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1/16 THIS DAY IN HISTORY: DIESEL VS. JEFF JARRETT IN MSG, THE FINAL WCW SOULED OUT PPV AND MORE

By Mike Johnson on 2014-01-16 08:00:00

January 16th 

On this day in history in ....

1941 - Billy Weidner defeats Jules Larance to win the Midwest Wrestling Association World Junior Heavyweight Title in Columbus, Ohio, beginning his second reign.

1963 - Dory Funk defeats Gene Kiniski for the Amarillo NWA North American Heavyweight Title in Lubbock, Texas, to begin his 12th reign.

1963 - Al and Don Greene defeat Jack Curtis, Jr. and Jan Madrid to win the Gulf Coast NWA Southern Tag Team Title in Mobile, Alabama.

1964 - Karl and Skull Von Stroheim win their second Mid-America NWA Southern Tag Team Title in Chattanooga, Tennessee. This ended Jackie Fargo and Mario Milano's second reign.

1967 - Fritz Von Erich defeats Joe Blanchard to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title in Fort Worth, Texas. This began Von Erich's third reign and ended Blanchard's second.

1967 - Chris and John Tolos defeat Don Leo Jonathan and Dominic DeNucci for both the Vancouver NWA Canadian Tag Team Title and Vancouver NWA World Tag Team Title in Vancouver, British Columbia.

1968 - Paul DeMarco and Lorenzo Parente defeat Ron and Terry Garvin to win the Florida NWA World Tag Team Title in Tampa, Florida, to begin their second reign.

1970 - Fred Blassie and Don Carson defeat Pepe Lopez and El Medico to win the NWA Americas Tag Team Title in Los Angeles, California. At the same event, Rocky Johnson defeats Great Kojika for the NWA Americas Heavyweight Title.

1970 - Dick Dunn and Ken Lucas defeat Flash and Rocket Monroe for the NWA Gulf Coast Tag Team Title in Dothan, Alabama, ending the Monroes' sixth reign.

1976 - Gilles Poisson defeats Frankie Laine to win the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title in Calgary, Alberta.

1977 - The WWWF holds an event at Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. The results were:
- Johnny Rodz defeated Mark Tendler.
- Baron Mikel Scicluna defeated Pete Sanchez.
- Doug Gilbert defeated Manuel Soto.
- Stan Stasiak defeated WWWF World Tag Team Champion Chief Jay Strongbow.
- WWWF World Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino defeated Bruiser Brody in a lumberjack match.
- Tor Kamata defeated WWWF World Tag Team Champion Billy White Wolf.
- Nikolai Volkoff defeated Jose Gonzalez.
- The Executioners defeated Special Delivery Jones and Gorilla Monsoon in a two out of three falls.

1980 - Tony Benetto defeated El Halcón to win the Mexican National Heavyweight Title in Acapulco, Mexico, ending Halcón's third reign.

1981 - Steve O defeats Kevin Sullivan for the NWA National Television Title in Atlanta, Georgia.

1981 - Ernie Ladd wins his second Mid-South Louisiana Heavyweight Title, defeating Jake Roberts in Shreveport, Louisiana.

1982 - The WWF holds an event at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The results were:
- Charlie Fulton defeated Tony Altimore.
- Bulldog Brower defeated Baron Mikel Scicluna by countout.
- Davey O'Hannon defeated Johnny Rodz.
- Jesse Ventura defeated Jeff Craney.
- WWF Intercontinental Champion Pedro Morales defeated Killer Khan.
- WWF Heavyweight Champion Bob Backlund defeated Greg Valentine in a steel cage match.
- Tony Garea and Rick Martel defeated WWF Tag Team Champions Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito by disqualification. Tony Atlas was the guest referee for the match.
- Adrian Adonis defeated Dominic DeNucci.
- Larry Sharpe defeated Jose Estrada.
- Steve Travis defeated Hans Schroeder.

1982 - Jack and Jerry Brisco win their second Florida NWA North American Tag Team Title, defeating Dory Funk, Jr. and Terry Funk in St. Petersburg, Florida. At the same event, Ray Stevens defeats Eric Embry for the NWA Florida Television Title.

1982 - Matt Borne and Rip Oliver defeat Rocky Johnson and Iceman King Parsons to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title.

1983 - The Grapplers defeat Ken Lucas and Ricky Morton to win the Southwest Championship Wrestling Southwest Tag Team Title in San Antonio, Texas, ending Lucas and Morton's third reign.

1985 - Rick Rude defeats Pez Whatley for the Florida NWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Tampa, Florida, ending Whatley's second reign.

1985 - Ted DiBiase defeats Brad Armstrong in Shreveport, Louisiana to win the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Title, beginning his fifth reign.

1985 - Alan Kilby defeats Steve Logan in Walsall, England for the vacant British Light Heavyweight Title.

1986 - Candi Devine defeats Sherri Martel to win the AWA World Women's Title in Winnipeg, Manitoba, beginning Devine's third reign and ending Martel's second.

1987 - Kevin Sullivan wins his third Florida NWA Southern Heavyweight Title, ending Lex Luger's third reign, in Daytona, Florida.

1988 - Kendo Nagasaki and Mr. Pogo defeat Invaders I and III for the WWC World Tag Team Title in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, beginning their second reign and ending the Invaders' third.

1988 - Rick Davis defeats Verne Siebert to win the Universal Wrestling Alliance World Junior Heavyweight Title in Cloverdale, British Columbia. The UWA was formerly NWA All-Star Wrestling, but changed its name when promoter Al Tomko pulled out of the National Wrestling Alliance in 1985.

1992 - Arn Anderson and Bobby Eaton defeat Dustin Rhodes and Ricky Steamboat in a two out of three falls match for the WCW World Tag Team Title in Jacksonville, Florida.

1995 - The WWF holds an event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The results:
- Aldo Montoya defeated Steven Dunn.
- Duke Droese defeated Timothy Well.
- Henry Godwinn defeated Bob Holly.
- WWF Women's Champion Bull Nakano defeated Alundra Blayze.
- The Undertaker defeated Tatanka.
- Bret Hart defeated Owen Hart with the Sharpshooter in a No Holds Barred match.
- The Allied Powers (The British Bulldog and Lex Luger) defeated Bam Bam Bigelow and King Kong Bundy by disqualification.
- WWF Champion Diesel defeated Jeff Jarrett.

1995 - Miss Texas (Jackie Moore) defeats Sweet Georgia Brown for the USWA Women's Title in Memphis, Tennessee. This ended Brown's second reign and began Miss Texas' ninth reign.

1997 - Spice Richards defeats Bobby Collins to win the Canadian Wrestling Federation Light Heavyweight Title in Winnipeg, Manitoba, beginning his third reign.

1998 - Mr. Gannosuke, Jado and Yukihiro Kanemura defeat Hayabusa, Hisakatsu Oya and Masato Tanaka to win the FMW World Street Fight Six-Man Tag Team Title in Yokkaichi, Japan.

1998 - Super Delfin wins the UWF Super Welterweight Title for the fourth time, defeating Mens Teioh in Sapporo, Japan.

1999 - Quinn Magnum and T. Rantula defeat The Wrong Crowd (Brian Anthony and Paul Atlas) for the Pro Wrestling eXpress Tag Team Title in North Versailles, Pennsylvania, ending the Wrong Crowd's third reign.

1999 - Flexx Wheeler defeats Patch to win the Pennsylvania Wrestling Alliance Heavyweight Title in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was stripped of the title right after, as the promotion didn't allow a wrestler to hold more than one title at one time. Wheeler held the PWA Tag Team Title with The Original Mercury.

2000 - WCW holds the fourth-annual, and final, Souled Out pay-per-view at the Firstar Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The results were:
- Billy Kidman defeated Dean Malenko in a Catch-as-Catch Can match, when Malenko accidentally touched the floor. The rules stated that a competitor could not only lose by pin or submission, but also by touching the floor
- Vampiro defeated David Flair (with Daffney) and Crowbar in a Triple Threat match, by pinning Flair after a Nail in the Coffin.
- Big Vito and Johnny the Bull (with Disco Inferno) defeated The Harris Brothers (Ron and Don Harris), when Vito pinned Ron.
- Oklahoma pinned WCW Cruiserweight Champion Madusa with a roll-up to win the title.
- WCW Hardcore Champion Brian Knobbs defeated Fit Finlay, Meng and Norman Smiley in a Fatal Four-Way match, by pinning Smiley after hitting him with a police shield.
- Billy Kidman pinned Perry Saturn in a Bunkhouse match after a Bulldog.
- Booker T (with Midnight) defeated Stevie Ray by disqualification, after Big T made his debut and attacked Booker. Big T (Anthony Norris) was previously known as former WWF Intercontinental Champion Ahmed Johnson.
- Tank Abbott defeated Jerry Flynn by knockout.
- Buff Bagwell defeated Diamond Dallas Page in a Last Man Standing match.
- The Wall (with Shane Douglas) pinned Billy Kidman in a Steel Cage match after a chokeslam.
- Kevin Nash pinned Terry Funk in a Hardcore match after a Jacknife Powerbomb onto a steel chair to become the new WCW Commissioner.
- Chris Benoit defeated Sid Vicious by submission with the Crippler Crossface to win the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Title. Arn Anderson was the guest referee for the match. Benoit was stripped of the title the next night on WCW Monday Nitro when it was shown that Sid's leg was under the rope when he tapped out to the Crossface. In reality, Benoit had left the company in frustration, and would debut in the WWF two weeks later.

2000 - Jose Rivera, Jr. wins his second WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Title in Carolina, Puerto Rico, defeating Harley Lewis.

2000 - Three NWA New England titles change hands in Wethersfield, Connecticut. Jeff Mangles wins the NWA New England Junior Heavyweight Title from Jason Rage, beginning his second reign. A male wrestler, Vince Viccolo, defeats Amanda Storm for the NWA New England Women's Title. Finally, Curtis Slamdawg defeats Knuckles Nelson to win the NWA New England Heavyweight Title, to begin his second reign.

2001 - FMW holds a pay-per-view event at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. The results:
- Ricky Fuji and Flying Kid Ichihara defeated Tomokazu Morita and Yoshito Sasaki, when Ricky pinned Sasaki.
- Mammoth Sasaki defeated Chocoball Mukai by knockout.
- Hideki Hosaka and Hisakatsu Oya defeated Asuza Kudo and Shinjuku Shark, when Oya pinned Shark.
- Naohiro Yamazaki defeated Kyoko Inoue.
- Jado, Gedo and Masato Tanaka defeated Kintaro Kanemura, Mens Teioh and Ryuji Yamakawa, when Tanaka pinned Kanemura.
- Goemon and Onryo defeated Chris Candido and Pat Tanaka, when Goemon pinned Tanaka.
- Kodo Fuyuki defeated Tetsuhiro Kuroda. As a result, Fuyuki had to retire and Kuroda had to marry Kyoko Inoue.

2002 - Gutter & Hacker defeat champions Tyson Dux & Tornado and Ruffy Silverstein & Trent Steele in a three-way match in Toronto, Ontario, for the Border City Wrestling Can-Am Tag Team Title.

2004 - Jerry Lynn defeats Danny Daniels for the IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Title in Oolitic, Indiana.

2004 - Harry Smith defeats Karnage to win the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title in Calgary, Alberta.

2004 - John Walters defeats Billy Kryptonite for the Chaotic Wrestling Title in Methuen, Massachusetts, beginning his second reign.

2005 - At a WWE RAW house show in Winnipeg, Manitoba, La Résistance (Rob Conway and Sylvain Grenier) defeat William Regal and Jonathan Coachman, who was subbing for Eugene, to win their third WWE World Tag Team Title. Coachman replaced Eugene, due to Eugene suffering a dislocated left patella one week earlier in the opening match of New Year's Revolution in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

2005 - TNA holds its first-annual Final Resolution pay-per-view, at the Impact Zone in Orlando, Florida, featuring AJ Styles starting his 4th reign as X Division Champion and America's Most Wanted winning the NWA World Tag Team Title for the fifth time by defeated Team Canada, ending their second reign.

