The Delco Elbow Drop


Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Indy Minute: Weekly independent wrestling recap



  Welcome back Delco Elbow Drop and Ring Rust Radio fans to another edition of the expanded Indy Minute – all the most important independent wrestling news from the past week. Let’s get right into it!

  Joey Styles commented on Twitter that he would commentate for NXT if asked. He even said it reminded him of ECW. (And this isn’t indy news but I just saw it on Styles’ Twitter – you’ll be able to play as Cody Rhodes’ new character Stardust in the upcoming WWE2K14. I guess this means Stardust is going to be around for quite some time.)


  On Saturday at the former ECW Arena, during the filming of the documentary “Wrestling with Disaster,” The Blue Meanie, Shane Douglas, and The Pitbulls were inducted into the building’s Hardcore Hall of Fame. Al Snow was on hand to personally induct Blue Meanie.
  Documentary is about the hardships and tragedies faced by several professional wrestlers who have competed at every level of the sport. It will also give a backstage peek at how an Indy show is run, lockerroom atmosphere and such.
 
  Harlem Bravado commented on Twitter that TNA reached out to he and his brother but declined them, saying they're happy in Evolve/Dragon Gate USA.





  Larry Legend, occasional ring announcer for CZW, posted some crazy stuff from Tournament of Death 13 this past weekend on his Twitter and Instagram accounts. There was also a Vine video of Jun Kasai winning the tournament, pinning Masada with a splash off scaffolding through a bundle of light tubes, but it’s since been taken down. (I was also thinking about linking some of those videos but decided against it – deathmatches aren’t for everyone.)
  There were rumors before the tournament that TOD 13 might be the last hurrah for the annual deathmatch tournament, with talk of the Delaware State Athletic Commission coming down on CZW for its bloodletting much like PA did over 10 years ago. But I guess we’ll need to wait until next summer to see if the rumors are true or not.

  Twitter user @SenorLARIATO posted a pic of Kevin Steen, Prince Devitt and Bad Luck Fale doing the Too Sweet taunt at a Revolution Pro show in Britain last week. If not for the fact that Devitt is out of New Japan now, I’d say this is perfect dirtsheet bait to get people thinking they’ll see Steen in a Bullet Club shirt any day now. 

 
  SMASH Wrestling  in Toronto, Ontario is offering their latest show, Rival Schools, for free digital download. The show features Matt Cross/MDogg20 defending his championship, Chris Hero taking on Takaaki Watanabe, Michael Elgin versus ACH in Elgin’s final Ontario Indy appearance before his ROH contract takes effect, the Super Smash Bros, Kyle O'Reilly and more.
 

  Ring of Honor Best in the World is this Sunday, the first ROH show to be offered on real deal Pay-Per-View. Adam Cole defends his World Championship against Michael Elgin, The Briscoes take on Matt Hardy and Michael Bennett, reDRagon defends the tag team championships against the returning Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian, the team of Bad Influence and much more. There are also rumors that this may be Kevin Steen’s final big ROH show before heading to WWE developmental later this summer.

 
  Drew McIntyre recently started following Dixie Carter on Twitter. Could this be a sign that the former WWE Superstar is headed to TNA in the near future?


  Prince Devitt tweeted a pic from a newspaper of Barack Obama throwing up the Too Sweet taunt. Clearly, Obama is joining Bullet Club.

When you're nWo, you're nWo for life.

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TNA to return to six-sided ring?



(I’m trying to think of a Beyonce joke about putting a ring on it but I’m not that funny)

I don’t really watch TNA. I might turn it on every once in a while because they have some talents I really enjoy watching (Samoa Joe, The Wolves, Austin Aries to name a few) but overall, the product they produce just doesn’t catch my attention the way WWE does or put on the type of matches I can find on the indies.

But today I found out they are doing something a bit interesting – TNA may be returning to the six-sided, lucha-libre inspired ring that they were once known for and are asking the fans if they want to see a return of said ring, starting at the Impact tapings in New York next week.


Personally, I hope they start to use the old style ring again. It calls back to a time when there was a hope that maybe, just maybe, TNA wouldn’t turn out like WCW. But more than that, I think the six-sided ring would actually help to set them apart from their competition (you can decide whether that competition is WWE or ROH). It might just be a gimmick to get some fleeting attention but honestly, anything TNA can do right now to get new eyes on their product and set themselves apart is a good thing.

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Thursday, June 12, 2014

Exclusive interview with former WWE,ECW and current TNA Superstar Bully Ray

The team at Ring Rust Radio - Donald Wood, Mike Chiari and Brandon Galvin - recently got the chance to talk with former WWE and ECW and current TNA Superstar Bully Ray! With such a long career in professional wrestling, the guys got to talk to Bully about his history wrestling in the Northeast, his evolving roles in TNA and his work leading up into the upcoming Slammiversary Pay-Per-View.



Donald Wood: TNA is having one of its biggest shows of the year with Slammiversary on Sunday, June 15, from Dallas, Texas. You are scheduled to take on Ethan Carter III in a Grudge Match. As one of the kings of hardcore, how are you approaching this matchup physically and mentally?

