2010 Pro Wrestling Thread

The Rumble jumped the shark when Rey Mysterio won it. How in hell is a guy who looks like he should be wrestling 135 at a high school wrestling meet going to win a match where you lift significantly larger people than you over the top rope?

 

So who are the favorites for the Rumble right now? The way I see it, in no particular order we've got....
Kofi
Pros: It would allow him to pick up his feud with Orton; A Kofi-Sheamus-Orton triple threat at WM would help build two new stars; Kofi's on the brink of superstardom and a WM title shot (and win) could push him over the top
Cons: He's faded just a step from the main event picture; More likely to get his title shot via MITB
Odds: 25-1, eliminated in the final 7

Cena
Pros: Still has a score to settle with either Sheamus or Orton; It's been two whole months since he's held the belt; Still the face (no pun intended) of the company
Cons: Held the belt so long that he's a little stale as champ; Will get another title shot at the Elimination Chamber next month; Could stand to build some heat by chasing the belt for a while; He's always the old stand-by whenever they need a safe placeholder champion, so he doesn't need to win now
Odds: 15-1, a surprise early elimination in the final 10

Triple H/HBK
Pros: A HHH win would further the DX breakup, especially if he eliminates HBK; HHH could turn heel by eliminating HBK and then stealing the shot at Undertaker; It's been a while since HHH has been in the championship picture; For HBK, he gets the shot at Taker the easy way and then saves Taker from losing the belt at the elimination chamber; HBK winning the Rumble and then Taker losing in the chamber draws out the drama and creates a conundrum; HBK can turn heel by eliminating Triple H
Cons: Hard to find any. I think one of these guys wins it, and eliminates the other; one con could be a sweet finish to the Rumble. Say HBK superkicks Triple H, who then flops over the top rope. While HBK is standing there with his patented somber dazed look, the third man comes up from behind and throws him out
Odds: HHH is 3-1, HBK is 2-1. They'll both make it to the final three, with one eliminating the other

Big Show
Pros: He's big, he's always on the periphery of the title picture, and they have a bad habit of making matches like Big Show-Sheamus for major PPVs; he could easily be the third man in my HHH-HBK scenario
Cons: They can accomplish so much more if someone else wins
Odds: 15-1, eliminated in the final 5

Chris Jericho
Pros: Could be a darkhorse winner if the stupid Raw vs. Smackdown thing is ending; Could also be the third man in the HHH-HBK finish; Has never had an extended, one-on-one feud with Undertaker; After being kicked off of Raw, embracing Smackdown and its title is a logical next step for him; eliminating HHH or HBK to win it would be a nice step/end for that feud
Cons: Like Big Show, they can accomplish more if someone else wins; I sense a Big Show-Jericho feud on the horizon; His character is driftless at the moment. Winning the Rumble seems an odd leap from where he is; Could just as easily pull a Santino and be eliminated within 15 seconds of entering as win it, and it would make sense right now
Odds: 5-1, eliminated in the final 3. There are a lot of reasons to make Jericho a surprise winner. It wouldn't shock me if he's the man

The Miz
Pros: Got a little taste of the main event last night and could be in line for a big push; Has made big strides in the last year
Cons: It's just not his time yet; The feud with MVP is his priority right now
Odds: 100-1. He draws an early number and is eliminated by a fresh MVP in the final 12 after a good showing

Cody Rhodes/Ted Dibiase
Pros: One of them winning would further their split with Orton; Similar to Kofi, a Dibiase-Sheamus-Orton triple threat at WM (after they inadvertently cost Orton his match at the Rumble) would benefit several guys; They both made it to the final four last year, so it's not unthinkable that they could win this time
Cons: Both of them have been thrown into the background lately, so a Rumble victory would be a surprise; Like others, more can be accomplished in the big picture and just as much for their characters without them winning
Odds: 15-1 for Rhodes, 8-1 for Dibiase. Rhodes is eliminated fairly early, Dibiase makes it to the final 8 -- and is somehow screwed over by Orton after Legacy costs him his match with Sheamus

CM Punk
Pros: Three-time world champion has established himself as a go-to guy when they need to put the belt on someone; after two MITB wins, he needs a new route to a championship shot; So many of the favorites are from Raw that they'll need a token Smackdown guy (and a token heel) around at the end
Cons: Yet again, more can be accomplished without him winning; Just doesn't seem to be angling for a shot at Undertaker right now; Is doing more good as a solid mid-carder than a main eventer right now
Odds: 30-1. He'll be in the final 9, maybe the final 6, but he won't win.

