5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 3/30/15

WrestleMania 31 is in the books. Just speaking from a guy who gets to cover professional wrestling for a living and also is a lifelong fan, this was probably the best the show i've ever attended with the expection of the 2011 Money in the Bank PPV! I had a blast last night at Levi's Stadium and I was probably the only guy on the site here who was geniunely excited for this show because I knew this show was going to be good. Welcome to this week's WWE Monday Night Raw Preview! The Raw's after WrestleMania have always been super anticipated and here's five things at least you can expect to see on tonight's show. Also I'll give you a demo of the match-card for Extreme Rules since it's going to be in my hometown in Chicago and it's my gift to you guys. 

1.) The Future is now the Present?

Nobody perfects pulling the strings better than the WWE! We had just about 4-5 months of whining and complaining about whether Brock was going to leave the WWE or Roman Reigns winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The match itself was really good and Reigns showed alot of heart and that Samoan toughness. Brock was a beast Suplex City was in full effect. Just as you thought Reigns was going to win out comes Seth Rollins and I didn't know how to react at that moment because I didn't know you can cash in during matches. So I was marking out with everybody and Seth Rollins who started in Chicago at AAW won the WWE World Title in the main event of WrestleMania and made history. As far as tonight is concern for what it's worth I know that Rollins was going to be on Today show, so maybe he goes to Stamford and then he cuts his promo's via satellite especially with Lesnar and Reigns seeking revenge on Rollins. For all it's worth maybe Rollins is at the building. We have Extreme Rules coming up and here's the question will Brock fight at the show? How will Reigns get back in the title picture? All good questions, but eventually I think we do see a triple threat match for the title at Extreme Rules.

2.) John Cena/Rusev Aftermath 

Just wanted to give my thoughts from the live event experience during this match at WrestleMania. The Rusev entrance really really cool. I fit perfectly for his character I remember saying "WHAT A HEEL" as he was coming down to the ring. The video package for John Cena was pretty good and once again WWE fans don't fail to dissappoint as Mr. America comes to the ring the song of "John Cena Sucks" grace upon Levi's Stadium. I thought the match was good and obviously for business purposes it made sense for Cena to win the United States Championship. Will it last long? That's the question and with Lana taking bump last night most likely will be written off TV for awhile. Where does Rusev go from here? I'm expecting tonight that there will be a segment with Cena and Rusev and eventually you see Rusev dominate Cena and then we'll see either a "I Quit" Match or a Last Man Standing Match. 

3.) Sting/HHH + Undertaker/Wyatt 

I'll go breif these matches because I'll be hyperlinking the great Review James had earlier today and I will go more in depth with what happen at WrestleMania when I come back on air this Wednesday. I thought the Sting/HHH was awesome. The brawl with the nWo and DX was legendary. It was awesome seeing Shawn Michaels get involved match as well and some people don't know that Sting and Shawn are pretty good friends. It wasn't about who was winning the match it was about putting an end to the Monday Night Wars. For tonight I want to know what happen's next for Triple H? You saw later that night he got laid out by The Rock and Ronda Rousey. Will The Rock be on the show tonight? Will we see The Rock vs Triple H at WrestleMania 32? The Bray Wyatt/Undertaker match was cool and it's always a sentimental moment for me when I get to see The Undertaker perform in person. I don't think Wyatt will be effected by this loss his character is so unique like a Mankind character he could lose a million matches and still be over. I think tonight we either see Sting or The Undertaker go on the mic and try to retire and right at that moment either guy will cut each other off and we'll get Sting and Taker at WrestleMania 32.

4.) YES! Movement in full gear

Daniel Bryan won the Intercontinental Championship in a fun ladder match. He got praised by some of the greatest Intercontinental Champions in history. Bryan does put a big spotlight on that title he's one of the most popular superstars in the WWE and the title matches now mean something. Tonight you can go in many different directions, but for me I think tonight we see Bryan talk about bringing back the prestige to that championship and that he's a fighting champion and he will challenge somebody to come out. Maybe you see Dolph Ziggler or Dean Ambrose. Maybe you see a IC Title match with Daniel Bryan and Bad News Barrett. Or Sheamus comes back and makes his heel turn and we finally get this Bryan/Sheamus program in full gear.

5.) Extreme Rules 2015 Demo Match Card 

1.) WWE Tag Team Championship Match 

Cesaro and Tyson Kidd (c) vs. The Lucha Dragons 

2.) WWE United States Championship Match 

John Cena (c) vs. Rusev 

3.) WWE Intercontinental Championship Match 

Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Sheamus 

4.) #1 Contenders Match 

Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler 

5.) Goldust vs. Stardust 

6.) The Miz vs. Mizdow 

7.) Bray Wyatt vs Randy Orton 

8.) WWE Divas Championship Match 

AJ Lee (c) vs. Paige 

9.) WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match 

Seth Rollins (c) vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar 

WrestleMania Business News: 

WrestleMania 31 had 5th largest attendance record with 76,976 people packing Levi's Stadium. Mania grossed about $12.6 million dollars which is the highest grossing event in the WWE's history. Also a big announcement today is that's the updated subscripition number's for the WWE Network is up to 1.3 million! Great week of business and great week for the product as a whole heading towards the rest of the year.

For more in depth thoughts about WrestleMania 31 check out James tremendous review.http://savagescondoonthemoon.blogspot.ca/2015/03/wrestlemania-review-night-with-some.html

Follow Me on Twitter @VoiceOfTruth94

Check out the Pro Wrestling Experience every Wednesday from 10am-1pm CT! On Chicagolandsportsradio.com

Wrestlemania Review: A Night With Some Surprises

I am not sure what this says for the building to big events given how Wrestlemania turned out. I can honestly say heading into the show, I literally had no interest in who won any match. Yet the show turned out to be a great wrestling event. It wasn’t what some people are saying the greatest Wrestlemania ever. It was very good though for the most part. What this show did have going for it was the unexpected that has been lacking in wrestling for years. Ronda Rousey made a surprise appearance with The Rock. The rumor mill had made it clear Rock was going to be there. People also knew Ronda would be there as a fan. In fact, WWE even acknowledged her presence at the show. No one expected her to get in the ring and judo throw Triple H and gently attacked Stephanie’s arm. In a world, that it is hard to keep a secret this had been planned months ago and had the approval of Dana White Ronda’s boss in the UFC.



In addition, the WWE did a pretty good job of booking themselves out of what seemed like a tough situation for their main event. Some had thought that Seth Rollins could have cashed in his Money in the Bank at Wrestlemania. However, no one expected the twist of Seth coming out during the match because it had never happened before. They were able to build Roman Reigns and make him look strong. Brock was not pinned to lose his title. While Seth Rollins the best heel currently on the regular roster, walk away the New World Heavyweight Champion.

If you’re into nostalgia, you were able to see a ton of it in the Sting vs. Triple H match. We had DX and N.W.O get involved in a very over-booked match. Sting got his moment for the people that care about that. He didn’t get the win. In the end, did you really expect Vince McMahon to “put over” the franchise wrestler of the company that tried to run him out of business? Better yet against his own Son-In-Law in Triple H. Even more to the point how many more matches will Triple H have compared to Sting. How much would it mean for Triple H to lose matches to guys like Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose Bray Wyatt or other rising talents. If Triple H loses to a guy in his mid-fifties that by the end of that match looked like it. How would this be for his credibility?

The United States and Intercontinental titles have been elevated coming out of this event. The Tag Team Titles and Diva’s Title look fairly week.

Tag Titles were defended on the pre-show and at least Cesaro and Kidd retained. They did have some cool spots but it having two-jobber team’s involved and half of the Uso’s did the match no favors. While the Diva’s title was not defended and the tag-team match with the Bella’s and Paige and A.J did get some time but fell flat. The girls tried hard but it just didn’t come off but at least the girls that can wrestle won with A.J got the champion Nikki Bella tap out.

The Intercontinental Title ladder match was much hyped but for me was a typical ladder match. Some cool spots and a nasty bump for Dean Ambrose that you hope really didn’t get him injured. In the end, the rumored winner Daniel Bryan was in fact the winner. They tried to make this seem a big deal with a cast of hall of famers that held the title was congratulating Daniel backstage. It is still impossible not to see the contrast in the fact Daniel Bryan winning the world title last year and this lesser title this year. I am just glad Bryan made it out of this match injury free.

The WWE went all out to try to make fans cheer John Cena. It was almost like a propaganda film with the entrances for this match. Lana was back and led Russian army men carrying the Russian flag with the Anthem playing. If all that wasn’t enough we had artillery guns firing on the stage and Rusev came in on top of a tank. John Cena was preceded by Republican based U.S propaganda film complete with clips of Ronald Regan, George W. Bush etc and all kinds of typical American images.

