Hunter's Torn Quad

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Given Morishima's position in NOAH, it's a pretty safe bet he's making a fair bit more than $50,000 a year. Not only that, he gets several weeks off a year, gets trans and hotel paid for, and doesn't have to deal with a lot of the bullshit that he would if he were to go to WWE. If Morishima were to get a good push, and that's a very big if, he could earn comparable to what he's making in NOAH, but he'd probably wind up with less at the end of the day because of the expenses he's liable for. On the other hand, and this is the major lure a spot in WWE offers, if he does have a good run in WWE, or even a half-decent one, he's going to return to NOAH a much bigger star than when he left. Long-term, Morishima, and NOAH, might feel it worth taking the hit, because of the potential rewards, both to Morishima and NOAH.

We should also keep the trade talk to PM's, AIM, etc, so we don't clutter up the thread and to keep things 'confidential'. And no trading someone on; once you have someone, you can't use them to bargain for someone else.

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I'm fine with trading. Everybody is bound to have missed out on at least one wrestler they'd like to have had, and I think it would add a little strategic element to the draft by giving them the opportunity to try and trade for that wrestler; the challenge is coming up with a wrestler that you're willing to give up but is also someone the person you're trading with is willing to go for. As for trade limits, how about a limit of two trades per person?

I'm still in this. I'll make my pick in a moment, when I've looked over who is left. OK, I've looked over the remaining wrestlers, and there really is only one choice. Fortunately for me, it's my first choice of the wrestlers on offer, and it gives me an all-time dream match. Not only that, but it also means my roster has a legendary worker who is a major draw everywhere my promotion would run. My pick is... Bruno Sammartino!

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It's from F4W, but is members only at this point, so can't be linked to yet.

Are we obligated to take someone, or can we pass?

The Goldberg one at Summerslam stands out as the single dumbest thing we got out of Triple H's 2002-3 ego trip. It killed the crowd dead.

F4W Sherdog It's not a fight that the message boards will like, but it's the biggest match, in terms of marquee value, that they could get out of Kimbo.

I imagine it wasn't so much that Modest didn't want to job but that, politically, he couldn't, because of working for NOAH. That sort of thing has caused a lot of problems for ROH when it comes to finishes. As for what Bret would have done if the Montreal situation was reversed, I think he would have been against doing it but that Vince would have been able to talk him into going along with it, because Vince is good at that sort of thing.

If Flair had stuck around, he'd have got the World belt back when Luger flopped, and transitioned it to Sting. Other than that, Flair would have still been the guy to put heels over before they feud with the top babyface. In fact, I think he'd have wound up being the guy to put Vader over en route to Vader-Sting. That's in addition to being the fall back champion of record.

Baby Doll got heat, and was subsequently fired, over dating Sam Houston because he was a jobber and she was a top star. Wrestling protocol is that stars date stars, and going against that gets you heat. It's why CM Punk had heat when he was dating Maria. Obviously she wasn't a 'star', but he was considered to be dating above his station, and it was frowned upon. And yes, Ole Anderson is a fantastic promo guy.

For my last pick I'm going with another shooter, one who has his roots in New Japan. In fact, before he ventured off into worked shoots, this person was tipped to be a future main event superstar because of his natural talent. This last pick obviously has the in-ring ability that I'm after, and he also has the charisma. He is a premier shooter who has submission wins over both Shamrock brothers, and was the co-founder of Pancrase. My last pick is... Masakatsu Funaki!

A better way of putting it would have been that the timing, at least to the conspiracy theorist, is strange that just when UFC is starting to get some competition from EliteXC, their heavyweight champion just happens to fail a test. Presumably, Silva would have been one of the non-Kimbo Slice names that EliteXC would have built their promotional machine around, and now he's out of the picture for a year. Irvin failed a test, but he's not a major name. And while Sherk failed too, and was Lightweight champion, he wasn't a major name at the time.

