Kurt Angle Back to the Olympics?

Last night I was reading an interview with Kurt Angle and in that interview he stated he would like to compete in the Olympics again next year. He said he was trying to prove a point that you can still do things in your 40s and the forty is still young. As we all know Kurt Angle was a gold medal in 1996 at Atlanta with a broken neck. He's revered as one of the greatest mat wrestlers of all time.

Think about it from this aspect. If Kurt Angle were to compete in the Olympics while he was in TNA, it would give them so much publicity that it might actually help the company. Kurt Angle's achievements are endless in wrestling. They include:

-USA Junior Freestyle Champion (1987)
-USA Senior Freestyle Champion (1995, 1996)
-FILA Junior World Freestyle Champion (1988)
-FILA World Freestyle Champion (1995)
-NCAA Division I All-American (1990–1992)
-NCAA Division I Champion (1990, 1992)
-NCAA Division I runner-up (1991)
-Pennsylvania State Wrestling Champion (1987)

So as you can see from the time he was a young kid he has been dominating in Amateur wrestling. You can see how great of a wrestler he is because it translates to how good he is in the professional wrestling ring. I personally would love to see Kurt back in the Olympics because he's defined what amateur wrestling is all about in this country. It shall remained to be seen if Kurt Angle can compete once again but if he does, I will be looking forward to it.

In other Kurt Angle news, he will be starring in a movie called Warrior as the character Koba. The movie is scheduled to be released September 9th. Be sure to check it out.

Review of Fast Five

Finally The Rock has comeback to the big screen. Last night I watched the newest Fast and the Furious called Fast Five. It was a good pick up from where the last movie started off. It started off with Mia, Brian and Dominic all in Rio with Dom's long lost buddy Vince. When they decided they want to pull off an impossible job they call in all their connections from the past. Anyone who was anyone in the Fast and the Furious movies was in this movie then you added The Rock to this movie and it was simply electrifying.

The action in this movie was unreal. There was a lot of great driving scenes and more importantly a great fight scene between The Rock and Vin Diesel. There was a moment in the film where Dom and Hobbs had a stare down in the streets and it feels like The Rock and Hogan moment at Wrestlemania 18. It was two of the biggest stars in Hollywood in their own right facing off in a great movie. This movie was packed with stars including Paul Walker, Tyrese, Ludacris, and Jordana Brewster.

The story was kind of interesting. It had some twists and turns that I didn't expect to happen. The final thing I am going to say is that watch the movie all the way through until the end credits are over. I will say that I was completely shocked by what I saw. I would give this movie 4.5 stars out of 5. It had everything from action, comedy, and drama. I have seen all of the Fast and Furious films and this one by far was my favorite of them all. Stay tuned because it was confirmed that there will be a sixth movie coming out.

2011 WWE Draft Results

Last night was the annual WWE Draft and there was definitely some shakeups and some bombshells. The funny thing was that John Cena was the first pick of the night and the last. He went to Smackdown then back to Raw. Here is how the entire draft played out.

DRAFTED TO WWE RAW:

- Jack Swagger
- Kelly Kelly
- JTG
- Drew McIntyre
- Curt Hawkins
- Chris Masters
- Kofi Kingston
- Tyler Reks
- Beth Phoenix
- Rey Mysterio
- The Big Show
- Alberto Del Rio

DRAFTED TO WWE SMACKDOWN!:

- Daniel Bryan
- The Great Khali
- Ranjin Singh
- Jimmy Uso
- Alicia Fox
- William Regal
- Yoshi Tatsu
- Natalya
- Jey Uso
- Ted DiBiase
- Tyson Kidd
- Tamina
- Alex Riley
- Sheamus
- Randy Orton
- Mark Henry
- Sin Cara

Not really sure how I feel about the whole thing but it should make for a good TV. I'll be curious to see how it all plays out in the end. Stay tuned.

MLB Takes Over the Dodgers

I've been hearing a lot about the Dodgers being taken over by Major League Baseball as of late and it's one of the craziest things I've seen and it may just be a first in sports where the organizations takes over one of its teams and boots the owner out. It's no secret that Frank McCourt has had a pretty rough last year with his divorce and all and now this. The reports coming out is that he was using the teams money for personal gains and reasons.

