WWE DVD Review: Survivor Series 2011
Survivor Series is one of the WWE’s longest running and iconic PPV events of the year. It is also one that had almost outstayed its welcome a short time ago, fortunately the WWE decided to retain its use and we can still enjoy the annual November event that is Survivor Series. Unfortunately the team-based match-ups which formed a big part of these events have slowly been removed from the card as the years unfold.
Whereas previous years have offered forth a few traditional style Survivor Series matches alongside the rest of the card the 2011 effort had just one such match-up. That’s not to say that this is a poor effort by the WWE, on the other hand the matches here were pretty damn good.
Highlights include the in-ring return of former WWE superstar (and recent multi-million selling movie star) The Rock teaming with his WrestleMania opponent John Cena against the pairing of R-Truth and The Miz, you can also witness CM Punk versus Alberto Del Rio for the WWE Championship. Henry and the Big Show battle it out over the World Heavyweight Championship. Dolph Ziggler tackle high flyer John Morrison and a decent (yet short) diva’s scrap between Eve Torres and Beth Phoenix. There is also of course the sole Survivor Series style encounter featuring Randy Orton, Sheamus, Mason Ryan, Sin Cara and Kofi Kingston versus Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Jack swagger, Hunico and Dolph Ziggler.
Survivor Series 2011 ticked a few boxes along the way with its well-paced old school match-up, the divas encounter was fair, the rest of the under card entertained too. Of course we all want to see more of the original SS style encounters, but things do move on and this wasn’t too bad an effort at all. The Rock/Cena teaming worked well. Rock especially faring good in a match where ring rust would surely have been noticeable. Here’s hoping their WrestleMania encounter lives up to its hype too.
Survivor Series 2011 is available now at all good retailers.
www.silvervision.co.uk
Showing posts with label 2011. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2011. Show all posts
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
Thursday, 6 October 2011
PPV Review WWE Hell in a Cell 2011
WWE Pay-Per-View Review : Hell in a Cell 2011
By Phil Allely
The Hell in a Cell gimmick is still by far one of my personal favourites in the world of sports entertainment. The HIAC bouts are usually hard-hitting and exciting feud-ending cage-based scraps that make for must-see viewing. This year the card looked pretty well stacked and there was great potential that we may even see a few titles change hands too. So what did 2011’s effort bring to fruition?
Sheamus versus Christian as an opener worked very well indeed, both men trading trademark moves and two counts. After some decent back and forth action it was the Irishman who took the advantage and nailed Christian with a Brogue kick for the win.
With Sin Cara’s recent suspension and replacement with a stand-in it was inevitable that we would take a trip down Undertaker v evil Undertaker mode once more and see two versions of the same character face-off. Here it was blue/silver Cara (the original) taking on the imposter Black/silver. The action here was well paced and enthusiastic, proceedings certainly proving that Cara is best when working with a fellow Mexican trained athlete. The end saw our blue suited hero put his foe away with a powerbomb.
The WWE Tag Team Title match between the combos of Air Boom (champs) and Jack Swagger/Dolph Ziggler was up next and whilst having its moments it never really caught our attention too much. The champs retaining after Bourne converted a powerbomb from Swagger into a hurricanrana.
The first Hell in a Cell match of the night saw World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry defend his belt against former champ Randy Orton. As with their previous encounter for the gold this was an above average affair, Orton carrying the larger and less mobile Henry to a well worked match. The Champ hit a huge slam to put ‘the Viper’ down for the three-count. Orton did however get some form of revenge by utilising a steel chair to beat down Henry.
The Intercontinental Title(now using the classic white version of the belt) encounter between champion Cody Rhodes and John Morrison had a few fine moments. Morrison and Rhodes working well together, Rhodes retained his belt with a swift roll-up when Morrison missed a springboard move.
Divas Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly took to the ring next to wage war for Kelly’s Diva Title. OK in parts this match became one where outside interference and slightly botched moves prevailed. Natalya interfering on Beth’s behalf paid off as ‘The Glamazon’ hit her glam slam move to win the belt.
The main event was another HIAC bout and it was also the point where this event went just a little bit odd.
Pitting Alberto Del Rio, CM Punk and John Cena in a cell-based scrap for Cena’s title. With chairs, the cage itself and anything else they could use the trio battered each other wildly around the ring. This was indeed Del Rio’s night as his heelish tactics and ever reliable cohort Ricardo Rodriguez worked in his favour. With Cena locked outside the cage Del Rio took advantage of the situation and used a steel pipe to level Punk for the win and his second piece of Heavyweight gold in a very short space of time.
As Del Rio celebrated his win Cena re-entered the ring to confront him, the previously banned R-Truth and Miz then entered the fray and as the cage lowered once more they pummelled the three combatants as an angry Triple H and WWE locker room watched on. The show ended with Truth and Miz being arrested and chaos surrounding he ring.
HIAC 2011 was certainly an event where many things happened, it did however feel like a slightly bigger budget Raw or Smackdown episode instead of a PPV. The Hell in a Cell format has lost an awful lot of its appeal in these non-bloodletting days of the WWE and that of course has a knock on effect with fans and the PPV buying public.
The new storyline with Triple H and the roster losing faith in him will be interesting to see develop and just where will the careers of Truth and Miz go now?
By Phil Allely
The Hell in a Cell gimmick is still by far one of my personal favourites in the world of sports entertainment. The HIAC bouts are usually hard-hitting and exciting feud-ending cage-based scraps that make for must-see viewing. This year the card looked pretty well stacked and there was great potential that we may even see a few titles change hands too. So what did 2011’s effort bring to fruition?
Sheamus versus Christian as an opener worked very well indeed, both men trading trademark moves and two counts. After some decent back and forth action it was the Irishman who took the advantage and nailed Christian with a Brogue kick for the win.
With Sin Cara’s recent suspension and replacement with a stand-in it was inevitable that we would take a trip down Undertaker v evil Undertaker mode once more and see two versions of the same character face-off. Here it was blue/silver Cara (the original) taking on the imposter Black/silver. The action here was well paced and enthusiastic, proceedings certainly proving that Cara is best when working with a fellow Mexican trained athlete. The end saw our blue suited hero put his foe away with a powerbomb.
The WWE Tag Team Title match between the combos of Air Boom (champs) and Jack Swagger/Dolph Ziggler was up next and whilst having its moments it never really caught our attention too much. The champs retaining after Bourne converted a powerbomb from Swagger into a hurricanrana.
The first Hell in a Cell match of the night saw World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry defend his belt against former champ Randy Orton. As with their previous encounter for the gold this was an above average affair, Orton carrying the larger and less mobile Henry to a well worked match. The Champ hit a huge slam to put ‘the Viper’ down for the three-count. Orton did however get some form of revenge by utilising a steel chair to beat down Henry.
The Intercontinental Title(now using the classic white version of the belt) encounter between champion Cody Rhodes and John Morrison had a few fine moments. Morrison and Rhodes working well together, Rhodes retained his belt with a swift roll-up when Morrison missed a springboard move.
Divas Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly took to the ring next to wage war for Kelly’s Diva Title. OK in parts this match became one where outside interference and slightly botched moves prevailed. Natalya interfering on Beth’s behalf paid off as ‘The Glamazon’ hit her glam slam move to win the belt.
The main event was another HIAC bout and it was also the point where this event went just a little bit odd.
Pitting Alberto Del Rio, CM Punk and John Cena in a cell-based scrap for Cena’s title. With chairs, the cage itself and anything else they could use the trio battered each other wildly around the ring. This was indeed Del Rio’s night as his heelish tactics and ever reliable cohort Ricardo Rodriguez worked in his favour. With Cena locked outside the cage Del Rio took advantage of the situation and used a steel pipe to level Punk for the win and his second piece of Heavyweight gold in a very short space of time.
