WWE Backlash 2007 Results

World Tag Team Championship
The Hardys (Matt and Jeff) (c) vs. Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch
I don't get it. I really thought that C & M were going to get the titles, but they didn't. I should have known better. The WWE builds up a team and it looks like they are for sure going to get a title run and nothing ever happens.
Me: 0/1
Dave: 0/1

WWE United States Championship
Chris Benoit (c) vs. Montel Vontavious Porter
The same thing as I wrote above applies here. No win for MVP.
Me: 0/2
Dave: 0/2

WWE Women's Championship
Melina (c) vs. Mickie James
This match was probably the best women's match that the WWE has put on TV in quite a while. Maybe it was because these two are actual wrestlers and not just eye candy that tries to wrestle. The fact that these two have genuine dislike for each other probably helped step up their game.
Me: 0/3
Dave: 1/3

Handicap match for the ECW World Championship
Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Umaga, Shane McMahon, and Vince McMahon (w/Armando Alejandro Estrada)
Vince wasn't part of the match for almost all of it. At the end he blind tagged Umaga and then went straight for the pin when Lashley was already laid out. Once Lashley kicked out of his pin attempts Vince tagged Umaga back in. After 2 splashes from the top rope Vince finally got the pin and was announced as the new ECW Champ. Afterwards he went to the back and gloated in front of the ECW Originals. I think that Vince is doing everything he can to destory the concept of the Original ECW. Perhaps he sees this as a way to ruin Heyman's legacy. I'm sure that Vince's title run will be short.
Me: 0/4
Dave: 2/4

Last Man Standing match for the World Heavyweight Championship
The Undertaker (c) vs. Batista
A good, but not great match. These two probably are still bitter from not being the main event @ WM. Ending came when Batista speared 'Taker off the stage into some 'electrical equipment'. They both went down and were unable to answer the 10 count. This match is a draw. I'm just going to throw it out.
Me: 0/4
Dave: 2/4

Fatal Four Way match for the WWE Championship
John Cena (c) vs. Edge vs. Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels
A good match as well. The ending came after various finishers by each of the wrestlers ending with Cena getting superkicked and falling backwards onto a fallen Randy Orton to get the accidental pinfall and win after Shawn was unable to break it up in time.
Me: 0/5
Dave: 3/5

Summary:
Yeah, I got them ALL wrong. Maybe I should just stop doing predictions....

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WWE Backlash 2007 Predictions

Let's just get straight to the matches...

World Tag Team Championship
The Hardys (Matt and Jeff) (c) vs. Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch
I Say: For the last few months every couple of weeks I have been reading that the WWE wants to keep the Hardys as singles wrestlers and not as a tag team. Then they go and put the tag titles on them. Go figure, but I think that one of the only reasons that the Hardys got the straps are because they needed to get the titles off of Cena and Michaels. They certainly couldn't put them on a Smackdown team since SD already has tag champs and there aren't exactly a lot of teams on RAW that could have picked up the titles. Cryme Tyme and The Highlanders are nowhere close to being top contenders. I would have maybe put them on Flair and Carlito to help build them up before their upcoming breakup, but that would be copying the whole reason that Cena and Shawn got the titles. As for this match I see a really good chance that Cade and Murdoch will get the belts. Especially since they seem to be having good luck as of late in RAW. Add to that the recent WWE.com article that was posted featuring C & M ripping into the Internet Wrestling Community and I see them getting the belts away from the Hardys this weekend. There's very few things that the WWE higher-ups hate more than the I.W.C.
Dave Says: I'm going with my heart on this one and give the victory to Cade and Murdoch. They have been on the cusp of breaking out and the WWE may give them the opportunity to show that they can generate some fan reaction.

Fatal Four Way match for the WWE Championship
John Cena (c) vs. Edge vs. Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels
I Say: First off, Orton is NOT getting the belt. Second, it looks like the 3+ month buildup to a Edge/Orton match will finally result in a match and the WWE Title will not be part of the match so I have to count Edge out of this match. That leaves Cena and Shawn. I picked HBK to get the title @ WM and think that they only reason that he didn't was because the WWE probably wanted to have Shawn pass the torch to Cena by putting him over on the 'granddest stage of them all'. Now that he did it I think that Shawn may very well get the title here. This is how I see it going down. Edge and Orton will cost each other the match leading to the 1-on-1 match between them. Shawn will then catch Cena with the Crescent Kick and get the pin and the title. Then...You guessed it. A couple of rematches over the next few months leading to a match between Triple H and whomever still has the title.
Dave Says: Randy Orton won't win because he's already in the dog house. I don't see Shawn Michaels winning so it's between Edge and Cena. Cena's rise to the top is inexplicable. He is a babyface who gets boo'd like crazy. In all my years of watching wrestling I've never seen such a thing. I always hope for Cena to lose but betting against Cena is generally not a good choice. I'll give Cena the win but I'd rather see any of the other three take the title.

