Slammin' Sammy debut

On the first day of their sophomore year of high school, most teenage girls are ready to show off their latest make up or catch up with their friends about summer vacations. Tales of the beach or Taylor Swift concerts echo throughout the hallways.

However, for a youngster that will have her first official pro wrestling bout this Saturday, the echo she heard on her first day of tenth grade was the hallow sound of the collision of the canvas. It was on that day more than two years ago that Sammy Trincia, known to her fellow trainees as "Slammin' Sammy" stepped into a wrestling ring for the first time at the Stronghold Academy, the training center of Ryse Wrestling, the blue collar league located just south of Pittsburgh in Uniontown, Pennsylvania.

"I started going to Ryse Shows at the Laurel Mall, I live two miles away from there and got to know Brandon K and many of the wrestlers. I loved it," Sam explained of how she discovered her hometown promotion.

The grappling arts isn't something new for the youngster, as the genre has been somewhat of a family tradition for as long as she can remember.

"My dad, Aaron, has always been a big fan. He used to watch wrestling with me when I was really small. At three years old, he would wrestle with me on the couch while RAW or Smackdown was on. He took me to my first WWE show when I was five years old," she said.

Around the same time that Sammy saw the over-the-top spectacle of sports entertainment in person, she began to pursue various martial arts at the age of just eight. For the first five years of her martial arts tenure, Sammy practiced Shotoka Karate, earning a brown belt with two stripes, the rank just under a black belt. At 13, Sam began training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, making a name for herself on the grappling competition circuit as a competitor that brought a combination of skill and aggression to the mat. 

"I love the contact and the sparring, especially. I have always been a naturally aggressive person and karate allowed me to express that. I learned a lot about work ethic, I had to work hard to improve at kata and weapons routines. I also did karate with the view that it would help me become a wrestler someday. I got the nickname Slammin Sammy for my sparring skills," she explained. 

After two years of learning on the grappling mat, she was ready to began the journey of grappling on the canvas, as she attended a Stronghold tryout that was held for aspiring hopefuls that wanted to pursue a path as a pro wrestler. The pro wrestling dream that started when she was a toddler was about to become a reality for the teenage.

"When Sammy began saying she wanted to become a wrestler at a young age, I figured it would pass just like any kid who says they want to be a baseball player or basketball player. She would tell everyone at school and karate that she was working to be a professional wrestler. She stuck to it, she took a lot of flack for it. She’s worked hard and I’m proud of her for following her dreams," said Sammy's mom, Tonya.

Sammy began the tedious process of repeatedly landing on the canvas of a pro wrestling ring.to learn how to do so as safely as possible, a well as learning in-ring techniques. It was a long way away from when she dropped elbows on the couch when she was only a few years old, but she cites The Stronghold's tight-knit crew of trainers and students as key to her development as a performer. She noted that the environment created at Ryse's home base at The Uniontown Mall, which houses the training center and the live event arena, allows positive encouragement from everyone to achieve the best results possible.

"I couldn’t imagine training anywhere else. At first training was tough, being the only teenager and the one of the only women, I’m sure I stood out. Learning to wrestle is hard, but I had great teachers and peers. Brandon is awesome, and I love him dearly. Brandon is so patient and really worked with me," Sammy remarked.

"If every one of my students had Sammy's heart and work ethic I'd be the most successful trainer of all time. Sammy comes to every single session I have. If the doors are open she's there. She's usually first and last in and out of the door. Two years of that discipline. I'm very proud of her journey so far and it's just getting started," added Brandon K, the founder of Ryse Wrestling.

Ryse Wrestling, launched in 2016, is very much a family venture. Brandon's parents, Mr, and Mrs. Clements run the concession stand, while his wife, Kristy works on ticket orders before the doors open for a live event. In a similar fashion, Sammy's parents were invited to watch her train and have become apart of the fabric of Ryse themselves.

"Brandon let us stay for all the practices until we were comfortable she would be okay. It became apparent early on that she was definitely okay. I knew she was safe surrounded by a second dad and a bunch of big brothers who look out for her. Ryse has been a blessing in her life, and I’m so glad she trains at the Stronghold. She was accepted with open arms from the start," said Tonya.

"Brandon K is a class act. Coach K has a heart bigger than all of us. Brandon gave Sammy the opportunity to train at 15 when he did not have to. I am a proud father of an indy wrestler, I am proud to be part of Ryse Wrestling," remarked Sammy's dad, Aaron.

In preparation for her official debut in pro wrestling, Sammy is often training at the gym or studying film of classic matches when she's not in the ring practicing her craft at The Stronghold Academy. With names like co-head trainer Dean Radford, matchmaker Chris LeRusso, and longtime veteran, Bigg as just a few of the many that have helped Sammy along the way, she looks to have her first pro match this Saturday at The Uniontown Mall. Her opposition is the longtime pro and very accomplished, Laura Loveless, a grappler that many consider the top women's wrestler in the organization. It's undoubtedly a tough challenge, but an opportunity that Sam didn't want to pass up for the start of her career.

There are a flood of emotions, I'm so excited to see all the hard work pay off. I'm so grateful to Ryse, Brandon K, and Chris LeRusso for this opportunity. I'm nervous, but I’m confident. It will be a challenge, but I am up for it and whatever comes next. I can’t wait introduce everyone to Slammin' Sammy, aggressive and tough and ready to go," Sam enthusiastically explained.

As we know, there are no guarantees in professional wrestling. That's the nature of the genre, there's no guarantee that when someone laces up their boots for the first time that the path that there are on will lead to fame and fortune. However, one thing is for sure, this Saturday when the music hits and "Slammin'" Sammy Trincia bounds through the curtain, it will be a dream come true for her. From the time she was a toddler and watched the larger-than-life personas beamed through her TV screen, she wanted to be inside the ring ropes, and she will have the chance to do that this weekend. When the bell rings to start the action at the Sears building that was converted into a wrestling arena with its video wall, entrance way, and of course, the squared circle, more than two years of consistent hard work will pay off when Sammy Trincia can call herself a pro wrestler.

