I was sending a text message the other day. As I was typing the word, “being,” my phone did something that I thought was amazing – it tried to autocorrect it to nWo. I might like wrestling a little too much…

For those who remember the glory days of the New World Order, nothing else is necessary; you know the story and how awesome it was. And, you also know how horrible the group’s fall from prominence was. But, for those who weren’t around back then, this is for you. 

The WWE recently released a 3-disc retrospective looking back at the history of the New World Order. It continues WWE’s recent streak of releasing solid documentaries that tell the whole story, not just WWE’s version, which has plagued some of their earlier releases. 

One point that is forgotten when talking about wrestling in the late 1990s is summed up very nicely by WCW star “Diamond” Dallas Page in the disc’s opening moments: “Wrestling at that time was a 9.8 out of 10 on the ‘cool meter.’” And, it really was. The cool promotion was WWE, with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and The Rock leading the charge. But, what really hadn’t been told until now is why WWE got so hot and popular in that era. WWE got so amazing because WCW had surpassed them as the premier wrestling promotion, thanks in large part to the nWo. They had to scramble to surpass WCW and they succeeded. 

The disc has a lot of new interviews with a wide variety of names from WCW, including Kevin Nash, Bill DeMott, Billy Kidman, Booker T, Arn Anderson, Dusty Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, and X-Pac. Stock footage from the early 2000s from interviews with Eric Bischoff, Scott Hall, and Hulk Hogan are also included.

One of the cooler aspects is that they include interviews with two wrestlers who were children during the nWo days – Cody Rhodes and Joe Hennig (sons, of course, of Dusty Rhodes and Curt Hennig). While both wrestling promotions claimed to aim toward an 18-35 year-old demographic, wrestling really was one of the most popular things with kids back then. Both talk about how they already liked wrestling and started seeing more of their peers wear wrestling shirts and talk about the product once the nWo kicked off. 

It’s not such a big deal now to see Hulk Hogan as a heel, but his turn in 1996 was groundbreaking and nobody expected it. His turn made it work. Nash stresses in his interview that they wanted everything they did to be different than the status quo. Hulk Hogan as a bad guy was different. They didn’t do wrestling promos. They almost did music videos, in black and white as well. The entire presentation was different and it worked for them. 

The evil nWo ran roughshod over WCW until a silent hero descended from the rafters to take them out. That man was Sting. The 15-month angle of Sting not speaking or wrestling and just watching the nWo made for compelling television. Cody Rhodes sums it up better than I can – “It was just beautiful.” And it was. That’s how you book a storyline. 

After a while, the nWo started fighting itself and split off into two groups, the black and white of nWo Hollywood and the red and black Wolfpac. When discussing the nWo, Dusty Rhodes talked about how it was so mainstream and got all of this attention from people who weren’t wrestling fans. He said the start of the downfall of the group was when it split up, noting that it was just a wrestling angle after that.Current WWE commentator Matt Striker summed the Wolfpac in his own unique way: “The Wolfpac was cool, but it’s kind of like when your little sister wants to be in the nWo. It’s like, ‘Alright, you can be in the Wolfpac.’” 

I liked the Wolfpac, personally. But, a lot of people apparently did not. The remainder of the disc looks at the downfall of the group. They talk about poorly-planned storylines and a general feeling of disorganization with the group’s motives. The bloated roster of mid-carders wearing nWo colors is discussed as well. The ill-fated “nWo 2000” featuring Bret Hart and Jeff Jarrett is ripped apart for not working. And the 2002 invasion of WWE by the original trio is brought up. 

Overall, it’s a nice set for the two main audiences WWE is going after – hardcore fans and nostalgia buffs. The matches on discs 2 and 3 aren’t bad either. Buy it.

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I have written about professional wrestling in various online forms since roughly 2005 or so. I have never received so much attention and excitement from people leaving comments than when I initially wrote about The Rock’s return to WWE in February 2011.

In terms of being a “big deal,” The Rock coming back to WWE for the first time in seven years was a pretty big F’n deal. He was a man who had become one of the WWE’s biggest stars during the late ‘90s and early 2000’s, during what has come to be known as the “Attitude Era,” the most profitable and – arguably – exciting era in professional wrestling history.

A cameo in a movie here led to a starring role in a movie there, which led to various extended absences from WWE. It eventually led to him quietly retiring as an active wrestler and making the transition to Hollywood film star. The Rock, who slowly switched to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and finally shed his wrestling name altogether, became a decently bankable movie star. WWE fans weren’t surprised by his comedic and dramatic range, but he surprised a lot of mainstream movie goers with his ability. He had moved on and most wrestling fans accepted that.

His 2011 return was to make an appearance at that year’s WrestleMania XXVII. In the buildup to that year’s event, The Rock started a small verbal feud with John Cena, the company’s current flagship star.

The night after WrestleMania, Rock made an appearance on Monday Night Raw and shocked everybody by challenging Cena to a match at WrestleMania XXVIII, a full year in advance. The year came and went. The match happened. WWE hyped it as one of the biggest matches in the history of WWE, on par with The Rock’s 2002 match with Hulk Hogan. As such, they released a 3-disc DVD set chronicling the year-long rivalry.

Rock vs. Cena: Once in a Lifetime contains a documentary looking at the evolution of Rock and Cena, as well as how they handled the feud over the course of a year, especially without Rock being there full time. Discs two and three contain all of their appearances together over the course of the year, beginning with Rock’s return in 2011 and ending with their match at WrestleMania.

The documentary is interesting, as it has some very candid comments from all involved. Cena is blunt when he mentions that he was number four on WWE’s list to try and make the face of the company, after it didn’t work with Brock Lesnar, Batista, and Randy Orton. Triple H echoed those sentiments, saying that nobody expected Cena to be the star he has become.

Cena’s infamous comments from 2009 are brought up by both superstars, as Cena was asked in an interview back then if he would ever leave WWE if his movie career took off. He then used that to take some shots at Rock, noting that if he loved WWE as much as he said he did he would make some appearances for the company. Rock discusses how those comments made him feel and how it fueled the feud.

Twitter played a prominent role in pushing the feud, as the interactions between @JohnCena and @TheRock were the only things keeping it going for stretches at a time. It struck me as a little odd watching Rock discuss Twitter. It seemed like he didn’t quite fully understand it during one scene when people were discussing trends with him. I also found it odd that Rock couldn’t type, as he was filmed sending a tweet and you could see him slowly hitting each key with his pointer fingers.

There were two highlights of this documentary – the bluntness of Cena and CM Punk. Cena is out of character, freely using profanity and being bleeped multiple times in various interviews. Punk is vocal about Rock not making more appearances for the company, noting that Rock said WWE is his family but that he doesn’t show it.

It all culminates with their match at WrestleMania. There are a lot of backstage scenes shown, with each wrestler hugging Vince McMahon after the match and the two talking to each other afterward. It’s a nice look at a part of WWE that they usually don’t let us see.

This is a decent disc. The only reason I don’t think it’s much better is because I feel like WWE over hyped this match. Yeah, it was a pretty big deal, but it wasn’t the biggest match in the history of WWE. It’s a cool documentary and a cool look into a match based on a real life issue. Take it or leave it if you’d like.