Handicap match for the ECW World Championship
Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Umaga, Shane McMahon, and Vince McMahon (w/Armando Alejandro Estrada)
I Say: I can't see Lashley losing. What will they do if he loses. Have Umaga and the McMahons as co-champs like the Spirit Squad was with the tag belts? During the time that the Sprit Squad and the McMahons were feuding with DX I was convinced that DX would lose, but they always seemed to win. If I recall there was a 7-on-2 match at one point that DX won. I see this being the same kind of situation. Lashley wins. They've got this whole invincibility tag on him.
Dave Says: Bobby Lashley's luck will finally run out at Backlash. So who gets the title? I assume Umaga but it would be funny to have it put on Shane or Vince.

Last Man Standing match for the World Heavyweight Championship
The Undertaker (c) vs. Batista
I Say: I don't have much to say about this match other than the fact that Undertaker will win. As long as 'Taker is feuding with Batista I am rooting for Undertaker. I wouldn't call myself a fan though.
Dave Says: My prediction for WrestleMania was an Undertaker win with a short title reign. I'm sticking with that and going with Batista for the victory.

WWE Women's Championship
Melina (c) vs. Mickie James
I Say: I said in my WM predictions that Melina could be on her way out. I really hope that doesn't happen. She is a halfway decent wrestler and she is the only legit female heel that the roster has. It's basically her, Victoria, and Jillian. That's it for the heels. As long as she has the title she's not going anywhere, but I don't see her having the title after this Sunday. I think that Mickie will win and these two will continue to feud so I don't see her leaving anytime soon. She'll be staying with the WWE and do you know who she has to thank for that? TNA. As long as TNA is around Vince is very hesitant about letting people go.
Dave Says: Melina will win because her boobs are bigger.

WWE United States Championship
Chris Benoit (c) vs. Montel Vontavious Porter
I Say: I think the plan was to put some gold on MVP soomer than later. The only reason that it didn't happen at WM was because they didn't think that he was deserving of being put over and getting a title at the biggest show of they year. He gets the title here I think.
Dave Says: The logical conclusion for the WM match was an MVP win. I'm going to pick MVP this time but I'm willing to bet I'm wrong. Maybe Vince is correcting his earlier mistake. This is not because I think MVP is deserving or a great wrestler. I just can't figure out why you put MVP in a PPV without giving him a chance to hold some gold. And it makes even LESS sense to do it twice.

Summary:
Cade/Murdoch, Shawn Michaels, Lashley, Taker, James, & MVP. (Yeah, I know that I have 4 title changes)
Cade/Murdoch, Cena, Umaga/McMahons, Batista, Melina, & MVP.

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TNA Lockdown Results

Quick Results

VKM defeated Serotonin. Internet reports stated earlier in the day that the Bashams were backstage. For some reason they weren't used.
Chris Sabin defeated Shark Boy, Sonjay Dutt, Alex Shelley, & Jay Lethal
Roode defeated Petey Williams
Gail Kim defeated Jacqueline
Senshi defeated Austin Starr
James Storm defeated Chris Harris
Christopher Daniels defeated Jerry Lynn
3D defeated LAX to win the NWA Tag TitlesTeam Angle defeated Team Cage. Sting pinned Abyss to earn a Title shot against Cage.

I picked 6/8 correct and Dave picked 4/7 correct.

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TNA Lockdown Predictions

Guess What! There's a TNA PPV this weekend. What? You don't care about what happens? I couldn't agree more. TNA sucks right now. Actually, it's always sucked in my opinion. It'll never be competition for WWE. TNA Management has stated that the promotion is not designed to be competition for WWE, but rather as an alternative. I suppose that could be true, but it would be like saying that ALPO is an alternative to a steak. Let's get this over with.

Lethal Lockdown match: Team Cage (Christian Cage, A.J. Styles, Scott Steiner, Abyss, and Tomko) (w/James Mitchell) vs. Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Rhino, Sting, and Jeff Jarrett)
The man who scores the winning pinfall/submission will get a NWA World Heavyweight Championship match at Sacrifice.
I Say: I am a little surprised that they haven't put the title on Angle by now. Because of that I am guessing that Team Angle will win with Angle scoring the pinfall and earning the title shot and eventually the title. However, now that Jeff Jarrett is involved I think that he may in fact get the pinfall and title shot. Either way Team Angle will win and Cage will eventually lose the title leading to his teammates (who he has promised title shots to) feuding with him. That's assuming that there won't be Cage/Angle or Cage/Jarrett matches for the next 3-4 months.
Dave Says: Sting (Note from J. - His pick is Team Angle)

Six Sides of Steel match: Senshi vs. Austin Starr (w/Bob Backlund as Special Guest Referee)
I Say: Austin Starr?
Dave Says: No Pick

