Hello, everyone, and welcome to the January 15th edition of the news and rumors right here at TPWW.net. As always, there is a lot to talk about today, including news on last night's stellar WCW PPV, WCW Sin, Monday night previews, and more. So without further ado, here are today's news and rumors.
Last night, WCW put forth what was, in my opinion, a great pay per view. The show's undercard was spectacular and had me interested throughout, and although the main event matches weren't all too great wrestling-wise, they were great from an angle standpoint. The match that really stole the show for me was the Jung Dragons vs. Knoble and Karagias match. I was literally marking out watching that match. It was one of the best matches I have seen in a while, and I mean that honestly. The rest of the undercard was also great, including the cruiserweight opener, the penalty box match, the US title match, the tag title match, and others. Speaking of the tag title match, Sean O'Haire really looked impressive as usual, but this time not only in the ring, but on the microphone as well. He actually showed a lot of charisma in the backstage interview with Mean Gene Okerlund. He's definitely a big time star in the making. The Goldberg situation is definitely a very interesting one. Not only did the loss put an end to the stupid winning streak angle, but it also gives fans a motive to watch Nitro tonight to see what's going to happen with Goldberg. I, for one, am intrigued by it. As for Road Warrior Animal being WCW's mystery man, all I can say is that I was surprised. And hey, it's better than Rick Steiner being the mystery man, I guess. The main event world title match was pretty bad, only going a few minutes, but was unfortunately cut short due to an unfortunate injury suffered by Sid.
On the subject of that unfortunate injury, Sid reportedly suffered a very serious leg injury during the main event of last night's PPV. Jeremy, who was in attendance at the PPV, sent along this report: "After Sin went off the air, the WCW trainer called for the paramedics. Sid apparently rolled his ankle or did something but he looked as if he was in a lot of pain. I saw them wheeling out a wheel chair or stretcher of some sort but I didn't stay long after that." According to WCW.com's WCW Live, Sid suffered a compound fracture of his ankle, meaning that the bone in his ankle actually pertruded through his skin, obviously causing a very painful and very serious injury. The original finish for the main event, according to Dave Meltzer, was to have Sid chokeslam Scott Steiner and go for the pinfall, but to have the mystery man, Road Warrior Animal, screw Sid out of the victory, allowing Scott Steiner to pick up the win. However, due to Sid's unfortunate injury, the end of the match was changed, and what happened was Road Warrior Animal entered the ring, nailed Sid once, and allowed Scott Steiner to pick up the pinfall. Sid was noticeably in pain at the end of the show. Sid reportedly underwent successful surgery today and had a rod placed in his injured leg. He is expected to be out of action for six to eight months.
For those interested, WCW Nitro will open tonight with graphic footage of Sid's leg injury, which he reportedly suffered while coming off the ropes and landing on his foot rong. The footage will be very graphic and gruesome, and may even cause a few fans to change the channel out of nausea. Ouch, judging from that, I feel for Sid. WCW reportedly passed the idea by Sid first, and he gave WCW the OK to play the footage.
You can also expect the following on tonight's edition of Nitro, according to WCW.com:
- Ric Flair will attempt to "right the wrongs" of WCW Sin.
- Mike Sanders plans to retaliate against the Cat.
- Sean O'Haire and Chuck Palumbo will defend their WCW Tag Team Titles.
- Rey Mysterio Jr. and Billy Kidman vs. 3 Count
- Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Crowbar - Cruiserweight Title
While watching WCW Sin last night and all the involvement Ric Flair had in the card, I couldn't help realize that we may be seeing the return of a heel Ric Flair. Keep in mind that this is just simple speculation on my part, but here's what I noticed... First off, Ric Flair's mystery man ended up turning on Sid just like that, and Flair did Sid no favors in delaying the mystery man's entrance into the match, allowing Steiner and Jarrett to doubleteam Sid. Ric Flair also introduced Goldberg to the fan earlier in the show, who ended up macing Goldberg and costing him his match. Flair asked Goldberg to give the kid an autograph, as to gain trust in him, so he would attempt to save the kid later in the show when Lex Luger confronted him. Ric Flair also made Goldberg's match no DQ, which allowed the kid to interfere. Plus, after the Cat won back the commissionership, Ric Flair told him to take the night off, leave the building and celebrate. Definitely some interesting stuff there, but again, that's just my speculation.
