The Return of the Pit Bull

On February 12, 201l, Andrei  Arlovski was knocked out by Sergei Kharitonov in the first round of a Strike Force bout, his fourth consecutive loss and it prompted many to call for his retirement. A former UFC Heavyweight champion,  Arlovski was on a multiple fight win streak before he left the promotion after he contract expired in 2008 and won a contest against Roy Nelson under the Elite XC banner before the above mentioned four fight skid.

Quite frankly, his career was considered over and the competitor known as "The Pit Bull" looked to be a shell of himself, which many assumed would lead to him concluding his career on the smaller fight circuit as many from his era have done in recent years. Six months after the disappointing defeat in the Strike Force cage,  Arlovski reemerged at the smaller Pro Elite show and dominated his opponent to get the victory. During his time away from competition, "The Pit Bull" began training with the Jackson fight team in New Mexico and the time spent sharpening his skills with some of the Jackson standouts, including Jon Jones, rejuvenated his career.

Over the next two years,  Arlovski won six of eight fights in a variety of promotions with only one blemish, a loss to Anthony Johnson in the World Series of Fighting organization. Prior to that, he fought Tim  Sylvia to a non contest, and both bouts that he didn't win were surrounded in controversy so he was in top form when he returned to the UFC in 2014.

Truthfully, when  Arlovski resurfaced in the UFC, I didn't think he would do much because I watched the KOs mentioned above and thought his career was finished. Granted, he put together a winning streak to open the door for a returned to the Zuffa organization, but I take most of the wins a competitor gets in the smaller fight leagues with a grain of salt once they take the step up in competition for some of the more well known promotions (UFC, Bellator, etc.) because the major league competition is different from the smaller venues.

Six years after he defeated Jake O'Brien via TKO, Andrei  Arlovski returned to the octagon to fight Brendan Schaub, not exactly top competition, but he won a split decision on the judges' cards. Just three months later,  Arlovski was a major underdog in a bout with "Big Foot" Silva, but he KO'ed the Brazilian in less than three minutes. Earlier this year, he stepped into the cage with dangerous heavyweight, Travis Browne, who had only two losses on his impressive MMA record. Again, most assumed  Arlovski would be defeated by the younger opponent that is seemingly in the prime of his career, but after a wild exchange,  Arlovski landed a series of punches and the referee rescued Browe from further damage with a stoppage. Just a few months ago, he won an unanimous decision in a lackluster fight against Frank Mir, but it added to his current six fight winning streak, which include four wins since he returned to the UFC.

This Saturday, Stipe Mioic will provide the opposition and once again, on paper,  Arlovski is considered the under dog, but should "The Pit Bull"be doubted? The Croatian brings a solid 13-2 record into the cage and precise striking ability, drawing comparisons to legendary, Mirko Crocop. If Arlowski tries to throw wild flurries, similar to what he did in the Browne contest, Mioic will land a counter and finish the fight. However, if Arloski fights smart and can dictate the pace, you have to at least give him a chance to win.

That said, if he can win five fights in a row in the UFC,you would think he would be in line for a shot for the Heavyweight title, a belt he last held almost a decade ago. Who would've thought that Anderi  Arlovski would be in the UFC title conversation heading into 2016? Regardless of the result of the Mioic bout,  Arlovski deserves a lot of credit for completely rejuvenating his career in what must be considered one of the most unexpected comebacks in mixed martial arts history.

NXT Takeover:London Review

Last week, the NXT brand went across the pond to London, England for a special WWE Network presentation and as a whole, the event could be an indication for the future of the brand itself. It should be noted that the British crowd really added to this show and it quite literally speaks volumes for the demand for pro wrestling in the UK. After years without well known promotions to capitalize on the market, European wrestling has seen a spark within the past year and independent shows throughout the region are currently drawing sell out crowds of a few thousand fans for each show. Rev Pro-UK, Progress Wrestling, and ICW have all done well recently with some tremendous young talent to fuel the resurgence in Britain. Mark Andrews, Marty Scurll, and Will Ospreay are some of the top talent that are helping to spotlight UK wrestling again so credit to them.

As for NXT Takeover, the show opened with Auska vs. Emma and throughout the contest, it became obvious that the competitor formerly known as Kana in Japan carried her opponent to a decent match. Auska has had to wrestle down to her opponent's level in recent NXT specials, first with Dana Brooke and now with Emma, but hopefully these matches are being used to establish her for something more important in the future because she has the ability to have some great matches when she's booked with a capable opponent. In many ways, Auska seems to be presented specifically for the NXT brand and I don't see her transitioning to the main roster, which is fine if the WWE intends to establish NXT as a full fledged brand. Similar to Samoa Joe, Auska provides a boost for the show when some of the younger talent gets moved to the main roster and if the money is right, there's nothing wrong making a career in NXT. That being said, with the stiff kicks and style, Auska as a heel would be money and a feud against Bayley could provide intriguing TV. Auska won the match and hopefully, there's a major angle for her in the future.

The tag team title match was solid and both teams worked well. Enzo is ridiculously over with the audience and the reaction his mic work received could be an indication that the team is ready for the main roster. However, considering the tag division is busy at the moment, WWE brass might not want to add another team to Raw to avoid them getting lost in the shuffle. Dawson and Wilder remind me of the Arn/Tully combination of the Brain Buster, and they work a similar style, which seems to compliment the NXT brand. Dawson and Wilder retain the belts, and it seems like they are going to get an extended run as the tag champions.

The Nia Jax/Bayley title match was solid, mostly because Bayley sold everything well and really enhanced the bout when Jax was trying to get heat during the match. Quite simply, Bayley is as good of a baby face as anyone in the business and if given the opportunity, she could be a major star for the company. The only downside of this contest was the portrayal of Jax and it tainted her "monster" persona somewhat in the process. Jax is relatively new to the NXT landscape and she was booked for a title feud almost as soon as she debuted so since she did the job in London, what now? While Jax was presented as a monster heading into the match in England, she didn't sell like a monster and her frustration during the false finishes didn't sell the gimmick either. Maybe I'm analyzing this one too far ahead, but if Nia Jax isn't booked for something relevant following the title match, her NXT time could eventually be summarized as just being another opponent for Bayley for the Network special.

The Apollo Crews/Baron Corbin match was decent, nothing spectacular, but nothing terrible either. However, Corbin did some good heel work from a character prospective and such development adds some depth to the brand. Granted, NXT is based on the in ring product, which allows it to be an alternative to the main WWE shows, but well established heels are a good addition to any wrestling product. As for Apollo Crews, assuming he can continue to work on mic skills and character, he has all the skills to be a major success for the WWE. From an in ring stand point, Crews is the complete performer you would think the WWE tries to recruit, but as seen in the past, mic work is at least half the battle for success on a national stage. That being said, I think Apollo Crew will do well when he transitions to the main roster.

Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor was a great match that helped elevate  the brand and the NXT title itself because it placed an importance on the actual title instead of it being used as just a prop. It was a hard hitting, fast paced, and physical bout that was a good representation of the brand. As mentioned earlier, Samoa Joe will probably remain on the NXT roster and there's nothing wrong with that, especially if the money is right. As I've mentioned before, it's disappointing that Joe worked in TNA during the prime of his career because he has the ability to be a bigger star, which is why it's good to see him get a run in the WWE. On the flip side, Finn Balor might eventually move to the main shows and if he does, he would have to be considered a potential main event competitor. Obviously, there are a lot of variables, but an eventual Balor/Rollins feud could be money for the WWE.

WWE.com ECW Poll

Recently, WWE.com conducted a poll asking fans about their favorite "forgotten ECW star" and thus far, its yielded some intriguing results. That being said, another question that has to be asked is, should these particular stars have been in the position to be forgotten at all? Granted, the WWE Network gives more fans more access to footage than anytime in history, but did these extremists deserve another national stage after ECW folded?

Joel Gertner, the raunchy manger of the Dudley Boys during their heyday in the South Philadelphia based promotion, was one of the main pieces of the puzzle that allowed the complete package of the Dudley stable to get legitimate heat from the savvy ECW crowd during a time when the possibility of getting that type of heat wasn't as common as during the kayfabe era of the business. Gertner also took some dangerous spots during his run so there was actually a payoff when one of the extreme heroes finally got to him. Simply put and this is meant as a compliment, Gertner was easy to hate as a heel and tailored his role perfectly to the ECW environment. On the flip side, Joel was over as a baby face as well and his verbal exchanges with Cyrus were anticipated openings of pay-per-views. While he had good promos, Joel Gertner was one of those performers that seemed to be molded specifically for ECW and it's doubtful that he could've transitioned to another national promotion without a watered down act. That's not a jab at him either, just that he played his role so well in ECW that it would have been diluted under more PG restrictions. However, Gertner is still involved with independent wrestling and started his own podcast earlier this year.

The late John Kronus was a product of the famed Killer Kowalski wrestling school and along with Perry Saturn, formed one of the promotion's most popular teams, The Eliminators. It should be noted that The Eliminators were one of the teams that put an emphasis on tag wrestling in 1997 before the "golden age" of the division with the TLC matches a few year later. Kronus was a heavyweight that could perform some amazing aerial moves and while he wasn't the most graceful high flyer, it was impressive that a competitor his size could do an array of top rope moves. He was probably too one dimensional to transition elsewhere, but had a decent run there because his positives skills were allowed to shine. He left ECW in 1999 and had a brief run on the independent scene before he passed away in 2007.
 
Roadkill was one of the initial students to debut from the ECW House of Hardcore school and along with another HOH school alumni, Danny Doring formed a tag team that became the last ECW tag champions. The Amish inspired character was a heavyweight that was really agile and the wild style of ECW tag matches allowed for a simple formula to hide his relatively inexperience with only a few years in the business. While the gimmick was memorable, Road Kill was signed to a WWE developmental deal in 2005 and despite wrestling within the system for three years, he was eventually released. Road Kill shouldn't be forgotten, but he wasn't exactly the most well rounded wrestler either so it's understandable that he didn't resurface on the national stage after WWE's ECW project.
  
