quote TheCrippler

Scheduled Matches

Singles Match
Kane vs. William Regal

Singles Match
Chris Hero vs. Charlie Haas

Debut Match
Rey Mysterio vs. ?????

Tag Match
Bryan Danielson and Matt Hardy vs. CM Punk and ?????

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Wrestling News.com News, Rumors, and Updates

Television Ratings and TNA/ROH Event Numbers

ROH Anniversary Celebration brings in 2868 people and $86040 in ticket sales

ROH's Anniversary Celebration, a large event that was run this past Sunday, saw a drop in attendence. ROH's last show was Trios Tournament which brought in roughly 3032 fans while the Anniversary Celebration had ticket sales of 2868, which is a decrease of 164 tickets.

TNA Against All Odds, the lastest pay-per-view from the wrestling federation, also occured this Sunday. The show scored a 1.01 buyrate, which is up 0.05 from Final Resolution which scored a 0.96. However, attendence dropped from 11686 fans to 11240, a total decline of 446 tickets sold. Still, the show is being called a success due to the higher buyrate, showing that more people are becoming interested in the TNA product.

Going back to this past Monday, RAW was the first show of the week and it was also the strongest, picking up its highest rating this year by scoring a 6.84, up 0.34 from last week's 6.50 rating.

TNA Xplosion debuted at midnight on MTV and scored a 1.63. This is a success considering the average score for that timeslot on that network is 1.67.

ROH Technicality picked up a bit of ground by scoring a 1.22, up from last week's 1.21.

TNA iMPACT lost what ground it has made, dropping back down to its average 5.45 score.

WWE Smackdown has a surprising loss in viewership after scoring a mere 6.37, down 0.51 from last week's great 6.88 rating. It is unknown what has caused this drop considering the show was one of the best since The Royal Rumble.

ROH Throwdown lost points this past Friday, dropping from last week's 1.35 to a 1.27, a loss of 0.08.

Finally, the second edition of Sunday Night Heat since it's return to the USA Network scored a 5.06. This score is exactly the same as last week's rating.

As usual, you can find the ratings in order of greatest to least below.

RAW: 6.84
Smackdown: 6.37
iMPACT: 5.45
Heat: 5.06
Xplosion: 1.63
Technicality: 1.22
Throwdown: 1.27

Two WWE Stars In Hot Water?, Major Name Signs With ROH

Recently re-debuting this Sunday as Muhammed Hassan's manager, Daivari has already picked up some backstage heat after he requested to have this Monday night off due to family issues. The WWE honored his request but are apparently highly dissapointed that Daivari is taking time off so soon after his and Hassan's return. Whether or not this will work against him in the future is unknown.

Another WWE wrestler who is currently rubbing some people the wrong way is Paul London. One-half of the tag team known as The Hooliganz, London is currently requesting a larger push for himself. While officials feel London is incredibly talented and could be a major star in the WWE, they don't think he is ready to be pushed past the midcard at the present time. However, London continues to assert himself backstage, demanding a push to the upper-midcard. Some feel this may adversely affect his career at a time when he is getting a strong tag team push with his partner, Brian Kendrick. Only time will tell if London's blunt attitude will earn him a push or get him sent back to the lower card.

Juventud Guerrera signed with ROH this past Saturday and his first show was the ROH Anniversary Celebration. He made a run-in during a match between Psicosis and Jimmy Jacobs where he at first helped Psicosis to pick up the win but then turned on his former Mexicool partner. A Ring of Honor official has told us that they are hoping that Guerrera will bring in both Hispanic viewers as well as mainstream wrestling fans.

How Is The WWE Doing Competitively?, Who Is Considered The Future Of The WWE?, Brand Split Returning?, All This And More!

The general feeling backstage is that WWE is positioning itself well for what was once considered a new wrestling war. However, TNA's public image momentum has slowed while the WWE's has more than doubled. If one were to put PI into percentages, TNA currently resides at a 17% Global image (which is up from their 99% National when 2007 began), WWE has a 77% Global (up from 33% Global), and ROH is at 89% Cult rating (nearly unchanged from the beginning of the year's 90% Cult). World Wrestling Entertainment continues to be the top federation in the wrestling world but TNA has moved up their game. Whether they will be able to take down the WWE giant is still up in the air.

The current John Bradshaw Layfield GM character came about when Bradshaw himself brought up the idea at a creative brainstorming meeting. The logic behind the gimmick is that by accentuating JBL's business side, the character can primarily play a heel while still making matches that don't necessarily favor the heels, as seen this past Friday on Smackdown.

