The Murky W.W.E. Title Situation

With Triple H beating John Cena last night, things are very interesting in regards to the title situation in the W.W.E. The two “world championships” continue to be on one brand. There are so many directions the W.W.E. can go with this. Does CM Punk cash in the “Money in the Bank” win for a title shot and then take one of the belts back to Raw? Do they have Edge and Triple H face off in a unification match? By the way, Edge and Batista put on a good show last night, but can’t Edge win a match without his friends' constant interference?

Well, here’s how we stand right now regarding the many championships in the promotion.:

Monday Night Raw
Intercontinental Champion: Kofi Kingston
Women’s Champ: Mickie James
World Tag Champs: Cody Rhodes/Ted DiBiase

E.C.W.
E.C.W. Champion: Mark Henry
U.S. Champ: Matt Hardy

Smackdown
W.W.E. Champ: Triple H
World Champ: Edge
W.W.E. Tag Champs: Miz/John Morrison

Meanwhile, what happened to that match last night that was going to determine the first Smackdown Women’s Champ and when is former champion Candice Michelle (pictured) coming back?

The Remixed W.W.E. Commentators: Ross Rules, Foley Is Good, Adamle Still Horrible

I was not happy about Jim Ross being drafted to Smackdown. But, knowing that he and Mick Foley (pictured with Mr. Socko) are friends, made me think that perhaps that chemistry would carry over to the airwaves. So far, it has. Given some more time that tandem will become the best in the W.W.E.

Monday Night Raw now has Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler. Cole is professional and understated, he knows when to let the action speak for itself and doesn’t need to inject himself where it is clearly unnecessary. Lawler will have to adjust, but I think the two will be very good together.

Meanwhile, over on E.C.W., Mike Adamle continues to prove that he has a solid shot of winning the “Randy Velischek Award” for putrid announcing. Thankfully, he has “The Human Suplex Machine” and an esteemed member of the "legit badass" club, Tazz, to help him out. I’ve never heard the analyst speak more than the play-by-play guy, but in this case it is so necessary.

Night of Champions: Results/How Predictions Went

WWE Champion Triple H defeated John Cena
I said Cena.

World Heavyweight Champion Edge defeated Batista

I picked Edge.

Mark Henry defeated ECW Champion Kane and Big Show

I took Henry, however, I thought he would get the win as a "reward" to for the racist-comment incident with creative writer Michael Hayes. But then we have to throw into the mix that Kofi Kingston defeated Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental title and perhaps as some have suggested the W.W.E. is trying to push more African-American athletes. That makes sense with the losses of Bobby Lashley and Booker T over the last year or so.

Ted DiBiase & Mystery Partner (Cody Rhodes) win World Tag Team Championship from Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes

Too easy to call.

WWE Tag Team Champions John Morrison & The Miz defeated Finlay & Hornswoggle
I said Miz/Morrison.

United States Champion Matt Hardy defeated Chavo Guerrero
I said Chavo and Ho Hum! Wrong on both accounts. Good solid match.

WWE Women's Champion Mickie James defeated Katie Lea Burchill

I thought Mickie would lose...thought wrong!

Overall, I went 4-3. Between the draft and the last night's pay-per-view the W.W.E. has definitely shaken things up a bit. I don't think anyone thought that both the W.W.E. and World Titles would be on the Smackdown brand. For how long is anyone's guess. I like seeing the young guys - Cody Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, Kofi Kingston - getting a bump. Raw should be interesting tonight!

Rags' No-Hitter! 25 Years? Really?

So I was looking at the upcoming Yankees schedule in the paper this morning and realized that the Yankees will be playing the Red Sox this Friday July 4th at Yankee Stadium. OK. What came back to memory for me is that the day will mark the 25th anniversary of Dave Righetti’s no-hitter against Boston.

The cynical side of me will add this: I’ve met way too many people over the years that claim to have been at that game. I’m sure that not all of these folks are fibbing, but last I checked the current capacity of Yankee Stadium is 57,545.

I wonder if they (Yankees, YES, etc.) will recognize it – I’m sure they will – although "Rags" works for the San Franscisco Giants these days as a pitching coach.

Still, just amazing to me how it seems like yesterday.

N.H.L. Free Agency Beckons

Tomorrow begins the lunacy of NHL free agency. Already Ryan Malone was given $32 million by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Specifically, though, I am interested to see if the Rangers bring back any of their pending free agents. Jaromir Jagr and Sean Avery are the two most notable names, however, Brendan Shanahan has been a first-class Blueshirt, as well. Last July 1, the Broadway Blues came on stronger than Irish coffee with the signings of Chris Drury and Scott Gomez.

The N.H.L. raised the salary cap $7 million to $57 million, so let’s see what Glen”The Savior”Sather will do this summer.

