Batson's Blog

There hasn't been a day that's gone by in the past couple of weeks that Mandy Rose hasn't made news on the pro wrestling news websites. Ever since she was released, apparently due to the explicit content on her FanTime page, people have been reacting, speculating, weighing in, and taking sides. My thoughts on the matter: I liked Mandy. She was always OK, but was never involved in anything I was excited about. Her feud with Sonya was good, her relationship with Otis was fun, her alliance with Paige was a good way to debut, and the best part of her tag team with Dana Brooke was Asuka naming the duo her, "Sexy Muscle Friends." I think her work with Toxic Attraction is a little overrated, but she did manage to reinvent herself and made names out of Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne along the way. While Mandy certainly improved in NXT, I wouldn't say she affects the women's division in NXT, or in WWE, in any significant way. NXT has half a dozen (or more) women there w...

The new year means a few things: new year's resolutions.  Award shows.  The Super Bowl. For wrestling fans it also means a few things: the Royal Rumble, the road to Wrestlemania and ... Hall of Fame inductions. One of the best nights of the year has become the night of the Hall of Fame ceremony.  Colorful speeches, fun road stories and seeing wrestlers of yesteryear are all part of the night that kicks off Wrestlemania weekend. Here are a few of my ideal Hall of Fame classes The years aren't exact, but a rough timeline of what I think would work out well 2020 (in Tampa): The Rock (headlining, obviously) Christian (he's from Tampa) Jushin Thunder Liger (he's retiring this month) Vader Taz Molly Holly 2021: The Undertaker Rob Van Dam The British Bulldog Jim Cornette Victoria 2022: The Big Show The Steiner Brothers Cyndi Lauper (Celebrity Wing) Eric Bischoff Goldust Luna Vachon 2023: Batista Rob Van Dam Paul Heyman (I assume he'll...

WWE's Hall of Fame has become one of the fans' favorite nights of the year. Why wouldn't it be? You get to see legends and childhood heroes get the respect they deserve and hear some (hopefully) funny road stories. There are some glaring omissions from WWE's Hall of Fame that hurt its credibility: Owen Hart , Vader , Davey Boy Smith , etc. There have also been some questionable inductees that also hurt its credibility: Koko B. Ware , The Godfather and Rikishi . It's understandable that each year, come Hall of Fame time, there will be debate amongst fans. Each group of fans is hoping their favorite gets the nod. The inductions this year have caused some controversy as well. Chyna , for example, is being inducted. After the way Triple H 's comments about Chyna on Stone Cold' s podcast went viral a few years ago, seeing her name as a Hall of Fame inductee was a little surprising. It was also a little shady -- giving Chyna an induction, but n...

Wrestlemania is just a few weeks away and it seems like it's going to be a lengthy show. After the Royal Rumble's main show was approximately 5 hours, there's no way that Wrestlemania won't be just as long. I'd like to see them place several matches on the pre-show (and start early so that the East Coast doesn't get done watching it at Midnight) so that it's not such a chore to sit through. Anything over 5 hours and it's bordering leg cramps, people going home from viewing parties so they can get up for work the next day and losing interest. So how would you book Wrestlemania? To be honest there aren't a lot of matches I'm really looking forward to seeing.  There are some matches I'd like to see happen but I know they're not going to. I have a dream card, but, realistically, it probably won't happen.  For example, I think this year would've been a great time to do The Undertaker vs. Shinsuke Nakamura .  I can say with ...

I have a bit of an unusual way to end WWE's Evolution event. I'm still not happy about the Ronda Rousey vs. Nikki Bella match, but it's obviously happening, so may as well make the most of it right? I also mentioned the fact that Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch may not have been the best route to go, simply because they've faced each other so many times in the past couple of months. But that match is also happening. Again, I may as well accept it. The question becomes: how do you end Evolution? Many people suggest that Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair is the way to go. Others point to Ronda Rousey vs. Nikki Bella being the most logical choice to close the show due to their name value. I agree on both points. Becky and Charlotte deserve to close the show more so than Rousey and Bella, but they don't have the name value to the casual fans. I think there's a way to have the best of both worlds, though. Becky and Charlotte will compete in the first (ac...

So, what did everyone think of this year's Rumble? I was curious to see a few things: how the pay-per-view would feel with two Royal Rumble matches on the same night, if Ronda Rousey would show up, who the women's Rumble surprise entrants would be, if they would put the Universal Title on Strowman and if they'd give Roman Reigns another Royal Rumble victory. Pre-show match: Bobby Roode vs. Mojo Rawley I came in halfway on this match, so I didn't see much of it.  Seemed like a throw away match to get Roode on the card (surprised he wasn't in the Rumble, itself).  Mojo is as good an initial opponent as any I guess. Handicap match for the WWE Heavyweight Title: A.J. Styles (champion) vs. Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens What can you say?  It was a good match.  Styles always delivers.  Sami and Kevin are both good workers themselves.  Great match.  Great athletic showing -- if not a bit of a spot fest.  Good match though. 2 out of 3 falls match...

There are always some surprise entrants in the Royal Rumble, but there are sure to be surprise entrants in the first ever women's Royal Rumble. If you look at the rosters, you've got 21 women on the roster. Raw: Alexa Bliss (champion), Alicia Fox, Asuka, Bayley, Dana Brooke, Mandy, Mickie James, Nia Jax, Paige, Sasha Banks, and Sonya DeVille Smackdown: Charlotte Flair (champion), Becky Lynch, Carmella, Lana, Liv Morgan, Naomi, Natalya, Ruby Riot, Sarah Logan, and Tamina Inactive (pregnant): Maria, Maryse Take away 2 of those women (the champions) and you've got 19 women on the active roster. That leaves 11 open spots to fill in the first ever 30 woman Royal Rumble. So who does WWE use? Outside names not signed to the company? Former wrestlers? NXT standouts? Yes, yes and yes. Here are some of the women I'd like to see show up, some of the women who are likely to be in the match and some of the women who WWE should not utilize in this match. Li...