As Del Rio celebrated his win Cena re-entered the ring to confront him, the previously banned R-Truth and Miz then entered the fray and as the cage lowered once more they pummelled the three combatants as an angry Triple H and WWE locker room watched on. The show ended with Truth and Miz being arrested and chaos surrounding he ring.
HIAC 2011 was certainly an event where many things happened, it did however feel like a slightly bigger budget Raw or Smackdown episode instead of a PPV. The Hell in a Cell format has lost an awful lot of its appeal in these non-bloodletting days of the WWE and that of course has a knock on effect with fans and the PPV buying public.
The new storyline with Triple H and the roster losing faith in him will be interesting to see develop and just where will the careers of Truth and Miz go now?
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
WWE DVD Review - Over The Limit 2011
WWE DVD Review – Over The Limit 2011
By Phil Allely
Over The Limit on paper had a lot of potentially high octane bouts on offer and whilst some failed to live up to their hype, others fulfilled their end of things very well indeed.
The show kicked off in a sombre mood as we saw a graphic proclaiming the event was in memory of the late Randy ‘Macho Man’ Savage, which considering the often mooted bad blood between the legend and WWE main man Vince McMahon was a very nice touch indeed.
R Truth and Rey Mysterio were up first and ably set the pace for proceedings, Truth showing his more brutal side and Mysterio taking punishment his battered and worn down body really doesn’t need.
Next following a cocky as ever speech by WWE Championship contender The Miz we had Wade Barrett face off against his former Corre teammate Ezekiel Jackson. This did plod along in parts, but both big men worked hard to give the fans a decent showing. The Corre of course made their presence felt here too.
The Sin Cara and Chavo Guerrero match was one of the already mentioned great on paper affairs. However whilst the pairs styles should have worked well, it just wasn’t meant to be. The set-pieces were good, but not as good as we were led to believe they would when executed by the highly anticipated Cara. The mood lightening seems to hinder Cara’s matches too, making some of his flashier moves hard to see.
After a fun interview segment with World Heavyweight Champion randy Orton and his nemesis Christian it was time for Alberto Del Rio to spout forth some drivel about his wrestling destiny. He was cut short by Tag Champs Kane and Big Show in a comical interlude.
Big Show and Kane then faced The Nexus team of Mason Ryan and CM Punk. Punk as the smallest participant had his work cut out to put forth a formidable showing here against his much larger foes.
The Divas title match-up saw champ Brie Bella defend her gold against the ever-popular Kelly Kelly. This was a more spirited scrap than the usual Diva cat fight, Nikki Bella of coursed got involved in proceedings and as per usual our underdog (Kelly) took a beating. Kelly’s inevitable comeback proving to be a welcome crowd pleaser, even with the delectable Bella twins underhand tactics.
After reaching the pinnacle of the WWE Christian saw his World Title dreams shattered when Randy Orton ended his title reign in just five days. This was his chance to redeem himself and take back the belt he had worked so long and hard for. Picking up the pace after a few duller bouts this match makes this release well worth a purchase alone. Orton and Christian work so well together in the ring that many of us could watch them do battle forever, each move and exchange are so fluid you’d think they had been working together for many years. This is the match of the night here and it’s great to see both men at the top of their game.
The bitter, sometimes offbeat feud between Michael Cole and Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler finally came to an end next, this Kiss My Foot match was a fine way to do so, although the feud itself did run a tad too long for many fans. Lawler throwing Cole through his ‘Cole Mine’ plexi glass shelter was a nice set-piece too. Watch out for a special appearance by some people who Michael Cole had offended alongside Lawler. There’s even a guest spot for original Kiss My Foot match participant Bret Hart.
The WWE Championship main event match between The Miz and champ John Cena was an entertaining affair. It quickly degenerated into a handicap match (featuring Miz’s Stooge Alex Riley).
The action was fast, furious and most of all involving, Cena may have his many fans, but equally there are countless others who detest his super hero style character. Here he appeared more human than ever and underwent a great deal of abuse at the hands of the duo of Riley/Miz.
With weapons galore (including steel cases, ring steps, kendo stick et al) this was a very good way to round off a PPV.
Over The Limit 2011 will certainly keep you amused as a home DVD release, it does tick many boxes and the main matches are indeed treats to view again. There are some inferior encounters in there, but they do move along quickly enough and don’t dilute the main one too much at all.
On the extras front there is an interview with John Cena only.
WWE Over The Limit 2011 is available now form ww.silvervision.so.uk and all good retailers.
RRP £17.99
Certificate 12
Running Time 2 Hrs 56 mins
By Phil Allely
Over The Limit on paper had a lot of potentially high octane bouts on offer and whilst some failed to live up to their hype, others fulfilled their end of things very well indeed.
The show kicked off in a sombre mood as we saw a graphic proclaiming the event was in memory of the late Randy ‘Macho Man’ Savage, which considering the often mooted bad blood between the legend and WWE main man Vince McMahon was a very nice touch indeed.
R Truth and Rey Mysterio were up first and ably set the pace for proceedings, Truth showing his more brutal side and Mysterio taking punishment his battered and worn down body really doesn’t need.
Next following a cocky as ever speech by WWE Championship contender The Miz we had Wade Barrett face off against his former Corre teammate Ezekiel Jackson. This did plod along in parts, but both big men worked hard to give the fans a decent showing. The Corre of course made their presence felt here too.
The Sin Cara and Chavo Guerrero match was one of the already mentioned great on paper affairs. However whilst the pairs styles should have worked well, it just wasn’t meant to be. The set-pieces were good, but not as good as we were led to believe they would when executed by the highly anticipated Cara. The mood lightening seems to hinder Cara’s matches too, making some of his flashier moves hard to see.
After a fun interview segment with World Heavyweight Champion randy Orton and his nemesis Christian it was time for Alberto Del Rio to spout forth some drivel about his wrestling destiny. He was cut short by Tag Champs Kane and Big Show in a comical interlude.
Big Show and Kane then faced The Nexus team of Mason Ryan and CM Punk. Punk as the smallest participant had his work cut out to put forth a formidable showing here against his much larger foes.
The Divas title match-up saw champ Brie Bella defend her gold against the ever-popular Kelly Kelly. This was a more spirited scrap than the usual Diva cat fight, Nikki Bella of coursed got involved in proceedings and as per usual our underdog (Kelly) took a beating. Kelly’s inevitable comeback proving to be a welcome crowd pleaser, even with the delectable Bella twins underhand tactics.
After reaching the pinnacle of the WWE Christian saw his World Title dreams shattered when Randy Orton ended his title reign in just five days. This was his chance to redeem himself and take back the belt he had worked so long and hard for. Picking up the pace after a few duller bouts this match makes this release well worth a purchase alone. Orton and Christian work so well together in the ring that many of us could watch them do battle forever, each move and exchange are so fluid you’d think they had been working together for many years. This is the match of the night here and it’s great to see both men at the top of their game.
The bitter, sometimes offbeat feud between Michael Cole and Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler finally came to an end next, this Kiss My Foot match was a fine way to do so, although the feud itself did run a tad too long for many fans. Lawler throwing Cole through his ‘Cole Mine’ plexi glass shelter was a nice set-piece too. Watch out for a special appearance by some people who Michael Cole had offended alongside Lawler. There’s even a guest spot for original Kiss My Foot match participant Bret Hart.
The WWE Championship main event match between The Miz and champ John Cena was an entertaining affair. It quickly degenerated into a handicap match (featuring Miz’s Stooge Alex Riley).
