5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 7/6/15

Welcome to this week's WWE Raw preview brought to you by Condo On The Moon! This piece will be special to me for the fact that tonight's Raw is from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois and I will be there. Tonight's Raw is going to be interesting especially for the fact this weeks Raw takes places from the loudest fanbase in the WWE Universe. We're 13 days away from the Battleground show and tonight we'll get a pretty good picture as to what will REALLY happen at the special on July 19th! Lot's to get to and will also be giving my thoughts about the Beast in the East show in one of the points. Let's get to it!

1.) Beast in The East Thoughts 

I would like to add my thoughts on the Beast in the East special that just happen this past Saturday since I was one of the crazy people who were up and covered the event when it was LIVE! I really digged the setup the event, the sumo hall is a cool venue for a wrestling show, I really enjoyed the commentary from Michael Cole and Byron Saxton and it really shows that JBL needs to get off that announce table for GOOD and then finally I just like how this event was unique to itself! The first match with Chris Jericho and Neville was really fun and no matter what you think of modern day Jericho the matter of the fact is that he's a legend and he continues to prove why at anytime he can be the best in the world. I thought the triple threat Divas Championship Match was solid, but not surprise Nikki won. Brock Lesnar's appearance on the show was everything it was supposed to be. You see him come into the building and the fans react like he's the modern day Godzilla. The Balor/Owens was amazing and we send our regards to our friend James, but it was going to happen sometime soon and congrats to Finn Balor becoming the brand new NXT Champion. While everybody went on a tirade on the main event (how original) I thought it was solid main event. It was like a mid 80's tag team match. Hulk Hogan & The Red Rooster vs. British Bulldog & One Man Gang. Overall it was worth staying up to 7am and I thought this was one of the coolest events of the year.

2.) John Cena vs. Kevin Owens Program

There's no doubt that this Kevin Owens/John Cena feud has been one of the best feuds in 2015. Week after week Cena and Owens try to one up each other and it's great and at Battleground Cena will defend his United States Championship against Kevin Owens. Last week on Raw we got it correct and Cesaro accepted the John Cena US Open Challenge and really brought the fight to the 15 time World Champion and just as Cesaro was going to win Kevin Owens who was on commentary during the match storm into the ring caused the DQ and gave both John Cena and Cesaro Popup Powerbombs. There's two weeks left and there's nothing really complicated that you need to do here to continue furthering this feud. Since Raw is in Chicago I'm pretty sure that Cena will compliment the crowd as he always does. It's going to be interesting to see what type of reaction Kevin Owens gets at the Rosemont Horizon. I've seen Kevin performed in this city for years and it's going to be a great moment to see him at the best in my opinion the best WWE arena in the US! What's next for Cesaro? Will Cesaro forget that Owens screwed him out of the US Championship? Or will Cesaro try to insert himself in this US Title program? Well since Owens lost the NXT Championship at Beast in the East we can't have a US Open Challenge, but I think we'll see Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro tonight. If Cena's having a US Open Challenge I think it would be nice to see him go against Dolph Ziggler

3.) Dusty Rhodes Special on WWE Network 

If you love tonight's Raw or you hate it like every single week, one thing we'll agree on is the fact that the Dusty Rhodes Special on the WWE Network tonight will be awesome. Really looking forward to see what they have in store for us in this special tonight. We already know that WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair will come back to Chicago which is pretty cool. I wonder if there's going to be other surprises on the show because it said that WWE Superstars and Legends will pay tribute to Dusty. It's going to emotional and I'm just excited for this event. Will Cody Rhodes come back on tonight's Raw? Who knows, but if he does that would be really cool.

4.) WWE 2K16 Cover Reveal

Click the video above and you'll see a very special WWE Legend who will be the cover boy for this year's WWE 2K16 Video Game!

All I can say is that this cover photo and the trailer is badass and very fitting for a upcoming WWE video game who said they're having the largest roster ever and it's going to be one of the greatest WWE video games ever. Let's see what happens! I doubt the guy who's on the cover would be on the show, but hey you want a cool moment. The Icon comes back in the building where he grabbed the brass ring.

5.) The Beast Invades the Windy City 

THE BEAST IS BACK!!!! All hell is going to break loose! I know that The Authority Triple H & Stephanie McMahon will be back on Raw tonight, but also Paul Heyman will be back on Raw with a angry beast in Brock Lesnar. Fair warning to Seth Rollins. RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!!! Prepare for the crowd to go nuts when Beast gets unleashed! There's no way that Rollins get the best of Lesnar it's just not happening again.

I hope you guys enjoy this week's Raw preview. You can follow me on Twitter @JoshLopezCSR

Enjoy Raw and please check out my radio the show The Pro Wrestling Experience on Wednesday from 10am-1pm CT on Chicagolandsportsradio.com on TuneIN Radio. I'll be speaking to former TNA Wrestlers Gunner and Magnus!

5 Things To Expect On WWE Monday Night Raw 2/16/15

"Hey, hey, hey. What's going on here?" It's not time for save by the bell, but it's time for this week's Monday Night Raw Preview brought to you by Condo On The Moon's very own Joshua Lopez. It's the go-home show to the WWE Fast Lane PPV. Tensions continue rise as we down a hill to the last stop on the road to WrestleMania this Sunday. We've been on a roll with these previews as this columns are giving a unqiue perspective on the current WWE Creative Team and their plans for editions of Monday Night Raw. A lot of people try to find things to be mad or complain about, but here we take a look at the current storylines and if there's issues we try to turn those negativies to a positive. The American Dream Dusty Rhodes will be on the show and The Nature Boy will be on tonight's show as well. Here's five things to expect on tonight's Monday Night Raw.

