. You can also read his frequently updated blog in the VIP forum. Check out his column each week in the PDF-exclusive version of the Torch Newsletter. Also, look for his Tuesday chats with James Caldwell each Tuesday afternoon on the Torch. Comments, questions and feedback are welcome, and can be sent to g_man9784@yahoo.com.

PWTorch Newsletter #1115_16 (31 pages!): Hogan-Bischoff-TNA Deal Covered In-Depth - Keller, McNeill, and Powell, plus six pages of Eric Bischoff Torch Talk, and much more

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:47:14 PST

Pro Wrestling Torch, a weekly 12-16 page print newsletter delivered via traditional postal mail, has been published since 1987.

The new 31-page PWTorch Newsletter (#1115_!6) has just been published in PDF format, with online text coming soon.

This issue opens with Wade Keller's expanded "Cover Story" on the Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff partnership with TNA. Keller's "BBL" editorial presents a scenario for how to best utilize Hogan. "Page 2 Buzz" with Jason Powell features his insight into the Hogan-Bischoff-TNA situation, plus other insider news items. Rounding out our team coverage, Pat McNeill presents his look at the situation... Also, six pages of the exclusive "Torch Talk with Eric Bischoff," coverage of Raw, Smackdown, Impact, and ECW, Sean Radican's coverage of the "Dragon's Gate USA" PPV debuting this week nationally, the WWE Newswire, TNA Newswire, and ETC. Newswire, and more!

CLICK HERE FOR PDF FORMAT OF TORCH #1115/1116 IN NATIVE FORMAT (now available)

#1115/1116 TEXT VERSION TABLE OF CONTENTS (coming soon). (All articles are posted on the PWTorch VIP Main Listing right now!)

If you're not a VIP member, click here to get details on benefits and pricing options

KELLER BLOG: Dixie Carter asks wrestlers to step it up, but what does that mean? Shouldn't their goal to be winning matches and nothing else?

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:17:56 PST

By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

On Impact last night, a clip aired of Dixie Carter addressing the "entire roster." On two levels, the speech was flawed.

"Since I was named president six years ago, I've had a lot of people tell me how to run a wrestling company. While I appreciate their contributions, it's time for a change." She told the wrestlers there will be more changes in coming weeks and months. "Nobody likes drastic change, nobody likes big moves, I understand that, and it affects different people in different ways." She said there may be some differing opinions of what to do, she expects them to be supported 100 percent. "When you question things in this company, you're questioning me, and I cannot allow that to happen."

She said she has made the choice to put her money and passion and love behind everyone on the roster and she expects the same from them. "You have a choice to make. You can choose to support me and the direction TNA is going, or you can choose not to. But you'll need to find another place to work. It's time for us to swing for the fences. It really is. No great success comes without risk, and I am great with that. I hope you are, too. Now is our time. I look at the faces who have helped made this company and you've made me very proud. This is a test. I'm asking all of you to step up in every way possible and let's do this thing together. Now is our time. You need to believe it. If you don't believe it, you are hurting the person sitting next to you. You are hurting me, you are hurting the fans. If you do believe it, let's do it together and show everybody what we're all about."

First, what more can be asked of most of those wrestlers? Should they take more stiff chairshots to the head? Should they take more pointless highspots that get a "This is awesome!" chant but are otherwise taken for granted by the bookers and forgotten about within a few minutes while cutting years off of their careers? Should they stop protesting behind-the-scenes obviously horrendous booking that everyone (except Dixie Carter and those with something to lose if things change) seems to see is stunting TNA?

Second, what is this "let's do it together" line all about? Isn't a wrestler's job, in the context of how a pro wrestling show should be presented on TV, to try to win their matches? This is not a team sport, yet that's a halftime "rah rah" speech as if all of those wrestlers are on a team. Each wrestler's job is to try to win matches, just as each heart surgeon's job on TV is to save lives not try to earn ratings. Can you imagine watching the start of a show about fire fighters where the director told all of the actors to "step it up" and "work together" and stop questioning his or her decisions? Or, can you imagine Dana White being shown before a UFC PPV telling his fighters to "step it up" and "work together" to make the company better? Whether you believe pro wrestling should be presented as a simulated sport with a straight face or openly acknowledge it's scripted entertainment, this speech doesn't make sense either way.

Until the people at the very top of the hierarchy get that pro wrestling fans don't care about "new beginnings" and "taking TNA to a higher level" and instead want good wrestling matches between wrestlers they care about (like or dislike) which play out in as realistic a way as possible with a mix of compelling hype and strong follow-up, there's going to be trouble.

I get that TNA is trying to convey to its fanbase that TNA is making changes and hopefully upgrading the product, and they want the fans to feel like they're part of a team, but I don't think it's a strategy that resonates with the four-million-plus fans who watch Raw each week but not TNA. Again, fans want wrestlers who are good at what they do in and out of the ring and placed into a context where they are in wrestling matches that are dramatic and athletically exciting which lead to ramifications such as settling grudges and earning titles or title shots. It's not any more complex than that.

So with that in mind, here's what she should have said: "Thanks everyone for your contributions and hard work in bringing TNA to the level it has achieved. By adding Hulk Hogan to our team in a role yet to be announced (or determined), your profile and the profile of this company will be raised. I am personally excited for more fans than ever to witness the best brand of pro wrestling out there. All I ask of all of you is continue to try to be the best wrestlers you can be. If you try to win your matches, I will do my best to create an environment where the best wrestlers get rewarded and that cheating and unsportsmanlike conduct is not tolerated. Those who are the best at what they do will be rewarded with title matches. We will continue to seek out the best wrestlers in the world, and if you lose too many matches, you'll be out and replaced with someone who wins. Because we want our fans to know be rewarded with seeing the best wrestlers in the world competing on the best stage anywhere."

===

Wade Keller is the editor and founder of Pro Wrestling Torch, which began as a weekly insider newsletter in 1987 and is now among the widest read and most trusted sources of news and analysis on pro wrestling on the Internet worldwide. Over 1,100 weekly issues of the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter have been published featuring in-depth exclusive news and analysis plus "Torch Talk" interviews with pro wrestling's biggest names.

WWE News: What's on WWE Smackdown tonight - Batista vs. Matt Hardy, Punk faces the Truth

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:01:04 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Tonight's edition of WWE Smackdown on MyNetworkTV will feature Batista vs. Matt Hardy after Batista was scripted to attack Hardy on last week's edition of the show.

WWE will also continue the Batista-Rey Mysterio program with sit-down interviews featuring Batista, Hardy, and Mysterio.

Other action on the show will include C.M. Punk vs. R-Truth, Rey Mysterio vs. Mike Knox, and Dolph Ziggler & Hart Dynasty vs. John Morrison & Cryme Tyme in unofficially the 250th installment of the Hart Dynasty vs. Cryme Tyme feud.

WWE also has the Survivor Series PPV to hype with more build-up for the World Title match between The Undertaker, Chris Jericho, and Big Show. Look for a confrontation between Taker and Jericho to start the show.

FEDOR vs. BRETT ROGERS on CBS Saturday Night - Torch Team Coverage (redirect)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:00:21 PST

TNA News: Ratings are in for Thursday's Impact - did TNA retain the audience from last week's Hulk Hogan Impact?

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:30:35 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Last night's edition of TNA Impact featuring Dixie Carter's speech averaged a 1.08 rating, which was down 13.1 percent from the previous week's 1.24 rating featuring the Hulk Hogan announcement.

Looking back to the October 22 Impact from two weeks ago, which was before the Hogan announcement, that show averaged a 1.10 rating. Last night's show lost 13.1 percent of the Hogan audience and was also below the audience level from the show before Hogan.

The first hour of last night's show averaged a 1.07 rating. It started with a strong 1.10 first quarter-hour rating for Dixie Carter's speech and the A.J. Styles-Daniels confrontation, but dropped clear down to a 0.98 for the second quarter-hour.

The second hour averaged a 1.08 rating, but peaked at the very beginning of the hour with a 1.16 fifth quarter-hour rating. The show failed to draw more viewers after the first 15 minutes of the second hour.

The final quarter-hour dropped to a 1.05 rating, reflecting the show not having a clear main event announced and built up over the course of two hours that would get viewers excited to see a definitive conclusion to the episode.

WWE News: Target of Chris Jericho's "anti-gay slur" rips Jericho for slur and empty apology

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:25:59 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The target of Chris Jericho's "anti-gay slur" and racially-driven comments at the Sacramento Horror Film festival a few weeks ago says he's "deeply offended" by Jericho's comments and is not buying Jericho's apology.

The man, identified as Mr. Lobo in a follow-up story published by TMZ, says Jericho did not apologize to him after Jericho called him a "fag" and labeled him with a racially-driven word. Jericho appeared to be inebriated on stage during his appearance at the festival.

"I don't think [Chris] has the capacity to give an honest apology. I don't think it's in his character," said Mr. Lobo.

Mr. Lobo also refuted Jericho's claim that "everyone on stage was having a blast," which Jericho used to defend his words and actions in an attempted apology to TMZ.

Jericho's remarks at the film festival were published by TMZ yesterday. Video of Jericho on stage is available here.

Link: TMZ Report.

TNA Impact Reax #2: "I'm tired of non-stop talking. This isn't a Broadway play; it's professional wrestling and the best stories are told in the ring"

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:10:11 PST

-- 11/5 TNA Impact Reax

Mathew Jonston of Jacksonville, Fla. (2.0): Best Match: Styles vs. Daniels. Worst Match: Dixie Carter addressing the troops. What was this? This Impact had me scratching my head and wondering, "What is Russo thinking?" I didn't think Impact could get any worse. Yet, they showed me that, yes, it can get worse. To me, the Dixie Carter meeting destroyed the illusion of WRESTLING STARS. They all looked like little boys being scolded by the homeroom teacher. Not only did it make the wrestlers look like wimps, but it also made Dixie Carter out to be a bossy female who wants things her way because she's the owner's daughter. And these are the guys that TNA wants me to shell out $30 bucks to see on PPV? Dixie Carter came off very badly in this segment. Stephanie McMahon she's not. She acted as though she had everybody in the world tell her how to run a wrestling company, but judging from Impact last night, she needs somebody to tell her what to do because she's not getting it. Russo has brought TNA to its knees. Abyss needs to turn in his wrestling uniform because he's dead. His stupid little boy antics aren't funny nor does it make me want to see him every again on my TV. Foley should be ditzy because he turns every other week. What is he now, good guy/bad guy/tweener? Desmond Wolfe is going backwards too. The first week he was on Impact, he was red-hot and now he's not even warm. Russo has killed every bit of momentum Wolfe had. What happened to the Morgan push? What happened to the Hernandez push? Homicide gets killed not once but twice back to back? Is Russo on crack? The only segment worth watching was Daniels-Styles. Other than that, this show was garbage. Everything TNA does now is one step forward two steps back and I think the rating will go back to where they were. The clock is ticking for Russo's departure and for me, it can't tick fast enough. Bad show. Bad writing. Bad execution. Even the Knockouts are bad now.

Forrest Mahaffey of Des Moines, Iowa: Well, it'll be interesting to see the ratings after this Impact. However, the show is still a disappointment. They have two hours and they waste it on fluff. I'm tired of seeing the first 30 minutes go by and everyone involved has their own microphone in their hand. The actual wrestling is extremely limited and watered down. I did really enjoy the opening segment with Dixie Carter. It showed the heart of TNA unlike anything seen in professional wrestling before. It also felt like any meeting that I've been to in my office. It was nice to see her acknowledge the fears and weigh them against the possible gain. It shows that she does understand how to run a wrestling company and to me, that is really encouraging for the business of professional wrestling as a whole. That being said, I think TNA would be wise to go back and look at two things before booking and promoting anymore of the microphone-in-hand segments that eat up the show. First of all, I would have Vince Russo watch the South Park episode titled "W.T.F." They really captured what is wrong with professional wrestling these days and exploited it to the hilarious hilt. Second, take a look at WCW as they started to take over the ratings back in 1998, but realize it wasn't just the big surprise names that drove the ratings up; it was the actual wrestling action going on. Even Goldberg stated on the "Rise and Fall of WCW" DVD that those were the matches that he would get excited to see. So if Hogan is seriously in this to help the business, then teach the boys how to work a match on the fly. Also, make sure that wrestling action is brought back to the forefront. I'm not saying that they need to give away huge match-ups for free on TV, but for Godsake, let a match go beyond the five-minute mark. You have TWO hours to fill. We're getting tired of listening to characters. This isn't a Broadway play; it's professional wrestling and the best stories are told in the ring. Again, this is the only way that TNA can be different; be the alternative to the WWE. I hope Hogan, Bischoff, and whoever else can help Dixie Carter grow TNA into must-see programming, especially for the fans.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "TNA TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Impact, click here.

WWE News: Batista presents award to Beyonce at MTV Europe Awards following drunk David Hasselhoff

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:44:31 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE wrestler Batista presented the Best Song Award to pop singer Beyonce at the MTV Europe Award show in Berlin, Germany on Thursday.

Batista's presentation followed former Baywatch actor David Hasselhoff "stealing the show" when he appeared to be heavily inebriated during his award presentation.

"Oh God, I want to party with David Hasselhoff," Batista said when he came on stage.

Link: U.K. Telegraph Report.

TORCH TALK DAILY with Eric Bischoff: Hogan-Goldberg on free TV - "I thought that was the kind of thing that could put Nitro back on the map"

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:00:43 PST

WWE News: Major update on 2010 PPVs - price change, PPV name change, WWE addresses PPV criticism (w/Detailed Analysis)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:35:39 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE released a memo to PPV providers with a complete list of their 2010 PPVs and an announcement they will be increasing the base price of PPVs from $39.95 to $44.95, reports PWInsider.com.

We reported last week that WWE is dropping the Judgment Day PPV from the spring schedule to space out PPV events. Last year, WWE crammed four straight PPVs into an every-three-weeks schedule that led to fewer PPV buys across the board, except for the Extreme Rules PPV.

WWE cited general criticism of the company's PPV schedule in an explanation for the changes. "The strategy of reducing our pay-per-view calendar to one event per month (except for October) achieves both creative and business objectives for WWE," WWE said. "It allows us to better develop compelling storylines and arcs in order to motivate our fans to purchase more pay-per-views. This change also allows for increased marketing windows for each event, during which we can more effectively communicate our sales message."

In addition to dropping the J-Day PPV, WWE has changed the Night of Champions PPV to September. WWE is listing "TBD" for the July PPV event, which is when Night of Champions usually takes place. Breaking Point is no longer listed for September.

Caldwell's Analysis: At first blush, the price change looks like a bad move even though WWE is trying to recoup the lost revenue from dropping a PPV event from the schedule. Unless WWE starts rotating new stars into PPV main events every-other-month to freshen up the PPV line-ups or they come up with PPV concepts that actually flow with the storyline progressions and aren't "circles crammed into square pegs," WWE is going to have a difficult time asking people to pay five more dollars for the same old matches. There's also something psychological about asking customers to pay $39.95 vs. $44.95. Once you pass the $30-level, a wrestling PPV almost becomes too much money to ask a consumer to pay. WWE doesn't have enough new fresh match-ups or new content to ask people to spend five more dollars without adding value to the pay events.

One solution would be a frequent-buyers club where consumers can receive discounted tickets to WWE shows locally or free merchandise or an entry in contests if they order x number of PPVs per year. Recently, WWE has created "package PPV deals" where consumers can receive a discount if they order one of the Big Four PPVs and two of the "off-brand PPVs" surrounding the big event. WWE really needs to emphasize this with their marketing if they expect customers to spend $50 (with taxes added in) for a product that's very similar to what they can watch on free TV.

Thursday Night TV Reax #1: "I feel anything TNA does right is inevitably drowned out by what they fail at"

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:42:05 PST

-- 11/5 WWE Superstars Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (6.0): Best: Jericho vs. Finlay. Worst: Raw Rebound Redux. 17 days until Survivor Series, and it's looking like TNA has bigger build toward its PPV. This time last month, fans were treated to replays of the Cena-Orton story, which made the title and their storyline seem like a big deal. What do we have now for WWE title build? Only that it's essentially DX vs. Cena, with very little in the DX column in terms of any dissension seed-planting. And the whole thing was buried this week by Hornswoggle and the Osbournes. But I was so happy that, for once, there was no Hornswoggle involvement in the Santino-Chavo match on the show. They turned in a fun little match. Santino is Teflon in terms of losses, so why did Chavo do the job? Swagger-Primo was a better and longer match this go-round, but why are they facing off again? Is there no one else for Swagger to face in his storyline? I hated the girlfriend question asked the Divas, but liked the question on how they handle nerves. If WWE wants the divas be treated seriously, more questions like the latter should be asked. The Yoshi and Rey-Batista videos were fine, but I could really have done without the Osbourne replay. Jericho-Finlay was a decent match. I hope Jericho was okay after the ugly bump he took when he missed Finlay's signature apron spot. At least WWE made the match seem important since Jericho is vying for the World Title. Wish there was more of it going toward one of The Big Four PPV.

-- 11/5 TNA Impact Reax

Luke Fleeman of Tulare, Calif. (4.0): Best Match: Daniels vs. Styles. Worst Match: Homicide vs. Lashley. I feel that anything TNA does right is inevitably drowned out by what they fail at because they fail so hard. The A.J. vs. Daniels vs. Joe feud is developing satisfactorily, and even if Wolfe vs. Angle is awkward, at least a new star is being built in an angle with actual time and development. However, there are so many mind-boggling, head-scratching decisions that it is hard to enjoy the good stuff. Foley turns face, again, but I don't believe it because he seems to turn every week. Dr. Stevie should be getting someone coffee for a living, but is instead still stinking up my wrestling time. A week after almost paralyzing Sabin, Bubba Ray gives Hernandez a flush chair shot on the head. I hope he feels good when another wrestler suffers the horrendous consequences of such chair shots. Dixie's speech at the beginning had this pedantic, "you've made mom angry" tone. To me, it didn't seem celebratory. It was almost like she was warning the locker room not to dare disagree with the garbage booking. (By the way, I did not see Nash, Steiner, Angle, or Foley in the crowd.) It seemed like an insecure money-mark warning the boys that she is actually very savvy despite the fact that she has hired every huckster in the wrestling business. I didn't like it.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on these shows for a "TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Superstars and Impact, click here.

WWE News: WWE announces details on three-hour Raw featuring Slammy Award Show and special guest host Dennis Miller

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:13:43 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE announced today that comedian Dennis Miller will host a special three-hour episode of WWE Raw on December 14 featuring the 2009 Slammy Awards.

The awards for the three-hour show will be WWE Superstar of the Year, WWE Match of the Year, and WWE Diva of the Year.

According to USA Network's listing, WWE is still scheduled for a three-hour Raw on November 23, the day after the Survivor Series PPV. WWE has not announced details on the November three-hour Raw.

Link: WWE press release.

TNA News: Next week's TNA Impact - Sting reappearing to talk Hulk Hogan, A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:00:35 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA is advertising that Sting will reappear on next week's edition of TNA Impact to talk about his future in TNA and Hulk Hogan joining the promotion. Sting has not been on TNA TV since his "I'm not sure...maybe" retirement match against A.J. Styles at the Bound for Glory PPV last month.

Sting and Hogan are linked to their WCW days when Sting spent the better part of the Monday Night Wars era feuding with Hogan by appearing in the rafters on WCW Nitro leading to their infamous Starrcade 1997 PPV match.

Also scheduled for next week's Impact, which is the lead-in show for the Turning Point PPV, is TNA World champ A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe in a non-title match and Abyss vs. Dr. Stevie with Stevie's TNA career on the line.

UNDER THE MICROSCOPE - TNA Impact 11/5: TNA = The Office, What Vince Russo was thinking during Dixie Carter's speech, Desmond Wolfe and Duran Duran, Highlander spotting, Numbers - Titleholders since 1990

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:30:41 PST

By Curtis Shanks, PWTorch Specialist

Welcome to the TNA Impact edition of Under the Microscope. This is not a detailed recap of the show, but a review for those of you that saw the show but didn't actually "watch" it. We're here to point out those little tidbits you may have missed, make some random observations, or use a little research to dig deeper into what was on the show. Cue the opening pyro.

All hands on deck

Great start to this week's show, as we get a behind the scenes look at Dixie Carter leading a company meeting concerning the forthcoming changes within the company. I'm a fan of wrestling shows adding a sense of realism to the product without compromising kayfabe, and this segment did just that. It was a good way to show that TNA's wrestlers are just human beings at a job trying to entertain fans, rather than a bunch of outlandish characters living out a real life circus on our TV screens.

The wrestlers could have shown a bit more personality in the segment, though. I know that the subject matter was of a serious nature, but the fact that it was a company meeting with nothing but somber faces had me drawing comparisons to the cast of The Office. I see those same looks every time they are dragged into the conference room by Michael Scott. Although I had a hard time noticing anyone shooting "Jim looks" in the camera's direction.

Bueller...Bueller...Bueller

The company meeting also gave us the rare opportunity to see most of the TNA roster on the same screen. Well, we've seen it before in the weekly brawls, but this time we got a chance to get a good look at the talents not draped by guys with Security shirts. Not all of the TNA roster was present, though. I didn't spot talents like Kurt Angle, Scott Steiner, Awesome Kong, or...Jethro Holiday. But there were other things I noticed when eyeing over the roster.

Jesse Neal is still part of the roster, as he was shown on-camera a couple times. Team 3D have been a tag team for almost 15 years, but they we're not sitting anywhere near each other. They must be the good friends who are class clowns and need to be separated during all gatherings. I've got a friend like that at my work, unfortunately for my boss.

I also noticed some names not seen on TV each week. New backstage agents Simon Diamond and Scott D'Amore could be seen behind Dixie Carter. I was not able to spot the third name in the new agent trio - D'Lo Brown. It was hard to tell who everyone was since there were many individuals in the shadows, but there were two individuals present who were no doubt hanging on Dixie's every word. Over her right shoulder, you could vaguely make out creative writers Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara. I can hear Russo's thoughts now - "Damn meeting taking up my TV time! We gotta go 100 mph and overbook everything! C'mon!"

Hey, jealousy

Did Daniels attack A.J. from behind the last two weeks? He seemed to have motive. Daniels's jealousy shined through this week, as he told Styles: "You've been pampered. You've been coddled. And yeah, you're a little bit spoiled A.J. You've always gotten special treatment." Daniels and Styles have been with TNA for the same duration, and it does seem A.J. has gotten more of the opportunities.

In the history of the TNA Heavyweight title, we all know that A.J. has four reigns to Daniels's zero, but how many shots have they had? Styles has been the challenger in twelve different World Title matches in his TNA career. Daniels is far behind, as he has only one - a three-on-one gauntlet match on the January 22, 2003 weekly PPV.

Wonder if he owns any Depeche Mode?

Say what you want, but Duran Duran has had some catchy songs during their lengthy career. Even Desmond Wolf agrees in a way. He just missed quoting a famous Duran Duran song during his promo, saying he was "hungry like a wolf." The Duran Duran song in question is of course "Hungry Like the Wolf," but I'm hoping Desmond wasn't referencing the song based on it's lyrics. "Mouth is alive, with juices like wine?" I hope that's not where this storyline is heading. If Wolf can work "Rio" or "The Reflex" into his future promos, that would be impressive, though.

I'm Robbie!

We haven't seen much of the Highlanders since they were released by WWE, but I'm glad to see Robbie McAllister continuing to get work. We saw him during the infamous crowd shot during WrestleMania weekend, but he's found a new way to appear on TV. Castrol Motor Oil needed a new spokesperson, and Robbie answered the call. "Quit thinkin' with your dipstick!" Still not as fun as "I'm Robbie!," but at least he's finding work.

No disagreement here

TNA has added some new nameplate graphics recently, and they've been mixing it up for each wrestler. Height, weight, years pro, finishers, nicknames - they've all been shown on the screen. But a new one was added to the list during Madison Rayne's entrance this week. Rather than biographical info, her graphic just read "She's beautiful, and you're not!" I won't disagree at all - I'm not beautiful. But I only say that because I'm a dude. Madison's nameplate was slightly amusing, so maybe we should keep the trend going with other TNA wrestlers in the future.

Traci Brooks - She floats in water, and you don't!
Hulk Hogan - He gets TV hype, title matches don't!
Shark Boy - Yep, I'm still officially employed here!
Cody Deaner - Yep, I'm still officially employed here...unfortunately.

Numbers crunch - Only a few (hundred) select guys are worthy

If you've read past numbers crunches, you no doubt know that I love title histories and the numbers that go along with them. We've looked at titles by company, by individual title, and for select individuals. But what about overall title reigns by individual? This week we'll look at every single individual in the big four (WWE, WCW, TNA, and ECW) to hold a title since 1990. We'll exclude the Hardcore Title since there were literally dozens of reigns every month. (Darn Hardcore Title skewing my number crunches!) Aside from that, we'll look at every single title and every single person to win it in the last 20 years.

It seems like there have been hundreds of guys to hold titles in those companies. Well, there has been - 327 guys to be exact. That's not even counting the 33 different females who have won a title during that time. The amount of stats and numbers you could look at comparing all 327 male individuals is endless, but here's a few I came up with.

Held one of the promotion's World Titles - 82 (25 percent)
Have five or more title reigns - 91 (27 percent)
Have ten or more title reigns - 45 (13 percent)
Only have one career title reign - 114 (34 percent)
Won five different titles - 36 (11 percent)
Held a title in more than one promotion - 70 (21 percent)
Only won titles in WWE - 110
Only won titles in TNA - 37
Only won titles in WCW - 74
Only won titles in ECW - 36

Looking at the 45 individuals with ten-plus reigns since 1990, it's interesting to note that 13 of them have never held a World Title. Daniels, The Dudleys, Scott Hall, X-Pac, William Regal, James Storm, Lance Storm, Kip James, Billy Kidman, Dean Malenko, Stevie Ray, and Rick Steiner all fall into that category.

Those listed who are still active should keep their fingers crossed, as it's still a possibility. Some of the individuals who have had ten title reigns in major promotions before ever winning a World Title include Rey Mysterio, Booker T, Edge, Christian, RVD, Scott Steiner, the Hardys, Jeff Jarrett, Eddie Guerrero, and Chris Jericho.

Curtis Shanks is a self-described wrestling nerd who, contrary to popular belief, does have a social life. Feedback is welcome as comments, suggestions and questions can be sent to Curtis at curtisshanks.torch@gmail.com.

WWE News: WWE's "History of the World Title" DVD receives mainstream press; WWE to include Thesz, Gotch, Buddy Rogers footage

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:33:40 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The Houston Chronicle printed a blurb on WWE's upcoming DVD releases, including the Hulk Hogan Anthology and a "History of the World Title" DVD that will include old-school footage dating back to Ed "Strangler" Lewis, Lou Thesz, Buddy Rogers, and Frank Gotch.

Hogan's DVD is scheduled for release on November 17. Amazon.com lists the "History of the World Title" DVD for release on December 1. Chronicle columnist David Barron said it's a classic DVD for "geezers" like himself.

"The latest round of WWE DVDs includes another Hulk Hogan collection, the first two volumes in a multi-year anthology of Survivor Series and, for my fellow geezers, a history of the world heavyweight championship with National Wrestling Alliance matches featuring the original Nature Boy, Buddy Rogers, plus Gene Kiniski, Dory Funk Jr., Terry Funk, Jack Brisco and Harley Race," Barron reported.

Barron has covered pro wrestling for the Chronicle for a number of years. The Chronicle covered WrestleMania 25 earlier this year with a cover-story on the five-star classic Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker match that was on the frontpage of the printed Chronicle the day after the PPV from Houston.

According to Amazon.com's listing for the World Title DVD, the chapters will include: Origins of Wrestling, "An American Hero" Frank Gotch, Ed "Strangler" Lewis, National Wrestling Alliance, Lou Thesz, Buddy Rogers, New Breed of Champions, 1970s World Champions, A Flair for the Gold, Crockett's World Champion, NWA to WCW, WCW Withdraws From NWA, Revolving WCW Champions, The Undisputed Championship, World Championship Returns, Legacy Lives.

Matches scheduled to be included date back to the 1960s with Pat O'Connor vs. Buddy Rogers and Gene Kiniski vs. WWE Hall of Famer Dory Funk, Jr. The Amazon link has the full match listing.

TNA News: Watch TNA president Dixie Carter's "Love it or Leave It" speech to the roster from Impact (w/VIDEO)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:06:48 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA president Dixie Carter opened Thursday night's edition of TNA Impact with a speech to the entire TNA roster and staff essentially telling everyone in the company to "love it or leave it" when it comes to agreeing with the direction TNA is going creatively and with Hulk Hogan's new power behind-the-scenes.

The segment was taped earlier this week during the Impact tapings. Wrestlers were shown out-of-character listening to Carter tell them not to complain about the booking and buy into her philosophy for how to run the company. Carter said she's been told how to run a wrestling company for six years, but she's not going to be told anymore.

Carter talked vaguely about changes coming with Hulk Hogan in power. TNA has yet to define Hogan's actual role behind-the-scenes or on TV, but she told everyone on the roster to get on-board or leave the company.

Video of Carter's speech to open Impact is below. Notice TNA writers Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara sitting on the ring apron over Carter's left shoulder. TNA agents Scott D'Amore, Simon Diamond, and D-Lo Brown were behind Carter over her right shoulder. Clip from TNA's official YouTube page.

CALDWELL'S WWE SUPERSTARS TV REPORT 11/5: Complete coverage of Chris Jericho vs. Finlay edition

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:59:51 PST

WWE Superstars TV Report
November 5, 2009 - Week 30
Taped the Week of November 2
Report by James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

I'm covering the replay of WWE Superstars currently airing on WGN. So, follow along with the replay of the show, which started with pyro and Raw announcer Michael Cole welcoming us to Superstars. Cole said we can expect everything tonight. First, Santino Marella. Santino came out blowing kisses to no one in particular before doing a full stop, drop, and roll into the ring and all the way across the ring. Santino shook hands with ring announcer Justin Roberts and ref John Cone before Chavo Guerrero came out to face him.

1 -- CHAVO GUERRERO vs. SANTINO MARELLA

Santino started on the offensive with his comedy offensive as the announcers tried to establish Chavo's credibility coming from the Guerrero family despite being made sport by Hornswoggle the past several weeks...and seemingly months. Chavo then came back with a rolling suplex that nearly dropped Santino on his beck. Santino kicked out of a pin attempt, then Santino came back with a backslide for a two count, but Chavo answered with a dropkick for a two count. Santino teased a comeback, but Chavo knocked him down to the mat and began toying with him. Chavo took his team taunting Santino, who finally had enough of Chavo. Santino did his cobra hand signal into a punch for the kids. He then attempted his comedic salute-the-troops diving headbutt that Chavo moved out of the way of. Chavo then put the boots to Santino and teased going up top. Chavo sold that he changed his mind and went for a mat hold, but Santino surprised him with a small package pin for the win. Afterward, Santino did his marching band salute while Chavo sold shock he lost again.

WINNER: Santino in 6:00. Fine opening match. Focus was on the happenings inside the ring with Chavo being presented as a less-than-credible heel to create some interest in who would win between the "less-than-credible heel with a strong wrestling background" and the "likable, comedy babyface." (*1/4)

[Commercial Break]

Back from break, we have another Raw match with Jack Swagger coming to the ring. Prior to the show, WWE advertised three of the four matches tonight on their website and Swagger's match was not one of the four advertised. Yes, apparently Paul Burchill vs. Tyler Reks is a bigger deal than Swagger's match. And out came Primo to face Swagger in a re-match from last week's show. Swagger vs. Primo...the face of the show taped before Raw.

