ECW is Raw

Ok. I know it's late but I've only just watched ECW because my interest going into the show was pretty small.

BINGO!

The opener with RVD and Sabu vs Test and Mike Knox was a great match. The spots were well worked in, not all of the spots were fucked up and thr result went the right way. All I ask is where was Heyman or Holly who had a vested interest in both men last week?

The main event was OK for what it was. It obvious promotion for the PPV on Sunday rather than pushing ECW angles but at this point in time that's absolutley fine. DX standing tall makes sense in the fact that faces need to be kept strong but we need to see a reason for them fighting at the PPV which at the moment is seemingly lacking. DX standing tall at the end of the ECW made me laugh at how far ECW has moved away from the original product.

CM Punk slapping Shannon Moore was funny.

I have one question for the vampire. Which in fact is my only interest in him. Why is he called Kevin? Could there be a plainer name for a vampire.

The Sandman/Striker thing is alright for what it is. They're holding the pay off of Sandman caining the shit out of the teacher and that's fine.

Overall the show was OK with a good opener and an OK main event all that was in between was pretty much filler.

Question of the week: Why do they never refer to ECW history? Surely it would add some legitmecy to the promotion.

X-Pac, the nWo and Kanyon

The deal with X-Pac is that his apperance at the house show on Friday was a one time thing. He is currently working with the MTV promotion which is set to start and Vampiro's RXLL which debuted last week. Despite Vince wanting to rewind to 1998 it seems that young Sean Waltman isn't part of the plan. Then again, Vince's plans change by the half hour so you never know.

Kanyon's apperance was off his own back. In order to stick it to Vince he bought a ticket for the show, made some signs at home and turned up to the show. This man is so desperate for a job anywhere and is trying to get the Internet on his side. Sorry kid it just ain't working.

As for the nWo they're not coming in. Nash is trying to get himself back into the company but Nash's drawing days are well behind him and is workrate days never were so I'd be surprised if Vince wanted him back. The nWo angle has been discussed and shot down many a time and it probably won't happen. As I said before about Vince's plans, you never know.

DX vs nWo

If you've been looking around the net for the last twenty-four hours I'm sure you'll have seen the rumours of a possible DX vs nWo feud.

The rumours span from a Raw house show report which claimed X-Pac turned up to the show and celebrated in the ring with Hunter and Shawn after they beat Cade and Murdoch. Interestingly Chris Kanyon allegedly 'invaded' and it was unsure if he was supposed to be there or not. Hunter said "who invited Kanyon" over the house mic, so if this happened I'm guessing it's a work.

X-Pac has been both a member of DX and the nWo (as has HBK). Kevin Nash is finished with TNA (he never did the job to Sabin) and Hall has allegedly cleaned himself up (lol). They could do some sort of story where X-Pac rejoins with DX but then turns on them bringing in the nWo leading to a short program between them. It would have to be short considering what happened last time Hall and Nash were brought in. Nash stepped off the bus and tore a quad and Hall was gone within six weeks for the usual Scott Hall behaviour.

In the short-term this feud could draw as it's two of the biggest stables in the history of pro-wrestling coming together and battling one and other. In the long-term it's not going to be the thing to pick business up. Business picks up through new stars (Edge, Cena, Orton) not through reunion tours (ask WCW).

Of course I could have just written all the above for little reason at all. The report could be fake and I don't think Vince is stupid enough to bring the nWo back. Then again with Hunter and Shawn in his ear and their good buddys looking for work the nWo could be back on a screen near you.

Is Ric Flair the coolest man on earth?

Yes.

Raw Thoughts

What a fine episode of Raw aired on Monday night. From top to bottom it was a good show with plenty of angles being shot for Unforgiven and for the first time in forever all the matches booked for the show have been determined with two weeks to go.

Edge's opening promo was really good. I like it when he's out there without Lita as the heat is actually on him rather than her. A great start to the show and the fact I really want to see this match means the job has been done. I'm interested because they're really pushing the Cena going to Smackdown angle so I have to say that Cena wins because I can't see him going to Smackdown when he's Raw's top babyface and WWE's biggest star.

