______________________________________________________________________ __ __ __ __ _ ____ | | | | | \ | | | |/ _ \ | | | | | \ | | | / \ | | |/\| | | \| | | | | | | | | |\ | | | | | | /\ | | | \ | |__| |_| |__/ \__| |__| \__| [ n a i d O ' s - W r e s t l i n g - N e w s ] Edition 269 February 10, 2001 "I get the news, so you don't have to." http://groups.yahoo.com/group/naidoswrestlingnews ______________________________________________________________________ [Official newsletter & complement to:] http://www.naidOsWorld.com To subscribe: naidoswrestlingnews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com To unsubscribe: naidoswrestlingnews-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com ______________________________________________________________________ [Table of contents] **Note from naidO **TOP NEWS STORY **Latest news from the WWF, WCW & ECW **[Artile] XFL.com traffic up 224% **[Column] Screwjob of the Week **[Column] Rounding the Sqaured Circle **Parting chair shot **Affiliates ______________________________________________________________________ [Note from naidO] Hello to those just joining. Tell your friends about the BEST newsletter around to subscribe today! - Man. Who would have thought that the Toronto Raptors would have TWO starters out of FIVE in the all star game this weekend! Whoo Hoo! Are you gonna watch the XFL tonight? Well if not, what ARE you gonna watch? Besides Jennifer Lopez on SNL *wink* - naidO nWN Founder - http://www.geocities.com/naidosnews ______________________________________________________________________ [TOP NEWS STORY] According to WCW.com webmaster Chad Damiani, WCW SuperBrawl revenge will be full of major surprises. Many feuds/angles will be thrown way off track, and many new feuds will arise. There is expected to be many alliances made and broken on the night of SuperBrawl. Many huge WCW main eventers are expected to be making their returns to WCW TV. Sting, Goldberg, and Booker T are all very likely possibilities who may be making a return at SuperBrawl. Damiani also stated that the rumors that have been going on as of late about WCW shutting down are completely false. Many people have been speculating the reason for the supposed "shut down", was that WCW did not have a PPV date set in April. The real reason that WCW does not have a PPV date in April is that the day they had scheduled was accidently on Easter. There were no other available open dates for the month of April, so they decided to just not have a PPV in April. ______________________________________________________________________ [News from The WWF] **The 2/8 edition of Smackdown did a final 4.0 rating. **According to the Washington Post, The Rock will be in the broadcast booth for the XFL Saturday night game on NBC. The main reason is that they believe Jesse Ventura might be too conservative and will have nothing controversial to say, so they are going to bring in The Rock. http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47268-2001Feb8.html **Jerry Lynn has apparently been offered a 3-year contract by the WWF, but is waiting until his lawyers review all of the documents before he agrees to sign anything. **For our Canadian fans, Lita will be a guest on next Thursday's edition of TSN's "Off The Record". **News and notes from the latest Jim Ross Report: - Shawn Michaels has signed a new long-term contract with the World Wrestling Federation which signals the pending return of the Heartbreak Kid to Federation television and, hopefully, eventually, to the ring sometime this year. - Terry Gerin, aka Rhino, has inked a long-term Federation contract. No start date has been established. - Al Snow has inked a new Federation contract. - Chyna's book, "If They Only Knew," is really being pushed hard. Chyna is working almost everyday on this project. It is now up to No. 3 on the New York Times hard-cover bestseller list. - X-Pac is back in action at live events and could well be back on television as early as this Monday night. - Neither Peter Polaco, who recently appeared in ECW as Justin Credible, nor Jerry Lynn were backstage in Atlanta and North Charleston this past week, as was reported on some Internet sites. - Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW) in Southern California is doing a tremendous job in preparing young men and women for an opportunity in the Federation. No one I know does a better job than Rick Bassman and his dedicated staff of training young talent. UPW has several excellent prospects currently training and it's going to be interesting to see who steps up and makes it clear they truly want to go to the next level. I enjoy viewing tapes from this group and suggest you check them out if you have the chance. - Keep your eye on the Kat/RTC issues. Might be some fun TV. - K-Kwik continues to improve and has many Federation officials smiling. - Paul Bearer is working behind the scenes with the Federation and will also be scouting and evaluating developmental talent and prospects. - Big Show had his best outing Thursday night on SmackDown! since returning to the Federation roster. His weight is still an issue. - William Regal is getting healthier and should be back in action in a few weeks. No rush as Regal needs the opportunity to heal. His recent work on television has been very entertaining from where I sit. - The Radicalz should be at full strength by mid-February. We need them to become more viable in the big picture. The ability is certainly there. - Mark Henry is down to 325 from 415 pounds and is beginning to "get it." I hope he makes it all the way