TNA FINAL RESOLUTION PPV; ABYSS RETURNS TO TNA
by Mike Johnson 

Pre-Game Show:

Jeremy Borash and Shane Douglas welcomed everyone to the pre-game show. They shot it over to Scott Hudson, who ran down several of the matches including Raven vs. Erik Watts so Watts is there.

At ringside, Mike Tenay and Don West discussing the evening's championship matches.

The Naturals vs. Johnny B. Badd and Sonny Siaki

Siaki and Badd started out quickly working over Chase Stevens. Andy Douglas tagged in but was hit by a Siaki leg lariat. He went for a pin but Stevens broke up the pinfall. The Naturals began working over Siaki, with Stevens dropping a low elbow. He began working over Siaki with punches, but Siaki fought back with chops. He was cut off and Douglas tagged in. Douglas missed a top rope elbow. Siaki made the tag to Badd, who cleaned house and came off the ropes with a kneelift to Stevens' face. He placed Douglas atop the turnbuckles and hit the "Badd Move" a top rope hurrancanrana for a near fall. Douglas ducked a clothesline and hit a high knee off the ropes. Siaki jumped in and began working over Stevens with chops. Stevens tossed Siaki to the floor. He wrapped a chain around his fist as Douglas held Badd. Siaki knocked Badd out of the way, but was struck by Stevens as he came off the ropes with the chain. They covered Siaki for the pin.

Your winners, The Naturals!

Jeremy Borash and Shane Douglas continued to preview the lineup for tonight.

They aired a video feature on the NWA championship situation, as Jeff Jarrett will defend against one of three possible contenders in tonight's main event.

Backstage, Scott Hudson interviewed Team Canada. Scott D'Amore said the best way to kick off 2005 was by Team Canada cementing its place as the top team in TNA history. He said that America's Most Wanted would crumble under the pressure tonight. D'Amore and Petey Williams ran down a list of contenders that Williams has defeated in the past and declared Williams was the "most ultimate X-Division champion of all time." D'Amore said that Williams would be victorious tonight and prove that there isn't an American alive who matches up to a Canadian.

Chris Candido vs. Cassidy Reily

Candido smirked as he came to the ring. Reily shoulderblocked him down and nailed him with a right. He took Candido over with several hiptosses, then took him over with a side headlock takedown for a near fall. Candido came back with a back suplex and then hit a thumb to the eye. Candido hit a snap suplex, then went to the ropes and connected with a legdrop off the middle turnbuckle. He gets a two count before Reily is able to kick up. Candido held Reily up with a suplex for a long time, before dropping him down. Candido chops Reily off his feet. Reily came back with a handspring elbow off the ropes and a backdrop. Reily hit a backspring elbow in the corner and a faceplant, but Candido kicked up at two. Reily went to the top rope but Candido took his legs out from under him, crotching him atop the ropes. Candido went to the top for a suicideplex (superplex off the top with both men standing on the ropes). Candido hit a top rope headbutt and scored the pin.

Your winner, Chris Candido!

Jeremy Borash and Shane Douglas stood in the center of the ring, running down the lineup again and pointing out the cables set up for the Ultimate X match. Jeremy Borash psyched up the live crowd as they had a minute to go and did a hard sell to the PPV audience to order the show. The crowd chanted "TNA" as they went off the air, leading into the live PPV....

TNA Final Resolution PPV

Final Resolution opened with a great video feature looking at the drive of their athletes and the legacies they are looking to leave behind. The video looked at all three TNA championships and the challenges who are striving for them tonight. It presented the night as a trial of courage for TNA's wrestlers.

Mike Tenay and Don West welcomed everyone to the PPV and ran down the lineup for tonight.

Backstage, Shane Douglas came into NWA champion Jeff Jarrett's locker room. He asked Jarrett about the three challengers looking to face him tonight and asked him, "What if it's Kevin Nash?" Jarrett ran down each challenger. He says that DDP's Diamond Cutter isn't going to cut it. He said that Monty Brown is just a AA ballplayer at best. He said that Kevin Nash thinks he's seven feet tall but he's 12 inches at best. Jarrett said that he earned the right to call himself the King of the Mountain. He said that Dusty Rhodes' plan tonight will backfire and he will remain the NWA champion tonight. It was a good promo.

Christopher Daniels & Michael Shane & Kazarian vs. 3 Live Kru

Christopher Daniels started the match with Konnan. The crowd chanted, "Fallen Angel." Konnan used some Mexican style matwork to keep Daniels on the mat. He hit a somersault into a clothesline on Daniels. Michael Shane tagged in but was taken down by BG Jammes. 3 Live Kru held his legs open for Killings to come off the top. Killings continued the assault on Shane, hitting a leaping forearm smash. Killings and Jammes worked over Kazarian, stomping him at the same time after doing a dance in synch with each other. Michael Shane tagged in but wasn't in his own corner, so the referee wouldn't allow it. Kazarian tagged Shane's foot and the referee wouldn't allow that either. Daniels blindtagged in and dropkicked Jammes' knee. He went down as Kazarian dropkicked him in the face. Jammes and Daniels battled back and forth with punches. Killings hit an axekick on Shane, but Daniels broke it up. Daniels hit an enziguiri on Jammes, but Konnan hit him with a faceplant. Konnan and Kazarian both went for a clothesline and took out the other. The referee began counting everyone down on the mat. Everyone make it to their feet and battle in the corners. Michael Shane is left in the ring with 3 Live Kru, who all work over him. Killings was pulled out of the ring and clotheslined by Kazarian on the floor. Daniels went for a springboard Arabian Press off the ropes to the floor, but hit Kazarian when Killings moved. 3 Live Kru took out Shane with a kick and Killings scored the pin.

Your winners, 3 Live Kru.

They noted that Traci Brooks, Trinity, and Jonny Fairplay would be doing several challenges tonight to find out who would be staying with Dusty Rhodes as his assistant. Backstage, Dusty Rhodes was sitting in the back of a pickup truck with Jonny Fairplay, Trinity, and Traci Brooks. He said there was a clue hidden in Universal which was "clear as the hat on your head." The idea was that two of them would make it back while one would be eliminated.

Sonjay Dutt vs. Primetime

The dueling chants by the fans started at the bell. Primetime pushed Dutt back into the corner with a collar and elbow tieup. Dutt came off the ropes with several takedowns on Primetime, then did several revolutions around Primetime before snapping him over with headscissors. Dutt charged Primetime on the floor, but got tossed over the guard rail into the crowd. Dutt flashed back and came off the railing with a clothesline. He tossed Primetime back in the ring and worked over his arm with an armbar. Primetime got to the ropes, forcing Dutt to release the hard. Dutt charged across the ring, holding Primetime's arm leaping over the ropes and snapping it. He came off the top rope with a dropkick to the arm. He kept going for the arm with Primetime wincing away in pain. Dutt signaled for a high risk move and climbed the ropes. With Dutt's back to the ring, Primetime hit a springboard dropkick onto Dutt, sending him flying out of the ring to the floor. Primetime rolled out of the ring and slammed Dutt, back-first, into the ring. He picked up Dutt and dropped him across the railing with an atomic drop. He chopped Dutt off the railing to the floor. Primetime was selling the arm from Dutt's offense on it earlier. Primetime tossed him back into the ring for a two count. Primetime went for the POD, but Dutt evaded it. Dutt came off the ropes but Primetime kneed him as he came down. He hit a gutwretch suplex on Dutt. Primetime flipped into the ring and hit a clothesline after landing on his feet. Sonjay came back with a spinkick, and a elbow. Dutt hit a backdrop driver-like move for a two count, but Primetime kicked up. Dutt hit a tiltowhirl DDT for a near fall. Dutt went for the Hindu Press, but landed on his feet when Prinetime moved. Primetime hit a spinning slam on Dutt and scored the pin.

Your winner, Primetime!

They aired a promo about the pending debut of Titus, who wasn't named. If you didn't know better, you would certainly think that the Ultimate Warrior was coming in.

Backstage, Kevin Nash and Diamond Dallas Page were speaking. Nash said that at his age, he wants to work smart, not hard. Sounds like Dave Scherer! Nash tried to convince DDP to help him take out Brown and then they could have a match like two gentlemen for the title match. DDP said that he always stood on his own two feet, going back to their issues with the NWO. Nash offered him an ultimatum, saying that they could work together and he would give his word not to touch DDP and if he struck DDP, the deal would be off. He asked DDP to trust him. DDP said, "Trust Kevin Nash? What a concept."

They aired a video feature on Kid Kash vs. Dustin Rhodes.

Kid Kash vs. Dustin Rhodes

Kid Kash's TNA music really sounds like Rob Van Dam's old ECW theme by Pantera. Rhodes is now sporting a goatee.

Kid Kash attacked Rhodes before the bell. Rhodes levels him with several punches. He knocks Kash out of the ring to the floor. Rhodes chases Kash around the ring, and when he follows Kash back in, gets cut off. Kash tried to monkeyflip Rhodes over, but gets a elbow to the mush instead. Rhodes went to the top, but Kash took his legs out from under him. Kash went for a superplex, but Rhodes shoved him off. Kash grabbed at his knee as if he was hurt. Rhodes didn't buy it, but the referee forced him to back off. The referee signaled for help, but when he had his back to the ring, Kash lowblowed Rhodes. Kash dropkicked Rhodes in the knee. He began working over the leg and knee. Kash trashtalked Rhodes and slapped him. Rhodes fought to his feet and slapped Kash, who dropkicked him in the leg again. Kash snapped on a spinning toehold, getting several two counts. Rhodes broke it with several rights to the face. He locked Kash in a backslide for a two count. Kash stomped Rhodes. Kash went for the spinning toehold again, but got locked in a small package for a near fall. Kash wrapped Rhodes' knee around the ropes, wrenching it. Kash tried to Irish Whip Rhodes across the ring, but Rhodes' knee buckled. Kash came off the top with a frog splash on the knee. He locked on a figure four leglock for a submission win. Rhodes finally turned it over, but as he got to his feet, Kash went right back to the knee. Rhodes was able to lock on a sleeper, but Kash reversed it and locked on a sleeper of his own, scissoring his legs around Rhodes' body. The referee dropped Rhodes' arm twice but he came back to life at the third try. Rhodes fought back to his feet and clotheslined him twice. Rhodes hit an inverted atomic drop on Kash, but used his bad knee and went down in pain. Kash went off the ropes with a bodypress, but Rhodes rolled through for a near fall. Rhodes went for the inverted suplex, but Kash flipped over and hit an enziguiri. He got a two count and was irate it wasn't three. Kash got in the referee's face who didn't back down. Rhodes used the distraction to nail a bulldog for the pin.

Your winner, Dustin Rhodes!

Somewhere in an office, Jeff Spicoli, I mean Jonny Fairplay found Dusty Rhodes' cowboy hat. It said "Clue" on the inside. Fairplay celebrated and said to the camera that he would be staying in TNA. He headed off to return to Dusty Rhodes. Fairplay seems to be channeling Sean Penn as Jeff Spicoli in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High."

They aired a video feature on the Three-Way Elimination bout for the NWA title match tonight.

They aired a video feature on Erik Watts vs. Raven.

Raven vs. Erik Watts

Erik Watts made his way to the ring carrying a steel chair. Raven attacked him as he entered the ring and began putting the boots to him. Watts tried to evade a clothesline but was hit with a droptoehold and went sailing outside the ring. Raven hit a side Russian Legsweep into the railing twice. Raven said he had Watts wrapped around his finger. He peppered Watts with right hands. Raven hit several boot scrapes across the face of Watts. Raven began measuring him with punches, scoring a two count. He tossed Watts out of the ring to the floor. He slams Watts' head into the ring apron. He fishhooked Watts' mouth. Watts hit an elbow and came off with a backwards mule dropkick off the top rope. Raven tried to walk out but Watts chased him up the aisle. Watts caught him and pulled him back to the ring. He hit a side Russian Legsweep of his own on the railing. He dropped Raven across the guardrail crotch first, then slapped him to the floor. Watts went for a chokeslam and hit it. He went outside the ring for the chair, but the referee took it away. With Watts distracted, Raven hit a low blow. He went for a drop toehold into a chair, but Watts evaded and slammed Raven's head into it. Watts dove off the chair with a clothesline on Raven. Watts hit a thrust kick on Raven, then mounted him with a series of right handed strikes. He beat down Raven with punches in the corner but Raven came back with his own lefts. Watts picked him up for a slam but instead threw him into the ropes. He went for the pin, but Raven kicked up. Raven superkicked Watts for a two count. Raven clotheslined Watts and demanded he get to his feet. Watts evades a DDT attempt and locked on a STF. Raven broke it and went to an anklelock. Watts used his height for leverage and choked Raven against the ropes with his legs. He went for a chokeslam but Raven evaded. Watts hit another and scored the pin.