Two More Great Performances from John"Thunderfingers"Entwistle

The final two videos I am going to post this morning are of The Who performing "My Generation" at Woodstock in 1969 and the band's Teenage Cancer Trust charity concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2000. The latter of which is of John Entwistle's solo during the song "5.15." His bass performance on this song clearly shows why he is "Thunderfingers."

Woodstock 1969


Royal Albert Hall

The Who - "Silas Stingy" written by John Entwistle **MUST WATCH**

The below video, "Silas Stingy," is from The Who Sell Out album and is guaranteed to get stuck in your head. John Entwistle (pictured above in his famous skeleton costume) wrote the song and is the lead vocalist. Whoever put this tribute video together did a great job!

R.I.P. John Entwistle

R.I.P.

"THUNDERFINGERS"

John Alec Entwistle

October 9, 1944 – June 27, 2002

Night of Champions Predictions

The W.W.E. brings you another pay-per-view this Sunday evening, Night of Champions. The show is intriguing for me for a couple of reasons: First, nearly every W.W.E. title is on the line so that means we are guaranteed some belts changing hands. Second, the W.W.E. brings back some of their former champions, which is cool to see. I like history – no matter what forum it comes from. So here are my predictions:

WWE Champion Triple H vs. John Cena
Cena beat Hunter a couple of years ago, so I am hoping for HHH to get this one from Cena. But either the W.W.E. Championship or the World Heavyweight Title has to go to Raw. So here’s my solution: Either Batista beats Edge and takes the World Title to Raw or Triple H defeats Cena, but then CM Punk cashes in his "Money in the Bank" victory and uses it for a match against Triple H on the spot. Punk wins which would give him some major credibility and now you’ve got the W.W.E. Title on Raw. Having said all of that, unfortunately, I think Cena will win this one.

World Heavyweight Champion Edge vs Batista
For some strange reason, Shawn Michaels does not have a match on this show. So? Well, someone’s gotta steal the show, right? So I think this match will be the one. Being that I think Cena beats HHH, I’m going with Edge to defeat Batista.

ECW Champion Kane vs. Big Show vs. Mark Henry (Triple Threat ECW Championship Match) Mark Henry scored a surprising non-title win over Kane on E.C.W. Tuesday night, and again, with how the draft played out I see Henry winning the title. It’s also a reward to Henry for the whole Michael Hayes racist comment incident. Because quite frankly if the W.W.E. wanted to push African-American wrestlers they would have kept Shelton Benjamin on E.C.W. and given him the championship – or even upstart Kofi Kingston. But Mark Henry gets the belt and probably the biggest push of his career after enduring creative writer Hayes’ sociopathic behavior.

World Tag Team Champions Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes vs. Ted DiBiase & Mystery Partner
I heard that DiBiase would choose D.H. Smith, son of the late Davey Boy Smith, as his tag team partner and that would be the start of the new second-generation stable of wrestlers that was going to be formed on Raw. But with Smith going to Smackdown in the draft, I have to go back to my original thought that Cody will turn on Holly and end up being the partner of DiBiase. Unless, maybe, the W.W.E. has a major curveball for us?

WWE Tag Team Champions John Morrison & The Miz vs. Finlay & Hornswoggle
The W.W.E. can’t come up with a better tag team than Finlay and Hornswoggle? If Morrison and Miz lose, I see the team being broken up with Morrison then getting a huge push. That's what I am hoping for, however, I do think the champions will retain.

United States Champion Matt Hardy vs. Chavo Guerrero
Chavo wins this one and keeps the U.S. Title on Smackdown. Ho hum!

WWE Women's Champion Mickie James vs. Katie Lea Burchill (WWE Women's Championship Match) Mickie James (pictured) will drop the gold to Katie Lea.

Natty Neidhart will also be fighting someone for the new Smackdown version of the women’s title. No idea who.

One final thought, I read that Vince McMahon isn't big on pushing tag teams at the moment. So if tag team wrestling is such a non-priority, why does the W.W.E. have two versions of the tag team title?

Any chance for an impromptu Michaels-Chris Jericho match? Please! What's a pay-per-view without Shawn Michaels?

W.W.E. Holding Supplemental Draft (UPDATED 3:15 P.M)

Well, it's not an infomercial but annoying Maria (pictured) was drafted off of Monday Night Raw to Smackdown! Here are all of the roster moves of this afternoon's supplemental draft:

1- Mark Henry drafted to ECW (from Smackdown)
2- Jamie Noble to Raw (from Smackdown)
3- Trevor Murdoch to Smackdown (from Raw)
4- Big Daddy V to Smackdown (from ECW)
5- Deuce to Raw (from Smackdown)
6- DH Smith to Smackdown (from Raw)
7- Hornswoggle to ECW (from Smackdown)
8- Super Crazy to ECW (from Raw)
9- Chuck Palumbo to Raw (from Smackdown)
10- Brian Kendrick to Smackdown (from Raw)
11- Matt Striker to Raw (from ECW)
12- Maria to Smackdown (from Raw)
13- Shelton Benjamin to Smackdown (from ECW)
14- Finlay to ECW (from Smackdown)
15- Carlito to Smackdown (from Raw)
16- Layla to Raw (from ECW)
17- Kofi Kingston to Raw (from ECW)

