TNA The Pope Interview

The Pope Will Arrive In January 2011!

By Phil Allely

TNA’s Pope D’Angelo Dinero is scheduled to appear on the companies January 2011 UK/Ireland tour, but prior to that he chatted to Phil Allely about some other ‘Pope’ stealing his limelight on these shores, and his World Championship aspirations amongst other things.

The Pope is currently visiting the UK, will you as TNA’s Pope be hoping to make as big a splash across the news as he has?

Of course I will I’ll be a part of the next UK Tour (January 2011 tickets on sale now). I can’t wait, in fact I’ve had so many people emailing me asking was I already in the UK.
They needed educating that only when I make it to the UK next year, will the ‘Pope’ really arrive. Unlike the other pope I preach what I wish to my congregation, there no one holding me back from speaking my mind and saying what I think. The Pope will make an Impact! (pun intended) when I travel with TNA to the UK and Ireland.

TNA’s flagship PPV Bound For Glory is just around the corner will you be on the card?

Last year I had an unfortunate situation that saw me miss BFG, this year I can guarantee that The Pope will be there.

I am currently talking backstage to get myself included in a possible four way at BFG, I may have lost my match against Anderson (at the No Surrender PPV), but the other two guys currently in the three-way (Jeff Hardy, and Kurt Angle) lost too in their semi final match, as there was no winner.
I want the Pope to face them all in a world title match.
However if that doesn’t happen I want to be a part of the show in some way, I don’t care who it’s against.

Coming from the WWE to TNA you were already reasonably well known as a wrestler, does that mean you don’t think of yourself as a TNA Original?

You know what that is a great question, kudos to you for asking, you see the pope arrived in TNA and he is more popular, bigger, better and higher profile than Elijah Burke ever was. So yeah I (The Pope) am a TNA original, I consider myself that and know my congregation do too. I’m a TNA original alright.

You seemed to be on the receiving end of a big push (and possible TNA title run) when an injury halted it, is that the case in your eyes?

I never had a push, that’s an over used word.
I wasn’t like Goldberg, Stone Cold or The Rock being thrown full throttle into things, by beating record numbers of guys, 3:16 spouting or turning heel, like they did to get a push.
I wasn’t pushed (by TNA) I was given an opportunity.
I took my opportunity and ran with it, my push was coming, but I got there first.
The Pope is ‘going to be’ the next TNA World Heavyweight Champion.
Out of the whole TNA roster is there someone you look up to or would relish a match with?

Sting as a dream opponent for me, I think he needs that something in a foe to motivate him (that creates a fire inside himself and spark between them), he is at his best when he is having fun (at this stage of his career you can see he does that) , you see the best of sting when he is enjoying being in the ring.
When I was in the WWE I longed to meet Sting and now I’m in the locker room with him, he has a unique ability to entertain a crowd.
Sting is the reason I watched TNA in the first place, he is an inspiration.
Ric Flair is the same, even when he is talking as ‘crazy Ric’, he is totally entertaining and you have to watch him.

You clearly know your stuff wrestling wise and have your own inspirational heroes working in the same company as yourself, does that affect your working with or locker room meetings with guys like Sing and Flair?

TNA’s locker room is a humbling place, it’s baffling too for me, as some other don’t feel as humble as The Pope does.
I appreciate these legends, I remember coming in off 12 hour shifts to watch these guys on WCW and I always dreamed to work for WCW, (thankfully it went bust and I didn’t though) ,but now I’m in TNA with them and its amazing to remember watching Sting being beaten up by the Horsemen, or watch Flair cut a classic promo and now I’m there centre ring meeting Hogan (Impact recently)and he’s there calling my congregation and using my moves instead of cupping his ear. It’s unbelievable really.

TNA’s tag team division is one of its prized possessions, will the Pope ever grace that area of the company?

No come on the pope wants the limelight for himself (laughs), it would take a really good reason to make him go that way.
Unless of course I get some lovely ladies as my team mates, then all bets are off and I’ll be there.


Watch out UK as TNA’s Pope prepares to preach to his congregation on these shores next January and catch up with his title chase each week on Impact! And the monthly PPVs.