Regardless of what Sammy does throughout her journey in the years to come, in many ways, "Slammin'" Sammy is already a success story, as she set her mind to a goal and this Saturday, she will accomplish it.

Wrestlemania 40 night two

Wrestlemania 40 is officially in the books, and while there was definitely an agenda to put a positive spin on the new era of the company, specifically one that ushered Triple H into the position as the king pin of WWE, the structure and booking of the event sent the same message. One of the more direct ways was, similar to night one when Triple H welcomed the audience to the event, night two saw Stephanie McMahon make her return to the organization to praise a new chapter of the organization. Keep in mind, Stephanie left the promotion after Vince strong-armed his way back onto the WWE board before the lawsuit from earlier this year saw him disgracefully resign. In many ways, Stephanie's involvement with the company again, even for just a cameo, is a subtle nod that she wouldn't be back if the TKO corporation didn't clean house with Vince's previous structure. Remember, TKO and its parent company, Endeavor are in the conglomerate business, there are literally billions of dollars on the line. Nobody's individual agenda, even Vince McMahon is going to be allowed to interfere with that type of cash.

As we've seen already, the current generation, probably because of the many precautionary tales of the past, mostly avoid many of the pitfalls of the prior era. Hopefully, this will continue to lead to a much healthier business, in terms of the choices talent make outside of the ring. Any form of entertainment will have its bleak stories, but it's much better that the current stars might spend their time post-show on Instagram than anything that was done after the show in the 80s. It might not be as controversial, but it certainly paints the future of the industry in a better light.

Along the same lines, as mentioned in the column about night one, Triple H is too much of a pro to harm the business with any of McMahon's depraved behavior. In many ways, Wrestlemania 40 allowed the company the start of a new chapter, and from all indications, including the results of the show, the business will continue to trend in the right direction.

The show opened with Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre for the World Heavyweight championship, and I understand why they want to open and then close with the title matches, but I'm still not sure if the structure of the match really allowed it to be the most that it could've been otherwise. In an effort to make it different from the other title match later, this was a 10-minute sprint rather than the dramatic 30-minute presentation that Cody and Roman had, which is completely fine, especially with the conclusion of the segment. The only problem I saw with this match was actually the same thing that I mentioned about the Rhea/Becky opener from the night before, during the first match of a 4-hour broadcast, the competitors kicked out of multiple finishers. Furthermore, Drew had to use 4-5 Claymore kicks to win, and regardless of it's a world title match, when it's in the opening spot, it just hinders the credibility for the finisher in the future. Along with that, it almost seemed like the amount of kicks were used as a substitute for a compelling narrative, given that they only had ten minutes to work with. Don't get me wrong, everything was solid, but I think these two could've had a better match under different circumstances. As a side note, as much as Rollins is undoubtedly a great in-ring performer, the goofy character stuff should be scaled back at some point. I understand that the song is over with the crowd, but I'm still not sure that the character is necessarily over, or what exactly the persona is supposed to be. As far as ability, Seth Rollins is top notch, but the silly entrance gear was something beneath a world champion.

Many were wondering if or when Damien Priest would cash-in his MITB contract, and that was answered when he dashed to the ring post-match after CM Punk clobbered Drew McIntyre with his arm brace. I completely understand what they're setting up here and it makes sense, but I don't know if it was the right decision unless they are other moving parts within the scenario that made it an easier call for the office. From a character perspective, Drew is doing the best work of his career with the recent heel turn. He's a heel, but he will make the valid points on television, thus giving depth to the character. He doesn't bring the cartoonish sword to the ring, and instead has layers to his persona. Again, I understand they want something major with the surprise cash-in and a way to put the foundation in place for a Drew/Punk feud after he heals from the triceps injury, but at the same time, Drew getting a proper run as champion with this heel persona at least seemed like it could've led to some good television. That being said, there was some speculation that McIntyre wanted to take some time off to spend time with his family before he signs a new contract so maybe this was a way to write him off the shows until he makes a comeback prior to the event in Scotland later this year.

Of course, this now opens the door for Damien Priest as champion, and he still has a big upside, particularly what he can do as a representative of the Puerto Rican fan base, but as a character, at least right now, he's not nearly as over as when he won the briefcase. That's not to say that he was subpar, but rather that Rhea Ripley emerged as one of the most popular stars during that time so it was almost unavoidable that he would seem somewhat secondary in The Judgement Day stable. It will definitely be interesting to see what direction Priest goes as champion, and management will have to book him in an important storyline after this unless he will ultimately be used as a transitional champion.

The Philadelphia Street Fight was fun for what it was, despite being a little sloppy. It only went about 7 or 8 minutes and had some entertaining moments, particularly the finish with the frog splash through the table, but this was a rather secondary feud on Raw so there's just not much to discuss. The Bubba Ray cameo as the guest referee was neat, and Snoop was entertaining, even though he seemed not to know at least half of the participants in the match. Perhaps the biggest takeaway from this segment was the Gin and Juice sponsorship. I'm not being sarcastic, the ability to land those sponsors are major cash, and the office is smart enough to have different sponsors for different matches. A side note, The Final Testament have the potential to be a solid faction, but it just doesn't seem like its in the cards for them right now with the rest of the current WWE landscape. The baby faces got the victory.

AJ Styles vs. LA Knight was a very solid match, and these two are quality pros. Everything they did was crisp and smooth, particularly AJ's offense. Sure, he just returned from an injury before this feud and he's obviously in the latter stages of his career, but he can still go as solid as ever. Much of the same can be said for LA Knight, even if his move set isn't as dynamic as Styles. If the office needed a main event challenger on short notice, either of these guys could work in the role. That being said, because the feud was booked rather recently, the match still seemed secondary on the card, mostly because of the other extended rivalries that were featured later in the night. The German suplex from the top rope was a highlight, and I thought when they exposed the concrete, it gave this match something that stood out since the spot isn't seen often in the modern era. It was good to see that LA Knight's finisher was protected and actually led to the conclusion of the match. Aside from the in-ring action, it's going to be interesting to see what direction Styles goes after this, particularly because the heel persona could give him more depth as a character and freshen up his presentation. Where that would leave The Club as a stable remains to be seen since they weren't involved in this storyline.

