Summer Slam review

There was a lot of speculation about what Summer Slam would be as it was the first WWE pay-per-view in the post-Vince McMahon era of the organization, and some wondered if it would attempt to use the platform of a stadium show in Nashville to launch a new chapter for the company. Depending on your perspective, the answer might be yes, but there are also questions about what's on the agenda in the future, particularly who are the next generation of stars to draw big money for the company?

With as much flak as management rightfully gets at times, you still can't deny the strength of the WWE brand, even in the rather sluggish modern era. Sure, it's considered a fly-in event for the most diehard fans of the product, but the bottom line is, a packaged stadium is an impressive visual, which almost underscores that regardless of the apparent lack of the next generation of talent that will draw for the promotion, the company is doing very well financially.

The show opened with Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch and while I get the logic of a major match to jump start the event, I was still surprised that this wasn't in the co-main event spot on the card. Say what you want about the rest of the product or the women's tag titles ending up in the witness protection program, the women's division as a whole, both in terms of star power and in-ring quality, might be the most solid aspect of the company. Bianca is a star, and while I didn't agree with the goofy space cadet presentation of Becky in recent months, her ability and star power is undeniable on the big stage. As you'd expect, this was quality bell-to-bell and had the crowd invested in the narrative of the match as the action went back and fourth between the two competitors. Bianca retained, which was a good decision because Lynch has reached a level that she's always going to be over and isn't going to get more over than she already is, which is meant as a compliment. Bianca continuing her reign as champion further cements her status, something that we know is important since we've seen how some wrestlers can lose momentum when management changes course too quickly during a storyline. The return of Bayley with the debuts on the main roster of Dakota Kai and Io Sky took place during the post-match segment. Obviously, it's great to see Bayley back after she was on the shelf for several months with an injury. I've said it before and I will say it again, despite some of the previous booking fumbles with Bayley, and taking into account the heel work she did before the injury, make no mistake about it, she's as valuable to the company as anyone on the roster. Bianca vs. Bayley could be a tremendous feud for the championship. Dakota was released a few months ago so it was definitely a surprise to see her back in the fold, but it's without question a good addition to the division. As I said when she was released, injuries derailed much of her momentum in NXT, and it's rather tough for management to invest too much into a talent that might be injury prone, but hopefully, this can be a fresh start since she has the skills to be successful. I was also surprised to see Io on the main roster since I assumed that she would continue to flounder in NXT. One of the many downsides of NXT 2.0 using such an inexperienced roster is that a quality talent like Io is often used to boost the show, which is probably the same reason that Roderick Strong is still on the program. There was speculation that Io was considering her options to leave the company after her current contract expires, which makes sense because she would truly be wasting the prime of her career competing on a secondary brand. She's one of the best in-ring talents in the company and has the potential to be a true star on the main roster so this was a wise decision to move her to Raw.

I'm still not going to discuss any match that involved Logan Paul. Next.

One of the questions that was discussed ahead of Summer Slam was, would this be a coronation for Theory? The chatter was based on the fact that Theory was a Vince McMahon project so would the new regime really want to go all the way with him as the next top guy? I penned an article about this a few days ago, mentioning that I don't see the hype around Theory, but how he was used on Summer Slam might be the way to gauge how much faith the Triple H regime had in his potential as a big star. When Theory was beaten by Lashley in just a few minutes, not a terrible match, but nothing too spectacular about it either, I assumed it was a rehash of the trope from the WWE playbook where someone loses earlier in the night to attempt to make it more of a surprise when they cash-in later. As we saw in the main event, that wasn't the case and all things considered, Theory was a complete afterthought during the main event segment. Unless, there's something stellar in the works for him to end up in a brighter spot, the booking of Theory on this show might indicate that he's not destined for the title.

The Mysterios vs. Judgment Day was fine, and it was clear that the return of Edge was the bigger story of the segment. Rey proved he can still go, but I'm not sure the victory does much to establish Dominik, mostly because of the previously mentioned Edge return. Speaking of Edge, the presentation looked great, and after he was booked completely flat, this might give him a fresh start. Don't get me wrong, we know Edge is a star and has an accomplished career behind him, but after the comeback, his character coasted a lot on the "welcome back" aspect of his return without much progress for his character. When his persona got stable, the Judgment Day heel turn gave him something to use to add a new chapter to his career. As I said at the time, the Judgment Day faction kicking Edge out just two months after he turned heel put him in a place where he couldn't be a baby face because he just blamed the fans for everything during promos, and obviously he couldn't be an effective heel after he was rejected from the stable. From purely a character perspective, the scripting of Edge's character completely neutralized any effectiveness it might've had at the time. Hopefully, the new presentation and a clear path to feud with the new members of the Judgment Day will give Edge's character a meaningful angle on television. Obviously, the follow-up is key, but as of right now, this is probably the best chance Edge has had to progress on the shows in several months.

Truthfully, Pat McAfee isn't my cup of tea. However, you can't deny his ability and the way he can entertain an audience. His bout with Happy Corbin was very entertaining and proved that outside of the silly gimmick, Corbin can go in the ring. McAfee initially trained under Rip Rogers so he doesn't work like a clone on the WWE Performance Center assembly line, which is a good thing for his in-ring work. MacAfee looks much more natural in the ring than someone of his experience level and brings more to the table than most of the NXT 2.0 competitors. I'm not sure his matches would have the same impact if he was a full-time wrestler, but that doesn't matter because as we know, pro wrestling is about the moments, and MacAfee has managed to create moments more often than not when he competes in the ring.  MacAfee gets the win and as far as the entertainment aspect of the business, he's one of the most valuable commodities in the company.

The Usos retained when they defeated The Street Profits. This was a solid match, but it was more or less the same bout you've seen before so there's not much new to discuss, especially when the result was obvious since it makes sense for The Usos to remain the tag champions as a part of the Blood Line storyline.

Liv Morgan retained the Smackdown Women's title in a disputed finish in just a few minutes so there wasn't much to the actual match. I get that WWE brass wants to portray Liv as the underdog, but she literally tapped out and only kept the title because the referee botched the decision. At some point, you have to establish Morgan as a credible champion if you want the title reign to elevate her star power. The way the segment was booked, she is literally an unworthy champion. The real-life competitor is much more talented than that and has more potential then that so I think the scripting of this match completely missed the mark. I'm not sure Ronda's perceived star power was worth protecting in that fashion, and the novelty of her pseudo MMA style has more or less worn off. The contest was clunky and the Rousey heel turn got a rather mediocre reaction from the crowd.

As I wrote about in an article last week, the Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns match was completely recycled and was booked for Summer Slam because the company didn't have any other options to promote for another stadium show. It was fairly obvious that the only question was if Theory would cash-in to win the championship and when that didn't happen, it was fairly obvious that Reigns would retain it. That said, this main event was wild and entertaining. It took the sports entertainment approach, which is fine because that's the only way that this bout could offer something different than what the audience already watched during the many previous matches. At the same time, it took Lesnar almost tipping over the ring with a tractor to accomplish that so let's hope this is actually the final Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns match on pay-per-view.

What's the status of Theory?

This weekend, the same time period of Ric Flair's supposedly "last match" in the same city, Summer Slam will be held in a stadium in Nashville, TN. It's somewhat ironic that on the weekend of Flair so-called final bout, the "Triple H era" so to speak will kickoff with its first pay-per-view in the post-McMahon phase of the WWE. Granted, this must be taken with a grain of salt, as is the case with most internet speculation, but there are reports that even management isn't too thrilled with the current line-up for Summer Slam.

Throughout the history of the industry, stadium shows were often considered the biggest events possible, not merely based on the size of the venue, but the fact that the main event had to be a major deal for promoters to even attempt to book a stadium for it. If the venture was successful, sometimes certain stadium shows became an annual tradition, and sometimes the results varied.

While, it's a much safer business decision now because the brand of the event sells tickets more than the actual card, you might've heard the phrase, "A stadium that needed a show instead of a show that needed a stadium." Unfortunately, that might be an accurate way to describe Summer Slam and could be a motivating factor for the new regime to shuffle the deck to create some buzz going forward.

That said, even with the move to TV-14, and something that was a main point of discussion directly after the McMahon retirement announcement, there won't be radical changes to the product anytime soon. Realistically, there shouldn't be earth-shattering changes made anyway. Right now, the WWE, regardless of the McMahon scandal, have record-setting revenue guaranteed based on their TV contracts and the Peacock deal alone. Ticket sales, merchandise, ad revenue, and sponsorships are all just icing on the cake. 

Why exactly would management want to change that?

However, the structure of the program might shift before there's a major change in the presentation. Sure, Roman Reigns is rightfully the top guy, but for the past several years, particularly based on the McMahon philosophy, stars from the past were brought in to move the needle because the vast majority of the current roster aren't considered money-drawing stars by the general public. Steve Austin, at 57, had to be brought back after 19 years of retirement to ensure there was a big house for Wrestlemania this year. Brock vs. Roman, a completely recycled feud, was a part of the WWE playbook for the past seven years. Would there really be another Reigns vs. Lesnar main event if the company truly had anything else they thought could sell enough tickets to a stadium? Keep in mind, if Brock would've walked from Smackdown, 55-year-old Bill Goldberg was rumored to be the contingency plan.

