Jim Ross updated his weekly edition of the Ross Report this week and as always, there were a few very interesting tidbits. JR stated that this Monday, July 3, there is an XFL press conference scheduled in Orlando, the site of this Monday's Raw is War. I think it's rather obvious that an XFL Orlando team will be officially announced. For more info on the XFL, check out XFL.com.
Jim Ross also announced the release of two WWF wrestlers, The Blue Meanie and Vic Grimes. Grimes has been under a developmental contract with the WWF and has been wrestling in ECW at the same time as part of The Baldies. The Blue Meanie had recently been wrestling in Memphis, but has now unfortunately been released. Hey, maybe we'll see him back in ECW soon. At least hopefully.
"Grandmaster Sexay" Brian Christopher, Taka Michinoku, and Sho Funaki have all been signed to new contracts with the WWF, according to Ross. Definitely a good move by the WWF, as Too Cool has obviously become one of the most popular tag teams in a while and it's no secret that I'm a fan of Taka Michinoku. Hopefully the WWF finds a way to use both Taka and Funaki. The WWF obviously sees something in them and hopefully has some plans since they signed them to a new contract.
JR hinted at a possible future feud between The Rock and the Crippler, Chris Benoit, stating that it "looks like Chris Benoit is headed towards a shot at The Rock in the next few weeks."
D'Lo Brown and Headbanger Mosh/Chaz may be in for a tag team stint, also according to JR. The team may go by the name "Low Down." Alllrighty.
WWF Smackdown! pulled in a decent (for the WWF) 4.6 rating for Thursdays show, off hours of 4.1 and 5.1, according to Dave Scherer. However, one thing that stood out about the ratings is that the first two quarter hours of the show, from 8:00-8:15 and 8:15-8:30 pulled in only a 3.6 and 3.9, respectively. That can't be too good, can it?
Dr. Pepper/Seven Up are the latest suckers to the PTC, as they have announced that they are pulling away from advertising on not only WWF television, but WCW as well. Here is the official announcement from the Parents Television Councel: ... Just today (June 28), the PTC received a letter from John Clark, Chief Advertising Officer for Dr. Pepper/Seven Up, Inc., stating that the company would cease advertising on all WWF and WCW programming. "[WWF] programming is extremely targeted to reach the teen audience with the highest television ratings among this always-elusive audience. On the other hand, the content of [WWF Smackdown!] has increasingly deteriorated in both its quality and entertainment value, so much so, questions arise whether Dr. Pepper/Seven Up brands should be associated with programming filled with such sexual innuendo, unacceptable language, and extreme violence," wrote Mr. Clark. "As a result, Dr. Pepper/Seven Up made a corporate decision not to advertise its brands in any type of Wrestling programming, whether WWF or WCW. Your letter provides additional support to our decisions and we appreciate the sentiments shared in your correspondence."
THQ's United Kingdom site, THQ UK, has announced the release dates for upcoming WWF video games in the UK. For the most part, the dates seem to be very similar. Big thanks to Albert J. for passing that along. Both US and UK dates are listed below.:
- WWF Smackdown! 2 (PSX) - US+UK: est. mid November (15)
- WWF No Mercy (N64) - US+UK: est. mid November (17)
- WWF Royal Rumble (DC) - US: est. early August (2); UK: est. October
On the subject of wrestling video games, Acclaim has opened the official website of their upcoming ECW title, ECW Anarchy Rulz. The game will feature the first ever Table Match, Dumpster Match, Inferno Match, and more. Hopefully the game is even slightly different than the Hardcore Revolution and WWF Attitude engine, although the screenshots I've seen do not make it appear that way. You can check out the site at AnarchyRulz.com.
TNN may be "screwing over" ECW even more than it may seem. As of now, it appears that WWF programming will come to TNN in very early September, possibly as soon as September 2 according to various reports. However, as mentioned in Thursday's report, TNN will cancel ECW on September 22, meaning that after the WWF leaves USA, if they were interested in bringing ECW to their network, it would mean about a three week gap of no wrestling on USA, ruling out all possibilities of a smooth transition from one promotion to the other and meaning that ECW would have to start late in the season on USA, if that's even a possibility. TNN stated that "ECW has failed to meet some of the criteria of the agreement, including ratings performance targets" as a reason for their cancellation. GIVE ME A F'N BREAK. So they're saying that they're cancelling their HIGHEST RATED SHOW due to LOW RATINGS? WTF? Why not cancel ROCKIN' BOWL for pulling in 0.2 ratings?
Backstage problems in WCW have been out of control as of late with Russo, Taylor, Steiner, Goldberg, Hall, and more. I'll attempt to go through everything today:
First, as mentioned a few days ago, Scott Steiner basically snapped on Terry Taylor after being asked to "job" to Mike Awesome on Thunder. Steiner went on a verbal tirade, threatening to beat up Taylor. Because of the outburst, Steiner has been reportedly suspended for at least this week's shows, but according to various reports, is still scheduled to work the PPV on July 9.
Another backstage problem in WCW has been with none other than Goldberg, who has been described as an "ego maniac" backstage, having a fit whenever he doesn't get what he wants. Rumors are that Goldberg has been constantly complaining about his heel turn, at times even refusing to do angles that would help make him into more of a full fledged heel. These problems in WCW definitely have to be addressed. One difference between the WWF and WCW is that in WCW, "the boys" basically almost run things, while in the WWF, Vince McMahon has total control and the respect of his workers. Honestly, in Scott Steiner's case, if you were to walk into the work place and threaten to beat up your boss because you didn't want to do a certain job, I think you'd be A LOT more than suspended for one week.
Bill Banks wrote a must read column on the current situation in WCW, posted on WCW.com. It is a GREAT read and you can check it out HERE.
Rumors are that Brad Siegel, head of WCW and Turner Entertainment does not want to bring Scott Hall back due to his history of personal drug and alcohol problems. As of now, it does not appear that Hall will appear at the PPV this Sunday, as he seemingly has been built up to. That's yet another problem in WCW. They revolve a huge angle on something (Hall's return) and are still unsure of whether or not he will be back at all.
According to several reports, Vince Russo is expected to return to WCW this Monday on Nitro. However, other reports indicate that Russo will make his return after the Bash at the Beach PPV on July 9. Whatever the case, more changes have to be made in WCW when he returns.
Chris Candido has reportedly been released by WCW, according to Dave Meltzer. Candido recently suffered a broken wrist, which would keep him out of action for a long while and it appears that WCW did not want to wait that long. Candido had been working under a per-appearance deal, without an actual contract.
Konnan is expected to miss two to six months of in-ring action due to surgery on his arm, according to Bob Ryder. However, he is still expected to appear on television for a non-wrestling role with the Filthy Animals.
Finally, on a site related note, I want to welcome along the newest member of the TPWW staff, Corey Silvia, as a columnist here on TPWW. His first column looks over the highs and lows of this week's WWF Smackdown and WCW Thunder, plus more. You can check it out here: Jerichoholics Anonymous.
That wraps it up for today's report. Be on the lookout for two more great new columns to debut on TPWW very soon, as well as several other new and more updated TPWW features. Until next time...
Triple A
TripleA99@aol.com