[Q2]

2 -- JACK SWAGGER vs. PRIMO

Primo employed a different strategy to start things off by avoiding Swagger's amateur holds and power offense early on. Swagger then took a head scissors, but blocked a corner attack by ramming Primo back-first into the corner turnbuckle. Swagger followed with right hand strikes before putting a boot in Primo's throat. Swagger followed with his running Vader Bomb, then a second one. Swagger intense and fired up. Put the man in a main event situation. Swagger then put Primo on the mat and stretched him with a neck-twist/back-wrench/abdominal-stretch hold. Swagger kept the hold locked in for a while before breaking it himself to inflict more punishment. Primo shook off Swagger's offense at 4:00, then came back with an aerial attack. Primo's comeback was short-lived, though, as Swagger caught Primo off the ropes in position for the gutwrench powerbomb and the pin for the win. Afterward, Swagger ran around the ring in victory before "popping his collar" to the crowd. Swagger remains undefeated after making his vow to run through 2009 without a loss.

WINNER: Swagger in 5:00. Good, intense display from Swagger, who apparently listened to Jim Ross's evaluation last week to "bring it" every time he's given a TV match opportunity. Primo, meanwhile, is being presented as Raw's table scraps on a regular basis. (*)

Announcers: Jerry Lawler was shown taking a swig out of his commemorative 7/11 cup. He pretended like he was "caught on camera" with a cheap plug. Cole and Lawler then rolled footage from Raw of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne hosting Raw on Monday night.

Backstage: They showed Chris Jericho pumping himself up backstage. He has a fight on his hands against Finlay later in the show.

[Commercial Break]

Did You Know: John Cena is the most requested sports celebrity for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, even more than either NFL, MLB, or NBA. Well, which one is it?

In-ring: Paul and Katie Burchill came to the ring for ECW's contribution to the show. Tyler Reks was out next as his opponent. Two tall men who carry the perception of being generic in their roles. Burchill is showing improvements, but Reks is only featured on Superstars.

3 -- PAUL BURCHILL (w/Katie Lea) vs. TYLER REKS

Katie helped out Paul early in the match, then Burchill went to work on Reks with control of the action. Reks made his obligatory comeback, then the ref instructed Reks to back off and allow Burchill to recover if he's injured. It was an obvious trap, though, and Burchill finished off Reks with his jackhammer suplex for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Burchill in 3:00. Match was there to promote Burchill. Reks continues to receive TV time on the D show, but it's not ample enough to develop a personality for his character. Apparently patience is a virtue waiting for Reks to get enough exposure for WWE to do something with him. (1/2*)

[Q3]

Main event to come: Jericho vs. Finlay. Cue up the WCW Saturday Night theme with the machine-like arm doing motions and numbers being scrambled on the screen. And Dusty Rhodes.

[Commercial Break]

Hey, Kids at home: Join the search for Parts Unknown! Matt Striker narrated a still photo of WWE's website with Ultimate Warrior's mug on the screen with WWE encouraging visitors to uncover the mystery.

Superstars Profile: Yoshi Tatsu. Complete with music and spin kicks. If WWE really wanted to tap into their expansive tape library, they could try to relate newer stars to older stars, such as Yoshi channeling the 1-2-3 Kid X-Pac Sean Waltman. It would enhance today's stars, similar to how sports broadcasters try to elevate today's athletes by comparing them to older stars who have name-brand recognition.

Smackdown Rebound: They went back to Friday's show when Rey Mysterio addressed Batista for trying to rip his head off at the Bragging Rights PPV. ... In-ring: Chris Jericho came to the ring with a self-satisfied look on his face. He has Finlay up next.

[Commercial Break]

In-ring: Finlay came to the ring sporting his "alternate jersey" black ring gear instead of the traditional Irish Spring green color scheme. I like the black gear. Nice look. Smackdown announcers Todd Grisham and Matt Striker narrated a clip from Smackdown last Friday when Drew McIntyre attacked and KO'ed Finlay prior to a match. No sign of Drew tonight. Let's get the bell.

[Q4]

4 -- Unified tag champion CHRIS JERICHO vs. FINLAY

Two old-school guys started with a slapfest and Finlay shot Jericho a look like, "You're kidding, right?" Finlay then shoved Jericho's face into the corner and Jericho begged off. Finlay then smashed Jericho with an uppercut and aggressively put him on the mat before Jericho responded with an aggressive takedown. The match moved to the floor where Finlay caught Jericho inside the ring apron and ring banner in his classic move. They cut to break with Jericho holding onto the banner and Finlay in control. Great opening three minutes.

[Commercial Break]

Back from break, Finlay was posing for a picture with Jericho locking him in a chinlock. Camera was zoomed in tight on the gap in Finlay's teeth, which should make for an interesting snapshot. Jericho worked over Finlay for a few minutes before Finlay came back with a kick strike. Jericho followed with a kick strike of his own before landing a Samoa Joe-style flying sentaun splash for a two count. Finlay then came back at 11:00 with a full comeback including the Rolling Hills drop as one woman in the crowd near an arena mic screamed with delight as Finlay scored a nearfall. Crowd was hot for the anticipated finish as Jericho teased the Walls of Jericho. This woman was going nuts screaming for Finlay to break the ropes, which he eventually did. Finlay then teased the Celtic Cross, but Jericho grabbed the ropes to block. Jericho then nailed the codebreaker out of nowhere. He slowly made his way over to Finlay to make the cover for the win. And the woman kept shrieking. Jericho had his hand raised in victory as they rolled a replay of the high points in the match. They closed the show with Jericho holding up the Unified tag titles with a heelish look on his face.

WINNER: Jericho in 14:00. Excellent TV match for Superstars. I'd like to see a few more rounds of Jericho and Finlay bringing back old-school WCW TV. Finlay is really under-utilized, in my estimation, especially when he's matched up with a wrestler who can take some punishment and have an aggressive match without anyone complaining about someone working stiff. Finlay brings good, old-school pro wrestling to the table that keeps viewers locked in if they want to see scripted, believable competition with one guy trying to prove he's tougher or the better wrestler than the other guy. I thoroughly enjoyed this main event. (**1/4)

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE Superstars TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on Superstars, email to pwtorch@gmail.com using our Feedback form.

TNA News: TNA adds a bunch of PPV matches to the Turning Point PPV line-up

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:45:06 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA announced several new matches for the Turning Point PPV on November 15 during tonight's edition of TNA Impact. The headline matches are TNA World Hvt. champion A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe vs. Daniels in a three-way match and Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe.

The complete line-up with one more week of Impact before the PPV is as follows:

-- TNA World Hvt. champion A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe vs. Daniels

-- Desmond Wolfe (Nigel McGuinness) vs. Kurt Angle

-- Bobby Lashley vs. Scott Steiner

-- TNA tag team champions British Invasion vs. Beer Money

-- X Division champion Amazing Red vs. Homicide

-- Awesome Kong vs. Tara in a steel cage match

-- TNA Knockouts champion ODB & TNA Knockout tag champions Sarita & Taylor Wilde vs. The Beautiful People with all of the titles on the line

[Samoa Joe art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

TNA IMPACT POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/5 Impact if you saw the show?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:36:39 PST

CALDWELL'S TNA IMPACT REPORT 11/5: Complete coverage of Dixie Carter addressing TNA roster, Styles vs. Daniels

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:00:05 PST

TNA Impact Report on Spike TV
November 5, 2009
Taped Nov. 2 in Orlando, Fla.
Report by James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The show opened with a video package of Hulk Hogan joining TNA last week, including Hulk Hogan's appearance on Larry King Live with a quick soundbyte on TNA. Mike Tenay with the usual histrionics that it's TNA's biggest announcement ever. Show title: "A New Beginning."

Impact Zone: The show went to the Impact Zone where Mike Tenay talked about "documenting" TNA's partnership between Hulk Hogan and Dixie Carter. He introduced a "behind-the-scenes" video from earlier today.

"Earlier today": They showed Dixie Carter addressing the entire TNA locker room in an empty Impact Zone. She said she's heard from so many people trying to tell her how to run the wrestling company for the past six years. Carter assured the talent there will be "drastic changes." Carter said she knows some people might have different opinions on her decision-making, but people need to stand behind her. She said she made the choice to put her finances and reputation behind each wrestler. They showed the wrestlers, Knockouts, and agents sitting in the Impact Zone out of character. Carter said the wrestlers can support her decisions or find somewhere else to work. They showed A.J. Styles in the arena sitting next to Tara. Carter said she sees wrestlers who have made her proud, but they all need to step it up in every way possible. "If you don't believe it, you're hurting the person sitting next to you." Carter said if they believe it, then show people what they're all about.

Impact Zone: Back to the show, A.J. Styles came to the ring as Mike Tenay and Taz talked ringside about Carter's speech. In the ring, Styles said there have been a lot of changes here in TNA. He said he's A.J. Styles and he's TNA World Hvt. champion. Styles said he's been part of a lot of changes in TNA. "Who would have thought Hulk Hogan would be part of the TNA family?" Styles asked, prompting a Hogan name chant. Styles said it's a whole new playing field on a whole new level. He said he's been dreaming of being at this level the past seven years he's been here. But, where there's positives, there's also negatives. Styles said when he won the World Title, he made it clear he's a fighting champion. Styles said someone has been hiding in the shadows jumping him every time he has his back turned. He told the mystery assailant to MAN UP and show up.

Daniels came out and the announcers instantly assumed Daniels was the mystery assailant. Daniels said Styles is assuming he jumped him because Samoa Joe told him. "Are you really that gullible? Or, are you really that stupid?" Daniels asked. Daniels told Styles he is so arrogant with the title belt on his shoulder. Vince Russo apparently scripted this promo. Daniels said along the way, Styles has been pampered, coddled, and a little bit spoiled. Check the video of Dixie Carter rubbing Styles's arm after his title victory two months ago. Daniels said he's been here just as long as Styles, but he's never been given the same breaks. He claimed to be every bit the wrestler as Styles is. "You know it!" No woo woo. Daniels said the only difference between them is that every time Styles was down, the company pushed him up. Daniels said every time he was up, they pushed him down.

Daniels said Dixie Carter vowed to make changes in TNA, but maybe today is his lucky day to make changes or else it's going to be another seven years in hell for him. Styles asked Daniels if he really thinks that because he's never opened up to him like that. Suddenly, Samoa Joe's music hit. And we continue to talk. Joe stood on the entrance ramp and told Daniels he's a bald...faced liar. Joe told Styles that Daniels has been lying to him their entire friendship. He accused Daniels of always being jealous of Styles. Joe said him and Styles aren't friends because Styles has something he wants. He said to be the best in the world, you have to be the TNA World champion. Joe said he can say that face-to-face to Styles and he doesn't need to attack him from behind like a shameful, cowardly punk.

Daniels answered Joe emphatically that he's not the assailant. He said he can beat Styles right here in the ring face-to-face, man-to-man, and no doubt about it. Styles turned Daniels around and asked him if he really thinks he's the best. "How bad do you want to find out?" Styles asked. He said all Daniels needed to do was ask. He suggested they settle this right here tonight. Styles said they can put their friendship aside and do things the right way: a winner and a loser. Well, that's a foreign concept in TNA. Daniels shook Styles's hand, then Joe smiled from the entrance ramp after pitting his two PPV opponents against each other. Good opening segment, but they missed the PPV hype in two weeks. Someone tuning in to this for the first time would have no idea there's a three-way title match on PPV with potential for awesomeness in ten days.

[Q2]

[Commercial Break]

Impact Zone: World Elite's music hit, bringing out Global champion Eric Young and Rob Terry. They're in tag action with a ten minute time limit. Do we get the FSN Fox Box? Beer Money came out second to glorify alcoholism. They cut to a shot from last week when Beer Money attacked World Elite to set up this match.

1 -- BEER MONEY (ROBERT ROODE & JAMES STORM) vs. WORLD ELITE (Global champion ERIC YOUNG & ROB TERRY)

Rob locked up with Storm to start things off, but Rob shoved him away. Tenay talked up TNA and Hulk Hogan being in the news - CNN, Jimmy Fallon, Howard Stern. Meanwhile, Terry flexed and nearly popped a pec. Tenay was handed a note: Styles vs. Daniels signed for tonight...and with special guest ref will be Samoa Joe. Back to the action where Roode launched Storm over the top rope onto Terry on the floor. Storm then rolled Terry back into the ring and Beer Money wanted the DWI, but Terry slipped out and dropped Roode face-first on the mat. Young then tried to KO Roode with the title belt, but Roode ducked and Terry ate the belt. Roode then made the cover for the win.

WINNERS: Beer Money in 5:00. Match was just there to fill TV time before the "intricate TNA booking details" were fleshed out in the post-match. (*)

Post-match: British Invasion stormed the ring in their little white track pants. The worst looking, most uncoordinated security in the world finally hit the ring to separate people. If Hulk Hogan is watching, that has to be the first thing to go. The lame-looking security just turns this show into a laughable program every time they're on TV. Beer Money recovered in the ring while British Invasion gave Terry a tongue-lashing for screwing up. Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley then jumped BI on the entrance ramp and...yes, another brawl broke out that security eventually broke up.

Backstage: The Beautiful People were suddenly on the TV screen walking down the hallway with their arms linked together complaining about A.J. Styles being given TV time over them. Harumph.

[Commercial Break]

[Q3]

Backstage: The Beautiful People barged into Knockout champion ODB's locker room. Had to check to make sure I didn't accidentally switch to Cinemax, as the Beautiful People were shown wearing close to nothing. Anyways, ODB was sitting in an office chair feeling pretty confident about herself, but the BPs beat her down and gave her a typical BP hazing before leaving the room.

Backstage: Lauren brought in Jay Lethal for his thoughts on Hulk Hogan joining TNA. Lethal, channeling Randy Savage, said the mere mention of his name brings back history of them fighting side-by-side and being against each other. Machismo said he wants to be the first to welcome Hogan to TNA. He wanted to make an announcement of his own, though. Lethal said in the New Home of the MegaPowers, next week will be the start of the Black Machismo Invitational. Anyone who wants to bring it and see if they can still got it, then show up. Lethal started naming names before landing on Ric Flair.

Mick Foley Office: More talking with Jeremy Borash going into Foley's office to know why he's no-selling his personal contacts via electronic communications. Foley said, as an executive shareholder, he wasn't made aware of the big changes coming to TNA. He said when they were interrogating suspects on the Tweak 'n Tweet picture destruction, Borash seemed a bit nervous about security footage he might not want the world to know about. Borash said he just wants to talk about Abyss. Foley said he has a surprise for him too.

[Commercial Break. Mid-break, they cut back to a shot of Desmond Wolfe (Nigel McGuinness) warming up in the Impact Zone. Mike Tenay talked him up for his program with Kurt Angle before they went back to break.]

Impact Zone: Desmond Wolfe came to the ring as a moon and howling music played. Apparently he's half-man, half-wolf. Get it? He's a wolf, haha. Anyways, Cody Deaner was in the ring as Tenay and Taz talked to Kurt Angle on the phone.

2 -- DESMOND WOLFE vs. CODY DEANER

Bell rang, Nigel landed the Lariat, and Wolfe scored the pin. Angle said Wolfe damaged his larynx and he basically has a pinched nerve running down his arm. Angle said this guy "got his attention," but he doesn't have his respect yet. Angle gave a slight cough to sell the attack. (This became comical over time.) Angle said he wasn't really ready for anything like what Wolfe gave him. Wolfe took the mic as refs checked on Deaner. He told everyone to take a good look at that Muppet in the ring. Angle chimed in that he was in Deaner's position last week. He sounded as if he was on a 1960s NASA phone line communicating from the moon. Wolfe picked up his promo that Angle should be called Mr. Mangled now. "Keep talking, Desmond *cough*," Angle interjected via the phone line. Angle's commentary was interjected over Wolfe's promo. "I'm glad to have it, Desmond, *cough*," Angle said. Wolfe said he's hungry for Angle's blood, like a wolf. He took his shades off for good measure, then put them back on. "Well, he said his piece *cough*," Angle said. Tenay announced Angle vs. Wolfe at the PPV.

WINNER: Wolfe in 0:10. Good squash for Wolfe and a great promo. Unfortunately, TNA interjected an unintentionally comedic phone call from Angle. Angle didn't do anything wrong other than sounding progressively silly his cough to go with the horrible production. Sounded like one of my podcasts from 2005 using a $20 mic from Circuit City. (n/a)

Backstage: Lauren brought in Suicide for a promo. Is it time to reveal to the world who he is? Suicide did the deep modulated voice that he wore the mask to conceal himself and he's not ready to share with anyone who he is. Suicide addressed Homicide - "We will strike down upon you." ... Plug: Daniels vs. Styles up next with Samoa Joe in zebra stripes.

[Commercial Break]

[Q4]

Backstage: Lauren brought in IWGP tag champions Team 3D. Brother Ray didn't want to talk about their match against Hernandez and Matt Morgan later. Ray said he never thought he would say the words "Hulk Hogan in TNA." That wasn't complementary or negative. One of those open-ended statements that could go either way. Ray added that Dixie Carter has a set of grapefruits. Rhino then walked into the promo and told 3D to wake up. Ray said he's crazy and delusional. Devon said Morgan and Hernandez are phenomenal young talent and they're looking forward to the match. Why "young?" Why not just "good talent" instead of talking down to the wrestlers TNA is trying to build up. Ray then closed the promo with a Ric Flair reference, as the not-so-subtle plugs for Flair continue.

Impact Zone: Samoa Joe came to the ring wearing referee stripes for Styles vs. Daniels. Daniels then came to the ring first to face Styles. They cut backstage where Borash talked to A.J. Styles about facing one of his best friends ever, Daniels. Suddenly, the mystery man in a black hoodie and black pants jumped Styles. The person walked off, leaving Styles out cold on the floor. "Hey, somebody get the doc!" a random man shouted. They cut back to the ring where Daniels was about to run to the back to check on Styles, but Joe kicked him in the groin and nailed the Musclebuster. Joe left Daniels out cold in the ring, then left the ring with a big smirk on his face. Joe's master plan unfolds as TNA continues to build him up as an intelligent assassin. Good stuff for Joe.

[Commercial Break. Mid-commercial: they showed Tara walking down the hallway with her tarantula. She's in action next.]

Impact Zone: Tara came to the ring as Tenay said they are attempting to get an update on Styles and Daniels. Good follow-up instead of just moving along to the next segment. Hamada then came to the ring to face Tara in a singles match.

3 -- TARA vs. HAMADA

Nice back-and-forth match to start with. Hamada really could be marketed as a unique women's wrestler worth building the Knockouts Division brand around. Tara, as well, with her name-brand value from WWE. At the end of the match, Hamada went for a top rope moonsault, but Tara moved out of the way. Tara then hit the Widow's Peak on Hamada for the pin and the win.

Post-match: Awesome Kong came stomping out to the ring, but the comical Security stood in her way. Tara then landed a plancha on the floor and another fight broke out ringside, this time between Tara and Kong. Looks like we have a PPV match set for Turning Point. The cameras cut back and forth between Kong and Tara to show their anger with each other to conclude the segment.

WINNER: Tara in 4:00. Good Knockouts match with a clean finish. Tara-Kong could be a show-stealing match on the undercard of the Turning Point PPV. (*1/2)

[Q5]

[Commercial Break. They cut to a break right at the top of the hour, which TNA was better about in recent weeks. Now, channel-flippers looking for new programming at the top of the hour will see a commercial instead of something that could get them hooked for the second hour of the show.]

Backstage: Lauren caught up with Tara, who said Kong has been running loose like an animal and she's tired of it. Tara said she didn't come to TNA to deal with this crap. She plugged their cage match at the PPV and warned Kong that she will be locked in there with her, not the other way around.

Impact Zone: Mick Foley came to the ring with a framed picture in hand, but it was covered up so we couldn't see what it was. Foley then asked Abyss to come on out to the ring. Cue up Abyss's music and out came the Urban Outfitters spokesman. Flannel, hoodie, leather pants, and a sweatshirt. Foley tried to talk nice to Abyss and he put down the little "giftaroonie" so it's not used as a weapon here. Foley said the only time he's ever felt guilty about anything he's said to a wrestler was on the occasion he told Abyss he's a cheap, rip-off because he really didn't believe what he was saying. So, in other words, Foley told the fans he's a con artist for trying to get fans to buy into his promo to get them to spend money on a PPV match between them at Bound for Glory. Foley told "Chris" that he's even better and tougher than he originally thought. Foley said all someone has left to show from their time in the wrestling business is from their legacy. He said he wanted to be a cross between Bruiser Brody and Dynamite Kid. Foley said he blended them together to be a good wrestler. Dynamite Kid? Um...he would probably be the last person I would see Foley borrowing from. Foley continued to talk up Abyss before bringing out the giftaroonie. Foley gave Abyss the framed picture with a new Tweak 'n Tweet Connection featuring Foley and Abyss instead of Foley and Borash. Foley left the ring and Abyss did his Eugene hand clap.

Foley's music hit to conclude the segment, but then Foley asked them to cut the music. He said he put Abyss through a great test at BFG, but he wants to give him another test. Foley booked Abyss vs. Dr. Stevie. And if Abyss pins Stevie, he is gone from TNA. Abyss shouted and smiled and did a big, over-exaggerated facial reaction before staring at the photo.

Backstage: Borash was with Scott Steiner to find out his thoughts on Hulk Hogan joining TNA. Steiner said they were For Life in the NWO back in the day. He said if he knows Hogan like he thinks he does, then he thinks Hogan will put all those "young punks" in place before joining him in the Main Event Mafia. Steiner turned his attention to Bobby Lashley and suggested Krystal isn't getting satisfaction. He said he'll provide her with the satisfaction she desires.

[Commercial Break]

[Q6]

Impact Zone: Homicide was in the ring to face Bobby Lashley, who came to the ring with Krystal. Ref Earl Hebner booted Krystal from ringside, which upset Lashley. Homicide took advantage by attacking Lashley before the bell.

4 -- HOMICIDE vs. BOBBY LASHLEY

Tenay had something in his ear. "That's going to be tonight?" he asked the mystery man in his ear. Tenay said Styles vs. Daniels is a go for tonight. Lashley finished off Homicide with a lift-up chokeslam for the pin and the win. Post-match: Homicide jumped Lashley from behind and tried to use a boot as a weapon, but Lashley put him in the air for a press slam. Steiner then appeared on the video screen trying to corner Krystal. After sexually harassing Krystal, Steiner chased down Krystal, who was saved by Lashley. A fight broke out backstage with Lashley beating down Steiner until the Guns, Lethal (out of character), and Simon Diamond tried to separate Lashley and Steiner.

WINNER: Lashley in 2:00. Fine little enhancement match for Lashley, who still doesn't exude any wrestling personality. Steiner has plenty of personality, which is apparently why they paired them up for Lashley to get a little rub from Steiner's character. Lashley vs. Steiner at the PPV ought to be a doozy.

[Commercial Break]

Impact Zone: Back in the Impact Zone, Homicide shoved down Earl Hebner. Amazing Red then ran into the ring and dropped Homicide with...a move. And another move. Red then went up top and Homicide waited for Red to nail him with a splash. Homicide bailed to the floor as Red pretended to be trying to go after him. And they'll see each other at the PPV.

Announcers: Tenay and Taz broke down the Turning Point PPV line-up: All Knockouts Titles on the line - KO champ ODB & KO tag champs Sarita & Taylor Wilde vs. Beautiful People, Amazing Red vs. Homicide for the X Division Title, Kong vs. Tara in a steel cage, British Invasion vs. Machineguns for the tag titles, Scott Steiner vs. Bobby Lashley, Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe, and Styles vs. Joe vs. Daniels for the TNA World Title.

Impact Zone: Madison Rayne came out alone and pretended she was a poledancer. I must have flipped it back to Cinemax. TNA's sexual objectification of women and the women going along with it is really quite sad. TNA's version of Mickie James, Taylor Wilde, then came out to face Rayne.

[Q7]

5 -- MADISON RAYNE vs. TAYLOR WILDE

Rayne, wearing fishnets and a revealing top, mounted Wilde early on, apparently channeling her inner Jenna Morasca. Taylor then finished her off moments later for a very short match victory. Post-match: the rest of the Beautiful People ran to the ring and jumped Taylor. Sarita made the save for Taylor, but the BPs held them down after a brief skirmish. Eventually, ODB ran to the ring and made the save for the tag champs. BPs bailed to the outside to yell at the trio they'll face at the PPV to close the segment.

WINNER: Taylor Wilde in 2:00. Match was inconsequential and was merely a vehicle to set up the post-match to promote the PPV six-Knockout tag match. (n/a)

[Commercial Break. Mid-break: They showed A.J. Styles lacing up his boots real tight to prepare for the match against Daniels with Joe still the special ref.]

TNA Live Events video: Don West let us know what's coming up on the TNA house show circuit, including a fundraiser in Nashville with the Houston Oilers next Monday.

Backstage: Matt Morgan and Hernandez were with Lauren for a promo. Hernandez said something, then Morgan said he's tired of these conspiracy theories from Rhino. Morgan quietly said Team 3D is history. He said the two of them are the future of TNA. Lauren sold shock and pretended to be beside herself hearing this statement. Hernandez finished in Spanish and Morgan said, "What he said."

Impact Zone: They suddenly cut back to the ring where Daniels was stomping around wanting a piece of Joe. Joe backed out of the ring, though, and Styles came to the ring to face Daniels in a singles match. Quick bell and they're off.

6 -- TNA World Hvt. champion A.J. STYLES vs. DANIELS -- Samoa Joe special referee -- non-title match

TNA didn't give the audience enough time to really prepare for the match after the false start in the first hour. Too much happened before this, so the first few minutes were just there before Daniels settled into a rear chinlock. Joe, of note, is wearing purple latext gloves that were apparently found in the household items aisle at the grocery store before the show. I get that Joe is trying to be like an MMA ref wearing latex gloves, but no other ref in TNA wears them, so it seems silly like Slick Johnson wearing soccer referee socks. At 4:00, Daniels started arguing with Joe, who told Daniels to focus on the match. Styles then made a full comeback and wanted a springboard fist smash, but Daniels blocked mid-air and both men collapsed to the mat. Of note, girls in the Impact Zone screaming as if Evan Bourne is wrestling. Styles has that John Cena/Evan Bourne factor going for him. Styles then finished off Daniels with the Styles Clash and pinned him clean in the ring.

Post-match: Joe presented Styles with the title belt and sold respect for Styles. Styles wasn't sold on Joe trying to act trustworthy. Joe then handed over the belt and raised Styles's arm. He left the ring with everything seeming to be cool, but then Joe snuck back into the ring and slapped on the rear naked choke to choke the life out of Styles. Joe grabbed the title belt and stood over Styles and Daniels to close the segment.

WINNER: Styles in 6:00. Fine singles match between Styles and Daniels, but, again, the match was a vehicle to lead to the post-match. TNA is finally presenting Joe's character accurately as a strong heel assassin with him clearly a strong threat to Styles's title. Good deck-stacking against Styles, although Styles needs to look strong and not gullible at some point as the champ. (*1/2)

[Q8]

[Commercial Break]

Video package: Hernandez was shown talking up Hulk Hogan coming to TNA. Hernandez said he's cool with it, but he's concerned how it will affect the youth movement in TNA.

Backstage: Lauren mocked Dr. Stevie as Daffney stood by. Stevie said he will not be played by Mick Foley like a pawn on a chessboard. Daffney interjected that Stevie was nuts for trusting Foley. Stevie laughed it off and said he's giving "Chris" his final warning that he doesn't want to know what they have in store for him next week. Stevie laughed it up. Would have been a good cap on the segment if he suggested he's going to pull out the old 1997 blue jean cut-off shorts to drop a good hint for next week.

Impact Zone: Team 3D quickly came to the ring for the main event. Hernandez and Matt Morgan then came to the ring to face them. For some reason, Morgan is still wearing his sorcerer's robe to the ring.

7 -- TEAM 3D (BROTHER RAY & BROTHER DEVON) vs. MATT MORGAN & HERNANDEZ

Bell sounded as Tenay and Taz talked up Hulk Hogan coming to TNA. Tenay said they don't know what it means for the "youth" on the roster, which they hope to clear up once Hogan's role is more defined. Tenay plugged next week: a wrestling legend will answer Lethal's challenge, Dr. Stevie vs. Abyss, and Super Dave Osborne on the show. Based on those Spike previews for Super Dave's return to TV, he appears to be on life support. Spike trying to get one last run out of the glorified stuntman. The four big men did some stuff in the ring as Taz cracked himself up with a stream of jokes and one-liners. At 3:00, Devon sold a knee injury after attempting a double axehandle on Hernandez. Hern took advantage by going to work on the knee with mat holds.

Rhino then came to ringside and started talking to Ray, who was on the apron. Morgan slipped into the ring and dropkicked Devon while Ray told Rhino to get lost. Rhino and Ray continued to argue as Rhino told Ray to take a chair. "Take tha pen! I insist, take tha pen!" Subtle Seinfeld reference there. Ray eventually ran Rhino off, but Devon continued to take a beating. The chair loomed in the corner after Rhino left it ringside, however. Morgan then came into the ring and Ray suddenly snapped when he grabbed the chair and smashed Morgan across the back to cause a DQ. Ray then landed a chair shot to Hernandez's forehead. Of course, a chair shot to the head on Hernandez delivered by Ray. Rhino entered the ring and hugged Ray, who sold disgust with Rhino taking advantage of his conflicted state of mind. Rhino then Gored Hernandez and Morgan to finish them off. Rhino then took Ray and Devon by the hands and raised their arms in Rhino's version of victory. TNA closed with a shot of Ray leaning on the top rope selling confliction. "What have we just seen here?" Tenay asked.

WINNERS: Morgan & Hernandez via DQ in 6:00 long minutes. Again, match was a vehicle to the post-match activity that was the "real story" of the interaction here. I don't even know why TNA has matches on TV because they don't mean anything. Coincidentally, TNA weekly waters down the exact wrestling product they want people to spend $30 on when they have monthly PPVs. It's just hilarious. Then again, when you have a less-than-interesting main event with four big men dragging themselves around the ring, perhaps it's best to distract the audience from the wrestling occurring in the ring. (1/2*)

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for an "Impact Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on Impact, click here.

Hogan News: Can Hulk Hogan wrestle again? Hogan needs help walking during TV interview (w/VIDEO)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:38:45 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Hulk Hogan was shown needing help onto the set of FOX's Good Day LA in Los Angeles today to talk about his new book. Hogan recently had back surgery and is scheduled to wrestle in Australia later this month.

During the interview, Hogan recapped the main points of his book we've heard during his book tour that his life reached rock bottom before he "snapped out of it" to see how beautiful life is while developing his Christian faith.

At the end of the interview, Hogan threw out a quick plug for TNA Wrestling. "You know what? I'm going to go back to work and run a wrestling company called TNA," he said. "I'm getting ready to give everybody another choice."

The beginning of the video below shows Hogan being escorted onto the set and not appearing to be in any condition to wrestle.

DGUSA News: Gabe Sapolsky predicts the wrestling industry will die without new TV wrestling stars

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:20:11 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Dragon Gate USA booker Gabe Sapolsky is painting a bleak picture of the state of pro wrestling that he thinks the industry will die without new stars being developed.

"Wrestling right now is not cool or hip. It's just a bunch of old acts and retreads. There's nothing new and fresh," Sapolsky said in an interview with Alex Marvez promoting the second DGUSA PPV debuting on Friday. "I think if nothing is done to cultivate new fans, the industry is going to die."

