Foreign Object Friday: Finlay's shillelagh

Hornswoggle & Finlay with their shillelaghs
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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It's St. Patrick's Day so it only makes sense to talk about Irish Superstar Fit Finlay and his shillelagh in today's Foreign Object Friday. The official definition of a shillelagh is a thick stick of blackthorn or oak used in Ireland, typically as a weapon.

Lashley tastes the shillelagh
Courtesy: WWE

Like Jimmy Hart's megaphone, Mr. Fuji's cane and Jim Cornette's tennis racket, Finlay's shillelagh was often at his side. He used it more than a time or two against opponents both big and small. Bobby Lashley tasted the shillelagh after Little Bastard (eventually Hornswoggle) slid him the weapon. That blow helped Finlay capture the U.S. Championship. 

Little Boogie Man gets hit
Courtesy: WWE

Little Boogie Man was also abused by the shillelagh. Finlay used it during he and Hornswoggle's feud with the Boogie Man and his diminutive counterpart. Even the World's Strongest Man Mark Henry has been whacked with the wooden stick too.

Father and son
Courtesy: WWE

Eventually, Finlay and his son turned good, but that didn't necessarily mean an end to the shillelagh shenanigans. It was used among several other foreign objects during Finlay's Belfast Brawl match against JBL at WrestleMania 24. There were even times Finlay relied on Hornswoggle as a weapon too, launching his pint-sized partner on unsuspecting foes.

I'm CRUSHED that Rusev lost

The new champ
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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Clash of Champions has come and gone and my predictions were mostly spot on. I picked Rusev to retain the U.S Championship against Roman Reigns, however, I knew in my heart that it was not meant to be. Years ago I learned don't bet against John Cena or Randy Orton. Now I think we can add Reigns to that class.

I'm extremely disappointed in this loss for Rusev, even more so than when Cena first beat the Bulgarian Brute for the title in 2015. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Roman Reigns, but it feels like WWE is still trying to cram him down the throats of fans, whether we want to accept him or not. His World Title runs were less than stellar and then being suspended right after losing the belt didn't help endear him to the fans.

Rusev crush!
Courtesy: WWE

But rather than run down on Reigns, I'm going to build up Rusev. When he invaded the main roster in 2014 with Lana, I had high hopes for the duo. I was not disappointed as Rusev ran through the competition before finally capturing his first U.S. Title reign later that year. He seemed unstoppable until he met John Cena.

After spending some time rebuilding from his WrestleMania 31 loss to Cena, Rusev finally got back on track and started a second reign as U.S. champ. WWE is currently lacking a full-time dominate bad guy. Rusev was the perfect monster to fill that role. However, the crowd was clearly behind him in this battle against Reigns. I loved the reaction when Lana pulled the referee out before the three-count after the Spear. 

Spear!
Courtesy: WWE

The loss to Reigns will hurt, but only time will tell how much. So before I completely dismiss the decision to take the gold off Rusev, I'll wait and see what's going to happen in the interim. The company may have bigger and better things on the horizon for Rusev. He simply can't be lost in the shuffle. He's too talented to have that happen.
    

Brock's Win Could Benefit Dolph Ziggler

The new champ
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents

This is certainly not an original thought on my part, but with Brock Lesnar's big win over John Cena at SummerSlam, other champions on the roster now have a chance to step into the spotlight.  I'm basing that on the assumption that Lesnar will remain a part time player in the months to come.  I don't have a problem with that, as I remember growing up, title defenses and appearances on TV by Hulk Hogan were few and far between.

Now if Lesnar maintains his "part time" status like I think he will, this is a great opportunity for others to step up and shine.  I'm looking at U.S. Champion Sheamus and the new Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler specifically.  I'll be curious to see if Lesnar will defend the WWE World Title at Night of Champions in five weeks.  

The WWE Creative team can put the focus on the secondary titles in the meantime.  I think both belts have been lost in the shuffle for way too long now.  Sheamus has been paired with Rob Van Dam recently on Main Event.  And look at how long Dean Ambrose held the U.S. Title without defending it.  I'm always optimistic when a new champ is crowned, thinking the focus will be put back on the title.  I'm hopeful that this time it will happen, especially with Dolph.

New champion, too!
Photo courtesy: WWE

I've always been a fan of Ziggler, and think he was short changed with the World Title run in 2013.  While he may never reach the very top of the mountain ever again, I think he's got a unique opportunity now to be the go to guy, if WWE gets on board with putting an emphasis back on the IC and U.S. Titles.  The fans clearly are behind Ziggler, and maybe now WWE will be too.  I'm also not opposed to a unification match between the IC and U.S. titles, although under the current circumstances, I don't think it's necessary.

U.S. Title: Damaged Goods?

