WWE Survivor Series Results, Miz Cashes In!, Raw Reaction

It has been quite a week in the world of WWE. The company's top star has been "fired," there is a new WWE Champion after Raw (when's the last time that happened?), and the King of the Ring returns this Monday.

Let's start with this past Sunday's Survivor Series Pay Per View.

Several WWE Performers Released, WWE Survivor Series Live Tonight on PPV

This weekend's breaking news is headlined by the release of several WWE Smackdown Superstars. As of this past Friday, Shad Gaspard, Luke Gallows, Vance Archer, Caylen Croft, Jillian Hall, and Tiffany have all been shown the door.

Shad was best known as one half of the Cryme Tyme tag team with JTG until they were broken up earlier this year. Shad turned on his former partner and was given an obviously unsuccessful heel singles push. He received a new look, new music, and a new catchphrase of "My Tyme!" This was short lived, and he was then sent back to developmental, where he spent the last several months until Friday.

WWE Raw Goes "Old School"

This past Monday, WWE presented a very special one night only edition of Raw. In what the WWE labeled as "going old school," the arena and feeling of the show resembled the way things were way back when, the beginnings of Raw in 1993, in simpler times. Like the previous three hour Raw specials, many fans went into this with low expectations, not sure of what we were going to get. Would it just be some old legends trying to work matches? Would the divas be dressing up for some stupid gimmick match? Is WWE creative just completely out of ideas? But unlike previous three hour episodes, most recently the Viewer's Choice episode this past summer (in which Nexus debuted), this edition did not disappoint.

Five Years Gone: Remembering Eddie Guerrero

Today’s blog post comes with a heavy heart and a happy memory. It was on this day, five years ago, that wrestling fans all over the world learned the tragic fate of one of the best and most entertaining performers to lace them up from the United States through Mexico and Japan. That was the day we lost Eddie Guerrero.

WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2011 Now Available!

     On October 26^th, THQ released their latest installment into the long running WWE video game franchise. WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2011 is the twelfth edition of the legendary series, with the first game, simply titled WWF Smackdown!, being released way back in 2000. I am a huge fan of the series, having collected and played them all, and this latest edition is no different. This year’s theme builds upon last year’s theme of increased customization, adding new features such as improved physics and creation tools in addition to the returning story designer and online Community Creations. Road to WrestleMania returns as well, with five new storylines following Cena, Chris Jericho, Christian, Rey Mysterio, and a storyline where you attempt to challenge The Undertaker at WrestleMania. I haven’t played through them all yet, but the stories so far are fun and entertaining, especially Christian’s, where the player is treated to a blast from the past via an Edge & Christian reunion! The game has been implemented with a completely new physics engine for weapons, which makes table and ladder matches more fun than ever before. You can now put an opponent through a table or ladder using any move, and if successful you’ll send your opponent into a table exploding into splinters. The way weapons work has been completely changed. 

WWE RAW Live in Person!

     This past Monday, I was lucky enough to score two great tickets to WWE's Monday Night Raw live at Nassau Colisseum here on Long Island. I try and always make the shows near me whenever possible. This time money was tight, and I was originally unable to go, until a stroke of luck brought me two amazing seats from the radio station I intern at. These were the best WWE seats of my life, in the apparent first row in the section right above the floor. I was right between the ring and the entry ramp, so I could see pretty much everything. Unfortunately, they happened to switch up the camera side, so I was not on camera, though I was right next to the amazing and large HD cameras that the WWE currently uses for their broadcasts.
    The show was completely live from start to finish. WWE tapes the Raw portion of Superstars before Raw goes live, so I was able to experience that as well. It's amazing how scheduled and organized the production crew is to keep the show moving on time, sometimes even changing the ring apron seconds before the show goes live on USA.

Bragging Rights Results, New Tag Team Champions

Last night the WWE presented its annual Bragging Rights PPV live from the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Here are the results:

U.S. Champion Daniel Bryan defeated Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler
This opening contest delivered in a big way. These two are both great wrestlers and can put on a good show when given the opportunity. Bryan won via submission when Ziggler tapped out to the LeBell Lock in this non-title contest, putting Raw in the lead over Smackdown.