McCourt said he as been in compliance with the leagues financial standards and from the sounds of it he plans on suing Major League Baseball over Bud Selig's actions. The Dodgers are one of the most historical teams in baseball and it sucks that all of this negativity and controversy is surrounding them. Even so, they are still playing decent baseball and making the most of it.

Someone asked me how can the league do that when someone owns a team? I am not quite sure but I am thinking when an owner joins the league he signs a contract that states he will be in compliance with all the financial expectations that the league has. McCourt obviously wasn't in compliance with the league and so they took it over.

Here's my question, why hasn't the same thing happened to the New York Mets? They have more problems then McCourt does and no one's taken them over. People are saying by next year MLB will take over the Mets but right now the focus is on the Dodgers. All I got to say is stay tuned for more on this situation because it's not going away anytime soon.

Thoughts on the Barry Bonds Trial

I've been waiting awhile to talk about this one and rightfully so. I had to think about this one long and hard before I shared my thoughts. My first question is, so you mean to tell me the federal government of this country spent 55 million dollars on a trial to expose what everyone already knew. Yes, Barry Bonds took steroids and lied about it, yet he only got off on one count and that was obstruction of justice. How can you get obstruction of the justice and then not get the things you were obstructing? That makes no sense whatsoever.

In my opinion, the trial, the jurors, the witnesses and everything was a complete joke and waste of time. Unfortunately now, that's 55 million dollars right down the toilet that this country could have used for something more productive like education, cutting gas prices or something. I highly doubt Bonds will ever get into the Hall of Fame because of this. He's at the top of a long list with people like Clemens, Palmeiro, Sosa, and others who have admitted steroids, lied about steroids or have been accused of steroids that won't be in the Hall of Fame.

I've heard that Bonds is thinking about appealing the one charge against him while on the other hand, I heard there might be a retrial to convict him of the other charges. As far as I am concerned, let it go. Let him live in shame. He doesn't need a record for that. He know he's a liar and a cheat so just let it go and don't waste anymore time or money on it.

Lastly, baseball has suffered enough. It's time that the media, the government, and the public focus on bigger and more important issues in this country. Barry Bonds is just a sliver compared to the problems this country is having. Who cares about Barry Bonds? I certainly don't!

Edge Retires from WWE

This past Monday Night on Raw, I didn't see Edge the WWE Superstar in the ring. I saw Adam Copeland, a very proud man who loves pro wrestling that had to give his love up way to soon. Edge announced to the world he had to retire due to a relapse from his neck injuries from eight years ago. Edge's WWE career started off in 1998 as a mysterious guy who came in from the crowd who didn't show much personality and didn't talk.

In 1999, he captured his first singles title by defeating Jeff Jarrett for the Intercontinental Championship. Later on that year he and his best friend Christian really began to carve a legacy in tag team wrestling. They feuded with the Hardys and Dudley Boys. They competed in Ladder matches that turned into TLC Matches and reinvented tag team wrestling and ladder matches as we know it. In 2001, Edge won the King of the Ring and it proved he could hang with the best of them.

He won the tag team championships with with Christian, Chris Benoit, Rey Mysterio, Hulk Hogan, Randy Orton and Chris Jericho. He also won the WCW United States Championship, Money in the Bank and the 2010 Royal Rumble.

In January 2006 he finally won the WWE Championship by defeating John Cena. He feuded with John Cena, Rob Van Dam and others. Also in 2006 he teamed with Randy Orton to feud with Degeneration X. After the feud with DX he went to Smackdown where for the majority of four years he feuded with Batista, The Undertaker, Kane, Jeff Hardy, Dolph Ziggler and Alberto Del Rio.

Over the last several months he's reunited with Christian and they have been teaming on and off. At Wrestlemania he retained his World Heavyweight title and retired as champion. There is no better way to go out then by being the best in the world. My favorite Edge moments were in 2005 when he feuded with Matt Hardy over the love triangle that took place in real life between the two of them and Lita. It was controversial, edgy, and they had some really good extreme matches that made their careers better.