"The Sinister Minister" James Mitchell is the one on this list that jumps out as someone that should still have a job with a national company today and he could still be a valuable performer for any promotion. Originally signed for the doomed "blood runs cold" angle in WCW, Mitchell sat at home for the majority of his Turner deal and there was speculation that the office didn't realize he was still on the payroll. After two years off the radar, The Sinister Minister debuted as a cult persona on Hardcore TV in 2000 and he narrated some of the episodes. Eventually, Mitchell managed Mikey Whipwreck and Tajiri as well as becoming a notable character during the later era of the organization. After ECW folded, Mitchell had a few different runs in TNA and did exceptional mic work during them. The mic skills, the persona, and the ability to do just enough to get a talent over without overshadowing them, which is the key to a great manager, made Jim Mitchell a valuable piece of the puzzle for his angles. His work with Abyss gave the monster more substance and something to build storylines around, and really added a new dimension to the character. Mitchell understands the role of a manager and if used correctly, managers could still be used effectively today. Sadly, since managers are used to push angles, not t shirt sales, it's a nearly forgotten art form. That being said, James Mitchell shouldn't be on a forgotten list, he should still be working on national TV.
  
Sadly, Hack Myers recently passed away at the age of 42 and sincere condolences to his family. Myers started in the early days of ECW as just a local enhancement talent, but he gained cult status as the "Extreme Shah" and had a run as one of the more popular competitors on the card. While his in ring ability was limited, he had a better run than most probably would've guessed and is still remembered as one of the more colorful characters of the Philadelphia promotion.
  
Similar to James Mitchell, Cyrus was a later addition to the ECW roster, but he was effective anytime he was on screen. Booked as the Network representative when TNN began interfering with the formatting of the TV show, Cyrus generated tremendous heat for the angles he worked and in the process, helped continue to provide intriguing TV when the promotion had declining star power. That being said, the roster at the time was still capable and Cryus' mic skills added a sizzle that highlighted the potential of some of the younger stars, including Rhino. Interestingly enough, Don Callus had a somewhat notable wrestling career before he surfaced as the TNN authority figure and worked in several different countries in the early 90s. He was noticed by fellow Canadian, Bret Hart and was eventually signed for the WWF as the cult leader Jackyl in 1997. For whatever reason, Callis was abruptly released a year later and surfaced in ECW shortly after that. While The Jackyl character was booked to manage the cartoonish Truth Commission and later subjected to Vince Russo booking, Cryus showed the true ability that Callis had as a performer. He made a few appearances in TNA during its early days, but eventually retired from the industry and works for the Canadian trade commission. I would guess that Callis found a good job outside of pro wrestling and was content to make good money, but he really is an underrated talent that should've had a job after ECW closed.

 During the early stages of ECW, when it was just finding its extreme niche in the otherwise stagnant industry of the early 90s, Paul Heyman still worked in front of the camera as Paul E. Dangerously and using his trademark phone, he called 911. The big man known as 911 would storm the ring at Paul E's request and choke slam the jobbers that were going to cause a mutiny among the die hard Philadelphia fans. As 911 provided a conclusion to the intentionally corny segments, the fans chanted loudly for the rescue. As one dimensional as 911 was, the choke slam segment being the only notable ability he could bring to the table, he received some of the biggest reactions of early ECW shows. According to almost all observations, his few attempts at actual matches were disastrous so it's understandable that his career concluded in ECW.

Chilly Willy was an example of an addition to the roster that could have done extremely well, if he was given the opportunity to develop his skills while wrestling for the extreme group, but considering the wrestling landscape was flooded with free agents in 2001 when WWE bought WCW, Chilly Willy probably got lost in the shuffle of the industry and hadn't necessarily made enough of a name for himself during his rather short run in ECW to get a contract. Eventually, Chilly Willy was signed to a WWE developmental deal in 2004, but he was released a year later.

Jose Aldo vs. Conor McGregor

After several months in the making, Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor will finally clash inside the octagon for this Saturday's UFC 194 event at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV. Originally scheduled for July, the bout was cancelled less than two weeks prior after Aldo cited a rib injury and at the time, there were conflicting reports about the extent of the Feather weight champion's injury. Chad Mendes was booked as last minute replacement and despite a solid effort was stopped in the closing seconds of the second round. McGregor won the interim Feather weight belt and the dynamic performance solidified him as one of the promotion's rising stars.

I penned a column prior to the Mendes fight to discuss if the charismatic Dublin native was the UFC's top star and when you take into account Ronda Rousey's recent defeat, it appears as though the stage is set for McGregor to seize the throne as the UFC's top draw, which was previously held by fighters such as Anderson Silva, Georges St. Pierre, and Brock Lesnar at various times.

On paper, 145 LBS king pin Jose Aldo should be the favorite to be victorious leading into the contest, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Despite being undefeated in the past ten years with only one blemish on his professional record, Also will probably go into the fight as a slight underdog because Conor McGregor has all the momentum entering the cage. One of the criticisms of Aldo is that he has cancelled five previous title defenses and because those bouts had to be rescheduled, he has fought sporadically in recent years. In fact, Aldo has been away from competition for a year, which is the second time in his career that he took a year between fights and he fought no more than twice in a calendar year since 2010. Considering the year absence, will Aldo show any signs of ring rust during the McGregor bout? When it comes to a skill set, Jose is nearly flawless with razor sharp striking technique, great take down defense, and a Brazilian Ju Jit Su black belt. The Brazilian is without question an extremely dangerous opponent, but he had questionable cardio during previous fights so that could be an avenue for the challenger to claim the title.

As for the result of the fight, it will probably be a rather simplistic scenario and the outcome will depend on where the fight takes places, as well as who dictates the pace of the contest. Conor has two defeats on his record, both via submission and Aldo has excellent ground skills so if the fight goes to the ground, the advantage will go to Jose Aldo. As mentioned, the champion's cardio has been questioned and Conor has an explosive style so if he can push the pace, McGregor might be able to secure a decision through the later rounds. I would suggest that Aldo would be the most dangerous in the first two rounds and if McGregor can survive the initial wave of offense, he has a favorable chance of success in the championship rounds. One of the few criticisms of McGregor is his somewhat one dimensional style and if he doesn't bring at least decent grappling defense into the cage, it could allow Aldo to retain the title.

As far as a prediction for the winner of this one, I have say that Conor McGregor will claim the undisputed Feather weight title, mostly because he has the momentum going into the fight and his opponent, Jose Aldo could have alot of ring rust after an extended absence from the cage. That being said, it won't be an easy night for McGregor, even if he's victorious because Aldo still one of the top fighters in the sport. From a business prospective, Conor is the draw for the UFC and you can expect Saturday to mark the start of a new era in the Zuffa organization or the group will still be searching for its next top star.

Nearly lost in all the fiery shuffle of the Feather Weight title hype is the Middle weight title bout, where Chris Weidman will defend his belt against top contender, Luke Rockhold. Interestingly enough, this battle could surpass the main event in terms of the quality of the action because it's a very evenly matched and it will probably be close fight. Weidman, who shocked the world when he slayed the dragon that was Anderson Silva, has quietly became one of the top fighters in the world, most recently Vitor Belfort earlier this year. Weidman has a grappling base, but is extremely well rounded and has no glaring flaws in his game, along with a flawless record so far in his MMA career. Luke Rockhold brings a very similar skill set into the octagon and only has two defeats on his pro record. Since these two are so even in terms of their skills and experience, I would guess there won't be a direct advantage for either fighter based on where the fight takes place. However, I have to pick Weidman to retain the championship because he's undefeated and as mentioned, he's a well rounded fighter but I wouldn't be shocked if Rockhold gets the win.

TNA signed for Pop TV

Despite following the product regularly, I usually don't write about TNA and in fact, I've only written a total of three TNA related columns this year, two of which involved other promotions and then an article about the Billy Corgan signing.

Why?

The answer is simple, I don't want to write something negative on a regular basis, and much like the product itself, the narrative of the promotion has remained the same for the past few years. Plus, the company has many talented performers and it would be unfair to them, and their hard work in the ring to be completely negative about TNA. So, I decided not to write about it as there's enough criticism on the internet about the organization already and even if it's justified, it's the same story fans have been ranting about since the Hogan era. It should be noted that internet fans are usually the most jaded group of fans and negativity is usually a common theme in most of their reaction. Sometimes, you can't blame them, but other times, I wonder if they watch pro wrestling to enjoy it or just watch for an opportunity to criticism it? More specifically, it's ironic that social media criticizes the WWE booking often and the feedback from the Sheamus win is another example of it, but the same fans that complain continuously still pay for a WWE Network subscription. As I've said many times before, does it matter to Vince McMahon if smart marks complain as long as they pay for a network subscription? The point being, pro wrestling is supposed to be entertainment and if you don't enjoy the product, watch a different promotion or another TV series. Automatic negativity doesn't help the perception of pro wrestling and it doesn't seem to represent actual fans of the sport.

That being said, TNA is moving to Pop TV after just a year on Destination America and some might think this could be used as a fresh start of the company, but that angle was used nearly a dozen times during the history of TNA. It could be suggested that the product caused Destination America to decide not to renew the TV deal, but I don't think that really had anything to do with it as ROH also didn't get renewed and are heading to a different network as well. Destination America didn't seem like a "wrestling channel" so to speak and it's still a little puzzling as to why they signed two promotions to contracts if they weren't going to invest more than a year into them. Unless the shows were too expensive for the network to produce, but again what exactly were they expecting revenue wise? Was it an attempt to get a slice of the WWE dominated market? Were they expecting WWE type ad revenue? Only the network executives know the answer, but it wouldn't be the first time a corporate executive was clueless about the wrestling business and there's a laundry list of former WCW employees to prove it.