I have to be honest, I wasn't expecting much from the US title match, which isn't a criticism, but rather that three way matches aren't easy, and Logan Paul is still relatively inexperienced. It was very wise to put him in the ring with Randy Orton and Kevin Owens, as both of them could make him look good and keep the match on track. Orton isn't usually flashy and works a mostly basic style, but everything he does is quality. You're not going to find many five-star classics from Orton, but you aren't going to find a list of terrible contests either. He makes sure what he's involved in is quality stuff and he's undoubtedly a top level worker. Owens has more highlights and worked a more physical style than Orton, but in a similar way, Kevin Owens can always make his opponents look good. There's a reason KO was chosen as Stone Cold's opponent a few years ago. 

I still don't understand why Logan Paul is famous, but I'm not in the demographic. That said, he definitely has a following and his involvement brings with it the Prime drink sponsorship. We've already discussed the value of those sponsorships so as much as Paul as US champion reduces the title to a prop, there's bigger business to be done in the grand scheme of things so it makes sense. As I said, I expected a basic match, but there was a lot of action here, and for the most part, Logan was able to keep pace with the two veterans. There was a scary moment when Logan slipped on the KO suplex off the ropes, but Owens was able to keep it safe and then landed a cool moonsault. I thought the brass knux being used for something that wasn't the finish jumped the shark, especially because Paul has used them to win matches before, but somehow Orton was not only able to kick out, he also continued the match. I'm not sure who the moron in the Prime outfit was, but he was a total clutzy that clearly shouldn't have been there. Instead of selling the threat from Orton, the guy tried to square up with him and it was just cringe worthy. Thankfully, Orton dispatched him in a fashion that emphasized the ability of a WWE star. The pop up RKO spot was cool and then the finish was well done. Given the fact that Paul's company was sponsoring the canvas, it made sense for him to retain the championship.

The Women's title match was excellent and yet another example of the depth and quality of the female division. The narrative was very well done because Bayley had to rally back, but wasn't cast as the underdog, and given her accomplished career, she shouldn't have been. It was an evenly-matched contest and the action reflected that as the narrative tilted back and fourth during the exchange of maneuvers. Iyo Sky is such a tremendous athlete and the way that she blends her character with her stellar in-ring work speaks volumes about her ability. This bout had believable near falls and it was structured to make the most of those moments. Even though Iyo had the championship since her cash-in at Summer Slam, it still would've made sense if she retained, but Bayley had the momentum of The Rumble win so the action built well to the conclusion. Bayley got the victory and it adds another chapter to her career with a fresh baby face run as champion, but Iyo Sky will continue to be an asset to the roster.

The main event was tremendous, and it was the high-quality storytelling that so many try to emulate, but fall short of with over exaggerated mannerisms or forced narratives. "Finish the story" began to seem like more of a marketing tagline than an organic narrative before Wrestlemania, but as the match unfolded, they were able to achieve the organic peaks and valleys of a memorable main event. As I wrote about during Roman's historic title reign, you can only use the cache that was built up from that four-year run once so it was important that when he dropped the championship that it was done in a way that maximized the opportunity. I think it's fair to say that the main event segment was able to maximize Cody's victory. One of the reasons I don't want to see finishers overused is that rare situations like that are when it makes sense for someone to kick out of a finishing move since it adds another level of drama. The four-year title run on the line against Cody's journey to win the title for Dusty is the scenario that justifies all the pyro and ballyhoo because it sells the drama. The back and fourth of the possible conclusion is what emphasized the drama with the multiple run-ins to impact the direction of the match. The Usos, John Cena, The Rock, and The Undertaker all added to the previously mentioned ballyhoo to build up to the three count when Cody Rhodes concluded the two-year journey to win the championship.

It was very nice to see so many people at ringside, including Cody's family and even Micheal Cole so happy for Cody that they were moved to tears. Keep in mind, from a business perspective, pro wrestling is about drawing the most money possible, but in the process of doing that, the presentation side of it is ultimately to provide entertainment for the audience. Sure, the villains have to win sometimes because that's what allows the baby face to eventually get the triumphant victory. A wholesome and happy conclusion often adds to the entertainment value.

The Vince McMahon scandal was a dark cloud over the pro wrestling industry, but the conclusion of Wrestlemania offered a brighter future for the business.

Wrestlemania 40 night one

Wrestlemania weekend began from a chilly Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and not only did it kickoff the two-night event, in many ways the message was sent that this was a new era of WWE, particularly without Vince McMahon, even though it was done without any reference to him. Before the opening match, Triple H was introduced to welcome the fans to the show, and in my view, this was a way for TKO to publicly "cleanse" itself of Vince. Paul Levesque was announced by his real name, a subtle way to distinguish him from his in-ring persona, and it was very clear that he's the new administrative face of the company. All things considered, Triple H is the guy for the job, not just for his knowledge, but for his dedication to the business. Levesque is the member of the Kliq that didn't drink or do recreational drugs at a time when it was rampant in the industry in the 90s. Quite simply, you never hear shady stories about Levesque, and that's exactly what the company needs in terms of its public perception going forward. Triple H is too focused on the actual business and has too clean of a mindset to fall into any of the deprived pitfalls that saw Vince McMahon exiled in disgrace.

The opening of the show was well done, as it gave the spectacle that you'd expect from Wrestlemania, but it wasn't an extended generic video package that was put on television for several weeks. The production got to the action, and the first bout on the card was Becky Lynch vs. Rhea Ripley for the Women's championship. The match itself was solid and provided some good action. The only criticism that I'd have for it was that in the opening contest of a two-night event with a total of eight hours of the broadcast, Rhea and Becky kicked out of finishers. It was a terrible trend in the early-2010s, as you'd see multiple finishers used to attempt to create a false finish, but there were very telegraphed scenarios so it often only yielded near falls rather than a believable false finish. That being said, the action built well toward the conclusion and the finish was well done. With this victory, Rhea Ripley is made as a true top-tier star, and that's nothing against Becky at all. In fact, Lynch is already a top star and is as over as she's going to be. She's at her peak as a draw and in terms of star power so she didn't need the win. On the other side of the coin, as mentioned, Rhea was elevated to a new level.

