August 2006 News Archive (Page 6)

For a guy who supposedly isn't pleased with the current angle he's in, Shawn Michaels must at least be thrilled to be healthy and performing again in the WWE.

The Showstopper has reportedly signed a new, five-year year deal with the company one that guarantees him $1.5 million per year. He should be able to afford his share of DX shirts for a long time now.

Many within WWE were said to be "shocked" at how high of a contract was given to Michaels, according to The Wrestling Observer. These days, the business is offering superstars less guaranteed dough - even Michaels himself was expecting a lower contract and saw no choice but to sign on the dotted line once he glimpsed the numbers.

Truth is, if anyone has earned these riches, it's HBK. The man fought back from a crippling back injury and has been the most consistent performer on RAW for months and months now.

Could the spear be coming to the six-sided TNA ring in the near future?

Such rumors are running rampant now that Bill Goldberg has sirned a 90-day holding deal with Spike TV. In other words, the former WCW and WWE champion will not be allowed to work for any other network during that time period.

Goldberg (sorry, Goooold-berg! Goooold-berg!) was scheduled to wrestle on August 20 for Gladiator Championship Wrestling for a one-time only appearance, but the Spike TV deal has prevented it happening because the appearance would have been televised

The large Jewish man has also stated that he'll definitely be talking to TNA as he meets with executives from Spike next week. We'll keep you fully apprised of this story as it develops.

Spoiler alert!Summerslam may not even be here yet, but the WWE looks to have given away the main event of the following pay-per-view, Unforgiven.

According to the information released to WWE affiliates, John Cena will once again take on Edge for the WWE Championship. The quote reads as follows:

"Nothing forgiven. Nothing forgotten. Everything gets settled as John Cena and the Rated R Superstar Edge battle it out for the WWE Championship."

Granted, it doesn't say WHO will win this Sunday and be defending the belt - but it's safe to assume a rematch means the heel, Edge, will come out on top.

There's also a lot of talk about the status of Trish Stratus. Her contract runs out after this year and she's getting married at the end of September. At Unforgiven, she may be written out of storylines for awhile, as she weights future options.

Everyone, say it together now: Please don't go, Trish!

The following report is courtesy of lordsofpain.com …

The show opens with The Great Khali making his way to the ring with Daivari. Daivari does the talking. He says who does the Undertaker thinks he is. Daivari says we do not accept the last man standing match at SummerSlam. The Undertaker's music hits and he quickly makes his way to the ring.

Taker throws punches and Khali fights back but Taker gets the advantage. Taker punches Daivari out of the way and chokeslams Khali! Taker celebrates his doings and poses in the ring.

Backstage, Chavo and Vicky Guerrero are talking. Vicky said this is ridiculous. Chavo says Rey is trying to take the Guerrero name from them. He says that he and Vicky are familia. Vicky says Rey is apart of our familia too. Chavo tells Vicky to remember Rey's last name is not Guerrero and to remember that well.

Match 1: Cruiserweight Champion Gregory Helms vs. Tatanka (Non-Title Match)

Tatanka chops Helms hard. Helms comes back with punches. Tatanka clotheslines Helms. Tatanka follows up with a bodyslam. Helms drops Tatanka face first into the turnbuckle. Helms attacks Tatanka's back and chokes him on the bottom rope. Helms nails a snapmare for two. Tatanka fights out and counters but runs into a high elbow from Helms. Helms jumps off the top rope and lands a picture perfect dropkick for two. Helms nails another snapmare and locks in an arm lock.

Tatanka fights out and chops Helms. They punch away at each other back and forth with Tatanka getting the better. Tatanka back body drops Helms. Tatanka nails the tamahawk chop to the head off the top rope for another two. Helms comes back and lands a neckbreaker. Helms follows up with the shining wizard and covers. Tatanka gets his foot under the bottom rope, but the referee doesn't notice it and awards Helms the match.
Winner: Gregory Helms

Daivari is yelling at Teddy Long backstage. Teddy says Khali will face Undertaker in a last man standing match, not at Summerslam but next week on Smackdown!

Match 2: KC James and Idol Stevens with Michelle McCool vs. WWE Tag Team Champions Paul London and Brian Kendrick (Non-Title Match)

London and Idol start out. They lock up and Idol applies a headlock. London lands a drop toe hold and tags in Kendrick. They nail a double takedown. They make numerous tags to one another performing moves off the top rope focusing on Idol's arm and shoulder. Kendrick lands a crossbody for two. Idol tags in James. James lands an elbow for two. Kendrick tags London back in and both nail a double hip toss and kick James in a chest and back combo move.

London moves and James runs into Idol. Idol gets back up and attacks London from behind. Idol throws London kidney first into the apron. London gets bodyslammed on James's knee. London fights back and bounces James' face unto the mat hard. London makes the tag to Kendrick who cleans house. London lands a double flying clothesline to James and Idol. Kendrick rolls up Idol but James kicks Kendrick in the head and Idol rolls through and grabs the tights for the three.
Winners: Idol Stevens and KC James

Backstage Ashley Massaro is talking to Luke Perry. Kristal Marshall interrupts and steals Ashley's spotlight unto herself. Ashley says she's sick of it. They have a staredown, but Perry breaks them up and Kristal tells him to call her.