The door is at least open for Summer Slam to usher in a youth movement for the next chapter of the company. It was a McMahon project, but most of the "selling point" if you want to call it that, of Summer Slam was the question of if Theory would cash-in the MITB contract to win the WWE championship after the Brock/Roman last man standing bout. At this point, they've hammered the notion so often on television leading up to the show, management has almost booked itself into a corner that it has to deliver on at least a cash-in attempt. If Theory is the guy and management believes that he truly has the potential to be a needle mover in the future then they should go with him all the way. Too often over the past several years, we've seen memorable title wins that fizzle out during a relatively short title reign because management shifts course before a talent can be firmly established in the main event scene. Big E has all the skills to be a main stream draw, but he held the title for just three months until Lesnar won the belt again, and Big E was moved back to the mid card before he suffered the neck injury.

If WWE brass believes that Theory is the next big star then Summer Slam is the chance for the organization to propel him to that spot with a memorable moment of winning the title as the show goes off the air. The opportunity is there, and the need for new blood is apparent by the fact that the exact same match that was booked for Wrestlemania this year is also booked for Summer Slam. Literally, where's the progress of the company?

That being said, while Theory is a great athlete, I don't see the hype about him. I'm not saying he's an awful performer, but without the McMahon endorsement on-screen, an angle that often made him look like a dork when it started, he could just as easily be a forgotten competitor on 205 Live when the show existed. My picks for the future of the company are rather simple and aren't necessarily the complete picture, but those to build around since we know that an over main event star can have a ripple effect through the rest of the product. Bron Breakker should be the next top guy for the WWE, period. There's only one Kurt Angle, but Breakker is in the conversation in terms of someone that naturally picked up the ability to be a top notch sports entertainer. With a similar athletic background, it goes without saying that Bron vs. Brock at Wrestlemania next year for Lesnar to "pass the torch" so to speak to Breakker would be a wise strategy. In many ways, Breakker is just spinning his wheels in NXT 2.0 because the show itself is minor league by definition, but you also have to wait for the current storylines to play out so there's a natural introduction for him on the main roster. Cody Rhodes is on the shelf, but when he returns next year, he should win the Rumble to eventual capture the title at Wrestlemania. Roman is doing the best work of his career right now and it's still not a stale act so go with him until there's someone truly over enough to unseat him as champion. Cody winning the title in honor of his dad is a story that writes itself.

Still, Theory is the performer that has the angle that has the opportunity to push him toward the title. Some aren't sold on him as a main event star, but if he fails during the cash-in then it's almost a flat moment so at the very least, it will be intriguing to see how much stock the Triple H regime puts into the Theory experiment. One thing is for sure, with a rather bland card and a recycled main event for Summer Slam, the new era of the WWE must attempt to truly make some new stars that can draw money in the future.

What's the status of Ricky Starks?

With so many of the AEW stars still on the sidelines or some simply dealing with injuries so they are working lighter schedules at the moment, it's imperative that All Elite Wrestling look to add depth with the elevation of some of its other young stars. Don't get me wrong, I hope Bryan Danielson wrestles until he's 75, but in case that doesn't happen, there must be the next crop of talent that will move into those money-drawing spots. Keep in mind, this isn't simply wrestlers that are good to have on the card, which is also very important since some mid-card guys have good careers in that role, but rather the talent that will be the reason that fans discuss to invest their money into the product through tickets and pay-per-view orders.

There are some great in-ring talents throughout the history of the business that had great runs in the mid-card, such as someone like D-Lo Brown, but All Elite Wrestling might've found its next generation of money-drawing stars during a segment on this week's episode of Dynamite.

By nature, All Elite has to build for the future because the company only has three years behind it. Chris Jericho will go down with a legacy uniquely his own, and while anything is possible, even Y2J might eventually hang up the boots so it's doubtful that he will be an in-ring wrestler ten years from now. The same can be said for Danielson and CM Punk, the two biggest stars on the roster right now. That's completely fine because the opportunity is there for both of those guys to add this chapter in their career and the company benefits from it so it's a win-win situation.

That being said, we're talking about the future and the prospects that might have the potential to be in those same spots a few years down the road.

As much as the All Elite product rightfully gets criticized for some of its scattered booking and mistimed segments, the FTW title match and the Ricky Starks promo that followed were a home run, giving a peak at the potential depth of the roster. Granted, as we've discussed several times, there are definitely too many wrestlers on the roster and a lot of them get lost in the shuffle, but the trio of Hook, Hobbs, and Starks elevated themselves ahead of the pack with their work this past week on Dynamite.

It's important to point out that while AEW has a roster of very talented in-ring competitors, there's a difference between being really good at the moves and being over with the crowd. Several talents on AEW programming can dive from the top rope, but those that make the biggest impact are the wrestlers that the audiences wants to see when they dive from the top. Ultimately, drawing money is more about the individual characters than the moves.

This is why the previously mentioned Hook, Hobbs, and Starks all shined in their segment this week. Hook, based on the trendy hair style, persona, and music has organically gotten over with the audience. He has the ingredients to stand out and seems to have the in-ring ability to be more than just the entrance. Showcasing him in small samples is a wise decision because it can maximize his presentation without exposing any of the weakness of his lack of experience. Plus, limited exposure preserves the aura he has with the unique presentation. Hook is only 23 years old so there's no reason to rush anything either. Obviously, it made sense for him to win his dad's former championship, and the reaction of the win made him look like a star. Again with the linage of his dad, Hook as a character can evolve through the defenses of the title. That doesn't mean that it will automatically propel him to the main event, but again, he's 23 so it makes sense to give him a few years to continue to develop as a performer.

Ricky Starks is a classic example of a competitor that was so entertaining as a heel that he got over as a baby face. While characters are ultimately more important than the moves, make no mistake about it, one of the things that sets AEW a part from the competition is that it often sells work rate to its audience, which is fine. Starks can go in the ring and has the ability to keep pace with anyone on the roster. You can see based on his in-ring work that Starks is a versatile performer that can work with any style of opponent. The emotional post-match interview that Starks did was a way for him to turn baby face, as it proclaimed his efforts to make the FTW championship more than a novelty title, and when one of the promotion's main selling points is work rate, it's easy for the audience to appreciate that effort. If the FTW belt is anything more than a novelty is irrelevant, it helped Starks get over with the audience and will probably do the same thing for Hook in terms of the storylines.

Ricky Starks was presented as the baby face that put forward his best effort to attempt to excel in the wrestling business. That's why Hobbs' vicious strike to the face was so effective. Hobbs hit someone with a cheap shot from behind after they were exhausted from a prior match. Hobbs was a shady snake that couldn't be trusted by one of his friends. There's nothing deep about it, it's very simple aspects of very simple storytelling that were extremely effective because it's based on human psychology. It should also be mentioned that the segment maximized the brutal strike because Hobbs hit Starks once and then peered at him to let the moment get the most reaction possible. Again, it's simple, but very effective.

Granted, a lot remains to be seen how either of them progress in All Elite. Maybe in a few years one or both of them get a big money offer from WWE and this discussion is moot, but assuming these two remain a part of All Elite, I think it's very fair to say that Tony Khan has two possible main event stars in the future. At 31 and 32 respectively, Hobbs and Starks are theoretically only now at the start of the prime of their careers. Starks proved that he can get over with the audience as a fiery baby face, and Hobbs has all the tools to be a main event level heel. It's not apples to apples, but as a direct example, the talent that gets over the most with the audience are those that can organically connect with the fans. CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, Steve Austin, Mick Foley, and John Cena became money-drawing stars because the audience connected with their characters.The reaction that Starks received during the promo, and the response that Hobbs' sneak attack garnered are proof that they have potential to make a difference in AEW in the future.

VHS Memoirs Volume 27

As most of the country continues to struggle with the current heatwave, I decided to review Beach Blast 1993 for this week's edition of the VHS Memoirs. I discussed the 1992 version of the event last week, which featured changed implemented during the takeover of Bill Watts, the former Mid-south promoter that had just an eight-month stint as the WCW booker. The result, as was the case for much of 1993 and even into 1994, was that the promoter continued to lack a clear direction. While Eric Bischoff rightfully has his share of critics, the almost unanimous notion is that at least he had a specific path that he wanted to take the promotion, even if it took several months for him to take steps in that direction. While Bischoff was still just an second-tier announcer in 1993, this pay-per-view reflects the lack of direction for the product, both in its booking and presentation. I know I've said this a lot about this era of WCW pay-per-views, but it still amazes me that this event, much like Beach Blast the previous year and many of the shows of this period have very subpar lighting with minimal production value. The reason I'm still surprised by this is that when the company is owned by Turner, you'd think production value would be one of its strong suites, considering that's the entire presentation of a broadcast company. Ironically, Beach Blast 1993 itself doesn't get talked about much, but the mini-movie where a dwarf dressed as a pirate blows up a boat that was used to advertise it remains one of the more infamous segments in wrestling history.

The pay-per-view started with Paul Orndorff defending his Television title against Ron Simmons. As iconic as Simmons' world title win the prior year was, his status as an opening match wrestler for this event less than a year later shows the continuous change in direction that the company was known for in the early-90s. Orndorff, who was a guy that probably didn't get the credit he deserved because literally anyone would've been secondary to Hulk Hogan in the 80s in the WWF, had a solid run in WCW at this time, where he would later form a team with Paul Roma. As many know, "Mr. Wonderful" suffered a neck injury during his feud with Hogan in the WWF and opted not to get surgery to fix it since he would have to take time off from some of the best money events of his career so his arm atrophied to a smaller size than his other arm. That said, Orndorff could still go in the ring, and the match itself wasn't anything spectacular, but definitely solid since it used the classic baby face come back dynamic throughout the contest. Ron Simmons had great baby face fire in this segment, and just as Orndorff attempted to end the bout with the pile driver, Simmons coincidentally back dropped him over the top rope to counter the attempted finisher. This caused the unintentional DQ, which protected Simmons and gave the heel a way to escape with the title.