The action was fast, furious and most of all involving, Cena may have his many fans, but equally there are countless others who detest his super hero style character. Here he appeared more human than ever and underwent a great deal of abuse at the hands of the duo of Riley/Miz.
With weapons galore (including steel cases, ring steps, kendo stick et al) this was a very good way to round off a PPV.
Over The Limit 2011 will certainly keep you amused as a home DVD release, it does tick many boxes and the main matches are indeed treats to view again. There are some inferior encounters in there, but they do move along quickly enough and don’t dilute the main one too much at all.
On the extras front there is an interview with John Cena only.
WWE Over The Limit 2011 is available now form ww.silvervision.so.uk and all good retailers.
RRP £17.99
Certificate 12
Running Time 2 Hrs 56 mins
Friday, 20 May 2011
WWE Royal Rumble 2011 DVD Review
By Phil Allely
The Royal Rumble is not only the event that kicks off the WWE’s assault on the Pay-per-View and live event market, it is also the one that sets the scenes for one or more of the main events for Wrestlemania. This year’s effort was no different and it had a few tricks up its sleeve too.
This was the biggest rumble match ever, featuring 40 participants instead of the usual 30. Meaning that not only did things move quicker than normal, but the whole match felt more intense. The fans were into it right from the start too.
Rumble highlights included Nexus dominating for a short period of time, the hilarious John Cena/Hornswoggle double team moves, appearances by veteran stars Booker T and Diesel (Kevin Nash). John Morrison’s cat like reflexes and athleticism are shown well too in one set-piece. Watch out for Chavo Guererro’s crazy suplex spot too. The over the top rope match was an eventful one and one that saw a relative newcomer pull of a shock win and progress to mania.
Elsewhere The Miz defended his WWE Championship against ‘The Viper’ Randy Orton in a heated match-up. Dolph Ziggler squared off against Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship in a very decent bout. The Divas Championship went from a handicap match to a fatal four brawl (via a RAW GM email) and saw Champion Natalya face Michelle McCool, Layla and Eve Torres, the girls had some good spots here, Natalya’s double sharpshooter was impressive and the end a bit of a surprise.
On the extras front there is an interview with Eve and a celebratory piece with Alberto del Rio from the January 31st Raw.
As the biggest and one of the best Royal Rumble’s in recent years this is a pretty good DVD to add to your collection, the matches are mainly worth a viewing or two and the 40 man bout certainly requires that to see all of high points.
Royal Rumble 2011 is available now from www.silvervision.co.uk and all good retailers.
DVD RRP £17.99 runtime 2hrs 56mins
Blu-ray DVD RRP £24.99 runtime 5hrs 42mins
Wednesday, 18 May 2011
TNA Sacrifice 2011 Review
TNA’s Sacrifice is wrestling’s gain!
By Phil Allely
TNA’s Sacrifice PPV came hot on the heels its flagship TV shows re-brand (now titled Impact Wrestling). Mick Foley’s re-appearance on TV as the Network representative, the emphasis on wrestling and much hyped Sting versus Rob Van Dam world title bout all built things up, but could they deliver the goods?
Mexican America and Ink Inc. had its moments as an opener, both teams doing their thing well. A pretty even bout throughout, the gorgeous Knockouts tag champs Rosita and Sarita proved to be the deciding factor for their team’s win.
Kendrick and Robbie had a fair match, whilst impressive in parts the duo failed to ignite the crowd even as Kendrick stole the win.
Madison Rayne’s re-match for Mickie James’ Knockout gold had a stipulation, if James retained her strap Tara would be relieved of her duties to Rayne. Reasonably paced and well planned this was a decent knockouts brawl, a ref bump and Tara cheap shot on Madison giving Mickie the win to set Tara free.
The X Division then got its chance to shine with champion Kazarian facing challenger Max Buck. Kaz retaining his belt for Fortune with a nice Great Muta like ‘shining wizard move’.
Big men Abyss and Crimson then went all out to pulverise each other in a show of strength and hard-hitting action. Crimson’s success going down well with the fans to maintain his winning streak.
The TNA Tag Team Championship bout saw champs Beer Money face the combo of Matt Hardy and the returning Chris Harris. Top duo Storm and Roode did overcome the odds and retain their prized belts, the Hardy/Harris team did give them a good run for their money though.
AJ Styles and Tommy Dreamer’s No DQ brawl saw the action flowing to the outside of the ring, high-flyer Styles working well with the more extreme Dreamer. A piledriver through a table giving Tommy the win (after a Bully ray run-in and Daniels save).
With Chyna on board the Angle/Jarrett storyline continued. The mixed tag bout saw the guys take the lead. Chyna did make her presence known against both Jeff and Karen where possible. A nice double ankle lock seeing the Jarrett’s lose.
The main event featured World Champion Sting tackling Rob Van Dam. Sting and RVD carried themselves well, the champ giving as good as he got from his risk-taking challenger. Stings second Scorpion Death Drop (after a slightly fumbled first attempt) on a prone Van Dam saw him retain his belt.
Sacrifice may not have shaken the wrestling world to its foundations, but it was a solid effort from a company that seem determined to offer ‘wrestling’ as their product. The match quality veered from good to above average throughout the show, storylines progressed and underneath it all there was a sense that perhaps by acknowledging that ‘wrestling matters’ they can continue to build their profile and put on more events like this.
By Phil Allely
TNA’s Sacrifice PPV came hot on the heels its flagship TV shows re-brand (now titled Impact Wrestling). Mick Foley’s re-appearance on TV as the Network representative, the emphasis on wrestling and much hyped Sting versus Rob Van Dam world title bout all built things up, but could they deliver the goods?
Mexican America and Ink Inc. had its moments as an opener, both teams doing their thing well. A pretty even bout throughout, the gorgeous Knockouts tag champs Rosita and Sarita proved to be the deciding factor for their team’s win.
Kendrick and Robbie had a fair match, whilst impressive in parts the duo failed to ignite the crowd even as Kendrick stole the win.
Madison Rayne’s re-match for Mickie James’ Knockout gold had a stipulation, if James retained her strap Tara would be relieved of her duties to Rayne. Reasonably paced and well planned this was a decent knockouts brawl, a ref bump and Tara cheap shot on Madison giving Mickie the win to set Tara free.
The X Division then got its chance to shine with champion Kazarian facing challenger Max Buck. Kaz retaining his belt for Fortune with a nice Great Muta like ‘shining wizard move’.
Big men Abyss and Crimson then went all out to pulverise each other in a show of strength and hard-hitting action. Crimson’s success going down well with the fans to maintain his winning streak.
The TNA Tag Team Championship bout saw champs Beer Money face the combo of Matt Hardy and the returning Chris Harris. Top duo Storm and Roode did overcome the odds and retain their prized belts, the Hardy/Harris team did give them a good run for their money though.
AJ Styles and Tommy Dreamer’s No DQ brawl saw the action flowing to the outside of the ring, high-flyer Styles working well with the more extreme Dreamer. A piledriver through a table giving Tommy the win (after a Bully ray run-in and Daniels save).
With Chyna on board the Angle/Jarrett storyline continued. The mixed tag bout saw the guys take the lead. Chyna did make her presence known against both Jeff and Karen where possible. A nice double ankle lock seeing the Jarrett’s lose.
The main event featured World Champion Sting tackling Rob Van Dam. Sting and RVD carried themselves well, the champ giving as good as he got from his risk-taking challenger. Stings second Scorpion Death Drop (after a slightly fumbled first attempt) on a prone Van Dam saw him retain his belt.