What does the move to Pop TV translate to for TNA? Most importantly, it has more TV clearance than Destination America so more people will have access to it, but increasing viewership has been a problem since TNA aired on Spike so accessibility helps, but isn't the main problem. As I've said many times, Dixie Carter is a money mark and is completely clueless about the wrestling business. In my honest opinion, as long as Dixie Carter is involved in the wrestling business, the company will not be successful.

Hey Dixie, how did that Hogan investment pay off?

Don't get me wrong, it would set wrestling back a decade if TNA folded and there's really no upside if it shuts down, other than potentially clearing a TV slot for another promotion. Ultimately, if TNA closed, there would be talented competitors that deserve to have a national stage, but they wouldn't have platform to display their skills. Ethan Carter is a tremendous heel and in my opinion, the WWE missed the boat on him. Eric Young continues to be one of the most versatile wrestlers in the business and he makes the best of what's booked for him. These are just two examples of the great TNA roster, but it's a moot point when illogical angles, lack of brand identity, and almost comical production blunders overshadow the in ring product. It's well known that as a part of TNA's cost cutting measures, they taped several months of TV within a few events and in the process, they have run into a series of situations that make the company look bush league. Since the TV episodes were taped so far in advance, there were stars that were featured for the World Title Series after they already departed the promotion, including Austin Aries, James Storm, and Kenny King. There was also the logistical problem when Hernandez appeared on Impact a few months ago, but the footage couldn't be used when it was discovered that he was still under contract for Lucha Underground, which caused TNA to copy/paste segments to cover it up. As I've said previously, I think there's too much stigma towards TNA and similar to WCW, it might be too damaged of a brand to improve.

So, where does TNA go from here?

As long as TNA has a TV deal and as long as the owner of Panada Energy, Bob Carter continues to fund Dixie's chance to play TV star, the company will continue to exist. To put it in prospective, regardless of the millions of dollars, the Carter family spent on TNA, Panada Energy is a several billion dollar company so maybe TNA isn't in any real danger of a shut down. On the flip side, with the amount of money behind it, you have to wonder why TNA couldn't garner more than a 1.2 rating on Spike TV? The bottom line is, TNA will still exist and many of the problems that have plagued them for years will still exist when they start on the new network.

The Career of Eddie Guerrero

Last week marked ten years since the passing of WWE Hall of Famer and former world champion, Eddie Guerrero. For many fans, there's still a somewhat somber atmosphere when they reflect on the sudden death of one of the most popular stars in the history of the industry, but his career continues to be celebrated.

I still remember when I saw that Eddie passed, it was on the Yahoo home page and I immediately checked a wrestling news site to get further details. At 38, Guerrero was found dead in his hotel room as a result of an enlarged heart and it shook the wrestling world. The WWE dedicated that week's TV shows to his memory and the emotional broadcast featured many of Eddie's friends sharing their stories of him. Almost six months later, I sat in the Rosemont horizon and watched as Eddie's friends and family inducted him into the Hall of Fame. As much as it was an honor to see the legend that was gone too soon take his place in the HOF, it was still extremely sad because he wasn't on the stage to give the speech. However, the entertainment he provided to fans around the globe give reason to celebrate the life and the legacy of Latino Heat.

With pro wrestling in his blood, Eddie was born into a wrestling family as the son of legendary promoter, Gory Guerrero, who earned the nickname from the crimson that was often featured in his matches. His brothers Chavo, Hector, and Mondo all became professional wrestlers and as the youngest of the family, Eddie had to live up to his famous family name in the ring. As was featured in the WWE DVD release of his career, Guerrero had a wrestling ring in his backyard during his child hood and it would later be where he started training to join the pro ranks. Debuting in 1987, Guerrero originally worked under a mask for CMLL before making a "controversial" jump to the rival AAA promotion, where he shed the mask and proclaimed he would assume the family name for his in ring career.

Throughout the early 90s, Eddie was a staple of AAA and teamed with another second generation star, El Hijo del Santo to form a popular tag team until he turned heel in 1993. Guerrero would join a competitor from another wrestling family, Art Barr to become "Los Gringos Locos" and the American influenced stable generated tremendous heat among the proud Mexican audience. Sadly, because of limited exposure in the United States and a relatively short career since he died young, Art Barr is often forgotten about or simply unknown to many of today's fans. However, Barr was a great performer that had tremendous charisma and he actually used the frog splash before Eddie, who started to use the move as a tribute to him. The team peaked in November of 1994 when their feud with El Hijo Del Santo and Octagon culminated in a hair vs. mask match at "When Worlds Collide," the first lucha libre pay-per-view broadcast in America. Around this same time, Eddie was also wrestling in Japan as Black Tiger for New Japan Pro Wrestling and was gaining notoriety as one of the top cruiser weights in the world, which brought an opportunity to compete in the United States. The tag match at the lucha PPV received rave reviews and is regarded as one of the best matches in the history of lucha libre, and the buzz around the match led to Paul Heyman offering Los Gringos Locos a spot in ECW scheduled for early 1995. Art Barr passed away just weeks after the PPV event and the cause of his death still isn't disclosed.

However, Eddie did make his ECW debut and despite only working there for a few months, he had a great series of matches with Dean Malenko that are still talked about today. The Malenko series along with his previous accomplishments brought Guerrero a contract offer from WCW when they signed several cruiser weights to establish the division as a staple of Nitro. During a four year run in the Turner organization, Eddie won many different titles and had many memorable matches, including the match of the year with Rey Mysterio in 1997. Despite the solid in ring work and being over with the crowd, the political structure of the company kept Guerrero from reaching his potential as a more established star. The politics of WCW led to Eddie and a group of friends requesting their release from the promotion in 2000.

Just a few weeks later, the group known as "The Radicalz" debuted on WWE TV, but Guerrero was almost immediately sidelined  with an elbow injury. Eddie remained on TV and returned to the ring for Wrestlemania. After a year of entertaining work in the WWE, Eddie's well documented demons caught up with him and he was sent to rehab. A few months later, Guerrero was arrested for DUI and released from the WWE. At a low point both professionally and personally, Eddie made the decision to get clean and rededicated himself to the industry. In 2002, he began working the independent circuit, including some of the early ROH events and a tour of New Japan. After six months of stellar matches, Eddie returned to the WWE and won the Intercontinental title. Guerrero returned to prominence and continued to rise in popularity, the pinnacle being when he defeated Brock Lesnar to win the WWE title in 2004.

On November 13, 2005 Eddie Guerrero passed away, but his legacy remains as one of the best performers to step into the squared circle. Eddie proved himself to be a champion in the ring when he won the WWE title and a champion outside of the ring when he became clean from substances. Eddie contributed many things to the wrestling business and he will always be considered a legend.

Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm

Overconfidence or arrogance?

One or the other played a pivotal role in the shocking KO of the UFC's top star, Ronda Rousey as Holy Holm sent her crashing to the canvas after a highlight reel head kick to claim the Bantam Weight championship in front of a record setting crowd in Melbourne, Australia. As a 14-1 underdog, not many gave Holy Holm, a former multiple time boxing champion, a chance in the main event of UFC 193, but a series of mistake led to Rousey being dethroned as the 135 LBS champion.

Nothing less than dominate prior to the last weekend's defeat, Rousey only needed more than a round to be victorious twice in his mixed martial arts career and become known for her lightening fast finishes more recently. In fact, Rousey finished her last four fights in a little over a combined two minutes, including a 34 second KO of Beathe Correia the last time she was in the cage this past August. Aside from adding wins to her MMA record, Ronda has appeared in movies, TV shows, a segment at Wrestlemania, and released an autobiography in 2015. She's also scheduled to film the remake of the film Road House early next year. The combination of skill and main stream exposure led to Rousey bringing a completely new demographic as well as a new dynamic to the UFC, but those outside projects may have set the stage for her to be defeated inside the octagon.

Ronda brought a 12-0 record into the cage on Saturday with a fierce offense of punches and her trademark arm bar to compliment the judo background that earned her a bronze medal in 2008. There's no doubt that Rousey is an elite fighter that has dominated skilled opponents during her career. However, when Ronda stepped into the octagon with the undefeated challenger, she was too aggressive and played completely into Holm's game. Sloppy striking from the judo expert and Holly's technical foot work allowed Holm to land jabs as Rousey tried to unsuccessfully rush into exchanges with wild punches. I was surprised that Rousey continued the strategy of chasing the challenger in the second round after she took damage in the opening five minutes of the bout, but Holm exploited the flawed attempted at offense. Less than a minute into the second round, Holm staggered Rousey with a punch to set up the previously mentioned head kick and the referee stopped the contest shortly after Ronda collapsed to the mat.

As mentioned, I don't know why Ronda would try to strike with a former pro boxing champion, especially considering how far advanced boxing striking usually is than the punches that are featured in MMA. Did Rousey just assume she would drop Holm with a flurry of punches as she had done to other opponents? With an Olympic grappling background, why would the former champion risk a striking exchange with a boxer?

Overconfidence or arrogance?

Whatever the case, Rousey assuming she would leave Melbourne with the championship and stating it very publicly in interviews before the fight gave Holly Holm the opportunity to overwhelm Ronda with top level striking. Not to take anything away from Holm, but Rousey's fundamental mistakes made it very possible for Holly to win the title. Why Ronda didn't attempt more take downs is anyone's guess, but her lack of precaution for Holm's ability led to the defeat. It has been said many times, but anything can happen in mixed martial arts and you can't overlook an undefeated opponent if you want to remain the champion. Instead of talking about planning to retire undefeated and when to film Road House, Ronda should have taken Holly's record into consideration.