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CM Punk: Best in the World is not a documentary about a professional wrestler making his mark in WWE. This 3-disc set produced by World Wrestling Entertainment is the story of a man who overcame all of his obstacles and wound up living his dream. His dream just happens to be being a professional wrestler.

This is the most personal, honest, deep documentary that WWE has ever been involved in. From the opening moments when Punk says he wasn’t close to his family and felt like he was adopted or from another planet, which prompts him to show the “Space Boy” tattoo on his wrist, you are emotionally invested in his story.

He is not particularly close to his actual family, as none are interviewed for the DVD. Several of his friends, whom Punk calls his real family, are featured. They recall their memories of him growing up and getting into the punk and straight edge scene.

The reason behind becoming straight edge has been storyline fodder in both Ring of Honor and WWE and Punk discusses it on his DVD – his alcoholic father. The story Punk tells about his father is unsettling to listen to and must have been absolutely horrifying for Punk to live through as a child. He basically says he never saw anything positive about alcohol and decided to never drink. As he got older he learned about the straight edge lifestyle and realized it was a fit for him.

While he was also a kid, Punk discovered Roddy Piper and noticed that they hated him for two reasons – the way he dressed and the things he said. Punk noted that he was hated for the same reasons, so he fell in love with Piper and the wrestling industry.

His early exploits in wrestling are heavily featured, as are comments from his opponents and friends who are not associated with WWE. Footage from IWA: Mid South and Ring of Honor are presented, as well as interviews from his trainer Ace Steel, best friend Colt Cabana, and Chris Hero (before he was signed by WWE and repackaged as Kassius Ohno).

The amount of time spent discussing ROH is amazing. They look at his early feud with Raven, pointing out that it was his first time having a program against somebody already established in wrestling. They illustrate it with pictures from their bloody dog collar match. His 3-match series with Samoa Joe is presented as being what it actually was – one of the greatest series of matches in wrestling during the last decade. Cabana and Daniel Bryan are featured heavily discussing ROH.

Punk is actually interviewed inside an ROH ring at their training center, where Punk used to be the head trainer. It is so surreal to see Punk sitting beside an ROH logo discussing the infamous 2005 “Summer of Punk” angle, where he won the ROH Championship and threatened to take it to WWE.

It really gets interesting after Punk signs with WWE. That is when Paul Heyman is introduced on the set. Initially sent to WWE’s farm territory Ohio Valley Wrestling, Punk is against the idea because he sees himself as being above it. That is where they send people to learn how to wrestle. Punk felt he had already proven that he was among the best. Training at OVW at the time was The Miz, who was interviewed and said that he and the others went to Punk for advice during that time, as they knew of his pedigree in the ring.

This is where it gets tricky for CM Punk. He initially had Paul Heyman vouching for him and helping him through the political minefield of WWE. After Paul’s dismissal from WWE in December 2006 – “He was either fired or quit, depending on who you talk to,” Punk says – it was a different world for Punk. It wasn’t until winning the Money in the Bank ladder match in 2008 that he finally stopped worrying that WWE would release him.

He wins his first World Heavyweight Championship in 2008, but feels anger over the fact that he is not in the main event. Triple H makes his mark at this point in the set, noting that a wrestler is supposed to make the title important, but his was a case of the title trying to make a wrestler important and it did not work.

He expresses his frustration at losing the championship without even being in a match. He then drops down to win the Tag title and Intercontinental title, before winning the MITB again and earning his second World championship.

Punk recalls a conversation he had with Vince McMahon at this point, where McMahon said, “I have a challenge for you, I want to see if you can be a heel.” Punk responds by saying, “What’s the challenge?” Punk goes on to be one of the most compelling heels for WWE in the summer of 2009, before being defeated by The Undertaker and again dropped down the card.

Punk again expresses his frustration at proving himself to be a top player during the summer, but then getting knocked down a notch for no reason. In a rare instance of breaking kayfabe regarding the Undertaker, Michael Hayes reveals that Undertaker told him that he respected Punk after their series of matches.

Punk’s response to getting bumped down is to create the Straight Edge Society. It got over and Punk was again a top heel. Jim Ross is among the people singing the praises of the SES and how it could have been a top faction in WWE history, but politics got in the way again.

Punk’s decision to leave WWE is next. That leads into the infamous pipe bomb promo, which is shown in its entirety in the documentary. Comments from Kofi Kingston and Curt Hawkins are interesting here.

The 2011 “Summer of Punk” is where we end the DVD on a happy note, as he wins the WWE Championship and becomes a top star for the company. Well, it ends on a happy note from the company standpoint.

Something to ponder is that Punk mostly talks about how frustrated he is during his entire WWE run, especially regarding not feeling like he is getting the respect and recognition he deserves. Presently, he is the WWE Champion, but is not main eventing pay per views. He is the champion, but he is second fiddle to John Cena. If WWE ever releases a part two, one has to wonder what Punk will have to say about this part of his life.

Bottom line, buy this set. The documentary is amazing. The matches included on discs 2 and 3 are awesome as well. This is one of the best sets released by WWE. Go buy it.

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3. A Look Inside Ring Of Honor

Over the summer, Ring of Honor came to Charleston, WV, and I attended the show. It was a television taping for their weekly syndicated show, titled simply “ROH TV”. More on that later.

Ring of Honor formed in 2002 following the demise of World Championship Wrestling and Extreme Championship Wrestling the year prior. The “Big 3” of the 1990’s wrestling war had one victor standing tall – World Wrestling Entertainment.

There needed to be an alternative. Some tried and failed, most notably Jimmy Hart and his XWF, despite featuring Hulk Hogan as its top star. In mid 2002, two promotions started at around the same time – Ring of Honor and NWA: Total Nonstop Action. Both recently celebrated their tenth anniversary shows. Both have also undergone several drastic changes in the last decade.

Initially promoted as a place for all of the top independent professional wrestlers to appear under one roof, ROH quickly gained a reputation as a hard-hitting promotion that promoted wrestling over sports entertainment. With its home base in Philadelphia and rabid fans, comparisons to ECW were obvious. While it wasn’t obvious until a few years later, they shared something similar to ECW – all of their top stars were eventually signed away by one of the bigger companies.

The stars of ROH’s early years reads like a who’s who of today’s WWE and TNA main event scene – AJ Styles (first TNA Grand Slam Champion), Christopher Daniels (multi-time X Division Champion), Samoa Joe (multi-time TNA World and X Division Champion), Low Ki (TNA X Division champion, WWE NXT season 2 winner), Bryan Danielson (World Champion in WWE), CM Punk (WWE and World Champion), Austin Aries (TNA World Champion), Tyler Black (NXT Champion), and Claudio Castagnoli (WWE US Champion) to name a few.

One of the problems facing ROH in the last couple years is that it looks like the promotion has sort of been running on fumes lately. Looking at the promotion right now and its top stars, they look like what they are – the top stars in Ring of Honor. They do not look like future stars in TNA or WWE. Let’s look at the last four ROH champions:

Current champion Kevin Steen, while being a good wrestler, is too heavy and not “PC” enough to fit into one of the major promotions. Previous champion Davey Richards has that classic Chris Benoit style (from back when it was a good thing to say that), but is seemingly too small to make it. Eddie Edwards always surprised me as being an ROH Champion. He just never stuck out to me and while he could put on a technical masterpiece in the ring, that was it. I felt like he was flat as a character. Roderick Strong was always a midcard talent at best, and only made his way to the top of the card after everybody else left. He’s a strong hand in the ring, but like Davey and Eddie, that’s about it.