1.) Daniel Bryan/Roman Reigns Fiasco 

I don't know about you guys, but I'm at the point where I could care less who wins the Daniel Bryan/Roman Reigns match. Here's a dose of reality, for those saying that the WWE holds Daniel Bryan back you don't know anything about wrestling. Little fun fact for you if a guy was being held back or buried why would WWE have Daniel Bryan compete in a title match in all of the 5 WrestleMania's he competed in. Roman Reigns is not ready, but at the end of the day who is? It's a lose lose situation for whatever type of wrestling fan you are. Don't get me wrong I like both guys and I enjoy the current storyline they're in it's the fans and the mood surrounding this feud that just gets me aggravated. People say that Daniel Bryan deserve his title run, but will people put their money where their mouth is when he's the main event of Mania and main eventing future Raw's and PPV's? Is the YES! Movement about the fans being part of the show or supporting Daniel Bryan for what he stands for? To me the YES! Chant is like the What? Chant. WWE has brought the anything you can know I could do better storyline back with Reigns & Bryan and for what it's worth it's been working so far. I enjoyed their tag team turmoil on SmackDown this past Friday night the fight they had with The Usos was awesome. Tonight will we see possibly Roman Reigns vs Kane, then Daniel Bryan vs. Big Show. You can also see Roman Reigns vs Kane & Big Show and Daniel Bryan vs Seth Rollins and J&J Security. Either way I tonight you will see Daniel Bryan seek his revenge on Roman Reigns for what happen on last week's Raw.

2.) John Cena & Rusev Program

I thought the WWE did a good job with the Rusev & John Cena storyline last week. I thought the video tribute Rusev gave to Cena last week was really funny and effective. I think what's helping this feud right now is not only because it's the perfect WWE esque storyline for both of these guys right now it's the fact that they're taking their time with this and not rushing anything. Last week on Raw we establish why this feud is happening and now it's about who will come out of Fast Lane as WWE United States Champion? Another cool thing with this feud if you will is that we don't really know what the long term plan is for both Cena & Rusev coming out of this feud. Can John Cena really become the US Champion on Sunday? Is this a one off feud? Can Cena put over Rusev? Tonight is going to be interesting because last week Rusev got the best of John Cena and his injured eye, now will the Cenation Leader get the best of the Bulgarian Brute. I think John Cena should take on Luke Harper tonight. Also what if any chance of us seeing the returning Celtic Warrior associate himself with this feud and get back the title he lost or possibly turn heel and go against the guy the left him off Team Cena at Survivor Series. I think tonight you'll probably see Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler or Ryback.

3.) The Rhodes Family Debacle 

What's more tradition in wrestling new sites? The yearly Carlito & Shelton Benjamin apperance in the Royal Rumble? Or the Cody Rhodes vs Goldust match at WrestleMania? I think we may finally get it and what a perfect time for both of these guys. Reports are coming saying that Goldust will be hanging up the boots after Mania and what a way for him to go out against his younger brother at the grandest stage of them all. Will it be Stardust vs Goldust at FastLane then Cody Rhodes vs Goldust at WrestleMania? I'm really excited to see what goes down between The Rhodes Family on Raw tonight. I think we'll finally have a mid-card feud in-ring segments that's intruging and meaningful. What I think eventually happens is that Dusty will try to play to the crowd a little bit he'll introduce his sons and during the segment Dusty or Goldust will spit out the name Cody and either Stardust will attack Goldust to or knock down his dad and walk away.

4.) The Authority  

I found out that the legendary "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair will be on Monday Night Raw to talk to Triple H about his upcoming confrontation with the vigilante "Sting" at WWE Fast Lane. I think we'll probably see a opening in-ring promo with The Authority where they promote the ppv say it's free you know the usual The Authority stichk and then they'll address what happen on SmackDown with Big Show & Kane and also the Daniel Bryan & Roman Reigns situation. Wonder if this Authority storyline has brought unwaranted heat towards the company because let's say for the casual viewer who tunes into Raw and they see The Authority and people know that Triple H & Stephanie McMahon are actual authority figures it puts a black cloud on what we're watching because is this how they real feel about Daniel Bryan or it's a what's best for the storyline type of thing? Because you watch Raw and then you see The Authority constantly degrading Daniel Bryan and for those who are not die hard wrestling fans they can assume that's how the company feels about Bryan and the character's The Authority don't care about the fans. It's a double eged sword in this reality era, but in today's society people are so insecure and gulliable they see something on television it could be a random match on Raw and they'll believe it's a new storyline or this or that, so it's interesting to see where this Authority storyline goes and how its finishes. As far as tonight is concern I think we'll see the confrantation with Triple H & Flair and then it will be interrupted by a interesting video package from Sting that will get Triple H flustered before their confrantation at Fast Lane

5.) WWE Fast Lane Undercard 

We know that Nikki Bella will defend the WWE Diva's Championship against Paige. Tonight we'll probably see Paige vs. Brie Bella again or her against Alicia Fox and maybe this time we'll see Paige get the best of the Bella Twins. Hopefully tonight they announce that it will be The Usos vs. Tyson Kidd & Cesaro for the WWE Tag Team Championship. Will Dean Ambrose gets his opportunity at the Intercontinental Championship? I think we may also see Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan vs. Seth Rollins, Kane and Big Show at FastLane due to what happen on Raw last week. Something else maybe for the pre-show you can do a number one contender's match with The Ascension vs. The New Day vs. Miz & Mizdow. That's all I got it's realistic outlooks as to what can happen on the undercard for FastLane.