Edge definitely went from nothing to something and he should be very proud of what he did in his career. One thing needs to be said though and that is never say never. Shawn Michaels took four years off an came back and look how great he was when he came back. However if this is Edge's farewell then my I tip my hat to you and say congratulations. I'll never forget the spear off of the ladder to Jeff Hardy or the spear to Mick Foley through a flaming table. Thank you Adam Copeland for being Edge.

2011 WNBA Draft Results

Last night was the 2011 WNBA Draft and there was a lot of talent from College that's now headed to the WNBA. Here is how the draft went down last night.


Round 1
* 1. Maya Moore Minnesota Lynx
* 2. Liz Cambage Tulsa Shock
* 3. Courtney Vandersloot Chicago Sky
* 4. Amber Harris Minnesota Lynx- From CT
* 5. Jantel Lavender Los Angeles Sparks
* 6. Danielle Robinson San Antonio Silver Stars
* 7. Kayla Pedersen Tulsa Shock- From PHX
* 8. Ta'Shia Phillips Atlanta Dream
* 9. Jeanette Pohlen Indiana Fever
* 10. Alex Montgomery New York Liberty
* 11. Victoria Dunlap Washington Mystics
* 12. Jasmine Thomas Seattle Storm

Round 2
* 13. Jessica Breland New York Liberty- From MIN via TUL via CT
* 14. Felicia Chester Minnesota Lynx
* 15. Carolyn Swords Chicago Sky
* 16. Sydney Colson New York Liberty- From CT
* 17. Angie Bjorklund Chicago Sky- From LA
* 18. Rachel Jarry Atlanta Dream- From SA
* 19. Brittany Spears Phoenix Mercury
* 20. Danielle Adams San Antonio Silver Stars- From ATL
* 21. Italee Lucas Tulsa Shock- From IND
* 22. Angel Robinson Minnesota Lynx- From NY
* 23. Karima Christmas Washington Mystics
* 24. Ify Ibekwe Seattle Storm

Round 3
* 25. Chastity Reed Tulsa Shock
* 26. Kachine Alexander Minnesota Lynx
* 27. Amy Jaeschke Chicago Sky
* 28. Adrienne Johnson Connecticut Sun
* 29. Elina Babkina Los Angeles Sparks
* 30. Porsha Phillips San Antonio Silver Stars
* 31. Tahnee Robinson Phoenix Mercury
* 32. Kelsey Bolte Atlanta Dream
* 33. Jori Davis Indiana Fever
* 34. Mekia Valentine New York Liberty
* 35. Sara Krnjic Washington Mystics
* 36. Krystal Thomas Seattle Storm

Here are some of the trades that went down last night was well.

-Minnesota traded draft rights of Jessica Breland to New York for the draft rights to Angel Robinson and New York’s own second round pick in 2012
-Phoenix traded the draft rights of Tahnee Robinson to Connecticut for -Connecticut’s third round pick in 2012
-New York traded Kalana Greene to Connecticut for the draft rights of Sydney Colson
-Washington Mystics traded Lindsey Harding and a 2012 second round draft pick to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for Ta’Shia Phillips, Kelly Miller and a 2012 first round draft pick
-Minnesota traded Felecia Chester to Atlanta for Rachel Jarry and a 2012 second round draft pick.

There you have it, the 2011 WNBA Draft. It shall be interesting to see how things turn out this upcoming season. Stay tuned for more!

Thoughts on WWE Tough Enough Episodes 1 and 2

The re-debut of WWE's Tough Enough took place last week and already in the first two weeks it has been intense. The first week Ariane was eliminated due to her lack of passion and knowledge about WWE. She said her favorite match was Alicia Fox vs. Melina and Stone Cold hated that and sent her packing.

In the second episode one of their drills was to overcome their fears and by that they were chased down by attack dogs. These dogs were vicious but not as vicious as Bill Demott. Bill Demott gave each contestant 5 body slams after giving them a clothesline them in the corner. Each contestant showed a lot of heart and toughness. In the end it was Matt Capiccioni (M-Dogg 20) who got eliminated for not stepping up and showing his poise and personality that has made him a star in the indy's.

I think it's going to be a crazy season. I am really looking forward to seeing how everyone does and if people get contracts who don't win. All I got to say is even if you're not a wrestling fan, you should watch the show because it's about as real as it gets. Tune in Monday nights for WWE Tough Enough at 8pm on USA.