Still by the time Cena entered the crowd was singing along to Cena’s theme telling him he sucks. The result of the match was fairly predictable as spoiler alert John Cena wins. I knew this when rumors of this match first surfaced 6 months ago. The match end came with Rusev knocking Lana off the apron as Cena avoided him. Cena became the first man to defeat Rusev. He defended America even though the crowd was pro Russia amazingly, as that sounds. For all the defenders of John Cena I challenge you to defend how he can’t get over in the most patriotic USA USA angle. In any case, he holding the U.S Title does help continue keeping the title strong as Rusev had begun to do. Rusev and Lana seem to be on the rocks but Lana still has a movie to finish so they might not be done. However if they decide to split them it will hurt both in a major way. Rusev needs Lana as much if not more as Savage in his early years needed Elizabeth.  

Oh maybe this was me trying to block it out but Big Show won the Andre Battle Royal. They did pull the trigger on the Miz and Mizdow break-up. They were the other two in the final three.  Show backed out and let Miz and Mizdow fight, as Mizdow eliminated the Miz. They did give Mizdow a decent little chance to eliminate Big Show but eventually failed to do it. While the Miz and Mizdow feud was featured the tension between Big Show and Kane was forgotten.  Ryback was in the final four and had several people eliminated at his hands. The opening spot of the match was fun as the entire battle royal turned on Curtis Axel and literally, body surfed him out of the ring as the first eliminated.



Bray Wyatt and Undertaker likely were most disappointing. Reports that Wyatt had hurt his ankle prior to match seemed legitimate. While the Undertaker looked more mobile than he has in the past few years. He grew out his hair as well and overall looked in better health and shape. This all being stated the fact he likely retires next year in Dallas is a good thing for him and for us, as he really should have retired before now. He did get the win over Wyatt and that might have been an audible with Bray's injury or it may not have been. The response for this match seemed muted as it followed the Rock and Rousey show with the Authority. Fans were pro Taker and got what they wanted. Bray may miss a week or two with his bum ankle that he fought through like a champion. Give full marks to Wyatt for working at less than 100 percent. 

The crowd hated Roman and they loved Brock, which shocked no one. Brock called the majority if not all of this match until Seth came out. It was a good fight and Brock legitimately getting hurt added to the match. He looked a bloody mess by the end. He still gave a beating to Reigns and to his credit, he took it. I really gained respect for Reigns even if that makes me in the minority so be it. He took his medicine and still worked very hard.

The booking to end things was fairly brilliant to use Rollins and Money in the Bank with a unique never before seen cash in. Earlier in the night, Rollins had a great match with Orton that Randy won. Rollins taking an amazing RKO to close that match which seemed forgotten after his stunning cash in to win the title.

In the end a Wrestlemania that I felt little to no investment, it wound up being a pretty great show. I give credit when things are good and this Wrestlemania was good, was worth my time, and kept my attention throughout.    

Condo On The Moon Podcast: Wrestlemaina Preview

Myself and Chris Walder with your full Wrestlemania 31 preview:

If your unable to listen here. Go to Podomatic and listen or download from there.

Condo On The Moon Wrestlemania Bonus Edition

We have an extra special glitter filled bonus podcast for Wrestlemania week. Brock is back and getting paid well. The impact on all based on this. Walder has been converted to an Alexa Bliss fan. While I see Dana Brooke as a possible answer to Ronda Rousey for WWE. In addition we preview the ROH Supercard of Honor IX.


We are back tomorrow with our HUGE Wrestlemania preview. So join us then.

If your unable to listen or download via website head over to Podomatic and listen or download there.

NXT Report

Only 3 weeks in and we missed an NXT Report. Note it is time to get some staff coming out of Wrestlemania. I won’t bore everyone with week the old news, but have just a few comments on NXT’s first outing to Ohio.

It is clear the vision for NXT has changed or at least expanded to the idea of it being its own unique brand. The test drive in Columbus was a huge success. Crowd was even more jacked than the crazies at Full Sail were and they knew everything and everyone connected to the product.

NXT is getting a show on Friday Night of Mania week at San Jose State University and it will sell out and likely be one of the most talked about things as part of Mania weekend.

As for this week’s show, it was two title matches that we have to see. Alexa Bliss got a count out win and earned a shot at Sasha Banks for her NXT Women’s Title. Bliss did a decent job in the match. Really does a great job with facial expressions to the camera. Her work in ring is still a little bit off in comparison to the top girls like Banks, Charlotte and even Bayley. I still see a bright future for her on the main roster, as she will really appeal to the kids. She will also appeal to the adult males and she is very attractive. That is a winning combination. She predictably came up short falling prey to the Banks Statement the finishing submission hold of Sasha Banks. Stone Cold would approve of this finisher as she really locks it on every time. It is quickly becoming one of my personal favorites as far as submission finishers go male or female.

Couple back stage segments one setting up a feud with Bayley and Emma who seems to have gone heel in her return to NXT. In addition, a rubber match between Tyler Breeze and Hideo Itami in a two out of three falls match that is booked for next week’s show.

Breeze calling Devin Taylor Barbra Walters based on her simple question was a highlight for me. Taylor seems to be cast in the role once played by Maria now in ROH as the ditsy but loveable backstage reporter. Taylor has the ditsy down but I am not feeling the loveable part at the moment. Maria played that character so well and it is amazing the contrast of that to her current ROH character that is a mean and nasty female valet for The Kingdom.

Kevin Steen as you may have heard had to have a minor knee surgery. The last match he had in the can was his title defense against Finn Balor. These two were given almost half of the show and made use of the time with a fantastic match. Balor sold a leg injury that ultimately led to his demise and Kevin Owens would retain the NXT title via pinfall.

Another note word is that Sami Zayn may also be injured with a shoulder injury of some sort. There is no real info on it, as the injury hasn’t been a part of storylines to this point. The same is true for Owens. Sadly, fans at Mania will miss on seeing Owens and possibly Zayn Wrestle.

Someone will be getting a ticket into the Andre the Giant Battle Royal and will be determined in a tournament going on at Axcess or perhaps on the Friday night show in San Jose. Most people are suggesting Adrian Neville will win and get the chance to appear on Mania.

I think that would be a bad debut for him in terms of his finisher being from the top rope and this being a Battle Royal. The two don’t make for a happy marriage. Neville I see more than any of the other top NXT male stars having a hard time getting over on the main roster. Vince McMahon is likely to see his negatives more than his positives and that could spell doom for him. Triple H is a huge supporter though so maybe he can help Neville survive in the land of the sharks on the main roster at least at first.

Lastly, there has been a lot of talk of how you change the Diva’s Division and make it into something different. Aside from cutting the dead weight, like the Bellas and the other non-wrestling chicks out of the picture there could be another way too eventually.

Most will say that Charlotte is where this goes next but it isn’t where this is heading. No doubt, Charlotte will be a success but given her ties to Ric Flair being his daughter she is not the answer on here own to change the divas back to women.

Dana Brooke is being teased as debuting soon in NXT. Assuming she is capable in the ring, I have an idea that is long overdue for the Diva’s Division. UFC has Ronda Rousey and she is not going to be wrestling anytime soon in a WWE ring. Brock maybe back but the UFC’s number one draw is not stepping in a WWE Ring to fight.

I purpose you make Brooke into a Ronda Rousey like smashing machine. She is attractive like Rousey and is a fitness model and body builder. So, she has the look to be that attractive ass kicker. Only question is how quickly she can get good in the ring. You could book her in a way to protect her much as they have with Baron Corbin at first. Like the real Rousey, have her come out and just maul he competition. Hell on the main roster she can be part of the authority and make her Stephanie’s response to the Give Diva’s a Chance Movement. If A.J Lee is not sticking around have this girl debut taking out A.J and putting her into a wrestling retirement.

It could work and the WWE’s most successful Women’s Champion started as a fitness model that wasn’t the greatest wrestler in the world. Her name is Trish Stratus and she is the Ric Flair of Women’s wrestling with nine Championship reigns the most by any women in WWE.

Hell if some day the real Ronda comes maybe you have the biggest women’s match ever. It is just a thought of where they could go with Dana Brooke. Now can she do that Rousey ring walk death stare? I have no idea. Nevertheless, this is a gimmick that fits her well. If she can’t do an armbar have Chris Jericho teach her it was one of his 1004 moves in his great feud with Dean Melenko back in WCW.

That is it for NXT. Don’t forget later today a special edition of Condo on the Moon Podcast talking Brock re-signing and previewing the ROH show tomorrow in Cali with Walder and myself.   

Brock Is Back So Now What?

