Wrestle Mania XXXI Review By Jeromme Graham

This past Sunday, the WWE put on their biggest show of the year. Wrestle mania 31, the ‘Showcase of the Immortals’. There seemed to be a general consensus among fans online that the build up to this year’s Mania was a little underwhelming. Fortunately, this year’s Wrestle mania delivered. There was great in-ring action, elaborate entrances and tons of star power.

Pre-Show

Kidd & Cesar vs. The Usos vs. Los Matadores vs. New Day

The first match on the Wrestlemania 31 pre-show was the fatal four-way tag match for the WWE Tag Team Championship. This was a great choice to start the night as it was wild and fast paced. All four teams were accompanied by a manager and they all got involved at various points in the match with a highlight being when Natalya managed to lock El Torito in a Sharpshooter. Cesaro got the win by pinning Big E.

2^nd Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal

The next match of the night was the 30-man Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. This was a fun match and an opportunity for a lot of the guys to take part in Wrestlemania. Ryback, Cesaro, Big Show, The Miz and Mizdow all stood out and were the final five competitors in the match. In the moment we were all waiting for, Mizdow eliminated The Miz. Alas, Big Show would go on to toss Mizdow out of the ring to win the battle royal.

Main Card

Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match

In the match that kicked off the main card, we saw Bad News Barrett, Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler, Stardust, Luke Harper and R-Truth battle it out in a ladder match for the IC Championship. This match was chaotic. In easily the most sickening spot of the match, Ambrose was powerbombed through a ladder by Harper. Bryan and Ziggler engaged in a head butt war with Bryan coming out on top. Ultimately, Bryan ascended the ladder, pulled the belt down and became the new IC Champion. Here’s to hoping we see the WWE do more with the title going forward.

Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins

It felt like it got off to a slow start, but it definitely picked up. The New Stooges aka J&J Security got involved in the match, which led to Orton hitting them with a double DDT. The most spectacular moment of the match was the finish. Rollins had Orton in place for the Curb Stomp, but Orton was able to launch him into the air and hit the RKO for the win. Not a show stealing match, but very solid.

Sting vs. Triple H

First things first, the entrances for this match were top notch. Sting was played in by a troupe of live drummers and Triple H did his best Terminator homage. Not a technical masterpiece, but I don’t think anyone expected that it would be. The match broke down into the ‘Best of the Monday Night War’ as there was interference from both DX and the nWo. In a bizarre moment, Triple H went to hit Sting with his sledgehammer, but Sting blocked it with his bat. Sting then swung the bat and broke Triple H’s signature weapon in two. After Sting went for another Stinger Splash, Triple H hit with him with the sledgehammer and picked up the victory. After the match, Triple H and Sting shook hands.

The Bella Twins vs. Paige and AJ Lee

After the #GiveDivasAChance movement took off, I hoped the women in this match would be given the time to really shine, but that was not to be. This match lasted just under seven minutes. Despite the crows being noticeably quiet for a lot of the match, all four women worked hard. The finish came when AJ Lee got Nikki Bella in the Black Widow to pick up the submission victory.

Rusev vs. John Cena

In possibly the best entrance of the night, Rusev made his way out to the ring riding a tank. He was also accompanied by Lana, who was absent the past few weeks as she was filming a WWE film alongside Edge. This was a really fun match with some great near falls. Towards the end of the match, Lana got up on the ring apron to distract Cena. Rusev charged at Cena, though Cena moved. Rusev crashed right into Lana and she went down off the apron. Cena then hit an Attitude Adjustment for the win; picking up the U.S. Championship and snapping Rusev’s undefeated streak. The crowd was into this match and it was a great showing for both guys. It’ll be interesting to see where Rusev and Lana both go from here.

The Rock/Authority Segment

After Rusev vs. Cena, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were in the ring. The Authority plugged the network and touted that they had set a new record for Levi’s Stadium with an attendance of 76,976. Triple H and Steph boasted about how great they are and that they owned Sting, the Superstars and the people. This led to The Rock’s music hitting and he made his way down to the ring. The Rock, fresh off hosting SNL, jaw jacked with the Authority. After Stephanie slapped him, Rock brought UFC’s Ronda Rousey into the ring. 

The exchange between Ronda and the Billion Dollar Princess was gold. Triple H and The Rock started going at it, which got Ronda and Stephanie involved too. Ronda getting her moments to shine by delivering a Judo hip toss to Triple H and threatening to snap Steph’s arm. The crowd ate this up. We definitely haven’t seen the last of Ronda Rousey in the WWE.

Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt

The Undertaker looked so much better than he did last year. He appeared to be much stronger and healthy. Wyatt had Taker in position for Sister Abigail, but Taker was able to fight out of it and he hit a Tombstone on the Eater of Worlds. Wyatt and Taker worked quite well together and at no point in the match did it look like Taker was in a bad way. While it certainly wasn’t on the same level as some of the Undertaker’s past Wrestlemania classics, it was a solid outing and served as vehicle for the Deadman to bounce back from last year’s loss to Lesnar.

Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

The final match of the night and probably the match that raised the most curiosity among the fans didn’t disappoint. Lesnar got things started with a German suplex right away. As Lesnar was destroying Reigns, he uttered the words “Suplex city, bitch”. While everyone was worried about how Reigns would fare in the main event of the WWE’s biggest show, he put on an amazing comeback. His signature moves all looked believable. Rollins ran down to the ring with the Money in the Bank briefcase. He let it be known that he was cashing in and the match was restarted. Lesnar had Rollins up for an F5, but Reigns speared Lesnar. Rollins hit the Curb Stomp on Reigns and pinned him to become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. It was a good call to have Rollins get the title without having Lesnar lose. Lesnar stays protected, Reigns gets to look strong in defeat and Rollins is the slimy champion that we all need.

Jimmy Jacobs To The WWE By Simon Wight

One of the more notable stories circulating WWE over the last few weeks was that Ring Of Honor’s Jimmy Jacobs is joining the company, but as part of the creative team and not as a wrestler.  It is unknown what brand he will be working on, but most likely NXT. However, I hope he will utilised on the main brands and be a new voice among the much maligned Hollywood writers.

Now wrestling shows on television have changed from being a promotional tool for the big show to becoming the big show (especially in terms of revenue now the WWE Network will have altered WWE‘s Pay-Per-View business), WWE has grown less willing to allow improvisation and spontaneity in their product. They now favour a more structured and scripted product suitable for television.  As such they utilise writers with experience of television production, if not with wrestling, to make the stories and the feuds.  The wrestling input is left to the in ring-portion, with road agents (often retired wrestlers) laying out matches.  In many ways, the writers have a tough job, having to write stories for various characters covering five hours a week for 52 weeks a year, while dealing with many factors that are out of their control (injuries, releases, fickle boss etc).  

However, while WWE is a show on TV, it is not a TV show in the way that something like EastEnders is.  A soap doesn’t require any input from the viewer.  It is a closed world with no active interaction between programme and viewer.  In wrestling, the input of the viewer - the fan - is encouraged in their support for their favourite wrester, be it buying a ticket to a show, a T-shirt, or the Network.  The problem is, in recent times, the writers have neglected and continue to neglect the wrestler.  They instead opt for the spectacle, the twist and the shock in the storylines to try and draw people in.  They write storylines in which they fit wrestlers into, rather than taking wrestlers and building storylines around them.  

Take the build-up to the Intercontinental Title match at WrestleMania.  Once upon a time the challengers would be chosen and wrestle each other for the right to be Number One contender.  Bad News Barrett would scout his opposition, while arrogantly claiming he‘ll beat whoever the challenger is. Now you have a bunch of guys physically stealing the belt from each other while Barrett loses his matches every week!  The twist of everyone ’holding’ the belt except the actual champion doesn‘t help the match.  What is needed is perspective from a wrestling standpoint.  

Which is where Jimmy Jacobs comes in.

First things first.  He is a wrestler.  In fact, he’s a 15-year plus veteran, who has wrestled in ROH, DGUSA, CZW, IWA Mid-South and pretty much any other Indy you can name, with and against the likes of Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Daniel Bryan, so he has friends in high places who could lobby for his ideas to be used.  He also as a very proficient promo ability, and a reputation for constantly updating and evolving his character, a sometimes overlooked but important part of wrestling.  He is someone who knows wrestling, and also knows what the modern fan wants.  Need that new killer heel to cut a sinister promo?  Look at Jacobs’ promos as leader of The Age of the Fall.  A big feud needs a layered build that leads to it ending in a hard-hitting bout?  Look at the Jacobs/B.J. Whitmer feud in ROH.  A wrestler needs a change that goes beyond the cosmetic?  Look at how ‘The Barbaric Bezerker’ is different from the bitter veteran of The Decade, but both personas are still Jimmy Jacobs.  Whether it be offering a wrestler’s perspective into a storyline or creating one all his own, Jacobs has insights that could be useful on so many levels and a little more modern.  