Follow Josh Lopez on Twitter @VoiceOfTruth94

Enjoy Monday Night Raw everybody

Like what you read make sure to check out my wrestling radio show the Pro Wrestling Experience every Wednesday from 10am-1pm CT on Chicagolandsportsradio.com

5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw 1/19/15

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! Tonight is the go-home show for the 28th annual Royal Rumble PPV. I remember James telling me that he was at the very first Royal Rumble PPV that's pretty cool. Anyways tonight is a very big show for the WWE. We got legends in the building, Daniel Bryan & Brock Lesnar are back, and 22 other superstars are looking to punch in their names into the Royal Rumble match. As here is my public service announcement, so people understand what this article is about. I'm giving you an insightful preview as to what you will see on tonight's edition of WWE Monday Night Raw and this by no means represents my taste in wrestling or what I would like to see on the show. Here's five things to look forward to on "Raw Reunion".

1.) Raw Reunion 

When I first heard about this special Raw Reunion show and that it was going to be in Dallas, Texas there was only one thing that was running through my mind. The reason why these legends are here tonight is to ring in the announcement of WrestleMania 32 taking place at Jerry World in Arlington, Texas. Here's the updated list of the legends that will be on this show tonight:  Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, X-Pac, Shawn Michaels, Ron Simmons, Jimmy Hart and The New Age Outlaws. Something that can work here with this special legends show why don't you have The Ascension come out and instead of saying "Oh we're better than the Road Warriors" since there advertised for the show, why don't you say "Oh we're better than the New Age Outlaws" call them out to a match and lay them out. It kills two birds with one stone you backed up your claim and you also made a statement to not only the tag team division, but to JBL. It would be nice to see a nWo or D-Generation X reunion tonight or maybe both come out at the same time. I think we'll probably see Ron Simmons do the "DAMN!" to the Rosebuds or The Miz & Damien Mizdow.

2.) WWE World Heavyweight Championship Program 

Seth Rollins sure made an statement last week on Raw! Couldn't have happen to a better a guy and  I totally mean that. Do we see John Cena in action tonight? Really digged the in-ring promo that Rollins & Paul Heyman conducted on SmackDown last week it was the perfect showcase of storytelling. It's not a question of "if", but when are we going to see The Authority? I want to remind people something 44 out 52 raw's in the years 2000 and 2001 had a in-ring promo to start of the show it sets off the tone for the show, get over it. I think tonight is important to make Brock Lesnar stand out. Ever since he came back Brock Lesnar has been made to look like a girl just being honest. Whether it's him running away from Cena one week, then getting A&A through tables and getting curb stomped the next week, Lesnar sure doesn't look like a strong WWE World Heavyweight Champion. I think tonight heading into the Royal Rumble PPV. They'll call it a Face-To-Face segment for big feuds like this on go-home show, but during this face-to-face segment Brock Lesnar needs to go off the air laying out both Seth Rollins & John Cena.

3.) Daniel Bryan or Roman Reigns ?

With the 2015 Royal Rumble coming this Sunday on the WWE Network. The hottest topic in the WWE right now with the fans are who should win the Royal Rumble Match? Daniel Bryan or Roman Reigns? It was great to see Bryan back in the ring last week on SmackDown. Here's an idea to shake things up and also get people talking is if you do this match. I think tonight we can see either a rematch between Kane & Daniel Bryan or Daniel Bryan & Roman Reigns will take on Kane & Big Show. If that doesn't happen we can possibly see a Daniel Bryan in-ring promo and instead of Stephanie coming out this time it will be Triple H who will come out to tell Daniel Bryan that he made a mistake coming back and threaten him to feud with The Authority again. Nonetheless it just great to have Bryan back on the television and makes things fresh and all I ask for tonight is if Roman Reigns is doing a backstage interview with the beautiful Renee Young, Please I beg the WWE to let Roman Reigns showcase his natural personality instead of bringing out some random line from Whinney The Poo or The Little Engine That Could.

4.) Royal Rumble Mid-Card 

Is there any chance we see the returns of Ryback, Dolph Ziggler & Erick Rowan tonight? If that happens I would be so happy for all three of these guys. As far as the rest of the mid-card for the Royal Rumble PPV is concern. We found out last week on SmackDown that The Miz & Damien Mizdow invoked their rematch clause and The Usos will defend the WWE Tag Team Championship against The Miz & Damien Mizdow at the Royal Rumble. I think tonight The Miz will take on Jimmy Uso or we can do that rematch from SmackDown last week The Miz, Damien Mizdow and Alicia Fox vs. The Usos & Naomi. I think tonight would be good to see Rusev take part of a squatch match or he'll probably have a rematch with Dean Ambrose. As far as the WWE Divas Championship feud between Paige, Natalya and Nikki Bella, with any indication from last night's Total Divas we're either seeing Paige vs. Natalya or we'll see Paige & Natalya vs. The Bella Twins. It would be cool to have Bad News Barrett come out before his match and say he has bad news and that the bad news is that Dolph Ziggler won't be in the Royal Rumble Match.

5.) Good Commentary or Bad Commentary?

Tonight is the final flagship show for the WWE before the Royal Rumble PPV. They've been doing a good job of promoting each match that's on every PPV over the last 5 months. Tonight I hope that JBL, Michael Cole & Booker T bring their a-game into tonight's show. I've been known to saying that this commentary team reminds me of FOX news radio or CNN. Tonight is the about promoting the Royal Rumble not promoting JBL's ego.

Let's try to have some fun tonight folks!

Follow Me on Twitter @JoshLopezCSR

Who is Sting? Why did Sting come to WWE? What will come out of this?

Coming off the heels of the 2014 Survivor Series, and a perplexing Monday Night Raw. There's alot of questions going around the wrestling universe. Why did Sting debut at Survivor Series? Why did Sting didn't show up on Raw? Why didn't Sting become the new General Manager? Are we going to see a match between Sting and Triple H at WrestleMania 31? While all these questions are valid and leads to good discussion topics that we will get to eventually,  lets step back in the history books and take a look at the Franchise of WCW and TNA, The "Icon" Sting. Also, I will discuss what will come out of this deal between Sting and the WWE.

