Jeff Wilen in his JAWbreaker segment at three8six.com, spoke to Kevin Nash on the phone yesterday afternoon. Nash told Wilen that his contract with TNA runs out on October 10th and that he had been in talk with Vince McMahon.

‘I talked to Vince (McMahon)," Nash said. ‘He offered me a contract, but he wanted me to dye my hair.’

Nash reiterated a TNA Wrestling schedule would be easier on him than a WWE schedule.

Nash had told other reporters in the past week that he wasn’t trying to rush any negotiations and that he had more to lose in the stock market right now than in a new contract.

Read the rest of Jeff Wilens reports here.

Post from: EveryJoe

Kevin Nash’s Status In TNA

Tonight Manny Pacquiao (46-3-2), arguably the #1 pound-for-pound boxer in the world, is stepping up a weight class to fight Ring Magazine’s #3 ranked lightweight David Diaz (34-4-1). It should be a great action fight and a lot of fun. The undercard features the great junior lightweight Humberto Soto (Ring’s #4; 44-6-2) who faces Francisco Lorenzo (32-4) and the skilled featherweight Steven Luevano (Ring’s #3, 35-1) who faces Mario Santiago (19-1).

Tomorrow the WWE Night of Champions is sure to see either a change in the WWE Heavyweight Title or the WWE Championship. Truthfully though the only match I’m interested in is the climax to the Batista vs. La Familia saga: Edge vs. The Animal. I’m really not too thrilled about John Cena vs. HHH (again), whichever lumbering big men are fighting and, c’mon, Miz and Morrison vs. Finlay and Hornswaggle(!).

If I had won Vince McMahon’s Million Dollar Giveaway I would be buying both events. But I didn’t and I’m buying neither.

If I were choosing between the two I’d buy the Pacquiao fight but then I’d be giving up three hours of my Saturday night to watch an event not broadcasted (at least via Comcast Harrisburg, Pa.) in high definition. That ain’t gonna happen.

I may find a way to watch these events but until then I got the Pay-Per-View blues.

Post from: EveryJoe

I Got the Pay-Per-View Blues

The WWE’s connection with Make-A-Wish began in 1982, dating back nearly to the charity’s inception. Since then the WWE has been involved over 5,000 wishes. It’s a perfect partnership. Kids love wrestling and wrestlers, for the most part, are generous, caring, down-to-earth guys.

Naturally, the good guys are the most Wished-for. Kids don’t just ask to see “a wrestler”. They ask to see their personal hero. The Make-A-Wish Foundation recently honored John Cena for his 100th wish fulfillment. His typically generous response:

We’ll have the real celebration when we hit 1,000. It’s not about the people who grant the wishes. It’s about the people who get the wishes.

The WWE recently produced a minute-and-a-half video spot highlighting their Make-A-Wish partnership and how they brought 50 Make-A-Wish kids, one from each state, to Wrestlemania XXIV this year in Orlando, Fla. WWE’s commitment to Make-A-Wish is not restricted to one-off events. Vince and Linda McMahon serve on Make-A-Wish’s National Advisory Council and wrestlers grant wishes year round and hundreds of nation-wide events.

Watch the video below and if you’d like to donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation go to http://www.wish.org/help/donate.

Post from: EveryJoe

WWE and the Make-A-Wish Foundation

Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes def. Cryme Tyme
This match lasts 12 seconds. I am not kidding. It takes Vince McMahon longer to dial the next Million Dollar winner’s number. She can’t stop telling Vince how wonderful is, how much she loves him, and how she thinks he’s the most handsome person in the world.

Image details: China Celebrates Valentine’s Day served by picapp.com

Paul Birchill and Katie Lea def. Mr. Kennedy and Mickie James
I enjoy all four of these wrestlers but am distracted and disturbed by the crawl reminding us to buy Ted DiBiase’s book, the WWE Kids magazine, WWE Diva ringtones, The Rock’s DVD (I do want that) and to register for next week’s Million Dollar Madness. This lottery farce is continuing next week! Maybe this week’s ratings will be down again and that will end it.

I like Katie Lea as a wrestler despite her tall awkwardness and her second pin in as many weeks of the WWE Women’s champ must mean something. She’s a convincingly vile heel, her myspace tag is dawgkilla, and I think her rivalry with James might have more legs than her “brother’s” saga with Mr. Kennedy. Kennedy has bigger and better things in his future.

Triple H def. Chris Jericho by DQ
Before tonight’s Main Event Frank from New Jersey wins $300K and tells Vince that he loves him. He had to have been prepped.