Remember when Edge went for neck surgery and he said he couldn't work any more of the TLC style matches? This will be his fourth since he has returned.

The DX stuff was kept to a bare minimum this week which is fine by me. Seeing Hunter and Shawn do what they did makes me happy as rather than doing their stupid antics they actually looked like they wanted to fight and that's what will sell the PPV. I haven't seen ECW yet so can't comment on the angle shot there on Tuesday.

In big news Super Crazy (the cruiserweight) returned to WWE on the Raw brand. The brand which has no cruiserweight division. Then again, does Smackdown? His shock win over Chris Masters made me laugh as John Cena couldn't beat Masters last week. This either means Crazy is getting a mini-push, Masters has pissed someone off or Masters is going to destroy Crazy next week.

Jeff Hardy vs Johnny Nitro was actually a really good match. I laughed at how they alluded to Nitro's press conference being boring (like watching paint dry actually). This ended exactly the way it should have done with Jeff looking like he can win the belt and Nitro looking like a dip shit heel. If people believe the challenger has a chance of winning the belt then they may just buy the PPV.

The Highlanders are now number one contenders for the tag belts and get the shot at Unforgiven. There's no interest in this feud from anybody and the number one contender's match was another example of how weak the tag division is. Maybe Cryme Tyme can sort it out. They look cool.

If Trish wins the belt at Unforgiven is the women's division done for? I would say she can't loose in her home town but this is WWE after all and burying people in their home town is what they do best.

Speaking of which is Ric Flair the greatest man to have ever lived? The Flair flop was absolutley great this evening.

I'm interested in Umaga vs Kane. Shock horror. See what booking can do?

The main event was solid and was a decent TV match. The crowd were rabid for Cena and I thought the only thing they did wrong was not do the hot tag. Cena just came into the ring rather than getting the big pop for the babyface team come back.

The only feud I don't have any interest in is Carlito/Orton. They did well together tonight but nothing that made me go "wow I want to see a singles match between these two guys!"

Overall it was a really good show from top to bottom. Nothing on the show was bad and nothing was fantastic; it was just a solid show that built angles for the PPV, ie the job of the TV show. It's an example of how if you book things correctly and get people interested in the feuds that are going on and keep the bullshit to a minimum you'll get a good TV show. The Atlanta crowd were hot and really added to the show tonight.

I've just had a thought. Maybe Cena is going to Smackdown. The plan is to get Smackdown rocking again on the new network. Maybe moving Cena there is a way of getting the viewership up?

Breaking News: Psicosis Still With WWE

Contarary to reports posted on the Behind The Angle blog yesterday Psicosis is still emplyed by World Wrestling Entertainment. It was Juventud Guerrera who was released in December.

There has been an outbreak of hysteria amongst the Internet Wrestling Community at the thought of Psicosis not being employed by the Stamford based company.

Paul Robson, author of the blog commented: "It was a mistake. The Mexicools all came in together and as Psicosis hasn't been seen for a while I got confused between the two. I apologise to any fans who I may have upset."

Smackdown vs Raw 2007 Roster

The latest roster for Smackdown series has been released and courtesy of IGN.com, I have it in my grasp:

Batista
JBL
Randy Orton
The Big Show
Jillian Hall
Rey Mysterio
Bobby Lashley
Joey Mercury
Ric Flair
The Boogeyman
John Cena
Rob Van Dam
Booker T
Johnny Nitro
Shawn Michaels
Candice Michelle
Kane
Shelton Benjamin
Carlito
Ken Kennedy
Snitsky
Chavo Guerrero
Kid Kash
Super Crazy
Chris Benoit
Kurt Angle
Torrie Wilson
Chris Masters
Lance Cade
Trevor Murdoch
Daivari
Lita
Triple H
Edge
Mark Henry
Trish Stratus
Eugene
Matt Hardy
Umaga
Finley
Melina
The Undertaker
The Great Khali
Mickie James
Viscera
Gregory Helms
Paul Burchill
Vito
Hardcore Holly
Psicosis
William Regal

There's nothing really shocking on there and everybody you'd expect to be in is in. Finlay, Umaga, Khali, MNM, Cade, Murdoch and Burchill are nice additions. I wonder if big Vito will be wearing his trademark dress? It's also interesting that Psicosis is on there considering he left the company last December.