Six Sides of Steel Xscape match for the TNA X Division Championship: Chris Sabin (c) vs. Jay Lethal vs. Sonjay Dutt vs. Alex Shelley vs. Shark Boy
I Say: I don't know what an Xscape match is. I assume that it is an X Division match where the first person to escape the cage win. I'll have to pick Jay Lethal to win.
Dave Says: Chris Sabin

Six Sides of Steel match: TBA (w/Christy Hemme) vs. The Voodoo Kin Mafia (B.G. James and Kip James)
I Say: There's no dount that Hemme's team will be a former WWE tag team. As I said in an earlier set of predictions, the whole angle will lead to the Bashams coming in to TNA. My guess would be for the Bashams to NOT come in right now and for Hemme's team to lose.
Dave Says: VKM

Electrified Six Sides of Steel match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship: The Latin American Exchange (Homicide and Hernandez) (c) vs. Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon)
I Say: First Off, the cage will not be electrified. They may use sparks shooting out of the top of the cage to make it look like it is electrified or something stupid like that. It'll look really stupid - That I can guarantee. Also part of the buildup has been 3D's legacy. They have held all 3 other major tag titles and are now going for the NWA titles as well. They are going to get them here.
Dave Says: LAX

Six Sides of Steel match: Robert Roode (w/Ms. Brooks and Eric Young) vs. Petey Williams
I Say: Who cares? I'll pick Roode
Dave Says: Petey Williams

Six Sides of Steel match: Jerry Lynn vs. Christopher Daniels
I Say: This is Daniel's big return match, I'll pick him.
Dave Says: Jerry Lynn

Six Sides of Steel Blindfold match: Chris Harris vs. James Storm
I Say: First, Blindfold matches are very phony looking. Second, I really don't know all that much about these two. If they walked right in front of me right now I would have no clue as to who they were. I'll pick Harris.
Dave Says: James Storm

Ladies Six Sides of Steel match: Gail Kim vs. Jacqueline Moore
I Say: I was never a fan of either of these two when they were in WWE, but I Gail Kim is Canadian like me. She's my pick. Someone is knocking on my door...It's Al Sharpton. He doesn't like my pick. He's going to Google's President and trying to get my blog shut down.
Dave Says: Jacqueline Moore

Summary:
I Pick: Team Angle, Starr, Lethal, VKM, 3D, Roode, Daniels, Harris, & Kim
Dave Says: Team Angle, No Pick, Sabin, VKM, LAX, Williams, Lynn, Storm, Jacqueline.

We only agreed on 2 matches.

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WWE Wrestlemania 23 Results

Here are the result...

United States Championship Match
Chris Benoit vs. MVP
Much to my surprise this match didn't start the show. I was expecting very little out of this match and it sure delivered on my expectations. I figured that Benoit would lose the title since he is tremendously over already and doesn't need the title to get a strong fan reaction. As it turns out Benoit kept the title.
Me: 0/1
Dave: 0/1

Kane vs. The Great Khali
An average match as far as these two are concerned. Ending came when Khali hit Kane with the double handed chokeslam which allowed him to get the pin by stepping on Kane's chest. After the match Khali used Kane's chain & hook to choke him.
Me: 1/2
Dave: 0/2

Women's Championship Match
Melina vs. Ashley
A very short match. Even for women's matches. The Lumbejills barely came into play. I think they only had to throw someone back into the ring once during the entire match an it was 3 or 4 babyfaces throwing Melina back into the ring. I'm not sure if Melina put on a good enough performance to keep her job, but here's to hoping that she did.
Me: 1/3
Dave: 1/3

ECW Originals (The Sandman, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer & Rob Van Dam) vs. New Breed (Elijah Burke, Matt Striker, Marcus Cor Von & Kevin Thorn)
In a huge surprise The ECW Originals came out the winners after a 5-Star frogsplash from RVD onto Striker. I still dont' think that the Originals will be sticking around for much longer though.
Me: 1/4
Dave: 2/4

Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Edge vs. CM Punk vs. King Booker vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Matt Hardy vs. Finley vs. Randy Orton
A very good match. Not as many really big spots as I would have liked and expected. The biggest spot came near the beginning when Edge was laid across as ladder that was horizontal across the apron and the wall. Jeff Hardy then climbed a 12 foot ladder that was set up in the ring, jumped off, and gave Edge a leg drop. The ladder that Edge was on bent to a 90 degree angle and both Edge and Hardy had to be carried away. The first of 2 humorous spot was when Booker was in perfect position to grab the briefcase only to have Matt Hardy prepare Sharmell for the Twist of Fate while telling him (Booker) that he better not grab the case or else his wife will be given the Twist of Fate. Booker of course decided to save his wife. The second humorous spot came when Hornswoggle climbed the ladder to try to grab the briefase only to have Kennedy give him the Kenton Bomb off the ladder. Kennedy eventually went on to win it to become Mr. Money In The Bank...Bank. Also, during the match it seemed like only two wrestler were active at a time. They seemed to all take turns being laid out.
Me: 2/5
Dave: 3/5