The New Arrivals: Ted DiBiase: In the aftermath of losing the I Quit match to Ric Flair at Clash IX, Terry Funk does a series of interviews where he's quiet, humble, and almost sullen. He talks about maybe not having what it takes anymore to compete at the top level in professional wrestling, and that maybe it's time to finally retire once and for all. Finally, after a lot of teasing, at the tv tapings in December, the 'main event' for the first hour is a big Terry Funk interview, where it is expected that he is going to announce his retirement from wrestling. After an emotional interview, with polite applause from the fans, Funk starts to announce that he is indeed going to retire. However, without warning, Ted DiBiase hits the ring and levels Funk from behind, Funk tries to fight back, but is too stunned, and DiBiase leaves Funk laying with a DDT on the floor. Back in the ring, DiBiase takes the mic, and he tells Funk that by losing at the Clash and shaking Flair's hand he not only disgraced himself but the memory of his father, Dory Funk Sr. DiBiase goes on to say that he grew up watching Dory Funk Sr. wrestle, and he admired the man and wanted to be like him one day, and that watching Funk disgrace the family name is something that he will not stand for, so he's entered the NWA to punish Funk for disgracing the Funk name, and when he's done with doing that, DiBiase says he is coming after the World Heavyweight Championship. The match is signed for Clash of the Champions X: Terry Funk v Ted DiBiase. Both men give interviews in the months beforehand, with DiBiase pressing home the point that losing to Flair and shaking his hand was a disgrace to the Funk family name, and that it wasn't something that Dory Sr would have ever tolerated from his children, and that by doing so, Funk tarnished the name of the Funk family, and as someone who loved Dory Sr like he loved his own father, more so after Dory Sr fought to save the life of his own father, DiBiase won't let Terry Funk tarnish his family name. Funk fires back, saying that he did nothing to disgrace the Funk family name. He fought his heart out against Flair, and that was just what his father told him to do; fight all you can, and you can live with yourself, and that fighting with anything less is the real disgrace. Funk will go on to say that he gave it his all, and while he didn't win the match, he can still live with himself, because he did everything he could to win the match, but Flair was the better man that night. Funk, in true Funk style, will tell DiBiase that there will never be a night where DiBiase is the man, because losing to DiBiase would definitely tarnish the Funk name, and Funk has absolutely no intention of ever letting that happen. Funk v DiBiase is a war, with Funk attacking DiBiase as he makes his way to the ring. The match is fought mostly on the floor, with both men using chairs on the other, and the guard rail seeing a lot of action too. There is very little wrestling here, as both men are content to brawl away, with the fans getting more than their moneys worth. In the end, after a few near falls, both men wind up decking the referee with dual headbutts, and the match is ruled a no-contest, amidst the sight of Funk and DiBiase brawling into the crowd, back over the guard rail, and then to the back of the building. Later on, after the next match, we see them being separated by security, with vile threats of violence going back and forth. The following TV would see DiBiase berate Funk for not beating him, and Funk doing the same to DiBiase. Funk would then talk about the upcoming PPV Wrestle War, and that in war there is death, and at Wrestle War he and DiBiase would have a Texas Death match, and that he is going to show DiBiase what a true member of the Funk family can do in the ring, when he is fighting the type of match that his father invented and made famous. The Texas Death match is the bloody brawl you’d expect with furniture tossed aside and the commentary team running for their lives. It’s a chaotic affair with a close finish as I want the program to keep going, and Funk goes over by the narrowest of margins, barely beating the ten count to get the win, but still triumphant in the match invented made famous by his father. The feud between DiBiase and Funk would culminate at Capitol Combat in a Strap Match, but not with the photo finish you typically get in these matches. With DiBiase primed to be the top heel in the NWA, he needs something to round him out as being more than just a great wrestler but as someone with an edge and a willingness to do whatever it takes. The finish would be quite graphic, for the time, and would be very ironic, because it’s going to see DiBiase wrap a plastic bag around Funk’s head and choke him out with the strap with Funk trying to fight it but eventually passing out and the referee calling for the bell and for immediate medical attention for Funk. It’s a strong finish, maybe too strong, but I want some major heat on DiBiase, and I think he gets it by going to such an extreme to finish off Funk. Summary: This feud is very old-school, blood and guts in nature, with two well traveled veterans going at it. Funk turns babyface, seemingly to go out with his head held high and the fans respecting him, but then Ted DiBiase, a friend of the family, shows up and gives Funk a beating. DiBiase then really turns the emotional screws by bringing up the memory of Funk’s father, a person that both idolized. This makes it personal and gets it really heated. Funk might think he’s on the edge of retirement but he’s not going to let someone, even a friend of the family, disrespect the name of his father. Funk’s the respected legend who believes it’s time to step aside at the top, but he’s got that one last issue to take care of before he can ride off into the sunset. As for DiBiase, the feud should do a damn good job of making him a major heel and effectively getting the people to see him as no longer the cartoon character that was the Million Dollar Man but the old-school, willing-to-do-what-it-takes heel who makes no bones about what he wants and doesn’t care that he has to step on personal friends to get it. The fact that Funk and DiBiase are friends adds a personal dimension to the angle, because DiBiase is such an asshole that he’s willing to use the memory of Dory Funk Sr., a man that longtime fans know he was close to, in order to try and put down Terry Funk, someone that fans also know he was close and that helped break him into the business.

