Wrestlemania 25, Baby!

[Mass Haas]

Once a year, we dedicate a wrestling thread that's not an R.I.P. tribute.

 

Bring on the silver anniversary edition!

 

Here's a summary and prediction piece from across the pond.

[razzzorsharp]

So who will be the big surprise? It says no Rourke, but will he interfer causing Jericho to lose?

[JimH5]

My prediction. . .

 

Someone dies and Chavo cries.

[patrickgpe]

all right so while giving up wrestling since i was 17 i have been watching raw the last couple weeks and i must admit wriestlemania seems to be compelling. I wouldn't pay 55 dollars but if i knew a bar to go watch it in town i'd would (does bw3's still show pay paer views). I think the undertaker vs shawn michaels and triple H against randy orten should be entertaining to watch.

[radman12484]

I am so pumped for HBK vs. Undertaker, Orton vs. HHH and Money in the Bank. I don't know which direction they are going with either of these matches, although I think Undertaker won't lose his streak but will be a good match. I could see Orton beating HHH with someones help that isn't part of Legacy. Money in the bank winner will probably be Christian or MVP. Big Show wins triple threat. Matt Hardy beats Jeff Hardy. Santino almost will win Ms. Wrestlemania, but Trish Stratus will win. Don't really care for the other matches. Should be fun show. 4 hours, well worth the money.

[jwaltz]

I can't see them having HBK winning and ending the streak. That's a feat they should save for a younger up and coming main eventer to give him a push. I'm not sure who that would be though. Orton vs HHH could go either way. If they are going to continue this feud then Orton needs to win here. Cena v Edge v Show is kind of a blah match. I just can't care about it. Too much soap opera. I wish they would have kept it about the title. The MiTB match is always entertaining. Not sure why Mark Henry's in there. I don't think there's anybody that believes he can win. I think MVP wins it. I don't see Vince giving this to Christian so soon after his return even though of all the participants he's the most main event ready. I think the match of the night will either be the MiTB or Taker v HBK, with Colons v Miz/Morrison a dark horse for match of the night if they are given enough time.

[Invader3K]

I kind of hope they don't waste 'Taker's streak on Shawn Michaels. I'd rather see a young guy like Cody Rhodes or Ted Dibiase Jr. beat him, and make it mean something.

 

Also, I didn't think I should start a new topic about this, but by chance have any of you played the Fire Pro Wrestling games from Japan? Some guys from another message board are trying to start a petition to ask Spike (the company behind it) to consider making a new game. This was just started by a US soldier currently serving in Iraq, so I figured the least I could do was put up a link. At worst, it can't hurt to try, I suppose: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Support_NEW_Fire_Pro_Wrestling/signatures-1.html

[thablingster]

I've been watching wrestling on and off for the past few months, but from what I have seen I think they've done a good job of building up both Undertaker-Michaels and HHH-Orton.

 

I could see Michaels beating the Undertaker because I really can't see Undertaker putting over a young guy to end the streak at WrestleMania. As for HHH-Orton, I would not be completely surprised to see a McMahon turn heel on Triple H to help Orton win, but since that is so obvious I'm not sure if they would book it that way on WrestleMania, but the booking rarely surprises me as a 20 year veteran of watching wrestling so it could happen.

 

I'm guessing we probably will see Mae Young in the 25 diva match because they love to randomly trot her out.

 

The Money in the Bank match should be good. Punk, Kingston, Christian, and Benjamin will probably take or give some ridiculously awesome bumps in the match. I wouldn't be surprised if this is finally the year Benjamin wins the match, he has come a long way. Otherwise my nod goes to MVP.

 

It should be a good show.

[brwrsfan]

Anyone know of any bars in the Waukesha area that shows PPV's now? Sharkeys and BW3's used to, but neither does any more (Sharkey's is gone now I think). I'd like to watch it but don't want to shell out the 55 bucks for it.

