Enigma 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 DARK MATCH: Kizarny defeated Zack Ryder. SMACKDOWN: Shelton Benjamin defeated Hurricane Helms to retain the U.S. Title. WWE Champion Jeff Hardy cut an intense promo about how he was going to beat The Big Show later that night. Triple H came out and called out Vladimir Kozlov. Chavo Guerrero came out instead. He said that Vickie Guerrero has ordered HHH to not interfere in anymore of Kozlov's matches. If he does again, he would not be allowed to compete in the Royal Rumble and would get no more title shots as long as Vickie was the GM. Vickie then came out and ordered Chavo vs. HHH to happen immediately. Triple H defeated Chavo Guerrero. Carlito defeated The Brian Kendrick. Primo and The Bella Twins were with Carlito, while Ezekiel Jackson was with Kendrick. A video package aired, hyping the return of Umaga to Smackdown. Edge & Vickie are seen backstage. Edge is discussing how much he hates both Hardys. Big Show walked in the room and told them he was going to beat Hardy tonight. Vickie said that if he can beat Hardy tonight, he'll get a title match very soon. Edge was not happy about that statement. Maryse defeated Michelle McCool to win the Diva's Title with Maria as the special guest referee. As soon as the match was over, Maryse took the belt and ran while McCool beat the absolute hell out of Maria. The Great Khali defeated MVP. After the match, Mr. Kennedy came out to cut a promo over MVP's body for his movie. It looks like the fan backlash against these constant movie plugs is starting. A video package for Kizarny aired, officially announcing his Smackdown debut next week. Vladimir Kozlov defeated Jimmy Wang Yang. Jeff Hardy defeated The Big Show by countout. Jeff & Matt celebrated at the top of the ramp to end the show. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Silence 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Shelton Benjamin defeated Hurricane Helms to retain the U.S. Title. That's what I thought was going to happen after Helms pinned Benjamin two weeks in a row. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cd213 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Shelton Benjamin defeated Hurricane Helms to retain the U.S. Title. That's what I thought was going to happen after Helms pinned Benjamin two weeks in a row. I happy that they didn't just give the title to Helms only a few weeks after being back. WWE has done that in the past, but it's good they didn't do that here. Helms stil has too much ring rust. Let their feud go through the Rumble and then have him win the title. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Psycho Penguin 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 I like Helms as much as anyone.. but maybe they can just not give him the title at all. There's something off about him. I want him to go back to the short hair and shaved look. And the old badass song he had after Hurricane and before ITS TIME! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cd213 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 I like Helms as much as anyone.. but maybe they can just not give him the title at all. There's something off about him. I want him to go back to the short hair and shaved look. And the old badass song he had after Hurricane and before ITS TIME! That was my favorite character of his. And yes, that theme was awesome. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanks for the Fish 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Too bad removing that hideous back tattoo will not be as easy... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
foleyfanforever88 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Maryse defeated Michelle McCool to win the Diva's Title with Maria as the special guest referee. As soon as the match was over, Maryse took the belt and ran while McCool beat the absolute hell out of Maria. YES!!! A video package for Kizarny aired, officially announcing his Smackdown debut next week. NOOO!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Psycho Penguin 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Fuck yeah, Maryse! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Silence 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 A video package for Kizarny aired, officially announcing his Smackdown debut next week. I can't wizait for his fizirst shizitty promo! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cabbageboy 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 I would think Maryse won the Divas belt mainly to be Ms. Transition to a returning Gail Kim. Show sounds adequate for the most part but what is up with the SD title scene for the Rumble and beyond? Who is Jeff's top challenger? Shelton may well be the worst booked champion in WWE today. He jobs constantly in non title matches and somehow sneaks out a win in the title match. But then I've never been a fan of that sort of booking, since in the end the champ looks weak and the challenger doesn't really gain anything in the end. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PILLS! PILLS! PILLS! 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 I would like to echo the optimistic sentiments re: McCool dropping the belt to the much more interesting (and hotter) Maryse. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hawk 34 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Shelton may well be the worst booked champion in WWE today. He jobs constantly in non title matches and somehow sneaks out a win in the title match. But then I've never been a fan of that sort of booking, since in the end the champ looks weak and the challenger doesn't really gain anything in the end. I disagree. At least Shelton has established himself as a champion and wins the matches that he has to win. However, Carlito and Primo have spent the majority of their reign trying to hook up with the Bella Twins and have no identity as tag champions. Their reign only supports the need to just unify both sets of tag titles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lt. Al Giardello 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Shelton may well be the worst booked champion in WWE today. He jobs constantly in non title matches and somehow sneaks out a win in the title match. But then I've never been a fan of that sort of booking, since in the end the champ looks weak and the challenger doesn't really gain anything in the end. I disagree. At least Shelton has established himself as a champion and wins the matches that he has to win. However, Carlito and Primo have spent the majority of their reign trying to hook up with the Bella Twins and have no identity as tag champions. Their reign only supports the need to just unify both sets of tag titles. I agree 100%. Atleast Shelton defends his title and wins the matches that matter the most. I've enjoyed his US title reign. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Truthiness 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Mr. Kennedy came out to cut a promo over MVP's body for his movie. It looks like the fan backlash against these constant movie plugs is starting. About time, I just want to see this guy go away. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PILLS! PILLS! PILLS! 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Primo and Carlito make Hawkins and Ryder look like The Steiner Brothers in their Championship heyday. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
haws bah gawd 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Shelton may well be the worst booked champion in WWE today. He jobs constantly in non title matches and somehow sneaks out a win in the title match. But then I've never been a fan of that sort of booking, since in the end the champ looks weak and the challenger doesn't really gain anything in the end. I disagree. At least Shelton has established himself as a champion and wins the matches that he has to win. However, Carlito and Primo have spent the majority of their reign trying to hook up with the Bella Twins and have no identity as tag champions. Their reign only supports the need to just unify both sets of tag titles. I agree 100%. Atleast Shelton defends his title and wins the matches that matter the most. I've enjoyed his US title reign. It seems the whoever becomes US Champion at least gets some consistently-long title reigns. Benoit held the title for eternity, then MVP received nearly a year-long reign, then Matt Hardy played transitional champ (before becoming ECW Champ) for Shelton, who has held the title since July (?). I agree the booking is a little off, maybe even reminiscent of Rey Mysterio as World Champion (losing each and every non-title match, but somehow retaining when the belt is on the line), but WWE always seems to be confident in Shelton enough to give him some ridiculously-long title reigns. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JoeDirt 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 I think the in-show movie promo things are going too far. I understand they want to hype the movie, but the ads do a good job of that. Just having slight mentions of it is so much better than the down your throat promotion of it that gets pretty sickening and annoying and makes you actively NOT want to rent it/buy it/whatever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LaParkaMarka 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Yay Maryse! Her heel mannerisms are fantastic. McCool was such a bland face too, maybe as a heel she can freshen up her character. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanks for the Fish 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 The wwe crminially neglects it's midcard titles. Regal has made it his mission to raise the stature of the IC title, but that will mean little if there isn't booker juice behind it. Benjamin is the posterchild for the wwe needing on-screen managers. Imagine him with Heenan, Hart, Cornette - he's be a main eventer. Carlito/Primo needed a win in their one-sided feud with Kendrick and Zeke, but Carlito is just so damn unmotivated right now. I know the wwe keeps him around because of target demographics, but I don't think he is worth the trouble or the spot. "The Puerto Rican Nightmare" Eric Escobar has been in developmentals for years now and would kill for a spot and the writers never seem to have anything for him. I think McCool will make a much better heel - it's tough to be a face from the get-go. It's easier to get fans to hate you first, and once they care about you enough to hate you it's easier than to turn face and get them to like you. Problem being that there is no face character to center the division around - Enter Gail Kim. I've come to the conclusion that the writers don't have any ideas for MVP anymore, so they just keep his groundhog day losing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanks for the Fish 