Your winner, Erik Watts!

After the match, Raven apologized and said that he let his hatred for DDP blind him. He said he didn't respect Watts. He said that he was jealous of Watts because he never had any friends or family and said even though Watts won't believe him, he asked for forgiveness. He then attacked Watts with a trash can. Security separated Raven from Watts.

They plugged the 2/13 Against All Odds PPV as Erik Watts was helped to the back.

Scott Hall vs. Jeff Hardy with Roddy Piper as the special referee

Roddy Piper made his way to the ring for his role as special referee tonight. Scott Hall came out with his Elvis outfit, right down to the wig.

Scott Hall demanded Piper check Hardy at the bell and he did. Piper then did the same to Hall and found foreign objects hidden in Hall's kneepad, jumpsuit, and jacket. Piper rang the bell, but Hall began frisking Piper, finding handcuffs. Hall caught Hardy's leg when he went for a kick, but Hardy spun and hit him with the other leg. Mike Tenay noted that Hardy's first WWE match ever was against Hall, which is correct. The crowd chanted, "Hardy." Hall caught him with a Fall Away Slam for a two count. Hall argued with Piper's slow count. Hardy rolled up Hall twice for near falls. Hall retreated to the floor for a breather. Hall tried to get back in the ring but Hardy dropkicked him to the floor as he tried to get into the ring. Hardy hit a plancha to the floor and slammed him into the ring steps. Back in the ring, Hardy did his doubleleg drop low on Hall. Hall came back with an elbow to the back of the head. He hit a clothesline in the corner, then a second. Hardy tried to fight back with punches, but Hall decked him. Hall grapevined Hardy's legs into a deathlock, then pulled Hardy's hair. Piper made him break the move and Hall did, but not before stomping Hardy's back. Hall shoved Hardy into the ropes, but Hardy collided with Piper, who went down. Hall went to the turnbuckle, where he had brass knuckles hidden. He went to hit Hardy, but Piper saw the knucks and gave him a thumb to the eye. Hall stumbled into the Twist of Fate and Hardy hit the swanton for the clean pin.

Your winner, Jeff Hardy!

Hardy took the mic and said he was going to start "kicking some a** in this place" and declared he was going to start with Jeff Jarrett. Piper told him he has a shot at the title and to get out of the ring while he can. He raised Jeff Hardy's hand, declaring him the next World Heavyweight champion.

Abyss hit the ring and attacked Hardy, nailing him with the Shock Treatment. Mike Tenay and Don West played it off like they were shocked Abyss was there. Looks like TNA made a play to keep Abyss, which explains why they removed the announcement he was no longer with the company earlier in the week. Kudos to them for keeping the surprise hidden.

Backstage, Traci Brooks tried to flirt with a TNA staffer who might know where Dusty's clue was. Trinity tricked her into leaving, saying Dusty needed her but the staffer didn't fall to Trinity's flirtations either.

Monty Brown vs. Kevin Nash vs. Diamond Dallas Page for the NWA championship shot

DDP jumped into the crowd before the match, which went nuts for it. You can be eliminated by pin, submission, DQ, countout, or being tossed to the floor.

Nash sat back and told DDP and Brown to go ahead and wrestle. Brown powered Page into the corner. Page went for the diamond cutter but Brown shoved him away. Nash and Brown locked up, with Brown overpowering Nash into the corner. Page sat back and watched, per his agreement with Nash. Nash mocked Brown's walk and physique in the ring. Nash tried to nail him with a right but Brown blocked it and took Nash down with a series of his own. Nash was knocked down but tripped Brown into the ropes. Nash worked over Brown in the corner, and tossed him into the ropes. As Brown rebounded, Nash hit him with a sideslam for a two count. Nash locked a sideheadlock on Brown, who dropped him back into a suplex. Nash rolled out of the ring. Page hit a lariat on Brown and dropped an elbow for a two count. Brown hit a DDT on Page for a two count, but Nash dropped an elbow to break the pin, saving Page. Nash and Page began working over Brown in the corner. They took turns peppering Brown with punches. Page backdropped Nash over the ropes, eliminating him. Brown scooped up Page for a powerslam but Page hit the diamond cutter. At the two count, Nash pulled him out of the ring. Page began hitting rollups and lariats for near falls, but Brown kept kicking up. The crowd kept yelling for the Pounce. Brown battled back and scored a two count. Brown scored a two count with a powerslam. Page came off the ropes and tried to grab a diamond cutter but Brown ducked it and came off the ropes with the Pounce for the pin.

Your winner, Monty Brown!

Monty Brown will challenge Jeff Jarrett tonight for the NWA championship.

They aired a video feature on America's Most Wanted vs. Team Canada.

NWA Tag Team champions Team Canada vs. America's Most Wanted

AMW attacked Eric Young and Bobby Rude in the aisle as they huddled with Scott D'Amore. Chris Harris slammed Bobby Rude into the announcer's table. Eric Young and James Storm brawled up the other aisle. Storm hit a tiltowhirl headscissors on Young on the ramp. Rude was thrown into the guard rail. Rude tried to slam Harris' head into the railing but he blocked and slammed Rude into it. Storm threw Young into the railing. Young was tossed into the ring where he was trashed and tossed back out. Young had a nasty knot raising in his forehead. Mike Tenay called it an egg. Storm clotheslined him in the aisle from behind. Rude attacked AMW but they both hiptossed him and caught him midtwist, then tossed him into Young like a battering ram. Rude ended up outside the ring. AMW grabbed Young and tossed him over the ropes, crashing onto Rude. Back in the ring, Rude tossed Harris into the turnbuckles. Storm backdropped Rude. Harris tagged in and hit a hurrancanrana. Storm rebounded off the ropes, where Young nailed him with a knee to the back. Rude caught Storm with a neckbreaker. Team Canada began stomping Storm. Team Canada worked over Storm. Young came off the top with an elbow, but Storm kicked up. He tagged out to Rude who dropped a big knee across the face of Storm. Storm went for an enziguiri, but Rude ducked. Storm throttled his other foot into Rude's face. Storm finally made the hot tag, who clotheslined Young then hit a bulldog off the ropes. He shoved Rude into Young and then hit a uranage. He came off the ropes with a flying lariat. He picked up Young and held him up for a extended period of time before dropping him down for a suplex. Storm hit a powerslam on Young for a two count. They called for ther Death Sentence but Eric Young stoped Harris. He went to superplex Harris off the ropes but Storm got under him and powerbombed him off at the ropes at the same time. Harris flew into Rude and took him out. Harris tried to pin Young, but Scott D'Amore pulled him out of the ring. America's Most Wanted grabbed D'Amore and handcuffed him to one of the metal supports for the Ultimate X. D'Amore threw a tantrum and tried to bite through the handcuffs. AMW took out Young and called for the Death Sentence again. Johnny Devine came down to interfere but Chris Harris saw him and chased him around the ring. Bobby Rude was waiting and hit a superkick on the floor. As the referee tried to admonish Rude, Devine broke a hockey stick over Storm's back. Young made the cover but Storm kicked up. Devine got knocked out of the equation. AMW nearly got a three count with a powerbomb. The crowd chanted, "bullsh*t" at the two count. Young was clotheslined out of the ring. Harris hit the catatonic on Young. Johnny Devine slid a chair into the ring and Rude slammed him into the chair. The referee counted two but Harris got his foot on the ropes. Johnny Devine tried to interfere and hit Harris, but hit Young by accident. Harris rolled up Young and scored the pin.

Your winners and new NWA Tag Team champions, America's Most Wanted!

Backstage, Jonny Fairplay was skipping along wearing the cowboy hat. He came across Traci and Trinity and told them he found the clue and they were just bimbos. They kicked the crap out of him and stole the clue out of the hat. It tore in half and they both raced back to Rhodes, who was waiting in the pickup truck. He told them that since they each had half, they were both survivors. He gave them an assignment, which was to scour the country and find him a new tag team for TNA. The woman who brought him the best tag team would then be his new secretary. They raced off and we were left with a shot of Fairplay crawling on his belly towards Rhodes.

They aired a video feature on the Ultimate X Match.

TNA X-Division champion Petey Williams vs. AJ Styles vs. Chris Sabin

AJ took the offense to both of his opponents at the start. Williams was chased around the ring by Sabin, leading to him being caught between AJ and Sabin's forearm shots. Styles hit a running dropkick to Williams, who landed outside the ring. Scott D'Amore, still handcuffed, implored him to get up. Sabin and Styles went back and forth with strikes and wrestling maneuvers. Styles tried to springboard off the ropes to grab the X-Division title but couldn't get it. Williams pulled Sabin out of the ring to the floor, where they brawled. Styles hit a running flip dive over the ropes to the floor. The crowd chanted, "Holy sh**!" I wonder if Universal will throw all of them out. They started chanted, "That was awesome." Styles scaled one of the corners towards the cables but Sabin caught up to him. Sabin hit Styles, taking him down. Sabin scaled the cables, but D'Amore (now free) got into the ring and grabbed his legs. Williams pulled Sabin down with Sabin landing on his knee. The referee threw D'Amore out of ringside as Williams protesting. Williams slammed Styles into one of the steel corners. He hit several suplexes on Sabin. He began scaling towards the cable, but instead stomped on Styles outside the ring. Sabin began chopping away at Williams, who countered with an elbow to the knees. Sabin locked on a Texas Cloverleaf. Styles climbed the cables but was pulled off by Williams. Williams ducked a kick and hit a back suplex. He went for a pin, which Mike Tenay covered by saying he was lost in the heat of battle since you don't have pinfalls here. Styles was tied upside down in the corner with Williams standing on his nether regions. Williams stomped on Sabin, trying to force him from the ring, finally succeeding. Williams came off the ropes but Styles nailed him with a kick to the face. Sabin tried to make the cables, but Styles pulled him off. Sabin returned the favor. Styles pulled Sabin onto his shoulders. As Sabin tried to battle his way off, Williams made his way across the cables, let go and landed on Sabin, hitting a hurrancanrana on him while he was on Styles' shoulders. Williams and Styles both scaled opposite sides of the cables, with each man racing across the cables. Styles and Williams battled while hanging there. Williams scissored his legs and hung upside down, trying to grab the belt. Sabin pulled Styles off the cables. Styles took down Sabin, then hit a springboard into a forearm smash on Williams, who was upside down. Williams crashed to the mat. The crowd went nuts and chanted "TNA." Styles made his way to the ropes, but Sabin jumped on his shoulders and hit a frankensteiner into the ring. The crowd chanted, "This is Awesome." Sabin went for an inverted DDT on Williams, but Styles hit a springboard flip over Sabin and caught one of his own on Sabin at the same second. Styles jumped onto the cables and made his way across, but Sabin dropkicked him off a springboard. Styles fell to the ring flipping down as he did in an awesome bump. Sabin hit a dive to the floor on Williams. Styles tried to recover in the ring as the fans chanted for him. Williams and Styles tried to ascend to the cables, battling on the posts. Williams grabbed Styles' arm and pulled it through the grid, then snapped it. Styles was hung by his arm, then crumpled to the floor. In the ring, Sabin grabbed Williams and hit Cradleshock. Sabin made his way across the cables. He pulled Sabin off and tried to set him for the Styles Clash but Sabin locked an armbar on Styles' hurt arm. Styles pulled him up with one arm and hit a "one armed" Styles Clash. The crowd chanted, "This is awesome." This match certainly is! Styles made his way across the ropes, but just as he got to the belt, his arm failed him and he fell into the ring. Williams hit the Canadian Destroyer on Styles. Williams stalked Sabin to hiot the Destroyer, but Sabin avoided it and hit a running powerbomb into the turnbuckles on Williams. Mike Tenay called it, "The Whiplash Effect." If that's not the name for the move, it should be! With Styles still down, Sabin and Williams recovered and tried to cross the cables. Each of them made the belt and while hanging upside down, were fighting over the belt, which they both released and grabbed. Styles springboarded off the ropes and grabbed the belt out of their hands. He crashed to the floor, and retrieved the belt in the ring. The crowd gave everyone a much deserved standing ovation.

