The Silver Report: September 2018

To be honest, I do quite a bit of rambling this report, so I am going to keep this intro short and (too) sweet.

As I will go into more detail briefly, September was a huge month for independent and alternative wrestling. We now live in a world where companies that aren't named WWE can sell out a 10,000+ seat arena, where wrestlers are more concerned with satisfying the fans than lining their pockets, where men and women are quite literally changing the world of wrestling as we speak. In short, we live in a post All In wrestling industry and that is gosh darn exciting.

Going "All In" on Independent Wrestling

Love it or hate it, you have to admit it that All In was special.

Like mentioned above, it quite literally changed the wrestling industry. While independent wrestling may not be on the same level as the WWE (and probably never will be), All In and its success made the mainstream take notice. It introduced the talents and styles of many different wrestling organizations to a larger audience than ever before via streaming services, pay-per-view, and WGN America. Hopefully, this exposure will lead to new and lapsed wrestling fans tuning into their alternative of choice over or in addition to WWE. Believe me, All In's impact will be felt for years to come.

Although All In will definitely be remembered for its impact on the industry, that's not all it will be remembered for. From Zero Hour to the main event — which finished only seconds before the broadcast was cut — it was a celebration of wrestling's past, present, and future. You had Stephen Amell throw himself through a table, an old-school NWA championship match with boxing-style entrances, Hangman Page carried out of the arena by penis druids, Chris Jericho attacked Kenny Omega while dressed as Pentagon Jr., a 30-minute match condensed into a non-stop 12 minutes, just to name a few great moments.

Looking at the show critically, All In was a great show. Some may even say it was one of the best shows of the year. Personally, I say All In is on the lower half of that list due to its rather slow start and some of the angles and gags being a little too hard for those who haven't caught up on Being the Elite to understand. Despite my qualms with the show, things kick into high gear once you hit the Chicago Street Fight and the show doesn't let up for a second.

In summation, huge thumbs up to Cody and the Young Bucks for putting this show together, the talent that put their bodies on the line for our entertainment, and the staff that made the broadcast possible. Without everybody's hard work, this incredible show would never have happened.

Source: Sports Illustrated

Bad Form in the Cell

I went into Hell in a Cell with low expectations. Like most main roster PPVs, the matches looked good on paper, but considering WWE's track record, there's always the chance that they'll find a way to screw it up.

Going into the main event, Hell in a Cell was doing better than the average main roster show these days. There were a couple stinkers in the Raw Women's Title Match and the Mixed Tag Team bout, but there was enough okay to great matches to counteract the bad. And the main event was Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman in a Hell in a Cell match. What could possibly go wrong?

Other than Mick Foley botching a two count, everything was all good until Roman speared Braun through a table. After the proceeding kickout, Roman and Braun would lay in the ring as all hell broke loose around them.

First, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre ran down to bully their way into the cell, only for Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins to stop them. The two teams would fight outside and on top of the cell for a good eight to 10 minutes before Rollins and Ziggler put each other through the announce tables at ringside. Then a returning Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman stormed the cell. Lesnar kicked down the door while Heyman maced Foley's eyes. Brock would then go on to F5 Roman onto Braun. After Lesnar made his quote-on-quote statement, he and Heyman left as a substitute referee called off the match right before the show cut to black.

It's hard to summarize how angry this debacle of a match made me. WWE quite literally flushed away all the work they did to try to rebuild the Universal Championship and Raw's main event scene. And just to bring back Brock Lesnar of all people! Seriously, WWE needs to move on because this over-reliance on Lesnar is doing serious damage to their product. Not only did Brock Lesnar's return at Hell in a Cell ruin a perfectly good main event, it made a mockery of the Money in the Bank contract (not that they've already done that multiple times in the past month) and made the top face and heel on Raw look like total chumps.

While these shenanigans may make a memorable moment, they'll also get people to take their money elsewhere. Especially in this post All In wrestling industry.

Source: India Today

Chaos in Kobe

Ever since Jay White returned from excursion late last year, the Switchblade has stirred up a whole lot of drama in New Japan, especially for Chaos.

Originally White was brought into the faction following WrestleKingdom by Kazuchika Okada as a challenger for midcard heavyweight titles like the IWGP Intercontinental and U.S. championships. Lately, the silver-tongued fiend has made an effort to challenge Okada's leadership at every turn. From his mind games with Yoshi-Hashi to trying to instill a killer edge in younger members Sho and Yoh, White's anarchist antics went unpunished as the faction concerned itself with the G1 then Okada's opportunity to win Hiroshi Tanahashi's place in the main event of WrestleKingdom.

With Chaos' attention diverted away from the problem child, nobody clued into what would happen next. Following Okada's loss to Tanahashi in the main event of Destruction in Kobe, White made his intentions clear — he won't be apart of a Chaos led by Okada.

White would take care of Tanahashi with a swift Blade Runner before turning his attention to the defeated Okada. As White's attack began, Yoshi-Hashi ran down for the save only to be dispatched by White almost immediately. Following Yoshi-Hashi's run-in was longtime Chaos member and Okada's former manger Gedo. Considering their former partnership, Okada turned his back to a chair-wielding Gedo as he readied to gang up on the mutinous White. Unfortunately for Okada, Gedo would blast the Rainmaker with a chair shot and align himself with the Switchblade to bring an end to Destruction in Kobe.

Although I haven't been a big fan of White's in-ring style since his return from excursion, I have to say that he has tremendous potential as New Japan's trickster, a character that uses his greater intellect to trick others for their own amusement. This manipulative nature has come across perfectly in White's antagonistic tenure in Chaos and his incredible promo work. Add Gedo into the mix and there's a lot of ways the Switchblade can make his ascent to the main event of New Japan.

So, will you breathe with the Switchblade?

Source: New Japan Pro Wrestling

Must-See Matches of September

9/1/2018

All In

Hangman Page vs. Joey Janela - Chicago Street Fight

Kenny Omega vs. Penta El Zero M

Golden Elite vs. Bandido, Fenix & Rey Mysterio

9/5/2018
NXT
Johnny Gargano vs. Velveteen Dream

9/7/2018

Road to Destruction Night 2

Golden Lovers vs. Tomohiro Ishii & Will Ospreay

9/15/2018
Destruction in Hiroshima
Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii

9/16/2018
Hell in a Cell
Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose

9/19/2018
NXT
Pete Dunne vs. Ricochet

9/23/2018
Destruction in Kobe
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada

9/30/2018
Fighting Spirit Unleashed
Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll
Golden Lovers vs. Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii

The Silver Report: January 2018

I started the Silver Report a good seven years ago as my weekly round-up and analysis on "all" (mostly WWE and TNA at the time) wrestling news. Over the years, it took on different forms and lengths, but it was always a nice outlet for my thoughts on professional wrestling.

Now as my taste in wrestling has matured and my knowledge of the industry has grown tenfold, I re-debut the Silver Report. Not just as an outlet for my thoughts and opinions, but to hopefully introduce newcomers to wacky world of pro wrestling while enriching the tastes of current fans.

One of the ways I hope to achieve that goal is through the brand new Must-See Matches section at the end of every Silver Report going forward. Must-See Matches will be my curated list of the best matches for the current month of discussion. So if you don't have the time to keep up with everything going on, these are the matches that will give you the most enjoyment for your time.

Naito! You Just Made the List!

January 4th and 5th had tons of great moments for New Japan from Minoru Suzuki shaving his head to Jay White declining an offer to join the Bullet Club, but nothing was bigger than the closing moments of New Year's Dash.

After Tetsuya Naito and his stablemates in Los Ingobernables de Japon (LIJ) dispatched Kazuchika Okada and Chaos in tag team action, Chris Jericho rushed the ring and attacked Naito. Although the attack was brief as Jericho was quickly pulled out of the ring, it was such a surprise to see Jericho since everybody thought his deal with New Japan was for just one match with Kenny Omega.

Starting this feud with Naito opens up the possibilities for Jericho to feud with more excellent New Japan talent like Ishii, Ibushi, Tanahashi, and even Okada! It's unbelievable to see the 47 year old Jericho on top of the wrestling world in 2018, but it is well deserved.