Of course, this column is mostly based on a hypothetical situation, and Jacobs will be at the Performance Centre helping the developmental talent harness their characters and promo skills, which isn‘t a bad thing.  He may end up on the main team, but there is always the possibility that his ideas are shot down or changed by one of Vince impulsively changing his mind.  But you never know.  Maybe Jimmy Jacobs’ arrival with kick-start a creative resurgence in WWE and become much-watch again.  If that does happen, and it leads to a more wrestling-orientated product, then Jimmy Jacobs could prove to be one of the most significant signings from the independent scene.

Another Note on Booking By Adam Timmins (@AdamTimmins83)

So I dashed off a less-than-200-word piece on Monday, emailed it to Stuart, and didn’t really give it much thought, but apparently it created quite a stir when it when was shared; some of it over the fact I called Brian Danielson, er, Brian Danielson. To avoid bringing Gottlieb Frege into things, I’ll refer to him as Daniel Bryan from hereon in. 

A couple of points came up after I wrote the original note which I wanted to address. I remember thinking last year when the whole Bryan/ Wrestlemania thing was playing out that it was a funny old world when a wrestling company has a guy who’s massively over and it’s a real problem. And history has repeated itself this year in terms of the problem of Bryan’s popularity; except that where the Fed acceded to fans wishes last year, this year it’s tough love.

Of course, the incongruous word in that sentence is ‘wrestling company’. Naturally for years the Fed has been referring to what it does as sports entertainment; but I always just rolled my eyes and thought “it features wrestlers, in a wrestling ring, having wrestling matches – it’s wrestling.” But when you reach the point we have now; where wrestlers are actually being punished for getting over (I’m thinking of Ryder here); or at the very least being held back even though you’re doing what you’re ultimately supposed to do as a wrestler – then they’re right – it’s not wrestling. When you reach a point where you’re violating the fundamental norm or rule of what is supposed to guide you, then whatever you’re doing becomes something else. So in a sense, Vince has now achieved what presumably he thought he’d done years ago – that is, created sports entertainment. 

The other point someone made to me on Monday night was that it’s not just Bryan who’s been subordinated to Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania; John Cena finds himself scrabbling around in the mid-card for the first time in ten years or so. Generally I refrain from commenting on Cena, on the basis that no-one can agree on anything said about; the debate about Cena wallows in the sort of fragmented chaos that the historiography of the French revolution once did. Ultimately though, the difference between the current predicaments of Cena and Bryan is that on the eve of Mania Cena could squat down, defecate in his hand, and hurl it in Vince’s  face; and still be guaranteed a decent post-Mania push. Bryan, I suspect, has to tread a bit more carefully. 

I’m probably going to get hammered for referring to the French revolution here [you pretentious twat –Ed.], so I might as well finish with another historical comparison. In the twenty years or so prior to the Russian revolution, everyone knew that Russia was a mess internally, and that a revolution would happen sooner or later – indeed, there was an aborted effort in 1905. Of course, no-one knew the form that it would take, but it was bound to happen. It strikes me we’re in a similar situation with the WWE; indeed, we could take the Russian analogy further – an out of touch, autocratic leader is currently heading up a tottering empire. It’s unlikely however, that Vince will be overthrown by an uprising from below. It’s generally accepted though, that change won’t occur until Vince is gone (i.e. dies). And that will happen at some point, but no-one knows when. But until then, it’s a case of just marking time….

NXT Recap March 11th 2015 By Jeromme Graham (@JerommeGraham)

First match of the night is Enzo & Cass vs. the Lucha Dragons. Enzo & Cass aren’t accompanied by Carmella and it’s funny how much better their entrance shtick flows without her. The Full Sail crowd didn’t really seem to be all that into the Lucha Dragons, but Enzo’s comedic timing went over well. The match itself was pretty solid. Enzo & Cass got the win over the former NXT Tag Team champions and it wouldn’t be a shock to see eventually see them sporting the titles.

We then get a killer Kevin Owens video package recapping how he won the NXT title and showing how dominant he has been.

Next match up is Carmella vs. Alexa Bliss. If you’ve been watching NXT regularly, you know that the women’s division gets a ton of well deserved praise. However, that praise tends to largely be focused solely on Sasha Banks, Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Bayley. It’s nice to see Carmella and Alexa get some time to shine. The match felt a little clunky at points, but the potential of both ladies was very evident. Alexa got the win with the Sparkle Splash from the top rope.