Your winner, AJ Styles!

Ladies and Gentlemen, order the replay just on the strength of this thing, it was amazing!

TNA should have called an audible and aired the post-match reactions from the live crowd, as this was something special.

Backstage, NWA champion Jeff Jarrett passed Kevin Nash in the locker room hallway. Jarrett mocked Nash. Nash tried to get at him, but was held back by security. He warned Jarrett he was coming for the belt.

NWA champion Jeff Jarrett vs. Monty Brown

Jeremy Borash tried to do the ring announcements as Jarrett and Brown shoved each other in the ring. The referees and security held them apart. The crowd chanted "Monty" at the onset of the bout. Brown and Jarrett circled the ring with a collar and elbow tieup. Jarrett did his strut after they were separated. Jarrett tried to wear him down with a side headlock, but Brown shoved him into the ropes. Jarrett ducked a clotheline and dropkicked Brown. Jarrett lounged on the ropes, mocking Brown. Jarrett tried to shoulderblock Brown but it was to no avail. Brown hit an elevated press slam on Jarrett. Jarrett kneed Brown in the midsection twice and tried to chop him, but Brown caught him and hiptossed him out of the corner. Jarrett ducked a clothesline but Brown caught his attempted high cross bodyblock and slammed him down for a two count. Brown scored another two count after a headbutt to the midsection. Brown misses a clothesline and lands on the floor. Jarrett hits a plancha but was caught by Brown. Brown nearly drops him but holds him and powers him over for a backbreaker. Jarrett slammed Brown into the steel corner, then tossed him into the crowd. Jarrett nailed Brown with a chair in the crowd. He hit Brown with it a second time, then tossed him over the railing, back into the ringside area. Jarrett measured Brown with a chair and nailed him in the ribs with it. Jarrett charged with Brown and slammed him into the announcer's table. Jarrett slammed Don West's chair into Brown. Mike Tenay and Don West scampered for safety. Jarrett began slamming Brown's head into the railing, and then shoved him towards the ring. Jarrett tried to use the NWA belt but the referee took it away. Back in the ring, Jarrett applied a sleeper on Brown. Brown battled back to his feet and reversed it on Jarrett. Jarrett went for a figure four, but Brown small packaged him for a two count. Brown charged him in the corner, but Jarrett moved. Jarrett and Brown clotheslined each other and went down. The referee began counting them out. Jarrett ducks two clotheslines, but Brown catches him and powerslams him for a two count. Brown reversed an Irish Whip on Jarrett, who crashed into referee Rudy Charles. Charles clutched at his knee. Jarrett got the guitar and nailed Brown with it. Brown staggered and finally collapsed. Brown kicked up at two. Jarrett grabbed the steel chair. Brown picked him up for the Electric Chair, but Jarrett slammed the chair into his face. Brown staggered and fell backwards with Jarrett on his shoulders. Jarrett made the cover and Brown got his shoulder up. Jarrett grabbed the NWA belt and struck Brown with it. Brown kicked up at two, shooting Jarrett into the air. Brown got a second wind, almost like Hulk Hogan hulking up in his prime. He went for the pounce, but Jarrett ducked and the referee took it. Jarrett grabbed another guitar and came off the ropes with it, but Brown grabbed him by the throat and chokeslammed him. Brown hit him over the head with the guitar, but there was no referee. Brown made the cover and the crowd counted to five. A second referee hit the ring but Jarrett got his arm up at the two count. Brown came off the ropes but Jarrett nailed him with the remnants of the guitar. Jarrett hit him with the stroke three times and scored the pin.

Your winner and still NWA champion Jeff Jarrett!

2005 - Jamal and Taiyo Kea defeat Hiroshi Tanahashi and Yutaka Yoshie in Osaka, Japan for the vacant AJPW Unified World Tag Team Title. The title was stripped from Kendo Kashin and Yuji Nagata on December 16, because they did not defend them within six months.

2006 - WWE holds a live RAW and tapes that week's WWE.com Heat at the RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. The results:
- In a dark match, Ken Doane and Mike Mondo defeated Chris Cage and The Miz.
Heat:
- Trevor Murdoch pinned Antonio of the Heart Throbs after a top-rope bulldog in a Royal Rumble Qualifying match.
- Rob Conway pinned Michael Youngblood after the Ego Trip.
- Snitsky pinned Val Venis after a big boot.
- Viscera defeated Lance Cade, Gregory Helms and Tyson Tomko in an Royal Rumble Qualifying battle royal, last eliminating Helms.
RAW:
- Shawn Michaels pinned World Heavyweight Champion Kurt Angle in a non-title match with a roll-up.
- Chris Masters and John Cena fought to a no contest in the Masterlock Challenge, after Edge came in and hit Cena with the WWE Title belt.
- Candice Michelle, Victoria and Torrie Wilson defeated WWE Women's Champion Trish Stratus, Mickie James and Ashley, when Victoria pinned Ashley after the Widow's Peak.
- Shelton Benjamin defeated WWE Tag Team Champion Big Show by countout when Triple H came through the crowd and fought backstage with Big Show.
- WWE Champion Edge defeated WWE Intercontinental Champion Ric Flair in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match to retain the title. After the match, Edge speared Flair and hit him with a con-chair-to, before John Cena made the save.

2007 - WWE tapes the January 19 edition of Friday Night SmackDown! and airs ECW live from Alltel Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas. The event featured the debut of Monty Brown on ECW, and the debuts of Deuce, Domino and Cherry on SmackDown!. The ratings for the two shows were 1.5 for ECW on SciFi, and 2.9 for SmackDown! on The CW. The results were:
In a dark match, Sensai (Shantelle Taylor) pinned Jamie Noble with a roll-up.
SmackDown!:
- Matt Hardy pinned Joey Mercury with a double-leg pickup into a roll-over. After the match, MNM gave Hardy the Snapshot on the exposed floor outside the ring.
- Montel Vontavious Porter, William Regal and Dave Taylor defeated Vito and WWE Tag Team Champions Brian Kendrick and Paul London, when MVP pinned Kendrick with a modified side slam.
- WWE United States Champion Chris Benoit defeated Chavo Guerrero by submission with the Sharpshooter in a No Disqualification match.
- Deuce and Domino (with Cherry) defeated Patrick Bentley and Adam Roberts, when Domino made the pin after Deuce hit the move that would become known as Crack 'Em in the Mouth.
- Kane pinned The Miz after a chokeslam.
- Mr. Kennedy defeated The Undertaker by disqualification, after World Heavyweight Champion Batista gave Kennedy a spear out of the ring just as Undertaker was going for the chokeslam. Kennedy had hit Batista just before while Batista was doing commentary on the match. If Kennedy had lost the match, the title match at January 28's Royal Rumble between Batista and Kennedy would have been made a Triple Threat match with The Undertaker added.
ECW:
- CM Punk pinned Matt Striker with a backslide after Kelly Kelly got on the apron and flashed Striker.
- Marquis Cor Von defeated Cassidy Riley by submission with an armbar. This was Monty Brown's WWE debut.
- Elijah Burke pinned The Sandman with a handful of Sandman's pants.
- ECW World Champion Bobby Lashley defeated Rob Van Dam and Test in a three-way match, by pinning Van Dam after a powerslam. After the match, Test hit Lashley with the title belt outside the ring.
- In a dark match after ECW, World Heavyweight Champion Batista, Kane and The Undertaker defeated Booker T, Finlay and Mr. Kennedy, when Batista pinned Kennedy after the Batista Bomb.

2009 - WWE released the trailer for John Cena's film "12 Rounds."

2009 - WWE releases Bob Holly after a 15 year run with the company.

2009 - Northeast independent wrestler Paul E. Normous (Paul Fuchs), who had a cameo and was mentioned by name in the first locker room scene in "The Wrestler" passed away.  We don't have any additional details regarding his passing at this time, but authorities are investigating.  He was only 33 years old.

A New York native, E. Normous trained out of a number of different schools including Gino Caruso and Jason Knight's after growing up a fan of the business.  He often noted in interviews that growing up, his grandmother was a huge Ric Flair fan  He was mentored by Little Guido/Nunzio as well before Guido signed with WWE in 2002.

E. Normous had worked some of the early Ring of Honor shows, plus numerous indy promotions like WXW, 3PW and a slew of other groups in the New York City tri-state area. He had also worked an invitational training camp for Ohio Valley Wrestling when it was an official WWE developmental.

A tall, extremely muscled worker, E. Normous was billed at 6'6 so he fit the role of a huge monster worker on independent shows during an era where most wrestlers on that level are far smaller. Beyond that, he had also worked as a celebrity bodyguard, personal fitness and nutrition and had done some acting work. He was among the wrestlers who had attended the New York debut of "The Wrestler" at the NY International Film Festival last year.


2010 -  EVOLVE debuted.  Stu Carapola filed the following live report:

I just got home from the debut EVOLVE event in Rahway, New Jersey.  I was really impressed with the show, everyone worked really hard and it came off well.  It wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing show, however, as the lighting was bad, the microphone kept cutting out on people when they were speaking, and the entrances were unspectacular, as each man would walk to the ring to generic music and be introduced with no hometown or weight.  But you couldn't say many bad things about the in-ring product.  Here's what happened on the show:

-Kyle O'Reilly defeated Bobby Fish in a stiff opener.  O'Reilly is from the same Tony Kozina camp that Davey Richards came from, and when Kyle cut a promo after the match talking about winning the first ever EVOLVE match, Davey came out and told him to get to the back so he could prepare for his main event match.

-Chuck Taylor defeated Cheech in a qualifying match to become a full member of the EVOLVE roster.  Taylor cut a promo after the match saying that he thinks it stinks that he had to win a qualifying match to get on the roster while certain other guys were just signed right up, and he plans to keep on winning and making EVOLVE management's life difficult.

-Ricochet defeated Arik Cannon.  After the match, Chuck Taylor came out and challenged Ricochet to a match at the second EVOLVE event, which Ricochet accepted.

-The Dark City Fight Club defeated Aeroform.  Aeroform was much smaller than the DCFC and the match was a lot more competitive than you might expect it to be, but the DCFC came out on top after hitting the pop-up double powerbomb.

-Mercedes Martinez defeated Niya.  This was just a one minute squash in which Niya got no offense.  After the match, Mercedes cut a promo saying that EVOLVE is not just a men's promotion, and she's out to prove herself as the top female wrestler around.

-Brad Allen defeated Silas Young.  After the match, Allen challenged Chris Hero to a match on the second EVOLVE event.

-Jimmy Jacobs defeated Kenn Doane.  Doane originally won the match, but Jacobs had his foot on the ropes.  This brought Tommy Dreamer out from the back to tell the ref about the foot on the rope.  The match was restarted and Jacobs tapped Doane out to the End Time.  Tommy Dreamer cut a promo thanking the fans for supporting him all these years and for coming out to support EVOLVE, then Jacobs took the mic and told Dreamer that he just came here for one more moment in the spotlight, and that he doesn't need Dreamer's help and called him a washed up hasbeen.  This led to a brawl between Dreamer and Jacobs.

INTERMISSION

-Johnny Gargano defeated Chris Dickinson.  This was short but fun.  Gargano won with a Flatliner.

-Minenori Sawa defeated TJP (aka TJ Perkins).  This was a really stiff match with both guys laying into each other with a ton of hard kicks and forearms.

-Team Lighting (Mike Quackenbush, Hallowicked, and Frightmare) defeated Akuma's Army (Gran Akuma, Brodie Lee, and Icarus).  This was a pretty standard CHIKARA six man match that featured a lot of cool, innovative moves.  It never ceases to amaze me the stuff these CHIKARA guys come up with.

-Davey Richards defeated Kota Ibushi in the main event.  This match was off the charts and was easily the best match of the night.  Ton of near falls, but Richards finally tapped Ibushi out to the Kimura Lock.  After the match, Richards challenged Kyle O'Reilly to a match on the second EVOLVE event, then thanked everybody for coming out and being a part of the first EVOLVE show.

