It’s being reported by TMZ and numerous other outlets that the WWE’s own John Cena filed for divorce from his wife of 3 years earlier today.  While rumors have been circulating for months about issues within his family, I don’t think anyone really saw this one coming.  John and Liz (pictured above) grew up as high school sweethearts and were married July 11, 2009 (also my anniversary).  If you follow pro wrestling for any amount of time you know that the being a wrestler takes a tremendous toll on ones family as the superstars spend most of their lives on the road.  This makes having a family difficult.

My thoughts and prayers go out to John and Liz as divorce is a difficult thing and not something I would wish on my worst enemy.  While it looks like the marriage is over for good, lets hope that maybe things can be worked out!!  This could be the reason the WWE has hinted at Cena taking time off in the very near future.  Let’s hope this ends on a good note (as good as one can end a marriage on) and doesn’t have a negative effect on Cena’s career.

Known for his ability to drop verbal pipe bombs, CM Punk had the unfortunate experience of having one blow up in his hand (metaphorically speaking) the other day after telling a fan on twitter that they should kill themselves and while telling another they should “drink bleach,” all because of the fact that the fans disagreed with Punk on the current hot button issue of gay marriage.

You would think that the “face” of the WWE wouldn’t be such a bully given that the WWE tries hard to tell others that bullying is wrong and shouldn’t be done. Of course Punk has come out and apologized for his comments but the fact is he has given the WWE, the WWE Championship, and the WWE Universe a black eye all because he couldn’t control himself.

While my personal views on gay marriage are irrelevant to this article I think it would be wise that the WWE either; 1.) get away from the hokie PG minded Era that has dominated their broadcasts the last several years and embrace a more edgy reality feel or 2.) be consistent with their PG mindset and take disciplinary actions against Punk.

Personally I think that his comments are shameful and warrant punishment even in an edgier reality Era as a leading public figure told fans who look up to him to tell others who disagree with gay marriage to commit suicide. While Punk didn’t say that in words he certainly implied that and for a leading public figure to do so is disgraceful to himself and the company he represents. The WWE could use this to their advantage however if they played their cards right by allowing Punk to begin to really step into a more edgy role. While I disagree with his comments I do think that they can be used for the good of the company.

Since the WWE has been toying with a new direction since Punk’s work/shoot promo from last June this could give them the reason to jump fully into a new Attitude Era with Punk at the helm. They could get away from the PG politically correct Era that has made the product boring for to long. ButI guess we’ll just have to wait and see how they handle this in the coming weeks and months.

And that’s the bottom line!!!

It’s that time of year again when the WWE cleans house and releases talent that are going nowhere fast.  Below is a list of current WWE talent that I think need to be released to make room for new and fresher faces:

A.W.

Who is this guy and why is the WWE paying him?  Really?  This guy needs the door to hit him on the way out as he is wasting important money that can be used to bring in better and more talented wrestlers who will help the product.

Darren Young

This guy needs to be fired just for this ridiculous spray tan!!  What has this guy done to help the product?  Nothing.  Goodby loser!!

Ezekiel Jackson

This guy is going nowhere fast.  Sure he has won a few titles but they have all been transitional championships and pretty much meant nothing to his character.  While I think the WWE has dropped the ball as far as Jackson is concerned the fact is that he is not needed in the WWE at this moment and his exit could give way to new talent that can actually be used.

The Great Khali

WHY WAS THIS GUY EVER IN THE WWE?  He is horrible!!  In every way you can be horrible, The Great Khali is horrible!!  I would fire him asap!!

Heath Slater

Why is this guy on the roster?  Who did he sleep with to get a WWE contract?  Seriously?   This guy is horrible!!

Hornswoggle

Again, why is this guy on the roster.  Sure, he was funny for a while.  He worked great with Fit Finley but besides that why is he still a WWE talent?  Free up cash and get rid of this guy!!

Johnny Curtis

Another wrestler who no one knows!!  I guess maybe he is HUGE in Europe or something but as far as the WWE goes no one knows or cares who this guy is.  In a few words Mr. Curtis…..YOUR FIRED!!!

JTG

Nothing like the WWE stereotyping.  JTG was cool in that tag team he was in a few years ago but he has stayed WAY past his usefulness.  Time for JTG to pack his bags and head to the indy circuit.

