Steve Austin Gets A Hell Of An Interview Out Of Vince McMahon

Perhaps the thing that is most disturbing for wrestling fans is the 3-hour show they watched prior to the Vince McMahon interview with Steve Austin: Vince thought it was good. If he truly believes that boy is this company in serious trouble at this point. The hour and fifteen minutes after Raw trumped anything on this show. It was billed as a no holds bar interview with Austin and McMahon and it lived up to the hype.

He would not only address Punk situation but went into subjects like Randy Savage not being in the Hall of Fame and Jim Ross being let go from the company. There was not a lot of substance to what was said but the fact they were even subjects was fascinating in its own right.

I have always found Vince McMahon to be a fascinating individual and it is rare we get him in a situation such as this. He clearly doesn’t think the same as your average person and that may seem fairly obvious but it is still worth mentioning. If you love or hate Vince McMahon, what you have to admit is he has always had guts and been willing to take chances. Even though, he tried to paint the WWE Network in a positive light, it hasn’t been the success it was suppose to be. Dana White of the UFC has made some comments about what Vince has done has being somewhat reckless and it devalued the WWE product. I think he is right and there likely isn’t a way to go back now with the relationships WWE has burned with cable providers by taking their core product in pay-per-views to the Network. The WWE events have been devalued, to be of a lesser value and likely can’t be turned back. UFC with their fight pass targeted only their hardcore audience and have events that are for mostly foreign markets to expand their brand globally. They still remain on pay-per-view and are not having their top stars appear on Fight Pass. WWE has all its stars on their network, having given up on pay per view before it has died as a business. Perhaps WWE has made this move to soon and is suffering in the short term. There have been many valid criticisms of the network and it seems WWE just continues to make mistake after mistake with it. 

McMahon’s apology to Punk was clearly unexpected but his explanation to why Punk was fired in effect on his wedding day seems highly unlikely to be the case. When you consider the history of Vince McMahon, it doesn’t pass the sniff test of availability. What he did, in what he said about the Punk matter, is left the door open and put the pressure on why Punk is no longer in the WWE back on him or at least that was the attempt. While I do believe, Punk and McMahon have a strange sort of love and hate relationship I do not think Punk has any sort of relationship with Triple H and Stephanie. Which will always be the problem if anyone thinks these sides would ever come together again. McMahon really never addressed any of Punk’s grievances saying he would not air the “dirty laundry” in public. More to the point, the allegations Punk made can’t really be addressed in public without the WWE looking very bad. What you have is two very brilliant individuals trying to compete for the minds of two groups of people. Two gorups of people, that are C.M Punk fans and the larger extent fans of WWE overall. Punk will always win with his fans who are people that share his opinion of the WWE and its lack of direction. They are the people that want change and feel Punk was the type of guy that understands what they want. WWE fans are far more willing to be convinced that Punk is just a bitter disgruntled ex-employee. Vince did a good job of trying to paint Punk as that and make Vince look like the good guy willing to do business in the future.

Vince seemed determined to convince folks that he listens to is audience and is not out of touch. In all seriousness, he failed in convincing most of that fact in this interview. When asked what was wrong with his roster he tried to characterize them as unwilling to take risks and to afraid to fail. That this generation of wrestlers was not as motivated to grab the brass ring a favorite analogy of Vince’s that we have heard before. He says John Cena was the last to achieve this. This was an indirect shot at C.M Punk to suggest that Punk never had that desire to be the very best was absolutely silly especially in the light of what we now know Punk was fighting through during his time in the company. It makes you understand why Vince is so tied to the idea that John Cena is the be all and end all to this company having success.

He did mention hope for guys like the three members of The Shield and Bray Wyatt as guys possibly able to reach for those brass rings in the future. C.M Punk claimed in his famous promo to have grabbed many of Vince’s as he called them imaginary brass rings. To suggest he was not motivated to be the best wrestler in this company would be wrong. The thing is to Vince McMahon as he stated early on in his interview he is not in pro wrestling that is what his father did. Even if you class C.M Punk under the form of sports entertainment, he still for many is one of the best at that. His promos were on another level and he was always focused on the path of his character to get to the next big challenge in front of him.

Vince McMahon in his evaluation of Cesaro kind of showed that he is not exactly the guy with all the answers and that he might not really understand what his audience wants as much as he thinks. He claims Cesaro is not a good enough talker, hasn’t built that connection with the audience. Maybe the fact he was Swiss or too European was an issue. This comes from the guy that took wrestling to a global stage.

Here is one thing about the WWE that has always been true to some extent, it is very much booked to appeal to only one nation and that is the United States of America. At times, they have thrown people in Canada and the U.K a bone with various superstars but they book with a United States focus. They clearly don’t see what Non-Americans see when they look at Rusev. Who is a patriotic guy but unfortunately happens to be for the wrong country in the eyes of America. He is booked like a baby face more than he is a heel. WWE claims to be this global brand, but has screwed Canada with a lesser version of their Network and Vince after making an apology to people in U.K once again claimed that the Network could in fact launch in U.K by start of 2015. Reality is most have turned to alternate methods to get the network by this point in both countries for simple fact they have not been treated well by the company and in effect are second class fans based on the actions of the company.

Randy Savage for the better part of 15 years has been kept out of the WWE Hall of Fame. Vince stated that he will in fact be inducted at some point if not this year than likely soon. No explanation as to why it has never happened until now. The WWE Hall of Fame has become a version of the Vince McMahon kiss my ass club and only when pressured to do so will the company attempt to bring outsiders into it. C.M Punk is likely never going into any WWE Hall of Fame unless he decides to come fix things with Vince McMahon. He will be the Randy Savage for this generation but the difference will be we will no why he isn’t being put in the Hall of Fame. There is no board or voting for the WWE Hall of Fame. You can argue that the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame is more valid. Vince would never acknowledge that though as he claims to not listen to critics.

How can you listen to fans and not to critics? Can fans not be critics as well, in what they do? In addition, the people who end up covering this business our for the most part some of the most hardcore fans of the business and product that we have.

In the end both the Punk and McMahon, interviews were very interesting. It comes down to who comes off as more credible at the end of the day at that is really C.M Punk. Vince is still fascinating and interesting but at his core is a promoter and is just by nature prone to exaggerate or out and out lie. Every Wrestlemania is the biggest one ever. Every big event is some can’t miss one of a kind attraction. At the end of all of this while, there have been lots of surprises and bombshells over the last few weeks nothing has really changed my opinion on the core issues. I always felt Punk was justified in leaving and he only strengthened that belief in what he had to say. I have always believed Vince McMahon is losing touch with his audience and that was clearly on display in this interview.

Punk and Vince are likely never to get back together as McMahon leaves open to possibility. Punk is different from all of the other people that McMahon listed it off he has reconciled with. He is at his core a very disciplined individual with a moral set of values that he believes in strongly. He also seems not to be worried about scoring some kind of payday. McMahon has the one carrot that C.M Punk never got of a true Wrestlemania main event but even at this point, I think Punk wants no part of that.

