Larry Sweeney Passes Away at 29

Alex Whybrow, otherwise known to wrestling fans as Larry Sweeney, was found dead today at his home in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He was just 29 years old.

The cause of death, as of this writing, was not made official, but judging by reaction across the internet, it may have been suicide.

Sweeney was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder and his eccentric behavior had both been a positive, and negative, in his professional life. Regardless of his ailment, you'll be hard pressed to find anybody say a bad word about Sweeney.

While I'm not as adamant of a follower of the independent wrestling scene as I once was, I do know the impact Sweeney left on the business. He definitely had skill inside of the ring, but it was as a manager that he struck gold. I have heard many of times that if given the chance on a major stage, he could've very easily been the next Bobby Heenan, which is a huge compliment.

The only time I ever heard Sweeney actually speak was during an interview on Between the Ropes with Brian Fritz a few years ago. He seemed like an extremely down to earth guy, as well as a knowledgeable fan and future star of this business.

Since the grave announcement, pro wrestling stars & friends have taken to Twitter to voice their support, sadness and memories on Sweeney:

Chris Hero was the one to break the news, posting: "We lost a dedicated friend and an overwhelmingly talented performer this morning. Alex Whybrow aka "Sweet & Sour" Larry Sweeney has passed.

Claudio Castagnoli: "Thank you for all the memories Larry Sweeney...I'll remember them forever..."

Adam Pearce: "Please smile on him, dear Lord."

Jigsaw: "I just lost my best friend"

Player Uno: "RIP Larry Sweeney. Another person taken from us way too young"

Mike Johnson, one of the top writers in the wrestling biz and contributor to PWInsider, wrote an amazing article, talking about Sweeney, his life, his career and his impact on the people he knew. It can be viewed here.

Rest in Peace, Sweet 'n' Sour.

"Wrestling" Finally Made a "Dirty Word"

When I heard the news today about the WWE's name change from WWE to, well, WWE, I was a bit taken back. For those who haven't heard all about it, let me enlighten you:

"To better reflect the company’s global entertainment offerings, World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) announced today a new business model for future growth, including formally rebranding itself, WWE."

That's right. After years of joking around about Vince McMahon considering wrestling to be a dirty word, he went out and he proved us all right. Professional Wrestling, as we know it, is dead, in all honesty. No other company will ever reach the levels of the WWE, so as far as the mainstream goes? Yeah, wrestling is dead.

As a wrestling fan, I don't know what to think. The press release, issued in the early afternoon hours of Thursday, continued on to explain, in no uncertain terms, that they were moving away from being branded as a wrestling company, and were basically becoming an all around entertainment company that just happened to feature wrestling programming.

"Two key components to WWE’s brand expansion will be the active pursuit to acquire entertainment content companies and the outsourcing of WWE’s core competencies – television and film production, live event production and licensing. As part of the new business model, the company will also focus on the development of new television products including scripted, non-scripted and animated programs, as well as the launch of a new WWE network in the next 12-18 months."

A WWE Network?! I'm all for that! If they can give me a 24 hour wrestling channel...I mean, what more could a wrestling fan ask for? But who's to say it'll even be like that? Who's to say they're not going to air their AWFUL movies they've tried creating the past ten years? Maybe even create first-run television programming outside of the reality genre. A sitcom starring Santino Marella was rumored to be in the works about a year ago, but nothing's been heard about it in a while. Could that be part of the programming on the WWE Network? A tired, old comedy act that stopped being legitimately funny 3 years ago. Just what I want to see. I have CBS for that.

“The new business model of the company better reflects what WWE is all about, being a global entertainment company,” stated Vince McMahon, Chairman and CEO, WWE. “We will always be loyal to our core business that made WWE a globally known entity, however, the future of WWE will be the addition of new entertainment content opportunities beyond the ring.”

But you're not a global entertainment company, Vince! Nothing you've done outside of wrestling has ever succeeded! The World Bodybuilding Federation? The Xtreme Football League? WWE Films? WWE Music? It's all failed one way or another! And yous ay you'll be loyal to the core business that made WWE what it is, but you haven't! And you won't! Something changed in you during the last 10 years, that's for sure. Maybe it was WCW closing down, maybe it's the tail end of a midlife crisis, I don't know. But this has to stop.

Look, it's not like we're going to stop seeing actual wrestling on WWE programming. Hell, even in this day and age where the WWE is pretending it's some kind of global entertainment conglomerate, we still get more wrestling weekly on TV than we did during the Vince Russo years in the 90's! But it's the thought behind it, Vince. Killing off the name "wrestling"? Your father broke away from the NWA in the late 50's, turning Capitol Wrestling into the World Wide Wrestling Federation, and soon, just the World Wrestling Federation. Even after those bastards at the World Wildlife Fund went and screwed everything up, you still kept the name WRESTLING prominent in your name, switching to World Wrestling Entertainment.

