______________________________________________________________________ __ __ __ __ _ ____ | | | | | \ | | | |/ _ \ | | | | | \ | | | / \ | | |/\| | | \| | | | | | | | | |\ | | | | | | /\ | | | \ | |__| |_| |__/ \__| |__| \__| [ n a i d O ' s - W r e s t l i n g - N e w s ] Edition 263 February 3, 2001 "I get the news, so you don't have to." ______________________________________________________________________ [Official newsletter & complement to:] http://www.naidOsWorld.com To subscribe: naidoswrestlingnews-subscribe@egroups.com To unsubscribe: naidoswrestlingnews-unsubscribe@egroups.com ______________________________________________________________________ [Table of contents] **Note from naidO **TOP NEWS STORY **Latest news from the WWF, WCW & ECW **[Column] Screwjob of the Week **Parting chair shot ______________________________________________________________________ [Note from naidO] Hello to those just joining. Tell your friends about the BEST newsletter around to subscribe today! - Jim Ross had A LOT to say this weekend on wrestling, signings and other things. I've scaled his report down to the non-redundant things so I hope you enjoy. Also, fo rhte first time ever, there's TWO top news stories. I thought both were huge enough :) - naidO nWN Founder - http://www.geocities.com/naidosnews ______________________________________________________________________ [Co-TOP NEWS STORY] In an interview on WWF.COM, Shawn Michaels admits he has closed his wrestling school in order to concentrate on returning for at least one last match. "I'm in negotiations about coming back to work," Michaels said. "For me to even come close to being able to compete with the guys, I'm going to need to concentrate on my job." No timetable was mentioned in the interview. To read the complete story, click http://www.wwf.com/news/headlines/1032417 ___________________ [Co-TOP NEWS STORY] The World Wrestling Federation has signed Peter Polaco, aka Justin Credible, and has reached verbal agreements with Jerry Lynn and Terry "Rhino" Gerin. They come to the Federation from Extreme Championship Wrestling, where they have all been World Heavyweight Champion. Rhino is the current ECW Champion as well as the holder of the ECW Television Title. Polaco (competing as Credible) has also wore tag team gold in that company. Jim Ross, senior vice president of talent relations for the Federation, called WWF.com from the airport with the announcements on his way to Orlando for Saturday's XFL game. Reached by telephone, former ECW competitor Tazz said the Federation has signed three top athletes. "As usual, the WWF has hit a grand slam," Tazz said. "I think it's great for the WWF, and I think it's great for them." To continue the article, click http://www.wwf.com/news/headlines/1032328 ______________________________________________________________________ [News from The WWF] **News and notes from Jim Ross: - The World Wrestling Federation has signed Peter Polaco, aka Aldo Montoya and Justin Credible, to a multiyear contract. No official start date has been established for the 27-year-old. Creative plans are currently being discussed for him and a name change from Justin Credible may be in the works. Peter worked this deal out with me personally without any input from his friends Triple H and Shawn Michaels, contrary to some Internet reports. Polaco improved greatly at Extreme Championship Wrestling under Paul Heyman's creative guidance and we are happy to have him back in the Federation, even though he is still available for ECW duty if needed by Heyman. - Sheldon Benjamin and Brock Lesnar, two amazing athletes who were former amateur stars to University of Minnesota, are as close to "can't-miss" prospects as we have. Lesnar, the 2000 National Heavyweight Champion at Minnesota, tips the scales at 290 and executed a perfect shooting star press in his tag match Wednesday night! Both these men have excellent character, work hard and look to be following in fellow amateur great Kurt Angle's footsteps. Sylvester Terkay and Ron Waterman, two more tough former amateurs, are physically awesome but now need to focus on the "sizzle" part of their matches and interviews. Both are bright and should be able to develop the charisma side of the game. Seven-footer Russ McCullough, who looks too much like Kevin Nash, has really improved and the former college and NFL offensive lineman has certainly increased his chances on being called up, perhaps as early as the fall/winter of this year. Damaja is filling out well and needs to continue to spend quality time in the gym, but I think this kid (early 20s) will make it. He busts his butt in practice and continues to have an excellent attitude. B.J. Payne and Slick Robbie D also had good nights and with continued hard work can make it to the "big dance" some day. - In Memphis, with Randy Hales and Terry Golden reportedly working together more smoothly, our situation has greatly improved. Bobby Eaton is on board as an instructor and he is one of the very best workers ever. The Haas Brothers are looking good, as are Scott Vick and Steve Bradley. The Dupps seem to be doing much better also, according to reports. There is no reason all six of these performers should not be able to make it to the Federation roster within the next 12 months or less with extra hard work and improved interview skills. - Chyna's book promotion is well underway and has been extremely well organized by the Federation, more so than any other book published with the company and ReganBooks. Check out "If They Only Knew" today. - Negotiations with