Sacrifice may not have shaken the wrestling world to its foundations, but it was a solid effort from a company that seem determined to offer ‘wrestling’ as their product. The match quality veered from good to above average throughout the show, storylines progressed and underneath it all there was a sense that perhaps by acknowledging that ‘wrestling matters’ they can continue to build their profile and put on more events like this.
Wednesday, 27 April 2011
Below are full results from the 2011 WWE Supplemental Draft:
Below are full results from the 2011 WWE Supplemental Draft:
* Daniel Bryan goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Jack Swagger goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* The Great Khali and Ranjin Singh go from RAW to SmackDown.
* Jimmy Uso goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Kelly Kelly goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* JTG goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Alicia Fox goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* William Regal goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Yoshi Tatsu goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Drew McIntyre goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Natalya goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Curt Hawkins goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Chris Masters goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Jey Uso goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Kofi Kingston goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Ted DiBiase goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Tyson Kidd goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Tamina goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Tyler Reks goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Alex Riley goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Beth Phoenix goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Sheamus goes from RAW to SmackDown.
Major WWE Creative Changes, HHH-Vince News, New Diva Slip Pics and More...
* Daniel Bryan goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Jack Swagger goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* The Great Khali and Ranjin Singh go from RAW to SmackDown.
* Jimmy Uso goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Kelly Kelly goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* JTG goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Alicia Fox goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* William Regal goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Yoshi Tatsu goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Drew McIntyre goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Natalya goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Curt Hawkins goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Chris Masters goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Jey Uso goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Kofi Kingston goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Ted DiBiase goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Tyson Kidd goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Tamina goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Tyler Reks goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Alex Riley goes from RAW to SmackDown.
* Beth Phoenix goes from SmackDown to RAW.
* Sheamus goes from RAW to SmackDown.
Major WWE Creative Changes, HHH-Vince News, New Diva Slip Pics and More...
Thursday, 21 April 2011
TNA Lockdown 2011 Review
TNA get Cagey at Lockdown!
By Phil Allely
TNA’s Lockdown pay-per-view is a highlight of the year for many wrestling fans, as it is the only event promoted by a mainstream US organisation that promises bloodshed. The all cage match set-up pretty much guarantees that.
Devon and Anarquia took pre-show warm-up duties with a short brawl, Devon pulling off the popular win.
The X Division then kicked things off (proper). Their Xscape match saw the Buck brothers, Chris Sabin, Robbie E, Amazing Red, Jay Lethal, Kendrick and Suicide battled for the right to be number one contender for Kazarian’s belt. Uber Confident Max Buck taking advantage of a slight ref bump to net himself the win in an exciting crowd-warmer.
The following four tag team affair saw Ink Inc. v The British Invasion v Crimson/Scott Steiner v Eric Young/Orlando Jordan. It offered up a lively mix of brutal moves, eccentric behaviour and some nice set pieces, ending when Shannon Moore stole the pin with a Moore-gasm.
Mickie James’ eagerly anticipated hair versus title match with Knockouts Champion Madison Rayne was cut short due to James shoulder injury, but the gutsy country singer was still able to raise her first TNA title over the cocky Rayne.
The Pope and Samoa Joe’s feud continued with a decent back and forth brawl, each trading the advantage before Joe locked in the ‘rear naked choke’ to take the submission victory.
Hernandez and Matt Morgan had a good big man match next, Rosita, Sarita and Anarquia tried but failed to distract big Matt from nailing a ‘Carbon Footprint’ for the win.
The battle between Kurt Angle and Jeff Jarrett progressed with a ’ultra male’ match, each man trying to outdo the other with their stiff exchanges (including a career shortening cage top moonsault from Angle). With run-ins tight-pulls roll-ups and Karen’s involvement Kurt’s fate was seale, but he did step up to the fray before a bloody Jarrett took the win.
Sting’s defence of the world title against Mr Anderson and Rob Van Dam had its moments, each man getting the chance to shine, Sting especially showing more enthusiasm than he has previously. The champ has found his mojo again (an enthusiastic double ‘scorpion deathlock’ attesting to that), Hulk Hogan appeared to witness the Stinger drop Anderson to retain his gold.
Lethal Lockdown saw Fortune tackle Immortal’s Ric Flair, Abyss, Matt Hardy and Bully Ray. The opening segments were brutally intense at times, but it was when the weapons laden cage roof lowered that the blood and violence overflowed. Flair bled heavily, Daniels put his body on the line and AJ Styles returned to the fold, the main event had it all and more. Flair tapping to a Roode arm bar saw the faction win.
Lockdown saw only one title change and less blood than many expected, but it did do what it said it would do, feuds were progressed, storylines continued and no one left looking like they hadn’t been in a fight.
TNA are now in a classic WCW like position, offering an exciting and innovative alternative to the WWE product, it just needs to maintain that and gain a mainstream push.
By Phil Allely
TNA’s Lockdown pay-per-view is a highlight of the year for many wrestling fans, as it is the only event promoted by a mainstream US organisation that promises bloodshed. The all cage match set-up pretty much guarantees that.
Devon and Anarquia took pre-show warm-up duties with a short brawl, Devon pulling off the popular win.
The X Division then kicked things off (proper). Their Xscape match saw the Buck brothers, Chris Sabin, Robbie E, Amazing Red, Jay Lethal, Kendrick and Suicide battled for the right to be number one contender for Kazarian’s belt. Uber Confident Max Buck taking advantage of a slight ref bump to net himself the win in an exciting crowd-warmer.
The following four tag team affair saw Ink Inc. v The British Invasion v Crimson/Scott Steiner v Eric Young/Orlando Jordan. It offered up a lively mix of brutal moves, eccentric behaviour and some nice set pieces, ending when Shannon Moore stole the pin with a Moore-gasm.
Mickie James’ eagerly anticipated hair versus title match with Knockouts Champion Madison Rayne was cut short due to James shoulder injury, but the gutsy country singer was still able to raise her first TNA title over the cocky Rayne.
The Pope and Samoa Joe’s feud continued with a decent back and forth brawl, each trading the advantage before Joe locked in the ‘rear naked choke’ to take the submission victory.
Hernandez and Matt Morgan had a good big man match next, Rosita, Sarita and Anarquia tried but failed to distract big Matt from nailing a ‘Carbon Footprint’ for the win.
The battle between Kurt Angle and Jeff Jarrett progressed with a ’ultra male’ match, each man trying to outdo the other with their stiff exchanges (including a career shortening cage top moonsault from Angle). With run-ins tight-pulls roll-ups and Karen’s involvement Kurt’s fate was seale, but he did step up to the fray before a bloody Jarrett took the win.
Sting’s defence of the world title against Mr Anderson and Rob Van Dam had its moments, each man getting the chance to shine, Sting especially showing more enthusiasm than he has previously. The champ has found his mojo again (an enthusiastic double ‘scorpion deathlock’ attesting to that), Hulk Hogan appeared to witness the Stinger drop Anderson to retain his gold.
Lethal Lockdown saw Fortune tackle Immortal’s Ric Flair, Abyss, Matt Hardy and Bully Ray. The opening segments were brutally intense at times, but it was when the weapons laden cage roof lowered that the blood and violence overflowed. Flair bled heavily, Daniels put his body on the line and AJ Styles returned to the fold, the main event had it all and more. Flair tapping to a Roode arm bar saw the faction win.
Lockdown saw only one title change and less blood than many expected, but it did do what it said it would do, feuds were progressed, storylines continued and no one left looking like they hadn’t been in a fight.
TNA are now in a classic WCW like position, offering an exciting and innovative alternative to the WWE product, it just needs to maintain that and gain a mainstream push.