Side thought: Maybe that's who we should blame. Those tree hugging, panda loving sons of bitches in the World Wildlife Fund who sued for YEARS to lobby a name change. As soon as that "E" switched from just a letter in the ticker symbol that stood for Entertainment and became the last letter in a brand we had been familiar with for nearly 50 years, officially making this an entertainment company, was the day we should've saw this coming.

"This new rebranding initiative will be highlighted through a national consumer and business-to-business advertising campaign entitled “Bigger. Badder. Better.™”

Oh. My. God. Number one, that descriptive slogan has been used so much in the past 20 years to describe everything from the flavor in potato chips to a tagline on the Nutty Professor sequel. It sucked then, and it sucked now. It didn't make me want that potato chip, it didn't make me want to see the next adventure in the Klumps saga, and it certainly doesn't make me more interested in this new campaign, Vinnie.

 
But, for every closed door, there's an open window...

"In addition to focusing on the expansion of the company, the company will bolster its core business with the launch a new talent development department headed by Paul “Triple H®” Levesque. The new department will put a greater emphasis on worldwide recruitment, training and character development to identify future WWE Superstars and Divas. The first recruit acquired under Levesque’s new department was the signing last month of future WWE Superstar, Sin Cara™, formerly known worldwide as Mistico."

Say what you will about Hunter's backstage influence over the past 10 - 15 years. At times, it's been evident and quite unbearable. But for as many detractors he has in this industry, you'll have just as many people, if not more, step up and admit that he GETS this business. He is a student of the "Game", as so dubiously explained in a Triple H promo in the summer of '99. One day, yeah, it's going to suck, and I can't even believe I'm going to type this...but Vince McMahon will die. He'll never retire, and his last day in that office will be the day they carry him out in a wooden crate. 

Sin Cara

But when he does, Triple H is already slated to pretty much take over with Stephanie. If Triple H's first major move was bringing in THE TOP WRESTLING DRAW IN MEXICO WHO'S ONE OF THE MOST TALENTED WRESTLERS TO COME FROM SOUTH OF THE BORDER EVER?! Then I'm ALL for it! No longer will we have to put up with Johnny Ace hiring whatever lingere model he slapped the ham to that week. No longer will the most recent NFL reject or local South Beach juice head get signed just because he has "the look", even though he's greener than goose shit. We will get a man who knows this business, who is a fan of this business, who at times has BEEN this business.

I have to admit. For as AWFUL of a decision as I think it is to remove the word "wrestling" from the company that made it what it is today, there is a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Waiting in that light is Triple H. And something that was probably said about him 15 years ago can now be said again. "Triple H is the future of this business".

 
Until he faces all of his new signees & recruits in a match and promptly squashes them all in 20 seconds with pedigrees and sledgehammers. But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

'Tough Enough' proves to still be enough for USA & WWE

This past Monday, the "original reality show" Tough Enough returned to airwaves amidst tons of mainstream media buzz. Tough Enough, which last aired as a weekly competition on SmackDown in the fall of 2004, already had a big following when it was announced that Stone Cold Steve Austin would be at the helm as the show's host, replacing former host Al Snow, who hasn't worked with the WWE since 2007.

Other trainers include former WWE Women's Champion Trish Stratus, former WCW & WWE World Champion Booker T, and former Tough Enough trainer & WCW US Champion Bill DeMott, formerly known as Hugh Morrus.

From the get-go, the show was a complete turn around from the original run of the series. It gave off more of a 2011 reality show feel, which isn't a bad thing. It was amazingly produced and edited together, and came across as way more professional than the way MTV did it nearly 10 years ago.

 
The contestants, chosen by both USA Networks and WWE Vice President Kevin Dunn, all have their own unique traits that already make them stand out on their own. Most notably, current Miss USA Pageant winner Rima Fakih, is one of the contestants, mixed in with other athletes, models and even a few independent wrestlers using this as a catapult into the WWE. Such as Matthew Capiccioni, also known as M-Dogg20 and Matt Cross, a veteran on the indy scene from nearly 10 years.

The first episode wasn't without controversy, seeing Miss USA herself use protective padding hidden under her shorts to dull the pain of running the ropes and being berated for it. And who can forget one of the most memorable eliminations in the shows history? Ariane Andrew, a wrestling fan for something short of two years who was only in this "for the experience", was eliminated by Steve Austin during the elimination ceremony. What sealed her fate? Not only her lack of desire and passion for the business, but when asked by Austin what her favorite match of all time was, she answered "Melina vs. Alica Fox", which left Austin and wrestling fans stunned.

No disrespect to Melina or Alicia Fox, the former of whom has gone public on Twitter to express her disdain over Austin's reaction to the answer, but when you're asked to name your favorite match, you don't give an answer like that. Needless to say, she wasn't "Tough Enough", or even meant for that business.

Be that as it may, she was signed to a developmental deal by the WWE and sent to Florida Championship Wrestling just one day after the episode aired. Goes to show you where Kevin Dunn & Johnny Ace's heads are at. Simply awful.

According to PWInsider, the Tough Enough premiere drew a 2.51 rating with 3,326,000 viewers, an absolutely strong showing coming off of 3 previous hours of WWE programming, including the airing of the Hall of Fame ceremony and of course, Monday Night Raw.