Bully Ray: Here’s the deal, these types of matches I can do with my eyes closed. I’ve been having hardcore matches, table matches, any type of violent matches for a long, long time. I think this is Ethan Carter’s first match like this if I’m correct. Ethan Carter is stepping into a style of match which he is unfamiliar with and he is stepping in the ring with a guy who’s basically the top two or three of this style of match, period. Ethan Carter has very smooth, pretty skin, and when you chop it a certain way, it splits right open, and that’s what I’m going to do to him. I’m going to split his skin open, I’m going to chop him until he bleeds and hopefully bleeds to death. I’m definitely excited about the match. Slammiversary is a huge event for TNA. The Texas crowds have always been great for us and to be able to get my hands on a Carter and spill their blood in Dallas, Texas is going to be great for this kid from Hell’s Kitchen.


Mike Chiari: During your time in TNA you’ve feuded with a lot of authority figures including Hulk Hogan and Dixie Carter. As a performer, what do you like about feuding with someone in a non-wrestling capacity and what are some of the challenges it presents?

Bully Ray: A story is a story and she is a performer, she is someone on our television show and I don’t care who I’m standing across the ring from, if they’re in the ring with me, I’m going to make sure that it’s the best possible performance. I’m going to make sure they up their game and I’m going to make sure, first and foremost, that the people get what they paid to see and when it comes to Dixie Carter, the one thing that every TNA fan, every WWE fan, every ROH fan, every House of Hardcore fan, every wrestling fan around the world wants to see that lady get powerbombed through a table.


Brandon Galvin: TNA is heading to the road for stops in both Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and New York City at The Grand Ballroom at the Manhattan Center. As a wrestler who spent plenty of time in both cities with ECW, WWE and TNA, what does it mean performing in these venues at this point in your career?

Bully Ray: For me, it’s always great, I love performing in the Northeast, not because I’m from the Northeast, because I know what kind of atmosphere and what kind of fans there are in the Northeast. They’re so passionate and they’re so into the product. This is going to be the first time, I believe, that we will be taping in Pennsylvania and the first time we’ll be taping in New York City, and I think this is a great opportunity for TNA to take the wrestling world by the balls and show everybody what we’re really about. Entirely too many people sit back and knock TNA and don’t give it enough credit and those are the people, I believe, who look at the product with jaded glasses or whatever the term is and just bash, bash, bash. TNA is a really good company, is every single storyline good? No. Is every single wrestler good? No. Is every single baseball player good? No. Is every single football player? No. You get a mix, and I think the wrestlers are going to feed off of the Pennsylvania crowd, I think they’re going to feed off of the New York City crowds, and I think they’re going to be some of the most top notch performances you’ve ever seen.


Donald Wood: There was a lot of controversy surrounding your removal from the House of Hardcore card. You and Tommy Dreamer have been very outspoken on the way this situation was handled. Do you think fans should be expecting to see Dreamer involved in the TNA product as the company heads to the Northeast?

Bully Ray: If Tommy wanted to get involved, I would be more than happy to step to the side for just a moment so he could get his two cents in because you guys all sit back and say ‘oh, this is part of a wrestling story’. Guys, let me make you understand something. She pulled a scumbag move, more of a scumbag move than you people really know. I was booked in the main event two nights for my best friend’s up and coming promotion and then at the very last second got me pulled off. She pulled me off in a way where she could justify it and contractually, I could not sue her because she pulled me off for another TNA Spike event. She fucked me over, she fucked Tommy over, most of all she fucked the fans over. It’s a big deal. You hear the term ‘this person crossed the line’, Dixie Carter really crossed the line with this move and made it a lot more personal than a lot of people realize.


Mike Chiari: You recently did an interview for Roddy Piper’s podcast Piper’s Pit and you mentioned on Chris Jericho’s podcast that you’ve been a wrestling fan since you were a kid. As a young wrestling fan was Piper one of the guys you found yourself looking up to? And what was it like for you to get to sit down and talk with him?

Bully Ray: When I got the offer to sit down and talk to Roddy I was genuinely excited because I don’t know Roddy and that’s why I wanted to talk to him so much. Me and Jericho can sit down and it’s so easy because we’re such good friends and we can trade stories but me and Roddy don’t know each other so it’s kind of a feeling out period, you know. I had never gotten the opportunity to go back and forth on the microphone with Roddy Piper, so I jumped at the opportunity and it was awesome and we had so much in common. I think he respected the fact that I knew so much of the old school history of the business, something that guys that come from his day don’t expect guys like me to know, but I pride myself on being the last of the old school mentality. So, sitting down with Roddy was great, and we could’ve talked for hours.


Brandon Galvin: You've been in the business for more than 20 years and continue to find ways to re-invent your in-ring work and character. Where do you draw your inspiration from and is there something you've wanted to add to your character that you haven't had the opportunity to do so yet?