F4W F4W Things were going bad for EliteXC out of the cage, and now this. I'm sure there's an MMA conspiracy theorist out there wondering why no major/semi-major UFC names fail the tests, James Irvin not withstanding.

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A couple of notes from the just-posted Observer:

Didn't anyone tell Russo that if everyone is 'shades of grey' then nobody stands out, you wind up being unable to distinguish the babyfaces from the heels, and people get confused about who to cheer for?

Whoever posted them put them in the same thread as the spoilers for last weeks show.

My last(?) pick is someone who fits the style of my promotion, serious wrestling, but also adds personality and entertainment, which is important when we go to North America. He's primarily noted for his MMA career, with wins over Frank and Ken Shamrock, and also being a former UFC Heavyweight champion. However, he's also worked for New Japan a number of times, which is where he becomes eligible. His style and personality make him a perfect fit for my promotion, with his wit and charisma making him a great choice for those all important promotional appearances. For my next pick I'm going 100% Guapo... Bas Rutten!

Edge vs. Undertaker (Hell in a Cell Match) Undertaker wins here. And I don't see Edge taking a 'Mick Foley bump'. WWE have gone away from that sort of thing for a long time now, and even if they were to go back to it, I don't see them doing so with someone who is both a franchise player and a little injury prone. WWE Champion Triple H vs. The Great Khali Triple H wins, but I wouldn't be surprised to see a DQ win. Smackdown has a dearth of people they can headline with, so I think they'll use the fact the HIAC is going last to go with a non-finish here and extend the program a little more. World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk vs. JBL CM Punk retains, but it'll be another finish where he pulls the win out of nowhere, rather than the more decisive major win he really needs. ECW Champion Mark Henry vs. Matt Hardy Henry retains here, but they'll keep the program going because there isn't really anyone else on ECW who can 'main event' John Cena vs. Batista I don't see a finish here, and if they have one, no matter who is involved, it'll be even more stupid than having the match take place this quickly with so little build. I think we'll see the match start out clean and then tempers will flare and it'll become a total brawl. The match will wind up in a double disqualification but eventually both guys will calm down and we might even see a show of mutual respect. I think it's clear Batista is turning heel at some point, but I don't think it's now. I think we'll see it a little later in the year, maybe in time for both men to captain opposing teams at Survivor Series. Montel Vontavious Porter vs. Jeff Hardy MVP seems to be the whipping boy of the Matt Hardy, and it'll probably be no different here. Kofi Kingston & Women’s Champion Mickie James vs. Santino Marella & Beth Phoenix in a winner take all match Don't care.

Then it's my turn, and I'm choosing a second announcer. As announcers go, he's a very good one, and his style of announcing fits in perfectly with my promotion. My next pick is... Mauro Ranallo!