If you've made it this far, here's my early prediction for the final 10, starting with the winner and going in order of elimination:
Winner: HBK
Chris Jericho (eliminated by HBK)
Triple H (eliminated by HBK)
Ted Dibiase (eliminated by HHH after interference from Orton)
Big Show (eliminated by Jericho)
CM Punk (eliminated by Big Show)
Kofi Kingston (eliminated by Big Show)
John Cena (eliminated by Big Show)
Kane (eliminated by HHH and HBK)
Christian (token ECW guy, eliminated by Kane)

 

Realized I forgot Rey and Batista. I see them eliminating each other somewhere around the 10-12 range, not long after they enter. Put their odds at 20-1.

 

Batman: Rey and Batista are probably in the Undertaker title match, so I don't guess they'd be in the Rumble.

I'm going to guess that HBK doesn't win the Rumble, but he costs Undertaker the title and eventually gets a WM rematch. It might be the impetus for a heel turn, but it doesn't have to be.

Had they did a better job keeping Kofi hot, I could have seen him winning the Rumble and jumping to Smackdown to challenge Batista for the title (assuming he beats Taker that night). Could still happen, but I doubt it. He's more likely to win Money in the Bank at WM.

My guess: HHH wins, Sheamus somehow beats Orton (DiBiase interference backfires or he just flat-out turns), and we get the following theoretical WM card:

Sheamus (c) vs. John Cena, WWE title
Batista (c) vs. Triple H, World title
Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker (maybe an Iron Man stipulation?)
Vince McMahon vs. Bret Hart, no holds barred
Randy Orton vs. Ted DiBiase
Money in the Bank: Kofi Kingston, The Miz, MVP, John Morrison, Shelton Benjamin, Christian, Drew McIntyre, CM Punk
Hart Dynasty (c) vs. Evan Bourne/Mark Henry, Unified Tag Team Championship1
Chris Jericho vs. Rey Mysterio, hair vs. mask2
Ezekiel Jackson (c) vs. William Regal, ECW title3

1 -- Figure DX won't have the belts at WM. There aren't many established teams (and we're all sick of Harts-Cryme Tyme), so pick a couple of random guys to produce a perfunctory tag team title match)
2 -- Bryan Alvarez is reporting that the plan, now that Hardy's in TNA/legal trouble, is to do Punk-Mysterio hair vs. mask to replace the Punk-Hardy match that was originally hoped for. But Punk wouldn't be ashamed to shave his head, since he told that dude last week that it proves he's better than the addicts around him. Jericho and Mysterio have a history involving Mysterio's mask, and who DOESN'T want to see Jericho bald?
3 -- Ezekiel beats Christian for the title, then Regal turns on him at some point because he wants the belt.

 

Holy shit, that's some big ass font.

Batista won't be in the SmackDown main event, unless Vickie puts him in the match and makes it a triple threat.

 

Already fixed. There's a difference between size=7 and size=7pt.

Can't imagine they'd have Undertaker be the champion at WM, especially if they're going with HBK-Taker II. Nobody's watching that match because there's a title at stake. Better to have someone else hold it so you have three top-card matches (four, depending on how you see McMahon-Hart). Batista's a better bet than Rey.

 

I'd throw Cody Rhodes into the MITB match ... he has to be on the PPV somewhere.

 

Great job, TNA! Finish your show with another version of the Montreal Screwjob. Like that ain't happened before.

 

Another old anti-American wrestler died.

http://deadspin.com/5454190/dead-wrestler-of-the-week-ludvig-borga

 

Cena brought his A game with that promo with Vince.

 

Indeed. I found myself...*cringes*...liking him during that promo.

 

Cena's grown on me a lot in the last couple of years. He still sometimes acts a little too goofy for me. But he's been fitting a classic babyface role, like Bruno and Hogan.

I was just so used to seeing antiheroes like Austin and The Rock. Cena just has a different style.