John Cena and David Otunga beat WWE Tag Team Champions Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes to become the new champions
This improptu match was made via Barrett and the mystery Raw General Manager. Cena was unwillingly paired with Otunga, but fought like only Cena could and made Cody tap out to the STF to give Nexus their first taste of championship gold.

Ted DiBiase defeated Goldust
As I said yesterday, win or lose, I was just happy that Goldust got a chance to deliver on PPV. Despite a loss, he still has DiBiase's Million Dollar belt in his possession, continuing this bizarre storyline for weeks to come on Raw.

WWE Bragging Rights Live Tonight on PPV, Brock Lesnar Loses

Tonight the WWE presents yet another PPV, the second and now annual Bragging Rights. The event gets its name from the theme of Smackdown vs Raw matches, headlined by a big seven on seven tag match to decide which brand brings home the trophy, or "bragging rights." Here's the card for the third WWE PPV in just a span of five weeks:

WWE Championship: Randy Orton (c) vs. Wade Barrett w/John Cena
The Nexus storyline continues to dominate Raw, but now with a new twist: John Cena must do everything Barrett says or be "fired," including helping him win the WWE Championship from Randy Orton.

World Heavyweight Championship: Buried Alive Match: Kane (c) vs. Undertaker
For the third straight PPV, the Brothers of Destruction will do battle over Kane's gold. Now that Paul Bearer is i the mix, the storyline has become more of a revenge plot for The Undertaker. The last time we saw a buried alive match in WWE history was quite some time ago, in 2003 if I'm not mistaken. Undertaker will get one last shot at the belt as well as his sweet revenge in this encounter in the making since 1997.

TNA Bound For Glory Results, New TNA Champion, CM Punk, Matt Hardy, Bragging Rights

Hello again from Ringside. Big Johnny Badd back again with some news and notes from TNA and WWE. First up, TNA's biggest PPV of the year was this past Sunday. Results are in:

The Motor City Machine Guns defeated Generation Me to retain the TNA World Tag Team titles

Tara won the TNA Knockouts title defeating Angelina Love, Velvet Sky and Madison
Rayne in a four corners match with Mickie James as the special guest referee

Ink Inc. defeated Eric Young and Orlando Jordan

Jay Lethal defeated Doug Williams to retain the TNA X Division title

Rob Van Dam defeated Abyss in a Monster's Ball match

Sting, Kevin Nash and D'Angelo Dinero defeated Samoa Joe and Jeff Jarrett in a 3-on-2 handicap match

Tommy Dreamer, Raven, Rhino, Sabu and Stevie Richards defeated AJ Styles, Kazarian, Matt Morgan, Robert Roode and James Storm in a Lethal Lockdown match

Jeff Hardy defeated Kurt Angle and Mr. Anderson in a three-way match to win the vacant TNA World Heavyweight title

The main shocker coming out of this PPV is of course the heel turn of Jeff Hardy and the revelation of Abyss' "THEY." To me, this just seems bizarre. The new heel faction now consists of Abyss, Hardy, Hogan, Bischoff, And Jeff Jarrett.

Edge To Smackdown, TNA Before The Glory, Mickie James Debuts, Other News

Big Johnny Badd back Ringside for another update. In the news this week: Edge's trade and the TNA Special.

As noted this past Monday on Raw, Edge has been traded back to the blue brand. In the storyline, the anonymous GM finally became so fed up that he traded Edge away, making Edge a face in the process. He debuted this past Friday, defeating Jack Swagger in a rematch from Hell In a Cell to continue their feud. It has not been announced who Edge was traded for, though numerous signs point to CM Punk, who replaced Edge on this weekend's Raw house show tours. Hmmmmm.....

This past Thursday, TNA's much hyped "Before the Glory" special took place live from Universal Studios. The event was to hype this Sunday's PPV, Bound For Glory, at which the vacant TNA title will finally be decided in a Three Way Match between Kurt Angle, Jeff Hardy, and Mr. Anderson. There were many bits of news to come out of this event. First, former WWE Diva Mickie James finally made her expected TNA debut. She interrupted the post match of the Beautiful People to announce that she was here, and would be the special referee at the PPV this Sunday in the Knockouts Title match. Mickie, tweaking her name to Mickey for TNA, was released from WWE this past April, with the company citing her difficulty backstage and unreliability as the reason for release. Mickie was shopping around a country music career, and the WWE didn't approve. But through her new TNA deal, she will be able to sing and wrestle on the much lighter TNA travel schedule. It's official: Mickie (Mickey)'s now a Knockout.

