The Custom Made News Report 04.13.08

Well, we’re back. I got several e-mails from folks thinking that, after last week’s column, I wouldn’t be writing for a while. Honestly, when I wrote it and when I posted it, I wasn’t entirely certain what I was going to do either. At the end of the day, though, I decided I would stick with things for a little while and see where they took me. I watched Raw, I watched a little Smackdown, and obviously I watched Impact. Frankly, I wasn’t that in to the shows, though it’s hard to tell whether that’s because of the “Wrestlemania XXIV effect” or whether the shows weren’t just that compelling this week. (Though I did think that Impact was fairly decent from a promotional standpoint.)

Save the Head Trauma for Your Mama

In a move that I didn’t see coming any time soon, WWE has apparently instituted a program that will monitor their wrestlers for head injuries and provide them with expert opinions as to when they can return to the ring after suffering a concussion.

Christopher Nowinski

This news comes to us from a press release by the Sports Legacy Institute via former WWE wrestler Chris Nowinski, who was forced to retire from wrestling due to post-concussion syndrome. Nowinski, now an advisor to the SLI, was reportedly informed by “anonymous professional wrestlers in World Wrestling Entertainment” that the roster already underwent a battery of neurological tests in early March. Follow-up testing is apparently to be conducted every six months, with the idea being that this should be sufficient for doctors to diagnose any long-term problems in talent. Additionally, wrestlers will be tested every time that they suffer a concussion in order to make sure that they do not return to the ring prematurely.

On paper, I have to say that this sounds like an EXCELLENT idea. The Sports Legacy Institute and other bodies have recently done a fine job of making the world aware that there can be serious consequences to head injuries suffered in professional sports, as evidenced by the untimely death of American football player Andre Waters and the unfortunate events of last summer involving Chris Benoit and his family. Even if the impact of head injuries on an athlete’s life does not reach those extremes, they can still lead to early retirement, decreased earning potential, and years of both physical and mental health problems. However, there’s a reason that I said that the idea was only excellent on paper. Though WWE deserves to be applauded for the concept, we need to wait and see how they actually execute it. We’ve all witnessed the trials and tribulations of the company’s wellness policy, which, though probably well-intentioned, is full of so many holes that it may as well not exist. Yes, people been suspended, but for every Jeff Hardy there is a Mike Knox and for every developmental wrestler striking out there is a competitor on the main roster whose body grew suspiciously larger heading in to Wrestlemania.

Of course, some may argue that WWE has less incentive to play fast and loose with this sort of program than it does with drug testing. After all, impressive physiques are considered integral to “getting over” in professional wrestling whereas gutting it out through head injuries is not. If anything, it may be the wrestlers themselves and not the promotion who keep this program from living up to its potential. After all, will a man on the cusp of breaking through to the main event level really want to report the fact that his head got rattled when it may keep him off TV for several months? Will a wrestler who needs money or is addicted to the spotlight take the recommendation of a doctor who tells him he should get out of the business due to his deteriorating mental functions? And what of the role of TNA? They’ve already proven that they will hire wrestlers who have been axed by WWE for allegedly drug related reasons (The Road Dogg, Booker T., Billy Gunn, Kurt Angle, and Jeff Hardy all immediately leap to mind). Would they do the same for wrestlers whose continued participation in the sport has been proven to pose a risk to the health of their heads? That factor may seriously undermine the effect that the program has on the industry almost regardless of how seriously WWE takes testing.

This will definitely be a story to watch over the next several months . . . and, though it seems like I say this far too often in regards to wrestling, I hope for the best but will not be surprised at all if I get the worst.

Wilson Goes Down

According to a post on her MySpace page, Torrie Wilson may be done with professional wrestling. Wilson, who has been sidelined with back problems for several months now, indicated that two different physicians have told her that she should never set foot in a professional wrestling ring again. Of course, plenty of wrestlers have been given this warning by doctors and continued on in the sport despite it. Rey Misterio and his notoriously bad knees are an example, as is Terry Funk and virtually every part of his body.