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Carnival freak fits in McMahon's circus BY JIM VARSALLONE [email protected] Who better to join ring leader Vince McMahon's three-branded circus than Nick Cvjetkovich, WWE's newest SmackDown! star Kizarny. With real-life experience working the carnival, Cvjetkovich can speak carny, a language used by those in the carnival know. He can also speak wrestling jargon, another insider lingo which shares a few words with its carny brethren. In the early days of pro wrestling, carnivals hosted pro wrestling matches. Full circle. It seems fitting the two worlds now collide again through McMahon's latest addition. ''I got to have a sit down with Vince McMahon, and we chatted,'' said Kizarny, 35, from the Florida Championship Wrestling training facility in Tampa. ``A lot of the guys were really nervous to meet him. I was nervous in a healthy way, but I wasn't going to go in there, shaking like I'm meeting a girl's parents for the first time. I'm thinking I'm going in there full blaze, and he's either going to like it or not. It will be definitive one way or another. ``Right out of his mouth, he said I had a good attitude, and I had a ton of energy. I'm humbly confident to know I got that in spades. It was all right.'' In September, WWE flew some of the developmental wrestlers to the Unforgiven pay-per-view in Cleveland and Raw and SmackDown tapings to meet Mr. McMahon. ''The point of us going there was to have a handful of us chat with him, so he could see the people he had, talk with them face-to-face, instead of just getting a written report,'' Kizarny said. ``You know to see what kind of people, what kind of characters, what kind of humans he's got working for him. ``I guess my craziness amused him. Soon after that I was filming vignettes, getting ready to get up there and tear things up. ``He just asked me about myself. He didn't really ask me a whole lot of wrestling stuff. He just wanted to know what I was like. He realized I was legitimately from the carnival and legitimately know how to do all the weird sideshow feats. He asked if I really did all that. I was like, `Yeah, what you see is what you get.''' Kizarny did some bizarre things in the carnival. His back was a human dart board, and he even bent iron with his teeth. ''Let's see Mark Henry do that,'' he chuckled. ``The hair, the tattoos, the fingernails, all the weird stuff, it's not any silly character. That's me. If I was going to be a lawyer or a doctor tomorrow, you get a lawyer with green fingernails and a foot long goatee. Angel wings tattooed on my back and the whole nine yards. ``I think [Mr. McMahon] kind of giggled and thought, `Holy smokes, I got an authentic wacko in front of me. This is awesome. A playful one at that. Maybe we can do something with that. That sounds interesting.''' Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Kizarny does bring something different to the WWE table while reinventing some of the things he learned from his mentors. Trained by Alex Atkinson, Rob Fuego and Ron Hutchison, Cvjetkovich debuted in 2000 in Canada. He wrestled throughout Canada and the United States. During his journey, he earned a black belt and became a protégé of former WWE star Jake the Snake Roberts. In FCW, Kizarny, known as Carnival Freak Sinn Bowdee, not only wore tights with painted snakes (in tribute to Jake) but often displayed this wry, freakish smile (ala Jake) before, during and after matches. ''I traveled with Jake to a lot of places and stayed with him in Florida,'' Kizarny said. ``We did a lot of [indie] shows together in Florida, and he taught me 90 percent of what I know -- the character stuff, the in-ring psychology, how to really maximize the feelings you want to invoke on the people, good, bad or indifferent. He's just a smart guy. ``He's got his demons. Everybody knows the story of Jake the Snake, but he's truly a sweet man and a very smart man.'' After signing a developmental deal in July 2007 with WWE, he worked on his persona and honed his skills in FCW, WWE's feeder group. Using a double underhook DDT with a bodyslam, he's come a long way. ''It was mind blowing to me to get offered a developmental deal with WWE,'' he said. ``I've been doing this since 1999. I starved, froze, slept in my car up and down the states, Canada, overseas, just trying to learn my craft. It didn't pay well at all. You make 100 bucks that week, and you might spend 300 bucks for travel and what not. ``I've woke up half frozen at rest stops. I actually woke up half frozen a couple of times in the desert not realizing how cold it gets. You go to sleep with no shirt on, thinking it's really hot out, and you wake up like a Popsicle. ``Paying dues like that to follow a dream, and then when that dream has a starting point; the starting point is you're hired, let alone all the hard work it takes to get to the starting point. So I was thoroughly excited, but I still realized it was the beginning. Everything I had gone through was just a warm-up.'' Kizarny worked without a contract in Ohio Valley Wrestling, a former WWE feeder group in Louisville. ``I wrestled Al Snow, the trainer at OVW, on the independent circuit a few times, and he said I should try to come down to OVW, and there's a line of guys trying to get in, but he really liked my character and skills. He said to come down, and he would put me to work. I did that. I just had a lot of fun there. Al taught me a lot.'' Kizarny worked for TNA in 2003-04 as the demented Sinn in The