There's been a lot of buzz about this Sunday's Money in the Bank PPV and especially the storyline between John Cena and CM Punk. This well may be the last appearance of CM Punk in WWE for some time and the last month of well-executed worked shoot promos have captivated the attention of the many. Some are predicting that this PPV might finally break the 170k domestic B-show ceiling.
Some perspective on that subject:
Since 2008, WWE PPVs that have done more than 170,000 domestic buys:
Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble 08: 352 domestic buys
Royal Rumble 09: 284 domestic buys
Royal Rumble 10: 282 domestic buys
Royal Rumble 11: 272 domestic buys
Wrestlemania
WrestleMania 24: 697 domestic buys
WrestleMania 25: 605 domestic buys
WrestleMania 26: 498 domestic buys
WrestleMania 27: 617 domestic buys
Hell in a Cell/Elimination Chamber PPVs
No Way Out 08: 217 domestic buys (Elimination Chamber)
No Way Out 09: 171 domestic buys (Elimination Chamber)
Hell in a Cell 09: 178 domestic buys (Hell in a Cell)
Elimination Chamber 2010: 174 domestic buys (Elimination Chamber)
Summer Slam
Summer Slam 08: 315 domestic buys
Summer Slam 09: 232 domestic buys
Summer Slam 2010: 214 domestic buys
Other PPVs
Night of Champions 08: 180 domestic buys (Edge/Batitsta, HHH/Cena)
No Mercy 08: 172 domestic buys (HHH/Jeff Hardy, Jericho/HBK Ladder Match)
Survivor Series 08: 211 domestic buys (Team HBK vs Team JBL, Undertaker/Big Show Casket, Team Orton vs Team Batista, Edge/HHH/Kozlov, Cena/Jericho)
Last Five Years of July PPV
Great American Bash (Smackdown!) = 7/23/2006 in Indianapolis, IN = 227k buys @ $39.95 = 60% domestic =136k domestic buys
Great American Bash 07 (Smackdown!) = 7/22/2007 in San Jose, CA = 229k buys @ $39.95 = 66% domestic = 151k domestic buys
Great American Bash 08 = 7/20/2008 in Long Island, NY = 196k buys @ $39.95 = 66% domestic = 129k domestic buys
Night of Champions 09 = 7/26/2009 in Philadelphia, PA = 267k buys @ $39.95 = 63% domestic = 168k domestic buys
Money in the Bank = 7/18/2010 in Kansas City, MO = 165k buys @ $44.95 = 61% domestic = 101k domestic buys*
*) UFC 116 with Brock/Carwin was 7/3/2010 so that shouldn't have affected killed last year's MITB PPV.
Showing posts with label wwe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wwe. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Monday, June 30, 2008
Night of Champions Review by Ray Rhodes
Night of Champions Review, Thoughts, and Comments
by Ray Rhodes
After the RAW Draft and the following Supplemental draft the entire WWE was shaken, not just stirred as in previous drafts. The skeptical viewer (see: the entire IWW staff) would see this as a shameless gimmick to force people to pay attention and to order the Night of Champions PPV to see where the title belts would wind up. And, it seems, a giant swerve to the Internet Community. Jim Ross to Smackdown!? Take that, Good Ole JR! Rey Mysterio to RAW? Where what will the Hispanic audience do? HHH to Smackdown!? They said it would never happen! DH Smith to Fridays? But he was going to be Ted Dibiase's partner! The Swerves! The Intrigue!
Yet, not only was it a shameless gimmick, it was also a great way to freshen up the stale feuds for which I am entirely grateful for. So thank you, WWE, for sending Umaga to Smackdown. Funaki needs his face caved in by Umaga's ass right quick.
Tonight was the Night of Champions and for me, the gimmick worked. I am a huge mark for the title belts and title matches a just the thought of a night where all the belts would be on the line sends shivers down my spine. But since the rising cost of gas has forced Zip Whittle to cut my pay, I haven't been nearly as enthusiastic about dropping 40 bones for a PPV. Any hesitation, however, went away after the draft. Bring on Night of Champions!
With Finlay and Hornswaggle officially moving to ECW, I knew the tag titles could go either way on the hot opener. The Fighting Irish against Miz and Morrison in a worth while match would rest squarely on the ability of the four to manage hard hitting wrestling, tag psychology and comedy. Which they did and then some. Miz and Morrison are fast becoming the best tag team of the last few years (sorry, Carlito and Chris Masters) and Finlay and the sprite put up as much fight as they should without Miz and Morrison losing too much credibility. WWE went the right way here and had the Chick Magnet and the Emperor of Abs go over here.
