WRESTLING PARADISE UNLEASHED 1,541: Royal Rumble Preview; Why is the Original Sin Cara Unhappy w/ WWE?; TNA to Tape Again at Universal Studios…but How Long Can They Stay? TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN Royal Rumble 2014 Predictions The Road to WrestleMania begins tonight at The Royal Rumble. This PPV will determine which wrestler will be the challenger for the WWE World Championship at WrestleMania XXX. Tag Team Championship: Team Rhodes (Goldust & Cody Rhodes) (c) v. New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg & Billy Gunn) This match will be taking place during the Kickoff Show, which streams FREE on WWE and WWE’s YouTube Channel from 7:30-8:00p et, as well as here on Wrestling Paradise Unleashed at the bottom of this post. The champions have been losing quite a few nontitle matches lately, while the challengers are long time friends of The Authority. I like the idea of the allies of The Authority winning the titles here to give that group even more power than they already have. On top of that, the champions losing the titles can lead to some dissension between the brothers, which will blow up later in the show during the Royal Rumble match. Predicted Winners & New Champions: New Age Outlaws Daniel Bryan v. Bray Wyatt I do not see this feud ending here. One of the reasons for that is because Daniel Bryan will still be entering this match with the same problems he has always had with The Wyatt Family: He will be outnumbered. Due to the outside interference of Erick Rowan & Luke Harper, I’m picking Daniel Bryan to not only lose this match, but to beaten up to a pulp following it. Predicted Winner: Bray Wyatt Brock Lesnar v. Big Show These two guys had some good chemistry working against one another a decade ago. The most memorable part of their feud is when the ring collapsed during one of their matches (on SmackDown). As far as this match goes, I think Brock Lesnar will do something that seems physically impossible to Big Show, and then carry that momentum into attempting to do something nobody else has been able to do: End Undertaker’s 21-0 streak at WrestleMania. Predicted Winner: Brock Lesnar WWE World Championship: Randy Orton (c) v. John Cena One of the impacts of the title unification match these two men were in last month is that there will now probably only be 1 Elimination Chamber match next month at Elimination Chamber and I would assume that match will be for this title. While this match is still important, it will not determine whom the Royal Rumble match winner will fight in the main event of WrestleMania XXX. I am picking Orton to win for 2 reasons: 1. It will keep The Authority with the title around the person they want. 2. It will result in several weeks of Randy whining about having to defend the title in an Elimination Chamber match. Predicted Winner & Still Champion: Randy Orton Royal Rumble So far, only 20 of the 30 entrants for this match have been announced. They are… 1. CM Punk (#1) 2. Alberto Del Rio 3. Batista 4. Big E Langston 5. Cody Rhodes 6. Damien Sandow 7. Dean Ambrose 8. Erick Rowan 9. Fandango 10. Goldust 11. Jey Uso 12. Jimmy Uso 13. Kofi Kingston 14. Luke Harper 15. Miz 16. Rey Mysterio 17. Roman Reigns 18. R-Truth 19. Seth Rollins 20. Xavier Woods Of this list, the only ones with a realistic chance of being in the main event of WrestleMania XXX are CM Punk and Batista. Because CM Punk has been slotted to appear in the #1 spot, I do not see him getting the win here, despite history usually saying otherwise. As far as Batista goes, I do not see him being put in the main event of WrestleMania XXX so soon after his return. That leaves me having to pick a name that is not already announced for this match. Here are the possibilities: TNA Free Agents Over the past few weeks, AJ Styles and Sting have left that company. In part due to the giant “AJ” on his side, I can’t see him joining the company while AJ Lee is the most popular Diva in the company. As far as Sting goes, he might FINALLY join WWE this year. However, I would think his first match with the company would be a MUCH bigger deal than just randomly making a surprise appearance. I can see him entering the Hall of Fame this year with his former tag team partner, The Ultimate Warrior. Another big name that left the company was Hulk Hogan. There is NO DOUBT in my mind he will be involved in WrestleMania XXX. One role he WILL NOT have, however, is #1 contender for the WWE World Championship. People on the Roster We Haven’t Seen in a While Due to injury or taking