Hell In A Cell Results, Paul Bearer Turns On Taker

Just two weeks after the first one, World Wrestling Entertainment returns with another PPV extravaganza. This one? The second and now annual Hell In A Cell, in which the two World Title matches of the night are decided within the confines of the structure bearing the same name. This year, the event broadcast live from Dallas, Texas. Several championships were on the line, however none changed hands. But the main shocker of the night, or shockes, as Cena lost and per stipulation must now "join" Nexus, came when the returning "Father of Destruction," Paul Bearer, turned on the very man he accompanied to ringside, costing him the World Title.

I had the pleasure of attending the first Hell In A Cell last year in Newark, NJ. I watched this one last night on PPV. Let's see if this one was worth it for the fans in Dallas.

Is Chris Jericho done with WWE? *Plus His New DVD

Welcome back Ringside! Big Johnny Badd back again with another post on the happenings in the wrestling world. Today's topic? Chris Jericho's future: Is he staying, going, or just taking some time off? Let's figure it out.

Chris Jericho has always been a top star since he came to the WWE. And he won't hesitate to let you know. He'll remind you of the fact that he beat The Rock and Austin in one night to become the first Undisputed Champion, or of his critically acclaimed "Highlight Reel" interview segment, or that he is a "huge rock star!" He'll let you know that he is "the best in the world at what he does." From his awesome debut in 1999 with The Rock and the millennium clock to his re-debut after a two year hiatus in 2007, fans have always been happy to see him return to where he belongs. However, Jericho is a busy guy. Outside of being a top wrestler for almost two decades, he has many other endeavors, including his popular band Fozzy, as well as his numerous hosting projects. This past summer he hosted ABC's "Downfall," and he often appears on VH1 specials. Chris Jericho is top notch at everything he does.

So here's the question we're all wondering: with everything else happening for him, how long will Jericho keep wrestling with WWE? This past Monday (taped last Monday), we may have gotten our answer. At least for now. When Randy Orton punted Jericho in the skull with his signature kick, we may have seen Chris make his final appearance for quite some time. That kick of doom has been used to send many wrestlers on injury leave, including Batista, Ted DiBiase Jr, Triple H, and John Cena. But they've all come back. And I believe Jericho will do the same.

News and Notes - Mickie James, X Division Title, Hart, Gonzales, Paul Bearer Lives!

Back again with trending topics!

Of course, the current talk of the town in the wrestling world at the moment is the surprise return of Paul Bearer to Smackdown this past Friday. The last time we saw him was at the Great American Bash 2004, in which the Undertaker killed him off by burying him in the concrete crypt, at the time ending his legendary run in pro wrestling. I am personally thrilled to see this man back and involved once again with the Undertaker and Kane feud over a decade after he made it famous. Welcome back Paul Bearer!

Mickie James has reportedly signed with TNA. This is no surprise to attentive fans of the former Women's Champion, as she has been rumored to have been joining the company ever since her release this past April. We'll see what the future has in store for this great lady wrestler.

Night Of Champions Results and Notes

Welcome back to Ringside Reflections. In our first post since Night of Champions, much has happened in the WWE.
Four new champions were crowned this past Sunday. Let's get to those results.

Dolph Ziggler defeated Kofi Kingston to retain the Intercontinental title.

As predicted, Dolph was able to keep the title with the help of Vickie Guerrero.

Big Show defeated CM Punk

I was surprised to see Big Show go over CM Punk, but it seems that these days Punk is just a mid card bad guy. The Straight Edge Society seems to be falling apart, but I believe this can only mean good things for CM Punk.

Daniel Bryan defeats the Miz for the United States Championship

I was very surprised and very excited at the same time to see Daniel Bryan win the US Title s soon after his surprise return. I expected the Miz to get the better of him for a few months before Bryan inevitably won the gold. Nevertheless, he beat the Miz in a solid match to continue this intense feud into the coming months.

Michelle McCool beat Melina to unify the Women's and Divas Titles

There is now only one true female champion in WWE. Michelle McCool now owns both titles after beating Melina in a Lumberjill match with the help of her partner Layla.