I think that, more than anything else, this story underscores the dangers of putting untrained or barely trained performers in the ring. Yes, it is true that, as things stand in 2008, Torrie Wilson has been a part of professional wrestling for nine years and is able to perform very basic maneuvers and standard bumps without looking out of place in the ring. However, those of us who have watched Torrie’s career from the beginning know that she was placed in matches and asked to take bumps well before she had sufficient training to do so. Though I’m certainly not a doctor, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to learn that the bad bumps she took in that early period of her career weakened her back to the point that the correctly executed falls she was taking recently did far more damage to her than they would have to an individual who was not forced to learn things on the fly. Every time that I see a barely trained wrestler – particularly a barely trained female wrestler – taking bad bumps in a match, I just have to hang my head in shame. Several people have told me in the past that this is no big deal because, most of the time, the women don’t get seriously hurt. What these people ignore is the fact that, though immediate injuries may not be happening, sometimes the long-term consequences of putting a barely trained wrestler in to dangerous situations can be worse than the short-term consequences. There are currently several women in WWE and even a couple in TNA who shouldn’t even be working in thirty second or one minute spurts. Hopefully what has happened to Torrie Wilson serves as a wakeup call to promoters and allows those women to be transitioned in to new roles while they get a grasp on the basics.

I know that I normally stick a video clip here, but, when I saw this photograph, I knew that I had to use it in some manner in this column, because it RULES. In it, Canadian indy wrestlers LuFisto, Portia Perez, and Nicole Matthews pose prior to a show on which they were featured. Part of the reason that I love the photo is that it’s always great to see documentation of the fact that the wrestlers who work so hard to entertain us manage to have a good time doing what they’re doing. The second reason is the background. Not only are the colors very vibrant, matching the grapplers’ gear perfectly . . . but try to figure out where exactly this is being taken and tell me that the answer doesn’t result in you chuckling just a bit.

You can find more information about LuFisto at LuFisto.com, more information about Portia at PortiaPerez.com, and more information about Nicole at her MySpace page.

PPV Preview: TNA Lockdown

TNA Lockdown

– This will be the fourth TNA Lockdown show.
– Of course, TNA Lockdown consists entirely of cage matches.
– Plenty of people bitch about this concept, but the show is usually entertaining.
– It also usually does slightly above average business, so there’s not much left to complain about.
– In a rarity for TNA, this will be the SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR that this particular pay per view has been held outside of Orlando.
– Last year’s Lockdown was held in St. Joseph (not quite St. Louis), Missouri.
– This year’s Lockdown will be held in Lowell (not quite Boston), Massachusetts.
– Believe it or not, there has been only one title change in Lockdown history.
– That match featured the Dudley Boys beating LAX for the NWA Tag Team Titles in 2007.
– The NWA Tag Team Titles will not be defended on this show.

Traci Brooks vs. Jackie Moore vs. Angel Williams vs. Talia Madison vs. Shelly Martinez vs. Trenesha vs. Christy Hemme vs. Roxxi Laveaux in a Russo Special

– The rules here state that all of the women will begin fighting on the outside of the cage, with the first two entering it then wrestling a singles match. I think.
– Assuming that this match takes place prior to the ladies tag match booked for this show, it will be the second time that women have wrestled in a cage match on Lockdown.
– It will be the first time on Lockdown that wrestlers have fought to get in to the cage.
– There’s probably a good reason that this sort of match has not happened before.
– The only woman not making her Lockdown debut in this match is Jackie Moore.
– Moore lost to Gail Kim at the event in 2007.

