SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE
-I guess it’s worth starting with the big talking point of the business. Sami Zayn. Here’s my 2 cents (that’s why you’re reading this, right?!). Why not? WWE missed out on a big time, special moment at Elimination Chamber. Cody Rhodes won’t receive the type of pop and reaction that Sami would’ve gotten in Montreal. You can’t persuade me enough to believe that. Also, in recent years we’ve seen major titles change in February right before WrestleMania so you also can’t tell me that “you can’t change the title this close to Mania!” In recent years we’ve seen Brock Lesnar and Bill Goldberg each win World/Universal Titles in February. Heck, Goldberg did it twice in four years between ’17 and ’20! The biggest one of this century was Eddie Guerrero beating Lesnar before WrestleMania 20. If you’re reading this, you love pro wrestling. There are no “rules.” Maybe just one and it’s to do what’s best for business. Changing the title this past Saturday wouldn’t have cost WWE a dime. WrestleMania 39 is mostly paid for at this point and anything else added to the bottom line is gravy. At WrestleMania, you could’ve had Rhodes beat Sami. You could’ve had Roman Reigns regain the title. Is anyone really that invested in the 900+ day streak? I’ll tell you one streak that fans were invested in at one time…The Undertaker’s; Vince had him put the wrong superstar over to end that streak. But that’s another argument for another time.
-Why am I supposed to like Charlotte Flair? That’s a serious question. She still acts like a heel. She still cuts promos like a heel. Granted, I feel that coming out of WrestleMania, this ship will right itself and Flair will be the heel and Rhea Ripley will be the big time babyface (while also distancing herself from Judgement Day). But, right now this feels way off. There’s five and a half weeks left until WM39. I’d like to think that the roles can and will be flipped before then, but with Ripley still clinging to Dom Mysterio and Judgement Day, I’m betting it’s not until after.
AEW
-Why aren’t The Elite featured on AEW Dynamite more prominently? These guys founded the company; technically the company is even named after them! Something feels off. Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks, If the rumors are to be believed, contracts are expiring at the end of 2023. They won the Trios Titles at the end of last summer and then had to go on “hiatus” due to the “Brawl Out” incident. But, they returned to major fanfare that included a great (from an in-ring perspective) best of 7 series with Death Triangle that resulted in them regaining the Trios Titles. Since then? A lot of nothing outside of some random appearances. Yes, they’ve defended the titles a few times. But, we haven’t seen one big Dynamite segment involving them talking about their title win, what their plans for the future are, etc. Kenny Omega had, thus far, what many consider an early Match of the Year with Will Ospreay. Nothing on that end either. I know New Japan is a different company but there is a working relationship there. In a strange way, The Elite have been featured more on Rampage where the audience is typically half of what Dynamite gets. I was actually quite excited when the Trios Titles were finally announced. I went against that grain. But, AEW does have a deep, if not bloated, roster and I really believed this would help more of that talented roster get into some programs. It hasn’t gone that way and it has pulled from the tag division, which was once considered an embarrassment of riches. It doesn’t feel that way so much anymore. You can run a competent Trios and Tag Division without one hurting the other. Your wresters can participate in both and it still can work. So far, I think it’s fair to say that the booking of the Trios and Tag Division since All Out last year has been disappointing overall and it’s shown in the quality of the overall product.
-The best story AEW has going right now is MJF and Bryan Danielson. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to come to that conclusion. However, I am very intrigued to see the story they tell at Revolution. Bryan Danielson is a star that has been proven throughout his career that he can have long matches whether they are technical classics or just brutal fights. MJF isn’t known for that although his in-ring work is very underrated. I feel like it’s way too early to take the AEW Title off of MJF and that’s what makes this so intriguing. When you look at the history of these two, MJF is the underdog. I guess I’m really interested to see how he comes out of this with the title because I don’t think I could be talked into the idea that MJF loses it yet at Revolution. For my money, I think MJF retains at Revolution. My guess is that MJF finally loses the title at All Out this year to Adam Cole after we get the “Summer of Cole (bay bay).”
Other Promotions
-So, Jay White eh? Where’s he going next? From a selfish standpoint, I’d love to see him in AEW. I think he works best with their roster and would be able to maintain the edge that has made him so good over the past so many years in New Japan. But, on the other side of that, I’ve already stated earlier that I feel as though the AEW roster is still bloated. If The Elite is getting lost in the shuffle, what happens to Jay White in a few months? Jay White in WWE could be a lot of fun if his presentation isn’t changed too much. I had reservations when AJ Styles made the jump to WWE in ‘16 and he gave them some amazing programs and matches since. With Paul Levesque in charge, White would also get more than a fair shake (although, as stated, Vince McMahon didn’t fumble the ball with AJ Styles). I still think a lot could be done with White and his former Bullet Club mates if he chose AEW. That could also be a ton of fun (assuming The Elite also doesn’t leave at the end of the year). Either way, Jay White is poised to make a United States based company very happy in the next few months.
Non-Wrestling
-Does anyone really believe that the USFL or XFL can exist in the long term without somehow striking a deal with the NFL as a developmental system? I’m sure PWTorch Columnist Greg Parks would love to talk about this topic more as he also writes about the XFL on XFLBoard.com. The last time a secondary football league really worked was the original USFL in the 1980s. It only sunk because they (or should I say Donald Trump) got greedy and wanted to go head-to-head with the NFL and run Fall and Winter games. Even then, who knows if it would’ve lasted? Prior to that, the American Football League (AFL) was the only true secondary league that was successful and they were able to force a merger. Throughout the years, we’ve seen various versions of the Arena Football League, various versions of the World Football League, various versions of the XFL, various versions of the USFL, and (not to be forgotten) the Alliance of American Football (AAF). None have worked. If I’m Dany Garcia, Dwayne Johnson, Brian Woods, and FOX Sports, I’m constantly on the phone with someone at the NFL offices about my respective league becoming a feeder/developmental system.
If you’d like to ask me questions about pro wrestling, this column could turn into a partial “mailbag” type feature in the future! See below for contact details and maybe I’ll write about your question! If not, I’ll at least answer you via Twitter!
Tony Donofrio is a Contributor for PWTorch.com. You can contact Tony at TonyDonofrio@icloud.com and follow him on Twitter @TonyDonofrio.
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