RAW Rumors For Tonight

[Zack Malibu 0]

- Also rumored to be at the event are Romeo Roselli and Antonio Thomas, OVW tag team known as The Heartbreakers, as well as OVW champion (and former Smackdown talent) Matt Morgan and former Tough Enough contestant, removed for lying about his age, Marty Wright. PWInsider.com is reporting that these talents will either be working prior to the show tapings or appearing on screen (it has yet to be determined). The Heartbreakers, like recent SD debuts MNM, have been getting great reactions at OVW and on the road, especially due to their ring entrance.

 

With the open challenge thrown out by Regal and Tajiri last night, it makes me wonder if they'll debut the Heartbreakers on RAW as heels, although the way they play their gimmick in OVW actually turned them face, with fans going as far as dressing up like them. Yes, a gay tag team was turned BABYFACE by Southern fans. They're great though, and I look forward to their eventual debut as much as I did the MNM one this past week.

 

Morgan I like, and he was involved in a GREAT segment recently in OVW where Cornette called him out for going to WWE before he was ready. He's still not the best worker, but he's booked as a monster by Cornette and is great on promos. Of course, Cornette's booking and WWE's are two entirely different things, although by keeping MNM together with the same gimmick I've seen some semblance of hope that they won't screw up every OVW guy they call up.

 

These guys also may not be on RAW, but could easily show up on Smackdown as well with the "dual taping" going on. I'm guessing they'll probably just do dark match work, but the possibilities are there for them to be on the actual shows.

[geniusMoment 0]

Tonights raw is only about one thing................HOGAN!!!!!!!

 

Nothing else on the show matters to me. In fact, this will be the first time I have watched anything WWE has put on in quite some time.

[razazteca 0]

Its time for balding H-boys to put over the Magic Carpet Ride!

[geniusMoment 0]

I find it funny when people say the older guys need to put over the younger talent. I would agree except for the fact that the younger talent only encompasses one of those two words, as they are not at all talented.

 

Batista--------I have no clue why this guy is at all over on this board. He sucks as bad as Sid in the ring, has little to no promo skills and is pushing 40. If I wanted to see someone in nice suits I would watch those red carpet shows.

 

Orton--------Is okay as a worker, has not shown the ability to cut good promos and is just generally annoying in an X-Pac sort of way.

 

Hassan-------Sucks as a worker, is stuck in some stupid '80s gimmick and has limited mic skills, covered up by being able to show good intensity.

 

Cena--------Is an average at best worker, his mic skills have went downhill since he became a complete pussy.

 

After watching HBK/Angle the other day I came to the realization that I do not care about age. I would rather they be on top, they are more entertaining. Quite frankly I think all the young guys suck, and if they are pushed on top there is no chance I will watch.

 

In other words, I hope Hogan and HBK destroy Hassan and D???????????. I then hope Hogan and HBK work a program together, as that I would watch.

[Zack Malibu 0]

Batista, Cena, and Orton all have undeniable charisma. Cena is the best on promo's, Orton is a great smarmy heel, and Batista has that "quiet cool" style.

 

Hassan's best work is on promo's, definitely not in the ring. Batista and Orton have evolved into very good workers, with Orton leading the pack as he really stepped up his game when given the Jesus push last year.

 

Cena I agree is average at best in the ring. Batista cannot carry a match against a Snitsky, etc. but is a very capable worker against even average opponents. Orton is the best worker of the bunch.

[razazteca 0]

Outside of the bell botch Hassan is THE most entertaining new character on tv. Sid is the ruler and master of the hoss universe and don't you forget that!

[Guest Pariah]

Yes, a gay tag team was turned BABYFACE by Southern fans.

Um... Ohio is in the north of the country, isn't it?

 

Heartbreakers in the WWE would be interesting, although for some reason a lot of people have been calling MNM's gimmick homosexual, when its blatantly rich kid, metrosexuals, so I'm not sure if the WWE wouldn't want to put out two so 'similar' gimmicks in such close succession.

[geniusMoment 0]

Batista is not a very good worker, unless you consider knowing about 6 moves good. I could not take more than 6 minutes of his match with HHH at mania before popping the tape out. What good matches has Batista had? I cannot think of any.

 

Orton is spotty, but he works that boring ass conservative style, his promos are boring and he has not connected as a heel or face.

 

Cena used to be good, then he lost his edge.

 

What happened to the talent. When Bret, HBK, Austin and Foley broke the door down they did it because they could work, talk, had charisma, could show fire and just had that "it" factor. I would like nothing more than for someone to come along with those intangibles, but right now the new guys are just boring.

 

 

I do agree that all have some form of charisma. But none have cut a money promo, and none have cut that promo that made me get out of my seat. Simply having charisma is not enough.