The tag team title ladder match was the car crash segment that you'd expect, and there's nothing wrong with that in theory. This was clearly more of a stunt show than the rest of the card, but it was designed to be something different. There wasn't much psychology, but again, that wasn't why it was booked. Pete Dunn and Tyler Bate were spotlighted well, and even if they didn't win a pair of the championships, they looked like bigger names than they were previously since they had those key moments, including the moonsault off the ladder, on the major stage. On the other end of the spectrum, DIY looked more like cosplay wrestlers than legitimate stars or a featured tag team. Don't get me wrong, Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa are good utility workers in the sense that they can do the moves, but the fact that they looked like a miniature version of DX at the biggest show of the year, it makes the statement that they just aren't stars. The power bomb through the ladder that breaks has been seen for years and was rather repetitive. The air raid crash off the ladder from Ciampa was insane and one of the highlights of the show. As far as the finish with Austin Theory and Grayson Waller winning the Smackdown titles and then R-Truth and The Miz winning the Raw championships seems counterproductive. It wasn't until the belts were consolidated and particularly with the run the Judgment Day had that there was more of an importance put on the division. Trying to split the titles again will probably see at least one, if not both sets of belts get lost in the shuffle within the next few months.

The LWO vs. Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio was decent for what it was. There was enough action to showcase everyone, but the task to get the rest of those at ringside involved became crowded. The segment was only about 10 minutes and had a lot of moving parts so it was overbooked to try to give everyone a spot for Wrestlemania. The Jason Kelce cameo was fun and the guy looked like he had a great time with the opportunity to be involved in the city that he played football. It made sense to give the baby face team the win, considering Kelce's involvement.

The Usos match was okay, but nothing too spectacular. There were too many super kicks and it was a little too dramatic to be believable. They both looked like they were trying too hard to act in their roles rather than allowing themselves to organically portray them. The video package before the segment was very well done and added a lot to the narrative, but the match itself seemed a little too forced to fully capture the drama they could've had. Jey getting the win was fine, but this wasn't anything too memorable, especially given the star power on the rest of the card.

The women's tag match was fine and it accomplished exactly what it should've. Every participant had a chance to look like a star, but the spotlight was rightfully focused on Jade Cargill. It was only about seven or eight minutes, and again, it was what it should've been. Keep in mind, the office has to introduce Jade to a new audience, particularly the viewing audience on Peacock. They had to keep the match as short as possible to highlight her without exposing any inexperience. Bianca Belair and Naomi are established within the WWE landscape so their involvement really assisted Cargill's presentation as a new character in the organization. Jade got the victory, and her WWE stint seems to be off to a good start, albeit from a small sample size for the audience.

The Intercontinental title match was great, and where the Uso bout was a little too forced, the IC championship bout seemed to generate the organic drama. It was stiff and there were some brutal moments that added a lot to the underdog narrative. The conclusion was brilliant, as it didn't have 38 near falls, the baby face rallied from underneath and a series of manuevers led to the win so it was a spontaneous finish. Sami winning was a legitimate Wrestlemania moment, and it was another scenario where it elevated a performer's stock within the organization.

The main event was all sizzle and very little substance, and on the surface that's fine, but the segment dragged on way too long, especially after the card had such a good pace prior to this. There was some Attitude era type brawling in the crowd, which is fine because it's a safer way to get some mileage from the contest with less of a risk to the participants involved, but the bout could've been about half as long as it was to accomplish the same thing. The conclusion within the final five minutes was very good, especially as the narrative tilted back and fourth, but there was no reason for this to be over 45 minutes. Don't get me wrong, you can't risk an injury on night one when the crescendo of the event is the main event for night two so I don't think anyone was expecting to see a wrestler jumping off the stage or bumps on the concrete, but there were just too many instances where the match had almost no momentum before the conclusion picked up the pace.

The finish itself was a wise decision. The Rock pinned Cody Rhodes so if Roman loses tomorrow, it opens the door for a conflict between The Rock and Reigns, which could turn Roman baby face down the road. More specifically, this creates an opportunity for an even bigger bout down the road, with The Rock vs. Rhodes for the championship because he can use the pin fall victory on night one to justify a title shot at Summer Slam or perhaps one of the overseas pay-per-views.

Overall, this was a very good night one of Wrestlemania. There wasn't anything legendary, but there wasn't anything subpar either and it accomplished many of the goals in terms of presentation of talent. Furthermore, when you take into account that night one more or less naturally builds to night two, the bigger show on the second night isn't a negative. Keep in mind, there's much more flexibility with the sizzle or substance ratio when both nights are included in the $4.99 subscription for the Peacock streaming service.

CM Punk vs. Tony Khan

CM Punk was right.

The much-anticipated CM Punk appearence on the MMA hour with Ariel Helwani streamed yesterday, which was a part of a slew of Wrestlemania-related appearances on the show. In true CM Punk fashion, he spoke about things that others within the TKO scope won't, albeit with his own spin on those topics. Within the nearly two-hour appearence, a vast portion of it was spent on his exit from All Elite Wrestling. I'm not necessarily sure that any of his comments were earth-shattering or ground-breaking, but they did seem to confirm much of the narrative around the company.

Before the All Elite tidbits that made the rounds on social media after the appearence, it was interesting to note that while others on the roster spoke about Vince McMahon when asked, Punk elaborated more than anyone else. The real-life Phil Brooks called the accusations against the former WWE boss, "indefensible and horrific." Brooks is right. Furthermore, he made a comparison to Chris Benoit, in terms of the public side of someone compared to what they did in their private life. Obviously, Benoit's actions were reprehensible and more severe, but Punk's comparison more or less explained how Vince was gone as far as being persona non grata in the company. In some ways, the willingness to mention both names painted the interview in a specific light, as far as Punk is willing to be upfront with his opinions, which gave the impression that he wasn't there to be a WWE shill.

