It’s today. The show starts in about an hour and a half and for the first time I’m actually excited to see it. I don’t care for a lot of the card, but at the end of the day, there’s one thing that makes me want to see it: it’s Wrestlemania. This is the biggest day of the year for us and even if it’s the lamest show they’ve ever done (which it might be), it’s still Wrestlemania and that means it’s special.

I don’t know if the show is going to be anything special to see. I don’t know if any of the matches are going to be worth watching. I don’t know if it’s going to wind up being a complete disaster. But at the end of the day, this is the show I want to see more than any other of the year because for one night a year, the wrestling world converges on one city, one stadium and one show. It’s the most important event of the year and it’s just a few hours away. I know most people aren’t looking forward to it, but I’m excited all over again.

He officially announced this on Sportscenter.  No word on how long the contract is for but he’s sticking with WWE.

I can’t say I blame him.  As he said, what else does he have to prove in MMA?  He was the undisputed World Champion and retired with a winning record.  WWE is easier on him and he makes good money.  What’s not to like?

I’m really digging these short form documentary like this one and the one on the Usos. They’re not the kind of people that are going to get a full three hour version (well Booker might someday) and these things are really well done and give you everything you could want to know. It doesn’t hurt that they probably cost about $18 to produce. Check these things out as they run half an hour and do what they’re supposed to do.

So I watched the latest episode of Countdown (great way to kill forty five minutes to an hour) and the topic was International Sensations.  Then this happened.Here’s their top ten.  Remember that these are voted on by the fans, though I believe there’s a list of options provided.

10. Cesaro

Not exactly a huge resume but some of his displays of strength are amazing.  This is fine.

9. Fabulous Rougeau Brothers

They have a great theme song, but they never even won the Tag Team Titles.  I’ll give them this though: they did translate the French in All America Boys, which turns out to be insulting America.  That’s amusing but this should have been an honorable mention.

8. Santino Marella

And we’re done.  Santino is a comedy character (if you call that comedy of course) and not exactly the most interesting guy in the world.  Yeah he’s a popular guy now, but ten biggest international stars ever?  Ok fine.  We’ll get to the bad stuff in a bit.

7. Nikolai Volkoff

This would be part of the bad.  Volkoff is a name and nothing more.  Other than winning the Tag Team Titles a few times with Iron Sheik, he never did anything people remember.  Oh wait scratch that.  He lost.  A lot.  Like, A LOT.

6. British Bulldog

No issue here.

5. Great Khali

Eh……..I’m not sure on this one.  Yeah he won a World Title and is a huge star in India, but fifth best ever?  That’s a stretch.

4. Rusev

Maybe in five years, but this meant we could look at Lana more so I could live with it.

Now let’s pause for a second here and consider the names we have left:

Bret Hart

Bruno Sammartino

Chris Jericho

Andre the Giant

Rey Mysterio.  What?  They mentioned him at the beginning of the show, and remember he’s from that far off nation of San Diego.

Trish Stratus

Bad News Barrett.  If the Fabulous Rougeaus can be on the list, why can’t Barrett?

I’m sure I’m forgetting some people, but that’s quite a list to pick three from.

3. Bruno Sammartino

You hold the World Title for eleven years and you’re not even in the top two?  There are only two names that could possibly top him from a star power standpoint.

2. Sheamus

This isn’t one of them.  I’m a big Sheamus fan and have been for years, but second ever?  Alberto Del Rio has won more world titles than Sheamus and he can’t even make the top ten?

1. Iron Sheik

Did Iron Sheik wrestle a classic and win the World Title in two different matches at a great Wrestlemania?  Ever headline the biggest show of all time?  Ever BEAT HULK HOGAN FOR THE WORLD TITLE?  Actually no, as he lost that match after holding the title for all of a month.  He isn’t even Ivan Koloff but he’s the #1 international star of all time?  I’m done.

This one actually made my head shake and that’s not supposed to happen on a show like Countdown.  I’ve clearly failed as an educator to the masses.

Well, it’s over.There isn’t much to say on this one as this story popped up and was done in less than a week.  From what it seems, DeMott, who denies all allegations, was described as abusive, overly angry and pretty much a psychotic who treated his students horribly.  It’s probably a good thing that he resigned as it could have gotten a lot worse before it got better.  DeMott had been around for a long time so it’s kind of a big deal that he’s leaving.  This story was one of the biggest things going on this week but it came and went so quickly that it barely had time to get interesting.

There’s no need for this kind of behavior from a coach or anyone in WWE.  I have no problem with a coach being tough and stretching guys.  However, there’s a big difference between making someone work and making them put themselves in unnecessary danger or shouting ethnic, racial or homophobic slurs at them.  That’s abusing your students who might be scared to stand up for themselves.  If someone isn’t doing something right and needs to be yelled at then that’s one thing, but this came off as someone abusing his authority and not seeing the line he crossed a mile back.  That doesn’t need to happen no matter what.