Sunday, 3 April 2011
Wrestlemania 2011 Final Card
WWE presents it's biggest show of the year
tonight at 7pm EST with WrestleMania 27 from the Georgia Dome in
Atlanta, Georgia. Below is the full line-up:
Guest Host: The Rock
America The Beautiful Singer: Keri Hilson
Special Appearances: 2011 Hall of Fame Class, WWE Tough Enough cast
WWE Title Match
John Cena vs. The Miz
No Holds Barred Match
Triple H vs. The Undertaker
World Heavyweight Title Match
Alberto Del Rio with Brodus Clay vs. Edge with Christian
Randy Orton vs. CM Punk
John Morrison, Trish Stratus and Snooki vs. Dolph Ziggler, Layla and Michelle McCool
Ezekiel Jackson, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel and Wade Barrett vs. Big Show, Kane, Santino Marella and one other Superstar TBA
Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes
Special Referee: Steve Austin
Jerry Lawler vs. Michael Cole with Jack Swagger
WWE United States Title Match
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus
tonight at 7pm EST with WrestleMania 27 from the Georgia Dome in
Atlanta, Georgia. Below is the full line-up:
Guest Host: The Rock
America The Beautiful Singer: Keri Hilson
Special Appearances: 2011 Hall of Fame Class, WWE Tough Enough cast
WWE Title Match
John Cena vs. The Miz
No Holds Barred Match
Triple H vs. The Undertaker
World Heavyweight Title Match
Alberto Del Rio with Brodus Clay vs. Edge with Christian
Randy Orton vs. CM Punk
John Morrison, Trish Stratus and Snooki vs. Dolph Ziggler, Layla and Michelle McCool
Ezekiel Jackson, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel and Wade Barrett vs. Big Show, Kane, Santino Marella and one other Superstar TBA
Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes
Special Referee: Steve Austin
Jerry Lawler vs. Michael Cole with Jack Swagger
WWE United States Title Match
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus
Tuesday, 22 March 2011
Trish Stratus Interview Highlights
IGN.com features an interview with multi-time WWE Women's Champion Trish Stratus promoting the USA Network's revival of Tough Enough, who appears as a trainer on the show. She notes that many of the contestants have previous wrestling experience.
"A lot of the contestants have a background," Stratus said. "They come from wrestling backgrounds. They've been doing it for a few years, but it's an entirely different thing to be doing it on the big stage and to do it professionally and to do it with the grind of the big WWE machine."
Stratus said of current WWE talent, Natalya is "untapped."
She explained, "Fans are starting to get to know her more and more and I'm just waiting for the day where she goes out there and really can do her thing because I don't think she's been given the opportunity to really get out there and show everybody what she's got."
In light of Sunny's induction into this year's WWE Hall of Fame class, Stratus suggested that Chyna be enshrined next.
"I think Chyna should be next in because she did a lot of stuff to bring attention to the women's division itself and just presented women as a different thing," Stratus said. "I think fans were conditioned to see women as eye candy for a long, long time and she really broke the mold with that."
"A lot of the contestants have a background," Stratus said. "They come from wrestling backgrounds. They've been doing it for a few years, but it's an entirely different thing to be doing it on the big stage and to do it professionally and to do it with the grind of the big WWE machine."
Stratus said of current WWE talent, Natalya is "untapped."
She explained, "Fans are starting to get to know her more and more and I'm just waiting for the day where she goes out there and really can do her thing because I don't think she's been given the opportunity to really get out there and show everybody what she's got."
In light of Sunny's induction into this year's WWE Hall of Fame class, Stratus suggested that Chyna be enshrined next.
"I think Chyna should be next in because she did a lot of stuff to bring attention to the women's division itself and just presented women as a different thing," Stratus said. "I think fans were conditioned to see women as eye candy for a long, long time and she really broke the mold with that."
Saturday, 26 February 2011
WWE Elimination Chamber 2011 PPV Review
WWE Elimination Chamber 2011 Pay-Per-View Review
By Phil Allely
The Elimination Chamber is one of the WWE’s best gimmick matches and one that harks back to the glory days of the cage match, where feuds ended inside the steel confines of the cage and old scores were settled with a lot of violence and hefty dose of blood. These days of course the WWE is PG rated and blood is something they try their best not to show on screen if they can. That however doesn’t stop cage and gimmick matches being intensely enjoyable and great live entertainment.
Following hot on the heels of the Royal Rumble Elimination Chamber 2011 was another step along the road to Wrestlemania for many involved and made for very good viewing too, as storylines continued, title chases built and some surprises kept us all on our toes.
Things kicked off nicely with Royal Rumble winner Alberto Del Rio facing off against Intercontinetal Champion Kofi Kingston. The action was crisp, Del Rio and Kingston blending well together to make a nice opener for the PPV. The rising star that is Del Rio finally winning with his arm breaker finisher to out the non-title match to bed and progress with momentum onto this years Mania.
Next up was the first Elimination Chamber bout, this one was the Smackdown brands chance to shine as Drew McIntyre, Kane, Rey Mysterio and Big Show (replacing the fired Dolph Ziggler) all went on the attack within the steel structure to wrestle the World Heavyweight Championship from Edge.
There were some pretty decent exchanges as each man entered the fray and the fight began to pick up speed. Edge held his own form the start and even as the bodies began being pounded, battered and flung onto as much exposed steel as possible it always looked as if he could achieve the impossible and leave the match as champion. As the eliminations started to reduce opponents it was Edge who was able to outsmart Mysterio to retain his gold.
His celebrations were short lived though, as Del Rio ran in to began to assault him, luckily Edge’s (storyline brother) Christian made his timely return to the WWE and chased off Del Rio.
Booker T then made his way to the ring to introduce another perosn who will join him as trainer on the upcoming Stone Cold Steve Austin hosted series of WWE Tough Enough, it was none other than former Women’s Champion Trish Stratus. Booker and Trish had some fun in the ring to the enjoyement of all in attendance before the action started again.
The unlikely and yet amazingly ‘over’ tag team of Vladimir Kozlov and Santino Marella were defending their gold against members of new faction The Corre (Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel), with Ezekiel Jackson in their corner too, things were one-side for the defending champs in this one. Kozlov and Marella did have their moments, but this was all Corre, Gabriel was able ti pull off the win and net the belts after a nice 450 splash on Kozlov.
A fun segment then saw Vickie Guerrero face off against Teddy Long over the firing of her beau Dolph Ziggler, Kelly Kelly made her return to the company. LayCool made a run-in to attack Kelly, fortunately Trish Stratus made the save and unleashed a beautiful double bulldog on the pair to round off a fun return by two of the fans favourite Divas.
Up next was the match many of us have been waiting for decades to see, Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler in a WWE Title match on PPV and this time he just may have a chance to raise the one title that has eluded him over the years. Lawler’s feud with WWE Titlist The Miz and colour commentator Michael Cole had already hit fever pitch by their point and the crowd were as pumped up as 61 one year old Lawler was.
The match itself was very good considering The King’s age and Miz’s relative newness to this level of bout. Both men traded the advantage, Lawler hit some nice moves for near falls and of course Cole and Miz’s second Alex Riley got themselves into the mix at times too. All of which set up nicely the finishing sequence, after missing a piledriver Lawler was hit by a big kick and then a ‘Skull Crunching Finale to see his dreams of WWE gold slip through his fingers one more time (although his now planned match with Cole at Wrestlemania will see him achieve that dream of appearing on the biggest event in the WWE year).
The main event was of course the Raw Elimination Chamber, there was no title belt on the lien this time, just the small matter of being able to go to Wrestlemania and take on the champ for the gold. With a prize such as that on offer hopes were high indeed for this one.
