RavishingRickRudo

Entertainment value can be effected by external factors independant of the match itself. If you are watching a match with two people talking loudly in the next room your entertainment value will shift while the match quality will not. How many times do I have to say this?

Is that the same principle regarding the McMahons? They have the securest positions in the company - since they, you know, own it. Thank god they don't abuse their power and spend an insane amount of time on TV...

I will never 100% hate Test for 2 reasons... "Bitch" - he said after Steph left TnA's lockerroom which to-this-day cracks me up. And his tilt-a-whirl spinning powerbomb he did on Eddie at Wm 17. That was so fuckin righteous. But other than that, I really don't look forward to his matches.

Here's a Quickie confirming what was said above:: Sunday, October 26th, 2003 HENDERSON VS BUSTAMANTE MMAWeekly.com told you a few weeks ago that Pride was working on a Dan Henderson vs Murilo Bustamante match up. Today we can tell you that the fight has been signed by both fighters. MMAWeekly talked with Dan Henderson late last night and asked how his torn ACL is doing. Henderson said "The knee is doing pretty good. I really didn't want to come back this soon, but Pride really wanted this fight and wanted it in two weeks. I was hoping to wait until February, but oh weel, I really want this fight so I will fight a little sooner than I wanted to." Henderson continued, "I've wanted this fight for a long time. Busta is a great fighter and I'm looking forward to fighting this guy. Sure I would love more time to prepare for a quality fighter like Murilo, but I'm still confident I can get the win." MMAWeekly.com can also report that the proposed fight between Heath Herring and Dan Bobish is almost a done deal as well, so this card is simply stacked as Pride delivers another solid card in back to back shows. (MMAweekly)

Do they look in their 40's? Do they look near their 40's? It's a stupid statement amongst many stupid statements. By saying "At least in their 40's" you open up the possibility that they could be 41 - do they look 41? Do they look 45? Do they look 49? This error in judgement dents your credibility as a writer (it also didn't help that it seemingly had no point). I also find it astounding that with all the other points I - or others - have mentioned the only ones you have replied to were/are rather insignificant in comparison.

Turner had a problem with McMahon. *swats fly away*

So far for Pride Final Conflict we have: Confirmed Yoshida vs. Silva Rampage vs. Liddell Cro Cop vs. Nog Sakuraba vs. Randleman Likely Bobish vs. Herring Henderson vs. Busta Wow. That... that... that might just be better than Total Elimination.

Shawn didn't "put over" Austin, Austin was already "over" as it was. *chews gum* Besides, my reply was based on the comment that began with "Shawn Michaels is back in WWE". And I forgot about this lil gem: Michaels' contribution to WWE is seemingly that of putting up great matches with green hands and vets alike while leaving the title scene to the current crop of main event talents. WHEN was Goldberg vs. Michaels FOR THE TITLE? And these "great matches"... oh lordy.

I am. I think anyone who slaps on a *-rating should be able to back it up with some sort of reasoning - if they can't, then that rating is meaningless. "Official Scale" or not, there should be a general method of analysis, a common ground of sorts, that should at least be acknowledged. I've been toying around with a figure skating-esque system of technical and artistic merit. As some matches (Benoit vs. Angle) are high on technical merit, but rather low on artistic. The degree of difficulty between the two is harder to incorporate and adjust accordingly. Like I said, I've been toying around with it, put I'll put it out there as a suggestion.

Bret and Vince "reconciled" before Vince decided to bring it all back up in Montreal w/ Shawn and Jericho. Bret will be on Wrestling Observer Live tonight from 8-10 to clear it all up. *laughs at Shawn "doing the right thing"* # of people Shawn has 'put over' = 0

You said they were "at least" in their 40's. Clearly they weren't. It's just as asinine to say they're "at least in their 20's". I mean, I could see -maybe- "at least in their 50's" because some people age differently than others, but their 40's? How many 40 year olds do you know that look like that? They look like my grandparents for crying out loud.

Hows about this: Angel won't be becoming Human? I can't see it happening. Buffy didn't stop being a slayer, she just stopped having the responsibility of "one". Angel won't stop being a vampire, he'll just be more less-at-odds with his vampire-self.

I don't know about that. Angelus is the vampire form of Liam. Angel is the vampire with a soul form of Angelus. If Angel turns human, he's back to being Liam... right?

I'm sure he had the Stu stuff lined up for a few years now, to be honest.