It's hard to imagine pro wrestling not being visible on TV with WWE offering six hours of programming, TNA offering two hours, and ROH offering one hour weekly, plus frequent PPV offerings from WWE, TNA, and DGUSA. Sapolsky says there could come a day when there is no more wrestling on TV.

"It's the same stuff over and over again," he said. "It's fascinating that wrestling is the only entertainment industry that doesn't make an effort to push new talent. You don't see that with TV, music, or anything else. When a new star bursts on that scene, everyone gets behind them. A record label wouldn't try to keep down new talent and keep shoving an artist whose music was selling 20 years ago."

WWE functions with younger wrestlers needing to "pay their dues" before they're given a main event-level opportunity. TNA, meanwhile, is pushing a youth movement, but just signed 56-year-old Hulk Hogan to essentially run the promotion. Sapolsky says the DGUSA promotion isn't concerned about grabbing casual fans for their niche brand of high-flying and athletic wrestling.

"We know there is a niche audience that wants to see great athletic wrestling. If that's the only audience we get, we're perfectly happy," he said. "We're not going to alter our product or change that we are trying to get more casual fans. We depend on word-of-mouth and hope that people give an affordable product a chance."

Link: Read Sapolsky's complete interview, including his thoughts on his former company, Ring of Honor.

Hogan News: Hulk Hogan cracks the Top 15 of a Best-sellers List

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:55:33 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Hulk Hogan's new book, "My Life Outside the Ring," landed in the Top 15 of Publishers Weekly's Best-seller List for Hardcover Nonfiction books. This was Hogan's first week on the list after the book came out last Tuesday.

Hogan's book is #14 among nonfiction books covering sports, politics, and business. Hogan has been on a tour of the U.S. promoting his book with stops in New York, Minnesota, St. Louis, Seattle, and Los Angeles. Hogan will be in Florida next week promoting the book.

Link: Top 15 book listing.

TNA News: TNA to feature unique start to tonight's TNA Impact

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:00:42 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA president Dixie Carter says tonight's TNA Impact on Spike TV will begin with a "talent meeting" with Carter addressing the wrestlers on the roster. Carter also says it's the first time cameras were allowed inside a talent meeting backstage at a TNA event.

TNA taped tonight's edition of Impact on Monday night after the announcement that Hulk Hogan has joined the promotion. Hogan did not appear at the tapings, but TNA is advertising he will be an important part of tonight's show.

"Met with talent before show. Preparing the troops for battle. 1st talent mtg w/cameras allowed. Look for footage at start of show tonight," Carter said on Twitter.

WWE News: WWE's earnings report leads to significant chance in stock price today

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:35:26 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE's stock price jumped 7.2 percent at the end of today's trading with WWE exceeding analyst expectations and estimates with their third quarter financial report today.

WWE closed the day at $14.51 per share after opening at $13.65 per share. The chart below shows WWE's stock progressively climbing throughout the day as more investors grabbed shares of WWE stock.

WWE's stock price surge today looks good on a day-to-day basis. However, the stock has been underperforming in recent weeks since hitting $14.40 per share on October 21.

Flash Player 9 or higher is required to view the chart
Click here to download Flash Player now

View the full WWE chart at Wikinvest

ROH News: Jim Cornette officially begins as ROH executive producer at today's ROH TV tapings (w/VIDEO)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:08:42 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Tonight's ROH on HDNet TV taping in Philadelphia is the first taping with former TNA agent Jim Cornette serving as executive producer. Cornette has said in interviews that he doesn't want to make changes to the product, but use his experience to enhance the storylines and personalities on the roster.

"I'd like to use my experience in wrestling to show them (wrestlers) how to work smarter sometimes and I'd like to dress up the wrestling program with some bells and whistles. I want to make it bigger and better for them," Cornette told WDFN last month. (Read the complete story.)

The ROH TV taping tonight will include main events of Austin Aries defending the ROH Title, Colt Cabana vs. Claudio Castagnoli, and Tyler Black vs. former TNA wrestler Sonjay Dutt. The three separate episodes taped tonight are scheduled to air December 7, 14, and 21.

The video below is a hype video on what's happening in Ring of Honor right now, including Cornette's announcement in New York City several weeks ago that he has signed on to the executive producer role.

WWE News: What's on WWE Superstars tonight - Chris Jericho vs. Finlay, Santino hi-jinks

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:50:41 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Tonight's edition of WWE Superstars on WGN will feature Unified tag champion Chris Jericho vs. Finlay in a singles match.

The match-up has a WCW feel to it since both men were on regularly featured in undercard programs on WCW TV a decade ago. One of the better Jericho-Finlay match-ups took place in October 1998 on an episode of WCW Saturday Night when Jericho was WCW TV champion.

Also featured on tonight's show will be the comedy hi-jinks of Santino Marella in a singles match against Chavo Guerrero. The ECW brand has Paul Burchill vs. Tyler Reks in a singles match.

Hardy News: Update on Jeff Hardy's legal standing after yesterday's scheduled court appearance

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:13:22 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Former WWE champion Jeff Hardy's probable cause hearing has been rescheduled to December 2, reports the Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer. Hardy was scheduled for court yesterday, but he did not attend.

"Hardy was represented by his Pinehurst lawyer, Jim Van Camp," reports the Observer. "During a recess, Van Camp said Hardy had planned to attend but they had not received a report from the drug lab."

The report from the drug lab is vital to Hardy's legal standing. The probable cause hearing now scheduled for Dec. 2 will determine whether there is enough evidence against Hardy to proceed to a trial.

If there is not enough evidence against Hardy at the probable cause hearing, the judge could drop the charges against Hardy altogether.

Hardy is faced with six different felony and misdemeanor drug-related charges after police arrested him and seized drugs in his house during a planned raid on September 11, just two weeks after Hardy left WWE.

TNA News: Rob Van Dam in-depth interview - says he's considering joining TNA

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:00:12 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Former WWE and ECW champion Rob Van Dam says he's considering joining TNA after Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff signed up with TNA to help build the company's visibility. RVD isn't sure Hogan should be booking storylines or making matches, however.

"It's more appealing because they raised the stakes," RVD told the Monday Night Mayhem radio show this week. "Hulk Hogan brings credibility & name recognition. A lot of people that don't watch wrestling and many who haven't watched wrestling in five or ten years, they all know who Hulk Hogan is. He is a great representative of what wrestling can be. Should he have the book? I don't know. Just because you have one talent in the business, doesn't mean you have something else."

RVD said in recent interviews that he has an "open door policy" with WWE to make infrequent appearances for the company, including the Royal Rumble earlier this year. RVD does not want to be on WWE's full-time schedule, which seems to open the door for TNA with their part-time schedule.

In the interview with the Mayhem radio show, RVD took an outsider's perspective on evaluating Hogan and Bischoff's alignment with TNA. He also played coy on whether he's ready to make the jump to TNA despite having conversations with TNA president Dixie Carter.

"With Hulk Hogan & Eric Bischoff now in TNA, it's a very interesting time in the wrestling business...and in a very positive way," RVD said. "I was at Bound For Glory saying hi to some friends. And part of that was 'Oh, hi Dixie, nice to meet you.' We have talked on the phone...Same thing with Vince Russo. Now that Hogan & Bischoff are there, it's definitely putting a lot of energy on TNA, a lot of focus and eyes. Now if they can follow up with that, they could really, really grow."

RVD said later in the interview that if he returns to wrestling, he wants to be part of something hip and happening, like in ECW's boom period under Paul Heyman that he was part of. RVD said he's tired of watching the same wrestling style on TV.

"Can we get the wrestling business fun with Hulk Hogan in TNA? I don't know but here's one thing, part of why it's not interesting to watch anymore is because it's so routine and mundane," he said. "Every match, we have to see the babyface cry and sell, and the heel do his stuff, and the babyface make his big comeback. Every match? I don't enjoy that."

Link: Listen to the complete interview on the Monday Night Mayhem radio show.

11/3 WWE ECW Hits & Misses: Goldust vs. Regal, Ryder's POV, Burchill - Hurricane

By Jon Mezzera, Torch Specialist — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:47:52 PST

ECW HITS

Opening Segment: After WWE put on a mostly bad week of tv last week, this week got off to a good start with a good Raw. ECW followed nicely, starting with the opening of the show. It was simple but effective follow up on what happened at the end of last week's show. Christian was good in being more serious in his challenge of William Regal. Regal was great on the mic in declaring that he has the power now and demanding that his ECW Title shot come next week in England. It makes sense, but I hope that doesn't mean that ECW will be shut out of another PPV. I also liked the dropkick from Christian at the end, sending a message to Regal.

Regal vs. Goldust: This was a good short match. It was nice to hear Goldust still getting a strong reaction from the fans after he has been in limbo since his great feud with Shaemus ended. He got in a good amount of offense, but the pre-match attack by Christian gave the #1 contender an excuse for taking time to eventually get the better of his opponent. Regal did not get much offense in, but that actually worked well to set up his running knee as a strong finisher. That was all he needed to get the win over Goldust. It sets it up in the minds of the fans as being a major threat to Christian next week.

Burchill - Hurricane: I have liked parts of this feud, and not liked other parts. This was definitely a good step towards the blow off match next week. Paul Burchill has improved and will presumably be moving on to Smackdown (just my assumption) with his sister so she can actually work with some other Divas. He played his part well, as did Hurricane. I liked the dueling lines about Halloween. Also, since his return, Hurricane hasn't gotten much (if any) mic time, so it was good to hear him speak here. It reinforced him as a character in talking about having fun, the fans being behind him and the chicks digging super heroes. And it was effective set up to a big match next week. ECW did that for two matches which is more than you can say for the other WWE shows most weeks.

Final Segment: Just as ECW got off to a good start, it also had a strong ending. The main event was a good, but short tag match (assumed it would go two segments) of Christian & Yoshi Tatsu vs. Ezekiel Jackson & Vladimir Kozlov. It was a bit formulaic, but it had good action. The ending was very good as the pace quickened, Tatsu hit a big plancha taking Jackson out of the match, and Christian got the clean win over Kozlov. Christian looked strong as the ECW Champion, while Kozlov wasn't really hurt much since the Ruthless Roundtable's deal is strength in numbers and physical beat downs, as opposed to marks in the win column. They got their heat back right away with another vicious beat down of the Champ after the match.

ECW MISSES

Tiffany's Music: I meant to comment on this last week in a Miss for the Abraham Washington Show, but it slipped my mind. Tiffany's new music is terrible. She is supposed to be an authority figure, yet she comes out to music more befitting a teenage pop star singing about wanting boys. It doesn't exactly set the tone for someone who has the power and responsibility that she does.

Ryder's POV: I've given these types of segments Misses many times in the past (baby's POV of Vince McMahon, Randy Orton's POV of his father with blood streaming down his face, etc.), and although not everyone agrees with me, I will continue to always give them Misses. It is a production technique that does not belong on pro wrestling where we are asked to suspend our disbelief in a different way from movies and other tv shows. It is totally ridiculous that we would be able to see what Zack Ryder was seeing when he looked at Rosa Mendes. It takes you out of the moment and is not needed in any way.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's WWE Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw, Smackdown, ECW, and Superstars each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.

For another view from the original Hitlist author, compare Jason Powell's views to mine by visiting prowrestling.NET's "Hitlist" section here.

WWE News: GLAAD responds to Chris Jericho's non-apology for using "anti-gay" slur

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:38:02 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) spoke out against WWE wrestler Chris Jericho today for his non-apology responding to being caught on camera using an offensive slur during a recent Q&A session. The video was circulated by TMZ, who spoke with GLAAD's president. (Read the original story with Jericho's "apology.".)

"Just three months ago Chris Jericho's boss and WWE Chairman Vince McMahon acknowledged to GLAAD that words matter," said GLAAD president Jarrett Barrios. "There is no time, context or occasion in which it is acceptable to utter racist and anti-gay slurs. Jericho's hollow apology 'if (he) offended anyone' is a template used by many and is insincere and worn."

GLAAD previously criticized WWE CEO Vince McMahon for using a slur during a scripted segment on the August 24 edition of Raw. McMahon said masks worn by Cirque De Solei performers were "really gay."

Link: TMZ Report.

WWE News: Mickey Rourke says he wants to wrestle for WWE to make up for WrestleMania 25 involvement

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:25:52 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Academy Award-nominated actor Mickey Rourke says he would like to wrestle for WWE after being disallowed from wrestling at WrestleMania 25 earlier this year. Rourke appeared at WrestleMania to hype "The Wrestler" movie, but he was limited in what he could participate in.

According to a report by the U.K. Sun, Rourke says in his new book, "Wrestling With Demons," that a clause in his contract for the Iron Man 2 movie banned him from wrestling Chris Jericho in a one-on-one match because he could have been injured and delayed filming.

Rourke says he walked away from the WrestleMania experience "disappointed" after his only involvement was punching Chris Jericho after Jericho was booked to defeat Ricky Steamboat, Roddy Piper, and Jimmy Snuka in a handicap match. Rourke says he wanted to test his wrestling skills after training for the lead role in "The Wrestler."

"He wants to help the wrestling community all he can having fallen in love with the sport over the course of that amazing movie," said Rourke's spokesman.

Roddy Piper was also not pleased with the match/celebrity angle at WrestleMania. Roddy Piper said in an interview recently that he wants to return to the ring one more time after getting a bad taste in his mouth from the handicap match against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania. Read Piper's complaint.

Link: Mickey Rourke report from the U.K. Sun.

ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - Chris Jericho Should Drink Some Shut Up Juice, Zack Ryder Fantasizes About Mrs. Potato, Vance Archer - Who Wants to Get Infected Tonight?, I Love TNA!

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:04:37 PST

By Shane McKinley, Torch specialist

"Just follow the smoke; they're bringing bottles of the goose
And all the girls in the corner getting loose
Screw rehab I love my addiction
No sleep, no sleep I am always on a mission"
-"Can't Stop Partying" by Weezer

Seems Chris Jericho should use an oldie and drink a tall glass of shut up juice.

It's all understandable. Jericho has had an innate ability this year to look like an ass in public. True, Jericho jousting with the fans at the start of the year was the sign of his heel character getting way over. Jericho making quips about President Obama taking away from Jericho's six-pack...well, I understand that, because I'm Republican. The latest was Jericho's offensive slur...to some, that "f" word is offensive. To others, it's what you call your bros in a joking manner. I'm not going to hold it against him.

Still, I wish he could have called the guy "germ incubator" or "blubbery parasite."

-ECW G.M. Tiff is getting on my nerves. Maybe it's her tendency to draw things out in crayon in big, bright colors. It would be cool if WWE played up that Tiffany injured her arm doing roller derby. But that would require knowledge of the outside world.

-I was thinking of doing an absurd list rating the women in wrestling. It would be sexist and childish, but then again, so is wrestling.

I bring this list idea up because Rosa Mendes has caught the fancy of our beloved Zack Ryder, and Rosa ain't no catch.

At first glance I thought that Rosa Mendes was a new diva. It's hard to keep track of them nowadays. She got what I like to call "The Van Halen Treatment," meaning Zack Ryder had a short music video in his head of how beautiful Rosa was. Meanwhile I couldn't figure out why Ryder busted his proverbial nut over Mrs. Potato Man.

We all see what's going on. WWE doesn't know what to do with talent like Jack Swagger and Zack Ryder, so look who become puppy dogs in love! Jack and Zack! Awww! Ah, maybe we'll get a blooming romance between all of these four knuckleheads. They could go the stale route of some hero fighting meanie Swagger for the honor of Eve (and then Eve does a turn). I say go with Eve calling up her homeboys Cryme Tyme and them laying a licking on the All-American American. Maybe then the "smart" bit of that utterly hollow "our divas are smart, sexy, and powerful" line WWE pumps up can come to fruition. I don't expect them to do my taxes, but I would like to say to young women that they can become smart, sexy, and powerful without getting a official WWE boob job.

I'm going to go ahead and nominate that "smart, sexy, and powerful" line as the worst WWE line for 2009. Every time I hear Mikey Cole say that as shiny pants-wearing divas come bouncing down the ramp, I naturally think of Austin Powers: Goldmember.

-Oh, I want to get back to busting a nut. Namely, WWE's fondness of premature ejaculation nowadays. From Dolph Ziggler to Zack Ryder, WWE just can't get enough of what's plaguing America. Haven't you heard? Premature ejaculation what all of the cool kids at school are talking about.

-It's been surprising that Paul Burchill has managed to keep his job in WWE for this long. I wouldn't put him in the same area of a Val Venis or even a Jamie Noble. More like a Scotty Too Hotty. His feud with the Green Hurricane has lasted 247 weeks. Keep at it boys.

-Abraham Washington wants sooooooo bad to be Eddie Murphy.

-Lance Vance Dance Archer, e.g. Lance Hoyt of the TNA Rock 'n Rave fame, is a tall and brooding sort of fella. I say jump on that "New Moon" craze and have Lance Archer be a vampire. A cool vampire. Not a goofy one like Gabriel or Kevin Thorne. These guys aren't accepted in the vampire club. Lance Archer, however, is already accepted somewhere. In my heart. You see his eyes? He's dreamy. I would like to get infected tonight.

I wonder how Jericho would respond to this.

-Why can't ECW end on damn time? Raw ended on time for once this week. I've got Dancing With The Stars to watch, ECW.

-By 2020, we will have automated cars and unmanned airplanes. We will have robots doing most of our grunt work. By then we can inhale certain nanomachines that produce dreams. And in 2020, DX will come back for a re-union and we'll all be bored senseless. "Hey look, it's those guys from 1997!"

I must say that DX are badasses in that Survivor Series commercial. Who cares that they submitted to Legacy? Who's fragging Hector while wearing bunny slippers? DX, baby.

I like how I'm supposed to drop $40 right now because hell, it's DX! And it's Survivor Series! It only happens once a year! So ya gotta buy it! It would be a hoot if the PPV only had DX coming out and doing their shtick for three hours. The PPV would get more buys than Bragging Rights, that's fer damn sure. Then again, so would a cat fashion show.

-I think TNA's new slogan should be this: "I Love TNA!" TNA could go the WWE PG route and have little kids going, "I Love TNA!" "TNA: Put Your Face Right In It!" Impact should also look into having a guest host like Raw to get even more viewers. But stay away from any NASCAR. I don't watch NASCAR, but I watch wrestling. And seemingly every time NASCAR gets involved in my wrestling, they have some good ol' boy botching things up royally and pissing me off. So now I hate NASCAR. But I Love TNA! "TNA: It's Okay To Take A Peek!"

I've been trying to figure out what is TNA. Is TNA a retirement home for WWE rejects? Is it the asylum for loony booking decisions? Are the words "TNA" a calling cry for those who crave fast paced X Division action? It's hard trying to figure out nutty TNA, but here's one thing I know: TNA believes they will never be considered a top dog with the X Division. Nah, it's old guys with name recognition like Jim Neidhart. And guys like Jim will be pushed over young talent like Jay Lethal. Jim over Jay. Does it make sense? Not really. Then again, who needs home-grown young talent? More old WWE farts will be sure to come down the pipe. Who can blame these legendary legends? A paycheck is a paycheck. Read this Editorial (w/SPOILERS!)

Yes, TNA can do whatever they damn please with their mission goal. It is up to them to achieve it. But TNA should remember that they have a hardcore loyal fanbase that stuck with them through some really questionable times (TNA at times was failing at the wrestling things
we fans take for granted). TNA should not just be a retirement homefor WWE rejects. It should be much more than that.

Later. Stay cool in yo bunny slippers.

(credit to cache-02.gawkerassets.com, sescoops.com and cdn.bleacherreport.com for pics)

Email is mckinley.torch@gmail.com

TORCH TALK DAILY with Eric Bischoff: "The direction we were being forced to go would not have allowed us to compete with WWE long-term"

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:01:14 PST

On Monday, September 14, PWTorch editor Wade Keller interviewed former WCW President Eric Bischoff an exclusive multi-hour "Torch Talk" interview covering a variety of controversial subjects from the Monday Night War period, his days on WWE TV, his 2006 autobiography, and the "Rise & Fall of WCW" DVD.

The following is the latest installment of part four of the exclusive five-hour "Torch Talk" with former WCW President Eric Bischoff. This fourth part of the series picks up in the midst of a discussion about Bischoff's oft-criticized decision to put the first-ever Hulk Hogan vs. Goldberg match on free Nitro with just four day's notice. Part 4(a) of our daily Q&As will be published here at PWTorch.com, which is unprecedented with our VIP-exclusive "Torch Talk" series.

To both READ and LISTEN to the entire interview, you'll want to become a VIP member, which also includes instant access to our newsmaking multi-hour in-depth hard-hitting "Torch Talks" with other top WCW players such as Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, X-Pac, Vince Russo, Ed Ferrara, Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, and others (ALL AVAILABLE AT THIS LINK FOR VIP MEMBERS). To subscribe right now and be the first to read the entire Bischoff "Torch Talk" and have VIP-only access to the audio, click here. The first audio segment and transcript installment is now available for VIP members.

We present today's latest question and answer from Part 4(a). Tune in tomorrow for the next series of Q&A's from part 4.

Wade Keller: I think there comes a point where if you stipulate to the fact that you could have done everything right and never made one mistake that WCW would have gone out of business, I still think as a lifelong fan and lifelong observer, somebody who enjoys following the industry and trends and ups and downs, it's still worth isolating some specifics and try to understand the decisions that were made and take a lesson from that or look at it differently. You were in the middle of it. So I love to get your perspective and kind of pin you down to the point so we learn something about the mindset that went into some of the decisions that are ridiculed or questioned or, in other ways, to just understand why a decision was made that people admire. That's what I'm trying to do when I bring up that specific situation (giving away Goldberg vs. Hogan on Nitro with little notice) because, I can tell you, if I ask people what do you want me to ask Bischoff about, that would be a top five question on most people's lists. "What were they thinking when they gave Hogan vs. Goldberg away!?"

Eric Bischoff: Believe me, it's understandable, but again I can't even go back and put myself in the frame of mind I was in at that time without thinking about it a lot. Because there was just so much going on. Again, you're in the eye of the hurricane. You're not sitting on the bench thinking about something and having the luxury of having days and weeks to figure s--- out. You're in the eye of a hurricane and you have a million things swirling around you and you have to juggle them, you have to take risks, you have make decisions, you have to come up creative, and sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad. Going back to that particular decision, given the competitive nature of where WCW was at the time and WWE was at the time, given that it was Bill Goldberg who we were building and it was an Atlanta crowd, we knew we'd get the reaction we'd get when he won the match (for) whatever self-serving reasons Hulk Hogan may have had for being the guy. It sounds like a great idea. I'm thinking to myself, 'Holy sh--, this is going to be one of those moments that people are going to talk about on Nitro.' This is going to be one of those moments that is kind of consistent with: You've gotta tune into Nitro; you just don't know what you're going to miss if you don't.

Keller: Well, Eric, in your defense, I'll say this. It's a point you just said there. Had Hogan-Goldberg on three day's notice on Nitro shattered ratings records and led to Nitro starting a new winning streak, it'd be talked about the greatest move you ever made...

Bischoff: There's the flaw. But there's the flaw. It wouldn't have. Had it started a winning streak that would have been more than a one-night hit, it wouldn't have, because while we were being forced to change the things that we had to change and forced to do the things we had to do pretty much against our will for the most part, it wouldn't have changed. Hogan and Goldberg might have gotten a 10.5, the following week we would have been right back to where we were because the nature of WWE programming at that time, and the nature of the programming we were forced - when I say forced, the mandate and the limitations and the direction that we were being forced to go into would not have allowed us to compete with the WWE on a long-term basis.

Keller: Did you know that at the time? Did you feel that at the time?

Bischoff: Yes.

MORE TO COME TOMOROW...

CLICK HERE FOR THE MOST RECENT BISCHOFF Q&A SNIPPET FROM PART 3(B)

CALDWELL'S BLOG: Vince McMahon is officially delusional, plus Vince's hidden message to Stephanie McMahon

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:26:25 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE CEO/Chairman Vince McMahon used today's conference call with investors to declare that WWE is NOT a family business. In a related story, Balloon Boy's whacked-out parents will be holding a press conference today announcing a cure for cancer.

"Some people perceive this to be a family business, but I do not," McMahon said with heavy emphasis on "I do not."

Gee, I wonder anyone could have possibly perceived that WWE is a family business when the McMahon Family has their own class of WWE Stock. "As previously announced, members of the McMahon family have waived $0.12 per share of the dividends. As a result, all Class A and Class B shares owned by the McMahon family will instead receive dividends in the amount of $0.24 per share."

McMahon went on to say positions within WWE are determined by performance and not someone's last name being McMahon. Apparently this was Vince's direct response to his wife, Linda, and his son, Shane, leaving the family...er...the wrestling business.

You could almost hear the conversations in the hallway with McMahon calling out, "Good riddance to you both...I - I could have fired you guys anyways based on...based on...performance!"

Also consider that WWE has created maybe three big-name, cross-over stars in the last decade under WWE VP Stephanie McMahon's watchful eye as head of the creative team. One of them, Brock Lesnar, now competes in another industry.

If WWE executive positions are truly based on performance and not last name, then perhaps McMahon was sending a message to Stephanie McMahon. If McMahon is to be held at his word, suddenly Stephanie's position as the future heiress to the throne doesn't seem as certain.

Stephanie has arguably done an adequate job as head of creative, but there are far more qualified names out there in the wrestling business who could advance WWE into the year 2010 instead of relying on the same wrestling presentation that is a relic from the Attitude era.

On this day, however, Vince McMahon's comments reeked of a detachment from reality. But, could they also have been a message to Stephanie McMahon? We'll have to stay tuned to find out.

WWE News: Report on WWE's conference call with investors - serious discussion of WWE TV, Vince McMahon: "This is not a Family Business"

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:29:02 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE hosted their quarterly conference call with investors this morning with the top stories coming out of the call being heavy discussion of WWE TV, Vince McMahon claiming WWE is not a family business, and WWE sharing a new Films Division strategy. The following are key highlights from the conference call.

-- On the prospect of a WWE TV Network: WWE executives said they are in the "preliminary evaluation stage" of the new TV channel. However, the tone of their comments was firm that they intend to launch the channel and they are not just throwing out a pie-in-the-sky idea.

WWE believes it will "generate significant economic return" and most of the programming will be compromised of using the old-school footage they have in their tape library.

One analyst called in complaining about a lack of old-school footage used on WWE programming. WWE COO Donna Goldsmith took umbrage with that statement and said WWE has used the footage on recent DVD releases, but WWE intends to use the footage on the new WWE TV Network whenever it's launched.

"We're just starting to put the business plan (for WWE TV) in place, but we will be using that footage. Stay tuned, as there will be even more usage," she said.

-- WWE CEO Vince McMahon opened the conference call declaring, "I think we had a relatively good quarter." McMahon said he uses two barometers to determine the success of business in terms of whether people are interested in the product - live event attendance and TV ratings. The consistently weak PPV business was not included in the "McMahon Barometer."

McMahon and executives talked about live event attendance being strong after lowering ticket prices to bring more people to the arenas. McMahon said it captures the strength of the WWE brand that people are willing to spend money and effort on parking, hot dogs, merchandise, etc. as part of the event-going experience.

-- Vince McMahon also used his opening remarks to make a speech about his family. "Some people perceive this to be a family business, but I do not," McMahon said with heavy emphasis on "I do not."

McMahon, the CEO of a publicly-traded company, gave an endorsement to his wife, former WWE CEO Linda McMahon, for her Senate run in Connecticut. "For those of you living in Connecticut, you might want to vote for her," he said. "We've lost Linda in terms of her CEO role, but I think she still sits on the board."

McMahon also mentioned Shane McMahon's departure from the company. "Shane has decided to pursue other opportunities in the marketplace," McMahon said matter-of-factly. He followed up that the strength of WWE's management team is based on performance, not if an employee's last name is McMahon.

McMahon's comments on WWE "not being a family business" seemed to be a clear message that no McMahon is bigger than the company following the departures of Linda and Shane. It remains to be seen if WWE executive Stephanie McMahon will be scrutinized more closely on her performance when it seemed she was set for life as head of creative.

-- WWE discussed a "revised film philosophy and practice." They will be doing small-budget films of $5.0 million per movie with a new method of distribution. WWE was vague on exactly what they will be doing differently, but they plan to have "greater control" over film distribution.

"If you want to buy stock in terms of just the film business, this is not the company to be associated with," McMahon said. WWE executives added later on they intend to have "limited theatrical releases," which implied a heavy dose of straight-to-DVD offerings on the $5.0 million budgets.

"We expect to produce returns significantly higher than films released to date," WWE said.

-- WWE did not specifically address their PPV business continuing a steady decline each quarter, highlighted by Summerslam 2009 falling off nearly 50 percent from 2007. Instead, WWE ignored the declines and told investors to look at the Hell in a Cell PPV, which was not included on the third quarter results since it took place just one month ago.

"We continue to stabilize PPV business," said WWE CFO George Barrios. "Early returns on Hell in a Cell indicate year-over-year increase of 11 percent."

TNA News: What's on TNA Impact tonight - more Hulk Hogan coverage, Team 3D vs. Morgan & Hernandez

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:38:16 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Spike TV's entire preview for tonight's edition of TNA Impact centers on Hulk Hogan joining TNA last week despite Hogan not being live at the Impact taping that took place on Monday for tonight's show.

TNA World Hvt. champion A.J. Styles will reference Hogan in a promo on tonight's show, but Hogan's involvement on the show will be through videos continuing to establish his presence on TNA programming.

Matches scheduled for tonight's show include Team 3D vs. Matt Morgan & Hernandez in a battle of pseudo babyfaces. Other matches scheduled include Bobby Lashley vs. Homicide and Tara vs. Daffney in Knockouts action.

WWE News: WWE and THQ renew video game partnership, new video game titles in the works

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:19:23 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

THQ CEO Brian Farrell announced during THQ's quarterly conference call with investors last night that THQ and WWE have agreed to extend their working relationship to 2014.

Included in the renewed five-year deal will be new WWE video game titles specifically targeting markets in Asia.

THQ announced in a press release last week that WWE had given the video game company until the end of 2009 to decide whether to renew the licensing deal that also includes toy manufacturer Jakks Pacific as a beneficiary.

We'll update this story if WWE CEO Vince McMahon sheds any more light on the subject during this morning's WWE conference call with investors at 11:00 a.m. EST.

WWE News: How did WWE's third quarter financial results compare to analyst expectations?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:16:13 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE's stock price shot up 2.5 percent in the first hour of trading this morning mainly based on third quarter results exceeding analyst expectations and predictions.

WWE reported earnings of $0.12 per share compared to the prediction of $0.10 per share by analysts. Quarterly revenue was $111.3 million compared to the prediction of $105.3 million by analysts.

WWE News: Chris Jericho captured on camera using offensive slur at public Q&A (w/VIDEO)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:55:02 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TMZ published a video of WWE wrestler Chris Jericho using an offensive slur at a Q&A session a few weeks ago when he was promoting the "Albino Farm" horror movie flick.

Jericho appeared to be inebriated on-stage, which prompted the moderator to check the cup in his hand for alcohol. "It's apple juice... fag," Jericho retorted.

Ironically, Jericho was shown on-camera demanding some of his other off-color comments be posted on TMZ. When shown the video of his offensive slur, Jericho responded to TMZ with a non-apology disguised as an apology.

"After seeing the video I realize some inappropriate comments were made and I apologize if I offended anybody." Jericho said. "Just know that everyone on stage was having a blast and we all shared a drink and a laugh after! The good news is I got my wish of being posted on TMZ."