Brock Lesnar kicked off Wrestlemania week with a bombshell going on ESPN to announce he is retired from MMA and had re-signed the night before with WWE. He stated that Vince McMahon made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

Some interesting things he stated were that he had been training for MMA for the last two months. He claimed his appearance at the Rousey fight in L.A was to be back in the UFC environment.  He also said he has been struggling with this decision for about a year. He had a bad taste in his mouth, in regards to how his career ended in MMA with UFC as a fighter. He went out on a losing streak and was dealing with recovering from diverticulitis. In the end, he felt that returning to the WWE and retiring from MMA was the best choice to make for his family.

Brock still hates to travel and by his comments it appears he has resigned for the same or similar part-time schedule. He also stated that he is the only one that gets to work part-time hours for full-time pay.  Which makes you wonder how wise this was for WWE given their new finically reality with the WWE Network.

While Brock claimed ignorance to angling for this deal with WWE that seems hard to believe. In fact, you can go back far before his latest moves with showing up at UFC to him playing the UFC and WWE against one another. I recall Paul Heyman doing an interview with Ariel Helwani noted MMA journalist that Brock would still watch UFC fights and tell Heyman that he could beat this guy and that guy. The subtle seeds had been planted about Brock having interest in returning. Heyman is back in the WWE based completely on his friendship with Lesnar. He would never say anything without the blessing of Brock in such a public setting. Heyman would never speak about C.M Punk’s issues prior to Punk making his reasons for leaving public. Punk also is close with Heyman and the loyalty Heyman shows has been shown in this situation as well.

While having Brock back will be seen as the big story in reality the fact this will almost guarantee Heyman’s presence on television is an even bigger deal for WWE. He has been an MVP for this company in the last year with his tremendous promos in selling angles and matches tied to Lesnar and others in the last year. He single handedly sold the Lesnar vs. Taker match a year ago. He was the driving force in selling the Lesnar against John Cena match at Summerslam and the re-match between the two.

In the end, Brock can say what he likes. He played this situation perfectly to be paid. He claims to enjoy wrestling in the ring and his just not a fan of travel. This is consistent to why he left originally to try out for the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL. Still to me, he will always be a mercenary that is out to be paid and is not necessarily a fan of the business. He is when it is convent to be and isn’t when it is not in his best interest to be. Bottom line Brock Lesnar is not a mark for the business he is a mark for himself at whatever he does.

The biggest loser in all of this likely will be Roman Reigns, as he now likely seems to be the odd man out. The chosen one to take the title from Lesnar now likely will not. Most felt that if Lesnar would be under contract prior to Sunday he likely will retain his title. This of course remains to be seen but seems highly likely and ultimately turn Lesnar officially babyface and have him continue his run with the title.

Even worse, a program he could have had, as a heel champion with The Rock likely now becomes The Rock against Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania 32 in AT&T Stadium. A program with Roman against his more famous cousin would have been a great thing for Reigns getting to another level as an attraction.

WWE can now breathe easy and can do what is BEST FOR BUSINESS if they want too. It isn’t to say they will mind you, as Lesnar in reality doesn’t care if he wins or loses on Sunday as much as he does that the check clears the bank for showing up.

5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 3/23/15

How's thing going? Welcome to the final Raw preview before WrestleMania 31! It's been a fun ride getting to do these previews during this crazy road to WrestleMania. Alot of people say that the build towards WrestleMania has been lackluster, but I disagree because, more people are talking about this WrestleMania then they did for the 30th Anniversary of WrestleMania. Whether good or bad or indifferent people are talking and amongst all these "controversies" brings a high level on intrigued not only on tonight's Raw, but also WrestleMania this Sunday. I'll be in San Jose this weekend love meet to some of the fans of the Condo On The Moon website and podcast. Tonight on Raw we have a couple special guest since Raw is at the Staples Center tonight which should bring a interesting crowd instead of the past three go-home shows that were in Washington and Atlanta. Snoop Doog will be making a guest appearance and also ESPN and Grantland founder Bill Simmons will be calling some matches tonight. So with that here's five things to expect on the final Raw before WrestleMania. 

1.) Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar

 

I will be sharing the comments that Brock Lesnar made from last week's Raw. Speaking of last week's Raw, Paul Heyman once again continues to blow us away with his ability to out do himself in his promos. I've been so bored with the whole Roman Reigns bashing or whatever you want to call this backlash towards him. It is what it is the main event is set and unlike other people I'm going to give you a look as to what they can do to make this match interesting. Tonight on Raw there's supposed to be a face-to-face segment between both the champion and the challenger. I'm figuring that this will close the show tonight or at least it should, but I wouldn't be surprised if they want this segment to start off the second or third hour's of the show. Anyways, I guess one of the only problems I've had so far with the presentation of Roman Reigns since he's came back from his injury is that we've not been given a solid reason to have a emotional investment in anything Roman Reigns. What do I mean by that? Well, WWE can say "Oh look at this guy, he has the look, he's from one of the greatest families in the wrestling business" Okay I know that, but how is Roman going to make himself standout from his other family members if he's not allowed to speak for himself. You constantly see people cutting him off when he starts talking then they start putting him over and kissing his ass. I like Roman Reigns don't get me wrong I want him to succeed, but if Roman's going to be the "next guy" you have make the fans care about him and drive away the John Cena stigma that's attached to him. Tonight on Raw It shouldn't be about Reigns talking to Paul, you should see Roman talk to Brock. We'll hear what Heyman has to say that's a given and then if a brawl happens and they want to go with this Reigns can't beat Lesnar campaign, then you have Brock lay him out with a F5! Also a wild card I think if it's possible and if he's there maybe The Rock shows up on Raw, but still even then you can have Reigns sidetracked then Brock lays out The Rock afront of Reigns and that can play off to the "rumored" main event of next year's WrestleMania "Brock Lesnar vs The Rock" Tonight is very important for this feud. You want to gain the heat and anticipation for this PPV and this match alone? You have to get the crowd off their feet and WWE is lucky they have a great crowd afront of them.

2.) Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins

I guess one of the benefits that comes with having "part-timers" associated with major matches on a WrestleMania card is that with Raw you can pay attention to feuds that usuallly wouldn't been given the time its deserved. You have one of the simplest feuds in the WWE right now and it's really interesting that the Orton & Rollins storyline has been dominating the Raw's on the road to WrestleMania. Which is cool for Rollins because he's getting more and more practice to succeed on high pressure situations especially like a main event segment when a major PPV is coming up. Last week Rollins seemed to be "dismissed" by The Authority, but that didn't last long when Rollins and Authority tricked Orton and that plan was haulted by Sting! On SmackDown JJ Security had a group of security men and women to keep Randy Orton out of the building. That didn't work out and Orton has been on a RKO spree over the last couple of weeks. While Rollins continues to run away it does remind you of the feud with Punk and Orton from WrestleMania 27, but on a higher scale due to the fact that both of these guys were associated with each other with The Authority for over 5 months last year. Tonight should be interesting just to see if Orton is going to be in a match or not. Will Rollins wrestle? I think tonight you'll see Orton be put in a handicap match wtih Big Show & Kane. Orton will win and then all the Authority will come in and attack Randy Orton and just as Orton takes all the guys out Rollins comes from behind with the briefcase hits him in the back of the head and then gives Orton a Curb Stomp! You put Orton in a vunderable situation and you also put Rollins over on a major show before Mania. Have to give Rollins and Orton a big round of applause for carrying major segments of Raw over the last couple of weeks.

3.) John Cena vs. Rusev

Not even going to give that fake Russian Lawyer any attention in this piece. There's no reason to have one of your best on-air personalities shooting a movie during the road to WrestleMania it's just dumb and not necessary. For what Rusev and John Cena said to each other I enjoyed. Like I've said before not a John Cena fan, but I have alot of respect for him and he's been more enjoyable to watch over the last couple of weeks and I'm not afraid to say that. His promos have been fantastic and this is a simple feud with a simple opponent and that's not taking a dig at Rusev it's showing that less is more. Rusev has been doing a tremendous job as a heel especially with him talking more and getting heat by himself. I'm going to share the interview that John Cena conducted with Michael Cole and I want you guys to listen closely to what he says. What I like about this feud is that I don't know what happens next for John Cena. There's so many options to go with this feud and if John Cena loses maybe we don't see John Cena for awhile. Tonight I think we see Cena get the best of Rusev and hold up the United States Championship. I hope Lana is on the show she's a major assett to Rusev character development and you don't see that from other managers unless your name is Paul Heyman and that's saying something. 

