{"id":14551,"date":"2016-03-29T14:05:18","date_gmt":"2016-03-29T19:05:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=14551"},"modified":"2016-03-29T14:05:35","modified_gmt":"2016-03-29T19:05:35","slug":"march29torchtoday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2016\/03\/29\/march29torchtoday\/","title":{"rendered":"Tuesday 3\/29 Torch Today &#8211; Raw Poll Results, Jon Jones, C.M. Punk&#8217;s UFC status, Ranallo calling WM32 matches, Ambrose talks old-school match vs. Triple H at Roadblock, Bayley talks Four Horsewomen at WM32, Eva Marie TV interview pre-Raw return, Baron Corbin on NXT fan angst, ESPN covers Road to Mania &#038; football\/pro wrestling, Jim Ross pens Texas Wrestling article, Renee Young interviews, EVOLVE Video &#8211; Thatcher doc"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-4081253907\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p><strong>TORCH TODAY &#8211; Tuesday, March 29, 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Opening Commentary: Three-hour Raws continue to drain the life out of Raw, especially on the Road to WrestleMania. Raw seemed to come to its natural conclusion when <strong>Dean Ambrose<\/strong> wheeled his wagon full of weapons away from ringside as <strong>Brock Lesnar<\/strong> stood in the ring twirling a kendo stick waiting to punish Ambrose on Sunday. WWE already got in the <strong>Undertaker-Shane McMahon<\/strong> hype, did what they could do with <strong>Roman Reigns <\/strong>and<strong> Triple H<\/strong> before Mania, and finished it off with Dean-Brock. But&#8230; there was even more show to go. Which led to a very long &#8220;main event&#8221; four-plus-hours into the TV taping, an uninspired Triple H promo, and an attempted pull-apart brawl that the crowd wasn&#8217;t having. The third hour really was a microcosm of the three-hour Raw era.\u00a0As a result, PWTorch readers were not pleased with the final Raw before WrestleMania&#8230;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>32% &#8211; Terrible Show (0-2 score)<\/li>\n<li>29% &#8211; Below Average (3-4 score)<\/li>\n<li>17% &#8211; Average Show (5 score)<\/li>\n<li>16% &#8211; Above Average (6-7 score)<\/li>\n<li>6% &#8211; Excellent Show (8-10 score)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/pwtorchlivecast.com\" target=\"_blank\">At PWTorchLivecast.com<\/a>: On-demand access to the final Raw Post-Game Show before WM32 with James Caldwell, Pat McNeill, Joel Dehnel, live calls, and emails.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/mmatorch.com\" target=\"_blank\">At MMATorch.com<\/a>: Coverage of <strong>Jon Jones&#8217;s<\/strong> latest run-in with the law just\u00a0ahead of his UFC return fight.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; <strong>C.M. Punk<\/strong> talked on Monday to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mmafighting.com\/2016\/3\/28\/11314212\/the-mma-hour-with-jon-jones-demetrious-johnson-joanna-jedrzejczyk-cm?_ga=1.217544528.799455960.1459238502\" target=\"_blank\">Ariel Helwani on the MMA Hour<\/a> that he could not put off back surgery any longer when his latest injury occurred training for his UFC debut fight. Punk said there is a small chance he could fight at UFC 200 this summer, but it&#8217;s more likely for later this year.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Don&#8217;t worry haters, I&#8217;m going to fight and it&#8217;s going to be f&#8212;&#8212; fun and awesome and you are going to be real upset. I just don&#8217;t want to say anything because I have\u00a0learned\u00a0my lesson. I have optimistic goals and we are just going to see if my back can cooperate with that,&#8221; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mmamania.com\/2016\/3\/28\/11319280\/ufc-cm-punk-tells-haters-make-ufc-debut-2016-and-it-will-be-awesome-mma\" target=\"_blank\">Punk said<\/a> of trying not to set expectations for when his first fight might happen so that he doesn&#8217;t have to pull out of another fight, like he did with <strong>Mickey Gall<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; <strong>Mauro Ranallo<\/strong> revealed that his WrestleMania Weekend schedule\u00a0will include calling the WrestleMania pre-show matches and being part of the NXT Takeover panel on Friday night.