Jen England, Layla El, Milena Roucka, JT Tinney and The Miz are in the ring. Miz introduces Luke Perry. Jen is first, she does kicks on the guy acting as a dummy and low blows him. She pours beer on her like Stone Cold does and gets booed. Next. Layla does a stripper dance and takes off her police costume and shows off her flexibility. She gets in a catfight with Jen and is cheered.

Milena is next she does a snapmare on the dummy guy and locks in an arm lock. She's booed. JT is last and reads a poem. She's booed. Luke goes through the girls to see what the fans think. JT is heavily booed. Milena is heavily booed. Layla is cheered pretty loudly. Jen is heavily booed. Layla wins.

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As long as movies continue to bill him as The Rock, we're gonna keep referencing Dwayne Johnson in our wrestling blog, okay?!?

Here, the brawler is shown still recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon, injured two months ago while preparing for his role in the football film, The Game Plan.

Let's just say this is a new (de)generation of DX. Even with various lewd acts from the past toned down, however, Shawn Michaels is still uncomfortable at times with the pairing.

“(Triple H) and I are different guys now, so the concept itself obviously is going to come across differently,” Michaels told wwe.com. “I think that was inevitable and I think we knew that when we started it. We didn’t want it to be the same obviously; I mean you don’t want to put the fans through just a rerun. You certainly have to do your best creatively to try to bring some subtle differences to it.”

Just a rerun, HBK? You mean like the entire storyline of the McMahons against the top faces for weeks on end?

Something that has actually changed is Michaels' faith in the Big Man Above. No, not Vince. HBK is a born again Christian and it impacts any angle he's involved in.

"Well, obviously my faith and becoming born again was the one and only impact on my life,” Michaels said. “A lot of other things changed as a result of that, and I knew there were a lot of questions coming to do with the DX thing. They obviously asked me beforehand what I’d be comfortable with and what I wasn’t comfortable with and I knew this going in.”

Combine that fact with Triple H now being a father and it's definitely an older DX. But is it a better one? Not as long as the frightening physique of Chyna is missing!

The Macho Man Randy Savage isn't the only wrestler entering into the reality TV fray.

Chris Jericho - remember him, WWE fans? - is signed up to compete in Celebrity Duets on FOX, a show whose premise is pretty much exactly what it sounds like.

Simon Cowell, that American Idol guy, will be an executive producer on the show that "pairs recording superstars with celebrities not famous for singing in hopes of their making beautiful music together," according to a FOX press release.

Because Jericho does actually sing in a (terrible) band, the question remains: which side will he fall onto? Tune in and find out!

Come on, did you think the Macho Man Randy Savage would just fade into obscurity? Ohhhh, no!

Savage will be included in the eighth season of The Surreal World, joining poker player, Phil Helmuth, among other pseudo celebrities.

Meanwhile, ESPN's Bill Simmons recently named the Macho Man his favorite wrestler of all-time. We'll let the Sports Guy explain why:

1. During his WWF days, his matches were always excellent - tons of moves, tons of bumps and a consistently high quality. His battle against Ricky Steamboat in Wrestlemania III was the first great modern wrestling match, the prototype for most of the matches today (it still holds up almost 20 years later). He was so good, he could even drag a decent match out of Hulk Hogan.

2. Nobody had a better nickname than "The Macho Man," with the possible exception of the "The Million Dollar Man," Ted DiBiase. Plus, he shrewdly avoided the obvious "Macho Man"/Village People link with his entrance song, which could have killed his career coming out of the gate.

3. Not only were his interviews phenomenally bizarre and entertaining, he was one of the first wrestlers to refer to himself almost entirely in the third person. The Macho Man was like the Rickey Henderson of wrestling, right down to the fact that you never knew what the hell he was talking about. And nobody was more fun to imitate. Ohhhhhhh ... yeah!!!!

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Viewers seem to enjoy their share of Umaga. Although DX being in the spotlight certainly doesn't hurt, either.

This week's edition of WWE RAW pulled in a strong 4.2 cable rating with a 7 share. That figure is up from last week's 4.1 rating.

With one of the biggest pay-per-view events of the year on the horizon, Summerslam, there's little wonder why more and more fans are tuning in. The card is shaping up nicely, too, with Hogan vs. Orton; DX vs. The McMahons; and John Cena vs. Edge, just to name a few matches scheduled.

Was it the return of Kurt Angle? His first ever match-up with Sabu? Or the emergence of Test as an actual wrestling force?

It's hard to say, but Tuesday's edition of ECW on SCI-FI continued to stay strong this week, pulling in a 2.2 cable rating, which is slightly down from last week's 2.4 rating.

The show drew 2.5 million viewers - and was the first time no current WWE talent crossed over to this brand. Got that, Vince? Let it grow on its own!