LAX vs. Jimmy Rave & Lance Hoyt vs. Scott Steiner & Petey Williams vs. Eric Young & Frankie Kazarian vs. Black Reign & Rellik vs. The Murder City Machine Guns in another Russo special

– Okay, stick with me on the rules here.
– There’s twelve guys in the ring, and they’re on teams.
– There are eleven sets of handcuffs in the ring.
– The goal is to handcuff your opponents to the cage.
– The last guy not handcuffed wins.
– Yes, even though this is a match with teams, there is only one winner.
– This begs the question of why there are even teams in the first place.
– I don’t get this company sometimes.
– This is also the first time that this sort of match happened, though, during Vince Russo’s run as head writer for WCW, there were more conventional cage matches that could only end by handcuffing your opponent to the structure.
– This will be the Lockdown debut of Jimmy Rave, Frankie Kazarian, and Rellik.
– LAX’s record at Lockdown is 0-1.
– Scott Steiner’s Lockdown record is 0-2.
– Eric Young’s Lockdown record is 0-2.
– Petey Williams’ Lockdown record is 0-3.
– Lance Hoyt’s Lockdown record is 0-1.
– Black Reign’s Lockdown record is 1-0.
– Alex Shelley’s Lockdown record is 0-2.
– Chris Sabin’s Lockdown record is 2-1.

Jay Lethal (c) vs. Curry Man vs. Sonjay Dutt vs. Johnny Devine vs. Shark Boy vs. Consequences Creed for the X Division Title in the reverse of the previous match

– The rules here state that the six men will start in the ring, with eliminations occurring by pinfall or submission. The final two men will then fight to escape the cage.
– This will be the fourth straight year in which this type of match has occurred at Lockdown.
– It will be the third straight year in which the match has included six competitors.
– It will be the second straight year in which the X Division Title has been on the line in the match.
– It will be the first time that Johnny Devine and Consequences Creed have wrestled at Lockdown.
– Jay Lethal’s Lockdown record is 0-2, including a loss in last year’s X Division escape match.
– Lethal did make it to the finals of that match, though, ultimately losing to Chris Sabin.
– Curry Man’s Lockdown record is 2-1.
– Curry Man is 1-0 in X Division Title matches at Lockdown.
– Sonjay Dutt’s Lockdown record is 0-3.
– Dutt was in the first and third X Division escape matches.
– Shark Boy’s Lockdown record is 0-2.
– Shark Boy was in the second and third X Division escape matches.

The Road Dogg vs. Billy Gunn

– This will not be the fist time that these two men have been opponents at Lockdown.
– At the 2005 version of the show, they were on opposing teams in a War Games match.
– Oddly enough, these two were the only men in that match who are still wrestling for the company.
– The Road Dogg’s team won that match, giving him a Lockdown record of 1-0.
– Of course, this means that Billy Gunn’s Lockdown record is 0-1.
– The two were tag team partners in the dark match prior to the 2007 edition of Lockdown, defeating Serotonin.

Gail Kim & ODB vs. Amazing Kong & Cheerleader Melissa
– This will be the first major women’s match to take place at Lockdown since TNA created its division.
– Of course, it is not the first women’s match at Lockdown.
– That was Gail Kim defeating Jackie Moore at last year’s show.
– Naturally, this means that the other three women in the match will be making their Lockdown debuts.

Booker T. & Sharmell vs. Bobby Roode & Payton Banks

– This will be the first time that a mixed tag team match has occurred at Lockdown.
– Bobby Roode is the only individual in this match who has experience wrestling at Lockdown.
– His record at this show is 1-2.
– He has a history of fighting former WWF wrestlers on the show, including the Dudley Boys and Dustin Rhodes.
– Roode is 0-2 in those matches.
– Oh, and he’s 0-1 in tag matches at Lockdown.
– Statistically speaking, it looks like it’s going to be a long night for Mr. Roode.

