WWE TV Megathread

[El-P]

5 minutes ago, C.S. said:

Seriously, I'm sure Cobb is great, but I have my doubts that "JC Mateo" will be. A name like that tells me WWE sees nothing in him and has already given up.

Then again, he could have the greatest name in the world and still be DOA, because he was positioned right off the bat as Solo's bitch, when Solo has been positioned as everyone else's bitch.

Seems like too little too late and the ship has sailed. If he's getting a massive payday (which is doubtful with TKO), God bless him.

Pretty much this. He could have had bangers with with former United Empire fellows in AEW instead. Kinda like the Lucha Brothers, I have been enjoying him since the LU days, so it's not like I did not get enough of Cobb.

[Timbo Slice]

LOL, so they’re just gonna run Vegas again. K

[C.S.]

1 hour ago, Timbo Slice said:

LOL, so they’re just gonna run Vegas again. K

I'll believe that when WWE actually announces it. I'm not too inclined to take badly-written, half-AI generated, word salad slop from NOLA.com all that seriously.

I'm calling London for WrestleMania 42.

[El-P]

Whatever it is, WWE pulling out of the NO deal is quite the fuckery. 

[Stiva]

Just wait and see where AEW does a strong gate next and make the guess based on that 

[The Thread Killer]

So Meltzer is apparently reporting that WWE actually wanted to call Jeff Cobb “JC Matanza” as a hybrid of his real/NJPW name, and his name from Lucha Underground, but they discovered when they bought the main ownership interest in AAA that did not include the intellectual property from Lucha Underground, and on top of that, apparently Cobb didn’t like the name, so they settled on JC Mateo.

Tonight, at least he wore his traditional Jeff Cobb ring gear, but in my opinion, he still didn’t look great. He still looked chubby and out of shape, and he still broke out the useless rear bearhug during the commercial break.

[El-P]

8 hours ago, The Thread Killer said:

Tonight, at least he wore his traditional Jeff Cobb ring gear, but in my opinion, he still didn’t look great. He still looked chubby and out of shape, and he still broke out the useless rear bearhug during the commercial break.

Him working the shitty WWE style is on the shitty promotion style. As far as being chubby, yeah, Jeff Cobb is chubby, what else is new ?

Anywoo. I saw the clip of the finish of his match. Gotta say, it's the *softest* and lamest looking Tour of the Island I have ever seen. And I have watched Jeff Cobb for a good part of the last ten years. So I gotta say it : WWE totally ruined Jeff Cobb in one a matter of one week. Classic job.

The Triple H announcement of them moving around Mania is hilariously crappy corporate PR bullshit. The guy looks and speaks like he's an AI already.

[The Thread Killer]

6 hours ago, El-P said:

Him working the shitty WWE style is on the shitty promotion style. As far as being chubby, yeah, Jeff Cobb is chubby, what else is new ?

Anywoo. I saw the clip of the finish of his match. Gotta say, it's the *softest* and lamest looking Tour of the Island I have ever seen. And I have watched Jeff Cobb for a good part of the last ten years. So I gotta say it : WWE totally ruined Jeff Cobb in one a matter of one week. Classic job.

I don’t disagree with you that being forced to fit into the “WWE style” does a lot of damage to a lot of guys, however, contrast Jeff Cobb with Jacob Fatu. They basically came into the exact same angle under the exact same circumstances, but Fatu looks like a killer and he has gotten over like gangbusters. The fans are literally chanting for him even though he was supposed to be a heel, and it looks like they are about to turn him because they don’t have any choice.

Jacob Fatu hasn’t changed his style or moveset at all from what I can see, if anything he has cranked up the intensity a notch since I last saw him in MLW. I will grant you that it will take some time for Cobb to adjust to WWE I guess, but he also has to bear some of the responsibility for how soft and ineffective he has looked since his debut.

And again…I don’t dislike Cobb at all. I really liked what I saw of him in AEW, and the limited amount I saw of him in New Japan. And I’m not “body shaming” him either, but compare what he looked like when he was in AEW or even New Japan last year, to what he looks like now, and I think you will notice a definite difference. Whereas they are saying that Jacob Fatu dropped almost 60 pounds before he came into WWE because he knew how much was riding on this.

