My Wrestling Hall Of Fame-First Class

I understand that I can't always agree with who the WWE adds to their Hall Of Fame. So, I will do the next best thing. I will create my own! After every major PPV of the year, I will induct four wrestlers into my Hall of Fame. In addition, my fiancee will also induct a wrestler on her own.

Together, we can induct anyone regardless if they are still active or not. They could have competed for WCW, ECW, WWF(E), NXT, TNA or any other promotion in the world. I am sure that some of our choices will not be the most popular choices, and I am okay with that.

My first inductee is Randy "Macho Man" Savage.In his career in WWF and WCW, Savage won the WCW title four times and the WWF Title two more times. He is also a former Intercontinental Champion. Every single time he stepped in the ring, he put on great matches. His match with Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat at Wrestlemania III is a must watch for any young wrestling fan. For whatever reason, he isn't in the WWE Hall of Fame. But as a life long fan of the Macho Man, I have to say OHHHHH YEAH! He's in mine. For his career highlights take a look at this video that the WWE released at the time of his death.

The next inductee to My Hall of Fame is Mr. Perfect, Curt Hennig. Originally he wasn't the one the WWF wanted to portray the role of Mr. Perfect, Terry "Red Rooster" Taylor was. But Hennig won them over with his style and charisma and became the perfect choice. From everything I have heard about him, he was a great guy. Just listen to Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Wade Boggs talk about the day that Hennig saved his life Curt Hennig was a two time Intercontinental Champion as well as a United States Champion and WCW Tag Team Champion. But for whatever reason he never won a World Championship, which to me is mind boggling. After he died, he was inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007.

Another person who never won a World Title which to me never made sense is Andre The Giant. I refuse to acknowledge when he had the title for a minute before he was stripped by Jack Tunney. There is a reason why Andre was referred to as the Eighth Wonder Of The World. There was never and will never be another Andre The Giant. Granted his move set was very limited due to his enormous size, Andre was still an accomplished wrestler. And he was one of the few wrestlers in his day that transcended wrestling. You could ask non wrestling fans in the 1980s who Andre The Giant was, they could tell you. Hulk Hogan would most likely be the only other wrestler from the era that would be as easily recognizable. Who could forget his memorable role in The Princess Bride? He won the Tag Team Titles with Haku. Andre The Giant was the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame, and he is in my first class as well!

The next inductee is manager Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. What is there to say about him? Whether he was managing his stable of wrestlers The Heenan Family or was at the broadcast booth he was always entertaining. He seemed to enjoy being heel more then most people I can remember, especially back in the day. The chemistry he had with all of his broadcast partners has gone unmatched with the exception of Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross. I always enjoyed Heenan, whether it was in WWF or WCW. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. Right now that he has been fighting throat cancer.

The Final inductee of the first class of my Wrestling Hall Of Fame belongs to my Fiancee Lori. And she inducts The Big Show. I know that she has been a fan of his ever since she started watching wrestling. He is athletic for a big man. But I think what she likes most about him, and I completely agree, is how goofy he can be one second (Just watch Knucklehead) and how much of a force he can be when he wants to the next. If you look up accomplished wrestler in the dictionary, you will see a picture of the Big Show. He has won every title he could possibly have won. He has won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship twice, WCW World Tag Team Championship three times, ECW World Championship, World Heavyweight Championship twice, World Tag Team Championship 5 times, Intercontinental title, WWE Tag Team Championship three times, United States Championship WWE Championship twice plus a reign as the Hardcore Champion as well. If you don't think that he is one of the best big men of all time read this article from Bleacher Report.

So there you have it. The first class of Inside the Wrestling Ring's Hall of Fame. Check back around Summerslam for the next class!

Wrestlemania 29 Predictions!

It has been two years since my last blog but now I will be back to blogging in the world of pro wrestling.  And what better time than to make Wrestlemania 29 predictions. I will have huge news coming soon as well on my next blog.  But that will be next week.  First, it's time for predictions!

First off, I have to say as a life long fan of the WWE I am rather disappointed in this year's card. There is nothing that jumps out at me and makes me say "I have to see this match!"  We have seen Rock-Cena.  We have seen Lesnar-HHH.  We have seen Undertaker-Punk. It bothers me that I am not impressed.  But oh well.

Here we go.  First with the Twice in a Lifetime match, I say there is absolutely no chance John Cena doesn't win this match.  I probably said that last year too, but now more than ever I think Cena wins and is your new WWE Champion. Anyone who knows me, knows I am not happy about this.  I am not a Cena fan.  Promo wise he is top notch, but there are only so many times I can see his five moves of doom.