Battle of the Billionaires - Hair vs. Hair
Special guest referee: Stone Cold Steve Austin
Bobby Lashley (w/Donald Trump) vs. Umaga (w/Vince McMahon)
Nothing really noteworthy as far at the wrestling is concerned. During the match Umaga took out Austin. Shane then came down and with help from Umaga and Vince he gave Lashley the Van Terminator. Shane then revealed that he was wearing a referee shirt. Umaga then went for the pinm but Austin pulled Shane out while Shane was counting. Right before the end Trump speared Vince onto the floor and proceeded to give Vince weak baby punches to the head. Austin then stunnered Umaga and after a spear from Lashley Umaga was easily beaten. Shane then jumped into the ring while Vince scampered away. Lashley chased him down though and threw him back into the ring. They then strapped Vince into the chair and while Austin held him down Lashley and Trump shaved Vince bald. After using the electric clippers they used a razor wich clearly didn't have a blade in it. If it did then Vince's head would have been a bloody mess with the way they were shaving. Vince then saw himself in the mirror and ran away is anger/shock. Lashley, Trump, and Austin celebrated with some beer. Austin them toasted Trump and gave him a stunner. I am amazed with how much Trump got involved in the whole thing (spearing Vince & getting stunnered). I had gotten the feeling that he was totally uninterested in the whole event.
Me: 3/6
Dave: 4/6

WWE Championship Match
John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels
Cena had an interesting entrance. They showed a Ford Mustang ouside on the street. The car then started racing through the streets like a video game and then it drove into Ford Field and came crashing through a plate of glass. Cena then poped out og the car as if he was driving. The part where the car was racing in the streets was clearly pre-taped late at night because the streets (and sidewalks) were empty which I sure wouldn't be the case if it was really 10PM in Detroit. Probably the match of the night. Shawn brought out the best in Cena. A lot of close finishes and attempted finishing moves. At one point Cena had Shawn in the STFU and it looked like Shawn would tap out. He managed to get to the ropes though. Ending came when Cena again got Shawn in the STFU, but Shawn tapped out this time. After the match Cena tried shaking Shawn's hand, but Shawn wouldn't have it and walked away.
Me: 3/7
Dave: 5/7

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. Undertaker
A lot faster paced match than I expected. Batista played the heel as expected. He went after the 'Taker as soon as the match started and at one point powerslammed Undertaker through the ECW announce table. Batista was able to kick out of all three of 'Takers finishing moves (not in a row) and 'Taker was able to kick out of a Batista bomb. Another tombstome by Undertaker was enough to keep Batista down and continue Undy's streak and have him become a World Champion again.
Me: 4/8
Dave: 6/8

Summary:
An excellent showing by Dave with 6/8 while I broke even with 4/8.

Other Stuff: There were a couple of noteworthy skits during the broadcast. The first one had Eugene walking backstage with Cryme Tyme. C.T. then tried to get Eugene to dance with the girls of ECW's Extreme Expose. He didn't really get into it at first, but then started to dance when Moolah and Mae Young appeared. All of a sudden Slick (who hasn't been seen in the WWE in about 15 years) appeared and yelled something which I couldn't hear. Next thing you know a full on party breaks out included various WWE legends like Dusty, The Stooges, Mene Gene, Slaughter, Ricky Steamboat, and others. The second skit was Vince and Stephanie backstage with her new daughter. Vince then starts telling the baby how he is going to beat Trump's skull in when the baby takes a dump which Vince calls a 'Trump' . Finally there was skit where Trump and former Miss USA Tara Connor were backstage and all of a sudden the lights turned red and Boogeyman appeared. Connor then ran away and Trump just turned around and asked him for a Sandwich. Pretty stupid? Yes. Did Trump kill Boogeyman's gimmick? Probably.

Final Thoughts:
I thought the show was solid, but I think I liked last year's a little more. There certainly weren't as many standout moments like last year when Shawn dropped the elbow on Vince through a table and when Edge speared Foley through a flaming table. Other than the Hardy/Edge spot the only other 'Wrestlemania moments' were when Vince was getting his head shaved, When Trump speared him, and when Trump got stunnered by Austin. It's too bad that there weren't more moments from the actual wrestlers in the actual matches.

I thought the set was good, but I had heard earlier in the day that the entrance was going to be mechanical and change to adapt to each wrestler's entrance. That didn't seem to be th case. I'm not saying that I was dissapointed, but I was surprised that it wasn't the way that I read it was going to be.

More thoughts to come on Monday (or Tuesday)...

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