Of the current ROH roster, I can think of only four talents that I feel have a good chance of getting signed by WWE:

Mike Bennett. He created the perfect heel character for ROH – that he is a sports entertainer and not a wrestler. He is charismatic, flashy, and has the size and build that WWE likes. He is also dating former WWE diva Maria.

Mike Mondo. Mondo had a stint in WWE previously, as part of the male cheerleading group the Spirit Squad. Don’t laugh, Dolph Ziggler was also part of it. It took him awhile in ROH to overcome the bad gimmick stigma, but he has slowly started to earn the respect of the hardcore audience and is seen as a credible wrestler.

Michael Elgin. On the surface, he looks like a stereotypical big guy wrestler who can’t do much. But, looks can be deceiving. He took part in two of Ring of Honor’s best matches this year – title matches against both Davey Richards and Kevin Steen. He has the look that WWE likes and also the wrestling ability that WWE often forgets they need.

Jay Lethal. I’m not sure why he hasn’t made his way to WWE yet honestly. Lethal broke through in the early days of ROH as a gutsy, young kid who always gave it his all. He then went on to TNA and became one of their more popular characters. An association with Kevin Nash led to a one-off Randy Savage impersonation, which then turned into the “Black Machismo” persona that lasted for several years before being transitioned into a hilarious Ric Flair impersonation. He then became his own man in the promotion and looked to become a star before abruptly leaving the company and returning to ROH.

Back to my ROH experience over the summer. It was the company’s first trip to West Virginia and the first ROH show I had ever attended. It came off as a very fake, forced atmosphere.

The first thing I noticed was a man walking around carrying around a garbage bag full of streamers passing them around to people in the lobby. A couple of the wrestlers – Eddie Edwards and the Briscoe Brothers – came up to him and started talking to him. There were a lot of nicely-dressed ROH employees around, but he appeared to be a fan. He was wearing a t-shirt and had several tattoos. But the wrestlers knew him.

During the course of the taping, all of the famous chants took place: the dueling chants (Let’s go Elgin! Let’s go Lethal!) the “This is awesome! Clap-clap, clap-clap-clap” chant, several “Yes! Yes! Yes!” chants, an homage to Daniel Bryan, and of course the infamous “ROH! ROH! ROH!” chant occurred numerous times.

As the show started, I saw the guy passing out the remainder of his streamers. I got two. One was thrown at Roderick Strong and the other was saved for Steve Corino. I spotted him across the room about halfway through the show. He was one of the loudest men there. I kept watching him throughout the night, and with the exception of a few “Yes-es,” that guy started every single crowd chant.

The event came off like we were all playing the part of ROH fans, not that we were so dedicated that we came out and got into the moment. I’m curious as to whether that is the case at every ROH show now. Are there any dedicated ROH fans left? Is the current apathy toward the product due in part to the lack of future “big time” stars in the company?

Check your local listings or go to http://www.rohwrestling.com for more information on the syndicated “ROH TV”.

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The biggest event of the WWE calendar is WrestleMania. Every storyline, angle, feud, what-have-you builds throughout the year and culminates at what they’ve dubbed “the grandest stage of them all,” and “the showcase of the immortals.”

Two words have become synonymous with WrestleMania over the last several years: The Streak. The Undertaker, who competed in his first WrestleMania in 1991, has participated in more WrestleMania matches than anybody in history. What’s even more impressive that that statistic is the fact that he has never lost a WrestleMania contest. With his most-recent victory over Triple H earlier this year, he went to 20-0 on the big stage.

With that marketable number in mind, WWE saw fit to release a four-disc retrospective chronicling the Undertaker’s WrestleMania history. Released last month, the first disc features a documentary looking at all 20 matches, featuring comments from WWE personalities and opponents. Since Undertaker is one of the few characters who still abides by the old-time tradition of “kayfabe” (not breaking character, acting like it’s real), the hour-long documentary features in-character comments and looks at each match in that manner.

With Undertaker having such a long history and WWE marketing toward a much-younger audience these days, disc 1 is a good piece for fans who may not know the full history. It’s a good educational piece for casual wrestling fans or young children. It honestly didn’t hold my interest, since I knew about the streak already.

Discs 2, 3 and 4 are where the set becomes worth the money, as all 20 matches are featured in their entirety. The last four years, The Undertaker has been involved in match of the year contenders. The four-year story arc involving Undertaker ending Shawn Michaels career and dealing with Triple H after that has been a thing of beauty. It would have been an amazing six-month feud, had it not been stretched out for four years over WrestleMania season, so to speak.

The thing that WWE has tried to gloss over lately is the fact that The Streak was not something that has been in the works for the last 20 years. Like Jim Ross has mentioned in his blog before, nobody decided to create the streak. Around 8-0, they noticed he was undefeated and mentioned it. Undertaker first mentioned it at 10-0 (he counted to 10 on his fingers after the match). The words “The Streak” were not mentioned until Randy Orton in 2005. And, to be honest, some of those early matches were pretty bad, with his match against Giant Gonzalez being among Undertaker’s worst of his career.

But, if you’re a fan of wrestling, and more specifically, The Undertaker, this set is a must-own. It’s a collection of history, something we will likely never see again.

With this post, we’ll take a look at Undertaker’s 20 matches, ranking them from worst to best. The ranking system includes quality of the match, historical significance, and my biased opinion as a fan. If you agree or think I have no idea what I’m talking about, let me know.

Here we go:

20) Undertaker vs. Giant Gonzalez (1993) … Jorge Gonzalez was a legit 7’6” former basketball player. He was drafted to the Atlanta Hawks and was not NBA quality. Ted Turner owned both the Hawks and WCW, so Gonzalez became a wrestler. He had an entertaining feud with Ric Flair, but after going to WWE, could not replicate that success with Undertaker, who was not at the stage of his career where he could carry a greener wrestler to a good match. They stood there and hit each other a lot. Gonzalez got disqualified, giving Undertaker his only win not by pinfall or submission. Scary to think that Undertaker could have possibly lost here, as the match was really used to get over Gonzalez to continue their feud.

19) Undertaker vs. Jimmy Snuka (1991) … The first match in the streak. Snuka had been one of the top stars during the early 1980s and this match was seen as a passing of the torch. The aging veteran was easily dispatched by this newcomer who had debuted only 5 months earlier.

18) Undertaker vs. King Kong Bundy (1995) … Undertaker was involved in a feud with Ted DiBiase’s “Million Dollar Corporation” and this match continued that. DiBiase had stolen Undertaker’s urn and Undertaker tried to get it back. He succeeded in the match, but Kama (aka The Godfather) stole it back and melted it down into a necklace. Dumb storyline, but that’s what they did back then. Match was nothing special. The MLB was on strike at the time and a baseball umpire was the referee for the match, as a way to try and get some media attention.

