The 10th Day News Report for 1.9.08

This week was to begin the start of my separate EWR column. I sat down to work on it a couple times and it kept feeling like I had to, not that I wanted to. So for the time being, at least, I’m going to put the idea on hold. I do thank everyone who contributed to it in the past and those who enjoyed it. Additionally, I might have changes in my life coming up that would prevent from keeping up with it. I’ll let you know more next week.

Today is my birthday. I just wanted to be selfish and mention it.

NEWS AND NOTES

-In your online Heat report Atlas DaBone went over Nick Nemeth in a dark match. DH Smith beat Greg Cardoza. Super Crazy and Jim Duggan jobbed out Big Daddy Flex and Mega. Santino Marella went over Brian Kendrick. Credit: PWInsider.com

-RAW on Monday scored a 3.2 rating. That is pretty good considering it was up against “American Gladiators” and the BCS Championship game. However, the BCS game was down from last year at a 13.2 from a 16.0. I guess people got enough of seeing Ohio State getting trounced last year. Just to comment, OSU gets screwed by having to wait nearly two months between their last game and the title game. The Big Ten should have a conference title game. The better idea would be to hold a tournament or at least a plus one scenario. I don’t think this loss is good for OSU for next year. My pick now for Big Ten champ will be Illinois. Write it down. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Confirmed for the Royal Rumble at this time is:
*Edge vs. Rey Mysterio for the World Heavyweight Title
*Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy for the WWE Title
*JBL vs. Chris Jericho
*30 man Royal Rumble currently including Shannon Moore, Jimmy Wang Yang, The Miz, John Morrison, Snitsky, Umaga, Hardcore Holly, Batista, The Undertaker Hornswoggle and Mick Foley. Credit: WWE.com

-WWE is advertising a rumble qualifying match for their Friday house show with Santino Marella and Carlito facing DH Smith and Drew McIntyre. I’d pick the heels to go over there. Credit: WWE.com

-Val Venis and Kane are both supporting Ron Paul as the Republican candidate for President. For Venis, I guess it takes a jobber to know a jobber. Paul is currently running sixth in opinion polls and placed fifth in the recent Iowa caucus. Credit: PWInsider.com, AP reports

-Bobby Lashley could return at any moment. They might hold his debut off until the Royal Rumble or have him debut to win a qualifying match as a surprise. Candice Michelle should be back early next month. There are talks of putting her back into a program with Beth Phoenix leading into Wrestlemania. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Ashley Massaro’s superstar profile on WWE.com has been moved to RAW after her appearance Monday. It is possible that she will be moved into a program with Beth Phoenix. Coach’s has been moved to Smackdown as he is the new color commentator. Oddly, Ric Flair’s profile is still listed for Smackdown even though he’s been on RAW since his recent return. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Nattie Neidhart continues to work Smackdown house shows, but there is no word on when her television debut will be. Neidhart worked against Victoria on Monday in Elmira, New York. She is the daughter of Jim Neidhart and the cousin of current RAW wrestler DH Smith. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Ron Killings is in talks with WWE. A contract has been offered and he is likely to sign it. I’d keel over laughing if they brought him back as K-Kwick. They’ll probably dump him on ECW. Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-It is said that WWE’s drug testing policy does not really cover marijuana. That drug specifically is only tested for once a year and comes with just a $1000. Rob Van Dam should be signing back up any day now then. I speak more on this below, but WWE is doing a good thing with the Wellness Policy, they just to continue tweaking it. Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-Hard to believe, but Randy Orton is rumored to be gaining in respect and clout backstage. Orton feels that he is untouchable, which I can believe, and that leads him to stand up to Triple H and Shawn Michaels. A recent story had Umaga wanting to get new tights made, but the seamstress told him that the colors he wanted were Triple H’s color and he couldn’t have them. He demanded them anyway. Shawn Michaels threw a fit when he saw the new tights. Orton stood up for Umaga and Michaels backed down. I side with Orton on that one. It’s a pair of tights, don’t be a baby. Hey, Shawn WWJD? Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that WWE will hold Wrestlemania in 2010 at the University of Phoenix stadium. WWE has not confirmed this. Wrestlemania 2010 shirts have been done up by those trying to bring in the event. Even Wayne Gretzky was pictured wearing one. Credit: PWInsider.com

