411 Fact or Fiction 09.29.11: HIAC Intrigue, Ryder For US Champ, David Otunga Esq., More

1. You are looking forward to the Hell in a Cell matches this Sunday.

Ryan Byers: FICTION. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure that the Punk/Del Rio/Cena three way will be a really fun match from a “workrate” standpoint, as all three of the men work well together in one-on-one matches and it’s rare that three guys who can all have good singles bouts against each other screw it up when it comes time to do a triple threat. Heck, even Mark Henry and Randy Orton didn’t have a completely terrible title match last month, so they’re probably going to do even better when they have the gimmicks that the Cell match will allow them to use. However, I still can’t say that I’m excited about either one of these matches. Why? It’s because there really aren’t any big, captivating stories surrounding them. They’re just run of the mill wrestling feuds that happen to be in the Cell because this is the month that they run the Cell pay per view. It’s not like the old days where the Cell match was the ultimate blowoff for a feud and you knew that you were going to see two hated rivals tear into each other. They’ve really taken the “oomph” out of HIAC, to the point that I’m probably not even going to bother buying the show on the first run.

Bobby California: FACT. Kind of a tough one here, as I’m generally against the idea of a Hell in a Cell PPV. I firmly believe it backs WWE into a booking corner and makes them have to do Hell in a Cell matches in Fall and never any other time. Worse yet it has in my opinion both devalued the concept to some degree and produced some of the lesser Hell in a Cell matches. When you add in WWE’s PG environment (Which I don’t normally mind, wrestling is for kids people, but there’s no need to tease what could be like this) and I know that we won’t get to see the type of brutal bloody messes that made the match so great. But all that said, I really enjoy when CM Punk and John Cena wrestle matches together and I like Alberto Del Rio a lot too, so I am greatly looking forward to seeing the three of them wrestle. Orton is amongst the best workers in the company in my opinion and I’m really into Mark Henry who is one of the best built monster’s WWE has pulled off in ages. I’m just hoping Mark doesn’t get RKO’d out of nowhere and see it all come to an end so soon. So I’m looking forward to the matches, but the matches as Hell in a Cell matches don’t add too much more for me. I’d be interested in these matches because of the men involved regardless of the stipulation.

Score: 0 for 1

2. The SummerSlam buyrate coming in lower than WWE expected is not a surprise at all.

Ryan Byers: FACT. The company had something really hot with CM Punk and John Cean going into and coming off of the Money in the Bank pay per view. Then, they sort of shot it in the foot when they brought Punk back a week after he “left the company” and turned the program into just another professional wrestling feud with no special bells or whistles. Then they watered things down even more when they made Triple H as special guest referee the focal point of the Summerslam match as opposed to focusing the hot rivalry between the two wrestlers. Given all of the above, it’s not surprising that people didn’t buy the PPV like they bought Money in the Bank or even last year’s Summerslam, which was headlined by a big match featuring the Nexus before they turned that group into a complete laughingstock. Unfortunately, things have gotten worse in terms of the steam on CM Punk as a character and not better, so I would imagine that the Hell in a Cell buyrate will be down substantially from last year’s version of the show as well.

Bobby California: FACT. I’m sure it surprised some people, but the card was so lackluster I can’t call it much of a surprise to me. I mean first off WWE only announced a handful of matches going into the show, and that is going to hurt buys at least somewhat, and secondly most of those matches were rehashes of things previously done. It was the less interesting Punk/Cena rematch without the huge drama of will CM Punk walk out of the company with the belt and take it to New Japan or Ring of Honor? Did WWE really think HHH as a special guest referee would make up for that? It was the seventy-fifth straight PPV with a Randy Orton/Christian match, and even though both guys are great and were able to add new wrinkles and have compelling matches every time eventually the audience is just going to tire of seeing the same two guys going at each other over and over with no respite. Outside of those two matches what else had a build? Sheamus and Mark Henry had a storyline that I myself enjoyed and had me looking forward to the match but I wonder how much steam the two had behind them in the average fan’s eyes? There was a big story centered around the Diva’s title match, and with all due respect to the ladies involved and my esteemed opponent I don’t think too many people care about women’s wrestling in any form, let alone enough that it will be selling big time PPVs. Furthermore I can not imagine the handful of people who are truly big women’s wrestling fans like Mr. Byers are probably not buying a $45 PPV to see Kelly Kelly defend her belt when that can likely buy you a handful of Shimmer DVDs (I have no idea how much those go for but most indy DVDs are 15, and that would be 3 DVDs.) WWE charges a lot of money for their Pay-Per-View events and if they’re going to ask us to shell out $45 or more thirteen times a year they’re going to have to give these shows a solid build and get people interested in what they’re going to see.

