The Cena-Owens match was serious, that’s for sure. It was a “street fight”: Chairs, ring steps and guard rails got used, and a portion of the ring steps got fired down the entrance runway. Nothing got learned after Brock Lesnar chucked the car door, apparently. Bad bounce = MAJOR LAWSUIT.
I was a bit surprised Cena and Owens absorbed such a battering in front of such a meager crowd. Some would praise their work ethic, and commitment to the 5,000 who did show up. Some would say they did too much for too few.
Full credit to all the show’s performers, though: Everybody tried hard. Nobody mailed it in. Nothing sucked.
Raw returns to Consol Energy Center in November. It will be full then.
It should be fuller for house shows. If WWE did better TV, it would be. Better TV always equals more money. Bad TV = 5,000 at house shows. Money is the barometer, except when you don’t want it to be. Then, you’re lying.
I enjoyed last month’s NXT house show at Pittsburgh’s Stage AE much more than last night’s WWE house show. NXT was in an intimate setting with an electric crowd, but with a fraction of the star power.
Jericho was on my radio show last week, and we talked about the purpose of NXT: Would it be better if NXT wasn’t a touring brand and wasn’t on WWE Network? That way, young wrestlers could make mistakes that very few see. Or, does experience gained via the pressure of that exposure help? There are valid arguments both ways.
NXT, of course, is a touring brand by way of wiping out Ring of Honor and to fatten Triple H’s resume. As it stands, WWE investors will have zero faith in Triple H’s ability to run the company once Vince McMahon retires or dies. But HEY, LOOK…NXT was pretty cool with the internet marks!
“It’s two minutes to closing, Gordon. What do you want to do? Decide.”
“Dump it.”
Follow Mark on Twitter: @MarkMaddenX