Neither was I and I completely agree with what you said. It was all-over-the-place, and the comparisons were just poor. Perhaps a better subject would be "believability" in wrestling, and how suspension of disbelief is created and sustained, rather than pointing fingers at the fans and the internet. There were probably 3 different topics which could have been given it's own column: - The Internet - Believability - The difference between "then" and "now" I can see how these 3 subjects can crossover, but they are not one-in-the-same.

I think it had something to do with wrestling not being real.

Dave is a mark for Mr. McMahon, he always overrates his matches and always uses "for what it was"... DRUGS ARE BAD!! NO! NO! NO DAVE! BAD!

Drugs are Bad, Mmmkay kids?

Of course, even the most avid wrestling historian will tell you to take all the information (from) "back then" with a grain of salt. As knowledge from both news paper article and through word of mouth can be "worked".

A smark is someone who wants to learn more about wrestling - who wants to go behind the move and behind the curtain. It's that simple.

I'm sorry, he lost me after he said that a couple clearly in their 60's were in their 40's.

It always provided good material.

Ok. Pat Smith vs. Frank Mir - I like Pat Smith. He looks like Ernest "The Cat" Miller. He got tapped at UFC 1, came back and said that he started training in submissions. I liked that, it showed that he "got" it. And this was when the majority of fighters had no clue. The fight itself, I could care less about. I like both guys, but whatever, I still don't care. Now, Bustamante/Henderson... OH LORD DO I CARE!!! That is going to be an AWESOME fight. "Dream bout" for sure. UFC HOF - *sigh* Gracie won 3 tournaments, Shamrock won... um... the SUPERFIGHT belt! YEAH! He trained some good fighters, so he should go in, but his accomplishments in the octagon really aren't that great. Beat Severn, beat Taktarov, beat Kimo,... had 2 of the most boring fights in MMA history... *Marks Feb 1st on Calender*

Oh and this: Ryan Parsons, TQFC chiropractor and nutritionist, posted this on the UG this evening, confirming Dan will be fighting Busta! quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: RyanParsons Date: 25-Oct-03 10:00 PM Member Since: 29-Sep-03 37 Total Posts Dan just got back from a two week hunting trip in Colorado today and found out he's fighting Bustamante. He's never turned down a fight and won't start now. Matt and Randy are coming down to California to help get him ready. Check www.tqfc.com for pictures and training updates. The training program with the DVD is about ready as well. Much of the Team Quest diet and training info will be featured. Ryan -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (via SherdogMB)