4.) The Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt + Triple H vs Sting 

It was nice seeing Sting on Raw last week and getting to talk to the WWE Universe. I mention last week we need more to this Triple H and Sting feud. I'm happy he's here and he's my favorite non WWE Superstar of all-time. What's coming out of this Triple H/Sting match? Sting says that he's here to take Hunter down, but if he beats him at WrestleMania and Hunter is on Raw the next night did he really do anything? I heard reports about Sting being in Los Angeles for tonight's Raw and I think he should be there. Tonight I think we do see a in-ring segment with Triple H and Sting and Sting will probably challenge Hunter for his "Authority" in the WWE. I think it would be really interesting if Vince came out on the show tonight and say that "I was the guy that brought Sting to the WWE and you've let me down and I told you to fix this and you didn't so I had to do it myself" BOOM!!!!!!! After that I think it would be important to have Hunter one up Sting before their match at Mania. As far as the Taker/Wyatt match goes I've been really impressed with Bray Wyatt no matter what happens in this match I think Wyatt will be elevated! Tonight is the last night to fight off the rumor that the WWE is holding Taker off until the PPV! I think it would be right to decision to hold Taker from appearing in person, but that doesn't mean you can't have Taker conduct a pre-tape video package where he talks about moving on from losing The Streak and he can talks about his feelings toward Bray Wyatt. They could go big on the hocus pocus stuff especially being at the Staples Center. I'm really interested in seeing what they do with Wyatt on the show tonight.

5.) IC Title + Mania Mid-Card feuds plus Raw matches 

I've been loving what they've been doing with the build towards this Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match. The gaunlet match from SmackDown was one of the best matches I've seen this year and it crazy to think they've been spending an average 30-35 minutes of TV time on the IC Title feud. As far as tonight is concern here's the following the matches that you can see on the show tonight. I think we Daniel Bryan vs Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler vs Luke Harper, and R-Truth vs Stardust and you have Bad News Barrett on the commentary! Tonight you'll probably see AJ Lee vs Brie Bella or you can do this and you can have a Divas Title match between Paige and Nikki Bella and then you have Paige win and after the match you can have The Bella Twins snap and say that they've had enough of diva's like you and being constatnly disrespected by the crowd. After that they can say if you guys beat us we're gone from the WWE for good. We'll probably see more names added to the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal and then obviously for the Tag Team Championship feud you can see Los Matadores and Cesaro/Tyson Kidd vs The Usos and The New Day. 

Before we head out here I wanted to congratulations to Kevin Nash becoming the newest member of the WWE Hall of Fame well deserved. This will probably be my last time on the site before the big show so I wanted to put my predictions for the show.

1.) Dean Ambrose wins the Ladder Match and becomes the new Intercontinental Champion after Sheamus cost Bryan the Ladder Match 

2.) Randy Orton over Seth Rollins 

3.) Cesaro & Kidd retain the Tag Team Championship 

4.) The Miz wins the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal 

5.) AJ Lee & Paige over The Bella Twins 

6.) Sting over Triple H 

7.) Wyatt over Taker

8.) Rusev retains the United States Championship 

9.) Roman Reings wins the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

You can follow me on Twitter @VoiceOfTruth94 

Make sure to check out my WrestleMania preview show this Wednesday on ChicagoLandSportsRadio.com from 10am-2pm CT!

Hope you guys enjoy this piece please feel free to share this piece on all social media platforms and I hope you guys enjoy Raw and WrestleMania.

Condo on the Moon Podcast #53

Walder and I try and shake off the Wrestlemania 31 blues. We discuss future of Brock, NXT and a lot more go have a listen:




If you are unable to download or listen here head over to Podomatic and listen or download from there.

Why It Doesn't Feel Like Wrestlemania Season In WWE

We are literally less than 2 weeks from Wrestlemania and having seen them all in my lifetime and lived through them this Wrestlemania is different and not in a good way. This show has just not had that special feeling that comes with the biggest show of the year. There are lots of reasons why and it begins but doesn’t end with the main event of the show. You have Brock Lesnar who is a guy who at the end of the day is out for a pay day. If Lesnar loses and makes his exit to the UFC he will not care as long as the check clears the bank. He just doesn’t come off as someone that loves the business. Roman Reigns while he clearly has a passion for this he also seems to have a cocky attitude that does not match what he has earned to this point. In an interview he did with Sam Roberts he spoke of himself as a brand not a wrestler. He clearly is already talking like the face of WWE that we have become use to in John Cena. It isn’t about putting on matches that entertain us as much as it is living up to what the company wants him to be.

In conclusion at least in my view Brock and Roman are both hard to root for in my view. They both in their own way are just so beyond the average person that it is hard to relate to them or care about them. Brock is simply a beast that you marvel at but can’t possibly relate too. You can marvel at what he is but you can’t possibly relate to him anymore than you can Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan. You respect the greatness but you find yourself looking for someone to knock them down from this mountain of greatness they stand on.

Roman Reigns a guy that is good looking and has a build that few can match other than a Lesnar or a Cena. He is not exactly the easiest guy to root for to beat the beast. Women love him but it has nothing to do with what he can or can’t do as a wrestler. He lacks the experience and comes off as someone that has yet to pay his dues in this business. Roman Reigns hasn’t earned it as much as he was chosen for greatness and to be the next one.

The guy that is the polar opposite of these two is Daniel Bryan. His story that led to last year’s Wrestlemania is a Hollywood movie that would be rejected for lacking realism. It happened though and this man that was short and had a scruffy beard went on a rise the likes we have rarely seen in wrestling. A year later he has missed most of the year due to injury and was stripped of the title never losing it based having it taken away based on those injuries. He now finds himself in a dangerous match for a devalued secondary title a year later. He headlines a match of unwanted and misused toys that WWE has failed to capitalize on and make into stars. Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose, Cody Rhodes Wade Barrett and Luke Harper have all had moments where they could have stepped up to another level and seemed to be pushed back down. Will this end up being a heck of a match despite the horrible title stealing story line leading up to it? Sure it will but at what cost in a ladder match with one guy coming off a serious next injury, another with a concussion history and a fragile champion that has been booked to look like an idiot in this entire angle. The sad thing is you honestly have to question if these guys are being treated like crash test dummies trying to prove some point that they will never prove.

Many expect that ladder match to produce the match of the night. It very well could but my pick prior to this lackluster build to it was and still is Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins. My fear now is that this match will not get the time I expected it to get. In addition this match could be ruined by potential run-ins to help Seth Rollins. Randy seems motivated since his return and this is the first big singles match for Seth Rollins at a Wrestlemania. The combination of those two things should produce a great match. I find it hard to be motivated to be invested in any of these matches on this Mania card but if any this might be the one I was excited for.

What I am not excited for is to see Sting face Triple H in a match with a storyline that is 15 years in the making of the imagination of a writer a month ago. I have no problem with Sting getting a Mania moment even if I personally don’t care. I do have a problem with this ridiculous story of Sting after 15 years coming back for some kind of revenge for the long forgotten WCW. Triple H probably doesn’t have many matches left in his career it is a match here and there at this point. To have one of his matches wasted on this lousy angle to give some past his prime guy in his mid-fifties a moment does nothing for me. I might be in the minority on this one but even the people excited about this match can’t be thrilled with the build to it. In addition the lack of seeing Sting only adds to the list of not seeing Brock or the Undertaker in the builds to their matches all that much. In case of Undertaker he has not appeared at all. No disrespect to Bray Wyatt or Triple H but everyone wants to see Sting and Taker. The thought is saving it for next year might be the plan. It will be a horrible match when and if it happens, but it is what people want. Not one Sting or Triple H fan has ever cared to see them have a match

Cena for the second year in a row is not in the main event at Wrestlemania. Instead he will defend America and try and make people care about the United States Title. The build to Rusev and Cena has taken the expected turn to being just the typical bad guy Russian against the babyface American Hero. Much like Hulk Hogan any actions Cena has taken are automatically justified based on simply being American. In reality Cena bullied his way into this match and Rusev has been victimized by John Cena.

Rusev has been undefeated and never submitted heading into this match. In the build to it Cena has both knocked out and made Rusev tap out taking away some of special nature to this match-up. In addition these two have already had a match at Fastlane. I maintain this match and Rusev winning at Fastlane has only hurt the build to this and made the predictable Cena win at Mania almost a foregone conclusion.

Cena’s Mania opposition last year Bray Wyatt has moved on to the 21-1 Undertaker for his opponent for this year.  Wyatt losing to Cena remains one of the huge mistakes of Wrestlemania 30. Now he enters another match where he is likely to lose to another WWE Icon in the Undertaker. Bray was not made better from sharing a ring with Cena and losing. I fear the same for the WWE’s potential new face of fear.  Bray seems to be in no win situation facing the Undertaker. What gets lost in the end of the streak is the match with Brock and Taker was pretty much a stinker. I fear Bray Wyatt will have a hard time getting a good match out of an aging Taker. Taker has been slowing down for years but it has been masterfully hidden by great talents like HBK, Triple H and C.M Punk. They all worked hard to make Taker look fantastic. Give Bray a ton of credit for basically having to do the build to this match alone but will that be what anyone remembers? Of course not it will be just who wins or loses the match.

