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FIGHT-ON
EPISODE 02: Macho Madness
DATE: July 29th 2009
In this edition of Fight-On we’ll review UFC 100, TNA Victory Road and WWE Night of Champions. Then we’ll get you up to date on all the major news of the (combat) world, induct a new member into the Hall of Fame (OOOOH YEAH!) and look ahead to UFC 101.
WWE.com reports:
PHILADELPHIA – For weeks, World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk said Jeff Hardy didn’t stand a chance against him. There was no way a flawed man like Hardy could defeat a competitor who follows the straightedge way of life, Punk claimed.
But at Night of Champions, Jeff Hardy proved CM Punk wrong when he pinned him in the center of the ring and captured his second World Heavyweight Championship.
This victory over Punk was a long time coming for The Charismatic Enigma. Jeff thought his dream of becoming the World Heavyweight Champion had finally come true at Extreme Rules when he defeated Edge in a Ladder Match, but the moment was short-lived. Mere seconds after he grabbed the gold, Hardy had to face CM Punk, who was cashing in his Money in the Bank title opportunity. Battered and tired, Jeff was unable to put up a good fight and The Straightedge Superstar won the title.
At The Bash, Hardy’s frustrations continued. When it seemed as though The Charismatic Enigma had pinned Punk to win the gold, it was revealed that the champion’s foot was under the ropes. When the match was restarted, Punk kicked the referee in the back, resulting in a disqualification and no title change.
But when the two Superstars met again at Night of Champions, there was nothing CM Punk could do to stop Hardy’s drive to win. The World Heavyweight Champion utilized his aggressive and unique offense to slow the Cameron, N.C., native down, but he simply couldn’t break the colorful warrior’s spirit. Even Punk’s brutal finishing maneuver, the Go to Sleep, wasn’t enough to keep Hardy down.
Frustrated with Jeff’s resilience, The Straightedge Superstar grabbed his gold and tried to leave the ring, but the adrenaline junkie dragged him right back in and delivered the Twist of Fate. Then, with 17,774 fans in the Wachovia Center chanting his name, The Charismatic Enigma scaled the top rope and delivered a picture-perfect Swanton Bomb onto Punk, scoring the victory and the title.
After the match, Jeff Hardy passionately celebrated his championship win with the WWE Universe, but the party can’t last for long. If CM Punk’s track record is any indication, the former World Heavyweight Champion is already concocting a scheme to get the title back.
What will happen the next time these two Superstars meet? Watch the next edition of SmackDown at 8/7 CT on MyNetworkTV to find out.
QUICK RESULTS:
-Match 1: Chris Jericho & Big Show def. Cody Rhodes & Ted Dibiase
-Match 2: Christian def. Tommy Dreamer
-Match 3: Kofi Kingston wins 6 Pack Challenge
-Match 4: Michelle McCool def. Melina
-Match 5: Randy Orton def. John Cena & Triple H
-Match 6: Mickie James def. Maryse
-Match 7: Rey Mysterio def. Dolph Ziggler
-Main Event: Jeff Hardy def. CM Punk
According to Yahoo Sports:
After promoting two critically acclaimed but financially disastrous mixed martial arts cards, Affliction on Friday first canceled its pay-per-view card scheduled for Aug. 1 and then opted to get out of the promotional business.
Affliction released a statement Friday evening in which it announced “a collaboration with the UFC.” It confirmed that it will cease operations as a fight promoter and that its clothing division will become a UFC sponsor.
“Our brand is synonymous with the ‘Live Fast’ approach to life and UFC is the perfect venue for us to market our brand. We have come to an agreement with the UFC which we feel will be the best for the sport and will help the UFC continue delivering the highest caliber of fights.” said Eric Foss, co-founder of Affliction.
Affliction had a card slated for Aug. 1 with a main event of Fedor Emelianenko, the No. 2 fighter in the Yahoo! Sports mixed martial arts rankings, against former UFC champion Josh Barnett at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.
But Barnett tested positive for an anabolic steroid and on Tuesday was denied a license to fight by the California State Athletic Commission.
That left Affliction scrambling to find a replacement for Emelianenko. With no viable alternatives – the best was former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort, who was already down to 195 pounds for a scheduled middleweight fight – Affliction early Friday opted to scrap the show.
Later in the day, Affliction came to terms on a deal with the UFC in which it would quit promoting fight cards. The UFC is likely to absorb the contracts of all Affliction fighters except Emelianenko.