Starting this Monday, Tough Enough moves into his permanent time slot of 8pm EST, preceding Monday Night Raw. No doubt this will make the ratings even higher as a lead in for one of the most popular sports entertainment shows in history. To make things even more interesting, the first in a long line of guest stars will appear as company ace John Cena will appear to talk to the students.

For more information, check out: http://www.usanetwork.com/series/toughenough/

OFFICIAL: John Cena vs. The Rock to headline WrestleMania XXVIII in 2012!

You can't get more old school than what the WWE has set out to do as of this past Monday Night. With the fallout of WrestleMania XXVII fresh on our minds, we were treated to hype all night that before the end of the broadcast, John Cena would confront the Rock based on Rock costing him the WWE Championship against the Miz the previous night.

I mean, what could they say? What else was left to do? Both men had gotten physical with each other,  both men had gone beyond the call of duty to verbally assault each other in and out of the ring and the mainstream media attention was of the likes that WWE hadn't seen in years.

Finally, the time had come. All the matches and other fallout from the previous night's extravaganza had come and gone, and with the sounds of a few familiar beats, John Cena made his way out to the ring. 

Credt: WWE.com

After a typical Cena promo, smiles and cheap pops everywhere, Cena proceeded to say he wasn't even mad at this point (which I think is an awful decision on what to say, but more on that at a different time), but he just wanted to call the Rock out and find out the same thing all the fans wanted to know: What's next?

Sure enough, the Rock came out. It was tense as tense could be. The Rock laid it out there, he respected John Cena. He respected his in-ring skills, the way he handles himself in and out of the ring, his relationship with the fans and the media and his overall demeanor as the flag bearer of the WWE in the current generation.

But just because he respected him didn't mean he had to like him.

So that's where they were at. John Cena, finally having heard enough, cut him off at the knees and let him know that it's time to put up or shut-up. If he says he's back, then he's back. If he says he'll never leave, he can't leave. And if he wants to give the people what they want, then listen to the people. And with that, John Cena did what we all knew was coming, but still never thought would happen.

He challenged the Rock to a one-on-one match!

This was huge, no doubt. But laying down the punk card for one of the best entertainers in wrestling history? The Rock, not to be outdone, not only AGREED to the challenge, but he one-upped Cena by saying that a dream match like that doesn't deserve b-level treatment, it can only happen at one place and one place alone: WRESTLEMANIA.

BUT WRESTLEMANIA HAD JUST PASSED?! DOES HE MEAN?!

YES! 

Credit: WWE.com

 THE ROCK CHALLENGED JOHN CENA TO A MATCH AT WRESTLEMANIA XXVIII, APRIL 1st, 2012, IN MIAMI, FLORIDA!

Announcing a match months ahead and building towards it, even just giving the fans a good idea of where you're going, is a trick that professional wrestling has been using for years. But announcing the MAIN EVENT of your BIGGEST PAY-PER-VIEW exactly ONE YEAR IN ADVANCE?! It has NEVER been done. Not only this is old school, it's unique!

What can happen in a year? Does the Rock wrestle a match or two before then? Do we see a begrudging respect grow between the two as we inch closer towards next year's spring classic? With the Rock's filming schedule and Cena being there every week, can they carry this feud out and keep fans interested without falling flat or seeming one sided?

One thing's for sure, in the 6 weeks leading to WrestleMania, the Rock appearing via satillite all but 2 times DID leave a sour taste in a large majority of the audience's mouth. Clearly, the Rock is not at the stage where he can appear every single week on television. But for the next 52 weeks, he can't exactly phone it in from a taped segment at his house either. What kind of medium can the WWE find?

Meanwhile, how do you keep John Cena relevant until then? Sure, he's your company's biggest star, but with the youth movement WWE's had going on for the past year, how can you keep him relevant while pushing the newer, younger guys to the top? While Cena/Rock will undoubtedly sell that Pay-Per-View like hotcakes, you still need a strong undercard, and some other main events as well.

A big question some wrestling pundits were asking themselves Tuesday morning was: Does John Cena win the belt at all going into WrestleMania XXVIII? Do you make the ultimate dream match for this generation for the WWE Championship? Championships used properly help create stars, fuel the fire with feuds and add to matches that are lacking. Nothing in The Rock vs. John Cena needs the WWE Championship. I don't think they'd do something like that, but after 22 years as a wrestling fan, nothing would surprise me at this point.

No other news has broken out at this time about the future of John Cena vs. The Rock at WrestleMania XXVIII, but it's sure set to be an extremely interesting 12 months. If the world were to end in December 2012...as far as the part of my life that consists of professional wrestling? I could die happy.

WrestleMania XXVII Review: Rejoyce or Refund?

Words can't express the disappointment I have boiling inside my body right now. As a wrestling fan of nearly 21 years, I have to say that I am thoroughly upset over the way WWE produced WrestleMania XXVII.