I really wanted to enjoy Jeff Cobb in WWE. Hell, they have even managed to make some sense of the fact that he is not directly related to the rest of the guys in Sikoa’s version of the Bloodline, as referenced by Fatu’s “I don’t know him, I don’t like him, and he ain’t family” promo last night.

All I’m saying is some of the responsibility for this lame debut has to fall on Cobb, just as much as it does WWE.

[The Thread Killer]

On 5/23/2025 at 6:45 AM, Stiva said:

Just wait and see where AEW does a strong gate next and make the guess based on that 

I’m not going to argue that AEW has not improved creatively a great deal over the last six months, but let’s not pretend that they are drawing anything resembling “strong gates.” They can’t even sell the same amount of tickets to a huge stadium pay-per-view like “All In” that WWE usually draws for B level PLE or even an episode of TV. Last I checked, AEW are still hovering around 15,000 tickets sold for Texas Stadium.

[The Thread Killer]

On 5/22/2025 at 9:39 PM, Timbo Slice said:

LOL, so they’re just gonna run Vegas again. K

 

On 5/23/2025 at 6:23 AM, El-P said:

Whatever it is, WWE pulling out of the NO deal is quite the fuckery. 

I agree with @El-P in that there is probably something janky going on with this deal behind the scenes that has not come out yet. And considering it is TKO involved, I’m going to bet that it involves money.

Rumour does keep coming up that they are going back to Vegas for no other reason than the amount of money they made this past year with Wrestlemania. I keep in mind that UFC is basically based in Vegas, and they run a large amount of their shows there. I assume there are financial incentives for them to do so, and TKO has certainly showed themselves so far to be concerned with the bottom line and how much money they can make at the expense of all other considerations. 

[The Thread Killer]

On 5/22/2025 at 3:34 PM, JRH said:

Possibly Mexico?

I just read an article where they talked about the fact that WWE has been trying to run a major event in Mexico for years, but it is not financially feasible because of the economy, the exchange rate, and the fact that the Mexican government will not pay them to come there like so many States have bid on the right to host major events.  In fact, the article claimed that WWE actually lost money the last time they ran a show in Mexico, so they might be willing to take the bullet for TV or something like that, but I doubt they would be willing to take a loss on Wrestlemania  considering what a huge chunk that whole week is of their fiscal year.

On 5/22/2025 at 4:13 PM, El-P said:

Of course Mania is going to happen in Saudi eventually.

I know I said it probably wouldn’t happen (and that opinion was never because of “morals” because I don’t believe that TKO has any limits on what they would do to make a buck.) I just never figured that WWE would undertake the hassle of moving the entire apparatus of the whole week of Wrestlemania all the way to the Middle East. That will be a colossal undertaking which I didn’t think would be logistically feasible or worth their time.

However last week, Grand Prince Whatshisname who works for the Saudi government appeared on Ariel Halwani’s podcast, and he admitted that the Saudis have been bidding on Wrestlemania for quite a while and that he thinks they will get it by 2026 or 2027 at the latest. So there you go. Apparently I was wrong.

I guess I keep forgetting that for the Saudis, money is literally no object. They are willing to pay pretty much whatever insane amount of money is required to get what they want.

The funny thing is, I remember way back when WWE first announced their deal with the Saudi government, somebody asked Dana White, who was actually a partner in Zuffa, the company that owned UFC at the time, if UFC would be going to Saudi Arabia as well, and White said they NEVER would. They ran shows in the UAE, where MMA is hugely popular, but never in Saudi Arabia. But then the Fertitta Brothers sold to Endeavour, and Dana White cashed out his shares and became the president, and UFC became part of TKO, and now…

There is no limit to what the Saudi government will pay, and there appears to be no limit to what TKO will do for money, so I guess anything really is possible.

[C.S.]

8 hours ago, El-P said:

yeah, Jeff Cobb is chubby, what else is new ?

I'm the last person who has an issue with anyone in wrestling being chubby - I love Keith Lee, Kamala, WALTER (and his slimmer alter ego GUNTHER), Mick Foley (obviously), etc. - but I ate a lot of shit on PWO for saying Kassius Ohno (Chris Hero) looked like a slob in basketball shorts, even though he absolutely did.