House looked to be in the 300-350 range, which was a lot more than I expected coming in.  EVOLVE returns to Rahway for their second event on March 13th.

2010 - TNA announced that they will be asking people that come to next week's TV tapings in Orlando to bring a donation for the victims of Tuesday's massive earthquake in Haiti.  They will then donate the money to the Central Florida Headquarters of the American Red Cross to help struggling folks in the country, which is very close to Florida.  The article has the following quote from Dixie Carter, "The photos and video from Haiti are tragic. We want to help. We have to help. The money raised at The iMPACT! Zone is just a start of TNA’s plan to help the country of Haiti."

Meanwhile, backstage interviewer Bubba The Love Sponge wrote (or possibly had someone write for him) the following on his Twitter page on January 14 (with the swearing edited out for family consumption): "I say f*** hati. Why do we have to take care of everybody our country is in shambles. Bubba". 

Bubba's comments led to Awesome Kong attacking him backstage at a taping and likely led to the end of his short TNA run as well.


2011 - The Nick Gulas Memorial Card was held in Nashville, TN.  Larry Goodman filed the following report:

I attended the Nick Gulas Memorial hoping for the best and fearing the worst. It turned out to be a great deal of the latter and not much of the former.

The event, co-promoted by Gulas Old School Wrestling, Showtime All-Star Wrestling and Havoc Wrestling Association, drew an SRO crowd of 340 to the HWA building in LaVergne, TN to honor the 20th anniversary of Nick’s passing.

The attendance was the great news, as was a tour de force performance by 80 year old Jackie Fargo. Also on the plus side, was a women’s dog collar match that delivered something unique and memorable.

Any wrestling event that calls for coordination and cooperation among three promotions is fraught with peril, and when one of the three is a late addition, it’s just asking for trouble. SAW had to move their TV taping out of Columbia, TN when RTW decided not to renew their sponsorship agreement. Since SAW was already planning to work with George Gulas and GOSW, they hitched their TV taping onto the Memorial. In theory, the move figured to improve the show by significantly boosting the talent level. In practice, it was a disaster.

The show ran over 5 hours, ending after 1am local time. There were 19 matches. The SAW TV Taping with the top talent went on last and didn’t start until after 11. The incredible packed house atmosphere of the first hour was long gone. The crowd dwindled to less than 100 before it was over. The net result was a good percentage of the fans missed the best matches featuring the big league talent, and SAW got a TV taping with a crowd that went from decent to dead, and was nothing like what it would have been had it gone on early in the evening.

So through some really fine promotion including a great article in the Thursday edition of the Nashville Tennessean, Gulas and company succeeded in producing a great atmosphere and getting a lot of new eyeballs to view their product, then failed to deliver anything close to the best possible product. The show had 10 matches before the SAW TV Taping was added. There were a number of changes made to the card that was originally advertised, and it was my understanding that it had been tweaked to get the total down to 12 or 13. Why that didn’t happen is an unanswered question. Why the SAW TV taping didn’t go on first is another one. And for that matter, how could a Nick Gulas Memorial take place anywhere except the Nashville Fairgrounds Sports Arena, the building the city of Nashville constructed specifically for Nick’s wrestling shows?

The event got off on the right foot with a smoothly run legends meet and greet. Jackie and Don Fargo, Gypsy Joe, Bobby Eaton Tony Falk and Gulas had a steady line of fans for 90 minutes. Scott Teal was selling classic photos – 5 for $5 - that the fans were getting the legends to autograph. Jackie was a bundle of energy throughout the evening. He appeared to be in great mental and physical shape. He and Don were obviously having a great time being together. The legends sat together at ringside kibitzing during the first half of the show, all except Falk, who had a show to run at the Stadium Inn. Michael St. John was on hand to handle a portion of the announcing duties along with Gordon and the HWA announcer.

(1) Johnny Demento (with Crazy Ray) beat Chad Williams (with Blackie West). At one point, Fargo came over with some words of advice for Ray. Demento pinned Chad after a screw up in which West hit Williams. West has limited ability, but it was good to see him at ringside after the serious medical issues he’s had.

(2) “Boogie Woogie Boy” Gary Valiant (with Yukon Jack) beat Sharp Dressed Man Lawrence (with Blackie West) in 10:13. Boogie’s popularity hasn’t dropped of any. The crowd ate up his all-through-the-crowd entrance. In my mind, “Sharp Dressed Man” will forever be associated with the heyday of Jimmy Garvin and Precious, and there’s just something so wrong about anybody else using that music. It was the typical Valiant match where he sells long and big before the comeback, pinning Lawrence with the Boogie Blaster. Afterward, Valiant tried to get Fargo to join him the ring. Fargo wasn’t down with that but Boogie was able to cajole him into a moment of Boogie Woogie schtick at ringside.

(3) “King of the Hill from Knoxville” Shane Williams pinned “King of Kingsport” Beau James in 9:10. No entrance music for Shane. I started going to pro wrestling shows when there was no such thing, and it did my heart good to see a heel get heat with sheer attitude walking to the ring. The crowd didn’t know what to make of Beau as a babyface, being that he looks like the love child of Jerry Blackwell and Frenchy Riviera, but they told the story well. Shane pinned James after punching him with a chain-wrapped fist.

(4) Dominique defeated Mickie Knuckles and Jessie Belle and Miss Rachel and Misty James to become The Queen of Gulas Old School Wrestling in 4:47. Not much to it. They paired off heels vs. faces. Knuckles and Belle battled to the back. James and Rachel went down on a collision of clotheslines. At that point, Dominique ran out and covered James and the made a three count. Jeff Daniels came out and celebrated with Dominique. Gordon announced The First Lady of the NWA” Dominique as the winner. Misty maintained her credibility by giving the ref holy hell for allowing it.

George presented each of the legends with a certificate. George talked about teaming with Eaton as the Jet Set vs. Joe & Tojo Yamamoto. Joe teased doing something physical to which George responded, “I know you’ve got flashbacks but no way.” George called the Fargos the biggest Nashville legend of all time at the Hippodrome and the Fairgrounds and said they made more money for his father than anyone else. George said Roughhouse Fargo died in 2008 and had gone to the big ring where it was 2 out of 3 falls with an everlasting time limit. Don made a brief thank you speech. As Jackie started to speak, he was interrupted by the appearance of King Shane. He made the rounds and the legends were less than thrilled with his hugs and handshakes. Jackie told Shane to get his ass out of there. “It’s me!” Shane said, his Jerry Lawler delusion in full effect. Jackie dropped Shane with a short right hand. Shane bounced to the outside. “You don’t want none of this action,” Jackie said. Jackie gave a simple heartfelt thank you speech, then he and Don did one last tandem Fargo strut. Jackie wasn’t done though. He danced in the ring with the blonde HWA security girl. Cue up “I Don’t Need No Rocking Chair.”

It was all downhill from there. The legends left during the intermission.

(5) Matt Madison & Jamine J beat KDS Legend & Violent T (with ?) in 6:30. Madison was the bright light in this HWA affair. He’s very small but he has skills, which is more than I can say for the rest of the guys in this match. Madison pinned Legend with a sick burning hammer.

(6) Chris Michaels beat Ryan Genesis in 5:45. Athletically and aesthetically speaking, this was several notches up from what had gone before. Michaels escaped from the Death Valley Driver and rolled Genesis up using the tights and the ropes.

(7) Chaos won an 8 man battle royal to become the number one contender for the HWA Hardcore Title. With six guys in the ring, the announcer asked if there were any more participants – a reasonable question after what happened with Dominique. Seven out of the eight combatants were in all black. The match dissolved into an indistinguishable mass of backyard level ugliness. The best thing about it was the bump Demento took for his elimination. Chaos and Torch Hudson managed to dump Karnage, who is hated heel here. Chaos pulled the ropes down on a charging Hudson for the win.

(8) Mickie Knuckles beat Jessie Belle in a Dog Collar Match in 9:22. The women brought the brutality. Belle is a terrific heel. Her personality is way more developed than her wrestling ability. Fortunately, Knuckles was there to hold up that end of the deal. Belle mostly choked Knuckles with the chain. Knuckles threw Belle out of the ring and rudely hauled her back inside. Knuckles then scored near falls with a basement dropkick, a gutwrench suplex, a spinning uranage. They traded near falls and it was a bit of a struggle. Belle used the chain to clothesline Knuckles over the top, then wrapped the chain around the turnbuckles in an attempt to hang Knuckles, who appeared to be in dire straits. Ref Jess Fields had to get physical with Belle. Knuckles recuperated sufficiently to hit a slingshot sunset flip for the pin. I liked this match a lot. Knuckles was on her game.

(9) GQ & Lee Condrey & White Trash beat Kevin “Thug” Jones & Deshawn Hoodrich & Brian Swift in 13:50. Hoodrich and GQ carried the action. Hoodrich now has a great look, the type that separated him from the pack in this match. He has added significant muscle weight since the last time I saw him. The aptly named Trash pinned Hoodrich with trailer park version of Sliced Bread #2. Way, way too long.

(10) Hammerjack & Shane Morton & Steve O & Diamond Steel defeated Jeff Daniels & Road Hogg & Derrick King Enterprises (Derrick King & Drew Haskins with Sista O’Feelyah) at 12:20 in an eight man elimination match. Steel is a pint-sized Van Hammer with a full blown electrified Guitar Hero intro. Daniels and Hammerjack did a believable brawl to the back for the best action of the night thus far. Personal highlight was a properly applied abdominal stretch by Haskins. It came down to Steel & O vs. DKE. King accidentally superkicked Haskins to the floor. O hit a cool full nelson face plant on King and Steel pinned him with a leaping legdrop, so I guess O and Steel split the $600 (cough) purse.

It was after 11pm when the SAW TV Taping finally got underway.

(11) Shane Williams beat Ryan Mitchell via DQ in 8:30 when Arrick Andrews attacked Williams.

(12) Jess Emerson (with Rick Santel & Roxy) beat Ryan Genesis in 8:50. Genesis hit the ceiling when he elevated on his top rope elbow drop. Kind of messed up his trajectory. Emerson kicked out of it. While Roxy provided the distraction, Santel threw a stinging liquid into Genesis’ eyes.

(13) Picture Perfect (Jon Michael Worthington & Christian Jacobs) beat Derrick King Enterprises (Derrick King & Drew Haskins with Sista O’Feelyah) to win the SAW Tag Team Championship.in 12:30. Worthington started the match alone. Jacobs came limping down to ringside to take the hot tag. Johnny Bandana came out and promptly missed catching King. Jacobs did the Hernandez suicide dive onto DKE. Worthington followed with a twisting dive off the top and was lucky not to kill himself. He couldn’t get his footing because the top rope was loose. Finish saw Bandanna screw up with a hotshot stunner on King, and Jacobs speared King for the pin.

A brief intermission for ring repairs was required, the last thing they needed.

(14) Tommy Mercer beat Chase Stevens via DQ in around 20 minutes. These guys have nothing but solid, intense matches. Heavy duty brawling to start. Stevens knocked Mercer off the apron with a springboard kick and delivered a snap suplex on the floor. Mercer had a Stevens in a cravate submission for a very long time. Mercer hit a massive double underhook suplex for a near fall. Mercer used a donkey kick to the yambags to cut off a comeback and hit a Russian legsweep but couldn’t put Stevens away. Stevens came back with the scissors kick for a near fall. At that point, Stevens lost his mind. He tossed ref Joe Williams out of the ring before hitting his finisher, so of course there was no ref to count. Fields ran down and Stevens threw him over the top rope. Fields caught the rope on his way down or it could have been really nasty. Mercer capitalized on the diversion, attacking Stevens’ knee with a chair. The geek squad ran out to break it up. Both refs sold huge and Stevens needed major help getting to the back.

(15) David Young (with Paul Adams & Jess Emerson & Rick Santel) beat Vordell Walker in 4:07. Young was wearing the superhero suit. He was in deep trouble despite all the outside help. Adams ran distraction and Emerson hit the Alabama Slam on Walker to hand Young the win on a silver platter.