Rey Mysterio

Some may be shocked by this pick but in all honesty I have never really been a Rey Mysterio fan.  He was pushed all the way to the World Championship, which is beyond ridiculous, has repeatedly violated the WWE wellness policy, and is a wrestler who should have been capped to the mid-card as it is totally unbelievable that he could beat someone like Batista, John Cena, The Big Show, JBL, or anyone who has more then 50-100 lbs on him.  Mysterio can barely wrestle without getting hurt and needs to hang up the mask and give way to new lucha libre the WWE can bring in.

Scott Standford

Four words:  Bring back Jim Ross!!

Sin Cara

I was hoping that Sin Cara was going to bring a new element to the WWE.  He didn’t.  He violated the wellness policy and has pretty much been a dud for his whole run.

Titus O’Neil

Who is this guy?  The WWE Creative Team would like to know too!!

Trent Barreta

This guy could probably be good if the WWE could ever find something for him but I don’t see that happening anytime soon.

Yoshi Tatsu

Anyone named after a dinosaur from a video game probably shouldn’t be a wrestler, much less in the WWE.  This guy has done nothing for the WWE and it’s time for him get the “We wish you the best in your future endeavors.”

So, there are my picks of talent that the WWE needs to be released in order to make room for new guys to be hired.  There are TONS of great wrestling talent that should be in the WWE and it’s time that the WWE make room for them.

And that’s the bottom line!!

Most wrestling fans will agree that the state of the wrestling business has been boring and stale for the last several years.  Storylines have been boring, championships have been devalued, and the lack of superstars have caused many to jump ship to rising sports like MMA.  While the WWE has tried to bring in older, more established stars like The Rock as of late it, seems that besides the ratings boast just hasn’t really materialized.  However, with the return of Brock Lesnar could the “Next Big Thing” be the catalyst that revives the wrestling business and specifically the WWE?

Brock’s return has created HUGE waves within the WWE as it gives the WWE its biggest heel since……..well…….Brock Lesnar.  The WWE has been in need of a monster heel since Brock left 8 years ago.  Sure they tried Mark Henry, Randy Orton, and a few others to take that spot, but no one has been as dominate as Brock was in his first WWE run.  With his return and his focus on the top babyface in the company, could the WWE be working to revive the company and product by creating a monster that can only be stopped by the rise of a new crop of talent?  Is the WWE going to allow John Cena to be destroyed at Extreme Rules in order to give way to an unstoppable Lesnar that makes the new generation of superstars rise to the top to defend the company?  I think it would be a great strategy.

Just imagine if Lesnar ran through the top superstars on the WWE roster (Cena, Punk, Show, Sheamus, etc.) in total domination.  Then out of nowhere Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Justin Gabriel, Mason Ryan, Michael McGillicutty, or a faction of new stars came to the rescue of the WWE.  Since the WWE seems to be pushing John Laurinaitis as a heel GM trying to take over the company from Vince McMahon using Brock Lesnar would be the logical answer to the biggest treat to the company.  Using this strategy would allow the WWE to use the mid and lower card superstars to defend the company while being lead by someone like CM Punk or Randy Orton.  This would allow the WWE to lay off Cena for a while (as it seems most fans would like to see that) and allow Punk and Orton to take a more leadership role in bring up the new talent.  Vince could return with a plea to save his company and rally the younger talent to step up to the plate.

However, Laurinaitis would need more then Lesnar to lead a charge against the WWE.  Which would bring in superstars like Mark Henry, a heel turn for Brodus Clay, while also bringing in some of the bigger more monster like wrestlers from the lower card and FCW.  I would even love to see old superstars return and pick sides or a true Raw vs. Smackdown like attitude where the faces are from the Raw show and the heels are from Smackdown.

Certainly Brock Lesnar cannot save the WWE or it’s product on his own but he can be the man that paves the way to a new era in the WWE that launches the careers of new talent and the superstars of tomorrow.  I guess only time will tell.

And that’s the bottom line!!

While I think the Era actually began on June 27, 2011 when CM Punk did a shoot interview on Raw that sent the Internet Wrestling Community on fire, this evenings Raw seemed to really cement the fact that the WWE is going in a new more reality based direction.  I must confess that the WWE has surprised me a lot lately (Rock winning at WM 28, Brock Lesnar returning on Raw last week and F5ing John Cena, and then this week when Cena and Lesnar had what appeared to be a legitimate brawl).

Please remember, I am a fan first.  I have watched wrestling for over 20 years.  I love it, and the recent direction the WWE has taken has caused me to love the sport even more.  The fact is that WWE is moving in a more reality based direction that will make the product feel and seem more real and here are some examples:

*  The John Cena/Brock Lesnar brawl with the underlying fact that when Lesnar was in the WWE several years ago he legitimately didn’t like Cena.

