C.S.

Don't let the shaggy beard fool you: Bryan is actually a decent looking guy. Dragunov is bowling shoe ugly. And let's not even get started on Ridge Holland and Timothy Thatcher, who look like toothless vagrants and have zero shot of anything on the main roster. I realize I'm being overly harsh, but only to make a point: That's exactly what Vince, Dunn, and Prichard are probably thinking about a lot of these NXT "darlings."

Difference is, Jeff Hardy is a pretty boy - Dragunov has a face not even a mother could love. Even by the low standards of "wrestling pretty" (Ricky Morton, Tommy Rich, etc.), Dragunov ain't it. I hope I'm wrong and you're right, believe me, because I really like the guy, but we all know how cosmetic WWE is.

I'd love to be wrong, but in a world where we're debating whether Adam Cole (Bay Bay) would do well on the main roster, I don't see how Dragunov has a chance. Just to be clear, I think Dragunov is great, but will Vince, Dunn, or lick-ass Prichard? Doubtful.

You really think Draguov would do better on the main roster? That seems like a big reach to me, Bubba.

I'd love to know what the supposed "cure" was from March 2020. Ogogo can o-go-go fuck himself.

PETE DUNNE VS. DRUGANOV TONIGHT! Hell yeah!!! Kyle O'Reilly is dreadful next to Adam Cole. A stammering mess on the mic, no ring presence, no charisma, no personality. Cole is actually a damn good speaker - especially next to KoR - good enough to act in movies, even. I've never been a huge Cole fan, but he brings such a believably to his character that KoR completely lacks. Yeah, Bubba, Odyssey definitely feels like one of the few NXT acts who will do even better on the main roster.

Bracket #1 1. Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon 9. Raven vs. Sandman 5. Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels 4. Vader vs. Cactus Jack 6. The Undertaker vs. Mankind 3. Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart & Hart Foundation 7. Steve Austin vs. The Rock 15. nWo Black & White vs. nWo Wolfpac Bracket #2 1. WCW vs. nWo 9. Sting vs. Vader 5. Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn 4. Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage 6. Ric Flair vs. Sting 14. Ultimate Warrior vs. The Undertaker DOUBLE DQ (HAVE NOT SEEN EITHER): 7. WAR vs. New Japan 10. Burning (Kobashi & Akiyama) vs. Untouchables (Misawa & Ogawa) 2. Ric Flair vs. Hulk Hogan Bracket #3 16. Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio, Jr. 8. Steiner Brothers vs. Nasty Boys 5. Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer 4. Rey Misterio, Jr. vs. Psicosis 11. Aja Kong vs. Bull Nakano 3. Dean Malenko vs. Eddie Guerrero 10. Sting vs. Cactus Jack 15. Diamond Dallas Page vs. Randy Savage Bracket #4 16. Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Vader 9. Jerry Lawler vs. Eddie Gilbert 5. Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart 4. Eddie Gilbert vs. Cactus Jack 6. Rick Rude vs. Ricky Steamboat 14. Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels 7. Rock & Roll Express vs. Heavenly Bodies 15. Rey Mysterio, Jr. vs. Dean Malenko

As beloved as the brief YouTube era of NWA Powerrr was before they pandemic, they clearly had no idea what they had in Eddie Kingston. In a perfect world without a pandemic, Billy and Lagnana would've eventually bought a clue, and Eddie would've been the one to dethrone Aldis. If I'm Billy, I'd work out a deal to send Eddie through the Forbidden Door to do just that. He is an NWA Powerrr "original," so why not?

That was me. Thank you so much for such a detailed write-up. Dave and Jim seem to have a weird sibling rivalry dynamic almost. It seems absurd to me that Jim would suddenly start hating Dave just because Dave likes the Bucks and Omega. Dave comparing The Bucks to The Midnight Express seems silly on the surface if he really means it, but I wonder if Jim took it as a petty dig by Dave, and that's what he's upset about. Good point by Jim that Dave's fandom is just as bad, if not worse. The WON message board was a complete embarrassment when I visited it several years ago, and I assume it still is. The Torch board was actually very polite and chill, so it can be done.

If any of that is true, AEW doesn't need people that dumb poisoning their locker room. Probably all Q-pilled morons anyway.

