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Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday we give you the scoop on what's happening in and out of the wrestling ring. Somedays it's even funny!"
Chairshots
6/20/01
Monday Thoughts
Three months ago no one in the wrestling world would have predicted that Diamond Dallas Page, Tajiri, Steve Austin as a heel and Spike Dudley would be the most entertaining aspects of an edition of Monday Night Raw. The WWF has risen from its post Wrestlemania slump and made things damn entertaining again. Credit Paul Heyman, Vince McMahon or the writers, but Raw was close to perfect this week. The skits with Stone Cold and Tajiri had me laughing out loud. The stalker mystery paid off big time with Diamond Dallas Page. If I had to pick a guy in a ski mask to get a good match out of Taker, it would be DDP. Benoit and Jericho continue to prove why they deserve to be in main events. Only two things stuck out in my mind as dull his week; the matches between Tazz vs. Hardcore and Matt vs. Albert. They were fine matches but could have easily been moved to Smackdown or Heat. When will Rhyno get some kick ass entrance music? Hopefully Smackdown! will put the finishing touches on the King of the Ring PPV this weekend and the WWF can deliver a solid show on Sunday.
Monday Ratings
The 6/18 edition of Raw is War scored a 4.2 cable rating, with a 7.0 share. That is up just a bit from last week's 4.1. The shows rating slowly built from 3.3 in the first quarter hour to 5.0 in the main event overrun.
We Don't Get Interviews
1Wrestling has an exclusive interview with Steve Austin that's a pretty good read. In it Austin talks about his health, his career, his heel turn, his outlook on the business, his future, the origin of Austin 3:16, his feelings on leaving WCW, the WWF buying WCW and much more. Go check it out. Watch out for all those damn pop up ads.
Eric Loves Teen Boys
What seems like decades ago at DailyRadar.com, I reported that Eric Bischoff is highly involved in the Matrats promotion. The Calgary based federation (I use the term lightly) caters to the teen girl demographic by having hunky teen boys wrestle. Not surprisingly the promotion has had trouble getting a television deal, something Bischoff believes is a major part of getting the promotion up and running. Bischoff has proposed putting an event on PPV, but those close to Bischoff are losing faith in the project (Huh. Go figure.) Bischoff would like to put the PPV on within a couple of months, but that appears unlikely. The tentative date for a Matrats PPV is 10.28. Check you local cable listing or Teen Beat magazine for details.
Drugs for Everyone!
New York Senator Tom Libous (R) is looking to push a bill referred to as "The Professional Wrestling Health and Safety Act." The Senator has been outspoken in the past about drug use in wrestling. The bill would order that a doctor examine wrestlers before they climb in the ring for a match, as opposed to when they go for a license, which some states still mandate. The bill would also declare professional wrestling as "entertainment" as opposed to "sport" and the New York State Athletic Commission would no longer have to send deputies to be present at wrestling events. I'm all for it, but how will this effect American Gladiators?
Wrestlers at Raw
Mike Awesome, Chris Kanyon, Shawn Stasiak, Billy Kidman, and Torrie Wilson were backstage at Raw Monday night. They spent time visiting with wrestlers and meeting with management. Arn Anderson, Ricky Santana, and Fit Finlay were also backstage preparing for their positions as WCW road agents. Observers say that the first meeting between Mike Awesome and Paul Heyman since Awesome quit ECW was cordial (i.e. no chairs or flaming tables were involved.)
Catch me Friday as we rev up for King of the Ring!
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