17) Undertaker vs. Diesel (1996) … Kevin Nash’s last WrestleMania before he went to WCW. The match was slow and plodding, with Diesel trying to wear Undertaker down with multiple bear hugs. The crowd was still into it big time, though.

16) Undertaker vs. Big Boss Man (1999) … The first Hell in a Cell match in WM history. Also generally considered one of the worst HIAC matches in history. At the time of its release, this was the only match not included in the HIAC compilation 3-disc set. Boss Man handcuffed Undertaker to the cell and that looked to play a major role in the match, but then the cuff broke within a few minutes and it looks like they had to scramble with a plan B. It didn’t work.

15) Undertaker vs. Big Show and Albert (2003) … Originally supposed to be a tag match with Nathan Jones. WWE reportedly didn’t think the newcomer was ready for a WM match, so they staged a beat down that took him out of action. Action was fast-paced due to Undertaker trying to maintain the advantage over two larger opponents. Match was during the end of his “American Badass” phase, so he got a huge pop for breaking the Tombstone piledriver out, a move he rarely used then. WM19 occurred mere weeks into the US/Iraq war, so one of the biggest pops of the night occurred when Undertaker came to the ring with an American flag.

14) Undertaker vs. Mark Henry (2006) … The only casket match in WM history. Entertaining match, especially considering Henry’s limitations. Mostly remembered for Undertaker’s plancha over the top rope and over the casket, landing on top of Henry. A couple years later, Monday Night Raw hyped several WrestleMania rematches throughout the night and this one was contested again. The outcome was the same. Undertaker is 2-0 against Mark Henry in casket matches.

13) Undertaker vs. Psycho Sid (1997) … Undertaker’s second WWE Championship victory, and first at WM. Sid had his working shoes on that night, as he moved quicker than usual and also came off the top rope several times (I cringed each time, as it conjured up memories of his gruesome 2001 injury). Bret Hart, getting his new heel character over, interfered 3 times in the match. Shawn Michaels, fresh off his “knee injury” and “losing his smile” is on guest commentary. He was full of inside snark and shoot comments that only he could get away with.

12) Undertaker vs. Jake Roberts (1992) … Jake Roberts had turned heel the previous year and had formed a partnership with the equally evil Undertaker. That all changed when Roberts was going to hit Ms. Elizabeth with a chair. Undertaker finally grew a heart and stopped Roberts. This was Roberts’ last match in WWE until 1996. In his WWE DVD documentary, Roberts talks at length about why. Very fascinating backstage politics at work.

11) Undertaker vs. Kane (2004) … Undertaker’s first WM rematch, as he previously faced Kane in 1998. This was the re-debut of Undertaker as “The Deadman,” as Kane had helped Mr. McMahon defeat Undertaker in a “Buried Alive” match at Survivor Series 2003. He buried Undertaker and effectively “killed him,” so Undertaker was now back to being dead and tormenting Kane. Match was somewhat brief, but the introduction for Undertaker was off-the-charts awesome.

10) Undertaker vs. Randy Orton (2005) … Orton had been WWE’s top heel under Triple H. He then usurped HHH as top bad guy, only to have H turn on him. Orton’s run as top face was a bust, so to set his heel turn into action, he decided that he would end The Streak to make a name for himself. It didn’t work. Orton’s father, “Cowboy” Bob Orton was being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame that year and made a cameo appearance with his cast to try and help his son. It didn’t work.

9) Undertaker vs. Triple H (2010) … Undertaker had ended Shawn Michaels’ career and Triple H was out for revenge. This match was nonstop action, with heavy hands, hard falls, and an unprotected chair shot to the head or two (which WWE issued a press release for saying that the two had been fined for). The ending was drama personified, as Undertaker won the match but did not leave the ring under his own power, as he was too exhausted and beat up.

8) Undertaker vs. Kane (1998) … Paul Bearer had tormented Undertaker for months, promising to unleash Undertaker’s long-thought-dead brother on him. Kane made his WWE debut in Sept. 1997 and tried to goad Undertaker into a match from that point on. Undertaker resisted until March, which coincidentally set their first encounter for WrestleMania 14 (best known for Steve Austin’s first WWE Championship victory). Undertaker took a nasty fall through the Spanish announce table, but ultimately vanquished Kane after three Tombstone piledrivers.

7) Undertaker vs. Batista (2007) … Undertaker had won the Royal Rumble earlier that year, last eliminating Shawn Michaels. He earned a shot at the title of his choosing and went after Batista. With two title matches that year, Batista vs. Undertaker for the World Championship and Cena vs. HBK for the WWE Championship, only one match could be in the main event. WWE put Batista and Undertaker on in the middle. They stole the show. Batista wrote in his autobiography that he received some heat for coming back after the match and yelling “Follow that!”

6) Undertaker vs. Edge (2008) … Interesting dynamic here, as Undertaker had never lost a match, while Edge could make the claim that he had never been pinned at WrestleMania (as he had lost a ladder match the previous year). He could still make that claim, as Undertaker made him submit to the “Hell’s Gate” gogoplata MMA maneuver.

5) Undertaker vs. Triple H (2012) … Billed as the “End of an Era,” these two part-time warriors competed in Hell in a Cell match with Shawn Michaels as the guest referee. Undertaker was battling injuries and this was only his second match in the previous 15 months. Triple H was slowing down his ring work to focus more on backstage duties. He had only wrestled a handful of times the previous year. HBK had been retired for two years and shown up only a couple times since. They told a great story of Triple H being jealous of Michaels, trying to do the one thing he could never do – end the streak. The question of whether Michaels would call it down the middle or try to end the streak as a referee was an added wrinkle. In the end, Undertaker prevailed and all three walked up the ramp together, having earned each others respect.

4) Undertaker vs. Ric Flair (2002) … In Flair’s autobiography, he wrote that this match was what brought him out of his funk, brought on by his own insecurities over his place in wrestling at his age. He and Undertaker had an intense, hard-hitting match. Flair was in top form here and Undertaker was at his vicious best, having recently turned heel. A run-in by Flair’s Four Horsemen “Enforcer” from the good ol’ days, Arn Anderson, wasn’t enough to end The Streak. Undertaker finished off Flair with a Tombstone to go 10-0.

3) Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (2010) … The last match of HBK’s storied career. The year before, he had attempted to end the streak. He wanted a rematch. Undertaker said yes, with the condition that he put his career on the line. Michaels said that if he couldn’t get the job done, he had no career. Given the main event slot over the WWE and World title matches, these two told a story like only they can do. Michaels tried to chop down the big man and Undertaker kept coming back for more. Undertaker started to show mercy at the end, only to be disrespected by HBK with a slap across the face. He hoisted Michaels up and with a leaping Tombstone piledriver, ended the career of one of the all-time greats.

2) Undertaker vs. Triple H (2001) … Earlier, we talked about end of an era with these two. WrestleMania 17 is unofficially considered the end of the “Attitude Era,” and these two were key figures in it. Triple H admitted he had done everything in WWE with the exception of defeat the Undertaker. The battle was on. And what a battle it was. Triple H was nearing his prime and Undertaker was looking good, having found his groove with the “American Badass” character. They brawled throughout the ring and into the crowd, with Undertaker finally getting the victory with his “Last Ride” power bomb maneuver.

1) Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (2009) … The twenty-fifth WrestleMania saw Undertaker and HBK steal the show and have arguably the greatest match in WM history, and no doubt a top 3 encounter. Words hardly do it justice. It’s all about telling a story and the magic that two men can make inside of a 20 x 20 ring. They did it. They crafted a masterpiece that will go down in history. The close calls, the submission attempts, the look of utter shock and exhaustion on Undertaker’s face after HBK kicks out of the Tombstone, they took the crowd on an emotional roller coaster. A must-watch for any fan of professional wrestling.

And there we have it. Twenty matches, in order. But, is it the correct order? If you don’t believe so, let me know. Comments and criticism is encouraged and appreciated.

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WWE Velocity was a late-night show that aired Saturday nights on SpikeTV during the mid 2000s. It was recap program that went over what happened the previous week on Smackdown. Matches featuring midcard talent and “jobbers” (unsigned guys who come in just to lose) were shown between the recap segments.

Above is a video of Steven Richards versus Bob “Hardcore” Holly. Holly had been a WWE superstar from the mid 1990s until 2008 or so. He was a good wrestler and was one of the biggest stars of WWE’s Hardcore division during the late 90s. Richards has always been one of my guilty pleasure wrestlers. One when I say that he’s one of my favorite wrestlers, people crinkle up their nose and say, “Really? Why?”

I remember watching this match in the summer of 2005. It was shortly before the SummerSlam pay-per-view, between my first and second years of college. Richards was still advertised as a member of the “Blue World Order,” his ECW group that had reunited briefly in WWE, but it was pretty much over by this point. WWE was trying out a new role for Torrie Wilson, as she was the ring announcer for the match. About that, let’s just say that her best role right now is to continue being Alex Rodriguez’ girlfriend.

With an art form like professional wrestling, it is often easy to overlook when somebody is performing their craft very well. Likewise, it is much easier to spot when somebody is doing a bad job (Ahem, Torrie…). I remember at the time being very impressed with how Richards tried to avoid Holly’s finishing move at the end of the match. It didn’t look rehearsed; Holly tried to hit it and Richards tried to stop it, just like if they were in a real fight. Now, I doubt anybody would try Hardcore Holly’s finishing move in a real fight, but just humor me for a moment.

I remember reading on PWINSIDER.com a few weeks after that something that really caught my attention. Apparently Vince McMahon had gathered the Smackdown locker room together and made them watch that match, specifically to call attention to Steven Richards’ ability to “sell” (pretend like he’s hurt, act like it’s real).

Why am I talking about this right now? I follow Steven Richards on Twitter (@MichaelManna, his real name) and he uploaded this match to his YouTube channel. The other day he tweeted the link to this match. I saw that and, never knowing if the story was actually true or just a rumor, tweeted to him, “Is that the one Vince made the locker room watch so they’d learn how to sell?” He replied to me, “yes……and then I sat home for 4 months.”

When CM Punk unleashed his initial pipe bomb promo last year and the fallout that came from it, he talked about politics a lot and how talented wrestlers were held back over the years in favor of muscled-up ex-football players and other such talents. A case could be made for putting Richards into that category. Vince McMahon thought he was good enough at selling moves that he wanted the entire locker room to learn from him. Did it get Richards anywhere? No. He apparently wasn’t used for four months after that, and when he was used it was always to put over other superstars.

Richards broke out in the early 1990s in ECW and was a sidekick of sorts to Raven, one of the top heels in ECW history. After a few years as a lackey, he started to break out and show his talents in main event matches. He was being compared to Shawn Michaels at the time, until a neck injury halted any momentum he was gaining.

A weak run in WCW reprising his Raven’s lackey role got him nowhere, as did a subsequent stint in ECW. After undergoing neck surgery, he made his way to WWE in the late 90s and a broken ankle stopped his midcard comedy character from going anywhere. He came back in 2000 with short hair and wearing a tie. He was tired of the crass, tasteless filth in WWE and was using his new group, the Right To Censor (RTC) to clean up the WWE.

It was meant to mock the Parents Television Council (PTC), who were waging a real-life fight against the WWE for similar reasons. The PTC had successfully managed to convince Coca-Cola and the US Army, among others, to stop advertising with WWE.

By 2001, the RTC was no more. Richards career had peaked. He had been an upper-midcard villain who received a lot of attention on WWE programming. After that, he disappeared for a while before being repackaged as the character he has effectively ended his career with, a deranged psychopath.

He became a midcard mainstay on lower-tier shows like Velocity and Sunday Night Heat, which Richards unofficially renamed “Stevie Night Heat,” even putting it on his trunks at one point.

He left WWE a few years ago and showed up in TNA in 2009. He had a brief partnership with Raven a few times that never really went anywhere. He feuded with Abyss and Mick Foley mostly. Near the end of his tenure there, I felt like they were really going somewhere with him. It seemed like they were gearing him up for the role of veteran wrestler going for one last shot at glory. A short feud with AJ Styles went nowhere and he left TNA shortly thereafter. He revealed in an interview with PWINSIDER.com that TNA President Dixie Carter had referred to him as “washed up.”

I feel like Richards never got anywhere near the amount of success that he should have received. If wrestling were really based on talent, Richards would have no doubt been a world champion many times over. But, it’s not. Instead, he was used to get lesser talents over and to play the midcard comic relief. And, he was good at both of those things.

While his career may have fizzled out, his life hasn’t. He has avoided becoming one of the countless wrestling tragedies that pop up over the years, especially his ECW generation. Now in his early 40s, he has transitioned to the next stage of his life, with wrestling looking to be his side project he does for fun. He may not have gotten all he deserved out of wrestling, but he seems to be getting a lot out of life these days. Good for him.

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I was watching WWE Monday Night Raw on August 27th (naturally, of course). The main event was CM Punk versus Jerry Lawler in a steel cage match. The point of this match was to help further Punk’s recent heel turn. The crowds weren’t really booing him, so I guess WWE wanted to use Lawler – the lovable ex-wrestler turned announcer – as a magnet to attract heat to Punk. He goaded the former AWA World Champion into the ring and proceeded to beat him to a pulp and attack him after the match was over.

During the match, I noticed something that piqued my interest. Punk’s face was driven into the cage and when he stood up from the ground his face was covered in blood. Since changing their television shows from TV-14 to TV-PG in the summer of 2008, they have banned the act of bleeding in a WWE ring, either intentional or accidental. If it happens on accident, the referee will stop the match and a physician will attempt to close the wound. Locked inside a cage, doing that was harder, so they went on with the show.

Punk, realizing the no-blood rule, tried to wipe the blood away at every opportunity, leaving his wrist tape soaked red. As soon as the match was over, he exited the ring and was handed a towel by the referee.

Rumors sprang up online the next day that Punk had drawn blood intentionally, through the act known as “blading.” Blading is exactly what it sounds like and has been used to increase drama in wrestling matches since at least the 1970s – you cut your forehead with a small razor blade. That’s an area of the body that will bleed a lot from a small cut. Mix in some sweat and you have what famed announcer Gorilla Monsoon famously called a “crimson mask.”