The match has started and Jericho has a quizzical probing look on his face. He’s trying to solve the puzzle that is Triple H. We suggest hair conditioner. Triple H viciously tosses Y2J into the ring post and Jericho grabs his shoulder. “Is he OK?” we wonder as the newly born match goes to commercial.

He must be. We return to see him put some damage to HHH via a kick to the head, an elbow to the face, and a slam into the steel chair. Jericho’s rage is getting the best of him as he recklessly walks into a HHH clothesline and knee to the face. Has the match turned?

Jericho can’t complete the Walls of Jericho (see left) and is hit with a Double-Edged Spine Buster and then a Pedig…no! Y2J counters but misses with a high risk Lionsault. HHH goes for the Pedigree again but Jericho counters again. The fight is getting good outside of the ring when Lance Cade, of all people, runs into the ring, assaults HHH, and the match is stopped.

John Cena shows up and all four start brawling. This is a disappointing turn of events. In the midst of it all Jericho puts HHH out with a Codebreaker showing what could have happened in the match had Cade stayed out of it all.

Post from: EveryJoe

WWE RAW 6/16 I Love You Vince McMahon

More Millions
Who could the WWE bring out alongside Vince McMahon to make the chairman look smart? Who could they put next to him that makes his delayed dialing synapses look lightning quick? There’s only one person:

Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Duggan is in a tux and so is his 2×4. My IQ has just dropped about 40 points.

Jeff Hardy def. Carlito
We’re already at RAW’s halfway point and this is only the second match. Thankfully, it’s good. Carlito brings his A game and the two work well together. During the match our favorite high flyer takes 4 blind leaps from the top rope and finally pins Carlito after a well-executed Swanton Bomb. As he leaves the ring Jeff looks exhausted and in pain. We worry about his health and the toll all those high risk moves must inflict. Nobody puts his body through week-to-week rigor that Jeff does and his sacrifice is why he is so loved.

Chris Jericho segment
John Cena and Chris Jericho are the WWE’s best talkers and they’ve both been featured tonight on the mic. Cena’s segment led to a great match but Jericho’s seems to be heading elsewhere; we don’t think he’s going to fight Shawn Michaels tonight. Y2J gets off to a rousing start calling the Salt Lake City crowd morally corrupt, blaming them for his rage, and telling them that they don’t want to be saved. He tells them that through they’ve ostracized him through their judgmental booing. They’ve forced him to punish Shawn Michaels for their sins. HBK’s blood will be on their hands.

This segment is great. Jericho is attacking the crowd by playing the Christ figure. His speech is laden with biblical metaphors and themes and where is he? That’s right, in America’s most fundamentally religious state and in a city whose main attraction is Temple Square. Coincidence?

Y2J wants revenge on HBK. Michaels, however, isn’t there. Y2J has the “liars and cheaters” chant HBK and whose music intones? Who is going to challenge Jericho? Jean-Jacques Rosseau’s favorite wrestler: the Nature Boy Ric Flair!

So much for retirement. After a standing ovation that lasts the entirety of the commercial breaks they stare at each other meaningfully before Flair challenges Michaels to a fight in the parking lot thus bypassing his retirement requirements. Y2J is game and follows the very sweaty North Carolinian. When Jericho opens the Exit door he runs into HHH who has “been looking for a way to make you my business” which Mrs. Jabandgrapple adds might be homoerotic if HHH didn’t look like Matt Damon’s Lenny Pepperidge character from Ocean’s Thirteen.

Flair tries to be angry about Triple H fighting his battles but the “I Love Yous” that he sprinkles into the conversation sort of defeat his purpose. No matter. Vince McMahon swiftly has Flair escorted from the building. Is a McMahon-Flair feud building? Sounds good to us!

Post from: EveryJoe

WWE RAW 6/16: Hacksaw, Hardy, and the Nature Boy

John Cena def. Umaga
No Million Dollar Giveaway and password at the show’s start? That’s good news. Instead we get Cena and HHH feuding in a Night of Champions promo. They’re really angry at each other but we’re happy the Million Dollar Mania isn’t the night’s focus. Can it continue? Vince McMahon breaks up their argument to announce the giveaway password – Watch Ray & Win – which is hardly a “password” at all. Oh, well.

Instead of Vince bumbling through the phone we immediately get a terrific “Street Fight” (no DQ’s) match between Umaga and John Cena. Cena finally seems fully recovered from his pectoral injury as evidenced by tonight’s high risk maneuvers, two attempts to lift Umaga, and the fact that he wasn’t fighting JBL for the 50th time since May. Once Umaga throws the steel stairs into the ring you know the match was over; those things are far too dangerous. Umaga’s recent losing streak has to mean one thing: he’s moving away from RAW next Monday at the Draft. This match and its setup take about 30 minutes and was a great start to RAW.