*  The CM Punk/Chris Jericho feud.  The fact that they are bringing in a wrestlers real past and personal/family struggles will hit home to millions watching.

*  The WWE has stepped up the profanity on programing.  They did this in the lead up to the Attitude Era.

*  Cena bleed on live WWE programing this week!!!  That is HUGE!!!!

While I would love to see this direction continue, we can only hope that it does at this point.  I still think the WWE is taking this direction change slowly as they still want parents to bring their children to the shows but the fact it that the WWE will only see another boom period if they can capture the 18-35 year old demographic.  The only thing I can say is that I hope the WWE continues in it’s current direction!!

And that’s the bottom line!!!

Personally I would love to see Lesnar be a dominate heel who blows through the WWE locker room.  I would love for the WWE to make him so dominate that no one can stop him.  Where it becomes the whole WWE locker room banding together to try and stop this beast of a man.  Lesnar has been that way before in his first run with the company and if the WWE plays their cards right he can be again.

John Cena.  The most loved and hated WWE superstar currently on the roster.  There is no middle ground with him when it comes to fan support.  You either love him or hate him.  I for one like him.  He’s entertaining.  While I am not always a fan of his promos (especially the ones geared more toward my 3 yr old.), I do enjoy his matches and the build up over the last year to WrestleMania 28 and his match with The Rock kept my interest enough for me to buy the PPV.

However, I just do not understand most wrestling fans hate for the man.  Sure he has gotten more then enough BIG pushes over the last decade, but I don’t think that is his fault.  The fact that the WWE cannot create big superstars to step into the main event has nothing to do with John Cena and everything to do with WWE Creative.  Cena is a workhorse!!!  Cena sells tickets!!  Which means that those people that call the wrestling podcasts and comment on the blogs about how much they hate Cena are paying their hard earned money to go see him at WWE events.

Is John Cena the best technical wrestler in the WWE?  No.  He never has been and never will be.  Just like Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior wasn’t in the 80′s-90′s or Triple H, Undertaker, and Batista in the 2000′s.  These type of guys will never be great technical wrestlers.  They are beast of men who manhandle their opponents.  They are the giants we like to see wrestle each other and do power moves that guys like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, CM Punk, and Daniel Bryan can’t do.

Sure, John Cena has been pushed hard and held the WWE/World Title more then he probably should have, but again that is more the fault of WWE Creative then John Cena himself.  John Cena came into the WWE at just the right moment and ascended to the top of the card because all the greats from the Attitude Era were either retiring, moving to Hollywood, or married the bosses daughter and moving into his new office space at Titan Towers.

The WWE had no choice but to push Cena.  I only wish they would have stayed away from the PG ratings and allowed Cena to continue in his attitude rap persona.  The 18-35 yr old male demographic loved him then.  He was a rebel and said some of the funniest and craziest stuff on WWE TV since Stone Cold Steve Austin.  While Cena right now is in the middle of transition as a character I think the real blame for the hate for him should be laid at the feet of WWE Creative and a heel turn that would take that into account would be a great storyline if Cena would be willing to go that route.  The only problem with that is Cena is the face of the WWE.  He is the Make A Wish Foundations favorite WWE superstar, he is the guy the WWE puts in front of the cameras at every possible chance to promote their brand.  Could the WWE really put CM Punk in that position?  Daniel Bryan?

While I would love a Cena heel turn to give his character a different spin I don’t know if I see it coming as much as I thought it would happen at WrestleMania.  With the addition of Brock Lesnar (who is a HUGE heel character), Cena could easily stay a babyface and take on Lesnar with a new sense of “I have a point to prove” mentality.  Time will tell but for now I would love to see if the fans who are currenlty booing Cena will cheer for him again if he were to get a little more edgy.  Only time will tell.

And that’s the bottom line!!

I have read a TON of blogs and websites all condemning the WWE for the 18 second shocker between Danial Byran and Sheamus last night at WrestleMania.  To be honest, I LOVED it!!!  It was totally shocking!!  I didn’t see it coming and it caught me off guard!!!  One minute I was talking to my brother about who was going to “JBL-it” (lose a match in under a minute) and the next thing I know Sheamus has brogue kicked Bryan into next week and is the new World Heavyweight Champion!!!

WHAT A WAY TO KICK OFF THE SHOW!!!

