The Triple Threat 9.27.09: 158th Edition: AJ Wins The Title, Bret Hart In ROH, Al Sharpton Hosting Raw, More

Topic # 1 What are your thoughts on AJ Styles winning the TNA World Title?

David Martell: It is about time that someone like AJ Styles wins the TNA World Title. He definitely deserves it but I think it would have been sweeter if he won it at Bound for Glory. Since he won it before Bound for Glory, it makes me feel that he is just holding the belt for Sting. If AJ loses the title to Sting I will be very much disappointed. Now if Sting lets AJ go over him, that will be great. AJ deserves the push because he has been their since the beginning and has given everything he can to make TNA worth watching. It is just sad that they took so long to put the belt back on him. This is the perfect time for TNA to put over the younger stars because the veterans are only getting older. Hopefully this trend will continue but we can only see with time.

Alex Mattis: Awesome, a bit overdue but awesome. AJ has needed some recognition like this for quite sometime but TNA hasn’t given it to him for some reason. They gave him the X-Division title and the “Legends” title, whatever that counts for, but they hadn’t given him the ball in quite sometime. AJ is, and should be, looked at as one of TNA most valuable players. He is the only guy that has constantly been with the company since their first show and has been the key figure that one has always been able to point to and say “that’s what separates TNA from everyone else.” Most importantly he has always done with the company has asked of him and never done anything to make anyone question his devotion to the company. I think the company owes it to put him at the top of the pack and show how much they really appreciate him. I’m not sure how long to expect AJ having the strap but it’s nice to see him holding the gold and representing TNA in the meantime.

Zach Brown: I thought that TNA was going to hand the belt off to either Styles or Morgan at No Surrender, and having Styles as champ is a welcome change to the landscape of TNA. Styles was all around the right choice because Angle and Sting have both had the belt for long periods of time, it was probably too soon for Morgan, and it was simply the wrong time for Hernandez to cash in. This sets up a pretty interesting opportunity for Sting to put over Styles for his retirement match at Bound For Glory (if that’s what they plan on doing). I’d like Styles to have the belt for a solid six months or so. This guy has been Mr. TNA from the beginning, and he deserves to be the face of the company. I hope this starts a trend of the younger guys in TNA having the belts more often than the older guys. I wouldn’t mind Styles handing the belt off to Morgan or Hernandez. But for a lot of the younger guys like Alex Shelley, Homicide, Christopher Daniels, or Jay Lethal to make it to the main event, a lot of these older guys in TNA are going to have to start giving up their spot. This isn’t something I see happening for another five years or so. But for now, Styles winning could be a sign of good things happening in TNA.

Topic # 2 How do you feel about the WWE possibly changing the name of No Way Out?

David Martell: I have no idea why they would want to change the name of No Way Out. The name already makes sense for an elimination chamber PPV. When you are trapped in a chamber, there is usually no way out. If they change this name I will be very disappointed. If they name is Elimination Chamber, that would be awful. All the other name options are just plain awful. Who wants to watch a PPV called Chamber of Conflict? The WWE creative team isn’t very creative with these types of names. I hope they just leave the name No Way Out alone. It is fine how it is.

Alex Mattis: No Way Out is one of the remaining In Your House PPV’s that I really enjoy and have always dug the name. This event holds great significance each year as it is the last stop before WrestleMania and has always helped set-up or alter the big matches heading in. This has been one of the only non-big four events that I have finally accepted as a true annual event and would be sad for it to lose the current legacy it has. No Way Out isn’t just one of the events that has been recycled, changed, and re-arranged over the years. It has created its own history and cemented its spot as an actual E yearly PPV and I don’t understand why the E would want mix it up.

Zach Brown: WWE should take it easy with this trend of overhauling or renaming PPVs. No Way Out is great the way it is. It used to be a PPV that many people would just consider easy to skip because it is the PPV before Wrestlemania. WWE found a way to make a normally mediocre PPV into a must see PPV with the inclusion of Elimination Chamber main events. The reason I bring all of this up is because WWE has already fixed No Way Out. Clearly, WWE has never heard the phrase “If it aint broke, don’t fix it.” No Way Out already does decent buys. What will a simple name change honestly do? And these names pretty much suck anyway. Elimination Chamber? No shit, WWE. Battle Chamber? Completely lame. Heavy Metal? Even lamer. And this one takes the cake…Chamber of Conflict. That is downright retarded. Now Way Out is just fine.