Saturday Oct 25th, 03 PAT SMITH IS BACK IN THE UFC! It was a pretty crazy 24 hours for MMAWeekly.com. Dana White was on LIVE with Ryan Bennett on MMAWeekly Radio when he found out that Wes Sims broke his arm. Hopefully you were with us on the Soundoff Forum yesterday when we found out who his replacement would be. MMAWeekly broke the news yesterday that Pat Smith will indeed be the guy to step in the Octagon to fight Frank Mir at UFC 45. Ironic, since this is the 10th Anniversary show, and it was Smith himself who competed in the first UFC. "My manager, Sven Bean said Are you sitting down? And I was like "What". He said your back in the UFC and I just smiled" Smith told MMAWeekly late last night. This is a very different Pat Smith in 2003 compared to the one back in 1993. Smith knows of the talk on the internet wondering if the game has passed him buy. Smith said "The game has changed and I have changed. I know this dude is a great ground artist so I'm excited to fight him." When asked about Mir's performance against Tank Abbott, Smith said "I saw that fat ass Tank get caught in that heel hook. Tank is not a MMA fighter, he's just a brawler. He had no idea how to get out of it. It was pitiful. (Mir) will have a hell of a time just taking me down and I have plenty of guys that I'm working with that will have me ready for submissions." One of those guys will be King of Pancrase Nathan Marquardt. Marquardt who is in the Denver area where Smith trains is known for his solid submission game. "Marquardt will be a great guy to train with. I also have a guy named Leo who is 290 pounds who tries everything from neck cranks to heel hooks who is very good, so I will be ready." So what will Smith strategy be in this fight? "Look if that dude from England (Ian Freeman) can execute his game plan, I can do the same thing. I'm a lot bigger (than Freeman) I'm stronger than (Freeman) him too. My conditioning is excellent so I feel that could be a factor and I'm telling you he will have a hell of a time catching me and if does, he will be hit harder than he has ever been before. I respect his game, but I don't know if he has ever been hit like the power I have in my game." Smith was at the very first UFC in Denver, losing to Ken Shamrock back at UFC 1 in 1993. This match-up of old guard vs. new guard should help give those fans that have been clamoring for the UFC to bring back some of the old guys for this show something to look forward to. (MMAWeekly) ---------------------------------------------- UFC HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCED UFC President Dana White made the announcement LIVE on MMAWeekly Radio yesterday. The UFC has created a Hall of Fame and every year at least one fighter will be inducted into the Hall. The first two inductees will be UFC legends Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock. "These two fighters paved the way for the fighters of today. They are true legends and deserve to be in the Hall." When Ken Shamrock was contacted White said "He was pretty emotional. He just wanted to be remembered for what he did in the sport and this was very fulfilling for him to have his legacy remembered." White continued by saying that MMA fans will get the opportunity to take pictures and get autographs with some of the legends of the Octagon. Here's the information for fans he want to attend. Autograph Session Friday, November 21 Mohegan Sun 2 pm - 6 pm Fighters Participating: Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Don Frye, Randy Couture, Pat Miletich, Marco Ruas, Mark Coleman, Pat Smith, Fred Ettish plus More fighters to be announced. These fighters will have some special "casino chips" made to commemerate the 10th Anniversay fights. If you can't be there at the Mohegan Sun, then if you buy the pay per view you will receive these special casino chips as a collector's item. (MMAWeekly) --------------------------------------- From pridefc.com " Emelianenko's Injury October 16, 2003 The Mirko Filipovic vs. Fedor Emelianenko Heavyweight Championship match, as anticipated as the Middleweight Grand Prix, has been delayed due to an injury sustained by Fedor. However, Dream Stage Entertainment announced the replacement match at a press conference on October 16th. Mirko, undefeated in the last 2 years, will go head-to-head with the former PRIDE Heavyweight Champion, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. This will be a showdown between extreme striking and extreme grappling. "To put it plainly, Fedor is out. However, we have an opponent who is about as tough as Fedor lined up." PRIDE General Manager Nobuhiko Takada continued, "Mirko's opponent will be Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira." Takada explained at the conference that Fedor has broken a bone in his right hand. "Don't you want to find out which is the strongest, striking or grappling?" And just as Takada said, this match lacks nothing in comparison to a possible Mirko/Fedor fight. This match will be for the PRIDE FC Interim Heavyweight Championship. Fedor, will put the true Championship on the line at PRIDE 27, schedule for February 1, 2004 at Osaka Castle Hall. Although, it's possible that another extension will be possible, depending on Fedor's recovery. Mirko, coming off a lighting-fast win over Dos Caras Jr., verified that he is in top condition and ready to battle, "I don't just want to fight Fedor. I want to fight whoever has the belt." Mirko's motivation doesn't seem to have dropped at all with the change of opponent. Not to mention that Nogueira, the former Champion, wants to be known as the strongest in the world. Although it's for an Interim title, there's not mistaking that beating his new opponent would give Mirko his so-desired title of the world's strongest and most-complete fighter. Nogueira also has a lot on the line in this match, Takada said. "We got an OK from Nogueira's side after only 2 replies." Nogueira lost the belt to Fedor in February of this year and wasn't able to perform like he wanted in his comeback match against Rico Rodriguez in August. Although it looked like he might be on his way out, Nogueira has take a step forward on the road back to Fedor. This is a rare, and unexpected, chance for him and Nogueira doesn't plan on letting it slip through his fingers. In fact, before his fight Fedor, Mirko was the opponent that Nogueira himself wanted the most. Nogueira gained the PRIDE Heavyweight Championship title in his 3rd PRIDE match, after defeating the PRIDE GP 2000 Champion, Mark Coleman, by submission. It's a natural progression that Mirko face Nogueira in his quest for the Championship. FEDOR'S INJURY Fedor injured his right hand in his August fight with Gary Goodridge. However, he started training hard in the end of August for his upcoming bout with Mirko. Despite his training menu being designed so as not cause much stress to his hand, it became clear on November 15th that the base of his right thumb was broken. He received extensive treatment by the only 2 Russian Presidential doctors in Moscow but it became necessary to put a cast on the hand on November 25th. It would take at least 2 weeks before the cast could be removed and Fedor won't be able to resume training until December at the earliest but January being better. Despite his prognosis, Fedor still wanted to fight Fedor in November. The opinion of both the official doctor and DSE was that he should not fight until he is completely healed, so that neither side would have any doubts over the result." (Via MMA.tv) -----------------------------------------