Almas and Gargano Steal Royal Rumble Weekend

It is rare to see any match in January eclipse the excellently crafted bouts of NJPW's WrestleKingdom supershow, but WWE did just that with the main event of NXT TakeOver: Philadephia. As the first WWE match in over six years to receive five stars from Dave Meltzer, Andrade "Cien" Almas vs. Johnny Gargano for the NXT Championship was nothing short of an instant classic.

Leading up to the match, it felt like such an unlikely main event. Almas had been dwelling in the obscurity of NXT's mid-card for most of his tenure, while Gargano seemed to be in a holding pattern as his feud with former partner Tommaso Ciampa was on hold until Ciampa had healed from injury.

Despite all the baggage these two had coming in, it all melted away when the match started. Almas and Gargano just work so well together as they chain their moves together like no one else in the business. The fast pace and smooth wrestling made the 32-minute long match fly by. When all was said and done, both Almas and Gargano solidified their positions as major players in the WWE for years to come.

Golden Lovers Reunite

Ever since "The American Nightmare" Cody joined Bullet Club at the end of 2016, tensions between him and leader Kenny Omega have been building. Those tensions would come to a head at the end of NJPW's second New Beginning in Sapporo event.

After Omega lost the IWGP U.S. Championship to Jay White in the main event, Cody made his move by hitting a Cross Rhodes on Bullet Club's leader. But before Cody could hit the finishing chair shot on Omega, Kota Ibushi made the save. After dispersing Cody and his fellow Bullet Club usurpers, Ibushi and Omega embraced each other in a surprising reunion of former tag partners.

While many suspected a Bullet Club implosion sometime in 2018, nobody thought it would be this soon. Plus, nobody thought we'd see Omega and Ibushi reunite as the Golden Lovers. Most of the rumour and scuttlebutt surrounding these two centered around them feuding instead of reuniting.

Although the story may end up with them fighting in the end, Omega's current ousting from the Bullet Club and his reunion with Ibushi opens up plenty of intriguing possibilities. Could we see the Golden Lovers vs. the Young Bucks in the not-so-distant future?

Tale of Two Rumbles

The 2018 Royal Rumble was an interesting show. It had arguably one of the best Royal Rumbles of all-time in the men's bout, one of the most disappointing in the first-ever women's bout, and a lot of disappointing finishes and average matches in between. While it was a better than average show, the position of the two Royal Rumble matches and their drastic difference in quality made for an uneven four plus hours.

First up, the men's bout was a high-octane affair with excellent storytelling, fun eliminations (especially Slater's elimination of Sheamus), nice surprise entrants, and an intense final 15 minutes. Its hour plus run time flew by because of how entertaining the match was. And to put the cherry on top, the right wrestler won in Shinsuke Nakamura.

On the flip side, the first-ever Women's Royal Rumble was another misfire in WWE's so-called "Women's Evolution." Although the right woman went over in Asuka, the match was full of sloppy wrestling, focused far too much on the nostalgic entrants, and criminally held its biggest surprise for the post-match theatrics.

Speaking of those post-match theatrics, what an awfully lame way to debut Ronda Rousey. Yes, it was done to protect both her and Asuka, but what was the point of her eclipsing Asuka's moment at the very end of the show? It undermined the preceding match while simultaneously teasing viewers of what we should've had.

In all honesty, I would take Asuka vs. Ronda Rousey as the final two in the Women's Royal Rumble over Rousey cartoonisly pointing at the WrestleMania sign any day.

Must-See Matches of January 

1/4/2018
WrestleKingdom 12
Hiromu Takahashi vs. Kushida vs. Marty Scurll vs. Will Ospreay - Four Way Match
Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho - No DQ Match
Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito

1/23/2018
205 Live
Cedric Alexander vs. Mustafa Ali

1/24/2018
NXT
Johnny Gargano vs. Velveteen Dream

1/27/2018
NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia
Aleistar Black vs. Adam Cole - Extreme Rules
Andrade "Cien" Almas vs. Johnny Gargano

1/28/2018
New Beginning in Sapporo Night 2
Roppongi 3K vs. The Young Bucks

Royal Rumble
Men's 30-Man Royal Rumble

1/29/2018
Raw
Asuka vs. Sasha Banks

1/31/2018
NXT 
Roderick Strong vs. Tyler Bate - No.1 Contender's Match for the UK Championship

The Silver Report: Money in the Bank Fallout

Last week due to some unfortunate circumstances yours truly was not able to put up the Money in the Bank preview that he wanted.  This week I am back in full force to breakdown the incredible fallout for last week's pay-per view event.  From what I gathered from reports and reviews online, Money in the Bank was a good PPV.  It was not a knock out like Payback, but it had enough good matches and major developments to keep wrestling fans entertained for three hours.  Randy Orton and Damien Sandow walked away with the WWE and World Heavyweight briefcases respectively, Rob Van Dam made his triumphant return, John Cena lasted the World's Strongest Man, Alberto Del Rio scrapped a disqualification win over Dolph Ziggler and all hell broke loose in the WWE Money in the Bank Ladder match.  It was one big night for the WWE that got lots of momentum rolling towards Summerslam.  While Money in the Bank had a great number of major developments, it was last Monday's Raw that hammered home the fact that this coming Summerslam should be one to watch.  Personally, I only got the chance to watch the final hour and a half of the broadcast as I worked last Monday night, but what I watched was nothing short of phenomenal.  That hour and half went a long way in single-handedly selling Summerslam to the majority of wrestling fans, yours truly included.  If you missed last week's Raw, it is definitely worth looking for a replay of the broadcast just to experience it for yourself.

Punk vs. Lesnar, Give It To Me Now!!
Ever since Brock Lesnar hit an F5 on CM Punk, it was obvious Paul Heyman would turn on the Best in the World.  Money in the Bank was the implosion of Punk and Heyman's relationship as Heyman repeatedly smashed a ladder over Punk's head, which ended up costing the Straight-Edge Superstar his chance to win the briefcase.  With thirteen stitches in his head and hole in his heart, CM Punk marched his way down to the ring Monday night and demanded Paul Heyman to explain his actions.  What started out as a regular promo between Paul Heyman and CM Punk quickly escalated to downright personal levels.  Heyman made reference to their long standing relationship and how Punk's failures from earlier this year and his actions upon his return hurt the dastardly Heyman's feelings.  To teach CM Punk a lesson, Paul called upon Brock Lesnar to rough Punk up.  Those comments did not sit well with CM Punk as he warned Heyman that no matter who stands between them, Punk will destroy them all one by one starting with Brock Lesnar.  The verbal exchange between Punk and Heyman was bone chilling.  It has been a long time since this writer has seen this much animosity portrayed in the squared-circle and CM Punk and Paul Heyman played their parts masterfully.  This exchange could have easily sold a lot people on Summerslam, but that was not all.  With the call of "It's Clobberin' Time!", Heyman set forth the beast known as Brock Lesnar on Punk.  The ensuing brawl was incredible.  Punk and Lesnar beat the tar out of one another.  Lesnar definitely had the strength advantage as he was tossing Punk around like a rag doll, but the Straight-Edge Superstar was a tenacious fellow as he kept coming back with fists flying at Lesnar.  In the end, Lesnar would get the better of Punk thanks to a F5 onto the announce table, but this feud is not over by a long shot.  We still have four weeks until this two collide at Summerslam, but it is going to be hard to wait.  Already this feud is at a level that it could single-handedly sell Summerslam.  People want to see these two fight as it is next to impossible to tell who WWE will have go over as there is a strong case for both men.  Personally, I cannot wait to see more between Lesnar and Punk in the coming weeks.