Sting was a very athletic and body bulding type of guy from Venice Beach, California that really didn't get the opportunity to watch professional wrestling growing up. Sting was working at a gym where he met, the late great Ultimate Warrior. Sting got his start in professional wrestling as one half of Power USA and The Blade Runners with Warrior in the Continental Wrestling Association and Mid-South. Warrior and Sting partnership ended in mid 1986 when Warrior decide to go to the WWF. Sting stood in Mid-South for the remainder of 1987 and won three UWF World Tag Team Championships, one with Rick Steiner and two with Eddie Gilbert.

At the age of 28, Sting arrived in the NWA and was becoming one of the fastest rising stars in the professional wrestling world. Sting's start in the NWA wasn't a easy one at first, Sting was put into feuds with establish talents like Ric Flair and The Four Horseman, Barry Windham, Mike Rotuna The Road Warriors and even the Great Muta. At that time, Sting only had captured the NWA Television Championship and then in late 1989, Sting won a four man iron-man tournament to determine the number one contender to the NWA Championship. Sting recently join the face verison of "The Four Horseman" in 1989, but tensions starting to grow with the legendary stable when Sting won the tournament. In 1990, Sting was booted out of the Four Horseman and then at Clash of Champions X, Sting injured his knee during his Steel Cage Match with Ric Flair. The injury put the promotion and the bookers in the rough situation as Sting wasn't going to be avaliable to perform on all the events.

Sting finally captured the NWA World Championship at the Great American Bash 1990. I thought that moment made Sting the official franchise of NWA/WCW. Sting would continue to feud with The Forseman towards the end of the NWA. The NWA transition into WCW then in 1991, Sting lost his title to Ric Flair in a rematch at Starrcade. 1991 was a big year for Sting, he had a legendary tag team match with Lex Luger taking on the Steiner Brothers, then Sting won a vacated WCW United States Championship Tournament over a young "Stunning" Steve Austin. Also Sting won the very first WCW Battlebowl then leading towards a feud with the Dangerous Alliance. Sting won his first WCW Championship from Lex Luger at Super Brawl II. Then in May of 1992 at WarGames, Sting and his Squadron defeated The Dangerous Alliance which was also the highest rated match from Dave Meltzer from the Wrestling Observer. Then to finish out the first part of his epic WCW run, Sting had some unique feuds with Vader, Jake Roberts, Cactus Jack, Rick Rude and The Dungeon of Doom.

Right as the Monday Night Wars started in 1996, Sting was already at legendary status especially with all the accomplishments Sting obtian while still not having one run with the WWE is really telling of how important Sting has been to the professional wrestling. We all know the story of the nWo and that there was talks that Sting was going to be the third guy joining Scott Hall and Kevin Nash "The Outsiders." While the nWo was taking over WCW, alot of the fans, wrestlers and commentators ponder what side will Sting be on. Sting's character needed to change as the twlight of his career was coming. Sting came back as the "Crow" Sting and didn't speak on the microphone for over a year. The Crow Sting was one of the most unique characters in the history of professional wrestling in my personal opinion. I thought this Sting was way cooler than the original Sting. This lead to Sting taking on the nWo at Starrcade where he defeated Hulk Hogan for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. In 1998, Sting was defending his title against the likes of Scott Hall, Kevin Nash and Diamond Dallas Page. Sting would join the nWo Wolfpac with Kevin Nash and Konnan. Towards the end of WCW Sting has feuds with Vampiro, Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner. The final night of WCW, March 26, 2001, Sting took on Ric Flair in the final match of WCW's history. Sting still sticking to his guns decided to not go to WWE in after the buyout, where he's said numerous interviews that he felt that the company wouldn't present him in the way he wanted to be presented. Which I think kind of hurt Sting in the long run because you never know with the WWE unless you take that leap of faith and give it a try. I thought with the Crow Sting especially in a WWE environment Sting would still be tremendous that move could have reseruceted his career.

Sting would go TNA in 2003, where he became the franchise of that company as well. Sting became the NWA Champion once again and also won the TNA World Heavyweight Championships in 4 in different occassions. Sting had of bevy of feuds in TNA featuring, Jeff Jarrett, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Christian, Mick Foley, Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, Bully Ray, Kurt Angle, Ace's and 8's, Dixie Carter and Ethan Carter III. Sting was part of a heel faction in the "Main Event Mafia". You can say that Sting's run in TNA was similar to his run in WCW. I thought something that worked pretty well for Sting in TNA is that as opposed to his original Crow character, when Sting was feuding with Immortal he brought on the Batman Joker persona into TNA. Sting became the very first member of the TNA Hall of Fame in 2012. Sting would leave TNA in early 2014 when he lost to Magnus in a Career vs. Title match at Genesis.

There was many rumors of Sting heading towards the WWE after he left TNA. Would he go there to finally have his dream match with The Undertaker? Would he have a actual run in WWE? Would Sting become a general manager of Raw and SmackDown? Sting eventually decided to join WWE where he made an appearance on the Warrior docuementary on the WWE Network, he was the main attraction of this year's WWE 2K15 Video Game, the WWE also release a best of Sting collection on DVD in September. Sting also has made public appearances for the company at the San Diego Comic Con and also the WWE 2K Panel during SummerSlam weekend. Sting finally made his first WWE TV appearance at Survivor Series where he took out Scott Armstrong and Triple H and helped Team Cena defeat Team Authority for power in the WWE.