Jim Ross Apologizes, Gets Ready For Smackdown Broadcasts

Jim Ross has had an apparent change of heart, as illustrated from his most recent blog post which appears in its entirety below:

Changes in one’s life take some adjusting to especially at my stage of the game. This week I received an unexpected change in my professional address. Within hours of writing an emotional blog, I am positively moving on. I am going to do all I can to make Smackdown the best program the WWE produces. Working side by side with Mick Foley should be fun. It will be entertaining I assure you. Mick is a great friend and a man I greatly respect. The Smackdown roster is loaded with exceptional talent and the WWE wants the brand to grow and I intend to do all that I can in my role to facilitate that growth.

The abruptness of the “trade” shocked me. I most likely responded in a non professional way in the eyes of some fans. That’s their prerogative and each has the right to their opinion, As do I. Not to be cliche, but wrestling has been great to my family and me. I owe it to the business to “man up” and to kick ass on Smackdown. That’s my plan. My emotions are what they are and I will not apologize for my candor or honesty. My feathers were ruffled…poor me. I still bring bona fide passion to every broadcast and fully expect to deliver come show time. As I write this I am in the midst of some travel delays, but I will definitely be in Houston and will be looking forward to “business picking up”. I will practice what I have preached and feel that after sleeping on this major change all things happen for a reason. Life is good. My tank has been re-fueled. Let’s have some fun. For those of you that were offended by my earlier rant I apologize. For those that think “old J.R.” can’t get the job done, I suggest you sit back and watch. I wish my good pal The King and Michael Cole great success but my professional priority is to help Smackdown kick ass. In more ways than one, “the game is on”.

Boomer Sooner!
J.R.

The Darkest Day In Wrestling: One Year Later

One year ago today was unquestionably the darkest day in professional wrestling history. That was the day that it was confirmed that Chris Benoit had murdered his son, Daniel, and his wife, Nancy, before taking his own life. Kevin Eck of the Baltimore Sun’s Ring Posts blog looks back on that day and the subsequent events that followed. Click here for more. The above photo of Daniel and Nancy comes from the New York Daily News.

Jim Ross On His Move To Smackdown!

Wow, I just checked out the blog of Jim Ross and he is not happy about going to Smackdown, the W.W.E.'s "B" show. Here's the post below:

As many of you know, I was “drafted” to Smackdown Monday night in the “random lottery”. Obviously that means I will be leaving Monday Night Raw and my long time partner Jerry Lawler.

I am not happy about this surprise development.

I also contemplated calling it a career Monday night and not going to Houston to tape SD.

After speaking with my wife and thinking on this matter until 6 a.m. Tuesday morning, I have decided to do the right thing for the fans who care and the talent who care and begin my new assignment.

It has been explained to me that the WWE’s Smackdown tenure on My Network is a high priority within the corporation. Allegedly, my presence is needed in that effort.

Many are speculating about when I learned of this development…the same time those of you were watching at home. I should have detected something with the demeanor of certain individuals either thru their plastic, poker faces or the perceived smirk that I thought I might have seen on some of their faces during the day.

As far as going to Connecticut each week to do Smackdown post production, that’s not going to happen. Either Mick Foley can handle it or the WWE can install a DSL line in my home to facilitate the work.

I will miss working with the King as the wrestling biz is one in which a guy can count his legit friends on one hand…even after a 30 plus year career. King has been like a brother to me….albeit an “older brother”. We will remain friends no matter that our team has been corporately imploded.

I believe that I have been strongly loyal to the WWE no matter the hands that were dealt to me over the years. In my tenure there I have earned a good living of which I am thankful. I will fulfill my commitments that I have made because unlike many in the business, my word is still my bond.

I can’t predict how long my Smackdown tenure will be, but I can promise that no matter how long or short it is that I will do my utmost best while sitting at ringside. I am not the kind of man who will “phone in” a damn thing.

My sincere thanks to all of you who have supported me on RAW over the years. I hope I was able to provide you a memory or two. Hopefully, we can create new memories now on Smackdown.

Based on my professional experiences, I look at each broadcast as potentially my last, which helps keep me motivated. So with that said we begin another chapter in my crazy life in the unpredictable world of ‘rasslin.

I still plan on attending RAW in my home market of OKC next Monday and I hear that tickets are still available. Any one have any extras?

Boomer Sooner!
J.R.