Score: 1 for 2

3. Zack Ryder will be the next United States Champion.

Ryan Byers: FICTION. Honestly, I feel like if the company was going to push Ryder in any meaningful way as a result of his cult popularity on the internet, they would have already done it by now. Plus, it’s been several months and I feel like the guy’s YouTube pseudo-celebrity status has already started to wane, so they’d almost be missing the boat if they pulled the trigger. To top it all off, in recent weeks on Raw, Dolph Ziggler has really been showing some personality and coming into his own as a heel, so it would be a horrible time to derail his momentum by taking the championship off of his waist. Simply put, it seems like all of the factors out there weigh against Ryder bringing the belt home.

Bobby California: FICTION. But maybe Fact? I think it’s too early to call. Before anyone goes nuts and jumps down my throat for this, I am totally a broski, I watch Z True Long Island Story every week, I take care, I spike my hair (ok I don’t), and all the rest of that good stuff. But Zack has been on Raw consistently for less than 2 months and in that time he’s been treated as a little bit of a joke, so I don’t think he’ll be taking the United States Title at Hell in a Cell. We’re seeing the process that will turn Zack Ryder into a contender for this belt and maybe when that process is over Dolph Zigler will still be champ and Zack will be the one who gets to overcome the odds and end his reign, but right now? I don’t think so. The build to me has made it pretty apparent that Dolph is going over at Hell in a Cell, but the Internet Champion need not worry, just wrestling in this match and being associated with guys like Hugh Jackman is a big time step in the right direction for my broski Zack Ryder.

Score: 2 for 3

4. David Otunga should use his Harvard Law School experience to become a lawyer for heel wrestlers.

Ryan Byers: FICTION. This is my personal bias speaking, but I absolutely hate it when pro wrestling angles touch on lawsuits and lawyers. I’ve got a little bit more familiarity with the legal system than your average Joe off the street, and the fact that wrestling writers almost always seem to get the law wrong when their stories focus on it aggravates me to no end. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that in the entertainment industry (and especially in wrestling) you sometimes have to depart from reality for the sake of moving a story along, but some of the stuff I’ve seen written about legal matters in WWE is just obnoxiously off the mark. Plus, the angle involves David Otunga, who is one of the worst in-ring performers in the company and is completely devoid of charisma, so I’m generally against anything which results in him getting more television time.

Bobby California: FACT. Sure, it’s different, it makes sense, there’s plenty of ways to go from it, and maybe now we won’t see all wrestling legal disputes settled by wacky loopholes in contracts and/or ladder matches. Otunga appeared to me way back during NXT season 1 to be the WWE’s chosen one in the competition, he is well educated, well connected, (Did you know he’s met President Obama multiple times and is married to Former American Idol and bonafide A-Lister Jennifer Hudson and that WWE has more followers on twitter than Nike, ESPN Microsoft, President Obama, and Santa combined?) has a good physique, and at least at times seems confident and natural on the mic. But he just never seemed to click, maybe due to a lack of in ring skill but he displayed an inability to connect with the fans and guys like Barrett, Danielson, and Gabriel did seem to click so it was put off. When the Nexus angle he was once again given a sizable role and seemed to be on his way to some type of conflict with Nexus leader Wade Barrett and in my opinion did a solid job at the role he was given, but it never went anywhere and he was shuffled into the New Nexus as the only original member under CM Punk. Eventually that too fell to the wayside as Punk did more important things like try to start a revolution. Otunga just continued to team with fellow cast off Michael Mcgillicutty in a truly awful team that won the tag titles by the default of being one of the only tag teams in the company. Then right as it seemed Otunga was completely going in the wrong direction when he and McGillicutty (damn do I hate that name) lost the titles and wouldn’t be a big deal WWE ran an angle where the lead face color commentator buried him and his partner with the accusation that they had no personality (a WWE death sentence) and things looked even worse. So the idea of Otunga getting a new gimmick can only help and give him a chance because from losing to a retired wrestler over and over you can really only go up.