Can our good luck continue? Yes and no. Vince staggers again through dialing the digits, gives so MON-ay away to an excited man from Virginia Beach, and announces a WWE Divas bikini contest.

SCCCRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHH.

That was the show’s momentum.

Image details: Spring 2008 – Around Smashbox – Day 4 served by picapp.com

Did I mind seeing the beautiful ladies? No, but there is no way Eve Torres should have lost to Maria. No reason whatsover.

This week the Million Dollar winners are interacting with Vince and seemed (gasp!) prepped ahead of time. A man from North Carolina responds to Vince’s ‘who is the greatest person to come out of the Tarheel State’ question with ‘Ric Flair’ much to McMahon’s disappointment. Evidently Vince was born in Pinehurst, N.Car.

Could the Nature Boy reference be foreshadowing tonight’s future events? I have my suspicions.

Photo Source: Newscom.com

Post from: EveryJoe

WWE RAW 6/16: Street Fights and Bikini Blowouts

Opening Segment
Vicki Guerrero gets booed a lot. When Batista signs a contract to fight Edge at Night of Champions (if he beats the Great Kali) she adds a clause saying if he doesn’t beat the Indian then he will be banished from the WWE.
Comment: Yawn. I like the major heel hate Vickie receives but the “win or your banished” route is getting pretty tired.

Morrison def. Finlay
Comment: I really enjoy Finlay’s brawling but I last week thought his and Hornswaggle’s feud with Miz and Morrison was a little silly. Finlay brings the best out of everyone and Mick Foley’s insults of The Miz are terrific. This match was surprisingly entertaining and the best bout in a horrifically bad night of SmackDown. If Vince McMahon is wondering why ratings are falling he only needs to re-watch this night’s putrid display.

Mark Henry def. Tommy Dreamer
Comment: Mark Henry is the last person I want to see sweaty, glistening, and wearing a skin tight outfit. He’s such a ridiculously boring wrestler and an unconvincing bad guy.

Cherry def. Maryse
Comment: Why can’t this feud just end?

MVP def. CM Punk
Comment: I know CM Punk is straight edge but he always looks so old, weathered, and in need of sleep. Which is why I catch a few zzzzs during this match. I wake up to yet another headlock and fall back asleep. Wake up. Arm bar. More sleep. Wake up. Commercial. I’m happy because I assume the match is over. It isn’t. The match mercifully ends when the ref catches Punk holding the Money in the Bank briefcase and wrongly assumes Punk used it to knock out MVP. Horrible horrible match.

Matt Hardy def. Chuck Palumbo
Comment: Chavo Guerrero announces he’s fighting Hardy for the U.S. Championship and that Chuck Palumbo is customizing a motorcycle for him. Hardy easily defeats the under- utilized Palumbo.

Jesse and Festus def. Deuce and Domino
Comment: Deuce hits Jesse with a poorly placed boot and open up a nasty cut on the little guy’s forehead showing just how violent these moves can be if they’re missed by the smallest of margins. I don’t understand why Jesse doesn’t let Festus open the matches since the same Jesse-is-beat-up-horribly-until-he-can-tag-Festus plot occurs in every one of the fights. He gets the tag and Festus predictably goes wild and quickly pins Domino. Deuce and Domino brawl after the match and it seems like these two might be breaking up. Not like I care either way.

Batista def. Great Khali
Comment: It’s hard to expect much when only one of the two participants can actually move. Edge and a wheelchaired Vickie Guerrero watch the bout from the entrance area. We feel bad that they have to witness Khali’s trademark boring mix of leg drops, elbow slams, and head butts. Khali hits an impressive Khali Bomb and Batista promptly sues the Punjabi giant for copyright infringement. Actually, the Animal spears the huge Indian and pins him thus saving his career and ending a miserably bad SmackDown.

Post from: EveryJoe

SmackDown 6/13 Results

RESULTS
Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne def. Mike Knox and Shelton Benjamin
Veronica def. Kelly Kelly
Finlay def. Armando Estrada
Colin Delaney def. Armando Estrada
Hornswaggle def. Armando Estrada
The Miz and Morrison def. Kane and CM Punk

Vince McMahon’s announcement of the June 23 WWE Draft has taken a bit of anticipation from tonight’s ECW matches. The bookend tag team matches were fun but their feuds will surely not be maintained when a few of these stars will be drafted into other WWE brands.