Monday Night Raw in San Antonio Quick Hits

It was quite a night down in the “Lone Star State,” with so much to digest after a very well-done Monday Night Raw. Although Jim Ross looked like he had just bitten into a $2 steak after being drafted to Smackdown! Nonetheless, though, here are some quick hits on what occurred, I’ll have more later:

At least two of the three injuries were real. Melina did indeed hurt her ankle during the ladies tag team match and Batista’s collision with Edge was a mistake. Thus, the blood was real. Vince McMahon, though, did not get hurt during the collapse of the lighting equipment at the show’s conclusion. I thought the execution of this worked well, especially with McMahon breaking from character and calling Triple H by his real name, 'Paul.' But it must have raised speculation about the legitimacy or lack thereof, because it was impossible to get onto any of the overloaded wrestling websites after the show.

So does Triple H drop the W.W.E. Title to John Cena Sunday night or does Batista take the World Heavyweight Title from Edge? Please don't have Cena beat Hunter, I would have trouble keeping my food down!

Is Chavo Guerrero actually going to beat Matt Hardy for the U.S. Title in order to keep that strap on Smackdown?

I’m assuming Kane will lose to Big Show, because what would be E.C.W. without the E.C.W. Championship? Since that championship is so "prestigious."

I still think it would have been better to have done the draft the night after the pay-per-view.

Chris Jericho is the perfect obnoxious heel.

I’m no fashion guru, but I dig Victoria’s boots with the spider webs. Too bad Victoria didn’t get drafted to Raw and annoying Maria didn’t get drafted to...an infomercial!

As far as the ladies go, my old friend Gorilla Monsoon would have said this about Kelly Kelly, “You don’t get a body like that waiting for the bus.”

HUGE Name Set For Monday Night Raw Tonight

Ric Flair will be appearing at this evening's Monday Night Raw, according to Wrestler Observer Radio. Nothing further about what role he will play. But – even if it is just for tonight – why not have the former 16-time World Champ assume the role of the Raw General Manager?

Also, the top prize in "McMahon’s Million Dollar Giveaway" is going to be $500,000!

Hey, I’m not overly enthused about the giveaway by any stretch of the imagination, but if I win $500G, I’ll be singing a different tune!

The W.W.E. Draft

Apparently, a slow week in the blogosphere, but all that promises to change this week with so much going on.

If tonight isn’t the most important night of the year for World Wrestling Entertainment than it certainly is one of. It’s the W.W.E. Draft! All three brands will be shaken up on Monday Night Raw, emanating live from San Antonio, Texas at 8 p.m.

Things are very, very tight so nothing has leaked out. Although Vince McMahon told shareholders recently that Umaga would be going to Smackdown. But as far as I’m concerned they have done a whole heap of damage to the Umaga character by never having him beat anyone credible, so a brand change could be good for Umaga, especially if he is rebuilt, perhaps in a tag team duo with his relative Afa Jr. But that’s just a thought on my part.

So what will happen this evening?

It’s a dare I say million dollar question, because the way the rosters break out after this evening will undoubtedly have a major impact on a product that has grown stale over the last couple of months – perhaps longer. This will all occur with Vince McMahon giving away $1 million again.

I don’t know how much wrestling will be on the show tonight between the draft and the giveaway segments, but this evening's show does have promise if some big surprises occur. I’m sure the W.W.E. is expecting stellar ratings for tonight, however, if they want to keep that up, they’ve got to do something big, something completely unexpected, yet something that makes sense.

John Cena to Smackdown? Eh, ok. Batista to Raw? That’s fine. But the move that has to be made is Triple H to Smackdown. That would give me and many others a whole bunch of new reasons to watch the W.W.E.’s “B” show. With a new network taking Smackdown in the fall, having Triple H as the show’s centerpiece would really be something.

Triple H can beat Cena at Night of Champions on Sunday and take the W.W.E. title with him to Smackdown. Meanwhile, Edge can drop the World Title to Batista, who if drafted to Raw, would then take the World Heavyweight Championship to the flagship brand. That would instantly set up a Hunter-Edge feud - something that we haven't seen before.

Oh and who wouldn't want to see Shawn Michaels win the World Championship once more? Something that could be done with HBK beating Batista. While we're at it why not have that match on Raw? Now that would put butts in the seats!

We’ll see. Just some ideas on my part. Let's just hope that the biggest move of the night isn't Snitsky going back to E.C.W.!!!

W.W.E. Polling and Contest

The Incredible Hulk movie comes out tonight and so WWE.com has a poll up here on who is the “all-time incredible Hulk” of the W.W.E.

Tough choice for me. Andre The Giant? Maybe. Big John Studd? Sure. Vader? That’s probably my vote. What a transformation he made! Vader, a former L.A. Ram, went from being the portly “Baby Bull” Leon White to being a legit badass.

The chance to win some of Vince McMahon’s money may be coming to an end soon, so why not register for a chance to win over here. Ratings did not get the bump that the company was looking for, so if that continues, this Monday night will most likely be the final time they'll have the contest. It may take away from the show, but I’m sure the winners aren’t complaining!

Thank God Tiger Is OK!

We can all exhale and put on a big smile with the news that Tiger Woods is able to play despite his achy knee at the U.S. Open, which starts today at Torey Pines in beautiful San Diego.