Bryan's Chance to Capture WWE Championship Gold Is Here!!
Daniel Bryan may not of won the WWE Championship Money in the Bank briefcase last Sunday night, but he did manage to earn his way into the WWE Championship picture for Summerslam.  After weeks of dominating Raw's heavyweight division and the hearts of the WWE Universe, Daniel Bryan was given the chance to challenge for the WWE Title from the champion himself.  This past week on Raw, John Cena was given the opportunity to choose the next challenger for his WWE Championship by new Raw General Manager Brad Maddox.  Throughout the night, all the wrestlers in the locker room were making their case to be the next one in line for a shot at the WWE Championship.  Out of the entire locker room, Chris Jericho and Rob Van Dam made one of the most convincing cases with the wrestling clinic they put on right before Cena came out to do his promo.  As a side note, make time to watch Chris Jericho vs. RVD from last week's Raw as it was absolutely incredible.  After a long winded speech of John Cena teasing the audience with possible challengers, he made the announcement that he wants to fight Daniel Bryan at Summerslam.  It was an announcement that had everyone in the crowd and at home screaming "Yes" at the top of their lungs.  Daniel Bryan has been on one incredible roll this Summer and it would be amazing to see him end it out with the WWE Championship around his waist.  That moment could easily make the crowd in the Staples Center and those watching around the world completely explode in a way very reminiscent of when Punk won the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank 2011.  Hopefully WWE can make these dreams a reality once again.

WWE Money in the Bank 2013 Predictions

Saturdays do not seem to be my day.  For the last few weeks, something bad always seems to happen on Saturday for yours truly.  When I sat down to work on the preview for Money in the Bank tomorrow evening, the USB drive that I save all my blogs on started malfunctioning.  For the past few hours, I have tried anything and everything to get my USB working to no avail.  Just my luck, I have not backed up this USB in over a year.  So I am in a predicament and not in the greatest of moods.  On top of all my amazing USB problems, I just found out I cut my open earlier in the day.  Only took ten hours to notice it.  Sorry, I am not the most peachy at the moment.  What I am trying to explain is that due to my situation there will be no preview of WWE's Money in the Bank PPV.  It should be a good show so I will at least provide my predictions on the event.  Hopefully I can get all my problems sorted out by next weekend so the Silverdome can get back to normal.

Wade Barrett vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Damien Sandow vs. Antonio Cesaro vs. Fandango vs. Jack Swagger vs. Dean Ambrose in the World Heavyweight Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Prediction:  Wade Barrett wins

Curtis Axel (c) vs. The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship 
Prediction:  Curtis Axel retains

Chris Jericho vs. Ryback
Prediction:  Ryback wins

Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler for the World Heavyweight Championship
Prediction:  Dolph Ziggler wins the World Heavyweight Championship

CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Christian vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus vs. Rob Van Dam in the WWE Championship Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Prediction:  Daniel Bryan wins

AJ Lee (c) vs. Kaitlyn for the Divas Championship
Prediction:  AJ Lee retains

John Cena vs. Mark Henry for the WWE Championship
Prediction:  John Cena retains

Top 5 Turns of the Past Decade

In the world of professionally wrestling, a wrestling is either face or heel.  While these classifications seem very basic and restrictive, they are not the only things that determine a wrestler’s character.  There are plenty of other factors that this writer can go into length about, but that is a topic for another day.  Being face or heel does not mean a wrestler is stuck in that classification for the rest of their career.  Movement between the classifications is a huge part of the wrestling industry.  A face or heel turn keeps the product fresh, builds excitement and brings in viewers new and old.  When one thinks about face/heel turns, the images of Bret Hart not letting go of the Sharpshooter on an unconscious Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan embracing Kevin Nash and Scott Hall and Stone Cold shaking hands with Mr. McMahon comes to mind.  Having only been a wrestling fan for a decade now, this writer did not experience these legendary turns firsthand, but has experienced some amazing turns nonetheless.  Here are this writer’s favourite turns of the past decade.

5. A Belfast Sized Slap

Sheamus has been criticized for his face character on many occasions.  While this writer agrees with all of those criticisms, it did start out with a whole lot of promise.  After a long run as a heel, WWE Creative gave the Great White a chance at being a fan favourite.  Rather than build it for weeks and months on end, this face turn came out of absolutely nowhere.  One Smackdown during the Summer of 2011, Mark Henry made a challenge to anybody in the locker room to fight him.  Sheamus answered Henry’s challenge with a huge slap that literally knocked the sweat off of the World’s Strongest Man.  With one slap, Sheamus turned from one of the most hated heels in the WWE to the most popular.  No matter the now infuriating result, it was one amazing turn.

4. End of the Legacy

Animosity between Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes, the group known as Legacy, had been growing for months leading up to their eventual implosion.  Rhodes and DiBiase were playing some games with Orton by giving the Viper mixed messages and costing him numerous title shots.  Eventually enough was enough for the WWE’s Apex Predator and Randy Orton cut his ties with the two younger stars by way of a Rope-hung DDT and RKO.  Due to all the build, seeing Randy Orton take out all his aggression on his former protégés and in turn change from a dastardly villain to a no-nonsense anti-hero was a sight to behold.

3. The Return of the Old Michaels

In Shawn Michaels’ later years in the WWE, he played the role of tweener, never being labeled as either face or heel because it would change depending on the storyline.  Before taking on this role, Michaels made one final heel turn that shocked the world with how sudden it was.  During the spring of 2005, Shawn called upon the iconic Hulk Hogan to team with on a few occasions.  From what was shown on camera, there was no visible animosity between these two.  Deep down in the darkest corners of the Heartbreak Kid, he grew jealous of Hulk Hogan.  Michaels’ jealously came to a head with a thunderous Superkick to Hogan’s jaw.  This one kick started a feud that saw the return of a side of HBK that has not been seen since the early days of the Attitude Era and it was glorious.

2. “You were supposed to be my friend!”

Sometimes a fresh start is all a wrestler needs to get fans interested in their character once again.  Back in 2009, Batista was stuck in that situation.  The development of Batista’s face persona had reached a standstill.  There was nowhere the Animal could take his character as a fan-favourite and people were starting to get bored.  Well at the Bragging Rights PPV, the Animal’s fortunes changed.  After losing a Fatal 4 Way match for the World Heavyweight Championship, Batista and Rey Mysterio, Batista’s best friend, were left in the ring.  Filled with rage over Mysterio breaking a possible three count, Batista beat the living hell out of Mysterio.  Batista’s ferocious beat down on Mysterio came to climactic end after screaming the now iconic quote that serves as the title of this paragraph.

1. Y2J No More

Chris Jericho has never been a wrestler to rest on his laurels.  His Y2J persona was easily one of the most popular characters in the late 90s and early to mid 2000s.  When Jericho returned in 2007, the Ayatollah of Rock ‘n’ Rolla knew it was time for a change.  That change meant the death of Y2J and everything associated with said character.  The death of the beloved Y2J character happened on one of the final episodes of the Highlight Reel where Jericho turned on Shawn Michaels and the WWE Universe.  By plunging Michaels’ face right into the Jeritron 5000, Jericho changed more than his character.  Jericho changed the perception of what it means to be a heel in this modern era and set a benchmark for all wrestlers to strive for in creating a character and setting up a feud. 

The New PPV on the Block: Quick Preview of WWE Payback 2013

Almost every Monday night for the past month, this writer has been busy with one thing or another.  Between hanging out with friends and watching the E3 press conferences, I have been slacking when it has come to tuning into the latest episodes of Monday Night Raw.  I have been following enough to somewhat understand what is going at this current point, but not enough to do a full-on preview of this upcoming PPV, Payback.  Instead this article will be a quick preview of the event with my predictions and thoughts on Payback as a whole.

Well, the WWE found a replacement for the abysmal Over the Limit PPV.  Funny enough, it is just another generic PPV by the name of Payback.  WWE has done a commendable job of taking the name of this PPV and making it the theme of most of the matches on the card.  Each match on the card has some sort of bitter feud behind it.  It is a nice parallel to the name of the PPV, but it is not enough of a selling point for Payback.  The real selling points will be the big matches on the card especially CM Punk’s return match against Chris Jericho.  While the WWE has not done much build for this match outside Jericho’s initial challenge on the Highlight Reel, it will still be a major match this Sunday.  This match will set the course where the WWE takes CM Punk leading into one of the most important times of the year, the summer.  There are rumours of some sort of double turn taking place at Payback, but this writer does not know for sure.  Personally, I would love to see Punk stay heel and go onto challenge the Undertaker to a rematch at Summerslam or Night of Champions in order to lead to a Hell in a Cell match at the Hell in a Cell PPV, but we will have to wait for Sunday to see.  CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho will easily be one of the best matches on this card especially considering Payback will be in Chicago, one of the hottest wrestling cities in the world and Punk’s hometown.  Another match that should gain plenty of attention this Sunday is John Cena vs. Ryback in 3 Stages of Hell for the WWE Championship.  As much as this writer has his fingers crossed that Ryback will finally win the WWE Championship at Payback, reports say otherwise. This 3 Stages of Hell match will be used to make Cena look strong heading into the summer months and a potential feud with Daniel Bryan.  At least, we should get a very physical and hopefully entertaining match out of Cena and Ryback.  Looking at the card, Payback seems like a fine show.  It is not the WWE’s best offering as this writer believes they are holding out until Money in the Bank and Summerslam to really knock us out, but with the backing of the phenomenal Chicago crowd Payback should be a fun PPV.