Speaking of tag teams, the Draft sent Deuce over to RAW. They've done similar things in Drafts of Yesteryear just before they fire someone useless. Sorry, Deuce, we hardly knew ya.
Matt Hardy had to defend his US Title against someone other than MVP. And the world rejoiced. Sadly, though, that challenger would be Chavo Guerrero, who can't seem to have a good match unless it's with Rey Mysterio and 7 years ago. The two worked a decent match, to be fair, and Matt Hardy picks up the win after reversing the last suplex in the Three Amigos and hitting the Twist of Fate.
** Ray Rhodes Nice Touch Moment of the Match**
When Matt Hardy hit the Twist of Fate out of the suplexes, Chavo's bodyguard was taunting the crowd and didn't see the reversal. So when Matt went for the cover and got the three count, Neely was caught off guard and it didn't give him a chance to try and interfere. If he had been watching, it would have looked silly for him to just stand there, especially since he's a heel. So, nice touch.
The Internet World had been a buzz for weeks. Who would be Diabase's partner? Was it DH Smith? No! He went to Smackdown! Was it Teddy Hart? Yeah, right. Was it Cody Rhodes in a move that makes no sense, even to the most toothless of rednecks? Of course! In a swerve that make no legal sense, even in professional wrestling, Cody Rhodes turned on Hardcore Holly and was announced his own mystery opponent. When Dibiase pinned Holly, Rhodes lost the titles with Holly and won them with Dibiase at the same time. To make matters worse, Dibiase has the worst theme music in the last 12 years as well as the worst finisher. Million Dollar Dream into some sort of Russian Leg Sweep? Apparently money can't buy you happiness, good theme music or a decent finisher. But it can buy you an awful storyline. If Ted Dibiase Sr. was dead, he's be rolling in his grave.
Somebody in the WWE woke up and had a good idea. Use Jericho to his ability. And his ability is to be a great heel and to have incredible matches, not brawling with JBL and wrestling once a month.
Now that he's in a great feud with HBK, something had to be done with the IC Title. And that something was recent draft acquisition, Kofi Kingston. In a very strong back and forth match, Jericho did what Jericho does and Kofi showed glimpses of living up to his potential despite a few rough patches. Throw in HBK, a superkick on Lance Cade and a surprise upset and you've got some intriguing TV for the next few Raws. I admit it, I'm hooked.
Pigs began to fly and Hell was frozen over because tonight was the night Mark Henry became a World Champion. It's been a long 12 or so years of multiple let downs, painful matches, and a dozen injuries but Mark Henry has done it! Night of Champions brought us Kane, Big Show and Henry in a match of Sloths. It actually started decent until Kane got roughed up on the apron after getting dumped from the ring which left Show and Henry in the ring longer than should be allowed by law. Eventually, Henry gets the win after massive amounts of bodies crashing around. Mark Henry is a happy man tonight, but the world weeps.
Mickie James defended her Women's Championship against Katie Lea Burchill in a match that would, in my mind, make or break Katie Lea. On a side note, I was digging the Burchill v Kennedy angle but they abruptly ended it and sent Kennedy to Smackdown. Jerks. The two women had a pretty good women's match truth be told and it was an actual match, with barely a hair biel, hair pull, or hair based offense at all. Thank you. Mickie picks up the win but I hope they continue to feud for another month or so.
I originally thought whichever World Title match went on last would be the big title change of the night. So when Edge v Batista was in the Viscera Spot, my hope of Batista taking the title to RAW fell apart. After weeks of getting screwed over, it seemed like the perfect point for Batista's revenge. Sadly, Edge retains but after Batista picks up Vickie and hurls her onto La Famiglia, I'd say it was worth it.
So, logically, HHH was losing to Cena, right?
I guess not.
After hyping the match as a match that would give us a moment we would never forget, it was a typical Cena/HHH match. It almost seemed too robotical and cookie-cuttered and at no point did it reach the point of intensity it should have. Even the false finishes were predictable and with HHH winning it just seemed like a cheat. Sure, it wasn't what was expected but sometimes what is expected is what's needed. Raw needs a champion and for that not to be resolved at Night of Champions just seems like a dirty trick. Like sending Matt Striker to RAW. Sorry, Matt, you're probably not going to have a job anymore.