Part of the draw for Ronda Rousey is she brings an authenticity to the sport, but some of the glitz and glamour of the main stream media could have diluted it. Make no mistake, there will be a rematch and it will be major money for the UFC. I would guess that Ronda Rousey will be more prepared and more cautious when she finds herself in the unfamiliar role of challenger. The reality check and the lesson learned from the UFC 193 defeat could be one of the most important things in Rhonda's career if she wants to be the UFC Bantam weight champion again.

Some have made comparisons to Buster Douglas beating Mike Tyson in Tokyo in 1990, but that's unfair to Holly Holm. Tyson was landing punches on Douglas before he got caught with a series on punches and couldn't beat the count. Holly Holm is undefeated with an extensive boxing record, she was more prepared for the fight, and exploited her opponent's mistakes to win the championship.

Who will be the WWE champion?

During a match with Kane on the WWE European tour this week, Seth Rollins suffered a major knee injury and will be on the sidelines for the next 6-9 months, which puts the company in a tough spot just a few weeks before the Survivor Series pay-per-view event. Aside from being the WWE champion, Rollins is basically the only major heel on the roster so there's more to the situation than just finding the next champion and because of that, the booking of the tournament scheduled for the PPV seems that much more important for the long term plans, especially considering that Rollins won't be back for Wrestlemania 32. First, it has to be said that it's extremely unfortunate that Rollins suffered such a serious injury and hopefully he can return to 100% because he deserves a lot of credit for his performances during his run in the main event picture, even if the booking was shaky at times. Is Seth Rollins the wrestler to launch wrestling into the main stream? Probably not, but the bottom line is, he can go in the ring and he has carried the company during a time when John Cena took somewhat of a more minimized role recently after working his own busy schedule.

That being said, Survivor Series is only a few weeks away and the WWE has to find a replacement for the champion, and the top heel in the promotion, which can be two completely different scenarios depending of how they book the PPV. Who really replaces Seth Rollins in terms of the major heel on Raw? Alberto Del Rio just returned to the company and won the US title, but he continues to be cheered. Kevin Owens is finally rebuilding momentum after he somewhat plateaued following the Cena feud and he's the current IC champion, but could he leap frog that far up the card that fast? Don't get me wrong, I think Owens has all the tools to be a main event star for the WWE, but you can't manufacture a "pipe bomb" type promo to automatically propel him to the title picture after he just became established as the IC champion. Bray Wyatt continues to be an entertaining act and one of the more over performers on the roster, but he has basically only been used to get other competitors over, most recently Roman Reigns at HIAC and it worked as the match elevated Reign's stock. However, that was designed to help get Reigns over, but when has Wyatt really been booked in a feud to make him become more of a star? It speaks volumes to his ability that he remains relevant despite being beaten into powder during most of the major angles he was booked for, including the match with John Cena, which could've helped establish Wyatt further up the card, but he did the job.

In my opinion, the perception of the lack of depth on the roster  is a result of talent not being fully utilized when they are over with the audience, but the actual talent is there and in many ways, the WWE currently has the best roster they've had in a decade. Why hasn't the WWE given Dean Ambrose a chance to work the main event picture? Instead, he was booked for cartoonish segments and then presented as Roman's sidekick. Dolph Ziggler was put in the spotlight of the main event of Survivor Series last year, but was anything booked to capitalize on it? Brock Lesnar could always be added to the tournament to give it a spark, but if Lesnar would be used more often as the champion again, (which he would have to be considering the competitors that aren't working TV at the moment) wouldn't that be counter productive to the WWE's strategy of making his appearances "special" events? The short term booking solution to prop up the star power on WWE TV of Lesnar working weekly could dilute the aura that's established around Brock with limited appearances. It's been said many times, but it applies here as well, the lack of competition within the wrestling industry seems to have led to the WWE overlooking the potential of certain performers. As I've said before, if WCW existed in 2014, would the office have shunned Daniel Bryan? It took the fans booing Batista out of the building (not his fault) and a near mutiny every week on Raw leading up to Wrestlemania for the WWE brass to actually present what the fans wanted to see in the main event.

Along with that, the business being completely over exposed has an effect on building new stars and specifically, the perception of main event heels. I wrote about it in a column last week, but if you blatantly tell the audience they are watching a staged product, it makes it more difficult to get an emotional investment into the characters. Granted, there's an aspect of "suspending disbelief," but the most successful performers in the history of the business were essentially themselves amplified through the scope of pro wrestling. When the audience knows specifically who is dictating the direction of the product, it makes it much more difficult for a heel character to get heat with the crowd. For example, when Daniel Bryan was eliminated from the Royal Rumble this year, the fans didn't get mad at Bray Wyatt for sending him to the floor, they directed the heat towards the office for booking Bryan to get eliminated. Basically, when the audience knows who makes the decision, the WWE brass gets the heat for the heel's actions, not the heel character and that makes it more difficult for the characters to establish themselves as legitimate stars. The talent and ability is there, but how many of the newer generation are perceived as money drawing stars? There's a reason the WWE has relied on nostalgia acts  to give their biggest events a boost in the past few years and it doesn't seem to help to solidify any of the younger talent either. The combination of not giving certain talents the proper platform when they are over with the fans and the over exposure of the wrestling business has led to a lack of star power, which puts the WWE in a tough spot.

So, what does the WWE do for the PPV? As far as protecting the secrets of the sport, the horse has left the barn, the train has left the station, and you can't go backwards in terms of what's already been revealed. But, the WWE can work within the current perception of the industry and use it to build an intriguing storyline for Survivor Series. Ironically, it was the same event in 1998 that also featured a title tournament and it was when The Rock turned heel to become the "corporate champion." A similar scenario could be used to cover all the bases for the WWE and allow them to accomplish what was probably their original goal for the event. It's well known that the WWE still hopes to make Roman Reigns the next top star and despite some struggles, he seems to be adapting well towards an eventual title run. Again, the majority of the results the audience doesn't want to see, the heat is directed toward the office and not the heels so the booking of the tournament could work towards that. It could be Dean Ambrose or Dolph Ziggler, both of whom the crowd perceive as being disregarded from the WWE office, challenge Roman Reigns in the finals and the Authority helps Reigns get the win so he takes his place as the "anointed champion."

It uses the initial resentment towards Reigns as the motive for the heel turn and it to gives the WWE another top heel. Would it be predictable? Yeah, but if it works, what's the difference? I think if Reigns wins as a baby face, it might fall flat and spark more hostility towards him so hopefully there's some depth to the booking of the tournament. Regardless, there certainly a lot of buzz for Survivor Series and it will be interesting to see who is the next WWE champion.

"The Bulldozer" Matt Tremont

A few months ago, streamers rained down on Matt Tremont as he clutched the CZW World title and with tears in his eyes, realized his dream of winning the top prize of Combat Zone Wrestling, one of the top independent organizations in the United States. After the moment set in, Tremont left the ring and hopped the guard rail to celebrate with the fans chanting his name, which provided an ironic scenario as it was the same place it all started for him.

Over a decade before the referee counted three and declared him champion, the competitor known as "The Bulldozer" discovered Combat Zone Wrestling through VHS tapes, and was memorized with the violent spectacle he saw on screen. After ECW closed, there was an opening in the Philadelphia wrestling market and dozens of promotions tried to capitalize on it, but Combat Zone Wrestling was one of the few to survive the wave of alphabet soup organizations that ran shows in the north east in the early 2000s. CZW found it's own niche within the independent scene mostly because instead of trying to replicate ECW, they created their own brand and raised the bar from hardcore to ultraviolent wrestling. The death match style originated in Japan and commonly features light tubes, barbed wire, and other dangerous objects. Along with CZW, the country of Japan provided Matt with an inspiration to purse professional wrestling when he saw a bootleg tape of the famous IWA Japan King of the Death Match 1995 event, which featured Cactus Jack and Terry Funk in the finals. Matt wanted to see the violent art form live and was provided the opportunity to do so when he went to a building he knew very well from dozens of wrestling tapes, the ECW arena, but it was Combat Zone Wrestling that drew him there. Inspired from CZW legend, Nick Gage and the die hard CZW fan base, Tremont and a group of friends regularly attended CZW events to cheer for their ultraviolent heroes.

However, the thrill of being in attendance wasn't the only goal for Tremont and he set his sights on joining the CZW grapplers in the ring. A native of Atlantic City, New Jersey, he searched for a training facility to learn the craft and found it through  AWFR in Philadelphia. A year later, Matt Tremont made his pro wrestling debut and within a few months, he began an ultraviolent journey. His performances in hardcore matches caught the eye of underrated independent veteran, Devon Moore, who took Matt under his wing and would ultimately help get him a job in CZW. In 2011, Tremont was booked in a death match at a smaller show with one of the top competitors in the style, Danny Havoc and the contest was a breakout performance for Matt, as he finally got noticed by CZW management. Just a few months later, Matt was behind the railing for a CZW event, but this time he wasn't there to rally the performers he looked up too. Instead, Tremont jumped the rail and made his CZW debut in a violent match with Pinkie Sanchez, and the anticipation of his arrival in the Combat Zone was audible, as the fans chanted "Bulldozer!" during the contest. His performance earned him an invitation to participate in the the Tournament of Death, an event he bought a ticket to watch just a few years earlier. Matt worked two matches at the event and his performances solidified his popularity with the CZW fan base. As the year progressed, he was booked for a match with the late independent star, Brain Damage and it was featured as the main event at the ECW Arena, which he considers a career highlight, but was also a sign of major things for him at the Combat Zone in the future. The following year, Matt Tremont was one of the main reasons that the death match genre was still relevant and he was rewarded for his efforts when he won his first death match tournament, the IWA East Coast Masters of Pain event. However, that was only one of six death match tournaments that he has won in his career, including CZW's tournament this past June.