What has also been made clear is the behind the scenes world of wrestling and we are not talking the crap on Total Divas has been far more compelling than the actual product.

Ball Is In WWE's Court On Punk Situation

The ball is clearly in the WWE’s court in terms of the C.M Punk comments made on the Art of Wrestling Podcast. WWE really finds the company in a position having advertised Vince McMahon in a no holds barred interview with Stone Cold Steve Austin on the network.

It really leaves the WWE in a difficult spot and a real no win situation. If they address the Punk situation, they are opening a Pandora’s Box that they want no part of that could damage the company in many ways. Most of all the issues Punk expressed on the medical issues in his time with the company. 

However if they fail to address the situation it will be seen as ducking the topic and adds validity to all of Punk’s claims. Therefore, the WWE has painted itself into a corner with this one to a great extent.

The most likely out come is the topic will be addressed and Vince McMahon will make a very corporate and generic statement. This seems the most likely outcome as the WWE was quick to release a very corporate statement in response to a Yahoo Sports article on the subject.

Punk is scheduled to appear on the Art of Wrestling again to be made to the public on Thursday. It is scheduled to be fan questions for Punk but you have to assume if the WWE comments on this story tonight, Punk will have some kind of reaction to it.

Some have already been sucked into this story by being talked about in the interview and have made responses to it. Ryback made some comments via twitter and suggested Punk’s claims of a confrontation between the two were false. He also made a bold claim that the truth would eventually come out and even alluded to slander on the part of Punk about himself. Call me crazy but given the steroid allegations Punk made I don’t see Ryback wanting to get in a legal battle in which his use or non-use of steroids would be in question. The WWE themselves would want no part of Ryback being involved in such a matter and it would be career suicide to some degree if Ryback got involved in litigation on this matter.

Chris Jericho defended himself saying that while he did want to have Punk on his pod cast Talk is Jericho all of those requests were prior to Punk leaving the company. He claims that Punk declined to appear and even they had a date booked in the December prior to him leaving that Punk backed out of according to Jericho. He says he did text Punk since leaving the company but never once brought up why Punk left the WWE or made any requests as relates to his podcast. He claims that he still considers Punk a friend even though they have not spoken since he left the company and is glad he was able to get stuff of his chest about him leaving the company.

Road Dogg as we mentioned on the podcast we at Condo on the Moon did on this C.M Punk topic engaged with fans about the Punk interview. A few other WWE Superstars made mention of the interview through social media but nothing of any great significance.

The question of A.J Lee’s future, how she will be dealt with in the fallout of all this is another topic to wonder about. Her desire to remain in the company through all of this really must make for a difficult situation for all. Punk’s firing on their wedding day has to have had a negative impact on her as well one could only conclude logically. This may have nothing to do with anything but Nikki Bella’s promo on Smackdown was edited and who knows if that had anything to do with Punk situation. A.J‘s line about talent being sexual transmitted in reference to Bella’s was not. It seemed a direct shot at their off-screen relationships with two of the company’s top stars.

All in all with a WWE Network that is struggling and a road to Wrestlemania that seems has uncertain as it was last year the WWE really didn’t need all of this to deal with.

What remains the biggest question is if this story will remain inside the wrestling bubble or if others outside of it will notice it. Punk may have no desire to push the story on his end but he does have that option and it could make the WWE look very bad if chose to do so.

It is far more likely Punk just looks to move on with other projects and leave his wrestling career and life in the past for the time being. He has signed on to write comics for Marvel and has the ability to work on or do any projects he desires. This seemed much more like an act of closure for Punk and something he wanted to offer to his true fans.

Punk opened a story on Pro Wrestling Tee’s on Monday and traffic for the site seemed to be in high volume. The other issue for the WWE will be how there audience reacts to all of this. Who have been chanting Punk’s name off and on for the entire year since he left. WWE has been accused of taking signs from fans involving Punk and doing their best to control their audiences without complete success at times.

Safe to say Punk Chants will make a return and he is likely not to make one perhaps ever in the WWE. This is becoming a messy divorce like situation with WWE the ones with everything to lose and Punk with very little to lose in the matter.

Fans that tune into the Stone Cold Podcast tonight expecting a grand response to this matter from Vince McMahon likely will be disappointed. It certainly will create a new interest for it though that likely wasn’t as strong as it is now.

It is pretty clear the WWE’s behind the scenes story has become far more interesting than the product they are producing in the ring of late. The issue is they have no real way that I can see to turn this behind the scenes story into a success on screen at this point.

Punk clearly changed public perception among wrestling fans on his departure from the company now that he has told his side of the story. The WWE seems fairly handcuffed and limited in how they can respond to this matter. Yet if they bury their heads in the sand and hope it goes away that is likely not going to work either.

It is your move Vince McMahon.

For what to expect from Raw. Check out Josh Lopez's preview of Monday Night Raw. For all the latest on WWE and Wrestling in general follow us on @condoonthemoon to stay update on the latest from us.

No Austin For Mania 31....Past Stars Can't Continue To Be The Answer.

Shocking the wrestling media took something said by someone, made some assumptions, and got it wrong. Stone Cold Steve Austin says he is not training for any kind of return to the ring as you may have read on a zillion wrestling websites this one included. This is not some post about our lack of skill in reporting as wrestling journalists. Maybe someday we should write one of those as I often see things that make my skin crawl done by a lot of various sites. This is more about the WWE and their still counting on former stars to be headliners but that well is starting to run dry.

Look around at all the guys the WWE tends to count on and they are getting to old or have other interests that are a bigger priority for them than the WWE. Austin and Shawn Michaels have been the two guys that have not gone back on their wrestling retirements. Michaels has done some guest ref appearances as has Austin but that is a bout it. Michaels has made it clear to anyone that will listen he has zero desire or intention to get back in the ring for a match. Austin has been vaguer about it, in suggesting at times if he was not opposed to it, he could do a match for the right thing. WWE even went as far as planting the seeds for a CM Punk against Austin match.

Punk is not talking to the WWE and is barely talking at all these days. He was on Colt Cabana’s podcast for the first time in along time in the intro. He had little to say on himself, other than to lash out at the person that took his picture at an apple store when purchasing an I-Phone 6.

As far as Austin goes, the only other opponent that has been kicked around is Brock Lesnar. Something that Paul Heyman in two separate appearances on Austin’s podcast seemed to be trying to pitch to the rattlesnake. Austin does not seem sold on the idea but doesn’t dismiss it entirely.

Lesnar of course ended the vaunted streak of the Undertaker. We have seen a much more mortal Undertaker since taking photos with people and ending up on his wife’s instagram. He has not officially decided on if he is retired but based on his life these days he looks like someone who is. At this point, retired or not he is without question a shadow of what he once was. While people clamor for a match with him and Sting it is something that would not be all that good the time it got around to having a match. Taker had great performers like HBK, Triple H and C.M Punk hide the fact he was aging over the years. The Lesnar match exposed things and Taker got concussion early into the match. Still Taker was not the same and time has ultimately taken its toll along with decades in the ring.