time off, we have not seen Sheamus, Christian, Rob Van Dam, and Chris Jericho in a while. I can easily see any of them coming back during this match. However, I do not see any of them winning. The Legends This includes guys like Kevin Nash and Roddy Piper. While I am sure a few blasts from the past will be making an appearance, I do not realistically see any of them winning. Wrestlers Wrestling Earlier in the Show “Yes! Yes! Yes!” The winner will be coming from this category. Do you remember the “Yes!” chants that closed out Raw a few weeks ago? THAT is how I envision WrestleMania XXX ending. Predicted Winner: Daniel Bryan WWE Original Sin Cara Plans to Fight WWE Luis Ignascio Urive Alvirde, the original Sin Cara and former Mistico Appeared on a Mexican Lucha Libre show Thursday, where he claimed that he owns the rights to the “Sin Cara” character, and he is going to fight WWE for it. He will have QUITE the fight on his hands, as WWE is moving forward with Hunico as “Sin Cara” and have PLENTY of money & power to fight him. You can watch his appearance (in Spanish) at youtube/watch?v=6IZB_ntR2UQ. Bad News Barrett out of Royal Rumble? Bad News Barrett says he has given up his spot in the 30-man Royal Rumble match. The following is from Twitter: “I’ve given up my spot in this year’s #RoyalRumble to make way for a WWE legend. It’s top secret, but just between us, here’s a clue: Voodoo.” WWE Network to Get Apple TV Channel? The connected device WWE Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer Michelle Wilson “wasn’t allowed to mention” at the WWE Network announcement earlier this month at CES in Las Vegas was the Apple TV. The word is the WWE Network could actually get a dedicated Apple TV channel and not just available through AirPlay from another Apple device. More: gearlive/news/article/wwe-network-coming-to-apple-tv-q114 WWE Reaches out to Viacom I have been monitoring TNA’s deal with Spike. Their deal is up in October, which is the same time the new domestic WWE TV agreement will begin. What seems to be flying under the radar is the fact WWE is believed to have reached out to or met with representatives from Viacom (something I have mentioned and Variety reported as well [variety/2013/tv/news/wwe-aims-to-pin-down-rich-new-tv-rights-deals-exclusive-1200966579]). If WWE and NBC Universal (their current partner) do not reach an agreement by February 14, WWE will be able to shop with another conglomerate such as Viacom. WWE will select their media partner(s) by March 4 so, obviously, TNA will know where they stand with Spike before its deal is up. TNA TNA Announces Impact Is Returning to Universal Studios TNA Wrestling has announced they will be taping Impact from Universal Studios in Orlando, FL in March, April, and May. The following dates are currently set for the theme park later this year: • March 13: Impact Live • March 14: Impact Taping • March 15: Impact Taping • April 10: Impact Live • April 11: Impact Taping • April 12: Impact Taping • April 26: One Night Only Taping • April 27: TNA PPV Event • April 28: Impact Taping • April 29: Impact Taping • May 7: Impact Taping • May 8: Impact Taping • May 9: Impact Taping There is much to cover here. As you can see above, TNA has a live PPV scheduled for Sunday, April 27 from Universal Studios that will precede a set of Impact tapings. Details regarding the PPV are unknown as of press time, but the night before, they will tape a “One Night Only” show to be carried later in the year. TNA returning to Universal Studios comes fresh off the news that Universal Studios had become part of WWE’s negotiations with NBC Universal for a new domestic television deal. Negotiations for a physical WWE Hall of Fame from Universal Studios hit an obstacle last year when WWE requested they have exclusive access to the park. Universal, who has enjoyed a good working relationship with TNA, balked at the idea of exclusivity unless WWE agreed to tape a show there. This was believed to be a deal breaker and I had not heard anymore regarding the physical WWE Hall of Fame at the theme park until the report from the New York Post that I referred to yesterday. The news of the tapings does not mean a deal for a physical WWE Hall of Fame is dead. Until WWE signs an agreement with Universal (if they ever do, that is), the park is free to host whoever they want. However, multiple sources within WWE have stated the company would want to be the only wrestling promotion in the theme park should they agree to have its physical Hall of Fame there. There is a lot of