Matt has been a featured draw in all of the premier events on the CZW calendar, but he has paid a price for the ultraviolent legacy he continues to create each time he steps into a squared circle. A road map of scar tissue decorates his forehead as an example of the blood he spilled and the sacrifices he made for the sport of pro wrestling. From nearly getting his leg impaled on a bed of nails at the ECW arena to cracking his head violently on the edge of a table during a "tangled web" match, there seems to be few risk The Bulldozer won't take, but he isn't too concerned saying, "I have encountered a hospital on many occasions because of the death matches only for stitches, thankfully in almost 9 years in the business, no serious injuries that have required any surgery."

In 2014, Tremont's stock began to rise as his brawling style was noticed by promoters throughout the independent scene and as a result, he has worked for nearly two dozen promotions, including an organization in Germany. When asked about wrestling internationally, Matt said, "My only international travel in wrestling thus far as been to Germany for WXW in late 2012. It was a tremendous experience. Looking forward to returning in the near future as well as the UK. My main personal goal left in wrestling for myself is to go to Japan either for Zero 1 or Big Japan or even FMW."

So, what's the driving force behind the organic draw to Matt Tremont for so many fans? Quite simply, the fans can identify with him because he has as much passion for pro wrestling as they have when they pack the building. Matt sat in the same seats, cheering for the same icons, and he gives the fans 100% as a way to repay them for their support. Some of the highlights of Tremont's journey were the subject of the "Bleeding Black and Yellow" documentary, which you can purchase directly from him through social media.

When asked about winning the CZW world title, Matt's response spoke volumes about his dedication to the sport as he said, "Anyone who knows my story knows I've been a life long fan of the Combat Zone.Went to my first live CZW event in 2002. Always was my goal in wrestling to make it to CZW. In 2011, I did just that and the platform and opportunities have been humbling and I'm very appreciate of those. The big one of course would be wining the CZW World Championship this past August 8th, 2015 at "Retribution," my biggest Accomplishment to date and most meaningful for me. It was a moment I'll never forget and now almost two full months as champion I look to defend it proudly everywhere I go and represent CZW to the best of my abilities in and out of the ring."

The ultraviolent style isn't for everyone, but nobody can deny the passion, the work ethic, and the sacrifice. Matt gives 100% for every match he has, which speaks volumes to his dedication to the wrestling business. Despite the success and admiration of the CZW fans, Matt remains a humble and polite competitor that strives to prove himself every time he competes. While death match wrestling has its critics, Matt Tremont is a credit to the wrestling business. Matt Tremont idolized the performers he saw while sitting behind the guard rail and he persevered through the trails and tribulations of the industry, which is why it made for a perfect setting that he celebrate with the fans behind the guard rail, where it all started for him over a decade ago.

MV Young

As a commentator for a local Pittsburgh promotion, I get the chance to call matches for a lot of talented people and there are some that have a chance to go further than just wrestling in front of a few hundred fans on the independent scene. A few of these competitors that immediately come to mind are Storm Academy graduates, Jack Pollock and Bryan Bowers, both whom make my work easier with their always solid in ring work. While Bowers is relatively new to the game, Pollock is one of the most underrated talents in the Pittsburgh area and I would recommend anyone unfamiliar to find some of his work online because he has the talent to make it to a bigger stage. Still, the independents have a draw to them and specifically the Pittsburgh area brings the blue collar atmosphere of the region to its wrestling. The storied history of Bruno Sammartino, Shane Douglas, Kurt Angle, and others have inspired competitors from the area to chase the dream of professional wrestling fame. Earlier this year, I was discussing the format of the TV tapings for that night's event when I saw and unfamiliar name listed on the run sheet, Mike Young. At first I thought it sounded like an 80s jobber, but when I actually talked to him to get his background prior to the show, it was interesting to hear that he trained under the tutelage of WWE Hall Of Famers, Scott Hall and Larry Zybyskso. I had never heard of or saw him wrestle before and in some cases, if you haven't heard of a competitor, it's possible you're going to witness a train wreck, as rookies are still in the learning process. However, Young showed poise and skills beyond his years, delivering a solid performance for his promotion debut.

I was surprised and impressed with his ability, especially for being roughly two years into his career so, what was the foundation for this rookie prodigy? The story starts not too long ago in 2002 when at age 7, Mike became fascinated with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and it led to him ordering the Summer Slam pay-per-view that year without knowing exactly who all the participants were on the card. The Lesnar-Rock bout had a profound effect on him and he searched for more notable contests. He found footage of a series of Kurt Angle matches, which he considers some of his favorite bouts. Soon, he discovered Youtube and watched as much wrestling as he possibly could, spending hours watching classic ECW footage, as well as seeking independent wrestling through Ring Of Honor during one of its peaks in 2006.

Mike became a die hard fans of the industry, but soon began dreaming of a career inside the ring ropes after he finished high school. Initially, Young planned to start the training process in his hometown, but when a job opportunity led to his family moving to Florida, he followed with his sights set on the WWE Performance Center.

"As far as my training in Florida, I had  planned to train at the PWX academy since I was in high school. I planned on starting right after I graduated. However, during my senior year of high school my father was offered a job in the Orlando area. This was right around the time WWE had announced that the performance center was being built in Orlando so the naive 18 year old version of me thought that wrestling in that area would increase my chances of being signed. I chose the Scott Hall and Larry Zbysko endorsed Team Vision Dojo that was within a mile of the performance center," he said.

The Team Vision Dojo brought a variety of trainers into the facility, including  Lince Dorado, Chasyn Rance, and Aaron Epic. There were also frequent visits from former WWE stars Ricardo Rodriguez and Alex Porteau for training sessions, which Young considered a valuable experience. After five months at the dojo, Mike Young made his pro wrestling debut in front of a small crowd in 2013 and he impressed his trainers, as he applied many of the dojo lessons in front of the live audience. During his time in Florida, he wrestled a few matches for notable independent Full Impact Pro, but he wanted to compete in his hometown, just as some of the legends that inspired him to purse a career inside the ropes.

Ironically, it was another Pittsburgh native and WWE Hall Of Famer, Larry Zbysko that was pivotal to Mike's return to Pittsburgh and Young said, The most important talk I had with Larry Z was the week before Wrestlemania 30. He was going to Wrestlemania access and I drove him to the airport.  I told him about how I loved wrestling in Florida, but how I missed PA and felt like I wasn't finished there. He told me that I had a good look and potential and to not give it up, but to go back to PA to go to college.That was all I had to hear. I moved back on my own to PA a month later." Aside from Zbysko's advice, Mike spoke on his interaction with Scott Hall saying, "I didn't get to talk to Hall as much as Larry, but there were a few instances at practice where Hall complimented me and I remember feeling ecstatic about having Razor Ramon compliment me."

After returning to Pittsburgh in 2014, Mike transformed to "MV Young" as a representation of the progress he made in his career and continues to wrestle regularly for a variety of promotions. When asked about his goals, MV said, "Living on my own paying my own bills, it really gives you extra motivation to "make it". I want to be a top indie guy and ultimately be In the WWE." MV Young also plans to study Sports Entertainment management as a college major next fall as another potential career besides wrestling. If MV Young becomes a superstar in pro wrestling remains to be seen, but it's certainly commendable that he's chasing the dream of pro wrestling stardom.

The WWE/ESPN deal

This past Tuesday, John Cena was featured on the launch of a weekly WWE segment on Sports Center as part of the WWE/ESPN deal that was previously announced. Essentially, a weekly WWE segment will bring viewers from outside the typical ESPN demographic to watch their network and wrestling related topics proved to be successful, as the WWE content featured on ESPN has always done strong ratings. Speaking of ratings, both networks have reportedly hit some what of a slump and co-promotion could spark things or at least provide a fresh dynamic. For the WWE, they are competing with some of their toughest competition of the year with the MLB playoffs and Monday Night Football opposite of Raw. Despite loading the show with Stone Cold, The Undertaker, Brock Lesnar etc. this past week drew 3.35 million viewers, which is one of the lowest ratings of the year, but not necessarily uncommon during the playoffs. That said, it still has to be somewhat concerning to WWE brass that they put nearly every possible major star they could on TV, but it just didn't garner the viewers. In my opinion, it probably indicates the lack of emotional investment in many of the current characters on the roster and the lack of investment could be a direct result of the business being over exposed. It's more difficult to get the main stream audience to buy into a character when they are repeatedly reminded that the performer is just a character. Granted, you can't insult the viewers and try to convince them that everything is real, but you don't have to blatantly expose it either. Technically, it actually opens the door to rejuvenate the believability of the product if the fans assume they know everything because if a character is presented with enough realism, you can get the crowd to question the line between reality and storyline, which Bray Wyatt did to some degree during his initial push. Brock Lesnar, arguably the WWE's top draw in the past few years, is another prime example of how a legitimate presentation can draw money. When Lesnar throws a car door literally into the second row, it's vastly different than the majority of the over scripted promos that are usually featured on WWE TV.

That being said, the ESPN deal gives the WWE more main stream publicity and can be a way to give fans a review of the angles from Raw if they didn't tune into the show, potentially generating some buzz for them to watch the following week. ESPN had a dip in ratings recently, mostly because many sports fans will look toward local coverage for their local teams, as it provided more detailed analysis. It should also be considered that while football and basketball have a national draw, baseball and hockey are more regional in popularity, which is another reason some fans will follow local coverage. Similar to WWE, the ESPN network has a lot of competition within its respective field and it makes sense for them to build towards a more diverse demographic.