U.S. Champions through the years
Photos courtesy: WWE.com

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

Magnum T.A., Dusty Rhodes, and Harley Race.  They're just a few of the greats to hold the United States championship.  That was back in the NWA and the title was second only to the World Heavyweight championship.  That was a lifetime ago.

Since the WWE has brought back the legendary title, it's been more of a prop in my opinion.  The same could be said about the Intercontinental title, but I do believe the company is trying to restore some of the old glory to that title.  I don't know if it's because it's an old WCW title and Vince McMahon didn't "create it", but it seems like the U.S. means nothing.  But really it seems that most titles in the WWE these days have little to no value.  When a belt gets hot potatoed every few months (or in some cases weeks) it devalues the titles.

I grew up in the era when Hulk Hogan held the world title for four years.  Honky Tonk Man was IC champ for 64 weeks.  Randy Savage had a more than year long world title run.  Since May 2011 (which is 14 months as of this writing) the U.S. title has changed hands five times.  I had no problem with Kofi Kingston or Dolph Ziggler or heck even Jack Swagger's reigns.  It was Zack Ryder's run (please don't hate on me, I love Zack Ryder but he was NOT ready for a major title run when he got it, I mean look at him now) and current champ Santino's run that bother me.  Both of these guys were lower mid card when they won their titles (if even that)  Neither man brought nothing to the title in my view.  And again, I enjoy each as performers and entertainers, but I'm still of the mindset just being over with the fans does not equate a title run.

Cesaro wins! Next champ?
Photo courtesy: WWE.com

Santino's title has been in jeopardy or so I thought a couple of times.  I thought they might go with Alberto Del Rio as the champion when Santino was feuding with Ricardo Rodriguez (a ring announcer in the WWE, keep that in mind)  I'm very encouraged that after the July 27 episode of SmackDown! that Antonio Cesaro scored a non title pinfall win over Santino.  While Antonio is a newcomer to the WWE, he's a very established star in the independent world and if booked properly could bring some of the luster back to the U.S. championship.

Just to recap, I don't dislike Santino at all, I just think putting one of the most prestigious titles in the history of wrestling on his waist is a real waste of gold.  The focus needs to go back in to restoring some integrity to the titles the WWE has, including the tag team titles.  But that's a topic of conversation for another day.

Christmas Wish List: Zack Ryder

Zack Ryder "Christmasfyed" (photo from WWE)

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger

Keeping up with the recent themes here at My 1-2-3 Cents (October was Halloween, November was Survivor Series and Chikara Pro), I'm going to attempt to do 25 days of Christmas Wish lists blogs.  I got the idea for this from Chad after having a horrible case of writers block.  So each day I'll look at a wrestler and analyze what it is I think he or she wants for Christmas.  Of course by the time the holiday rolls around, some of these stars may have had their wishes granted.

So first up, is everyone's favorite broski, Zack Ryder.  I think it's pretty clear what he wants this year.  A shot at the U.S. title.  I don't think many people can argue against it.  Ryder has pinned the champ, Dolph Zigger on at least two occasions, I think one was a non title match and the other was a tag team match.  Zack also picked up a big win over former World heavyweight champion Jack Swagger.  BUT, does that mean the Long Island native is ready for a run as champ?

This may disappoint some, and this is coming from a former Broski of the Week (episode 22), but I think the WWE kinda screwed up their push of Ryder.  Here's why.  For months we didn't see him at all on Raw or SmackDown!, only random times on Superstars.  That's fine, but how many people watch Superstars?  I think more people watch Z! True Long Island than Superstars, but that's another issue.

Anyway, I feel like they should have had Ryder wrestling guys like David Otunga, Trent Barreta, and Tyler Reks in the early days.  Put him over them.  Then he challenges guys like Drew McIntyre and Jindar Mahal.  Finally give him some pinfall victories over even more established guys like William Regal and R Truth to show that Zack is no fluke.  Then he's ready for a guy like Swagger and then in line for a title shot.  I feel like they started him almost at the top, not only throwing him into the matches with Ziggler and Swagger, but having him team with John Cena.  I know he's over online, it just seems like they're rushing this on TV and my fear is that it's not going to end well for Ryder.  They basically started him out at or near the top, he has no where to go but down from here (unless he wins the title and has a lengthy run, which I'm not opposed to)

Ryder vs. Ziggler (WWE.com)

I don't think he's going to beat Dolph for the title.  I would almost bet that they'll face off at TLC in some kind of match and Ziggler will get the victory.  I do have high hopes for both these guys though.  I'll get into more specifics in a future blog.  But please don't misunderstand, I think Zack Ryder is great.  He's one of the guys who will be the future of the biz, I just don't like the way the WWE has gone about pushing him so far.