I know, I know!!  I may be marking out a little here but bear with me!!  This WrestleMania was EPIC!!!  I felt like a little kid again watching wrestling with my dad.  The whole show was great and I was genuinely blown away by several things during the show!!!  However, I will save my WrestleMania recap for another blog.  For now I want to still talk about the Danial Byran/Sheamus match:

Here is what I think we can expect from the booking for these two men in the coming weeks;

Daniel Byran

     He’s going to be pissed and is going to blame AJ for the loss at WrestleMania.  I’m hoping the WWE stays away from a physical violence angle between the two but I absolutely see a confrontation coming.  Probably tonight on Raw or Friday on Smackdown.  However, the squash match will not be the end of Daniel Bryan.  It could actually be something that takes his heel character to the next level as he becomes more violent and ruthless.  I hope that is the case.  Bryan is by far the best pound for pound pure wrestler in WWE’s locker and the more he is in the main event the better it will be for both WWE and Bryan.

Sheamus

Sheamus needs to dominate!!  While Sheamus has been around for a few years now I have always thought him a better heel then babyface.  However, right now he is really over with the WWE fan base and has the opportunity to really lead the Smakown brand into a new era.  With the WWE a bit short on baby faces on the Smackdown brand it will be Sheamus responsibility to grow the new talent coming in and help Smackdown to compete with Raw.  I hope that Sheamus is not a transitional champion and would like to see someone hold the title longer then a few months.

I think WWE is in a new era and look forward to how things play out over the next couple of months.

And that is the bottom line!!

    EPIC!!!!  

I’ve been a pro wrestling fan for a long time!!!  I have been a fan in good times and bad times.  I have been a fan when it was cool to watch wrestling and when all my friends laughed at me.  I have been a fan before Vince McMahon was a billionaire and when the Attitude Era packed out every arena it came too!!  I LOVE pro wrestling.  I love the storylines.  I love the characters.  I love the culture!!  It is in my blood.  It is in my heart, and it will be something that I will share with my children and grandchildren.

Tonight I am proud of my sport!!  I am proud of the WWE for putting on one of the BEST pay-per-views in a long time!!!  I am proud that I got to sit with my children and family and watch as the WWE gave me everything that had!!  It was awesome!!!  While I certainly hear all the marks in the IWC (Internet Wrestling Community) talking about how the WWE sucks, why John Cena sucks, and why the Attitude Era was better, I will be honest when I say that they have no idea what they are talking about!!  They are fair whether fans!!  They will stop being fans when they get bored.  Sure wrestling goes through cycles and boom and bust periods, but wrestling will never suck!!!  EVER!!!

Tonight the WWE gave us the wrestling Superbowl and it was fun!!  They had me at the edge of my seat!!  I was shocked by the outcome of several matches, predicted a few more, and ended the night thankful for Vince McMahon, the WWE, and the great Superstars that give their heart and soul in this industry.  Tonight was EPIC and I am glad I paid the money to enjoy the show!!

And that’s the bottom line!!

Wrestling promotion TNA (Total Nonstop Action) picked up a developmental agreement with Ohio Valley Wrestling and WWE’s developmental territory FCW has told its television company that it is closing its doors. Rumor has it that FCW would be moved to Connecticut to be closer to the WWE and hopefully have more of a crowd at the television tapings. If this is true or not… I think that I have a better idea that will benefit the WWE and ultimately the wrestling industry which seems to be dwindling over the past few years compared to the rise of MMA.

WHAT THE WWE CURRENTLY HAS
Logically the WWE doesn’t even need a developmental territory when they can just scoop up anyone they want and put them on NXT or Superstars for a year before they make it to RAW or Smackdown. That keeps costs down while still training talent.

MY IDEAS
Start 4 territories or get an agreement going with 4 existing promotions. These territories need to be in big cities far away from one another. Let’s say New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto and London. These are all in English speaking countries since the WWE is an English speaking company.

GETTING EYEBALLS AND SELLING TICKETS
Each company would have around 20 wrestlers and 3 of those would be WWE contracted employees, the WWE could send 2 or more developmental workers to each company, and on top of that, the WWE should send 1 midcarder to each company for a TV taping. These midcarders would be main eventers and given a chance to shine with these small companies. In the TV tapings they could work programs with the developmental guys to train them on regional TV. Imagine Dolph Ziggler vs Richie Steamboat in Los Angeles for a month. Jack Swagger vs Chris Hero in Toronto. Cody Rhodes vs Xavier Woods in New York. The TV tapings are for 3 – 4 weeks of TV. Have the WWE midcarder the star for that taping to get eyeballs and sell tickets. Then the next month shuffle the WWE midcarders that come in. Jack goes to Los Angeles, Dolph goes to London.