Despite the initial outrage of scripted WWE TV invading the legitimate sports landscape, it should be mentioned that this is a win-win situation. More specifically, the die hard sports fans that think carny pro wrestling is staining real sports should realize that ANYTHING on main stream television is entertainment designed to generate ratings and thus, ad revenue, which is very similar to the WWE's objective for Raw. There's a reason there are such boastful and diverse pairs of hosts on ESPN, ratings. Even some of the more traditionally formatted ESPN content, such as Mike and Mike, which avoids some of the more overtly ratings driven tactics because of its time slot, still has Greeny as the somewhat timid analyst and Golic for the brute that brings the former player aspect. A prime example of the "entertainment first" aspect of ESPN is the "First Take" show that features debates between professional troll, Skip Bayless and passionate sports reporter, Stephen A. Smith. Bayless takes to the defense of some of the more polarizing figures, such as Tim Tebow, Tom Brady, and Johny Manziel while Stephen A. argues the more logical points. The point being, the usual ESPN viewers aren't going to tune out because of a weekly WWE segment and if anything it gets non typical viewers to watch Sports Center so there's no real harm done to either brand. Would it be somewhat goofy to see an outlandish wrestling angle follow NHL highlights? Probably, but again, its about the ratings and a weekly segment isn't going to jeopardize the credibility of ESPN.

The bottom line is, the WWE is a global product and ESPN is still a media power house so it's a good deal for everyone. Plus, if it's packaged right, the WWE spot could be seen as an entertaining variety aspect of Sports Center. Some sports fans might complain about staged wrestling appearing along with the legitimate competition of other sports, but if they are still watching, does it matter? Keep in mind, ESPN or any other network are as much about entertainment and ratings than anything else, which is exactly the point of the WWE/ESPN deal.

The Journey of Jordynne Grace

At 15, most young ladies are listening to pop groups that won't be relevant the following year or deciding if they are "Team Edward" or "Team Jacob," but that certainly wasn't the case for independent women's wrestler, Jordynne Grace. For her, the age of 15 meant an introduction into the world of professional wrestling as an in ring trainee and it started her journey to wrestling in several different states, as well as other countries in just a few short years. Growing up, the Texas native watched the WWE product often, but it was the live experience of attending independent shows in her early years that prompted her to purse a career in the squared circle. In 2010, she found a wrestling school in Texas, but faced a unique situation when her family planned to relocate. "The only issue was I lived in the city and my mother wanted to move to the country. I had a job at 15 so I asked to move out and go to school/continue wrestling. My mom, of course, didn’t like that but she knew I really wanted to wrestle and stay in Austin, so she let me. My family has always been extremely supportive of my career path." she said.

Living close to the Mexican boarder, Jordynne was given the opportunity to train with the women's group, Lucha Libre Femenil south of the boarder, but the rookie experienced a sense of culture shock when she entered the country. She spoke no Spanish, wasn't initially familiar with the intricacies of the lucha style, and was leery of some of the more notorious urban sections of the country. When asked about her time learning her craft in Mexico she said, "The main thing I learned was how to protect myself extremely well, because the women over there wrestle really stiff, verging on dangerous. So I learned pretty quickly how to prevent injury." At the age of just 16, Jordynne made her debut in Mexico and has even returned since then for a few extended tours with the promotion.

When she returned to the United States, she continued training at the AAPW school where she started and worked extensively in Texas. A bright student, Grace was able to graduate at 16 and wanted to compete as much as possible so she relocated to St. Louis as apart of a group that wanted to further their wrestling skills. While wrestling in St. Louis she met and bonded with independent stand out, Johnathan Gresham and relocated to Atlanta before eventually settling in eastern Pennsylvania. In 2014, she began to make a name for herself using an athletic and strength based style, and since that time has been afford opportunities with some of the more well known independent groups. Combat Zone Wrestling, IWA Mid South, Beyond Wrestling, and dozens of others have all been added to her resume, as she has become one of the rising talents on the independent scene. However, competing on such a regular and diverse schedule doesn't come without it's share of traveling, which can be as challenging as in ring competition. Jordynne estimates that she has wrestled in nearly two dozen states and spoke about the travel saying, "After being in so many cars, planes, and buses and traveling to states that I’m not in more than eight hours before leaving again it’s pretty tiring at this point." It speaks volumes to the versatility that she brings to the table, considering that each time Grace began working in a different part of the country, she had to prove her skills to a whole new audience and received positive reviews for her work.

When she turned 18, Jordynne's athletic background from wrestling prompted her to pursue a certification in personal training so she studied it and passed the test to become a certified personal trainer a few months later. She currently works for Planet Fitness and Gold's Gym while wrestling a full schedule, which is another sign of her dedication to the industry.

The cities of Chicago, Monterrey, Philadelphia and many others decorate Jordynne Grace's wrestling resume, but perhaps the most impressive aspect of her career is her determination to be successful. While still in school, she decided to wanted to become a professional wrestler and five years later, she has worked for dozens of promotions. At 19, the prime of her career is still ahead of her, but Grace already has plans for the future, potentially opening her own gym after her wrestling career. It's somewhat ironic that Jordynne has made a career of traveling a variety of places because it could come full circle for her with a return to Texas being one of her goals saying, "To move back to Texas and be with my family while being flown to shows around the United States." One thing is for sure, Jordynne Grace is an athletic young prospect that has wrestled in many states and internationally in just a few years, and she certainly has the determination to be successful on a major stage.

James Storm signed for NXT

Less than 24 hours after the stellar NXT special on the WWE Network, it was revealed at the next set of tapings that former TNA star, James Storm was signed to compete for the brand. First, it should be mentioned that it's great to see Storm land a job in the WWE after an abrupt exit from TNA and the continued uncertainty that surrounds the Nashville based promotion. Storm, one of many that was completely underutilized in TNA, has the talent to work on a main stage and it's another solid veteran signing for NXT.

A nearly two decade veteran of the business, James Storm initially gained notoriety in the early days of TNA, where he worked from the inaugural show until his departure this past July. Originally, a member of America's Most Wanted, Storm and Chris Harris had a good run as one of the top tag teams, and had memorable matches during the "Asylum era" of the company. In 2006, America's Most Wanted concluded and it was generally thought that Chris Harris would have the better run going forward, but that wasn't the case. Storm continued to evolve into a well rounded performer, while Chis Harris had a cup of coffee in the WWE as Braden Walker and faded into obscurity. Despite a lack of any real direction booking wise, Storm had a solid series of matches during the next few years and eventually joined Bobby Roode to form Beer Money. During their time as a team, Beer Money was the top team in the promotion and one of the organization's most entertaining acts.

In 2011, James Storm was introduced to the TNA World Heavyweight title picture and ironically, it was the start of TNA underutilizing him. Storm was becoming one of the promotion's top stars and his blue collar character was extremely over with the audience. There were some similarities to Stone Cold Steve Austin, who praised Storm's work, but he did enough to make the persona his own in TNA. After the Bound For Glory series, Storm defeated Kurt Angle to win the title, but dropped the belt to Bobby Roode a week later. Keep in mind, Roode won the Bound For Glory series that year to get a title shot, but was defeated by Angle. As I said at the time, if Roode was going to eventually win the title anyway, why not book him to defeat Angle in the finals? Wouldn't it have made Roode look stronger if he won the title in the finals? Instead, the booking made Storm look weak because he only had the title for a short run and it made Roode look secondary to a former WWE star when he didn't defeat Angle for the championship. Roode is a great talent and had a decent run with the belt, but if TNA was going to book Storm as the champion, they should have at least given him a decent run, especially considering how over he was with the crowd.

From there, Storm eventually returned to the tag division and while he had another run as a tag champion, it was more of a throw together team with Gunner and not nearly as popular as his previous tag team run. In 2014, Storm was booked in a cult leader angle and despite random members being added, Storm made it work with some great mic skills and even without too many major angles to work, it provided some entertaining TV. As mentioned, Storm left TNA in July after working for the company during its entire existence and there was some speculation he could sign to work for Global Force Wrestling.

Ultimately, Storm was underutilized in TNA and they missed the boat on him, but that's nothing new for the company. During his initial push, Storm could have been used to help establish the TNA brand as something other than WWE lite, but it was a missed opportunity and again, that's nothing new for TNA. Storm is a solid in ring competitor and he did the best he could with whatever he was booked to do in TNA, which is why Storm is a great signing for NXT. He's versatile enough to adapt to a new system and it seems like he will do well in the NXT environment. It's a win-win situation because Storm gets a platform to apply his trade and his veteran experience could help the younger talent. It's also great to see that he will retain his name and character for NXT because sometimes a specific formula works for a performer and it would be counter productive to spin it just to be able to put the WWE stamp on it. Samoa Joe is another example of this and he has done well so far in his NXT career. Granted, Storm already has several years of network TV exposure so some WWE fans will know who he is, but I think the reasoning behind certain talent keeping the names they used prior to their WWE career could be simpler. This is just a guess, but the WWE is the top promotion in the United States and if a particular talent would go elsewhere using the same name they used while wrestling in NXT, would it really be any threat to WWE? The point being, James Storm is a solid signing for the WWE and he provides some substance to go along with the sizzle of the NXT brand. The debut of Storm allows NXT to remain strong even if certain competitors get transferred to the main roster and assuming he has a decent contact, Storm could make a WWE career out of his work at NXT, which would further establish it as another WWE brand instead of just a developmental system. The bottom line is, James Storm deserves the opportunity and he will probably have a solid run in NXT.

The career of Brian Pillman

October 5, 1997 marked the passing of Brian Pillman, who competed the night before at a WWF house show and was scheduled to appear at that night's pay-per-view event. The broadcast of "Bad Blood" opened with WWF owner Vince McMahon informing the viewing audience that Pillman was found dead in his hotel room at the age of 35 and a 10 bell salute followed the next night on Raw. Nearly two decades later, Brian Pillman is still remembered, specifically through a DVD release on his life in 2006 and the accessibility to classic footage through the WWE Network, but the true impact of his career might not be realized to many fans.

