Hardcore Overload DVD Review

Here's a review of a rare and hard to get dvd from RFVideo. it's called Hardcore Overload and features the following.

1. Shoot interview with Art barr in the locker room after the AAA PPV, Art talks about ECW plus more rara footage

2. Interview with Vampiro from airport in LA, he talks about Art Barr's death. This was a shoot interview, 11/27/94, a few days after Art died

3. Sabu & Taz vs. Malenko Brothers

4. Public Enemy vs. Cactus & Sullivan (rare, never seen before)

5. Various never seen before footage of the AA PPV

6. Clips os Al Snow vs. Bob Bradley (Fullerton CA)

7. Too Cold Scorpio vs. Chris Benoit (11/7/94)

8. Coverage of SMW in Philly and other rare clips

9. More rare ECW footage, Pitbulls vs. Rottens (Dog Collar), Douglas Piledrives Sherri

Its a nice little curio of a dvd, that looks at Art Barr's rise to stardom before his untimeley death, also presenting a look at some other grapplers in action, inlduing Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, Chris candido and the Public Enemy all of which have now passed on.

Look out for it on ebay and of course form RF Video.

Phil :)

WWE Releases Talent

The WWE have released two veteran grapplers, both Dave Taylor (last seen tagging with Drew McIntyre) and ECW original Balls Mahoney have both been let go.

I wish them well in the not so well paying world of indie grappling.

Backlash Highlights

so Triple H did it he raised his 12th WWE title and in doing so creeps closer to the 16 his hero Ric Flair obtained during his illustrious career.

Matt Hardy took the US title from the hugely impressive MVP in a stormer of a match.

But my highlight was the return of Mick Foley as colour commentator on Smackdown's roster, the three time WWE champion and hardcore wrestling legend will add a lot to the brands programming.

Forever Hardcore DVD Review

With the now watered down and barely distinguishable ECW on WWE programming I thought it was time to look back at the rise and fall of the legendary original ECW as created by Paul Heyman, Todd Gordon and others.

This two hour documentary by Jeremy Borash is a superb addition to the WWE made Rise and Fall of ECW, which although wonderul in its own right did put a slightly WWE friendly slant on matters.

This is a nicely made, talking heads style programme, where many of the ECW originals (not uneder contract to WWE)speak about the company from its humble beginning to its highs points and eventual implosion.

Its great to hear people like sandman, Terry Funk, Sabu, Francine, Shane Douglas and Pitbull Gary Wolfe all talk about the company and thier involvment.

Its a must for any fans of ECW and those curious as to just what the original company did and how it paved the way for current WWE and TNA shows.

Phil Allely :o)

WWE Suspend Michael Hayes!!

I hear WWE Smackdown head writer Michale Hayes has been suspended for 60 days, it is being billed as a holiday, but form whati cna tell it goes back to an incident at Wrestlemania where hayes pulled a rib on carlito that backfired on him, it involved a fake choke with wrist tape and has led to the current situation.
hayes is a wrestling elgend who was a major part of the USWA, NWA and WCW scene as a member of the Fabulous Freebirds before he jumped ship to the WWE and started off there managing the Hardys before moving backstage to his current position, always a great grappler and ring psychologist Hayes is a legend of the sport.

Regal: King Of The Ring

So Raw GM William Regal is now the 2008 King of the Ring, but what does it really mean?
KOTR used to be a stepping stone to greatness, the launching pad for an up and coming star to shine or someone who had paid his dues to get the recognition he deserved.
Regal has been doing his comeyd parody of an englishman so long now that his winning this one-off event really doe svery little to boost him or the people he beat on the way. Surely giving someone like CM Punk the nod would have added to the prestige of the event.
Only time will tell.

TNA Lockdown My Comments

So now i've wtache dthe PPV here are a few comments.
yet another success for TNA the evnt drew a ecent 5000 plus crowd, the idea of having a whole event of cage matches could be an awful one but having each match slightly different helps and there of course is not raising and lowering of the cage to interupt proceedings.
I was very impressed by the X Division scrap although there was an awful lot going on until the field was thinned down. Lethal, Devine, Dutt and Curry Man all showed well.
Queens of the Cage was a nice and varied attempt at a cage match, the knockouts all had a great bout before Laveaux pinned Angelina Love to caim the title shot at Awesome Kong.
BG James and Kip James took their team break-up to the cage and really did little to move on or end their feud, pity because they were once a sueprb team.
Cuffed in a cage had far too many men involved, it was very ahrd to keep track of what was going on, soem nice spots but the bodies in the ring did hold up things, Suerp Eric save sthe day again.
Awesome Kong/Raisha vs Gail Kim /ODB was very good, exactly what you expect from this talented set of grapplers.
Roode and Booker T will hopefully now move on from their feud after this tag team match, Sharmel pinning Payton.
The Lethal Lockdown cage match had it all, blood from Devon, some hard -hitting moves, although the action was so intense and so many people were involved that it probably was easier to watch via tv than live, the set pieces on the cage roof were dangerous, exciting and spectacular to see.
Nice to see Rhino get the win.
Joe and Angle was a no-brainer, no way was Joe retiring form wrestling and we all knew it, but this was a hard-hitting and brutal match-up, angle brought out the best in Joe and to see him win made this event stand-out.

overall a nice ppv that cement sthe companies position as number tow behind the WWE.