-A very popular news item from last week had Maria saying she wanted to pose in Playboy. That has apparently been confirmed and Maria’s spread will run in the March issue as hype leading into Wrestlemania. To tide you over until then, Maryse is Miss January on Playboy’s hottest nudes calendar. Credit: PWInsider.com

–The Game Plan starring the Rock will be released to DVD on January 22nd. The film was a surprise success at the box office and I bet it keeps the trend up on the home entertainment front. Credit: PWInsider.com

-“American Gladiators” scored a 6.7 rating for its debut Sunday night and a 6.2 rating on Monday. I was going to watch it, but had to grout my bathroom tile instead. I’ll be interested to see if that number holds up over subsequent episodes. Curiosity factor can draw you huge ratings to start that cannot be sustained. Ask “Cop Rock.” Credit: PWInsider.com

-TNA Impact rundown, fairly non-spoiler:

Xplosion
*ODB and Jackie Moore vs. Velvet Sky and Angelina Love
*Judas Mesias vs. Elix Skipper

Impact for 1.10.08
*The Motor City Machine Guns vs. Senshei and Elix Skipper
*Judas Mesias vs. Chris Harris
*Petey Williams and Sonjay Dutt vs. VKM
*Jim Cornette confrontation with Robert Roode
*LAX vs. Jimmy Rave and Lance Hoyt
*In ring confrontation with Kurt and Karen Angle, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe and Christian Cage
*Awesome Kong vs. Gail Kim for the TNA Knockouts Title

Impact for 1.17.08
*ODB vs. Angelina Love
*In ring confrontation between Team 3D and the Motor City Machine Guns
*Tomko vs. Eric Young
*Kaz vs. Senshei
*Kip James and BG James confrontation (I have to spoil this, Bullet Bob shows up)
*Abyss vs. Lance Hoyt (Mitchell reveals Abyss’ secret)
*Robert Roode vs. Sonjay Dutt
*Christian Cage vs. Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles for a title shot

*Jay Lethal defeated Sonjay Dutt, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelly, Johnny Devine and Petey Williams in a six way dance in a dark match that apparently was being filmed for use in the TNA video game.
Credit: PWInsider.com

-SPOILERS FOR AGAINST ALL ODDS

According to the Impact tapings matches confirmed for Against All Odds are ODB vs. Awesome Kong and Team 3D vs. the Motor City Machine Guns in a hardcore street fight. Christian won a title shot and BG James announced that his father would be his partner for his upcoming tag team title shot, but those matches were not confirmed for the pay per view. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Several cable subscribers in Canada through Viewer’s Choice were unable to buy TNA Final Resolution on Sunday due to equipment malfunction. That’s a whole six buys gone off their total. It was just lying there, but I went there anyway. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Before the Final Resolution pay per view Terry Taylor told talent that they would be instituting a drug testing policy starting with the January 21st and 22nd Impact tapings. These tests will most likely just be used to provide a baseline for the use of steroids, painkillers and other illegal narcotics. There is no word yet on what punishments will be for violations. It needs to have teeth if it’s going to be anything. People might give WWE little respect for having their Wellness Policy, but they have suspended and fired people for violations. Additionally, it possibly saved MVP’s life in detecting a heart condition. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Some New Japan wrestlers will start working for TNA at the end of the month. No word on exactly who yet. Several TNA wrestlers worked for New Japan last week. Kurt Angle vs. Yuji Nagata will air on the Global Impact special and is said to be a pretty good match. Credit: PWInsider.com

-TNA is said to be putting a lot of energy and effort into their upcoming house show in Dallas, Texas. The city is home of Panda Energy, which is the parent company for TNA. TNA is also looking to run a ppv in Texas this coming year. Credit: PWInsider.com