[And That]

WWE has clamped down on bars showing PPVs. The thought was, more people would buy PPVs at home if they couldn't congregate at an establishment. I don't know how well that has worked out for them given how far their buyrates have declined in recent years.

 

Like I mentioned in another thread, this is the first Wrestlemania in a long time I won't be watching. The HHH-Orton feud has been fun to watch... Orton has a chance to be one of the best heels in history. Other than that and the Money in the Bank ladder match (except for the inclusion of Mark Henry and Kane... that's terrible booking), nothing is of interest to me.

 

The Cena-Edge-Show angle was very late in developing. That's a shame because those three guys are capable of really great mat and mic work. Where the WWE really screwed the pooch was Jeff Hardy's booking. He's a fan favorite (I'm a pretty big mark myself) and they have him in a feud with his brother. It was another late developing storyline and Matt Hardy is terrible as a heel. Jeff should have had a title shot, or at least should have won the Money in the Bank. Jericho vs three old guys is lame. The rest of the card is nondescript. I don't think the ECW title or the US title is even being defended? And a Diva battle royale? Whoopty crap.

[TracyThom]

I hate HHH. I think Orton will win at WM because the rumored main event at the following PPV is Vince McMahon, Shane McMahon, and HHH against Orton, Rhodes, and Dibiase. *groan*

 

Really nothing is compelling me to buy this PPV. As usual, I think the Money in the Bank ladder match will be the best match. Matt vs. Jeff might steal the show, though. Where is Evan Bourne? How about R-Truth? Both guys are insanely over, but neither guy made the PPV.

 

The biggest disappointment is the Jericho angle and storyline. We get Jericho against Piper, Snuka, and Steamboat. Piper and Snuka can barely move. I love Ricky Steamboat. Hopefully he delivers his deep arm drags against Jericho. It's too bad they couldn't talk Stone Cold into a match against Jericho. I would have picked up the PPV then.

[crewcrazy]

To be fair, I think Money in the Bank was kind of screwed over by injuries this year. Evan Bourne and Wisconsin's own Mr. Kennedy (....Kennedy) would have been two good bets for the match instead of Kane and Mark Henry, but were both out for extended periods of time (Bourne returned a couple weeks ago, Kennedy's still out). I was surprised that they had Shelton Benjamin drop the U.S. title to M.V.P. just a few weeks before the PPV...maybe they're getting ready to push him with a MITB win, and they didn't want him to lose momentum by losing the title after he already held the briefcase? MITB should be fun because even though there's only a handful of guys who probably have a real chance of winning it based on the way they've booked recently (Benjamin, M.V.P., C.M. Punk, Christian), but there's no real clear winner.

 

The rest of the card seems pretty predictable to me...I think Rey Mysterio's going to beat JBL for the IC title (ugh...first time the IC title's been defending at Wrestlemania since 18, and it's a crap match), Miz/Morrison will beat the Colons (Morrison's going to be a star in a few years), Jericho's probably going to lose to the Legends thanks to interference from Mickey Rourke, Jeff Hardy's probably going to beat Matt (although the build for this match has been total crap; very disappointing and not exactly Bret vs. Owen caliber wrestling), John Cena's going to win the World Heavyweight title (Edge is rumored to take more time off, and I don't see Big Show as a viable world champion), Undertaker's beating HBK in what should be a great match, and I think Orton should win the WWE title (I love the work he's been doing lately).

[And That]

Miz/Morrison will beat the Colons (Morrison's going to be a star in a few years)

I forgot about this match while writing my previous post... all four guys in the match are pretty awesome wrestlers. Morrison is an unbelievable talent, Miz is a very underrated heel (he's bloomed as a wrestler in the past year), and Carlito and Primo are top notch luchas. They've put almost the entire feud on ECW for some reason. ECW can be the most entertaining show some weeks, but it's not the place to hype anything other than the ECW championship match, of which there is none at Wrestlemania.