THE INVASIONS
Then if they want ratings… the Toronto one could invade the New York territory for a few months. Or the UK one could invade the Chicago territory. And yes European style and diversity are very important. I miss diversity in wrestling. It is so simple 4 developments in 3 countries to draw in 20 workers each. Let the promotions hire 18 guys and WWE could give them 1 dev talent and 1 midcarder per TV taping. 1 TV taping for 4 episodes per month. 2 storylines to follow with each show.

The companies could do once a year or once every 2 years.  The away team from a city better than yours comes in to threaten your home town babyfaces. Month one the heels go over, months two and three the home team wins. Then… you go to the other city and reverse the home and away teams. Home teams always win in the end. Like if WWE invaded WCW on WCW TV the fans would want WCW their prefered product to win. Plus you’d get a chance for your roster to practice heel and face. Away team is always heel even your squeaky clean faces in Los Angeles become heels in Toronto. So you know how is this guy as a heel without the guy’s character by flip-flopping him face heel face for the home territory.

THE NON WWE WORKERS
SInce you can’t have a company of 3+ WWE workers, the feeder company needs to have other guys and with the tagline of WWE developmental territory it would attract workers. With four feeder companies in 3 countries it would attract everyone in the country that wants to make it to the WWE. There are legends of guys living out of their car just to get the WWE to notice them working at the developmental territories. Canada has some great workers, so the WWE needs to have a territory there to make the tradition from Canadian wrestler to American sports entertainer go smoothly. London needs a territory to have a different WWE style and if William Regal and Fit Finley can make it in the WWE, then there can be other success stories. Since the WWE is so international, they need English countrymen the fans can cheer for. Someone that looks and sounds like them.

IN CONCLUSION
Look for a second part to this discussing how the WWE can saturate the industry with wrestlers to fill these feeder promotions if they don’t have their own training academies.

Bland.  That is the one word that best describes what the WWE product has been for the last several years.  Sure there have been some storylines that I thought were going to revive the brand, but all of them ended up being nixed or rewritten.  While I am and will always be a WWE fan here are some ideas I had on how the WWE could revive the brand:

1.  End the Smackdown brand.  It has run its course and is just costing the company money.  It is barely a B show and the time and effort put into the show could be used to make Raw better and more edgy.

2.  Establish baby faces and heels again.  Sure there are a few superstars that are one or the other but for the most part most WWE superstars have no real identity.  Only change their status by an ending of a storyline or surprise.

3.  Get rid of either the WWE Championship or the World Heavyweight Championship .  To have both cheapens both.  I would love to see the WWE go back to the old school “Winged Eagle” WWE Championship Belt.

4.  End the every month pay-per-view and return to the Big 4 (WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series, and Royal Rumble)  This will allow for storylines to develop and grow instead of starting and stopping every couple of weeks.

5.  Only do 3 live shows a week including Raw but not including a PPV (If they returned to the Big 4 PPV schedule). This will allow time for the wrestlers to have breaks and get much-needed rest.  This will also make WWE tickets hot commodities.  Many WWE superstars are plagued with injuries because a lack rest time.

5.  Hire the hottest up and coming Indy stars even if they don’t look like Batista.  The best time in WWE history was the Attitude Era which headlined superstars like Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, The Rock, and Stone Cold Steve Austin.  While these men were in great shape, they were not 300 lbs monsters.  There is no need to have a locker room full of Batista’s.  They are usually not the best wrestlers anyway.

6.  Work with local organizations in the cities they work in each night.  This would allow for local talent to get a try out and also allow those attending the show to know that there is a local organization in the area.  The WWE would do well to work with the Indy promotions in the cities they work in.

7.  Make the titles mean something again.  PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DO THIS!!!  IF YOU DO NOTHING ELSE, DO THIS!!!

8.  Return to being a private company.  The WWE is a great company, but in order to go to the next level it will need to expand its horizons a little and think outside the box.  Corporate interests have clouded the minds of WWE management and it is long past time to get back to the basics of what made the WWE a force to be reckoned with.

I think if the WWE did the following we would begin to see a turnaround in how the company is run and the quality of programing offered.  Let’s hope that things begin to change in the very near future.

And that’s the bottom line!!!