I know it is hard to believe but the Tag-Team Titles use to be a big deal at Wrestlemania. Here in 2015 we are having a match destined to be on the pre-show of Wrestlemania. A legit injury to Jimmy Uso makes what was planned as four-way match to now a three-way match. That leaves Tyson Kidd and Cesaro the champs to face the world beaters of Los Matadors and the New Day. If Kidd and Cesaro lose I personally give up on Cesaro and Kidd ever getting anywhere. The loss of the Usos makes this match mean even less than it originally did. It also speaks to how badly things have gone for the Accession not even been included in this match. They could be a late replacement for the Uso’s but on a show where everyone gets fit into make this card and they were not. Perhaps they would have been included in the Andre Battle Royal which is back for another year.

So in this match of unwanted toys that is the Andre The Giant Battle Royal it seems there are only 3 real options to win this match. The people’s pick would be Mizdow and his rival in a slow build to a feud The Miz also could be considered to win this. However the chance a returning Sheamus could return to win this match is likely. After Cesaro winning last year and the aftermath of this from last year makes the winner of this match is far less significant.

In addition we will be giving the Diva’s a chance to not have their match cut as Brie and Nikki team up to face Paige and A.J Lee in a tag-team match. No Diva’s title on the line and it has been ages since we single one on one contest for the Diva’s or Women’s Title at Mania.

There has been no mention of celebrities appearing at Mania just another small thing that has been lacking in this build. What was planned to be a coronation of Roman Reigns to be the next John Cena for a decade has become a story about if Brock will stay or go. Personally the face people are hoping for him to return I don’t quite understand. Realistically Brock is MIA and so is the Championship for as long as he holds it. While it is financially irresponsible to pay what Lesnar will command with out question.  It is just not realistic based on the new model the WWE has created to justify paying Lesnar for a very limited amount of dates. This also speaks to perhaps the lack of care that has been put into this Mania build. The effort level has matched the 9.99 price tag or 11.99 if you happen to be in Canada.

It has been pretty universal in people lack of excitement heading into what is suppose to be the biggest show of the year in pro wrestling. It is a sad reflection of how this last year has impacted on the WWE.  The WWE Network has cast a shadow over this year and changed wrestling in the WWE not for the better. Mania has had trouble moving tickets with tickets still available just weeks prior to the event. It makes the massive challenge of filling AT&T Stadium seem like mission impossible looking forward to next year. A match the level of Hogan vs. Andre is not waiting around the corner for WWE.

5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 3/16/15

Happy 3:16 day you melee mouth bastards! Give me a "Oh Hell Yeah!" Welcome to this week's Monday Night Raw preview. WWE puts the metal forward on this bumpy ride to WrestleMania 31. We're two weeks away from WrestleMania 31 and I feel like the only person that's excited for this year's Mania and I felt this way last year. What I bring to these Raw previews is a big picture perspective. Last week on Raw we found that three major matches are confirmed for WrestleMania. The Undertaker accepted Bray Wyatt challenge, John Cena force Rusev & Lana to accept his challenge for the United States Championship, and Randy Orton finally turn and destroyed Seth Rollins. Tonight Raw is from Des Moines, Iowa which has been known over the years as one of the most quietest crowds in the WWE Universe. We're 13 days away from WrestleMania and here's five things you can expect to see on tonight's show.

1.) John Cena vs. Rusev 

One of the major feuds that has been gaining my attention on the road to WrestleMania is the feud between John Cena and Rusev! Which is surprising thinking about this feud on paper, but it's not the case because the feud writes itself. The build towards this match has been perfect and honestly as a non Cena fan this is one of the most exciting builds to a John Cena esque WrestleMania match. Last week on Raw Rusev made quick work of #AxelMania which is unfortunate, but Rusev was laid out by former United States Champion John Cena who warned him earlier in the night. There seems to be some tension between Rusev and Lana after Lana accepted John Cena's challenge for WrestleMania last week on Raw. What happens tonight? We know that Rusev will be defending the United States Championship against John Cena at WrestleMania. What can they do to make things this match more relevant then it already is? I think tonight Hulk Hogan needs to come out and say that he's going to be in the corner of John Cena to make sure that we don't have the same finish from FastLane. Will Rusev still be mad at Lana? If Rusev is retaining the championship at Mania I think you can still make him look vunderable on these Raw's. If Cena is winning the championship at Mania I think tonight Rusev MUST lay out John Cena on the Raw's before Mania. Match wise is always hard to figure out cause one week Cena wrestles then he doesn't same goes for Rusev, but this is one of the storylines that I'll be keeping my eye on as far as watching Raw tonight.

2.) Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins 

Last week on Raw it finally happen. Orton made the face turn that was already three weeks too late, but nonetheless it was effective and very entertaining to watch. I want to show you a clip of the interview from SmackDown where Orton basically laid out the reason behind the build towards this match with him and Seth Rollins. Orton says that he's going to spit in the face of Seth Rollins and challenge him to a match at WrestleMania. I think that match will be made tonight, but Rollins will get his revenge tonight. Expect to see The Authority to deny Orton request and send the hounds towards Orton for defying the Authority! I don't look at dirtsheets and I can tell by studying the tv product where this feud between Rollins and Orton has to go. Either guy can win or lose and they'll won't be effected by it. Tonight Rollins lays out Randy Orton and accepts his challenge and the match will be official.

3.) Triple H vs. Sting 

Have we come to the point where we only care about the stories  that's being said on the mic. I will also be putting the Sting promo in this piece to illustrate my point in this piece. There's "reports" going around about Sting possibly appearing on tonight's Raw. Awesome and if he speaks like the Sting we all know great, but my problem is not about whether his voice is distorted or not, my problem is what's going to come out of this match at WrestleMania. Sting talked about rectifying a wrong in The Authority and that he's been waiting 14 years to put a end to the Game. I think people are worrying to much about what's he saying because we know that he was in TNA during this time last year. This is not a dig or whatever you want to call it at TNA, but we need to put the TNA stuff aside when analyzing the stuff that comes out of either Triple H or Sting's mouth. I want to know what's going to be the aftermath of this feud. Is Sting going to become the GM of Raw? Is Triple H going to lose his "Authority"? Simple questions that I have and that should be addressed on the show tonight if Sting appears on the show. I'm sure Triple H will say if Sting loses he'll never be allowed on WWE Television again, but once again what does Sting get if he beats Triple H?

4.) Roman Reigns Journey 

I'm going to keep this point very short because I think we're a beating a dead horse times a thousand on this topic and this feud between Reigns and Lesnar. I get it! It's the main event of WrestleMania. You don't think that Reigns is ready? I don't think anybody is ever really ready when it's not a real sport? WWE mindset is that hey we can strike when the potential is hot, but the fans don't think he deserves this position due to circumstances that I will never understand because is subjective. Brock is holding the title hostage we don't know if he's going to stay or not, we here about MMA and UFC more than we here about this feud and this match. I have a problem with that. Tonight is simple Reigns go out there and prove your detractors wrong on the mic it's that simple. Have him come out and have a promo with Paul Heyman. Vince stop with the insecurity and scripting his promos. Let the guy come out and be himself. If Reigns is presented like himself then people will latch onto him.

5.) The Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt + WrestleMania Mid-Card build 

Last week on Raw Undertaker accepted Bray Wyatt challenge for a match at WrestleMania. I think they're going to keep Taker off of TV until WrestleMania and I think that's good because they haven't done that before. Wyatt has been building this feud perfectly and he's showing that he can be one of the best storytellers in the history of wrestling. We know that we'll be getting a promo from Wyatt tonight. As far as what else is going on the card for Mania. I know that AJ Lee & Paige will take on Bella Twins at Mania. Tonight you'll probably see AJ & Paige vs Alicia Fox & Summer Rae. Expecting another fatal four way tag team match for the WWE Tag Team Championship. We'll see The New Day vs The Usos then Los Matadores vs Tyson Kidd & Cesaro. I think we see more build towards the Battle Royal maybe you see Ryback vs Big Show. The IC Title feud has been great so far. I think Truth needs to get off the commentary and fight. Tonight we'll see Truth vs Harper, Ziggler vs Barrett and Stardust vs Daniel Bryan you can have Dean Ambrose on commentary this time.

I want to congratulate the "Living Legend" Larry Zbyzko on becoming the newest member of the WWE Hall of Fame. I know the crowd won't be that hot tonight, but it's Iowa! So I know what I'm expecting to see on tonight's show I'm not asking for a lot if they address all the matches on the card then I'm fine with that. I hope you guys try to enjoy Raw tonight and not over think things let it play out if you don't like it cool, but give it a chance before judging.