TNA’s Bound For Glory Pay-Per-View is live this Sunday night in the US Oct 10th and will be shown live here in the UK the following Friday, check back

Former WWE Talent Sunny Blasts TNA

Sunny Blasts Insensitive TNA!!
By Phil Allely
Former WWE talent Tammy Sytch (Sunny) explained during an interview with Women’s Wrestling Today that she loathes TNA Wrestling because when her longtime boyfriend died, Chris Candido, they refused to forward her his last paycheck (for the final shows he performed at for the company, including the one where he broke his ankle, which led to the surgery in which he got an infection and ultimately died from) so she could pay off his outstanding bills.
“They refused, because we weren’t legally married. So bills I had of his, in both our names, ended up being my sole responsibility. It was only a $1,500 check, but still.
“They had Terry Taylor call me and tell me that. So he basically broke his ankle and died for free. They sent the check in his name, which I couldn’t endorse and deposit. When I asked them to cut me a new check in my name, they said no.”
The last know approach from TNA to Sytch was back in 2008 when she was being provisionally pitched as an onscreen love interest for Jeff Jarrett, however that was vetoed by a TNA higher-up who insisted the former Sunny ‘Would not work in TNA’.
The former manager and pin-up has now turned her life around after a few wilderness years which hampered her in-ring career and is back appearing at conventions and independent shows across the United States.

WWE Hell In A Cell 2010 Review

WWE Hell In A Cell 2010 - PPV Review

By Phil Allely

Hell in a Cell is one of those concepts that when it first appeared in the WWE was a fresh of breath that the company needed. The violent steels cage match premise and very eager to please grapplers who entered it often bled heavily form the match and that in turn ramped up the live audience and PPV buy rates. However now that the WWE is in a place where it wishes to portray itself as a PG organisation and bloodshed is a no-no, this years HIAC outing really needed to be something special indeed.

With a couple of nice (on paper at least) looking matches based in the steels cell and a good supporting card hopes were indeed high for the 2010 offering.

Things started well with The Miz and John Morrison taking on United States Champion Daniel Bryan for his belt in a submissions count anywhere match-up. The action was fair to good and all three worked hard to please the pumped up live crowd. A Nexus run-in saw Daniel Bryan able to capitalise and wipe Morrison out of the equation, leaving Miz to tap out to the LeBell submission move once again for Bryan to retain.

Next up surprisingly was the Hell In A Cell match for the WWE Title between champ Randy Orton and Irish man Sheamus. This was the 20th HIAC match in WWE history and saw both men risk life and limb with earnest. Sheamus and Orton traded near falls, trademark moves and some stiff shots throughout. The steel ring steps proving to be harder to negotiate than the cell itself, with Sheamus first being slammed into them then RKO’s onto them for the pin fall loss.

The nice mystery Raw GM storyline continued to pick up speed next as Edge was interrupted mid rant (about Del Rio) and told he’d be facing Jack Swagger next.

Swagger dominated most of the match, using his speed advantage over the veteran Edge. Edge’s cunning and brutal looking Spear saw him overcome an ankle lock attempt and embarrassing loss to the young underdog, to win the impromptu scrap.

The following bout was a fun one on paper, WWE cartoon hero John Cena was faced with the prospect of joining the Nexus group next, he faced Wade Barrett in a match where if he lost he joined up and if he won they disbanded.

Without his team mates Barrett put forth a great deal of offence to the former multiple time WWE champ. There were near falls aplenty and Barrett got a very decent showing against the man who WWE seem intent on pushing to the sky Cena.

The end came when a fan (most likely a Nexus member) and an associate took out Cena, Barrett capitalised on the interference and left a great many of Cena’s fans upset that their hero would have to join the upstart Nexus group.

The new Unified Divas Title was up for grabs next as Natalya faced current champ Michelle McCool. McCool’s partner in crime Layla proved to be the thorn in Natalya’s side though, taking a few opportunities to interrupt proceedings and leave the ref with no choice but to DQ McCool.

The final match of the night was the highly anticipated and eagerly awaited match between the Undertaker and his brother Kane. With Undertaker’s old manager Paul Bearer (also storyline wise Kane’s father) thrown into the mix this was expected to be a scorcher.