Wade Barrett (c) vs. The Miz vs. Curtis Axel in a Triple Threat Match for the Intercontinental Championship

Prediction:  Curtis Axel wins the Intercontinental Championship

Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Kane for the United States Championship

Prediction:   Dean Ambrose retains

The Shield (c) vs. Daniel Bryan & Randy Orton for the WWE Tag Team Championship

Prediction:   The Shield retains

Kaitlyn (c) vs. AJ Lee for the Divas Championship

Prediction:   AJ Lee wins the Divas Championship

Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship

Prediction:   Dolph Ziggler retains

CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho

Prediction:   CM Punk wins

John Cena (c) vs. Ryback in a 3 Stages of Hell for the WWE Championship

Prediction:   John Cena retains

Since 2009, the WWE has gone through quite a few different PPVs with only a few actually sticking.  June has been a hard month to hammer down a PPV for.  Hopefully, Payback does well enough to be the regular June PPV from now on because this writer does not want to have another brand new PPV next June. 

The Silver Report: May 26-June 1

Say goodbye to the month of May and hello to June.  We are just a few weeks away from the official start of summer and the Payback PPV.  Payback in the oh so glorious wrestling city of Chicago will be the beginning of the build-up for the Biggest Event of the Summer, Summerslam.  There is a lot to hope for this coming summer as we move out of a lackluster few months.  To hype up this summer, next week’s blog will be this writer’s Top 5 Hopes for the Summer.

Clash of the Best in Chi Town

CM Punk disappeared from WWE television just over a month ago after a rather cryptic promo.  What this promo meant was anybody’s guess, but we will not have to wait much longer.  Last Monday in Calgary, Chris Jericho hosted a special edition of the Highlight Reel with Paul Heyman as the guest.  While pleasantries were exchanged at first, Jericho quickly got down to business, the whereabouts of the self-proclaimed Best in the World.  Heyman tried to redirect Jericho’s questions, but nothing would deter Y2J.  Jericho kept pushing Heyman’s buttons by saying Punk no longer deserved the Best in the World moniker and getting the Calgary crowd to chant said moniker at Mr. Heyman.  Heyman would eventually succumb to Jericho’s mind games and accept Jericho’s challenge to face CM Punk at Payback.  While it has only been a year since CM Punk and Chris Jericho feuded over the WWE Championship, it is still exciting to see these two wrestle especially considering the roles have been reversed since their last feud.  This match at Payback looks to be more of a way to bring Punk back in time for the summer rather than the start of a summer long feud.  Either way, the match should be entertaining nonetheless.  Considering that Payback takes place in Punk’s hometown, the atmosphere surrounding this match should be nothing short of electric.  This story should keep many fans interested in the weeks ahead.

The Axel Begins to Turn

From the Shield to Fandango, this year has already seen a good number of fresh faces debut.  The latest to join the main WWE roster is Curtis Axel, the son of “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig and the grandson of Larry “The Axe” Hennig.  With the mentorship of the one and only Paul Heyman and the supposed backing of the WWE big wigs, Curtis Axel is primed to being pushed to the main event of the WWE.  Those plans are not for certain considering WWE executives love to change their minds on a dime.  Axel has gotten a win over Triple H (funny it took a week to tell the audience the result) and John Cena in his first two weeks on Raw.  While these wins have only been by count-out and knockout (I believe), they are wins nonetheless.  It will be interesting to see how Axel will be booked in the coming months.  It is nice to give him wins over main eventers like Cena and Triple H, but Axel will need some pinfall victories if Creative wants the fans to believe Axel is a bona fide main eventer.  This writer just hopes that Creative does not get scared when it comes to pulling the trigger on taking Axel to the next level like they are currently doing with Ryback.  Only time will tell if the Curtis Axel experiment is a success or failure.  Considering the WWE is in dire need of stars, expect Axel to be pushed heavily in the weeks and possibly months ahead.

Moving On: Preview of WWE Extreme Rules 2013

WrestleMania only comes once a year.  When the festivities of that one grand weekend come to an end, it is time for the WWE and the fans to get their heads out of the clouds and back to reality.  The show never stops, so we move onto the PPV that immediately follows WrestleMania, Extreme Rules. 

The one night of the year where the WWE packs some of their biggest gimmick matches all onto one show.  At its best, Extreme Rules can be one of the most entertaining PPVs of the year.  At its worst, Extreme Rules can be a complete mess of bland and boring gimmick matches.  Even with the loss of the Triple Threat Ladder Match (a match plenty of wrestling fans, myself included, were looking forward to), this year’s card looks solid.  Hopefully, the WWE can put on a good show with all the talent on the card.  There is only three hours to put on eight matches, a couple backstage promos, a few video packages and dozens of pre-match entrances; this writer is a little worried that a few matches will be rushed while others will given too much time.  Time constraints are always a factor, but when it comes to gimmick matches sometimes giving too much time to a boring gimmick or too little to an interesting gimmick can hurt the show.

Randy Orton vs. Big Show in an Extreme Rules Match

Big Show turned on Randy Orton and Sheamus at WrestleMania after Orton lost the match for their team, thanks to a blind tag.  Big Show was the man wronged by the distrust of Orton and Sheamus.  Funny enough, this match has been built around the idea that Orton should not have trusted the Largest Athlete in the World, a little backwards if I say so myself.  Who cares that much about the generic storyline when the wrestling is all that matters?  Big Show has been at his best this past year so hopefully he and Orton can put together an enjoyable brawl.  Considering Extreme Rules is in St. Louis, expect Randy Orton to get the win in front of his hometown crowd.

Prediction:  Randy Orton wins

Chris Jericho vs. Fandango

Ever since WrestleMania, Fandango’s popularity has been all over the place.  His popularity skyrocketed WrestleMania weekend with his win over Chris Jericho and the rise of the Fandangoing Internet dance craze.  After that faithful week, Fandango seems to all over the place.  Fandango has jumped between pandering to the crowd one week, to feuding with the Great Khali the next and finally coming back to feuding with Jericho the week after that.  Creative does not seem to know what exactly to do with Fandango as they try to push him as a heel while the crowd dances and hums along to his entrance theme.  Putting this young gun with a ring veteran like Jericho is the best direction to take Fandango at this present time, but it seems Extreme Rules will be the end of this little feud between Fandango and Jericho.  Since Jericho is being advertised to feud with Ryback in the coming months, it would be best for Y2J to win this Sunday.  As long as these two put on a competitive bout, one loss will not hurt Fandango.

Prediction:  Chris Jericho wins

Sheamus vs. Mark Henry in a Strap Match

This feud came straight out of left field.  There was perfect set-up for a Triple Threat Match between Big Show, Randy Orton and Sheamus for Extreme Rules considering the fallout from their match at WrestleMania.  The plans never seemed to materialize as WWE was set on a one-on-one match between Orton and Big Show.  Since being left out of that feud, Sheamus did not had much to do so enter random Mark Henry attacks and another big man trying to get Sheamus to be serious (honestly I will applaud the person that finally gets Sheamus to stop being funny man and back to being a no nonsense ass-kicker) and we got a match.  Sorry for the lack of excitement, I just do not care for a match where two big guys are going whip each other with a strap for ten minutes instead of actually wrestling. 

Prediction:  Sheamus wins

Kofi Kingston (c) vs. Dean Ambrose for the U.S. Championship

Let the Shield’s stranglehold of championship gold begin.  Everything the Shield has touched since they debuted last November has turned to gold.  They are one of the best factions in years and to put the United States and Tag Team belts on them will hopefully bring prestige back to those divisions.  Creative will definitely not feed these stars to the dogs of the main event scene like they have been doing with mid-card champions for the past year now.  With the unorthodox style of Dean Ambrose and the high-flying fast-paced offence of Kofi Kingston, this match could be one to possibly steal the show.

