CJ's Top Five: Wrestlers Who Should Be in the WWE HoF

The WWE Hall of Fame has become a treasured event and occasion for wrestling fans. It's the night where WWE takes time out to honor the legends of yesteryear. The list of people who should be inducted are potentially endless, but here are my personal top 5.

5.  "Ravishing" Rick Rude

Ht. 6'3" Wt. 252 lbs.
Finishing Move: Rude Awakening

CAREER STATS: 1-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, 3-time WCW International World Heavyweight Champion, 1-time WCW United States Champion, 1-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, 1987 Jesse "The Body" Award Winner, tremendous influence in promo work and heel work.

4. Sting

Ht. 6'2" Wt. 250 lbs.

Finishing Moves: Scorpion Deathlock, Scorpion Death Drop

CAREER STATS: 2-time WCW United States Champion, 6-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, 3-time WCW World Tag Team Champion, 4-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, 1-time TNA Tag Team Champion (Speed's Note: He also probably owns the honor of appearing one of the most intricate WWE video game advertisements.)

3. The Rock

Ht. 6'5" Wt. 260 lbs.
Finishing Moves: Rock Bottom, The People's Elbow

CAREER STATS: 8-time WWF/E Champion, 2-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWF Tag Team Champion, 2000 Royal Rumble Winner, 6-time Slammy Award Winner, 6th triple crown champion, 1st 3rd-generation wrestler to win the world championship

2. Owen Hart

Ht. 5'10" Wt. 229 lbs.
Finishing Move: Sharpshooter

CAREER STATS: 1-time WWF European Champion, 2-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, 4-time WWF World Tag Team Champion, 1994 King of the Ring winner, 2-time Slammy Award Winner. (Speed's note: In addition, Owen's match with Bret Hart at SummerSlam 1994 was a five-star match--one of five Dave Meltzer has awared to WWF/WWE matches.)

1. "Macho Man" Randy Savage
Ht. 6'2" Wt. 237 lbs.
Finishing Move: Flying Elbow Drop

CAREER STATS: 4-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, 2-time WWF Champion, 1-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, 1987 King of the Ring Winner (Speed's note: Randy Savage also appeared in a match most wrestling fans consider classic--if not one of the greatest matches of all-time: Savage vs. Steamboat at WrestleMania III).

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Eyes on the Ring 6:47 PM  No comment

Ring of Honor Review 8/23/2014

Ring Of Honor Wrestling review – Airdate: 8/23/14

By Nathan Neumann @Headliner5 on Twitter

 

There were supposed to be three matches tonight but there only ended up being two but I will get to that in the review. This show was pretty good, the main event is definitely worth a watch if you have the time.  Let’s get on with the review.

Match 1

 

Rocky Romero vs. Tommaso Ciampa

 

Result: Rocky Romero defeats Tommaso Ciampa via DQ after Ciampa wouldn’t break the Sicilian Stretch after Romero made it to the ropes.

 

Thoughts: This match was good. It wasn’t great, but it was passable.  Romero has been in two singles matches within the last few weeks. And while they were both good, he is better suited in tag team action.  At one point in the match, Romero went for a sliced bread attempt off of the ropes but Ciampa reversed it and hit a backbreaker (a better one than Roderick Strong would have done).  

Later in the match, Romero hit Ciampa with a top rope superplex to get a near fall.  Romero comes off of the top rope again and Ciampa nails him with a drop kick for a near fall of his own.  Moments later Romero hits a powerbomb for another near fall, while Ciampa hit the second rope Air Raid crash for another near fall. 

The finish of the match came when Tommaso Ciampa locked Rocky Romero in the Sicilian Stretch.  Romero managed to make it to the ropes and the referee Todd Sinclair laid down the five count.  He got all the way up to five and Ciampa didn’t break the hold.  He allowed some leeway for the time being by giving Ciampa another opportunity to break the hold but upon reaching a second five count Sinclair had no choice but to call for the bell awarding the match to Rocky Romero via disqualification. 