Lesnar now the WWE Champion seems like he may want to return to the UFC with his health issues behind him. His contract comes due after this upcoming Wrestlemania. Many feel he might opt for a return to the UFC. Clearly, the door to that avenue for Lesnar is closing faster than a career in wrestling.

The Rock recently teased a match with Triple H at a Wrestlemania in the future with no real determination to which number it will be.

In any case, the point to all of this is that WWE is running out of stars they can count on to help carry the load. The time has come to build new stars and have them as the focus of Wrestlemania; it is past due in many ways. Still with Cowboys Stadium, the rumored home for Wrestlemania 32 it is unlikely the youth movement is going to be able to pull off that show on their own. The fact that aging stars are still considered viable options in 2014 is just insane.

At least everyone not named Hulk Hogan is on board about not wanting to see him wrestle again. Truth is that list should be growing as the years go on. WWE can’t keep turning back the clock and hoping that will help their future. It does not help build stars it just pushes them further down the card.

Believe in Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt and the other stars you have and allow them to take the spots they have earned. At some point you are going to have to do it and better you do it by choice than be forced too because you can’t convince past stars to return for a big payday that likely isn’t as big as it use to be with the transition to the network. Wrestlemania did make a Forbes Magazine list of top sporting events but to keep that going it is going to need new stars to help it reach 40, 50 and beyond.

Condo on the Moon Podcast #32

We are a day later than normal but back to talk the week that was in pro wrestling.Chris Walder is back and is more famous than when we last talked with him. Will explain and dive head first into the Rock's Return and a lot of other stuff from Raw and Smackdown this week. In addition we talk about the latest TNA blunders give best wishes to the first couple of ROH. While we look ahead to Wrestlemania 31 and beyond.


Fun show as always sorry for it being a day later than usual had some scheduling issues. Also was a bit under the weather but I am healthy and 100% I am happy to report.

If you are unable to listen to the show here head over to Podomatic our podcast hosts and listen there. You can also via I-Tunes over at Podomatic.

So thanks for listening and if you have ideas or thoughts on the podcast we would love to here them  @Condoonthemoon and you can reach Walder @Waldersports as he has been unbanned from Twitter jail.

Raw Preview: Reigns On Raw From Brooklyn

Roman Reigns will be on WWE television for the first time since his emergency hernia operation in Nashville a few weeks ago. Reigns told Sam Roberts in an interview that he is going to be at Raw that takes place this week from Barclay Center in Brooklyn, New York. He is expected to give an update on his injury status that by his own admission in this same interview is likely still at least a couple months away.

Last night on Total Divas, ironically one of the major angles was if Daniel Bryan would need to go through a second surgery to repair what is wrong with him. Keeping in mind, Total Divas can be at times about as real as Nikki’s breasts. The show did make it seem like Daniel Bryan himself was against having the second surgery and was looking to avoid it. An idea that John Cena saw has stupid and compared it to something being wrong with a car and it leading to other larger problems down the road. Cena is noted for his super human recover time from most injuries. It leads many to question the methods of how that is achieved but that is another story altogether.

Daniel Bryan has successfully fought avoided a second surgery and is on a timetable to come back hopefully by December-January. This is about the same time that Roman Reigns would be returning. Assuming the two do not have any setbacks having both comebacks at around the same time would speak a lot to the future of both in the short term.

The one great unknown is how fans will respond to all of this. We can safely assume they are going to explode for Daniel Bryan as they use any excuse to use the Yes chant even if it is for his wife Brie. Reigns was being positioned for a big monster push before injury took him out. The other factor to be considered is Dean Ambrose and the rise in his popularity that seems to be growing each week without Reigns or Bryan in the fold.

It will be interesting to see how Ambrose responds after last week. Ambrose has been even getting comparisons to Stone Cold Steve Austin. Speaking of which some are convinced Austin is planning to make a return to a WWE Ring for Wrestlemania 31 as Austin made some mention of trying to get in shape for another run. Austin has toyed with the idea of coming back when pressed on the issue but it remains to be seen if he will in fact stay motivated and interested to do so. The dream match people wanted to see for him however is miles from happening as C.M Punk and WWE are at odds perhaps even more than when he first left the company in January. If we do not get Austin against Punk, a match against Brock Lesnar would not exactly be advisable for Austin’s health. While a match with John Cena would be interesting but never, capture the imagination that an Austin against Punk battle would.

Raw is once again in hostile territory with a New York crowd that will be active and engaged with whatever is thrown in front of them. It makes for a unique and challenging environment but as was proven last week in Chicago one that motivates the WWE to put in more effort it seems on the surface.

In any case, with a crowd like that it make Raw even more interesting to tune in and watch. If Raw fails to entertain the sign and people watching never disappoints in a crowd like Brooklyn.

If you were busy over the weekend and missed it we had Ring of Honor Star Adam Cole on the Podcast. You can also give us follow on Twitter @Condoonthemoon

The Perfect Storm Creating WWE's Lack of Depth in 2014

 Everyone would readily admit the WWE is lacking depth at the time. This is in direct contrast to this belief that the WWE has perhaps their best crop of talent for the future in years. The WWE to their credit is not pressing the panic button and rushing people to the main stage. In reality, the WWE is kind of paying for their lack of protecting their mid-card talent. Guys like Dolph Ziggler, Csearo and others have been mismanaged to the point we can’t take them seriously as top talent. Which when all is going well is not a huge issue. When injures as those to Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns happen it becomes an issue.

Dean Ambrose as we noted on this past Raw has taken it as his opportunity. He is afforded that opportunity because all of the former members of The Shield have been protected fairly well since arriving in the WWE. They are likely at the top of that list of the future of the WWE. The recent special they did on the WWE Network leading into Summerslam based on Ambrose, Rollins and Roman Reigns. It outlined them as the future of this company that they very much have become and earned. In essence, they are the first products of Paul Lévesque guys out of developmental.

They have not been subject to the normal typical WWE booking of trading wins and becoming irrelevant to some extent. You can always tell what the WWE thinks of certain talents if they are exempted from the typical booking style. It is that booking style that leaves them looking very short handed in terms of top stars.

Injuries have really been the story of 2014, having had a huge impact on the WWE product, and influenced the direction of the company. It is easy to blame the WWE and they do deserve a lot of blame for some of the awful content they have produced. You have to wonder what things would be like if Daniel Bryan had not been injured. So much would likely be different.

Would Brock Lesnar be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion? How much more compelling would a Daniel Bryan loss to Lesnar have been followed by rematch had been? That was the assumed direction had Bryan remained healthy. Would we have such a microscope on Roman Reigns and rush to push him to be the next face of this company? Is Dean Ambrose even in the main event scene at all had both not been injured? This is probably not the case at all. In fact would we have even seen The Shield break-up happening at all by this point.

We still likely would have pointless Total Divas driven stories but likely, not with the major emphasis they have had as we do with this whole Bella vs. Bella feud. It all makes you wonder what might have been.