Christian, Sting, Kevin Nash, Rhino, & Matt Morgan vs. Travis Tomko, AJ Styles, James Storm, & The Dudley Boys in a War Games Match

– This will be the fourth straight year that a War Games match has been featured on Lockdown.
– It will be only the second straight year that the War Games match has been five on five.
– In 2006, the match was four on four.
– In 2005, the company had what may have been the only three on three War Games match in history.
– The face team has won TNA’s War Games match every time that it has occurred.
– This will be Kevin Nash’s Lockdown debut as well as Matt Morgan’s.
– Sting’s Lockdown record is 2-0, with both of those wins being in War Games matches.
– Sting and AJ Styles have a good deal of history in these matches, as they were partners in 2006 and opponents in 2007.
– Rhino is also 2-0 at Lockdown with two War Games wins.
– This will be the third straight year that Rhino has teamed with Sting in War Games.
– Christian has a 1-1 record at Lockdown with his loss coming in last year’s War Games match.
– Two of Christian’s partners from last year’s match (AJ Styles & Tomko) will be his opponents this year.
– Travis Tomko’s only prior Lockdown appearance was a loss in last year’s War Games match.
– The Dudley Boys have a 2-0 record at Lockdown but have never been in War Games.
– James Storm’s Lockdown record is 2-1.
– Storm’s prior War Games appearance was a loss in the 2006 version of the match.
– AJ Styles has a 2-1 record at Lockdown with one win and one loss in War Games.

Kurt Angle (c) vs. Samoa Joe for the TNA Title

– This will be the first time that the TNA Title has been defended at Lockdown.
– TNA’s prior World Championship, the NWA Title, was only defended once at Lockdown.
– In that match, Christian successfully defended his belt against Abyss.
– Kurt Angle’s only prior match at Lockdown was last year’s War Games.
– Angle’s team was successful in that match, giving him a winning record.
– Who teamed with Kurt in that match?
– None other than Samoa Joe!
– Joe’s Lockdown record is 2-0, with the War Games win and a singles victory over Sabu in 2006.

As far as feedback is concerned this week, I don’t have one specific e-mail or group of e-mails to which I’d like to respond. However, the news report that I wrote last week has probably been one of the most heavily and most intelligently discussed pieces that I’ve written in my four years with this site. Thank you to the numerous people who commented and e-mailed to either voice your agreement or to attempt to convince me that things would get better. Even if you didn’t necessarily agree with me, I appreciate those of you who voiced it in a rational, well thought out manner.

However, I also wanted to take a moment to address a second group of people. There was a contingent of readers who completely missed the point of the article, and I wanted to take a second to straighten them out. At no point did I say that I wanted to stop watching professional wrestling because Ric Flair is no longer active in the sport. Unfortunately, that’s what a lot of people took away from the column, and it’s so far away from what I was attempting to get across that it’s not even funny. The entire point of the column was not that I am having a hard time watching wrestling because Flair is gone but rather that I’m having a hard time watching wrestling because I know that nothing I watch again will ever equal the emotional high that I got out of the sport during the Flair retirement festivities. Of course, people who disagreed with me may still think that the point is idiotic, but I’d rather have them disagreeing with the point that I made instead of the point that they made for me.

The other big gripe was from people who wanted to argue that I didn’t like Wrestlemania. Again, those people probably need some help with their reading comprehension. I said that, as a whole, I liked the show. It just wasn’t up to the standards of other ‘Manias, mainly because there was too much filler. I’ll stand by that opinion for years to come.

With that said, let’s provide everybody with a few links before we head on out of here:

~ I plug my review of TNA Impact every week, so why should this one be any different? Here it is.

~ Also this week, I appeared in Buy or Sell. The column is now dated as it previewed the weekend’s ROH shows, but you can look back on it to see just how wrong I was.

~ We have a ton of new video reviewers. One of them is Adam Nedeff. I haven’t actually read his first contribution yet, but you should.

~ JD Dunn has done a very good job recently of reviewing shows from my favorite lil’ indy promotion. He’s up to SHIMMER Volume 5. Did I mention that I’ll be watching the company tape Volumes 17 and 18 in just two weeks? I’ll have more on that in my next news report. Oh yes.

And that’s it for another Custom Made News Report. I’ll be back in seven days, and, until then, add me as a friend on MySpace to get a bulletin notification every time I add new content to the site.