I love all the games in this series so if anything else of interest comes up I'll post it here. I'm looking froward to this one though.

Hardy vs Nitro for the belt

Tonight's Raw promises Jeff Hardy vs Johnny Nitro for the IC Title. This could be a fun match or could end up being a complete disaster.

That's the only match announced so far but I'm sure Cena and Edge will get five minutes to push their match and then Vince and DX will get thirty to plug theirs. Pays to be owners.

As always my complete thoughts on Raw will be posted as soon as I get round to watching it.

The Myth of the Cruiserweight Title

I'm sick of hearing that the WWF Lightheavweight and WCW Crusierweight Titles were unified at Summerslam 2001. Mainly because they weren't. It was X-Pac (WWF) vs Tajiri (WCW) in a title-for-title match-up not a unification match.

X-Pac won the match and won both belts. A couple of weeks later X-Pac dropped the WCW belt to Kidman on either Raw or Smackdown (around that time there were so many titles and so many title changes it's hard to remeber. He didn't frop the WWF belt though.

Around this time he was injured and he disappeared from TV. Mick Foley as commissioner alluded to this in his promo when he booked the tag title and US/IC title unification matches for Survivor Series. He stated he wanted to unify the lightheavyweight and crusierweight belts but "nobody knows where X-Pac is".

In December 2001 WWF simply adopted the WCW belt renaming it the WWF Cruiserweight Title.

When X-Pac returned in April 2002 he was still Lightheavyweight Champion. He defended the title on a few house shows but never carried the belt on TV. Soon after he returned the belt was dropped all together and the cruiserweights became exclusive to Smackdown.

Next time you hear (or say) the belts were unified then recite this tale and bust the myth that still exists to this very day.

New United States Champion... Champion

For those of you who don't watch Smackdown (and I can't blame you) Mr Kennedy won the US bet in a triple threat involving Finlay and Lashley.

I love Finlay so I'm disapointed at this but the plan seems to be that Lashley is getting screwed out of the belt all the time so I'd expect him to go on and chase Kennedy.

This could be a disaster. Lashley has been working with Finlay to bring him up to the next level. When he's working with Finlay Blaster looks really good but when he's in the ring with anybody else he always seems a step behind. Working with the green Ken Kennedy won't exactly sort this out.

Kennedy should make a good champion and his promo ability could add some credibility to the belt and to Smackdown.

Guilty Your Honour

ECW mainstays Rob Van Dam and Sabu pleaded guilty to their drug charges from June. Both men have escaped with fines and a slap on the wrist.

I'm positive this will stop both men from doing anything like this again.

Take Note Vince, UFC Have Really Got Something Here

I'm not a huge fan of MMA (I prefer my sports fake) but as I follow the wrestling business it's hard not to see the rise in popularity of UFC.

UFC gets less viewers than WWE (in America, not always in the UK) but is doing huge numbers on their PPV show. December's PPV which will see Chuck Liddell take on Tito Ortiz (the man may I add) and buy rates are estimated at 1,250,000!

Vince never reached that. Bischoff never reached that. Heyman certainly never reached that. TNA? Don't make me laugh!

Estimations state that UFC through the promotion of two key matches on each show are encouraging 25% of their audience to part with their money for a PPV. WWE is currently persuading around 5% of their audience to buy their PPVs.

Considering WWE can actually determine the outcome of their matches and create stars themselves, they're doing a really bad job at it. UFC on the otherhand are creating their stars and doing a fantastic job of it.