Leave your comments here, good or bad, I can take it.  And please like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and buy the My 1-2-3 Cents t-shirt, oops, I mean, subscribe to the YouTube channel!

Hugh, Hugh, Hugh, U Know It

A new Broski

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger on Twitter

So actor Hugh Jackman made an appearance on Monday Night Raw recently, and this was actually one of the more enjoyable guest host appearances for me.  I'll be perfectly honest with you, I don't think I've ever seen a Jackman film, so I'm completely unbiased with my analysis.

His role on Raw made sense to me.  Jackman helped the underdog Zack Ryder beat the U.S. Champion Dolph Ziggler in a non title match.  My only concern with this development is that everything ended after the bell rang.

Jackman loosens some of Ziggler's teeth

By that I mean, is this angle between Ziggler and Ryder over?  One would hope (or at least I hope) that Ryder's victory will result now in a rematch for the championship.  Ryder is red hot in terms of being over, at least with a certain population of the WWE Universe.  I want to see this match and time in the spotlight with Jackman develop into a more regular spot on WWE programming.

I'm not sure what the WWE has planned for Ziggler and Jack Swagger and Vickie Guerrero.  Personally, I'd rather see these guys working together and developing a new stable in the company than have them feud.  I think the WWE is lacking good, solid heel characters and I think Dolph is one of the best.  So if he drops the U.S. title to Zack Ryder, I'd like to see him work toward getting back into the WWE or World championship picture.  His feud with Edge in late 2010 and early 2011 really proved that he's got the goods.  That short lived run as champ needs to be extended into a legitimate reign.

Zack gets the win!

Of course Ryder would benefit from this too.  He's gone from zero to hero over the course of the last 32 weeks or so.  His YouTube show put him on the map for a lot of fans.  Of course now that he starts getting some time on TV, will it hurt Zack's show on YouTube?  A few months back, you may remember Zack came out during David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty's celebration in the ring.  I had really hoped they were working on a plan for Zack to become a contender for the tag team titles, but instead he showed up with Santino Morella (nothing against him) but it was a real disappoint.  So WWE, please don't drop the ball this time around.  At least give Zack an actual title match with Ziggler.  If he doesn't go over, so be it.  I'm content with either man as the U.S. champion.  Woo, Woo, Woo! You know it, bro.

Hey by the way, I was Broski of the Week in Episode 22.  Here's the video I submitted.

Post your comments here, on Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube.  Would love you thoughts!

Champs or Chumps

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger on Twitter
Photos are from WWE.com


Regular readers of this blog know that I (we) vent a lot about the lack of focus on the champions in WWE. Most recently on the Summer Slam pay per view.  I think many still consider this one of "the big 4" events on the WWE PPV calendar.  But once again there was no tag team title match.  No Intercontinental title match.  And no U.S. title match.  Not only were there no title matches, but fans didn't see Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes, David Otunga, or Michael McGillicutty that night.

Think back to past Summer Slams.  The IC title match some years was THE MATCH of the card.  Mr. Perfect vs. Bret Hart, Davey Boy Smith vs. Bret Hart, and Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon come to mind immediately.  Tag team title matches also meant something back then.  The Brain Busters vs. the Hart Foundation and Demolition vs. Hart Foundation come to mind.

This year, we didn't even see any of these champions on the card. But Dolph Ziggler defended the U.S. title in a dark match against Alex Riley.  I'm curious why the WWE didn't save the Cody Rhodes-Ezekiel Jackson IC match for Summer Slam instead of having it two nights earlier on SmackDown!  And the tag team division is in the toilet right now, so I guess it's better there was no tag team title match.

You have to go back to Summer Slam 2009 for the last time the tag team titles were defended on that PPV. It was the Big Show and Chris Jericho defeating Cryme Tyme.  And get this, the last time the U.S. title was defended at a Summer Slam, it was 2005.  Chris Benoit beat Orlando Jordan.  Call me crazy, or old school, but in my opinion pay per views should feature title matches.  All the champions need to be defending their gold.  And when's the last time there was a scheduled and announced tag team title match on any PPV?  Not just one that was announced that night.

This likely goes back to the problem we've talked about before.  The focus seems to only be a handful of superstars.  That leaves guys like Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, and Kofi Kingston as after thoughts.  Then guys like Zack Ryder, Evan Bourne, and Jack Swagger who are lucky to appear on a show at all.  While I don't claim to have all the answers, I think it's important to include your champions on the show, whether it's a Raw, SmackDown!, or PPV (especially if it's one of the "big 4").  Night of Champions is around the corner, let's hope they're ALL a part of the show, and we get some buildup leading their defenses.

Your thoughts are always encouraged.  Post here.  Or like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to the YouTube channel.  (I'll have some new videos soon, I promise.)

