Thank you to everyone - by Justin Messingham I am 27 yrs old and I'm a wrestling fan. I would like to personally thank everyone involved with this site. OWW is the measuring stick for all wrestling sites. I would also like to thank all the people who write in and contribute to this site and follow and support this great SPORT! I remember when Wrestlemania III was in town I saw a commercial for it on a local channel. There was a shot of Hulk Hogan and from that point on I was a junkie. I was 9. Like many of us, I was picked on alot in school. But I never bad mouthed wrestling and I never betrayed my passion. People used to look down on wrestling fans like we were an inferior race but now everybody likes wrestling. The general public does not report on wrestling nor do they recognize its existence unless a tragedy occurs then they obscure the truth. Its because of people like us that keep the interest alive and tradition intact. For that I thank all of you. Without the wrestling industry I don't know where Id be right now. I was raised by the training the prayers and the vitamins and believing in yourself. That's sounds lame I know. But its true....its true. I love this more than anything in the world and I'm still not ashamed to admit it. I don't care if this makes the board or not I just had the itch to write it and hope someone takes the time to read it. RIP to all of our fallen heroes there are too many to name but you know their names and faces. Last but not least thank you to ALL the indys. The true breeding grounds of the gods.

WWE Crosses The Line - by Billy Bob The WWE is no stranger to crossing the line, we usually see it every week on Raw and it usually doesn't bother me because I know it's the entertainment business. However, a few weeks ago I heard about this Tim White suicide angle and I really thought nothing of it, just another stupid WWE shock attempt. But what I read on WWE.COM today truly sickened me - Tim White's Weekly Suicide Attempt. What in the hell is the WWE thinking? Am I the only one who sees how twisted this is? I didn't even bother to watch any of them but to even think that the WWE would sink THIS low suppress me. Is there any payoff to the storyline or is just for people to come on and make fun of a guy trying to kill himself? I really don't get it. Apart from using Eddie's lowrider in an attempt to piss off fans, this is without a doubt the lowest WWE has ever sunk. I just felt I had to write about this, im usually not a bitchy fan but this goes beyond anything offending. Threes a difference between using this in an actual wrestling storyline and parading it on their site for shock or comedic value. Am I the only one who thinks this is twisted?

A Ticked off Black Smark by Timothy J. White Disclaimer: The following contains the viewpoints of Timothy J. White and do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of anybody else (examples: Americans, Blacks, males, straight people). Even though I did not watch the WWE Armageddon PPV or any of the stuff from it, I probably won't want to watch it. This incident is not good for pro wrestling refs. I know for sure that if I were to become a pro wrestling performer, I couldn't use the first and last names I was given at birth (Timothy White). I would probably have to use a nickname or a stage name in order to distance myself from the White guy that also has the name Tim White. It seems like this lardass (obese person) could even kill himself right. What a loser! I'm not easily offended. In this case of some jabroni that used to work for the WWE tarnishing my real name Tim White, I will not let this slide. Taken from a well-known scene from "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation": If I could walk into The Friendly Tap and look the bar owner called Tim White straight in the eye, I would tell him what a no-good, rotten, low-life, overstuffed, worm-headed sack of garbage he is!! After I say this, I taunt him to strike me. When he does, I'll hit him in the face with my palm followed by throwing a beer into his face!! Sincerely, A ticked off Black smark who happens to be a Professional wrestling fan since 1988 and an independent professional wrestling fan since 2002 ..

Why Is Kane Being Pushed Aside? by James Watts He is one of the most dominant individuals to ever grace the wrestling ring. He tore the door off of Hell in a Cell in his debut, but is wrestling's monster now a mere mid-carder? The man known as "the Big Red Machine" has dominated WWE with a gloved fist for a decade, but now we may be seeing that dominance come to an end. Glen Jacobs, known to wrestling fans as Kane, has left a trail of destruction since setting foot in a WWE ring in October of 1998, and is recognised by many as the WWE's biggest monster. But now we see a much different Kane. Now, instead of the invincible monster that crushed Vader, Mankind and Stone Cold Steve Austin back in the late 90s, we see a Kane that loses to Edge, or gets eliminated from the Elimination Chamber second. What the hell is going on?!