That is the thing though wrestling doesn’t always follow the intended path and we have many famous examples of it. One not based on injuries but a famous change of direction happened in the build-up to Wrestlemania 4. Randy Savage was going to regain the Intercontinental Championship and defeat the Honky Tonk Man. He was not willing to lose the belt to Savage. This would see Savage become the WWF Champion instead and defeat Ted DiBiase who was originally planned to win the title. No Mega Powers exploding the following year and perhaps the greatest year-long build to a match in wrestling history.

As much as we can be critical of the WWE’s lack of long-term vision these days, you can see why they might have a more liquid formula. Injuries can happen and things can be turned upside down in an instant. This is what has happened a lot in the WWE in 2014.

Still the WWE is growing a massive stable of talent it is just about making sure they use it all correctly. It is our lack of faith in them to do so that makes these times and situations times to feel a sense of panic. After all, we have a man in a bunny suit as now an excepted member of the main roster. What on earth kind of a WWE has this become.

Likely one searching for answers and in a desperate situation with their network, failing and their top talent depleted.

Here is another what if situation for you that led to the most successful wrestler in the company’s history emerging. If not for the MSG Curtain Call, it would have been Triple H and not Stone Cold Steve Austin winning the King of the Ring. Stone Cold never wins maybe never says Austin 3:16 and goes on from there to be the biggest star in the company.

This is not to say Dean Ambrose or anyone else could take this time to reach such levels. It is however a time where opportunity is clearly knocking and some guys like Ambrose, Ziggler and Cesaro are clearly aware of that and it is showing in their work going to an even higher level. Ambrose has the biggest canvas of the three to paint on given his position at this point.  It also makes you wonder if Bray Wyatt had been more successful in his runs with Cena and Jericho where he could have been positioned in this time period. Instead, he is kind of going back to square one to some degree.

These are interesting times despite the WWE struggling to come up with solutions for a lack of depth. This is the result of their poor booking and injuries coming together in this perfect storm. You have a Champion that only makes limited appearances in Lesnar. While John Cena by most reports is pretty banged up himself is now deemed as vital to keeping this ship a float even if he is over exposed and the crowd is tired of him.

These dark times for the WWE in the past have always been times we have seen new stars emerge and perhaps the same will be true of this time period when history looks back on it. Time will tell as we head down the road.

5 Modern WWE Guys That Would Have Fit In The Attitude Era

People often look back fondly on the Attitude Era as perhaps the best time in the history of wrestling. What modern day stars would fit best in that era? We attempt to tackle that question today in the Condo on the Moon. We will give you five names in no particular order that we think could hang with the likes of The Rock, Stone Cold, Shawn Michaels and the rest of that crew.

Dean Ambrose: We are just starting to see what Dean Ambrose is capable of as individual competitor. If we took, the handcuffs of a PG Era off just imagine how crazy he could be. Some compare Ambrose to one guy from this time period. That is the loose cannon Brian Pillman. If these to ever had a feud back in this era it might be the most deranged and dark feud in the history of wrestling. Ambrose would fit because he seems to have a great sense of timing both with his promos and in the ring. He is the one member of The Shield that could hang and bang with the big fishes off the attitude era.

C.M Punk: Yeah he is not around anymore and who knows if we ever see him again in the WWE. He was made for this era with his no nonsense takes no prisoners reality-based promos. It has been teased as a match to get Steve Austin back in the ring. Imagine if we saw Stone Cold at the peak of his career against Punk at the best of his game. It would make for magical promos and a great match in the ring. We already got to experience The Rock and him go at it. Punk proved he could hang with the Rock verbally which few can even back in the attitude era. Punk was made for this era and he would have been able to hang with anyone in it.

Bray Wyatt: Imagine if Bray could develop his character in an even darker direction that would fit with this time period. A feud with someone like the Undertaker would have been right up his alley. The havoc that Bray Wyatt would have been allowed to create we can only wonder. Let’s face it nothing was off limits back in those days. It would add a much more dark and scary tone to an already great character. Another dream match we likely would have seen is Mick Foley as Mankind and Bray Wyatt. The strange and demented things they would both say and do would have been something to behold.

John Cena: We are not talking the hustle, loyalty and respect version but the doctor of thug-o-nomics version. He was a guy that on the tale end of this era showed he could hang with some of the stars from that era. We almost forget what an edgy John Cena is like. When he was cutting raps on everyone on the roster no one was safe from takes some verb shots. He also would likely have a much more aggressive in-ring style that would help him get beyond those five moves of doom.

Daniel Bryan: He quite simply is an incredible in ring talent that could have had some classic matches with guys like HBK, Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle. He would really have a chance to shine and have the handcuffs on his in-ring style. He would be a fan favourite that would get over with people in that era as he does in this one. He might be out of his element in terms of promos. This is not hard to hard to accept given this era featured some of the best talkers of all-time.  The fans could do his talking with the Yes chant. What? I said the Yes chant. What? Stating the positive and raising your arms.

Honourable Mentions: Kevin Steen, Cesaro, A.J Lee

You think we missed someone on the list.  Give us a shout on Facebook or on Twitter @Condoonthemoon 

WWE Attitude Era Can Only Be Bought For $9.99 Now

It hit me watching the Monday Night Wars episode on DX like a bolt of lightning. The Attitude Era is never coming back and there are so many reasons why. Some of those reasons are obvious, some might not be as obvious. Let’s get started with the obvious ones that seem fairly clear.

The first thing that everyone points to is how the WWE has become a much more corporate based company. McMahon family business became a corporate entity by becoming an IPO and a publicly traded company on Wall Street. In doing that, suddenly, Vince McMahon became accountable for his actions to shareholders. He had people to answer too about the choices he made with his company. That might not have mattered as much as the change it brought to the company as a whole. WWE became a much more corporate based culture with people coming from the business world that you never have considered getting involved in wrestling in the past. WWE now employs executive types from professional sports leagues, writers from Hollywood and television shows. It was not like it use to be and it created a corporate culture that by its very nature is conservative in nature. It led to having buzzwords and a very different way of thinking that was not necessarily one that would connect with your average wrestling fan. WWE was now “putting smiles on people faces,” with the “WWE Superstars,” for the “WWE Universe.”

This led to the WWE doing more to address the people critical of the product as opposed the ones that truly supported it. It ultimately led to the shift back to a very PG and corporate friendly product that they felt would open up more revenue streams and allow them to create partnerships to greater merchandising their brand on a global scale.

WWE had more of a focus on being an entertainment company than simply just a wrestling company and part of why they were able to make this change was the lack of any true competition for what they do. They in a sense became a monopoly of the industry of pro wrestling and with the focus on expanding beyond that wrestling bubble to other ventures beyond it. Things like WWE Studios came as a result as the WWE tried to make themselves into players in the movie business as well. It has been far from a successful venture in terms of dollars and cents but was an example of the whole idea of expansion beyond just it is wrestling property as the core business driving the ship.