Oh poor lil Tiger!

The sport that Tiger and Fatso Francesa like to rip, regularly features guys who play with an assortment of injuries and never complain. I've always liked Tiger Woods and was disappointed to hear him putting down the great sport of hockey.

One other thing that is cool about the icemen - pun intended - is that most of them show nothing but respect when speaking of their fellow sports brethren. Tiger might want to follow their example.

As for Francesa...oh the hell with him!

So Long Michael Strahan!

Michael Strahan (pictured above) announced his retirement this week, which I have mixed emotions about. Not that he retired, no, the fact that he lasted 15 years in the N.F.L. is really amazing and I’m sure it took a tremendous toll on his body. Strahan was always outspoken during his career, and too often it came back to haunt him.
Although when Strahan started to get ganged up on by “those guys on the radio in the afternoon” my feelings of ambivalence about number 92 changed to where I just had to root hard for the guy. Michael Strahan retires on top after being part of one of if not the greatest Super Bowl upsets ever. His play on the field will be missed, but his mouth won’t because I’m sure he’ll be on some network doing football analysis before long.

Though I wouldn’t expect him to be hangin’ out with “those guys on the radio in the afternoon,” you know, the ones who look like they are such athletic specimens (pictured on the far left and right)!

W.W.E. Musings

Quite a few things aren’t making sense to me these days with the W.W.E.

For one, I don’t understand why they are burying CM Punk. I’ve read that Vince McMahon thinks he is a “stringbean.” I guess you could be called worse. But let’s face facts, CM Punk and Samoa Joe, while both working for R.O.H., put on a rare Dave Meltzer “five-star match.” Meltzer, is one of the best sports journalists around, period. His judgement is better than mine will ever be about what goes on inside the wrestling ring and so to me that means that Punk has the ability for greatness. Why he isn’t being pushed is beyond me.

The W.W.E. builds up Beth Phoenix as this indestructible force, only to have her drop the Women’s Championship and then stick her in a directionless feud with Melina.

Mr. Kennedy and Paul Burchill start a feud but it seems like it is already over. Kennedy won a quick match over Burchill Monday night. Yes, Burchill attacked Mr. K after the bout, but any element of intrigue to this is gone by the fact that Kennedy already beat Burchill so easily. Also, why did they take away Kennedy's microphone shtick?

Triple H-Randy Orton-John Cena have gone 'round and 'round for the W.W.E. Championship while over on Smackdown, The Undertaker-Edge-Batista have done the same tango for the World Championship. Any chance of perhaps mixing it up? Pretty please!

Yet, despite all of this there is a lot of good with the W.W.E. I like the Shawn Michaels-Chris Jericho feud. I also think that if young Ted DiBiase can wrestle as good as he can talk, the W.W.E. has a future star on their hands. A young faction of second and third-generation wrestlers also could work really well.

It’s pretty amazing that there are so many young guys of that ilk right now, not to mention Jim Neidhart’s daughter, Natalya (both pictured).

Incidentally, I would have Carlito drop Santino Marella as his tag team partner and bring up his brother Eddie Colon from F.C.W. to form a tandem.

Santino’s career really needs some revitalizing; they’ve basically buried the guy by having him lose to every scrub and their mothers.

Kofi Kingston, John Morrison and Lance Cade all seem to have some potential, as well, if packaged correctly.

Finally, I am a bit perplexed as to why the W.W.E. would hold the draft on June 23 and then have the Night of Champions pay—per-view on June 29. Most, if not all of the matches are set for the p.p.v. so why not have the draft the night after Night of Champions. The way the draft goes will basically tell us how the pay-per-view will turn out.

We’ll see, I guess.

Mike Myers Talks About Keith Moon Movie

Finally, some news on the movie about Keith Moon (featured) starring Mike Myers. In a recent interview, Myers discusses the Moon role and some other upcoming characters he'll be playing.

Click here for more.

Monday Night Raw: What A Dog!

So sorry to have gone postless the last few days, but I’ve needed a few days to get over what the W.W.E. put forth on Monday night. For a variety of reasons I was pretty tired, so I thought my judgement may have been a bit skewed about the show. But most people seem to be in agreeance with me that McMahon’s Million Dollar Mania is a miscarriage of justice!

There were several problems with it, but the biggest one that I had was that it completely overshadowed Monday Night Raw. Time for W.W.E. and their “creative” writing team to go back to the drawing board.

The lone bright spot of the show was the apparent heel turn by Chris Jericho after he threw Shawn Michaels into the Jeritron. Shawn Michaels is the main attraction for me on Raw these days, but hasn’t he always, though.

Brian Danielson defeated Lance Cade via submission in the “dark match.” Danielson is still working for Ring of Honor and for whatever reason, R.O.H. gave him permission to work Raw. Maybe this is a sign of the W.W.E. working with some of the other promotions. If you recall, they did the same thing at the dawn of the “Attitude Era."

