The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of TNA Impact

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of TNA Impact (Blog I wrote for gerweck.net)

The Good: The opening segment with Austin Aries delivered on all accounts, mainly because of Austin Aries. Yes, I know Vince cut him from Tough Enough before it began and some critics feel he is too small to be in a main event world title match on pay-per-view, but his in-ring work and charisma makes you forget about those things. He is one of the best workers on TNA’s roster and I expect him to take full advantage of his opportunity at Destination X which will be the most important match of his career.

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Fedor Retires Following KO of Pedro Rizzo in Russia

Fedor Emelianenko knocked out Pedro Rizzo at 1:24 of the first round at the M-1 Global event in St. Petersburg, Russia. The 35-year-old Emelianenko leaves the sport with an overall 34-4 record in 12 years of professional competition. Despite never finding his way to the UFC’s octagon, The former Pride heavyweight champion is consensus greatest heavyweight in the history of mixed martial arts.

M:1 Presents: Fedor vs. Rizzo 6/21/12
St. Petersburg, Russia

Main Event
Fedor Emelianenko defeated Pedro Rizzo by Knockout (Punches, 1st Round, 1:24)

Heavyweight Title Bout
Kenny Garner defeated Guram Gugenishvill by Stoppage (Doctor, 3rd Round, 5:00)

Lightweight Title Bout
Musa Khamanaev defeated Daniel Weichel by Submission (Heel Hook, 1st Round, 1:57)

Heavyweight Feature Bout
Jeff Monson defeated Denis Komkin by Submission (North-South Choke, 1st Round, 1:58)

Undercard Bouts
Marat Gafurov defeated Mairbek Taisumov by Split Decision
Mikhail Malyutin defeated Renat Gasanov by TKO (Strikes, 1st Round, 3:16)
Ramazan Emeev defeated Alberta Duraeva by TKO (Strikes, 1st Round)
Vugar Bakhshiev defeated Jerome Bouisson by Submission (Heel Hook, 1st Round)
Pavel Vitruk defeated Radoslaw Piechnik by Unanimous Decision
Akhmed Sultanov defeated Denis Goltsov by Submission (Heel hook, 1st Round)
Abdulmazhid Magomedov defeated Davreka Isakova by TKO (Strikes, 1st Round)

UFC on FX 4: Maynard vs. Guida Preview & Predictions

Gray Maynard (10-1-1) vs. Clay Guida (29-12)

Just like Nucky Thompson did many years earlier, Clay Guida and Gray Maynard will try their luck on the Atlantic city boardwalk in pursuit of UFC glory. While both fighters are coming off losses, they fall under a different set of circumstances. Guida’s loss to Benson Henderson cost him a title shot while Maynard’s knockout defeat to Frankie Edgar denied him the lightweight title and gave him the first loss of his career. Pre-fight drama has uncharacteristically in their case, reared its ugly head as Maynard’s camp filed a protest with the New Jersey Athletic Control Board complaining about Clay Guida’s hair. To avoid any commission entanglements to focus on the fight, Guida will braid his hair. Maynard told MMAJunkie.com “I never filed a complaint” and “This was the first I’ve ever heard about it.”

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Savio Vega: Wrestling’s Worst Mystery Partner Ever

In the spirit of No Way Out this Sunday, I’m reminded of the very first installment of this pay-per-view happening back in 1998. It was the twentieth event under the In Your House banner, and the company changed the name two weeks out to No Way Out of Texas. Jeff Jarrett defended an NWA title on WWF TV against Bradshaw, Taka Michinoku wrestled a rock band, and Brian Christopher was almost fired on the spot for calling him a “jap” on commentary.

The eight-man tag team main event was scheduled to be Stone Cold Steve Austin, Owen Hart, Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie against Shawn Michaels, HHH, Road Dogg and Billy Gunn. WrestleMania 14 was on the horizon and with Mike Tyson’s involvement in the Austin/Michaels title match, there was very little interest in this event. No Way Out was the first event that my friends and I didn’t care to see which is shocking if you knew how much we loved wrestling when we were in high school.