The match itself was fair, but Taker and Kane in 2010 is nothing compared to when they faced off a few years ago. The in-ring abuse and wear-and-tear and various injuries are all slowing down the giants unfortunately. The pair did pull out all of the stops, but this main event just lacked something that previous scraps have seen. The ending though will have internet notice boards buzzing for weeks I’m sure. Direct from the comic book matches of old (when Taker beat much larger foes and used supernatural powers), Paul Bearer strode into the ring amidst a ref bump and unleashed a flash of light from his ever present urn to blind Taker and allow Kane use it as a weapon on his charge. The match ended with Kane and Bearer leaving a shaky Taker to make his way to the back.

Hell in a Cell could have been so much more, the main event fell flat after some of the decent scraps earlier. Having Sheamus and Orton on second still seems an odd choice and the ongoing Undertaker and Kane feud has now hit some very strange levels. I’m hoping the rumours of Buried Alive matches and upcoming arena tour of the UK will see them show their talents to a better degree than HIAC did.

TNA Knockouts

The TNA Knockouts Division may be a shadow of its former self, but thats not to say that the girls have lost any of their charms. Here are a few pics to keep us all amused until Bound For Glory Next week.

Steve Austin Interview Sept 2010

'Why Can't I watch TNA?'


Exclusive Interview: ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin

By Phil Allely


Stone Cold Steve Austin needs very little introduction to wrestling fans, he was one of the WWE’s biggest and most popular stars during the 1990s, the bald headed maverick single-handedly he helped their attitude era of wrestling beat their close rival WCW into submission. A severe neck injury that forced him to retire from the ring was the only thing that stopped him still being there today.

Here the WWE ‘Hall of Famer’ talks to Phil Allely about wrestling and his new movie release Hunt to Kill.

Steve does still watch wrestling and has his own opinions on the direction the product is taking today.

‘I watch WWE, I watch TNA, I don’t like it when people say, hey you’re a WWE guy why do you watch TNA. I love pro wrestling, I watch all wrestling when I can, be it TNA or WWE, it’s a passion, I have always had that passion for the sport. That’s what inspired me to enter the ring in the first place, I watched wrestling avidly and back then it was guys battering each other in smoke filled arenas and blood flowed freely’.

In his prime Stone Cold rose from the opening act on WWE cards to the main event star in very quick succession, his character striking a chord with millions and making him a real life icon to them all.

‘I was Stone Cold Steve Austin and my era and my style was what worked (very successfully) back then (when I was active). In WWE today I guess PG works business wise for them right now. That’s why I watch wrestling whenever I can today, it‘s entertaining and takes me back, I do have fond memories of my time there in the ring. When it took off with me (as Stone Cold) it was so hot and so fast, I realise now it was not designed to last forever, when I got dropped on my head that all changed. I lasted a while longer only after that match with Owen Hart. But I had a lot of fun as that guy, I ran through and had so many exciting moments as Stone Cold. My career was what it was, I had some 15 years of cuts, stitches, injuries and much more, I cant say nothing bad about it. I met some great guys and had some amazing matches’.

When he left WCW Austin joined the more violence orientated ECW for a short while and still has a lot of respect for the Philadelphia company that spawned so many of today’s top stars and wrestling icons, many of which have now cropped up in TNA recently.

‘ECW was a blast back in the day and you know who’s gonna fault them being back in the limelight again, we all have opinions on who should be on TV or not, but at the end of the day its good to see the guys getting a payday and the respect they deserve. Those guys in TNA today (as EV2.0) many of them are old road buddies of mine and I have the utmost respect for them’.

‘To be honest its great to see some guys still performing out there after the injuries they’ve had. I’m lucky, you know my neck is 100% these days, I can do my own stunts and fight scenes where I can. I don’t claim to be a tough guy, but give it a go. My neck was fixed in 2000, I had to leave the ring because of the damage, but in my normal life and movies it’s fine, wrestling wise I’d be a total mess right now’.

‘You know I’m hearing Hulk is talking about getting back in the ring, even though his backs messed up. You know he was a big guy, all that wear and tear takes a toll on the back and the bigger the guy the harder it is. He was working with big guys too, like Andre, John Studd and such. He’s a big boy and more power to him if he thinks he’s fit to step in the ring. He’s the immortal and only Hulkster, so ultimately he knows his body best. I respect whatever decision he makes’.