Like I said earlier this match was good but I really hated the finish. I really don’t understand where they are going with it (if anywhere) but it just seemed out of place and didn’t make a lot of sense to me.

 

Match 2

 

Moose vs. RD Evans

 

Result: No contest

 

Thoughts: At the start of the match, Veda Scott came into the ring and told Moose to consider her offer from last week (Moose becoming a client of Veda Scott). RD then said that he wanted to be a tag team with Moose. Veda and RD did their best to make this segment work Moose just stood there like a brick wall the entire time. Moose then proceeded to take the offer and shake RD’s hand, which meant that there was no match, I didn’t have to see Moose wrestle, and The Streak was still in tact.  So relax Streak Freaks. You can rejoice in the fact that Moose didn’t completely destroy RD. Realistically, he probably would have but this is wrestling so there’s that.

 

Main Event – Match 3

 

ACH vs. Jay Lethal ©
Ring Of Honor World Television Championship Match

Result: 30-Minute Time Limit Draw

 

Thoughts: This match was every bit of excellent. ACH is a very gifted athlete who is going to go places because he is that talented. Jay Lethal is great, he’s been great ever since ditching the Hydro gimmick and adopting the Jay Lethal moniker. The one thing I noticed at the start of the match was that Lethal’s hair was down and he looked insane. He then must have put his hair in a ponytail during commercial because his hair was up when they came back from a break. 

A few minutes into the match, ACH rolled to the outside of the ring and Seleziya Sparks threw him head first into the ring post. It looked like referee Todd Sinclair was going to DQ Lethal for the interference of his bodyguard but instead he let the match continue and ejected Sparx from ringside. Back from a commercial break and ACH has the advantage. Truth Martini attempted to trip ACH up when he was near the ropes but ACH noticed it and chased Martini around the ring.  Meanwhile, Lethal grabbed the Book of Truth and managed to hit ACH in the face with it once he reached Lethal's side. 

Later on, ACH hits Lethal with a flying back elbow (which he got extreme height on). He then followed it up by hitting Lethal with a top rope double stomp to the back of the head for a near fall.  A few minutes later Lethal once again gets the upper hand and hits the downed ACH with his patented finishing maneuver “Hail to The King” which ACH managed to kick out of at two. ACH proceeds to down Lethal and go to the top rope and hits him with a 450-degree splash. The referee made the count and it was as close to a three count as you can get without it being an actual three count. I jumped out of my chair because I thought the match was over.  The match would end in a thirty-minute time limit draw when neither man can pin the other.

I normally don’t like finishes like this but this match was excellent, and it just gives Lethal and ACH another opportunity to have another match which will probably be better than this one.  Having said that this match was excellent and I would highly recommend watching it if you can.

Final Thoughts: This show was pretty good. The opener was solid minus the finish. The second match wasn’t really a match, which I was fine with. And the main event exceeded my expectations.  I was worried about how Ring Of Honor would progress after losing arguably one of their biggest stars they have produced in the last five or so years.  However, it seems like they will be doing just fine because they have plenty of talent to fill the gap of the now-absent Kevin Steen.  That will do it for me for this week, until next week ROH fans. 

I am Nathan your resident ROH reviewer saying so long for now and keep your eyes on the ring for some great content ateyesonthering.blogspot.com

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Eyes on the Ring 5:22 PM  No comment

Peagle's "Shut Up, He's On The Mic" List

Peagle's “Shut Up, He's on the Mic” List 

Now in my first post, I alluded to this list. These are some of my favorite mic workers in the WWE (Kinda) and one of my favorite moments for each of them. 

