By Nick Whitworth@pwpitstopNick
Anotha one… 10 bucks you just said that in the voice of DJ Khaled. Anyways it is indeed that time of the week where you spend time with the Canadian Smoke Show himself…..I am fresh off of having a minor medical procedure and am ready to Rant away. Summertime is in full effect, vacation is right around the corner and the kids are in bed so what better time to get this ball rolling. Today’s topics are:
– Vince McMahon’s love for AJ Styles
– Lio Rush: Man Of The Hour
– Brock Lesnar shows up at UFC 226
– Evolution Pay Per View
– Matt Riddle :WWE bound
1: Remember back in 2016 AJ Styles showed up at The Royal Rumble. The place literally shook. Grown men jumping up and down hugging each other. Grown women screaming with joy thinking it was me… I mean screaming because AJ just walked through the curtain. We witnessed something we never thought we would see. AJ Styles inside a WWE ring (I am not talking about his odd jobber matches on Sunday Night Heat).
Right from that moment I told my friends that Styles will be wearing the WWE Championship by Summerslam. I was only off by 1 month as he defeated Dean Ambrose at Backlash cementing him as WWE’s MVP and has been ever since.
Since his debut, Styles is on the poster for most Pay Per View events, his merchandise section in WWE Shop is massive and he has been champion for almost a year. WWE built Smackdown Live around him and has been their most consistent wrestler on either brand. Even his sub par feud with Shinsuke Nakamura didn’t affect his standing with the company.
Rumors have circulated around the Net that Vince McMahon only seen Styles as a name and the plan was for AJ to be featured on the mid to lower end of the card. Whether or not that is true or not quite frankly means squat. Vince might have judged a book by its cover but quickly realized AJ’s drawing power. Just look back at his run from his debut to now.
The Phenomenal One has been featured and showcased like a mega star. Recently there has been multiple reports stating Vince absolutely loves AJ Styles and wishes he had signed him 10 years ago, he has zero plans to take the strap from him and wants his title run to be a historic run. That is a lot different from a mid to lower card run eh?
Anything could change. An injury, another star’s popularity sky rockets and WWE has to make the move but Styles holding on to the belt for a while is fine by me. Actually I would love to see him hold it until next years Wrestlemania where he will finally get the main event slot and put on a classic AJ Styles match that not only we need to see but AJ deserves. He has accomplished so much already in his short tenure with the company but judging by his credentials you would have thought his Mania moment would have already happened. I know, any match on Mania is considered a dream but Styles should be closing the show.
If WWE does manage to land Kenny Omega, what better match to have at Wrestlemania then Kenny Omega vs AJ Styles. Just the name alone would sell but give them the last match and 30 plus minutes and we would all be in for a real treat. If they can’t close that deal I would love to see either AJ close the show with a match against Daniel Bryan or Seth Rollins. I know everyone is a face here but the fans wouldn’t care. With the right build and the proper match length any of these matches could go down as the best in the company’s history.
Vince, I will elaborate more on this scenario a bit more at our next meeting.
2: Ever since Triple H took over 205 Live the product has been must see TV. The division was finally gaining the momentum it should have gain when it made its debut almost 2 years ago. The division has a stacked roster and is producing solid matches with great story lines. 205 Live has been on a roll.
The recent debut of Lio Rush added a new sense of flavor to the brand and created a lot of hype. Rush can really add some serious depth to the brand and will bring in a tremendous amount of eyes. His debut didn’t come as smoothly as it seems though.
The Man Of The Hour wasn’t really seen on NXT TV and spent most of his NXT run in the dog house with a bad tweet. Social media is a blessing to all performers but it can also cause a ton of damage if you post the wrong thing. Once posted it is out there for everyone to see and it doesn’t matter how quick you delete it. Rush stepped up, realizing his wrong doing and apologized quickly, no doubt saving his job.
Lio came in with a lot of excitement but with the internal heat, his run seemed it could be not what his fans hoped for. That was until vignettes started airing during 205 Live stating Rush was coming. As a fan of his I was extremely excited as we were about to see him perform inside a WWE ring.
He is so crisp inside the ring and exciting to watch, he was a perfect fit for 205 Live. He has his character nailed down. His cockiness and arrogance is spot on and he oozes with swagger (not Jack) which makes you drawn into him. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him challenging for the Cruiserweight Championship sooner rather then later.
His size might be an issue with Vince but with Triple H gaining more control within the company I would love to see him make a move to the main roster but he needs more time of course to get his character over with the WWE audience.
The MOTH is the reason people will tune into 205 Live and will be the reason why the brand is one of the most talked about brands in WWE. Lio will show the fans just how good he is and the fans will be so into his character he will become insanely over. To top it all off Topanga is his biggest fan. Every male out there has had a crush on Topanga and there is no denying that.
Everybody makes mistakes. As long as you learn from them then we should all be given a second chance. Lio was and is making the most of it. Lio Rush will be the best thing to happen to 205 Live…. Mark my word.
3: Dana White made it known Brock Lesnar was going to return to the UFC. Brock finally made it known as well as he recently showed up at the UFC 226 event and had an in ring tussle with current Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier. It came across very WWE, scripted and set up.
Brock hasn’t been seen on WWE television in months, is the current Universal Champion but pops up at the UFC event. Mind blown. It is beyond obvious there is a working relationship between both companies involving Lesnar but here is where I am confused.
In WWE he barely competes and his matches are all the same and very short. I find him to have lost all his star power by his in ring performances he has been giving lately. Vince obviously sees more from Brock then I do but as a fan, having your champion work a less then part time schedule just decreases the value of said belt. I think the damage to the Universal belt is way to severe to fix. It would take a great champion to really work his tail off to fix this mess.