Thanks to Torch reader Ryan S. for the tip.

WWE News: WWE announces new business outlook for the next three years

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:46:41 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE announced a "revised business outlook" over the next three years with expected revenue growth between 15-20 percent through 2012. WWE said the revised optimism is based on a "comprehensive review of the Company's operations."

WWE CEO Vince McMahon said specifically they believe the new toy partnership with Mattel that begins in January 2010 will strengthen WWE's quarterly revenue.

Looking at the third quarter 2009 revenue, the Licensing division (toys, video games, merchandise, etc.) was down to $7.9 million from $10.6 million in the prior year quarter. The Mattel deal will not be reflected until first quarter 2010, but it shows WWE has room for significant improvement.

McMahon also mentioned a harder look at global expansion and more television distribution as sources of increased income. WWE realized revenue growth this quarter thanks to the Asian Pacific market, which WWE has just begun to take advantage of.

WWE News: WWE announces third quarter 2009 earnings results - revenue up due to int'l, PPV business weak

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:27:39 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE reported third quarter 2009 revenue of $113.3 million compared to $108.8 million in the prior year third quarter. The revenue increase was mainly driven by revenue in the Asia Pacific market, which was up $5.7 million.

Domestic revenue was down $1.9 million compared to the prior year quarter, which was reflected in the poor PPV revenue figures.

Most alarming with PPVs was only 369,000 buys for WWE's second-biggest PPV of the year, Summerslam. The Summerslam PPV was down from 477,000 buys in 2008 and 537,000 buys in 2007.

From an operations standpoint, WWE realized a greater level of profitability with their cost-cutting measures. Net income was $8.9 million compared to $5.3 million in the prior year quarter.

"Entering the year, we established clear goals to reduce our cost structure and to improve our operating efficiency," said WWE CEO Vince McMahon in the earnings release. "Our results to date, including significant and sustained improvement in our profit margins, demonstrate our ongoing commitment in meeting these objectives."

We'll have much more coverage today breaking down each of WWE's business segments.

FOLLOW-UP STORIES
-- WWE announces 3-Year Biz Plan
-- Stock Market responds favorably
-- REPORT on McMahon's Conference Call w/Investors
-- CALDWELL'S BLOG: McMahon is delusional

WWE News: WWE to report financial earnings results today

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:34:06 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE will be reporting third quarter 2009 financial earnings this morning, including a conference call with investors hosted by WWE CEO Vince McMahon at 11:00 a.m. EST.

Check back on Thursday morning for all of the coverage looking in-depth at the financial numbers, WWE's position going forward, and areas of improvement for WWE's business.

WWE News: WrestleMania 26 tickets on-sale this morning with Internet pre-sale

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:05:03 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

A select number of WWE WrestleMania 26 tickets will be going on-sale this morning at 10:00 a.m. MST (12:00 p.m. EST) through an Internet pre-sale.

The pre-sale password is "WWEUOP" and the link to order seats before Saturday's on-sale date to the general public is here.

WWE will be hosting an official "WrestleMania 26 Kick-off Party" at the Westgate City Center in Glendale, Ariz. on Friday night. Chris Jericho and Kelly Kelly are scheduled to appear at the event promoting the PPV.

Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com

TORCH MONTHLY AWARD VOTING: Polls OPEN for best/worst in pro wrestling from the month of October (Part 2 of 2)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:45:28 PST

-- GO BACK TO PART 1

(6) Promos of the Month

(7) Best PPV/TV episode/Event of the Month - The category includes the best PPV, best TV episode, or best event during the month.

(8) Best Angle/Storyline/Feud of the Month

(9) Rising Star of the Month

(10) Crashing Star of the Month

-- GO BACK TO PART 1

TORCH MONTHLY AWARD VOTING: Polls OPEN for best/worst in pro wrestling from the month of October (Part 1 of 2)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:35:41 PST

-- GO TO PART 2!

(1) MVP of October - Who was the most valuable overall performer in pro wrestling?

(2) Best Wrestler in October - Who performed the best in-ring during the month?

(3) Best Tag Team in October

(4) Best Female Wrestler in October

(5) Best Match of the Month in October

-- CONTINUE TO PART 2!

11/4 WWE in Dublin, Ireland: John Cena vs. Jack Swagger WWE Title match, DX vs. Legacy, Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:37:38 PST

WWE Raw house show
November 4, 2009
Dublin, Ireland at 02 Arena
Report by Stephen Cooney, Torch subscriber

(1) Jack Swagger won a #1 Contender 14-man Battle Royal to face WWE champion John Cena later in the night. Match also featured Kofi Kingston, Mark Henry, Sheamus, MVP, Cody Rhodes, Ted Dibiase, The Miz, Chavo Guerrero, Jack Swagger, Chris Masters, Randy Orton, Evan Bourne, Primo, and Santino Marella. Kofi eliminated himself and Randy Orton early in the match. The match came down to Cody, Ted, Swagger, and Mark Henry. Swagger ended up eliminating Mark Henry to earn a title shot against John Cena in the main event.

(2) Chavo Guerrero beat Hornswoggle. Chavo had to wrestle this match on his knees. Typical "comedy" match that lasted way too long. Hornswoggle won with the tadpole splash.

(3) Sheamus beat Evan Bourne. Sheamus cut a heel promo on the Dublin fans to avoid him getting the hometown cheers. It was effective and worked with the younger members of the crowd. This match was designed to highlight Sheamus as a powerhouse. He won in the end with his finisher.

(4) U.S. champion The Miz beat MVP. Good back and forth match with Miz hitting a fairly sloppy-looking Skull Crushing Finale for the win.

(5) Divas champion Melina beat Alicia Fox. Jillian was introduced as Guest Ring Announcer for this one, and treated us to a lovely rendition of Sinead O'Connor's song "Nothing Compares to You." The crowd popped slightly for the entrances, but you could have heard a pin drop during the match, which is impressive when you consider there were approximately 11,000 people in the crowd. Melina eventually won with her leg sweep across the neck finisher.

(6) Mark Henry beat Chris Masters. Awful match saved in some way by the crowd reaction to Mark Henry. Everybody loved him, and cheered each of his power moves. Masters played the cocky heel who took a pumelling very well. Henry ended up winning with his World's Strongest Slam. Post-match, Henry played to the crowd for a few minutes leading us into a 15-minute intermission.

(7) Randy Orton beat Kofi Kingston. Great match that showed a lot of promise for their current feud. Kofi got in a lot of offense and looked to have Orton beaten on multiple occasions. Orton ended up winning after Kofi missed with the Trouble in Paradise, and walked into an RKO out of nowhere. Kofi got a big reaction from the crowd after this match.

(8) DX (Shawn Michaels and Triple H) beat Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase). Long intro spiel from Hunter and Shawn for this match, which really got the crowd going. Easily the biggest reaction of the night thus far. Great match with Legacy getting the majority of the offense and keeping Shawn and Hunter separated from being able to tag each other throughout the match. The match ended with HBK hitting Sweet Chin Music on DiBiase, while Hunter hit Rhodes with the Pedigree to get the three count.

(9) WWE champion John Cena beat Jack Swagger. As this was a mostly younger crowd, the place absolutely erupted when John Cena came out. There were duelling "Lets Go Cena, Let's Go Swagger" chants throughout. The match started very slow with Swagger using a lot of mat-based amateur wrestling holds. Cena ended up winning after eventually working through his signature moves to hit the Attitude Adjustment for the win.

Notes: The venue holds approximately 11,000 people and the place was about 95 percent sold-out I would guess. Interestingly a Smackdown/ECW show is taking place on Saturday, November 14 in the same venue, but that show is completely sold out. I was pleasantly surprised to see that.

Between every match, we were treated to the ring announcer trying to sell us merchandise and encourage us to buy Survivor Series, etc. The crowd really stopped appreciating that after about the third match.

With the exception of the opening Battle Royal and the U.S. Championship match, the first half of the show did not hold much interest for anyone over ten-years-old. Thankfully, they really stepped it up in the second half.

Seeing all the wrestlers in the opening battle royal (with the exception of DX and Cena) seemed to dampen the reaction some of them received later on when they came out for their one-on-one matches. Some of the lesser names were greeted with reactions, which suggested that seeing them once in a night was enough.

11/4 Wade Keller Hotline - The News: Latest on Hogan/Bischoff-TNA, plus ECW's dropping ratings, Ross comments on WWE from a distance (19 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:57:31 PST

This installment of the Wade Keller Hotline features a look at the latest news including the dropping ECW ratings, Jim Ross's comments on watching WWE TV from a distance, and the latest on the Hulk Hogan/Eric Bischoff-TNA situation, where there remain more questions than answers.

NEW - SUBSCRIBE TO THE WADE KELLER HOTLINE FOR $2.99 A MONTH - GET ONE WEEK FREE IF YOU SIGN UP TODAY

---WADE KELLER HOTLINE SUBSCRIBER PAGE: PWTORCH.PODBEAN.COM

(PWTorch App visitors, get the Wade Keller Hotlines on your iPhone in a mobile-friendly directory for just $2.99 a month. Enter this on a new Safari browser page and then click on the "Premium sign up" link: http://pwtorch.podbean.com/)

---FULL VIP MEMBERSHIP INFO: CLICK HERE.

(If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.)

FREE PODCAST: Get our free podcast by doing an iTunes podcast search for "pwtorch." Listen to our weekly 60+ minute podcast on-the-fly directly on your iPhone right now.

WWE News: Jim Ross blogs on DX and need for "new TV content," WWE's video game company reports earnings, WWE to report earnings tomorrow

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:30:46 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

-- WWE announcer Jim Ross posted two new blogs on his website scouting WWE TV from home while he waits out his recovery from a Bell's Palsy attack two weeks ago. Ross wrote about the need for "new content" on WWE TV and young wrestlers needing to understand how to present their characters.

Ross said about DX's commentary during Raw: "DX's commentary on the main event was entertaining. For a former Raw announcer, their remarks were amusing. At least it was a change of pace and was a new element added to the presentation. Key term is 'new,' of which the business needs an abundance." Read Tuesday's blog.

Regarding the ECW brand, Ross said William Regal would be the right person to revitalize the male manager role whenever his wrestling career is over. "When someone realizes that really good wrestling managers can help any company's presentation and that many of today's fans would look at managers as 'new,' we'll see it happen. ... Plus, some young stars don't have a clue as to how to verbalize and rely on memorization and how they 'perceive' a wrestler would react and respond to particular situations." Read Wednesday's blog.

-- THQ, WWE's video game producer, announced positive earnings results today for their most recent period. THQ did not provide specific numbers on WWE Smackdown vs. Raw's video game sales, but the company CEO talked favorably about the results they've seen thus far.

"THQ is now operating as a more focused, more efficient company,” said Brian Farrell, THQ’s president and CEO. “We continue to deliver highly rated hit titles such as UFC 2009 Undisputed and WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010. We believe we are well positioned this holiday with our strong mass-market line-up led by the highly rated WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010." Read the full report.

-- WWE will announce their third quarter 2009 earnings on Thursday morning complete with a conference call at 11:00 a.m. EST hosted by WWE CEO Vince McMahon. We'll have all of it covered on the site bright and early on Thursday morning into the afternoon breaking down WWE's earnings results.

TNA News: Daniels to be featured on FOX Sports video segment complete with steel chair

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:01:20 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA wrestler Daniels recently filmed a series of three skits for the FOX Sports online video show "Cubed." The segment, which of course involved a steel chair, is expected to run on the sports website next week.

Daniels is scheduled for the main event of TNA's Turning Point PPV next Sunday, which should give TNA a publicity boost in time for the PPV.

Photo credit Marc Kruskol / MJK Public Relations.

WWE News: ECW TV ratings are in - how did the show fare with Christian and Yoshi in the main event?

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:49:09 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Last night's episode of ECW TV featuring Christian & Yoshi Tatsu vs. Ezekiel Jackson & Kozlov averaged a 1.0 rating with an estimated 1.32 million viewers. The show was right in line with the previous four weeks of TV.

Over the past five weeks, ECW has averaged a 1.02 rating. The ten-week average is a 1.12 rating, which shows the steady decline downward for the ECW brand.

Caldwell's Analysis: The show has established a very consistent audience level over the past six weeks since scoring a 1.2 rating on September 15 and 22. There's stiffer competition on TV during the fall season, so I expect this 1.0 trend to continue while ECW continues to be consistent with solid, fundamentally-sound, not-particularly-sexy TV programming.

11/2 Wade Keller Hotline - Raw: Juvenile humor, obvious jokes, insider references Raw's audience doesn't relate to, with the pushes of Sheamus and Kofi providing a bright side (28 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:31:23 PST

This installment of the Wade Keller Hotline features a rundown of this week's Raw including a show filled with crazy zany drunk-dad-at-the-wedding DX humor, stunted-emotion-juvenile Santino humor, obvious jokes, and pointless insider references that Raw's target audience doesn't relate to ("intellectual property violations" doesn't come up very often on a normal day for Raw viewers in their lives). But there were some bright spots including the valiant killer heel push of Sheamus and the admirable Kofi Kingston push that he's living up to so far.

NEW - SUBSCRIBE TO THE WADE KELLER HOTLINE FOR $2.99 A MONTH - GET ONE WEEK FREE IF YOU SIGN UP TODAY

---WADE KELLER HOTLINE SUBSCRIBER PAGE: PWTORCH.PODBEAN.COM

(PWTorch App visitors, get the Wade Keller Hotlines on your iPhone in a mobile-friendly directory for just $2.99 a month. Enter this on a new Safari browser page and then click on the "Premium sign up" link: http://pwtorch.podbean.com/)

---FULL VIP MEMBERSHIP INFO: CLICK HERE.

(If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.)

FREE PODCAST: Get our free podcast by doing an iTunes podcast search for "pwtorch." Listen to our weekly 60+ minute podcast on-the-fly directly on your iPhone right now.

11/4 VIP East Coast Audio - SuperShow reviews of Impact, Smackdown, ECW, Hogan (65 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:53:41 PST

VIP-exclusive East Coast Audio Super Show: In this audio recap, Trav and Dre briefly recap the biggest stories coming out of last week's Impact and Smackdown, also a full recap of this week's ECW is included. From Impact, the Hogan signing and the rise of Desmond Wolfe are discussed. From Smackdown, the main topic is Rey and Batista's face-to-face confrontation and Jericho being inserted into the World Title match at Survivor Series. ECW last night wasn't as good as the last few weeks, but it set up next week in England very well.

East Coast Audio shows directory - VIP members access to latest East Coast Audio updates

-VIP members can access all earlier Audio Updates (August 2009 and
earlier) by CLICKING HERE

-If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.

-PWTorch App visitors, please check out our VIP sign-up info on a PC at our regular website, www.pwtorch.com, where you can get over 50 VIP-exclusive PWTorch podcasts each month including top shelf news, conversation, analysis, and interviews.

-APP USERS: Be sure to do a search for "PWTorch" in iTunes and listen to our free weekly podcasts with about an hour of highlights of our VIP Audio Shows. We're the no. 1 podcast in iTunes in the pro wrestling category and would welcome you as a regular listener! Also, as a VIP member, you can log into your account and get more than 50 audio shows each month on the go on your phone or ipod (or other smart phone).

ECW ROUNDTABLE REVIEWS 11/3: Caldwell, Mayer, Parks rate and review

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:42:52 PST

James Caldwell, Torch Assistant Editor (6.5)

A nice, progressive episode of ECW TV. Nothing fancy. Nothing must-see. Just solid, fundamental storytelling setting up next week's ECW Title match, continuing to associate Yoshi Tatsu in the ECW Title picture, and bringing in Lance Hoyt under a new name with a completely new gimmick that was quite refreshing compared to the end of his TNA run.

The one logic flaw of the entire show, though, was how William Regal received his ECW Title shot for next week's show. Unless Tiffany is turning heel as the ECW authority figure, it made little sense that Tiffany would find it ethical to give Regal a sniff of the title picture after he disobeyed her authority and beat up the champion the previous week. A lesson for the kids at home: if the teacher says you can't have a candy bar for lunch, then beat up the kid that does and the teacher will be forced to give you the candy bar. Great lesson. Class dismissed.

Goldust, Zack Ryder, Shelton Benjamin, and Vance "don't call me Lance" Archer received solid exposure in the ring during the show. Goldust was competitive with Regal, Ryder and Shelton did some stuff with Rosa Mendes to keep themselves on TV in a meaningful program, and Vance was smooth with his squash match performance. There's a different vibe to Mr. Vance, and suddenly became marketable.

Dominick Mayer, PWTorch.com Contributor (6.5)

Pretty good installment of ECW this week. It was more a build to new things than an advancement. First off, I'm really glad to see Lance Hoyt. I always liked his work in TNA, and he's shown himself able to get over even with terrible storylines under him, so hopefully he'll get a better draw in WWE. I also really liked the Burchill-Hurricane setup; yeah, the feud has overstayed its welcome a little bit, but they're building to a conclusion, and they've let it stretch long enough that there's legitimate importance on the blowoff match next week. Since I don't see them dropping the Hurricane character just yet, though, I wonder where Burchill will end up.

Shelton Benjamin looked okay in a pretty brief match, but I hope they keep building something for him soon; he looked really strong in his feud with Sheamus until the latter was moved over to Raw. And where the main event is concerned, I like that Tatsu is being kept a visible part of the equation weekly. The tag match was just kind of there for me, but I'm hoping this is building to something big, namely a Survivor Series tag match. This show could really use the exposure of featuring, say, Regal, Kozlov, Jackson, Ryder and maybe Vance Archer (if they go heel with him) vs. Christian, Tatsu, Shelton, Hurricane and maybe the return of Tommy Dreamer. Or, go 4x4 and eliminate the last off each of those lists.

Greg Parks, PWTorch.com Contributor (6.5)

ECW is quickly developing a viable mid-card. Hurricane vs. Paul Burchill should be interesting; Burchill is just starting to find his groove, so if he loses, hopefully he can move on to greener pastures, preferably on Smackdown. I don't see them having Hurricane lose, but I will have no problem with it if they do. Zack Ryder's backstage segment was stupid, and I don't see great upside in him being smitten with Rosa Mendes. Shelton Benjamin is back to treading water, I see.

Regal vs. Christian should be good next week. I was very happy with the main event, as the quality of the match really surprised me. Vladimir Kozlov no longer looks awkward selling, which is a good sign. I'm not as sold on Vance Archer yet as James is- his facial expression was different, but not much else stands out really. Yeah, he's tall, but what else is new?

11/3 Wade Keller Hotline - Major Impact Rant: A list of the dozens and dozens of major problems with last week's Impact (51 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:39:36 PST

This installment of the Wade Keller Hotline features a major rant regarding last week's major edition of TNA Impact featuring the giveaway of Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe on zero week's notice and the hype for the Hulk Hogan press conference which turned away viewers, and the hundred things from start to finish that were inexcusably dumb and should have never made it through whatever filters TNA has set up to weed out stupidity and inefficiencies.

NEW - SUBSCRIBE TO THE WADE KELLER HOTLINE FOR $2.99 A MONTH - GET ONE WEEK FREE IF YOU SIGN UP TODAY

---WADE KELLER HOTLINE SUBSCRIBER PAGE: PWTORCH.PODBEAN.COM

(PWTorch App visitors, get the Wade Keller Hotlines on your iPhone in a mobile-friendly directory for just $2.99 a month. Enter this on a new Safari browser page and then click on the "Premium sign up" link: http://pwtorch.podbean.com/)

---FULL VIP MEMBERSHIP INFO: CLICK HERE.

(If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.)

FREE PODCAST: Get our free podcast by doing an iTunes podcast search for "pwtorch." Listen to our weekly 60+ minute podcast on-the-fly directly on your iPhone right now.

TNA News: TNA President Dixie Carter comments on Hulk Hogan conversation, Shannon Moore in TNA

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:14:42 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA president Dixie Carter posted the following comments on her official Twitter page over the past 24 hours regarding Hulk Hogan and Shannon Moore.

Tuesday afternoon: "Spoke to Hogan who is burning up the road on his book tour. He said, "the TNA response is on fire!"

Wednesday afternoon: "Told Shannon Moore I heard you guys and to call off his fans' tweet campaign to me. I doubt Shannon's TNA days are over."

Carter's posts were unrelated, but Hogan and Moore are connected through Hogan's Hulkamania Tour this month. Moore was confirmed for Hogan's Australian Tour last month, but he's not officially listed on the Tour website.

Moore's last appearance in TNA was in early 2006 when he was feuding with A.J. Styles. Moore then wrestled on WWE's ECW and Smackdown brands before he was released in August 2008.

SPECIAL AUDIO: Flashback to Bischoff-led Fusient Media Ventures buyout of WCW press conference - early 2001 (43 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:46:38 PST

Torch VIP Members, click on the red VIP Audio Updates button above to access today's new Torch Talk Audio feature.

The following is a special audio presentation of the early 2001 press conference announcing the sale of WCW by AOL/Time-Warner to Fusient Media Ventura, a group led by former WCW President Eric Bischoff. This 40 minute press conference features a fascinating glimpse into a moment in time when it appeared WCW would be saved and remain independent from WWE. The deal days later, in a story broken by Pro Wrestling Torch (denied by Bischoff at the time, but later confirmed), would fall apart, leading AOL/Time-Warner exec Jamie Kellner canceling all WCW programming and selling WCW's scraps to WWE.

DIRECT LINK: Press Conference - Fusient Media Ventures announces purchase of WCW

DIRECT LINK: TORCH TALK AUDIO LISTING

(VIP members can also access over 1,000 earlier Audio Updates and Wrestler Interviews from our pre-August 2008 library by CLICKING HERE.

If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.

PWTorch App visitors, please check out our VIP sign-up info on a PC at our regular website, www.pwtorch.com, where you can get over 50 VIP-exclusive PWTorch podcasts each month including top shelf news, conversation, analysis, and interviews.

APP USERS: Be sure to do a search for "PWTorch" in iTunes and listen to our free weekly podcasts with about an hour of highlights of our VIP Audio Shows. We're the no. 1 podcast in iTunes in the pro wrestling category and would welcome you as a regular listener! Also, as a VIP member, you can log into your account and get more than 50 audio shows each month on the go on your phone or ipod (or other smart phone).

TORCH TALK AUDIO with Eric Bischoff, pt. 4B: Plans if Fusient bought WCW, would he have announced in WWE, claims Vince McMahon's creativity is vastly overrated, more (25 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:26:23 PST

Torch VIP Members, click on the red VIP Audio Updates button above to access today's new Torch Talk Audio feature.

The following is part four of the exclusive five-hour "Torch Talk" with former WCW President Eric Bischoff, who took it to WWE in the late-'90s during the Monday Night War. He later became an on-air WWE G.M. This is the second part of the fourth installment of the transcript running in the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter. This marks the beginning of the second recording session from Oct. 1, 2009. In this segment, Bischoff talks about what Fusient's first move would have been had it been successful in buying WCW, his case for why Vince McMahon is vastly overrated as a creative genius, whether he would have announced for WWE if asked, and more.

DIRECT LINK: TORCH TALK with Eric Bischoff, pt. 4B

DIRECT LINK: TORCH TALK AUDIO LISTING

(VIP members can also access over 1,000 earlier Audio Updates and Wrestler Interviews from our pre-August 2008 library by CLICKING HERE.

If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.

PWTorch App visitors, please check out our VIP sign-up info on a PC at our regular website, www.pwtorch.com, where you can get over 50 VIP-exclusive PWTorch podcasts each month including top shelf news, conversation, analysis, and interviews.

APP USERS: Be sure to do a search for "PWTorch" in iTunes and listen to our free weekly podcasts with about an hour of highlights of our VIP Audio Shows. We're the no. 1 podcast in iTunes in the pro wrestling category and would welcome you as a regular listener! Also, as a VIP member, you can log into your account and get more than 50 audio shows each month on the go on your phone or ipod (or other smart phone).

TORCH TALK DAILY with Eric Bischoff: Goldberg vs. Hogan title match on Nitro - "At the time, it seemed to be the right thing to do"

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:00:40 PST

On Monday, September 14, PWTorch editor Wade Keller interviewed former WCW President Eric Bischoff an exclusive multi-hour "Torch Talk" interview covering a variety of controversial subjects from the Monday Night War period, his days on WWE TV, his 2006 autobiography, and the "Rise & Fall of WCW" DVD.

The following is the latest installment of part four of the exclusive five-hour "Torch Talk" with former WCW President Eric Bischoff. This fourth part of the series picks up in the midst of a discussion about Bischoff's oft-criticized decision to put the first-ever Hulk Hogan vs. Goldberg match on free Nitro with just four day's notice. Part 4(a) of our daily Q&As will be published here at PWTorch.com, which is unprecedented with our VIP-exclusive "Torch Talk" series.

To both READ and LISTEN to the entire interview, you'll want to become a VIP member, which also includes instant access to our newsmaking multi-hour in-depth hard-hitting "Torch Talks" with other top WCW players such as Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, X-Pac, Vince Russo, Ed Ferrara, Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, and others (ALL AVAILABLE AT THIS LINK FOR VIP MEMBERS). To subscribe right now and be the first to read the entire Bischoff "Torch Talk" and have VIP-only access to the audio, click here. The first audio segment and transcript installment is now available for VIP members.

We present today's first question and answer from Part 4(a). Tune in tomorrow for the next series of Q&A's from part 4.

Wade Keller Why not make that decision three weeks earlier and build it up (Goldberg vs. Hogan) so that you drew a rating that would never be matched? I know your philosophy - and I think there's a lot of merit, for whatever my opinions were, to not telling people what's going to happen until they tune because then you have to tune in every week for fear of missing the biggest thing ever. And I get that. But Hogan-Goldberg, to me, was an outlier. That was something that you put three weeks of energy into. You don't take a phone call from Hogan on a Wednesday, announce it on Thunder on a Thursday, and run it on a Monday because Hogan - critics will say, and I'm one of them, because he's a master at self-preservation and a master at self-promotion, and it's good and bad for the promotion he works for - but in this case I think he wanted to be in front of a crowd of 30 or 40 thousand people, in front of all of the corporate suits on short notice, so he could take credit for what was clearly already on pace to be a huge ticket sales day.

Eric Bischoff: I think the ticket sales were already done.

Keller: I think they had a 20,000 advance when Hogan-Goldberg was announced and it ended up 35,000 paid, roughly speaking.

Bischoff: So assuming you may be right to a certain degree, you may be right a little bit, you may be right a lot; it's one of those things that I'd have to go back and call Hulk and say, "Hey, what in the hell were you thinking?" At the time, it seemed to be the right thing to do. At the time we were neck-in-neck, we were head-to-head, we see-sawed back and forth. At the time it fed into my kind of promotional formula and I gravitated toward spontaneous combustion, as I used to call it, creatively. It fit. It seemed like the right thing to do. Could we have gotten a bigger rating and gotten some kind of a record that everybody would have forgotten by now and wouldn't have changed the course of history? Sure. Who cares? It wouldn't have mattered.

Keller: I think there comes a point where if you stipulate to the fact that you could have done everything right and never made one mistake that WCW would have gone out of business, I still think as a lifelong fan and lifelong observer, somebody who enjoys following the industry and trends and ups and downs, it's still worth isolating some specifics and try to understand the decisions that were made and take a lesson from that or look at it differently. You were in the middle of it. So I love to get your perspective and kind of pin you down to the point so we learn something about the mindset that went into some of the decisions that are ridiculed or questioned or, in other ways, to just understand why a decision was made that people admire. That's what I'm trying to do when I bring up that specific situation because, I can tell you, if I ask people what do you want me to ask Bischoff about, that would be a top five question on most people's lists. "What were they thinking when they gave Hogan vs. Goldberg away!?"

Bischoff: Believe me, it's understandable, but again...

MORE TO COME TOMOROW...

CLICK HERE FOR THE MOST RECENT BISCHOFF Q&A SNIPPET FROM PART 3(B)

TORCH TALK AUDIO with Eric Bischoff, pt. 4A: Four big controversies discussed in depth - Bret Hart's treatment by WCW, rushed Hogan vs. Goldberg match, Syxx firing leading to WWE jump, deaths of many WCW wrestlers (30 min.)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:55:52 PST

Torch VIP Members, click on the red VIP Audio Updates button above to access today's new Torch Talk Audio feature.

The following is part four of the exclusive five-hour "Torch Talk" with former WCW President Eric Bischoff, who took it to WWE in the late-'90s during the Monday Night War. He later became an on-air WWE G.M. This fourth installment, recorded Sept. 14, picks up in the midst of a discussion about Bischoff's oft-criticized decision to put the first-ever Hulk Hogan vs. Goldberg match on free Nitro with just four day's notice. It then moves on to talk about other controversies including the firing of Sean Waltman, the misuse of Bret Hart, and the deaths of so many Nitro-era WCW wrestlers.

DIRECT LINK: TORCH TALK with Eric Bischoff, pt. 4A

DIRECT LINK: TORCH TALK AUDIO LISTING

(VIP members can also access over 1,000 earlier Audio Updates and Wrestler Interviews from our pre-August 2008 library by CLICKING HERE.

If you're not a current VIP member, for info about a Torch VIP Membership to gain access to around 50 audio exclusive updates per month: CLICK HERE. If you're reading us via mobile device such as an iPhone or Blackberry, visit our main website on a computer and click on the VIP Info button under our main logo.

PWTorch App visitors, please check out our VIP sign-up info on a PC at our regular website, www.pwtorch.com, where you can get over 50 VIP-exclusive PWTorch podcasts each month including top shelf news, conversation, analysis, and interviews.

APP USERS: Be sure to do a search for "PWTorch" in iTunes and listen to our free weekly podcasts with about an hour of highlights of our VIP Audio Shows. We're the no. 1 podcast in iTunes in the pro wrestling category and would welcome you as a regular listener! Also, as a VIP member, you can log into your account and get more than 50 audio shows each month on the go on your phone or ipod (or other smart phone).

DGUSA's UNTOUCHABLE PPV DEBUT

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:54:54 PST

Torch columnist Sean Radican has posted his review of Dragon Gate USA's "Untouchable" PPV, which debuted on Friday night across most cable systems. The show features Bryan Danielson vs. Naruki Doi and Davey Richards vs. Shingo in excellent matches.

-- RADICAN'S DGUSA UNTOUCHABLE REVIEW

WWE News: WWE begins 22-date European Tour tonight; RESULTS WANTED

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:05:58 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE will begin their annual fall European Tour tonight in Dublin, Ireland with a Raw brand house show. The Smackdown brand will begin on Thursday night in Frankfurt, Germany.

There are 22 dates scheduled including shows in Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany, Belgium, and the "main event" shows in the U.K. WWE will be taping next week's Raw in Sheffield, England on Monday night, followed by next week's ECW and Smackdown on Tuesday night.

The Raw brand wraps up the two-week tour on Saturday, Nov. 14 in France before traveling to New York City for Raw from Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16.

The Smackdown/ECW crew wraps on Nov. 15 in Belfast, N. Ireland before traveling to Philadelphia for the final SD/ECW TV taping on Nov. 17 leading to the Survivor Series PPV.

Torch Reader Alert: We are looking for live event reports from the shows on the European Tour. Send a report to pwtorch@gmail.com.