The best part of the night, perhaps, for comedy anyway, was when Batista and Cena were talking backstage, CM Punk came up and made sure we remembered he had the Money in the Bank Briefcase. Just the thought of Punk againt Cena or Batista made me have a fit of laughter. The day Punk beats either of them is the day Carlito beats HHH. Stranger things have happened, however, Mark Henry is a World Champion after all.
Final Word: The PPV started off good but a baffling and stupid tag team match and no title change in either of the main events brings a possible A grade to a strong B.
by Ray Rhodes
After the RAW Draft and the following Supplemental draft the entire WWE was shaken, not just stirred as in previous drafts. The skeptical viewer (see: the entire IWW staff) would see this as a shameless gimmick to force people to pay attention and to order the Night of Champions PPV to see where the title belts would wind up. And, it seems, a giant swerve to the Internet Community. Jim Ross to Smackdown!? Take that, Good Ole JR! Rey Mysterio to RAW? Where what will the Hispanic audience do? HHH to Smackdown!? They said it would never happen! DH Smith to Fridays? But he was going to be Ted Dibiase's partner! The Swerves! The Intrigue!
Yet, not only was it a shameless gimmick, it was also a great way to freshen up the stale feuds for which I am entirely grateful for. So thank you, WWE, for sending Umaga to Smackdown. Funaki needs his face caved in by Umaga's ass right quick.
Tonight was the Night of Champions and for me, the gimmick worked. I am a huge mark for the title belts and title matches a just the thought of a night where all the belts would be on the line sends shivers down my spine. But since the rising cost of gas has forced Zip Whittle to cut my pay, I haven't been nearly as enthusiastic about dropping 40 bones for a PPV. Any hesitation, however, went away after the draft. Bring on Night of Champions!
With Finlay and Hornswaggle officially moving to ECW, I knew the tag titles could go either way on the hot opener. The Fighting Irish against Miz and Morrison in a worth while match would rest squarely on the ability of the four to manage hard hitting wrestling, tag psychology and comedy. Which they did and then some. Miz and Morrison are fast becoming the best tag team of the last few years (sorry, Carlito and Chris Masters) and Finlay and the sprite put up as much fight as they should without Miz and Morrison losing too much credibility. WWE went the right way here and had the Chick Magnet and the Emperor of Abs go over here.
Speaking of tag teams, the Draft sent Deuce over to RAW. They've done similar things in Drafts of Yesteryear just before they fire someone useless. Sorry, Deuce, we hardly knew ya.
Matt Hardy had to defend his US Title against someone other than MVP. And the world rejoiced. Sadly, though, that challenger would be Chavo Guerrero, who can't seem to have a good match unless it's with Rey Mysterio and 7 years ago. The two worked a decent match, to be fair, and Matt Hardy picks up the win after reversing the last suplex in the Three Amigos and hitting the Twist of Fate.
** Ray Rhodes Nice Touch Moment of the Match**
When Matt Hardy hit the Twist of Fate out of the suplexes, Chavo's bodyguard was taunting the crowd and didn't see the reversal. So when Matt went for the cover and got the three count, Neely was caught off guard and it didn't give him a chance to try and interfere. If he had been watching, it would have looked silly for him to just stand there, especially since he's a heel. So, nice touch.
The Internet World had been a buzz for weeks. Who would be Diabase's partner? Was it DH Smith? No! He went to Smackdown! Was it Teddy Hart? Yeah, right. Was it Cody Rhodes in a move that makes no sense, even to the most toothless of rednecks? Of course! In a swerve that make no legal sense, even in professional wrestling, Cody Rhodes turned on Hardcore Holly and was announced his own mystery opponent. When Dibiase pinned Holly, Rhodes lost the titles with Holly and won them with Dibiase at the same time. To make matters worse, Dibiase has the worst theme music in the last 12 years as well as the worst finisher. Million Dollar Dream into some sort of Russian Leg Sweep? Apparently money can't buy you happiness, good theme music or a decent finisher. But it can buy you an awful storyline. If Ted Dibiase Sr. was dead, he's be rolling in his grave.
Somebody in the WWE woke up and had a good idea. Use Jericho to his ability. And his ability is to be a great heel and to have incredible matches, not brawling with JBL and wrestling once a month.