(16) Hammerjack beat Jeff Daniels by DQ in 4:38. Daniels went for the coathanger. Hammer cut him off and was about to turn the table on him when Dominque bopped him in the head with a hammer. Daniels choked Hammer out with the coathanger again. Would have been great with the fired up crowd of the first hour.

(17) Cody Melton beat Johnny Bandanna (with Sista O’Feelyah) in 6:33. Some really crisp action. Nobody cared. Melton got out from under Bandanna’s moonsault attempt and rolled him up.

(18) Sigmon beat Terry Ray via submission in 30 seconds.

(19) Arrick Andrews pinned Will the Thrill in 30 seconds with Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am. The few people remaining for some reason gave Will a lot of grief. It was amazing to me that found it within them to spew venom after 5 hours.

NOTES: Footage taped for broadcast by SAW included the legends ceremony, exclusive interviews with Fargo and Eaton, and all the matches from Shane Williams vs Ryan Mitchell on except for Mercer/Stevens, which will appear on a DVD version along with several other matches. In total, the taping will provide three weeks worth of TV…The next SAW TV taping will be 2/12 in Nashville at the Stadium Inn, the promotion’s first Saturday night taping at that venue. The upcoming event for the HWA Arena reads as follows: HWA on 1/22, 1/29 and 2/12. GOSW on 2/5 and 2/19…The most professional aspect of HWA is their security. I didn’t catch her name, but the blonde that danced with Jackie Fargo was a total pro…Former occasional SAW TV announcer Jack Johnson, Nashville wrestling pundit The Bro (www.broknowswrestling.blogspot.com), and noted Nashville wrestling photographer Embra were in the house…Beau James will be our special guest on “Phoning It In” Monday night at 8pm ET. We’ll also talk get an update on the 1/29 Fairgrounds show featuring Lawler/Dundee for the last time in Nashville. Check it out at www.blogtalkradio.com/psp. The promotion behind the Fairgrounds event is Southern All-Star Wrestling, not to be confused with Showtime. Not only do both promotions go by SAW, but at one point they were one and the same as Southern All-Star. The Reno Riggins/Paul Adams TV product changed its name after consultation with Jerry Jarrett, who came on board to assist in securing international syndication. TJ Weatherby, the promoter of the of the original SAW Mill building in Millersville, has continued to run weekly Friday night shows as Southern All-Star…Haskins worked on torn ligaments in his left knee. The good news is the doc said he won’t need knee surgery, which was the initial prognosis…Riggins was at the building but did not appear in front of the crowd.

2012 - WWE broadcast Raw.  Richard Trionfo filed the following TV report:

This week’s episode of Raw begins with the annual footage of the I Have a Dream Speech from Martin Luther King Junior since it is Martin Luther King Day.

We are live from Anaheim, California and your announcers are Jerry ‘The Happiest Place on Earth’ Lawler and Michael ‘Is Anaheim ready for the Funk’ Cole.

Mick Foley starts things off and he makes his way to the ring.

We see that CM Punk and Daniel Bryan will be facing Mark Henry and Dolph Ziggler in a tag match. Zack Ryder will defend the United States Title against Jack Swagger tonight.

Mick says that he is here tonight for two simple reasons. He would never pass up an opportunity to spend the day at Disneyland, right here in Anaheim. Second, he says that he was more than content to be involved in a non-physical and nostalgic role. Foley says that he enjoyed being Santa on Smackdown and he was happy being in the This is Your Life segment with John Cena, even though it was not that good.

Mick says that he has accomplished everything in the ring, including headlining Wrestlemania in this building with his wife and children in attendance. Mick says that he has two more kids so he wants to be able to have his kids see him in the ring. He wants Mickey and Huey to see their dad in the ring one more time.

Mick says that he is here to announce that he will be in the Royal Rumble.

Vickie Guerrero comes out to the ring with Dolph Ziggler and she throws out some Excuse Mes. She introduces the next WWE Champion, Dolph Ziggler.

Dolph takes the mic and he points out that there are thirty precious spots in the Royal Rumble for the golden ticket of Wrestlemania, but Mick wants to show up to take one. Dolph wants to know if Mick is willing to take the spot of the person whose dream it is to make it to Wrestlemania so Mick can show off for his snotty kids. Mick says yes.

Dolph says that he saw Mick doing his standup and if this is one of his bits, it is funny. If not, Mick’s shot in the Royal Rumble would go just like this. Yay, our daddy is in the Royal . . . whoops, daddy got eliminated.

Mick says that could happen and it could be considered the biggest mistake of his life. There is an unpredictability with the Royal Rumble. Mick might draw a number in his favor. There could be the same magic that was there when Mick won the World Championship three times.

Mick says that he is not in there only to participate. Mick says that he has higher aspirations. He is in the Royal Rumble to win it.

Dolph says that is what everyone wishes for and what he works all year for. Dolph mentions that he beat John Cena last week. He beat CM Punk two weeks in a row. Dolph says that he cannot believe that Mick is out here and Dolph says that he cannot believe the possibility of having to face Mick Foley for the WWE Championship if Foley wins at the Royal Rumble. He calls Mick a glorified stuntman and punchline.

Dolph says that Mick came here to make one more point. He came out here to make a fool of himself one last time and Foley succeeded. Dolph tells Mick that it is over and he tells Mick to go home, buy a new shirt, eat a salad, and just go away.

CM Punk’s music plays and he makes his way into the arena.

Punk stands by Foley’s side in the ring. Punk says that it is so good to see Mick, right here in Anaheim, California.

Dolph suggests that Mick and Punk buy clothes from the same homeless person.

Punk says that they don’t look, talk, or try to fit in the mold like every other WWE Superstar. They don’t hide behind a woman. They do their talking themselves. Punk calls Vickie a poor excuse for a woman.

Everything they have achieved, they have earned, unlike a guy in the ring wearing a pink shirt with a guest referee in his pocket. Punk then insults John Laurinaitis. With the turd in the punchbowl referee, Punk says that he will still be the WWE Champion. It is because he is the best in the world.

Punk says that he thinks it would be damn cool if he faced Mick Foley for the WWE Title.

Vickie says that there is a wrestler in the ring named Dolph Ziggler. Punk tells Vickie to stop talking.

John Laurinaitis comes out and he has an announcement. John wants Punk to look at him. He reminds everyone what his job is. He says that as the guest referee, he will be completely unbiased in the match. To show how fair he can be, he will take Mick’s request to be in the 2012 Royal Rumble under advisement. John says that he has thought long and hard and his answer is NO.

John walks to the back and Vickie laughs in Mick’s face.

Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston are walking in the back but they do not have their tag title belts because they lost the titles to Epico and Pimo in Oakland.

We go to commercial.

We are back and we see footage from the Tag Title Match in Oakland when Epico and Primo beat Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston to become the new tag champions.

 

Match Number One: Epico and Primo with Rosa Mendes versus Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston for the WWE Tag Titles

 

Epico and Bourne start off and Epico with punches and Bourne with a sunset flip for a near fall. Bourne with a head scissors take down. Epico with a kick and Primo tags in and Bourne with a springboard cross body but Epico and Primo catch Bourne and hit a double fallaway slam. Primo kicks and punches Bourne.

Epico tag back in and Bourne with a rana that sends Epico off the turnbuckles and into Primo. Kofi tags in and he hits a springboard clothesline on both men followed by a clothesline, back elbow, and drop kick. Kofi with a Superman punch to Epico and then he hits the Boom Drop.

Kofi sets for Trouble in Paradise but Primo tries to interfere. Epico with a rollup for a near fall on Kofi. Kofi with Trouble in Paradise and Bourne tags in and Primo sends Kofi into the ring post and Epico crotches Bourne and he hits a lungblower for the three count.

 

Winners: Epico and Primo

 

John Laurinaitis is texting someone and we get to watch. Mr. Coffee enters and he gives a package to John. David slurps after saying that someone needs to come into the match. The tag match is now a six man tag match with David Otunga, Dolph Ziggler, and Mark Henry against CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, and . . . Chris Jericho. Chris enters into the camera shot and he turns off the lights and turns on his jacket.

We go to commercial.

We are back and it is time to talk about the six man tag match that was made from the scheduled tag match. Jerry Lawler mentions that the envelope that was handed to John earlier was Zack’s medical report.

Zack is in the interview area and his ribs have been taped. He is with Eve. Josh asks Zack if he is cleared to wrestle. Zack says that he does not know. Eve says that he should not be wrestling tonight. Zack says that he is going to go to the ring and he is not going to forfeit the title. Eve says that she is going with Zack to the ring.

We see a Kane video package about what he has done to Zack Ryder the last few weeks.

 

Match Number Two: Jack Swagger with Vickie Guerrero versus Zack Ryder with Eve Torres for the United States Title

 

Swagger with a forearm to the injured ribs and then he hits a side slam. Swagger with a hard Irish whip. Swagger with forearms to the back and then he runs into Ryder’s knees in the corner. Ryder comes off the turnbuckles and Swagger catches Ryder and hits a back breaker. Swagger with a Swagger Bomb to the back and he gets a near fall.

Swagger with the Doctor Bomb and he only gets a two count. Swagger with another Doctor Bomb and Swagger can only get a two count. Swagger with elbows to the back. Swagger with a third Doctor Bomb and he finally gets the three count.

 

Winner: Jack Swagger

 

We go to commercial.

We are back with a Moments Ago Moment of Jack Swagger becoming the United States Champion.

The doctor is checking on Ryder and John Laurinaitis enters and he says that Zack was not medically cleared but he did not read the report until after the match. Eve yells at John but John tells her to shut her mouth and show him some respect.

It is time for our guest ring announcer and it is Perez Hilton.

 

Match Number Three: Kelly Kelly and Alicia Fox versus The Bellas

 

Brie with a knee to Kelly and then she kicks Kelly. Brie runs Kelly into the corner and kicks her. Brie misses a clothesline and Kelly with a bulldog for a near fall. Nikki replaces Brie in the ring but Perez pulls Nikki out of the ring.

Kelly with a rollup for the three count.

 

Winners: Kelly Kelly and Alicia Fox

 

After the match, The Bellas push Perez down and then Kelly and Alicia stand up for Perez.

It is time to take a look at what happened last week when Big Show ran over AJ Lee during the World Title Match.

We go to commercial.

We are back and R Truth makes his way to the ring.

Before Truth can say anything, Wade Barrett comes out and he throws off his jacket before making his way to the ring.

Wade apologizes to Truth for interrupting him. Wade tells us who he is and he says that is a name that we are going to hear soon as the winner of the 2012 Royal Rumble match. Wade thanks everyone that the old git Mick Foley is not one of the thirty. Wade says that he is in the match and so is the delusional lunatic in the ring with him.

Truth says hello to the guvnah. Little Jimmy wants to ask Wade if he knows that he talks funny. Truth says that they are across the street from the happiest place on Earth. Truth says that he went there earlier today and he had a smile on his face. He wants to see Wade’s smile. We have a slideshow of Truth’s day at Disneyland.

Truth tells Wade that he saw Pinocchio at Disneyland and he said that Wade was going to win the Royal Rumble, but his nose grew. Truth says that he believes that a mouse can talk and an elephant can fly, but he does not believe that Wade is going to win the Royal Rumble.

From out of nowhere, Miz attacks Truth from behind and Truth tries to fight back but Barrett joins in the attack.

It is time for the fill in for feuds moment and Sheamus comes out and Barrett and Miz leave the ring.

Teddy Long comes out because he has nothing to do with Raw. Teddy says that he is taking charge since John is busy. Teddy suggests that we have an Over the Top Rope Challenge.

 

Match Number Four: Miz versus R Truth versus Sheamus versus Wade Barrett in an Over the Top Rope Challenge

Sheamus goes after Barrett while Miz goes after Truth. Barrett with punches and Miz tries to eliminate Truth but Truth gets free. Sheamus with elbows to Barrett and then Barrett with kicks. Sheamus punches Barrett while Truth punches Miz. Truth and Sheamus try to eliminate Barrett and Miz joins in.

Miz punches Truth and Sheamus takes care of both men. Sheamus with punches and kicks to Miz in the corner. Truth punches Sheamus and then Truth tries to eliminate Sheamus but Sheamus stays in the ring. Sheamus sends Truth into the corner and then Truth floats over in the corner and does a split followed by a leg lariat.