Next up was 2 Cold Scorpio and Marcus Alexander Bagwell vs Tex Slazenger and Shanghai Pierce. This was before Marcus was Buff or Tex and Shanghai were hog farmers so it's a neat retrospective. Bagwell trying to dance next to 2 Cold was very comical. This wasn't a segment that had a lot of star power involved, but this was a good tag match that helped pick up the pace of the card. As much as The Godwinns had a myriad of gimmicks throughout their careers, mostly because that was the way of the era in the sport, make no mistake about it, these big guys were very agile in the ring. That's some of the highlights of this contest, there are a lot of fast-paced sequences and crisp wrestling from both teams. At one point, the camera almost missed it, but 2 Cold ends up landing short on an assisted dive from Bagwell and lands awkwardly on the ramp Thankfully, Scorpio was okay and hit the 450 splash for the victory.

Steven Regal beat Erik Watts in about six minutes, and I'm sure Erik Watts tried his best in this bout, but this was literally Regal wrestling circles around him to make the match work. To be fair to Watts, his dad was the Cowboy and he was put in a very difficult situation with being booked for television without much experience. If this was anybody else other than Regal, I might call this match skippable, but it's worth watching just to see how the British grappler keeps the segment on the rails.

If you didn't get a snack and a Coca-Cola during the Watts exhibition, there's still time because you won't miss anything with the next contest. Maxx Payne previously blasted Johnny B. Badd in the face with one of his confetti cannons so Badd is wearing a pink mask to the ring, although it's not explained what exactly that was supposed to accomplish. The highlight of this entire clunky segment is that Maxx Payne appears to be actually playing his guitar on his way to the ring, which is more than can be said for Van Hammer. This went about four minutes before Badd got the win and it's best if we all move on with this review.

Thankfully, the card picked up for here when The Hollywood Blonds defended their Tag Team championships against the Four Horsemen combination of Arn Anderson and Paul Roma. Granted, Roma sounds in interviews like he thinks he was a much bigger star than he actually was, but the guy definitely had in-ring ability. This was the substance match to go with the sizzle of the main event. This was thirty minutes of back and fourth action that built to the conclusion. The crowd followed the drama as the momentum tilted toward each team throughout the match. It looks like Pillman's trunks might've been ripped at some point during the contest, but he was there for the conclusion when he nailed Roma with a clothesline behind the ref's back to allow Austin to get the roll up for the win to retain the belts. This is definitely a match to go out of your way to watch and it should be noted that despite being heels, the Blonds got a big reaction from the audience with some signs for them in the crowd.

I'm not sure if this was a coincidence or by design, but similar to the prior year, Rick Rude was booked in a thirty-minute iron man match, this time against Dustin Rhodes. The action was crisp and solid, with Rude being a total pro to make the younger baby face look good throughout the bout. Rude hits the Rude Awakening to take the lead with a pin fall at about the 15-minute mark so in that way the contest was almost divided into two parts, as Dustin tied it up with only a few minutes left before the eventual conclusion was a draw. The was quality wrestling, but I'm not sure two matches in a row that each went thirty minutes was the best way to pace the card.

While Vader was the WCW champion at the time, this was the almost bizarre time period where the NWA title was still used in the company, even though the initials were more or less phased out of the promotion. Barry Windham was the titleholder and was challenged by Flair, who returned to the Turner umbrella after a two-year stint in the WWF. The match was fine, but almost subpar by what you would expect from a Flair/Windham contest based on their previous bouts. It looked like the finish was botched when Flair applied the figure four and when Windham had his shoulders down, the ref counted three. Windham attempted to get his shoulders up and looked confused when the ref called for the bell. Even Flair looked a little surprised when the referee handed him the championship. The match ended after just 10 minutes and the finish was flat so there might've been some miscommunication at the conclusion.

The main event of Sting and Davey Boy Smith vs. Vader and Sting was decent. That being said, it was a basic tag match and was based more on the star power than the in-ring quality. There's not necessarily a lot to say about it either other than the novelty of watching British Bulldog in a WCW ring during an era that he was so closely associated with the WWF, including when he won the IC title in the main event of Summer Slam the previous year.

The career of Meg Fair

One of the benefits of higher education, at least we're told, is that it allows students exposure to new concepts and ideas. Hollywood had us believe that the late John Belushi had an extended college career that consisted of many adult beverages and toga parties.

For one of the Pittsburgh scene's fastest-rising personalities, Meg Fair didn't re-enact ancient Rome during their college years, but they were introduced to an "Animal House" of entertainment during their time at Ohio University. Meg didn't grow up a pro wrestling fan, as watching the over-the-top spectacle was forbidden in their house. In a true example of "only in pro wrestling" when Meg made their way to college, with the level of freedom that provides, a friend suggested they watch the original GLOW series on Youtube. The neon presentation of names like Tina Ferrari and Americana made an impression on them.

However, it wasn't until Meg saw a replay of the 1996 pay-per-view where Mankind literally buried his foe alive that they were truly bitten by the wrestling bug. Pro wrestling really is an animal house.

"Though some of GLOW has not aged well, I was obsessed with the camp of it. The next thing that got me hooked was seeing the first Buried Alive match. When the Undertaker’s hand shoots out of the ground and the lightning strikes, I was like, ‘This is so corny and magical, I’m in.’ I feel lucky because my intro to wrestling also came in 2014, and so NXT had a lot of really incredible women’s storylines that hooked me," Meg explained.

Despite the introduction to a new form of entertainment, Meg is no stranger to show business or the entertainment field. With a background in journalism, Fair has done everything from live stage performances on the drums to radio broadcast during their time at college, where they worked as the general manager of the school's station. Media and entertainment remains one of their passions, as their Patreon page offers a wide range of content for subscribers.

"Now I put out an episode every other week on Spotify. To build off of it, I started a Patreon where I write weekly newsletters, upload essays and film photographs, share seasonal playlists and so forth. It’s a nice way to share my interests and creativity with people while finding a way to cover some of the costs of film and printing," they commented.

The combination of their seasoned background and their discovery of sports entertainment made for a natural involvement in the sport. And, like most things in life, organic timing was the start of a journey that began to shape the direction of their life.

"I was going to wrestling shows, independent stuff around the city and NXT house shows, and a group of us often sat together and became friends. I knew a lot of those people through punk music, actually, so it just brought us closer together. Some of those folks are now the owners of Enjoy Wrestling. They approached me in late-2019, asking if I’d have an interest in doing backstage interviews, given my journalism experience. I was thrilled," Fair said enthusiastically.

Enjoy Wrestling, a progressive organization based in Pittsburgh, offers the steel city a diverse and unique blend of sports entertainment, which was a perfect fit for Fair. As we know, the entire world was shuttered in the midst of the COVID pandemic in mid-2020 so the Enjoy debut was postponed. However, the February 2021 tapings not only saw the product's debut in the world of pro wrestling, but also gave Meg their start in the industry that captured their attention years early on those GLOW programs.

"It was a closed set with no crowd, so it definitely was an unusual experience. I had no idea how to style myself or what my voice should sound like. Everyone was really kind and supportive, but when I go back and watch those episodes I can see how nervous and unsure of myself I am. I definitely hadn’t found my voice yet, so to speak," they explained

During Meg's time in college, they were exposed to the in-ring mayhem that eventually landed them inside the ring to hype the crowd for a packed venue. However, it was also a time of discovery for their own personal journey when they discovered that they were non-binary as a way to live a more authentic life.

"I had some serious, ‘I’m not like other girls!’ syndrome until high school. I think I started to have an awareness of what it meant to be nonbinary or exist outside of the gender binary when I got to college and started to meet lots of different kinds of people and read all sorts of literature. I think I came out as nonbinary in 2016, but recently, I’ve been referring to myself as trans more often than nonbinary. I’m not exactly sure why, but that’s what I feel drawn to," they commented. 

"I think that people maybe have a misconception that everyone experiences gender variations the same way, but that’s not true. It’s a unique and personal experience. I was fairly content to gender bend in makeup and fashion for many years until I became close friends with other trans people and saw the possibilities for myself. I’ve now been on HRT for almost 11 months and it has been truly the best thing I’ve ever done for myself. I’ve never felt so present in my body as I do now," Meg continued.

Still, Meg was a little unsure of themselves when they had the chance to open the show in front of a crowd of rowdy wrestling fans at Enjoy Wrestling's live debut in October of 2021.

"My leg was visibly shaking, I was so scared. I think that show gave me a taste of what I needed to be doing to really engage with the crowd," Fair said.

The diversity of professional wrestling and how it can unify those through their passion for the sport helped Meg not only showcase themselves, but find their voice so to speak on the platform that it provides. The acceptance and support of their announcing has given them a renewed sense of confidence.

"Since my voice has dropped and I feel more comfortable as me, I feel this confidence and self-assured that I didn’t have before. I feel really supported and encouraged to grow and push myself and be the best me I can be on the Enjoy team. It’s really something special. I think a huge reason why I’ve fallen in love with and stuck with professional wrestling is because of the people I’ve met through it. Interviewing EFFY in 2018 for the first time was this revelation, meeting another beautiful weirdo who knew you could really encourage exploration through the kind of theater that wrestling is. Having gotten to work with Edith Surreal and Veda Scott has been also amazing. I see this beautiful variety in expression and presentation and identity in professional wrestling," Meg said.