Ghosts of Wrestling Past

Nikita Koloff, Kevin, & Lex Luger

By Kevin Hunsperger

The last few weeks have been good ones for me as a wrestling fan.  Memorial Day weekend I got to meet and interview Impact Wrestling Knockouts Champion Mickie James.  The Tuesday after that I met "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan.  A couple of days ago, Impact Wrestling agent D'Lo Brown was a guest on our morning show.  I got to "manage" Velvet Sky at a Basebrawl event, and Chad and I went backstage and got lots of pics with stars from Impact Wrestling.

Then Saturday night, I got to interview Lex Luger and Nikita Koloff.  The experiences have been surreal.  My meeting with Lex and Nikita was awesome.  The two were speaking at The Church of the New Beginnings in Eldorado, Illinois.

As most fans know, Lex and Nikita have both given their lives to Christ.  Several things lead to their "rebirth." They both explained what happened in Part 1 of my "One on Two" interview with them. Lex's past has been well documented and he explained that it was time in jail that turned his life around.  Nikita just felt like he needed something more in his life.  He now runs Koloff for Christ Ministries and he and Lex "tag team" and speak about what Christ has meant to them.

Because the interview went much longer than I had anticipated (this is a good thing, as I normally only get a few minutes), I am going to cut it into at least two or three different parts.  Part 1 as I mentioned is already on YouTube.  I'll be working on the rest in the coming days, so be sure to check out My 1-2-3 Cents on YouTube.

One thing I was able to confirm is that Lex is indeed working for the WWE and their Wellness Program.  He hopes to add more of a spiritual aspect to it and bring in a chaplain to travel with the superstars.  I'll have more on that in the coming days.

Lex Luger vs. Nikita Koloff

The two also talked about the past and some of their favorite highlights.  Old school fans probably remember their classic U.S. Title match at the Great American Bash back in 1987.  Nikita was the babyface defending against the newest member of the 4 Horsemen in Lex Luger.  Luger went over in that match and started the first of many reigns as United States champion.

Nikita wrestled off and on for WCW/NWA until 1993.  During the interview we talked about why he never worked for Vince McMahon.  He said there were opportunities, but he was a loyalist to Crockett Promotions.  Even when he worked for the AWA, it was part of an agreement with Crockett.

Some people who saw the photo of the three of us together commented on how Lex looks old.  He is in his early 50's now and has suffered several medical issues.  But as he explained to me, he's getting older, he wasn't going to have that "Total Package" body forever, and he's just happy to be alive. With everything he's been through, Lex has an incredible attitude and a great outlook on life.  Even when they weren't on camera for the interview, we talked for about 20 minutes.  Just shootin' the breeze with two wrestling legends.  At one point I said to myself, "I'm standing here talking to Lex Luger and Nikita Koloff!  How cool is this!"  And it was cool.

This was an opportunity I'm glad I had a chance to have.  Lex and Nikita were legends in the ring and are now doing good work.  It's my hope that one day I'll be on hand to see these two men get inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.  They have certainly earned a spot there as far as I'm concerned.

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Champ or Chump?

The forgotten titles

By Kevin Hunsperger

Unless there's a couple of matches added to the Extreme Rules pay per view, which begins in less than 3 hours, there will be no U.S., Intercontinental, or Tag Team title matches.  This shouldn't be a surprise though.  I've done a little research, and here's what I've discovered.

The last time the U.S. title was defended on PPV was at Survivor Series.  That was November.  Daniel Bryan defeated Ted DiBiase.  The WWE had scheduled a U.S. title match between Sheamus and Bryan at Wrestlemania, but it was dropped from the card and was the dark match of the night, but quickly turned into a battle royal instead.

The last time the Intercontinental title was defended on PPV was at Tables, Ladders, and Chairs back in December.  Not quite as long ago as the U.S. title.  Dolph Ziggler beat three others in a fatal four way match.

The tag titles were defended more recently, at Elimination Chamber, in February.  But prior to that, the tag straps hadn't been up for stakes on PPV since Bragging Rights in October.  In case you forgot, John Cena and David Otunga beat Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre that night.  Ugh.

Why does the WWE have champions if they never have them defend their titles on PPV?  I remember back in the day, you saw the champion defending their title on each PPV.  I can understand why no tag team title match.  That division is horrendous right now, and there's no way you could construct a PPV quality match that we haven't already seen on Raw or SmackDown! already.  But why not introduce Wade Barrett and Sheamus to a new challenger tonight?  I really thought they'd have at least one of them defending against a Raw guy to take one of the belts to that show.  To be fair though, WWE has been known to throw together a match like that at the last minute.  Maybe they're just waiting... that's a complaint for another post.

What do you think?  Should the tag, US, and IC belts be defended more regularly on PPV?  Weigh in here or join us on Facebook or @my123cents on Twitter.