Topic # 3 What are your thoughts about Bret Hart Possibly becoming an ROH ambassador?

David Martell: This is great news for ROH. Bret Hart would be an excellent edition to ROH and he could really teach the young guys a lot. He could teach some of the talent better wrestling techniques and how to gain more charisma. I can see more people tuning in to ROH on Hdnet if he ends up playing a TV role much like Ric Flair. I know I would be more interested in watching it. Overall, I am just glad that Bret Hart is still in the wrestling business. He is not someone who threw his knowledge away. I really don’t know who could be better in helping in creating the talent of tomorrow.

Alex Mattis: This would be tremendous for Bret and for the company. The work with Flair and ROH proved to be very beneficial to both parties and it was something the fans really enjoyed. Having someone who appears rarely, like Bret Hart, someone who is one of the greatest professional wrestlers in history is something that ROH can only dream about having. Bret has made it known that he appreciates the product and would have no problem promoting it when needed. The fans and ROH in general need someone like this to push the company; they need a legend that will help without interjecting himself into the product.

Zach Brown: I think it’s pretty cool that Bret Hart could be helping out ROH. With losing some of their top talent, ROH needs all the help they can get. It would be cool to see Bret put over the talent in ROH such as Austin Aries. But I doubt this will lead to an in-ring return for Bret because that would be downright ridiculous. I’ve also heard people talk about a return to WWE being imminent. I think that is even more ridiculous. I think this will be one of Bret’s final appearances in the world of wrestling altogether, and I think he’ll find more opportunities with writing books as well as selling his story for a movie. All in all, I think it’s really cool that Bret is doing this for ROH, but I don’t think it’s a sign that Bret will be making more appearances in the wrestling world.

Topic # 4 Al Sharpton is guest hosting Monday Night RAW this week. Your thoughts?

David Martell: This is by far the worst choice for a guest host yet. Al Sharpton is a political figure and not an entertainer. There is already enough politics in wrestling as it is. With that said, I am personally not a fan weekly guest hosts for RAW. It doesn’t really help the progression of storylines and most the time we end up with bad comedy skits. The only two guest host that I have enjoyed so far was The Million Dollar Man and Dusty Rhodes. They helped continue storylines and push new stars, which happened to be their sons of course. Al Sharpton is going to end up being terribly boring and I am not in the mood to hear him preach about some cause. This is wrestling, not CNN.

Alex Mattis: Are we being serious? E… where will this end? I mean it’s clear at this point that they have lost all interest in bringing in “interesting” guest hosts and are now just focused on bringing in people that draw the slightest bit of outside attention. I’m sure there are some entertaining things that could come out of this scenario but from where most are sitting it just seems ridiculous. The E has done a good job of making their special guest hosts of the past work but it will certainly be interesting to see what is made of Rev. Al Sharpton’s appearance on a professional wrestling program.

Zach Brown: This move by Al Sharpton make me think he is just desperate for publicity. I’m not crazy at all about politicians, and having them participate in the world of wrestling just seems odd and mismatched to me. Most of the guest hosts in the past have made sense because several of them want to promote a movie, TV show, or book that they are coming out with. What is the positive side for Sharpton? The pundits are going to tear him to shreds. And call me crazy, but I think Al Sharpton’s time is better spent elsewhere. He isn’t going to add anything worthwhile to Raw, and I’d rather have a wrestling legend or someone else from the entertainment world to be quite honest.

Topic # 5 How do you feel about CM Punk possibly getting a body guard?

David Martell: This is an interesting idea but only if done right. I know there is a rumor of having Festus playing this role but I feel that would make CM Punk look like a joke and take away some of progress. Being a body guard isn’t a tough role to fill so I feel like they can take any no name big guy from developmental and put him in that position. Wrestlers who started out in roles like body guards have ended up being stars such as Batista, Ezekiel Jackson and Luther Reigns. Ok, scratch that last one. This could be a good opportunity for someone at FCW and who knows where his career could go. It would definitely make for an interesting storyline and it could help continue Punk’s ever growing heel persona.

