Corner to Corner: What is RIGHT in Wrestling?
    Submitted by Stan Grubb on Tuesday, August 19, 2003 at 7:26 PM EST

    Triple H is too controlling. Vince McMahon has lost touch with the fans. Stephanie McMahon has a screech that could curdle milk. The Big Show and A-Train are taking up too much television time, while those who deserve it are being told to wait their turn. So much is wrong today. Just so damn much. But you know, just what in the hell is RIGHT with the business today?


      Corner to Corner: What is RIGHT in Wrestling?


    Hello again everyone and WELCOME BACK to Corner to Corner. Thanks to Calvin for the understanding behind my hiatus. I'm back now and all explanations will be made available at a later time. Right now, I'm sitting on the topic that has been going through my brain for the past three months and it's time to finally share.


    OFF WE GO!!!!


    So, what IS right in wrestling?


    This is the one question I've been pondering since Badd Blood. I mean, is it even possible that wrestling doesn't suck half as bad as these guys who run around screaming that their boy deserves a push? Is it possible that wrestling isn't as doomed as some would have us believe? You're DAMN RIGHT it's possible!


    Note to all you folks who are waiting for the Big Show to get fired: You've got another five years. It's called a contract and the man is an investment. So, like it or not, we're stuck with the fat bastard until he gets hurt or just decides to retire. And as for A-Train? Once again you can sit and wait, because somebody in the back loves the heel heat the man draws.


    We get to spend so much of our time complaining, I often think that we could use a hand finding the positives that make us enjoy this sport so damned much. So here we go, top five positives in the business today.


    5. NWA-TNA: A Weekly Reminder


    There you go right there. The NWA-TNA has been on television now for almost a year and it has yet to show any real signs of closing down. When we order their pay per views, we get a glimpse of what raw wrestling talent can look like without the marketing machine in CT. Teams like America's Most Wanted and XXX give you no chocie but to admire the skill and desire of those involved. Plus we don't have the degree of storyline that WWE decides to push so much, so it becomes a story of who is the better wrestler. Damn, I miss that.


    4. Brand Extension in WWE having separate PPVs


    Look, it's obvious that WCW is gone, no rebirth is possible. That being said, we do have the next best thing. Raw and Smackdown having their own individual pay per views. What we're finally getting a chance to see is just who does rule the roost. I mean sure, Helmsley is the top dog in Raw, but at least with dedicated pay per views, we can see the other talents that might not see a pay per view had this extension never happened. When you are the single biggest wrestling promotion in the world, it's really better off to diversify and show everyone that they DO have a choice. With Smackdown, we are finally seeing those wrestlers who work their asses off get rewarded. With Raw, we have NEW talent actually busting into the limelight. I don't care one bit about what Triple H does, but the fact that The Hurricane is able to do a main event with him, tells me not all is wrong with the world.


    3. The Return of the Intercontinental Title: Making up for stupidity can be hard.


    Face it, when they unified the Raw World Title and the Intercontinental title NONE of us cheered it at all. As a matter of fact, we all knew it was a disaster. So, finally they bring the thing back and once again we get a chance to see OTHER WRESTLERS shine. Case and point: Christian. Here's a talent who, given the proper attention, can very well become the next main event draw. All he really needs is a little fuel to the fire he has when he's out there. So they give him the Intercontinental title. Sure, the original way he won it was kinda silly, but in retrospect he's given more than his share leading upto today so it wasn't all that bad of a move. It's a shame Booker T is injured but at least the belt didn't go to a lesser wrestler. With Christian, you've got potential for a show stealer and also the chance to see a young star break the glass ceiling. I always felt the best way to get up top is to kick the sombitch down.


    2. The Return of the United States Title: Again a smart move to cover up ignorance.


    When the Smackdown World title is being held by the Big Show, or when its tied up in a feud that probably won't end anytime soon, what else have we got to watch and enjoy? Well at one point, we had the tag division and the cruiserweight division, but recently they've been really trying to avoid those for some reason. The one shining thing that seems to keep it together however, is the United States Title. When it becomes important to reward your workhorses, you give them a title that has always(save the Duggan reign, cuz well he sucked) signified hard work and determination. What belt could that be? Yeah, that's right the UNITED STATES title. That belt is in the right hands when it's held by Eddie Guerrero or Chris Benoit. It's in the right atmosphere when you have those men putting on clinics. Rhyno and Tajiri are both good additions to the division as well. You've got to admit, when all else seems to really get on your nerves on the Smackdown side, at least you've got one title you can count on to have quality talent involved with at all times.