You can follow me on Twitter @VoiceOfTruth94

Make sure to check out my wrestling radio show dub "Pro Wrestling Experience" every Wednesday from 10am-1pm CT on Chicagolandsportsradio.com

Condo On Moon Podcast #52: Rocky Road To San Jose

We breakdown a Raw that was memorable for how bad it was. So much bad in this week but from her Flintstones based promo to her delusional self impression Nikki Bella finds a way to stand out in a sea of bad. Nikki has a dream to be the female Rock and we have a dream to have a women's champion that actually has talent. We re-cap another season finale of Total Divas that will make us all a little worse off for doing. In addition not all bad news as we talk about who is returning to ROH and who might be going. While NXT seems to eye ROH talent as they look to stock up and become a legitimate separate brand from WWE. All of this in 90 minutes plus with James Borbath and Chris Walder as your guides down this Wrestlemania highway to hell.



If your unable to listen via the site head over to Podomatic and download or listen there.

Can it get worse on this road to Wrestlemania? Let's put it this way I need a fast forward button or a stop button not some play button at this stage. Will be back next week regardless of if things improve or not.

NXT Report: March 11th 2015

There has been a lot of talk about NXT this week and for once, it is not as much about what is happening in the ring. Bill Demott stepping down as the head trainer at the WWE Performance Center dominated the headlines last week. He has been replaced by Matt Bloom (Jason Albert) in the role. This is likely a positive to have the WWE try to distance the NXT brand from Demott. While almost all of the allegations against Demott pre-date NXT his presence there currently would only serve as hindrance for the brand moving forward.

This is another thing that is being talked about quite a fair bit is what exact the future for NXT will be as it grows. Is it still a developmental system or is it growing into its own unique promotion. Is it now growing into a brand that is some kind of super independent promotion? Obviously having the backing and money of the WWE behind it gives it an advantage over any promotion including TNA and ROH. The NXT show took to the road last weekend in Columbus Ohio and it was promoted on last night’s episode of the show that we would see some of the events from that road trip next week.

Samoa Joe has stated he is in talks with WWE and he would be another huge name born on the independent scene that could be added to the mix in NXT. Joe may need some conditioning not unlike a Kevin Owens, but as far as his work in the ring, he has proven to be at an elite level when motivated to be. Add him to the mix with Finn Balor, Adrian Neville, Sami Zayn, Hideo Itami and Owens it is top 6 that would make any independent promoter drool.

It all leads to the question of is NXT still a developmental program or it becoming a brand geared to attract the hardcore wrestling audience that has been under whelmed with the current WWE product. Can it be a mix of both at the end of the day?

If we put a label on last night’s show it was leaning more to the developmental side than the creating a brand side.

The night started with Big Cass and Enzo going against the Lucha Dragons for the number one contender spot for the NXT Tag Team Championship. The expected happened with Enzo and Cass winning as the angle between them and Blake and Murphy was already teased. No question Cass and Enzo are over and have been for some time in NXT. I have always stated if this act goes to the next level, I see Colin Cassidy as the big star and Enzo more as a manger than his partner in a tag team. One thing that Big Cass has is his size and to steal one of their catch phrases…You Can’t Teach That!  Enzo is entertaining but more so for his personality and work on the microphone as opposed to anything he does in the ring.

Alexa Bliss returned to action after being sidelined for two months with a broken nose. She took on the third member of that crew Carmella. This match was a step below what we have come to expect from the women in NXT. I still think Bliss has a bright future and like Bayley could get over huge with kids. Unlike Bayley she is looks wise a miniature version of Trish Stratus. If she can learn and develop as Trish did, she can be a big hit on the next level. Lots of work to do though but I really like Alexa and think she has an “it factor” to her that can work well on the next level. That cross between Diva and Women’s Wrestler that ideally fans want.

Alex Riley returned to the ring after over 2 years away from it. It took about 2 minutes to realize why he was placed in commentary and not wrestling. His promo prior to his match with C.J Parker was little over the top but great. In ring, Riley is average at best and just doesn’t hold a candle to the talent even here in NXT. Owens came out and promised to end Alex Riley’s wrestling career and move on to ending the rise of Finn Balor. After watching Riley this week, Kevin Owens would be doing us a favor he delivered on his promise about Riley. Kevin will be able to get a good match out of Riley despite his lack of skills in the ring. Kevin is just that talented that he can. In addition the build verbally and storyline wise has been outstanding.

Hideo Itami and Tyler Breeze seem to be paired together based on having nothing else for either. It has been a good re-establishing of Tyler Breeze and with his new selfie stick; it adds a new layer to the gimmick. Hideo Itami on the other hand while clearly talented also seems clearly lost in some ways. I will say this that his selling is amazing. Problem might be he is selling too much and we have not got to see the offensive capabilities of this man.  The have teased is use of the GTS which fans at NXT now are determined to see. If he ever hit the main roster with that move not sure if that would be received with welcoming arms as it will be at NXT. While he did invent the move, even C.M Punk admits that, the move is forever tied to Punk for WWE fans. Itami lost the match to Breeze and that seemed the right outcome for me. Tyler Breeze while not the big name that Itami was as Kenta prior to the WWE, He is much more comfortable in the WWE setting and NXT environment

This was one of those rare NXT shows that I would say there wasn‘t anything that you need to go out of your way to see. Not that it was a bad show or anything close to the 3-hour snooze feast that was Raw. It just wasn‘t up to the standards that NXT is known for as being very high and over performing that leaves us wanting more.  .

5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 3/9/15

THE CHAMP IS HERE!!!!! Well, that's not true because the guy that came up with the catchphrase  doesn't even have a WrestleMania match booked. The real WWE World Heavyweight Champion "The Beast" Brock Lesnar is advertised to appear on tonight's show With that said welcome to this week's WWE Monday Night Raw preview. Tonight the WWE is in the Steel City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We're 20 days away from WrestleMania 31. Acclaimed rapper and Pittsburgh native Wiz Khalifa will perform on tonight's show. The road to WrestleMania is always a bump ride no matter which side of the fanbase you are in. I'm on the side that what matters to me at the end of the day is the story that's being told from the ring and not on the mic hence why I'm so interested in this year's WrestleMania. Here's five things you can expect to see on tonight's Monday Night Raw.

1.) Intercontinental Championship Carousel + Daniel Bryan

In one of the most anticipated matches for this year's WrestleMania we have people thinking it's a 8 person ladder match. Let me remind you guys something there's six people that are going to be in this match. Last week on Raw we saw Dean Ambrose, Bad News Barrett, Luke Harper, R-Truth and even Dolph Ziggler hold the Intercontinental Championship. There was some tease on SmackDown where maybe Daniel Bryan and Stardust would join the match. Here's the thing if Bryan's in the match I'm fine with that, but I don't think that Daniel Bryan nor Stardust will be in the Ladder Match. I think we see Daniel Bryan vs. Stardust then Goldust will distract Stardust to let Bryan win the match then while Bryan is celebrating with the crowd coming from behind is a returning Sheamus with a vicious Brouge Kick plus a High Cross to the turnbuckle that's your heel turn. As far as tonight goes for the IC Title I think we see Dolph Ziggler vs Luke Harper then Bad News Barrett vs R-Truth and this time you have Dean Ambrose on the commentary.

2.) Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns ?

Brock Lesnar is advertised for tonight's Monday Night Raw and hopefully this time he actually appears on the television screen. I want to make this perfectly clear with everybody I'm a Brock Lesnar fan and I enjoy his work, but there's been no return of investment with this Lesnar's WWE World Heavyweight Title reign. Brock Lesnar wants to go to UFC fine go ahead knock your socks off my issue is that know there's report about Brock and WWE not getting along with contract negotiations and my issue is that he wants to fight in UFC and WWE at the same time and not only should not happen, but it's not going to happen when Vince McMahon is the owner of the WWE. As far as his match with Roman Reigns goes I think people are acting like hundinis and there's this mindset that this match is going to be like Goldberg/Brock from WrestleMania 20. I don't know how the match is going to go and neither do you. If Brock's on the show I think it would be good to hear him talk and go off the whole I can do anything I damn well please soliloquy to get some heat from the crowd. I think something that can build some heat into this match is if Reigns and Lesnar brawl on tonight's show and both guys need to be seperated. I would have it start the show actually you have Brock and Paul in the ring and they do their thing and Roman comes out and says oh you think I can beat you bam they start brawling the locker room comes out and seperates both guys. I think its a good idea because its a good test to see how the reacts to Brock and Reigns going after each other.