New Church, led by the diabolical Father James Mitchell. He also worked the Florida indie circuit including South Florida's Coastal Championship Wrestling. He's faced King Kong Bundy, Raven, Hawk, Hacksaw Jim Dugan, Tatanka, Joe Gomez, Jim Niedhart, Robert Roode, Pat Tanaka, Petey Williams, Kid Kash and Roberts. He recalls tagging with Helvis, known as the Beasts of Burden, and battling the Steiner Brothers at a high school fundraiser in Detroit. He proudly said they went toe-to-toe with the Steiners. Speaking of tag team greats, he is friends with Edge and Christian. ''One day one of the WWE office guys came in, and he didn't want to hear a wrestling promo,'' Kizarny said. ``He just wanted to hear about us. I just basically said how I was just never going to quit, and I'm either too stupid, stubborn or skilled to quit. I'm going to be successful or die trying. ``He came up to me later and said how impressed he was with what I said. Then, a good friend of mine, Edge, was rooting for me, and all the guys I wrestled were rooting for me. There were enough references. `Hey, this guy's good. Hey, this guy's a hard worker. Hey, this guy's unique.' ``I think there was that sort of character reference. Finally, that week when that one guy from the office heard me. Maybe that was it. I don't know. It was a combination of stuff. That was the week. That was the time. That was last June. 'So they called me and told me to get up to Canada. `Wait for your VISA.' I'm Canadian. So I did that. Pending my VISA, they said get down to Florida. OVW was closed not long after that. I've been in Florida ever since.'' Florida is the Sunshine State. ''I don't know how anybody can complain about moving to palm trees and oceans to get paid to live your dream,'' he said. ``We work real hard. It's as physical as you can get. I guess if you love what you do, you don't work a day in your life. I've got nothing to complain about. Any bumps, bruises along the way, I can just take with a smile because I'm getting paid to live my dream. ``How many kids want to grow up to be a rock star, baseball player, runway model, whatever it is. I get to live my dream. Being a wrestler is like being something out of the pages of a comic book. I get to be like a real live super hero or super villain, depending on the mood or the direction of your boss -- one way or another.'' http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/other/story/800342.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chazz 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 Shelton may well be the worst booked champion in WWE today. He jobs constantly in non title matches and somehow sneaks out a win in the title match. But then I've never been a fan of that sort of booking, since in the end the champ looks weak and the challenger doesn't really gain anything in the end. They've done this sort of booking a lot in the past few years involving secondary champions, with the champion getting beat in one or two non-title matches, then somehow getting the win when the title is on the line. Just off the top of my head we've had R-Truth vs Benjamin(U.S. Title), Batista vs M.V.P.(U.S. Title), Jimmy Wang Yang vs Chavo Guerrero(Cruiserweight Title), and Miz/Morrison vs Yang/Shannon Moore(Tag Team Titles). I think it's time to retire this particular way of booking,(at least for awhile), as it's gotten as tired of a plot device as the "ex-champ is using his/her re-match clause." Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Silence 0 Report post Posted December 23, 2008 I think it's time to retire particular way of booking,(at least for awhile), as it's gotten as tired of a plot device as the "ex-champ is using his/her re-match clause." Which happens too often after Wrestlemania. Either a rematch on Raw or it happens at Backlash. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
garfieldsnose 0 Report post Posted December 24, 2008 The wwe crminially neglects it's midcard titles. Regal has made it his mission to raise the stature of the IC title, [/kayfabe] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanks for the Fish 0 Report post Posted December 24, 2008 The wwe crminially neglects it's midcard titles. Regal has made it his mission to raise the stature of the IC title, [/kayfabe] Actually he said as much in a UK Sun interview. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DrVenkman PhD 0 Report post Posted December 26, 2008 From WWE.com: Jeff Hardy vs. The Big Show (non-title) Maryse vs. Michelle McCool - Divas Championship bout. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Psycho Penguin 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2008 Hey, she's on a diet, she can fit! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisMWaters 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2008 I still find it amazing how much heat (even if it is cheap heat) that Vickie gets. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sluggo 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2008 Helms should just ditch the head gear when he comes to the ring Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sluggo 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2008 that was a good match Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisMWaters 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2008 Why is it I'm picturing Goldust and Jeff Hardy painting each other's faces after that promo? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