Aside from their work in Enjoy, Meg also announced for FEST Wrestling in Gainesville, Florida and looks to continue to add to their resume as they have truly become a part of the fabric of the progressive independent wrestling scene. Perhaps the biggest take away from their relatively new tenure in the sports entertainment world is that a combination of confidence, support, and talent allowed for one of the premiere voices on the indy circuit to emerge as Meg Fair showcases their skills.

"In the future, I’d definitely like to get into color commentary to push myself to learn something new. But truly any opportunity I get in this magical world of performance feels like a blessing, Meg concluded.

Ryse at Ringside 15

It was certainly a wild few weeks in the world of professional wrestling, but before Ryse returns for what should be another action-packed card in September, I'd like to take an opportunity to share something that was very special to me at the event in July. As you might've read in last month's edition of "Ryse at Ringside," the chance to call a Delirious match was an honor for me and saw things go full circle in some ways because the competitor that I saw tear the house down with Matt Sydal at a Norm Connors event in Monroeville in 2005 was now on a card that I got to do commentary for 17 years later.

As I tweeted at the time, Delirious is a true pro and one of the hidden gems of the wrestling business. I hope that the call that I provided lived up to what was a great moment, both for Ryse as a company and for Tony Johnson, who is really only now getting the credit he deserves for his skills as an athlete. If you haven't, make sure you check out the broadcast on indywrestling.us because our friends there do great production work.

However, there was another aspect of the July showcase that had an impact on me.

Some fans might not be aware, but there's a tremendous amount of work that goes into the Ryse events beyond just the two and a half hours of action for their entertainment. There are names and faces that you may not see or know that are critical to the final presentation at bell time. The ring crew is tightening the ropes, the staff is setting up tables, and Chris LeRusso is often darting around the venue to get everything organized. Brandon K is running sound checks, while Kristy is getting paper work signed. As cliche as it might sound, this exhaustive process is ultimately done for the fans. I can say without any doubt that the Ryse crew, regardless of the regime or any specific organizer, has always aimed to give the fans their money's worth.

That's the same reason I take my role as an announcer seriously, because of the respect I have for the performers that risk their bodies for the entertainment of the audience, and for the fans that paid to see the show. I detailed this in another edition of the column a while ago, but for years on the independent circuit, the bar was set very low for commentary. A promoter's brother's mailman would end up on the mic because commentary was deemed "just talking" and the result was often some yokel discussing his favorite record in 1994 instead of the action in the ring.

Thankfully, the improvements in technology that have allowed for the expanded distribution of independent wrestling has rid the commentary booths of some of those knuckleheads. It always meant a lot to me when wrestlers complimented my work because they knew that I put the action in the ring first. The fans that greet me at events are always very nice and their encouragement is always helpful.

I don't mention it too often in this column, other than briefly last year simply because it's not usually relevant to pro wrestling, but I have Spastic Cerebral Palsy, a muscle disorder.  As I mentioned before, pro wrestling has helped me deal with my disability in many ways, most of them would be too length to explain here, but the most direct way to describe it is that I've always had pro wrestling in my life, the same way I've always had Cerebral Palsy. My earliest memories are physical therapy when I was very young before I would get home to watch early editions of Monday Night Raw. As tacky as it might be, I tweeted a picture a while ago from Kindergarten in 1994, where "what I want to be when I grow up" was a sloppily drawn picture of little Jim in the trademark blue Hasbro ring. The fact that I had to use a walker to get into the building, didn't make a difference, I assumed I would just show up one day to be WWF champion.

This is why being involved in the wrestling business for the past 14 years continues to be special for me because it's something that I never truly thought was possible, especially as I got older. To have a role in the industry that people compliment me for, despite my disability, is something that I'm very thankful for. The friends I've made and the people I've met has been a wonderful experience, despite some of the antics of this crazy business.

This brings me to the event in July, as I was writing down a few late-minute notes before the music hit for showtime. As many fans know, I walk with a limp because of my disability and don't get me wrong, I'm just happy that I can walk, but at the same time, I'm also very self conscious about walking with a limp. You probably wouldn't believe the amount of times that random strangers have said something to me about the way I walk throughout my life. So, I generally always cringe when I'm going to walk in front of any group of people because I'm always thinking to myself "everyone sees the limp." This is one of the things that I told BC Steele just as the music began to play, "I'm going to feel terrible about how I walk until I get on the mic then it doesn't matter."

As Red Watson, Ty Cross, and I went through the curtain, the audience greeted up with a enthusiastic response. Granted, the audience pays to see the wrestlers, not us, but it was very nice that they gave up a polite reception. I walked along the left side of the ring, mostly because I have a tendency to lean to my left side anyway, and the fans said hello and exchanged high fives as I made my way to the announce desk. As I put the headset on and was ready to call the action for the night of the first-ever Ryse Rumble, something occurred to me, during the somewhat shaky walk to the table, I wasn't concerned about how I walk or who noticed it. It didn't matter because we were all there to watch some excellent pro wrestling from the Ryse roster. It's not often that I have the chance to get my mind off of my disability because every step I take is literally a reminder, but when I'm on the mic and the red light is on, my disability is completely secondary. Cerebral Palsy can't ruin how special pro wrestling is to me, and it didn't matter the night of the Ryse Rumble. Thanks to everyone that makes this sport so great and I'll see you all at the desk next time.

You can follow me on Twitter @jimlamotta

Vince McMahon retires

It's not often that I'm speechless, but less than an hour ago, the great Pat MacLaughlin sent me a link to an article about the announcement that WWE kingpin, Vince McMahon planned his retirement from his position within the company that he bought from his father before a national expansion almost forty years ago. The announcement wasn't necessarily too surprising so to speak, given the recent allegations against the emperor of sports entertainment, but somehow it's still shocking to consider that there will be a WWE without him.

I have a degree in Corporate Communications from PSUGA and have done work in a variety of roles within the field, including a radio division before the pandemic, but still as I write this, I'm almost speechless about McMahon's exit. I assumed Vince would "die in the chair" before he would retire to civilian life outside of the sports entertainment bubble. You can hear countless interviews from former and even some current McMahon employees on Youtube clips that confirm that all Vince does is work on his product. Many have commented that the WWE is Vince's entire life. If that's healthy or not is a different discussion, but the past month or so has definitely been a wild course of events as the organization that McMahon dedicated his life to build eventually saw him as a liability with the revelations made in a series of Wall Street Journal stories.

I discussed this at the time when the claims against Vince were made public, if it was a consensual relationship and Vince paid the female with his personal cash not to talk about it then there wasn't much that would affect his status in the company, other than the public embarrassment of his infidelity. The second round of allegations were much more serious because it was suggested that the boss of the company implied that an affair with him would impact a former wrestler's career. That's nothing more than Vince using his position of power to manipulate a woman into doing things she wasn't comfortable with. If that is indeed what happened then there isn't a place for McMahon in the WWE because he shouldn't be allowed to be in a position where such a circumstance would even be possible again.

Make no mistake about it, as many McMahon sycophants that might tweet "thank you Vince," if he forced a female to be involved with him against her will then he deserves to be ousted from the company. A consensual relationship is a completely different matter, but if Vince forced anyone into anything then his own actions are what caused his departure. The timing of all this makes you wonder if more claims will be uncovered, especially because there's speculation that The Wall street Journal could publish another story within the next few weeks. Still, it all remains rather muddy because the former wrestler from the 2005 claim was paid a reported $7.5 million to sign a nondisclosure agreement so there wouldn't be any definitive public statements from those that were involved.

Obviously, the safety of the women in these stories are what's most important, but the secondary question is, what happens to WWE without McMahon?

From purely a pro wrestling prospective, this is uncharted water because for the first time in several decades, Vince McMahon isn't a key player in the industry in America. For all of his faults, Vince kept the industry stable in the United States, even though the rocky periods. During the steroid scandal of the early-90s, Vince refused to do the job for Uncle Sam. He survived the lean years of the down turn of the industry and then won a bitter wrestling war against Ted Turner. The WWE weathered the storm of the negative publicity of the business in the aftermath of the Benoit tragedy.

To put it in perspective, every major pro wrestling promoter in the history of the United States eventually went out of business, except Vince McMahon. McMahon himself was the one constant throughout everything. The scandals, the walkouts, and the recessions of the industry, he was there to lead much of the business. In some ways, Vince is the reason that sports entertainment didn't go the way of roller ball after it was confirmed to audiences that the action was scripted.

Some misguided fans will jump for joy and assume that with Vince out of the way that the product will immediately be everything they've wanted for years. If Triple H's version of NXT was going to get over on a main stream level then All Elite Wrestling would've never got off the ground. That said, the combination of Stephanie, Triple H, and Nick Khan will take over the major duties of the organization. While I don't think that less Vince will automatically translate to a better product, it's possible that there will be some fresh dynamics brought to the programming, which would definitely be an improvement.

As I mentioned in a recent article about the second round of accusations, now would actually be the time for Vince to step away because aside from the hit the stock price will take, the company itself is completely stable and on autopilot in many ways. The organization will tout record-setting profits for the next few years, based on the TV contracts and the Peacock deal. At the end of the day, the shareholders only care about making a profit so the dip to the stock will be minimal in the long run. Ticket sales, merchandise, and ad revenue are all extra profit for the promotion that will already have the biggest profitability during the next few years so the company is fine.