Prediction:  Dean Ambrose wins the U.S. Championship

Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger in an “I Quit” Match for the No. 1 Contendership for the World Heavyweight Championship

As much as it hurts to see such an amazing match taken away due to an injury, the world of wrestling is definitely unpredictable.  Hopefully Dolph Ziggler has a speedy recovery, but we are left in good hands, Jack Swagger and Alberto Del Rio.  While a ladder match may not play to the strengths of Jack Swagger and Alberto Del Rio, an “I Quit” Match certainly does.  The story just might not be there, but these two can and have put on some great wrestling matches.  This “I Quit” Match will be no different as I personally expect a grueling submission clinic on display at Extreme Rules.  There are rumours floating around that the WWE wants to have the Triple Threat Ladder Match for Summerslam.  If that is the plan, there are definitely plans to keep both Swagger and Del Rio in the World Title picture for the time being.

Prediction:  Jack Swagger becomes the No. 1 Contender for the World Heavyweight Championship

Team Hell No (c) vs. The Shield in a Tornado Tag Team Match for the WWE Tag Team Championship

A 6-Man Tag between the Shield and Team Hell No and the Undertaker would have easily blown the roof off the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.  Sadly, not everything we dream becomes reality, but this match should be very good as well.  In one corner, you got the Tag Team Champions Team Hell No, one of the best pairings the WWE has made since Jeri-Show back in 2009.  In the other, you got Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns of the Shield, the best thing to happen to the WWE in what seems like ages.  Expect some great action to result from this Tornado Tag Team match, a stipulation that is more akin to a Fatal 4 Way than a traditional tag team match.  When the dust settles, the Shield will prevail and leave Extreme Rules with gold around their waists.

Prediction:  The Shield wins the WWE Tag Team Championship

Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H in a Steel Cage Match

The one feud nobody wanted to see more after their main event match from Summerslam.  Having Triple H and Brock Lesnar on Extreme Rules definitely adds enough star power to garner some buys from casual wrestling fans.  Setting their third and hopefully final match in the Steel Cage will provide a brutal canvas for Triple H and Lesnar to paint their final masterpiece or disasterpiece.  Steel Cage matches have been hit or miss in the WWE the last few years.  As long as Lesnar emerges from the cage as the victor of this match and feud, this writer will be happy.

Prediction:  Brock Lesnar wins

John Cena (c) vs. Ryback in a Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Championship

There is no doubt in this writer’s mind that it is time for John Cena to step aside as Ryback’s time is now.  You can debate all day whether Ryback is ready to hold the WWE Championship or not.  The fact of the matter is Ryback has lost so much on PPV the last few months that a loss against Cena at Extreme Rules just might be the tipping point for fans.  It is hard to believe in a monster that cannot win a big match on PPV.  With how Cena has buried Ryback verbally the last few weeks, there is no way Ryback can leave Extreme Rules with loss without serious damage done to his image with the audience.  Also dropping the title to Ryback will allow Cena to properly heal for his Achilles tendon injury.  It is time to take this Ryback experiment to the next level and see if he can succeed as the WWE Champion. 

Prediction:  Ryback wins the WWE Championship

The month long build for Extreme Rules went a long way in creating a solid card with some well put together feuds.  Now WWE needs to combine the longer build with actual PPV hype and the interest and buy rates in PPVs will definitely improve.  It is a good start and WWE can make steps forward from here.  Top to bottom, Extreme Rules looks like a good card with no filler except for the Strap Match, but that is more my personal opinion.  If you are looking for some wrestling to watch this Victoria Day weekend, look no further than Extreme Rules.

The Silver Report: The Problems with Raw

Watching Raw last Monday was nothing short of boring.  The matches were mediocre at best, the promos left a lot to be desired and overall the show left a bad taste in my mouth.  Having watched WWE programming for about a decade now, I know not every show will be a home run.  I just hope that there will be at least one thing worth watching each week.  Sadly, this week I got more entertainment from reading Chris Jericho’s Undisputed:  How to Become the World Champion in 1,372 Easy Steps (an excellent book by the way) than from watching Raw and that is just unacceptable.  Due to being bored out of my mind, it was very easy to pick out a lot of the problems that have been plaguing Raw for the past few months.  Instead of running down the biggest developments of the past week, I thought for this week’s edition of the Silver Report that I would highlight the three biggest problems that are holding Monday Night Raw and the WWE product back from being as good as it possibly could be.  There are plenty more problems that plague this company such as backstage politics and the inability to make main event caliber talent, but these three are the most visible in the product at this point in time.

John Cena

There are a great number of polarizing opinions on John Cena.  Personally, I am past hating the Face of the WWE.  I respect Cena’s ability in the ring, but his character is becoming like a broken record.  He has done the same carefree, head in the clouds, funny guy shtick night-in and night-out for over five years now.  Cena rarely shows any concern about the opponents he faces as he just makes fun of them and belittles them.  These actions have gotten so out of control that they are starting to damage the product.  When Cena does not take his opponents seriously, the fans do not believe said opponents have a chance of beating Cena.  This mentality kills fans’ excitement towards Cena’s matches and damages how fans perceive Cena’s opponents.  There is no doubt that John Cena is the biggest draw in the WWE, but the company has done everything there is to do with Cena as face that fans including this writer want to see some drastic changes in his character, hopefully a heel turn.  While I personally will not hold my breath for a John Cena heel turn, there needs to be some sort of change to Cena’s character.  He has to get more serious because his promo work outside of his feuds with Punk and Rock is simply atrocious and his attitude towards his opponents is doing more damage to the overall product than good.

Burying the Mid-Card Champions

There was a time a few years back when the mid-card championships meant something.  A time when the United States and Intercontinental Titles were more than just props; they were stepping stones on the way to the major WWE and World Heavyweight Championships.  Oh, how drastically the times have changed.  Nowadays, winning either the United States or Intercontinental Championship seals the champion’s fate as a jobber for the upper mid-card to main event level talent for their entire title reign.  Seeing these champions lose on live television every week damages the prestige of the championships and the credibility of the champions.  Eventually, fans stop believing that the champion deserves to even hold the title or that the championship means anything.  WWE seems to be puzzled about how it seems next to impossible to create stars like The Rock or Steve Austin in this day and age.  The fact of the matter is that continually feeding their up-and-coming stars including the United States and Intercontinental Champions to the likes of Sheamus, Randy Orton, Ryback and John Cena does not allow the fans to get behind the younger talent.  They just see these younger wrestlers and champions as being incapable of competing on the same level as their upper level talent.  WWE needs to learn soon that nobody is going to get behind a champion that loses each and every week.

Three Hour Runtime

When Raw went three hours to celebrate the 1000^th episode of the WWE’s flagship program, many people thought that going three hours would severely hurt the product.  For the first month, things were fine.  Raw was very entertaining as the WWE was giving more time for matches and bigger angles.  Once summer turned to fall, the novelty of a three hour Monday Night Raw every week quickly wore off.  Raw became a marathon to watch as the WWE added more filler to the show than there was ever needed.  With three hours of Raw and close to five hours of more WWE programming on every week, the WWE has too much programming for the current roster to fill.  So a lot of times, fans are left watching the same matches on a number of shows throughout the week.  Three hour Raws use to be special, but now they are nothing more than the norm.  It is easy to see due to the three hour runtime that the quality of the show and the WWE product has dropped.  Going back to the two hour format will not immediately solve this problem; the WWE needs to find a happy medium.  A possible solution is that the WWE keeps the three hour format, but make the first hour of Raw a pre-show, exclusive to WWE.com, that builds to two hour main program on TV.  You can keep all the filler, but regulate most of it to the pre-show rather than weighing down a main program.  Personally, I believe that the WWE can take the problem with the current three hour format and make it work if and only if they just take a step back and retool it.