‘I never thought I’d say it, but when I’m asked about one more match these days I do tend to say Never say never, so don’t rule it out’.
‘I sometime wish Hogan and I had have had a run a few years earlier, imagine how good that could have been, given the chance I’d have loved to have faced legends like Harley Race, Nick Bockwinkle and Andre the Giant, those guys in their prime and me in mines would have been great’.

Though he’s no longer an active wrestler and now a respected action movie star with his own vehicles, such as The Stranger and new film Hunt to Kill under his belt Steve has also starred in one of the most highly anticipated and successful action films of the last year The Expendables, where he rubbed Shoulders with many of the genres greatest stars.

‘On The Expendables I was number 12 on the call sheet, that was a great experience though, I learnt so much from all of those guys, in particular Sylvester Stallone, he was the number one box office star in action films and has taught me so much’.

Action may be the natural acting genre of choice for an ex-wrestler with a hard as nails character, but Austin has other thespian aspirations too beyond his chosen comfort zone.

‘Comedy I‘d love to do that, but right now after doing this, action’s my genre and learning from Stallone and the guys on The Expendables, I just want to do more. Next February I’m off to Vancouver for a SWAT team film and now I’m just itching to go and do more back-to-back ones.
My brand and my style are there to build on. I want to take the training wheels off (the Steve Austin action movie juggernaut) and get going.
I’d really love to do some comedy, a horror or a sci-fi film, but action is my thing right now’.

Steve Austin’s new film Hunt to Kill is released on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 11 by Anchor Bay Entertainment and features him as a Montana Border Patrol Officer who not only has to deal with a rebellious teenage daughter, but a gang of dangerous criminals who are in search of a missing horde of cash. The action packed film is Stone Cold’s biggest solo project to date and promises to ‘Hunt to Thrill‘.

WWE DVD Review: Fatal Four Way 2010

By Phil Allely

Fatal 4 Way 2010 was a first of its kind for the WWE, a PPV event where all the main event matches were contested under fatal 4 way rules. Ths meaning that the likelyhood of the current champion retaining his or her gold was a tougher feat for them to achieve.

Out now on release from Slvervision this dvd of the event has an awful lot to offer diehard fans of the WWE and those who casually make a DVD purchase.

As the only PPV of its kind to date this one has it all, thrills, spills, high risk moves and some hotly contested in-ring battles. There are a few great surprises to, all of which help elevate it to a highly anticipated event for the future as well.

Stroyline wise the action here falls in betweent eh rise of the Nexus group, Undertakers disappearance form TV and Bret Hart's vacation of the Raw General Manager role. All of which play a part in proceedings here.

The opening bout between Kofi Kingston and Drew McIntyre for the Intercontinental Title has a at few moments, McIntyre's lackings in ring helped by teddy Long and Kofi's assured ring work.

Divas Eve Torres, Gail Kim, Maryse and Alicia Fox do give their all in their short Diva Championship brawl. Amidst the screams and messy moves some nice risk taking moves, invluding a good looking moonsault help keep this above other ladies division bouts.

Chris Jericho versus Evan Bourne had an awful lot going for it, both men proving their worth to the roster. Jericho as the wily main event regular and Bourne as the up and comer waitng for his shot.

The World Heavyweight Championship match between Jack Swagger, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk and Bg Show was superbly put together, all four making their mark and there were some great set pieces, each hiting trademark moves,double teams and more as they vied for the Prized Belt on offer.

With their unlce Bret Hart out of action the Hart Dynasty had something to prove in their match with up and comers the Usos and Tamina. Having so many third generation stars int eh ring is interesting to witness and although some are greener than otehrs the action itself was very good here. The Samoans and the Canadians all seemed in synch with each other.

The main event was a belter too, pitting John Cena, randy Orton, Edge and Sheamus all against each oher with the WWE Championship on the line. The match itself was nicely paced and each man shone in his own way, the moves, action and back and forth styling sof the four man situation proving to be a runaway success.

All in all Fatal 4 Way 2010 was a wonderful addition to the WWE PPV calendar, heres hoping it return in 2011.

8 out of 10

Christian undergoes surgery

WWE superstar Christian (Jay Reso) has underwent surgery to repair his torn pectoral muscle. This is Christians forst major surgery and one that may keep him off the air for a good few months. Here's hoping he heals quick and can regain some momentum in the WWE upon his return.