Now to discuss the topics I brought up at the beginning of this piece. I think it's great that Sting is in WWE, I think it's 14 years too late in my opinion, but I'm honor and happy as a fan of Sting to see him get the moment he deserves. I'm not sure why Sting wasn't on Raw last night, not that's it's a bad thing I think that adds intruige and mystique which always a common thing when it comes to Sting. I don't think that he will become a general manager of Raw or SmackDown there isn't really a need for that to be honest with you. I understand he's 55 years old and maybe he may not be able to put on the performances in the ring like he did in the early 1990's, but I seen Sting have a match with Austin Aries in TNA when they were here in Chicago in 2013 and it was awesome. I think Sting can still go and especially with Sting's future, The Only Thing That's For Sure About Sting in the WWE is that Nothing Is For Sure. The best is yet to come in my opinion, I think it would be cool to see Sting go against Triple H at WrestleMania or even seeing Sting take on Bray Wyatt. It's still up in the air as to whether he will take on The Undertaker, but instead trying to figure out and ruining the moment when this match is officially made I leave it at this. Sting is a Icon, Sting is one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all-time. He's The Undertaker of WCW, He's back in WWE, whether you like him or not, Sting deserves a WrestleMania Moment and it will happen soon let's try to enjoy the journey of Sting in WWE and not let the rumors and the dirtsheets dictate the way we think about Sting let it play out and I think you'll enjoy this run.

Follow Me on Twitter @JoshLopezCSR

Check out my wrestling radio show the "Pro Wrestling Experience" from 10am-1pm CT Wednesdays on Chicagolandsportsradio.com. We'll talk about Survivor Series, Sting, TNA's new contract, Lucha Underground. Two big Ring of Honor Interviews with Adam Cole and Roderick Strong.

Ric Flair To Kick-Off Raw with John Cena

It would appear that the 16 time and 15 time Champions are going to kick-off Monday Night Raw together. Ric Flair has always been a Cena buddy even behind the scenes and it looks like he will be out there with him as Cena makes his first public comments since getting totally beaten down. Here is the tweet from Flair announcing this news:

I'm kicking off #Raw on Monday night at 8pm! Brock is a beast, but @JohnCena is MY MAN. We're talking REMATCH.
— Ric Flair® (@RicFlairNatrBoy) August 23, 2014

Ric Flair has been used in a number of segments with no real defined role on the show. You have to wonder how long they can keep this up. Triple H has always been a huge supporter of Flair and it is not like he is going to tell him to go away.

Update 12:45 PM 08/23/14

Add Shawn Michaels to the party for Raw this Monday

Y'all just keep pullin' me back! 'Ol HBShizzle will be on #Raw Monday night. We're talking @JohnCena/@BrockLensar rematch!! Yee-Haw!!!
— Shawn Michaels (@ShawnMichaels) August 23, 2014

 

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Sting In A WWE Ring: No Thanks

Normally I would do a Raw notebook but in all honesty I felt like I watched a three hour infomercial. In addition I ended up doing Between the Ropes recap of Raw anyway. Part of that infomercial was the big hook to pre-order WWE 2K15 this year. Last year it was the Ultimate Warrior and this year it will be Sting. This is the first sign that Sting will be part of the WWE officially and you will get retro Sting and the black and white crow version of Sting that he has been doing since the mid-90’s.

Why people are excited of the prospect of Sting beyond this is a mystery to me? If you saw him at all on TNA he is pretty much an old guy that can still work but nothing tremendous. I find it funny that a wrestling audience that for the most part screams for change many of those same people clamour for nostalgic performers like Sting.

How on earth are you suppose to have change if you keep bringing back dinosaurs that by the length and success of their careers demand spots higher on the card. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. This is unless you’re playing the WWE Video Game which it is fine to have all the guys from that past and makes for a great selling point for the game. The reality is though, the actual man that is Sting will not fair as well as his video game counterpart in the ring.

Did we not learn a lesson from this past Wrestlemania that legends get old and when it becomes obvious it can be a painful and eye opening experience? I am making reference of course to the Undertaker’s match with Brock Lesnar in which he looked slow, lethargic and past his due date. How bad that match was is only covered up by the fact his legendary Wrestlemania streak came to an end. I realize he suffered a concussion at some point in that match but isn’t that in itself maybe a sign it is time to go. Concussions at any age are not good but when you reach a certain age you don’t bounce back from any kind of injury as fast as you once did in younger days.

People for pretty much the last decade have clamoured for a match between the Undertaker and Sting. I would suggest to you that two men in their 50’s try as they might are not going to live up to your expectations. It just isn’t going to happen. Aside from that I have no desire to see Sting face a John Cena or anyone else on the current WWE Roster. It just wouldn’t mean anything at this point. Sometimes you can catch lightning in a bottle as the WWE did with The Rock and Hogan at Wrestlemania 18 but in truth those moments are few and far between. Even in that match do we really remember much about the match itself or just the stare-down and the ending of it?

I can have all the nostalgia I want on the WWE Network watching all of these past heroes when they were actually credible performers in the ring. Wrestling has been littered with guys that have hung on to long and stayed long past the time they should. I have respect for guys like Randy Savage and Shawn Michaels who knew when to make an exit and basically stayed away from the temptations of returns to the ring.

I don’t care if it is in the WWE or at a local independent show there is nothing more sad and pathetic to watch than someone trying to hang on to be cheered or worse yet hang on because they have too having wasted away all they earned.

Wrestling is supposed to be this magical place where we can set aside reality and just go boo and cheer to our hearts delight. Nothing feels worse, that breaks that illusion than watching someone that you can remember who was so much better than what you see in front of you. It reminds you that these guys and gals are actually human beings and not superheroes. The irony is it is rare we see women stick around to long because at the first sign of age they are cast aside because they are not good looking enough to remain in a business that still values appearance over substance as relates to women.