For example, it’s hard for me to put any attention to the Kofi Kingston – Shelton Benjamin rivalry because both deserve and appear to be moving upward and out of the ECW. Still, they’re very good in the ring together and I thought the toss flip Benjamin landed on his feet was impressive. Wish they had had more time to face off against each other.

Kofi seems suited to fill SmackDown’s high-flying void – at least until Rey Mysterio reappears – and his goofy Jamaican stereotype angle would fit on the Friday night show. That being said I thought the opening ECW tag team match was terrific.

I really like the in-ring aerials of Evan Bourne (who last week was Matt Sydal). If he’s given a chance he could pump a lot of excitement and action into the ECW and might even get himself a tag team title belt. Below is a youtube video of their match. If you didn’t see it, judge for yourself.

Regarding the other matches, I don’t ever mind seeing WWE Diva Kelly Kelly but I’ve already tired of the Armando Estrada saga which has descended into pure comic relief. Pinned by Hornswaggle! C’mon.

The main event tag team title match was watchable but Kane’s pre-match showdown with Big Show sapped the match’s momentum and relegated it to a sideshow to the future Night of Champions event.

Post from: EveryJoe

ECW June 11: Waiting for the WWE Draft

RESULTS
Mr. Kennedy def. Paul Birchill
Mickie James def. Beth Phoenix in a non-title match.
John Cena def. John “Bradshaw: Layfield
Chris Jericho smashes Shawn Michaels’ face into a TV in a Highlight Reel segment
Umaga and Snitsky def. Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes in a non-title match
Cryme Tyme def. Santino Marella and Carlito
Jeff Hardy def. Triple H by count out in a non-title match

COMMENTARY
Was tonight really “all about the money” or were there some good wrestling matches? Before RAW started we had hoped that Vince McMahon would pull out all the stops for this episode. We thought that we’d get near pay-per-view caliber matches and great between-match drama since the stated intention of this Million Dollar Mania show was to bring in new RAW viewers. Were we right?

Once Vince announced the password, WWE Universe, and that he was giving out $200,000 RAW got right into a moderately interesting feud: Mr. Kennedy vs. Paul Birchill. The action was good and the Katie Lea-slapping-Kennedy was cool but I couldn’t get into it as much as we wanted. We were still distracted by whether or not Vince would call.

The next match was more or the same. It was a terrific WWE Divas match between the champ Mickie James and Beth Phoenix, the best women’s wrestler by far. After James pinned Phoenix Melina came out and feverishly attacked the Glamazon. It should have been fun but we were still thinking about the money.

The money-centric theme didn’t change. Either before or after every segment or match Vince gave away money. This consisted of the chairman slowly dialing the phone numbers like your aging grandparent often hitting the wrong buttons and having to start again. There were busy signals and the first callee actually Rickrolled Vince!

As the show went on there seemed to be more and more time dedicated to the giveaways. One especially long segment received a rain of boos and boooo-ring chants from the audience. The chairman’s son-in-law Triple H even derisively called him Monty Hall. Both the excited Oakland crowd and Triple H seemed a little perturbed that RAW had sunk to be all about the money. It should be all about the wrestling, right?

If Jerry “The King” Lawler’s declaration that 1.5 million people signed up for the Million Dollar contest then so far the giveaway must be seen as a failure. Even with the ratings decline RAW still draws more than 1.5 million weekly. The entry number reveals no demonstrative gain; maybe the shows ratings will be up. Up enough to excuse the raw desperation, the pathetic pandering, and the descent of RAW into game show territory? Not in our book.

This should have been a great night of RAW. The matches were great and the performers put in terrific efforts. The wrestling show shouldn’t have had to take a backseat to a glorified lottery.

Photo Source: Newscom.com

Post from: EveryJoe

Magnificent Matches or McMahon’s Million Dollar Mania?

Don’t get me wrong, I actually enjoyed last night’s RAW. However, this month’s community blog post here at b5 media is “The Worst” so I’ll be scouring each match and segment on RAW to determine what was “The Worst”. I’ll also balance it with “The Best”.

Segment winners in italics. At the end of the article we’ll crown our definitive Worst and Best of the June 2 WWE Monday Night RAW.

SEGMENT #1
Triple H, John Cena, Jeff Hardy and Vince McMahon discuss who will face HHH at the Night of Champions.