Shaemus and John Morrison started things off and got the pace going for the others. They were soon joined by Randy Orton, CM Punk, R Truth and eventually John Cena. A malfunctioning pod saw Punk get eliminated and re-instated (by the ever present RAW GM computer), this let everyone have a fair shot at the match it seemed and all went for it with gusto. The final three remaining were Morrison, Punk and Cena, after some nice sequences Punk eliminated Morrison and felt the force of an Attitude Adjustment from Cena on the steel for his trouble. Cena was then easily able to pin Punk and win his spot on the Wrestlemania card.
Elimination Chamber 2011 was a fun and interesting event, the build up to Mania was well paced and the return of Trish and Kelly were nice to see. The addition of Booker T to the commentating roster and the tag Title change are fresh and welcomed ones too. Miz not laying down for Lawler was a disappointment to many, the king fully deserves a title run, even a short one for his dedication to the sprt, but perhaps he himself is happy enough to be in a title match and to know that he will make it to Wrestlemania at long last.
By Phil Allely
The Elimination Chamber is one of the WWE’s best gimmick matches and one that harks back to the glory days of the cage match, where feuds ended inside the steel confines of the cage and old scores were settled with a lot of violence and hefty dose of blood. These days of course the WWE is PG rated and blood is something they try their best not to show on screen if they can. That however doesn’t stop cage and gimmick matches being intensely enjoyable and great live entertainment.
Following hot on the heels of the Royal Rumble Elimination Chamber 2011 was another step along the road to Wrestlemania for many involved and made for very good viewing too, as storylines continued, title chases built and some surprises kept us all on our toes.
Things kicked off nicely with Royal Rumble winner Alberto Del Rio facing off against Intercontinetal Champion Kofi Kingston. The action was crisp, Del Rio and Kingston blending well together to make a nice opener for the PPV. The rising star that is Del Rio finally winning with his arm breaker finisher to out the non-title match to bed and progress with momentum onto this years Mania.
Next up was the first Elimination Chamber bout, this one was the Smackdown brands chance to shine as Drew McIntyre, Kane, Rey Mysterio and Big Show (replacing the fired Dolph Ziggler) all went on the attack within the steel structure to wrestle the World Heavyweight Championship from Edge.
There were some pretty decent exchanges as each man entered the fray and the fight began to pick up speed. Edge held his own form the start and even as the bodies began being pounded, battered and flung onto as much exposed steel as possible it always looked as if he could achieve the impossible and leave the match as champion. As the eliminations started to reduce opponents it was Edge who was able to outsmart Mysterio to retain his gold.
His celebrations were short lived though, as Del Rio ran in to began to assault him, luckily Edge’s (storyline brother) Christian made his timely return to the WWE and chased off Del Rio.
Booker T then made his way to the ring to introduce another perosn who will join him as trainer on the upcoming Stone Cold Steve Austin hosted series of WWE Tough Enough, it was none other than former Women’s Champion Trish Stratus. Booker and Trish had some fun in the ring to the enjoyement of all in attendance before the action started again.
The unlikely and yet amazingly ‘over’ tag team of Vladimir Kozlov and Santino Marella were defending their gold against members of new faction The Corre (Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel), with Ezekiel Jackson in their corner too, things were one-side for the defending champs in this one. Kozlov and Marella did have their moments, but this was all Corre, Gabriel was able ti pull off the win and net the belts after a nice 450 splash on Kozlov.
A fun segment then saw Vickie Guerrero face off against Teddy Long over the firing of her beau Dolph Ziggler, Kelly Kelly made her return to the company. LayCool made a run-in to attack Kelly, fortunately Trish Stratus made the save and unleashed a beautiful double bulldog on the pair to round off a fun return by two of the fans favourite Divas.
Up next was the match many of us have been waiting for decades to see, Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler in a WWE Title match on PPV and this time he just may have a chance to raise the one title that has eluded him over the years. Lawler’s feud with WWE Titlist The Miz and colour commentator Michael Cole had already hit fever pitch by their point and the crowd were as pumped up as 61 one year old Lawler was.
The match itself was very good considering The King’s age and Miz’s relative newness to this level of bout. Both men traded the advantage, Lawler hit some nice moves for near falls and of course Cole and Miz’s second Alex Riley got themselves into the mix at times too. All of which set up nicely the finishing sequence, after missing a piledriver Lawler was hit by a big kick and then a ‘Skull Crunching Finale to see his dreams of WWE gold slip through his fingers one more time (although his now planned match with Cole at Wrestlemania will see him achieve that dream of appearing on the biggest event in the WWE year).
The main event was of course the Raw Elimination Chamber, there was no title belt on the lien this time, just the small matter of being able to go to Wrestlemania and take on the champ for the gold. With a prize such as that on offer hopes were high indeed for this one.
Shaemus and John Morrison started things off and got the pace going for the others. They were soon joined by Randy Orton, CM Punk, R Truth and eventually John Cena. A malfunctioning pod saw Punk get eliminated and re-instated (by the ever present RAW GM computer), this let everyone have a fair shot at the match it seemed and all went for it with gusto. The final three remaining were Morrison, Punk and Cena, after some nice sequences Punk eliminated Morrison and felt the force of an Attitude Adjustment from Cena on the steel for his trouble. Cena was then easily able to pin Punk and win his spot on the Wrestlemania card.
Elimination Chamber 2011 was a fun and interesting event, the build up to Mania was well paced and the return of Trish and Kelly were nice to see. The addition of Booker T to the commentating roster and the tag Title change are fresh and welcomed ones too. Miz not laying down for Lawler was a disappointment to many, the king fully deserves a title run, even a short one for his dedication to the sprt, but perhaps he himself is happy enough to be in a title match and to know that he will make it to Wrestlemania at long last.
Friday, 4 February 2011
Royal Rumble 2011 Review
Royal Rumble 2011 PPV Review
By Phil Allely
The annual Royal Rumble event is a great one for fans of wrestling, the main event being one of those things that we all love simply for the spectacle of it. This year the Rumble itself was its biggest yet, featuring 40 performers all of which were to enter the ring at 90 second intervals and take their chances against their peers for a shot at winning a place in a Wrestlemania Main Event for a WWE World Title.
The fun part of the rumble as always is the trying to work out who may win the over the top battle royal and head to this years Mania. Of course along the way there are usually a few shocks, surprises and perhaps even a mix up or two. This year was no exception as some surprise entrants joined the match and a man nobody thought would win the match did just that.
Things started with a bang as World Heavyweight Champion Edge put his belt on the line against Dolph Ziggler. Edge was on top form as usual here and opened proceeding well against his younger and quicker opponent, Vickie Guerrero at ringside to assist Ziggler helped things along too. After many near falls, underhand tactics and outside interference from Vickie all things went to pieces, the ref went down, Vickie fell too and Edge struck a nice spear to put Ziggler away and keep his gold.
Next up Randy Orton challenged The Miz for his WWE Title, of course where there The Miz is, normally there are a few people to help him out too. Miz having not only Alex Riley by his side, but Nexus and CM Punk on his side too. Orton was all over Miz for most of the bout, each trading the advantage and vying for the win, but the numbers game and eventual Nexus run-in caused Randy to lose his place in things and miss CM Punk’s appearance. As Orton RKO’d Miz, Punk ran in and hit his GTS finisher to allow Miz an easy pin and to retain his strap.
The planned Diva’s title handicap match became a fatal four way brawl thanks to the e-mail-aholic Raw General Manager , leaving champion Natalya to face not only the team of Layla and Michelle McCool, but Eve Torre as well. Lay-Cool worked as a unit for most of the bout, attacking both Natalya and Eve, although McCool did accidentally nail her partner at one point. After a nice looking double sharpshooter by the champ and some near falls, the finish came when Eve’s moonsault put down Layla down for the three count (controversially at precisely the same moment McCool was pining the defending champion), the referee spotting Eve’s pin and awarding the gold to her.