Maybe that's a bit much. Because about 3 hours of the 4 hour extravaganza was absolutely phenomenal, and was just missing that ONE match to set it up, head and shoulders, above the rest as one of the premiere WrestleMania's of all-time. For those of you who saw the event, I'm sure you share my sentiment, as I haven't found a wrestling fan yet in the past few hours who disagrees. For those who haven't, stay tuned.

After a decent rendition of America the Beautiful by some singer I've never even heard of, we moved on to the FIRST opening video package, which then led to the introduction of our host of the evening, The Rock. Everyone I was watching with, including yours truly, was absolutely pumped. After seven years, the People's Champion was back at WrestleMania! But as he made his drawn out entrance towards the ring, a friend of mine rose a good point..."What the hell does a host of WrestleMania do anyway?"

That turned out to be the question of the evening as we never got an actual answer! He did nothing a host on any other entertainment medium would do. Which might not be a bad thing. Rock came to the ring and he cut a nearly 12 minute promo where nothing was accomplished. It was, quite frankly, the worst Rock promo I've ever seen. Nothing was done to explain his role for the evening, barely any mention of his conflict with John Cena and the Miz came up, and short of saying his catchphrases a bunch of times...there wasn't even that much talking!

After what seemed like forever, Rock took his time posing and headed to the back, and we faded to ANOTHER video package. Hey, I won't lie, the WWE is probably the best in ENTERTAINMENT at putting highlight videos together, but enough is enough.

Coming out of the final video package for the opening, and of course the mandatory pyrotechnic display, we finally began WrestleMania, the Showcase of the Immortals, with the first match of the night, which was...

THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH?!

Match #1: Edge [c] w/ Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio w/ Brodus Clay [WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Del Rio won the Royal Rumble back in January which gave him the right to challenge for the title of his choosing come WrestleMania. Traditionally, the Royal Rumble winner has always challenged whichever champion towards the end of the show, if not the final match. As it should be! No instead, WWE decided to take a massive shit on tradition by putting this on first, and what a slap in the face to both of these men. WWE had done a terrific job at building this feud, and more importantly, building Del Rio the past 9 months. Edge no longer needed the World Championship, hasn't in years, but winning this from Edge would catapult Del Rio farther than he already was. The match itself was quite good for the time it got. Christian & Brodus Clay both got involved at points, as did Del Rio's announcer Ricardo Rodriguez, and they all played their parts well. Edge went into this with an "injured arm" at the hands of Del Rio and his cross armbar finishing hold, and Del Rio's work on the injury was excellent. Edge's selling was a bit off, but that's become the usual anymore. In the end, they had a terrific finishing run full of reversals and counters that led to Edge avoiding the Cross Armbar to hit the spear and win. The actual ending fell a bit flat but still a good match. Edge gets nothing out of this win and meanwhile, Del Rio's momentum is stopped dead in its tracks. Terrific performance, but in the long, it's hurt him more than anything.
Rating: **1/2

Match #2: Cody Rhodes vs. Rey Mysterio
I had a big fear going into this match. Mysterio has become quite the backstage politician in recent years, and Cody's push has been stopped and started so many times it's not even funny. But Mysterio hand picked to work with Cody this year, so I didn't know what to expect. And to my surprise, it was great! It started off a bit sloppy, especially on Mysterio's part, but they both made up for it with some excellent selling and the story telling involving Mysterio's knee brace and Cody's face protecting mask was great. See, months ago, Cody & Rey wrestled on SmackDown and Mysterio's exposed kneebrace accidentally damaged Cody's "dashing" face, causing him to wear a protective mask. A really old school angle, which I dig. Back to the match itself. Rey's selling was on par back to his early WCW days, and has been for the past few weeks. It wasn't a technical masterpiece here, but again, the story being told was what really brought this up a notch or two. Great ending when Cody exposed Rey's knee brace and chucked it to the floor. As Cody did this, Rey recovered and attempted a few pinfalls before ripping Cody's mask off and exposing him! He put Cody's mask on and began creatively headbutting his previously injured face. Cody bailed to the outside as Rey began to celebrate. Rey went for a dive through the ropes onto Cody but Cody picked up Rey's brace from the floor and NAILED HIM IN THE HEAD! Rey slumped across the ropes and Cody hit his finisher (Cross Rhodes) to win! Huge win here for Cody. Great finish. Rey loses nothing by not winning and Cody is now elevated. Job well done.
Rating: **3/4

Backstage, Snoop Dogg talked to SmackDown General Manager Theodore R. Long about his upcoming tour and they decided to hold auditions for backup singers. Pure filler and a decent comedy seg that saw the British William Regal do a freestyle rap of his own version of Straight Outta Compton, the Jersey Shore wannabe Zack Ryder sing the AWFUL "Friday Song" only to be attacked by Rowdy Roddy Piper and resident WWE leprechaun (that's not a typo) Hornswoggle finally speak so he, too, could freestyle rap.