Next up, we have Alberto Del Rio vs Jack Thwagger for the World Title. We may never know the original plans of this match, because I feel Jack's arrest changed the outcome of this match.  I think Swagger was going to win, but now he has no chance of winning.  It's not going to matter since Dolph Ziggler will walk out as the World Champion after cashing in his money in the bank.

Another match that the build up clearly had to change due to real life circumstances is Undertaker vs CM Punk.  With Punk being disrespectful due to the real life death of Paul Bearer,  I have to wonder what the original build was going to look like.  Regardless, Undertaker's streak will continue!

Triple H will have his revenge on his loss to Brock Lesnar as well, just like Cena will get revenge on Rock.  This match will be violent.  It will feature Shawn Michaels, Paul Heyman, and most likely a McMahon or two. It won't be a wrestling match, it will be a fight.  But I think it has the potential to be a great match.

Randy Orton, Sheamus, and Big Show Vs The Shield should be a decent match.  I have been very impressed with Roman Reigns. When The Shield was called up, Ambrose and Rollins were supposed to be the good ones and they are, but Reigns has shown me something. I do expect Big Show to officially turn face while Randy Orton turns heel. And then The Shield will win.

I think that Kane and Daniel Bryan will retain the tag titles, for now, against Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston. I see them losing the titles at Extreme Rules more than at Wrestlemania, because Dolph will be more concentrating on cashing in. If Team Hell No is still champions by the end of May and a functioning Tag Team I will be very surprised.

Ryback vs Mark Henry will also be a fight.  But Ryback needs a win on Pay Per View. And he will get it here.

Chris Jericho vs Fandango could honestly go either way. But I think Fandango will let his A's breath with a win!

The fact that Antonio Cesaro, Kofi Kingston and Zack Ryder don't have a match on Sunday but Brodus Clay/Sweet T(ensai), Naomi, Cameron, And the Bellas all have a match is just mind boggling.  And how is this not the preshow match instead of Miz-Barrett for the Intercontinental Title? Makes no sense to me!

Randy Savage....

As I stated in my first blog, I have been a fan of wrestling since around 1986-1987. There have been many debates in wrestling history about top superstars. Today it's Orton-Cena. Before it was Rock-Austin. And before that it was Savage-Hogan. It was easy to be on Team Hogan. He was the larger then life superstar. He was power, but Savage was speed and finese. When my brother and I wrestled, I was the speed guy. I was the guy jumping off the top rope, or in my case the back of the couch. So I admired Randy Savage for all that he could do in the ring. He had some of the best matches in WWE history, including the one with Steamboat at Wrestlemania III. Was any of Hogan's matches on that level? Not really. Yeah, his matches with Andre were good, but it wasnt on the same level. Not even close.

Earlier today while driving, Randy Savage suffered a heart attack in Tampa. He crossed the median and smacked into a tree. He died. His wife of a year was in the car with him and survived with only minor injuries.

Another wrestler from my youth has died. I know it sounds cheesy, but I hope when he arrived in the wrestling ring in the sky.... the first person there to greet him was his ex wife Elizabeth. How these two are not in the wrestling hall of fame is still mind boggling. She was the first woman of professional wrestling for a reason. I know his relationship with Vince McMahon wasn't always the best, but there is no reason why he shouldnt be elected into the Hall of Fame. Especially now. I would have loved to seen his acceptace speech, but now if he ever gets in it will have to be post humously.

As a fan, everytime I heard "Pomp and Circumstance" I didnt think of graduations and gowns. No. I thought of Randy Macho Man Savage. I heard it just this past week and commented on it to another wrestling fan. Our girlfriends thought we were crazy. Just last night I was watching one of his matches from 1988.

He was 57 years old when he died. It's weird to think he had not been wrestling on a major promotion since his last appearance in TNA wrestling back in 2004. He will be missed.

I am glad to see that this story has been picked up by alot of news media, not just those that talk about wrestling. Several articles are on IMDB about it. I saw it even on ESPN and AOL News too. It was trending on Twitter earlier. I even just saw Weird Al Tweet about Randy Savage. So did Elizabeth Banks... her Co-star in Spiderman!

Bringing back my Youth in the Ring

So far in the Calender year we have seen shocking returns of Kevin Nash, Booker T, Trish Stratus and Non wrestling returns of The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Plus once again the return of Undertaker and HHH from Injuries as well.

I met Kevin Nash in 1995 in Hartford Connecticut. I was 18 at the time. He towered over me, as one might expect. It was an amazing exiperience to be that close up to someone that you have watched on TV.

While I have never met Booker T, Stratus, The Rock, Austin or HHH I was about ten feet away from the Undertaker that day as well. And this is old School total Deadman Undertaker. I did meet Paul Bearer that day. Talked to me in his normal voice, not the Paul Bearer voice. It was rather disturbing.

