MikeCampbell

I'd say that it's probably a 99% chance that Henry gets the title. WWE seems to want to keep the ECW Title strictly with ECW. Lashley never defended it on RAW at all during his program with Umaga. And I don't think it was ever defended on SD (although don't quote me on that). And when Lashley got drafted to RAW last year, they vacated the title instead of having Lashley drop it.

Supposedly, the reason for HHH's move is because Steph is having another baby and he likes the reduced schedule. I'm really hoping it's not a permanent thing though.

Until HHH got picked, I was thinking that SD was going to be interesting over the next few months with potential programs between Edge/Hardy and Edge/Kennedy. I'll also admit that I got a pretty good laugh out of Matt Hardy going to ECW, since it'd been reported that an Edge/Matt program was going to start on Friday, unless one of them got drafted. What I'm wondering is if WWE will go all out on switching up the titles with the brands, like they initially did in '05 with the WWE and World Titles. I'm figuring Big Show will win at the PPV to keep the ECW Title where it is. But I could see WWE again switching up the WWE and World Titles.

There's even more fun in today's newswire. Gabe made a comment implying that NOAH had allowed ROH to promote the first ever singles match between Marufuji and Shiozaki. But it's pretty common knowledge that they've wrestled before in singles matches. It's already been mentioned on the board and the silence is deafening, aside from comments like "It's sad that you even know that!"

When I heard he had to take sensitivity training classes, all I could think about was the episode of Rescue Me, where the whole fire house had to take classes and wound up throwing around every racist term in in the book.

Michael Hayes is back to work, but with quite a few provisions. Namely, he had to taken sensitivity training, had to have a sit down with Mark Henry and other African American wrestlers, and can no longer drink at WWE related event.

Good points all around, Loss. Plus ROH being on PPV would also be a factor. I honestly think that it's possible, given that WWE is based out of the Northeast, but it would only happen in ROH's financial woes continue. There hasn't been much said about them lately, any word yet if their cost cutting has been helping them out?

Having seen the Joe/Punk shoot and hearing about Gabe's near orgasam over Joe/Punk II getting five stars. I can only imagine what Gabe would do if WWE offered to either subsidize ROH or make them into a developmental territory. And then subsequently, after is goes south, how the newswires would be all 'ROH is its own company, we don't need them!'

I've been thinking about re-upping my sub, and now I'm sold. I'll do it when I get back from my honeymoon. I'm tempted to do it right now, but I'll be in myrtle beach for six days with no internet.

A Hogan and Nick in jail show would actually be morbidly entertaining, like watching Chyna on Howard Stern. Hogan knows best meets Oz!

Raven is sort of a tricky example though. Because he created Raven to completely overhaul himself in the business to update with the times. If he came out as Raven, same character and same attitude, and wrestled like Scotty the Body or Scotty Flamingo, he'd have been booed out of the building. How far did he got with the stuntman style? I'm recalling the famous chairshot from Dreamer, and when one of the pitbulls bounched his head off the table with the superbomb. Raven himself has stated that his career lasted as long as it did because he got lazy in the ring. On the flip side of the coin, what about Dean Malenko? I'm at a loss for any situation where he took a big risk, unless one wants to count a pescado.

It depends on your view of 'mainstream star' but the Dudley Boyz/Team 3D are still one of the most recognizable teams in the business. Also, there was Rob Van Dam, before he got busted.

For all of your snide remarks and complaining, you have yet to say anything to even attempt to back up your statement. I've already discussed how unlikely it is that his work in ECW had anything to do with Benoit going to WCW. JDW already pointed out that they left for greener pastures, not because they couldn't keep up. Can you name one ECW wrestler that Paul 'replaced' they couldn't keep up the pace? You mentioned before that a lot of ECW's wrestlers are out of the business now because of the style of wrestling. Why is it that Tommy Dreamer, The Sandman, Spike Dudley, and Raven, four guys who were pretty big names in ECW and who all worked the stuntman style, are all still around and still wrestling today? It seems more reasonable, to me, to assume that they're out of the business now because they weren't good enough to get picked up by WWE. And they weren't good enough, or a big enough name to make a decent living on the indy circuit. Why is Roadkill, who never worked the stuntman style, nowhere to be found, while New Jack, who dove out of balcony's, is still working indy shows?

Name one person who left ECW because of this. The vast majority left over money. Either because Paul wasn't paying them or because they'd gotten an offer from WCW or WWF. It's hard to say he cast them aside for not being able to 'go' when Tommy Dreamer was still in a prominent role in the year 2000.

It depends on why I'm watching. If I'm watching specifically to review, I like to be alone. But if I'm just watching for kicks, then it's much more fun to have the guys or my sisters in law around.

And look where Kurt is now . . . .

The closest I can think of in WCW, other than the cage dives, was when he was feuding with Sullivan. I remember once when Sullivan broke a wooden chair over his head, and another angle when he hit him in the back of the neck with some sort of club or stick maybe and broke it (the weapon, not Benoit's neck).

Not that I can recall. Does anyone know when he left ECW? I think the Three Way Dance show in April '95 is the last ECW home video release he was on.

Yeah, he most likely would have. Benoit, Malenko, and Guerrero were brought into WCW through their deal with New Japan. Bischoff had wanted to start the Cruiserweight Division since at least '94 (there were mentions of it in PWI), and he needed smaller wrestlers who could work a faster more exciting style than guys like Flair, Sting, and Luger. They were the perfect fit. They also brought in Sabu around the same time they brought Benoit in, and he was long gone from ECW. Scott Norton was also hired by WCW due to their deal with New Japan, and he never worked ECW.

If by paving the way, you're saying that Benoit first got noticed in the U.S. working for ECW, then you're right. But Benoit had been working that style for years. Benoit, Pillman, and Lyger were taking bumps on exposed concrete during a nationally televised Clash of Champions Special in 1992. Have you read Pure Dynamite? At one point Billington talks about diving off the top of a cage and not even thinking about it until afterwards and then realizing how big a risk he'd taken. If that's the mentality that Benoit's idol in the business had, how can you credit/blame Heyman with him doing that? It's not just Benoit or DK either. Look at Foley in Have A Nice Day, during the IWA KOTDM touny. He was thinking that his wounds, and everyone else's would go away, but the video of the tournament wouldn't

In Beniot's case, I don't think that working that style has anything to do with Heyman. Benoit's idol was Dynamite Kid, who basically made (and ended) his career by taking every risk put in front of him.

I usually just watch the match and then write about it. Sometimes if I don't think I've got enough to say, I'll watch it a second time to see if I notice anything else.

I'm actually a bit relieved that you can't find it. My reviewing style and my analysis has changed a lot since I wrote that in, I think, May of 2002.