It was extremely interesting that Punk said that while he signed an NDA about the original backstage brawl with The Elite, he didn't seem to have anything signed to prevent him from talking about the fight with Jack Perry at Wembley Stadium. When he was on the shelf with the triceps injury that he sustained in the match with Jon Moxley before the previously mentioned fight with The Elite, he visited Raw backstage when the show was in his hometown on Chicago. On the MMA hour, Brooks claimed he was just there to visit friends, but I will still say what I wrote about the story about the time, CM Punk is a master politician, and that's not necessarily a negative in the political shark tank of the sports entertainment business, but I think it's fair to say that his backstage visit was still to see if the door would be open for a WWE return if the situation with All Elite wasn't resolved after he healed from surgery.

A few of the most intriguing notes about his hiatus from All Elite more or less confirmed a lot of what the narrative appears to be within the company based on the decisions made, social media posts, and some of Tony's comments about the entire situation. Punk said, "Tony is not a boss, he's a nice guy" and that's basically what the common thought is about him. He's a great guy that cares about his roster, and that's wonderful, but there's a harsh reality of the business world. Tony started All Elite as a way to play promoter and wanted to be friends with his favorite wrestlers. If he can't make the tough decisions or deal with the reality of business then he can't be an effective boss. Punk added that AEW "is not a real business." Again, this was a common criticism about the company and there are numerous examples of it. As difficult as Phil Brooks was to work with and as unprofessional as he was to bury the company that was paying him during the infamous press conference, if Tony Khan was a legitimate boss, The Elite and CM Punk would've been put in a room to work out their differences to use the negative of the backstage fight to draw money for the company with a series of matches. Along those same lines, and I said this at the time of the entire debacle as well, as egotistical as Punk is, The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega failed just as much at their job as EVPs. To consider them management, and the fact that they supposedly still have those titles as a part of management is laughable. Sure, Punk wanted to sound like a tough guy and said if anyone had a problem with him then they could go to him so he shouldn't be shocked when someone did. However, if The Elite were truly management then they have to put their personal grudges aside for the best of the organization, it's one of the responsibilities of being a part of management. In a legitimate company, the Vice Presidents can't get into a fight with the talent at the water cooler.

I thought the statement "not a real business" summed up a lot about All Elite Wrestling because it essentially explains why the assets on the roster aren't maximized and why it looks like a vanity project more often than not. How many times has Tony booked something because it was a match that he wanted to see rather than a match that might draw numbers? He tweeted about aspirations to win "booker of the year" from The Wrestling Observer, but unless that includes a cash prize, booking for what sells tickets should be the priority. Don't get me wrong, from a historical perspective, Dave Meltzer is one of the best resources in the history of the business, but by definition, he caters to a niche demographic of diehard fans. There's nothing wrong with that either, he has made a living from it for decades, but the point being, Meltzer's philosophy or newsletter isn't designed to draw the national television audience. Tony is booking for a niche when the target audience has to be much broader than that. As I've said many times, if Tony was only concerned with "five star matches" then he could've started an independent company and spent a lot less of his family's money. If a product is on national television, even if it's an alternative product, the goal must be to draw the biggest audience possible from the general public. That's why there are advertisement and commercial revenue streams associated with national TV. The ability to generate seven figures will always be more important than five stars.

A few more of the notable quotes were that after the brawl with The Elite, Punk claims that he told Khan "they don't want me here, just let me go" and asked for his release. If that's true, it's even more of an indication that Tony isn't an effective boss since that would imply that he assumed that during Punk's recovery from surgery that the issues on the roster would randomly resolves themselves. At some point, couldn't the guy that signs the checks tell the talent that he pays a hefty salary to that they should act professional and work with each other or just release them from those high-priced contracts? The bottom line is, regardless of what side of the story that you hear, there's never a point where Tony acted like a boss to handle the situation. Assuming it's true that The Elite didn't want Punk in AEW, and by most indications that was the case, it was probably because CM Punk didn't go into the company with the agenda to work with his friends and have fun like it was an indy show. Punk was there to make as much money as possible, and wanted to do what he thought the right moves were to make that happen. Sure, Phil Brooks wanted to make himself look as good as possible and use his position in the company as the biggest star on the roster to add to his resume, but that's basically the goal of everyone in the organization. Pro wrestlers are independent contractors so as much as Brooks might claim he was there to "help" AEW, he was there to get as much cash as possible, and you can't blame him for that.

The friction with The Elite was seemingly that Punk was smart enough to know that you have to have someone to work with so you can't stream roll or politic like Hulk Hogan in WCW. It's just my two cents, but I have no doubt that if The Young Bucks would've been professional enough to put their personal grudges aside, CM Punk would've worked with them and then All Elite would've drawn the biggest money possible for the organization. It's a win-win for everyone involved. But again, The Bucks are there to work with their friends because Tony is paying them good money anyway. Punk put a wrench in those plans because he was a much bigger star and didn't care who he worked with, he just wanted to draw the most money possible. By nature, the addition of CM Punk to the roster took some of the spotlight away from The Elite.

As far as his return to AEW from the triceps injury, Brooks said that Khan didn't want to release him and wanted to give Punk the Collision show to get the people that didn't get along at different venues. Punk said that he told Khan that it wouldn't work, and it didn't. Brooks told his side of the story of the fight with Jack Perry as if he handled it calmly, but I doubt that. However, we know that Punk's version will naturally have a slate to it, as its his perspective. This was another example of the mismanagement from Tony because the office knew that they were bringing a car into the stadium for the spot that led to the fight. As I wrote in an article last week, Jack Perry ultimately cost AEW the ability to promote CM Punk. Punk is a much bigger star and much more important to the company than Perry. Jack Perry is completely expendable, and it speaks volumes to Tony's avoidance of any type of conflict when it was recently reported that despite being his boss, Khan hasn't talked to the former Jungle Boy in months. Punk noted on the MMA Hour that he didn't hear from Khan for months after the infamous All Out brawl.