So far this year is shaping up to be a pretty good year in Wrestling. I know a lot of people arent happy that Alberto Del Rio won the Royal Rumble. But I know they are looking to push new stars. And While he is a heel right now, Mysterio won't be around for ever. And they are going to need to keep the Hispanic children watching. I think in time Del Rio can be this generations Rey.

I really hope we dont see Michael Cole vs Jerry Lawler at Wrestlemania. That has the potential to knock Lesnar-Goldberg down as the worse Wrestlemania match ever!

Royal Rumble Prediction

With this being the BIGGEST ROYAL RUMBLE EVER, it's almost impossible to make an accurate prediction. But I am going to try as we head on the Road to Wrestlemania.

First off, I dont know if there are even 40 active wrestlers on the roster, so that should be interested. Of course that does mean someone like Beth Phoenix could enter the Royal Rumble again.

I expect a few other names to pop up that we havent seen in a while, wether it be from injury or for other reasons. So I wouldnt be surprised to see the return oI f Christian, the Great Khali or another name that definitely seems to be floating around being the return of the five time five time five time five time five time WCW champion Booker T! But I expected him back last year so we shall see.

I expect another big confrontation between The Corre and The Nexus. I expect atleast one former member of the Nexus (Tarver perhaps since he seems to be around in the background) to eliminate either a member of Nexus or The Corre.

But I am going on record to say the winner will be Kofi Kingston!

In Defense of Jerry Lawler

The Sultan. The Blu Brothers. Tenryu and Kitano. Jerry Lawler. Akebono. Lawrence Taylor. Butterbean. Bull Buchanen. Floyd Mayweather. Skinner.

All these names have something in common, except for one. One doesn’t fit with the rest. And sadly, that name is Jerry “The King” Lawler.

But you may be asking exactly what do they all have in common, except for Jerry Lawler. And that is that they have all at matches at the Showcase of The Immortals, Wrestlemania. Three of those names were just special attraction matches to get WWE more wide spread attention (Akebano, Taylor, Mayweather). Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Lawrence Taylor and Floyd Mayweather vs. Big Show got Wrestlemania on Sportscenter.

Recently Jerry Lawler was named as one of the WWE Top 50 Superstars of all time. As a matter of fact he comes in on the list at number twenty, even a head of Hulk Hogan. And yet in everything that Jerry Lawler has done through his career, he has never had a match at Wrestlemania. He was involved in one of the most mainstream wrestling angles ever (Andy Kaufman anyone?) and held more titles then anyone in the history of wrestling. In fact he has had 163 different title reigns. Everyone always talks about Ric Flair and his 19 World Title wins. Jerry Lawler has had more than 50 reigns as American Wrestling Association Southern Heavyweight Champion.

Jerry Lawler is in the Hall of Fame. Maybe I missed the Sultan’s induction? I think the only thing missing from Jerry Lawler’s career is a match on the grandest stage of them all. If you saw any of his matches against The Miz on Raw (November 29 in a TLC Match), (December 20th in a 6 Man tag match), or (December 27th) you know that while he isn’t quite the wrestler he once was, he can still wrestle at a great level.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not necessarily a huge fan of non full time wrestlers getting a spot at Wrestlemania, but I think there is a time and a place for everything. I’m not saying that Lawler has to face the Miz at Wrestlemania, but I think it would be the feather in his cap if he could wrestle someone with some merit at Wrestlemania. I don’t want to see a match just thrown together just so he can wrestle. I want the match to have reason. I think the world of wrestling owes Jerry Lawler that.

No Surrender PPV Predictions

Velvet Sky vs Madyson Rayne- Whenever the words grudge match are used, a safe bet is always with the face in this case Rayne. But I have a feeling that Velvet Sky will pull this one out. By cheating of course.

Falls Count Anywhere Abyss vs Rhyno - I have been a fan of Rhyno for a while, but he never seems to get PPV matchs so I am glad to see this. However as rare as his PPV matchs are, PPV wins are even harder to come by. Abyss wins!

Sting/Kevin Nash vs Jeff Jarrett/Samoa Joe - In the battle of the dinosaurs, Samoa Joe turns his back on Jeff Jarrett and once again sides with Sting/Nash....

X Division Title: Sabu vs Douglas Williams. Sabu wins... via DQ. Hence no title reign for him

I Quit AJ Styles vs Tommy Dreamer. Tommy Dreamer probably has never said I Quit. Either has AJ Styles. Tommy should have quit a long time ago... Styles win

TNA World Tag Titles Motor City Machine Guns vs London Brawling. That may be the dumbest tag name since Techno Team 2000. MCMG retain the titles!

Mr. Anderson vs The Pope - In the first semi-final match Mr. Anderson will defeat a very game Pople.

Kurt Angle vs Jeff Hardy - In the 2nd semi final match and the match that will steal the card.... Kurt Angle will win.