By pushing two matches on a card and making us care about them UFC is doing a great job. WWE on the other hand are stuck on a treadmill pounding out the same old stale stuff week after week. It's hard to care about anything right now in that company as rather than making us care, stuff just happens.

WWE haven't realesed PPV numbers since May. Let me tell you, there's a very good reason for this: UFC are whipping they're arse.

Take note Vince. Please.

Raw Thoughts

Raw was somewhat disapointing this week. They had two angles that were pretty hot last week in Cena/Edge and Foley/Melina but they didn't really do anything with them this week. For some reason the McMahon (Helmsleys) are all over this show. Can't think why.

Cena and Edge, despite being a feud over the most important title in wrestling today got nothing on this show. TLC was announced for Unforgiven and at least they actually did an angle for the match rather than the usual announcment.

Chris Masters has been to rehab if you couldn't tell. the contrast between his body in his video and in real life was a stark contrast.

The most boring feud on the planet continued with the McMahons and DX. Shane had the best line of the show "you guys need to grow up." You can say that again. The main event was decent for the time it got and seeing Finlay and Regal on a decent show is always good. They're really pushing the boat at at Unforgiven with hell in a cell and TLC. It makes sense to finish this feud in the cage but it's going to be one big cluster. Adding Big Show isn't going to really make this any better but at least it's different. It makes me laugh how the ECW Champion is the guy to help the McMahons becuase everybody else on Raw sucks.

Did you know that Vince likes cock? Get some new material.

Nitro was decent on the mic. We've not had chance to hear him do much talking at all so this effort was pretty good. They needed to address the Foley situation and this was a fine way of doing it. I don't know if Foley will return to feud with Nitro or if this was just a way of turning Foley face before his next apperance. On another note Jeff Hardy vs Johnny Nitro could be fun if booked right.

Carlito continued his feud with Orton. They're doing an angle at least but both guys are cold at the moment. Talking of Carlito he is very pissed off at the moment as he felt he was reaching the main event but now he's stuck in a love storyline with Trish. Hate to say it Carlito but I hope you're not in many more main events.

Trish is retiring. It has now been announced so we all know how September's PPV goes. Great work booking team.

Mickie is a babyface now? Storyline development.

Spirit Squad are still tag champs if you didn't know. They also main evented a PPV two months ago.

There was a lot of references to wwe.com made on this show. Maybe they now understand not every fan goes on that site.

Let me know what you thought of Raw or anyhting else going in the world of wrestling by emailing me at: mailto:robsonmania@yahoo.co.uk

The Kurt Freakin Angle Story

OK, WWE.com is shit. They want to be the news site for wrestling but, they can't decide if they're going to be inside or kayfabulous. They've reported that Angle left on mutual terms with WWE and he has had three injuries all sustained in one match with RVD. Not true.

The story goes pretty similar to what I wrote on Saturday when I heard. Angle came back from his thirty-day suspension without having made any effort to get off the pills. Last week he met with Vince he told him to go to rehab. Kurt refused. Kurt was released.

The fact of the matter is that Angle has a huge downside guarantee in his contract which sees him take home $1m guaranteed. He could have gone into rehab and taken as much time off as he wanted and recieved his pay. Plus as Vince does in these situations I'm pretty sure the cost of the rehab program would have been paid for by WWE.

However, the problem lies in Kurt Angle. Angle doesn't believe he has a problem (locker room reports say he is completely messed up) so won't go to rehab, guaranteed deal or not.

WWE have done the same deal in which they did with Eddie Guerrero; released him for his own good. The only problem is that Kurt Angle is a mahcine. He wrestled in the Olympics with serious neck problems and in the main event of Wrestlemania under the likelihood of paralysis or even death. There's a story which Angle tells in his book regading the death of his father. His Dad worked on a construction site and fell from some beams. He got up, walked to hospital where he was told he'd broken his neck, arm and leg. He later died in hospital. The day Kurt found out he played football and played the best game of his career.

See where he gets it from?