Now that he's in a great feud with HBK, something had to be done with the IC Title. And that something was recent draft acquisition, Kofi Kingston. In a very strong back and forth match, Jericho did what Jericho does and Kofi showed glimpses of living up to his potential despite a few rough patches. Throw in HBK, a superkick on Lance Cade and a surprise upset and you've got some intriguing TV for the next few Raws. I admit it, I'm hooked.
Pigs began to fly and Hell was frozen over because tonight was the night Mark Henry became a World Champion. It's been a long 12 or so years of multiple let downs, painful matches, and a dozen injuries but Mark Henry has done it! Night of Champions brought us Kane, Big Show and Henry in a match of Sloths. It actually started decent until Kane got roughed up on the apron after getting dumped from the ring which left Show and Henry in the ring longer than should be allowed by law. Eventually, Henry gets the win after massive amounts of bodies crashing around. Mark Henry is a happy man tonight, but the world weeps.
Mickie James defended her Women's Championship against Katie Lea Burchill in a match that would, in my mind, make or break Katie Lea. On a side note, I was digging the Burchill v Kennedy angle but they abruptly ended it and sent Kennedy to Smackdown. Jerks. The two women had a pretty good women's match truth be told and it was an actual match, with barely a hair biel, hair pull, or hair based offense at all. Thank you. Mickie picks up the win but I hope they continue to feud for another month or so.
I originally thought whichever World Title match went on last would be the big title change of the night. So when Edge v Batista was in the Viscera Spot, my hope of Batista taking the title to RAW fell apart. After weeks of getting screwed over, it seemed like the perfect point for Batista's revenge. Sadly, Edge retains but after Batista picks up Vickie and hurls her onto La Famiglia, I'd say it was worth it.
So, logically, HHH was losing to Cena, right?
I guess not.
After hyping the match as a match that would give us a moment we would never forget, it was a typical Cena/HHH match. It almost seemed too robotical and cookie-cuttered and at no point did it reach the point of intensity it should have. Even the false finishes were predictable and with HHH winning it just seemed like a cheat. Sure, it wasn't what was expected but sometimes what is expected is what's needed. Raw needs a champion and for that not to be resolved at Night of Champions just seems like a dirty trick. Like sending Matt Striker to RAW. Sorry, Matt, you're probably not going to have a job anymore.
The best part of the night, perhaps, for comedy anyway, was when Batista and Cena were talking backstage, CM Punk came up and made sure we remembered he had the Money in the Bank Briefcase. Just the thought of Punk againt Cena or Batista made me have a fit of laughter. The day Punk beats either of them is the day Carlito beats HHH. Stranger things have happened, however, Mark Henry is a World Champion after all.
Final Word: The PPV started off good but a baffling and stupid tag team match and no title change in either of the main events brings a possible A grade to a strong B.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Future Presidents appears on RAW; King of the Ring returns!
Political theatre jumped in the squared circle on Monday night as all three major Presidential Candidates appeared on RAW in taped speeches laced with wrestling catchphrases. Also on this special three-hour episode, WWE held a one-night King of the Ring tournament crowning the first champion since King Booker’s 2006 win. (Prior to that, the tournament had been retired since June 2002 when Brock Lesnar defeated RVD in the finals. Trivia note: only five of the sixteen men in that 2002 tournament – Edge, Hardcore Holly, William Regal, Val Venis and Chris Jericho – are still working for WWE now.)
WWE did not announce the participants for this tournament in advance. The news that the Presidential Candidates had each taped a message for the show was also late-breaking. No doubt, with a very close primary in Pennsylvania, any efforts to target young voters (Obama appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Monday as well), were being pursued aggressively. The overnight ratings for the show were not released yet but are expected to be higher than normal for the last two hours.
The timing for a one night, three-hour RAW directly preceding Sunday’s Backlash PPV is interesting. Typically, these specials are directives from USA. A seven-match one-night tournament like King of the Ring is an excellent way to fill the time but on a go-home show directly prior to a PPV, is it dilutive to selling Backlash? PPV storylines were woven into the tournament as well as promos for the RAW main event. However, the tri-focus of KOTR, promoting the upcoming pay-per-view and the messages by Obama, Clinton and McCain gave the show a very odd feeling.