TNA Lockdown 9pm Tonight On Bravo 2

As you know by now Samoa Joe raised the TNA Title at Lockdown on Sunday Night in Boston, you can catch up on this match and the rest of this all-cage match card at 9pm tonight on Bravio 2. I'll make my comments on the show tomorrow after the show has aired.

WWE King Of The Ring Tournamment

According to sources the next 3 hour RAw will feature a one-night KOTR style tournament.
The PPV was one to launch Steve Austin, Triple H etc to the big time, but swiftly lost pace and was reduced to a shorter series of matches that only took over the top ened of a ppv card and not the whole thing beofre being droppped totally.

Thsi years King of the ring one-night show will most probably fetaure 10 sueprstars fomr all three brands.

names bandied about are:
Jericho, Umaga, Michaels, Batista, Cm Punk, Big Show, Finlay, Kennedy, HHH, MVP.

should be interesting to see and of course to see what the show offers for the winner.

odds are Punk to win or MVP.

Joe The Champ

So after a hard-hitting match Samoa Joe netted himself the TNA Championship. That means unless he drops it to Kurt angle or Scott Steiner in the coming months he will be the title holder on the UK Tour in June. Is he the best man for the job? I think so, read my mate Simon Rothstein's review on the Sun's website.

Can Joe Topple Kurt?

This Sunday Samoa Joe gets his chance to take the TNA title from Kurt Angle inside the six-sides-of steel and in a hard-witting MMA style environemnt. With such interet in the match will TNA bow to the fans and let Angle lose or will they stretch this storyline out a bit further? Joe is the future of the company no doubt, but its a simple case of star power and drawing numbers. Can he command the attention that say someone like Angle or Sting can in the mainstream media.

WE'll know the answeer by Monday and be able to witness it oursleves form 9pm on Wed April 16th on Bravo 2.

WWE Belfast Wrestlemania Revenge Tour Results April 10th 2008

WWE Raw Results Belfast Odyssey Arena Thu 10th April 2008

1. Brian Kendrick pinned Paul Burhcill
2. Maria & Mickie Jame beat Beth Phoenix and Katie Lea.
3. CM Punk pinned Carlito
4. Snitsky beat DH Smith
5. William Regal pinned Santino Marello
6. Holly & Rhodes bested Cade & Murdoch
7. Chris Jericho retained his IC title over Umaga
8. Kane kept his ECW title over Chavo Guerrero
9. Triple H beat WWE champion Randy Orton via DQ caused by William Regal.

check out my detailed review on www.thesun.co.uk/wrestling very soon.

Former WWE Star Wrestles In Ireland

Nick Dinsmore (formerly Eugene) now billed as U-Gene took part in the Irish Whip Wrestling St paddys Tour of Ireland. from all accounts his presence was well received. check out www.irishwhipwrestling.com

Belfast Brawl Comments

I'm a fan of Dave 'Fitt' Finlay and proud to see that my fellow countryman has not only fought back from a career threatening injury (that left him unable to wrestle, but lead to a lucrative job as trainer to the WWE's female grapplers)to be able to coempete full time once more, but has inded had a large part in a very high profile storyline over recent months. That being the Hornswoggle McMahon story, this culminated in the Wrestlemania Belfast Brawl between Finlay and JBL. Unfortunately Finlay left Mania defeated and as such an uncertian future awaits him and his 'son' hornswoggle, they seem to be in a comeyd amtch limbo at present and whilst fun to watch does nothing for the mans career. I hope its only a small blip in what ahs been a superb WWE career to date. perhaps at the upcoming Odyssey Arena show in Belfast (which i will of course review) Finlay will get his revenge on JBL on home turf too.

WWE Wrestlemania Revenge Tour Imminent

So in the space of nine days there will be 18 WWE shows in Europe as all three brands go n tour with two live recordings (Raw and Smackdown in england) between the dates of April 10-19. The shows will be in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England, Spain, Switzerland, France, Austria and Portugal. Look out for my Belfast Review on the Sun's website soon.

www.thesun.co.uk/wrestling

Trish Stratus Most Searched Female on Lycos

For the end of march former WWE Diva and womens champion Trish Stratus was the most searched for feamle celeb.

Trish in case you are wondering is currently filming a reality tv show entitled Stratusphere.

WWE Legend Hennig's Daughter Signed to WWE

Curt 'Mr Perfect' Hennig's daughter Amy has been signed to a WWE developmental contract, she is currently training with former NWA champ Harley Race.

She will train with Race and not move to the Dusty Rhodes run FWA in Florida.

Tracy Smothers A Benoit Style twist!