With that said, nothing about JC Mateo's presentation stands out. He looks like a jobber on WCW Worldwide next to Jacob Fatu. And I'm not even talking about his weight. It's everything. He just doesn't come across as impressive in comparison to Fatu or even Solo.

[The Thread Killer]

That’s the thing…I couldn’t really care less if Cobb is “fat” or has a big gut. Firstly that would make me a giant hypocrite because I’m a fat guy, but also much like Good Bubba @C.S., I appreciate the long, rich, storied history and tradition of fat guys in Pro Wrestling. Dusty was a fat dude and he was in some glorious bloodbaths. Some of my favourite matches involve Abdullah The Butcher who might be King of the Fat Guys.

And I actually like guys like Vader, Rhino, etc., guys who weren’t even really overweight so much as they were stocky and powerful and knew how to use their body size to their advantage. Guys with a “Hugh Morris” type physique are actually ideal for Pro Wrestling. I prefer those kind of guys over the muscleheads who can’t work worth a damn.

And that was the kind of guy I used to think Jeff Cobb was. According to Cobb, he wrestled his last two months in New Japan without a contract. His last date in New Japan was April 19, his WWE contract went into effect on April 21, and he made his WWE debut on May 10. That’s only 3 weeks, but I’m just saying that by the looks of him, he didn’t spend a lot of time on a treadmill during those three weeks. Maybe this is nothing more than a case of ring rust, and once he gets to working regularly again, he will look the way he used to in New Japan.

[sek69]

Honestly I think his problem is he is a charisma void, and standing next to Jacob Fatu just hammers that home even clearer.

[The Thread Killer]

Welp, I guess Bronson Reed isn’t part of Solo’s new Bloodline anymore.

[C.S.]

6 minutes ago, The Thread Killer said:

Welp, I guess Bronson Reed isn’t part of Solo’s new Bloodline anymore.

Thank God!

Bloodline 3.0 is the drizzling shits.

And having Bronson Reed there would only make JC Mateo look even more mid than he already does.

Speaking of big guys, Big Bronson is a fluffy gentleman, but he carries it well and comes across as a total badass.

[The Thread Killer]

5 minutes ago, C.S. said:

Speaking of big guys, Big Bronson is a fluffy gentleman, but he carries it well and comes across as a total badass.

That sumbitch can MOVE for a big guy. He was hauling ass outside the ring, and he looked great coming off the top rope as well.

[sek69]

Bron and Bron as a beef team killing fools is money.

[The Thread Killer]

13 hours ago, sek69 said:

Bron and Bron as a beef team killing fools is money.

Agreed. This new stable with Heyman would be awesome were it not for the fact that the centrepiece is Seth Rollins.

[JRH]

I've posted this elsewhere but this just came to my mind, for Cena's final match, no matter who he faces, the special referee should be Kurt Angle. He's still on good terms with the company and it would be a good way to go "full circle".

 

[sek69]

It should be stated R-Truth cut a great promo on Smackdown for the SNME match. It was nice to see former NWA world champ Ron Killings for a minute to remind people he's capable of being more than just the funny guy.

[The Thread Killer]

1 hour ago, sek69 said:

It should be stated R-Truth cut a great promo on Smackdown for the SNME match. It was nice to see former NWA world champ Ron Killings for a minute to remind people he's capable of being more than just the funny guy.

That was especially impressive because the promo started out with people obviously not taking him very seriously and even giving him the “What?” Treatment, but he ended up, sucking them in and engaging the crowd in the end.

[NintendoLogic]

For all the grief I've given Seth over the years for dressing like a clown, I have to give him credit for at least trying to come across as larger than life. When I watched Raw a couple of weeks ago, I was struck by how almost everyone else came out in t-shirts and sneakers. Someone like CM Punk obviously shouldn't be wearing a suit and tie, but most of the roster would probably benefit from dressing in a way that makes them seem like a big deal.

[The Thread Killer]

Dang, that Triple Threat Money in the Bank Qualifier match that started off RAW was great. 

[sek69]

So on Raw they billed Vikingo vs Chad Gable on Worlds Collide as being for the AAA Mega Championship. One problem, Alberto's still the champ but he has  match with Vikingo on AAA's next taping on 5/31. Not the best start for WWEAAA spoiling upcoming results.