As a fan of Kane, I must confess my disgust with the horrible misuse of a great talent. The Big Red Monster is a great talent, and possibly the most athletic big man in WWE history. Granted, he's one half of the World Tag Team Champions, but that is getting horribly repetitive. After all, he's had championship reigns with Mankind, X-Pac, RVD, The Hurricane and his "brother" Undertaker. Give the man something new to do!! I personally would love to see Kane as WWE Champion again, as his last reign lasted a day (which is total bull and another example of misuse) and he really deserves to be the champion again. He is simply being overshadowed at the moment, and by lesser talents. Instead of Kane in the main event picture, they're giving title shots to Chris Masters, and Carlito. When Kane is in there with men like Shawn Michaels, or Kurt Angle, or Triple H he really shines. He sells for his opponents, but he also gives off an aura of being unstoppable that few others are able to pull of quite as well as the Big Red Machine. There are hints of the monster of old. The dominance over the Heart Throbs (beating two men in 28 seconds!!!) and athletes such as Val Venis and Gene Snitsky prove that Kane still has what it takes to be the monster that other wrestlers were terrified of. If WWE were to capitalise on that, then its money in the bank, baby! Depending on the success of his new film, See No Evil, and on how the WWE uses him in the near future, I would think that Kane may soon say goodbye to WWE for good, because staying there in his current position is doing his career more harm than good.

Trish: Can She Get Better? by Bobby Lange My question is how in the world can Trish Stratus get any better than she already is? She proved that she can fight with or against weapons, men, and both. She can fight a good, solid match against Divas, or turn it up and beat them in about one minute much like she did at Wrestlemania 20. She could have beat Christy Hemme in about one minute, but instead made it a good five minute match, in which Hemme got near-falls and momentum leading the crowd to believe that she might have been able to defeat Trish. But in the end it was Trish who prevailed retaining the women's title. She fought a great hardcore rules match at Survivor Series 2002 against Victoria which saw ironing boards, chairs, brooms, fire extinguishers, and much more being used by both women. She fought in a Battle of the Sexes match in 2003 with Lita against Chris Jericho and Christian.

I'm sure everyone knows she is a record holder in the women's division, having held the women's title a record breaking six times. She's won it in Six Pack matches, Fatal-4-Ways, Triple Threats, Inter-gender tag tam matches, and singles matches. She has been on numerous magazine covers for WWE, oxygen, fitness, and more. In early 2005, she suffered a back injury when she was taken out by Viscera. She spent months and months rehabbing her back and the Women's Division proved how much they needed her when we saw a Victoria-Christy Hemme feud. Even after months of rehab for her back, Trish proved that she hadn't lost her touch as she and Ashley took on Victoria and Torrie at Unforgiven; Trish nailed numerous double team maneuvers and a Chick Kick to seal the deal and win the match. Trish then formed a feud with Smackdown's Melina which led to a match at Survivor Series in which Trish won after a modified Stratusfaction. Trish is now developing a feud with Mickie James which we will see where that goes. We know that Trish will be defending her title at the Pay-Per-View that she last won it, New Year's Revolution. Which leads to my question can she get any better than she already is ?

Eddie "Hotstuff" Gilbert by Ron M. His style has been imitated by many of the top stars for the last 10 years. From the look to the size to the attitude. This statement is usually followed by the name Superstar Billy Graham, and it is all too true. He was probably one of the prototypes for stars of the 80's and 90's. The man to which I refer however is Hotstuff Eddie Gilbert. He set a standard to be followed as well. There was a time when to really make it big (WWF), you had to be big both in physical size and persona. What Eddie lacked in the former he made up for in the latter. The last few years has seen a rise in the number of "undersized" wrestlers. Not that these men are small compared to the average person but they lack the size of the Triple H's, Batista's and Hulk Hogans of the wrestling world. Chris Jericho. Eddie Guererro. The entire cruiser weight division of Smackdown!. They all owe a little to Eddie Gilbert.