Here below is a online letter from Former ECW, WWE USWA Smoky Mountain and Japan star Tracy Smothers' former girlfriend, i do hope and pray that it is untrue but you never can tell, see what you think.

taken from www.tracysmothers.biz

April 7, 2008


When I decided to end my four year relationship with Tracy Smothers I ordered a three month supply of all his medications before I took him off my insurance.
I also made sure he would have the COBRA forms to be able to extend his insurance.

After I moved out of our home I left all his things in a storage closet in the back of our townhouse for his friend to pick up for him. His friend did that but Tracy has not bothered to go get anything from him.
That means he has none of his medications or the paperwork that he needed to extend his insurance.

I found out yesterday that Tracy has not taken his medicine in close to a month.
He is taking borrowed blood pressure pills and what he called nerve pills. He is still getting drunk every Monday and smoking pot daily.

I know for a fact that he has been having mini strokes since early Christmas morning.
It's happened to him in the ring and when he has been driving to shows.
He told me himself that he had one over a week ago and in the car on Saturday.
They are getting more frequent because he is off his seizure medication.

He has brain damage and post concusssion syndrome to the point where his neurologists told him that he should have gotten out of the ring ten years ago.

Anyone who steps into the ring with him is now taking their life in their own hands.
Any promoter who would consider booking him for a show is insane unless they want to see him die in their ring.

When Tracy is off his medications he is delusional, irrational, and has violent blackouts as well as the seizures and mini strokes.

Without his mediciations he will be the next Chris Benoit!

I got out because I refuse to wind up like Nancy.

If anyone sees him in public or at a show please encourage him to go get his medications that I have already paid for.
His friend has them waiting for him here in Nashville.

I am curently writing a book on dealing with his insanity. I just hope he lives until it is ready to go to press.
It will be a miracle if he survives much longer.

For more information about that please visit my website at http://www.reneepayne.com

I plan on donating most of the profits from the book to the
Nancy and Daniel Benoit Foundation for Abused Women and Children in Atlanta.

I'm not posting this to be mean or spiteful. I am trying to save his life!

Please feel free to repost this information on as many websites as possible.
Tracy has given his life to the wrestling business and now has absolutely nothing to show for it in return.
If anyone cares about saving his life please get him to start taking his medication and get out of the ring for good.

The wrestling business does not need the stigma of yet another untimely death.

Thank You!

Renee Payne

TNA lockdown Line-up

here is the ppv card for TNA's all-cage match show Lockdown.

TNA title: samoa Joe v Kurt Angle

Team Tomko V team Cage

X Championship Match: Lethal v Curryman v Dutt v Devine v Shark boy.

Mixed tag match: Roode/banks V Booker T /Sharmel

BG James v Kip james

Women's title: Awesome Kong/Raisha Saeed v Gail Kim

Queen of the cage match: Agelina Love, Velvet Sky, Salinas, Rhaka Khan, Traci Brooks, Christy hemme, jacqueline, Roxxi Laveaux.

Ric Flair DVD Bargain At Silvervision.co.uk

those wonderful people at www.silvervision.co.uk are doing a great deal on the Ric Flair three disc dvd set.

until 5pm tomorrow Friday April 4th 2008 they are doing the set for £11.99, saving you £10. go get it now its an unmissable boxset.

WWE On Tour To The UK

So its tour time again and the Wrestlemania revenge tour will swing by my local arena (the Odyssey In belfast) next week.

Taker reclaims his title!

Great to see the Undertaker get his hands on his world title again, it was a shame to watch the big man have to drop the belt last eyar due to injury, he has been promised a lengthy run i her, so finegrs crossed he does get it.

Kane ECW champ

So is it just me or has the WWE given up on the ECW brand? Kane squashed ECW champion Chavo in literally seconds during their Wrestlemania encounter. I am sure the whole ECW roster was amazed at how their title was belittled on the biggest show of the year.
I do hope that the proposed moving of CM Punk to another brand happens before he cashes in his Money Inthe bank title shot. Jeff Hardy's loss may be Punk's gain, but we have to believe that he is thought of more backstage than a title that was virtually thrown away.

Kane deserves a title run before he retires soon (according to rumours), pity its not the RAW or Smackdonw title he's wearing these days.

New Flair DVD In The Making

With his much-hyped retirement now a fact the WWE are hard at work on a Ric Flair DVD release, here's hoping this one covers his non-wwe career and fills in the gaps between the superb Ric Flair boxset and foru horsemen releases.

Phil Allely's Flair tribute part two

More Ric Flair pics to savour

Ric Flair A PIcture Tribute To My Hero

Now that he has had his emotional send-off at the biggest Wrestling event of the year (wrestlemania), at the hands (or should that be foot) of Shawn Michaels, living legend Ric Flair is set to step away from the squared circle forever. Whether he will stand by his word or like so many grapplers return to in-ring competition either full or part-time is still to be seen. Considering Slick Ric's ego, financial situation and the fact that for decades wrestling has been his life blood i'm assuming he will return in some capacity pretty soon.

So anyway since he is my hero and a true definition of a living legend here are some pics from the lear-jet flying, styling and profiling in-ring great to enjoy.

Phil