Originally posted by geemoneyRemember J.R's "Ross Reports" where he ALWAYS mentioned how the cruiserweights should be pushed more? You'd think he would've had some pull to change things....
Look at the cruiserweight division now, compared with it in, say, 2000 or 2001. Back then, they maybe had two or three viable contenders for the belt and matches were MAYBE relegated to Heat.
Now, they have three times that in regularly-seen cruiserweight talent and the matches are a big part of SmackDown (hell, the Hardy-Mysterio match was the MAIN EVENT a few weeks ago), and they're running angles to promote the division.
So I think cruisers ARE being pushed more... more than they used to be. But the likes of Billy Kidman will never, EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEVER, be pushed more than The Undertaker and company.
Originally posted by NagAs mentioned I was impressed with what little I've seen of London. What I took out from his match is that he had some great spots and was a great seller seemed to have good charisma. So I am curious how would you guys rank his other aspects. As far as Ring Psychology, Technical...etc etc!
I've seen quite a bit of his stuff from ROH. To make a comparison - London (to me anyway) seems like a smaller, cruiserweight version of Edge. He's got charisma, looks, and a sort of all-around style with a lot of high-flying & spotty stuff. But, he's good enough in that if he was paired with a Mysterio, Noble, or Dragon he could be carried to some really high quality stuff. Similiar to how Edge is a quality wrestler but seems to go above and beyond when working with Guerrero, Benoit, Angle, etc.
It was just a matter of time before WWE snatched this guy up. Now, about that Danielson kid...
"So I think cruisers ARE being pushed more... more than they used to be"
That's undeniable, but they still do a really, really bad job with them. Before the big Smackdown main event, Rey spent two months being eaten by the Big Show while Prestigious CW Champion Matt Hardy jobbed to every non-cruiser he wrestled. The Ultimate Dragon came in with a big build-up, but they already flattened him out by having him do a job in his second match. Tiejiri with the tag title run and Noble with his inheritance storyline are at least not buried as underground as they were before April. They've definitely got "The Horses" to make it work and work great, but defending the title on the PPV would be, well, a good start.
Now, they have three times that in regularly-seen cruiserweight talent and the matches are a big part of SmackDown (hell, the Hardy-Mysterio match was the MAIN EVENT a few weeks ago), and they're running angles to promote the division.
So I think cruisers ARE being pushed more... more than they used to be.
What have they done w/ the cruisers since the Hardy/Rey ME? What were they doing before then? What angles are they running? How often is the cruiser belt defended on PPV's?
The matches are a big part of SD? That's pretty laughable. The week after the Hardy/Rey ME, the were in the opening match. There are next to no cruiser matches (i.e. cruiser vs. cruiser) on SD.
I just don't get where you got this impression from.
Now, they have three times that in regularly-seen cruiserweight talent and the matches are a big part of SmackDown (hell, the Hardy-Mysterio match was the MAIN EVENT a few weeks ago), and they're running angles to promote the division.
So I think cruisers ARE being pushed more... more than they used to be.
What have they done w/ the cruisers since the Hardy/Rey ME? What were they doing before then? What angles are they running? How often is the cruiser belt defended on PPV's?
The matches are a big part of SD? That's pretty laughable. The week after the Hardy/Rey ME, the were in the opening match. There are next to no cruiser matches (i.e. cruiser vs. cruiser) on SD.
I just don't get where you got this impression from.
What have they done with the cruisers since Hardy/Rey? Well, they introduced a new competitor to the division, and as far as angles go, they're setting up a 'Kidman turns on best friend Mysterio' storyline right now... that seems to be progress to me. My point was, just two or three years ago, you'd be lucky if Dean Malenko defended his light heavyweight title against Scotty Too Hotty as a dark match before a PPV -- it wasn't the type of thing you'd see every week on the main shows, ie Raw or SmackDown.
And I still believe what I said about cruisers being a big part of the SD! roster -- no, they probably won't get too many main event slots, but guys like Rey, Nunzio and Hardy (admitedly, not too many others) are still a part of the show every week in some capacity or another.
OK, the Kidman turn is 1 angle, but that's it. And we're lucky *now* if the cruiser belt gets defended at all. Most of Hardy's matches (IIRC) were non-title.
You said "the matches" were a big part of SD, which I assume to mean cruiser vs. cruiser matches, which clearly isn't the case. If you want to watch a cruiser vs. cruiser match, you're best bet is to watch Velocity.
Originally posted by Spaceman SpiffOK, the Kidman turn is 1 angle, but that's it. And we're lucky *now* if the cruiser belt gets defended at all. Most of Hardy's matches (IIRC) were non-title.
You said "the matches" were a big part of SD, which I assume to mean cruiser vs. cruiser matches, which clearly isn't the case. If you want to watch a cruiser vs. cruiser match, you're best bet is to watch Velocity.
Points well taken, Spaceman. I guess what I meant to say was `cruiserweights', not necessarily `cruiser vs cruiser matches.' All I mean is that this is progress from how it used to be, and hopefully with the packed cruiser roster they have right now -- it will continue to be pushed.
Paul London really impresses me when I see him on Velocity. The top "jobber" guy that really catches my eye just with just his ring skill. Offense and selling.
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How about putting him into a tag team with Spanky and having HBK manage them? He could ask to be on SD to help promote his young proteges and he would be a great mouthpiece for both of them until they are ready to go on their own. Imagine a Sliced bread #2 followed by an SSP? I know it breaks the whole code about the separate divisions but he is performing two different services and it keeps him on TV w/o having him wrestle. This could be HBK's formal retirement and it keeps him on TV.