[Guest Askewniverse]

Yes, a gay tag team was turned BABYFACE by Southern fans.

Um... Ohio is in the north of the country, isn't it?

OVW is based in Louisville, Kentucky.

[2GOLD 0]

Marty Wright?

Was that the big black guy with his face painted that revealed he was in his forties? Cause if it is, and he can work, then I'm already sold.

 

The moment they sent him home, I quit watching. Screw Daniel Puder, long live skull face guy!

[Guest LooneyTune]

geniusMoment makes good points about the current crop of talent (Batista, Cena, Hassan, Orton, etc.), but I'll go against his dislike of Batista, mainly because he's the only person allowed to actually destroy Triple H in quite a while.

 

I don't understand everyones support for Hassan. The character is hardly the most over (being chanted "What?" during your promos isn't a good sign), he wrestles like it's 1980 despite being under 30 years old, and is hardly the most intimidating person on the roster.

 

Cena's faults have been discussed before: he hasn't done anything to improve wrestling-wise, his raps are the same boring crap for the last 16 months, and he's been allowed to use 2 custom belts, despite never actually showing any signs of drawing, which is the argument against the only other person allowed to have a custom World Title (Steve Austin).

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Matt Morgan vs Chris Masters!

 

[Zack Malibu 0]

Marty Wright?

Was that the big black guy with his face painted that revealed he was in his forties? Cause if it is, and he can work, then I'm already sold.

 

The moment they sent him home, I quit watching. Screw Daniel Puder, long live skull face guy!

That be him, but he is still in training and off OVW TV, which leads me to believe he needs work on his work.

[geniusMoment 0]

If I were in charge I would move Shawn to Smackdown, have him beat Cena due to interference. Have him become heel, and have "badass" Angle chase him. You guys can have your Orton-Bastista snoozefests. I will take 4 months of build up to Shawn-Angle at Summerslam. A build consisting of great promos and matches. I would tell the younger guys they will be on top when they break through, not when they are pushed through.

[Zack Malibu 0]

If I were in charge I would move Shawn to Smackdown, have him beat Cena while due to interference. Have him become heel, and have "badass" Angle chase him. You guys can have your Orton-Bastista snoozefests. I will take 4 months of build up to Shawn-Angle at Summerslam. A build consisting of great promos and matches. I would tell the younger guys they will be on top when they break through, not when they are pushed through.

Well considering Batista got Orton's spot due to overwhelming fan response without the plans of turning him into the babyface World Champion, I'd say he connected and broke through quite nicely.

[Black Lushus 0]

So other than Orton and Cena, are any of these OVW guys panning out or have the potential to? Was Batista in OVW at some point?

[geniusMoment 0]

If I were in charge I would move Shawn to Smackdown, have him beat Cena while due to interference.  Have him become heel, and have "badass" Angle chase him.  You guys can have your Orton-Bastista snoozefests.  I will take 4 months of build up to Shawn-Angle at Summerslam.  A build consisting of great promos and matches.  I would tell the younger guys they will be on top when they break through, not when they are pushed through.

Well considering Batista got Orton's spot due to overwhelming fan response without the plans of turning him into the babyface World Champion, I'd say he connected and broke through quite nicely.

I am not so sure. I have seen where he has popped a few decent ratings. But he has shown no depth or ability to work at the level necessary to stay over. I am wagering the fans will see through him within a year, as right now he is getting over on the "cool vibe", eventually fans will want more for him to break out (ie. world caliber matches and great promos).

[Guest Hass of Pain]

I am really hoping that WWE debuts The Heartbreakers on Smackdown, I would much rather see them there than on Raw. My guess is that they will probably be the team that accepts Regal and Tajiri's open challenge, but it could also be Hassan and Daivari which would make more sense.

 

I'm baffled as to Marty Wright's appearance. He's only been training for like two months now and he's not even good enough for Jim Cornette to put on on television yet. I'm going to laugh if someone from WWE saw him scouting and decided to call him up, but I highly doubt that is the case. If his appearance on Tough Enough is any indication, they guy would make such a good crazy monster heel to work with Batista some day.

 

I'm a little curious as to why Matt Morgan has been asked to attend as well. He'll probably just work a dark match or something, but it's curious that on this weeks show he had his hair died black with a more cleancut look, and he was wearing a suit for the first time I have seen on OVW television. I've heard people speculate that this leads one to believe that he might be joining Evolution, and though the evidence is a little flimsy for me to believe, it certainly could work out that way.

[B. Brian Brunzell 0]

Was Batista in OVW at some point?

Yeah. Dave wrestled as Leviathon I believe.