First round was Chris Jericho (Intercontinental Champion, RAW) and Montel Vontavious Porter (US Champion, Smackdown). This pairing is especially interesting because Jericho honed his skills as one of the last modern wrestlers to really tour the world (Europe, Mexico, Japan, North America) prior to joining WWE. MVP joined the professional wrestling community much later in his life, but has shown a veracious ability to learn and improve ever since Kane literally lit a fire under his ass during their inferno match. Both have expressed a deep appreciation for Japanese strong-style wrestling. With these expectations, the match was okay but not incredible. Surprisingly, MVP submitted to the Walls of Jericho after Y2J escaped from the Play of the Day. Considering that Jericho is the referee for the Batista/HBK match and MVP has a singles match with Matt Hardy, I would have thought MVP would continue. However, seeing the rest of the matches, the decision must have been made that face-face matches would play better than heel-heel matches.
Next match was “Never say Die” Matt Hardy and “Mr. Money in the Bank” CM Punk. Considering MVP’s loss, it seemed evident that Hardy would be doing the job. Another match that would play very well in front of a ROH audience, Punk was able to get the pinfall after Hardy escaped from the G2S (KENTA’s Go 2 Sleep).
Fit Finlay and Great Khali had a short match ending in a disqualification. Khali was killing Finlay and destroying his leg by wrapping it around the ringpost. Eventually, Big Show appeared and the two had a short confrontation. I was surprised they had Khali giving Big Show the Tree-Slam on Smackdown last week. Personally, the allure of these two giants fighting one another (in my mind because Big Show had to take Khali’s place in the awful Punjabi Prison Match several years ago) is only special if we can’t see them taking bumps on free TV.
Finlay and son Hornswoggle were leaving when William Regal came out and it was announced that the diminutive former bastard son of Vince McMahon had been entered into the King of the Ring tournament. Regal made quick work of Hornswaggle by applying the Regal Stretch and immediately garnering a submission victory.
CM Punk defeated Chris Jericho in the KOTR semi-final match in the best match of the evening. These two men met just three weeks prior on Monday Night RAW during the build-up to the Money in the Bank Ladder match at Wrestlemania. In that encounter, Jericho landed the Code Breaker to defeat CM Punk in an excellent match. On Monday night, CM Punk avenged that loss when he managed to nail the G2S for the win. With a tournament which has the possibility to create new stars, CM Punk seemed like the right person to get some additional momentum. However, since he already holds the “Money in the Bank” title shot, it’s questionable whether he really would have needed to win this tournament as well.
William Regal and Fit Finlay had their usual face-bustingly violent affair. It was terrific to see them working over each other with their brutal strikes. Eventually, Regal managed to destroy Finlay with a devastating combination of senton-punches-knee lift and Regal stretch for another submission victory. Because of Finlay’s knee injury from the Khali match, I was surprised this one went as long as it did.
The finals for the 2008 King of the Ring tournament was William Regal versus CM Punk. Again, in another promotion, given sufficient time, this could be one of the finest matches of the year. On RAW, this was merely a good, albeit too short, final for a one-night tournament. In the end, Regal matched to apply the Regal Stretch for a third consecutive submission triumph.
A tournament such as King of the Ring offers an opportunity to make new stars. One of the main problems with the WWE Brand Expansion is that with the multiplying number of belts, it becomes harder and harder to establish anyone but the very top tier of the company: Triple H, Randy Orton, John Cena, Undertaker, Batista, Shawn Michaels and Edge. When you remove these players from a major tournament, you are only left with faux-main event contenders (JBL), Tag Champions (Hardcore Holly), Intermediate Belts (US Champion MVP & Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho) and ECW “Superstars” (Kane & Chavo Guerrero). The Fit Finlays of the roster are people whose sole job is really to be a credible opponent without really being a major contender. Wasting a slot on Hornswaggle, especially without a storyline about Regal being a conniving GM stacking the tournament in his own favor, is a real shame. Instead, elevating a young star such as Lance Cade or re-establishing a potential powerhouse such as Umaga would have had far more impact. William Regal’s transition to King of the WWE will hopefully be a productive adventure. He definitely has the skills and background. The real question is – who will he defend his royal title against?
WWE did not announce the participants for this tournament in advance. The news that the Presidential Candidates had each taped a message for the show was also late-breaking. No doubt, with a very close primary in Pennsylvania, any efforts to target young voters (Obama appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Monday as well), were being pursued aggressively. The overnight ratings for the show were not released yet but are expected to be higher than normal for the last two hours.
The timing for a one night, three-hour RAW directly preceding Sunday’s Backlash PPV is interesting. Typically, these specials are directives from USA. A seven-match one-night tournament like King of the Ring is an excellent way to fill the time but on a go-home show directly prior to a PPV, is it dilutive to selling Backlash? PPV storylines were woven into the tournament as well as promos for the RAW main event. However, the tri-focus of KOTR, promoting the upcoming pay-per-view and the messages by Obama, Clinton and McCain gave the show a very odd feeling.