  

Honorable Mention: C.M. Punk

The reason for that “kinda” up there. Yeah he's not here any more, and he likely isn't gonna come back, but you a damn a liar if you say his 2011 run on the mic was anything other than legendary. He made everyone he stepped in the building with look like a fool and as much as it hurts me to admit this, he absolutely washed the next guy on my list. And yes, I had to post this ENTIRE part because it was just that damn good.. 

  

Favorite Moment: "Unlike a lot of people I'm glad you're back. I don't care what your schedule is. I don't care if you work here 16 days a year or 365 days a year. You could be Santa Clause and have his schedule, one day a year. I'd still kick your ass. I don't care how many movies you film every year. I know how hard that schedule probably is, but every time you come back, whenever you decide to grace us with your presence, I'm gonna kick your ass. Because this isn't candy land. I'm like nobody you've ever faced before. You can make fun of the color of my t-shirt and you can talk about pie and you can sing songs and you can rhyme and you can do your tired, lame-ass schtick. I just want you to know that come Royal Rumble, and you have about three weeks to realize this, I'm gonna kick your ass 'cause I'm the best in the world. I'm the best thing going today. I'm the best guy you've ever stepped foot in the ring with. And you need to understand, congratulations, Rock, you just graduated from the kiddie table, but you just bit off more than you can chew. You're playing little league with your little insults and your rhymes and your 'millions and millions' and your 'finallys'. And I'm in the big leagues and I'm swinging for the fence. You need to understand that your little jabs and your insults, it's all kiddie games. You can't leave a mark on the champ's face. Come Royal Rumble, understand, when you step in the ring, your arms are just too short to box with God." 

5. The Rock-

I've made no secret that The Rock is my favorite wrestler, but i'm not putting him at the top because of his super part-time status and Punk made him look silly....What in the blue hell is a “cookiepuss” Dwayne?? At any rate, his feud with Cena showed he still had it, the Boston Tea Party and History lesson segments were hilarious and his intensity on the mic in that feud was great. Not to mention the years of quotables he gave us during his run in the Attitude Era. So yeah, Rocky comes back, you know your role and shut your mouth.. The Great One is on the mic. 

Favorite Moment: “Smell..what Y2J is cooking? You ask The Rock to smell what you're cooking? Well let's just say for argument's sake that The Rock does indeed smell what you're cooking, 'cause The Rock will try anything one time. So here goes..*smells* Ahh yes there it is...indeed The Rock does smell what you're cooking. And quite frankly Chris Jericho, what you're cooking smells like 100 percent, Grade-A, Money Back Guarantee, ONE BIG BUCKET OF CANADIAN MOOSE PISS!!”

4. Bray Wyatt

I'll freely admit, sometimes Wyatt can go a little long with his promos, but his delivery and intensity make up for it. I'm always here for a Wyatt promo. Everything about the way he speaks fits his character and quite honestly, it would be weird if he DIDN'T speak in riddles. His mic work against John Cena was great, I want to see him expand the content for other feuds but when I hear that scream and the screen blacks out, I'm all in. 

Favorite Moment: “John, let me lay it out for you...If you look up at me, you will see a friend, if you look down on me you will see an enemy, and if you look me square in the eye, you will see a god.”  

3. Chris Jericho

Y2J, yeah he's part-time too, but when he's there..he's there for the whole run. he can do silly, (Fandango) he can do serious, (Punk/Wyatt) but whatever he decides to do, he's damn good at it. Jericho's greatest attribute is his constant willingness to do something different, as was the case with Bray Wyatt. He had him call the “Talk Is Jericho” podcast and they both went back and forth for a few minutes before Wyatt abruptly hung up, it was awesome and truly a credit to Y2J's mind for the business. Even more impressive is the fact that I find my self caring when he gets on the mic despite the fact that I know he's coming back to lose. 

Favorite Moment: "Congratulations, Vince...after 647 consecutive run-ins during my matches, you have decided that due to outside interference, in the interest of fairness, it's time to play it safe. Well maybe if you would have had that Socratarian wisdom the night Stephanie was conceived, the world we live in would be a much less slutty place."  