Shawn Michael's representatives are ongoing. Hopefully, a deal will be finalized within the next few days and we can get HBK back on television soon thereafter. - I like feedback from our fans, buy every now and then it would be nice to hear something remotely resembling positive. This week's trend comes from devout followers of ECW's Paul Heyman (who I admire greatly and have for years) and the lack of delivery for SmackDown! Xtreme. SmackDown! Xtreme was simply a marketing tool created by UPN to counter-promote powerhouse programming of "Friends" and "Survivor." I thought we did a damn solid show. I will agree, however, we need to reshuffle the deck and become more creative and unpredictable with our storylines. As we speak, steps are in place to do that. The creative staff that now includes Bruce Prichard and Michael Hayes is working tirelessly to do just that. It's not as if our ratings and box office numbers are in the toilet. Plus, all of Paul's fans are clamoring for him to join the Federation. I agree, but that's not our call or decision. It's Paul Heyman's decision and his alone. I'll drink his Kool-Aid, but he's got to be on board to serve it up! - D-Von Dudley's shoulder continues to bother him. He will not miss any ring time. - The Rock has a minor neck injury but will be in North Carolina for house shows this weekend. - X-Pac starts back to work this weekend. There is no guarantee when he will return to TV, however. - William Regal's neck injury is improving, but he will continue to be held out of combat until further notice. - Eddie Guerrero is cleared and ready to return to the Federation. His hamstring and groin are much improved. - The Big Show continues to work on his physical conditioning and weight. Show is weighed every Friday and will continue to be weighed regularly as long as he is in the Federation. Contrary to what some folks say, Show has lost considerable weight, from 483 to 414. His goal is 375. Show knows now better than any time in his career that he has a helluva long way to go, that he broke in the business back- asswards and spent the early, formative years of his career listening to the wrong people. Changes are in order and necessary. Either he makes them, as he is currently trying to do, and succeeds in the Federation, or he fails to make changes and leaves the company permanently. - Boy, lots of former employees of the Federation and other organizations sure are trying to catch on with the Federation. Some have absolutely no chance in hell of earning a living with this company. - RAW's 5.4 rating on TNN Monday night was really strong, especially when one is familiar with TNN's non-RAW ratings, which are usually about 400 percent less than RAW. Seems to me that TNN could promote us more, especially LiveWire and Superstars! (naidOs Note: Haha...tnn and promotion...) - I'll admit I'm not an avid MTV watcher -- although I do enjoy the MTV Video Music Awards -- but I must say, in my humble opinion, maybe it's the format but the straw that stirs the drink seems to be missing on Sunday Night HEAT. - Chyna's Playboy sold more than 1.3 million copies! You do the math! That's a lot of money from where I come from. Her sales eclipsed those of Sable's a few years ago, which were also very impressive. I would say Chyna is one of the most eligible bachelorettes in America these days! **John Molinaro of SLAM!Wrestling conducted an interview with the WWF's Senior VP in charge of talent Jim Ross dealing with the recent signings of ECW talent by the promotion. One of the stories that came out is that the WWF has not secured any kind of agreement with Yoshihiro Tajiri. It had been reported last week that Tajiri had signed a letter of intent with the promotion. Jim Ross also talks about the recent signing of Justin Credible and the intent of Rhino and Jerry Lynn to do the same. To read this article, just click http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestling/feb2_wwf-can.html **Tazz confirmed last night on Byte This! that he will be the official trainer for WWF Tough Enough, and not Dave Taylor, which had been previously reported. (Cred: wwf.com, SLAM) _______________ [News from WCW] **Although WCW recently cut Tygress, Paisley, Daffney, Major Gunns and Leia Meow, there are rumblings that WCW may try to bring back Kimberly Page and Elizabeth, who are far more recognizable with wrestling fans. **WCW is seriously rethinking the strategy of showing no WCW programming while they go into their restructure period. The thought now is although they would continue to promote its return while they are dark, they would lose a lots of fans to the WWF. They are currently brainstorming other options. **NWA Wildside has announced that AJ Styles and Air Paris who worked a dark match together at the TV tapings this past Monday, have been notified that they will soon be getting contracts offered to them by WCW. We'll keep you updated on the situation. (Cred: ultimowrestling) _______________ [News from ECW] **Jim Ross was quoted in the WWF.com article as saying, "We're excited about them signing to our roster. But until their WWF future is absolutely etched in stone, they'll still be available for ECW. They remain available and will continue to remain available even after they sign with the WWF." So, they will be able to work for ECW, at least in theory, if they get a deal of some kind. Could it be that will be for a WWF-owned ECW? By signing ECW's top guys, it is beginning to appear that this may be part of a plan to have ECW become part of their company. One of the questions is, will