 

Speaking of ECW, TJ Wilson, er, Tyson Kidd, is going to be a huge star. He has all the energy of HBK. Jack Swagger should end up with a few title runs. I even like DJ Gabriel's size/speed combo. And Evan Bourne should have been in the Money in the Bank, even with the short turnaround from injury. Replacing Henry and Kane with Bourne and Ron Killings, er, R-Truth, would make it a monster match.

[LouisEly]

To be fair, I think Money in the Bank was kind of screwed over by injuries this year. Evan Bourne and Wisconsin's own Mr. Kennedy (....Kennedy) would have been two good bets for the match instead of Kane and Mark Henry, but were both out for extended periods of time (Bourne returned a couple weeks ago, Kennedy's still out). I was surprised that they had Shelton Benjamin drop the U.S. title to M.V.P. just a few weeks before the PPV...maybe they're getting ready to push him with a MITB win, and they didn't want him to lose momentum by losing the title after he already held the briefcase?

 

Two very good points. Kennedy definitely would have been in the match. I must be the only person who wants to see a Mark Henry push. I recall the little feud with Mysterio where Mysterio went for the pin on Henry and got the two count, but then Henry sat up (still holding Mysterio), rolled over backwards and up to his feet, and did a power slam on Mysterio for the win. I thought that would propel him to a push but apparently not.

 

MITB is usually about 1) who has paid their dues and is ready for a push but hasn't held the title before, and 2) who is the hot new talent signed and the push is in their contract. This leaves Benjamin (definitely paid his dues), Christian (perhaps the push was in the contract to get him to leave Jarrett's promotion), and Henry (paid his dues). Henry's the long shot, but the threat of "the world's strongest man" cashing in a title shot at any time, particularly after a long brutal match or a gang-style "beatdown", could be well-played by the WWE.

[Viva La Grinch]

Too late to look it up, but I gotta believe Henry's contract is up soon. I think this is the year when we finally get somebody winning MITB and not winning the cash in match. I am really hating MITB, as it has become more important the the intercontinental match these past few years. As for the winner of this match, I am really rooting for Christian. It makes the most sense, as they can get a fresh story with Edge out if it. I wonder though if Vince would give him the push so soon after his TNA run. TNA's ratings are up, and they might be finally viewed as competition for the the WWE.

[TracyThom]

Bah, TNA will never be competition. I watch them pretty regularly, and I just shake my head with their storylines. I liked the old days of TNA when the X-division received top billing. I really don't need to see Kip James (Billy Gunn) and Kevin Nash on my tv screen. Nash can barely move for goodness sakes. Speaking of that, did anyone go to the GLCW show in Waukesha a few weeks back with Hall & Nash vs. Billy Gunn / Road Dogg? I heard Hall was having "issues."

 

ECW is the only wrestling program that I Tivo on a regular basis, outside of the Lucha Libre on Galavision. ECW is more about wrestling than storylines. I am looking forward to the Tyson Kidd/Evan Bourne feud. It should be fun. As usual though, the ECW roster will get ravaged during the next WWE Draft Lottery. It does every year. Just keep Matt Striker on commentary and I will be a happy man.

 

I forgot to mention Fire Prowrestling. I've been playing Fire Pro since Fire Prowrestling S on the Sega Saturn. I love it. For those who don't know, you can pick up Fire Pro wrestling Returns for the Playstation 2 for under $9 on Ebay. It's worth the purchase.

[Invader3K]

Ah...GLCW. I forgot they were still around. I remember going to one of their shows in '98, and they had Mick Foley doing basically his last appearance as Cactus Jack. He won their title that day, too.

 

Tracy, sounds like you and I got into Fire Pro around the same time. I also had 6 Man Scramble on the Saturn. Awesome game for the time.

[jwaltz]

Fire Pro Wrestling was awesome. All of them are great games.