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Before Watchmen: Minutemen #1 Review

**Before Watchmen: Minutemen #1** | Writer: Darwyn Cooke & Len Wein | Art: Darwyn Cooke & John Higgins | Colors: Phil Noto & John Higgins | Publisher: DC Comics | Price: $3.99

Some have been waiting with bated breath, while others have cursed the existence of this prequel. No matter which side of the fence you stand on, DC Comics summer event has arrived, and everyone is treated to more Watchmen. My first impression after reading this was it’s good, but it’s not Alan Moore good. Please, don’t take this as an insult or as a sign not to read it. Moore’s original has certain je ne sais quoi that no one will ever match.

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Cow Boy: A Boy And His Horse Review- A Wild West Classic

**Cow Boy: A Boy** **and His Horse** | Writer: Nate Cosby | Art: Chris Eliopoulos
Colors: Chris Eliopoulos | Publisher: Archaia

Cow Boy follows the story of a bounty huntin’ 10-year-old named Boyd Linney who is looking to collect by bringing a certain set of criminals to justice…his family.

Armed with his hobby horse-shaped peashooter, Boyd travels throughout the Wild West looking to right the wrongs his family has perpetrated.

Nate Cosby brilliantly captures Boyd’s innocence as he hides behind the economics of collecting bounties, but inside is a hurt child who just hates seeing bad things happening to good people.

The fact that it’s his family doing the hurting is what drives his incorruptible spirit. There is a vulnerability to this tough-as-nails child that will absolutely make you cheer for him.

Chris Eliopoulos’ art does a fantastic job of conveying a whirlwind of emotions, thoughts, and feelings the script tries to convey.

The entire creative team’s collaborative efforts have produced a heartwarmingly clever novel that people of all ages will thoroughly enjoy.

The four bonus side stories added to this extraordinary tale of the little boy Linney make this, without question, a can’t-miss book. Please, believe the hype. It’s all good!

Grade: A

Ten Greatest WWE Intercontinental Champions Of All Time

The WWE Intercontinental championship is the most revered and perhaps the most respected title belt among professional wrestling fans. For the longest time, it was this championship that produced the most anticipated and exciting matches.

More times than not, those who wore this coveted title were able to elevate their careers as a result. As a kid, I was more excited for the IC title matches than I was for the world title matches. Today I’m going to list the Top 10 Intercontinental Champions of all time. This list is based on tenure as champion and their accomplishments beyond.

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Brock Lesnar’s appearance at UFC 146???

The internet is up in arms over Brock Lesnar’s appearance at UFC 146 this past Saturday. Everyone wants to know: is he ditching the WWE, once again, for Octagon glory? The answer is yes. Well, at least until Junior Dos Santos was declared the winner.

In his retirement speech, Brock stated his plan was to win the title one more time and retire as champion. It’s been proven that if you can throw a decent punch, you can beat Brock Lesnar. Cain Velasquez, Alistair Overeem & Junior Dos Santos all fit this criterion. Frank Mir? Not so much. Mir can’t take a punch either, but what if he had somehow beat JDS? Brock would have been the first person in the cage to challenge him, and that, ladies and gentlemen, is why he was there.

He knows he can beat Mir, and a rubber match between the two could end up being the highest drawing pay-per-view of all time. Their first bout drew 600,000 buys and their second bout drew 1.7 million buys.

Thank goodness Mir lost because if he had won, we would be reading about Lesnar quitting WWE for the second time and all the drama that would come with it. Brock is a fickle man and can get away with what most people can’t because he draws a lot of money. The funny thing is, after all the legal rigmarole, Vince would still take him back because, in the end, money talks.

UFC 146: Dos Santos vs. Mir Predictions

From top to bottom, the all heavyweight main card at UFC 146 has undergone many changes due to a positive drug test and a plethora of injuries. The main event features Junior Dos Santos making his first heavyweight title defense against former champion Frank Mir.

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Monday Night Raw Going Permanently To Three Hours In July

If I was still an innocent wrestling fan who never discovered the IWC, read a newsletter or smartened up by my time on the independent scene, I would have been ecstatic about Raw moving to three hours on a permanent basis. My sense of occasion is non-existent because the company can barely write an entertaining two hour show, and three hours runs a great risk of watering down the product and burning out the fans. The ratings are always down during the first hour of a three hour Raw because people forget about the earlier start time and let’s face it, the steak and potatoes are not on the plate until the beginning of the second hour.

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