Finally it was Royal Rumble time and it started well as CM Punk and he found himself in between a gang war as his Nexus group took on the recently formed Corre faction. The Raw GM luckily sent an e-mail to ban both teams from ringside and competitor number two Daniel Bryan entered the fray. The action went back and forth and as each new man entered alliances and old feuds began to rear their heads. It was fun to see guys like William Regal, John Morrison and Mark Henry face off against Nexus up and comers like Michael McGillicutty and Husky Harris as well.
Eliminations were timely and as the ring filled there was a distinctly Nexus heavy side to things. The surprises were this fewer in number, but overall better than expected, first up Booker T made his return to the WWE (he will now work as a colour commentator and sometime wrestler), Hornswoggle took to the ring and alongside John Cena had a fun series of exchanges working in tandem with Cena. The biggest pop of the night came as Kevin Nash strolled down the aisle as his former WWE incarnation Diesel (complete with old ring outfit and jet black hair).
Booker and Diesel were never going to threaten the outcome of the match, but it was good to see them back in the WWE (especially since both were heavily hinted for a TNA return this very month). Diesel’s face-off with Big Show may lead to a match down the line, perhaps alongside one with Wade Barrett who he also took a disliking too during the match, plus Booker is now back for another run it seems.
Back to the match itself and the biggest Rumble in WWE history quickly started losing people as they got sent packing over the top rope to the floor, some hanging on for dear life and scrambling back in, others falling to hit the unforgiving floor and see their dream Wrestlemania match gone for yet another year.
As the numbers lessened a few fan favourites remained, Rey Mysterio, Cena and Kane amongst them, but that soon changed as Kane fell to Rey, and he went out to Barrett, Cena got taken out by a run-in from Miz leaving Barrett, Alberto Del Rio and Orton. The match itself form there seemed to be Orton’s, he threw Barrett out, scuppering his plans for a Mania title shot and then he went to Del Rio. Del Rio’s celebrations were short lived but, Santino Marella (who had slipped under the ropes earlier was still and active participant and tried to sneak in and steal the win. Santino of course had bitten off more that he could chew with Del Rio and soon he went sailing over the top rope to leave the shock winner of the rumble to be relative WWE new boy Alberto Del Rio the man who can pick and chose his WWE Championship match at the biggest PPV of the WWE calendar.
The 2011 Royal Rumble was a great way for the WWE to open its PPV year, the matches were all very good and built nicely to the battle royal main event. The rumble itself had it all, thrills, spills, surprises and a shock finish that few saw coming. It was also good to see the younger and newer roster members get a look in over the more established ones, the returns of Booker T and Diesel were fun too. Let’s now see what else we get as the road to Wrestlemania rolls on.
The planned Diva’s title handicap match became a fatal four way brawl thanks to the e-mail-aholic Raw General Manager , leaving champion Natalya to face not only the team of Layla and Michelle McCool, but Eve Torres.
By Phil Allely
The annual Royal Rumble event is a great one for fans of wrestling, the main event being one of those things that we all love simply for the spectacle of it. This year the Rumble itself was its biggest yet, featuring 40 performers all of which were to enter the ring at 90 second intervals and take their chances against their peers for a shot at winning a place in a Wrestlemania Main Event for a WWE World Title.
The fun part of the rumble as always is the trying to work out who may win the over the top battle royal and head to this years Mania. Of course along the way there are usually a few shocks, surprises and perhaps even a mix up or two. This year was no exception as some surprise entrants joined the match and a man nobody thought would win the match did just that.
Things started with a bang as World Heavyweight Champion Edge put his belt on the line against Dolph Ziggler. Edge was on top form as usual here and opened proceeding well against his younger and quicker opponent, Vickie Guerrero at ringside to assist Ziggler helped things along too. After many near falls, underhand tactics and outside interference from Vickie all things went to pieces, the ref went down, Vickie fell too and Edge struck a nice spear to put Ziggler away and keep his gold.
Next up Randy Orton challenged The Miz for his WWE Title, of course where there The Miz is, normally there are a few people to help him out too. Miz having not only Alex Riley by his side, but Nexus and CM Punk on his side too. Orton was all over Miz for most of the bout, each trading the advantage and vying for the win, but the numbers game and eventual Nexus run-in caused Randy to lose his place in things and miss CM Punk’s appearance. As Orton RKO’d Miz, Punk ran in and hit his GTS finisher to allow Miz an easy pin and to retain his strap.
The planned Diva’s title handicap match became a fatal four way brawl thanks to the e-mail-aholic Raw General Manager , leaving champion Natalya to face not only the team of Layla and Michelle McCool, but Eve Torre as well. Lay-Cool worked as a unit for most of the bout, attacking both Natalya and Eve, although McCool did accidentally nail her partner at one point. After a nice looking double sharpshooter by the champ and some near falls, the finish came when Eve’s moonsault put down Layla down for the three count (controversially at precisely the same moment McCool was pining the defending champion), the referee spotting Eve’s pin and awarding the gold to her.
Finally it was Royal Rumble time and it started well as CM Punk and he found himself in between a gang war as his Nexus group took on the recently formed Corre faction. The Raw GM luckily sent an e-mail to ban both teams from ringside and competitor number two Daniel Bryan entered the fray. The action went back and forth and as each new man entered alliances and old feuds began to rear their heads. It was fun to see guys like William Regal, John Morrison and Mark Henry face off against Nexus up and comers like Michael McGillicutty and Husky Harris as well.
Eliminations were timely and as the ring filled there was a distinctly Nexus heavy side to things. The surprises were this fewer in number, but overall better than expected, first up Booker T made his return to the WWE (he will now work as a colour commentator and sometime wrestler), Hornswoggle took to the ring and alongside John Cena had a fun series of exchanges working in tandem with Cena. The biggest pop of the night came as Kevin Nash strolled down the aisle as his former WWE incarnation Diesel (complete with old ring outfit and jet black hair).
Booker and Diesel were never going to threaten the outcome of the match, but it was good to see them back in the WWE (especially since both were heavily hinted for a TNA return this very month). Diesel’s face-off with Big Show may lead to a match down the line, perhaps alongside one with Wade Barrett who he also took a disliking too during the match, plus Booker is now back for another run it seems.
Back to the match itself and the biggest Rumble in WWE history quickly started losing people as they got sent packing over the top rope to the floor, some hanging on for dear life and scrambling back in, others falling to hit the unforgiving floor and see their dream Wrestlemania match gone for yet another year.
As the numbers lessened a few fan favourites remained, Rey Mysterio, Cena and Kane amongst them, but that soon changed as Kane fell to Rey, and he went out to Barrett, Cena got taken out by a run-in from Miz leaving Barrett, Alberto Del Rio and Orton. The match itself form there seemed to be Orton’s, he threw Barrett out, scuppering his plans for a Mania title shot and then he went to Del Rio. Del Rio’s celebrations were short lived but, Santino Marella (who had slipped under the ropes earlier was still and active participant and tried to sneak in and steal the win. Santino of course had bitten off more that he could chew with Del Rio and soon he went sailing over the top rope to leave the shock winner of the rumble to be relative WWE new boy Alberto Del Rio the man who can pick and chose his WWE Championship match at the biggest PPV of the WWE calendar.
The 2011 Royal Rumble was a great way for the WWE to open its PPV year, the matches were all very good and built nicely to the battle royal main event. The rumble itself had it all, thrills, spills, surprises and a shock finish that few saw coming. It was also good to see the younger and newer roster members get a look in over the more established ones, the returns of Booker T and Diesel were fun too. Let’s now see what else we get as the road to Wrestlemania rolls on.