In the time since the Punk interview aired, some of the AEW talent have praised All Elite Wrestling on social media. Of course they are, that's where they make a living, and without All Elite, most of them would probably work independent shows for a fraction of the money that Tony Khan is paying them. But, make no mistake about it, the lack of communication, the lack of firm decisions made, and the lack of leadership that Punk referenced in the interview are only a few of the reasons that All Elite Wrestling is a vanity project. Make no mistake about it, Tony Khan is a nice guy, you hear that from almost everyone that works with him, but that doesn't mean that he has any qualifications to be a wrestling promoter. But hey, Tony gets to be friends with his favorite wrestlers, more talent get to make a living, and in the process, there will be a few diamonds in the rough in terms of quality pro wrestling bouts from AEW.

It's ironic that the lack of business sense in AEW is more or less what brought CM Punk back to the WWE. He credited CEO Nick Khan for how the deal was made, and in truth, it was a smart move since Nick Khan is a neutral executive without being involved in Punk's rocky exit from the WWE a  decade ago. Phil Brooks knew that he could make major cash if he was willing to work in the WWE again, and TKO knew that bringing CM Punk back into the fold could translate to more money through ticket sales and merchandise. You don't have to exchange gifts at the holidays to work together if there's money to be made, and it's not surprising that the cash solved the rift between Punk and the company.

All that said, I'm not sure CM Punk, despite what he might say publicly, changed all that much in the span of a few months between his AEW departure and his WWE return. However, he might have a better perspective on the WWE's agenda to try to draw the biggest money possible when it clearly wasn't a priority for AEW. When you take into account that All Elite Wrestling lost $34 million last year, it's difficult to argue with Punk's statement that the organization isn't a real business.

Dynamite ratings

Over the past few weeks, All Elite Wrestling added three more high-profile free agents to its roster when Kazuchika Okada, Will Ospreay and Mercedes Mone all inked to full-time contracts. However, the numbers have remained sluggish and in some cases there was a decline despite the new talent added to the show. As these new performers made their arrival on Dynamite over the course of the past month, I've written about the impact or lack thereof that it had on the television ratings that were sluggish over the past year.

Unfortunately, this week's edition of Dynamite drew just 747,000 viewers, the lowest the show has garnered in almost six months.

As a disclaimer that I have to include in most of these articles to avoid the misguided feedback of the diehard AEW fan base, I hope that All Elite Wrestling can be a successful as possible, but when analyzing the status of the company on a continuous basis, the patterns that emerge usually underscore the fundamental flaws within the structure of the organization. In fact, the key segments with the broadcast served as key examples of why the product continues to either plateau or have slight decreases during certain weeks.

Keep in mind, I've said prior to this that there's a difference between a matchmaker and a booker. Tony Khan is a great matchmaker and practiced t that on the internet for years when he booked an E-fed on message boards for 22 other people. That's a much easier task since it's not a ground-breaking concept that Ospreay and Takeshita had an incredible bout on pay-per-view. A great booker knows when, where, and under what circumstances that specific talents collide to get the most out of the situation. There's very little of the All Elite product where you can say that Tony maximized the opportunity or the assets he had. CM Punk returned to pro wrestling for the first time in seven years under the All Elite banner, but more than twice the audience that tuned into AEW at his peak saw him cut a promo on Monday. Even on the injured list, Punk is a bigger star for the WWE than he ever was under contract to All Elite. Furthermore, Khan just spent another hefty amount of cash to bring in New Japan's top guy, the biggest female star on the free agent market, and a tremendous talent with the potential to build the company around for Ospreay.

But, still Dynamite just had the lowest rating of the year so far during the same month that these three top-tier talents arrived.

Sure, the March Madness tournament is stiff competition, but the bottom line is, even a portion of the core All Elite audience would rather watch hoops than three major talents? If Tony booked a compelling show then the viewers would watch it. If NCAA basketball can take a portion of the All Elite television audience away, it proves that not enough is being done to maintain viewers.

At this point, the fans know that the three previously mentioned stars are going to be there, but maybe the viewers know that how the talent is going to be used won't be "must see" television so they watched other programming.

Will Ospreay is one of the best in-ring talents in the business today and has a huge upside as a main event guy for AEW. The story of him winning the championship at Wembley this year writes itself. That being said, his first main event match as a full-time talent was against Kyle Fletcher a few weeks ago drew a disappointing 779,000 viewers, which had more to do with the opponent than Ospreay. It's not that Fletcher isn't a talented wrestler, but rather that he was rarely on television prior to this and the audience didn't know enough about him to watch the main event segment. Sure, it allowed Tony Khan to see a dazzling spot fest, and the participants probably wanted to have the match since they are real-life friends, but Fletcher wasn't established enough to justify a main event spot and the numbers reflected that.  In a similar fashion, the Ospreay/Katsuyori Shibata bout that opened Dynamite this week didn't have the chance to be promoted as anything more than a random bout. Yes. Ospreay and Shibata have history from New Japan, but that wasn't used to advertise the contest in advance or build it up with their background in Japan. Shibata, similar to many others on the roster, is just another of the numerous names that you will see sporadically on television. Aside from Dynamite, he made just two other television appearances this year that were within the past two weeks on Rampage and Collision respectively. As talented as Shitbata is, he isn't on television enough to be seen as an important player within the All Elite landscape. A side note, given his history with the very serious head injury, it's still concerning to watch him wrestle and it would probably be safer if he remained a trainer for New Japan.

The pair of tag matches on the show were more or less in the same category as non-essential viewing. The Young Bucks vs. Private Party is a match that has been seen on television multiple times before, and most fans know that with the new heel persona, The Bucks are going to advance in the tournament. We've already discussed in prior articles that Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, regardless of their in-ring ability, went from lame comedy skits to a supposedly dangerous heel group in the span of a week. Trent Barrett is a really solid worker, but he's another guy that's rarely on television so Best Friends vs. The Undisputed Kingdom was skippable.

There was a four-way women's match to determine the number one contender for the women's championship at the pay-per-view next month, and it makes sense for Willow to get the win to set up her title win to be able to book Mercedes vs. Willow for the championship at Double or Nothing in May as a way to build off of their New Japan bout when Mone was injured. However, the problem was, Mercedes was put on commentary and sounded completely aloof with nothing to add to the broadcast. Given that her first two promos the weren't anything spectacular, it's questionable why she was put on commentary. Don't get me wrong, Mercedes Mone is a star, but this wasn't the way to showcase her, and she actually came across like less of a star during the segment.