Eddie never had a big run in the WWF so he is probably not as well known to newer fans but some of his first exposure came at the side of WWF kingpin Bob Backlund. He was the fresh kid apprenticing with the champ. A real injury was worked into the story by way of an attack by The Masked Superstar, on the way to a run at Backlund. Eddie was the ultimate babyface at that time. It was the next step that started to set Eddie a little apart. The next stop for Eddie was the Mid-Southern territory. In an effort to replace the newly departed Fabulous Ones (Steve Keirn and Stan Lane), Eddie was teamed with one of the 80's poster boys for a "good guy", Tommy Rich , as Fargo's Fabulous Ones. Physically, Eddie had filled out and tightened up from his WWF stint, but he would never be a giant. The teams run was short lived and ended in one of the better heel turns (a forgotten art today) of the time; and "HOTSTUFF" was born. The following feud can still be seen today in some famous pictures of Rich wearing the "crimson mask". During the ensuing heel run Eddie began to show a talent for working the mic and quickly became one of the top heels in all of wrestling . The next few years saw Eddie work in Bill Watts Mid-South/UWF promotion, where he once again quickly established himself as the top heel in the territory; but this time with added duties. He "acquired" a valet and later a wife in Missy Hyatt, but most importantly at that time helped launch the careers of 2 young wrestlers. He was the mouthpiece / manager for Terry Taylor, Rick Steiner and Sting! Eddie was never the biggest person from a physical standpoint, but anywhere he worked he ended up being the guy everyone loved to hate and wanted to see get beat up. Who was this little guy with the big mouth? And did he really just throw a fireball in that guys eyes?? Hotstuff was an innovator as well. Real fans will remember Jake Roberts as the creator of th DDT. Ric Flair will be remembered for the figure four leg lock. Eddie Gilbert was the first to use the "Hotshot" suplex that is common for any number of wrestlers today. The last run for Eddie was a small Northeast promotion called Eastern Championship Wrestling. Differences of opinion ended that stay and shortly after chants of "ECW, ECW" could be heard across the Northeast. There were a few more stops in the next couple of years but the business was sort of "reshuffling" itself at this point. That was for all intents and purposes the end of a colorful career. Shortly after that, the life of Eddie Gilbert ended. His legacy should be one that showed the smaller guys could be just as entertaining as the big guys. Alot of the "undersized" wrestlers today walk a path paved by "Hotstuff" Eddie Gilbert.

Theodore Long Not Qualified For GM? by Heather It didn't shock me when I saw Long appear on television and eventually gain the title of GM. I've often heard from around the internet and a few friends that Theodore Long, or Teddy Long, isn't qualified to be a GM of SmackDown!. Some say he was only in wrestling for a little while and shrug him off as a WWE off-beat who was just handed a job because they needed filler. To me, I just have to laugh at those people who remark on Teddy Long being inexperienced and not in wrestling for a while. When I ask, "What do you mean?," knowing what they'll usually say, they always reply something along the lines of "He was only a manager to Rodney Mack and Jazz. And we know how much of a failure that was."; I still have to refrain from laughing out loud. They got part of it true, about the faction as a failure. But the rest is just what most people think.