they buy ECW outright, or possibly work some kind of restructuring of the company so that past debts can be paid down the road. If the WWF is looking to buy ECW, my hunch is that they will do the latter. Existing creditors would surely take the WWF's power and proven business acumen as a positive sign and be willing to restructure debt that they wouldn't were ECW trying to do it on their own. On the flip side, this move could also be seen by some as a way for the WWF to try and bring Paul Heyman into the fold. By taking three of his top names, it surely puts them in the position of making the WWF his most attractive option right now. We will have to see how this one plays out. (Cred: Dave Scherer) __________________ [In other news...] **CBS is running advertisements for "Walker Texas Ranger" featuring Hulk Hogan. The episode featuring Hogan airs tonight and is called "Division Street." In the episode, Walker and his friend (played by Hogan) create a basketball league for two rival gangs. Walker airs at 9:00 PM Eastern time. **Sun Sentinel wrestling columnist Alex Marvez has written an insightful column on the debut of Vince McMahon's new XFL footbal league. Since he knows both wrestling and football, it is one of the better written articles on the XFL. To read this article, just click http://www.sun- sentinel.com/sports/daily/detail/0,1136,36500000000106119,00.html **Saturday, February 3 - The episode of "Saturday Night Live" hosted by The Rock, will rerun on NBC at 11:30 p.m. ET. (Cred: lwn, the law) ______________________________________________________________________ [Column] Screwjob of the Week - by Ted Cabata It's kind of hard to write a column and mention the runner's up when you are so excited to write about this week's winner. Austin costing Triple H the title on Smackdown was pretty good except we've seen this time and time again. There really wasn't much else this week on WWF TV. I think I was more interested in the Duke/UNC basketball game then I was in Smackdown. So let's move on to WCW...Ok forget it I won't get into it because like everyone else watching Nitro Monday Night I was blown away by one event and that event is going to be this week's winner... The winner(s)...Dusty and Dustin Rhodes! Seeing Dustin fight off the Elite Team and then seeing Dusty come out to help it might have been the greatest thing WCW has done since turning Hogan and starting the nWo. Seeing Dusty and Dustin the ring together hugging was great and the way it was done also allows me to write about it because they screwed Ric Flair big time! I think I am going to have to go back to watching Nitro and Thunder more now if WCW keeps this up. Ted Cabata Tcabata@roanoke.edu ICQ# 4745291 AOL IM: frogs 11 ______________________________________________________________________ [Parting Chair Shot] Remember, tell your friends about nWN - naidO's Wrestling News today! **Missed any TV Shows? Go to the following link to read the results: http://www.naidosworld.com/tvshows.html Also, be sure to check out the NEW internet home of nWN, http://www.geocities.com/naidosnews for all your archived stats, tv shows, wrestling links, terms and PPV's, and most of all PICTURES! - naidO nWN Founder ______________________________________________________________________ [Affiliates] **http://www.paywindah.com **http://green_mist.homestead.com **http://www.geocities.com/dsherelo/ - BECOME AN AFFILIATE OF nWN and make it your official newsletter!! Email naido@hotmail.com with your website's address for consideration. ______________________________________________________________________ [News gathering links] **Dave Scherer, Buck Woodward, Bob Ryder @ http://www.1wrestling.com **Dave Meltzer, Zach Arnold @ http://www.wrestlingobserver.com **Chris Clarke, Jeff Pollock @ http://www.liveaudiowrestling.com **Blake Wolfson @ http://www.ultimowrestling.com ______________________________________________________________________ [Ads] ESW - The number one E-Fed on the face of the Earth! The ESW: Extremely Suicidal Wrestling! http://www.geeksoft.net/gin/gfed2/gfed.cgi?lid=1204 ______________________________________________________________________ [nWN Staff] Founder & Editor: naidO - naido@hotmail.com Columnist: Sam Jerry - SAMJERRY@aol.com Columnist: The Vile - stoncold@bignet.net Columnist: Ted Cabata - tcabata@roanoke.edu ______________________________________________________________________ [Disclaimer] naidO's Wrestling News was founded on April 30, 2000 and is owned and operated by naidO. He, nor this newsletter is in no way, shape, or form affiliated with World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Turner Broadcasting's World Championship Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, or any other wrestling organization. Nor the people (staff members), wrestlers, or any other talent in the wrestling. News is gathered from various sources around the net, including newsgroups and are believed to be of public domain and truthful (uh huh). As long as proper credit is given it exempts nWN and it's staff. I (naidO) am just promoting their organization/website. nWN is not responsible for content on affiliate websites or where they may link to including mp3's, warez, kiddie porn and/or other unlawful content. This exempts myself & this newsletter (nWN) from all legal disputes. Anything taken from this newsletter requires written consent from naidO Copyright © 2000, 2001 naidO. All Rights Reserved To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: naidoswrestlingnews-unsubscribe@egroups.com Sorry to see you go if you do =(