back. - WrestleMania tickets are still available in Houston and at Texas Ticketmaster outlets. - Albert is making excellent progress with his in-ring work. This huge young man has a helluva future, but I think a name change is in order. - Look for Raven to continue to get more opportunities on television in upcoming weeks. Here's another outstanding talent who has benefited from the Federation system and his own hard work and love of the game. We're very happy he's with us. - I would like to see Tazz become more involved with Federation storylines; however, his TV announcing occupies a great deal of his time and ability to perform at live events. He is under-utilized in my opinion. - Some very interesting storyline changes are in the planning stages. Stay tuned. - Trish Stratus is really becoming a prime-time player. If she continues to improve, the young Canadian beauty could become as big as any female we've ever had here. (Cred: ultimowrestling, wwf.com) _______________ [News from WCW] **Stacey Keibler met with Eric Bischoff last week and discussed her future with WCW. The meeting reportedly went well, which was why she was not released with Paisley, Tygress, Major Gunns, and two others earlier this week. She expects to return to a prominent role within the next few weeks. She had been undergoing somewhat of a pay dispute with WCW, but it was just about costs of transportation to the shows she attended. **Here is an updated card for the WCW Superbrawl Revenge pay-per- view, which takes place on 2/18 from the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee: - Scott Steiner vs. Kevin Nash - WCW World Title - Jeff Jarrett vs. DDP - Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Rey Mysterio Jr. - WCW Cruiserweight Title - Lance Storm vs. The Cat - Commissionership On The Line - Shane Douglas vs. Rick Steiner - WCW United States Title - Mark Jindrak and Shawn Stasiak vs. Sean O'Haire and Chuck Palumbo - WCW Tag Team Titles - Lex Luger and Buff Bagwell vs. Kronik - No Substitutions Allowed. **The Franchise will be on TV this week, even though his has a broken bone in his wrist and knuckle. However, he will not be wrestling, he will just have an on-air personality role. (Cred: the law, wcw.com) _______________ [News from ECW] **Although no official meetings have gone down, the WWF and Nova have played phone tag for well over two weeks now, and there is definite interest from the WWF in signing him. Plans for an official get- together with the two parties is expected by the end of the month. **Richard Burton of the Miami Herald has posted an article based on a recent interview with one-half of the ECW World Tag Team Champions, Amish Roadkill. In the article, Roadkill reveals where his gimmick came from, discusses his partnership with Danny Doring, and comments on the uncertain future of ECW. You can read the article by http://www.miamiherald.com/content/today/sports/wrestling/digdocs/0558 99.htm (Cred: 1wrestling) __________________ [In other news...] **Recently it has been reported that the WOW PPV replays were cancelled. The official reason given by WOW is that there were 'technical difficulties', but apparently the real reason is that there were many, many complaints about the quality not only of the show, but complaints about the quality of production, so therefore the replays were cancelled. (Cred: 1wrestling) ______________________________________________________________________ [Article] XFL.com traffic up 224% NEW YORK (Reuters) - Traffic to XFL.com (http://www.xfl.com) rocketed 224 percent during the week ended February 4, making it the third fastest-growing Web site that week, according to leading Internet audience measurement service Nieslen//NetRatings. The Web site for the new football league, jointly owned by the World Wrestling Federation and NBC, attracted 463,000 unique home visitors, compared with 143,000 visitors the week prior. Eighty-seven percent of the audience comprised male surfers, and 13 percent were female. "The XFL is attempting to establish a solid brand, hoping to take a page from the play-book of its co-owner, the World Wrestling Federation," said Allen Weiner, vice president of analytical services at NetRatings. "The WWF has successfully used the Web to promote wrestling and the XFL seems poised to make the same impact online. The inaugural XFL telecasts and the initial popularity of XFL.com are early examples of TV and Web convergence, and how the two can work together." (Yahoo! News) ______________________________________________________________________ [Column] Screw Job of the Week - by Ted Cabata Well this article almost didn't happen, being the fact that I'm 21 now and my girlfriend came down to surprise me. Oh and also because this week's TV pretty much sucked!!! WWF was pretty much the same thing as ever, the same 4 guys in the Main Event and here's a shock the Big Show came out and attacked the Rock, haven't seen that one before. Then Raven's mystery woman once again won him the Hard-core Title back, how many weeks has this happened now? Luckily for me though for some reason I happened to turn the first hour of Nitro on at work and somehow got interested in what was going on with team Elite. When the main event was announced of Nash and a partner VS Scott Steiner I got the idea that hey maybe it will be Sting or Booker T, but I had an idea all along that it would be this week's winner... The winner is...Rick Steiner WCW actually shocked me when they had Steiner turn heel because well Team Elite is pretty big but then it made sense because they need room for