3.) Triple H vs Sting + Bray Wyatt vs The Undertaker 

Just wanted to throw out a couple of scenairos for both of these matches. I think that Triple H and Bray Wyatt have been doing a good job so far building both matches. For Triple H you have the recent confrontations with former WCW Superstars and it's really cool from a historically standpoint because the WWE has been nailing the build for this match with Triple H and Sting. I think a nice surprise for the crowd and for this feud you have either Sting show up on a balcony or in a video package, but either way you have Sting talk about why he's in the WWE and his purpose to go after Triple H. We have to see Sting before Mania and while Triple H has been doing a good job putting words in his mouth how can you personally connect to the feud if you don't know what's going through the mind of the challenger as much as wrestling fans think that they're the smartest people on the earth they're not mind readers. As far as Bray Wyatt/Undertaker match is concern once again I think Bray Wyatt is doing the best work of his career. Last week on SmackDown Bray Wyatt said that he's going to reveal the soul of The Undertaker on Raw. Do you have Undertaker play mind games with Bray since he's holding onto the urn now? Or do you have a coffin come down to the ring with Bray Wyatt and Bray opens the casket and tries to light it on fire and as Bray opens the casket he sees himself and then The Undertaker music hits he appears and everybody loses their you know what? Taker doesn't have to be on Raw, but if he is I think we see him in person and Bray Wyatt walks away laughing.

4.) John Cena vs. Rusev vs. Curtis Axel ?

Tonight we know that we'll see Curtis Axel vs Rusev. It hasn't been made official that we'll see the rematch at WrestleMania, but someway somehow we see John Cena make Rusev accept his challenge. I think eventually Hulk Hogan gets involved with this feud and you see that in the constant actions of Curtis Axel. I think Hulk Hogan will be in the corner of John Cena at WrestleMania. Also since The Authority continues to get into Cena's head if Hogan shows up and he's involved in this feud you can have Triple H come out and ask why he's here and that can also transition into Triple H and Hulk Hogan talking about Sting. I think John Cena may have another confrontation with Stephanie McMahon. If not we'll see John Cena vs Kane and Big Show and that plays with Cena mentioning that he wanted to be in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal you have Kane & Big Show feuding with each other saying that they will win the battle royal and they also represent The Authority who doesn't want John Cena at WrestleMania.

5.) Randy Orton and Seth Rollins Friendship?

I don't know why WWE is taking forever to make this match official. You already had Orton come back too late and now you're continuing to stall this friendship if you will with Orton and Rollins when everybody knows that Orton is going to turn on The Authority. You're missing out on a major face moment in Randy Orton career and on Raw. This has to end tonight. I think we see Randy Orton vs Roman Reigns tonight due to what happen in the main event of last week's Raw. Rollins cost Orton the match and then he finally turns. It has to happen tonight. I think we see Seth Rollins brag about beating Roman Reigns and how he feels that he needs to be in the main event of WrestleMania, but eventually things will change where Ryback comes out you have Seth Rollins vs Ryback on Raw.
As far as other stuff for the show I think we see who else enters the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Also coming out last night's Total Divas The Bella Twins are no longer WWE Divas, so it makes sense now with AJ Lee & Paige vs Bella Twins at WrestleMania. I think we also see more tensions between Miz & Mizdow who will be in a match with The PrimeTime Players. I think tonight we see The Usos vs. The Ascension and the winner of that match will take on Kidd & Cesaro for the WWE Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania.

That's a wrap for this week's WWE Raw Preview. Hope you guys enjoy it you can follow me on Twitter @VoiceOfTruth94 and also make sure to check out my wrestling radio show the Pro Wrestling Experience which airs live every Wednesdays from 10am-1pm CT on Chicagolandsportsradio.com

#StundentOfTheGame

Condo on the Moon Podcast #51

Today on the podcast Chris Walder and I get the full 90 minutes to share our thoughts on all things wrestling. Including a full rundown for the ROH Pay-Per-View from Las Vegas, thoughts on the WWE HOF that added Madusa/Alandra Blaze to the class. She was part of Team Madness pictured above that had a run in late 99 early 2000 in WCW. We also talk the ever strange and winding road to Wrestlemania both in and out of the ring.

So go have a listen:


If you are unable to listen via our website head over to Podomatic and listen or download there.

We are entering into year two so help us spread the word and build our audience. We have a lot of fun every week and hope you as listeners do as well. So help us share it with others and grow our audience. Our best source of advertising is you out there listening if you spread the word we can grow by leaps and bounds.

Time For Cedric Alexander To Move To The Land Of Heels In ROH?

One of the things that likely slipped under the radar with Ring of Honor’s PPV was at least a tease of Cedric Alexander turning heel down the line. If you go back in time when Kevin Steen left ROH for NXT, he declared in his final speech to an ROH audience that Alexander was the future of the promotion. Since that time Cedric has not exactly been on fire in terms of wins and loses or positioning on the card.

He really seemed on the verge of breaking out coming off his program with Roderick Strong.  Since that time, Cedric has faced quality opposition but never really has been able to break through. He had an excellent match back in Toronto when he was a last minute replacement for ACH to take on Jay Lethal.

The talent is there but you are starting to see the frustration become part of his ROH persona. After losing to Matt Sydal, he was clearly frustrated but still did the right thing in terms of being a babyface. It seems like he needs a match against a top-level talent and just snaps and goes to the heel side of the equation.

Could Cedric pull off a heel character? It remains to be seen but it is worth a shot to try to get him to an upper level in the company.

Adam Cole is the best example of what a heel turn can do taking you to another level. Cole’s turn was part of a top program for the ROH title in a drawn out tournament. I don’t think it is possible to give Cedric something on that high of a level.

Perhaps having him join the House of Truth looking to learn the evil ways of the force from Truth Martini and Jay Lethal would be a direction to go. The ROH Roster is only becoming more crowded and Alexander needs to find a way to stand out and move up the ladder.

Is it a risk to do this with him? Obviously, there is but there is also a risk in leaving him the same and getting lost in the mix.

The talent is there but you cannot just let it sit at the bottom of the card without progressing. If Kevin Steen believes in Cedric there has to be something to that. He also is one of the favorites of Steve Corino. People see success in him. It is time to press the button and start a climb to the top for him by any means necessary.

For more talk on ROH, WWE and the Wrestling News of the week make sure to listen to the Condo On The Moon Podcast that comes out later tonight and every Friday evening.

NXT Report: March 4th 2015

This is likely long overdue but welcome to the first ever NXT Report here on Condo on the Moon. If you have listened to our podcast, you know how much I love NXT in fact who doesn’t love NXT. It is a big weekend for the WWE’s Developmental brand, as they will be appearing at the Arnold Classic on the weekend. This will be the first venture outside of Florida for NXT as a whole. A big step as Triple H has stated he wants to see NXT expand and tour doing some live events in the future going forward.

A couple of notes on this new venture it will be spoiler free for the most part and follow what is going on with the product based on the most recent T.V. Any reference to future events are just speculation and is not based on info gather from spoilers.

So, here are some thoughts based on this week’s episode of NXT:

We had a couple of squash matches featuring NXT Tag Team Champions Blake and Murphy who have flipped the script to being heels. They are being positioned to face the much-loved team of Enzo and Big Cass. Who cut a promo with Carmella declaring their intentions to become #1 Contender to the tag team titles. Not sure if it was Blake or Murphy, but one of them hit a pretty nice frog splash covering 3/4 of the ring to get the win.

The other jobber match saw Baron Corbin squash some poor sap with The End of Days. The NXT crowd tried to do their counting gimmick but it appeared they were trying to kill that by have a long pause before Corbin and his prey locked up. Corbin has definitely had a noticeable drop in his buzz since his brutal match with Bull Dempsey. It was a horrible match and exposed Corbin for being not ready for prime time.

Solomon Crowe had a match over the aforementioned Bull Dempsey and came out on top. I wasn’t blown away with his in ring work but maybe Bull Dempsey just makes people look bad at the end of the day.

Segments of note on this show included Bayley wishing Charlotte luck in here title match with Sasha. After which Emma came along and suggested to Bayley that acting nice was what got Emma back in NXT. Some might say it was a terrible pairing with Santino, a shoplifting incident at a Walmart and a general failure to get over but let’s go with she was too nice for sake of storyline.

Sami Zayn had a taped promo that he claimed was taped from his home in Montreal. He talked about not being mental right to compete right now. He stated he has yet to watch back the match he lost against Kevin Owens yet but will and promises to return to NXT. He also made mention of all the changes in the short time he has been gone. So it appears if Sami is going to the main roster he will at least have one more run of matches on NXT.

Speaking of Kevin Owens, he was on the show again. At the start of the show, Alex Riley who Owens attacked last week was in Regal’s office begging for a match with Owens. Regal stated that he could not be a commentator and competitor in NXT. Later in the night, Kevin Owen came out, starred at Riley, and eventually dumped water on his head. Jason Albert restrained Riley and Steen calmly walked away. Riley stormed into Regal’s office as he was talking with C.J Parker. Riley said he wanted to wrestle and wanted Owens. Regal stated he needed to sign a talent contract and he would get to fight Owens but only when Regal deemed he was ready. C.J Parker chimed in stating he has been the only person that ever hurt Owens and Riley had no chance. This sets up Riley and Parker for next week.