Match #3: The Corre [Wade Barrett/Heath Slater/Justin Gabriel/Ezekiel Jackson] vs. Big Show, Kane, Santino Marella & Kofi Kingston
Sadly, this was the piss break. The Corre is basically what Nexus used to be, and what it probably still should be considering what they've done to that group over on the Raw Brand. Going into this, nobody was expecting much, so needless to say, I don't think anyone was disappointed. Santino's partner, Vladimir Kozlov, was injured during the week so he was taken out and replace by Kofi, who had to feel awful going from an upper midcarder on the brink of Main Event level stardom just 18 months ago, to not even originally being on the Mania card. This lasted all of 3 minutes with all hell breaking loose and Big Show knocking Heath Slater out with his devastating KO punch.
Rating: 3/4*

For the second time tonight, we get our WrestleMania Host. And what's he doing?! Oh, he's just talking to random WWE Diva Eve Torres about WrestleMania moments. Oh god, and then they tease him making out with 90 year old  Mae Young, one of the first female wrestlers. Who gives a shit -- WAIT A MINUTE! STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN AND THE ROCK GO FACE TO FACE BACKSTAGE AT WRESTLEMANIA! And much to my surprise, it wasn't hokey or friendly, and no kindness was shared between the two. It was brute, it was to the point, and the best part, IT HAD CONTINUITY, because after all these years, at least in "the wrestling world", The Rock and Steve Austin still HATE each other.

Match #4: Randy Orton vs. CM Punk
This was absolutely great! In the weeks leading up, Punk and his New Nexus had been attacking Orton. This led to the Anonymous Raw GM ruling that Punk & Orton will square off at Mania, and in the weeks leading up, Orton would face a member of Nexus. If he beat them, they would be gone, but if they won, they could be in Punk's corner at Mania. Sure enough, one by one, the other four members of Nexus were defeated by Orton and sent packing, leaving Punk an island unto himself. But he held his own. This was an extremely psychological match with great storytelling, and a great backdrop being Orton's leg injury caused by Punk two weeks ago. Orton's big move as of late as been the "punt to the head", which sends people on the shelf indefinitely. After a grueling match, Orton caught Punk getting too cocky, DDT'd him and set up the punt, but his leg gave out! Punk went to work and started getting cocky again, almost getting an RKO for his troubles, but he got out just in time. Punk's facial expressions along with Orton's selling made this an early contender for Match of the Night. Punk went for his springboard elbow onto the hurt Orton but Orton caught him and hit the RKO to win. This was perfect, to be honest, for what it was. Orton didn't dominate, and neither did Punk. Both men's characters were kept strong, Orton didn't look weak, he was just injured, but he played the psychological role perfectly. Meanwhile, Punk continued his role as a cerebral player and in the end, only fell due to his cockiness and Orton's luck. Orton continues to be, by fan reaction, probably the top babyface in the company, while Punk still comes out looking strong and loses absolutely nothing by losing this match.
Rating: ***1/4

More pointless drivel backstage as WWE Hall of Famer "Mean" Gene Okeurland introduced the Rock to John Cena's biggest fan...PEE WEE HERMAN! Ugh. More pointless drivel as nothing even remotely funny happened here. Anybody who bought this pay-per-view solely for The Rock's appearance is probably wanting their money back.

The Hall of Fame inductees from the previous night's ceremony were brought out next, and as always, it's very special. Good to see some of these guys get their swan song, especially main inductee, Shawn Michaels. The Original Diva, Sunny, who helped me get through my early teen years quite frankly, looked phenomenal. And the celebrity inductee, Drew Carey, albeit grateful, was clearly peeved at being boo'ed out of the building. Can't say I blame the crowd on that one.

Match #5: Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. Michael Cole w/ Jack Swagger [Special Referee: Stone Cold Steve Austin]
This had probably the best build going into Mania, which is a sad, sad state of affairs, but what are ya gonna do? Nobody expected this to be a good match, and anyone who did was severely disappointed I'm sure. But you gotta open your eyes here people. The angle around the match was good enough. Jim Ross being able to return and do commentary for this match, and eventually the rest of the night, was extremely special. Swagger did alot of the work on King so Cole was able to pick the bones and not have to do much. Cole was perfectly fine in what he had to do. They weren't making him go like a wrestler, they were making him go like an announcer who was wrestling in his first match ever, and that helped alot. Jack Swagger got involved again only for Austin to drop him with a Stone Cold Stunner, and Lawler beat the shit out of Cole, ending it with his famous fist drop from the top to win.
Rating: 1/2*

Post-match, Lawler & Austin began to celebrate as Swagger drug Cole up the rampway. Booker T, who was commentating with Jim Ross & Josh Matthews, got into the ring to celebrate with him. After doing a WrestleMania spinarooni, Booker was promptly treated to a Stone Cold Stunner just because. As Lawler & Austin continued to celebrate, the anonymous Raw General Manager beeped on and Josh Matthews read the e-mail, saying that since Steve Austin got physically involved in the match, the result was overturned, and Michael Cole was the winner. This pissed Lawler & Austin off, who attacked the innocent messenger Josh Matthews as a result, laying him out with a Stunner. Austin celebrated to the back while Lawler got to join his old broadcast colleague and best friend, Jim Ross, at the announce table to call the rest of WrestleMania for the first time in two years, which in the end, may have been the greatest victory of all for everyone involved. Including the fans watching at home.