As a side note, do you all want me to post more news stories like this?  I’ll never post a bunch of low level stuff like “here’s an interview with someone where they don’t say anything interesting”, but for bigger stories like this one?  I’ve been thinking about doing that for a long time now but I’m not sure how well it would go over.  Any thoughts?

I was reading back through some of the recent reviews/comments and I’ve come to a conclusion: I’m WAY too bitter about WWE at the moment. I know I rip on it a lot but I really don’t like getting this upset about wrestling of any form. Even late WCW was horrible but it was more of a head shaking horrible than “I really don’t want to see Wrestlemania” kind of anger. Yeah, Raw sucks right now but that doesn’t mean there aren’t good things going on. Today, I want to take a quick look at some of the things I really do like in WWE right now, because there certainly are a few of them. Let’s get to it.

These are in no particular order.

First up, we have Kidd and Cesaro. These guys have worked very, very hard in the last few months and deserve to be rewarded. At first it looked like Ascension was destined to get the big moment at Wrestlemania, but barring a sudden switch, Kidd and Cesaro are going into the biggest show of the year with the belts. They haven’t been a team that long but they deserve this spot and I’m really glad they’re getting it. They need a deeper division to defend against, but I’d love to see them have the belts until at least the summer. Hopefully they don’t drop them back to the Usos to tie into Rikishi’s Hall of Fame induction.

Randy Savage is going into the WWE Hall of Fame. No matter how you look at it, that just feels right.

I really like how Ryback has been treated lately. I was always a fan of his and there needs to be a simple monster on the good side. He’s not likely to get back into the World Title hunt for years, but it’s really refreshing to see him getting back to form instead of just shouting RYBACK RULES over and over again.

Just touching on the main event scene a bit, it’s nice to see that the Philadelphia crowd wasn’t indicative of how the masses view Reigns. No he isn’t the next coming of Steve Austin (the more I think of it, he’s more Diesel. They even look a bit alike) but he’s far from hated the way Batista was last year. That’s encouraging for WWE because it means he isn’t a total lost cause and they could fix him up with the right story and character development. He has a great base but he needs more molding.

Daniel Bryan is in the ring. Nine months ago, we really didn’t know if that was ever going to happen again.

Lana. The camera doesn’t do those legs justice and she looks even better with her hair down. Seriously, she’s just awesome.

Seth Rollins and Jon Stewart had an awesome segment that was far better than I think most of us were expecting. How cool is it that it’s Rollins getting that spot and not say, Santino? Seth more than carried his end of it and that’s exactly why I’m looking forward to him as a top star in the future.

When he’s in the ring, Brock Lesnar is still a sight to behold. The guy is the definition of a monster and he ranges somewhere from masterpiece to destruction almost every time he’s in the ring. Yeah he’s absent a lot, but it makes those appearances all the better.

Stephanie McMahon. When she isn’t standing up for Andre the Giant (I’m leaving it alone), she’s AWESOME as the evil boss. The fact that she’s a really good looking woman helps too. She was always attractive when she was younger but she’s gotten a lot better with age.

Axelmania. I mean DANG this thing is glorious. The clock is a brilliant idea and Axel has gone from the jobbiest jobber this side of JTG to one of the few saving graces of this past week’s show. I know it isn’t leading anywhere special but I’m digging it while it lasts.

Sheamus is coming back. Screw you guys, I’m still a fan. Tell me you wouldn’t see him as a MAJOR improvement over Kane or Big Show.

The Bella Twins. No I don’t like their wrestling or personalities, but they can fill out some tight clothing. While we’re at it, Summer Rae is a great looking blonde and there’s something about a pale British chick in limited clothing. I think I’m out of main roster Divas to fawn over now. Oh and Alicia Fox is good looking. There now I think I’m done.

R-Truth being insane is still a good thing. It’s not exactly “When Little Jimmy Comes Marching Home”, but him being all over the top and stealing the belt is a nice touch.

Cena vs. Rusev is a good feud and a great way to elevate the title. It’s time for Cena to step away from the main event for a bit and it’s working well so far. I don’t think Rusev keeps the title at Wrestlemania, but Cena as US Champion is going to do good things for the belt.

Santino isn’t around. Isn’t that just a nice feeling?

Sting however is around at times. That’s one of those things you never thought you would see but it’s still cool.

I’m rambling now so I’ll cut it off here. There’s still a lot of great things in WWE at the moment and it’s not good to get bogged down by all the horrible things that are going on right now. Enjoy wrestling for what it is and never forget that at the end of the day, you’re watching grown men in limited clothing grappling on a mat. It’s not something that needs to be taken so seriously.

On the continuing subject of the evolution of Cena’s character.