-Bobby Heenan is currently recovering from jaw surgery he had in mid December. His rehab process will be longer than first thought. Heenan’s initial surgery on December 14th was unsuccessful and doctors had to redo it on December 18th. Bone was taken from his leg and hip to reconstruct his jaw. Heenan was placed in a coma for several weeks to prevent him from moving while the graft took hold. Heenan is right at the top of the list of people I would like to meet and I certainly wish him the best to a full recovery. Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-The next issue of “Hustler” to hit the stands will feature pictures of the late Nancy Benoit shot before she entered the wrestling business in the early eighties. The pictures were obtained from Orlando DJ Mark Samansky who took the pictures for Nancy when she was considering getting into nude modeling. The photos were thought destroyed, but Samansky handed over the negatives to “Hustler” for an undisclosed sum. Honestly, the less said about that the better, but I think we can all agree that running the spread is completely disgusting. Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-On a happier note, the animated series “Much Lucha” are working on possibly doing live wrestling events with grapplers based on characters from the show this summer at fairs and such in the Southwest and West Cost. The events will be targeted at small children and families. Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-IWA and WWC in Puerto Rico is currently involved in a feud where several wrestlers are jumping between companies. This began when announcer Moody Melendez for WWC was fired from his commentating position in favor of Jerry Rodriguez. Melendez, who was booking WWC at the time, walked away completely from the company and took many wrestlers with him that originally came over from IWA. Melendez and Biggie Size are confirmed to be back with IWA. Size was the WWC Universal champion and took the title belt with him to IWA. At a recent show, WWC officials appeared to reclaim the title, but IWA officials hid the belt from them. IWA and WWC officials got into a heated argument during the show and police were called. WWC is rumored to be filing a lawsuit to get the title belt back. Size is countering that WWC owes him money and he will not turn the belt over until he is paid. Many more wrestlers are rumored to be going to IWA from WWC. In related news, Apolo of WWC is scheduled to report to WWE at the beginning of February and should be with the RAW brand. Credit: Armando Rodriguez of 411

-Kevin Steen vs. Necro Butcher has been added to the Ring of Honor show this Friday in Boston. January 26th in Chicago will feature El Generico vs. Claudio Castagnoli. The previously announced tag team scramble match will be reworked due to Tyler Black and Jimmy Jacobs winning the tag team titles on December 30th. Credit: ROHWrestling.com

ECW RECAP

-We start with credits. Hyped matches are Chavo vs. CM Punk and a dance off between Kelly Kelly and Layla. I am so not psyched for that.

-Fifteen minutes of fame match for the WWE Tag Team Titles between Miz and Morrison vs. Moore and Yang. Whatever happened to tag team names? Miz is wearing his pimp hat, so he means business. Morrison is actually the only guy in the match without a cool hat.

Miz and Moore start. They slug it out. Moore gets a body scissors into a roll up, then a backslide. Moore is pushing that you need to get pins early. Miz drives Moore into the corner and tags Morrison. Morrison gets a neckbreaker for two. Morrison gets a running knee. He covers for two. He goes to a headlock on the mat. Moore works up. He flips over a suplex and runs Morrison into Miz in the corner. John tries to cut off the tag, but Moore makes it to Yang. Yang is a house of fire. Morrison does a great sell of a monkey flip. Miz saves the cover. Yang avoids a double team, then Moore takes out Miz with a rana. Morrison avoids the moossault press. Morrison tries to use the ropes on a roll up, but Moore stops him. Miz distracts the ref from a pin on Morrison. Yang takes out Miz on the apron, but Morrison rolls him up with tights for the first pin. We go to break. Hot starting sequence.