Monday, 31 January 2011
Royal Rumble 2011 Eliminations
Royal Rumble Entrants:
1. CM Punk
2. Daniel Bryan
3. Justin Gabriel
4. Zack Ryder
5. William Regal
6. Ted DiBiase
7. John Morrison
8. Yoshi Tatsu
9. Husky Harris
10. Chavo Guerrero
11. Mark Henry
12. JTG
13. Michael McGillicutty
14. Chris Masters
15. David Otunga
16. Tyler Reks
17. Kozlov
18. R-Truth
19. Great Khali
20. Mason Ryan
21. Booker T
22. John Cena
23. Hornswoggle
24. Tyson Kidd
25. Heath Slater
26. Kofi Kingston
27. Jack Swagger
28. Sheamus
29. Rey Mysterio
30. Wade Barrett
31. Dolph Ziggler
32. Kevin Nash (Diesel)
33. Drew McIntyre
34. Alex Riley
35. Big Show
36. Ezekiel Jackson
37. Santino
38. Alberto Del Rio
39. Randy Orton
40. Kane
Royal Rumble Eliminations:
1. Gabriel (via Bryan at 2:35)
2. Ryder (via Bryan at 3:45)
3. Regal (via DiBiase at 8:52)
4. Chavo (via Henry at 15:05)
5. Yoshi (via Henry at 15:34)
6. JTG (via McG at 18:00)
7. DiBiase (via Harris & McG at 18:51)
8. Bryan (via Harris at 20:56)
9. Masters (via Punk at 21:11)
10. Morrison (via Nexus at 21:25)
11. Henry (via Nexus at 21:50)
12. Reks (via Nexus at 22:50)
13. Kozlov (via Punk at 24:19)
14. R-Truth (via Punk at 26:10)
15. Husky (via Khali at 27:23)
16. Khali (via Mason at 28:22)
17. Booker (via Mason at 31:00)
18. Ryan (via Cena at 32:35)
19. Otunga (via Cena at 32:40)
20. McGillicutty (via Cena at 32:41)
21. Punk (via Cena at 35:20)
22. Kidd (via Cena at 37:05)
23. Slater (via Cena at 38:42)
24. Hornswoggle (via Sheamus at 43:53)
25. Swagger (via Rey at 45:35)
26. Diesel (via Barrett at 52:22)
27. Ziggler (via Show at 54:52)
28. McIntyre (via Show at 55:18)
29. Show (via Jackson at 55:33)
30. Riley (via ??? at ???)
31. Kingston (via Orton at 60:42)
32. Sheamus (via Orton at 60:48)
33. Jackson (via Kane at 62:35)
34. Kane (via Rey at 63:29)
35. Rey (via Barrett at 63:37)
36. Cena (via Miz at 66:30)
37. Orton (via Barrett at 68:37)
38. Barrett (via Del Rio at 68:39)
39. Santino (via Del Rio at 69:48)
1. CM Punk
2. Daniel Bryan
3. Justin Gabriel
4. Zack Ryder
5. William Regal
6. Ted DiBiase
7. John Morrison
8. Yoshi Tatsu
9. Husky Harris
10. Chavo Guerrero
11. Mark Henry
12. JTG
13. Michael McGillicutty
14. Chris Masters
15. David Otunga
16. Tyler Reks
17. Kozlov
18. R-Truth
19. Great Khali
20. Mason Ryan
21. Booker T
22. John Cena
23. Hornswoggle
24. Tyson Kidd
25. Heath Slater
26. Kofi Kingston
27. Jack Swagger
28. Sheamus
29. Rey Mysterio
30. Wade Barrett
31. Dolph Ziggler
32. Kevin Nash (Diesel)
33. Drew McIntyre
34. Alex Riley
35. Big Show
36. Ezekiel Jackson
37. Santino
38. Alberto Del Rio
39. Randy Orton
40. Kane
Royal Rumble Eliminations:
1. Gabriel (via Bryan at 2:35)
2. Ryder (via Bryan at 3:45)
3. Regal (via DiBiase at 8:52)
4. Chavo (via Henry at 15:05)
5. Yoshi (via Henry at 15:34)
6. JTG (via McG at 18:00)
7. DiBiase (via Harris & McG at 18:51)
8. Bryan (via Harris at 20:56)
9. Masters (via Punk at 21:11)
10. Morrison (via Nexus at 21:25)
11. Henry (via Nexus at 21:50)
12. Reks (via Nexus at 22:50)
13. Kozlov (via Punk at 24:19)
14. R-Truth (via Punk at 26:10)
15. Husky (via Khali at 27:23)
16. Khali (via Mason at 28:22)
17. Booker (via Mason at 31:00)
18. Ryan (via Cena at 32:35)
19. Otunga (via Cena at 32:40)
20. McGillicutty (via Cena at 32:41)
21. Punk (via Cena at 35:20)
22. Kidd (via Cena at 37:05)
23. Slater (via Cena at 38:42)
24. Hornswoggle (via Sheamus at 43:53)
25. Swagger (via Rey at 45:35)
26. Diesel (via Barrett at 52:22)
27. Ziggler (via Show at 54:52)
28. McIntyre (via Show at 55:18)
29. Show (via Jackson at 55:33)
30. Riley (via ??? at ???)
31. Kingston (via Orton at 60:42)
32. Sheamus (via Orton at 60:48)
33. Jackson (via Kane at 62:35)
34. Kane (via Rey at 63:29)
35. Rey (via Barrett at 63:37)
36. Cena (via Miz at 66:30)
37. Orton (via Barrett at 68:37)
38. Barrett (via Del Rio at 68:39)
39. Santino (via Del Rio at 69:48)
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
TNA Dublin 2011 Line-Up/Matches Revealed
Dublin (January 12, 2011): Total Nonstop Action (TNA) today announces the full line-up for its “Maximum iMPACT! 2011” European Tour event in Dublin, Ireland, including new additions Matt Hardy and Kurt Angle.
Hardy and the Olympic Gold Medallist join a roster of top TNA superstars that already includes “Nature Boy” Ric Flair, Jeff Hardy, Rob Van Dam, Mickie James, Douglas Williams, “King of the Mountain” Jeff Jarrett and TNA World Heavyweight Champion Mr. Anderson.
Sadly AJ Styles has suffered an injury meaning he will miss the Tour, which also takes in Lyon, Paris, Berlin, Glasgow, Manchester and London.
The matches announced for the “TNA Maximum iMPACT! 2011” event include:
Monday 24th January - Dublin National Stadium
• TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match - Mr. Anderson vs. Jeff Hardy vs. “King of the Mountain” Jeff Jarrett
• TNA World Tag Team Championship Match - Beer Money, Inc. vs. Motorcity Machine Guns
• Genesis Re-Match - Rob Van Dam vs. Matt Hardy
• TNA Knockouts Tag Team Action – TNA Knockouts Champion Madison Rayne & Tara vs. Mickie James and Angelina Love
• TNA X Division Champion Kazarian will defend the gold!
• Also Appearing: “Nature Boy” Ric Flair, Olympic Gold Medallist Kurt Angle, “The Blueprint” Matt Morgan, “The Pope” D’Angelo Dinero, Douglas Williams, “Prince of Punk” Shannon Moore, Mark Haskins and more!
Tickets from €34 including booking fee go are on sale now through Ticketmaster.ie and usual outlets nationwide.
Special €75 tickets include Early Entry, Best Ringside Seats, Meet & Greet and Programme.
Bell time is 7:30pm with doors opening between 6pm and 6:30pm.
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