Something I’ve said many times is that John Cena isn’t going to be fully appreciated until after he’s gone. You hear people complaining about Cena today, but I truly believe those same people will be missing him soon after he’s gone for good. The question is why does Cena not get the recognition that he deserves. While there are other reasons out there, I think a lot of it has to do with the talent around him.

Cena is surrounded by one of the best main event pictures in wrestling history. In the time that Cena has been on top, he’s been surrounded by Undertaker, Edge, HHH, Shawn Michaels, the Rock (kind of), Chris Jericho, Alberto Del Rio, Brock Lesnar and of course his major rival Randy Orton. Compare this to some of the other top stars of all time.

Austin had Rock, HHH, Undertaker, Foley, Angle and then it’s a BIG drop. At the end of the day though, Austin and Rock were miles ahead of everyone else, no matter what HHH would like you to believe.

With Hogan, other than Savage and Warrior, he never really had anyone around him near his level. After that you have guys like DiBiase and Piper but it wasn’t a heel on top company back then. I mean, Paul Orndorff was great back then but he just wasn’t that kind of main event star. Andre was a great monster to beat, but hindsight says that he was never going to be anything more than a featured attraction.

The point of this is simple: the main event scene is so talented in the last ten years that it’s hard for Cena to really show how great he is. It’s not saying that he isn’t great because he certainly is, but when you’re on an all-star team, your top superstar doesn’t shine as bright. That will be a lot more visible once Cena is retired, but for now, just think a bit about how many main event guys Cena has around him to contend with and then look back at how few people like Hogan had around him. It explains a good bit.

The trend of leaving off matches you can find on the Network continues, and that’s a good thing.

Matches
Boston, MA – October 10, 1988
Intercontinental Championship
Ultimate Warrior vs. Honky Tonk Man

Madison, WI– June 6, 1989
Ultimate Warrior and King Duggan vs. Ravishing Rick Rude and Andre the Giant

Superstars – May 18, 1991
Ultimate Warrior vs. Smash

Monday Night Raw – April 29, 1996
Ultimate Warrior vs. Isaac Yankem

Meadowlands Arena – May 8, 1989
Intercontinental Championship
Ultimate Warrior vs. Ravishing Rick Rude

Maple Leaf Wrestling – October 29, 1989
Intercontinental Championship
Ultimate Warrior vs. Andre the Giant

Wrestling Challenge – April 28, 1991
Ultimate Warrior vs. Rick The Model Martel

Lexington, KY – May 19, 1992
Ultimate Warrior vs. Papa Shango

SummerSlam Spectacular – August 19, 1992
Ultimate Warrior and Macho Man Randy Savage vs. Nasty Boys

Promos/Interviews

Wrestling Challenge – March 13, 1988
I Live For Anger and Frustration

Wrestling Challenge – August 13, 1989
Mean Gene Interviews Ultimate Warrior About SummerSlam

Superstars – May 23, 1992
The Papa Shango Curse

Monday Nitro – September 21 – 1998
Running to Reappear

Wrestling Challenge – June 25, 1988
I Won’t Let You Down

Superstars – July 16, 1988
Legends Weren’t Built Overnight

All American Wrestling – September 18, 1988
You Can Feel It

Superstars – February 3, 1990
I Speak to You, Hulk Hogan

Superstars – April 14, 1990
The New WWE Champion

Superstars – June 23, 1990
The Brother Love Show Discussing SummerSlam

Superstars – September 19, 1992
The Ultimate Maniacs Are Born

Wrestling Challenge – November 7, 1992
The Ultimate Maniacs Are Out of Control

Monday Nitro – August 24, 1998
One Warrior Nation

Monday Night Raw – April 7, 2014
The Spirit of Ultimate Warrior Will Run Forever

Blu-ray Exclusives
WrestleMania VI – April 1, 1990
Arena Cam
Ultimate Warrior vs. Hulk Hogan

WCCW – August 22, 1986
Dingo Warrior vs. Rick Rude

Ontario, Canada – June 3, 1992
Ultimate Warrior and Undertaker vs. Papa Shango and Berzerker

Shock and awe, this is about NXT.Before I get into this, let me make it clear that I’ve said this before too, dating back as recently as about 11 hours ago.

A lot of fans want the NXT guys to get onto the main shows so they can fix all the boring problems.  Here’s the thing: it doesn’t matter what the guys are capable of.  Do you really think a lot of the guys on the main roster couldn’t be competitive with people like Zayn and Neville as far as work rate etc?  NXT works because of the workers there, but arguably even more because of the atmosphere they’ve developed down there.

If the rosters were flipped, you would see the NXT guys cut off at the knees and the WWE guys getting to show off.  The Divas would go from tearing the house down to three minute matches centered around stupid concepts and lame pranks.  This assumption that it’s just the talent dragging WWE down doesn’t hold, no matter what people want to think.

I don’t get to say this often, but this actually makes me feel good to be a wrestling fan.  This is so overdue and I’m glad it’s finally happening.