Punk vaguely referenced the rumors on Twitter, tweeting about how paying a $500,000 fine was a “drop in the bucket. Bucket of blood!” He further added, “And, yes, I have more power than you could possibly imagine,” as one would assume a wrestler intentionally breaking that rule on live television would be instantly fired.

See for yourself – click here to watch the match. It’s broken up into clips. At around the one-minute mark, Lawler drives Punk’s head into the cage. Punk hits the ground and one of two things happen – he blades his head or he touches the legitimate cut on the top of his head.

I’m leaning toward the latter, that he was really cut from his head hitting the cage. One, I just don’t think he would take the chance on doing something like that. Two, the cut was on the top of his head and pretty long. Even if he did blade, I don’t think he would do it like that. Click here to see the 8 staples he received. When some questioned that the blood was fake, he tweeted the picture with the caption “The staples are fake too.”

So, with all that said, why is there a video of Shawn Michaels versus Chris Jericho from 2008 embedded above? That’s a landmark match for a couple of reasons. First, it was the beginning of Jericho’s great heel turn and their amazing feud. Second, it was the last major blade job in WWE before the company turned TV-PG.

My girlfriend has gotten into wrestling a little bit just by being around me. She never watched WWE pre-PG and she hates when matches get bloody. She feels like there is no need for blood in wrestling and a lot of people feel the same way about it. I think that when used correctly, blood can add the necessary drama to a match and help tell a story. A perfect example of that is Jericho vs Michaels from the Great American Bash 2008.

The story is amazing and is why the feud worked so well. In May, Shawn Michaels faked a knee injury to win a match. He “played possum,” in effect. He played up the injury for a while and Chris Jericho started to question it. Still a good guy at this point, he called Michaels out on it and HBK admitted that he lied. That was the impetus for Jericho’s heel turn. He questioned the fans for continuing to cheer Michaels despite the fact that he lied to them. He said they respected Michaels for being a cheater and would never respect him no matter how hard he tried. Jericho was tired of pandering to the fans for respect like Michaels had done. The first couple minutes of the video recaps this.

Jericho slammed Michaels head into a television screen, damaging his eye. Michaels later made his return and cost Jericho the Intercontinental Championship. Michaels euphoria was short-lived, as Jericho walked up to him and punched him in the eye, further injuring him. That leads into the GAB 2008 match.

At around the 18:50 point of the video above, Jericho catches Michaels with an elbow to the eye. He’s busted open. Jericho realizes it and takes advantage of it, punching and kicking at Shawn’s face with reckless abandon for nearly 10 minutes. He mounts Michaels and throws punch after punch until the referee pulls Jericho off an unconscious Michaels and declares Y2J the winner.

Amazing visual of Michael’s loss. The ensuing storyline sees Michaels admit that he might not be able to return. He says he will make an announcement about his future at the following month’s SummerSlam event. Standing in the ring with his wife, HBK looks like he is about to announce his retirement before Jericho interrupts the party. Jericho attempts to punch Michaels, but HBK moves out of the way and Jericho inadvertently strikes Michaels’s wife in the face [click here to watch].

The feud ends at the beginning of autumn, with an unsanctioned match, with HBK recreating the GAB finish, mounting Jericho and punching him until the referee pulls HBK off an unconscious Y2J.

That blood added the drama and realism of Shawn Michaels suffering a potentially career-ending injury. The personal animosity between the two competitors was upped a notch with Jericho attacking Michaels and drawing blood.

While I understand WWE not wanting blood on their programming, that doesn’t mean that I have to like it. With that said, though, you don’t need blood to have an entertaining match. A lot of times, I’ll admit, blood is often overused and doesn’t add anything. But, when it’s used correctly, like Jericho and Michaels showed, it can help turn a good match into a great match and an already great angle into one of the best of the last decade.

What do you think? Is blood unnecessary or an effective tool to help tell as story?

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In the current storyline, WWE Champion CM Punk is angry at the WWE Universe for not showing him the respect he feels he deserves for being the best in the world. In real life, WWE has that respect for him, as it would appear he is tentatively penciled in to face Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson at January’s Royal Rumble. Johnson will challenge for the WWE Championship in January in what will be his third match in the last seven years. Punk has been WWE Champion for 10 months and shows no signs of losing the belt anytime soon.

Everything in WWE builds to the biggest show of the year, WrestleMania, held each April. It would appear that WWE is looking to do a rematch of last year’s mega main event, Rock vs. John Cena. Rock won last year’s contest, then announced his desire to once again be WWE Champion. Cena has not had a substantial reign as WWE Champion in well over a year. If Rock’s schedule permits, I see him winning the Championship and Cena earning a shot at WrestleMania. 2012’s biggest match ever has the new twist to make it even bigger for 2013.

So, with that fantasy booking aside, where does that leave CM Punk? Ever since the infamous “Pipe Bomb” promo in the summer of 2011, Punk has been one of the hottest wrestlers in the world. With it looking like he will lose his championship heading into the biggest show of the year, where does he go from here?

Looking at the current main event scene, there is a small list of names that will be in the top matches at WrestleMania 29. We know Rock and Cena will be involved. Brock Lesnar signed a one-year contract that will presumably see his final match occur at WM29. The Undertaker looks to be healthy following his appearance at the recent one thousandth episode of Monday Night Raw. He’ll likely be looking to add victim number 21 to his streak. Triple H could likely factor into the equation as well, although the current storylines seem to indicate he is winding down his in-ring career, he could always show up at WM.

The biggest online buzz seems to be on Undertaker facing Brock Lesnar. Years before it became popular, Undertaker began incorporating MMA moves and submissions into his repertoire, and Brock’s dominance in UFC leads many to salivate at the potential for a realistic, hard-hitting battle.

So, where does CM Punk, arguably the biggest star in WWE right now, go for the biggest show of the year? Ever since the Pipe Bomb promo, he has been compared more and more to “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. A mega dream match between the two has been talked about for over a year. What makes this seem even more likely is that both superstars have actually spoken publicly about it.

Steve Austin, the most popular wrestler in the history of the game, retired from active competition in 2003 due to a neck injury. At the time, he said he would never have another match. As the years progressed, Austin’s stance on the issue gradually softened. After a while he stated that he was no longer in any pain from his neck. Then he changed it to he could wrestle if he financially needed to, but he didn’t want to risk injury. Then he changed it to he would consider coming back for one match if it made sense.

Then CM Punk’s promo hit the airwaves. He became a bigger deal than he ever had been before. Then he and Austin began interacting on Twitter, hurling worked barbs back and forth. The fans were entertained and the rumors began.

In interviews, Austin downplayed it, saying that Punk was a great performer and he would consider a match if everything made sense. Punk has said in interviews that he wants the match to happen and that it all depends on whether Austin is physically ready for it.

I can’t think of a better time to have this match than WrestleMania 29. One of the things that looked like it would stop the match from happening was that Punk was a face. It wouldn’t make sense to have a good Punk challenge a good Austin. But, Punk’s recent heel turn could let it happen. There were a few tweets back and forth regarding Punk’s straight edge lifestyle clashing with Austin’s beer drinking persona.

Imagine the electricity in the building if these two went back and forth in the ring. The promos alone could probably eclipse the pay-per-view buy records that Rock and Cena set for WM28.