We’re then taken to a backstage Alex Riley promo. To call this promo passionate would be an understatement. With his #FreeRiley campaign on Twitter, Riley made it very clear that he wants to be an in-ring competitor more than anything you can see that he’s serious about it and giving it his all.

CJ Parker vs. Alex Riley. It seems that CJ Parker is now the go-to guy for matches against returning stars or debuting acts. The crowd was soundly behind Riley and that was great to see. Riley looked good and picked up the win with a Blockbuster. This was a decent match designed to re-introduce Riley as a wrestler and it got the job done. NXT Champion Kevin Owens came out after the match to taunt Riley and to make his presence felt, building up tension of the Owens vs. Riley match.

From there, we get right into the main event.

Tyler Breeze vs.Hideo Itami. Both Breeze and Itami are beloved guys that fanswould love to see more of, so to see them main eventing the show is great. There has been a lot of talk that Itami was struggling to adapt to the WWE style, but that doesn’t seem to be an issue any longer.  Breeze picked up the win with the Beauty Shot after dodging a dropkick from Itami. I’m sure this feud is far from over.

Overall, this was a solid episode of NXT. It furthered along the Breeze vs. Itami and Owens vs. Riley feuds and we got to see Bliss and Carmella get more ring time. While this episode didn’t feature some of the top tier NXT names like Balor or Neville, the wrestling didn’t disappoint.

A Note On Booking By Adam Timmins

So I came across the final card for this year’s Wrestlemania this morning, and my reaction was “wow, this is pretty bad.”For a Wrestlemania anyway. But the one thing that really stood out was the placement of Brian Danielson in the IC Title Ladder Match. Here’s a guy who’s over like crazy; probably the most over guy in the company…and he’s lost in the shuffle.

Now this got me thinking about booking in general. In any other promotion, wrestlers are told “it’s your job to get yourself over.” It is your goal as a wrestler; it’s how you know you’re doing your job correctly. If you’re over, then you’ve earned your shot at titles, main events, decent payoffs etc.

Unless of course you’re in the WWE. You have to wonder what’s going through Danielson’s mind at the moment. If he’s making decent coin, and obviously he has his beautiful wife, maybe he’s not too fussed about. But there must be part of him, somewhere, that’s saying “this isn’t right.”

Bill DeMott Issue Raises It's Ugly Head Again

So, more former WWE developmental wrestlers have come forward with stories of Bill Demott's treatment of them while they were there. The first time I'd heard of DeMott's abuse towards trainees was way back on the Two And A Half Wrestlers podcast which is hosted by Kevin Matthews.

Some time back I interviewed former developmental talent Rampage Brown on  The Indy Corner and I did mention to him what I had heard but he couldn't shed any light on the matter.

However, there's no smoke without fire, I know many will say it's just disgruntled wrestlers who didn't 'make it' in NXT but I think there is more to it than that. Even people who had dealings with DeMott in the past who were not actual talent have said he was a bit of a hard ass so again, I think there is something in this story and I  advise you to seek out Kevin's podcast to hear what he and his guests had to say about DeMott.

TNA Glasgow By Craig Hermit

 When the final episode of Impact Wrestling aired on SpikeTv last year, fans in the UK were concerned about what might happen regarding the Maximum Impact Tour and the future of TNA itself in 2015. 

Despite not having a television product in America, in the UK however, Challenge TV, treated fans and kept them interested in the TNA brand by presenting with the second series of British Boot Camp. 

This second outing is regarded by fans as widely superior setup to the previous series. With a new format to the show, this proved to be more successful in demonstrating the variety and the depth of talent that the UK had to offer also with Jeremy Borash and Rockstar Spud on commentary, who were passionate in the words for the praise they gave the wrestlers.

Even towards the end of the series, British Boot Camp did everything it could to make sure fans were aware that TNA was coming to the UK in 2015. A prime example was when Grado challenged one of the judges, Al Snow to a match in his home town of Glasgow after he was let go from the competition.

Alternatively, the three finalists, Mark Andrews, Kay Lee Ray and Rampage Brown en route to the final had matches with the stars from TNA and looked every bit as there equals during the bouts.

The finale saw Mark Andrews winning the contract to become a TNA Star, and that was when any doubt that fans may have had about the company continuing were laid to rest. 

Fast forward to January 29th after Impact Wrestling has produced three successful shows on Destination America and Challenge TV, TNA arrived in Glasgow.

