411 Fact or Fiction 10.02.08: HHH Looking Weak, Suicide, CM Punk Challenging for Tag Gold and More!

1. CM Punk looking to challenge for the tag team titles should NOT be seen as a demotion.

Bayani Domingo: FICTON. I realize that “Main Eventers” go through a cycle from time to time to make room for new players at the top. Cena hasn’t held the title for a while, HBK hasn’t held the title in over a decade, there is always a shuffling of players on top, this case however has to be considered a demotion based on the fact that the WWE has booked the tag title so poorly for so long that they are really the equivalent of the old European belt right now, only two guys get to hold it. It used to be that Tag belt meant something and while we’ve had random teams of “main eventers” hold the title before it was done mainly as a plot device, it was the wrestlers who wore them that gave them some purpose and prestige. Kane/Taker, HHH/Stone Cold, Foley/The Rock, Cena/Batista, are all examples of big name players who have held the title after they had already worn championship gold, the problem is that they were either used to begin or continue a feud between the two champions, or in HHH/Austin’s case were used as a way of bogarting all the gold. I can’t imagine that Punk/Kofi are going to win the title and break off into some magnanimous feud down the line. This seems like a way to keep Punk in A title picture, but not THE title picture. It’s hard to believe that Punk’s character would be just as happy to forget all about the “Big Belt” and now focus on the 6th most important belts in the “e”. Sure they are justifying Punk’s quest for the Tag Titles under “revenge” against the guys who helped cost him his Title and at some point it will lead into a program with Orton, but it is still a big step down from where Punk once was.

Mathew Sforcina: FACT. It shouldn’t be, but by the majority of the fans it is. The tag belts, in an ideal world, would be separate from the singles, with the tag champs, while not really on par with the World Champ, in his league, the tag champs should be able to beat with ease the world and IC champs in a tag match, and vice versa. Ergo, someone moving into the tag ranks should not be seen as a demotion. But this is fantasyland, where ice creams cost a nickel, you can’t give oil away, and Duke Nukem Forever has a concrete release date to coincide with Chinese Democracy and a Wargames Box Set. In reality, many will see it as a step down. But hopefully a few months of Simply Priceless V Punkofi then SP V Punk/Goldman should help get it back up there…

Andy Clark : FACT. I know plenty of people were less than thrilled with how CM Punk’s title reign went down, and there are MANY folks who like to use going after the tag titles in their Punk conspiracy theories, but the fact of the matter is that these things happen. There are so many people Punk could feud with out of the title picture, and I don’t hear many people clamoring for another match with JBL or Kane. You also have to take into account who the tag champs are and how big of a deal they are supposed to be. If Punk was going after tag champs like Cade & Murdoch or Hawkins & Ryder then it would definitely be a demotion, but Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase are being booked a pretty important parts of Raw. And the feud itself is a natural occurrence as Rhodes & DiBiase cost him the World Title, so it’s not like WWE just stuck him against the tag champs because they had nothing better to do. Keep in mind that Randy Orton should also figure into things at some point, and Punk has seemed like much more of a star in his few interactions with Orton then he did in anything else he did as World Champion.

Score: 2 Fact, 1 Fiction

2. The memo from WWE to publications covering the new WWE video game that demands there to be no screens of HHH “in a defenseless or vulnerable position” is completely ridiculous.

Bayani Domingo : FACT. I almost went with “Fiction” here only because we’re talking about the “e” here and HHH, so considering what we know of HHH and how highly he thinks of himself it isn’t ridiculous for the “e”, just ridiculous for anyone else. I wonder just how the rating system is going to look like for SDvsR when HHH has a 99 rating and everyone else has a 15. That’s going to make for one hell of a short “story mode” for HHH when you play a full calendar of him holding on to the belt and keeping everyone else down. I can’t wait to see people start posting screen shots of HHH being “humbled” by Khali and “double teamed” by Cryme Tyme. Saucy!!