The main event was a stellar fast-paced contest, but it failed to capture viewers for the same reason many of these type of main events don't bring up the ratings. Tony booked this because he thought it would be a great match and it was a bout that he wanted to see this week, but it was given a very minimal promotional push. The fact that it was deemed a number one contender bout was almost thrown in as a side note rather than the major focus. Furthermore, Takeshita was defeated by Ospreay at Revolution, and only won two matches on Rampage since then so how exactly did he get a number one contender match? On the other hand, Swerve has a lot of momentum behind him and he's one of the more popular on the roster right now so it was obvious that he was going to win the match. Again, there wasn't enough of a meaningful or important storyline for the main event segment for viewers to watch the entire broadcast.

Don't get me wrong, the sluggish ratings over the past month aren't going to make the company go out of business, and signing free agent talent isn't the only way to build hype around the product, but if you consider the past year, outside of the Adam Cole reveal that flopped, what long-term storyline was set up for a payoff? Furthermore, while new signings aren't the way to truly build the audience because it's an artificial boost rather than building compelling programming, All Elite adding more wrestlers to the roster is one of the few consistent concepts on the shows. There are a lot of talented names under contract, but very few legitimate stars that can boost the numbers and proof of that is the addition of more names have yielded a decline in the ratings.

What's the staus of Jack Perry?

Jack Perry, the former Jungle Boy in All Elite Wrestling, is back in the news this week, but the murky situation surrounding his status with the Tony Khan-owned organization isn't any clearer or provided any indication if he will actually resurface in the company again.

The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer addressed the scenario in a recent edition of his newsletter, claiming that Perry, who was involved in the backstage brawl at Wembley Stadium with CM Punk that saw the real-life Phil Brooks fired, apologized to Tony Khan in hopes of opening the door to get back on television. Perry vehemently denied the report, claiming that he never issued an apology to his boss and didn't hear from Tony for two months after the backstage fight. The Observer's Bryan Alvarez added some clarity to the situation, reporting that Tony Khan set up an in-person meeting with Perry in Los Angles when the company held shows there to discuss plans to bring the former Jungle Boy back to television, but those plans were scrapped when Punk returned to WWE, as All Elite didn't want anything to look like a reference to the Wembley fight. Rocky Romero, who works as a liaison for New Japan Pro Wrestling, was able to set up Perry's current run for the Japanese league when they were touring the United States. It was also reported that Jack Perry legitimately requested his release from the company, but it was denied.

There are a few different layers to this story, and depending on how it unfolds, it will either be an indication of lessons learned or the same pattern repeated within management.

As I wrote at the time of the incident, while CM Punk was completely unprofessional and clearly didn't care about working for All Elite when he was willing to get into another backstage fight after all the negative press the original brawl with The Elite caused the company, Jack Perry provoked the situation. Furthermore, Perry was infamously aloaf at a wrestling convention months earlier when his comments implied that he didn't really care about his matches in AEW, and if that's the case, how was the audience supposed to be invested enough in his matches to be willing to pay to watch them?

It implied that Perry doesn't have the mindset to be a true pro that can draw serious money in the wrestling business.

Of course, the entire situation boiled down to a compete lack of management skills by Tony Khan, not just for how the Perry/Punk fight was handled, but also the way he mismanaged the Punk/Elite brawl the year previously. Keep in mind, there was also a backstage confrontation between Eddie Kingston and Sammy Guevara before Sammy was punched by Andrade during a different altercation. Unfortunately, there was a precedent set within AEW that real-life fights had very little consequence in the organization. Tony wanted to be friends with the wrestlers, not their boss. Nothing was truly done to address the issue, as The Elite were given the Trios championships upon their return to television, and Punk was given an entire show with Collision so he could play the top guy on Saturday night, but Khan didn't assert any authority as the guy that signs the hefty checks for the talent. Punk trashed the company at the press conference, got into a fight with the EVPs, got paid millions of dollars while he stayed home to heal from triceps surgery, and was given his own show when he returned.

What consequences were there for anyone involved in the original brawl?

Obviously, those lack of consequences gave Punk the impression that it didn't matter if he got into another fight with Jack Perry. On the other side of the coin, Jack Perry wasn't worried about any repercussions to his job when he provoked the situation with his comments about real glass during the All Out broadcast or when he was confronted by Punk. In a similar fashion to when CM Punk was kept under contract while his triceps injury heal, Jack Perry is still getting paid by Tony Khan, but is wrestling somewhere else. The details of his New Japan agreement aren't known, but the point is, he's under contract to All Elite Wrestling, but remains a healthy scratch from the line-up.

As far as what Tony Khan should do with Jack Perry, I have the same impression of the situation now that I did when the fight happened last September, Jack Perry cost All Elite Wrestling the biggest star they had on the roster. Perry is a secondary guy and whatever potential that it looked like he had initially diminished considerably within the past two years, and the convention appearance implied that he didn't have the mindset or the dedication to make it to the next level in terms of the star power required to draw money. CM Punk was exponentially more important to All Elite Wrestling business than him. The bottom line is, Jack Perry is completely expendable, and his involvement makes zero difference in the grand scheme of things for the company. Granted, there's a portion of the All Elite Wrestling roster that is expendable, not because they don't have talent or potential, but rather that they are simply lost in the shuffle of the bloated roster. 

At this point, Perry is expendable because he was more of a hindrance than an asset for the organization. Would there truly be a difference in any of the numbers if Jack Perry was released? Would ticket sales go through the roof if Perry was advertised for the live events? Would the ratings improve if he was promoted on television? If not, why is he still under contract? Tony Khan has nearly a full roster of talent that are in catering every week, why does All Elite Wrestling need Jungle Boy on the roster?

As far as Jack Perry refusing to apologizing to his boss for the backstage fight, it's completely ridiculous since he was totally unprofessional, and as much as Tony failed as management in the situation, there was no excuse for Perry to provoke the situation or get into a fight. As mentioned, Jack Perry is expendable, and while he has talent, he's not worth the hassle to keep on the roster. He's a mid-card performer, and there  are dozens of other wrestlers on the roster that can work in that role. In the grand scheme of things, Jack Perry is cannon fodder, but the way that Khan handled or avoided the situation says a lot about his continued mismanagement of the company.