2. Dean Ambrose

Look man...this dude got it. Every time he picks up a mic I expect him to tear it up and he does. His delivery, movements, everything is perfect for him. He's easily the standout of The Shield despite WWE getting behind Reigns. It should be said that I really do like Reigns, but he's not ready...Ambrose is. He's got a bright a future in the WWE provided they don't jack him up.  

Favorite Moment: “There are three things in this world that will survive a nuclear explosion: Twinkies, cockroaches, and Dean Ambrose's”  

1. Paul Heyman

Ladies and Gentlemen...his name is Paul...Heyman and he is the Reigning, Defending KING of this mic work. I've had conversations with friends who said Lesnar was the only one that could handle the heat that came with ending the streak..Lesnar don't have to do anything but look menacing..Paul Heyman is the only one that could handle it, and handle it he did. The work he's done over the last few months has been nothing short of phenomenal from taunting the WWE Universe with the end of the streak to taking John Cena to task with a little verse (A promo i'm still waiting for some internet wizard to put to Nas' Ether Instrumental), Heyman has been amazing on the mic and I will accept NO noise when this man picks up a microphone. 

Favorite Moment: “I pledge allegiance to the greatness of the conqueror who stands before me. And to his dominance for which I stand, one Cenation, under John, now divisible, with no more hustle, loyalty, or respect for all.” 

So that's my list, now this being the internet, I'm sure there's some disagreement with it. You got a list? Drop it in the comments. In the meantime, make sure to follow on twitter @eyesonthering and follow me @peagle05. 

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Eyes on the Ring 2:30 AM  No comment

WWE Summerslam 2014 Review

As you can see above, the story coming out of WWE Summerslam 2014 is Brock Lesnar winning the WWE World Heavyweight Title in convincing fashion from John Cena. The domination was unbelievable to witness and has left a lot of fans wondering, "what's next?". Summerslam 2014 was incredibly entertaining and almost felt like a shift from what we'd been getting(as I believe every big PPV should). It kicked off with a pretty decent match between RVD(in his last WWE match for now, until he decides to return) against the criminally underused Cesaro(who put on a great performance here). RVD picks up the win(why???) and as the countdown to the beginning of Summerslam winded down, a buzz was in the air. What would open the show?

Hulk Hogan Segment

Hulk Hogan kicks off Summerslam 2014, similar to how he kicked off Wrestlemania 30(which he hosted of course), and all he really did in this case was plug the WWE Network and the now infamous price tag of 9.99(don't even get me started). This segment was pretty much unnecessary, but it provided the crowd with the energy of Hulkamania early on to get them revved up.

WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Dolph Ziggler vs The Miz

Dolph Ziggler has had the worst streak of bad luck in WWE, I'd say. He's consistently worked his ass off, put on great matches, and saw most of his opportunities pass him by. The fans have been chanting heavily for Ziggler, and have been consistently let down by the WWE booking department. With this match, a lot of people were expecting Miz to walk away with the victory, as he just debuted his new Hollywood gimmick and won the belt at Battleground. As the match kicked off, the crowd was firmly behind Ziggler as expected, and they put on a nice back and forth contest. The pace picks up at the end of the match, after a great sequence that saw Ziggler barely connect on a Fameasser, then Miz hits a Skull Crushing Finale right after for a 2 count(Ziggler kicks out of somebody's finisher!!). In the moments afterwards, Miz misses a kick to the head, which Ziggler counters with a Zig Zag, and as the ref goes to count, it's almost as if time stood still..... 1........................2....................................3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ZIGGLER WINS! Great match overall and the right person picks up the victory. Good job, WWE.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Divas Championship Match
Paige vs AJ Lee