The Worst Nominees: HHH’s theme music (always bad); HHH making fun of Randy Orton’s broken collarbone; Vince McMahon’s kooky and confusing memory loss gimmick.
The Best Nominees: John Cena’s great stage presence (bringing up Nostradamus, Dr. Emmett Brown, Miss Cleo, and John Edward); Jeff Hardy’s inclusion in the title shot contenders; The Jeff Hardy replica armbands that so many audience members are wearing.

SEGMENT #2
Mr. Kennedy def. Umaga
The Worst Nominees: Paul Birchill cowardly ducking Mr. Kennedy; Katie Lea Birchill’s velvet costume; Birchill’s predictable post-match sneak attack.
The Best Nominees: Kennedy calling William Regal a “little British pansy”; The “I Wish Katie Lea Was My Sister” sign; Lawler’s “Katie Lea must be a fast learner” comment.

SEGMENT #3
Vince McMahon announces his $1,000,000 plans
The Worst Nominees: Vince’s bad acting and disingenuous amazement at the look of $1M; Vince’s increasingly growly voice; The incorrect belief that people need free money to watch the WWE.
The Best Nominees: Vince’s saying that the contest winner had to be an American citizen and that that might be difficult here in Bakersfield, Calif.; Vince correctly calling the WWE a cross-section of America; Vince’s call to bring back past wrestling fans; The class warfare angle “those who insult wrestling don’t get it and look down on you”.

SEGMENT #4
Santino Marella and Carilto def. Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes
The Worst Nominees: Non-title matches; Roddy Piper misuse as time keeper; Roddy Piper’s shirtlessness;
The Best Nominees: King to JR: “The last time you opened up your wallet Ric Flair was voted best newcomer.”; Santino insulting Jimmy Kimmel using gimmicks of other late-night hosts; Change: Cody Rhodes possibly breaking up with Holly and joining other next generation wrestler Ted DiBiase, Jr.

SEGMENT #5
Chris Jericho def. JBL
The Worst Nominees: JBL’s boring wrestling style; Jericho’s weird need to show mercy to his competitors angle; More fake JBL blood.
The Best Nominees: Jericho’s promise to defend the InterContinental Title as much as possible; Y2J’s acrobatics; The crowd’s bloodlust and desire to see more pain inflicted on JBL.

SEGMENT #6
Beth Phoenix and Katie Lea Birchill def. Melina and Mickie James
The Worst Nominees: This match’s abrupt end (I was really getting into it); Katie Lea’s gawkiness; The Mr. Kennedy-Birchill feud overshadowing the good women’s match and Melina-Phoenix feud.
The Best Nominees: Melina’s epic yearning desire to attack Beth Phoenix and her subsquent feverish hair-pulling; Mickie James’ perky acrobatic and excitable style;The beatdown Phoenix puts on Melina.

SEGMENT #7 and #8
Lance Cade def. Trevor Murdoch
John Cena and Mickie James talk in the training room while HHH watches TV in the locker room
The Worst Nominees: Cryme Tyme extraneously eying up the $1M; The WWE’s crashed internet server due to overwhelming $1M applicants; Trevor Murdoch’s singing; The crass Mickie James’ panties joke; HHH’s crotch shot
The Best Nominees: The breakup of a successful tag team and the resulting feud; Their apparent disdain for each other (just wish I could get more excited about this one); The commercial for the forthcoming The Rock 3-DVD set; John Cena and Mickie James do look cute together.

SEGMENT #9
John Cena def. Jeff Hardy for the right to face HHH at the Night of Champions PPV.
The Worst Nominees: A dude from the audience actually made it past the security and into the ring and seriously killed the momentum of what could have been a great match; We love Cena but we wanted new blood going for the title; The mid-match commercial shortened an already shortened match.
The Best Nominees: A dude from the audience actually made it past the security and into the ring and the crowd cheered him wildly; Hardy and Cena showed great professionalism when they visibly laugh at the guy and are forced to delay their match until he’s removed from the arena; JR and Lawler do a great job joking about the ring interloper: The King evokes an image of JR streaking and they reckon the $1M promise has driven the crowd crazy.

The WORST of RAW: Has to be the crass Mickie James panties joke from Segment #8. In Segment #3 Vince talked about how he wanted to bring back people who grew up watching wrestling and for some reason stopped. For me that reason was the unnecessary inclusion of sexual gags and a loss of the 1980’s innocence. If I had been tuning in anew for the $1M that joke might have turned me off for good.

The BEST of RAW: We’ll say the breakup of Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes that was hinted at in Segment #4. We want a change from the stagnant matchups more than anyone and a stable/alliance of second (and third) generation wrestlers like Rhodes and DiBiase, Jr. would be great.

Post from: EveryJoe

WWE Monday Night RAW June 2: The Worst