Both WCW president Eric Bischoff and Fusient Media president and CEO Brian Bedol were backstage at WCW Sin, according to Dave Meltzer. However, their creative involvement in the PPV was said to be minimal, if any at all. Actual big creative changes should be made by the new WCW management in about 30-45 days, when the WCW sale to Fusient Media is closed. Bischoff reportedly met with the wrestlers before the PPV and spoke to them about the current state of WCW and met with them again after the PPV to congratulate them on a great effort.
With WWF Raw tonight, we can expect a few matches to be finalized for the Royal Rumble PPV next Sunday, as well as a few new participants for the actual Royal Rumble match to be announced. Along with that, here's what you can expect for tonight's Raw, according to WWF.com:
- The Rock & Undertaker vs. Rikishi & Kane
- Raven vs. Test - Hardcore Title
- The Hardys & Lita vs. Bull, Goodfather, & Ivory
- Tazz (That's not a typo!) & Kaientai vs. K-Kwik & Too Cool
- Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, and Kurt Angle will also be on hand at the show.
"The One" Billy Gunn will host WWF Raw tonight at WWF New York.
There are rumors that we may see Shane McMahon return to the WWF some time around the Royal Rumble, either before, at, or after. No word on what his possible role would be, but it would obviously be an interesting development to have Shane-O return to the mix.
Dean Malenko will be out of action for around 3 to 4 weeks due to a knee injury, according to Wade Keller. This explains the angle where his knee was attacked on television, and obviously, this means that his angle with Lita will be put on hold until he returns.
Full results are available of last night's WWF live event in Madison, Wisconsin, which featured Austin & Undertaker vs. Rikishi & Kane. To check out the results, click HERE. Thanks to Buccaneer_fan4life and Bruiserberg for both sending results.
Scott Hall may reportedly take bookings in All Japan Pro Wrestling at the end of February or beginning of March, according to Wade Keller. As of now, his future in U.S. wrestling doesn't appear to bright due to his recent problems.
ECW's Spike Dudley recently commented to 1wrestling's Dave Scherer on the rumors of Saturday's ECW show being ECW's last. "For the record, the entire 'funeral' at the end of the show has been completely blown out of proportion," said Spike. He continued, "First off, the boys gathering in the ring is something we tend to do as a celebration when we go to a new town. Yes it got a little emotional, but never at any point, did anyone wish me farewell. In fact, there are only a couple of guys who believe we're done." Spike commented on the rumors of ECW taking simply taking some time off to solve their problems. "We have been expecting this time off and it's going down as Paul claimed it would last month. I know it looks bleak but I (and a lot of the boys) still have confidence in ECW and Paul E. Call me stupid loyal, but I believe it," he said. Spike concluded, "It wasn't meant to be a last goodbye, it just got out of hand. I feel like a heel for taking part in it. I truly thought it was a celebration not a funeral and I'd like people to know that I'm sticking by Paul (as well as the rest of the boys) until the end. I'd just like to see something positive coming out about ECW instead of all this gloomy s***. We're not dead yet. Thanks." It's definitely great to see that everyone still has confidence that ECW can survive their recent problems. I, for one, being a huge die hard ECW fan, sincerely hope that they can.
That just about wraps things up for today's report. Be sure to check out Rob Harvey's latest column, Ticking Timebomb, where he rants on everything on his mind in the wrestling world. Also be sure to check out Corey Silvia's latest column, Jerichoholics Anonymous, where Corey looks at the various possibilities ECW has with each possible TV network. Until next time, enjoy tonight's shows. Later.
Triple A
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