How all of this evolves over time and the ripple effect it will have during the next decade might be a different story.

When you take into account the track record of corporate executives that attempt to run a wrestling company, let's hope that Stephanie and Triple H retain their positions in the promotion for the next few decades. At the same time, prehaps without Vince at the top, the rumors of the eventual sale will materialize, which might truly be the time for concern. As much as the WWE tried for decades to reshape the nature of the genre, pro wrestling is a unique commodity that needs "wrestling people" to run it in an effective manner, not a corporate suit that assumes sports entertainment is interchangeable with any other television show.

Ironically, as I'm writing this, The Wrestling Observer's Bryan Alvarez just tweeted that Brock Lesnar left Smackdown because Vince isn't there. This is where the cache that McMahon has built as a promoter is important because there are certain talents that would only want to work for him. This news makes the whole story that much more unpredictable because management will want to avoid a situation where the house of cards collapses in terms of the perception of the company. More than anything, it's ironic that taking the WWE public and thus getting a board of directors is what made Vince a billionaire, but it also led to his exit from the company.

The status of the WWE product

The draw of professional wrestling, especially in the modern era, particularly from the WWE product, was based a lot on the nostalgia of the industry, the classic moments that so many fans remember as key moments in their lives. Fans remember watching the Monday night war they as it happened, not knowing who will show up where, and a small percentage of them that would deal with the tedious process of dial-up internet connections to attempt to get the latest dirt on the sport. Others might remember where they were when they saw Paul Orndorff finally turn on Hogan or when Macho won the WWF title at Wrestlemania IV.

As far as a business strategy, the nostalgic selling point makes sense, as it's another revenue stream and ultimately, in some form or fashion, more content for the WWE machine to churn out, which is key when you take into account that the company's most profitable deals are based on the hours of content it produces for television and Peacock. One of the perks of winning the wrestling wars of both the 80s and the 90s is that Vince McMahon can collectively market the vast majority of the history of the business in America to his audiences, even if those fans might not have seen the original run of a promotion. Sting, Goldberg, and others from the WCW era all played key roles in the past several years of the WWE business plan, mostly for the initial purpose to promote the video games. As much as I don't understand why people watch others play video games on Twitch, there's no doubt that the video games are big business for sports entertainment. As we know, the reception to guys like Sting and Goldberg ultimately led to more current runs in the WWE, and thus a completely line of new merchandise with it.

It's a win-win for everyone involved since the company makes money, the talent makes good money later in their careers, and the fans are happy to get a chance to relive the glory days.

But, even that fun trip down memory lanes has its draw backs, specifically the problem that so many have discussed in recent years, where are the new stars?

I don't talk about myself too often in this column, simply because you click these articles (and I sincerely thank you for it) to read about wrestling, not me. However, when I was getting another tattoo in honor of one of my dogs, the late Bubber II, who was named after the original Bubber, similar to the Tiger Mask legacy, last month, the tattoo artist mentioned an interesting point about the state of sports entertainment. A quick side note, I never wanted a dog and don't necessarily consider myself a dog person, but once you fall for them, you embrace me. So yes, I never wanted a dog, but now have two tribute tattoos to the dogs I had. There's a swerve for you, right? Hank is the current dog champion of the house, but he's only four so there will be no discussion of tribute tattoos.

Minus the sidebar, the wonderful Lisa Black, who I originally talked to at a comic con where I met Sammy Guevara, Dustin Rhodes, and JBL last year, was working on the Bubber II paw print when she mentioned that "wrestling used to be so much more memorable" and since that conversation, I've really put some thought into, "why is that the general consensus for the sport?" As she continued to add the shading with the handheld tattoo gun, she said that The Rock N' Sock connection was her favorite. Granted, it's easy to pick an act from the hottest period of the business as a favorite, but again, the question remains, why haven't there been as many iconic moments in more recent years?

I'm not sure if this answer will be ground-breaking or completely obvious, but I guess it depends on the perspective. Part of the WWE process to take the company public and thus make it a billion dollar company on Wall Street was that the corporation had a very specific presentation in the past several years. For example, the state-of-the-art production always looks great and the broadcasts have a certain format that's always followed. Along with that, the WWE machine built the Performance Center, a facility with some of the best trainers in the world. In theory, the PC can take any great athlete and transform them in the exact sports entertainers that Vince McMahon wants to promote for his brand. That sounds great in theory, but how does it apply to the actual business?

Again, in theory, it's a great idea to attempt to train competitors in the "WWE style" because those are the parameters that the performers will work with when they debut on television. However, and this might be the biggest flaw in the entire system, you can't simply "create a superstar" when the business could use another big draw. If that were the case then there would never be a down turn in the business. Someone might be a great athlete, but that doesn't automatically mean that they will be a great sports entertainer. In fact, given the unique nature of professional wrestling, I think it's fair to say that those that are extremely successful in the business have intangibles that can't be taught on a sports entertainment assembly line. Too often there are too many carbon copies of the exact same performers that get put through the WWE developmental system, and even the main roster often has a cookie-cutter format. Is there anything less memorable than something cookie-cutter?

We've talked about the 50/50 booking aspect where the bulk of the roster are kept at relatively the same level instead of key talent being viewed as stars. There's a reason that Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, and Ronda Rousey are viewed as a level above everyone else on the roster. The most disappointing part of all of this is that the talent is there, and in terms of in-ring ability, this might be the roster with the most depth in the history of the company, but at the same time, you could make an argument that it's low on star power.

Outside of Bianca Belair's emotional promo after she won the Royal Rumble a few years ago, how many organic moments were there in recent years? Yes, Steve Austin vs. Kevin Owens at Wrestlemania this year was a great moment, but again that was based on an era before there was a corporate assembly line of sports entertainers. We've seen speculation that the product will return to a TV-14 rating, which gives the structure of the shows more flexibility, but it doesn't guarantee better scripting of the characters. Seth Rollins is one of the best overall performers on the roster, but is often booked and scripted like a dork. Rollins is a tremendous talent, but isn't going to be a major star when he's scripted to sound like a ripoff of The Joker.

Listen, the WWE is worth a billion dollars, and I'm not so obviously they run a corporation better than I would, but I still think it's a fair question to ask, is selling nostalgia essentially taking the short-end money now in exchange for stars in the future? Granted, from strictly a business prospective, the WWE is more profitable now than another other time in its history so almost any criticism is moot. That said, based on the sluggish ratings of the past few years, will they company get the same amount of money for their next TV contracts?

Roman Reigns is finally the top star the company wanted him to be, and he's doing the best work of his career. That was possible because instead of trying to shoehorn him into the role of the next John Cena, they allowed him to evolve into the top star as Roman Reigns. Still, Cena is the most recent main stream star the company had, and Roman is already taking a lighter schedule so who's the draw for the future?

You could question if the current structure of the company is more to serve the stockholders than to create money-drawing stars?

That's not the same concept, either. Selling nostalgia is big business for WWE and the stockholders are concerned with a return on their investment, not content. Does the guy that bought WWE stock care if his profit was based on a Goldberg return or a new star? The difference is, the Goldberg return is a limited commodity, where as the new star is a level of security for the future.

Why was pro wrestling more memorable two decades ago?

Granted, some people will always look back fondly at certain times of the sport, but the bottom line is, Steve Austin, The Rock, and Mick Foley were the biggest WWE stars of the hottest period of the organization. Did any of them resemble a cookie-cutter WWE format? If not, then prehaps the key to more memorable characters in the modern era is a more organic approach to the product.

VHS Memoirs volume 26

This week for the VHS Memoirs, I'm going to review Beach Blast 1992, a pay-per-view that took place during a transitional period in WCW, a time when former Mid-South promoter Bill Watts took over as head book for the company. The Watts administration was short-lived, as The Cowboy lasted less than a year before he was fired from Turner. For all of his critics, Watts was very successful in his heyday, promoting his Mid-South territory very successful for several years, including major events at The Super Dome in New Orleans before the oil crunch of the late-80s forced him to sell the organization to Jim Crockett Promotions. Still, Watts' ideology, which can be seen throughout this pay-per-view, with no mats on the outside of the ring and disqualifications for jumping off the top rope, was so antiquated that it didn't give WCW a fresh direction. Furthermore, the hard-nosed Watts couldn't work in a corporate environment, which is why he wasn't a successful booker outside of his own territory. In 1995, his WWF tenure was just a few months.

A rather comical side note, the show titled, "Beach Blast" was held in Mobile, Alabama, which isn't exactly a location known for its beaches. The broadcast opened with Scotty Flamingo, the grappler that would go on to have arguably legendary success as Raven, in a bout against Flyin' Brian Pillman for the WCW Light Heavyweight championship, the predecessor to the Cruiser Weight division that would become a staple of Nitro a few years later. It's somewhat odd to see Scotty Flamingo in all the florescent attire, simply because he's so well known for the brooding Raven persona. That said, you can see just from his body language that Raven "gets it" and knows how to perform for show business. That lends credibility to the notion that Raven always had the talent, (regardless of the later years in his career when he often put it on autopilot) and thus found his biggest success when he became a character that was closest to the real-life Scott Levy. The bout itself was solid and went about 15 minutes with a lot of fast-paced action. It's the classic dynamic of the fiery baby face, a role that Pillman did very well in the early part of his career, even if he was still honing the finer points of the craft, and a shyster of a villain, which Flamingo worked well during this portion of his career. Flamingo got the win to capture the championship.