Regardless, I have heard only positive things about Danielson.

Joe Hennig, son of the late Mr. Perfect, has started working for the W.W.E.'s developmental league, Florida Championship Wrestling.

Rough Day At The Office?

What say you?

http://www.break.com/index/office-worker-goes-absolutely-insane.html

64 Years Ago Today The World Changed...

Lest we all forget - 'cause I'm sure the newspapers are too busy chasing Lindsey around instead of writing about something of real substance - the Invasion of Normandy started 64 years ago today. This is a good day to either show a veteran some appreciation or give thanks to God for all of those brave folks involved in such a complex and dangerous operation.

For more on this historical event, click here.

Paul Heyman Says W.W.E. Right To Deny Flair

Thanks to a comment earlier, I was alerted to the fact that the W.W.E. is preventing Ric Flair's participation in an N.W.A. Hall of Fame induction ceremony. The induction will go on with Flair not being present. The ceremony is part of a show tomorrow night in Atlanta which will be headlined by Sid Vicious, the Midnight Express and the Rock and Roll Express. Ticket sales are so bad they are now giving away freebies. For more on Paul Heyman's thoughts, click here courtesy of The Sun.

Big Brown's Destiny Not Affirmed

I've got a feeling - that's all it is - that Big Brown will not be the first thoroughbred since Affirmed to win the Triple Crown tomorrow at the 140th running of the Belmont Stakes. Just a feeling so don't bet the house on anything I say, but here are my picks nonetheless:

Win: Dennis of Cork (featured)
Place: Icabad Crane
Show: Big Brown

W.W.E. 24/7 Is The Best Buy On Cable

If you are a fan of the squared circle, then W.W.E. 24/7 is a must! For around $6 or $7 per month you can watch some great stuff from the past and the recent present. They already have No Way Out from February as a feature this month.

My favorite show is the Legends of Wrestling. It's normally hosted by Jim Ross, but the last couple of episodes have been hosted by my "close, personal, long-time friend," "Mean" Gene Okerlund.

This month he moderates a round table discussion on the worst gimmicks in the history of wrestling with Dusty Rhodes, Pat Patterson, Mick Foley and Michael Hayes as the panelists. Yes, the Gobbeldy Gooker does come up. But in past months they've talked about other topics such as territories and legit badasses.

It has an old-school type of feel with some of the guys puffing on cigars or cigarettes. Former panelists have included Tazz, Eric Bischoff, Mike Graham and Jerry Lawler.

So if you're tired of the current product, do yourself a favor and at least try out W.W.E. 24/7.

Hillary Clinton (And Why Not Rudy Also) = LMAO! Part II

It's all over Hillary. I would have been genuinely bummed out if she was elected president. I'm not overly excited with either one of the choices on the table, but I won't be angry if either gets elected because I think both candidates can represent this country well.

Hey, I threw in Rudy because I never got to give him a parting shot and even if I did, well why not do it again. America's mayor, my ass!

Be gone cretins!

Sidney Crosby = LMAO! Part I

Congratulations to the Detroit Red Wings for winning the Stanley Cup last night. I'm so glad to see Chris Osgood (great story), Chris Chelios (coming soon: Cheli's chili from the Cup?), and Nicklas Lidstrom (class act) get to hoist above their heads the most difficult trophy in all of sports to win.

As far as Sidney Crosby? Well, the pools are now open so he can work on his diving all day!

Kurt Angle: The One That Got Away

Some great comments on here the last day or so and I want to say thanks for reading and commenting. It got me thinking about who could help the W.W.E. that is no longer with the company. Now also keep in mind that although the ratings are down, the W.W.E. is still one of, if not the top show on the different channels that they are on.

But of all the wrestlers that for one reason or another left the W.W.E. in the last few years, the one that I think stings the most (other than The Rock) is Kurt Angle. Kurt (featured) is a legit badass as a result of winning a gold medal, although he didn’t do it with a broken neck as he says, he did make it through the trials with a broken neck.

Now he is in T.N.A. and apparently wants to pursue Hollywood. His oft-injured neck may force him out of wrestling sooner than we would all have hoped. A guy like Angle put on some fantastic matches in the W.W.E. and brought out the best in guys like Brock Lesnar.

For the W.W.E., Kurt Angle is definitely “the one” that got away.

Inside The Squared Circle: Big Show Now A Big Question? New E.C.W. GM, Draft Thoughts, **WARNING: SPOILERS AT THE END**

The Big Show (pictured above making life miserable for Kurt Angle) has been diagnosed with a broken nose and possible broken orbital bone as a result of his match at One Night Stand. The question now becomes will he be able to wrestle Kane at Night of Champions at the end of this month? Somehow I think he will, because the W.W.E. can’t afford to have another period like last year where they start losing guys to injury, suspension, etc.