Emelianenko’s contractual status is not known, though UFC president Dana White said Friday he is trying to negotiate a deal with the Russian.
Multiple sources had indicated to Yahoo! Sports that Affliction was on the verge of a deal with Strikeforce for some sort of merger, but that fell apart in the last 24-48 hours. That’s when talks began anew between White and Affliction. They had spoken earlier in July about such a scenario, but were unable to come to a deal.
WWE’s Night of Champion takes place this Sunday (July 26th) live and only on Pay-Per-View. Let’s take a look at the card.
WWE Champion Randy Orton vs. Triple H vs. John Cena
PREDICTION: I believe that this will in fact be the main event and has the potential to be a very good match. However, given the fact this PPV is a lead in to SummerSlam I believe Randy Orton will walk out holding the strap.
World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy
PREDICTION: Will this be Jeff Hardy’s final match on PPV before he takes time off? That possibility is certainly there. It’s also possible that WWE could drag the feud out to SummerSlam. Either way, I see CM Punk keeping the gold.
Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler
PREDICTION: This is the match that could launch Dolph Ziggler if he beats Mysterio for the IC title this Sunday. As much as I love Mysterio and wish he could have a longer run as the champ I think WWE realizes that they’ve got to establish new stars and so I predict that Dolph Ziggler will in fact cheat to capture his first WWE gold.
United States Champion Kofi Kingston vs. Big Show vs. MVP vs. Carlito vs. Jack Swagger vs. The Miz (Six Pack Challenge)
PREDICTION: If given enough time, I believe that this will be the match of the night. As I’ve said on my Twitter, “Kofi Kingston is money”. That being said, I don’t think Kingston needs to U.S. title long term and I already feel that both Swagger and MVP are on track for heavyweight gold in the near future. So, who would benefit most from winning the U.S. title? I feel that The Miz is going to continue be a good heel and for that reason he is my pic to win this Sunday.
ECW Champion Tommy Dreamer vs. Christian
PREDICTION: This could also be a match that steals the show. Tommy Dreamer is a legend and it is my hope that he will keep the ECW Championship.
Unified Tag Team Champion Chris Jericho & A Mystery Partner vs. Ted DiBiase & Cody Rhodes
PREDICTION: Who will be Jericho’s partner? How about Christian? I could see Jericho and Christian losing the Tag Team Championships to Legacy. Of course, after the match Jericho will turn on Christian and this will set up a feud between the two at SummerSlam.
Women’s Champion Michelle McCool vs. Melina
PREDICTION: I think Melina will beat McCool.
Divas Champion Maryse vs. Mickie James
PREDICTION: Maryse is as hot as it gets but I have not been impressed with her ring work. Thus I think the ultra talented Mickie James has gold in her future this Sunday.
WORTH THE MONEY: There are some good matches on this card. Randy Orton vs. Triple H vs. John Cena is a strong main event where all three superstars will work hard. CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy is sure to be an intense match (it also may very well be the last time we see Hardy for awhile) and the Six Pack Challenge match-up is sure to deliver for those looking for highspots. But at $40.00, that’s an incredibly hefty price to pay for just three hours of action. Plus Night of Champions is in many ways just a short interlude before SummerSlam. So despite the good card, I can’t recommend spending that kind of money in this economy unless you’re a hardcore fan of wrestling. My suggestion? SAVE YOUR MONEY (Or watch it at your local sports bar)!
We all know how rumors are in wrestling. Most of the time you have to take them with a grain of salt. Still, most “smart marks” (or anyone who loves and follows wrestling) would have to admit that the behind the scenes politics of professional wrestling are juicy and nothing short of intriguing. The most recent rumor is the story going around that Karen Angle—the now ex-wife of Kurt Angle is shacking up with Jeff Jarrett. How true are these rumors? We don’t yet know. However, we do know that Jeff Jarrett has been sent home and possibly suspended by TNA President Dixie Carter. One would only naturally assume that Jarrett being sent home is somehow related.