Fighting to survive from the start of his life, Brian Pillman underwent dozens of throat surgeries to remove cancerous polyps and as a result of the procedures, he developed his trademark raspy voice. Pillman continued to defy the odds, as he played football in college, but went undrafted so he decided to try out for his hometown team, the Cincinnati Bengals. Many thought Pillman's statue would prevent him from landing a spot on an NFL team, but he was signed to the Bengals in 1984. While Pillman weighed only 225 LBS during most of his career, his determination allowed him to gain notoriety on the field, which prompted his teammates to vote that he receive the Ed Block Courage Award. After his time with the Bengals, Pillman played briefly for the Buffalo Bills before going to Canada to play in the CFL, which opened the door for his pro wrestling career. While in Canada, Pillman began training in the legendary Hart dungeon and debuted for Stampede Wrestling in 1986.

Within just a few years, Brian Pillman's aerial skills got him noticed in America and he signed a contract with WCW in 1989. During his nearly seven year run in the Turner organization, Brian Pillman was a true innovator in many different aspect of the sport. More specifically, his matches with Japanese legend, Jushin "Thunder" Liger in the early 90s put a foundation and blue print in place for the cruiser weight division that would become one of the highlights of WCW programming a few years later. Pillman was actually the first WCW Light Heavyweight champion, which was a short lived belt, but it was essentially the predecessor to the cruiser weight  title. Pillman brought a style that was rarely seen on TV in the United States and was a pioneer of the American cruiser weight style. His career continued to evolve when the Hollywood Blondes were formed in 1993, and they had a great series of matches with Ricky Steamboat and Shane Douglas. "Stunning" Steve Austin and "Flying" Brian Pillman were poised to become the top team in WCW, but the political climate within the organization saw the conclusion of the duo less than a year after their rise within the ranks. In my opinion, if the Holly Woods Blondes had remained a team for a few more years, they would have probably been mentioned on the same tier as many of the top tag teams in history, but they just didn't get the chance to truly establish themselves as a team.

As his WCW career progressed, Pillman resumed his classic series of matches with Jushin Liger, including the first match in the history of Monday Nitro when the show debuted in 1995. During a brief stint as a member of the four horsemen, he began to evolve his character to an unpredictable and unstable competitor. Pillman took it a step further and didn't break character even when he was backstage, leading to speculation among insiders in the business that he might be legitimately crazy. In reality, Brian Pillman was an incredibly smart businessman, as only his closest friends in the sport knew he was just trying to make his new "loose cannon" persona as believable as possible and in the process, he became a priority for all three major companies to sign just months before his WCW deal was set to expire. Basically, Pillman was maximizing his earning potential and his PPV bout with Kevin Sullivan enhanced it. Originally booked as a "respect match," Pillman grabbed the mic after a brief scuffle with Sullivan in the ring and said, "I respect you, booker man!" before he exited the ring during the live show. His reference to Kevin Sullivan's work behind the scenes as the booker of WCW became the talk of the industry and being one of the smartest minds in the industry, Sullivan knew the worked shoot would increase Pillman's value before his deal with WCW concluded. At the time, many WCW officials were unaware of the plan that Pillman and Sullivan had prior to the match, and they thought Pillman legitimately left during the pay-per-view.

Following his departure from WCW, Brian Pillman made a surprise debut at the ECW arena that would launch of series of "shoot promos," which continued to enhance his loose cannon character. At the time, he was expected to sign a contract with the WWF, but in April 1996 he was involved in a very serious car accident. Pillman was in a coma for a week, his ankle was shattered, and his wrestling career was in doubt. However, he showed the same tenacity he displayed his entire life when he recovered enough to return to the wrestling spotlight, even returning to ECW on crutches to continue his tirade toward WCW on the mic. Keep in mind, Pillman was cutting "shoot promos" before the business was completely exposed as entertainment and in many respects, the loose cannon persona was revolutionary.  A few month later while he was still recovering from ankle fusion surgery, Brian Pillman signed with the WWF and worked as a commentator until he returned to the ring. Sadly, Pillman was never the same after the car accident and his close friend, the legendary Jim Ross speculated on the Pillman DVD release that he died from the sadness of not being able to perform in the squared circle the way he had previously. However, when Pillman started wrestling again, he joined the Hart Foundation, using his history with the Hart family for the storyline. It's interesting to note that Brian Pillman is the only competitor to be a member of the Four Horsemen and the Hart Foundation, two of the most legendary stables in the history of pro wrestling. He was also involved in the infamous gun angle on Raw that many viewers thought was real because of how it was portrayed and it's a segment that's still talked about today. Prior to his death, Pillman had a memorable feud with Goldust and it was the last major storyline of his career. Despite the initial speculation of an accidental overdose from the medication for his ankle injury, an autopsy later revealed that an diagnosed heart condition caused a heart attack.

Brian Pillman defied the odds and endured many surgeries to  combat polyps during his early years. He had the determination to play pro football and won the admiration of his teammates through the Ed Block award. He started in the wrestling business when light heavyweight wrestling was rarely seen and he was offered a contact with a major organization within just a few years. His athletic and aerial style helped solidify the foundation of much of the high flying wrestling that is seen today. Before CM Punk dropped a pipe bomb, Brain Pillman was cutting a promo on the booker man that even had those in the business guessing as to the reality of the situation and there wouldn't be a "lunatic fringe" without the loose cannon. Pillman was ahead of his time in many aspects and sadly, he probably won't be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame because of the circumstances of his death, but he's undoubtedly an under rated legend.

Will Jon Jones return to the UFC?

"The saddest thing in life is wasted talent," a memorable line from the 1993 film, "A Bronx's Tale" was delivered by Robert DeNiro, playing the role of the father of a rambunctious youth, as he advises his son that one mistake can be a turning point. This past Tuesday, the decision in a New Mexico court room could be a turning point for Jon Jones, as he avoided potential jail time in exchange for a plea bargain and if he adheres to the terms of the deal, will also avoid a felony on his record. Obviously, Jones has the money to get himself a top notch legal team, which was probably the key to him staying out of jail and presumably getting back toward reestablishing his career.

However, the hit and run incident this past April was only the most serious, not the most recent in a string of controversies that have surrounded the young prodigy since he captured the UFC Light Heavyweight title in 2011. The traffic case that landed the former 205 LBS champion in court alleges that Jones ran a red light and hit another car, which injured a pregnant motorist. She suffered a broken wrist, but thankfully, the pregnancy was unharmed. Jones fled the scene before returning to his car to grab cash and then fled again, which an off duty police officer witnessed, allowing him to identify Jones as the suspect. Documentation identifying Jones and drug paraphernalia were found in the car, which prompted a warrant to be issued for him. Eventually, Jones turned himself into police and was subsequently stripped of the UFC Light Heavyweight title as well as dropped from sponsorship deals.

As I said, the car accident was only the most serious, not the most recent incident for the talented fighter. Less than a month after successfully defending the title against Rashad Evans in 2012, Jones crashed into a pole and was arrested for DUI. Just a few months later, an injury forced Dan Henderson to withdraw from a scheduled title fight and Chael Sonnen was chosen as a last minute replacement, but Jones declined the fight, which prompted the event to be cancelled. It's certainly ironic that Jones declined the fight when it was former champion, Shogun Rua accepting to fight Jones as a late minute replacement that gave him the title shot that led to him winning the championship. "Bones" Jones continued to defend the belt and it seems as though he developed a brash attitude as his accomplishments accumulated. In 2014, he made headlines again when screen shots of an Instagram post surfaced that showed Jones using offensive slurs towards fans, but he claimed his account was hacked. Later that year, during the promotional tour for UFC 178, Jones was involved in a brawl with challenger Daniel Cormier and it resulted in a fine from the Nevada State Athletic commission. Following a successful title defense against Corimer earlier this year, it was announced that Jones tested positive for cocaine during an out of competition test. Since he only failed the out of competition test, there was nothing to prevent him from fighting at UFC 182 and it makes the entire out of competition test seem pointless, but the UFC fined him $25,000 for violating the fighter conduct policy. After the failed test, Jones went to rehab and left the next day so it seems doubtful he got any real help there.

Obviously, there's a pattern here and it seems clear that Jon Jones is a classic case of fame inflating his ego. The once humble prospect has been replaced by an arrogant narcissist that assumes the rules don't apply to him. Jon Jones, the fighter that chased down a purse thief just hours before fighting for the Light Heavyweight title in 2011, fled the scene of an accident that injured someone in 2015. However, before the laundry list of legal problems and the series of events that soured many fans on him, "Bones" was considered by many to be potentially the best pound-for-pound MMA fighter in the world and the heir to the throne as the UFC's next top star, previously held by former Middleweight champion, Anderson Silva. Ultimately, that's the most disappointing aspect of the whole situation, Jon Jones is without question one of the most talented fighters in the history of the sport and instead of proving his dominance as a fighter and setting records, he's spending some of the prime of his career in a court room because of his own dumb decisions. At 21-1, his only loss a DQ on a technicality from elbow strikes, Jones has the ability to build a legacy, but at this point, it could be argued that his mishaps outside of the cage have somewhat overshadowed his accomplishments in the sport. Hopefully, Jon Jones takes the court decision as an opportunity and he puts his athletic ability toward his career as a martial artist because he certainly has the skills to become a legend in the sport. It would be extremely disappointing if Jones doesn't realize the opportunity he has in mixed martial arts because the saddest thing in life really is wasted talent.