Will the match actually happen? I don’t know. One roadblock in the way right now is Austin’s mobility. He had knee surgery earlier this summer, which caused him to miss the one thousandth episode of Raw. Could he be at 100 percent by April? Nobody really knows how severe the surgery was and Austin hasn’t said much publicly about it.

Another factor that could play against this match happening is the fact that Rock and Cena will likely be the main event. Does Austin want to come back for his first match since 2003 and be on the undercard? Of course, that’s assuming that Rock is appearing at WrestleMania, which hasn’t been confirmed but has been heavily implied.

The buzz for WrestleMania will start to kick into overdrive after the Royal Rumble. A victory from The Rock will leave CM Punk without an opponent at the show of shows. Let’s see if the fantasy booking can become a reality. Can the Straight Edge Superstar overcome the onslaught of Austin 3:16? I hope we get a chance to find out.

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I spotted Hacksaw: The Jim Duggan Story at Barnes & Noble the other day and had to get it. With his trademark beard, long hair, blue trunks, two-by-four, and loud “Ho-oh” chant (which is how he spells it in the book), Hacksaw was a fun character that I enjoyed as child. At 236 pages, it was an easy read that I got through in two days.

Co-written by Scott E. Williams, who has co-authored several recent wrestling biographies, Hacksaw’s book does not pay meticulous attention to detail or specific dates. Instead, it is more of an off-the-top-of-his-head approach to telling his life story. It works for Hacksaw’s book. It gets through the major aspects of his life – childhood, professional football, Mid-South, WWF, WCW, WWE – with an easy flow and plenty of funny anecdotes thrown in.

The biggest part of the book concerns one of the worst scandals of the late-80s WWE, and one of Jim Duggan’s lowest moments, his arrest for marijuana possession. What made the incident particularly scandalous at the time was that he was traveling with the Iron Sheik, the Iranian bad guy he was feuding with. What Duggan said hurt the worst was that his father was a police officer.

As Duggan writes, “Maybe I should have had reservations about being seen giving a ride to someone I was feuding with so heavily, but the kayfabe mentality that the old schoolers had was dying out, and the sense of it was not as strong in the WWF as it had been with Bill Watts’ Mid-South territory. To be honest, as a newcomer, I was actually kind of excited that the Iron Sheik wanted to ride with me.”

Duggan says that one of the biggest mistakes he made was thinking that this arrest would blow over without any major issue. In fact, he didn’t even call the WWE office after it had happened. He recounts when he finally did call WWE boss Vince McMahon – “Usually, calling Vince at his office meant sitting on hold for five minutes, listening to that awful Muzak that companies pipe over their phone lines while you wait. However, when I called his office that morning and told the receptionist, ‘Hi, it’s Jim Duggan for Vince McMahon,’ it was almost instantaneous, like click-click, ‘Jim?’ And, I will remember verbatim what he said next until the day I die: ‘Jim, what have you done to us?’”

While that road story did not end well, he tells several funny stories about his travels as a WWE superstar. Fun times were had with names such as Jake “The Snake” Roberts (who Duggan says he was close to until Jake’s crack addiction drove a wedge between them), Andre the Giant, and the Nasty Boys to name a few.

In Ric Flair’s autobiography, he writes about one of his problems with Hulk Hogan’s entry into World Championship Wrestling being that he brought in a “clique” of wrestlers with him. Duggan pulls no punches in admitting that Hulk Hogan brought him into WCW and that there was resentment from what he dubbed “Ric Flair’s Group.”

One of Duggan’s biggest moments in WCW came in 1994 when he defeated “Stunning” Steve Austin (before he was “Stone Cold”) for the US Championship. The match was notable for being a 35-second fluke, with Duggan hitting a surprised Austin and quickly pinning him. Duggan writes about the match: “We were supposed to go about 10 minutes but we ended up only going 35 seconds. I gave Austin a backdrop and we just went right to the finish. The truth is he just didn’t want to do the job and pass the belt to me. He was pissed off because he was part of the Flair group and I was part of the Hogan group.”

One of the more interesting stories involves Duggan being present for Juventud Guerrera’s infamous ecstasy freakout during a WCW tour of Australia, which saw Guerrera running naked around a hotel lobby before being subdued by several police officers.

In the mid 2000s, Duggan eventually found his way back to WWE in the role of a legend, brought in for the occasional nostalgia pop and to get heat on a bad guy for beating up the legend. He talks positively about wrestling Edge. He also tells a funny story about watching Vince McMahon try to send a text.

Duggan has earned the respect of his peers, as was shown during his brief cameo in the 2009 Royal Rumble: “I used to jump in the ring, but these days, I roll in, so I rolled in and got to my feet to find myself face to face with The Undertaker. Boom! I hit him. Boom! I hit him. Boom! I hit him. Undertaker said, ‘Give me the big one, Hack!’ I wound up and hit him, and he went down like he’d been shot! Everyone else in the match looked my way… and then Kane came over. Boom! He went down. HHH came over. Boom! He went down. Every single one of those guys fed me and it really meant a lot to me that these big stars would give an old-timer like me a chance to shine.”

The book ends with Hacksaw’s induction into the WWE Hall of Fame, an honor which truly means something important to Duggan. “Still, I don’t care what anybody says, it’s a very big deal, and I think anyone who’s been a part of it will say so, if they’re being honest,” Duggan writes. “Guys who say it doesn’t matter are either lying to you or they’re lying to themselves.”

Duggan tells several more interesting tales, including his thoughts on Kevin Nash and Scott Hall’s turbulent backstage antics in WCW, the time he almost got into a fight with actor Mickey Rourke, and Vince Russo’s attempts to make him quit WCW. He was also backstage at the WWE Raw show that was canceled the day Chris Benoit’s body was found. Duggan sheds some light on what was to happen that night on the show.

Being a large man with long hair and a burly beard makes Duggan stand out, but he said his outrageous look has never bothered him, except for two occasions in his life where he felt self-conscious. Both are heartbreaking to read and they really humanize the cartoon-character image of Duggan.

Hacksaw: The Jim Duggan Story is a fun, easy read. Duggan’s book is required reading for a hardcore fan of wrestling, and something that even casual fans can get into and enjoy.

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By Chris Slater

WWE’s most recent pay-per-view “Money in the Bank” is, for lack of a better term, in the bank. The two marquee matches are the MITB ladder matches, in which competitors climb to retrieve a briefcase containing a contract for either a WWE or World Championship match at any time of his choosing. The contract is good for up to a year.

In the storylines, Chris Jericho is given credit with creating the MITB concept. In real life, Jericho deserves partial credit. In his second autobiography, he writes about how he came up with the idea of a ladder match where the winner receives anything he wants. He pitched it to WWE writer Brian Gewirtz, and it was set. The winner was to be Rob Van Dam and he was going to request the ECW: One Night Stand pay-per-view become a reality. Then RVD got injured and it was changed to a contract for a title match. Edge won the first ladder match at WrestleMania 21, in 2005.