Ron Simmons vs. Terry Taylor was next, and this was a basic bout that went about six minutes for a contest that was completely designed to make Simmons look strong. As we know, Simmons beat Vader for the WCW world championship just a few months later in an iconic moment. Terry Taylor, who had the "Tailor Made Man" discount Ted Dibiase gimmick at the time, made his opponent look great with a lot of good bumps. Simmons showcased a lot of power moves and the finish saw him land a power slam to get the win.

Greg Valentine beat Marcus Bagwell, and the match was fine, but the contest went about five minutes, garnering almost no crowd response. "The Hammer" looked as cheerful as you'd expect during this segment.

The match that is well known from this pay-per-view because it was released on a few of the Mick Foley career retrospective DVDs is the Cactus Jack vs. Sting Falls Count Anywhere match. While the Sting feud was one of the first rivalries that helped Cactus gain notoriety in the United States, you can see how the style took a toll on him. Cactus takes some absolutely brutal bumps, including a back drop on the entrance ramp where he bounces from the impact. He also took a suplex and a few other bumps on the concrete. The finish saw Sting hit a clothesline from the top rope onto the ramp for the three count. This was a wild and very entertaining match.

There was a 30-minute iron man match between Ricky Steamboat vs. Rick Rude, and it goes without saying that putting these two legends in the ring for 30 minutes is guaranteed quality pro wrestling. The psychology in this bout is top notch, as Rude took an early lead before he jumped off the top rope, causing a DQ, but used the maneuver to get another pin fall directly after that so he was ahead again. The dynamic of this match-up had "The Dragon," one of the best baby faces of all time, rallying from behind to attempt to tie the score throughout the duration of the contest. Finally, the momentum shifts and Steamboat takes the lead, prompting Rude to desperately try to get another pin fall in the closing moments. Finally, the bell rings and Steamboat wins 4-3 in the iron man challenge. This is great stuff that you should go out of your way to watch if you haven't seen it.

Dustin Rhodes, Barry Windham and Nikita Koloff beat Arn Anderson, Steve Austin, and Bobby Eaton in a six man tag team match. Again, you can look at the competitors booked for this contest and know what you're going to get in this segment. Everything was crisp and the crowd was following the action. Unfortunately, the finish was flat when Arnderson was DQ'ed for jumping off of the top rope, and you can tell that the crowd doesn't immediately associate it with the new rules. If I had to guess, I'd say this finish was booked as a way for Watts to establish the new DQ rules, but that probably would've been a more effective decision for a TV segment, not pay-per-view.

The main event was The Steiners vs. Terry Gordy and Steve Williams for the WCW Tag Team titles. Unfortunately, this was another Watts booking that was designed more to establish the cowboy's antiquated version of pro wrestling than to serve the paying audience, both in the building and on pay-per-view. These are unquestionably two legendary teams and under usual circumstances, you'd expect this to be a great match, and it probably should've been. Instead, it was 30-minutes of an amateur style contest right out of the Watts playbook, and at times, it almost resembled a UWFi style from Japan, which didn't translate to the live crowd. There's nothing wrong with the bout itself, but the lack of crowd reaction to a main event match had a rather flat presentation. The finish was a draw and that itself doesn't lend to a reaction from the audience either.

What's the status of ROH?

Next weekend, Ring Of Honor will present Death Before Dishonor on pay-per-view, the third PPV from a Khan-owned wrestling project in the span of just three months. It might sound repetitive, but I must at least make note of it, it's very difficult to sell a $50 broadcast in the modern era when the footage of almost every major wrestling company in the history of the United States, along with "premium live events" are either $4.99 a month or in some cases free for Comcast customers on Peacock. All Elite Wrestling makes it work because they go with quarterly PPV and the main selling point of those events is often less glamour and more of a focus on high quality in-ring action. The story and the buy rates for AEW on pay-per-view would be much different if the company tried to sell PPV on a monthly basis. As we know, Double or Nothing had hype around it and sold well, based on the potential coronation of CM Punk in the main event for the championship. Just a month later, Forbidden Door, a co-promoted venture with New Japan, drew an estimated 125,000 buys, which was considered successful. In many ways, the Forbidden Door event was an exception to the rule so to speak because it was a unique show that was discussed since the inception of All Elite.

Now, Tony Khan will attempt to sell an ROH pay-per-view for $40 so you have to realistically ask, are fans really going to shell out $140 on three wrestling shows in the span of three months? That doesn't take into account the fact that the ROH brand has the least amount of fanfare among the three events and that the company itself is almost nonexistent.

Don't get me wrong, Ring Of Honor helped shape not only the style, but much of the direction of the business today. Many of the modern era's biggest stars originally made their name in ROH, and the company had an undeniable influence on the history of the sport, which speaks volumes to the talent that was there, considering that the group started in the dingy Murphy Rec Center in Philadelphia. That said, why the company didn't get bigger before the Sinclair purchase and subsequently why the broadcast company didn't truly invest in the organization are another discussion for another time. It goes without say that the buzz that The Elite had on the ROH platform and the buzz online were key pieces of the puzzle for the eventual successful launch of AEW. The bottom line is, ROH couldn't rebuild itself after the Elite exodus and couldn't generate the revenue to sustain itself, which is why Sinclair sold the company. The vast majority of the ROH fan base chose to follow many of the former ROH stars to All Elite because Tony Khan had the funding and the distribution to All Elite a chance to become a national entity.

Keep in mind, the entire reason that ROH was sold was because it couldn't draw on pay-per-view or live attendance so outside of the Super Card of Honor on Wrestlemania weekend a few months ago, what exactly has changed? Why would fans spend a portion of their "wrestling budget" on what could be considered another one-off pay-per-view? Sure, the ROH belts are mentioned on TBS, but as we've discussed, there is a comical amount of titles on the program to the point that they are merely props. Is Wheeler Yuta really a bigger star because he's the Pure champion? The argument could be made that the association with the BCC has done more to elevate his status than the belt.

Even the most diehard fans have a limit to the amount of wrestling they are going to pay to watch.

The card itself has talent, but not necessarily matches that would give the audience enough of a reason to order another pay-per-view for the third month in a row. Samoa Joe vs. Jay Lethal is a bout that makes sense based on their history in ROH, but the current feud just doesn't have much hype. Don't get me wrong, Samoa Joe is a tremendous talent, and Lethal should've been used better upon his arrival in All Elite, but he doesn't have the heat to be considered a threat to Joe. The fact that an injury angle was used to write Joe off of television so that he could do some film work has led to a rather flat angle since there haven't been any recent confrontations on television. Plus, this feud was associated with the terrible Satnam Singh debut segment so there's just not a lot of buzz for it.

Wheeler Yuta and Daniel Garcia are very talented, but it sounds like a match-up from a Rampage taping, not pay-per-view. In a similar fashion, Mercedes Martinez vs. Serena Deeb should be a very good match, but it sounds like a bout on Dynamite since the rivalry hasn't exactly been a top priority on AEW programming. Jonathan Gresham is one of the best technical wrestlers in the world today, but he was a big fish in a small pond during the vast majority of his tenure in ROH. He hasn't had enough television exposure to truly be considered a star to the national audience. Claudio Castagnoli is AEW's newest free agent signing so I'm not sure if booking him for a secondary product is the best use of his skills.  Most importantly, if Claudio wins the ROH title, does it make a difference in the grand scheme of things?

The Briscoes vs. FTR rematch is the only contest on the card that is truly a selling point based on their thirty-minute classic at Super Card of Honor earlier this year, but again, it's a one-off because TBS executives don't want the Briscoes on AEW programming. The topic has been discussed at length and there are points to be made on both sides of the conversation, but the point is, the Briscoes won't be on Dynamite so the tag team rivalry will be minimal.

The biggest hurdle to selling Death Before Dishonor to the audience is, what exactly is the ROH brand? Is it a subsidiary of All Elite? Is the ROH product designed to be integrated into the All Elite shows? Samoa Joe is the television champion of an organization that doesn't have its own television show. In my opinion, ROH as its own entity just muddies the waters of All Elite. Keep in mind, AEW should still be trying to establish itself as a consistent and profitable brand, and to accomplish that, there should be an all hands on deck approach to the All Elite project. Tony Khan should use and promote the best talent possible for the company that is the ability to draw on a national level.

Finally, I will say what I said when Tony Khan originally purchased ROH, the biggest asset from the sale was the extensive video library since there are hundreds of full-length events and hundreds of hours  The ROH catalog could be used as the basis for a streaming service since there's still major money to be offered on streaming platforms. Even if ROH would land its own television show now, is it wise to divide the resources of the All Elite organization? As mentioned, Ring Of Honor had an important influence on the business, but it's very doubtful that the brand will generate major revenue in the current landscape of the industry.

What's the status of Raw?

Some discussion was generated online with the news that starting next week for Raw, the broadcast will officially go back to a TV-14 rating after several years of the PG era that saw some aspects of the industry, including blood, eliminated from the program. Of course, the jaded social media crowd might expect this to be the return to "the glory days" of the Attitude era, a time period where the business surged in popularity based on the competition of Monday night programming.

However, will Raw actually be any different with a TV-14 rating?

