Greetings and welcome to the TPWW News and Rumors Report for Sunday, November 19, 2000. I'll be your host to all the happenings on the Internet for today, Survivor Series Sunday. It's a pretty dismal day here in Rhode Island, and I can't believe it's already getting dark at three in the afternoon! Life goes on however, and let's get on with the News and Rumors...
First on a WWF video game note, I stopped by my local Electronic's Boutique to reserve WWF Smackdown 2 for the Playstation yesterday, and was leafing through the strategy guide while in line. I made a few discoveries.
*First and foremost, there is a total of sixty-six wrestlers in the game, including everyone from Funaki to the Radicals.
*The character's costumes are relatively up to date, since the Undertaker is in his biker guise.
*However, THQ was too cheap to spring for American Badass, and so the Taker comes out to his previous "Lord of Darnkess" entrance song.
*Val Venis and the Goodfather are still in their porn star and pimp characters, respectively.
*Stevie Richards and Bull Buchanan however, are in the RTC white shirts and ties.
*The game is relatively up to date in terms of characters, though there are a few exclusions. Chaz is left out, as well as Raven (not a surprise, he debuted too close to the release date), and finally, THE BIG SHOW IS NOT IN THE GAME. I don't have an explanation as to why Paul Wight has been left off the lineup, but he is not there. Hope you enjoyed this update, and be sure to pick up the game on Wednesday (the official, confirmed release date, btw).
According to a few sources, there are still two matches that might be added to WWF Survivor Series during WWF Heat. The first is a European Championship match between William Regal and Hardcore Holly, and the second would be Raven vs. Tazz. Both matches would be excellent, and there is sufficient evidence (including Jim Ross) that says they will be added. By the way, should those matches be added, my picks would be Regal retaining and Tazz picking up the win.
It is a lock and confirmed that Austin's next feud will be with Chris Benoit, following his match with Triple H tonight. This match tremendously excites Jim Ross, as well as myself. There is a good chance that Benoit will act as Triple H's intermediate, going after the rattlesnake to get some measure of revenge for Triple H.
The DirecTV preview for Raw tomorrow is as follows:
Hour one: Austin vs. the Radicals
Hour two: The Rock gets revenge
The obvious exclusions from tonight's Survivor Series lineup include X-Pac, the Acolytes, and the Big Bossman, though all those athletes will be back in action within the month of December, along with the green goddess Tori.
The WWF higher ups are very pleased with Hardcore Holly, and are interested in making him a dominant force in the mid card, as well as dabble him into the upper card. There are rumors that he may interject himself in the WWF title match at the pay per view, in order to continue his rivalry with Kurt (who broke his arm earlier this year) alive. I like Holly quite a bit, but I don't like him wrestling Kurt. Angle needs more main event credibility before he can start taking on upper mid carders like Holly, though it is just my opinion.
On Tuesday, November 28th The Rock will guest star on DAG (David Allen Grier's new show) which is on NBC at 9:30pm.
Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley will be back at the pay per view tonight, according to a recent radio show that she was on. It should be interesting to see how she handles the Triple H heel turn, since she left prior to his attack on Steve Austin.
The WWF has opened up an official website for Lita and the Hardys, which can be reached at www.WWFHardys.com. It's a good site with a lot of info on the threesome, so I'd advise you to check it out if you're a fan of any/all of them.
Christopher Daniels has been meeting with WWF officials nonstop this week, trying desperately to hammer out a deal with the organization. WWF officials are very pleased with the Fallen Angel's potential and ability, and may offer him a low downside contract later this week. For those of you who recall, Daniels played the shorter Conquistador on a few WWF telecasts last month.
Vince McMahon is going to serve as the Executive Producer for the Rock's new movie, the Scorpion King. Vince is very confident the movie will do well, particularly with the aid of the "WWF machine" propelling it.
There are already a few things on tap for Nitro this week:
*Boogie Knights vs. Jindrack/O'Hare (Boogie Knights, well, Alex Wright and General Rection, won the tag titles while on the tour of Germany).
*Kevin Nash will form an alliance with DDP (they're slated to team up at the pay per view against Stasiak and Palumbo).
*Jimmy Hart will fight a DJ (something tells me the ratings will skyrocket during this one).
*Rick Steiner will be on Nitro.
*Ric Flair will have his booking shoes on, laying down some more matches for Mayhem.
*Lex Luger vs. Booker T
*Buff Bagwell vs. Shane Douglas
*Jun Jang vs. Jamie San
*Kwee Wee and Meng (odd combo) vs. Jim Duggan and Elix Skipper
*The Battledome guys will be on hand as well
There is going to be an absolutely scathing column by Bret Hart in the Calgary Sun, which will be available later today.
Daffney is interested in returning, and WCW storywriters are interested in bringing her back, but an angle is yet to be established, so she'll be kept off the TVs for the time being.
Pretty much everybody in WCW is pretty sure that Scott Hall will not sign any kind of a deal with ECW, and will just work some dates. Some people are convinced that he'll sign with the WWF relatively soon, while others (well, Kevin Nash) are campaigning to bring him back. Nash's reasons are now different than before, saying that if Hall hits the WWF it would be the end of days for WCW.
Sting is going to take some time off for surgery, which explains his selling of an injury at the hands of Scott Steiner. He'll be back in a short while, and the surgery is very necessary for his career at this time.
A lot of people within WCW are very impressed with Crowbar and his recent work ethic. In addition to being a good all around wrestler and high flyer in the ring, he is said to be very amicable and friendly behind the scenes, as well as willing to do the job when necessary. His push alongside Mike Awesome is only the tip of the iceberg for this talented performer. Good news for fans of Crowbar, of which I am one.
General Rection is going to be taking a good deal of time off after WCW Mayhem. He's received several concussions in past months, but absolutely refuses to take time off until he feels he's "properly established" himself. His condition is getting worse, and has come to terms with his injuries and has decided it is time to take a rest, before he can no longer compete in the ring. As a result, expect his match with Storm at the pay per view to be the final in this series for a while to come.
Slightly tied to that story, Lt. Loco has been eager to disband the Misfits in Action during Rection's leave of absence. He is said to want to stay with Lash and form a tag team, then feud on and off with The Wall. I've always said that Lash and Chavo were too talented to be saddled with this lame gimmick, and I hope this breakup does indeed come to pass.
Just a slight reminder, Goldberg will be on Live with Regis the day after Thanksgiving, this coming Friday. He'll be plugging his book, entitled "I'm next."
ECW is VERY interested in nabbing the defecting Vampiro, since he does embody the "extreme" attitude they work so hard to exude. Vamp has made it known that he is done with wrestling for good however, and wants to concentrate on his musical career. As a result, it is unknown whether he will sign. However, should his music career bottom out (believe me, there is a good chance) he would be accepted to ECW with open arms...and WCW would NOT take him back after all the slanderous comments he has made against the talent and writers. He's also made some vitriolic comments towards Chris Jericho and Jim Ross, which pretty much burns any possibility of a WWF run.
Steve Corino will most likely defend his title against the Sandman at ECW's next pay per view, and Justin Credible will most likely face Jerry Lynn. Should Scott Hall agree to perform on the show however, that last match would almost definitely be altered.
Well, that about wraps it up for today's report guys. Be sure to check out the live real time coverage of tonight's Survivor Series event here at TPWW.net, and feel free to check out my latest column as well (managed to wedge that plug in here nicely, huh?). Anyway, I'll be on my way now, and if you have any information, comments, suggestions, feedback or whatever, the address is Corey@tpww.net, and I'd love to hear from you all.
Corey Silvia
Corey@tpww.net