First round was Chris Jericho (Intercontinental Champion, RAW) and Montel Vontavious Porter (US Champion, Smackdown). This pairing is especially interesting because Jericho honed his skills as one of the last modern wrestlers to really tour the world (Europe, Mexico, Japan, North America) prior to joining WWE. MVP joined the professional wrestling community much later in his life, but has shown a veracious ability to learn and improve ever since Kane literally lit a fire under his ass during their inferno match. Both have expressed a deep appreciation for Japanese strong-style wrestling. With these expectations, the match was okay but not incredible. Surprisingly, MVP submitted to the Walls of Jericho after Y2J escaped from the Play of the Day. Considering that Jericho is the referee for the Batista/HBK match and MVP has a singles match with Matt Hardy, I would have thought MVP would continue. However, seeing the rest of the matches, the decision must have been made that face-face matches would play better than heel-heel matches.
Next match was “Never say Die” Matt Hardy and “Mr. Money in the Bank” CM Punk. Considering MVP’s loss, it seemed evident that Hardy would be doing the job. Another match that would play very well in front of a ROH audience, Punk was able to get the pinfall after Hardy escaped from the G2S (KENTA’s Go 2 Sleep).
Fit Finlay and Great Khali had a short match ending in a disqualification. Khali was killing Finlay and destroying his leg by wrapping it around the ringpost. Eventually, Big Show appeared and the two had a short confrontation. I was surprised they had Khali giving Big Show the Tree-Slam on Smackdown last week. Personally, the allure of these two giants fighting one another (in my mind because Big Show had to take Khali’s place in the awful Punjabi Prison Match several years ago) is only special if we can’t see them taking bumps on free TV.
Finlay and son Hornswoggle were leaving when William Regal came out and it was announced that the diminutive former bastard son of Vince McMahon had been entered into the King of the Ring tournament. Regal made quick work of Hornswaggle by applying the Regal Stretch and immediately garnering a submission victory.
CM Punk defeated Chris Jericho in the KOTR semi-final match in the best match of the evening. These two men met just three weeks prior on Monday Night RAW during the build-up to the Money in the Bank Ladder match at Wrestlemania. In that encounter, Jericho landed the Code Breaker to defeat CM Punk in an excellent match. On Monday night, CM Punk avenged that loss when he managed to nail the G2S for the win. With a tournament which has the possibility to create new stars, CM Punk seemed like the right person to get some additional momentum. However, since he already holds the “Money in the Bank” title shot, it’s questionable whether he really would have needed to win this tournament as well.
William Regal and Fit Finlay had their usual face-bustingly violent affair. It was terrific to see them working over each other with their brutal strikes. Eventually, Regal managed to destroy Finlay with a devastating combination of senton-punches-knee lift and Regal stretch for another submission victory. Because of Finlay’s knee injury from the Khali match, I was surprised this one went as long as it did.
The finals for the 2008 King of the Ring tournament was William Regal versus CM Punk. Again, in another promotion, given sufficient time, this could be one of the finest matches of the year. On RAW, this was merely a good, albeit too short, final for a one-night tournament. In the end, Regal matched to apply the Regal Stretch for a third consecutive submission triumph.
A tournament such as King of the Ring offers an opportunity to make new stars. One of the main problems with the WWE Brand Expansion is that with the multiplying number of belts, it becomes harder and harder to establish anyone but the very top tier of the company: Triple H, Randy Orton, John Cena, Undertaker, Batista, Shawn Michaels and Edge. When you remove these players from a major tournament, you are only left with faux-main event contenders (JBL), Tag Champions (Hardcore Holly), Intermediate Belts (US Champion MVP & Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho) and ECW “Superstars” (Kane & Chavo Guerrero). The Fit Finlays of the roster are people whose sole job is really to be a credible opponent without really being a major contender. Wasting a slot on Hornswaggle, especially without a storyline about Regal being a conniving GM stacking the tournament in his own favor, is a real shame. Instead, elevating a young star such as Lance Cade or re-establishing a potential powerhouse such as Umaga would have had far more impact. William Regal’s transition to King of the WWE will hopefully be a productive adventure. He definitely has the skills and background. The real question is – who will he defend his royal title against?
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