Next up was the battle for THE STREAK~. The Undertaker has gone 18-0 at WrestleMania events over the years, and this year, Triple H had stepped up to challenge him. If you weren't a true wrestling fan, or even a regular wrestling fan, then you probably wouldn't realize that this was the ten year anniversary of Triple H & Undertaker originally battling at WrestleMania X-7, which ironically enough, was when WWE began to make mention of Undertaker's undefeated streak.

Before the match, we're usually treated to special entrances, especially from Undertaker. Triple H came out to "For Whom the Bell Tolls" by Metallica, dressed quickly as a member of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, guarded by a legion of men holding shields, before the lights went out and he was in his usual ring attire, coming out to his usual theme. The Undertaker, on the other hand, disappointingly only came out to his regular entrance, which as grand as it is, isn't what we've come to expect at WrestleMania.

Match #6: The Undertaker vs. Triple H [No Holds Barred]
This match was everything that's good with pro wrestling. It wasn't meant to be the technical masterpieces that Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels were at WrestleMania's 25 & 26, and if you went into it expecting that, then I do apologize. It was a tremendous brawl, starting off hot with both men chucking each other around like rag dolls on the outside, going through tables, barriers and other structures that would paralyze normal men. It cooled off a bit in the middle as Triple H began some back work on Undertaker, which eventually led to an AMAZING finishing run. Triple H & Undertaker broke out every move they knew, all of their finishers, and nothing could put the other man away. Triple H even was able to catch Undertaker at one point and hit him with Taker's own Tombstone Piledriver. But not even that could put him away. Triple H brought in a steel chair and AWESOMELY wore out Taker's back, but Taker kept getting up as H screamed "STAY DOWN, WHY WON'T YOU STAY DOWN", almost growing remorseful in the face, knowing what was next. Triple H went to the outside and under the ring he grabbed his trusty sledgehammer, weapon of choice for over ten years, and he went to use it, but UNDERTAKER CAUGHT HIM IN HIS VERSION OF THE TRIANGLE CHOKE! He held it on, tighter and tighter and tighter, and Triple H kept fighting. He tried getting to the ropes, he tried lifting Taker up to slam him down and break it, he tried grabbing his sledgehammer which had since left his grips, but he couldn't do it. And in a phenomenal moment, while Triple H indeed tapped out, the camera picked up something alot different, as it appeared to me at least to be a pat on Taker's shoulder, telling him job well done.
Rating: ****1/4

Post-match, the Undertaker was not moving at all and it took a while before Triple H got up. Medics came out to tend to Taker who was playing the role of pretty much being dead, so it seemed. They got him to the outside where he collapsed again. It wasn't clear whether Triple H was going to attack Taker or help him up, but whatever it was, the referee wouldn't let him near him. Eventually they got Taker onto a medical cart and drove him to the back, like an injured football player. This humanized the otherwise supernatural Undertaker, and I didn't like this post-match hooplah at all, to be honest.

Match #7: Trish Stratus, John Morrison & Snooki vs. Dolph Ziggler & Lay-Cool w/ Vickie Guerrero
This was what it was. Michelle McCool got her dream to fight Trish Stratus, Layla unfortunately did next to nothing, unless I missed something, I don't even think Morrison or Ziggler got into the ring legally, and Snooki came in to do a pretty amazing handspring back elbow onto McCool and a backflip splash onto McCool to get the win. Whatever.
Rating: 1/4*

At this point, we all had realized that a hyped up and advertised United States Championship match between Sheamus & Daniel Bryan, which many had expected to STEAL THE SHOW...HAD BEEN CUT FROM THE SHOW! It took us going online and checking a number of websites to find out that it was regulated to pre-show status where a bunch of people got involved and it turned into a lumberjack match, non-title mind you, that neither man even won. ABSOLUTELY AWFUL. I was beyond words and my anger had only begun to start.

The WWE, as I said before, is brilliant with their video packages. And what they put together for the Miz was absolutely stunning, and I highly suggest going out of your way to see it. Cena's on the other hand, meh. Same thing he's had the past few years, really.

Match #8: The Miz [c] w/ Alex Riley vs. John Cena [WWE Championship]
This was not very good. I don't know what it was, but this was not very good. It felt like half of a match. They never really got a chance to get going, and it felt rushed. And these two have put on decent matches before. Unfortunately, Cena's still not the wrestler who can carry a match, and Miz is still at the level of needing to be carried at certain times. They brawled to the outside and Miz tried escaping over the barrier only to have Cena tackle him over. They both landed on the other side onto the concrete, and neither were moving, leading to the referee counting ten and...that's right, counting both men out. The decision was even made official until...THE WRESTLEMANIA HOST THE ROCK CAME OUT YEAH! SURELY HE WOULD FIX THIS AND FINALLY DO SOMETHING WORTHY OF BEING THE HOST! The Rock says no WrestleMania would end like that and he was officially restarting the match no dq, no countout, no rules, and there must be a winner! Miz & Cena crept back into the ring and Cena went for the Attitude Adjustment on Miz...BUT ROCK PULLED CENA AWAY AND HIT THE ROCK BOTTOM! Miz covered Cena to retain! WHAT?! I'm perfectly fine with Miz retaining but this was AWFUL.
Rating: 3/4*

Post-match, John Cena simply disappeared from sight as Miz celebrated, and not surprisingly at all, Rock got into the ring and beat up Miz, hitting the People's Elbow and posing to end the show, at least sending the fans home...happy?

