For those who keep track of such things, WWE has officially removed the Superstar profiles of Primo and Epico. They now work regularly as Los Matadores, so WWE just kind of swept their previous personas under a rug.
There was some expectation of Layla not returning to WWE, but she's now back in action and I for one am glad!
There are some incorrect dates for events airing on the WWE Network. Not really sure why, but with that much stuff to keep track of, I'm willing to cut them some slack.
Everything else from yesterday is after the break.
The business world had fun with the "WWE for sale" rumors, with both Bloomberg and SeekingAlpha weighing in. I'm under the impression the likes of Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and Kevin Dunn will be shaping WWE once Vince is out of the picture as opposed to him selling it off. Of note, Hogan wasn't an unknown before he joined WWE, though the company caught that lightning in a bottle. Either way, very interesting and well-written article.
WWE put out a press release on Mr. T going into the Hall of Fame. I think he's a great addition and pivotal to the celebrity wing. Cyndi Lauper should be the next celebrity put in. Then maybe Muhammad Ali? There are only so many who truly deserve it (though others might once enough time has passed).
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper is predictably fired up about the announcement. There could be some neat nostalgia moments at WM30. Hogan, Piper, Warrior, Mr. T, etc. don't need to actually wrestle for there to be a big pop involving them.
Zack Ryder symbolically broke his replica of the United States Championship as the "glass ceiling" preventing him from making it in WWE. I really admire his determination. I don't necessarily see him as "top guy" material, but I'll be damned if he doesn't have my attention. It is time for a new stage of his career. He doesn't need a gritty, edgy reboot, but it is time for a new Zack Ryder.
Smackdown's audience on Friday was 2.80 million viewers. There was a big bump for the March 4 show that was lost for this one. What caused 300,000 people to watch one week and disappear for the next!?
There's speculation of The Usos vs. The Rhodes Brothers for the WWE Tag Team Championship being added to WrestleMania. That's not what I would have expected a few weeks back. I guess the New Age Outlaws will be on the shelf for a little while longer before they get their rematch. Obviously WWE can't wait too long to pull the trigger there. I want my Dumpster match, damn it! Maybe for Extreme Rules?
In what shouldn't be much of a surprise, C.M. Punk's appearance on "The Talking Dead" was a subject of talk in the WWE locker room, specifically how rested he looked. I hope that leads to WWE adjusting its schedule so top guys don't go through so much so often.
For my take on Monday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. At least he wasn't made GM for the night. Whew. Honestly with him having a movie coming out, I think WWE can justify him being used on TV.
2. It's good to have a few people around as "job guys" - people who have the "losing" thing down pat and can serve as warmups for acts who've just started on the main roster. That said, there seem to be a good number of talents who are just kind of "there" and don't seem to be coming back in a big role anytime soon (Otunga, Bourne, etc.)
3. If they do put all the talented people on Raw and Smackdown, what's the point of watching NXT? There actually is room on the main roster, but WWE just uses the same few acts a lot. If there was a brand split of some sort, they could make use of more of their large roster of talented performers. it's not like they don't have plenty of TV time each week!
4. I'm in favor of them being disciplined in their booking approach and using new talent strategically (i.e. The Shield and the Wyatt Family). I wouldn't want there to be a situation where some NXT talents work a match on a big show and then WWE has no idea what to do with them.
5. I do think Russo gets a little too much blame, as he does deserve some credit for the Attitude Era's success. But, by and large, he's not someone I would classify as a "good" lead booker. He had a lot pressure on him a lot of times and that probably led to him "cracking" and producing less-than-stellar results, but I can't be too complimentary of him overall.
More wrestling later in the day.
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