The sad fact is that Kurt Angle won't stop. Kurt Angle is a machine. In 90-days time I'd bet that Kurt Angle isn't in rehab. I bet that Kurt Angle will be signing on the dotted line with TNA. TNA are desperate for stars and Angle is a recognisable star. Most importantly for Angle, TNA don't drug test. The obvious fall in salary won't mean a thing to Kurt as long as he can compete.

The sad fact is that WWE's release of Kurt Angle is supposed to be for his own good. It's supposed to be for him to clean up his life and get himself sorted out. The first step Angle has to take is admit he has a problem. Here lies the first stumbling block. He won't. Whether Angle is employed or not, the likelihood is this is all ending in tragedy.

Prove me wrong Kurt. I beg you.

Unforgiven Plans Looking Good

As far as we know the Raw plans for Unforgiven will see Edge and Cena on top in a TLC match. I'm perfectly happy with that as I'm liking Cena in his current spot and Edge is great as champion.

Last weeks Raw looked like DX vs Vince and Shane was to continue (boring) and I haven't watched this weeks episode so can't comment on proccedings until tonight. If the plan is to keep Hunter and Shawn together for the forseeable future then they're going to be pretty much stuck. It's not even like they can go after the tag belts as they've destroyed the Spirit Squad that many times it's gotten boring and there are no other teams on Raw who are worth the feud. They can continue working together on TV no problem but they need to be doing something different. If Edge retains after Unforgiven I'd like to see him work with Shawn again as they've had good matches in the past and working with Shawn will only add to Edge's credibility.

As for other matches on the card it looks like Kane vs Umaga, Spirit Squad vs Highlanders, Carlito vs Orton and Hardy vs Nitro. Looking like a great PPV hey?

I'll have more to talk about tommorow when I've been able to watch Raw.

More than meets the eye

There seems to be far more to Kurt Angle's release than what WWE.com is letting us into. It's obvious that Angle has been asked to sort his problems with pain pills out but he has refused to do so but there is talk of there being a lot more to it.

There have been reports that Kurt has been very vocal in the ECW locker room about matches, both his own and others. Apparently this was common with him on Smackdown, but because he was Kurt fucking Angle nobody cared. However as there are a number of new faces in the ECW lockeroom a number of comments have been made about his practices.

Although obviosuly this isn't grounds for a firing it could well be one of the reasons why Angle has gone.

When I get my copy of the Observer and Figure Four I'll post more about the situation and what I think.

KURT ANGLE RELEASED

In a huge story, WWE.com has announced that WWE have officially released Kurt Angle. This is a huge shock to me and everybody out there.

Angle has had may documented issues with prescription drugs and has only recently returned from a 30-day suspension. It was well-known that upon his return he was still relying on the medication and had done little to help himself.

WWE took him from TV last week and he didn't appear at Summerslam or on this weeks episode of ECW. Last night he was released.

It would seem that WWE are releasing Kurt Angle for his own good (much like they did with Eddie Guerrero in 2001) as competing in the ring is becoming more and more dangerous for the olympic gold medalist. This is a drastic decision by WWE as Kurt Angle could well be (and probably will be) picked up by TNA and make apperances in other indy feds.

Obviously Kurt wouldn't be making as much money as his WWE deal but the fewer dates could be a god send to him. Of course this could have been done to send a shock to Angle and get him to clean himself up. It's a course of action which worked with Eddie Guerrero and William Regal but Angle is a very stubborn character and has been forthcoming in accepting help in the past.

Vince McMahon has given many a second chance (see Hardy, Jeff) and I'm sure Kurt Angle will be given the smae treatment as everybody else. The question lies on whether Kurt Angle will allow himself to be given a second chance.

I'll be following this story very closley so please keep checking back for more news and thoughts on the situation.

Email me yout thoughts here.

Three new divas signed... don't ask me who

After whatsaface won the diva search some more have now been signed. In fact three more have been signed. I don't know which ones and to be honest I don't really care.

Here's the problem with the current crop of divas: they're just too normal. Every single one of them is hot but, it's nothing I couldn't see by taking a walk into my town centre. The divas used to be over because they were something special. They used to have personsality and be sexy, they used to be untouchable.