This is certainly not the only instance of backstage drama. A few years ago there was the Edge / Matt Hardy / Lita love triangle. When Matt Hardy was home nursing an injury his then-girlfriend Lita cheated on him and hooked up with Edge. Hardy later found out and was released over the situation only to be brought back a few months later due to fan demand (if you went to a live event the chants directed at Edge or Lita during this time were “HARDY” or “YOU SCREWED MATT!”. Upon Matt Hardy’s return, he and Edge would have a series of hard-hitting matches that blurred the lines between shoot and wrestling. It was during this time that Edge was paired with Lita and became the Rated R Superstar. In my opinion, it is this feud that put Edge over the top and took him a good heel to a monster heel. In essence, Matt Hardy made Edge. I know that’s a bold statement but I highly doubt that without this love triangle Edge would be as big as he is today (and no, I’m not taking anything away from Edge. He is incredibly talented and we wish him a speedy recovery).
What this proved to me is that fans want real life stories they can connect with. It’s sad that such real life tragic events such as affairs have to happen to spark fan interest but I believe with proper hard-hitting storylines bookers could easily keep the interest of fans. You want examples? What about the feud between The Sandman and Tommy Dreamer where Dreamer blinded the Sandman. What about JBL vs. Eddie Guerrero (which was an issue about racism, make no mistake about it), Andy Kaufman vs. Jerry Lawler, or Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon just to name a few.
There’s no doubt that TNA needs some new cooks in the kitchen when it comes to booking. I have always defended TNA and I’ve felt that the wrestling media and dirt sheets have really been FAR too hard on TNA for a long time. I actually enjoyed most of the build up towards Victory Road ’09. However, the pay-per-view itself was just bad and I can’t help but question if that was because of the situation going on backstage.
For all we know, both Angle and Jarrett have known about the situation for months. Perhaps Angle knew that Jeff and Karen were seeing one another and the straw that broke the camels back was when she (and perhaps his children) moved into the Jarrett household. At this point, who knows. We can only speculate.
I would like to end with this: If this is all a work then all the parties involved have done one hell of a job. Sadly, I get the impression that it’s not. While Jeff Jarrett, Karen Angle and Kurt Angle are all adults I will say that if Jeff Jarrett is shacking up with Angle’s ex-wife then I for one will have lost a lot of the respect I had for him.
Article by: Jason “Pro Wrestling Dragon” Glasco
FIGHT-ON
PRO WRESTLING NEWS
Mixed Martial Arts News
According to PWInsider.com and f4wonline.com, Jeff Jarrett was not at Sunday’s Victory Road pay-per-view. Front office staff at TNA were apparently informed last week that the King of the Mountain will be taking ‘personal time off’.
“It’s interesting to note that Jarrett’s sudden absence coincidentally occurs after an incident on Bubba the Love Sponge’s radio show last week where an “anonymous TNA employee” had their voice distorted and claimed on-air that Jarrett was now involved in a relationship with the ex-wife of Kurt Angle, Karen. The person claimed the two were living together at Jarrett’s residence.”
In fact “it would appear that there is something to the anonymous TNA employee’s claims on last Wednesday’s episode of Bubba the Love Sponge’s satellite show that Karen Angle and her children were living together with Jeff Jarrett. It is now coming out that TNA president Dixie Carter ordered Jarrett to go home as soon as she found out about the person’s claims, which has been described publicly as him agreeing to take a leave of absence.
At Saturday night’s TNA house show in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Kurt Angle was telling people that he is going to end up with the booking control of the company that Jarrett had and that he won’t sign a new contract with TNA if Jarrett remains in power. No one really know how things will transpire from this point. Angle’s contract with TNA is set to expire in September and he has not yet agreed to a new one.
Jarrett was booked in segments on last night’s pay-per-view that were either tweaked or removed. The direction of the booking for last night’s show was planned before all of this stuff went down, as is television for the next few weeks. However, everything involving Jarrett will obviously have to be tweaked and/or removed as he was slated to further his program with Eric Young at this week’s slate of television tapings.”
“TNA’s public relations official Steve Godfrey declined to comment on the situation when contacted. He said he could not ‘comment on personnel issues at this time’.”
“Jarrett’s sudden absence was a large topic of discussion among wrestlers and employees at last night’s pay-per-view. This may have been the first pay-per-view in the company’s seven-year history which he was not running and/or backstage.
There is said to be no timetable on when he will return to his duties.”
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FIGHT-ON
EPISODE 01: Red and Yellow
DATE: July 8th 2009
On the first ever edition of Fight-On we’ll preview UFC100. Other topics include Edge’s serious injury and the surgery that followed, Jeff Hardy and his refusal to commit to WWE, Matt Hardy’s surgery, censorship and much more. Plus we’ll give you our predictions for the main fight card of UFC 100 and induct our first ever Hall of Famer into the fold.