Mathew Sforcina : FACT. FACT, FACT, FACT. 2 possible reasons for this spring to mind. 1) HHH needs to be protected to this degree, his popularity is on a wire. If this is the case, why is he on the cover, and more importantly, are there really people who see his VG counterpart and think that reflects on him? Or 2) Seeing HHH get beat up is a major reason why people buy the video games and thus must not be shown to make them buy it. Which is slightly more plausible, but if it was true then Kozlov would be the most popular guy on SD right now. It’s just stupid, petty protection, although I feel this is more Steph’s order than HHH’s. Unless it’s all a gigantic work to get attention, and get people buying the game to post footage of HHH getting the crap kicked out of him…

Andy Clark : FACT. If WWE had been smart they would have included some other top name wrestlers as well like Undertaker or John Cena so it doesn’t look quite so bad. Or maybe even not mention anything at all, because anyone would have screenshots of a popular babyface being dominated unless they were prompted to do so. But by going out of their way to keep Triple H from looking bad and by not covering their own ass by including other wrestlers to that list they draw attention to the very thing they didn’t want. I normally take all of the nepotism talk with a grain of salt because most of it is complete crap driven up by the IWC, but in this instance it is pretty clear what, or rather who, WWE prioritizes when it comes to public perception.

Score: All agree with FACT!

3. Paul Heyman was right when he stated that the writers in WWE write for Vince McMahon and not for the ticket buying audience.

Bayani Domingo : FACT. Look, if Vinny Mac likes it, then all the rubes in the stix will like it too. Because Vinny Mac sayeth so!! One reason that I KNOW that this statement is a FACT is that they cruiserweight title was dropped and has yet to make a return. Look at the crowd reaction for guys like Rey Rey and Bourne and you’re telling me that the creative staff is writing for the audience? It’s clear to me that Vince thinks he knows more about what the audience wants than the audience does themselves so it doesn’t surprise me one bit that someone finally said something.

Mathew Sforcina : FACT. Although that’s kind of a tautology there. Of course they write for Vince, he’s the boss, of course they write towards him. The point Heyman was really making, that Vince is booking just for himself and not the fans enjoyment is a little less clear cut. Booking to the fanbase isn’t automatically good (TNA has proven that), and the best stuff out of the WWE recently seems to all point back to the talent rather than writers (Austin, as I understand it, pitched the Flair angle AND Wrestling 2.0, with Jericho/Shawn taking over for their thing), but overall the product isn’t THAT bad. It can be better, but it could be far, far worse.

Andy Clark : FICTION. At least the majority of the time. There are plenty of times when I’m sure the writing staff does write for McMahon, but I’ve got to believe that the staff mostly writes for the betterment of the product. Sometimes it isn’t as apparent, but I attribute that more to the throwing stuff to the wall to seeing if it sticks then just amusing Vince. And really I think there needs to be some writing to Vince’s taste because if Vince doesn’t appreciate it, whether it be a good idea or not, there will be no longevity and no backing on screen. Given McMahon’s almost menstrual like mood swings as it relates to the product it would be foolish to write specifically to his tastes anyhow.

Score: 2 Fact, 1 Fiction

4. You are looking forward to Mick Foley’s “official” debut on this week’s Impact.

Andy Clark : FACT. From a fan perspective I’m excited, but in an full disclosure I’m also a big Foley mark. I’m intrigued to see him in a new surrounding, I’m interested in what he has to say, and I’m curious to see how they book him, especially with the TNA Originals vs. Old Breed storyline. I don’t think his appearance will generate any big bump in the ratings (given TNA’s track record I don’t think the rebirth of Christ would pop anything more than a 1.2) and the promotion for the appearance hasn’t been exactly mindblowing, but I’m excited nonetheless. The one thing I’m worried about is how they make his appearance on the PPV special. When Kurt Angle debuted on Impact with that great brawl with Samoa Joe it was a cool moment but seemed like it would have been more important had it happened on TNA’s biggest show of the year. The question is whether TNA can keep any sort of Foley momentum heading into Bound for Glory or if he will just be treated like another guy by then.

Mathew Sforcina : FACT. If only for the promo. Angle’s on a roll, Sting is keeping up, and Jarrett is finally in a PERFECT spot, he’s doing superb. Toss in Foley, who can cut a promo in his sleep AND has Russo in the back who trusts him, and hopefully the debut should be good, albeit long and talky. But then, that’s what you want from Foley on free TV, lots of talk.