Wrestling has always been a reflection of society to some degree. Look around in 2014 the world has changed to a very politically correct one despite the rise of social media.  Which the WWE now reflects and being as we discussed a much more corporate based business that is being a good corporate citizen. Which speaks to how the WWE goes out of its way to have relationships with high profile charities and making those relationships very public and using that good will as positive public relations for the company. It makes is very easy to do with a corporate face to the company like John Cena that is a PG and squeaky clean role model that is commonly referenced as the WWE’S version of Superman. He is a long way from Stone Cold raising middle fingers in the air and drinking beer in the middle of the ring. Very different from DX doing crotch chops and making sexually based humor while being flashed by hot girls in the audience that looked like they came off the “Girls Gone Wild” video series. Stone Cold or Shawn Michaels were far from the corporate poster boy that John Cena is.

They were also far less agreeable with what they were told to do. Austin and Michaels both were said to be challenges to work with at times because they demanded having good storylines and would not just play ball with Vince McMahon. This was much easier to do when there was a legit alternative out there to go to in WCW until 2001. Still even without that, I do not think it would have changed Austin or Michaels all that much. Contrast that to Cena who recently referenced the idea of him turning heel as their (The WWE’s) decision. If Austin or Michaels wanted to change their character, they did not think with such a mindset. They had the guts to fight for what they wanted even to their own detriment at times. Austin once took his ball and went home and Shawn Michaels lost his smile a time or two. John Cena is always smiling and always looking like that perfect idea of what people think a corporate face and role model of a company should look like. C.M Punk was never that and was much more a guy that fit in that by gone era. He sits at home in Chicago as much as it is from a lifetime of wear and tear on his body it is about him being much more of the mindset of an Austin or Michaels back in the day. Punk connects with the true wrestling fan and even though people complain about it these days, it speaks to why his name is still chanted to this day at WWE events. He was in a way the last of a by gone era.

There is only one CM Punk and that is fairly obvious, but he is the exception to the rule. He can afford to be how he is having had a run at the top and being able to have saved that money to walk away. You hear many of the older wrestlers from the Attitude Era and even the 80’s talk about how different wrestlers in the locker room are in comparison to their day.  Things have changed and with no other place to go to make the kind of money you can in the WWE, it makes the idea of being a rebel behind the scenes not so appealing. It is a different world too where one tweet that goes out to the public can land you in the doghouse faster than you can say delete. While the idea of someone wrestling for a Ring of Honor, New Japan Pro Wrestling or Pro Wrestling Gorilla is exciting to wrestling fans. Those options are not exactly competitive in terms of the money that can be made in the WWE with the corporate machine behind you.

This whole culture of guys walking on eggshells seems to be very real from anyone that has left or been fired from the WWE will tell us. Talent is very scripted and the time limits for matches are far more a math equation than it has been in the past. Creativity in general in a corporate environment is encouraged but in reality is really discouraged based on the risk and reward factor involved in it.

Still in contrast to all of this is Vince McMahon, who still is the boss and that is the one constant in all of this, he thrives on confrontation. Which is easy to do when you own the company but harder to do when you’re a wrestler trying to make your way to the top of the WWE. If you hear those words that Vince has made famous in “You’re Fired” you do not have a very good landing spot in terms of earning the same income as discussed. Kind of a downer to realize that these guys that we are taught to think of as super heroes are worried about something as simple as job security. Wrestlers while they are trying to connect with us and being someone we can relate too but are never really attempting to be like us. In a world that has an economy that is far different from the late 90’s as well, that is something to be concerned about as well.

There is a positive in this with this generation of wrestlers from a pure moral point of view. They are so different from the partying there is no tomorrow attitude of the 80’s and 90’s talent. The chances we lose far too many wrestlers to premature deaths is far less with this modern group. 

The whole idea of health has changed in society and in the WWE as well. The concept of guys bleeding in the ring has become something that was once as part a part of wrestling as pepperoni is on a pizza. Times have changed and the idea of blood, chair shots and blows to the head are thought of in a different light by all. The WWE as part of this completely corporate change has had to be much more proactive in the concern for their talent’s well being. This has led to many things such as establishing re-hab for former talents that are in need of help. To the current talent being aggressively tested in terms of concussions and overall general health.  The idea of a wrestler sitting out for over a month with a concussion would be considered absurd just a decade ago.  Daniel Bryan openly has said he did not want to have his neck surgery in an interview with Sam Roberts, but the WWE forced him to have it. Prior to that, a couple of years ago Bryan had a match stopped and got into a shouting match with Triple H for the fact that it was. Triple H himself famously finished a match with a torn quad muscle something that never would happen today.

That whole concept that the show must go on has kind of died to some degree in modern times. It again erodes away at the idea of these guys being super heroes and makes them mortal and much more like us. Batista recently in an interview on Talk is Jericho recalled a story from before he has left the WWE in 2010 which he was fined 100 thousand dollars for bleeding by choice in a match against Jericho. Therefore, this change in mindset for the WWE has been evolving over time. While all of this might upset some, it does make for safer working conditions for the people who entertain us. Similar to contact sports like football the game has changed and while better morally it would be a lie to say we do not miss the hard-hitting action of the old days. It is part of why we love any form of combat sports regardless of if it is worked like the WWE or legit combat in the UFC.

That is another thing to consider the rise of MMA and the UFC in the modern era. It is harder for the WWE to compete with the real blood and guts of the UFC at times in its product. While the UFC will claim to be far safer than boxing, it definitely is a sport encourages the whole idea of the knockout and finishing your opponent. Brock Lesnar has been the one athlete that has been able to best embody that UFC attitude and transition it to the WWE Universe. What at the core of Brock Lesnar makes him work are a couple of things. First and most obvious is the fact he is a legit monster and with that comes a real belief that who could snap and destroy anyone at anytime in either company. There is that wonder of what will happen creating a real sense of unpredictability, which he brings. Combine that with the fact he is a legit mean person that people truly see and fear to some extent.

The UFC is not at the peak it once was and is learning what it takes to become a global company as the WWE had become before them. It leads to over exposure of your product and sometimes more can be less for the overall entertainment value. The UFC is like the WWE a business and has made business decisions to make the product bigger even if it hurts the quality overall at times. The big difference is the UFC enjoys the luxury of still being a private company and not having to open the books, as the WWE is required to do being a public traded company. While people moan and grow concerned with the WWE Network and its lack of success. The UFC Fight Pass can be presented as a success and we have no idea what their numbers are in terms of subscribers. They get to control the narrative of the company far more than the WWE. They may not be able to pre-determine their results like the WWE can but they can have much greater control over the presentation of their business.The UFC has sat back and allowed the WWE to be its test model in a sense of how to operate in a post pay-per-view world. While they can just sit back and observer at what the WWE does with its network.

What a UFC fight has that a WWE match is lacking is unpredictability. This is something that was once a WWE marketing campaign once billed as the place “where anything can happen,” it seldom lives up to that these days.