I know that when I turned on my TV I would see not a girl but a woman. A woman who was untouchable, a woman who I wouldn't be able to pull in a thousand years; a Sable, a Debra, a Miss Elizabeth. These days if I wanted an Ashley I could walk down the street and happily chat away to a 'girl next door' with no worries at all.

Look at the example of Trish Stratus. When she first came on the scene in 2000 she was untouchable. She wore her short skirts and cowboy hats and I would have given anything to be with her. These days she comes to the ring in jeans and a top, probably what she's had on all day. I'd still give my back teeth to be with her but she doesn't have that x factor any longer.

These women used to be something out of this world, now they're nameless faces. Good luck to the three new divas. See you at the dole office in twelve months.

Too Cool v2

With DX back, Jeff Hardy returning and even Tatanka being a permanent fixture on the Smackdown roster WWE are attempting to return to the glory days of old. Accoriding to the Observer Too Cool are going to be revived. Rikishi and Grandmaster Sexay will both be brought back and TNA star Ron Killings (who has asked for his release) is thought to be on the verge of signing to join the stable.

Will Too Cool be able to dance their way back into the hearts of today's young wrestling fans? I have to admit to liking Too Cool back in 2000 and they could freshen up a very boring Smackdown. They're not going to set the place alight but they could be fun for a while at least.

In an unrealted note, Attitude era favourite and former European Champion Mideon will not be returning to the company.

Raw Thoughts

Raw was pretty decent this week. The Edge/Cena feud is really hotting up. This is the side of Cena which many people have been begging for all throughout his run last year. It's good to see what he can do when he is chasing and Edge is such a great heel that Cena looks like a star.

Jeff Hardy's return was rather random and they've put him over strong in his almost-win over Edge (although the finish was messed up). This has been done with Hardy before in his matches with Hunter in 2001 and Taker in 2002. The problem lies in the fact that they don't do anything with him after that. He could easyily move into a program with Johnny Nitro over the IC belt and out some fresh energy into the stale Carlito, Shelton, Nitro mid-card.

It never ends. The DX/McMahon feud must continue and it must continue with an angle that was actually shot weeks ago. With both Vince and Hunter involved in this angle it must of course be billed as the main event of every show, but it certainly doesn't deserve to be there. The faces won on Sunday so why do they need to carry on tormenting the heels? Give me a reason why DX are doing this to the McMahons and it might interest me a little.

What makes it OK to not let the live (5,000 people) crowd know you've been broken but allow four million people at home to know?

Foley's face turn was probably a good thing because as good a heel as he is, crowds weren't booing him because he is Mick Foley. Whether he'll be off TV now or whether an angle will be made of the Melina betrayl we will have to wait and see.

It looks like Randy Orton will be moving from Hulk Hogan, arugably the biggest star in wrestling history to Carlito arguably the most unmotivated guy on the roster. Yay.

If Orton pinned Flair decisivley how can the ref reverse the decision to a Flair win? Surely the match should have been restarted?

The Spirit Squad are being jobbed out. They were beaten last week by Eugene and Hacksaw, were anhilated by DX (again) at Summerslam and the Highlanders beat them on Monday. They're not even getting an entrance these days so it looks like they're finished on Raw possibly after Unforgiven when they loose tag belts, or possibly even sooner.

Kane is going to be feuding with Umaga. The Samoan Bulldozer has to go over in this one.

Despite both women leaving the company it looks like Trish will take on Lita for the Women's title in the near future (it has to be in the very near future). Trish is slated to leave in September when she gets married so may take on Lita in a loser leaves town match with Lita going over. Lita is scheduled until November time so I'd expect a similar deal with her around that time. Of course both women may just disappear from TV such is the usual course WWE take.

Overall the show was decent with Edge and Cena grabbing all the right strings to move their feud along. The DX stuff is getting stale but a few more angles are being pursued and that can't be a bad thing.