(Notice how I just completely SKIPPED the intro this week?) The big story over the last couple of days has been the court ruling in favor of the World Wrestling Federation over the USA Network to bring the WWF programming to Viacom controlled channels, which include TNN and MTV. It appears that Raw is War, Livewire, and Superstars will now air on "The Nashville Network," TNN, while Sunday Night Heat, which is part of a separate deal with the USA Network, is also expected to be moved to Viacom and will air on MTV. The shows will presumably remain in their same timeslots, although that is not confirmed. There are even rumors that a WWF Raw Tuesday night replay may air on MTV, but again, those are just rumors. WWF Smackdown! will remain on UPN, as UPN is also a part of Viacom. Besides the obvious channel changes, the WWF gains with several other changes. For one, Viacom will pay the WWF an estimated $550,000 a week for their programming, which according to my calculator is $28.6 million a year, obviously far more than USA's $5.2 million. WWF programming will move to Viacom's channels this September.
There is a very strong possibility that with the most recent addition of WWF programming to their lineup, TNN will be given a whole new facelift and may possibly even receive a name change. "The National Network" is one name being considered, according to Dave Scherer. The network will move away from its traditional country feel to a newer, more modern feel. The WWF obviously will help make that possible.
As for viewers in Canada, WWF programming is no longer expected to air on TSN, and most Canadian viewers will now be able to catch the WWF on TNN, which is carried in several outlets in Canada. This is definitely a plus in some aspects for viewers in Canada, as they no longer have to deal with Raw being pre-empted or edited, as it has been on several occasions. In the other side of things, this leaves an open timeslot for WCW Nitro to air on Monday nights, live on TSN. That's also a big plus for WCW fans in Canada.
As for ECW, the WWF's move to TNN may not seem like a good thing on the surface, but looking deeper, this could be yet another blessing in disguise for Extreme Championship Wrestling, which has been riddled with problems over the last few months. As of now, all signs point to ECW leaving TNN, and due to that, it opens up several other options for Paul Heyman's company. According to Wade Keller, Heyman has already made plans to meet with USA Network officials about a possible move for ECW to USA. If that deal does go down, I think USA would take great care of ECW, including giving them a much better time slot and teaching TNN (at least the current TNN) how to promote a program properly.
The Rock appeared on MTV's TRL today along with Wyclef Jean to premiere Wyclef's newest video, "It Doesn't Matter," which features The Rock. Brett Crane sent along a full report of the happenings on the show, which you can read HERE. On a related note, The Rock and Wyclef will appear on ABC's Good Morning America on July 28 for a live performance of "It Doesn't Matter."
GameInformer has released six great new screen shots of the upcoming Sony Playstation WWF videogame, WWF Smackdown! 2. You can check out the screen shots HERE.
Hardcore Holly suffered a broken arm at last night's WWF Smackdown! tapings in Hartford, CT when Kurt Angle apparently landed badly on a moonsault, according to Dave Scherer. The break is apparently very serious and Holly may be out for a long while.
Staying on the subject of injuries, Goldberg did not make his scheduled WCW Thunder appearance at last night's taping, when he noticed swelling on his previously injured arm. To stay clear of any further injuries, Goldberg was kept off the show, where he was scheduled to team with Mike Awesome to take on Scott Steiner and Kevin Nash. The match was changed to Scott Steiner vs. Mike Awesome.
On the subject of the Steiner vs. Awesome match, according to Dave Meltzer, Scott Steiner went irate at last night's Thunder tapings when he was asked to job to Mike Awesome. He apparently snapped and threatened to beat up booker Terry Taylor. Taylor then apparently threatened to sue Steiner if he did so. Does anyone else notice a pattern in the WCW locker room? These types of things are just ridiculous.
As mentioned yesterday by Mike, Konnan is expected to receive surgery on his injured arm in the next couple of weeks, which will keep him out of in ring action for a few months. However, he is expected to remain on WCW television while his arm heals.
Shane Douglas also reportedly suffered an injury at Tuesday's Thunder tapings during his match against the Wall, where Wall apparently hit a DDT wrong. Douglas reportedly received a neck stinger due to the DDT and may have been knocked out for a while. However, he refused hospital treatment and was said to be fine today.
And staying on the subject of injuries (a lot today, huh?) Major Gunns also suffered an injury while preparing for her match against Paisley and Tygress on the WCW Thunder tapings last night. During the preparation for the match, one of Gunns' breast implants were apparently damaged and she was taken to the hospital. I remember Chyna spoke of a similar injury on "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno a couple of weeks ago.
According to several reports, Vince Russo is vacationing in Florida with his family this week. There is an overall feeling that Russo will be back in a few weeks, possibly as soon as this Monday's Nitro. I personally think the current Terry Taylor led booking committee has done an EXCELLENT job in putting on some great shows, and if Russo can work together with them, we could see some even better shows.
WCW is expected to introduce more Power Plant graduates to WCW television soon, according to Bob Ryder. I thought the Mark Gentrach and Sean O'Hare vs. Filthy Animals match on Nitro was GREAT, and it was definitely a smart move by WCW to put them over. Those guys had some great moves. How often do you see guys their height hit a "Swanton" bomb?
On an ECW related story, former WCW valet "Gorgeous George" is now officially with ECW and will make her television debut this Friday on ECW on TNN. She will apparently go by the name "George," dropping the "Gorgeous" ... just from her name.
You can also expect the following on Friday's show, courtesy of ECWwrestling.com:
- The debut of "George"
- The return of The Sandman
- Tajiri vs. Little Guido (Jerry Lynn as referee)
- Tommy Dreamer & Jazz vs. Justin Credible & Francine
- Rob Van Dam vs. Rhino (ECW TV Title)
That wraps it up for today's report. Stop by tomorrow for more news, rumors, etc. Until next time, later.
Triple A
TripleA99@aol.com