Predictions: WWE Night of Champions

Welcome to the second installment of Ringside Reflections. Today's post will introduce a new feature I plan to continue as this blog goes on. With WWE's only PPV this month, Night of Champions, taking place tonight, I thought I'd start there. We'll analyze the lineup, predict a winner, and see how it holds up after the PPV. So without further ado, here we go:

This show's theme is championship matches. All current WWE championships will therefore be defended on tonight's card. All matches are advertised as of this writing.

I suppose the right place to start is with the undercard:

WWE Intercontinental Championship: Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Kofi Kingston
No, that's not a mistake. This match is indeed scheduled to happen yet again. After their numerous encounters on Smackdown as well as their match at last month's PPV that was interrupted by Nexus, this pairing is beginning to wear thin. While these two have definitely been able to put on several good matches in the past, this storyline has evolved past the wrestling and is now more focused on Ziggler's relationship with Vickie Guerrero than anything else. The story here is simple: Dolph took Kofi's belt with Vickie's help, continued to screw over Kofi in each title defense after that, and now Kofi is really at the boiling point. Because of the way those last encounters went down, there is a stipulation in place that if Dolph is counted out or disqualified, Kofi will win back his title. Classic stipulation that has stirred up much championship controversy in he past. Personally, I don't think that Ziggler has had a strong enough reign to drop the title yet.
Prediction: Dolph Ziggler wins by the skin of his teeth. Vickie helps but narrowly gets away with it, allowing Ziggler to get the pin or submission.

WWE United States Championship: The Miz (c) vs. Daniel Bryan
Wow. What a year it's been for Bryan Danielson. In just seven months, he has gone from a favorite on NXT, to a feud with Miz and Michael Cole, to taking it too far during the Nexus angle leading to his release, finding success once again on the indies where he truly shines, only to shockingly return triumphantly as the final member of Team WWE at Summerslam. And now the match we all saw coming will finally happen tonight, and it's for a championship. Miz has grown so much over the last two years. Not only are his mic skills awesome, but he has grown tremendously in the ring as well. This has the potential to steal the show. While so much more can be said about this match, there is much more to cover.
Prediction: The Miz manages to steal an upset after one hell of a fight from Bryan. This feud must continue, and Daniel Bryan's continued hunt for revenge is the perfect driving factor behind this program.

Ringside: The Best Seats in the House!

Welcome to the very first post of Ringside Reflections, a new blog covering all topics sports-entertainment! My name is Big Johnny Badd, and throughout these posts, I'll be discussing the latest in professional wrestling, covering everything from the big boys, including WWE, TNA, and ROH, to the smaller indy promotions, specifically those in the New York area. We'll be discussing major headlines to come out of the wrestling world, as well as commenting on current storylines and angles playing out on television. Comments are encouraged, though please keep the discussion on topic.

First, here's a little about me. I have been following the art of professional wrestling for over a decade. I grew up with the famous "Attitude" era of the then WWF and have enjoyed a healthy obsession with all forms of pro wrestling ever since. I watch WWE and TNA just about every week, as well as attend various independent shows throughout the Long Island area. I attend WWE shows when they come to the area as well, including those at Madison Square Garden as well as the Nassau Colisseum. I have been keeping up on the backstage side of the business for many years now, and continue to love suspending my disbelief every week when I watch wrestling programming. In addition to being an active fan, I also have several friends in the business. I love supporting them at their shows as well as helping critique the match afterward. I consider myself a buff on recent WWE history, and can even name every winner of the Royal Rumble in order (without Wikipedia!).

With that said, the purpose of this blog is to find a home for my love of all things professional wrestling. We'll analyze, discuss, and attempt to provide some educated insight on all happenings in the wrestling world. Whether you're a proud member of the WWE Universe, TNA Galaxy, or just like to catch the occasional Goldust match, you'll find something that interests you as this blog grows. So, without the annoyance of ordering overpriced tickets, finding parking in an overcrowded lot, and being forced to pay prices at the concession stand that even "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase would find outrageous, simply log on, sit back, and enjoy a ringside seat with none of the hassle. This is Ringside Reflections, where you've got the best seat in the house!