The Silver Report: April 28 - May 4

Last week, I shared my Top 5 WWE Championship matches in honour of the WWE Championship’s 50^th anniversary.  This week, it is back to the regularly scheduled blogging after that little tangent.  It has been surprisingly refreshing to see WWE give more than three weeks to build a PPV.  We have had about a month of build so far for Extreme Rules with two more weeks to go.  Personally, I have not been keeping up with Smackdown for a while now, other than a match here or there, so I cannot talk about WWE programming as a whole.  Although I will say that Raw has been considerably watchable this last month and I believe it has to do with not having to cram close to six weeks of build into a mere three weeks.  Now WWE just needs to start confirming matches for Extreme Rules so they have a card to promote outside of the three matches that have already been set in stone.

A Chink in Super Cena’s Armour

After being on tour in Europe the week prior, WWE returned to North America to get on with normally scheduled television tapings and live events.  Upon returning, news broke that John Cena had injured his Achilles tendon while on tour in Europe.  Fans and critics alike feared the worse for the current WWE Champion because this type of injury can be especially dangerous, just ask Edge.  It left the plans for Raw up in the air as many speculated if John Cena would be on the show and whether the injury was severe enough to vacant the WWE Title.  Good news for Cena fans and bad news for Cena haters, John was on Raw and scheduled to team with Ryback to face off with the Shield.  Ryback would back out of the handicap match due to Cena’s injury so the match was changed to Team Hell No and John Cena vs. the Shield.  The match was great as everybody played up John Cena’s injury.  From Daniel Bryan and Kane intentionally avoiding tagging Cena in to Seth Rollins taunts towards Cena, the idea that John Cena is not even close to 100 percent was performed perfectly by everybody in the match.  Also Cena did an admirable job in selling his ankle injury, which led right into the finish with Cena’s ankle giving out to set up Roman Reigns to hit the Spear and get the pin.  While it might be difficult to let another big name take some time off, this injury serves as a perfect way to have John Cena drop the title to Ryback at Extreme Rules.  Having Ryback possibly targeting the ankle during their match or even doing an angle with Ryback “breaking” John Cena’s ankle would provide excellent set-up for Cena’s eventual return match while making Ryback looking like a bigger heel.  With John Cena out to heal for a few months, WWE could have Ryback feud with Chris Jericho, Daniel Bryan or even Kane in order to give Ryback some momentum heading into an eventual rematch with Cena.  There is a crack in the seemingly impervious armour of Super Cena and WWE has an excellent opportunity to use this rare occurrence to create a new unstoppable heel and a potential main event caliber rematch.

Three Men, Three Ladders, One Title

In the right hands, a ladder can make the highest objects reachable.  In the wrong hands, it can be one of the most inventive weapons out there.  In the hands of wrestlers, a ladder is used both the right way and the wrong way, but nevertheless it is always enjoyable.  Ladder matches are an easy way of providing tension as competitors scale ladders in order to reach a title, briefcase or any other object hanging above the ring before their opposition.  How does WWE make a Triple Threat Match between the three men fighting for the World Heavyweight Championship better; they add ladders to the mix.  Alberto Del Rio, Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger have all competed in a Ladder match or two during their time in the WWE.  Due to their experience in Ladder matches, there is no doubt that these three can put on a Ladder match that could easily steal the show at Extreme Rules.  Making this Triple Threat match a Triple Threat Ladder match was a great decision on WWE Creative’s part as it has surely raised the interest in the World Heavyweight Championship match at Extreme Rules.  Now we just need a few more gimmick matches like this one that are worthy of being on Extreme Rules and we could have a great PPV on our hands.

The Road to WrestleMania 29 Part 4: Coming Home

Before we start this preview for WrestleMania 29, I want to address the lack of posts these last two weeks.  While I was hoping to be able to sneak in another part or two for The Road to WrestleMania 29 series, it never came to fruition with the amount of work that I had to do for my classes.  Split between working on a presentation and two major papers, I did not have much time or energy to work on anything other than school work.  Getting those projects done and out of the way was so important that this series had to be put on the backburner.  I am sorry that I could not address this delay sooner, but I hope to make up for it with one huge preview for WrestleMania 29.

Personally, I cannot remember a WrestleMania so poorly built as this year’s event.  Watching WWE this last month has been very straining because seeds for feuds that should have been planted all the way back at the Royal Rumble were entirely nonexistent until only a few weeks ago.  WWE missed an incredible amount of opportunities to make this WrestleMania live up to the majesty and grandeur this event demands.  Matches like CM Punk vs. Undertaker and Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar that could single-handedly sell any other PPV have been so poorly built that nobody cares or is remotely interested.  In the shadow of Madison Square Garden, WrestleMania’s true home, you would expect the WWE to pull out all the stops to make this WrestleMania worthy of this grand homecoming especially considering that next year WrestleMania will not be coming from MSG, breaking a WrestleMania tradition.  It is still WrestleMania and honestly this wrestling fan is hoping even with my doubts the WWE can pull together a show to surprise us and live up to the name of WrestleMania or fail gloriously in the process.

Wade Barrett (c) vs. The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship

Not very often do the secondary championships get showcased at WrestleMania.  It feels pretty special when it happens and it stings a lot when this match gets shafted to the pre-show.  It is understandable considering how little build this match has had and the roller coaster WWE creative has sent these two wrestlers on for the last month before settling with this match.  Given enough time, Wade Barrett and the Miz will no doubt put on a good match.  There is a slight possibility that the WWE will give the title to the Miz in order to push his new babyface second-coming of Ric Flair gimmick down our collective throats.  Personally, I am pulling for Barrett to retain the title to hopefully give him and his Intercontinental Title reign more legitimacy.

Prediction:  Wade Barrett retains

Brodus Clay, Tensai and the Funkadactyls vs. Team Rhodes Scholars and the Bella Twins in an Eight-Person Tag Team Match

This match is the definition of a pre-show match.  There is no feud between these teams, no build for this match and no interest from the fans.  To put this match on the main card for WrestleMania would be a travesty.  It is definitely sad to see two young talented wrestlers like Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow in a throwaway match on the Biggest Stage of Them All.  There is no need to watch this match as it will be nothing more than mediocre filler anyway.

Prediction:  Brodus Clay, Tensai and the Funkadactyls win

Team Hell No (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston

Speaking of talented wrestlers going to waste on the Biggest Stage of Them All, we have the Tag Team Title match.  Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler and Kane could have easily been placed in singles matches that would be more appealing than this match.  Team Hell No, while still enjoyable, has gone its course.  If WWE is not going to use Team Hell No to build a tag team division worth caring about, it is time to take Daniel Bryan and Kane in a new direction.  WrestleMania could have easily been the big climactic finale to their long-term feud.  It just feels like a missed opportunity in my opinion.  These guys will probably put on a good tag team match.  Like with many other things with WrestleMania 29, it could have been so much better.

Prediction:  Team Hell No retains

Ryback vs. Mark Henry

Ryback hits the Shellshock on Mark Henry.  Nobody will care about the match; they will only care about the big WrestleMania moment at the very end.  That folks is Ryback vs. Mark Henry in a nutshell.

Prediction:  Ryback wins

Chris Jericho vs. Fandango

While this match should have been Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho, this wrestling fan believes Chris Jericho can put on a good match at WrestleMania no matter who he is paired with.  Considering this match will be Johnny Curtis’ debut as Fandango, the lights will definitely be on this young up-and-comer.  It will be a true test if Fandango is deserving of the push he is currently getting from WWE Creative.

Prediction:  Fandango wins

The Shield vs. Sheamus, Randy Orton and Big Show

The Shield has been seemingly unstoppable during their short time in the WWE.  Superstars step up to challenge this faction of young superstars, but all fall to the Shield of Justice.  The next challengers are a pretty mighty bunch in Sheamus, Randy Orton and Big Show.  This fragile alliance will be severely tested Sunday night as they battle one of the most cohesive groups in WWE history.  This match is one that I am personally most excited for because of how great the Shield’s matches have been and the possibility of a Randy Orton heel turn.

Prediction:  The Shield wins

Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Jack Swagger for the World Heavyweight Championship

The more I think of this match, the more it reminds me of Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle from WrestleMania XX.  I could care less about the storyline between the American-loving Alberto Del Rio and the American Extremist Jack Swagger, it is the match these two technical wrestlers put on that really matters.  Technically this match will be great as you got two technical styles that will work wonderful together.  The match will come down to a showdown between the Cross Armbreaker and the Patriot Lock and that should be a sight to see.  Also I am personally hoping for Dolph Ziggler to cash in the Money in the Bank contract after this match, fingers crossed.