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/twitter.com\/mauroranallo\/status\/714871149788684288<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-4270157196\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&#8211; <strong>Dean Ambrose<\/strong> talked to <a href=\"http:\/\/fightnetwork.com\/news\/6552075:the-laws-full-interview-with-dean-ambrose\/\" target=\"_blank\">Live Audio Wrestling<\/a> about his old-school wrestling approach, how veterans respect him for his approach to his craft, and enjoying his Roadblock match against\u00a0<strong>Triple H<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was very cool to me because it was a lower-key situation, a bare-bones situation, it wasn\u2019t all the bells and whistles and the sparks and crap. It was just a more intimate arena at Ricoh, a bare set, just a ramp. I showed up to the building at 6:00,\u00a0you had two dudes, he\u2019s an old school kind of guy too and I shared the ring with him. It was just two guys working, two guys wrestling, just feeling it, and doing it old-school style. Having that classic style match that you don\u2019t really get to do anymore because now we\u2019re out there doing TV style stuff. Now it\u2019s sports entertainment. To be able to travel back in time and take everyone on a retro night, it was like retro night. This is what it would be like if it was still pro wrestling. Just for one night, we\u2019re going to turn the clock back and I was so happy to be able to do that,&#8221; Ambrose said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; NXT Women&#8217;s champion <strong>Bayley<\/strong> talked to the <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/siriusxmrush\/nxt-womens-champion-bayley-on-nxt-takeover-triple-h-and-moving-to-the-wwe-main-roster\" target=\"_blank\">Busted Open satellite radio show<\/a> about her thoughts seeing the other Four Horsewomen in a Divas Title match at WrestleMania.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love NXT. It\u2019s been an honor and a privilege traveling the world with them. We\u2019re such a family here, but my ultimate goal is definitely to be up there and seeing them (Charlotte, Sasha Banks, and Becky Lynch) in a match at WrestleMania when you\u2019re thinking last year, we were just watching it together on the floor of WrestleMania,&#8221; Bayley said. &#8220;I just saw a picture of AT&amp;T Stadium and they\u2019re, like, right front and center and it\u2019s just amazing what a year does and what hard work and dedication does. It makes me so proud, like I feel like I\u2019m part of the show. But, I know that after the end of the show, I\u2019m just going to go back to my hotel and just think, \u2018What can I do to be there next year?'&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Before returning to WWE TV on Raw, <strong>Eva Marie<\/strong> appeared on Hallmark Channel&#8217;s &#8220;Home &amp; Family&#8221; show on Monday morning. Eva talked about training in NXT, where everyone is fighting for a main roster spot. She said she watched WWE during the Attitude Era with her family, who initially thought she was crazy for trying to be a wrestler as an adult. (Thanks to VIP&#8217;er Kylin)<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; NXT wrestler <strong>Baron Corbin<\/strong> talked to the <a href=\"http:\/\/pittsburgh.cbslocal.com\/2016\/03\/29\/baron-corbin-finding-wwe-success-after-end-of-days-in-nfl\/#.VvrGSmOOV_k.twitter\" target=\"_blank\">Pittsburgh CBS affiliate<\/a> about his college football background and battle with NXT fans who do not see him as one of their guys, like <strong>Austin Aries<\/strong>, who Corbin faces at &#8220;NXT Takeover&#8221; on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s just my attitude. I\u2019m gonna do what I want when I want to do it, and if people don\u2019t like it they can either change their mind or deal with it,\u201d Corbin said.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m getting opportunities to get in there and tangle it up with these guys, and of course I learn every single time. I learn what to do, what not to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/espn.go.com\/espn\/story\/_\/id\/15075017\/real-life-injuries-taken-their-toll-wwe-ahead-wrestlemania-32\" target=\"_blank\">ESPN.com&#8217;s David Shoemaker<\/a> published an article on the injury-filled Road to WrestleMania that led to <strong>Shane McMahon<\/strong> in a headline match at WrestleMania.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-3106392997\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/espn.go.com\/college-football\/story\/_\/id\/15089922\/ric-flair-roman-reigns-ties-college-football-pro-wrestling\" target=\"_blank\">ESPN.com<\/a> also published an incomplete list of college football and pro wrestling tie-ins. The main focus was on <strong>Roman Reigns<\/strong>, who played at Georgia Tech, headlining WrestleMania for the second consecutive year a decade removed from his college football career. ESPN also dove into the history of college football stars with wrestling tie-ins, omitting\u00a0University of Texas All-American <strong>Steve &#8220;Mongo&#8221; McMichael<\/strong>, who had a WCW run in the 1990s.