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WRESTLING COLUMNS

Rydawg's Opinions on WWE
July 6, 2004 by Rydawg


I am here to talk to you wrestling fans on a number of topics that has taken palce in the last few months. First the Great American Bash. The Great American Bash sucked beyond belief with the only match to praise being Rey Mysterio and Chavo Guerrero. WWE made John "Bradshaw" Layfeild the WWE Champion! Let's look at the WWE Championship holders shall we!

Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin, Mick Foley, Triple H, the Rock, Kurt Angle, John Layfeild

Does this list look wrong to anyone else" Bradshaw is not a wrestler; her is a brawler who knows two moves (no offense to Bradshaw). He is a great talker with good mic skills but that's only half the equation. The WWE champion needs to know how to talk and how to wrestle. Then we had useless matches like Luther Reigns versus Charlie Haas and Hardcore Holly versus Mordecai. I know why Billy Gunn fought Kenzo Suzuki, that match made sense. They never gave a reason on why Mordecai had beef of Mr. Hardcore! Then they had Torrie Wilson battle Sable. I know why that match took place---the match sucks but I know why it took place.

- I see that the Bad Blood buyrate came in low so that is not good news for WWE considering the hype they put into hell in the cell between Shawn Michaels and Triple H. WWE better hope that Summerslam comes back alright because the Great American Bash won't bring it much money and I don't think Vengeance will either. Vengeance does have potential to be a decent show if played right.

- To me Vince McMahon and the creative team are doing the opposite that WCW did back in the day. While WCW pushed the older talent and held the younger guys back, Vince is pushing the younger talent and keeping veterans like Billy Gunn, Booker T, and Rob Van Dam on the back burner. Rob Van Dam is world championship material. So many new characters were introduced on Smackdown in a short time period that their not established enough for fans to care about them. Raw has allot of star and drawing power like Triple H, Chris Benoit, Kane, Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho, Edge, Lita, Eugene, Randy Orton, and others while Smackdown has John Cena, Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, the Undertaker and that is really it. Raw has the Rock popping in once in a while and the beautiful divas of the WWE. Raw has smart angles (my opinion) going on and entertaining matches every week. Smackdown runs without any direction. Now we are going to see Eddie Guerrero/Bradshaw part three and this time in a cage match. Personally, I think that's a bad idea. Fans are not interested in Eddie and Bradshaw anymore. Move Eddie on to a new feud and then have him return to the WWE title picture. To be honest, the WWE Championship has no credibility anymore. The World Heavyweight Champion does but not the WWE Championship.

- Another problem with Smackdown is the booking process for the show. On Raw, each match or angle has been based off of existing storylines so the matches make perfect sense. However, Smackdown had Rey Mysterio battle Mordecai which rings the question of why" It would have made more sense of having Rey team with someone against Chavo Guerrero and someone, a follow up to the Mysterio/Guerrero match from the Great American Bash. On the other end, it would have made sense to have Mordecai and Kenzo Suzuki battle Hardcore Holly and Billy Gunn since both Holly and Gunn lost to Mordecai and Suzuki respectively. They had John "Bradshaw" Layfeild battle Spike Dudley in the main event. With all due respect to Spike Dudley, what purpose did this serve" Spike has no drawing power whatsoever. Matches tell a story and yeah maybe a Rey Mysterio vs. Rene Dupree match would be good but you need to ask yourself "Good match but what purpose did it serve" Why did this match take place"". And if I ever have to see another Torrie Wilson/Sable match, I will die. I respect both these women but they are not wrestlers. Fill that spot with a 5-6 minutes cruiserweight match that will keep the audience entertained. I don't know why Vince hired back Sable in the first place. I know he gives second chances but the woman threw a lawsuit against him. I don't know!

- Smackdown also doesn't follow up with angles. They had Booker T became Mr. Voodoo and what happened to that" All those voodoo skits WWE made the fans sit through were for nothing. Booker T went from a sucka to a voodoo dude back to a sucka. On Raw, WWE have kept up to date with the Kane/Lita storyline without boring us with the angle. I read in a colume ont his site that the Kane/Lita angle isn't going to work but I disagree. I think the angle will work out in the end. They have the always entertaining Eugene angle and it didn't grow stale yet. In order to ensure this, they are turning him "heel" to see how that goes. Raw has a great stable like Evolution while Smackdown has the FBI minus Chucky, can you say ratings"

- Let's talk general managers for a second. Raw has the always genius Eric Bischoff, a man fans love to hate over and over again. Smackdown has Kurt Angle! No one respects Kurt Angle more than me for everything he has done and contributed to the company but the whole wheelchair thing isn't working. If I were Kurt, I would talk a year off wrestling, get my neck repaired, and come back better than ever. Chris Benoit, Lita, Rhyno, and Edge have all had the surgery and they are in great shape. Angle has had three neck surgeries. He can't keep doing it. GO HOME KURT! GET YOUR NECK FIXED! Bring Paul Heyman back as general manager or put William Regal in a general manager position. William was great as Commissioner!