[2GOLD 0]

Would anyone want to see Ric Flair go over Edge? Of course not, cause it would serve no purpose. Hogan going over Hassan serves only one purpose, to put over Hogan and make Hassan a PPV bitch.

 

Hassan, as much as I'd hate to admit it, has been improving in and out of the ring. He has massive heel potential, which the WWE seriously needs right now. It doesn't help the company or Hassan to put over Hogan so Hogan can put over that young whippersnapper Shawn Michaels.

 

If Shawn Michaels is the answer to the current RAW heel scene then someone obviously misread the god damn question.

[2GOLD 0]

Was Batista in OVW at some point?

Yeah. Dave wrestled as Leviathon I believe.

 

And totally no sold the Big Show's chokeslam at one event. Dave used to be too cool to sell moves.

 

When they brought him in as Deacon Batista, that was a depressing moment. Thankfully they corrected that huge mistake quickly.

[Guest Hass of Pain]

So other than Orton and Cena, are any of these OVW guys panning out or have the potential to? Was Batista in OVW at some point?

Yeah, Batista held the OVW title in 2002.

 

Some of the guys in OVW right now show potential, and three in particular have the potential to be Orton/Cena/Batista round two.

 

Bobby "Blaster" Lashley: If he entered the WWE right now, he would be the most physically impressive guy on the active roster, Batista included. Add to that the fact that he is a three time national amateur wrestling champion, he's said to be picking up on wrestling fast (like most former amatuer standouts seem to) and as good of a natural athlete as Brock Lesnar was. The guy just has this riduclous look and presence to him, he'll be huge when he's ready.

 

Paul Birchill: 6'4", 300lbs and the guy can do a standing shooting star press and a standing spanish fly. The guy is a monster in every sense of the word, and as a British wrestler he'll be a little different from the rest of the pack and stand out.

 

Matt Morgan: Awesome promo, passable work in the ring and arguably better all around than Batista was when he came out of OVW. The sky is the limit for Morgan.

 

Edit: Whoops, you were asking about guys who are in WWE now who spent time in OVW. My bad.

[Guest Coffey]

Outside of myself, whom has even posted about being on the Hussan bandwagon? I thought the general consensus around here was that he wasn't very well liked. I've read about being a bad worker with a bad gimmick

 

and

 

giving

 

promos

 

like

 

this

 

more than once.

 

Or are you guys just typing that shit to try to give your arguments some merit?

 

There's certainly not a fucking waiting line to get some Hussan discussion around here.

[2GOLD 0]

I'm close to joining the bandwagon. I'll gladly admit I was wrong. The guy is starting to entertain the hell out of me. Between him and Sid's long lost cousin Gene Snitsky, I've had moments where the RAW heel scene was bearable. Course then Edge shows up and ruins my fun.

 

And his promos are like that for the "WHAT". It was kinda what everyone would do for it.

[haws bah gawd 0]

Was Batista in OVW at some point?

Yeah. Dave wrestled as Leviathon I believe.

Say Hello to Dave "Leviathan" Batista

 

[ChrisMWaters 0]

Was Batista in OVW at some point?

Yeah. Dave wrestled as Leviathon I believe.

Say Hello to Dave "Leviathan" Batista

 

As a bonus for that picture...it also shows Kane back when he didn't look REALLY goofy.

[haws bah gawd 0]

Did Snitzky wrestle in OVW for long before joining the main roster? I don't remember ever hearing of him before his TV debut against Kane.

[Guest reek]

The Heartbreakers wrestled a TV match on International Heat a few months ago, they're terrible and shouldn't be said in the same breathe as MNM.

[Zack Malibu 0]

Did Snitzky wrestle in OVW for long before joining the main roster? I don't remember ever hearing of him before his TV debut against Kane.

He was cast as "Mean Gene" Mondo, the "Little brother" of Mike Mondo in OVW. When picturing Mike Mondo, picture Crash Holly and there you go. He was only there briefly before the callup.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

Cena's faults have been discussed before: he hasn't done anything to improve wrestling-wise,

OK, valid criticism.

 

his raps are the same boring crap for the last 16 months,

He hasn't done a rap promo in at least 2 months, if not more. He's had more of an edge in his promos (i.e. "bringing the fight").

 

and he's been allowed to use 2 custom belts, despite never actually showing any signs of drawing, which is the argument against the only other person allowed to have a custom World Title (Steve Austin).

The first belt was a big seller, so why not do another? As for drawing, he'd been stuck in the midcard prior to his feud w/ JBL. Of course he's not going to draw, he hasn't been given the opportunity. His merchandise sells, and he's 1 of the most over guys on the show (if not the entire company). He got over on his own, as opposed to being a WWE "let's push this guy down your throats" production, which is a good sign he's got some staying power. Why not see how his title reign goes before you start bitching about him on top?