In UFC it is known he isn’t clean. He uses banned substances he shouldn’t be and that is ok by both UFC and WWE. Both have policies and both allow this to happen. Brock might be a PPV draw, which business wise I get, but he needs to be clean to be showcased the way he is and there is not a person on the face of the earth who would said Brock is clean.
Lesnar is a beast hands down. I really enjoyed his first run in the UFC and honestly felt bad for him when diverticulitis put a damper on his success. His WWE return was perfect and I was excited to see the Beast back in business. I wasn’t expecting his schedule to be so scattered but that doesn’t involve me. He was and has been placed in the main event scene ever since.
My issues with Brock’s run would be non existent if he wasn’t the champion and his matches so copy and paste match by match. I think although it increases the aura of Brock Lesnar, it damages his opponents, the belt and the company. They make it seem has if nobody on their roster is as good as he is. Knock him down a few pegs and I might be alright with this situation.
I guess I will try to remain positive about this whole situation and hope their is a great overall plan here. Not the Roman Reigns plan either. If WWE ends up creating a new mega star, then all this was worth it. If not, then Vince and myself need to have a sit down one on one chat.
4: Triple H, Stephanie and Vince McMahon (well Vince just stood their seeming really awkward) recently announced their history making Pay Per View Evolution. The history making portion of this is the event being the company’s first ever all women’s event. This right here shows you that WWE is in the best hands possible for when Vince decides to step back.
The women have busted their butts off for years trying to come across somewhat equal to the men and finally the company recognizes this and are proudly showing the world the women are just as good as the men.
With Hunter really showcasing the women in NXT, he and Stephanie listened to the fans and have been giving us what we wanted all along. We have seen the women main event television, pay per views, they had their first ever Royal Rumble and now their own PPV. This is such a special moment for the women in WWE and all across the indies.
A lot of people have been quick to state WWE isn’t the first to run an all women’s event. They are right but WWE hasn’t and WWE is the number 1 company in the world so this is a major deal. This shows the company is trying their hardest to give the fans what they want. This shows the company views all of their talent equally and hopefully will be changing their pay scale to match their beliefs.
Hate on Triple H all you want. Say he is only where he is because of his marriage to the bosses daughter but if you still think that you are 100% wrong. All of the current top stars in WWE are because of Trips. All of the Hall Of Fame inductions involving legends who had a falling out with the company is because of Trips. And now the true showcasing of the women is because of Trips.
Hunter and Stephanie are the perfect pair to fill the void left from the icon himself Vince. Vince might be a tad bit outdated in some story lines but HHH and Steph are always on top of things with their ears wide open to reactions. That is how to grow and please your audience.
This event will be much like the Women’s Royal Rumble with wrestlers from the past, present and future on the card. Having all the titles on the line plus adding both the NXT and NXT UK Women’s belts to the mix makes this card that much bigger. Having the Mae Young Classic Finals on the card is the icing on the cake. This event will be impossible to drop the ball. There is no doubt it will be Triple H and Stephanie’s event. Hunter will have his team leading the way backstage and the line up will be their biggest card in a very long time. This could very well be their best event of all time.
Will there be a lot of pressure on the company? Of course, and the haters will come out of the woodworks but the event will blow everyones minds. Call me crazy, call me nuts, or call me smart but there is no way Evolution will not deliver.
The only thing left is for the women to main event Wrestlemania and I think that is right around the corner. Especially with Ronda Rousey being with the company.
WWE, you really lit up the wrestling world with this announcement and now have all eyes on you. Take this and really run with it. There has been such a positive reaction and now it is up to you to not disappoint your fans.
5: The good old rumor mill now stats indie darling Matt Riddle is WWE bound and all I have to say about that is…. Finally. Riddle has become a hot commodity and has traveled the world honing his craft trying to figure out his NXT move (like that?).
There is no denying WWE’s love for MMA stars and if you think other wise please feel free to check out their entire roster. The recent addition of the final 2 MMA Four Horsewomen shows the world that MMA and wrestling go hand in hand. When I was growing up it was former NFL athletes making the transition into wrestling, now it is MMA fighters making the move.
Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler for prime examples of how well the transition from sport to sport has been. Riddle is in the same boat. Matt has fought the who’s who of professional wrestling and most recently defeating Zack Sabre Jr to capture the Evolve Championship. As we all know Evolve and WWE (Triple H) work together. So this signing seemed natural.
The only little bit of baggage Riddle brings is his UFC dismissal for failing 2 drug tests for marijuana. WWE did have interest in him for a while now which explains his Evolve run. Triple H has said everyone deserves a second chance and he just has to prove himself.
The funny thing about this is New Japan has serious interest in him as well which I think caused WWE to pull the trigger on his signing. NJPW is a major threat to WWE so if WWE can swoop in and snag a star or 2 then why not. Marijuana? What marijuana…
Now on the weed topic. It is 2018 and in most places marijuana is legal so having talent fail drug tests over weed blows my mind. Pills are the major issue in professional wrestler so eliminating them by using marijuana is a major win for the wrestler. I read WWE doesn’t take any action towards a failed test over weed, just a fine. Still, a fine is a tad harsh especially for all the benefits weed has. Now this isn’t a rant on the benefits of using marijuana, it is just a simple rant as weed isn’t as bad for you as the schools told us.
I am hoping we see Riddle show up at NXT Takeover IV. The potential dream matches are endless. Matt has the talent to be a major player in WWE and has the potential to be a major draw. Lets just hope he doesn’t get the Evan Bourne treatment for his usage of marijuana. Vince, just show him the video of the eggs in the frying pan with the title of “This is your brain on drugs”…
Well that’s all she wrote for this week. Time to kick back and watch the UFC’s Best Of CM Punk video……….. Oh and Drake, I just got off of the phone with KiKi and she mentioned that she does love you so there you go, case closed.