European Tour Schedule

- 11/4 WWE Raw house show in Dublin, Ireland

- 11/5 WWE Raw house show in Glasgow, Scotland
- 11/5 WWE SD/ECW house show in Frankfurt, Germany

- 11/6 WWE Raw house show in Newcastle, England
- 11/6 WWE SD/ECW house show in Brussels, Belgium

- 11/7 WWE Raw house show in Butlins, Minehead, U.K.
- 11/7 WWE SD/ECW house show in Dusseldorf, Germany

- 11/8 WWE Raw house show in Liverpool, England
- 11/8 WWE SD/ECW house show in Nottingham, England

- 11/9 WWE Raw TV taping in Sheffield, England
- 11/9 WWE SD/ECW house show in Cardiff, Wales

- 11/10 SD/ECW TV taping in Sheffield, England
- 11/10 WWE Raw house show in Cardiff, Wales

- 11/11 WWE Raw house show in London, England
- 11/11 WWE SD/ECW house show in Stuttgart, Germany

- 11/12 WWE Raw house show in Birmingham, England
- 11/12 WWE SD/ECW house show in Leipzig, Germany

- 11/13 WWE Raw house show in Lyon, France
- 11/13 WWE SD/ECW house show in Hamburg, Germany

- 11/14 WWE Raw house show in Lyon, France
- 11/14 WWE SD/ECW house show in Dublin, Ireland

- 11/15 WWE SD/ECW house show in Belfast, N. Ireland

11/4 Nostalgia Audio with Brian Hoops: Format change to the show, new guest host, upcoming shows

By: Brian Hoops Torch Nostalgia Columnist — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:01:38 PST

I am very pleased to announce I will soon be implementing some changes to the Torch Nostalgia Podcast. Beginning next week, wrestling author and historian, George Schire, has agreed to serve as the new co-host of the program. George and I will be talking about a variety of nostalgia related wrestling topics each and every week. Listeners are encouraged to send in your comments or questions to the show using the email address of torchnostalgia@gmail.com.

I will also be joined by loyal Torch listener and subscriber, JR Barnes, to review and breakdown Survivor Series 1989 and 1990.

Be sure to listen in and tell me what you think of the new format.

DGUSA News: Complete list of matches and wrestlers announced for the first DGUSA Title tournament

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:48:14 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Dragon Gate USA announced the complete list of matches and wrestlers scheduled for the first DGUSA Title tournament on November 28 in Philadelphia. The two-round, five-match tournament will determine the promotion's first champion.

-- Singles match: Brian Kendrick vs. BxB Hulk

-- Singles match: Davey Richards vs. YAMATO

-- Four-way match: CIMA vs. Mike Quackenbush vs. Super Crazy vs. Jorge Rivera

-- Six-way match: "Young Buck" Matt Jackson vs. "Young Buck" Nick Jackson vs. Jigsaw vs. Gran Akuma vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Lince Dorado.

The winner of each of the four first round matches will be in the main event DGUSA Title match at the end of the show. The title match will be elimination-style, not a "fatal four-way" match.

The semi-main event of the show will be a feature tag match with the top stars from the Dragon Gate promotion in Japan - Dragon Kid & Shingo vs. Yoshino & Doi.

Link: DGUSA show information.

ROH News: Ring of Honor receives positive press for ROH TV taping this weekend

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:34:06 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The Philadelphia City Paper gave Ring of Honor some positive publicity to help promote this weekend's ROH TV tapings at the former ECW Arena in Philadelphia.

The story drew attention to ROH alumni C.M. Punk as a former WWE World Hvt. champion, Samoa Joe as a former TNA World Hvt. champion, and Nigel McGuinness debuting on TNA Impact in a program with one of the top stars in wrestling, Kurt Angle.

-- Thursday's ROH TV taping will include ROH champion Austin Aries scheduled for an ROH Title defense against an unnamed opponent. The other two main events are Colt Cabana vs. Claudio Castagnoli and Tyler Black vs. former TNA wrestler Sonjay Dutt. The three shows taped on Thursday are scheduled to air December 7, 14, and 21.

-- Friday's TV taping is loaded with main event matches that include ROH champion Austin Aries & Kenny King vs. Tyler Black & Colt Cabana, Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards, and Kenny Omega vs. Chris Hero.

Friday's taping will take ROH through the end of the year to the beginning of 2010. The shows are expected to run December 28, January 4, and January 11.

PWG News: Former WWE wrestler, TNA tag team, ROH World champion scheduled for PWG's "Battle of Los Angeles" tournament

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:19:40 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Southern California-based Pro Wrestling Guerrilla has released the full list of 16 wrestlers scheduled for their annual "Battle of Los Angeles" tournament that will be headlined by former WWE wrestler Brian Kendrick, TNA wrestlers Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley, and ROH World champion Austin Aries.

PWG has not announced the first round match-ups in the tournament yet scheduled for November 20 and 21. The winner of the tournament will be the new PWG World champion after Bryan Danielson was booked to vacate the title on his final PWG show in September.

Top stars confirmed for the tournament include Kendrick, Sabin and Shelley, Aries, Colt Cabana, the Young Bucks, Roderick Strong, El Generico and Kevin Steen, Joey Ryan, and Kenny Omega. Local favorites include Scott Lost, former PWG champion Human Tornado, Jerome "LTP" Robinson, and Brandon Gaston.

PWG recently released DVDs from two important shows, including Bryan Danielson's final PWG match on the "Guerre Sans Frontieres" DVD. PWG DVD ordering info.

TNA News: Complete PPV and Impact TV taping schedule for the first three months of 2010

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:51:47 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA's schedule of PPVs and Impact TV tapings in Orlando, Fla. has been set for the first three months of 2010. TNA will not be touring outside of the Impact Zone at Universal Studios for televised events.

TNA also has two international tours. The dates are included in the schedule below. The European Tour in January will affect TNA's TV presentation, as TNA will have a PPV on January 17, then three TV tapings from Jan. 18-20 for all four episodes of Impact leading to the next PPV in February.

- 1/4 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 1/5 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.

- 1/17 TNA Genesis PPV in Orlando, Fla.

- 1/18 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 1/19 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 1/20 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.

- 1/23 TNA house show in Glasgow, Scotland
- 1/24 TNA house show in Paris, France
- 1/26 TNA house show in Bournemouth, England
- 1/27 TNA house show in Cardiff, Wales
- 1/28 TNA house show in Coventry, England
- 1/29 TNA house show in Manchester, England
- 1/30 TNA house show in London, England

- 2/14 TNA Against All Odds PPV in Orlando, Fla.

- 2/15 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 2/16 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.

- 2/24 TNA house show in Brisbane, Australia
- 2/26 TNA house show in Sydney, Australia
- 2/28 TNA house show in Melbourne, Australia
- 3/3 TNA house show in Adelaide, Australia
- 3/5 TNA house show in Perth, Australia

- 3/8 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 3/9 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.

- 3/21 TNA Destination X PPV in Orlando, Fla.

- 3/22 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 3/23 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.
- 3/24 TNA Impact taping in Orlando, Fla.

Thanks to Devin Cutting for the confirmed TV and PPV dates.

WWE News: Batista scheduled to present award at MTV Europe Awards Show

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:21:37 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE wrestler Batista will be visible at the MTV Europe Award show in Berlin, Germany on Thursday night. Batista is scheduled to present the Best Song Award, reports Patrick Lennon of the Daily Star.

WWE will begin their annual fall European Tour tonight in Dublin, Ireland with a Raw brand house show. The Smackdown brand, of which Batista is a part of, will be in Frankfurt, Germany on Thursday night.

Other News: Mick Foley and Colt Cabana joined by former WWE manager on comedy tour this week

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:54:32 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Former WWE manager/agent "Brother Love" Bruce Pritchard will be joining TNA wrestler Mick Foley and ROH wrestler Colt Cabana on their stand-up comedy tour this week in the Boston area.

The Total Extreme Comedy tour will be at Dick Doherty’s Comedy Escape at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Worcester, Mass. on Thursday night.

Later this month, the tour will be at the Manhattan Comedy Club in New York on November 13, followed by a Thanksgiving Week stop at Comedy Connection in Providence, R.I.

Link: TEC Tour information.

Hardy News: Jeff Hardy scheduled for court today facing charges from September arrest

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:34:28 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Former WWE star Jeff Hardy is scheduled for court this morning at Moore County Criminal District Court in Carthage, N.C. Hardy is expected to present a defense against several drug-related charges he is faced with after his arrest in September.

There are three separate court cases filed under Hardy's name and six charges altogether. Following is a list of categories and charges.

Case 1 - Felony drug trafficking, Two felony charges of possession of a Schedule III controlled substance or drug. (3)

Case 2 - Felony possession of cocaine, Felony maintaining a dwelling for redistribution of controlled substances. (2)

Case 3 - Misdemeanor Possession of drug paraphernalia. (1)

We'll continue to monitor this story today and report back on the results of Hardy's court appearance.

WWE News: SPOILERS - Smackdown TV taping report for Friday night's show

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:20:20 PST

WWE Smackdown TV taping results
November 3, 2009
Providence, R.I.

The following news, notes, and results from Prowrestling.net's detailed taping report. Read the complete Spoiler Report at Prowrestling.net.

-- World Hvt. champion The Undertaker and Chris Jericho had a confrontation to promote their Survivor Series PPV title match also involving Big Show.

-- Josh Mathews hosted sit-down interviews with Rey Mysterio and Batista throughout the show to promote their feud. Mathews also interviewed Matt Hardy prior to him facing Batista in the TV main event.

(1) Dolph Ziggler & Hart Dynasty vs. John Morrison & Cryme Tyme.

(2) Beth Phoenix in a squash match.

(3) Drew McIntyre vs. Jimmy Wang Yang.

(4) Rey Mysterio vs. Mike Knox.

(5) C.M. Punk vs. R-Truth.

(6) Batista vs. Matt Hardy.

ECW TV Reax #1: "William Regal has stepped up big time since coming to ECW and he deserves a World Title run"

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:33:43 PST

-- 11/3 ECW TV Reax

Alex Mobley of Louisville, Ky. (8.5): Best Match: Goldust-Regal. Worst Segment: Ryder-Mendes. Is it just me or does the new commentator remind anyone else of Taz? Anyways, it's pretty sad that WWE's biggest heel is on the least important of the three main TV shows. William Regal has stepped up big time since coming to ECW and he deserves a World Title run. I think his mic work is close to Jericho and his in-ring work is second to none. Goldust is another wrestler who has stepped up since coming to ECW. I was hoping to hear them announce Christian vs. Regal at Survivor Series, but that would be too much to ask. What was WWE thinking with Zack Ryder and Rosa Mendes? Another sex joke from WWE? So much for PG TV. Shelton Benjamin is still just okay. Man, remember when he beat Triple H? I really don't know what to say about Ryder at times. He's impressive and then there's weeks like this where he just doesn't look like a future main eventer. The new guy Vance Archer really did look intense. Christian is good and I can't wait until he gets moved to another show. Hopefully it will be Smackdown. Regarding Yoshi, I want to like him and I try to like him, but I just can't stand him. I always wondered why Ezekiel Jackson was the manager to The Brian Kendrick and not the wrestler. Now we all know why because three moves will only get you so far. Making Regal look strong at the end was wise going into the title match next week. I didn't mention Hurricane or Burchill because I'm done with their story. They both seem pretty terrible on the mic. Overall, good show with great storyline progression. Hopefully ECW will be given at least one match at the next PPV.

-- 11/2 WWE Raw Reax

Justin Eldridge of Cold Lake, Alb., Canada, military (6.0): Best Match: Miz vs. Evan Bourne. Worst Match: Divas Battle Royal. I was actually fairly impressed with how this Raw went. Even though Ozzy and Sharon messed up the names of Bourne and Kofi, the opening was pretty good. I hate how the announcers keep saying that Evan has scored some "big upsets" on Raw. I like that he actually got some offense in this time on The Miz even though his win was apparently stricken from the record. Sheamus looked dominant again, but WWE needs to give him someone to work with. That powerbomb on Noble looked absolutely brutal. I thought Jamie was really hurt. I was really excited to see what Kofi and Randy were going to give us, but they continued to make Randy look weak by having Legacy run in. Randy just had a big series with SuperCena and now he can't stand alone against Kofi? No offense to Kofi, as he has been developing really well. The six-man tag actually wasn't that bad and I was glad to hear the crowd come alive for the Mark Henry hot tag. I though "Raw's Got Talent" started out pretty good. Chris Masters had my vote. That was hilarious. Why was Khali there, though? Is Chavo going from fighting the smallest guy on the roster to the biggest? Once again, the divas got no love. Why not have a tournament to decide the number one contender instead of another "throw the girls out there and give them five minutes between the six of them" type match. I much prefer to watch the TNA Knockouts compared to this. Give them more one-on-one time! The main event was pretty good. I'm getting tired of DX, but they were really funny announcing. I was ready to be mad when Cena did his comeback with just a couple minutes left in the show, but it was nice to see the three invincible stars KO'ed for once. Good to see Jericho and Show given some credibility back, even though they'll probably get destroyed next week.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "ECW TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on ECW, click here.

WWE News: ECW TV Notes - ECW Title match booked for next week, Former TNA wrestler debuts

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 23:24:03 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

-- WWE booked an ECW Title match for next week's show from the United Kingdom with ECW champion Christian vs. William Regal in Regal's home country.

-- Former TNA wrestler Lance Hoyt debuted on ECW tonight as Vance Archer. Hoyt was in WWE's developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling, for five months before being called up to the main roster.

Hoyt debuted on ECW TV with a squash match victory. Prior to his in-ring debut, Hoyt "turned heads" by walking down the hallway and catching the eyes of Abraham Washington and Tony Atlas. WWE is emphasizing Hoyt's height and mean streak as a potential top heel on the ECW brand.

GUEST EDITORIAL: Disgruntled TNA fan says he's done with the promotion after today's Impact taping (Contains SPOILERS)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 23:20:49 PST

Editor's Note: At PWTorch.com we strive for our content whenever possible and practical to be original and unique (i.e. not published on other sites), therefore Guest Editorials submitted to PWTorch.com should be submitted only to PWTorch.com. If you submit a Guest Editorial for consideration, please state at the top of your editorial that you submitted it only to PWTorch. com. For more details on submitting Guest Editorials, check out a detailed submissions guide following today's Guest Editorial below.

GUEST EDITORIAL
By Bradly Torrey, Torch reader

This guest editorial is written by a former huge TNA fan. A TNA fan up until tonight. Just like many fellow wrestling fans, I fell in love with the X Division when I first saw it on Fox Sports Net. I saw some familiar faces that drew me in to watch, but it was the X Division and the innovation that kept me watching.

The first PPV I ordered was the original Turning Point highlighted by a cage match that led to Elix Skipper's "catwalk on the cage." At that moment, my friends and I were hooked. We loved watching the X Division, just like many others. The innovation and skill set of the wrestlers in the ring was captivating and seemed to signal the start of a revolutionary new product.

Fast forward to tonight. I stuck by TNA this long, but the reason wasn't because of a great product. It was because I longed for the day someone in the inner circle would bring about a change that would bring back my beloved X Division. If I wanted to see Hulk Hogan, Scott Steiner, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, or any other fifty-year-old wrestler, I could go to YouTube.

When I saw the spoilers that Jim Neidhart was booked to defeat Jay Lethal, I said to myself, "enough." I give up, TNA. No longer will I curse in my head at the criticisms by the writers at PWTorch, no longer will I watch Raw and think how cool it will be when TNA catches up with them, and no longer will I believe that the X Division will come back to life. I do not care how it happened (interference, cheating, or whatever), there is no way in hell that Jim "the Anvil" Neidhart should ever, at his age, pin Jay Lethal. Wasn't it Jay Lethal who pinned Kurt Angle on Impact one time? Wow, talk about the Billy Kidman curse.

There is no reason for me to watch TNA anymore. I do not care for WWE, but since TNA has become WWE-lite, I might as well just watch the real deal. I should have seen the signs a long time ago. Petey Williams, Senshi, Sonjay Dutt, and Kaz (Suicide does not exist in my head) are gone. In their place? Mick Foley past his prime, Jim "the Anvil," Rhino, and Kevin Nash. I should have seen it coming. Ten years ago, of course I would take the second group over the unestablished wrestlers. However, it's 2009, not 1999! How did I not see this coming?

The X Division was refreshing and simply awesome. Just like Awesome Red, wait what is his name again? That is no shot at Amazing Red; it's just that you have to put your DVR on slow-motion to be able to catch a glimpse of him on Impact.

In conclusion, I just want to say sorry to PWTorch. Sorry for getting upset at all the times I thought you had an agenda and were just trying to get more support for WWE. Sorry that up until now I thought you were on a wild goose chase when criticizing TNA's product. Now that the X Division seems to be completely meaningless, my only hope for TNA is that Desmond Wolfe and A.J. Styles collide and have an epic feud. It's too bad I will not be watching. Maybe I will catch it on YouTube.

You are invited to submit a "Torch Guest Editorial" for possible publishing on this site in future days. For submission guidelines and the current email,click here.

WWE RAW ROUNDTABLE REVIEWS 11/2: Caldwell, McKinley, Parks rate and review

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:20:09 PST

Shane McKinley, PWTorch.com Contributor (5.5)

The new Raw theme song will be a old Sunny & Cher song apparently, considering it's now a variety show. Most of Raw was filled with stupid humor, but I like me some stupid humor. Opening was filled with rating-killers, at least told to fans by Mr. Cool push-killer Triple H. Miz beats up on the pathetic Evan Bourne, but Mizzy needs a credible opponent. And it ain't Jack Swaggah. Sheamus' powerbomb of Jamie Noble was memorable. Would like to see follow-up in this week of WWE programming. The brand-spanking freshness of the Kofi-Randy Orton feud is much needed, and I wouldn't mind seeing these two guys at the PPV. Sad to think that nowadays, many fans are excited more about mid-card matches at WWE PPVs than the main events (WWE Bragging Rights). Something's wrong here.

Many people complained that the Raw's Got Talent was beyond stupid (duh), but hey, you've got to dig pretty damn deep to come up with Chris Masters pumping his chest pecs to a Ozzy Obsourne song. I give them credit for the effort. The Cena-DX feud, in my opinion, needs to take a serious tone. HBK and Triple H should clearly separate themselves from each other, because it sucks knowing you're buying a PPV when WWE is playing up the lame "two vs. one" card for two triple-threat matches. Save that for the ugly Smackdown triple threat, which needs that kinda cheap tactic. And, yeah, Triple H is the coolest person walking on the face of God's green earth. But we all already knew that. That's all we've heard for the last eight years. Loved
Ozzy's "The Ultimate Sin' shout-out by Chris Jericho.

James Caldwell, Torch columnist (5.5)

This was a basic, run-of-the-mill Raw without a PPV to immediately promote or a PPV to follow-up on from the previous night. I like that WWE developed some personalities, including Kofi, Sheamus, and Chris Masters, but WWE didn't exactly advance toward the Survivor Series PPV. Not enough was done to create an issue between John Cena, Triple H, and Shawn Michaels worth paying money to see played out at Survivor Series.

Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne provided some "mainstream moments" for WWE, but they didn't enhance the show with name-botching, involvement in a long, drawn-out opening segment, and a typically weak comedy segment with Santino, Jillian, Chavo, Khali, Hornswoggle, etc. At least Chris Masters had some character development, if you want to call him flexing his pecs character development.

Sheamus looked strong in Week 2 on Raw, but WWE needs to exercise patience in finding the right program for him. Take your time, continue to expose his personality to the audience, and feed him more wrestlers. ... Chris Jericho and Big Show standing tall at the end of the show was a nice touch to build interest for how Cena and DX respond next week, but we still don't have a money issue between Cena, HBK, and Hunter.

Greg Parks, Torch contributor (6.0)

Believe it or not, the thing that stands out most from Raw was Sheamus' destruction of Jamie Noble. Everything was just sorta "there," thanks to a few weeks break from the non-stop PPV hyping that WWE has been using Raw for. And to me, that's a good thing. The Osbournes were about what you'd expect as hosts. Nothing more, nothing less. Week two of the Kofi vs. Orton feud smartly didn't give TOO much away as far as their one-on-one match. I'm just not into MVP & Mark Henry as a team, for whatever reason.

I'm hoping neither Jack Swagger nor The Miz turns face, since they're both such good heels. But I don't know where else this feud is going. Hopefully, Evan Bourne can stay in the U.S. Title picture, as sad as begging for something as low on the totem pole as that belt is. Alicia Fox has really improved in the ring, so it's nice to give her another shot at the title. And apparently she's still the only heel on the brand (until Maryse returns). Jericho pins Cena! (in a tag match). But still! Main event was just OK.

ECW POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/3 ECW if you saw the show?

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:16:27 PST

CALDWELL'S ECW TV REPORT 11/3: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of the rest of ECW tonight

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:05:05 PST

WWE - ECW on SyFy TV Report
November 3, 2009 - Year 4, Week 22 (Week 178 overall)
Taped in Providence, R.I.
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Thanks to Greg Parks covering the first 20 minutes of the show. His report is here.

-- After Zack Ryder's odd segment with Rosa Mendes, WWE returned from commercial with Rosa Mendes in-ring announcing the following match. Well, before that, she cut a promo about how excited and nervous she is about guest-announcing ECW. She told us she's kinda amazing. A production assistant then gave her a cue to hurry the heck up. "Oh, sorry," she said. Out came Zack Ryder sporting a less-heelish beard. Zack stared down Rosa, then she introduced Shelton Benjamin, who is fresh off a loss to Sheamus on last week's ECW.

2 -- ZACK RYDER vs. SHELTON BENJAMIN

The opening bell sounded and Shelton took Zack to the mat with a rear takedown. Shelton followed with a punch strike and Ryder bailed to the outside to get a breather. Ryder then walked over to Rosa, Shelton followed, and Ryder punched Shelton to the mat. Back in the ring, Ryder went to work on Shelton and nailed a running boot to the face in the corner ala Samoa Joe. Shelton then came back with an overhead suplex and Ryder went to the apron. He started making eyes at Rosa, who tempted him with an application of lip gloss. Ryder, smitten, then turned around and took Pay Dirt from Shelton for the pin and the win. Rosa then with the announcement Shelton was the winner.

WINNER: Shelton Benjamin in 4:00. Multiple choice test - who was supposed to get over with this segment - (a) Shelton, (b) Ryder, (c) Rosa, or (d) None of the above. I'm leaning more toward Rosa. In any event, Shelton got a cop-out win, Ryder looked lame, Rosa showed personality, and this is an exact copy of the Raw mid-card storyline featuring Swagger, Bourne, and Miz. Really, seriously, really? (*)

[Q3]

[Commercial Break]

In-ring: Paul Burchill was in the ring sporting his leather jacket while Katie Lea stood by his side. Burchill was ready to end this deal with Hurricane Helms. The Hurricane's music hit and out came the character with a weapon in hand. Burchill gritted his teeth and waited for Hurricane to show up. Burchill told Hurricane that Halloween is over. Nice line. Hurricane shot back that Halloween lasts all year long, just ask your sister. Burchill smirked and said Hurricane has duped all of these soulless, mindless fools. He said he's talented, physically fit, and has great family values. Hurricane stumbled saying these people like him because he doesn't call the fans mindless and soulless, plus he likes to have fun. And they like to fly. Plus, chicks dig superheroes. Burchill said it's not a joke or funny time. He has a proposal to finish this once and for all: one more match. If he wins, Hurricane unmasks and confirms he's a hoax. If Cane wins, Burchill said he and Katie will leave ECW. Whadda say? Hurricane thought it over and said, "In brightest day, in darkest night, Hurricane will never back down from a fight. It's on!" Well, that's how you set up a blow-off match. Burchill has improved sooooo much with the presentation of his character. Good segment.

Backstage: Abraham Washington was complaining to Tony Atlas about William Regal ruining his furniture and the set last week. He blamed Tiffany and said he needs to request - no demand - new furniture. He said he's even going to give Tony a new soundboard machine. He then made a fart noise. Seriously. Tony cackled, then Abraham knocked on the ECW GM's office door and both men went silent as Lance Hoyt came out. He's sporting a haircut. They sold fright and shock at his height. Tiffany then came out said that's ECW's newest star, Vance Archer. She hesitated and said, "Well, he's intense."

[Commercial Break]

Raw Rebound: They showed Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne hosting Raw's Got Talent. Chris Masters did his pecs to Crazy Train. Great Khali found it oddly mesmerizing. Chavo and Jillian then butchered a duet. Jillian: "You people do not know talent." Jack Swoggle with a tadpole splash. Oh, dear.

[Q4]

In-ring: Vance Archer's music hit and out came the former TNA wrestler Lance Hoyt. No facial hair. No air guitar. No Jimmy Rave. No TNA stench. Already in the ring was Logan Jones, billed as a local talent.

3 -- VANCE ARCHER vs. LOGAN JONES

Bell sounded, they locked up, and Archer tossed Logan to the outside. Lance followed with a big kick to the chest and a hard slap to the face. Vance very calm and cool delivering power moves before landing a sweeping reverse DDT for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Archer in 1:00. Archer is going to get over. He just has a tremendously different vibe than when he was going through the motions in going-nowhere storylines in TNA. This was a great debut. (n/a)

Backstage: ECW champ Christian was shown walking down the hallway with a determined Yoshi Tatsu. Main event up next.

[Commercial Break]

Next week: William Regal has his ECW Title shot against Christian from his home country in the U.K. Deck stacked against the champ. Thanks, Tiff.

In-ring: Ezekiel Jackson and Kozlov were in the ring pumped up and ready to eat Christian and Yoshi. Kozlov had a close shave before the show. Nice little improvement to the facial presentation. Sounds like a little thing, but the little things often make a big difference, like how Burchill and Vance carried themselves earlier in the show. Christian and Yoshi then came to the ring to start the main event.

4 -- ECW champion CHRISTIAN & YOSHI TATSU vs. EZEKIEL JACKSON & KOZLOV

Yoshi started things with Jackson and gained a surprising early advantage with kicks that Jackson couldn't keep up with. Jackson grunted in frustration, which Yoshi sold with a lack of understanding. Kozlov then tagged in and absorbed a few body kicks before ramming Yoshi into the corner. Jacklov began tagging in and out working over Yoshi with Jackson grunting his way through an offensive attack.

[Q5 -- over-run]

Yoshi finally escaped the heels and tagged in Christian at the top of the hour. Christian went after Kozlov, then knocked Jackson off the ring apron. Christian wanted a top rope move, but Kozlov caught him and tossed him down to the mat. Kozlov wanted a shoulderbreaker, but Christian slipped out and nailed a fallaway reverse DDT for a two count. Action broke down and the babyfaces dumped Jackson to the floor. Yoshi then nailed a plancha to the outside. Back in the ring, Kozlov gave Christian a fallaway slam, but missed with a corner attack. Christian followed with a Tornado DDT and called for the end. Christian wanted the Killswitch...and he connected on the first try. Christian rolled Kozlov over and scored the pin for the win.

WINNERS: Christian & Yoshi in 8:00. Fine tag match. Surprising to see Kozlov take a clean loss, though. Post-match was the story, though, with another beat down on Christian. Yoshi was apparently eaten by the ringside mat during the beating to follow... (*1/2)

Post-match: Regal hit the ring to attack Christian, who fought off Regal before Jackson smashed him from behind. Yoshi was out of the picture as Regal directed traffic in a repeat from the end of last week. Jacklov rammed Christian into the ringpost multiple times to wear him out before the title match next week. Regal then put Christian in the Regal Stretch on the floor. He went nuts with the hold and entered that new level of intense insanity we saw on the Abraham Washington Show last week. Christian was left out cold on the floor as Regal stood over him o close the show.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for an "ECW TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on ECW TV, email to pwtorch@gmail.com using our Feedback form.

TNA News: SPOILERS on Jim Neidhart's TNA debut, Raven's return, Kurt Angle returns from injury angle

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:50:49 PST

By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The following are spoiler notes from today's TNA Impact taping for the November 12 show leading to the Turning Point PPV on November 15.

-- Former WWE tag champion Jim Neidhart debuted with TNA and was booked to defeat X Division wrestlerJay Lethal in a singles match.

-- Raven returned to TNA storylines after a five-month absence and was re-inserted in the Mick Foley-Abyss-Dr. Stevie storyline. Raven attacked Mick Foley and sided with Dr. Stevie.

-- Kurt Angle returned after a stretcher angle on last week's Impact and picked up another fight with Nigel McGuinness (Desmond Wolfe) to set up a PPV match.

Notes from PWInsider.com.

PARKS' ECW REPORT 11/3: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of the show's first few segments

by Greg Parks, PWTorch.com Contributor — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:09:48 PST
ECW on SyFy
November 3, 2009
Taped earlier tonight in Providence, R.I.
Aired on SyFy Network

I'll be here for the first segment or two tonight, until James is able to take over his usual duties.

-WWE Open.

-They showed clips of the Yoshi Tatsu vs. Christian ECW Title match from last week, as well as the attack by Vladimir Kozlov and Ezekiel Jackson.

-In the arena, Christian came out. He simply said he wanted William Regal in the ring, and he wants him there now. He said he'd go to the back to find him if Regal didn't come out. Instead, Tiffany and her awful new music came out. She took the blame, saying Regal only did what he did because she wouldn't give him a title match. She told him not to get mad because that's what Regal wants. The Ruthless Roundtable then came out.

Christian said he wanted a go at Regal, since he was in the building where he won his first ECW Championship, and he wants to defend his title in front of all of his Providence peeps. However, Regal declined the offer. He said he'd accept only on his terms. Apparently, those terms are that Regal wants it to be in front of a deserving crowd, i.e. next week in England. Christian accepted and Tiffany OK'd it, under one condition: Zeke and Vlad were banned from ringside. And Regal is in action next.

As Regal tried to make his way into the ring, Christian dropkicked him through the ropes. Tiffany admonished him as they went to break.

[Commercial Break]

WWE News: ECW TV preview - Christian & Yoshi vs. Kozlov & Jackson, LLP

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:05:32 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Tonight's edition of ECW TV on Syfy will feature ECW champion Christian and Yoshi Tatsu vs. William Regal's group of hired henchmen, Ezekiel Jackson and Kozlov.

The match continues last week's ending when Regal, Jackson, and Kozlov took out Christian and Yoshi after Christian retained the ECW Title over Yoshi in the TV main event.

Mixed in last week's show was an award-winning performance by Regal, who showed near-insanity ripping up the Abraham Washington Show set.

Torch Reader Alert: We are looking for a Smackdown/ECW TV taping report from tonight's show in Providence, R.I. Send a report to pwtorch@gmail.com.

ROH News: ROH TV episodes now available on DirecTV's Video-On-Demand service

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:31:31 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

HDNet announced today they are partnering with DirecTV to offer 20 hours of programming, including select ROH TV episodes, on a Video-on-Demand basis for DirecTV subscribers.

HDNet says much of the programming will be available on the VOD service within 24 hours of the original airing on HDNet. The service will conceivably allow DirecTV customers to watch each week's ROH TV episode the day after the original airing on Monday nights.

Link: HDNet press release.

CALDWELL'S TUESDAY CHAT w/GREG PARKS: Raw & Smackdown discussion - Orton-Kofi build-up compared to Rey-Batista, DX dissension, Sheamus stands out

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:16:20 PST
James Caldwell: This is Torch asst. editor James Caldwell joined by Torch specialist Greg Parks talking last night's Raw and Friday's edition of Smackdown. Greg, first off, thanks for covering Raw for me last night. What was your impression of the show and what stood out the most?

Greg Parks: Well, it felt like what it was: a show that didn't have a lot to push since it's still a few weeks away from a PPV. That allowed everything to flow at a less frantic pace and WWE wasn't trying desperately to plug everything at the last minute. What stood out to me though was the push of Sheamus - he came off looking great through really elementary, simple booking.