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Ahead of WrestleMania returning to Texas on Sunday, <strong>Jim Ross<\/strong> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.foxsports.com\/wwe\/story\/wwe-wrestlemania-32-texas-stone-cold-steve-austin-the-undertaker-shawn-michaels-032916\" target=\"_blank\">published an article on FoxSports.com<\/a> looking at the history of Texas Wrestling and some of wrestling&#8217;s biggest stars hailing\u00a0from Texas. Ross will be camped out at the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ticketmaster.com\/Jim-Ross-tickets\/artist\/1944341\" target=\"_blank\">House of Blues in Dallas<\/a> this weekend for three &#8220;Ringside&#8221; shows that might include some special guests with Texas tie-ins.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Big Week in Texas, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/HOBDallas?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@HOBDallas<\/a> Tkts Scarce, Ross Report Podcast w\/ <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MarcMero?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MarcMero<\/a>, Book Update, AXSTV,    <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ZF6yr0xQYo\">https:\/\/t.co\/ZF6yr0xQYo<\/a><br \/>JR&#39;s Blog<br \/>RT<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Jim Ross (@JRsBBQ) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JRsBBQ\/status\/714890333775994880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 29, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&#8211; WWE announcer <strong>Renee Young<\/strong> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.miamiherald.com\/sports\/fighting\/article68735812.html\" target=\"_blank\">talked to the Miami Herald<\/a> about the influences on her TV interview style and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.si.com\/more-sports\/2016\/03\/28\/si-media-podcast-renee-young\" target=\"_blank\">talked to Sports Illustrated<\/a> about auditioning for ESPN&#8217;s SportsNation gig when Michelle Beadle briefly left ESPN for NBC Sports.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; WWNLive released a new mini-documentary on Evolve champion <strong>Timothy Thatcher<\/strong>.\u00a0EVOLVE commissioned filmmaker Kenny Johnson to produce the special documentary on the Evolve Title match between Thatcher and Matt Riddle from March 19 in New York.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"EVOLVE Mini-Doc: Before, During, After Thatcher - Riddle I\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uIzTTpEf2Wc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-2101681924\"><div id=\"pwtor-3107690433\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>TORCH TODAY &#8211; Tuesday, March 29, 2016 &#8211; Opening Commentary: Three-hour Raws continue to drain the life out of Raw, especially on the Road to WrestleMania. Raw seemed to come to its natural conclusion when <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2016\/03\/29\/march29torchtoday\/\" title=\"Tuesday 3\/29 Torch Today &#8211; Raw Poll Results, Jon Jones, C.M. Punk&#8217;s UFC status, Ranallo calling WM32 matches, Ambrose talks old-school match vs. Triple H at Roadblock, Bayley talks Four Horsewomen at WM32, Eva Marie TV interview pre-Raw return, Baron Corbin on NXT fan angst, ESPN covers Road to Mania &#038; football\/pro wrestling, Jim Ross pens Texas Wrestling article, Renee Young interviews, EVOLVE Video &#8211; Thatcher doc\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5653,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[601,133],"class_list":["post-14551","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-quicknews","tag-torch-today","tag-wm32"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/PunkCM_WK_3x2_600.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14551","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14551"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14551\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14553,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14551\/revisions\/14553"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14551"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14551"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14551"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}