Not seeing how that's a bad thing. Arn and Tully were one of the best teams ever, whereas no one outside the ROH bubble knows what a redDragon is. They only wish they could be spoken about in the same breath as Arn and Tully.

Most baffling decision of the recent round of releases, for me, by far. People say Bobby Fish, but no - 1. He's old. 2. He's as "indie" as they come. 3. He wouldn't have made any kind of dent on the main roster as anything other than "the other guy" in a tag team or the fourth wheel in a stable. (Basically, just like his fellow Bobby - Bobby Roode - but with even less upside.)

Agreed. Cody made Darby, period. It's such a fucking cut-and-dried case that anyone claiming otherwise either doesn't understand wrestling or is stupidly anti-Cody.

The Finn-Joe era was some of the most boring shit ever, with some of the most overrated matches ever. Nak was around this time too, right? Another dud as champion. He was amazing in his debut against Sami Zayn, and it was all downhill from there. The Gargano-Ciampa(-Andrade) era was amazing at first, with some of the best matches in NXT history, but they ran the Gargano-Ciampa feud into the ground to the point of diminishing returns. That - whatever the fuck it was - on WrestleMania weekend was abysmal. Ironically, I'd welcome another Joe reign now. Compared to Kross, he'd be an amazing breath of fresh air.

Can you post the details in the Cornette podcast thread or create a new thread?

Reed is a head-scratcher and just had a title (I guess this explains the quick loss). Ruff was just a champion a few months ago himself. WTF? Martinez is another head-scratcher IMO, but it's not like WWE ever knew what they had in her. She'd be a good veteran presence on any other roster. Fish is surprising but not really. Can't imagine that enticing Adam Cole to stay though. I wonder if negotiations broke down with Cole, and Fish lost his only lifeline because of it. Who knows... Update - Rumor: Cole signed a main roster contract? If that's true, I wonder if they let Fish go after that, just like they fucked Zelina over by releasing her man the minute she signed. What a fucking company!

The Anderson-Eaton team with Michael Hayes as their manager (essentially combining The Horsemen, The Midnight Express, and The Freebirds) was one of the coolest things ever, and I absolutely loved them. I always thought they'd be the next great tag team, but the whole thing didn't last more than five minutes. I wonder what happened? One of the rare (only?) instances of WCW doing WWF-style vignettes and succeeding at them. Regal and Eaton were just that good. What a crying shame that Bobby Eaton was basically reduced to "enhancement talent" status in the Nitro era. Shame on Eric Bischoff for not having the knowledge or the class to realize the caliber of talent he had at his disposal in Eaton. "Beautiful" Bobby deserved a better send-off than that. Hopefully he at least made crazy Monday Night War money in those last few years, but I doubt it.

My favorite Bobby Eaton story. My favorite story about any wrestler:

This one is hard. Only 62, just a few months after his wife's passing.

First time I heard the phrase was in the Sylvester Stallone-Wesley Snipes-Sandra Bullock classic Demolition Man - 20+ years before Nick Gage.

If gymnastics can be an Olympic sport, why not pro wrestling? Just to be clear, I am not denigrating gymnastics in any way - it obviously requires extraordinary athleticism, but so does pro wrestling at its best. Rey Mysterio in his prime, for example, would have been an amazing Olympic-level pro wrestler. While I agree it's definitely an "in the bubble" conversation for Bryan and Lance to have, it's honestly not the worst idea in the world.

You must be a riot at parties.

Pat Laprade and Dan Murphy's Sisterhood of the Squared Circle: The History and Rise of Women's Wrestling has dropped to $2.99 on Kindle. I believe I paid $4.99 for it, so this is a great deal! (Edit: I thankfully got it at $2.99 when it was that price before.) https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01M5IK3DQ

Forget about Richard Fliehr. The bigger news is that JoJo Offerman was quietly released months ago. Seriously though, with I.R.S., Bo, and JoJo all getting released over the past year, I wonder if any of that played a part in Bray's rumored dissatisfaction.

Mickie James indirectly blamed Bliss too, even if that wasn't necessarily her intention. Obviously she meant it as a criticism of WWE higher-ups, but she should've been smart enough to realize her comments could potentially cause unnecessary issues for Bliss.