JC: Yeah, Sheamus has quickly been made into a monster in just two weeks. I'm interested to see where they go with him. I think they'll continue this build-up in 2009, then perhaps give him a stand-out moment in the Royal Rumble to begin a strong 2010 run. Triple H is obviously behind him based on the interview a few weeks ago, so Sheamus appears to be ready for a strong run to begin the year. WWE just needs to take their time and not rush things. ... Did you feel like Raw accomplished anything with the major players - e.g. Cena-HBK-Hunter or Orton-Kofi or Legacy's involvement? Or, did it come across to you as it did to me as more of a holding pattern type show?

GP: It was definitely a holding pattern show, but again, that's not necessarily a bad thing. This is when you can tease feuds for the future and kind of let characters develop. It's a lot better than having to hype/come off a PPV every week or two where there isn't a lot of room for character development because you're getting guys in and out of feuds and PPV matches.

JC: Good point on that. And this is why I was glad to see WWE drop a PPV in 2010 to allow for more weeks when they can focus on characters and developing personalities rather than having to rush into selling the next off-brand PPV with a series of "concept matches" that have no business being part of a feud's progression. For some reason, Chris Masters's name pops to mind, but do you think he benefited from being booked in that silly Raw's Got Talent segment to give him something to work with character-wise?

GP: Only if WWE capitalizes on it. I think that the fans even got behind him for it. It was certainly bizarre, but it gave a new dimension to his character should WWE choose to build on it. That's what I was talking about above, just fleshing out guys's characters on shows like this.

JC: Great perspective on that. Looking ahead to Survivor Series, what other matches do you see being added to the PPV? I'm on the fence on whether WWE should go with Kofi-Orton in a singles match, as I'd like to see some more time given to the feud before they go the route of a PPV singles match. What else do you see being added?

GP: Yeah, I would hold off on that too, but then where do you put Orton? I guess he could be in an elimination tag match with Legacy and another heel against Kofi, MVP, Henry, and a babyface. I guess it all depends on how many elimination tag matches WWE is going to do at the PPV. Miz vs. Swagger is another match I could see there, but again, they may be utilized in a tag match.

JC: I can see it now: Legacy-Orton tension part 25 at Survivor Series. It certainly seems they're going that direction with the tag matches. Perhaps you put Miz and Swagger with Legacy, then add Bourne and another face to Kofi, Henry, and MVP. It would continue to flesh out the feud between Miz and Swagger while also teasing more Legacy dissension.

GP: I could see that- I'm just afraid they're going to turn Miz or Swagger face. Bad idea, in my opinion.

JC: Agreed. Both are strong heels who just need some more exposure. Final note on Raw - how much dissension do you think WWE will tease between DX leading to the PPV? Does WWE tease HBK being fed up with Hunter or do they keep it where it is with DX being chummy leading to the match against Cena? How do you see it being played up?

GP: It's gonna be tough for WWE to transition from the hamming-it-up-comedy-duo that DX currently is to building real, PPV buy-worthy tension in only a matter of a few weeks. It'll be a tall task to do it, but if DX doesn't seem worried, what's the hook for buying the PPV then?

JC: That was my main concern coming out of this show is that I didn't feel like there were any new issues developed for the PPV title match. I agree with everything you said that WWE had a week to focus on characters and not necessarily the PPV, but they really needed to find balance and give viewers a new reason to be interested in the title match coming up. I didn't feel WWE delivered that this week.

GP: True, true, but I prefer this more laid-back style, working things up to the final hype for the PPV, rather than having one hyped on overdrive every week, or just coming off a PPV and having to deal with what just happened there.

JC: Yeah, and not have to deal with the "Oh, thanks for your $40 last night, but please consider another $40 in three weeks" problem WWE typically runs into. ... Let's shift gears to Smackdown before we wrap it up. You were there live for the taping of last week's show. Anything you noticed different live vs. covering it on TV on Friday night?

GP: Not a ton - Ziggler's "Bragging Point" comment edited to say "Bragging Rights" and the "What" chants during Rey's promo edited out, which actually made the entire segment come across better on TV than live. I was ashamed to be in the same crowd as those people.

JC: Nice. It's right up there with the "Twoooooo" for "annoying wrestling references making a comeback in 2009." I thought Rey and Batista each had one of their better promos ever. Neither one is a promo guy, but they somehow brought it out of each other. What were your thoughts on how the program started after Batista's heel turn at Bragging Rights?

GP: First of all, I did the "TWOOOO" on ever near-fall both nights, so I disagree on that; second, I thought it was wise to keep the two from getting physical the first show after the PPV. Hopefully, WWE doesn't throw them into matches against each other coming up as the intrigue of them going one-on-one could garner WWE some extra PPV buys.

JC:And that's what I thought was a mistake with Orton-Kofi on Monday throwing them out there in the ring for the first time. There has to be anticipation to sell PPVs, but now that anticipation is gone. You can't get that first Kofi-Orton match back. So, I agree very strongly with what you said about keeping Batista and Rey away from each other until the timing is right to make money. Batista vs. Matt Hardy on Smackdown this week will be a nice bridge to continue the Batista vs. Rey program. ... Cuing up the lame radio host ending, it looks like we're up against the clock, any final thoughts on Smackdown?

GP: Eh, not really. A Jericho vs. Kane main event didn't really get me excited, and C.M. Punk was relegated to fighting Scott Armstrong, so nothing much for him to do either. I guess that about does it.

JC: Looks like we'll pick up next week with a look at where WWE takes Punk's character after the Undertaker program and how the build-up for Taker-Jericho-Kane at Survivor Series advances. Two very interesting developments to follow. Greg, thanks for your time today!

GP: Always a pleasure, James.

WWE News: USA Network announces victory over ESPN last week thanks to WWE Raw

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:52:13 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

USA Network issued a press release today announcing their return to the top spot in the cable TV rankings last week. ESPN had won the head-to-head battle each week during the fall season with their Monday Night Football coverage, which prompted USA to issue a press release announcing a victory.

USA averaged 3.47 million viewers in prime time compared to 3.09 million viewers for ESPN. USA included WWE Raw's strong showing with 5.59 million viewers in their press release explaining how the victory was won.

The press release cited Raw having "its best night in weeks," which is accurate after Raw averaged 4.73 million viewers over a five-week stretch from Sept. 21 to Oct. 19 prior to the surge in viewers last week.

USA also said Raw was the "most watched entertainment program in cable prime." USA also said WWE Raw added one million viewers from week to week. The claim is nearly accurate after rounding, as Raw went from 4.64 million viewers on Sept. 19 to 5.59 million on Sept. 26.

WWE News: Raw TV ratings break down - Detailed analysis of the Raw ratings for last night's show

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:40:35 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor
WWE Raw from Monday night averaged a healthy 3.45 rating and 5.0 million viewers with similar viewership in the first and second hours. The audience was consistent, but peaked in the first hour with heavy involvement from the Osbournes and top stars Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and Kofi Kingston.

The key demographic ratings were above the 2.00 ratings benchmark to continue the momentum from last week's strong showing.

Among adults 18-49, Raw was below the benchmark for four episodes from September 28 to October 19. Last week, the show shot up to a 2.40 rating among adults 18-49 and averaged a 2.02 rating for last night's Ozzy Raw.

Looking at the viewership number, Raw was strong compared to the previous five weeks of TV (up 2.2 percent), but down slightly compared to the ten-week average (down 2.2 percent). The break down is below.

Raw TV Viewers Breakdown
11/2 - 5.00 million viewers (Ozzy, vs. Week 8 NFL, World Series)

LAST FIVE WEEKS OF RAW
10/26 - 5.59 million viewers (NASCAR hosts, vs. Week 7 NFL)
10/19 - 4.64 million viewers (Snoop Dogg, vs. Week 6 NFL, MLB Playoffs)
10/12 - 4.79 million viewers (Nancy & Maria, vs. Week 5 NFL, MLB Playoffs)
10/5 - 4.71 million viewers (Big Ben, vs. Week 4 NFL highest-rated game ever)
9/28 - 4.49 million viewers (Rev. Sharpton, vs. Week 3 NFL)
5-WEEK AVERAGE: 4.84 million viewers (11/2 Raw up 2.2 percent)

W/LAST TEN WEEKS OF RAW
9/21 - 5.01 million viewers (Cedric, vs. Week 2 NFL)
9/14 - 4.90 million viewers (Trish Stratus, vs. Week 1 NFL)
9/7 - 5.48 million viewers (Bob Barker)
8/31 - 5.13 million viewers (Dusty Rhodes)
8/24 - 5.85 million viewers (Floyd Mayweather/Night after SS)
COMBINED 10-WEEK AVERAGE: 5.06 million viewers (11/2 Raw down 2.2 percent)

WWE News: Raw TV ratings are in - how did the Osbournes fare as guest hosts?

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:28:38 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Last night's episode of WWE Raw averaged a 3.45 rating, which was down from the previous week's 3.70 rating. The show held up well against Monday Night Football and the World Series with an average of 5.0 million viewers.

Looking at the past few weeks of TV viewership, the show was on the high-end of Raw ratings against stiff competition from football on ESPN.

11/2 Raw - 5.00 million viewers
9/28 - 4.49 million viewers
10/5 - 4.71 million viewers
10/12 - 4.79 million viewers
10/19 - 4.64 million viewers
10/26 - 5.59 million viewers

Caldwell's Analysis: Good number from Raw last night. The show didn't build toward a PPV or follow a PPV from the night before, so WWE should be pleased with hitting the 5.0 million viewer benchmark that should be the goal every week against the NFL during the fall season.

-- FOLLOW-UP STORY: Complete Raw Ratings break down & analysis

WWE News: ESPN.com writer rips WWE's new movie starring Big Show

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:30:11 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

ESPN.com writer Jake Rossen is back at it again ripping pro wrestling in a story related to MMA, which he reports on for the sports site. Rossen covered WWE's announcement that WWE Studios is completing filming for "Knucklehead" starring Big Show and he suggested the involvement of MMA in the movie will hurt the entire industry.

"'Knucklehead' is an intentional comedy, which means the WWE's surprising embrace of MMA could feature some groin shots to the sport's growing influence," Rossen wrote.

Rossen also wrote that WWE announcing the completion of the film "would normally be cause for alarm in any context." He added: "MMA fans might feel especially unnerved by the idea that Wright portrays Walter Krunk, a church orphan who finds himself in a New Orleans mixed martial arts tournament."

Caldwell's Analysis: I'm not sure of the origins of Rossen's snobbery toward pro wrestling, but it's apparently clouded his judgment on evaluating the impact, if any, the movie will have on the MMA industry. It may or may not be a decent movie, but it certainly won't be a "groin shot" to the growth of MMA, as Rossen concluded with a hefty amount of exaggeration.

Link: ESPN coverage of the movie.

TNA News: Knockouts champion signs new multi-year contract with TNA

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:25:14 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA president Dixie Carter announced on her Twitter page that TNA has signed current Knockouts champion ODB to a multi-year deal.

TNA News: Father of current WWE diva backstage at Impact tapings, Raven scheduled for return

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:00:48 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Jim "the Anvil" Niedhart, the former WWF tag champion and father of current WWE diva Natalya, is backstage at today's TNA Impact taping and is scheduled to appear on-camera, reports Jason Powell of Prowrestling.net.

Powell reports that Niedhart was booked prior to Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff's announcement last week that Hogan is partnering with TNA.

Raven is also expected to be on-camera during today's Impact taping for the final Impact leading to the Turning Point PPV. Raven was on TV during May and June earlier this year for a short program with Abyss and Dr. Stevie.

WWE News: Edge interview - will he be back for WrestleMania?, reviews the Jericho & Big Show tag team

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:47:59 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE wrestler Edge says he's progressing toward a full recovery from his severe ankle injury this summer, but he's not sure if he will be able to return in time for WrestleMania 26 in March.

Edge told the Micromania Game Show in France that he was given a six-to-nine-month recovery period by his doctors and he's currently at the four-month mark. Edge says he's at the point where he can put weight on his ankle and slightly push off again.

When Edge went down with an injury, WWE planted seeds for an Edge vs. Chris Jericho match down the road when Edge is recovered. Edge was tag champion with Chris Jericho at the time of his injury and he was replaced by Big Show. Edge offered his thoughts on Big Show replacing him.

"It is very a good choice," Edge said. "If I had to choose a partner, I think that it would be him or Undertaker."

Links: Translated version of the interview and Video of Edge's interview.

WWE/TNA News: Comparison of Hulk Hogan's claim he taught Vince McMahon the wrestling business to what Hogan wrote in his first book

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:38:37 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Hulk Hogan claimed in an interview promoting his new book that he taught WWE CEO Vince McMahon the wrestling business when McMahon "didn't really understand the business" after buying then-WWWF from his father, Vince McMahon, Sr.

"I moved in next door to him in Connecticut and taught him all about lifting weights and riding motorcycles and partying like a mad man; and then I taught him about the wrestling business and making money," Hogan told the City Pages newspaper in Minnesota. "And now I'm doing that again with TNA Wrestling." Read the entire story here.

Hogan offered a slightly different take in his first autobiography published in 2003 through WWE's publishing company. Hogan used terms like "we" and "us" to describe the learning process for both himself and McMahon on how to market pro wrestling to the masses and make more money for the promotion.

In 2009, Hogan seems to want personal credit for WWE's success as a national wrestling promotion now that he's with TNA. The following are two key excerpts from Hogan's first book, "Hollywood Hulk Hogan," that show a different viewpoint when he was working for WWE.

Page 168: I was in his ear about this merchandising thing, driving him crazy. I had seen what could happen in Minnesota (wrestling for the AWA), and I told him that were more ways to make money than just a wrestling payoff. And as soon as he got the ball, he ran with it.

Vince became a monster, the greatest wrestling promoter ever, the greatest deal maker ever, the greatest licensing person ever. he did what nobody else could have done - he turned the company into a multibillion-dollar business empire in just a few years.

Page 176: The other good thing that came out of my success was I became friends with Vince McMahon, Jr. I lived in Stamford, Connecticut, very near hise house, and we started to ride motorcycles together.

We were doing everything together. We were riding, we were lifting weights, we were blazing new territory in the wrestling business. Everything we did was like this "Mission: Impossible" plot to get through somebody's door to pitch our product. And Vince had a better feel for uncharted waters than anybody I had ever seen. He would take his damn house and put it on the line for something he believed in. he would always bet on himself and I'll be damned if the son of a bitch didn't always come out on top.

WWE/TNA News: Hulk Hogan claims he taught Vince McMahon the wrestling business, talks more about his role in TNA

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:53:23 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Hulk Hogan claimed in an interview promoting his new book that he taught WWE CEO Vince McMahon the wrestling business when McMahon "didn't really understand the business" after buying then-WWWF from his father, Vince McMahon, Sr.

"I moved in next door to him in Connecticut and taught him all about lifting weights and riding motorcycles and partying like a mad man; and then I taught him about the wrestling business and making money," Hogan told the City Pages newspaper in Minnesota. "And now I'm doing that again with TNA Wrestling."

Hogan also talked himself up as the savior for TNA. He said the company agreed that he could have a "Vince McMahon role" calling the shots for TNA. Hogan says he will be "unofficially" running the promotion, which he equated to the role he had behind-the-scenes in WCW.

"All I told these guys was that they should give me a chance. If they didn't like what I was doing they can tell me to take a hike, but let me have the chance to come in and take a shot at it," Hogan said. "Let the fans and the other wrestlers take a look and decide for themselves what they're in to and I'm confident that I will get this thing rockin'."

-- FOLLOW-UP STORY: Hogan offered different comments on McMahon in his first book.

Link: Read the complete interview on citypages.com.

TNA News: Hulk Hogan not at today's Impact tapings, where he will be instead

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:19:38 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Hulk Hogan was not at the TNA Impact tapings last night, nor will be at today's Impact tapings for the final show leading to the Turning Point PPV. Hogan was already scheduled to take his new book around the country on a book-signing tour.

Tonight, Hogan will be in Seattle, Wash. at Third Place Books. Hogan will be signing autographs starting at 5:00 p.m. local time. Last night, Hogan was in St. Louis signing books.

Yesterday, we covered the possible start dates for Hogan as an official member of TNA storylines. Read about his November schedule, including the wrestling tour of Australia here.

11/2 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Miz vs. Bourne, Raw's Got Talent, Kofi - Orton, Cena vs. Jericho vs Show

By Jon Mezzera, Torch Specialist — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:01:20 PST
Last week was a poor week for WWE tv on the whole. Raw was bad with the exception of the Kofi Kingston - Randy Orton feud. ECW had a great main event, but the rest of the show was poor. Superstars was solid as usual. But, Smackdown was also bad. It was good to see Raw start the week off on a better note. It wasn't a great show, but it was a good show particularly the first half while the second half floundered until the main event.

RAW HITS

Opening Segment: This is a marginal Hit as it was far from great. However, it did achieve the main goal of setting up several matches for later in the show. Sharon Osbourne was very annoying, especially in her battle of "reallys" with the Miz. I prefer more focused openings than ones like this where several random wrestlers come out to make a statement, or in this case a complaint. But, they all made sense given what happened to each last week. The wrestlers all played their parts well. I laughed when Big Show demanded an apology for what happened last week and Ozzy Osbourne apologized. I liked the idea that DX would whisper into their ears the matches to make. It was also amusing how Triple H hijacked Big Show's attempt at doing the same. And as I said, it set up three big matches for later in the show which was good.

Miz vs. Bourne: This was a short match especially for the US Title, but I enjoyed it while it lasted. Evan Bourne clearly deserves a bigger push. It won't come, but at least here he had some time in the match to show what he can do other than just the shooting star press. His offense is incredible. He makes leverage pins seem like the most exciting thing ever in his unique variations. The crowd really bought into everything he did in the match. Miz looked good too. The ending sequence was great with Bourne landing on his feet after Miz moved, only to be hip tossed into the corner setting up the Skull Crushing Finale.

Shaemus Beats Down Noble: I'm not a fan of moving Shaemus to Raw, but at least this week he had a very memorable appearance. His beat down of Jamie Noble was very well done. And as I said, it was memorable which is the key. People should remember this for a long time, especially the brutal power bomb on the outside. WWE did a great job of selling the beating with the initial replays as well as the fact that Noble had to be stretchered out of the arena. After the commercial, they showed more replays. Then later in the show, they did again and gave an update on Noble and said they would have another update next week. That final revisit of the situation is a little short moment that helped sell the angle.

Kofi - Orton: This is a multiple segment Hit. Kofi Kingston gave a good pre-match interview about not being bullied by Randy Orton. I thought it was odd to go to a match between the two so soon, but it turned into a very nice tease. The match was good while it lasted, showing what a PPV match between these two could be. The Legacy interference turned it into a 6 man tag which was the right way to go in order to not give away too much of Kingston vs. Orton. The tag match itself was good. It wasn't anything special, but it allowed Kingston to spoil Orton's fun as he tried to RKO Mark Henry allowing Henry to ultimately get the win for his team. A good week of progress for this feud.

Cena vs. Jericho vs. Show: I liked the main event triple threat match. It was a good way to hype the two triple threats at Survivor Series. John Cena, Chris Jericho and Big Show all looked good in the ring. While I am tired of DX, I have to admit to finding much of their antics on guest commentary to be funny. They put over how hard the announcing job is, while also making fun of the announcers which was nice. They also did a good job of talking about the triple threat match with Cena at the PPV. The match itself was well booked to keep the Tag Champions strong while working together, but hinting at dissension at times as they both wanted to get the pin (foreshadowing Survivor Series). I liked the ending with Show knocking Cena out, but Jericho getting the win. The quick and sudden beat down of DX afterwards was also very well done. It was good to see Raw end with JeriShow on the same page and standing tall.

RAW MISSES

Raw's Got Talent: It is segments like this that make me hope the guest host deal is going to come to an end soon. We saw something similar with the Price is Raw when Bob Barker hosted. It wasn't entertaining and didn't advance anything. There were a few funny moments. I liked Santino Marella's impression of Ozzy Osbourne, but the humor wasn't up to Santino's standards. Chris Masters' peck dancing was actually the most impressive and entertaining thing he has ever done in WWE, which is probably not a good thing. I'm sick and tired of Chavo Guerrero's never ending feud with the guest hosts. I don't ever want to see the Great Khali on my tv. The concept was lame as there were buzzers for each judge to use, but they never seemed to use them as Jerry Lawler buzzed each one. He apparently didn't pay attention to the script as he acted surprised that the judged enjoyed Masters' performance. It was a waste of time.

Divas Battle Royale: WWE has to stop doing Divas Battle Royales for at least 6 months. I honestly have no idea when the last one was, but it seems like they do them at least every 2 months. Even if that isn't the case, that is the perception. I don't need to see another for a long time. I hate that the Divas can be thrown under the bottom rope and still be eliminated. That is so weak. Also, all Battle Royales should have at least ten wrestlers in them. Six isn't enough. Considering that there was only one heel in the match, it was fairly predictable that Alicia Fox was going to win. At least there seemed to be some tension between Gail Kim (who was eliminated too early) and Kelly Kelly. Maybe a heel turn is in the works for Kim which would at least give her a chance to do something on Raw.

DX - Hornswoggle - Cena: This was stupid. I'm not into the DX - Hornswoggle storyline. The attempts at humor were bad like John Cena talking about hanging leprechauns from hooks. I thought they were going to go somewhere serious with the scene to save it as Triple H and Shawn Michaels recalled beating Cena in the past, only Cena went cartoonish and over the top in his monologue about how they all have beaten each other numerous times for a lame homoerotic joke. He could have gone serious by talking about defeating each on the biggest stage of them all, WrestleMania. That would have given heat to the moment, but that would have meant upstaging DX and turning a silly scene serious. I would have preferred it, but WWE went the other route.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's WWE Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw, Smackdown, ECW, and Superstars each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.

For another view from the original Hitlist author, compare Jason Powell's views to mine by visiting prowrestling.NET's "Hitlist" section here.

WWE News: WWE gets mainstream publicity from the Osbournes on Raw; Kofi Kingston says whether guest hosts help or hurt WWE's product

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:53:47 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

MTV.com published a positive review of last night's WWE Raw hosted by Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne. The reviewer talked glowingly about Ozzy ruling Raw "with an iron fist, making matches, cutting promos, and referring constantly to 'Crazy Train.'"

WWE is looking for mainstream publicity with their weekly guest-hosting concept to remain in the public eye. WWE has shifted from seeking wrestling fans to seeking entertainment fans who will stay tuned into Raw for the "variety hour" style programming.

Rising star Kofi Kingston was asked in an interview whether the weekly guest hosts have helped or hurt the WWE product and Kofi went with the company line that exposure is key for WWE's product.

"I think it attracts a new type of audience who might not tune into wrestling usually," Kofi told the U.K. Sun to promote this week's European Tour. "The more people we can get to and the greater our audience is then the better. I think the guest host thing is a great idea, and seems to be working."

Caldwell's Analysis: The guest-hosting concept could go on for quite a while until WWE runs out of relevant celebrities or legends from wrestling, so it's hard to tell at this early stage whether the bad outweigh the good. The bad being a weekly distraction from the "pro wrestling elements" of storytelling that annoy wrestling fans who will tune in because it's wrestling. The good being constant mentions on ESPN, MTV, etc. and more people reading/hearing about WWE to expose the brand. As a publicly-trade company, WWE can't get to the point where the wrestling fans have been driven away in droves because that will start affecting the bottom line. That won't happen in the short-term, but it's something to watch out for over time.

Links: MTV.com review U.K. Sun interview.

KELLER'S TNA IMPACT REPORT 10/29: Examining the Hulk Hogan announcement, Sabin controversy, Wolfe vs. Angle, Joe-Styles-Daniels hype

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:30:54 PST

By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

KELLER'S TNA IMPACT REPORT
OCTOBER 29, 2009
TAPED IN ORLANDO, FLA.
AIRED ON SPIKE TV

[Q1]

-The show opened with clips of Hulk Hogan making various mainstream media appearances. The narrator told viewers to stay tuned for his historic TNA debut. Then they went right to the TNA Impact opening, of which Jeff Jarrett is still part of (hmmm...)

-They went to a video package of Kurt Angle's "transition" last week complimenting "the boy and the girls in the back" for earning his respect and becoming his "peers" in his mind. Then clips aired of Desmond Wolfe attacking Angle.

-As the camera panned the crowd and pyro blasted, Tenay said, "You've read about it, you've heard about it, and the world is talking about. Hulk Hogan has partnered with and TNA and Dixie Carter." Taz said the mammoth announcement would take place later on the show. They said they are assembling footage of the press conference during the show and would present it later.

-Desmond Wolfe walked out for his ring intro. He formally introduced himself. He said, "To my friends, I'm just "Wolfe, but to your wankers, I am Mister Wolfe." He said he was raised from Day One to be the World's Greatest Fighter. He said it's in his blood, in his jeans, and what he does. He said everyone who has stepped in his way has gotten knocked on their ass. He said some people are destined to become common folk, whereas he was destined to become a champion. He said Angle won the Gold Medal not by outscoring his opponent, but because it was given to him because they felt sorry for him. He said Angle's tough guy image is a facade. He said he proved it when last week he "left him lying on the floor." He might be the first wrestler in history to get that grammar right. The correct phrase is "left him lying on the floor," but all wrestlers and even most practicing journalists get it wrong and say "left him laying the floor" (which incorrectly indicates they were having sex on the floor, because "lying" is a state of motionlessness, whereas "laying" is an action). I've been waiting 22 years for a wrestler to get that right! Now if we can just root out the phrases "try and do" (should be "try to do") and "could care less" (should be "couldn't care less"), I can die happy. Wolfe said he could have broken Angle's neck last week, but he didn't because he left his mark. He said in one night he became the greatest wrestler in the history of TNA. Angle's music played and he walked out.

Angle stepped onto the stage. He listed several wrestlers who have earned his respect, but said Wolfe has earned nothing. He told Wolfe he messed with the wrong guy. He said tonight he's going to face him one-on-one in a street fight. They should have a street fight, but not until they've had at least two regular wrestling matches on PPV, so a street fight should be slated for January. Tenay, though, hyped they'd have a street fight tonight on Impact.

-Lauren stood backstage with A.J. Styles watching a monitor replay footage of the mystery person who attacked him. He said, "Only a punk clips somebody from behind." In walked Samoa Joe. Styles asked if it was him. Joe said, "It wasn't me." He said he doesn't need to attack him from behind. Joe suggested it was Daniels. Styles said, "No way." Joe said Daniels has reason to begrudge him since Daniels hasn't had the success in TNA that Styles has had. He said Daniels wants his "spot." He said at No Surrender when he won the TNA World Championship, Daniels was the first person out there to congratulate him. He said he was the only one. "It was you and Daniels soaking up your adoring fans' adulation," he said. Joe said sometimes Styles is so angry at him he might be blind to his own friend stabbing him in the back. Joe walked out and Styles kicked a bench. Joe sounded like he was hoarse, but whatever it was, it was the most impressive he's been on the mic in very long time. He finally wasn't yelling at the top of his lungs, and he came across as a tough guy you'd respect. The softer he talked, the closer I listened. [c]

[Q2]

-They went to Awesome Kong destroying an AKEA room with a golf club because she doesn't have a handler anymore. Tenay and Tazz appeared on camera. They hyped the line-up for Impact beginning with the Hogan announcement. They showed footage of Dixie Carter arriving for the press conference looking quite a bit like that crazy cult lady on "True Blood." They also showed Hogan again.

1 -- TARA vs. ALICIA FLASH

When Flash was hung upside down and the camera zoomed in on her butt, Taz said that looked uncomfortable and reminded him of the pictures he showed him of his honeymoon. Tenay and Taz began talking again about Hogan, which was good. Tenay said the Hogan news broke "after tonight's Impact show was taped." Wait, they just showed them at ringside, so how could their comments be taking place after the show was taped? That mind-bending. So they're calling the action at ringside a few feet from the ring, but somehow able to know about the future, or did the matches they're watching happen in the past? How did someone (like Taz or Tenay) think about how little sense that would make within the TNA Impact world to acknowledge the future during what is presented as commentary taking place during the taping? I'm confused trying to explain why I'm confused. The short of it is, they didn't need to explain that the news broke "after Impact was taped." It was perfectly fine to present the show as if it were live and not draw attention to the fact that everyone wasn't obsessed with Hogan and instead going about their business. Tara's finisher was, as Tazz put it, "not pretty, but effective."

WINNER: Tara in 5:00.

STAR RATING: *

-After the match, Kong charged to the ring and kicked Tara in the chest. Kong then gave Tara an Implant Buster onto Alicia Flash. Tenay said that's a warning to everyone in TNA that she's "uncaged and unleashed."

-They went to Team 3D backstage having a fun exchange with each other. In walked Rhino. He said he finally thought they started to see the big picture. He said Hernandez wanted to take him out of TNA for good "and take my spot here." He said tonight he faces Matt Morgan. He asked if they see a pattern there. Brother Ray said what's insane is that he believes all of the garbage coming out of his mouth. Ray said they didn't save Rhino from Hernandez, they saved Hernandez from Hernandez. Hernandez was born in 1973, Ray in 1971.) He said if Hernandez threw him over the top rope and his brains splattered on the floor, he'll be suspended. "That kid is the future of this company." (Hernandez is two years younger than Brother Ray, by the way. Rhino said deep down they know he's really right. Devon said they don't need any help with the Machine Guns. "They never beat us before, they'll never beat us again," Devon said. Rhino told them to watch their backs because "they're all in on it." Ray said, "Thanks for the heads up, Lee Harvey." [c]

[Q3]

-Clips aired of the Ultimate X match last week.

2 -- TEAM 3D vs. MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS

Tenay pushed that the production team is putting together the footage of the Hulk Hogan press conference. Taz wondered what TNA stars think of the signing. Tenay wondered what role Hogan would have in TNA and how it'd affect everyone from the teams in the ring to himself and Taz on commentary. At 2:00 Ray gave Sabin the infamous Urinage suplex that caused the commotion backstage with Kevin Nash going nuts because the match wasn't stopped. They replayed the move several times from multiple angles, but edited out Ray going for the cover and lifting him afterward. They instead cut right to Devon gorilla pressing Sabin in the air, thus much of the controversial conduct by Ray was edited out, making it tough to judge as a third party what Sabin's body language should have told Ray at that moment in the match, but what was shown was pretty nasty. Shelley clipped Devon's legs, so he dropped Sabin. Sabin had the wherewithal to tag in Shelley a couple seconds later. Taz and Tenay noted that Sabin landed hard and "might have had his bell rung." They replayed it again two more times. Tenay said it was "difficult to watch." They showed medical staff checking on Sabin on the ring apron. Taz said Sabin's landing reminds him of when he broke his neck in a tag match with Eddie Guerrero as his partner. He said Shelley, like Guerrero, might have to finish the match alone. Shelley wrestled Team 3D alone, but took a second here and there to check on Sabin's condition. Imagine having to keep your focus on the match when you're legitimately worried about the condition of your friend and tag partner. Shelley put Devon in a half Boston Crab. Devon pounded the mat and the ref called for the bell, assuming he tapped out. Tenay and Taz wondered if he just hit the mat in reaction to the pain or because he really was giving up. Tenay said, "Just as we've seen in Major League Baseball and the NFL, there's controversy when it comes to officiating in TNA."

WINNERS: Sabin & Shelley in 5:00.

STAR RATING: *1/4

-Lauren interviewed Scott Steiner backstage. Lauren asked if Steiner wanted to apologize to Bobby Lashley and his wife. He seemed to begin to apologize, and Lauren let us know that would make her very very happy. Then Steiner said he's sorry that she's never been with a man like him. Lauren let us know that made her very very sad. He said she lusts after him and concluded that he has a "big surprise" for her, and pointed down. Get it? [c]

-They showed Desmond Wolfe lacing his boots. Tenay plugged that the street fight against Kurt Angle was coming up on Impact. This was a mid-commercial break interlude, a new trend to slow down fast-forwarding among DVR users a new trend in TV.