Prediction:  Alberto Del Rio retains

Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H in a No Holds Barred Match with Triple H’s Career on the Line

Looking for an all-out brawl reminiscent to the hardcore matches of eras past than look no further than Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H II.  While their first match at last year’s Summerslam left a lot to be desired, giving these two free reins to beat the living crap out of one another with everything and anything will be a big improvement.  It might seem obvious that Triple H will get the victory over Brock Lesnar to avoid retiring, but that result would be incredibly damaging to the monster the WWE is trying to build in Brock Lesnar.  Brock should not lose a match until the WWE is ready to have him face somebody they want to push to the main event like Sheamus or challenge Undertaker to end The Streak.  Honestly, Triple H does not need to be wrestling anymore, so give Brock Lesnar another win under his belt and a definitive ending to Triple H’s career.

Prediction:  Brock Lesnar wins and Triple H retires

Undertaker vs. CM Punk

There was one point in time when Undertaker vs. CM Punk at WrestleMania 29 seemed like a great idea then we got the last four weeks of WWE programming.  Opinions can quickly change when thoughts on paper turn into reality.  CM Punk and Undertaker tried their best to make the storyline they were given to work with, but it was not enough.  While these guys are great on the microphone especially Punk, the storyline really drew off the death of Paul Bearer, way too soon in my opinion, that it felt quite uncomfortable at times.  There is no doubt that these two will steal the show at WrestleMania.  Some of the excitement that normally surrounds an Undertaker match at WrestleMania is gone thanks to such a horrible storyline.

Prediction:  Undertaker wins

The Rock (c) vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship

Here we are, at the rematch no one asked for—The Rock vs. John Cena II.  For the main event of the Biggest Show of the Year, this match has had less build than Undertaker vs. CM Punk.  That is what WWE gets for wasting two weeks showing the exact same video package about this match.  While this match has been built as John Cena’s redemption, nobody really cares who wins if one of two things happens.  First, Rock and Cena deliver a match that surpasses last year’s match in Miami.  Second, John Cena FINALLY turns heel.  Wrestling fans are getting sick and tired on John Cena’s character because it has not evolved in over six years now.  Cena needs a new direction and why not initiate on the Grandest Stage of Them All where the lights are on bright and the whole world is watching.

Prediction:  John Cena wins the WWE Championship

It is WrestleMania Sunday and there is no hype, no excitement.  Last year, I could not contain my excitement to see Rock vs. Cena, Undertaker vs. Triple H and CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho that I tried to find affordable venue to watch the event to no avail.  This year I have no such inclination to watch WrestleMania live.  It is easier and much more affordable to wait two months and pick up the DVD.  Yes, you miss out on watching it in the moment, but you pay about twenty dollars to have the event forever.  Instead of wasting thirty to fifty dollars only to see if WWE can put an amazing show despite the incredible lack of build and excitement.

The Flawed Storm: Quick Preview of WWE Summerslam 2012

This year Summerslam has the tagline, “The Perfect Storm.”  This tagline has been used as hype for what was supposed to be the biggest match on the card, Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar.  Much like the build for this big match, the build for this year’s Summerslam has been flawed in my opinion.  WWE focused too much on hyping the 1000^th episode of Monday Night Raw that they forgot to put anything towards making people care about Summerslam.  Summerslam is suppose to be built as the second biggest PPV of the year behind WrestleMania, but for the last few years it feels like WWE has been treating it like every other PPV, which is not how you build one of the biggest shows of your year.  From top to bottom on paper, the card for Summerslam looks very good, but WWE has not done much of anything to make me or any other wrestling fan care about this card.  Out of all the matches on this card, the only feud that has gotten the proper attention and good build has been the Chris Jericho and Dolph Ziggler feud.  In all honesty, the Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler is the only match on the card I actually want to watch.  It is the one to watch as I can personally see these two stealing the show.

The Miz (c) vs. Rey Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship

Prediction:  The Miz retains

R-Truth & Kofi Kingston vs. The Primetime Players for the WWE Tag Team Championship

Prediction:  The Primetime Players win the WWE Tag Team Championship

Kane vs. Daniel Bryan

Prediction:  Daniel Bryan wins

Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler

Prediction:  Dolph Ziggler wins

Sheamus (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship

Prediction:  Sheamus retains

Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar

Prediction:  Brock Lesnar wins

CM Punk (c) vs. Big Show vs. John Cena in a Triple Threat Match for the WWE Championship

Prediction:  CM Punk retains

Much like last year’s Summerslam, WWE could possibly pull out a great PPV out of absolutely no build.  Right now looking back on the weeks leading up to this event, it has been quite frustrating that even with all the glimpses of greatness we have experienced with Raw’s move to three hours.  Summerslam is supposed to be built as the second biggest PPV of the year and it does not feel like that anymore.  Personally I am more excited for a regular PPV like Extreme Rules or Money in the Bank than I am for Summerslam and that is a huge problem, WWE. 

The Silver Report: August 5-11

It was a mixed week of wrestling in the WWE.  While Raw and Smackdown did have their ups and downs this week, there are a few moments and matches that were good to great that saved this week from being a complete and utter waste in my opinion.  We are a week away from Summerslam and I honestly bared hyped for this PPV whatsoever other than being excited to see Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler, but more on that later.  It seemed like WWE put all their resources into hyping Raw 1000 that they forgot to put any hype towards their second biggest PPV of the year, Summerslam.  With one week left, let us see if WWE can pull out a miracle and make us care about Summerslam this year.

Lesnar Is Coming to Get You

Considering the main WWE Championship storyline repeated what happened last week just with Big Show standing tall at the end of Raw, we will have to look at the Brock Lesnar-Triple H feud for the biggest story of the week.  Seeing as Raw was in San Antonio this past Monday, Shawn Michaels made a special appearance.  The main reason Michaels was at Raw was for Shawn Michaels Appreciation Night, which happened after Raw went off the air, but WWE also decided to inject Michaels into the feud between Triple H and Brock Lesnar.  Shawn Michaels made his way out to the ring and gave his take on the whole situation between his best friend and Brock Lesnar.  Shawn’s opinions got the attention of Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman as they made their way to the ring to confront HBK.  Paul Heyman’s attempts to convince Shawn Michaels was the superior athlete were futile as they only infuriated the Heartbreak Kid.  They infuriated Shawn to the point that he announced that he would be in Triple H’s corner at Summerslam.  This announcement did not sit well with Lesnar as he made his move to attack Shawn Michaels to only be stopped by Triple H.  Hoping to hold off the fighting for another day, Lesnar and Heyman made their retreat.  Before they left, Lesnar told Michaels that he will see him before Summerslam.  While I do think it was a good move for WWE to hold off until the go home Raw before Summerslam for Lesnar destroys Michaels, I personally did not like the execution.  Why would you blurt out your plan to your opponent and the whole world no less and completely destroy the element of surprise?  Now that Shawn and Triple H know what you are going to do this week on Raw, so how does Brock think he will be able to get away with it?  WWE could have easily had Brock make a gesture towards Michaels that insinuated that Michaels would not make it to Summerslam instead of the overly cartoony and unrealistic villain telling the heroes his plan.  Still it is a good hook for the Summerslam go home show, just the whole element of surprise is gone from an angle that could have easily stolen the show.

Y2J is Back, Baby!!

Ever since Dolph Ziggler made the mistake of saying Chris Jericho has lost his touch, the Show-Off has been made to eat his words.  After delivering numerous Code Breakers to the World Heavyweight Money in the Bank winner, Chris Jericho has gotten into Dolph’s head.  Case and point, Dolph Ziggler spent too much time concentrated on Chris Jericho on commentary this past Monday on Raw that Alex Riley rolled Dolph up to pick up his second win of the 2012.  This past Friday on Smackdown, the Highlight Reel, Jericho’s classic interview segment, made its’ return.  Along with the return of the Highlight Reel, came the return of a side of Chris Jericho that everybody has missed for a long time.  Some of Dolph’s insults really home with Chris Jericho as he has not been up to snuff in the big matches, so Jericho has welcomed his Y2J character back with open arms.  It did look like the WWE has been building for this moment for a month or so now considering Jericho’s increased use of his classic catchphrases.  Personally I love the return of Y2J as it gives an established face for the WWE to pull upon as a challenger for Dolph Ziggler’s eventual World Heavyweight Title reign especially with all signs pointing to their current feud ending at Summerslam.  Once Y2J made his return, Dolph Ziggler made his move, attacking Chris Jericho with the Money in the Bank briefcase.  This attack got Dolph some much needed payback on the man that has humiliated him these past few weeks.  With their match finally set in stone for Summerslam and the return of Y2J, this feud is easily the most interesting thing on WWE TV at the moment.

