Greetings TPWW readers, and welcome to today's News and Rumors Report. I don't have much to say in the intro today, so let's just get straight into the top stories for today.
For those who still aren't a hundred percent certain whether they'll be picking up WCW Sin tonight, here's the FINAL card for the pay per view:
- Scott Steiner vs. Sid vs. Jeff Jarrett vs. Mystery Man - WCW World Title
- Goldberg & Sarge vs. Lex Luger & Buff Bagwell
- General Rection vs. Shane Douglas - US Title, First Blood
- Nash & DDP vs. Two Natural Born Thrillers - WCW Tag Titles
- Mike Sanders vs. The Cat - For Commissionership of WCW
- Team Canada vs. Filthy Animals - Penalty Box Match, Duggan as Ref
- Chavo Guerrero vs. Shane Helms - Cruiserweight Title
- Crowbar vs. Terry Funk vs. Meng - Hardcore Title
- Big Vito vs. Reno
Just to toss in a rumor killer, there is no chance whatsoever of Sting or Booker T being the mystery man at the pay per view tonight. Both are still rehabbing from injuries at their respective homes, and the earliest possible return date remains Superbrawl Revenge, as was reported recently here at TPWW.
According to a few sources, D'Lo Brown is said to be very displeased with his current status in the WWF. It is almost a certainty that he'll try his luck with the new management regime in WCW once his contract runs out. With the awful/derivative angle the WWF has given him right now, who can blame him?
The following are the top 10 selling items over at WWFShopZone.com:
1. Chyna "If They Only Knew" Book
2. WWF The Music - Volume 5 CD
3. Hardy Boyz Fear T-shirt
4. Stone Cold Steve Austin Deer Camouflage Hat
5. Undertaker "Dead Man Inc." T-shirt
6. The Rock "Just Bring It!" T-shirt
7. Stone Cold Official Beer Drinker T-Shirt
8. Hardy Boyz Pendant
9. Hardy Boyz & Lita Long Sleeve T-Shirt
10. The Rock "Guaran-Damn-Tees It" T-Shirt
Some surprises there as I definitely didn't think Chyna's book would make such a splash in its first week available. I thought for certain that WWF the Music Volume 5 would pull in at number one, but it appears as though Chyna's book won out that battle.
According to the WWF, former superstar Hillbilly Jim will be hosting the pre Royal Rumble special next week. Billy Gunn will also be hosting Monday Night Raw tomorrow from WWF New York.
According to the WWF, the Fabulous Moolah will guest star on tonight's edition of "Nikki" on The WB. The show airs at 9:00 PM EST tonight.
Congratulations to Mick Foley and his wife Collette on the birth of their third child, Mickey, according to Jim Ross.
About 4,000 tickets are still available for next Sunday's WWF Royal Rumble PPV in New Orleans. Tickets are also still available for WrestleMania X-Seven in April, according to Jim Ross.
Last night in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, ECW ran what many believe may be their last show. The show was the last event on the ECW schedule before their PPV in March, which may or may not even happen. The show was said to be a very emotional one last night, with the ECW roster entering the ring and drinking beer together to end the show. ECW owner Paul Heyman was not at the show. ECW has been trying frantically to find a TV network deal or even sell the company to keep themselves alive, but as of now, it appears that they have had no luck. ECW has not only lost their network TV deal with TNN, but also recently lost their slot on the MSG Network in New York, their top market for their weekly syndicated show, Hardcore TV. ECW has not produced a TV show in the last two weeks, and it appears that they may not for another few weeks. As sad as it is to say this, unless ECW gets a TV deal or the company is sold soon, we may finally see the end of ECW.
New Jack has apparently come out of retirement… this time for XPW. RossHB sent along the following report of New Jack's return to wrestling: "Last night, January 13th, at XPW's New Year's Revolution show in Reseda, CA, New Jack made his return to pro wrestling. After a main event between XPW champion Sabu and a wrestler named Messiah, the familiar "Natural Born Killers" song hit. Everyone in the crowd went insane, and out came New Jack! He came to the ring with his weapons, cleared out Rob Black (XPW President), and his minions. He then hugged Sabu, but then clocked him with a guitar! He said he had retired from ECW, but not pro wrestling, and that he was going to turn XPW upside down. New Jack also said he had others waiting to come to XPW, and that the company would never be the same again. His new XPW theme music then hit, and New Jack left. Oh, and the writer/director of Beyond the Mat, Barry Blaustein, was also at the show, and got a nice ovation as well." Thanks to Juice for sending along a similar story.
An exciting match has been booked for All Japan Pro Wrestling as it was announced earlier today that Rob Van Dam and Sabu have both been booked their February-March 2001 "Excite Series" tour. The big event is scheduled to take place on March 3 at Yokohama Bunka Gym. That should be an excellent match, especially since they are both very familiar with each other.
CW Anderson was injured at a house show a few days ago. The injury came when Anderson, who was booked to win the match, took a hard suplex bump from his opponent. He landed at an awkward angle, which caused his back to feel a sharp stinging sensation. He quickly ordered his opponent to cover him, and he did, winning the match. Following the match CW laid on the canvas for ten minutes, not moving whatsoever. Eventually he was carried off by some officials and wrestlers in the back. We'll have more on this story as it becomes available.
That's just about it for today, folks. I know this is a pretty paltry report, but it's pretty much all I could dig up on the Internet today. Most of the breaking stories are concerning the WCW purchase, a subject we've already covered at length. Regardless, I hope you all enjoyed what little of this report there was, and will check back with us tonight for the live coverage of WCW Sin.
Corey Silvia
Corey@tpww.net