Meanwhile, as of last night Teddy Long is the new GM of E.C.W. replacing Armando Estrada. To me this is a waste of talent. Teddy Long should either be GM of Smackdown or Monday Night Raw, not the third-string E.C.W. Estrada should either go back to managing or become a heel commentator.

In general, I’m no fan of the three man booth, but he would provide some spark with any of the three commentating tandems.

I find it really interesting that not only are the wrestlers eligible to be drafted and thus switch brands, but so are the commentators. Done right, this draft could really be a good thing for the W.W.E.

Randy Orton will be out three months with what WWE.com is saying is a compress fracture of his left collarbone.

I was impressed by Matt Sydal in his countout loss, albeit a quick one, to Shelton Benjamin last night on E.C.W.

SMACKDOWN SPOILERS
-Cousin Sal (who came out to the song "Working for a Living" by Huey Lewis and the News) beat Santino Marella due to outside interference from Jimmy Kimmel and Roddy Piper.

- The Great Khali made his "triumphant" return to beat Deuce & Domino.

- There will be a Smackdown version of the W.W.E. Women's Title.

- Batista, Nunzio, Funaki and Colin Delaney defeated Edge, Curt Hawkins, Zach Ryder and Chavo Guerrero (w/Bam Neeley and Vickie Guerrero).

- Batista defeated Edge and Vickie Guerrero.

Time To Warm Up Some Milk And Celebrate!!!

The reason? Simple, just read below courtesy of the Associated Press:

Clinton set to concede delegate race to Obama
By BETH FOUHY, Associated Press

Hillary Rodham Clinton will concede Tuesday night that Barack Obama has the delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, campaign officials said, effectively ending her bid to be the nation's first female president.

Obama is 40 delegates shy of clinching the nomination, but he is widely expected to make up the difference Tuesday with superdelegate support and votes in South Dakota and Montana. Once he reaches the magic number of 2,118, Clinton will acknowledge that he has secured the necessary delegates to be the nominee.

The former first lady will stop short of formally suspending or ending her race in her speech in New York City.

She will pledge to continue to speak out on issues like health care. But for all intents and purposes, the two senior officials said, the campaign is over.

Most campaign staff will be let go and will be paid through June 15, said the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to divulge her plans.

The advisers said Clinton has made a strategic decision to not formally end her campaign, giving her leverage to negotiate with Obama on various matters including a possible vice presidential nomination for her. She also wants to press him on issues he should focus on in the fall, such as health care.

Universal health care, Clinton's signature issue as first lady in the 1990s, was a point of dispute between Obama and the New York senator during their epic nomination fight.

Clinton was at home in Chappaqua, N.Y., with her husband, former President Clinton, and was placing calls to friends and supporters.

On NBC's "Today Show," Clinton campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe said that once Obama gets the majority of convention delegates, "I think Hillary Clinton will congratulate him and call him the nominee."

In a formal statement, the campaign made clear the limits of how far she would go in Tuesday night's speech. "Senator Clinton will not concede the nomination," the statement said.

Clinton field hands who worked in key battlegrounds said they were told to stand down, without pay, and await instructions. Speaking not for attribution because they didn't want to jeopardize their jobs searches, many said they were peddling resumes, returning to their hometowns or seeking out former employers.

Clinton officials have said they would not contest the seating of Michigan delegates at the convention in Denver this August. The campaign was angry this past weekend when a Democratic National Committee panel awarded Obama delegates it thought Clinton deserved.

Big Show, Big Hurt

The above is proof positive that wrestlers get hurt. There are conflicting reports, but Big Show either had to go for an M.R.I. or is going for one. The W.W.E. said that initially it was just a cut over his eye, but Show woke up Monday morning with his eye shut and some major swelling. Nasty stuff!

Monday Night Raw Thoughts

A couple of quick thoughts on Monday Night Raw from last night…

Overall a good show, but I don’t like when the opening segment is a rant or an interview with a wrestler. Better to start with an actual wrestling match in my opinion. Also, I found it quite disturbing that a fan jumped over the barrier and got into the ring during the John Cena-Jeff Hardy main event match. It also looked as though the security had a heck of a time trying to restrain said individual. The same sort of thing happened last week during a Raw dark match and the next night during the Smackdown taping in a segment that had to be edited out.

The W.W.E. is having a press conference today at noon in Los Angeles to promote the giveaway of Vince McMahon’s money and supposedly something else. We’ll see. If you want to get in on the action to win some of McMahon's dough, go to WWE.com.

Cena defeated Hardy in match that determined who would face Triple H at Night of Champions. I thought Cena-Hunter would be held out until SummerSlam, but I suppose the W.W.E. needs a marquee matchup for that pay-per-view.

It just seems way too obvious that Cody Rhodes is going to turn heel when he and "Hardcore" Bob Holly drop the tag team straps to Ted DiBiase and his mystery partner - Cody Rhodes himself?