The biggest takeaway from the entire scenario has nothing to do with Jack Perry since his impact on the promotion is minimal, but rather that Tony Khan took a passive approach to the situation again. Instead of confronting Perry about what he cost the company or cutting him from the roster, Tony avoided conflict, as Perry claims he hasn't heard from Khan in months. We've seen that when talent has left the company in the past, Tony had his legal team get them to sign NDAs to prevent public discussion about their exit. Sure, it covers the company from a PR perspective, but it's also another way for Khan to avoid the tough decisions that go along with being the boss. Tony doesn't have to confront the talent, he pays a lawyer to do it. Since nobody can talk about what happened when they left, Tony doesn't have to answer any questions at the press conference about the talent's comments on their departure. The bottom line is, if Tony Khan wants to be a successful pro wrestling promoter, he will have to be the boss that can make the firm decisions, not friends with the roster.

The Rock on Raw

You've heard the old pro wrestling trope that "red equals green," a notion that a bloody rivalry translates to big box office. There were undoubtedly times for professional wrestling, mostly within its regional heyday, that when the crimson flowed, it added an extra level of intensity that made a bout "must see" for fans at the arenas. When  Larry Zbyszko turned heel, pummeling his mentor, the legendary Bruno Sammartino, with a wooden chair on television, it was appalling. The fact that he bloodied the iconic Italian hero was unforgivable. "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes further established his blue collar persona because he was willing to bleed to overcome the villains in his quest for victory. The visual of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin refusing to quit in the sharpshooter as blood streamed down his face was ultimately what cemented the Stone Cold character as the top baby face in the years that followed.

Not surprisingly, when something works in pro wrestling, it will be replicated and usually its too often, thus diminishing its effectiveness. As we know, the Attitude era pushed the envelope, and as much as the mid-card drek doesn't hold up more than two decades later, a lot of the thrilling main events had blood on a regular basis. Triple H might be seen as the savoir of creative today, but fans were less than enthusiastic about his twenty-minute weekly promos and extended reign of doom in the early-2000s. Obviously, a student of the sport and a fan of the gritty NWA style, many of those Triple H pay-per-view bouts saw him bleed when his championship was on the line.

Of course, when Linda McMahon ran for Senate twice, the company went PG and while it was definitely a move designed to benefit her campaign, there were some positives with the shift in direction. Aside from the fact that it got away from the previously mentioned sleaze of the prior era, it unquestionably opened the door for more main stream sponsors, which is one of the company's most important revenue streams today. That said, there were also times when the PG approach hindered the product, as the nature of professional wrestling is based on conflict so you can tailor as product, but you can't reinvent the genre.

The elimination of chair shots to the head was one of the best decisions they company ever made and it should probably be something that is applied across every promotion. The other side of the coin was, the organization eliminated any blood from the shows, even from a hard way cut during a match. If the corporation doesn't want its performers slicing their head with a razor blade, there's somewhat of an argument to be made there, even if that method only causes superficial damage, but when matches were stopped because of a hard way cut, especially when the talent were fine to continue the contest, it halted any momentum the match had. A major example of this was Edge vs. Finn Balor at Wrestlemania last year when a stiff ladder shot accidentally gashed Balor's head open just minutes into the match. His head had to be stapled closed at ringside before the match could continue at the biggest show of the year.

Still, the decision to completely scale it back made the times that blood appeared, particularly when the action was allowed to continue stand out, adding another layer of sizzle to the segment.

The ridiculous legitimate elbow that Brock Lesnar used to slice open Randy Orton at Summer Slam years ago is still mentioned now, even though it was planned for Orton to take a stiff elbow to generate blood. Last year, Brock legitimately rammed his head into the exposed turnbuckle to bleed from a hard way cut during his match with Cody Rhodes at Backlash in Puerto Rico. It would've been exponentially easier to use the small cut from the traditional techniques of the blade, but it wasn't company policy.

However, perhaps with a new board of directors, there are new company guidelines.

As entertaining and compelling as The Rock's thirty-minute promo segments were on Smackdown and served their purpose to hype WM 40 in a few weeks, it's fair for the counterpoint to mention that such segments were becoming repetitive after being the standard formula for several weeks. Much of WWE programming has been primarily based on promo segments since The Rock joined the TKO Board of Directors, including the lengthy CM Punk/Drew McIntyre segment  on Raw so it's understandable that the audience wants to see more action to go along with the sizzle of the mic work.

After Cody had roughly twenty minutes on the mic on Monday, he was interrupted by Dwayne Johnson, but The Rock didn't say anything to the audience, opting to whisper something to Rhodes instead, It created somewhat of a flat opening segment, but at the same time, left some intrigue as to what was said. Thankfully, there was a resolution that was anything but flat at the conclusion of the show. When Cody was brawling backstage with members of The Bloodline, he was attacked by The Rock. The fight slipped outside the arena into the rainy parking lot, allowing for a very gritty and realistic segment. Rhodes was cut during the attack and the blood added the intensity that the angle needed ahead of Wrestlemania. The segment emphasized the violence and was presented in a way that appears to stack the odds against the baby face. As we know, the bigger the odds the baby face can overcome, the bigger the payoff for the victory. Furthermore, the gritty way it was done with The Rock being portrayed as a vicious heel can help sway the crowd to rally behind Rhodes rather than simply be entertained by The Rock's typical promos.

That's not to say that the crimson should be added back to WWE as a regular part of programming, but rather saved for big match scenarios like this when it can really put an extra sizzle to the angle. Keep in mind, selling the drama is a key aspect of drawing money in the sports entertainment business. The "good guy" is left bloody in the rain in the parking lot while the powerful villain talks trash as the show goes off the air. It's simple, but effective. Granted, this is yet another way that the focus is put on The Rock vs. Cody instead of Rhodes vs. Reigns, but with the level of hype this Wrestlemania event is going to generate, you can give the storyline the benefit of the doubt to what direction it goes in the next few months.