The Return of Fedor Emelianenko

In 2007, a Yakuza scandal led to the demise of Pride Fighting Championship and thus the end of a decade of influential mixed martial arts events. There were rumblings of organized crime involvement as early as 2003 when the original president of the organization, Naoto Morishita committed suicide, rumored to motivated by his debts. Pride co-founder, Nobuyuki Sakakibara became the president of Dream Stage Entertainment, the promotional company for Pride FC and the organization flourished, setting an attendance record for the "Final Conflict" event later that year. Names such as Fedor, Crocop, Nogueira, and others were involved in epic battles that made them legends in the sport. Just a few years later, Japanese media reports of the Yakuza involvement prompted Pride's television deal to get dropped and the domino effect began towards the collapse of the company. Sakakibara saw the writing on the wall and a deal was in place to sell the organization to owners of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. While it was initially planned to keep Pride open as its own entity, the Zuffa corporation's attempt to expand into Japan on a full time basis was met with political red tape and the Pride FC organization officially folded in October 2007.

Last weekend during the Bellator Dynamite event that featured a co-promoted show with Glory Kick Boxing, similar to the Pride/K1 events, there were certainly reminders of Pride FC throughout the night. The popular Lenne Hardt brought her unique ring announcing style to the show and the legendary Sakuraba was shown in attendance. Amid speculation of some type of announcement about an event in Japan, it just seemed too coincidental and that proved to be the case. Prior to the main event,  Sakakibara made an appearance to announce a working agreement with Bellator for a new promotion that he was launching in Japan and the inaugural event would be broadcast live on Spike TV on new year's eve. It was then revealed that the legendary Fedor Emelianenko has signed to fight in the main event of the historic show and there was a buzz among MMA fans about The Last Emperor's return to the sport. A live American broadcast of the Japanese tradition of the new year's eve show is great for the sport of MMA, but several questions still remain about the entire situation.

First, will Sakakibara be able to recreate Pride? The Pride Fighting Championship brand established itself as unique because of the different rules, production, and match ups than the UFC. Arguably, there was a time when Pride was the better organization, in terms of quality fights, but can that type of organization be promoted again in Japan? On the surface, the answer is no because Zuffa acquired the rights to the Pride name and video library when it purchased the company for a reported $60 million eight years ago, but will the draw of a Pride inspired organization get off the ground? In my opinion and this is more of a guess than anything, I would have to say that while the initial event could make a splash, I don't think there will be another resurgence of Pride FC in Japan. The main reason being it would be difficult to recapture the Pride environment because many of the stars that built the promotion are past their prime or retired. Another aspect to consider is, will the Japan public support  Sakakibara's company after the Yakuza scandal? While his involvement wasn't ever completely clarified, the stain of the scandal could still be upon him and the downfall of Japan's top mixed martial arts company happened on his watch. Granted, time has passed, but it will be interesting to see the perception of his new venture, specifically on a long term basis. Keep in mind, the Dream promotion was supposed to revive the Pride style, but folded within a few years so success isn't guaranteed for  Sakakibara in 2015. Regardless, it should be very interesting to see who is signed to fight for the event and at the very least, it provides a unique broadcast on Spike TV for MMA fans.

Regarded by many as the greatest MMA fighter of all time, Fedor Emelianenko originally announced his intention to return to MMA a few months ago and since then, there was much speculation about where he would sign. Truthfully, I assumed he would fight in Russia for a promotion that most people hadn't heard of against an opponent that less people had heard of so I was surprised when he appeared during the Bellator event. Many MMA fans are assuming the announcement to fight in Japan closes the door on Fedor fighting for the UFC, but I don't think that's necessarily the case. While it hasn't been confirmed, it's rumored that Fedor only signed a 1-2 fight deal with Sakakibara's promotion and if that's the case, a potential UFC deal could still be a possibility. In fact, the Japanese deal could be a way for Fedor to test the waters or be considered a tune up fight to determine if he could still be competitive with the level of UFC competition. That being said, I've always found it to be a conflict that Fedor's manager is also the president of M-1 Global and that if a UFC deal was put in place,  Vadim Finkelchtein would essentially sign his top star to the competition. I'm just guessing here, but Fedor doesn't seem to be too concerned with compensation at this point in his career and his humble background probably allows him to security from the money he made during the prime of his career so I think Finkelchtein was more of an obstacle than anything in the Fedor/UFC negotiations from years previously. However, Finkelchtein is no longer Fedor's manager so it at least seems possible that some type of UFC deal could be done before he retires. Regardless of what happens in the future, it's great to see Fedor return to the sport and it will be interesting to see if the return leads to another run in his career.

Will Sting win the WWE title?

This Sunday at the Night of Champions pay-per-view, Seth Rollins will defend the WWE championship against Sting and it creates a very intriguing scenario, which will help boost subscriptions for the network, as another free month is offered to get as many fans to sign up as possible. The obvious question is, will Sting win the title to make history? The concern, especially for long time fans is, will this be another shot at WCW and Sting goes 0-2 in his WWE run, suggesting that WCW's franchise just isn't on the WWE level?

In hindsight, it's somewhat understandable that the WWE brass and performers weren't exactly thrilled or enthusiastic about bringing several WCW stars, many of whom were a part of the effort to put them out of business, onto the WWE scene in 2001. Even though many of WCW's top stars had guaranteed contracts from the Turner company and were going to stay home to collect them, it's almost unanimously thought that the WWE could have done more with the Invasion angle. Essentially, WCW was beaten into powder and made to look completely inferior, and if a former WCW star had any major success, it was after they were given a WWE created gimmick, most notably when Booker T was repackaged as King Booker during his main event run in 2006. Regardless of the somewhat  understandable resentment of WCW after the Monday night wars, the general consensus is that it was the wrong decision to minimize many performers that could've had a better run in the WWE, but weren't given a chance to establish themselves on WWE TV. Mike Awesome is a prime example of a competitor that WWE could have pushed and developed into a well rounded talent with a fresh start after WCW gave him a goofy gimmick that halted the momentum he had as a monster in ECW. Reportedly, a time slot for WCW to remain its own product under WWE ownership, but after the train wreck of Buff Bagwell vs. Booker T on Raw, the spot was used for the "WWF Excess" show, which the WWE probably still doesn't know exactly what it was supposed to be. Hypothetically, if WCW was given it's own show until the main event stars were signed, it could've provided the platform for an invasion angle that was used to push the "super bowl of wrestling" angle that many fans were hoping to see after WCW was purchased, but as mentioned, WCW was squashed within a few months.

There's also a WWE  spin on most of the documentaries released, including the Monday Night War series that was aired on the WWE Network and again, it downplayed most of WCW's success. The WWE narrative is that WCW was successful because the company "raided" stars that WWE created, but if you take a more objective look at it, there's more to it than former WCW president, Eric Bischoff using Ted Turner's check book to buy WWE stars. Hulk Hogan was the initial major Turner acquisition, but after the steroid scandal of the early 1990s, did Hogan really have a place in the WWE? Hulk got a fresh run in WCW and while his political power was one of the many reasons the promotion closed, it allowed him a heel run that wouldn't have worked in the WWE in 1996. Randy Savage was similar in that he didn't really have a place in the WWE in the early 90s and Vince McMahon actually wanted Savage retire from the ring, instead working as just a commentator. While Savage wasn't exactly in the prime of his career, he had another run in the Turner organization and proved he was still a solid in ring performer. It's well documented that the wrestling business was in a slump after the steroid scandal and one of the ways that Vince rebuilt the image of the company was to showcase a new generation of stars, including Bret Hart and Shawn Micheals so did WCW really raid the WWE roster or did the events of the 90s allow Eric Bischoff to sign free agents? Even Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, who were top WWE stars at the time they left for WCW, were in somewhat cartoonish angles during their original WWE run. The Outsiders were more successful than Diesel and Razor Ramon would have been if they remained on the WWE roster, specifically because the NWO gave wrestling a boost. Another example of the WWE spin is that Bischoff took the luchadors from ECW, but international talent was booked in WCW prior to ECW's existence and WCW provided more of a platform for the lucha libre style. Granted, WCW didn't use the luchadors to their full potential, but that's one of the well known reasons, the promotion couldn't compete on a long term basis. The bottom line is, WCW didn't win the ratings war for a year and half because it raided other companies. They won the ratings war because they had a better show and the competition generated one of the boom periods of the wrestling industry.

Don't get me wrong, the Turner company made many mistakes and that's why it shut down, but the ridiculous mistakes that led to the demise of WCW could be seen without the WWE spin. Ted Turner owned the organization for twelve years and it was profitable for about two years so in the big picture, WCW had success and didn't know how to build on it. Goldberg was the only major star that was a homegrown WCW talent and despite an entire roster of young talent that could've been used to build the company, the politics of the company kept the aging talent in the main event scene. Once the WCW product became stale, the audience changed the channel and the WWE took the lead. Again, anyone that watches some of the Vince Russo booking of WCW knows that the product was inferior to the competition without the WWE trying to completely bury the entire organization. It should be noted that despite the goofy booking, there was a lot of solid talent on the WCW roster before the promotion folded so it doesn't make sense to bury the entire company. The point being, the WWE was a better company from a talent, business, and production aspect, but burying WCW could indirectly limit the revenue the brand could generate for DVDs etc.

That is what creates the question about the chance that Sting wins the title at the pay-per-view and if he doesn't, what's the point of his WWE run? He did the job at Wrestlemania and if he loses again, what did he really accomplish in the WWE? I think Sting should win the title because it would be be a rare opportunity for wrestling history and it's one of the few things he hasn't done in his career. That being said, if Sting wins the title it should be a short run because of his age and he probably didn't sign to work many matches. Since his age, some might suggest that it wouldn't make sense for Sting to defeat the younger champion because Seth Rollins is at the prime of his career, but it's pro wrestling and if it's done right, it could work. Sting could win the title and Sheamus cashes in the money in the bank or it could build to a rematch with Rollins, which could get more mileage for the title run. Either way, it should be interesting to see what happens because the result of the title match will be another jab at WCW or there will be wrestling history.