First, it should be noted why the product went PG originally and that will more or less explain why it makes sense to shift the product in a slightly edgier direction now. The PG process was at least two-fold, if not more layered than that. As we know, Linda McMahon, who donated six million dollars to the Trump campaign to buy a spot in his cabinet as the head of the Small Business Administration, unsuccessfully ran for senate in both 2010 and 2012. But, Linda's political aspirations began before that, as she was on the Connecticut Board of Education in 2009 before she left that position to pursue the senate. It goes without say that softening the WWE's image with the switch to the PG era in mid-2008 was a benefit to Linda's campaign, as it gave her opponents less material to use against her if the WWE product was more family friendly by the time voters went to the polls. As mentioned, Linda was a part of Trump's cabinet for a few years, and worked in politics as recent as the 2020 presidential election when she raised money for a Trump Super-Pac.

Politics are even shadier than pro wrestling.

So, the company had its former CEO in mind when it took the product in a PG direction, but it wasn't just for Linda's potential political career. As we know, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, a fledgling organization before Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta rescued it from the brink of collapse, surged in popularity in the mid-2000s from the success of the Ultimate Fighter reality show, and by the time that the WWE went PG, Zuffa was taking a noticeable piece of the pay-per-view pie that Vince McMahon had monopolized since WCW folded. Obviously, the UFC was a combat sports product that catered to the same demographic that tuned in for record-setting ratings during the Attitude era. Instead of trying to directly compete with the trend at the time, the McMahon empire shifted toward a younger demographic that wasn't associated too often with mixed martial arts.

John Cena was the perfect representation and character for the PG era. In many ways, Cena was the real-life good guy off-screen that Hulk Hogan pretended to be for years on-screen. It's no coincidence that the majority of Cena's big run was during the PG era because he was the classic baby face that the younger generation could cheer. Some might cite that a portion of the audience would boo him out of the building on a regular basis, which is true, he certainly had detractors among older fans, but the bottom line is, John Cena is a legitimate, money-drawing star. It doesn't matter if the fans paid to cheer him or paid to boo him, the point is, they always paid to see him.

However, John Cena, aside from his recent Raw appearance to celebrate twenty years in the company, has taken a role as a part-time wrestler between movie roles, and you can't blame him, considering there's more money in Hollywood without the risk of pro wrestling on a full-time basis.

So, this does open the door for a change of pace with the product, especially since the representative of the PG era isn't a full-time wrestler now, but that doesn't mean that next Monday will be the return of the Attitude era either.

For whatever reason, some fans view the wrestling war of the late-90s with rose-colored glasses. Don't get me wrong, it was an amazing time to be a fan and undoubtedly the biggest boom period in the history of the industry. Every Monday night was "must see" programming and you really never knew what was going to happen, especially because internet rumors were only read by a portion of the viewing audience so you saw an organic reaction from the crowds on television. That being said, much like the "Rock N' Wrestling Connection" of the 80s, the Attitude era was a product of its time and place. At the time, society was moving in an edgier direction, and sports entertainment responded to that, which is why wrestling had a spot in pop culture. Marylin Manson sold almost five million albums, Howard Stern had twenty million daily listeners, and Jerry Springer had pay-per-view specials.

If you actually watch some of those retro shows now, there's a chance that on any given show, at least 30% of the content is just lame segments that won't hold up today. For every Stone Cold segment that became etched into history as a signature moment in video packages, there's a Beaver Cleavage or Mae Young with the hand segment that everyone wants to forget actually happened. Part of the reason the dreck was overlooked at the time was because the industry was so popular that fans were willing to overlook the muck to get to watch Austin, The Rock, and Mankind on the same show.

If the vast majority of those segments were booked today, it would flop, even the successful stuff in the 90s because it has already been done. By nature, the content that got over more than twenty years ago would by antiquated in the modern era. Kevin Owens driving a maple syrup truck to the ring would just be a retread of an angle when the sport was more popular. Plus, the "crash TV" style of the Attitude era by nature doesn't have any longevity, which is why WCW went from the hottest wrestling company in the world to out of business in the span of roughly three years.

No, the TV-14 rating isn't the return in the Attitude era and probably not a drastic change for the product either. In fact, the structure of the program arguably hinders more of the progress of the show with the 50/50 booking than the nature of the content itself. The ability to use more profanity or some blood in itself doesn't do anything to help make new stars. If that environment can help maximize someone's potential might be the biggest takeaway from the new rating. The use of blood, at least intentionally, hasn't been seen in years in the WWE so if Kevin Owens makes a top baby face bleed then the segment can stand out. There's a reason everyone remembers that Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton match. Speaking of Owens, he's the guy that I really think could benefit from lighter restrictions of the product. He's a top guy that often doesn't get booked like a main event star, but the ability is there. Again, there's a reason he was Steve Austin's opponent at Wrestlemania. The TV-14 rating doesn't change the landscape of the company, but it definitely gives more flexibility to the product.

Another Vince McMahon scandal

Last month, the Wall Street Journal broke a story that not only did Vince McMahon, the emperor of sports entertainment, pay a former paralegal that worked for the WWE $3 million to keep quiet about an affair he had with her a few years ago, the now-former Head of Talent Relations, John Laurinaitis was also involved with her before she left the company. The non-disclosure agreement prevented her from revealing any of the details of her affair with McMahon, but anonymous e mails sent to the WWE Board of Directors made the story public, and it was published by the Wall Street Journal.

Many assumed this was the end of Vince's time as the kingpin of pro wrestling.

In true McMahon fashion, on the same day the story was publicized by main stream media outlets, he opened the broadcast on Smackdown, which was nothing more than a snub to his detractors, as an adoring crowd cheered and bowed to him. An earlier announcement put his daughter, Stephanie in place at the interim CEO, while Vince maintained his position as the head of the creative team. As we know with his boosting on television, the interim title is merely a PR move, his appearances on WWE programming were to let the world know that he was still in charge of his company.

As I wrote at the time, while the story of another powerful CEO paying off someone he had an affair with was sleazy and there was a certain amount of embarrassment for the McMahon family because of Vince's infidelity, as long as the nondisclosure was paid with his personal cash then his role in the WWE wasn't at risk. Keep in mind, this was a consensual relationship so as long as company money wasn't used to keep her quiet then the Board of Directors didn't automatically have a way to give McMahon his walking papers.

However, it was reported that the board had retained the services of a firm to investigate the situation and it was suggested that other nondisclosure agreements would be uncovered during the investigation.

Last week, another story hit the news with much more damaging allegations toward McMahon. The Wall Street Journal reported that there were more women that signed nondisclosure agreements that totaled $12 million over the past 16 years. The details of these encounters don't paint Vince in a favorable light and could be what lands the czar of pro wrestling outside of his sports entertainment empire.

A 2005 account claims that a former wrestler had a sexual encounter with McMahon, but when she declined to participate any further after that, she was demoted and eventually her contract wasn't renewed. In 2018, she and her lawyer approached the company and McMahon agreed to pay $7.5 million for her to sign a nondisclosure agreement. In 2006, he had another affair with someone that worked in the company and paid her $1 million to stay quiet about it. Details on a 2008 incident surfaced that Vince paid another $1 million to a former employee that he sent unsolicited nude photos to when she worked for the company and attempted to pursue a relationship with her that she declined.

In truth, I waited to discuss this topic of the latest allegations, simply because I wanted to see if any new claims were going to be made against McMahon since it would provide a clearer picture as the situation develops in the news. First and more importantly, it goes without say that Vince McMahon or anyone else should never pressure women into unwanted contact or activities. Again, if Vince had a consensual affair with the paralegal a few years ago, and with the employee from the 2006 claim then only the moral or ethical side of the situation is in question. However, if McMahon implied that the former wrestler's career in WWE was on the line if she didn't participate in a sexual encounter with him then that's a case of sexual harassment. The same can also be said about the nude photos that he allegedly sent in 2008, if he sent unwanted photos then it's a case of sexual harassment.

Obviously, consenting adults have the right to do what they want in their personal lives, but there's a very clear difference between a private relationship and sexual misconduct.

The bottom line is, if a CEO is harassing his employees then he shouldn't have power in the company, but this is the wrestling business and we all know it's not exactly an industry known for its ethical standards. That said, as much as it would've seemed unthinkable that the WWE would exist without Vince McMahon, I really don't see how he maintains his position in the company, at least officially, after the latest allegations. The fact that the former wrestler was paid $7.5 million for the incident in 2005 implies that it must've been something really terrible and that alone creates questions about if McMahon should stay in a position of power. Furthermore, while consensual relationships aren't a form of misconduct, there's definitely a pattern based on the current number of allegations, which makes you wonder, how many more of these claims will be uncovered before the conclusion of the investigation?

I don't see how Vince stays in the company after all of this, but at the same time, it wouldn't shock me because McMahon survived negative publicity before. If Vince exits, now would probably be a time period where the promotion would take minimal damage. Sure, the stock price would drop initially, but with the television deals and the Peacock deal, the company is guaranteed to tout record-setting profits for the next few years. The brass tacks of the global corporation is profitability and as long as the investors continue to make money then the WWE is fine, even without McMahon.

Nick Khan, who has credibility from his resume outside of the world of sports entertainment, could be the business figure head, while Stephanie and Triple H run the bulk of the wrestling operations, at least publicity. Aside from the possible domino effect these latest claims could have, as I said previously, the entire scenario makes pro wrestling, including everyone involved in it, look terrible. Granted, it's not shocking that a business that started in the carnival circuit is scummy, but putting sports entertainment on the stock market didn't change too many of the shady incidents. Perhaps, the stock market and the billions of dollars of guaranteed money made Vince McMahon think he was teflon that's not the case when outside firms get a chance to investigate the situation.