Yet Hogan, Flair and Sting are allowed to just continue on and be simply because we as fans don’t want to admit they are mortal. While they as performers don’t want to admit their time is done and it is time to go back to being just an average human being.

If Sting is here to add context to the WCW and its history as part of the WWE Network I welcome him with open arms. If he is here to try and be Peter Pan and never grow old and wrestle I am not on board with that. At some point the concept of “One More Match” and “You Still Got It” becomes a ridiculous statement to make in terms of wrestlers. We as fans need to enjoy people while we have them and look towards the future and not the past if wrestling is ever going to create stars to rival these past heroes and all they accomplished.


 

Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! If you have questions/comments for our NEW Weekly Google+ Show Live Thursday's 8pm EST use hashtag #AskMachoMoon. You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com. 

Raw Commissioner Ric Flair?

Rumors have been going on for about a month about a Ric Flair return to television. The original rumors focused on him as a manager and it seemed like it was a battle between who he wanted to represent and who the WWE wanted him too. He wanted to be paired with Dolph Ziggler and company wanted him with the Miz. It seems they have decided to go with option number three at least based on the latest rumor.

In recent weeks Brad Maddox and Vicky Guerrero both were fired in storyline from management positions on Raw and Smackdown. The rumor is that this Monday Flair will be named commissioner of Raw. It is also said the fact that John Cena is one shy of Ric Flair’s record 16 times as World Champion. It is said in reality that Flair’s real number of championships could range from 18-21 according to Dave Meltzer.

In real life Flair is good buddies with John Cena and likely Flair is fine with Cena taking his made up number of title wins.

Still in storyline the idea of a crazed Ric Flair trying to protect his greatness would be fantastic to watch. Flair eventually could become a point of division between Stephanie and Triple H. Everyone knows that Flair has been an idol of Triple H for years. I would venture to say the reason Ric Flair has been given chance after chance by this company has been Triple H.

If a point comes where Flair falls out of favor in storyline with Stephanie that could led to an interesting dynamic.

This that will be interesting is how much they allow Ric Flair to be Ric Flair. In recent appearances Flair has seemed to have been very much scripted and tried to keep him to not go off track with promos. Flair at one time was one of the best talkers in this business.  Although working in a PG world is to say the least a challenge to keep Ric Flair from straying out of that range.

How big a role would be interesting as well based on this. Given the concerns I mentioned how much of what we see will be pre-taped with Ric Flair in the back rather than live in front of the people.

In any case it is an interesting role for Flair and might be similar to when in storyline he became partners with Vince McMahon. This time it likely will be in a heel role but perhaps not. Last time we saw Flair he stressed how he seemed to believe in The Shield more than he did Evolution. This wouldn’t be the first time WWE totally forgot what happened the last time someone appeared intentionally or unintentionally.

It will be interesting if Ric Flair is going be around every Monday Night.

We here at Condo on the Moon are adding to our line-up with a show for all of you to interact with us. Join us tonight at 8pm as we kick-off our Google Hangout and You-tube show. We want to use this show for your questions and comments. It will also server as the preview for our WEEKLY PODCAST.



Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! If you have questions/comments for our NEW Weekly Google+ Show Live Thursday's 8pm EST use hashtag #AskMachoMoon. You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com. 

John Cena Champion Again....Please For The Love Of Ric Flair! No!

 Heading towards Money in the Bank there is lots of theories on what could happen. They all sound cool and when explained, somewhat logical in nature, but the grim reality is the WWE will likely go with devil they know in John Cena. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer is just one of many people covering wrestling that I have heard by default expect Cena to be the Champion after this is all said and done.

This comes on the heels of  the WWE doing some market research about Summerslam asking who people would like to see face Brock Lesnar in the main event for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Lesnar and Cena had a fantastic match right after Brock made his initial return from the UFC. It was a match that Cena won coming off a loss to the Rock at Wrestlemania the month prior.

It was perhaps the best match Cena has had in the last five years with the lone exception being his match with CM Punk at Money in the Bank in I believe it was 2011? The one where Punk wins takes the title and drives home and puts it in his fridge. Two very different styles of matches as the Lesnar vs. Cena match was a war and brawl.

What also might be alarming especially seeing as this could be a very short title run if Brock is set to win the title at Summerslam. Lesnar is booked the following month so many have speculated he will win the title and drop it on the next PPV. Not that this is what is even rumored to happen at this stage but just for a moment let’s say both of those matches are with Cena.

If this plays out I believe that makes John Cena a 16-time World Champion tied with the legendary Ric Flair. Am I the only one that the thought of John Cena some day surpassing Ric Flair’s historic record of title reigns makes me ill?

It is not like John Cena on surface is not a better human being than Flair in many respects. It is no secret the many things not so great that Ric Flair done over the years. In fact at this time you feel a little sorry for Flair to be honest. The idea that John Cena the corporate face of WWE would beat the record of the legendary Ric Flair just seems so wrong to any long-time wrestling fan.

We all probably should respect Cena but for whatever reason we don’t. I think there are a lot of reasons why we don’t. It begins with the loss of "Kayfabe" in our world and thus it is not hidden that Cena is the company’s choice to be its face. Hulk Hogan while he clearly was favored by WWE it was through storylines and the in-character President of the World Wrestling Federation Jack Tunney. It was not nearly as obvious.

The fact that he fails to admit or accept that he is not over with a large and growing portion of the WWE Audience is annoying to say the least.  It is a fact that under his era of wrestling the audience has taken a massive free fall in terms of ratings.  Yes all shows do not get the ratings they once did but Cena was the face of generation after the Attitude Era and the Business has in some ways suffered as a result.

It is kind of like Barry Bonds or Mark McGuire breaking the home run record. It just feels wrong in some way and not natural. This isn’t making some accusation about what Cena may use or not use to look the way he does. It is not a comment on his amazing Superman like recovery power either. We will leave those types of questions for you to decide.