We return to Morrison working a headlock on Yang on the mat. Yang is whipped into Miz on the apron and he hits the floor. He goes up for the moosault press, but gets crotched. Morrison hangs him in the tree of woe and wails on the knee. Miz returns to the apron to work over Yang. Morrison goes for a back superplex, but Yang elbows him off. He hits the moonsault press for a pin. Miz dives in to take out the hurt knee. Miz goes to a single leg crab. I’m sensing a draw. Yang fights out. Morrison returns to go on the leg. John argues with the ref so Miz can cheat. Morrison works a spinning toehold into a knee bar. Yang gets his other leg up to flip Morrison off his feet, but he comes up in his corner and tags Miz. Miz wraps the leg around the ring post. Tag to Morrison. They do the catapult into the forearm with the following leg drop spot. That needs a name. How about the Wild Ride? Morrison works a leg lock. Yang makes the ropes. Tag to Miz. Miz whips Morrison into Yang, but he ducks. Yang gets a jawbreaker on Miz. He tries to vault over Miz to tag Moore. It becomes a sunset flip. He comes out of it to tag Moore. Moore flies in on Miz, but rolls through the cross body to nail Morrison. Moore knocks Miz to the floor and sentons out. Morrison attacks him. Yang cuts Morrison off. Yang goes up top for a cross body to the outside. Moore gets a modified neckbreaker for a two back in on Miz. Moore hits a corkscrew moonsault press for two. The faces mess up a powerslam neckbreaker combo. Yang looked to barely have made contact. Morrison puts Miz’s foot on the ropes on the cover. Yang kicks Miz and covers for two. Yang hits the moonsault press, but can’t cover in time. The draw favors the champs. Now this should lead to best of three falls where there must a winner.

-Back from the break the slam of the week is Colin Delaney getting slammed, crammed and jammed by Big Daddy V.

-Tazz is in the ring with Delaney. He has his ribs and left arm taped. This should keep going until he’s wrapped up like a mummy. Tazz tries to throw it to the vide tape, but it doesn’t get played. This isn’t live, couldn’t they have fixed that. Delaney says he hurts pretty much everywhere. Tazz asks for a round of applause for him. He gets booed. The good news is that he doesn’t have to face an ECW superstar. Bad news is he has to face a Smackdown superstar. I think you can guess. It’s Mark Henry. This should be a Rumble qualifier just to get Henry in, but give Delaney more to fight for.

-Mark Henry vs. Colin Delaney. Henry headbutts him. He then whips him into the ropes and catches him for a press slam. Henry hits the old school Vader bomb. He finishes with the World’s Strongest Slam. I want Delaney to job to the Zombie.

-Kofi Kingston tourism video for Jamaica. Some douche on a cell phone steps on a kid’s sandcastle. Wrong move, Gordon Gekko. Kingston lays him out and takes his cell phone.

-Lena of the Diva Search is there to host the Diva Dance Off. Each woman gets thirty seconds to shake their groove things. How have I lived with out the slunts gyrating? Very well thank you. Layla goes first. Kelly reverts to her old ways by stripping. If I were in a strip club I would be throwing beer at the stage at this. Not that I’ve ever been to a strip club mind you. Lena is about ready to announce the winner, when she enters herself at the last moment. She basically just prances around like a “Top Model” reject. She declares herself the winner. I don’t think Lena is going to work as a heel. Also, where does this put Layla as a heel who has a beef with another heel? Layla vs. Lena. Maybe WWE is coveting the worst match of the year already.

-CM Punk walks through the back to kill time.

-Shelton Benjamin cuts a promo in the back about how he needs to get dirty and filthy. He’s going through the dirt He has his first gold nugget. It’s a slot into the Royal Rumble. He wins that and will hit the mother lode. Is he officially in and how did he qualify?

-CM Punk vs. Chavo Guerrero. If Chavo wins he gets a title shot. Punk and Chavo lock up. Punk arm drags out. Chavo tackles Punk down and works him over on the mat. Punk works up. Chavo shoulder blocks him down. They do a crisscross. Punk takes over with a headlock on the mat. Chavo fights out into a head scissors. Punk struggles out and gets a basement dropkick for two. Chavo comes back with forearms in the corner. Chavo gets a body slam. He kicks the back. Chavo whips Punk into the corner and charges. He catches the boot before running into it. Punk just turns that into an enzuigiri. Chavo is knocked to the floor. Cue commercials.