• Wrestling News & Wrestling Rumors – WWE & TNA

Thanks to Jimmy Parker for sending in his thoughts on The Bash PPV. If you’d like to leave your thoughts, send in and email or leave them in a comment below:

Is it just me or is the WWE in a downward spiral? I remember Pay Per Views being exciting and unpredictable. Now it seems that everyone knows who is going to win based on the circumstances involving the current feud. It seems as if WWE is lacking in the talent department.

Do you remember when the title belt would actually change hands on RAW? Mick Foley won his first World Heavyweight Championship on RAW. Not a Pay Per View. Now the only belts that are decided on RAW or SMACKDOWN is the U.S. belt or the Intercontinental belt. It’s sad really. There is a generation of fans who never see the belt change hands because the PPV falls on a school night! I know the WWE is a business and is trying to make a profit, but why can’t we bring some of the PPV action to the Prime time airings? Ok now that I have that off my chest let me re-cap the BASH for you!

The first match of the night: Tommy Dreamer defying all odds to retain his ECW title. This was a surprisingly decent match. This match actually has two of WWE’s future brightest stars in Christian and Jack Swagger. Not much to say about this match except that it is a feel good story and I am an old school fan so I give credit to Tommy Dreamer.

The second match of the night pits Intercontinental Champ Chris Jericho against the high-flying Rey Mysterio. This was without a doubt my favorite match of the night. This match had athleticism, it was up-tempo, and it was very unpredictable. I am proud of these two competitors for the show that they put on despite it being for the IC title. How wrong is it that the most athletic match of the night comes from middle-aged superstars for the IC belt? I applaud Jericho and Mysterio for putting on a thoroughly entertaining match and bringing a little more credibility back to the Intercontinental Championship! The only downfall to this match was the fact that Mysterio would have to take off his mask for good. We knew that wasn’t going to happen and this angle has been done before. We saw it happen with Kane and we have all seen Rey’s face. It is not the mask that makes people love Rey, it is his risk-taking and high-flying style and charisma.

Onto the next match: Dolph Ziggler vs The Great Khali. This match was the only one that made me put my computer down and do something else until it was over. Ziggler has talent. Ziggler has a decent heel gimmick. My question is where does the Great Khali fit into this picture? Where is WWE really going to take this? To top this match off, they brought in Kane, who by the way lost all credibility when he removed his mask. Now it seems as if Kane and The Great Khali are entering into a painfully boring feud. I am just speaking for myself but I don’t want to see two massive guys go at it again. Makes no sense if they are fighting for World Heavyweight Championship.

Ahhh, another match that has some spunk:the Unified Tag Team Match. The match was pretty well put on. The highest point of the match is when Teddy Long added Edge and Jericho into the mix as another Tag Team. As always, Edge brought with him a great performance as did Jericho. I must say, Carlito is very athletic. He deserves more credit for what he does in the ring. I really like Legacy though. The concept of two up and coming second generation superstars is pretty intriguing. Especially since they are so gifted in the ring; not on the microphone but in the ring. I am interested to see what Ted DiBiase Jr is going to do next. For those of you who didn’t see, he is getting a little fed up with playing 2nd chair to Orton. Could there be a mutiny? Maybe a face turn for DiBiase? I am really excited to see where WWE is going to take Edge and Jericho.

By the way, I am going to say what everyone is already thinking: when Edge came out, I just knew that Christian was going to be his partner! I am eager to see if WWE brings Christian into the mix somehow.

The Women’s Championship match was surprisingly good. Michelle McCool and Melina are gifted in the ring. I used to say there are only two good female wrestlers and they are Mickie James and Michell McCool. I now add Melina to this group. Michelle McCool did deliver on her promise and she did in fact take the Women’s Title from Melina.

The match between CM Punk and Jeff Hardy was the one I was looking forward to the most. I was slightly disappointed in the ending but was satisfied with the match. I really hope they continue with Punk and Hardy as they are two really top notch wrestlers and still have a while to go in their respective careers. This match went back and forth the entire way. Jeff Hardy scored 2 Twist of Fates and 1 Swanton Bomb on Punk but it would not be enough. CM Punk would retain his title by disqualification after sustaining an “eye injury”. Punk kicked the referee and his plea was that he couldn’t see because of his injured eye. The ref rang the bell and yet again Hardy’s chance at a legitimate title run has eluded him by mere inches.

The match between The Miz and John Cena was a joke! This whole “feud has been a joke from the start! I won’t comment on this match except to say that Cena easily defeated the Miz and this will hopefully be the end of that.

The 3 Stages of Hell Match was interesting. It started as a regular match, went to a Falls Count Anywhere Match, and if necessary a Stretcher Match. I like the way this one started. HHH got himself DQ’d from the first match by repeatedly hammering Orton with chair shots. Not a bad idea if you ask me considering the next match is a Falls Count Anywhere Match. Incapacitate your opponent and then inflict more punishment in an even more brutal environment. Orton takes the first round by DQ and HHH takes the second round by pinfall and this leaves up with the Stretcher Match. To make a long story short, HHH lays The Viper on the stretcher and begins to wheel him out when Legacy comes out to help Orton. No surprise here. They distract HHH long enough to get the Legend Killer off of the stretcher. Once HHH clears Legacy out, Orton hits HHH with a steel grate, lays him on the gurney, rolls him the final 2 feet across the finish line to retain the title! HHH has minimal revenge after the match when he attacks Orton and strikes him with his signature Sledgehammer. I am not so impressed with WWE these days.

Do you know what I think the problem is? The superstars are too spread out. Forget ECW and Smackdown and bring them back to RAW! Keep the newly added show Superstars but eliminate the others. Imagine Edge, Orton, Batista, HBK, The Undertaker, CM Punk, and HHH all on the same brand? Maybe then we would see the Heavyweight Title change hands on RAW. Oh well, who am I to say anything? I am just a fan who spends his time watching WWE and spends money on PPVs. Wait a minute! Isn’t that why the Superstars do what they do? Perform for us, the fans? Maybe WWE needs to get back to what gave them their fan following: great matches, great promos, and great story lines. But until that day comes I guess I will just keep on watching; remembering the Attitude Era when things were at their best. Do you know why that is? It is because they were there for the fans!