It is more that putting John Cena next to a legend although on paper he has the resume he just doesn’t feel like he belongs in their class or company. I have heard many of these legends try and put John Cena over and I am still not buying it. John works hard I get this but I question the results he gets based on that work. I also question how many other guys he has damaged that could have easily passed him by on the way to taking his top spot.

I could have lived with Triple H beating Ric Flair’s record of title wins because I know how much Paul Lévesque the man truly respects Ric Flair. I know how much that would mean to him to surpass that standard. I look at it in a way of how much respect and love Emmitt Smith had for a Walter Payton when beating is all-time rushing record.

John Cena for me comes off as plastic and corporate and I really don’t believe he cares about anything other than himself and doing what is best for him and in addition his employer the WWE. Maybe it has been jammed down my throat so much all of John Cena’s good deeds and the fact he grew up a wrestling fan it all rings fairly hollow at this point.

I just don’t believe that John Cena deserves to beat a record that is held by Ric Flair. The sad reality is that sooner or later it is likely to happen with Cena not looking like he plans on going anywhere any time soon.

So not just because it is the wrong thing to do right now for the WWE, but for the sake of history I really hope that we don’t see John Cena at the top of a ladder holding two title belts. He is not the legend that Ric Flair is and never will be.


Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com

Raw Notebook: April 28th, 2014 from St Louis

I should start by saying that I like to do these things the next day because it allows everything to settle in. It is far less reactionary when you do it this way. I do love recap shows right after Raw as well and they have a place as well, but often are based on instant reaction like social media as we watch. Not to say we may not do similar shows in the future, but for now we have the notebook.

Show Opening/ Cena vs. Wyatt

I struggle to think of a better start to Raw in quite sometime. This opening segment was validation of why we are wrestling fans for me. You had John Cena out in the ring for the first time admitting that maybe the WWE Universe is not on his side. He questions why this is which in many ways is comical I could list about 100 but will save that for another day. He is interrupted by a child’s voice in the darkness as only the ring was lighted. Singing that familiar tune of “He’s got the whole world in his hands,” and than the lights come up and a whole choir of children join him singing. They are joined by Bray Wyatt and his family, with Bray joining in singing and the children follow him and surround the caged ring. The lights go out again and all of the children have on sheep masks and continue to sing. They cut to Bray in his rocking chair with a small child on his lap in the sheep mask. Just a brilliant visual and the symbolism of this was off the charts.

Cena later in the night is approached in the back by Renee Young and asked to comment and he is speechless. At this point GOLD go ahead and take my money I want to see these two go at in a cage on Sunday. You need Cena entering a match doubting if his supporters will actually support him any longer as he faces a dangerous and demented man in a cage.

But as always with John Cena they take it one step to far for what purpose I have no idea. Later in the night he talks to Young and apologizes for earlier and not addressing her question. He goes into John Cena comedy and talks about buying Bray a donkey and he realizes his fans are still behind him and he is going but a fist in Bray’s face and a foot in his ass.

Why can’t we have Superman be vulnerable every once in awhile heading into a match? Isn’t that best for business to not know who is going to win?  Even the actual Superman is paralyzed by Kryptonite. What is John Cena’s Kryptonite commitment? Ok I am being like Cena making bad jokes I will stop now.

Kane/Bryan & Steph and Brie

Plugged throughout the show was Stephanie was going to apologize to Daniel Bryan for Kane’s actions last week. While some may have groaned at the thought of this, not me I love what she does in roles like this.  If there is anyone better at insincerity on this planet I don’t know who that is. I think Stephanie will one day run for political office and win avenging Linda’s losses. She has about the same level of sincerity as most politicians. Anyway the short answer is I love Stephanie in roles like this. 

So when we roll around to that Steph true to form was almost in tears addressing her regret to Bryan and Brie who are on the entrance way. Bryan continues to say that Stephanie is full of crap and talks about the trauma his wife was put through. To which Stephanie says she can totally relate to as she has spent many a night in a hospital beside her husband Triple H falling asleep in his room worrying about him being ok.

Stephanie invites Bryan to come to the ring which he refuses because his mamma didn’t raise no fool. I say this, he didn’t say that, I did and it sounded more like something Mr.T would say as opposed to Daniel Bryan. If not for Kane I believe he still would be thanking his mamma. Anyway back to this and Stephanie informs Bri that she is going to have a shot at the diva’s title and she could be champion along side Bryan defending that title at Extreme Rules and the match it starts now.

Bryan protests and says there is no way he is going to allow this unless he is accompanying Bri to the ring. Stephanie is fine with this and we have a Diva’s Title match.

All through the night they had shown Kane’s mask in a case which Stephanie had mentioned in trying to prove her sincerity was locked in her office as proof Kane was not going to attack Bryan. Right before they cut to break the mask is gone and we return for the Diva’s title match. You know what happens next Kane’s music interrupts the match and he comes from under the ring and tries to drag Bri Bella under the ring with him. Bryan fights him off while wearing a neck brace from the attack on Raw last week. He manages to get Bri out of the ring and than Kane Chockslams him and Bri comes back in the ring distracts Kane and Bryan is able to be taken out to the ring and Bri is able to escape from Kane.

Later in the night a concerned Stephanie goes to the medical room and is almost tearful that this has happened again and asked if Bryan will be ok for Sunday. Bryan says he will be there Sunday to defend his title. She than apologizes again to Bri who is trying to be very concerned and emotional as best as Bella can act. She screams at Stephanie “You Bitch” and tells her to get out.

All and all some pretty good stuff, but despite it all I don’t consider Kane a real threat no matter what they do and the fact this match will likely not be last on the PPV that is a sign that the  WWE doesn’t either to some degree.