Ah yes. These two lovely ladies in a feud that seemed like a dream for most of us...fangirls especially(I hate ya'll, but I digress). The match started off pretty intense for a Divas match and while relatively short, it featured some good action. I believe that this match should have been longer and I'd be able to give it a better rating, but it was still solid for the time it had. AJ was my pick to win it, but Paige picks up the victory and her 2nd Divas championship. This just means the feud continues, and gets even more intense, which I have no issue with.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Flag Match
Jack Swagger w/ Zeb Colter vs Rusev w/ Lana(my wife)

I was confused initially by what this match represented. I thought it was a flag on a pole match, but it was really just a one on one match that ended with the winner getting their nation's flag raised. The action here was pretty standard, and while I enjoyed the match, I'd say it could have been much better. Rusev picks up the win due to Swagger passing out from his submission, which only leads me to believe that this feud will continue at least one more PPV. Zeb Colter took a kick from Rusev, so I can't see them just moving on to a different opponent right away.

Rating: 6 out of 10

Lumberjack Match
Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins 

Hands down, this is match of the night. I've never been a fan of Lumberjack matches, and I was skeptical as hell when I first saw the stipulation, but damn it, these two made it work perfectly. Ambrose is my current favorite wrestler in the WWE and he's been on my top 5 list since his arrival into the WWE. As he shines as a solo competitor more and more, I'm really interested to see what's next from him every week. Rollins, who has done great as a heel, played his role perfectly in this match, and I really enjoyed both of these guys fighting against the lumberjacks. The fire inside Ambrose is something that can really build a legend, and with all the crazy antics, moments and way he got the crowd hype, there's no telling how far he can go as a star in the company. I didn't particularly like the ending of the match with Kane once again having to help Seth out from losing and Rollins needing the briefcase to win, but if Ambrose was going to lose, this is the way to do it I'd say. It makes Ambrose look like a badass who Rollins can't beat by himself. I am excited for their rematch, which is inevitable, and I fully expect Ambrose to pick up a victory FINALLY in this feud. Ambrose, the last 3 PPVs as a solo act, has stolen the show, and at Battleground, he DIDN'T even ACTUALLY WRESTLE! I can say nothing bad about this match at all, it's match of the night as I mentioned, as well as a possible MOTY candidate for me too. The ending, like I said wasn't ideal for me, but the way they made it work, only draws me in more to Ambrose and can't wait until he gets his vengeance.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Bray Wyatt vs Chris Jericho 

This feud was something that I had been waiting for since Bray came on the scene. I'd watched them fight in NXT before and I was so excited to see them do battle on the big stage. The feud itself has left a little to be desired, but the promo work between both men has been absolutely amazing. Bray never disappoints on the mic, and neither does Jericho. Coming into this match, my expectations were slightly low because of their Battleground match which didn't really work for me. Jericho picked up a quick win, and the feud continued from there, but this match was a bit more decisive. Bray was great in this, and Jericho seemed like he was struggling in this match a bit. I'm not sure what it is, but the in ring chemistry of these two seemed to be off early on. The pace picked up and the match drastically improved near the final moments, but the match still left something to be desired. Bray picks up a victory here, as he should, but I'd assume that this feud has one more match(maybe with a stipulation to make it more intense) that closes this out and lets Jericho go back to Fozzy touring for however long this time. At least Bray has finally picked up a PPV pinfall victory, his first actual singles pinfall victory since beating Daniel Bryan clean at the Royal Rumble in January(it's August).