What is exactly underneath the GM's belt? Or should I say, how much experience exactly does he have? Almost everyone I ask thinks he is a not cut out for GM. Well they might be right, but for the wrong reasons. And I'll tell you why, in which many of you may be getting this for the first time as well. You see, you've most likely seen Teddy Long before many times and have just never realized that it was him. Some of you who pay attention might know the part about him being a ref, but usually that is as far as it goes for knowledge of him. What many don't know is that he has a connect to that big scary guy who puts his eyes in the back of his head an claims to be the Lord of Darkness on SmackDown! who has recently been hunting Randy Orton and anyone in his way. He also has a connection with that really tall blonde hair guy, who was "Spycho" and even held the WWF title once. Further more he connects with regular veteran faces of wrestling more than most do... or I should say more of whom are still around today and still recognized. He's managed some of the best fan favorites and heels that have been in the WWF/E. From Undertaker early in his career as a part of the Skyscrapers tag team with Sid Vicious and Dan Spivey; to managing Ron Simmons, or more popularly known as Faarooq. Teddy has even managed the likes of Butch Reed, Too Cold Scorpio, Johnny B. Badd (more recognized as "Wildman" Marc Mero) and many more. People often just mistake him for a quick manager who was once a referee. Yes he was a referee, but he helped guide and work with many of the younger versions of who you see today. He has been in wrestling working the independents and WWE as a manger long enough that I think he would know what he is doing. Now of course, just because a show isn't all that good doesn't mean it was alone Teddy Long not doing a good job. I would have to say that Teddy Long is doing a fine job; it is the behind the scenes acts that are screwing it up.

What Lies Ahead - by Joanann C. Think of your favorite wrestler on the current roster and who has a match every couple of weeks. That narrows it down a lot. Is it Shawn Michaels? Batista? John Cena? There aren't too many wrestlers to choose from that are actually any good. Now if I included past generation wrestlers then it would be easier. Today talent is very hard to come by. So if talented wrestlers are getting harder and harder to come by then what will it be like in a few years from now? In past generations like, the 80's and 90's, there was so much talent, so many different styles and so many different people to choose from to like. You can't say that there aren't many legends that you don't like, and that there isn't a single Hall of Famer that you didn't love to see. They are the people that you crave for; the people that you beg to make an appearance or even a match. Like the immortal Hulk Hogan, Rowdy Rodney Piper, or even super star Billy Graham. They're greatly loved and respected by most of us. There are so many wrestlers that will be leaving the business in the next few years. They are mostly people who we love. Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, the Undertaker, and even Chris Beniot. All people who have entertained us for years and stolen our hearts. They won't be here forever, even as much as we wish that they would be. The newer generations that will be here for awhile aren't the best. Don't get me wrong; there's nothing wrong with them it's just they haven't yet proved to us that they deserve our liking them. For instance Carlito, Chris Masters, or Shelton Benjamin. They do have a lot of potential, but we as fans don't want to wait for them to hit their peak or excel themselves to their full potential. We want our action now. So think about it. What is in store for us as the fans? Will there be a day that we are forced to cheer for someone that we don't actually like, just because there is no other chose? What will happen to the wrestling that we have known and loved ever since we saw our first match? What will the future bring us?

British Potential: Part 1 of 3 - by Arrow F PAUL BIRCHILL As you may be able to tell this is my first article and I hope it makes the par that the other columnists have set. In this article and the two follow ups I will be talking about the potential in the British wrestlers who have made it in the USA starting off here with WWE's Paul Birchill following next with ROH's Nigel McGuiness then finally former ROH Pure Champion "The Anarchist" Doug Williams. Paul Birchill has the potential to become the first ever British wrestler to hold either the WWE or World Heavyweight Titles respectively if he can get out of his little jobbing tag team with William Regal, as a few of you may know Birchill is 6'4 and weighs in at 281lbs and yet a man of that size and weight can still pull off a standing shooting star press and a standing moonsault and his finisher the C4 is out of this world a back flip exploding rock bottom, I mean who else of Birchill's size can do that, no-one can and yet the WWE give him a crappy move set with an even worse finisher, a high angle fujiwara armbar I mean please if you can pull off the moves Birchill can you would be a force to be reckoned with in any promotion.

