Heyyyyy... after a brief vacation down to New Jersey for the weekend, I'm back with today's news and rumors right here at TPWW. Without any further delay, here we go...
According to various reports, tonight's Raw will be a "can't miss" show. The WWF is apparently planning on totally revamping the WCW invasion angle and adding some twists and turns to it to make it come off better than it has been doing lately. One big rumor going around, according to Dave Meltzer, is that the WWF is planning on adding a 3rd promotion to the mix... ECW. Word is that Rob Van Dam may debut tonight on Raw to lead an "ECW invasion" to the WWF. Oh man. This should have been done since day one. Just imagine the possibilities. Hopefully Paul Heyman has something to do with the angle... if it does in fact happen. As of now, it still is just a rumor, but hopefully it'll come to life tonight or sometime soon.
The WWF is in Atlanta tonight and will use tonight's show to evaluate the future plans for WCW. Being that it's Atlanta, the WWF has to hope that WCW's home town fans will support them more than other fans lately. Again, some major changes are expected to go down tonight and many people are getting their VCRs ready.
The only match announced for Raw tonight so far is Diamond Dallas Page taking on Shane McMahon in a street fight. The match will apparently open up Raw in an attempt to increase Raw's often low first quarter hour rating.
There is also a rumor that a new WCW commissioner will be announced tonight, as previously reported. The lead name on the rumor list is Mick Foley, but some have speculated that it may be Arn Anderson. Of course, it could end up being a completely different person, but in my opinion, Mick Foley would work out best. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that Shawn Michaels will be returning any time soon, at least if recent rumors are any indication, but you never know.
The WWF has already released Buff Bagwell. The following was posted on WWF.com earlier today: "Bagwell parts ways with World Wrestling Federation Entertainment - World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. Senior Vice President for Talent Relations Jim Ross met with Marcus "Buff" Bagwell on Monday, and the two men mutually agreed to end Bagwell's contractual obligations." It didn't look like the WWF was planning on signing Bagwell in the first place, but decided to change their minds apparently after he received a good reaction at the WWF-WCW simulcast Raw. Bagwell has been nothing short of a menace backstage lately and has now been released.
The WWF apparently now has more heat on Stacy Keibler, according to 1wrestling, since she decided to take off this weekend's house shows because of prior plans... which were going to the beach with her friends.
The WWF has added the following matches to July 22nd's WWF/WCW Invasion PPV: Trish Stratus & Lita vs. Stacy Keibler & Torrie Wilson in a bra and panties match. Now that's what I call a dream match. Also, Billy Kidman is expected to take on X-Pac in a title vs. title match, with Kidman holding the WCW cruiserweight title and X-Pac holding the WWF Light Heavyweight title. This is in addition to Rhyno vs. Mike Awesome for the Hardcore title and the WWF vs. WCW "inagural brawl," in which the participants are yet to be announced.
Matt Hardy and Lita will host Raw tonight at WWF New York.
Spike Dudley suffered a hairline fracture of the fibula at this week's Smackdown tapings when he landed bad on his leg while attempting the "Dudley Dog" (I still feel weird typing that since it's not even a friggin' bulldog). Spike will be out of action for a few weeks and is now in a soft cast, according to Jim Ross.
Goodfather has been suffering from two pulled hamstrings and will be out of action for a few weeks, according to JR.
This past Thursday's Smackdown pulled in a 3.8 rating, up 0.1 points from last week. Tough Enough on MTV scored a 2.0 rating, down from last week's 2.2.
The Sandman debuted for XPW last night in the Olympic Auditorium for XPW's "Rapture". The Sandman did a run during a Major Gunns vs. Lizzy Borden match, then defeated Vic Grimes in a match. Also, there was an incident at the show where Supreme, one of XPW's stars, was lit on fire during a flaming tables spot. He was apparently badly burned and was rushed to a hospital. No word on his condition at this point.
An ECW reunion show was held last night in Buffalo, NY, featuring many of ECW's former stars. To check out full results from the show, click HERE.
Finally, the acclaimed and very respected Internet wrestling audio show, Dave Meltzer's Wrestling Observer Live, had its final broadcast tonight. The show's host, Eyada.com, will be shutting down due to the bad condition of Internet advertising at this time. The show can be checked out at HERE.
It's just about time to wrap this one up. Enjoy Raw tonight and until next time, later.
Triple A
TripleA99@aol.com
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