Shield/Evolution- Ric Flair WOOOO!!!

Well Evolution hit’s the ring for the final segment that is supposed to be a match with Roman Reigns and Randy Orton. They cut a promo showing that they were impressed as The Shield systematically took out the 11 guys they had faced on Raw a few weeks ago on last week’s Smackdown. Triple H even going as far as saying it reminds him of them. Shield hit the ring and before they can say much Ric Flair’s music hit he cuts a very odd promo that lacked logic and he basically endorses the Shield after reminiscing about his times in St Louis and his time as part of Evolution. Flair was just not himself and he is a legend and all of that can never be taken away but I can’t help but feel sorry for him as he seems a shadow of his former self.

Anyway we do have a bit of match which ends with a flat out brawl and another no-contest on the night as the Diva’s Title Match earlier. Dean Ambrose was going after Triple H like he owed him money. It was a long brawl that saw the Shield get the better early than Evolution did before the Shield made a final rally and controlled the ring. That was how Raw left you to head into Extreme Rules on Sunday.


Other Notes:

• As expected Bad New Barrett became the number one contender for the I-C belt. Cesaro and Swagger who has a match earlier would get involved. After losing RVD would take care of both Swagger and Cesaro setting up a three way at the PPV for those three as Chris Walder predicted on our Podcast.
• A forgettable segment with Hugh Jackman, Dolph Ziggler and Damien Sandow took place.  Some X-Men movie Promo non-sense that makes me so sad for both Sandow and Ziggler who were a year ago in much higher profile places. They are now reduced to doing bad comedy bits.
• The Uso’s defended there titles against Ryback and Axel. This was nothing spectacular but nice to see titles being defended on Raw and T.V in general.
• Speaking of titles not being defended Dean Ambrose on Smackdown will have a three on one match against Del Rio, Ryback and Axel for his seldom defended U.S Title.
• Storyline of a Cody and Goldust break-up coming was advanced a little tonight.
• Speaking of little we had the El Torito and Hornswaggle epic feud continue…..They are set to go one on one at the PPV in a mini TLC match.
• Paul Heyman proved he can get over anything as he told a knock knock joke and got it over with the punch line we all saw coming MY CLIENT BROCK LESNAR CONQUERED THE STREAK.
• All in all I liked this show my fellow podcasting partner Chris Walder was not as big a fan. Will find out why and sort it all out on Friday on the IWCP. To this point we do not have a guest booked so we may have more time to talk this week will see. 
• Oh and ADAM ROSE debuts next week....Can't wait. 

After having a drop off of 600 thousand viewers in the final hour last week on Raw will see if this show was able to rebound. It was clear a lot of effort was put in to make sure that is does.

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Ronda Rousey In WWE Just A Matter Of When Not If?

The WWE always loves main stream attention and they have a history of not being afraid at bringing outside people to pop a rating. It seems that every scrum of late for the UFC’s Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey includes some WWE talk. She was in attendance at UFC 171 and in the 11 minutes or so she took some of that time to talk about loving the WWE and not being opposed to be involved in it although with her schedule it likely doesn’t make sense. She also talked with school girl like enthusiasm about meeting CM Punk after her most recent victory at UFC 170. Have a listen to the media scrum from MMA Fighting Website:



While we joked on the IWC podcast about bringing her in for Wrestlemania this year that likely makes no sense given Rousey’s schedule. Summerslam would seem to make a ton of sense being in L.A but that also appears to be around the same time Rousey expects to jump back in the octagon. So if she is preparing for a fight that likely is not going to work. Wrestlemania 31 up in San Francisco might make a ton of sense.

I seriously wonder if people in WWE have her on the radar because if they don’t they damn well should. You bring back Batista, in part, based on a movie roll, a guest slot for the most famous women’s fighter ever and a movie star in her own right, this needs to happen for WWE. 

More than that Rousey unlike some guests that get thrown into the WWE world is a legit fan and a legit threat physically. She may not come alone either as she has a group of female fighters that make up her group they have named the 4 horsewomen. This is just something waiting to be exploited by Vince McMahon.

WWE may already have a storyline waiting for this to all come together. Ric Flair’s daughter Charlotte currently in WWE Developmental at NXT has recently taken on her dad’s history in storyline. They have even gone to the point of calling her the “Dirtiest Diva in the Game” as a play off her dad’s famous catch phrases.  A storyline involving Rousey’s 4 horsewomen rolling into WWE even for a short one off appearance could fit in with all of this perfectly.

Am I obsessed with the idea of Ronda Rousey and WWE coming together? Yup I am, but as crazy as I am about it this does make sense if you can make it happen. WWE got a big boost back in the day from Mike Tyson, there is no reason to think they couldn’t do it again with Ronda Rousey.

I think the idea of her getting into a match of any kind is never going to happen but to see her involved in a way like Tyson was is something I could totally see happening.

It doesn’t seem like Ronda’s love for Pro Wrestling is going away despite true MMA only fans perhaps rolling their eyes. In the same way they do when CM Punk talks about wanting to fight in MMA or at least teasing the idea of it.

Rousey recently met Punk at her fight which was a rare public appearance for Punk since leaving the WWE after the Royal Rumble. If Punk was part of the WWE when and if Rousey were to come around he would only be helpful in making this happen you have to figure.

Not sure what strictly WWE fans would think of Rousey but as she has proven in MMA she is cool with playing the heel if it works out that way. I have a feeling the WWE fans that are also MMA fans would embrace this has something pretty big.

But the biggest reason the WWE would do such a thing is Ronda Rousey brings with her a ton of media interest and her own built in fan base and haters as well. Whatever Ronda Rousey does these days seems to draw a ton of attention. You can make the argument she is the most famous female athlete on the planet today.