This has been a long drawn out way to explain to you that about the only way your going to experience the Attitude Era is to spend $9.99 on the WWE Network to see it. In fact the Network and the ability to go back and compare the two products side by side with what is going on today only fuels the love for that era and the lack of love for this one. There has been an appetite for change long before C.M Punk cut a promo about it and made himself the poster boy for change. Here is the cold reality though the change that most want might not be possible to have in 2014. Can the WWE move a little more to an edgy product if they decided too? Sure, they could do that, but if it is going to be compared to the Attitude Era, it is always going to fall short because the rules have changed.

It also should be stated just how talented that roster truly was from top to bottom. If we were being honest about it, how many of the current WWE roster would be able to hang in the Attitude ERA? Some could and would fit right in but most of the roster would not even make the dark match back then. It really is the truth.

I guess this article ends in a predictable and grumpy old man sort of way. Sorry kids but my WWE will always be better than your WWE. It is something that has been said in pro sports for years from generation to generation. This time for a variety of reasons, it is not just some old person trying to rationalize how their time was better. It is pretty much a factually based argument to be made.

We stick up our middle fingers to let you know that our WWE was number one. Cheer up though your video games make our video games look like they were created in the stone ages.  So at least you have that on us old folks.

 

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Blame The WWE For Batista's Failed Return To The Company

Everyone can agree the Dave Batista’s return can only be classed as a major failure. If you didn’t see this coming you really should have. In the build to his return he was made to seem a much bigger deal than he actually was. There was talk that WWE had planned his return as more of a surprise and not how they ended up doing it. Regardless of that fact, it was doomed to fail based on a couple of factors.

First and foremost was the WWE over estimated the level of star Batista was. He was always a guy in my opinion that was carried more often than not by the people he worked with. WWE viewed him as an “A” level star and he clearly wasn’t.

His debut was weak and being friends with the biggest heel in Triple H was not exactly the way to make a top babyface talent. WWE fans already had picked their top babyface and it wasn’t Batista and it wasn’t John Cena. It was of course Daniel Bryan who had been the chosen one for quite sometime.

WWE unwillingness to put Bryan over and forcing Batista down the throats of the audience came to a head at the WWE Royal Rumble. It caused the WWE to change course and the plan for Bautista was dead and eventually so was his ill fated babyface run.

His in ring work was terrible when he first returned. He would limp his way to Wrestlemania 30 as part of the now three-way match that ended up being Daniel Bryan along with Randy Orton. He would be the man to take the fall to Daniel Bryan.

He would move on to the reformation of Evolution and would like in the past be carried by five superior talents to create two solid three on three match-ups and than it was over.  It was one of the worst return runs in terms of the dollars spent to return that was gotten from it in WWE history.

I don’t put a lot of blame on Batista and in fact think if he doesn’t come back, I wouldn’t blame him in the slightest. He is off to promote his movie "Guardians of the Galaxy" as was always planned. In the end the WWE screwed this up and they made one of their most typical mistakes at the core of this.

They saw a former star that was going to be in a main stream motion picture for big movies franchise like Marvel Comics and so this as a way to gain mainstream attention. They promised him the moon and the stars to come back. At the time they figured the Daniel Bryan fad would eventually die off and they could make Dave the champion and parade around with their championship getting that "oh so important" main stream attention.

They also saw him as mentioned as a higher level star than he really was and fans did not embrace him as such. He was not the big draw that he was expected to be.

I would like to think the WWE has learned from this experience but I will sit on the sidelines and wait to see if they actually have. The days of going to the well and being bailed out are coming to a close. The well has all but dried up at this point for them. Brock Lesnar is perhaps the lone exception to that, but even given the salary he is paid for the amount of dates he performs I am not sure how cost effective it is.

The time has come to create this era’s stars and count on them to build and grow the brand back to a level closer to the glory days. I am not saying having returning stars isn’t something they can do but in the right context. The way that Wrestlemania 30 started with that iconic moment with Austin, Rock and Hulk Hogan sharing a ring was fantastic. It was however just a moment and did not involve anyone being involved in matches or storylines. It was just that nice nod to the past of this great company.

There is only one match with a legend vs. a current star that I see as possible at this point and it would be CM Punk against Steve Austin. I would say not only is it possible it may be required for Wrestlemania 32 if they plan on heading to the Dallas Cowboys stadium and filling it.

This currently seems so unlikely with Punk himself declaring himself retired and Austin seeming to have little interest in an in ring return. But to suggest a Goldberg, Sting or any other old dinosaur you care to bring back from the dead would draw I see it as being out of touch with things. The match with the Undertaker and Brock Lesnar was a harsh look at what happens when you go past your expiry date in the ring. The Undertaker is one of the most respected people in the history of this company but to watch him stumble his way through that match with as we learned a severe concussion was sad to watch. His streak ending overshadowed the fact that he had no business being in the ring in his condition at that stage.

It is so hard to accept when sports legends skills lose the battle with father time. Even harder when wrestlers who have tricks,smoke and mirrors suddenly are exposed as normal humans like you and me.

WWE has spend a lot of money in all of their developmental aspects and it is time to have faith in that money spent and create a new generation of stars and let them shine. That should be the lesson for the WWE coming off the whole failed Batista run they have learned.

Why am I not confident that they have learned much of anything from it? History, which they constantly seem to try to go back too with diminishing results of success as their go to answer to problems as this magical fix.  You want to use history for something WWE, how about for promoting your network. That is the place to do it not in the ring with the current roster today.

If anything has been made clear by the WWE audience in the last 2-3 years they want change. They want change yesterday and they still haven’t got it. CM Punk and his rise to stardom was all about a man that wanted change and an audience that embraced that man and said so do we. Punk is gone and the audience remains with that same desire for change.

Ten Count: 10 Matches We Would Like To See In WWE

 We are a day late, but hopefully not a dollar short with the 10 count this week. In this week's edition we will day dream a little with 10 feuds that we have not seen in WWE that we think would be pretty damn cool. Not to say all of them are possible, but we are throwing them out there none the less. Still will try and keep it realistic.

#10: Lita vs. A.J Lee: You could make a great number of feuds that involve women that have dated CM Punk let’s face it. None more appealing than this one as A.J Lee grew up idolizing Lita the recent WWE Hall of Fame inductee. It would make for an excellent match even if you leave the Punk element out of the equation.

#9: Bray Wyatt vs. Bo Dallas: At some point we all expect Bray Wyatt to become a baby face and when he does a feud with his actual brother in real life Bo Dallas you would think has to happen. I can see the promo Bray would cut in my head right now. Bo was always a dreamer and he is lying to himself. I Bolieve this feud eventually happens and it will be great.

#8 Dean Ambrose vs. John Cena: We have seen some interaction with these two with Ambose as part of The Shield. If the two ever got together in a one on one feud it could be excellent. John Cena when pushed by someone who can go in the ring always does his best work. On the mic Ambrose can hold his own with anyone and would no doubt drop some verbal jabs on Cena that all his haters would enjoy.

#7 Seth Rollins vs. Cesaro: Forgive me for not knowing if this ever happened in ROH but the two alums from that company can go in the ring for days. In ring this match would carry the goods and both have the potential to get it done on the microphone as well. It would be fun to see these guys work a program.