Score: 2 for 4

SWITCH!

5. James Storm deserves a singles push similar to the one Robert Roode is getting.

Bobby California: FACT. Sure why not? James Storm has been a loyal solider for TNA for longer than almost anyone. He’s done his time under the big time stars from the old big 3. Storm has always been over in Orlando, a solid wrestler both as a face and heel and decent enough on the mic. A sustained James Storm push likely won’t turn things around for TNA, but if Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Kurt Angle, Nash, Hall, Waltman, Steiner, Ken Kennedy, and the rest couldn’t give TNA the boost they needed to compete with WWE I don’t know if anything really could turn things around for TNA. But I know pushing more and more cast offs from WWE won’t so you might as well try something new. And let’s not declare the push Robert Roode is getting all that great until he actually makes it to Bound for Glory and actually wrestles Kurt Angle for the title in a match, something I’m still doubting will happen.

Ryan Byers: FACT. During the periods that I have actually watched TNA, James Storm has been one of the most consistent performers in the company, and he’s been there literally since day one. He’s great in the ring, he’s better on the mic, and, aside from his look, I honestly think he’s got more qualities of a main event superstar wrestler than even Bobby Roode does. If you don’t believe that, just go talk to Chris Harris, who was pegged as the breakout star of America’s Most Wanted until Storm completely upstaged him and took his spot. I don’t necessarily see that same scenario playing out with Roode, but I will say that Storm deserves every opportunity to make it happen.

Score: 3 for 5

6. Hulk Hogan will not re-sign with Impact Wrestling.

Bobby California: FICTION. Is I don’t care an option I’m allowed to put here? Because I really don’t care anymore. I hope he doesn’t because Hogan isn’t the right guy to turn Impact Wrestling around; he’s not the right guy for anything but signing autographs in convention booths in wrestling in 2011. The wrestling industry has long since passed Hulk Hogan by. His days as a viable star to build a promotion around are more than a decade passed now. And he has never shown the least bit of capability at running the show. I truly believe Hulk Hogan resigning with Impact Wrestling is the wrong move for Impact Wrestling, but Hogan needs the money and if following the company for so long has taught me anything it’s you can always count on good old TNA to make the wrong call, so expect a nice long guaranteed extension for Hogan. Oh and to save the times of the commenters who are going to want to call me a TNA hater, don’t bother, I do hate TNA, they are awful. Just to be up front about it.

Ryan Byers: FICTION. Near as I can tell, WWE has no real interest in bringing back the Hulkster, and, with his ex-wife’s alimony payments sapping his money and his son being a total fuck-up who essentially killed his best friend, Hogan needs some major cash, brother. Granted, there are some deals outside of wrestling he can cut in order to get the moolah that he needs, but being near full-time with a bigger league professional wrestling group is pretty much Hogan’s only “sure thing” in terms of income. There’s no way he’s going to give that up in light of his financial obligations, though I wouldn’t be surprised to see him wait until the last minute to renew his deal or even go without a contract for a couple of weeks in order to try to get a bit of leverage. He’ll be back in due time, though.

Score: 4 for 6

7. ROH’s first telecast on the Sinclair Broadcasting Group stations was a success.

Bobby California: FACT. I don’t honestly think you can call this show a success yet, nor could you decry it as a failure. I don’t think ratings are in, and with the way the show is distributed I’m not sure we’ll regularly get a good gauge of how the show does in ratings unless more stations jump on it or stations begin jumping off (which I would consider somewhat unlikely for now as the show is almost exclusively if not exclusively on stations owned by a company that just paid money to purchase ROH and are thus going to want to give their investment a shot.) But I did watch the program (not on TV, Sinclair hasn’t been able to find anyone willing to air the show in their biggest market and my home town, New York City) and I can say that I thought as a show it was a moderate success. The first match showcased the theoretical future of ROH in Future Shock (Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly) and to a lesser extent in my opinion The Bravado Brothers (Harlem and Lancelot) and showcased what ROH is, fast paced and exciting if at times spotty, not the slower style usually seen on televised wrestling. The main event saw the present and past of Ring of Honor’s tag division square off with Tag Team Champs Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin facing off the WWE bound Kings of Wrestling (Claudio Castagnoli and Chris Hero) who have been the face of the division over the last nearly two years. The match showcased once again what ROH is all about, which is putting on the best possible wrestling, and the match delivered fairly well if not being quite as good as the two team’s previous encounters. And the show did a good job of showing how their different than WWE with a focus on tag team wrestling and the solid video package about the Code of Honor. My only big complaint about the show was it’s look which felt a little dated, but Ring of Honor obviously doesn’t have the budget behind it that Impact Wrestling or WWE do, and for the first set of tapings I can give it a pass. But the show will need to look better or it will come across as a little too amateur, which is fine for the following they have now, but will make it tough to expand from their niche audience.