I don't know if I was sent home happy. In fact, I was quite pissed off. That was an absolutely dreadful WrestleMania ending. And while this certainly was nowhere NEAR the worst WrestleMania, that was without question the WORST ending to a WrestleMania I had ever seen. Overall, it was a fun experience as it always was. WrestleMania will never stop being WrestleMania. And it would take alot for WrestleMania to be an absolutely awful experience. Tomorrow night, as always, should be explosive being the start of a brand new booking year in WWE. And for diehard wrestling fans, the weekend continues as at 8pm, the Hall of Fame that was taped Saturday is broadcast, followed by the two hour Raw, and then the season premiere of Tough Enough.

My advice? Go out of your way to see everything on this show up until the Main Event. Even the Snooki match, Cole/Lawler & the Eight Man served their purposes and were entertaining in parts. But for being the hottest things going into this show, Rock, Cena & Miz certainly did not deliver. Whether it's their fault or not, who knows. But I for one am sorely disappointed.

The Rock, a Hard Case, and a Wrestling Resurgence? [From 3/7/2011]

It was one of the biggest moments in professional wrestling history. When Dwayne Johnson, otherwise known as The Rock, was revealed to be the "special guest host" of WrestleMania 27, it sent the wrestling world on a frenzy of intrigue and wonderment. Not only because for the first time in SEVEN YEARS the Rock stood in a WWE ring, but because of his comments aimed directly at current company ace, John Cena. 

Needless to say, Rocky doesn't hold Cena in the highest regard after comments made in a UK Sun interview back in 2008:

"He is a genuinely nice guy and a fantastic human being. What I kind of get peeved about, and this is my Achilles heel, is that I've wanted to do this my whole life. Rock falls into that category. At one point he loved wrestling and wanted to do this all his life. So explain to me why he can't come back for our 15th anniversary show or why he can't make an appearance at WrestleMania? I wish he'd just show up, say hi and leave. Do the eyebrow once and get out of town. Simply put it's because he wants to be an actor and there's nothing wrong with that, because he's truly found another passion. He's good at acting. His films make money. Associating with sports entertainment doesn't do much for his acting career. I get it. Just don't f*** me around and tell me that you love this. That's the only thing that gets me really p***ed off. Our fan base have so much admiration for him, he's got to respect that. He doesn't give anything back."

That was the first shot fired in a war that made many die-hard wrestling fans salivate at the possibility of a Rock/Cena match-up. It was only a few weeks later when The Rock made his first appearence in over four years at the WWE to induct his father & grandfather into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Rock got a few pot-shots in towards Cena, but nothing much was said of it, and the whole incident was brushed under the rug.

Upon the Rock's return on Valentine's Day 2011, he made his peace with the fans, hit all of his signature catch phrases and the internet had a stand still. Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites were blowing up. Fans who hadn't watched wrestling in years were quickly turning the channel to see The Rock, live and in person, on Monday Night Raw. And once he had them all at the edge of his seats, he let his opinion be heard about John Cena. He ran Cena's accomplishments down, and as his words grew angrier, even the most casual fan could tell this wasn't your standard wrestling interview.

"So let me get this straight, in the past 10 years, the WWE has gone from the ground-breaking, historical AUSTIN 3:16, to the MOST ELECTRIFYING MAN IN SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT, to...You Can't See Me?"

Mocking Cena's signature catchphrase with the slightest hint of a baby's voice was enough to get the crowd to immediately turn on Cena. He went on to mock Cena's other catchphrases and his signature attire, calling him a "Fruity Pebble" and "Barney's Turd', due to the amount of flashy colors he wears, namely, purple and yellow. 

Many wrestling purists would have you believe this was bad, having a once in a while attraction practically bury your top guy to the point of no return is not usually a great strategy. But this was different. This was something people had wanted to see for years.

Regardless of the fact that the WrestleMania main events had already been set in stone, this was the first time in a long time wrestling fans were left with the idea of "Okay well I know the rest of that stuff is fake...but this, this seems real."To make a professional wrestling fan in 2011 believe that something they see on the weekly shows COULD BE REAL is an amazing attribute to have, and The Rock is one of the few who can actually do it.

That's a great compliment for the Rock, and at the same time, it's a horrible view on what a sad state of affairs a once impenetrable business has become.