And adding to this, if they really cared about the Cruizer, they should have had a gauntlet match with all the cruizers at the PPV where the winner comes and gets a shot at the title at SummerSlam. This gives the people a chance And this would also be a great way to introduce London as I would have him be one of the last guys to remain and have Tazz and Cole put him over as this great newcomer. The gauntlet would include Moore,Dragon,Noble,Spanky,Nunzio,London,Nova (i know he is hurt but i can dream right) and Tajiri. I would also consider bringing in one or two other guys for this and see if they get any crowd reaction (be it Kid Kash, Chris Saban, Christopher Daniels,Amazing Red, CM Punk, AJ Styles, et al). I would use these guys as a litmus test and if one got a good reaction, sign em. This would also pacify the smarks in the audience. This gives them 10 guys and I woudl give the match 30-35 minutes. This would be one helluva way to get this division over right and woudl give people a chance to see what these guys really are capable of.
If nothing else, set him up with a feud _against_ Spanky, to give them something to do. It's the match that half the crowd expected at the Super 8 and didn't get, so...
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I got to see Paul London when I went to the NWA-TNA anniversary show a few weeks back ... this guy is off the chain! ... I did see his match with Matt on Velocity and thought it was one of the best matches I've seen in a while. Even Matt seemed to step it up another notch. But Vince will probably drop the ball on this one too. But hey at least Paul will be getting a nice payday I'm sure. Can't blame a guy for that.
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I like the idea of a Spanky/London team, especially when looking at the tag team division on SmackDown. I think they'd need to reestablish Spanky first, and then bring in London. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if they signed Michael Shane and American Dragon at a later date, and created a little "HBK trainees" stable. A lot of potential there, especially as heels.
I don't think it's that Vince & co. don't want the cruisers to draw. Point blank: if they draw, Vince makes money. Vince wants to make money.
Vince is just stubbornly putting all creative efforts at the top of the card. And yeah there a lot of good arguments against him doing that and I would agree with a lot of them. But the top of SD!'s changed fairly drastically with the departures of Hogan and Piper (again, there are a lot of valid blah blah blah.) {Edit: I forgot to finish this thought.} Now that they're down to just Steph, Vince and Zach as sports entertainers (again, blah) they've got to re-stabalize things.
Cruisers aren't his priority. When he's happy with the upper card they'll get fleshed out. For as stupid as an angle as Knoble inheriting a bunch of money is, it's still a cruiser weight story line. Then you have the Rey / Kidman feud brewing and both of them verbally put Ultimo Dragon over. Dragon's probably just floating until Kidman and Rey start really ruling the division.
(edited by Notorious F.A.B. on 14.7.03 1413) It's just you against the group mind.
Cruisers aren't his priority. When he's happy with the upper card they'll get fleshed out.
Doubtful. We've already seen reports that Vince doesn't much care for anybody below the ME level. Couple that, with the fact that the cruisers don't match Vince's ideal of a wrestler (somewhere around 6'7", 290 lbs), and I won't be holding my breath for the cruiser division to get fleshed out.
If the cruisers get over, it'll be in spite of Vince, not because of him.
I don't think it's that Vince & co. don't want the cruisers to draw. Point blank: if they draw, Vince makes money. Vince wants to make money.
IMO, Vince has already decided cruisers won't draw, so we get into the whole sulf-fulfilling prophecy thing.
IMO, Vince has already decided cruisers won't draw, so we get into the whole sulf-fulfilling prophecy thing.
Point takun.
Seriously, that's a good point.
Couple that, with the fact that the cruisers don't match Vince's ideal of a wrestler (somewhere around 6'7", 290 lbs), and I won't be holding my breath for the cruiser division to get fleshed out.
I have more hope in the guy. Nathan Jones is out. (He is to D-Lo Brown what Rodney Mack is to Orlando Jordan.) Albert's on velocity. They paired off Steiner and Nash. If Goldberg could work, it would probably be just quick squash matches. The only big men I can think of that are hanging around are Taker, Brock and Big Show. Brock's definitely earned his spot, Big Show's character has been on lately and Taker's the fucking Undertaker. Big men don't seem to be en vogue anymore.
The cruisers are getting storylines. That's a big sign, I think. Steph loves her storylines. These guys will be around to at least further their angles. Rey and Kidman have a good one brewing and I'm betting Ultimo will play the third man there. Knoble will at least be visible if he ends up working with Billy Gunn (via Tori.) He'll probably job to give Billy a win and cruisers can't beat heavyweights in WWE. But then he's got his character solidified and hopefully move back to the cruisers revitalized for Ultimo, Rey and Kidman.
How 'bout this question: have they ever been put in a position to draw? WCW was really the only big company to use them extensively, and they really only used them in opening & mid-card matches.
I don't know if they would draw if ever given a serious push, but in the very least they could have a very good mid-card by using them correctly (i.e. not as jobbers for the big guys).
Originally posted by Spaceman SpiffHow 'bout this question: have they ever been put in a position to draw? WCW was really the only big company to use them extensively, and they really only used them in opening & mid-card matches.
I don't know if they would draw if ever given a serious push, but in the very least they could have a very good mid-card by using them correctly (i.e. not as jobbers for the big guys).
I just don't think Vince or anyone in the company is willing to take the risk to see if they can draw. They probably looked at the rating that the Mysterio-Hardy focused Smackdown did and decided that there wasn't anything to gain.
Will they take the risk again? They may have to considering Hogan has gone and the Vince-Gowen thing isn't working. Whether or not cruiserweight vs. cruiserweight could draw remains to be seen, but they could at least mix things up. If that means seeing if an actual cruiser could legitimately draw, then so be it.