Could the brand split return? That is a topic of discussion that is going on backstage between both management and the wrestlers. There are some who feel that wrestlers like Ken Kennedy, Charlie Haas, Shelton Benjamin, and Carlito are not getting their deserved push simply because RAW and Smackdown are dominated by feuds between big names and their isn't as much time to get them over with the fans. Heat was created to get around this problem but some feel that it is not enough. The current word is that the WWE will continue without the brand split for now but, if the roster ever becomes to large to deal with, it could return.

CM Punk has quickly become the man who the WWE feels will lead them into 2007, along with Bryan Danielson and Paul Burchill. All three men are young enough that the company can rely on them in the years to come and they have both the skills and charisma to get over with the fans. The feeling is that all three men are in line for strong pushes, starting with Punk who is rumored to be on his way to being booked in a co-main event alongside John Cena vs. The Undertaker while Bryan Danielson will be given a "slow burn"-style of push where he will slowly move his way up the title ranks. Burchill, on the other hand, is likely to be used along the lines of Kane, rarely in the actual title picture but always making sure his presence is known. Danielson, Punk, and Burchill are all being considered the future of the company and as long as none of them are seriously injured or get in troubly backstage, all three will almost certainly see an Undisputed title reign.

On the topic of Cena and The Undertaker, expect one of the two men to make a heel turn by the end of the month. The feeling backstage is that a continued face/face program will be difficult to maintain past No Way Out and that it stiffles creative works. The current rumors are that it will be The Undertaker but this could go either way.

Which wrestlers are next in line for title shots? Some names being thrown around for the Cruiserweight title division are Chavo Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, Carlito, or Gregory Helms. Possible United States title contenders are Paul Burchill, Ken Kennedy, Matt Hardy, Muhammed Hassan, or Bryan Danielson. Current Undisputed Tag Team title possibilities are The World's Greatest Tag Team, The Pitbulls, and MNM. Finally, Undisputed title contenders are Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, Randy Orton, or even CM Punk.

Finally, our sources state that the WWE creative team has already created a plan for the entire 2007 year. These plans could change at the drop of a hat if a wrestler is injured, if a big name is signed by the WWE, if a big name is signed away by the competition, or if the brand split returns. The general feeling backstage is that by planning so far ahead, it will be easier for the creative team to adapt to any unforseen events. The opposite side of this logic is that any bumps in the road could completely ruin the current plans and the WWE will have to work quickly to correct their feuds in order to overcome such events.

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WrestlingNews.com Poll

1. Another week of WWE television has come and gone with the biggest events being the Cena/Taker team up and the debut of Muhammed Hassan.

Which was the best WWE show this week? Why?

2. With the upcoming No Way Out and Wrestlemania pay-per-views, new feuds have sparked in the WWE.

Which of the below feuds is the best (Italicize your answer)? Which is the worst (Underline your answer)? Why?

John Cena vs. The Undertaker
Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H
Bryan Danielson vs. CM Punk
Paul Burchill vs. Kane
The Hooliganz vs. The Kings of Wrestling

3. We recently posted a super-sized edition of our normal WWE poll earlier today. Some of the news bits that were contained was the thought of the brand split returning, the current state of the wrestling market, and more.

Which piece of news (if any) would you consider as good news? Which piece of news (if any) would you consider to be bad news? Why?

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WrestlingNews.com Poll

1. Another week of WWE television has come and gone with the biggest events being the Cena/Taker team up and the debut of Muhammed Hassan.

Which was the best WWE show this week? Why?

Heat, because of Hassan's debut and some good matches.

2. With the upcoming No Way Out and Wrestlemania pay-per-views, new feuds have sparked in the WWE.

Which of the below feuds is the best (Italicize your answer)? Which is the worst (Underline your answer)? Why?

John Cena vs. The Undertaker
Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H - It's just boring me, I'd rather see the characters doing other things.
Bryan Danielson vs. CM Punk
Paul Burchill vs. Kane
The Hooliganz vs. The Kings of Wrestling - Typical heels vs. faces stuff but it works really well.

3. We recently posted a super-sized edition of our normal WWE poll earlier today. Some of the news bits that were contained was the thought of the brand split returning, the current state of the wrestling market, and more.

Good - brand split, bad - London in trouble.

quote The Shape

The Kings of Wrestling are becoming a great heel tag team, I'd like to see them face Haas and Benjamin for the titles, maybe a triple threat tag match with London and Kendrick involved too.