Miz with a clothesline to Truth followed by a running boot to the head. Miz throws Truth over the top rope but he lands on the apron. Miz sets for the Awesome Clothesline but Sheamus recovers and hits a clothesline of his own. Sheamus with double sledges to Miz and then he connects with a series of forearms across Miz’ chest.

Sheamus hits his own chest to set for the Brogue Kick but Miz ducks down and Sheamus gets caught on the top rope. Miz punches Sheamus but Sheamus pushes Miz away. Sheamus gets ready to eliminate Miz, but Truth comes from under Sheamus and eliminates both Sheamus and Miz.

 

Winner: R Truth

 

After the match, Sheamus with a Brogue Kick to Miz on the floor and then Sheamus points through Truth to the imaginary Wrestlemania 28 sign that will be hanging over the ring at the Royal Rumble.

John Laurinaitis is texting again and John Cena storms in and accuses Laurniaitis of screwing over Ryder. Cena says that he will show how concerned about Kane he is if he shows up. Kane will face John Cena at the Royal Rumble. Cena will face the new United States Champion tonight.

We go to commercial and Laurinaitis goes texting.

 

Match Number Five: Jack Swagger versus John Cena in a Non Title Match

 

Cena punches Swagger and Irish whips him and hits a splash into the corner. Cena punches Swagger and throws him over the top rope to the floor. Cena sends Swagger into the ring post. Cena punches Swagger while the referee warns him. Cena chokes Swagger on the announce table while the referee warns Cena. Cena with a punch to the head and then he kicks Swagger. Cena with a front face lock and then Cena Irish whips Swagger into the ring steps.

Cena adjusts the ring steps and he slams Swagger’s head into the steps multiple times. Cena thinks about stomping Swagger’s head on the ring step but Cena remembers that bullying is bad.

Cena picks up the ring steps and he is going to drop them on Swagger, but Kane’s pyro goes off and we know that Kane takes forever to get to the ring so Cena drops the steps and gets into the ring.

Kane says that Cena is starting to get it. Kane says that by the time they get to the Royal Rumble, Cena will have embraced the hate. Kane signals for the pyro but it is on a brief delay.

We go to commercial.

 

Match Number Five: Brodus Clay with the Funkettes versus JTG

 

Brodus steals the butt shimmying from Eve before locking up. Brodus with a waist lock and JTG with a punch and then he looks like he is humping Clay’s leg. Clay with a punch and head butt. Brodus with a T-Bone suplex followed by a splash into the corner and the cross body for the three count.

 

Winner: Brodus Clay

 

We go to commercial.

We are back and Jerry Lawler and Michael Cole talk about the collision between Big Show and AJ during the World Title Match on Smackdown. We also see Bryan calling Show a bastard for what he did.

Daniel Bryan makes his way out to tell everyone how AJ is doing. Daniel says that most of the people think that Big Show is a lovable, gentle giant. Big Show is a cruel, inhospitable freak who at over 500 pounds had no problem bowling over his 95 pound girlfriend AJ. Daniel says that AJ has been traumatized and she will never be the same.

Show could have avoided this, but Show intentionally ran over his girlfriend to get to him and his World Title. Bryan says that Show never said that he was sorry. Show was crying like a blithering idiot. Bryan says that Show was faking with the crying. He tells Show never to show his face on Smackdown. Bryan says that if he shows up, he will make him pay.

This Friday on Smackdown, he has a World Title Match against Mark Henry. Right now, Bryan says that he is going to dedicate that match to his girlfriend AJ. Last week, she told Bryan that she loved him and he appreciates that. On Friday, he will show AJ how much.

 

Match Number Six: Daniel Bryan with a heavy heart, Chris Jericho with a shiny jacket, and CM Punk without any ice cream bars versus Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler with Vickie Guerrero, and David Otunga with his bottomless cup of coffee

 

Punk starts things off against Ziggler. Punk with a waist lock and take down into a front face lock. Punk with a slam and kick. Punk with a punch and suplex for a near fall. Bryan tags in and he kicks Ziggler and he follows it with a European uppercut. Bryan with a shoulder tackle but he trips on Ziggler and Ziggler with a kick to Bryan. Ziggler with a DDT to the leg.

Otunga tags in and he kicks Bryan in the hamstring and then he hyperextends the knee. Ziggler tags back in and Ziggler with a snap mare and a leaping elbow drop for a near fall while the fans chant for Jericho. Ziggler with a single leg crab on Bryan but Bryan gets to the ropes.

Ziggler misses a splash into the corner and Punk is tagged in and he faces his former Nexus protégé Otunga. Punk with a side head lock and take down. Punk with a head butt to the midsection but Otunga with a boot and Ziggler tags in and he kicks Punk. Ziggler with a neck breaker. Ziggler with a side head lock on Punk but Punk with a back breaker to get out of the hold.

Ziggler keeps Punk from making the tag and Otunga tags in and he connects with a double sledge and boots. Otunga puts Punk on the turnbuckles and he tries for a superplex but Punk stops Otunga and he knocks him off with a head butt. Punk goes up top for the Savage elbow and he hits it.

Punk tags in Jericho and he wants to hear the crowd instead of wrestling. Jericho tags in Bryan without doing anything and Jericho goes to the back.

We go to commercial.

We are back and Ziggler with a leg submission and chin lock. We see Bryan hitting the turnbuckles when Otunga moved on the drop kick into the corner. Bryan with a kick and Ziggler is down. Dolph tries to keep Bryan from making the tag but Punk tags in.

Punk with a clothesline followed by a neck breaker. Punk with the running knee and a bulldog to Ziggler. Punk with a springboard clothesline for a near fall. Henry gets involved and Henry puts Bryan on the apron but Bryan punches Henry. Henry wants to know if that is all that Bryan has. Bryan hobbles away and Henry follows after him. Henry sends Bryan up the ramp.

Meanwhile, there is a match going on.

Mick Foley’s music plays while Punk and Ziggler are down in the ring. Foley wants to be a part of the match and he says that Laurinaitis okayed it.

Ziggler grabs Punk’s leg to prevent Foley from tagging in. Punk misses an enzuigiri and Ziggler hits a Fameasser for a near fall. Ziggler kicks Punk and hits a neck breaker. Ziggler with a second neck breaker for a near fall. Punk with a round kick to the head and both men are down.

Foley and Otunga tag in and Foley punches Otunga and sends him into the turnbuckles. Foley with punches in the corner and then he hits the running knee into the corner. Foley waits for Otunga to get up and he hits the double underhook DDT and it is time for Foley to dig into his pants and Mr. Socko is out.

Foley with the Mandible Claw and Otunga is out.

 

Winners: Chris Jericho, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, and Mick Foley

 

After the match, Super Texter John Laurinaitis comes out and he says that he never gave Foley permission to be in the match. John says that he is going to have to reverse the decision.

Punk takes the mic and he wants to know if John doesn’t like that. Punk asks John if he thinks he is disrespectful. He says that John is not going to do anything about this. Punk wants John to listen to him and shut up. He tells John to man up, take his balls out of his purse, and figure out the situation.

This is all about who John is not. The people have no idea who John is because when he was a competitor, he had the look, but he sucked in the ring. Punk brings up how John’s brother was part of one of the greatest tag teams while John was boring and vanilla. Punk says that it kills John that he never made it to the ring in WWE. John went from someone who sucked to someone who sucked up. He says that John cannot accept that Punk has achieved more in the last year than his entire life.

Punk says that John is going to screw him at the Royal Rumble. Better people have tried and they have failed. Punk says that he is the WWE Champion and John cannot stand it. Punk says that there is nothing that John can do at the Rumble because he will always be better than John. Punk says that if he screws him, he will not hit the GTS or put John in the Anaconda Vice. They will talk about how John Laurinaitis looks like he went through a meat grinder because CM Punk kicked his pathetic ass.

Punk makes Laurinaitis flinch and then he calls John pathetic.

Foley gives Laurinaitis the thumbs up while he paces around the ring trying to figure out what to text.

John introduces himself and he reminds us of his title. John says that he is not pathetic and he says that he will not be intimidated by CM Punk.

Foley wants John to admit that he will screw over Punk at the Royal Rumble. Foley calls John a sycophant and then he dumbs it down for John and calls him a kiss ass.

John wants to know who Foley thinks he is talking to. John says he is going to screw Punk. He says that he is sick and tired of being disrespected and pushed around. He says that he is sick and tired of being bullied. He puts on the most entertaining show every week and he is not appreciated for it.

John hits Foley in the head with the mic.

We go to credits.

2013 - WWE broadcast Main Event.  Richard Trionfo filed the following TV report:

Another week, another chance to see if we get the best wrestling match of the week on Wednesday night. What will happen when the United States Champion is in action?

This week’s show is in San Antonio, Texas and your announcers are Michael ‘Do I have a chance with Eva Longoria’ Cole and Miz.

Miz says that he is broke after paying Ric Flair’s bar tab on Monday. Cole mentions that we are about to start the official ‘Road to Wrestlemania’.

Cole reminds us of the problems that Randy Orton has had with the Shield over the last few months.

We see footage from Antonio Cesaro confronting Ric Flair on MizTV on Monday night.

 

Match Number One: Randy Orton versus Antonio Cesaro in a Non Title Match

 

They lock up and Orton with a side head lock and take down. Cesaro tries for a head scissors but Orton is able to avoid it for a moment. Cesaro finally gets the head scissors applied but Orton quickly escapes. They lock up again and Cesaro with a side head lock. Orton with a drop toe hold into a front face lock but Cesaro escapes.

They lock up again and they go around the ring. Orton with a front face lock but Cesaro escapes. Cesaro with a punch on the break followed by a kick and European uppercut. Orton misses a clothesline but he hits the Thesz Press and he punches Cesaro. Orton with a European uppercut that sends Cesaro into the corner. Orton with another European uppercut for a near fall.

Orton with a reverse chin lock. Cesaro with a shoulder tackle and Orton goes to the floor to regroup. Cesaro punches Orton and connects with a European uppercut. Cesaro hot shots Orton on the ringside barrier. Cesaro with a European uppercut and he returns Orton to the ring and Cesaro gets a near fall. Orton sends Cesaro over the top rope to the floor.

Orton goes to the floor and then he sends Cesaro’s head into the announce table. Orton with a belly-to-back suplex onto the ringside barrier. Orton sends Cesaro back into the ring but Cesaro rolls to the floor. Orton follows but Cesaro with a kick and European uppercut followed by an Irish whip into the ring steps. We go to commercial.

We are back and Cesaro with a chin lock using Orton’s arm. Orton with punches and a head butt. Cesaro with a clothesline and then he picks up Orton for a dead lift side salto for a near fall. Cesaro chokes Orton in the ring and then he goes over Orton’s back to the apron and then he drops Orton on the middle rope.

Cesaro goes up top but Orton stops Cesaro. Orton with a head butt and he connects with a European uppercut. Orton sets for the superplex but Cesaro with punches and a head butt to knock Orton off the turnbuckles. Cesaro with a double sledge to the head and Cesaro mocks Miz. Cesaro with a chin lock. Orton gets back to his feet and he punches Cesaro. Cesaro with a Michinoku Driver for a near fall. Cesaro leaps onto the chest and he gets another near fall. Cesaro returns to the chin lock.

Orton with a head butt and European uppercut but Cesaro with a knee to the midsection and Cesaro gets a near fall. Cesaro returns to the chin lock. Orton with a head butt and drop kick and both men are down.

Orton puts Cesaro on the turnbuckles and he punches Cesaro. Orton goes up top for the superplex and he hits it. Orton can only get a near fall. We go to commercial.

We are back and Orton and Cesaro exchange punches. Orton with head butts and Cesaro returns fire. Orton with a European uppercut and punches to Cesaro. Cesaro with a sleeper and Orton is down to one knee. Orton with punches and a head butt. Cesaro returns to the sleeper but Orton with a belly-to-back suplex and both men are down. Orton and Cesaro exchange punches, forearms, head butts, and kicks. Cesaro with a series of European uppercuts that backs Orton into the corner. Cesaro with an Irish whip but Orton with a clothesline. Orton with a second clothesline and he avoids one from Cesaro.