For the folks who love the women grapplers of T.N.A., it appears now that the W.W.E. has another legit lady wrestler in Katie Lea…she’s not just another pretty face as my old friend Gorilla Monsoon used to say. I’m now betting that it will be Katie Lea, not Beth Phoenix, challenging Mickie James at Night of Champions for the W.W.E. Women's Title.

I’m really intrigued by the whole Chris Jericho-Shawn Michaels-Batista angle and how it will play out. This whole thing about Jericho losing a bit of his killer instinct by not hitting a prone JBL with a chair is good stuff. As far as storylines go in general, I like when they drop subtle hints instead of giving away the dessert while your still working on the appetizer, or something like that.

Oh yeah, Big Show apparently has to go for an M.R.I. due to the repeated blows to the head he took on Sunday night. There are some pictures of Big Show on the W.W.E.'s website showing how badly his face got messed up, particularly around his left eye.

Cougarmania Runnin' Wild

Is it me or are the Hogans sick? I mean really sick! With all the stuff that has been going on with that family, there is unbelievably more weird stuff being reported. The latest are some photos that show Linda Hogan partying over the weekend with a 19-year-old that resembles her son, Nick. This after Hulk has been seen dating a girl that looks an awful lot like his daughter, Brooke. The story is courtesy of TMZ here.

Win Vince McMahon’s W.W.E. Money!

Below is a story courtesy of the Associated Press about the W.W.E. giving away some major shekels...

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Wrestling fans eager to get their hands on Vince McMahon's money will have to jump through a few hoops first.

The World Wrestling Entertainment chairman announced during last week's "Monday Night Raw" that he would give away $1 million of his own wealth to viewers, but he didn't specify when or how it would be distributed.

The cash will be given away as part of a lengthy promotional sweepstakes, McMahon and the WWE told The Associated Press.

For a chance to win a part — but not all — of the $1 million, viewers must pre-register on WWE.com and then watch the beginning of "Raw" each week to receive a special code, which viewers must tell McMahon if he calls them during the live broadcast.

The code will change each week of the promotion and will not be revealed until the beginning of each episode.

"People can view this as my own version of an economic stimulus plan to benefit our viewers," McMahon told The Associated Press.

While the USA Network series continues to be one of the most watched shows on cable TV, its ratings have recently declined. Last Monday's episode received the lowest ratings in five years, according to Nielsen Media Research.

McMahon said his goal with the giveaway, which begins June 9, is to reward loyal "Raw" fans and draw new and former viewers back to the show.

USA is owned by General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal.

Last Ride For Undertaker At One Night Stand?

Results from last night’s One Night Stand pay-per-view and some thoughts…

Edge over The Undertaker (TLC Match for World Championship)
Is this the end of The Undertaker? Edge won the belt with a lot of help from his friends in an outstanding match. Undertaker is said to be taking an extended hiatus, so he’ll return at some point. But is it possible that he just unceremoniously walks off into the sunset?

W.W.E. Champion Triple H defeated Randy Orton (Last Man Standing Match)
These two have had some good matches, but never a great one, that trend continued last night. The match had an anticlimactic ending, which was soon explained after it was revealed that Randy Orton had legitimately hurt his collarbone. I wondered last week what direction they would go in with Orton following this bout and there was a hint during a backstage segment in which Randy asked Batista if he would like to reform Evolution. Batista said nothing, but regardless that angle is now presumably off for a while with the Orton injury.

John Cena bludgeons JBL (First Blood Match)
Good match, with some pretty violent spots. Do they continue this feud or does the W.W.E. follow my rantings and match up JBL and Mr. Kennedy?

Shawn Michaels loses to Batista in a Stretcher Match
Batista was dominant in this match, especially in the latter half. Michaels does a tremendous job of selling injury, but I thought that giving Batista such a dominant role limited Michaels a bit. So does Batista now challenge Edge at Night of Champions? Seems logical.

Jeff Hardy beat Umaga (Falls Count Anywhere)
Hardy makes me nervous whenever he does those high-risk maneuvers. I’m sure there was some camera trickery involved, but diving onto Umaga on the cement is still quite risky. Does Hardy go after Jericho next?

Big Show defeated John Morrison, Tommy Dreamer, Chavo Guerrero, CM Punk in a Singapore Cane Match
Big Show lost his marbles after being ganged up on by the other four. His shot on Dreamer with the cane at the end of the match was brutal. Interesting to see Chargers' linebacker Shawn Merriman get involved from his front row seat by smashing Chavo Guerrero with the cane. I wonder if it is a one-time thing? Show-Kane forthcoming at Night of Champions for E.C.W. Title.

Beth Phoenix makes Melina say "I Quit" ("I Quit" Match)
This match exceeded my expectations. Phoenix won and now will presumably face Mickie James for the W.W.E Women's Championship at Night of Champions.

Overall a solid pay-per-view. I’d give it an 8 on a scale of 1-10.

Monday Night Raw should be interesting tonight with so many questions to be answered, especially how we go about winning some of Vince McMahon’s money.