But as the promo continued more people, even the most casual fan, started to realize "Hey...THIS ACTUALLY IS REAL!" The Rock does not like John Cena. There's no script behind this, no elaborate storyline. The Rock's pissed off over the comments going back to 2008, and he has every right to be. That's not to say Cena didn't nail it on the head with his interview back in '08, but was it really his place to say so? When it comes to an attraction like the Rock, is it really anybody's place to say so?

The following week, John Cena addressed the strong words Rocky had for him and, in a brilliant move, turned even the most anti-Cena fans into believers again when he broke out his old "white rapper" gimmick to cut a freestyle on the Rock:

"Finally the Rock came back and everyone was gettin' with it.
Til he said I was talkin' trash but he would never be specific.
Because I wasn't talk trash, Rock, I was talkin' truth.
You left us high and dry to play a fairy with a tooth?

And then you walk into this ring and tell these people that I'm lame, man?
He wore lipstick in Be Cool and rocked a skirt in the Game Plan.
This fruity pebble that you're dealing with?
I'm not your average jabroni.
I'm like a big purple pinwheel, Rock.
So go ahead and blow me.

And your electrifying, yes.
But hang with me? That's just absurd.
Because now you gotta go tell your family you just got schooled by Barney's turd.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up, that's your material, you can have your joke back
Just don't go racin' to Witch Mountain, Rock, because your Mountain is Broke Back.

The Rock's new movie, it's nothing like Walking Tall.
He spends the movie in a bowling alley, and he can polish my balls.
The People's Champ, Rock, you're hard with the people!
You immitate my catcphrase every time you leave,
'cause for SEVEN YEARS, we couldn't see you.

And is it Rock or is it Dwayne?
Pick a side, come on son.
If I was you, I'd stick with Rock,
because Dwayne ain't got a Johnson.

And you'll see me at Wrestlemania?
Well I'll make sure not to miss it.
But you ain't gonna whip my candy ass dude
I'll make sure you kiss it.

You're the WrestleMania HOST, Rock
That's your role, so know it.
I'm here every week to show it.

That's called a first round knock out,
now you know that I'm not playin.
Run your mouth all you want dude,
IT DOESN'T MATTER what you're sayin'..."

I think even the most laidback, off and on wrestling fan who knows ANYTHING about the Rock and John Cena (two of the biggest draws in wrestling history) would agree with me when I deemed that a fatality.

This past Monday on Raw, the Rock responded live via satillite with another vicious promo, going for the juggular, even mocking Cena's freestyle and creating one of his own. While the promo was no doubt electrifying (no pun intended), many were left groaning by the fact that by responding from his HOME, LIVE VIA SATILLITE, it proved Cena 100% correct.

Could the Rock return after 7 years out of the
ring?

"Let me remind you, and the world, how this whole thing started. It started with you publically running your mouth about me. Calling me a liar when I say the WWE. You said "Don't jerk you or the fans around" by saying I love this business and not coming back? John, by saying that, you insulted me and my family. Let me tell you something. My love for the WWE is endless. I grew up in the WWE, I was born into the WWE, my blood is the WWE. My grandfather, the late great High Cheif Peter Maiva, my father, former WWE Tag Team Champion Rocky Johnson, both Hall of Famers who I INDUCTED. I am standing in my HOUSE, this is my collection of WWE Championships that I proudly display. I didn't show love?! Because I accomplished my goals in the WWE, and I wanted to achieve more?! I knew that if I made it in Hollywood outside of the WWE, then that meant one important thing, that I just opened the door for the WWE. Helped open the door for the entire WWE locker room that's there tonight. I helped open the door, John Cena, FOR YOU! Paved the way for YOU!"

While the Rock has a right to be legitimately angry with some of the comments Cena made, can he really call Cena wrong?

Sure, Cena had no right to say that the Rock didn't love the WWE. He legitimately has been in the business his entire life. But this passionate, down right amazing promo was overshadowed by one thing: the man who told us just a few weeks ago that he was back for good and would never leave again was cutting this promo from the safety his own home.

Time will only tell how this situation develops and what it actually leads to. With four weeks left before WrestleMania, there's more time for Rock to show up on RAW, and there's just as much time for more responses from Cena. John Cena is slated to challenge the Miz for the WWE Championship, but isn't that just a complete after thought at this point? Sadly for the up and coming Miz, he's the third wheel in an amazing set-up for a big time WrestleMania showdown.

Over the years, the WWE has brought in numerous amounts of celebrities, wrestling legends and icons, and have had some of the greatest moments in sports history occur on their grand stage. But this may be the first time ever that a conflict with no wrestling involved will single handedly sell a Pay-Per-View of WrestleMania's magnitude.

"Will they or won't they?" is the big question. Will we see a last minute change of John Cena vs. The Rock? Will there be a physical altercation before or even after Cena's match with the Miz? Will we get to see The Rock break out the Rock Bottom and People's Elbow for the first time since 2004? Rumors are running rampid, and like Vince McMahon always told us during the greetings for Monday Night Raw back in the 90's "ANYTHING can happen in the WWF(E)."

One thing's for sure, I'm willing to shell out the $65 dollars and force it into McMahon's pocket. You've done it again, Vince. Bravo.