Birchill is good on the mike, granted he may not have the people skills of say John Cena or The Rock but his talent in the ring is superior to Cena's and could give The Rock a run for his money in the ring. Just watch one of his old FWA matches and you won't be disappointed. With a look as evil as Satan himself I urge you to ask yourself "how long can a talent like this go without a serious reward"

CBS shuns Eddie Guerrero in Memorium - by Mike Summers Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse concerning the mainstream media, this has definitely taken the cake. Earlier this morning, I was working overnight at the TV station I work for and was very outraged when I watched a video tribute on CBS's "Up To The Minute" overnight news program of all of the people who passed away this past year. We lost so many influential people this year, Rosa Parks, Don Adams, Richard pryor, even Pope John Paul II. Who was not included among these great people... who else? Eddie Guerrero. CBS News, like so many other media outlets, doesn't give a crap about professional wrestling. They are worse on wrestlers than they are on conservative politicians like President Bush. I am so disgusted with the media. They have absolutely no respect for anybody. No our president, not the governor of California, not our troops stationed in the Middle East, not even Eddie Guerrero.

Let's face the facts. Eddie was a major player on Friday Night SmackDown! What network airs SmackDown!? UPN. Who owns UPN? Viacom. The same company that owns CBS. What in the blue heck is CBS thinking? Hopefully, NBC will show a lot more respect to wrestlers like they did before when they bring back Saturday Night's Main Event. Eddie was a great performer in the WWE. Yes, he had his struggles with drugs and alcohol. Yes, he nearly died two other times. Yes, he nearly lost his family as a result. That's usually network news material. But when he found Jesus (becoming a born-again Christian) and got his life straightened out, the network news and so-called "mainstream" media could care less about him. Stroies like his, Shawn Michaels and Nora (Molly Holly) Greenwald are what these idiots would call "boring". When UPN aired "Cheating Death, Stealing Life: The Eddie Guerrero Story", it was one of the most watched show at the time and it is now one of, if not the most-purchased, DVD's. I think CBS should be ashamed of themselves. But, then again, CBS has no shame. Niether does ABC, NBC, CNN or even National Public Radio. And ESPN (especially Colin "The Coward" Cowherd), well forget it. If you can't show wrestlers any respect, then you are a bonafide... well, you know what I mean.

Why the Ultimate Warrior Was The Stupidest Person of 2005 - by kevin johnson Warrior, who was once known as Jim Hellwig, was a terrible human being who was rightfully ruined by not just the WWE, but the people outside the company- as well as wrestling- altogether. Warrior tried to use politics so he could just save his own hide, and was a terrible speaker who tried to use YAF to back himself only, and tried to say that he was a devout speaker of Christianity and its preservation throughout the US; Warrior himself is no dedicated Christian and only spoke of conserving Christianity just so he could only save his own hide altogether. He trys to blame everything on Vince McMahon, when he also hurt WCW and also a dedicated WCW worker who has never had any ties to the WWE- in any known way at what-so-ever- and this person who he didn't lift a finger to help is Steve Borden (Sting). Sting was even Warrior's old tag team partner when they wrestled in the UWF, and even there he couldn't be helped; so Warrior then saved his own butt by moving to where their was the most money for anybody in wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation. While wrestling as the Dingo Warrior, Hellwig then knew that he was getting absolutely nowhere with his gimmick so he borrowed a gimmick name that was already very suggested by other wrestlers, and that was The Ultimate Warrior; Hellwig once again saved his ass because of the fact that he would have self-destructed, since he was a horrible human being, with that stupid Dingo Warrior gimmick. Hellwig really began to sink by the time 1993 occured so to avoid self-destructing- since the Ultimate Warrior was the only gimmick that was even popular for him- Hellwig changed his name to Warrior and was now able to keep the gimmick that was already commonly used by even Butch Reed. I hope, in 2006, more facts are displayed against Warrior then there were in 2005