#6 Tyler Breeze vs. Adam Rose: These two characters seem to fit together well and I wouldn’t doubt we see this match-up in NXT if Rose is around long enough for it to happen. Prince Pretty vs. the Party starter Adam Rose seems like something that could be fun. Breeze not being considered cool enough to party with Adam Rose and your off and running. In the ring we have not seen the best of either, but if you believe what people say both have potentially to be very good. 

 

#5 Adam Cole vs. Sami Zayn: These next two feuds involve people currently not signed to WWE but what the heck were going make it happen here. Adam Cole is the current ROH Champion and I have no doubt will find his way to the WWE. The in ring style of both would make for some incredible matches. Cole is getting very good with a microphone in his hand, while Zayn continues to improve in that area. Why does this happen? Simple if Cole came in he would claim to be the rising star that everyone thinks Zayn already is. I think that qualifies as one of J.R’s personally issues and goes back to something we said in this blog about wanting to be the best.

#4 Kevin Steen vs. Luke Harper: I am sure this likely took place on the Indies somewhere. You want a crazy flat out brawl this is a match that will deliver the goods. Steen can talk on the microphone with anyone in this business and he can go with someone with Harper’s rough and tumble style. Heck if you add in Eric Rowan and Steen’s former tag partner Sami Zayn and this is a heck of a tag-team match. Steen is not signed in WWE of course but rumours are out there he had a great try out. This would be a great feud for him to showcase his in ring style.

#3 Roman Reigns vs. The Rock: Yes Roman Reigns is likely heading to face HHH at some point and could some day be the man in this company. How cool would it be to see him get in the ring with the most famous of all his relations in a match? We already saw the two interact with Reigns as part of the Shield. Give him a year or maybe two and this makes a hell of a Mania match or any other big show the WWE would put it on. There are a lot of questions on if The Rock would ever wrestle again but for a member of his extended family you have a better shot at convincing him to come back and do it.

 #2 Daniel Bryan vs. Brock Lesnar: A modern day David and Goliath match-up this would be. WWE loves to book Bryan as the under dog and is there a match on earth where he would be a bigger one than in this one? My answer is a flat out no to that, so that is why this match makes so much sense. There were rumours that the Undertaker actually wanted to work with Bryan at this past Mania. Why not use those as Bryan’s motivation to get what Brock took away from him. The chance to beat the streak and go down in history. While it is no secret that Lesnar has already stated several times about being the uncrowned number on contender and wants the belt.  You don’t even need the Undetaker stuff other than Brock having beaten The Streak. Still you internet fans are aware of the rumours and it only adds another layer of awesome to this match-up.
 
#1 CM Punk vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin: WWE teased us with this and it is the one match in wrestling that I truly want to see above all others. More than a few problems in making it happen of course but these two seem destined to fight and made for each other. If Punk had been around in the attitude era I have no doubt in saying a feud with he and Austin would be considered one of the best of that era. Which given that era is saying a lot. Would it be as good now as it would have been than? On the microphone it will be as both guys still know how to cut a promo. In ring it might not be as good but Punk proved he can work well with an older rusty talent in his match with the Undertaker. I believe it is the only match Austin would come back for. I also believe this is a match that gives CM Punk his final goal to achieve in wrestling to Main Event a Wrestlemania. The WWE needs a hell of an attraction if they plan to go to Cowboy’s stadium and look to have a crowd of over 100,000 people in attendance. This IS THAT ATTRACTION and it will bring all those people that use to be wrestling fans back into the fold. Will it ever happen….hope is fading fast on this one!

Obviously there are a million of these you can come up with so you’re invited to suggest your own. Love to hear your suggestions. In this we tried to keep it as realistic as possible with no real dream matches other than perhaps Punk vs. Austin and Rock vs Reigns. Also we tried to only use each talent once as you could see several good options for many of the top talent to work in programs with.

Hope we came up with some solid matches that you agree would be fun to see. There is not one on this list that I wouldn’t love to see happen at some point.

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I Love Me Some Wrestling Podcasts

I love wrestling podcasts and enjoy a great many people doing them out there. Each podcast is its own unique little world but all have common bond of wrestling. Anyone that is going out of their way to produce a podcast has to at the very least be a fan of the business on some level. There is nothing more fun than stories about this wacky world of professional wrestling. I could spend hours on end listening to stories about this world that is both interesting and has an intrigue of what goes on behind the scenes in this crazy world. From serious stories that relate to real life to the craziest funny stories that just seem too funny to be true. It all is entertaining in its own way.

So I will run through some of my favourites that I do my best to listen too on a weekly basis. I think the original king of the wrestling podcast world is Colt Cabana. His Art of Wrestling show is for me the place where it all begins for wrestling podcasts. Colt has been doing his podcast since I believe somewhere around 2010 or 2011 long before podcasting was the rage it is today. He has interviewed everyone from wrestling legends from the past to guys that work on the independent scene that I knew very little about.

If you are one of the few that has not heard the Art of Wrestling it is an hour of Colt talking with his guest with the listeners getting to be a fly on the wall. It is based on wrestling and stories but sometimes dives into real life stuff both funny and serious. Colt makes an effort to steer away from the negative aspects of the wrestling business aside from the struggle that wrestlers go through. At the end of an episode of Art of Wrestling you will feel you have got to know someone better that you already knew or got to know someone you never knew and get to know someone you might not have ever known or heard of.

Perhaps the most popular podcast that has burst on the scene is Stone Cold Steve Austin’s show on Podcast One. It has led to a couple other WWE personalities getting involved with Podcast One in Chris Jericho and Jim Ross. Austin obviously can right his own ticket and booking whoever he wants on his show likely isn’t too difficult. Still Austin is an entertaining guy and if you are an Austin fan he is giving you everything you love about Stone Cold in his podcasts. He can be just as entertaining complaining about driving etiquette in L.A as he is at interviewing his guests.

What is great with Austin is while he can book pretty much his choice of wrestling talents he has not just stuck to the WWE world or just the Attitude Era wrestlers that he was a part of.  Austin has had great podcasts talking with MMA fighters and with guys like Kevin Steen who wrestles in ROH. Even a nice tip of his hat to the aforementioned Colt Cabana as they both appeared on each others podcasts about 6 months ago. Even having fans on episodes taking calls has been something Austin has done most recently. The one thing that has become some what of a cult hit with people is Austin reading the ad copy for the sponsors on his podcast. It is something to be experienced rather than explained. He claims to bring a can of “Audio Whoop Ass” to every podcast and does his show for the “Working Man” but what he does is just give you everything you love about Stone Cold. He has taken this venture seriously and has improved a lot as an interviewer which is something that prior to this was not likely in his wheelhouse. What? What he was use too. What? Oh hell you get the idea.

I do also enjoy Chris Jericho and J.R’s podcasts that have started more recently. They are both entertaining guys and also seem to fit in very easily to this podcasting format. I am sure like Austin they will grow a comfort level and get better and better at it. Ross really already is fit like a glove for this type of thing. Jericho has done a variety of various things in entertainment and his natural humour comes shining through in something like this.