Bully Ray: The inspiration for me of always trying something new comes from the rock n’ roll world, watching bands like Kiss and Motley Crue. They go out there every year and they’re playing the same songs but they always find a different way to present it to you, a different stage set, a different feel, and that’s what I try to go out there and do. I try to take the rock n’ roll approach to things, whether I’m out there and people love me or people hate me, I try to go above and beyond. If people love me, I want them to name their first born child after me. If people hate me, I want them to slash my tires and despise me to a whole new level. I’m always thinking of new ways to do things and I’ll always be passionate about the business and I’ll always be passionate about taking the fans on a roller coaster ride, so that’s what keeps me going.


Donald Wood: One of the coolest additions to the Slammiversary card is the involvement of the Von Erich family. With the pay-per-view taking place in the heart of Von Erich country, are you excited for this monumental occasion?

Bully Ray: I’m just excited to meet Kevin Von Erich because he is somebody that I’ve never met before and with the Von Erich name in the history of professional wrestling it’s going to be a cool moment for me to shake his hand and tell him I appreciate what he and his family have done for the industry. I’m definitely looking forward to meeting him.


Mike Chiari: I know that you’re a big soccer fan, so with the World Cup getting started in Brazil, I was wondering who you see winning it all and lifting that World Cup trophy.

Bully Ray: I will always be pulling for my home country of Italy. I’m really hoping they can repeat what they did two World Cups ago. There’s so many strong teams, with the World Cup being in Brazil and them being probably the number 1 or number 2 powerhouse in the world right now, but Argentina is also going to be very tough because Argentina is in South America, so it’s always great when all these teams get together and put the absolute best on the field. I love the World Cup, I’m a huge soccer fan. Brazil, Argentina, Italy, Spain, all these powerhouses coming together is going to be awesome.


Brandon Galvin: You and Devon are the masters of the table. Who have you enjoyed putting through a table most during your career?

Bully Ray: The one person that we almost put through a table that would’ve been absolutely great was Vince McMahon. We had him jacked up, and ready to go, but I believe Road Dogg and X-Pac stopped us from doing that. As far as enjoying one person over another, a lot of people enjoyed the Mae Young table bump the most. I put Joe C from Kid Rock through a table. I’ve enjoyed everything, so everything sticks out in my mind but I think putting Vince McMahon through a table would’ve been special. I am really looking forward to jacking Dixie Carter up and putting her hard, hard, hard through the middle of that table.

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Breaking: WWE announces release of several Superstars



The WWE announced numerous releases on its website today. Take a look below at the many talents who will no longer be gracing Raw or Smackdown.

-Drew McIntyre
-Jinder Mahal
-Evan Bourne
-Brodus Clay
-Yoshi Tatsu
-Aksana
-Curt Hawkins
-Camacho
-Theodore Long
-JTG

While none of these Superstars were setting the world ablaze lately, it was still a surprise to see many of them “future endeavored” by WWE.

At first I thought the releases of McIntyre and Mahal meant that 3MB would be no more, but I would wager that rather than just scrap the group, they’re going to be turned into the permanent foils of Los Matadores. They’ll probably pair someone with Heath Slater so that it’ll be a tag team and Hornswoggle, just like the Matadores and El Torito.

It seemed that Brodus Clay had been trying to fulfill his “monster heel” destiny lately, though it never panned out. He had an NXT Title shot against Adrian Neville a few weeks ago, but failed to capture the title. I guess knocking a few teeth out of the mouth of “The Man Gravity Forgot” will be the last thing Clay did of note in WWE.

Evan Bourne’s release surprised me, though I guess it shouldn’t have. With his talent for high risk maneuvers, I always figured that WWE would find something for him. But with guys like Adrian Neville and Kalisto coming up from NXT in the future, losing Bourne wouldn’t hurt the company too much. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him turn up in Dragon Gate USA, Ring of Honor or Pro Wrestling Guerrilla before too long.

I was also pretty surprised to see Teddy Long be let go. Long started with the WWE as a referee all the way back in 1998 and transitioned from that role to a manager and eventual became General Manager of Smackdown. He also became widely known for interrupting in-ring squabbles by saying “Now hold on a minute, players” and making tag team matches.

Camacho, Yoshi Tatsu and Curt Hawkins have been largely directionless for...man I don’t even remember the last time any of them did anything. Well, that’s not entirely true. Hawkins and Camacho have had a few matches on NXT in the past few months to a year but honestly, I’ve been watching WWE again since about 2011, 2012 and I can’t recall ever see Yoshi Tatsu once.

Aksana’s release hurts my heart the most. She seemed like she had really been improving in the ring lately, but I guess breaking Naomi’s face with a knee drop a few months back didn’t win her any favor. I thought that maybe Alicia Fox turning on her last week would be the start of something for the Lithuania beauty but that is apparently not the case.

JTG, however, is still employed.

I was wrong folks. JTG in was released a little bit later in the afternoon.

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An avid gamer and long-time pro wrestling fan, stay tuned to Grizzly Gaming and the Delco Elbow Drop for game reviews and pro wrestling news.

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