- Is it just me or does the Cruiserweight division suck" Rey Mysterio was originally brought to the WWE to spark the division up or has he--NO! Rey is the human highlight reel and they make his fight Mordecai" Rey should be shocking fans against Billy Kidman, Jamie Noble, or Shannon Moore--yes he still works for the company--but Rey doesn't fight them. I was excited to see some Rey Mysterio/Ultimo Dragon matches but look what they did to the Dragon---they turned him into Mr. Velocity! Sign Juvi Guerra or Psicosis! Jacqueline and Chavo Guerrero Sr (aka Chavo Classic) were the champions, why" Making Lita or Victoria the cruiserweight champion works only because they are athletic women but Jacqueline" It's like, you don't see her for months then she appears of television and wins a major championship! Why not just give Steven Richards the WWE Championship why you're at it or hell lets bring Nathan Jones back, have him win the royal rumble and main event at Wrestlemania. It would have the same effect. If I were the bookers, I would coax Dean Malenko out of retirement and have him win the title.

- I know that the morale in the locker room isn't all that great and for McMahon, that is bad. The man needs to be careful who he lets go from WWE because NWA:TNA will pick up anyone they feel will draw. WWE failed to sign Jeff Hardy, who would spark interest if used right. If Jeff would return, the smartest thing to do would to reform Team Extreme (Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, and Lita).

- On Smackdown, Bradshaw called Hardcore Holly a Hardcore Legend. Holly is a much of a legend as Randy Orton is. Mick Foley is a hardcore legend! So is Terry Funk and maybe Al Snow but not Hardcore Holly!

- Let's looks at the MIA's of the WWE. WWE wants to release an amazing star like Rikishi but yet they make Bradshaw champion. Rikishi is a hell of a talent but I'm no talent scout I guess. Test and Scotty Steiner can stay of television. I'm not losing sleep over it. Scott Steiner is just too big. He upper body is huge and is lower body is small (legs, feet) and Test just doesn't work for me. Put him and A-Train back together if they must keep him. Shelton Benjamin caught a bad break. He broke his hand and it's a shame. The kid was on his way to the top, Shelton is a great talent.

- Personally, the savior for WWE may be the Big Show once he gets off the injured list. We need the Show back. Losing Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, the Big Show, Steve Austin, and Kurt Angle to injuries or them leaving hurt the company.

- Speaking of Brock Lesnar, what a whining bitch! The man couldn't handle the travel schedule--boo hoo! I know traveling with WWE isn't easy but deal with it. WWE gave him everything. They handed him the ball and in the end, he dropped it big time. I hope Brock Lesnar never returns to the WWE because we know his true colors. The fans a Madison Square Garden were right "HE SOULED OUT!".

- The possibility of one day seeing the legendary Bret Hart back in a WWE ring is always on my mind. I know Bret and Vince McMahon have sorted out any issues that have with one another but a piece in Bret is still angry with Vince. Personally, Bret was never given an oppertunity to say good-bye to his fans and maybe one day he will have that chance. Bret has had a rough few years from his days in WCW to the deaths of his parents, brother, and brother-in-law. Bret had a stroke and it took allot out of him. We miss you Bret.

- This is Funaki, Smackdown Number One Announcer! I had to say it!

- Down in OVW, Linda Miles (The Artist Formally Know as Shaniqua) is causing trouble when she got into a shouting match with James E. Cornette. Why do WWE still have her contracted" That's right, she won Tough Enough 2! I say get rid of her and give Cornettes voice a break. Hell, bring him back to television. Great Character.

- Remember Mark Jindrak"

- WWE needs to get their act together and make some crucial decisions. Don't try to sign stars like Sting but rather work with he stars you already have. WWE has a great talent pool from matt technicans to high-flying daredevils. From olympic heros to young men who want it and won't stop until they get it. From sexy, dedicated divas to showstopping performers that will put everything on the line for the fans they love.

I would like to finish this column with name association:

Triple H: Overrated
Shawn Michaels: Icon
Chris Jericho: Dedicated
Randy Orton: Future
John Cena: Future
John Layfeild: Why
Lita: Passion
Eric Bischoff: Genius
Paul Heyman: Genius
Kurt Angle: Athlete
Brock Lesnar: Disappointment
Chris Benoit: Real
Ric Flair: Legend
Terry Funk: Thanks
Mick Foley: Respect
Bret Hart; Excellence
Owen Hart: Missed
RyDawg: Fan
Vince McMahon: Mastermind

This is only my personal opinion on the direction WWE is taking and recent events that have taken place. Thank you, I'm Rydawg and that's my opinion.

by Rydawg..


wrote:

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