Alex Mattis: Why not? What better way to get over a chicken-shit heel than putting some muscle in there for him to stand behind? The bodyguard has always worked well in the past for the smaller heels. Look at Diesel and Shawn, DiBiase and Andre, Jericho and Ralphus. These things just work. Especially with a feud with a monster like ‘Taker the bodyguard angle could be perfect. Punk’s never really been at a stage of his career where this particular type of thing has been brought into question; but with the program ‘Taker and with the way his character is being presented I think this could be perfect.

Zach Brown: So I’ve heard that the plan is for Festus to become CM Punk’s bodyguard? Really? I don’t know how well this will work out. CM Punk could definitely “take Festus off of his medication,” thereby making him normal. So that makes sense in terms of storyline. But Festus has only had two roles in WWE: Fake Kane, and a vegetable who goes nuts when the bell rings. So it’s difficult to tell if this guy can actually have charisma or become an interesting character on his own. But I think that Festus will be less of a bodyguard and more of a meatshield for CM Punk. I suspect that Festus will be there simply to take a few chokeslams from Taker while CM Punk runs away like a coward. While this change to Festus makes sense in the world of CM Punk, and could definitely add a lot to Punk’s character, I doubt it will lengthen Festus’s career by a considerable amount.

Superstar Highlight

William Regal, Vladimir Kozlov, and Ezekiel Jackson

Our thoughts on the group of Willaim Regal, Vladimir Kozlov and Ezekiel Jackson .

David Martell: This isn’t the most talented group of men ever assembled but I do quite enjoy the stable. Kozlov and Ezekiel as a tag team just looks devastating. I like how Regal just sit there behind them while they do all the dirty work. You got he brains and the brawn. The only problem with this is where are they actually going? If Regal never actually wins the ECW title, this will really be a wasted idea. They need them to take over ECW in some sorts to be successful. Eventually it can work out where Christian has to come up with a team of his own to challenge the likes of Regal’s round table. It is a very simple storyline and it could work really well if done right. Hell, even give them shots at the tag straps. If the WWE is really trying to rebuild the tag division, then they need to let lower level tag teams get a shot at the straps to get them more exposed. It did wonders for Cryme Time during SummerSlam season. I just hope that this little faction here isn’t a wasted opportunity.

Alex Mattis: This could turn into just another classic case of a stable-built-from-dudes-that-were-going-nowhere turned into something the people tune in to see. Regal has always been one of the top mid-carders in the E for quite sometime and hasn’t hit a big program in quite sometime. Sure he feuded for the “ECW” title but he also lost on PPV in 8 seconds or whatever. Koslov has been used properly seldom thus far in the E. He needs to be used as someone who murders and doesn’t speak. When he first came to “ECW” it was looking like that was going to be the case but that faded. And Jackson has yet to be given any real opportunity, All things considered; this could be very beneficial to all involved.

Zach Brown: I enjoyed the swerve that Koslov and Big Zeke were teaming up instead of feuding. That was interesting. Also, these guys have a pretty sick skillset for big guys. Koslov has a good technical side with Sambo background, and Ezekiel just kills people. And Regal is a great mouthpiece for the group, and no slouch in the ring himself. That being said, I’ve started to think that this group is somewhat mediocre because all they do is kill jobbers or gang up on Christian. They aren’t doing anything really worthwhile in my opinion. Here’s a thought: since these guys are so unstoppable on ECW, maybe have them challenge Big Show and Jericho? I know that would be heel vs. heel, but it would be 10 times more interesting than anything these two are doing on ECW. Either that, or have another tag team on ECW to feud with these two. Ezekiel and Koslov are just kind of spinning their wheels on ECW right now, especially since Regal doesn’t have the belt. If Regal beat Christian for the title, they could be a little more interesting as enforcers for the champ. But as for right now, I’m getting kind of tired of squash match after squash match. I can’t even tell if they have good chemistry with other wrestlers because hardly anyone else gets any offense in. All in all, they have potential, but WWE just has not found a worthwhile spot for them yet.