At this year’s event, the two winners were about as polar opposite as two wrestlers could be. Holding the World Title briefcase is Dolph Ziggler, a cocky heel that fans have been waiting to break into the upper echelon for at least the last 15 months. The WWE Title briefcase holder is none other than the face of WWE, John Cena. Already a 10-time WWE Champion, he has announced that he is cashing in his match this coming Monday, July 23, at the historic 1000th episode of Monday Night Raw.

Cena will be the eleventh man to cash in his briefcase. The odds are in his favor, as the previous 10 cash-ins have resulted in championship victories. With this space, I’m going to look at those MITB cash-ins and rank them according to the following system: unpredictability, match quality, overall impact and aftermath (in addition to my biased opinion as a fan).

But, first, some trivia:

Edge and CM Punk are the only people to cash in MITB on more than one occasion. Edge and Punk are also the only two people to both cash in MITB and have it cashed in on them. John Cena has been cashed in on twice. The World Championship has been cashed in the most, with 6, including 5 straight. Rob Van Dam (and as of now, John Cena) is the only competitor to announce his title match in advance. All others took advantage of a loophole that allowed them to cash in at any time, including on an unconscious competitor. Ken Kennedy (now Ken Anderson in TNA) is the only competitor to lose the briefcase before cashing it in. He lost it in a match to Edge.

Now, the list:

1) Rob Van Dam versus John Cena, One Night Stand, 2006: RVD announced he was cashing in at the second ECW PPV, and it led to arguably one of the top 5 moments of the last decade. Cena, the epitome of the cartoon WWE world at the time, walked into the nostalgic ECW crowd and received the loudest gathering of boos and obscene chants he’s ever had. He threw his shirt into the crowd and they threw it back at him. Five times! RVD won, which led to him simultaneously holding the WWE and ECW championships for a short period. It also led to the rebirth of ECW as a permanent brand.

2) Edge versus John Cena, New Year’s Revolution, 2006: The original cash-in and one of the most unpredictable and exciting. Cena had just defended the title in a bloody, half-hour plus Elimination Chamber match. As the cage was ascending, Vince McMahon came to the stage and told the audience to stay in their seats because he had an announcement. With that, Edge came out and Mr. McMahon announced that he was cashing in. Edge went on to win his first WWE Championship and was well on his path to greatness.

3) CM Punk versus Edge, Raw, 2008: The tables were turned. Edge, who had cashed in twice on unsuspecting opponents, finally received his comeuppance as the same thing happened to him. Edge had been drafted to SmackDown and was taking his World Championship with him. He had one final chance to gloat on Raw before the flagship show was left without a title. This brought out Batista, who had been feuding with Edge, who proceeded to beat him unconscious around the ring for a few minutes. Enter Punk, who won his first World Championship. It was the beginning of big things for the “Best in the World.”

4) Miz versus Randy Orton, Raw, 2010: By this point, MITB had become somewhat predictable. Every time the champ is down in the ring, the crowd waits to see if the briefcase holder will come down. That night’s Raw was built around Orton defending his WWE Championship against Wade Barrett. The Nexus interfered and injured Orton’s leg. What followed was a great match in front of a hot crowd that saw Orton win. Then, Miz came out and ruined it. Watching his celebration, it was obvious that he was genuinely happy, as he pounded his fists on the mat and teared up. Watching the crowd, it was obvious they hated him. Check out “Miz Girl” on YouTube if you haven’t seen it yet.

5) Edge versus The Undertaker, SmackDown, 2007: Somewhat predictable, in the sense that we knew going in that Undertaker had injured his arm and needed surgery, so people were waiting for him to lose the World Championship on this episode of SmackDown. Ken Kennedy was slated to win his first title, but had injured his arm over the weekend and it was thought he needed surgery. They got the briefcase off of him on Monday, then Edge cashed it in on Tuesday. On further review, Kennedy was only going to be out for about 3 weeks. Good drama to this. Undertaker survived a long, brutal, bloody cage match against Batista, then was ambushed by Mark Henry, then got cashed in on by Edge.

6) CM Punk versus Jeff Hardy, Extreme Rules, 2009: Punk was the first man to win consecutive MITB matches and cash in both. Hardy had just won the World Championship from Edge in a TLC match. As Jim Ross entered the ring to interview Hardy on his first World Championship victory, Punk’s music hits and he cashes in. Punk and Hardy were both faces at the time, so there was some questioning of Punk’s motives here. This was the slow build to Punk’s first WWE heel turn, as his straight edge philosophy clashed with Hardy’s care-free attitude.

7) Daniel Bryan versus Big Show, TLC, 2011: The quickest of all MITB cash-ins, as previously the referee would make the other competitor get up to his feet before starting the match. This time, Bryan came down to the ring and pinned Show while he was still on the ground. Similar to Punk, this was the start of the slow build to the heel turn for Bryan. While the match wasn’t much, it has led to Bryan becoming one of the top stars in WWE right now. Counting the cash-in, Bryan went on to compete in six consecutive World or WWE Championship matches on pay-per-view. Who woulda ever thunk it?

8) Kane versus Rey Mysterio, MITB, 2010: At the first PPV designed specifically for the MITB concept, Kane became the first person to win the briefcase and then cash it in on the same night. He defeated Mysterio only seconds after Mysterio had defeated Jack Swagger. This led to Kane’s last great heel turn, and possibly The Undertaker’s last stretch as an active wrestler, as he feuded with his storyline brother before injuring his shoulder and only competed at the last two WrestleMania events since then.

9) Jack Swagger versus Chris Jericho, SmackDown, 2010: WrestleMania was that Sunday. Swagger had shockingly won MITB. My bet was on Christian. Jericho had defended his title against Edge. On Monday Night Raw, Swagger attempted to cash in on WWE Champ John Cena, but the match was never official. The next night, during the SmackDown taping, he took advantage of an unconscious Jericho and became World Champ. They positioned him strongly for the rest of the summer, before seemingly giving up on him. His most recent losses are to Brodus Clay, Ryback, and Santino Marella. It’s actually been joked about by the announcers on WWE television that he is a former World Champion.

10) Alberto Del Rio versus CM Punk, SummerSlam, 2011: This is last for a couple reasons. First, reportedly the only reason he won the WWE Championship was because WWE had their first tour of Mexico coming up and wanted him as champion there. That wasn’t a good enough reason for me to disrupt the awesome Cena/Punk feud that had been going on. Second, the reign lasted only a month. Third, it was overshadowed by everything else at SummerSlam. Here was the crowd: “Punk is back in WWE! I can’t believe he just beat Cena! But, wait, did Triple H not see Cena’s foot on the rope?! Holy shit, Kevin Nash is back! Why does he have beef with Punk? Oh, hey, there’s Del Rio cashing in.” Just too much all at once.

So, where will Cena’s cash-in this Monday rank among the others? Will he be the first to lose in his opportunity? The Rock will be there and tweeted that he wanted the WWE Championship. What role, if any, will he play in the match. What do we want to see more – Rock/Cena II or Punk/Rock?

Will Dolph Ziggler decide to prey upon a fallen Sheamus and claim his second World Heavyweight Championship at the 1000th Raw?

Tune in this Monday at the new start time of 8 p.m. on USA Network and find out.

Related posts:

1. Why Jericho Must Win And Other Money In The Bank Musings
2. Promos By Hyphen: Elimination Chamber Blues
3. The Ryback Predicament