    1. Honest answers to important questions in interviews


    To me, one of the best things about what's going on in wrestling today is the honesty that a lot of superstars are showing. There comes a time when it's not about being the best in ring performer anymore but rather the most up front and honest. In a time where the integrity of the business is under a very heavy microscope, people like RVD and Roddy Piper are doing us a service by giving us their honest feelings and opinions. It's too often that the WWE website blows off a rumor only to see it come to fruition a month or so later. What this industry needs to keep is the integrity that the two I mentioned a moment agot have attempted to show. Piper, who was fired for his honesty, showed that this business is a dirty and scary thing when you it overtakes the important things like family and friends. He gave us all insight into what really makes a wrestler tick, even if it isn't pretty. I don't know if his release was right, but I'll say this much. The man told the truth and for that, much respect to him.


    Rob Van Dam is rumored to be winning over the guys in the back with his candid remarks. You can't qutie blame him either when every effort of his get's shuffled downward while the antics of egomaniacs attempt to overshadow his outright excess of talent. A lot of people try to cover up for Triple H and how things are really going. Van Dam is at least giving us the perspective we really need to see. He's not overly concerned about where he's at on the card anymore, because he apparently sees that he's getting the reactions when he's out there. So it kinda reminds us that yeah, Triple H sucks, but at the same time we have these highlights to overshadow him. And when you got somebody being honest it becomes hard to overlook that. What will they do now? Fire RVD for telling the truth? Well if ya do that, NWA becomes a real player because you just KNOW they'd pick him up. In essence, RVD has given the WWE a degree of brush off that he feels they have given him and to me, that shows he's not afraid of the potential nonsense. Integrity is just that important nowadays, so when someone comes out and says the truth, I'll applaud.


    In short, I think we can all agree that yeah, the industry is in need of some repairs, but not an overhaul. We have guys like Jericho, RVD, The Hurricane, Brock, Kurt, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero to look at and say: "Hey, those are some damn good workers in there, let's enjoy that."


    Summerslam Predix: Who will leave the Chamber a winner? Who will be the Smackdown champ?


    Summerslam is this weekend and we're all wondering who will come out on top. Well, I'm gonna give this a shot and we'll see who wins what.


    RAW's Matches


    I'm gonna say that Chris Jericho is going to win the elimination chamber and become the Raw World Champ. To me, HBK is deserving but his deal with Orton will keep him out. Triple H will end up doing the job, FINALLY, but I think it will be to Jericho before it goes to Goldberg.

    I'll go ahead and pick the Dudleyz over La Resistance. I think this one has been the slowest tag feud I've ever watched and I'll be happy to see a title change and La Resistance go back and find something a little more effective than being french canadians. Sorry guys, try the 90's they may have room for ya.

    Shane McMahon will defeat Eric Bischoff. C'mon, how in the hell is this going to go any other way? It's all over but the crying for Eric and we need to see a good Shane-O Mac win.

    In a hard deal to decide, I'll go against the grain and pick RVD over Kane. Not that I don't think Kane will mess him up during or after, but I think RVD will get the win to continue his momentum.


    Smackdown's Matches


    So far we've got three, probably fourth to be added.

    I'm picking Lesnar over Angle in a screwjob finish. Sorry, I don't think McMahon can stand the idea of not being on television, so he'll probably be the one who puts the title on Lesnar.

    When it comes to the Taker vs. A Train? Hey, I'm not opposed to see the Train get derailed. So uh, yeah I got Taker.

    In the four way dance for the United States Title, I'm going to pick Rhyno. I have a gut feeling that Tajiri will somehow cause the ending to put Rhyno over.

    So there we have it. My thoughts on Summerslam! Next week, we're going to look at Wrestling Games: Past, Present, and Future.

    See ya next time it's good to be back and THANKS FOR READING!

    --Stan Grubb--


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