Sheamus vs. Del Rio Cancelled for Summerslam

In all honesty, I have not cared for this feud one bit.  There have been little glimmers of greatness, but things have gotten so drawn out and stop and go that it would be better if Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio went their separate ways.  I thought that until witnessing the events of this past Smackdown.  Back on Monday, Sheamus stole Alberto Del Rio’s car and went on a joy ride throughout San Antonio.  While the fact that Sheamus got away with grand theft auto with little to no repercussions is beyond me (logic is sometimes thrown out the window in the WWE), it lead right into the main event of Smackdown, which was suppose to see Sheamus defend the World Heavyweight Championship against Alberto Del Rio.  The match did not even start because these policemen came out and surrounded the ring.  At first, Del Rio told the policemen to stop walking towards the ring because he did not file that report with San Antonio police against Sheamus and that he wanted his chance to win the World Title.  As these supposed policemen got closer to ring, Del Rio begged and pleaded them to stop until the Mexican Aristocrat’s look of horror turned into a smile and he told his hired guns to attack Sheamus.  At first, Sheamus beat off the horde, but eventually the numbers became too much for the World Heavyweight Champion.  Sheamus succumbed to the overwhelming odds and Del Rio was left standing over a beaten down World Champion.  As result of what happened at the end of Raw, the Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio World Heavyweight Championship Match has been removed from the Summerslam crowd.  While did like that the WWE has put more heat on Del Rio with this beat down, it might be too late to do a whole cancelation angle seeing that Summerslam is only a week away.  If they go with entire different match, there will be no time to build anything and it would kill almost all the momentum Del Rio gained from this beat down.  The wise decision would be to add a No DQ stipulation to their match at Summerslam to capitalize on the heat generated toward Del Rio by this entire angle and make it that much more satisfying when the fans see Sheamus fight him at Summerslam.  We will have to wait and see what actually happens, but I do have to applaud the WWE for getting me interested in Shemus vs. Del Rio again.  Now hopefully they do not screw it up before Summerslam.

The Silver Report: July 29-August 4

As we enter August, we enter the final month that I will be posting regularly once a week.  Come the second week of September, I start university so I am going to be too busy to write a blog post every single day between two blogs.  I will talk about this situation in more detail when the time comes for the change, but I would like to give a little warning so I do not surprise anybody with the news.  Now with that news out of the way, let us get on with the regular scheduled blogging.

While not a home run, Raw 1001 was a success.  WWE successfully put on a rather good three hour show that had a great balance of promos and wrestling.  While there was a fair share of promos, they all felt like they had a purpose and were all fairly entertaining.  The main focus was on the wrestling as Raw 1001 had three matches that easily went well over the 10 minute mark.  If you can, you should go out of your way to watch the Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler and Miz vs. Christian and Chris Jericho.  Both easily among the best matches I have watched on Raw all year.  Raw 1001 did drag for a little bit thanks to incessant amount of recaps the WWE decided to put us through.  There was a recap for everything that happened on Raw 1000, a recap of the opening promo and recaps of those previously mentioned recaps.  It was overkill and hopefully next week, WWE does not bombard us with all those recaps.

CM Punk Embraces the Cult of Personality

The big question going into Raw 1001 was why CM Punk did what he did at the end of Raw 1000?  WWE made the right choice of kicking off Raw 1001 with Punk’s explanation.  In all honesty, I do believe WWE should have promoted this promo kicking off Raw on last week’s Smackdown instead of mere hours before Raw 1001 because it would have helped establish the new start time for Raw with the people who missed Raw 1000 or just forgot.  Nonetheless, CM Punk started off Raw with one incredible promo.  CM Punk called out Jerry Lawler over his call at the end of Raw 1000 saying Punk turned his back on the WWE Universe saying it was untrue.  Then Punk went on to say that The Rock disrespected Punk at Raw 1000 by making the show all about him and only recognizing Punk to say he has been handed a WWE Championship match at the Royal Rumble.  So Punk took it upon himself to give The Rock a sense of who The Rock will possibly be dealing with at Royal Rumble and ended Raw 1000 the same way every episode of Raw in Punk’s opinion should end with the WWE Champion standing tall.  It was a very effective promo that did not paint CM Punk as either a face or heel.  While CM Punk is leaning toward a darker side of his character, everything he said in that promo was true and to the point.  Maybe we are getting the slow reemergence of the renegade that dropped the Pipe Bomb heard around the World over a year, maybe we are getting a new incarnation of the classic heel Punk we all know and love.  Right now much like CM Punk’s first heel turn in the WWE, we have to patient because it will be a slow burn.  CM Punk will not show his true heel colours right away, it will take weeks, possibly even months before we see CM Punk’s heel turn is complete.  As evidence to the end of Raw where he attacked both Big Show and John Cena and his screaming at AJ, he is showing more and more heel qualities.  We will have to continue to watch Raw in order to see the end result.  So far CM Punk’s embrace of his own Cult of Personality is getting off to a great start.

The New Smackdown GM, Booker T.  Now Can You Dig That, Sucka?

On the 1000^th episode of Raw, AJ was named the new General Manager of Raw by Mr. McMahon.  That left many wrestling fans wondering who would be the General Manager of Smackdown.  Well we did not have to wait too long as Booker T was named the General Manager this past week on Smackdown.  Actually WWE broke the news of Booker T being named GM of Smackdown on their website on Tuesday in order to entice fans to tune into Smackdown and possibly stop the wrestling websites from spoiling the news.  The way things have gone with GMs for the past year, I am hoping Booker T and AJ stay the GMs for a while.  It gets very annoying to have a new authority figure every few months.  You stop to care who actually is in the role of authority figure when it changes at such a rapid rate.  Hopefully WWE starts to build Raw and Smackdown around AJ and Booker T as the authority figures for the coming year or so instead of having them be another set of GMs that last only a few months on the job.  The best thing with Booker T being the GM of Smackdown is that we will longer have to listen to his atrocious colour commentating on a weekly basis.  Rest in Peace Shuckey Duckey Quack Quack, we will not miss you.

Orton’s Return Complicates the World Title Picture

When you thought Heath Slater had no other purpose on Raw and Smackdown after the conclusion of the Raw Legends storyline at Raw 1000, the One Man Rock Band made his way down to the ring this past week on Raw to challenge any superstar in the locker room.  Lo and behold, Rev Theory’s Voices boomed from the speakers and out came Randy Orton.  Returning from his suspension, Orton squashed Heath Slater on Raw.  On Smackdown, Randy Orton faced Alberto Del Rio in the main event.  It was an okay match at best that saw Ricardo Rodriguez get involved, which caused Orton to get the win by DQ.  Following the match, Del Rio ate a RKO thanks to Sheamus throwing the Mexican Aristocrat back into the ring after the match.  Yes, Alberto Del Rio is set to face Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Championship at Summerslam, but there is one question that is my mind after the Orton’s return this past week.  What is WWE going to do with Randy Orton going into Summerslam?  With the way Smackdown ended, it looks like WWE will find some way to add Randy Orton to the World Heavyweight Championship match at Summerslam.  The only other possible match WWE can add for Summerslam is a No. 1 Contender’s match with possibly Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Kane and Daniel Bryan, which determines who will face Sheamus at Night of Champions.  The fact that Randy Orton is still booked as one of WWE’s most dominant superstars after two strikes against him (one more Wellness Policy infraction and Orton will be fired), I cannot see WWE leaving him off of the biggest PPV of the summer.  While I believe it would have been better to have had Randy Orton return after Summerslam, these are the cards the WWE has dealt all of us.  Let us see if they can get out of this complicated situation without making things more convoluted.