Before there was podcasts there was Radio and Live Audio Wrestling is a show that has lasted for over 15 years in one form or another on the airwaves in Canada. The days of just two hours of The Law on Radio late on a Sunday night are in the past. They still do that show currently on TSN 1050 in Toronto at 11-1 or if actual “Real” sports gets in the way 12-2am on Sundays.

However as part of The Fight network they have expanded to include a laundry list of podcasts that are just excellent wrestling content. Let’s see we have Review-a-Raw and Review-an-Impact which is pretty self explanatory. John Pollock and Wai Ting recap the goings on of a Raw Episode or Impact episode. Well they do but it also has a ton of side talk about a great many things including MMA to the hate of some but not myself. In fact I credit The Law for turning me around and making me a fan of MMA. It also is some just hilarious stuff that has nothing to do with wrestling at all.

John and Wai have a unique way of making a connection with their audience that allows me to feel like they are friends of mine even though I have never met either. I feel I have got to know them through all of the crazy stories that have nothing to do with wrestling. But they do eventual get to giving you a detailed rundown of Raw or Impact with great thoughts from both a business and fan prospective on the shows.  Than at the end they take feedback from fans via their law message board in which you hear what the audience has to say if they are able to write it in plan English which sometimes is a struggle for some.

Review-A-Wai is a show where the two review old mostly wrestling based shows be it PPVS or old episodes of Raw. But they have more than a few times stepped out of the box reviewing documentaries and all kinds of things you would never expect. It is by far the most fun show they produce on a weekly basis and really is an enjoyable history lesson or trip down memory lane depending on how old you are.

What’s NXT is the newest Law Podcast that features Law Host Jason Agnew and newest member of Law Family Braden Harrington. It is like Review-a- Raw and Impact a review of WWE NXT but. Like the Pollock and Ting shows though it dives into the personal lives of the co-hosts as well. It gets a lot more out there than the chatter between Wai and John but is amusing and entertaining in its own way. The format is pretty much the same with a recap of the show and some thoughts on the product and upcoming talents in the WWE Developmental Show. Also they have feedback on both NXT and their podcast which can be somewhat entertaining given Jason’s lack of patience for stupidity if it is reflected in the feedback. This is a much kinder and gentler version of the Agnew that we get in comparison to The Law.

What show has become my favourite though in the Bauer and Pollack show which they jokingly call the King and the Fish. This however is perhaps the least joking show of the lot with a lot of hard news on the wrestling industry and mixed martial arts. Court Bauer is a former member of the WWE creative team, he ran his own promotion called MLW and now hosts his own Podcast with former WCW Talent Konan and a wacky character known as MSL. Will get to that podcast in a minute. But Pollock and Bauer is a real good education for people that want to understand the business side of this sport. Bauer also currently is working with ROH Wrestling in some former of advisory role that he has never truly defined.

There are fun moments but for the most part this is hard hitting analysis of the world of wrestling in all promotions not just the WWE and TNA. It is really interesting to hear things from the insider prospective the Bauer brings to this program. It is something that I honestly can’t miss on a week to week basis. When the show went a brief hiatus I was concerned it may not return with Bauer’s new role in Ring of Honour but it has. In fact I respect Court some much he is one of the people I reached out too when starting this blog back up. I got his opinion on it and if I was wasting my time here by writing this blog. His feedback was fairly positive so that meant a lot for me to get inspired to keep this idea going.

MLW Radio the podcast the Bauer is a part of is without a doubt the most off the wall podcast I have listened too. It is mix of the strange and bizarre with a lot of pop culture to pro wrestling all mixed with some humour that may not be for everyone. It is however just a crazy fun laid back show that offers some great stories from the past from K-Dawg and Bauer. MLS is a somewhat strange guy that has also worked in the business. I can’t really explain him he has to be experienced.

The show has its own language to some extent with phrases and expressions that you will come to understand as you listen over time. They shoot the breeze about wrestling and a variety of pop culture based things and on some episodes have a guest that joins in and becomes part of the mix. It is somewhat like an interview but more like having a fourth person in the mix that becomes the focus on the conversation. At the end of MLW episode you likely have laughed and maybe even learned a thing or two about the wrestling business.

MLW like The Law has other shows but some of them are part of a VIP package that you have to pay 15 dollars/year to listen too. The other free show they have is with Jim Cornette who has been a fixture in the wrestling business for decades. I started off listening to this as well but fell off after I just had my fill of Jim Cornette. If you love Jim you get a ton of him on this podcast. I like Jim but at times get burned out on him and can only take so much. What had me jump off that train was his bashing of Kevin Steen who I really like as a performer. Kevin and Jim have had their very public differences about Jim’s time in ROH. I just had heard enough and stopped listening after that. Cornette has the people he likes and people he does not and that is painfully obvious in anything he does.  I can only take so much.

Between the Ropes is also like The Law a hub for a lot of great wrestling content. Brain Fritz and his crew do some excellent work with interviews and podcasts that are entertaining and informative stuff. Lots of news mixed with opinions done in a very professional way.  A weekly podcast summing up Raw and live google hangout show is provided on a weekly basis with some great interviews with people in the business on a regular basis.

If your into the Google + Hangouts Straight Shoot with Aubrey Sitterson is also world a look. He actually took a suggestion I had for a game I had called Push, Re-Package and Fire and has really run with it. He has a really great guest list of people that act as his co-host for re-caps of Raw and Preview and Reviews of PPVs.

Last but not least are Mike and Maria in Wonderland which is a podcast with former WWE Diva Maria and her soon to be husband and ROH Wrestler Mike Bennett. This show is my guilty pleasure wrestling podcast. It isn’t all about wrestling and goes into other areas of life like politics and pop culture. What it reminds me of is the old reality show newlyweds with Jessica Simpson and Nick whatever his name was.

Not saying that Maria comes off like Jessica in fact she is a pretty smart cookie and nothing like the somewhat ditsy lovable character. Mike Bennett was/is a guy that a lot of people disliked in wrestling. I am not sure why exactly. I have never had that opinion but listening to him on this podcast would change some minds I think. He comes off as a pretty cool guy and very genuine. He is not afraid to express his opinions on any topic from gun control in the U.S to the pro wrestling business.

It is not for everyone as I found out when I professed my love for it but for me it is a great fun hour to 90 minutes that flies by with lots of laughs and the zany out of control nature the show has a tendency to do. This show does not work with much of a format but if it did likely wouldn’t be as fun as it is.

So that about covers the gambit of what I am listening to on a regular basis. Not a pod cast but if you don’t watch Kevin Steen’s Weekend Escapades or Colt Cabana’s World’s Worst Promo with Marty DeRosa you’re also missing some things that are pretty amusing.




Who needs the WWE Network I got podcasts for days up here in Canada.

There is a sea of wrestling podcasts and I am thinking about jumping into that ocean with one of my own in the not to distant future. I hope it can be as entertaining and fun as the ones I enjoy on this list. The Internet Wrestling Channel Podcast is coming soon. Get it IWC which is a term that I think needs to be put in the trash.