Alexa Bliss was back and stated she is ready to compete and looking for revenge against Sasha Banks regardless of if she retained her title or not. Banks apparently broke Alexa's nose and she has been out as a result. Don’t remember that happening, but hey, its part of the story now.

Divas always get a chance on NXT and that includes main eventing as Sasha defended her title against Charlotte. It was a great match that really showed off the flexibility of Charlotte. It also showed the growing aggression in Sasha Banks. Charlotte survived many submission attempts after stopping Banks from running out on the match and taking a count out loss but keeping the title. In the end, Banks would get a pinfall using the ropes for leverage keeping this feud alive if they choose to do so. Charlotte has been another name rumored to be heading to the main roster. Her not regaining the title adds fuel to that speculation.

Last note on NXT mark your calendar as the week of Wrestlemania on Wednesday we will be getting Kevin Owens defending his title against Finn Balor. It should be an amazing match that likely will be better than many at Wrestlemania.

So, that was your NXT Report look for this every Thursday going forward here in Condo on the Moon. Don’t forget tomorrow night that we have the Condo on the Moon Podcast.

5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 3/2/15

"Can you avenge evil with becoming it? If you are good at something never do it for free." Welcome to this week's WWE Monday Night Raw preview for Monday March 2nd, 2015. I'm Joshua Lopez from the Pro Wrestling Experience and it's been a fun challenge so far getting to write these pieces and seeing the feedback it gets is really humbling. We're still on the road to WrestleMania 31 and the next stop is in Newark, New Jersey in the Prudential Center! Last week Randy Orton played posse with The Authority, Rusev denied John Cena challenge, Triple H went slient, Reigns sent a message to Brock Lesnar, Brock walked out of Raw, AJ called out Stephanie, Now people want to #GiveDivasAChance and now we have a multiple person ladder match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania. Here's five things you can expect on tonight's Monday Night Raw.

1.) The Authority/Randy Orton  

It was nice seeing The Viper return to WWE television last week. I felt that WWE took way too long for Orton to come back, but I understood the purpose as to why The Authority wanted Orton back and he hasn't striked back at the Authority. Orton went to a business summit last week where Stephanie McMahon wanted him to be back with the Authority and work out his issues with Seth Rollins. Orton & Rollins took on Reigns & Bryan in a very good tag team main event last week and just when you think that Orton was going to lose his mind he shakes Rollins hand and continues to play mind games with Rollins & The Authority. It was a good week to be Seth Rollins coming out of the recent social media controversy that happen a couple weeks ago. Rollins made an appearance on Jon Stewart's "Daily Show" last Thursday and invited the long-time comedian to tonight's Monday Night Raw. I think it's obvious that Rollins will take on Orton at WrestleMania, but here's the thing. When does Orton turn? Do you hold off the turn until the second to last Raw before WrestleMania and continue to play posse and tease and tease? Far as tonight is concern if we do see Jon Stewart I think it will be pretty cool because I am of fan of his! I think we can see Seth Rollins vs. Ryback or Erick Rowan. I think The Authority will try to calm down Randy and continue to patronize him and we may see him against Dolph Ziggler tonight. Tonight is the night you will see Randy Orton finally make his turn. 

2.) John Cena vs. Rusev ?

Haven't had a chance to talk about this here on the site, but I really enjoyed the match between John Cena & Rusev at WWE Fast Lane. Match far exceeded my expectations and that match really put Rusev on the map. Rusev continues to shine in his promo's and his in-ring work each week and he's positioning himself to become one of the best heels in the WWE over the last ten years. Last week on Raw Cena said that he lost the match, but he said he wants to beat Rusev on the grandest stage of them all. Rusev denied Cena request which I approved with finally somebody says no you lost the match who are you to think your entitled to get everything you want? This is the standard WWE feud and it's the best thing for both guys right now. One of the cool things with this year's WrestleMania this is actually the first WrestleMania in many years where it's clear spotlight on the current and younger talent in the WWE. You know it's a big deal when John Cena is not main eventing a WrestleMania and at the same time pinning these two guys together totally puts a major spotlight on the United States Championship. Rusev deny John Cena request, but how does John Cena get what he wants? Can you see John Cena vs Luke Harper or maybe John Cena takes on one of The Authority's hench men or maybe we see John Cena vs Jack Swagger. John Cena has rarely wrestled on Raw over the last couple of months and it's going to be interesting to see how does John Cena get's this rematch with Rusev at WrestleMania. Is someone also included in this match?

3.) Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns?

Now you may wonder why I put another question mark in this bullet point. We'll probably see John Cena vs Rusev, but we aren't sure if we'll see the main event of WrestleMania. Brock Lesnar walked out of Monday Night Raw last week due to circumstances that is not known right now. I don't bother with rumors or speculation nonsense, but I'll say this. If you didn't want to be here? Why ask for a title run in your contract? I didn't want Brock Lesnar to win the title at SummerSlam because I knew something like this would've happen. I thought it would have been better business for Brock to win the title at the Royal Rumble and have a shorter run then drop it at WrestleMania. Brock has held the WWE title hostage and it's been very frustrating to be honest with you. When the subject of Brock Lesnar comes up, it's never about him being the WWE World Heavyweight Champion it's about MMA and the UFC. I respect MMA I have no problem with it, but what bothers me is that Brock's run as champion has been about him leaving the WWE after WrestleMania and going back to UFC. Go ahead Brock do your thing you don't care about professional wrestling you never did, but was it the right choice to have Brock break The Undertaker streak and the only thing you get out of it is the fans talking about UFC more than the WWE and that's a problem. I like Roman Reigns go ahead crucify me, I followed this guy work in college football and has been shoved down people thoart it's a subjective topic because people only have a problem with that mindset if it's with a guy who they don't like. Is he ready? Honestly was anybody ever ready? I want Roman to succeed because he wants to be there and I appreciate that more than someone who thinks about himself and MMA 24/7. I'm not watching WWE for MMA you want MMA stuff go watch Fox Sports 1 or get the UFC fight pass. Roman Reigns will prove his detractors wrong and I think these two guys can have a good match. I think Brock showing up at the UFC 184 PPV was a legit spit to the face to not only WWE, but also every single wrestling fan. As far as tonight is concern I think that we'll see Roman vs The Miz. Paul Heyman said that he has a message for Roman Reigns, so that should be interesting. 

4.) Triple H vs Sting 

I want you guys to check out the video down below which I thought was great work from the WWE. It's a interview with Michael Cole, Michael PS Hayes and Arn Anderson. It's great display of storytelling. Tonight we'll get to learn more about the man called Sting and I wonder if Hunter is actually going to speak this week. Triple H was radio silent last week on Raw and it's going to be interesting to see how Triple H reacts to being embarassed again by "The Vigilante" Sting for the fourth time.

5.) IC Title Shenangians 

It was great finding out on Friday that the Intercontinental Championship will not only be defended at WrestleMania, but it will be defended in a Ladder Match. I think that's a great added a bonus and very nice treat to hardcore wrestling fans and I'm pretty sure that this match will open and could steal the show. Bad News Barrett had a pretty rough week he lost to Dolph Ziggler on Raw and then he lost to Daniel Bryan on SmackDown and his title was robbed by R-Truth. I've been happy that R-Truth has been added in this title picture because he's going out of his way to show hey I'm here I deserve a title shot whether people like it or not. I don't think that Daniel Bryan will be in this match, but it did say that this match is a multiple person ladder match. Tonight we can possibly see Bad News Barrett vs R-Truth and Dean Ambrose vs Dolph Ziggler. Either way I'm happy that the IC Title will get big spotlight on WrestleMania and I'm interested to seeing who's added into this match. 

It was reported that AJ Lee and Sheamus will make their WWE returns tonight. I think that we'll find out who else is added to the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Look to see more tension growing between Miz & Mizdow and also we'll have a rematch from Fast Lane added to WrestleMania where Tyson Kidd & Cesaro take on The Usos or maybe The Ascension add their hats to this title feud at WrestleMania. If AJ's back I think we'll see either a fatal four way for the Divas Championship or we'll see AJ Lee & Paige vs The Bella Twins at WrestleMania. Will we get conformation that Sheamus will take on Daniel Bryan because if that happens I'll mark out because I'm a big fan of Sheamus and love to see a heel turn from Sheamus. Also WWE said that a female will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2015. I think it may be Victoria or Alundra Blayze.

Hope you guys enjoyed this week's WWE Monday Night Raw Preview 

I'm at Twitter @VoiceOfTruth94 

Check out my wrestling radio show "The Pro Wrestling Experience" on Chicagolandsportsradio.com every Wednesdays from 10am-1pm CT!