Bayani Domingo : FACT. It’ll be interesting to see what he has to say and to be honest I’ve always been a big Foley fan and giving him a live mic to say whatever he feels like saying is a great way to get people interested in TNA…if they do it right. Hopefully he doesn’t get thrust into the main “Originals vs. WWEject” storyline too quickly and just stays on the sidelines till it makes sense. Regardless of what people say about Foley, the man is gold on the microphone and you have to think that having him backstage, even for a short time, will help the younger guys tremendously in developing their own characters. Let’s also hope he can be another voice of reason when it comes to letting the young guys work a match without having to resort to things on poles and on top of domed cages surrounded by rabid squirrels.

Score: All agree with FACT!

5. A Hulk Hogan vs. Goldberg match on PPV would bring in more buys than the average TNA PPV.

Andy Clark : FICTION. But only because TNA is a semi-established name and they have more name stars to book on a show then presumably the undercard of a Hogan-Goldberg match. I actually think that Hogan-Goldberg could do pretty well in a comparative sense in a WWE and UFC dominated PPV market if it were promoted properly (a big if), but on the whole I don’t think it can beat a brand name, however small it may be, with a loaded talent roster. I’d actually say that some sort of joint venture between the two entities would do quite well for a non-WWE wrestling PPV, like maybe have Hogan and Goldberg headline with 3-4 contributing TNA matches where TNA could get a share of the overall profits. Even a conglomerate of major non-WWE wrestling entities, especially those trying to gain a foothold in the TV arena like ROH, NWA, and the Celebrity Wrestling deal could make a decent little PPV effort.

Mathew Sforcina : FICTION. Not today, and not without a hell of a hype. At least, for the sake of my sanity it will be so. Now, the average ROH PPV…

Bayani Domingo : FACT. There are too many Hogan ‘marks’ around to not be able to outsell your average TNA PPV. Even now when the match has virtually no appeal and is guaranteed to be poorly wrestled and end in a total screw job there are enough people out there willing to blow maybe $20 or $25 to watch it. Now if the price goes over $40 then I think this ends up being a “Fiction” because unless they have a dynamite undercard there isn’t anyone stupid enough to pay WWE-like PPV prices for this clunker. Unless the undercard features some HLA between Brooke and some other friend the Hulkster is bangin’.

Score: 1 Fact, 2 Fiction

6. TNA is making a mistake by currently airing the video packages for Suicide, considering that Frankie Kazarian (who will be portraying the character) will be out a minimum of four more months recovering from surgery on his torn triceps.

Andy Clark: FICTION. That’s if they actually change their direction. I thought it was a dumb idea to use Kaz for that role in the first place so perhaps they can find somebody else to saddle with the Suicide gimmick other than Kaz, a guy that was already pretty well over with TNA fans before they shunted him off of TV. The only real positive thing about this Suicide character is that in the TNA iMPACT game Suicide actually gets a run with the World Title, so it could eventually be a nice little push for someone outside the usual suspects. Ultimately I think it’s an idea that COULD work if booked properly (but given TNA’s track record I don’t have much to hope for) and if it’s not Frankie Kazarian in the costume. If they decide to stick with Kaz, besides it being a misuse of an already over wrestler, they would have to stretch the build out for this guy for longer then the fans will probably care. Then again, this is the same company that gave us the 4 Live Kru saga, the Eric Young-Robert Roode feud, and the Sonjay Dutt-Black Machismo-SoCal Val love triangle, so they have proven they are not afraid to run something into the ground way past the point of people caring.

Mathew Sforcina : FACT. Assuming everything in that question holds up. Assuming Kaz does end up playing him, and assuming he does take that long to come back, his debut will be drawn out far too long. But with Russo booking, all that could get thrown out the window tomorrow, so here’s hoping.

Bayani Domingo : FICTION. The guy is in a mask right? If they wanted to run some video packages and have someone else wrestler for a few months while Frankie gets better than it’s easy enough. They just have to wait a few months until they can reveal who the wrestler really is. Besides, this is all about capitalizing on the video game and trying to sell a few more units, they’d be stupid not to try and generate some more sales by tying in the character.

Score: 1 Fact, 2 Fiction