-A commercial then aired for the "Smackdown vs. Raw" video game, a rare instance of John Cena and other WWE stars appearing during the Impact commercial breaks. [c]

-Hermie Sadler interviewed Amazing Red and Don West. Red said he's not an "I'm going to get you" kind of a guy, so he wanted someone to speak for him and West is perfect for that. West said Red personifies what a wrestler should be. He said he "represents everything that's right about this business" and is a role model for kids. They abruptly cut away before too many more people tuned out.

[Q4]

3 -- BOBBY LASHLEY vs. ERIC YOUNG

They showed Krystal Lashley, Bobby's wife, at ringside. At 1:00 Steiner clotheslined Lashley at ringside. He was wearing a shirt with Kyrstal's image on it. He stood in front of her at ringside and asked if she wanted to be with a real man. Lashley hit Steiner from behind. Young hit Lashley from behind. In the ring Lashley made an immediate comeback and set up his Dragon sleeper. Steiner entered the ring with a chair and bashed Lashley in the back with it. The ref called for the bell. Steiner put Lashley in the Steiner Recliner.

WINNER: No contest in 4:00.

-The World Elite stood center-ring wearing their new white workout sweat suits with their new "W/E" logos. Brutus Magnus said the rumors are true, British Invasion were suspended without pay until Turning Point. He said they apparently didn't like that he decked the referee. He said it's a loop hole because the cage match was Beer Money's last title shot. He said they had to make sure they left with the belts, and they did. He said they fined them as well. "Big deal," he said. "Pocket change to the World Tag Team Champs." He said they can call it a suspension, but they prefer the term vacation. Taz interjected, "Or holiday." Funny. Young then took the mic and bragged that he dished Lashley his first defeat. Tenay said the match was ruled a no contest. Shouldn't it have been a DQ win for Lashley since Steiner interfered on Young's behalf? Young said he had a big announcement that would change the wrestling world and shake TNA's foundation. "The Legends Title is dead," he said. (Okay, now they're just trying to curry favor with me.) He said he now wants the belt to be referred to as the TNA Global Championship. He said he will never defend the belt on American soil and he will never defend the belt against an American wrestler. He said the reason is because "you people don't deserve me as your champion." They showed a close-up of the belt, and it says Global on it. Tenay just accepted that a wrestler can change the name of the title, which makes sense since they just began sanctioning matches for the belt that Booker T made up.

Kevin Nash stepped out. Taz said he wants his 60 grand. Nash asked if they had a deal at Bound for Glory. He asked if the deal wasn't that he made sure Hernandez didn't touch him and he'd walk out with his belt and 60K. He said Young didn't hold up his end of the bargain. He asked Young if that's really how he does business. Young said he knows it might be hard for him to deal with it because "the shoe is on the other foot" because he's been doing that type of thing for years. He said he respects that and "learned from the master." He said they each knew one of them was going to get screwed, and he made sure it wasn't him. He told him to step into the ring so they have the conversation face-to-face. Beer Money then entered the ring from behind and began hitting World Elite members with a stop sign and a chair. Nash then smiled and said, "You can run, boys, but you can't hide."

-Backstage Daniels approached A.J. Styles and asked him what he thought of what Samoa Joe was saying about him attacking him. Daniels was upset with Styles that he didn't say he didn't believe him. Styles accused Daniels of being defensive. Daniels said Joe wants them to fight so it increases his odds at Turning Point. Daniels began to leave and said he's going to go talk to Joe.

[Q5]

-Ring intros took place for the six-woman tag match. Then they cut to an oddly placed commercial break one minute into the second hour. [c] Then they did another commercial interlude showing the six women getting ready to face off. Then they finished the commercial break. [c]

4 -- THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (Velvet Sky & Madison Rayne & Lacey Von Erich) vs. ODB & HAMADA & CHRISTY HEMME

Tenay pushed the Hulk Hogan-TNA "partnership" and said footage of the press conference was coming up soon. Tenay again stressed that everyone is wondering what the "implications" (he meant "ramifications") will be now that Hogan is partnering with TNA. At 3:00 Christy missed her top rope legdrop. Lacey then gave Christy a weak looking chokeslam for the win. Taz noted that Christy has a surgically repaired neck. After the match, Awesome Kong's music played and she brawl with Tara at ringside until they were pulled apart by security.

WINNERS: The Beautiful People in 4:00. [c]

[Q6]

-They showed that Kong and Tara were brawling backstage with security again trying to separate them. They cut away to show a video package on Mick Foley and Abyss.

5 -- ABYSS vs. DR. STEVIE

Before the match Stevie told Abyss to come see the monster he created in him. Taz said that proves Stevie is insane. Stevie met Abyss in the aisle and they brawled into the ring. Abyss no-sold some Stevie slaps and chops, then slapped Stevie hard to the mat and threw him to ringside. Taz said he and Stevie spent a lot of time together in the original ECW and Stevie does like to "get extreme." Tenay hyped the Hogan signing, noting again it happened "after tonight's Impact show was taped." Stevie worked over Abyss's legs to take control, including using a hockey stick. Abyss came back with Shock Treatment for the win.

WINNER: Abyss in 3:00.

-Afterward, Stevie choked Abyss with a stick. Mick Foley's music played and Foley walked out to the ring. Stevie seemed encouraged by the apparent reenforcement. Foley tapped Stevie to hand him the stick. Foley swung and hit Stevie instead of Abyss. "What the hell?" said Tenay. Taz said Foley didn't miss, but rather that was by design. Tenay said Foley is the living, breathing example of unpredictable. Tenay said they need to get Jeremy Borash to find out why Foley did that. [c]

-Borash caught up to Foley backstage. Foley said "no comment." Borash asked for more. Foley said what happened out there is between he and Abyss, "and that is all the people need to know." He then held up his hand like Baron Von Raschke. Tenay asked why Foley was channeling Von Raschke.

6 -- RHINO vs. MATT MORGAN

As the match began, Tenay again plugged the Hogan announcement, calling it "the biggest moment ever for us." Taz said Hogan has a past with Morgan. Tenay said they have a common thread, which is "American Gladiators." Morgan was a gladiator when Hogan was an announcer. Tenay said they know Morgan is on Hogan's radar. Rhino took early control. Tenay said Rhino isn't necessarily paranoid. He may be clever in acknowledging that younger wrestlers are looking to take the spots of veterans. Taz agreed. At 2:00 Morgan made a comeback and signaled for the Hellivator. Rio elbowed out of it and hit a belly-to-belly. Taz said Morgan's high center of gravity makes him easier to suplex. Morgan then surprised Rhino with a Carbon Footprint for the sudden win.

WINNER: Morgan in 3:00.

[Q7]

-After the bell, Rhino gave Morgan his Gore. Hernandez made the save. Rhino fled the ring. Rhino stood at ringside and said only the strong survive in TNA and nobody's going to take him out.

-Backstage Daniels approached Joe. Daniels told him to cool it with the games. Joe said he's not twisting the facts, but he's just pointing out what's in front of his face "or maybe I should say behind his back." Joe said when he told Styles that Daniels might hurt him, he rolled his eyes. Joe said he considered it a joke to suggest he is in his league. Joe told Daniels to think about that the next time he looks at him "or looks down at him, however that works." Daniels hit the wall. Joe should have a cold every week because this low-key verbal style is immensely better than his yelling-at-the-top-of-his-lungs toddler tantrum style. He is money right now with this approach because it stand out so much and just plain fits his persona better. [c]

-Don West hyped upcoming TNA dates. Homicide interrupted and said his boy is ducking him. He grabbed him and West got bug-eyed. Homicide demanded a title shot. West said he could have what he wanted. Homicide then grabbed his wallet and grabbed some money and said he'd hold his driver's license until Turning Point. He said his wife is good looking, so he must be packing.

-Borash told Angle backstage he's never seen him so upset. He said he hardly knows who Wolfe is. Angle said he's trying to take a shortcut, and nine out of ten times shortcuts come to a dead end. Borash asked if there might be someone behind Wolfe's actions, someone who doesn't want him in TNA. Angle said he tried to put him on the map the cheap way and he's going to send him back where he came from. Begin the conspiracy theories about who's behind Wolfe's actions. Who wants Angle out of TNA? Maybe Jeff Jarrett hired him? Or Hulk Hogan? Or Eric Young?

-They went to the back where Styles was knocked out cold backstage. Lauren was very, very worried and promised to keep everyone up to date on developments. Terry Taylor was with the medics checking on Styles. [c]

-As the ambulance pulled away, Lauren said they're taking him to a local medical facility for an examination. She told fans to stay tuned to TNA's website for details. Taz wondered who was behind the attack. The implication is it was Daniels.

-Angle's ring entrance took place followed by Wolfe's.

[Q8]

7 -- KURT ANGLE vs. DESMOND WOLFE

Angle charted at Wolfe at the start of the match. TNA putting Wolfe into the ring against Angle in his TNA debut is kind of off the charts in terms of the inefficiencies, one of the most glaring examples of the main problem with TNA's booking philosophy and approach. Wolfe took control at 1:00. Taz said he heard that Wolfe has a lariat clothesline that is just lethal. Didn't Taz recognize him as Nigel McGuinness, and now he's just aware of "rumors" that Wolfe has a nasty clothesline. Angle knocked Wolfe over the top rope to the floor, then head-first into the steps. Tenay said the Hogan press conference footage is coming up next. He said it doesn't get any bigger than this. Wolfe made a comeback at ringside at 3:00. Back in the ring they exchanged punches, but then Wolfe dropped Angle with a yanking arm twist that Angle sold like he was punched by Big Show. Wolfe went for his killer lariat that has never been seen on TNA TV. Angle ducked and then back suplexed Wolfe. He dropped his strap and showed fire. Wolfe recovered and nailed Angle with his signature lariat. Taz gasped and said that wasn't your basic clothesline. The ref called off the match, saying he can't move. Wolfe said he'll end his career right here and now. Where was that ref when Sabin went down for real earlier in the taping?

WINNER: Wolfe in 4:00 (apparently, as no one bothered to actually announce a decision)

STAR RATING: *1/4 -- Good start, but more of an angle than an actual match. It's a huge annoyance when the outcome of the match isn't deemed important enough to announce, or for political reasons they don't want to make the call. The contrast between how TNA is pushing Wolfe in week three compared to how WWE is pushing Sheamus shows the stark contrast in philosophies. The same thing was accomplished on Raw on Monday with Sheamus destroying Jamie Noble, but WWE didn't give away without notice the money match in the process of establishing Sheamus's abilities. [c]

-They showed Angle being carried out on a stretcher.

-Tenay threw to the Hogan press conference footage.

-They began with Eric Bischoff introducing Hogan at the press conference. Hogan stepped up to the podium as fans chanted "Hogan! Hogan!" He said it was so nice to be back in the house that Hogan built. He introduced his new business partner, Dixie Carter. She walked onto the stage and shook hands and lightly hugged him. She said there is no single name that defines an industry more than Hogan. She said he's recognized worldwide and is a pop icon. She said they are so thrilled to have him join their company, "the man, the brand, all you Hulkamaniacs." She said justo ver seven years ago they were a TV show that broadcast weekly PPVs to tens of thousands of people, and now they're announcing "the biggest acquisition you can have in the history of wrestlnig." Hogan said it's intense and he feels "born again." Hogan said: "This is awesome. When TNA approached me and I saw how aggressive they were and how they made a stance and how they dug in with Spike TV, I knew this is where I wanted to be. This is why I'm getting back into the mix of the business with TNA. This is the company that is going to lead the way in the future. I guarantee that." Spike TV president Kevin Kay then spoke about Hogan taking them to the next level, come up with new programming, and take TNA to the next level. Hogan said his goal is to make TNA the number one sports entertainment company. "There are so many positives that they have. I just think they needed a little momentum shifter like Hulk Hogan to make a statement, just like the last time I decided to shift gears. The company I worked with, the people I worked with, in a short amount of time we showed the world we had the best product. Dixie Carter has her act together. You couldn't have a better partner than Spike TV. I'm telling you, brother, I'm really looking forward to getting into the mix. I don't know what's going to happen, brother, because when I go at it, I go at it wide open." He told the fans he loved them, did his "whatcha gonna do, brother" bit, and the show ended.

QUOTEBOOK

Mike Tenay: "It doesn't get any bigger than Hulk Hogan joining TNA - the most defining moment in our history - the announcement of the partnership between TNA, Dixie Carter, and Hulk Hogan - an absolute blockbuster."

Desmond Wolfe: "I'm not going to come out here and say I am the Next Big Thing. Read my lips. I am The Only Thing."

Desmond Wolfe: "That's why I am here in TNA - to dominate a sport I was built for, I was designed for, I was bred for. I don't need a gold medal to prove how tough I am."

Kurt Angle to Wolfe: "I'll let you in on a little secret. You messed with the wrong guy. If you think you're going to make a name for yourself at the expense of Kurt Angle, you've got your head up your ass. Nobody comes in my backyard and pisses in hit. Nobody!"

Brother Ray (born in 1971) on Hernandez (born in 1973): "That kid Hernandez is the future of this company."

Scott Steiner: "I'm here to apologize to Bobby Lashley's wife. I am truly sorry... sorry... that she has no idea what it's like to be with a real man. I see her looking at me in the back and I can see the lust, the desire that she wants to be with me. She has a want, she has a need, to be one of my freaks. She wants to be my number one freak and I'm going to make it happen."

Mike Tenay: "I can't tell you how many texts that I received and they all said the same thing - that situation with the Beautiful People, Taylor Wilde, and Sarita in catering was one of the hottest things they've ever seen on Impact."

Taz in response: "Well, if you're into food and stuff, I guess."

Taz: "I could not help but notice on the back of the buttocks of the tight area of Velvet Sky that it says the word shy. She's anything but shy."

WWE News: New documentary criticizes Vince McMahon for killing the "wrestling" in pro wrestling (w/VIDEO)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:17:30 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

A new wrestling documentary titled "Stronghold" is critical of WWE CEO Vince McMahon for "killing" the wrestling industry with his form of sports entertainment. The film focuses on pro, amateur, and submission wrestling, but is receiving publicity attacking one of the most visible figures in wrestling.

The filmmakers issued a press release today announcing details of the documentary and Yahoo ran with the story to generate publicity. The hook for the documentary is a scene where a Vince McMahon action figure is "killed off" to symbolize frustrations with McMahon's vision for pro wrestling on TV.

From the press release: "It's no secret that pro wrestling is still popular, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's good. In a segment in the STRONGHOLD film, pro wrestling enthusiasts take on Vince McMahon and how the WWE monopoly negatively influenced professional wrestling."

The comments from wrestling enthusiasts in the movie focus on WWE TV programming featuring too much talking and not enough wrestling. The movie broke down an episode of WWE Raw from 2007 where there was one hour of talking, 36 minutes of commercials, and 24 minutes of wrestling with only six minutes of "applied holds" in the wrestling matches.

"It's not about wrestling anymore. It's about everything else that builds up to the match," said one fan. "Whereas, before, the match was the pinnacle; it was the thing you wanted to see."

There is a video trailer for the movie below. The press release can be read on Yahoo here.

Caldwell's Analysis: Some of the wrestlers shown in the video preview come across like bitter wrestlers who never got a shot at the big time. However, based on the video sample, the documentary appears to have strong points on WWE hurting their namesake in favor of trying to catch more viewers. WWE isn't in the business of looking for wrestling fans, but entertainment fans. And this documentary was completed before the guest host concept was instituted on Raw.

WWE News: Last night's Raw guest host and Diva Maria offering "personal training" at exercise event today

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:04:40 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

Last night's WWE Raw guest host Sharon Osbourne and Smackdown diva Maria are joining Bret Michaels in New York City today for a public exercise. Sharon's role for the event is "personal motivator" while Maria will be the "personal trainer."

The workout is taking place at the 24 Hour Fitness at 225 5th Avenue. The event started at 10:00 a.m. EST and runs to 1:00 p.m. EST. A press release sent to the Torch says the organizers are raising money, but it does not indicate what charity or organization will be the recipient of funds.

WWE Raw Reax #2: "The major flaw of this show was the real lack of hype for Survivor Series"

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:58:03 PST
-- 11/2 WWE Raw Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (3.0): Best: Kofi promo; Kingston/MVP/Henry vs. Legacy. Worst: everything else. Really??!! What the hell happened? This was a train wreck almost from start to finish. Ozzy and Sharon pretty much blew everything they were supposed to do, even with assistance in the opening segment. And, again, someone outside of the Guest GM books the show with the Guest GM as the mouthpiece. Maybe the Guest Host gimmick should die if WWE can't trust who they book. And what is this--still--with Lawler and the Trapezoid muscle? It's Trapezius! DX would give them way too much credit later on after a constant mistake like this. If Jamie Noble were on the chopping block, he did a mighty fine job respecting "the time honored tradition." That said, that ringside powerbomb to the floor looked as brutal as the Brother Ray uranage on Chris Sabin last Thursday. At least WWE went about it the right way on handling the follow-up. WWE also handled the follow-up better with Kingston-Orton. It's still a weak explanation when Legacy didn't finish the job at the PPV that it's Kingston's fault Orton lost. But Kingston's line about leaving the mirror on the destroyed car undamaged so Randy could truly see who is to blame made up for it. The "Raw's Got Talent" segment was a complete waste of time. Does Chris Masters not get the joke that's being played on him? The Michaels-Cena-Triple H build has been a living nightmare to watch. What's driving this story isn't the title, but a little person. This is the same person who is co-dependently obsessed with Chavo Guerrero. What was the point of turning the "even with odds the odds are even" title-at-stake promo into a gay joke? That was just stupid and disrespectful. Like with Miz and Morrison some time ago, I really only wanted to hear one of DX at a time. What I got instead was this noise of idle chatter and more unnecessary use of insider terms by Triple H. Took a huge chunk out of the main event, and out of my enjoyment.

Justin Shook of Columbia, S.C., USC student (7.0): Best Match: Cena vs. Y2J vs. Big Show. Worst Match: Divas Match. The opening segment just wasn't good. The crowd seemed into Ozzy, which was good to see. Sharon was decent on the mic, while Ozzy came off as totally uninformed. There were several screw-ups on the mic, but still it wasn't that much worse then what we've already seen from guest hosts in the past. What really frustrated me was DX. Why do they get to make the matches every week? Maybe they should have announced that DX was guest-hosting Raw tonight, as it came off like Ozzy and Sharon were just there to promote their book and enjoy the free food in the back. They got better later, but this opener just didn't vibe with me. Then we get an unpromoted, unadvertised U.S. Title match! Oh great! Why is it being made out like Evan Bourne beating The Miz is an "upset?" Did The Miz get elevated that much, or did Bourne just get pushed that far down the totem poll? WWE needs to put a real effort into making ALL the titles relevant again. Sheamus squashed some no-body, oh wait wasn't that Jamie Noble? Former Cruiserweight champ? Well I guess that doesn't matter. That aside, the powerbomb on the outside was nasty looking. The pre-match promo by Kofi before facing Randy Orton was a great touch that the WWE needs to do more often. Kofi-Orton was good while it lasted, but you knew that wasn't going more then a few minutes. The six-man tag match that followed was fine. WWE needs to learn to build up tension between two guys for a few weeks, and then finally let them go at it instead of letting them get physical a week after their rivalry just started. That buildup to the fight is what makes rivalries matter in the eyes of the fans. Instant payoff does nothing to elevate stars or make matches feel special. Overall, this show was filled with the usual issues Raw has had for months now. However, it did have its bright spots like Jericho over Cena, good elevation of Kofi and Sheamus, and Cole getting trashed by everyone! The major flaw of this show was the real lack of hype for Survivor Series. This is one of the "Big Four" and should be treated as such. I am praying that next week we get the rubber match between Cena and HBK.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE Raw Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Raw, click here.

ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - WWE Raw: Sheamus The Bad Barbarian, Chris Masters Finds His New Gimmick, The Beginning Of The End Will Happen When Triple H Retires

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:25:46 PST
By Shane McKinley, Torch specialist

"Overkill, enough is enough
There's nothing left of me to devour
You've had your fill, I'm all I have left
What can stop your hunger for power?"
-"The Ultimate Sin" by Ozzy Obsourne

The Raw guest host is a polarizing issue. On one hand, I don't enjoy what a typical Raw guest host brings to the table, meaning being in throwaway backstage skits and butchering wrasslers and their whittle special wrasslin PPV that's coming up.

But on the other hand...did you catch Smackdown last week? Ugh.

Here's Ozzy, and he's riding a bloody crazy train. Good move in getting Sharon. She's a doll.

Here comes rating-killer #1, the Miz. He complains about Evan picking up a count-out victory. Not a lot of people remember your match last week, Mizzy. Especially since WWE trains their fans to view you as a chump whose act only lasts four minutes on Raw.

Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes, rating-killers #2 and #3, go up to the teacher and complain that Kofi Kingston smashed their buddy Randy's toy car. It's not fair!

Rating-killer #4 Big Show wanted an apology from the Raw roster. Awww. I keep forgetting that Show isn't on the Smackdown roster.

-As long as there is professional wrestling, there will always be guys looking to bury others in order to push themselves. Take your Hulk Hogan, who might be greeted with chants of "overrated" by hardcore TNA fans who don't want to see TNA's young talent vanish. Or your cool Triple H, who saves Raw from boredom constantly.

Hell, you know what? Give me the ratings-killers and have Hunter retire. At least so I don't have to hear the same tired Trips nonsense over and over again. Shadup yo face, it's old.

-Vince was right. The Miz does have great legs. And the Miz is getting a serviceable push right now as U.S. Champion. Meanwhile Evan Bourne...what can we say? Right now he looks like he couldn't win against a fly. (Or a bat.) I hope for a Bourne match on Superstars but that's rare nowadays. And as for Jack Swagger? Doing a dead-end flirt thing with Eve. He won't lose a match the rest of 2009. The question is: does anybody care?

What was up with the crowd chanting "this is awesome?" Sarcasm? Or has WWE trained their fans to go crazy when somebody does a suplex?

-At least they're not pumping up "Smackdown vs. Raw" hype anymore. No sir, they're on the "Evil Sheamus" propaganda vibe right now. WWE knows that Sheamus could have used more time in the oven down in ECW. That's why the powerbomb was the right move to do by the mighty barbaric Sheamus.

Let's face it, Sheamus could be seen as a joke with fans chanting, "get a tan." The skin could work in his favor in making him stand out and for rocking the "God of War" vibe. The great thing about the powerbomb was the fan beside the cameraman urging Sheamus on. "Yeah, Big Red! Do it again! Ha ha ha!" Dude had a really evil laugh. WWE even went the stretcher route and the fan just kept laughing that evil laugh. A gold star for the fan!

WWE on their programming should at least reference Sheamus perhaps getting punished by WWE in some fashion. Maybe even going the length of suspending Sheamus from the next Raw (but Sheamus shows up anyways). Hell, even a follow-up with a short video clip of Jamie Noble recovering in the hospital. Give weight to the powerbomb. And push this guy to the moon. You know. That guy that fans can only remember having two feuds in ECW, one with Goldust and Shelton Benjamin.

Meanwhile, in a dark basement, Mike Knox plots his revenge.

The Kofi-Randy Orton feud is a breath of fresh air in the dusty halls of WWE. It's too bad that for Survivor Series they're hyping up the "will the tag team of DX/JoMizzy team up or will they go at each other's throats?" They can take that TNA "loyalty" specialty and cram it up their collective butts. I'm not going to buy a PPV match to see any team play this tired card.

Here's a thought: separate Hunter and HBK apart. Don't do the lame trick of teasing the fans of "Will John Cena have to face both DX? Or will it be everybody man for himself?" What I'm saying is that for the Raw triple threat, they should have Cena, Hunter, and HBK fighting for themselves. Save that "two vs. one" nonsense for the Smackdown triple threat. (Undertaker vs. Jericho vs. Big Show? Come on.)

Kofi Kingston left Randy's mirror alone because he wants Randy to look at himself in the mirror. Uh huh. "That's why Orton isn't WWE champion," says the man who has never been World champion. Why don't you destroy more people's property, Kofi? What was up with that fake Jamaican accent? Who is the real Kofi Kingston? The lies Kofi feeds us all. Don't trust Kofi. My smear campaign for Kofi Kingston has only just started.

Look for Legacy vs. The Kewl Kool-Aid Men MVP and Mark Henry in one of the Survivor Series match ups. Winner? Does it matter? Hopefully they've got things in store for Legacy, as they once were hot.

-Raw's Got Talent...it was better than the usual standard deal. To me, WWE got off their asses and put effort into this. Compared to last week, when two "huh?" NASCAR drivers were involved in backstage skits that nobody remembers.
In "Raw's Got Talent," I chuckled a bit. I also shrieked when Masters pumped his man boobies to an Ozzy song. That song is ruined forever. Forever!

I think Chris Masters has found his new shtick in flexing his tits. I noted a while back Chris's unique talent during one Raw review when he made a rare appearance. Before you object, remember Tito wrestling in a dress. And also remember that Chris Master was born without a personality.

Professional Boxer Ricky Hatton is guest hosting Raw next week. You've got Hatton, who looks like he doesn't give two s--- about anybody, and the allure of him in a segment with Hornswoggle. It doesn't add up.

Alicia Fox is big with WWE management because she likes to stick her butt out. She also looks like some crazy alien with her out of control hair and flamboyant attire. But at least she's not Lacey Von Erich or Jenna Morasca.

Breaking news: Punk has been slated to shine Vince McMahon's shoes on the next Smackdown and will feud with R-Truth.

More breaking news: There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of creatures Ref Scott Armstrong has allowed to live.

Even more breaking news: Batista kills bunny rabbits and then eats their entrails for fun.

Last breaking news: Sunglasses and a vest do not cover up the poor wrestling ability of Eric Escobar.

One of the nice things about the guest host deals is that Raw shelves time for Chris Jericho to meet his child metal-rock gods. His interaction with Ozzy made me smile. "Ultimate Sin" shout-out.

The Rock and Roll DXpress is bullying poor Hornswoggle about "gimmick infringements." Cena comes to save the day. It seems lately that John Cena makes a point to mention in his promos how his feuds feel like deja vu. He then talks about all they seem to do is beat each other. So their triple threat match is a circle jerk? Fellas, Hogan probably won't even been on TNA programming untill after Thanksgiving! Don't go to that length!

I did laugh with Triple H going, "Vintage Big Show! In the corner. Oh my." Couldn't pay attention to the main event with DX cracking jokes (they got serious when Cole rejoined at the end of the second hour), but who could? I was enamored with DX. And when Triple H retires, we'll be left with nothing but painfully uncool chumps. And that will be the beginning of the end of wrestling.

(credit to por-img.cimcontent.net, sosofficial.com and media.photobucket.com for pics)

Email is mckinley.torch@gmail.com

MOJO MITCHELL'S RAW 11/2: Stream of My Fourth Grade Hero and The Mid-Card Kicks Main Event Ass

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:11:56 PST
By Bruce Mitchell, PWTorch senior columnist

When I was in fourth grade, my buddy Walt and I used to borrow his older brother Mike's "Black Sabbath" Paranoid album so we could listen to it on his turntable. (That's album, not download or CD or cassette or track tape.) As a teenager who knew exactly what Lester Bangs and Robert Christgau and the Reverend Charles M. Young meant, if you had told me Ozzy would be a household name/harmless joke almost forty years later, well, I would have had a lot of questions about the future that maybe didn't include Black Sabbath...

Ozzy is sitting on his throne, because there's no sense in spending network time on how long it would take him to walk to the ring. Sharon, who you may know is the wife, prompts him through a few non sequiturs, then Miz comes out to get his count-out loss from last week no one remembers or cares about taken off the record, Legacy wants a handicap match against Kofi Kingston, and Big Show wants an apology for Raw turning on him last week.

Then, since all celebrities love Triple H and his partner, and it's not because D Gen X is wearing out their welcomeor anything, DeGeneration X comes out to plug their book and Ozzy's book, neither of which were written by their authors. They get the Osbournes to book Miz in a rematch versus Evan "Bron," "Kobe" Kingston against Randy Orton (we'll see), and John Cena versus Big Show versus Chris Jericho, jobber to the stars and almost-stars. The Ozbournes do the DX pose because DX is just so cool.

Miz beats Evan Bourne in a decent TV match.

Joey Matthews: Is there anything (Sheamus) would do tonight to impress Ozzy Osbourne?

Sheamus: You mean other than stand on this box?

Sheamus squashes jobber-to-the-mid-card Jamie Noble again. He squashes him so badly the ref stops the match because apparently Noble has such a severe concussion his eyes won't close. Sheamus then powerbombs the damaged Noble on the floor so hard he starts bleating incoherently, sounding a lot like like Ozzy on Paranoid.

Randy Orton faces Kofi Kingston. This starts with some real heat. Kofi does well early. Legacy comes out to help Orton catch Kofi.

The Ozbournes on the pre-tape don't like Kofi's odds. Sharon makes it a six-man tag. "That's right," Ozzy bleats, "It black geys versus the white guys!"

Or was that Bill Murray?

Anyway, MVP & Mark Henry & Kofi Kingston face Randy Orton & Legacy. Even-Steven Rules say that Ted DiBiase pins MVP. Ole, Gene, and Lars cut off MVP in the corner. A table with three legs cannot stand.

Kofi Kingston cuts an assured promo about his match next with Orton.

Poor ol' Even Steven. He's nowhere in sight when Mark Henry pins Cody Rhodes. Poor Ol' Legacy. Remember when they beat DeGeneration X? Me neither.

Ozzy, Sharon, and The Great Khali host "Raw's Got Talent." Yeah, well, we'll see.

As you might expect, Santino Marella is first to sing "Bark at The Moon."

He's dressed like Ozzy. He bites the head off a bat – a Batman action figure, that is. "Rubbish," Sharon yells. Where was she when we needed her all these Monday nights.

Chris Masters makes his pecs dance to "Gyno Train." Randy Rhoades died for that?

Jillian Hall and Chavo Guerrrero sing some duet Ozzy sang with Lita Ford. Everyone's getting gonged tonight.

I think Jillian and Sharon are going to fight. Yep, Sharon slapped her.

Chavo steps toward Sharon. Khali stands up and slaps him down. Hornswoggle, dressed like Jack Osbourne, frog-splashes Chavo. What fun!

The Bella Twins, Kelly Kelly, Gail Kim, Alicia Fox, and Eve have a Battle Royal. The winner goes for the big prize - not getting over, either. Jack Swagger likes Eve. Alicia Fox wins.

A video package airs recapping Randy Orton versus Kofi Kingston, which would seem to indicate it counts for something. We'll see.

Dave Batista plays bully well with little Rey.

Man, Ozzy's a shrimp. Chris Jericho almost towers over him. The Osbournes laugh at the Jericho trademark promo.

DX tells Hornswoggle he can't imitate DX for two weeks. They hang Hornswoggle on a hook. I can't spell leprechaun. DX and John Cena do comedy about their three-way match for the title at Survivor Series. I'm not sure it's amusing enough to generate pay-per-view buys.

The stars of Raw are here to watch from ringside as John Cena faces Big Show faces Big Show. Triple H and Shawn Michaels note the people yelling in their ears. It's good to be kings.

Dr. Wertham can tell you what it means that Shawn is Robin to Triple H's Batman. DX is so cool, too cool to care about sports entertainment matches - even our main event. Big Show fussing with Jericho, does that foreshadow trouble in our heroes' camp?