Goldberg, Sting, and Booker T on the face side of things. Anyway, Rick Steiner turning heel was much better then mind games with Austin and Triple H on RAW. Ted Cabata Tcabata@roanoke.edu AOL IM: Frogs 11 ICQ# 4745291 ______________________________________________________________________ [Column] Rounding the Sqaured Circle - by Sam Jerry "ARE THE REPORTS OF MY DEATH PREMATURE?" OR "ALAS POOR ECW, I KNEW IT WELL" There was no bigger fan of ECW than me. I never missed any of ECW's syndicated TV shows. I never missed any of ECW's shows on TNN. I went to as many shows as I could when ECW came to Florida. Every time ECW got into financial trouble, I knew Paul Heyman would find a way. No matter who left, I knew someone would take their place. I have steadfastly refused to accept that ECW might not survive. Unfortunately I think the dream may be coming to an end. ECW has canceled all House Shows and is not producing any syndicated TV shows. The local station here that carried ECW showed repeats for a month and now has dropped them from their schedule. I have a feeling that is happening across the country. Is there any chance that ECW will survive? I sure hope so, but I can't see how. The death blow was ECW's inability to secure a TV contract. At one time it looked like they close to one with The WWF's old home, The USA Network. When USA's Supreme Being said he felt wrestling had peaked, that all but put the nail in the coffin. There were rumors that ESPN and FOX were interested, but USA was ECW's best hope having had wrestling in prime time. With much of their top talent having either already left, or being close to leaving, the chances of a last minute TV deal seems remote. Wrestling can't exist without TV, so ECW can't exist without TV. There have letter writing campaigns to TV Networks going on, but when their best chance (USA) says they are happy with the demographics they are reaching with the programming they are now carrying, it doesn't look very promising. I wish it were otherwise. Where does that leave the people in ECW who have not signed with WCW or The WWF? People like Tajiri, Jerry Lynn and Rhino are in demand, and reportedly close to signing with The WWF. Likewise Super Crazy and WCW. Good Old Eric (GOE) is reported to have said we can expect big news and may be signing a bunch of ECW personnel. Joey Styles would give them the announcer they sorely need. Steve Corino could be someone they could build around. The Sandman has said he would consider (like he has a lot of other people kicking his door down) returning to WCW. The one man who both Federations would love to have is Rob Van Dam, a true franchise player. The question is whether they want to sign him with the baggage he carries. The WWF has shown no interest for that reason; WCW hasn't shown much interest in the past, but GOE may go for it. A real shame since IMHO he his one of, if not the best wrestler in the world today. Where does that leave Paul Heyman? Never a quitter, Paul is still working his butt off trying to save ECW. Those ECW wrestlers who have signed with The WWF have been told they can work for ECW if any shows are booked. Heyman has an offer from The WWF to join their writing staff. He would make an excellent addition. He has good relations with some people in The WWF, and strained relations with others. Whether he could go from running the whole show to being part of the writing team is unknown. He has had his differences with GOE in he past, so WCW is questionable. As for the rest of ECW's wrestlers, The WWF has its biggest and best roster ever, with many young up and coming stars in their "farm system" looking for spots, so openings just aren't there. WCW is going to be playing catch-up with The WWF. There may be openings there as GOE has spread the word that things are changing. He expects everyone to be in top physical shape and working for their pay checks. The days of punching the clock and taking a nap are over. Those that don't get the message will be gone. That will open spots for people hungry to work. ECW was known for its work ethic. There are a bunch of people there used to busting their butts each and every day. Young guys like Kid Kash, Danny Doring, The Amish Chicken Murderer, and Little Spike Dudley to name just a few, along with older guys like Balls Mahoney, who will do anything to please the fans. As far as the women are concerned, their options are limited. GOE has decided to play RTC and dumped most of the ones he had. That only leaves The WWF or the Indy circuit. Dawn Marie would be a welcome addition to The WWF; Francine could make a living doing what she does best, shaking her booty; and Jasmine St. Clair can always enter a convent. I hope Heyman pulls a Hail Mary and finds a way to save ECW. If he does, a lot of people besides me will be happy. If he doesn't, its legacy will live on; Hard work, dedicated workers, and the best fans any wrestling Federation ever had. Visit My Home Page At: http://members.aol.com/samjerry ______________________________________________________________________ [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 **http://www.tommydreamer.net **http://www.stephaniebellars.com - 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] **1Wrestling/Dave Scherer/Bob Ryder @ http://www.1wrestling.com **Wrestling Observer/Dave Meltzer @ http://www.wrestlingobserver.com **The Law/Dan Lovranski @ http://www.liveaudiowrestling.com **UltimoWrestling/MrWolfson/MrCutting @ 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 - vile316@yahoo.com 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