Dixie Carter had this to say about the UK tour and the fans "Our fans across the UK know TNA for the unmatched professional wrestling we deliever each week on Challenge. We are thrilled to once again showcase internationally through our flagship program, Impact, the energy and excitement of the rowdy UK crowds by televising all three of our MAXIMUM IMPACT 7 events in Glasgow, Manchester and London. After the incredible energy the UK fans gave the IMPACT shows broadcast from these three cities this past January, I decided we had to try and raise the bar even higher in 2015. Several talent such as Lashley, Bram, Angelina Love and TNA Knockouts Champion Taryn Terrell will be making their first appearance on a TNA UK tour or returning after several years' absence"

As a fan who attended the Maximum Impact Tour in 2014, I was keen to see if there would be any differences this year.

The Fan Interaction session was alot more organised this year and more planning had been done to make it run smoother. The fans got to speak to, have autographs and photos taken with, Gail Kim, Angelina Love, So Cal Val, Mr Anderson, Bram, Samuel Shaw and Matt Hardy. It must be mentioned that all the stars were on fantastic form and were entertaining from start to finish.

As the interaction finished, fans only had to wait an hour, or for fans who arrived earlier to the show, were greeted by five finalists of British Boot Camp, Mark Andrews, Kay Lee Ray, Noam Dar, Grado and Rampage Brown. 

The five stood with the crowd, taking selfies, answering questions and autographs for fans as well. This was a brilliant touch by TNA who recognised that the fans would enjoy this way to talk to there stars better for a better interactive experience.

For fans who got to the seats early or were close to the ring got to meet, TNA President Dixie Carter who was fantastic to talk to and took every chance to interact with the crowds.

The show started with a brilliant tag team match featuring Kay Lee Ray and Noam Dar facing Gail Kim and Rampage Brown, the Hydro crowd were cheering for more when the ICW regulars Ray & Dar triumphed in a hard fought bout that demonstrated that the three British Boot Camp finalists were ready to compete on the main stage.

From there fans were entertained by an amazing wrestling match between Austin Aries and Bobby Roode that paved the way for a segment between Kurt Angle, Bobby Lashley and MVP.

The matches continued when Bram destroyed Crazy Steve, Awesome Kong dismantled Madison Rayne, a great bout in three on two match between Tryus and EC3 against Rockstar Spud, Mark Andrews & Jeremy Borash that saw highflying highlights from Spud, Andrews and even Borash himself. The first part of the show closed with the main event having Samoa Joe & MVP defeat Bobby Lashley and Kurt Angle.

Inbetween the matches, it has to be said that So Val Cal and Jeremy Borash were fantastic at keeping the fans entertained.

The next part of the show, the fans witnessed a brutal Street Fight between Eric Young & Tommy Dreamer. There was a Knockouts Championship match that saw Taryn Tarrell face Angelina Love and even had an appearance from Awesome Kong and Gail Kim that excited the fans.

Matt Hardy was later saved from an onslaught by all the members of The Revolution as The Wolves intervened and left the fans wanting more.

But the next segment had fans in awe, (only the second biggest surprise of the night) as Mickie James arrived to the ring and had a verbal showdown with Bram. Then the fallout of the EC3/Rockstar Spud feud added another TNA star to the mix, Mr Anderson, there was indeed a "scalping" that had the crowd shouting with delight.

Next was the twenty man gauntlet match and it was an explosive bout seeing Kurt Angle, MVP, Kenny King and Austin Aries all having key roles in the chance to become the No1 Contender for the TNA Heavyweight Championship.

And finally, the last match witnessed Grado against Al Snow, it was a good match that both men delivered and Grado would defeat the man who would refuse to shake his hand on British Boot Camp but at the end of the bout the two would join forces to leave the crowd with a happy ending...

Or so it seemed, as they stood with the crowd cheering, all the members of the Beat Down Clan invaded the ring and attacked. The cheers turned to venom as the fans witnessed there hero and his ally being assaulted, then suddenly a hooded man entered the ring with the steel pipe and chased the attackers away, it was Insane Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Drew Galloway much to the shock and amazement of the crowd.

The three men stood tall in the ring as the fans chanted ICW and on this night, there was no better way to end this event and conclude the storyline left open at British Boot Camp to make it a success for everyone involved.

Overall, it was amazing to think that a year ago, TNA hid the ICW chants from fans. This year, they embraced and welcomed those reactions from a red hot crowd as the company at least for a short time has an alliance with the well known Scottish Wrestling Company. It shows that within a year the growth and maturity Impact Wrestling has developed, even recently they have named other wrestling companies on Tv, acknowledging the wrestlers histories, and this shows that a new beginning on Destination America really is an exciting new e

ra for the company and their fans.