Jeff Gorman book

Nearly 40 years ago, a youngster from a small town in Ohio tuned into NBC on a fall evening in 1985 expecting to see the usual Saturday Night Live line-up. Instead, Jeff Gorman, who went on to earn a degree in journalism from Northwestern University outside of Chicago, found Saturday Night's Main Event, the quarterly specials that were a key piece of the puzzle of Vince McMahon's national expansion of the decade that saw the "Rock N' Wrestling Connection" propel the popularity of the industry. On that particularly night, perennial top star, Hulk Hogan beat Nikolai Volkoff to give America the chance to gloat at the USSR's expense in the midst of the cold war era.

That television program had such a profound effect on Jeff that he developed a passion for the ring that not only shaped the direction of his life, but continues to stay with him to this day. With aspirations to be a baseball announcer from the time he was a toddler, Jeff had a natural gift for broadcasting, something that he showcased during his years at Northwestern University when he called Big Ten baseball games.

Back at home, he started his journey as a wrestling announcer in 1994 for promoter Kid Collins, and has remained a fixture of the independent circuit for nearly thirty years. Throughout Ohio, Pennsylvania, and several other states, Gorman earned a stellar reputation as informative, intelligent, and professional. Jeff's voice has provided the soundtrack to everything from Ring Of Honor's brutal Low Ki vs. Samoa Joe bout to mixed martial arts pay-per-view alongside the legendary Bas Rutten.

 Jeff Gorman knew the wrestling game and the broadcasting business from the ground up.

He also went on to excel in the journalism field with the skills he learned at Northwestern. After college, he found work on staff at the Mansfield News Journal. Still today, Jeff balances his passion for the media through a series of ventures. He continues to cover legal news through his writing, and works as an announcer for the Lake Erie Crushers, a baseball team based in Avon, Ohio.

As is often the case in the wild world of professional wrestling, things went full circle for Jeff, as he found a way to combine all of his skills with the special memories he had from that Saturday night in the fall of 1985 from his childhood.

Gorman embarked on a literary venture that would provide a unique context to one of the most important aspects of history of the sport, pay-per-view. If you examine the true barometer of success for pro wrestling as a national entity, pay-per-view, regardless of its form or fashion, was the key to it all. The ability to sell the content at a premium to the casual audience is ultimately what decided if business entities survived the waves of the industry. Keep in mind, the emperor of sports entertainment, Vince McMahon once told cable companies in the 80s that they couldn't offer NWA events to their customers if they wanted the ability to sell Wrestlemania on their systems that year. As a counter punch of sorts, when Wrestlemania was offered on pay-per-view for $29.95, Ted Turner, who rescued the NWA from collapsed because the organization couldn't maximize its PPV revenue streams, put Ric Flair vs. Sting and Steamboat on free TV in 1988 and 1989 respectively.

Pay-per-view, especially throughout that era and into the boom period of the 90s, was the biggest revenue stream in sports entertainment, and those that drew the best buy rates were considered the top group of the industry. In his new book, "King of New York:Who was The MVP of The World Wrestling Federation?", Jeff takes an in-depth look at all the pay-per-view cards in WWF history and provides an expert analysis as to how successful the event really was, particularly with a fair context.

"When the WWE Network came out in 2014, I felt like a kid in a candy store because I would watch all of the old pay-per-views. Since I'm a completist, I just started at the beginning with the first WrestleMania. I wrote down my thoughts on each PPV on the Death Valley Driver message board. I also awarded an MVP award for each show. Then I counted up the winners, and thought, 'this would be a great idea for a book' to cover the entire WWF PPV era and crown an overall MVP at the end of the book," Jeff explained as to how the concept was developed.

The process and dedication to the high standard of quality that Gorman is known for throughout his career made the tedious project exhausting, but rewarding. Jeff didn't gloss over anything, he put the time into this venture to give readers the relevant background information that fully explained the conclusions he drew for his ratings throughout the pages.

"The hardest part was filling in the blanks around the PPV. I wanted this to be a history book, so I had to add in all of the title changes, and just make sure I explain who everyone is. That way I can tell the individual character stories. Virgil is a great example, going from 'the butler' as my daughter called him, to capturing his boss's Million Dollar belt. I also tracked the Undertaker's streak and Big Show's face/heel turns," Gorman said.

However, this isn't the first time that Jeff put pen to paper for professional wrestling, as he wrote his autobiography several years ago. Thankfully, through the improvements of modern technology, his "King of New York" venture will be much more accessible to readers, particularly through the easier publishing process, something that would've been a barrier for special projects in the past.

 "It's a lot easier than it used to be. You used to write a few chapters or an entire book, and then pray that a publishing company would accept it. Then you could self-publish, as I did for my "This Side of the Mic" announcing memoir, by paying a company to print your book. Now with Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing, you don't have to pay a dime. You write a book, upload it, and share the revenue with Amazon," Gorman commented.

A true historian that has worked in and studied the aspects of both wrestling and media, Jeff Gorman looks to give readers a comprehensive record of the WWF's pay-per-view era that can be used as a resource of the history of the sport.

"The biggest story of King of New York is about the man who promoted every match in the book. Vince McMahon's triumph over WCW was the defining moment, and it has shaped the last two decades of wrestling history. This series of history books is my gift to the pro wrestling world. Fans can collect them and hold on to great wrestling memories, while learning who were the real winners and losers of the wrestling wars and why," Jeff remarked.

As someone that was in attendance live for the classic Flair/Steamboat bout at Chi-Town Rumble during his college days, Jeff already has his next publication in mind. 

"I just finished watching all of the WCW pay-per-views, so I will start writing the next book, "King of Atlanta," he concluded.

Ryse at Ringside 14

This weekend, Ryse returns to the Uniontown Mall for the first-ever Ryse Rumble, a 30-wrestler battle royal with the winner getting a shot at the Grand Championship. I'm scheduled to be on commentary for the event with the esteemed Ty Cross for our friends at indywrestling.us for the broadcast. In the 14 years I've spent in the wrestling business, I've called battle royals before and it goes without say, the action is wild. The back and fourth battles of multiple wrestlers in the ring at the same time, and some of the personal rivalries that spill over into the contest certainly make for an often rowdy scene.

That being said, I really think that the concept of the Ryse Rumble has a special atmosphere around it, not only because of this being the first-ever Ryse Rumble, but also what's at stake in this bout. The winner of this contest will get a chance to challenge for the Grand Championship, whoever that might be after the final bell this Saturday night, and there's no telling who might emerge from the locker room to add their name to the rumble for that opportunity. All things considered, the direction of Ryse could change in the span of just one night, especially if a debuting talent wins the Rumble to challenge for the championship. Furthermore, it opens the door for those already on the Ryse roster that might be more than qualified to get a shot at the title to put themselves in line for the belt.

That's why this event is so intriguing because you just don't know what's going to happen.

Christian Noir is going to square off against Ashton Day, and while Day is a capable athlete, I'd wager a few dollars on Noir to get the win here. Despite the recent defeat against Tony Johnson, I'd still say that Noir is one of the most dangerous competitors anywhere in Pittsburgh and we have yet to see his best work in the organization.

Speaking of Tony Johnson, "The Iceman" has a major chance in front of him when he steps into the ring of independent wrestling legend, Delirious. I've said it before and I will say it again, Tony Johnson is as good as anyone in Ryse, and it's very disappointing that the pandemic, not a lack of talent, took away his chance to shine as the Grand Champion. Keep in mind, The Iceman didn't get a one-on-one title shot for that championship until two years until after he was forced to vacate it when the majority of the world shutdown. The bottom line is, Tony Johnson deserves this opportunity and win, lose, or draw, he's going to shine on this platform.

For me, getting the chance to call this match has some sentimental value, as things will full circle in some ways. When I started as a photographer on the local scene in 2008 and then as a commentator the following year, I didn't really have any expectations. I was just happy to be involved in pro wrestling on some level, as I never thought I'd get the chance to have a role in the sport. Since that time, I've met some great friends, contributed to the industry that I've followed almost my entire life, and I've even had the chance to call matches for some major names. Su Yung, Chris Hamrick, Paul London, Corey Graves, Sam Adonis, and others are just a few of those names. I knew the name Delirious before I saw him live in July of 2005, but seeing the Matt Sydal/Delirious bout, a match that was very notable among the independent circuit at the time, in-person made me an immediate fan of his ability. Almost 17 years to the day that I saw that Sydal vs. Delirious match at a Norm Connors event at the Monroeville Sports Center, I'm going to get the chance to call Delirious' Ryse debut in Uniontown.

The tag team four corners match is going to be another wild contest on the card. The question is, how will BC Steele juggle this situation when two of his teams are in the same match? Will there be some type of agreement? That also leads to the question, what are Steele Corp's plans for the Ryse Rumble? Statistically, the group will have the numbers advantage and BC Steele always seems to have a plan.

PB Smooth will defend his title against "Pure Trash" Ron Mathis, someone that we saw in the tag division before the pandemic. In many ways, Ron Mathis has nothing to lose in this bout. He answered the open challenge the champion made so he created an opportunity for himself. However, PB Smooth is arguably in the prime of his career right now and has all the momentum behind him. If Mathis is defeated, there's no shame in a loss to such a dominate champion. On the other hand, Ron Mathis has made a career of being willing to take risks. Mathis has been involved in matches with light tubes, barbed wire, and other dangerous objects. The combination that Mathis has nothing to lose and that he's obviously willing to risk his body is what makes him a threat to the championship. Mathis is a nearly 15-year pro because he found success in the industry, albeit in an unconventional fashion, and he has the chance to completely chance the direction of Ryse if he wins the championship.