 

Now WWE is saying the Tag Title match won't be aired on the Wrestlemania broadcast It's going to be recorded as a DVD exclusive. Boo. Way to take one of the best potential matches away from the PPV buyers. I agree that Morrison is a future star. He's the guy I'd like to see end Undertakers streak next year. He plays his self absorbed primadonna character perfectly and he's very good in the ring and on the mic.

[razzzorsharp]

Undertaker's streak continued....

[Viva La Grinch]

I am so glad that I watched the PPV for free and did not pay to see this. When I have to endure five Kid Rock songs instead of watching a tag team match that was advertised, something is wrong. The Taker match was good, but also had many dead spots and will probably be blown up since it was the highlight of the PPV. The Orton match was a snoozer, and I actually read the newspaper during it. Seemed liked it just set up Backlash with that match. Throw in the rushed diva battle royal and MITB and the ho hum Cena win and this was a PPV that ranks with the bottom Wrestlemanias.

[PlayerHader]

I only saw the last 3 or four matches. Taker vs. HBK was very good I thought. Some good spots. Cena lifting up the Show and Edge at the same time was phenomenal in an otherwise average match. HHH vs. Orton was a joke. Boring wrestling throughout and an even less interesting finish. I was very disappointed there. Did HHH turn heel? I haven't watched much recently, has he been a face?

 

Those were the only matches I saw. Seemed pretty disappointing.

[TracyThom]

I haven't seen the show, just read the results. What does the WWE have to gain by HHH retaining the title? I don't get it.

 

I also forgot to mention, Ring of Honor now has a weekly show on HDNet. Very good stuff.

[brwrsfan]

Wrestlemania was pretty terrible in my opinion. I was able to find it for free, I would have been pretty unhappy to shell out $55 for that. I just don't understand a lot of the thinking that went on. I missed about the first 15 or so minutes, but when I turned it on, it seemed like the MITB match was just about over. I thought that was very odd to have started Wrestlemania.

 

Then, what was with Kid Rock...really boring, no reason to have that many songs. He stops singing and then all the Divas are already in the ring (I did leave the room for a bit, but I don't think I missed 25 entrances.....I didn't even know who was in it, or who the "legends" were, that was really disappointing...especially to let Santinto win (funny, but really lame).

 

I kept waiting and waiting for the tag match, I go online and see that the Primos won. Did this happen in like the first 2 minutes of the show or was it not even on at all? How do you promote a match for weeks and then not even show it on the PPV? Very poor.

 

I was disappointed with just about every match, save for Michaels/Undertaker, which was the highlight, but mainly out of default, as the others were all boring. I still don't understand the fascination with Cena as champion, and HHH keeping the title made very little sense. I was hoping for Christian/Edge fued to start, a major heel turn or something...but as has been the case with about the last 20 PPVS...very predictable, very boring and not worth the money. I might have finally come to the end of my wrestling watching days. It's been building for awhile now and I've just grown tired of the same stuff, same stories, same poor PPV's all the time.

[Invader3K]

Yeah, I have even stopped watching RAW basically...which I have been watching pretty much every week since the early '90s (going back to the WWF Primetime Wrestling days). It just doesn't hold my interest anymore. I'll probably watch tonight for the post 'Mania fallout, but if they don't hook me right away, I'll probably be taking a break from watching WWE for quite a while.

[crewcrazy]

Rumors going around that something big might be happening on Raw tonight in terms of HHH/Orton fall out. I hope they don't just leave last night's result as the blowoff for the feud, because it left a lot to be desired. Orton could easily say something about HHH having to use the sledgehammer to beat him, and since HHH was supposed to lose the title if he was disqualified (and he would've been had the ref been "conscious"), he could get some kind of rematch tonight.

 

The Undertaker/Michaels match was incredible, though...instantly one of my favorites ever. I think part of the reason why the main event seemed so discombobulated and awkward was because the crowd and the announcers were burnt out from that match. The probably would've been better off having that match main event the show, because it was just incredible all around...especially considering both guys are well into their 40s and were still to pull off some of those spots despite having some serious body concerns (Michaels' back and Taker's knees).