Ryan Byers: FACT. Having television exposure in the wrestling business is always, 110% of the time better than having no television exposure in the wrestling business, so it is hard to imagine a set of circumstances under which you couldn’t call ROH’s Sinclair debut a success on some level. Plus Sinclair-owned stations are available in more homes across the country than HDNet is (despite Sinclair not being in several major markets) so, realistically, this opens the door for Ring of Honor to be viewed by more individuals than at any other point in its history. This exposure alone means that this show is going to be a success for the promotion unless they just start putting on absolute stinkers for weeks on end, which I sincerely doubt will happen given their track record.

Score: 5 for 7

8. Sara Del Rey is the best choice to win the CHIKARA 12 Large Summit.

Bobby California: FICTION. Eddie Kingston is the best choice to win the 12 Large Summit. Just being in the tournament and getting to be in it this late in the game is a huge deal for Sara. Getting to beat Claudio in what is looking like it will be his second to last ever Chikara match, barring WWE allowing the freshly restyled Antonio Cesaro to finish up his seemingly eternal feud with Eddie Kingston, was almost as big for her and woman being treated as equals in wrestling than winning this would even be. And as much as Chikara and Del Rey have done an exceptional job of transforming Sara into someone who can beat the men and not have it look like a joke, I just don’t know if wrestling fans are completely ready for a woman to hold a promotion’s main title. Especially as it’s first champion. Chikara likes to buck trends though, so they may just put the belt on Sara to spite the people who wouldn’t want to see a woman atop a promotion, even a woman who’s more talented than a lot of her male counterparts throughout wrestling and bigger than most of the other guys on the roster. On the other hand Eddie Kingston has been over the last year and a half one of the main focal points of the promotion; he’s been the man they stuck against the big name outsiders like Daniels, Danielson, Generico, Dreamer, and Homicide. He was the first guy to really stand against the BDK led by his nemesis Claudio Castagnoli. So even if Sara was the one who struck the big blow against Claudio on his way out, it’s been Kingston who’s been the promotion’s top star. Kingston is amongst the most over and talented performers in the company, in my opinion is easily the promotion’s most believable asskicker, and most importantly cuts one of the best promos in all of wrestling not just Chikara, so I think he is the right choice to win from those who are still in it.

Ryan Byers: FACT. Coming off a series of surprisingly good performances against the male wrestlers in CHIKARA, particularly Claudio Castagnoli, Del Rey is the hottest act in the promotion right now. She’s so good at what she does that SDR as a main event wrestler in this promotion doesn’t as all come off as forced or gimmicky. (It also helps that the CHIKARA wrestlers are mostly very small guys, but that’s another matter for another time.) Sara doesn’t feel like “that woman who wrestles men.” She feels like a main event wrestler in the company who coincidentally happens to be a woman. Sara has all the goods to carry the belt as the company’s first singles champion, and it doesn’t hurt that the titleholder will be crowned just a month or so before CHIKARA’s “Joshimania” tour of shows for which a female singles champion could be an added draw. The cherry on top of the Del Rey-as-Champ sundae, though, would be the fact that this tournament was named to honor the memory of Larry Sweeney, and it would be a fitting end to have somebody who had such a strong on-camera relationship with Sweeney walking out with the belt at the end of the day.

Final Score: 5 for 8

It turns out that Bobby & Ryan agree a lot more than the AZN was likely hoping for. No matter, it was still good discussion of fun topics! Vote in the comment section on who you think was better, and feel free to give your thoughts on the questions! Thanks to Ryan & Bobby for participating, and I’ll catch you guys next week with more Fact or Fiction with two new contestants!