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Brie Bella vs Stephanie McMahon 

I had no interest in this match going in. I really didn't even want to watch it, but I figured something would happen, so I decided to give it a look anyways. Steph looked pretty good in her wrestling outfit, and the match started out slightly intense. The pace was a bit plodding at one point, and business didn't start to pick up until Triple H came down to interfere with Nikki Bella following close behind him. At this point, it became apparent where the direction of the match was headed. Brie was gaining the upper hand on Steph, Triple H took a baseball slide kick(and sold it like a sumbitch), and Steph was caught in between Nikki and Brie, as the ref was knocked out. Impending doom for Steph right? Of course not. The expected "swerve"(most predictable one ever) with Nikki turning on her sister to set up a feud on TV(TV meaning RAW and Total Divas... emphasis on Total Divas). Steph picks up the victory, and this match was given way more time than it should have been. AJ vs Paige was cut short for this Steph vs Brie match and despite knowing why(the Authority storyline is taking up massive TV time), I wish the match lengths would have been reversed. This match wasn't AS bad as I thought it would be and it was actually entertaining. Wasn't better than AJ and Paige, but still solid for entertainment value, ESPECIALLY if you didn't see the "swerve" coming.

Rating: 5.5 out of 10

Roman Reigns vs Randy Orton 

I went into this match with pretty low expectations, and for the first.... 5-7 minutes or so, I was definitely correct in those expectations. Roman, who is being groomed to be the next WWE golden boy it seems, has been forced a bit down fans throats, and while he is over with the audience decently, he still has a long way to go. Orton, who is off and on as one of my favorite performers in WWE, is notorious for his restholds and slow methodical pace in matches that some fans might deem as boring. So, going into this, I wasn't necessarily expecting a classic. This match wasn't a classic, but as the pace picked up in the last 7-9 minutes of the match, it got really good. A sick Superman punch into a RKO counter, along with a scoop slam counter from Randy are some highlights in the match. Reigns kicking out of that RKO counter did strike me as a bit much, as Randy losing to a single spear from Roman really didn't make him look as strong as I'd like them to. I wanted to see Randy go for the punt, get speared, kick out, then have Roman go for a Superman punch, Randy blocks it, attempts an RKO again, then gets pushed off into the ropes into a spear for a 1-2-3. I think Randy kicking out of the spear would have made the crowd go wild and just make him look even stronger in defeat so everyone wins in essence. Roman wins in a pretty good match, I just hope the WWE doesn't make too many missteps in pushing this guy.

Rating: 7 out of 10

WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match 
Brock Lesnar vs John Cena

There's so much I could say here....... let me start by saying this......... FUCK YOU CENA FANS! WOOOOOOOOOOO!!!(Flair struts down the keyboard). Brock vs Cena was billed as the biggest fight of the summer, but it wasn't. It wasn't a fight. It was a massacre. A slaughter. Destruction. It was everything that Brock vs Cena at Extreme Rules 2012 was supposed to be. Brock decimated Cena through every minute of this match and we only saw Cena mount a small comeback which resulted in a few clotheslines and one AA that Lesnar kicked out of, and proceeded to sit up like The Undertaker afterwards(Brock was amazing in this match, and the Gifs and memes made off his head after sitting up are hilarious). This was Lesnar at his finest, dominating the WWE's reigning superman like he was nothing. His path of destruction, which included tons of knees, strikes, 16 German Suplexes, and 2 F-5's were absolutely CRAZY. There have been plenty of Summerslam main events in his long and storied history, but NEVER in the history of WWE has there ever been such a one sided main event title match. Brock seemed to just be toying with Cena the entire time, and he quickly put him out of his misery after Cena made a sorry attempt at locking on the STF in the closing moments of the match. For me personally, seeing Cena destroyed was beautiful, and seeing Brock make such easy work of him almost erases the mistakes that WWE made with Brock in the beginning. After decisive victories over CM Punk, Big Show, The Undertaker, and now John Cena for the WWE Title, the world is in Brock Lesnar's hands. He is the conqueror. The beast. The man. Paul Heyman said it. The prophecy became reality. Where do we go next? Only time will tell.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Overall, this PPV was solid, and with no real BAD match itself, it's definitely one of the better Summerslams. How it holds up in repeat viewings is a different story, but for now I'll leave you with my final overall rating and the last image of the night.

Summerslam 2014: 7 out of 10

@TrueGodImmortal 

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Eyes on the Ring 2:38 PM  No comment