Orton with a power slam and then he picks up Cesaro and sends him to the apron for the IEDDT. Cesaro sends Orton to the apron and Orton drops Cesaro against the top rope. Orton gets a near fall. Orton with a kick but Cesaro with Swiss Death for a near fall. Cesaro picks up Orton and head butts him. Orton with an Irish whip but he runs into a knee. Cesaro comes off the turnbuckles but Orton with a drop kick and both men are down.

Orton gets a near fall. Cesaro with a shoulder from the apron and a head butt. Orton blocks being sent into the turnbuckles but Orton sends Cesaro into the turnbuckles. Orton with the IEDDT but when Orton looks around for the RKO push ups, he sees The Shield.

The Shield surrounds the ring and then they get on the apron. Miz goes into the ring with Orton and the members of the Shield back down.

 

No Contest

 

Rollins signals for the attack and they go into the ring. Miz and Reigns battle while Rollins and Ambrose attack Orton. Rollins and Ambrose grab Miz and then Reigns with a spear on Miz. They turn their attention to Orton and they get Orton up for the Three Man Power Bomb.

Antonio Cesaro enters the ring as he surveys the damage from the Shield’s attack. Cesaro picks up Miz and hits the Gotch Style Neutralizer.

We go to commercial.

We are back and it is time for the Raw Rebound of the Rock Concert.

We go to commercial.

Brad Maddox comes to the announce table to join Michael Cole since Miz has been laid out by the Shield and Antonio Cesaro.

 

Match Number Two: Darren Young and Titus O’Neil versus Jimmy and Jey Uso

 

Jimmy and Titus start things off and they lock up. Jimmy with a waist lock and Titus backs Titus into the corner. Jimmy with chops but Titus pushes Jimmy into the corner. Titus with a punch but Jimmy with a flying back elbow. Jey tags in and he punches Titus in the ribs. Jimmy tags in and they hit a double head butt.

Titus with a knee and he backs Jimmy into the corner. Darren tags in and they double team Jimmy. Jimmy with a punch to Darren and then he tags in Jey. Jey with a double sledge to the arm.

Darren with a punch and he sends Jey into the turnbuckles but he doesn’t feel anything. Darren tries for a head butt but Darren is the one who feels the impact. Jey with a head butt and then he tags in Jimmy and they hit a double back elbow and a double elbow drop.

Jimmy with an Irish whip into the corner but Titus pulls Darren out of the way on a running butt splash. Jimmy and Jey with baseball slides to Darren that sends him into the announce table. Titus grabs his whistle and blows it, calling for a time out. We go to commercial.

We are back and Titus tags in and he connects with shoulders and a European uppercut. Titus with a bark. Titus misses a short arm clothesline and Jimmy with chops. Jey tags in and he connects with a forearm on Titus and he gets a near fall. Jey with an arm bar. Titus with an Irish whip but Jey goes to the apron. He connects with a super kick to Young on the apron. Titus with a kick to the head. Titus with a slam and he tags Darren back in. Young and O’Neil with a double shoulder tackle. Young with a kick to the abdomen and he gets a near fall.

Young with a cravate. Young with a Northern Lights suplex to Jey for a near fall. Titus tags in and he hits a gourdbuster of Young on Jey. Titus stands on Jey’s head. Titus chokes Jey and Young with a leg drop while Titus distracts the referee. Titus gets a near fall. Young tags back in and Titus with a kick. Darren slaps Jey in the head and then he punches Jey before applying a reverse chin lock.

Young with a knee and Jey with a kick. Jey sends Darren to the floor and then Jey with a drop kick to Titus’ knees. Young is sent into the ring by Titus but Jimmy tags in and hits two clotheslines followed by a savate kick and a Bubba Bomb. Jimmy with a running butt splash into the corner but Titus breaks up the cover. Titus is sent over the top rope. Jimmy with a super kick to Young. Jey tags in and both Usos go up top but Jimmy with a cross body onto Titus on the floor. Jey hits the Superfly splash for the three count.

 

Winners: The Usos

 

We go to credits.

2013 - WWE broadcast NXT.  Richard Trionfo filed the following TV report:

We crowned a new NXT Champion last week when Big E Langston was able to fight off Seth Rollins and The Shield. What is next for the NXT Title? What is next for the former champion?

We are in Winter Park, Florida and your announcers are William ‘I approve of the Shield’ Regal and Tony ‘ ’ Dawson

 

Match Number One: Adrian Neville versus Sakamoto

 

They lock up and Neville with a waist lock. Sakamoto with a standing switch and Neville with another standing switch. Sakamoto works on the wrist and Neville reverses. Sakamoto with another reversal. Neville with a reversal but Sakamoto with a punch. Neville with a side head lock and shoulder tackle.

Neville with a head scissors to Sakamoto. Sakamoto pushes Neville and connects with a thrust to the throat and then he connects with chops and gets a near fall. Sakamoto with a chin lock and he sends Neville to the mat. Sakamoto with a rear chin lock. Sakamoto with a front face lock and side head lock but Neville escapes and he connects with forearms.

Sakamoto with an Irish whip but Neville floats over and then he hits an enzuigiri. Neville goes up top and hits a corkscrew shooting star press for the three count.

 

Winner: Adrian Neville

 

We go to commercial.

We are back and Kassius Ohno joins William and Tony at the announce table.

 

Match Number Two: Leo Kruger versus Trent Baretta

 

Kruger takes his time getting up and they lock up and Trent with a clean break. They lock up again and Leo punches Trent in the ribs but Trent with a chop and forearm. Trent with a back elbow to Kruger and then he connects with a leaping knee drop for a near fall. Trent with a Northern Lights suplex for a near fall. Trent with a side head lock take down.

Leo with a punch to the ribs but Trent with a drop kick and he gets a near fall. Leo with a head butt to the midsection followed by a punch and forearm. Leo tries for a slam but Trent gets to his feet and he tries for an O’Connor Roll but Leo holds on to the ropes. Leo with a knee to the midsection. Leo drops Trent on the top tope and then he grabs Trent by the hair while hanging from the ropes and Leo drops Trent to the mat and gets a near fall.

We go to commercial.

We are back and Leo with shoulders in the corner. Leo gets Trent on his shoulder and he drops down for a modified gutbuster and Leo gets a near fall. Leo with a single leg crab and he puts his knee in Trent’s ribs to add more pressure on Baretta. Trent with an inside cradle for a near fall. Leo with a clothesline.

Leo gets a near fall and then he kicks Trent in the back. Leo with a gutbuster on Trent for another near fall. Leo kicks Trent but Trent gets up, showing that he is not going to give up. Leo runs into boots from Trent and he hits a modified double stomp for a near fall. Trent with a chop and forearm.

Trent with a clothesline and then he hits the springboard back elbow in the corner. Trent goes up top and hits a missile drop kick and gets a near fall. Trent tries for a tornado DDT but Leo counters and applies a single leg crab and he puts the knee in the ribs again. Trent reaches for the ropes but Leo pulls Trent into the center of the ring. Trent gets to the ropes and Leo releases the hold.

Leo with double sledges to Trent. Trent avoids a short arm clothesline with an enzuigiri and Leo goes to the floor. Trent tries to summon the power to hit a dive to the floor and he hits a plancha onto Kruger.

Ohno leaves the announce table and he makes his way to the ring and he hits the OBE on Trent while the referee was not looking. Kruger hits the Kruger End and gets the three count.

 

Winner: Leo Kruger

 

After the match, William Regal comes to the ring to make sure that Ohno and Kruger cannot do any more damage to Trent. The referee reverses the decision and awards the match to Baretta.

We go to commercial.

We are back and the new NXT Champion makes his way to the ring.

Langston has the mic and he says that as your new NXT Champion, you are about to see a reign that you have never seen before. He welcomes everyone to the Era of the Five.

Camacho’s music plays and he is on the stage. He asks Langston if they forgot that they have a beef to settle. At first, it was about the money to get his boy back from Mexico. Now there is something around Langston’s waist and tonight he is going to take it.

 

Match Number Three:Big E Langston versus Camacho

 

They lock up and Camacho backs Langston into the corner and he connects with forearms and then he kicks and punches Langston. Camacho with a chop and Lagnston has had enough. Langston with a clothesline or two and then he connects with five knees to the midsection. Langston with a running body block and then the straps are down and it is time for the Big Ending and the three count.

 

Winner: Big E Langston

 

After the match, Langston decides that three is not enough and he puts the title belt down and he picks up Camacho for another Big Ending and a five count from Langston. Langston goes for a third Big Ending and down goes Camacho for another five count.

We go to commercial.

We are back and Damien Sandow has something to say before the main event.

Sandow demands that the music be silenced since he is about to speak. He says that he neither desires or requires your admiration. He tells you to keep your mouths closed and ears opened because he is about to speak.

There will soon be a quote from the great Damien Sandow “He who seeks the admiration of idiots is himself an idiot.” Damien says that he is not an idiot. He is the intellectual savior for the masses and your martyr. He tells everyone that they are welcome.

Jim Ross joins William Regal at the announce table for the main event.

 

Match Number Four: Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel versus Antonio Cesaro and Damien Sandow

 

Kidd and Sandow start things off and they lock up. Sandow with a side head lock and Kidd with a hammer lock. Sandow with a reversal into a hammer lock of his own but Kidd goes through the ropes and ties Sandow in the ropes. Kidd with a drop toe hold into an arm bar and he tags in Gabriel. Sandow gets to his corner and he tags in Cesaro before Gabriel can do anything.

They lock up and Gabriel works on the wrist but Cesaro with a forearm and punch. Cesaro sends Gabirel to the mat and then applies a cravate. Gabriel with a head scissors that sends Cesaro into the turnbuckles after floating over. Gabriel with kicks to Cesaro and he goes to the floor. Kidd tags in and connects with a running kick to the head.

We go to commercial.

We are back and Kidd with arm drags to Sandow and an arm bar. Gabriel tags back in and he gets a near fall with a sunset flip. Gabriel with an arm drag into an arm bar and then Gabriel messes with Sandow’s hair. Sandow with a forearm to escape and he tags in Cesaro. Sandow with a shoulder and Cesaro with a kick.

Cesaro with a side head lock take down. Cesaro with a shoulder tackle. Cesaro blocks a hip toss and connects with one but Gabriel lands on his feet and gets a near fall with a back slide. Gabriel with a chop but Cesaro runs into a boot. Sandow distracts Gabriel long enough to allow Cesaro to connect with a clothesline and Cesaro gets a near fall.

Sandow tags in and he connects with a series of knees to the ribs. Sandow with a side Russian leg sweep followed by the Elbow of Disdain and he connects to get a near fall. Cesaro tags back in and Sandow with a slam and then Cesaro leaps onto Gabriel’s chest and gets a near fall. Cesaro with a front face lock and he keeps himself between Gabriel and Kidd to prevent the tag.

Cesaro with a chin lock using Gabriel’s arm. Gabriel with an elbow but he is sent into the turnbuckles. Gabriel with an elbow and then he back body drops Cesaro over the top rope but it is on Kidd’s side of the ring. Cesaro pulls Kidd from the apron just before Gabriel can get there to try to make the tag.

Cesaro with a dead lift side salto for a near fall when Kidd breaks up the cover. Cesaro with a chin lock on Gabriel and then he gets Gabriel up for a slam but Justin gets to his feet and he hits a jawbreaker but Cesaro is able to grab the leg. Gabriel kicks Cesaro and tags in Kidd. Sandow tags in too and he is met with an enzuigiri from Kidd. Kidd with a springboard drop kick and he knocks Cesaro off the apron. Kidd with kicks to Sandow followed by a drop kick to the head and he gets a near fall.

Kidd sets for the Sharpshooter but he sends Cesaro out of the ring when he tries to interfere. Sandow with a rollup for a near fall but Kidd counters and gets a near fall. Kidd with an enzuigiri to Sandow and then he tags in Gabriel. Kidd with a pescado onto Cesaro while Gabriel hits an STO. Kidd tags in and Gabriel with a quebrada followed by a springboard elbow drop from Kidd for the three count.

 

Winners: Justin Gabriel and Tyson Kidd

 

We go to credits.

2013 - WWE Hall of Famer The Original Sheik was been named to the 2013 Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame in Michigan for 2013.

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