relief within TNA that they were able to secure taping dates from Universal Studios for later this year. This deal was just agreed upon last week and hinged on numerous factors. There is no long term lease in place, but this will prevent the company from being forced to tape television on the road. It will be interesting to see how the theme park being back in play as a potential location for the physical WWE Hall of Fame plays out. The obstacle last year was exclusivity and should WWE get that exclusivity, TNA would obviously have to do something else. Kurt Angle to Accept TNA HoF Induction in London, Surgery Planned, Contract Update Kurt Angle announced on Channel 4′s Sunday Brunch with Tim Lovejoy and Simon Rimmer [channel4/programmes/sunday-brunch] that he will accept his induction into the TNA Hall of Fame on Sunday, February 1 at TNA’s live event from the Wembley Arena in London, England. Angle explained there were things he wanted to accomplish before accepting his induction. More: impactwrestling/news/item/5454-Huge-News-Kurt-Angle-To-Be-Inducted-Into-The-TNA-Hall-Of-Fame-At-Wembley-Arena After TNA’s European tour, it will be time for Angle to slow down. He will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery next month and the major point of discussion will be the fact his TNA contract is up in September. BULLET BLITZ • ARTICLE: Goldust Talks Wellness: miamiherald/2014/01/24/3891720/goldust-shines-again-in-wwe-coming.html • ARTICLE: Seth Rollins: “We could triple-powerbomb Hulk Hogan”: digitalspy/tv/s216/wwe/interviews/a546382/wwe-the-shields-seth-rollins-we-could-triple-powerbomb-hulk-hogan.html • ARTICLE: Story Behind Royal Rumble: wwe/shows/royalrumble/story-behind-royal-rumble-match-26176232 • AUDIO: Mark Madden Interviews Paul Heyman: 1059thex/media/podcast-mark-madden-MarkMadden/paul-heyman-24235227 • AUDIO: Roman Reigns on His Potential as a Singles Star: youtube/watch?v=eyo_xJNIj2k • BLOG: The latest blog entry from Jim Ross is online at jrsbarbq/blog/jrs-new-orleans-tkts-available-saturday-royal-rumble-fox-sports-deal-done-primani-brothers. • INFO: According to a Retweet of Curt Hawkins, he is part of a pro wrestling academy out of Long Island, NY. • INFO: Adventureland in Voorhees, NJ sent word they’re hosting Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins on Sunday, March 23 at 11:30a-1:30p et. Tickets can be purchased at adventurelandstore/adventureland/index.php?main_page=page&id=10 or by calling (856) 772-5900. More info: facebook/events/647451781984084 • INFO: Former WWE worker Gene Snitsky was backstage at Saturday night’s WWE live event in Reading, PA. • INFO: Kevin Nash is in Pittsburgh and is part of a Royal Rumble after-party that is not affiliated with WWE. • INFO: NXT worker Alexander Rusev was on Friday night’s WWE live event in State College, PA. He went over Zack Ryder via submission in a singles match and was introduced to the crowd with a vignette. NXT profile: wwe/shows/wwenxt/alexander-rusev-bio • INFO: The updated plans for WrestleMania XXX have him in a program with Sheamus. The point to make heading into Royal Rumble is that plans have Undertaker working Brock Lesnar and Bryan working Sheamus. Obviously, that is subject to change, but the first step towards WrestleMania [and WrestleMania storylines] begins tonight. • Q&A: Former WWE Diva Recalls Friendship w/ John Cena, Pities Bella Twins: reddit/r/SquaredCircle/comments/1w1mrh/first_lady_maria_kanellis_from_roh • Q&A: Ryback “Offended” Over Batista’s Return, Still Wants Undertaker at WrestleMania: news.directv/2014/01/24/exclusive-will-ryback-rule-at-royal-rumble • There are plans for Ricardo Rodriguez to work on the Spanish announce team at tonight’s Royal Rumble. • VIDEO: Backstage Fallout: January 24, 2014: youtube/watch?v=IR35PPRAz2c • VIDEO: JBL & Cole Show #61: Cody Investigates at WWE HQ Part 2: youtube/watch?v=-Ap_X5e7Uu4 • VIDEO: Michigan State Football Player Travis Jackson and the “YES!” chant: youtube/watch?v=0iuHwzaPw34 •INFO: WWE has recently changed its stance on stars attending UFC shows. Once considered a big deal, now the company does not mind their stars popping up in front of UFC cameras. CM Punk was at Saturday’s show in Chicago, while stars like Undertaker have been known to attend UFC events in the past. Ric Flair, while not under an active WWE contract, was at UFC Fight Night 35 a couple of weeks ago. (c) = Champion(s) entering match
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 00:08:14 +0000
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