Cena goes for the Attitude Adjustment on Jericho, but Show reaches across the ropes and knocks him silly. Jericho pins Cena. Huh?

DeGeneration X hits the ring for the save. JeriShow kicks their ass. Huh?

What was the main event for Survivor Series again?

WWE News: Insightful Stephanie McMahon interview - competing with Shane, reading Newsletters, disagreements with Triple H

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:06:43 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE executive Stephanie McMahon had a very interesting interview with Powerslam Magazine that was published after her husband, Triple H's, very interesting and revealing interview on the state of WWE business. (Read Part 1 and Read Part 2 of Hunter's interview.)

Stephanie was interviewed by boxing writer Danny Flexen prior to her brother, Shane McMahon's, announcement that he is leaving WWE effective January 1, 2010.

-- Stephanie on competing with Shane: "Our roles don't exactly cross over that much. But I can't deny that we are, and always have been, competitive. ... I think our type of competition is a good kind: it drives us both on and makes the business better. But I cannot foresee a day when my dad (Vince McMahon) hands over the reins to either of us. He's still very much in charge -- and, trust me, everyone knows it."

-- Stephanie on arguing with her husband, Triple H: "We actually don't (argue) much at all, except in the business. Sometimes, you can take your work home with you and sometimes you don't. But we always work things out."

Caldwell's Analysis: Stephanie and Hunter have different philosophies on many aspects of the business. Hunter is perceived as a student of the game who would like to see wrestlers brought up the old-school way where they learn how to be a wrestler before they ever sniff the main roster in WWE. Stephanie has more of a marketing background on how to market wrestlers without necessarily keeping a strict eye on what works in a traditional wrestling storytelling sense. I'm sure that's where they butt heads at times.

-- Stephanie was asked if criticism of her job performance bothers her. She responded: "It used to, but I decided that people are going to think whatever they want to think. I try to do the best I can do. I don't read the dirt sheets at all anymore: they used to really bother me."

-- Stephanie on the WWE travel schedule: "I think we worked it out ... I don't have the figures in front of me, but the averages days worked per year was actually a lot lower than you'd expect. We always try to keep the balance right, and I know that's something (WWE VP of talent relations) John Laurinaitis is always thinking about. The brand extension means it's worse than it was, but it also means there are more opportunities available for the guys who want to work."

WWE Raw Reax #1: "The main event commentary was hilarious with Triple H and HBK making fun of Vince, but DX has run its course..."

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:51:53 PST
-- 11/2 WWE Raw Reax

Alex Mobley of Louisville, Ky. (4.0) Best Match: Miz-Bourne. Worst Segment: Raw's Got Talent. I love Ozzy, but this was just a terrible Raw except for the progression of Randy and Kofi's feud. That is the only reason it gets a 4.0. I think I speak for everyone when I say, "DX, please break up and Shawn please turn heel." I think that would be the best thing WWE has done all year. It would be less predictable then Triple H turning heel. Evan Bourne looked really good as always. Did Sheamus really need another squash match? How many does one guy need on his career? The main event was okay, but not memorable. The commentary was hilarious with Triple H and HBK making fun of Vince yelling through the headset. But, sadly, DX has run its course and needs to end hopefully at Survivor Series. Oh, and I'm glad to see Cena actually take a loss, as well as DX. It will be interesting to see how creative will handle the seemingly inevitable DX break up hopefully sooner rather then later.

-- 10/30 WWE Smackdown Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (7.0): Best: Batista-Rey promo; Morrison vs. Ziggler. Worst: Punk vs. Armstrong. Sunday had come and gone, and I was seeing lots of possibilities coming
out of the Bragging Rights PPV. Friday comes and goes, and my 9.0 score from the PPV is starting to downslide. I'm dumbfounded by the direction C.M. Punk's character is going. If the end is that Punk is exposed somehow, then it's fine, I guess. But what could Punk be exposed for when his part in the new Montreal Screwjob from two months ago has been clearly explained? The New Montreal just isn't clicking. Beth gets to squash a jobber, but at least a story was given to the jobber which usually doesn't happen. Could this match be an audition of sorts for the Miss Jenny Brooks? If so, she did okay. Eric Escobar has this look and the way he carries himself that reminds me of JBL and Barry Wyndham. The problem is that he doesn't have the charisma of either of them. It was smart to have him paired with Vickie Guerrero for the heel heat she draws, except she can easily overshadow him (unless that is the booking plan). There may still be the chance that the two non-captain groups of the Smackdown Seven could square off in a Survivor Series match. But none of the pairings (Escobar-Hardy, McIntyre-Finlay) played up to it. McIntyre seems nonplussed and back to ambushing as he was before. And Matt Hardy may have moved on to Batista as a side feud to Batista-Rey. Meanwhile, the six-man on Superstars featuring Cryme Tyme & R-Truth vs. Hart Dynasty & Mike Knox seemed more like a continuation of an ever-present feud than an extension of a new situation. Where were Big Show and Undertaker to put perspective on the World Title match? Other champions have scouted matches before, so why not those guys? For two guys not known for their promos, Rey and Batista did a great job. Batista is a different heel than during his Evolution time, and the heel turn progressed at a much slower rate than his face turn. This storyline actually looks like it was well thought out. Just wished the other ones were.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE Raw Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Raw, click here.

WWE News: ECW main event announced for Tuesday's ECW TV show

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:29:34 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE announced ECW champion Christian & Yoshi Tatsu vs. Ezekiel Jackson & Kozlov for the ECW TV main event on Tuesday night's show airing on Syfy.

The match will continue the storyline from last week's show. After Christian retained the ECW Title over Yoshi in the TV main event, William Regal led Jackson and Kozlov in a beat down on Christian and Yoshi to conclude the show.

WWE News: Summary of the news, notes, happenings from Monday's Raw

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:17:42 PST
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

-- No new matches were announced for the Survivor Series PPV on November 22. The card remains WWE champion John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H and World Hvt. champion The Undertaker vs. Chris Jericho vs. Big Show.

-- No matches were announced for next week's WWE Raw from the U.K. WWE confirmed that that boxing star Ricky Hatton will be guest-hosting the show next week.

-- Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne hosted tonight's show. The potential "mainstream moment" from the show was Sharon slapping Jillian Hall during the "Raw's Got Talent" talent contest. It remains to be seen if WWE receives publicity from the slap that is being featured on their website.

-- WWE brought back Great Khali following knee surgery to be a judge during the "Raw's Got Talent" contest. Khali was written off Smackdown several weeks ago when Kane took apart his knee in an injury angle.

-- Alicia Fox won a #1 contender's battle royal to earn a future Divas Title shot against Melina. Her victory was expected after WWE established a pecking order on the past two episodes of WWE Superstars. On the October 22 Superstars, Kelly Kelly beat Gail Kim. On the Oct. 29 show, Alicia Fox beat Kelly Kelly.

WWE Raw Results 11/2: KELLER'S rundown of all matches and segments, plus analysis, star ratings, quotebook

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:11:35 PST
By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

KELLER'S WWE RAW REPORT
NOVEMBER 2, 2009
LIVE ON USA NETWORK

[Q1]

-I don't play close attention every week, but the opening WWE montage with clips dating back to Bruno Sammartino and Pat Patterson now features John Morrison among the all-time contemporary stars such as Undertaker, Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, and John Cena. Hulk Hogan and Mick Foley are the two TNA talents still featured. Shane McMahon is still in the center screen flying through the air.

-They went to Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne sitting mid-ring to start the show. Ozzy introduced the show in his signature style: "Welcome to Monday Night Raw. All aboard. Ha ha ha ha!" Sharon then threw to a cllip of Ozzy coming to the ring at WrestleMania 2. Also, a clip aired of his May 15, 2007 performance on Raw. Sharon asked if he remembers all that. He said he absolutely does not. The Miz's music then played and he jaunted his way to the ring. Michael Cole called it a rude interruption. Jerry Lawler wasn't surprised he was trying to steal Ozzy's thunder. "When this guy hears thunder, he takes a bow," Lawler said.

Miz did his "really?" bit. He told them he's a bigger star than their entire family combined. "Really, really little boy?" Sharon asked. Miz told them to pay close attention to what he was about to say. He said he was robbed last week in his fight against Lyoto Machida, I mean Evan Bourne. He said due to outside interference he lost by countout. He asked them to strike it from the record. "I want you to banish it, erase it, omit it," he said. Ozzy asked, "Who are you?" He said he is the current U.S. Champion, adding, " am The Miz and I am awesome." Then out walked Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase.

Rhodes and DiBiase entered the ring. Rhodes spoke first, telling Miz it's petty to complain about losing the match by countout. He said las week they bought Randy Orton a special gift. DiBiase objected, saying he paid for most of the car. Rhodes said Kofi Kingston vandalized personal property and they wanted a handicapped match against him. Miz told them to wait their turn because Ozzy and Sharon are going to deal with him first. Then Big Show's music played.

Show complained about being betrayed and assaulted by the entire Raw roster. He demanded an apology. Ozzy said, "I'm sorry." Show scratched his head and said he didn't want an apology from him. He said he wanted the entire Raw roster to walk out and apologize to him. He said if they don't, they'll each get punched. DX's music then played. Triple H and Shawn Michaels danced out with their glow sticks. Lawler said MIchaels is a huge Ozzy fan.

Triple H said (and I was thinking he'd say pretty much exactly this): "I'm sorry for the interruption, Ozzy, just 'um, before this got out of control with the four ratings killers destroying seg. one of the show, I thought I'd make the save." He said they share a lot in common. He then hawked Ozzy's book and their DX book. "Two subtle plugs," said Lawler. Miz said it's not time for his shameless plugs. He said it's time to get serious. Hunter said they're going to take care of business "Wizard of Oz" style. He whispered a suggestion to Ozzy. Ozzy then said, "He's going to fight Evan Brawn (sic) tonight... for the U.S. Title." Miz protested. Hunter joked, "Close enough." Michaels said he can't help DiBiase and Rhodes with WrestleMania tickets, "which incidentally go on sale on Saturday." He told them to get in line to buy tickets if they want to be there. Michaels whispered something to Sharon. She said, "Tonight it will be Kobe Kingston... facing his opponents... Randy Orton." I don't believe they're messing the names up on purpose, but maybe that's now a running gag. Show said he knows what Triple H and Michaels are up to. He suggested a Triple Threat match with John Cena vs. Triple H vs. Michaels. He then whispered something to Ozzy. Ozzy said, "Tonight there's a Triple Threat match... John Cena..." Hunter then whispered to Ozzy, and he said, "...versus Chris Jericho versus The Big Show." Show said that's not where he was going. Sharon said Ozzy's decisions are final. She said if they're not down with that, she's got two words for them." The crowd finished the phrase. Cole said this proves Sharon is a great promoter.

[Q2] [c]

1 -- THE MIZ vs. EVAN "BRAWN" BOURNE -- U.S. Title match

At 1:00 Bourne went on offense, sending Miz to ringside and then diving at him with two knees. He scored a two count back in the ring. Miz came back with a knee to the gut. Bourne came back at 4:00 by kneeing his way out of the middle of a suplex attempt. He then caught a charging Miz with boot and flipped onto the top rope. He went for his Air Bourne, but Miz moved and then hip tossed him into the corner. He followed with the Skull Crushing Finale for the clean win.

WINNER: Miz in 5:00.

STAR RATING: * -- Short, but good action. At some point Bourne should be utilized as something more than a showy jobber barely a notch above Scotty 2 Hotty. [c]

-Josh Matthews interviewed Sheamus, asking if he's trying to impress the guest host. He said Ozzy Osbourne's career should have been over years ago. He said tonight, when he's done with him, Jamie Noble's career will be over.

-They went to Cole and Lawler at ringside briefly, who threw to Sheamus's ring intro. They sounded like they feared for Noble's career.

2 -- SHEAMUS vs. JAMIE NOBLE

Lawler said Sheamus is a huge guy with a unique look. He wondered if his body has ever seen the son. He's fast-tracked because he's a work-out pal with Triple H, who sees potential in him, but they won't be bringing that up on TV anytime soon. After dominating for two minutes, Sheamus covered Noble, but then lifted his shoulders to continue the beating. Lawler went into "quiet serious talk" mode and said the ref should stop the match. The ref did call it off, but Sheamus continued to beat on Noble. He powerbombed him hard onto the mat at ringside. Lawler exclaimed, "You're on the floor! No!" Noble made nightmarish pain noises as officials checked on him. A desired "You suck!" chant broke out. As Sheamus walked to the back, Noble was put on a back brace with a neck brace on. Lawler said he can't help but feel sorry for Noble. Noble began convulsing as they cut to a break. This is a privileged position they've put Sheamus in. It'll be interesting to track the success level of Sheamus's mega-push on Raw compared to Desmond Wolfe's on TNA Impact as they both left the gate with a big shove at the same time. [c]

-They showed Cole and Lawler at ringside who narrated footage of the Kingston vs. Orton's Car angle last week. Backstage Matthews interviewed Kingston. He asked him if he had any regrets over his actions last week. Kingston said orton lost any chance he had of getting his WWE Title back after his loss at Bragging Rights, and like any bully, he wants to blame someone else. He said he destroyed Orton's car, but there's one thing he didn't touch, the part of a car Orton probably uses the most. He said now Orton can use that mirror to see who is responsible for him not being the WWE Champion. Kofi's promos are so much better now that he's dropped the accent. They're good on any standard because he seems serious, not gimmicky, and conveys his points believably.

[Q4] [c]

3A -- RANDY ORTON vs. KOFI KINGSTON

Orton had great body language and facial expressions in the opening seconds. He slapped Kofi. Kofi slapped back. Orton pummeled him in the corner. At 1:00 when Kofi made a comeback, Orton and Rhodes ran out to interfere. Kofi dove onto all three at ringside. They surrounded Kingston. Ozzy and Sharon interrupted on the big screen. Ozzy said he knew this was going to happen. Sharon said it'll now be a six-man match. Out came MVP and Mark Henry.

WINNER: No contest in 2:00. [c]

3B -- RANDY ORTON & CODY RHODES & TED DIBIASE vs. KOFI KINGSTON & MVP & MARK HENRY

Kingston showed good fire during a flurry against DiBiase. MVP hot-tagged in and they did their signature spots together in stereo on DiBiase leading to a two count for MVP. Henry tagged in and headbutted DiBiase. DiBiase and Rhodes double-teamed Henry, but he fended them off rather easily. He tagged MVP back in, but he caught a Rhodes boot to the face when he charged him in the corner. Rhodes tagged DiBiase in and took control.

[Q5]

Cole reset the stage at the top of the hour, touting Raw as the longest-running weekly episodic TV series in history. He also talked about the Osbournes. Lawler hyped the Triple Threat main event. Rhodes scored a near fall on MVP after a dropkick, then tagged Orton back in. Orton connected with is own standing dropkick for a two count. Cole said everything Orton does is malicious. MVP avoided a kneedrop. MVP nearly hot-tagged Kingston, but Orton broke that up. MVP came back against DiBiase and hot-agged Henry at 7:00. Rhodes also tagged in, but Henry demolished him. Henry splashed Rhodes in the corner, but when he lifted him for a bodyslam, Orton interfered. Kingston dropkicked Orton to block his RKO on Henry. Rhodes tried to surprise Henry with a leap of the second rope, but Henry caught him and powerslammed him for the pin. Kingston gloated from the ring toward Orton at ringside.

WINNERS: MVP & Henry & Kingston in 8:00.

STAR RATING: *3/4 -- Kingston continues to show that "leadership quality" you want in a strong high-level babyface. This feud with Orton is really elevating him, and Kingston looking like he belongs on camera with him confirms so far at least it was a good choice to push him.

-Lawler plugged that "Raw's Got Talent" is up next. [c]

-Lawler stood in the ring and introduced Sharon and Ozzy who were sitting at a table in hte ring. He introduced it was "Raw's Got Talent." Lawler wore an Affliction-style t-shirt with a king logo. The Great Khali was introduced as the third judge followed by Ranjin Singh. We thought we'd never have to see Singh, my pick as the most obnoxious personality of the decade on Raw, again. Khali sat next to the Osbournes and mumbled something. Lawler said Khali said he has a crush on their daughter. Sharon said they've love to have him as their son-in-law.

Lawler introduced the first contestant - Santino Marella. Lawler said he would sing, "Bark at the Moon." Santino came out and said he won't sing that because "I am not a dog." He told Ozzy that they watch "Ozzy and Harriet" in Italy all the time. Santino pulled out a Batman doll and tried to bite his head of. Santino was dressed as Ozzy. He pretended to choke on the head. Sharon said, "Rubbish! Rubbish!" as Ozzy seemed to get a kick out of it. They zapped him and he left the stage.

Lawler announced that Chris Masters was up next to do a "performance art piece" to Ozzy's "Crazy Train." masters then made his pecs dance to Ozzy's song. Ozzy laughed and Sharon said she liked it. The camera, fortunately, stayed above Masters's waistline. Ozzy then shouted, "Buy that man a bra!" Sharon complained about Ozzy zapping him and said she loved it. Singh said Khali found it "oddly mesmerizing."

[Q6]

Lawler then introduced Chavo Guerrero and Jillian Hall. Hall said she's a huge fan. They sang a duet, but it was cut short as Sharon and Ozzy couldn't take any more. Jillian said, "You guys don't know talent." She accused them of being jealous and she rescinded her comment about being a fan. They walked to the ring to protest close up. She began singing Britney Spears within a few feet of Sharon's face. Sharon smacked her. Chavo told Ozzy to control his wife. He said he can't control her, but Chavo could try. She got in Sharon's face. The Great Khali stood up and chopped Chavo over the head. Chavo went down in a heap. Hornswoggle then ran out dressed up as their son Jack. That's pretty funny. He gave a tadpole splash to Chavo. He hugged Sharon and danced alongside Ozzy. Cole plugged the return of Ozzfest in 2010, "but it's like Ozzfest tonight!" He snuck in another plug for Ozzy's autobiography, saying he'll have to add this to it.

-They cut to the Bella Twins and Kelly Kelly backstage. The they showed Eve and Gail Kim walking together toward the entrance tunnel. [c]

-The announced next week's guest host would be pro boxer Ricky Hatton from Sheffield, England.

4 -- DIVAS BATTLE ROYAL - Winner Becomes No. 1 Contender for Divas Title

Contestants: Gail Kim, The Bella Twins, Eve, Alicia Fox, and Kelly Kelly. This was one of the smallest battle royals ever with just six contestants. They showed Melina watching backstage on a monitor. Gail was the first to be eliminated. Fox awkwardly celebrated with a dance.

WINNER: Alicia Fox in 2:00.

-Cole and Lawler were on camera again as they updated Noble's condition. They aired clips of the beating. Cole said Noble suffered "serious neck and back injuries." Then they shifted to a clip of DX posing with the Osbournes earlier and then the appearance of Jackswoggle. They hyped the triple threat main event.

[Q7] [c]

-WWE Fact: WWE won a coveted 2009 Beacon Award for the "Smackdown Your Vote" program. The Beacon Award is cable's highest award for communications excellence."

-Cole and Lawler then talked about the Rey Mysterio-Batista angle. Lawler said it's sad because they were once best of friends. They went to a clip from Smackdown. [c]

-Chris Jericho walked into Sharon and Ozzy being flirtatious with each other. Jericho said they were making a mockery of Raw by not respecting him and consulting with hi at all during the show. He said he's got all the talent because "I am the best in the world at what I do." He said when he was growing up, Ozzy was his hero. He said he memorized every word and had his posters on his wall. He recited some lyrics and said he wanted to be just like him. "I pandered and begged for the adulations and cheers of the fans, and then I realized I didn't have to pander to the fans," he said. He said he's better than the fans and even Ozzy. Sharon laughed. He said if they disrespected him again, that'd be the ultimate sin. Ozzy asked Sharon who that was.

-Michaels and Triple H told Hornswoggle that they need at least two weeks where he doesn't infringe on their personal intellectual property. He asked if he understands him. Hornswoggle said no. Michaels said he's in big trouble if he imitates DX again. In walked John Cena. He lifted him off the hook that DX had hung him from. Cena said his uncle hung a leprechaun from a hook once - only once. He said he is the reason they are fighting in a triple threat match later. Triple H said he's not sweating it too much considering he beat him two weeks ago. Michaels reminded Cena that he beat him in England once. Cena said he beat both of them before. He said, "I beat you. I beat you. We beat each other all the time!" The Bella Twins stared and then walked away, looking creeped out. Cena said, "That didn't come out right." Michaels said he knows for a fact that DX has a mathematical probability of walking out of Survivor Series with the WWE Title. Cena agreed the odds are against him, but anything can happen in a triple threat match including friends fighting each other. He said he doesn't even have to be pinned to lose. He told them to watch the triple threat tonight. He said at Survivor Series, he won't have two words for them, he'll have four words for them: "The Champ is Here!" Michaels threw a mock fit, saying he wants someone to get their own material and stop stealing their stuff. [c]

[Q8]

5 -- JOHN CENA vs. THE BIG SHOW vs. CHRIS JERICHO

DX came out first and sat at ringside to do commentary. Michaels said it's hard to do commentary. They joked about someone yelling in their ears all the time. Hunter said Cena shouldn't have gotten between them and Hornswoggle. Cena came out next, followed by Jericho and then Show. When Cole plugged the WM ticket sales launch, Michaels wanted to know why Cole could do that, but when he does it, everyone calls it a shameless plug. They cut to a break as the match was about to begin, with DX giving Cole a hard time for talking so much as they were getting a countdown to the break. [c]

[c]

The match was in progress as they came back from the break. Michaels did commentary, saying he was doing what's called a "reset." He screwed up the play-by-play on purpose. Michaels said it's hard, then mocked Cole by saying he should just say "vintage" a lot like Cole said. Jericho and Show double-teamed Cena early. Hunter went off on a tangent about how much it hurts when you have to pee but you just can't. Lawler cut him off and said that happens sometimes with Cole during PPVs. Michaels said he has a voice in his head saying it's great that Cena is getting beat up by two guys. At 4:00 Show broke up a pin attempt by Jericho on Cena. Lawler told DX that might be their future. Jericho slapped Show. Show shoved Jericho over the top rope by his throat. Cena made a comeback, but Show powered out of an FU attempt and landed on Cena. Show dragged Cena to the corner and set up a corner swing splash. Cena moved.

[Q9]

Cole reset the show for new viewers tuning in. Cena caught a charging Show with a boot and the knocked him to the floor. Cena then took on a returning Jericho with a series of moves including his You Can't See Me routine. As Cena lifted Jericho for an FU, he was too close to Show on the ring apron, so Show punched Cena in the skull. Jericho landed on Cena and scored the pin.

WINNER: Show in 7:00.

STAR RATING: * - A basic methodical two-on-one beating.

-Afterward, Show and Jericho set up a double-team hold on Cena. DX made the save. Show KO'd Michaels and head-butted Triple H. Jericho then gave Triple H a Code Breaker. Jericho and Show celebrated over all three fallen babyfaces. They replayed Show's punches and headbutts, then closed the show by showing Jericho and Show smiling on the stage.

QUOTEOOK

Jerry Lawler on Miz: "You ever notice how success goes to a man's mouth?"
Shawn Michaels: "I don't know how you guys do this. If I could say 'vintage' a lot, that would help."

Triple H: "Did anyone see Big Show this week. He was on that show, 'I'm Fatter than the Entire 5th Grade.'"

Jerry Lawler: "The Big Show told me it was in fifth grade when he realized he was different. (Not because he was bigger,) but because he was 18 at the time."

RAW POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/2 Raw if you saw the show?

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:18:41 PST

RAW POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/2 Raw if you saw the show?
Triple H
Shawn Michaels
John Cena
Chris Jericho
Big Show
MVP
Mark Henry
Randy Orton
Kofi Kingston
Cody Rhodes
Ted DiBiase, Jr.
Sharon Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
The Miz
Evan Bourne
Sheamus
Jamie Noble
Santino Marella
Chris Masters
Alicia Fox

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: What was the Best Individual or Series of Promos of the month?
	The Miz-John Morrison Dirt Sheet - 10/16 SD
	Chris Jericho weekly promos on Raw Guest Hosts
	C.M. Punk on Undertaker & Fans
	Desmond Wolfe introduction promos
	Mick Foley promos on Abyss leading to PPV match
	Batista-Rey Mysterio exchange - 10/30 SD
	John Cena-Randy Orton promos during month-long feud
	Kofi Kingston on Randy Orton - 10/26 Raw
	Cody Rhodes promos on DX leading to BR PPV
	Chris Jericho runs down Team SD - 10/23 SD
	Triple H addresses the troops - BR PPV
	Triple H's weekly sarcasm, humor on Raw
	Kurt Angle promos on Matt Morgan leading to BFG PPV
	Kevin Nash's unaired promo on TNA management - 10/29 Impact
	Sting-Styles promo exchanges leading to BFG PPV

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: What was the Best PPV/TV/Event of the month?
	WWE Hell in a Cell
	TNA Bound for Glory
	WWE Bragging Rights
	Hulk Hogan joins TNA
	TNA Super Impact 10/15 - Styles vs. Angle
	TNA Impact 10/22 - Wolfe debut
	WWE Raw 10/26 - BR PPV follow-up
	WWE Raw 10/19 - Cena vs. Hunter
	Decade of Smackdown 10/2
	ROH TV 10/12 - KENTA vs. Hero
	ROH TV 10/19 - Aries vs. Danielson

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: What was the Best Angle/Feud/Storyline of the month?
	Desmond Wolfe's debut attacking Kurt Angle
	The Miz vs. John Morrison - Who's Jannetty?
	Raw vs. Smackdown feud leading to BR PPV
	C.M. Punk feuding with The Undertaker
	Batista turns on Rey Mysterio
	Sting's retirement angle leading to BFG PPV
	A.J. Styles attacked by mystery assailant
	John Cena-Randy Orton build-up to PPV main events
	Awesome Kong goes nuts on Impact
	Eric Young renames Legends Title
	Legacy teases dissension with Randy Orton
	Kofi Kingston dumps paint on Orton's car
	ECW Title program with Christian, Yoshi, Regal
	Scott Steiner hitting on Bobby Lashley's wife
	Austin Aries Lucky Lottery

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: What was the Best Tag Team of the month?
	Chris Jericho & Big Show
	DX (Triple H & Shawn Michaels)
	Legacy (Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase, Jr.)
	Beer Money (James Storm & Robert Roode)
	Mark Henry & MVP
	Cryme Tyme (Shad & JTG)
	Hart Dynasty (Kidd & Smith)
	Christian & Yoshi Tatsu
	Kozlov & Ezekiel Jackson
	Scott Steiner & Booker T
	British Invasion
	Motor City Machineguns (Shelley & Sabin)
	Team 3D (Ray & Devon)
	Young Bucks (Nick & Matt Jackson)
	Briscoes
	American Wolves (Richards & Edwards)
	Taylor Wilde & Sarita

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: What was the Best Match of the Month?
	John Cena vs. Randy Orton Iron Man - Bragging Rights
	A.J. Styles vs. Kurt Angle - Super Impact
	Kurt Angle vs. Matt Morgan - Bound for Glory
	Ultimate X match - Bound for Glory
	John Cena vs. Triple H - 10/19 Raw
	John Cena vs. Randy Orton - Hell in a Cell
	Austin Aries vs. Bryan Danielson - 10/19 ROH TV
	KENTA vs. Chris Hero - 10/12 ROH TV
	Raw vs. Smackdown 14-man match - Bragging Rights
	Christian vs. Yoshi Tatsu - 10/27 ECW TV
	The Miz vs. John Morrison - Bragging Rights
	John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler - Hell in a Cell
	C.M. Punk vs. John Morrison w/Miz commentary - 10/15 Superstars
	Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe - 10/29 TNA Impact

SMACKDOWN POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/6 Smackdown if you saw the show?
	Chris Jericho
	The Undertaker
	Batista
	Rey Mysterio
	Matt Hardy
	C.M. Punk
	R-Truth
	Dolph Ziggler
	Hart Dynasty
	Cryme Tyme
	John Morrison
	Drew McIntyre
	Jimmy Wang Yang
	Mike Knox
	Beth Phoenix
	Mickie James
	Michelle McCool
	Ref Scott Armstrong
	Matt Striker
	Brittany Carter

TNA IMPACT POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/5 Impact if you saw the show?
	A.J. Styles
	Daniels
	Samoa Joe
	Team 3D
	Rhino
	Matt Morgan & Hernandez
	Desmond Wolfe
	Dixie Carter
	Beautiful People
	ODB
	Awesome Kong
	Tara
	Scott Steiner
	Bobby Lashley
	Beer Money
	World Elite & British Invasion
	Mick Foley
	Abyss
	Dr. Stevie & Daffney
	Jay Lethal

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: Who was the Rising Star of the month?
	Nigel McGuinness (Desmond Wolfe)
	Matt Morgan
	Ted DiBiase, Jr.
	Cody Rhodes
	Kofi Kingston
	Sheamus
	R-Truth
	Yoshi Tatsu
	Hernandez
	Zack Ryder
	Drew McIntyre
	Davey Richards
	Young Bucks

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: Who was the Crashing Star of the month?
	C.M. Punk
	Booker T
	Hulk Hogan's Legacy
	Dolph Ziggler
	Sting
	Matt Hardy
	Cryme Tyme
	Lacey Von Erich
	Eric Escobar
	Evan Bourne
	Chavo Guerrero
	Carlito
	Primo

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: Who was the MVP of pro wrestling during the month?
	Chris Jericho
	Randy Orton
	C.M. Punk
	Triple H
	John Cena
	Christian
	A.J. Styles
	Kurt Angle
	Hulk Hogan
	Nigel McGuinness (Desmond Wolfe)
	Davey Richards
	Austin Aries

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: Who was the Best Wrestler of the month?
	Chris Jericho
	John Morrison
	Kurt Angle
	A.J. Styles
	Randy Orton
	John Cena
	Dolph Ziggler
	Christian
	Triple H
	Rey Mysterio
	C.M. Punk
	Davey Richards
	Matt Morgan
	Daniels
	Samoa Joe
	Yoshi Tatsu
	Alex Shelley
	Chris Sabin

OCTOBER TORCH POLL: Who was the Best Female Wrestler of the month?
	Taylor Wilde
	Sarita
	Alissa Flash
	Tara
	Awesome Kong
	ODB
	Velvet Sky
	Lacey Von Erich
	Hamada
	Madison Rayne
	Mickie James
	Melina
	Beth Phoenix
	Michelle McCool
	Alicia Fox
	Kelly Kelly
	Gail Kim
	Jillian Hall
	Maria Menounos

ECW POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/3 ECW if you saw the show?
	Christian
	Yoshi Tatsu
	William Regal
	Kozlov
	Ezekiel Jackson
	Goldust
	Zack Ryder
	Shelton Benjamin
	Paul Burchill
	Hurricane Helms
	Vance Archer
	Rosa Mendes
	Abraham Washington
	Tony Atlas
	Lea Burchill
	GM Tiffany
	Josh Mathews

RAW POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/2 Raw if you saw the show?
	Triple H
	Shawn Michaels
	John Cena
	Chris Jericho
	Big Show
	MVP
	Mark Henry
	Randy Orton
	Kofi Kingston
	Cody Rhodes
	Ted DiBiase, Jr.
	Sharon Osbourne
	Ozzy Osbourne
	The Miz
	Evan Bourne
	Sheamus
	Jamie Noble
	Santino Marella
	Chris Masters
	Alicia Fox