Manny Ramirez Retires

I wanted to wait a few days before I wrote about this because it's got a lot of people talking and I wanted to hear what others said before I wrote about it. I'd like to first say that I feel bad for the Tampa Bay Rays who were counting on his bat and his clutch hitting the he once had. I know they didn't sign him for a lot of money but they took a chance on him anyways.

He tested positive a second time for P.E.D's. He would have been suspended 100 games and the season would have been a waste. He had some great numbers over his career but now that this has happened the chances of him being in the Hall of Fame just went from likely to highly unlikely.

I have never been a big Manny fan especially with some of the antics he's pulled over the years. All in all I will say this, I had a lot of respect for Manny when he played for the Red Sox and helped them win two World Series titles. After that I never saw much use for him. He was a distraction and a clown towards the end of his career.

Thank you Manny for the clutch hits, the memories but most importantly thank you for the laughs at all the dumb things you did during your career. Enjoy retirement Manny, hopefully you don't screw that up as well.

Thoughts on Final Round of Masters

It's rare that I get a chance to write about golf but yesterday was an exciting day for golf. Going into the final round Rory McIlroy had it locked up but others including Tiger Woods played some brilliant golf yesterday. At one point Adam Scott, Geoff Ogilvy, Luke Donald, Angel Cabrera, and K.J. Choi all we either in the lead or putting themselves in contention to lead.

At the end of the day it was Charl Schwartzel from Johannesburg, South Africa who was awarded the Green jacket along with $1,440,000. I honestly have never heard of this guy until yesterday but then again the whole time I watch Golf is when their is a major on.

This guy apparently went from being a nobody to a somebody really quick and he's now a millionaire. All I got to say is good for him. I heard him talk and he sounded like a pretty classy guy. It was a good day for golf, and it was nice to see someone new win for a change. I can only imagine what the U.S. Open is going to be like.

Diaz Reigns Supreme at Strikeforce in San Diego

Last night one of the best rounds in the history of MMA took place as Nick Diaz defeated another badboy of MMA, Paul Daley. Daley was pretty much banned from UFC after his actions in a fight against Josh Koscheck. This was an intense round of an action but with three seconds left Diaz got the TKO victory over Daley. Other fights that were on the card included:

-Lightweight Championship bout: Gilbert Melendez (c) vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri
Melendez defeated Kawajiri by TKO (strikes) at 3:14 of round 1 to retain the Strikeforce Lightweight Championship.

-Light Heavyweight bout: Armenia Gegard Mousasi vs. Keith Jardine
Mousasi and Jardine fought to a majority draw (29–27, 28–28, 28–28). Mousasi was deducted one point in round 1 for an illegal upkick.

-Lightweight bout: Shinya Aoki vs. Lyle Beerbohm
Aoki defeated Beerbohm by submission (neck crank) at 1:33 of round 1.

I was really impressed with how Keith Jardine did considering he took the fight on nine days notice. I think he probably has regained the form he once had. I also think Gilbert Melendez will find himself in the UFC before too long. He is very impressive and has been mowing people down left and right.

Overall I was impressed with Strikeforce last night. It probably has something to do with the fact that it's owned by UFC now. Keep checking back for more on Strikeforce because it's just a matter of time before they get merged into UFC.

Major Fights Signed for UFC 132

It's going to be more often now, that UFC is having mega cards and great fights. On July 2nd it won't be any different because the card is stacked once again full of great fights. Here is what the card looks like so far:

* Bantamweight Championship bout: Dominick Cruz (c) vs. Urijah Faber
* Lightweight bout: George Sotiropoulos vs. Evan Dunham
* Lightweight bout: Dennis Siver vs. Matt Wiman
* Lightweight bout: Melvin Guillard vs. Shane Roller
* Middleweight bout: Wanderlei Silva vs. Chris Leben
* Featherweight bout: Erik Koch vs. Cub Swanson
* Light Heavyweight bout: Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader.

I don't know what fight I am looking forward to the most. I really hope Tito doesn't back out of a fight this time. I can't even keep track how many fights that man has backed out of now. All I know is it's going to be a hot summer night when UFC 132 comes around. The fans should be excited. I know I am.

The Rock vs. John Cena at Wrestlemania 28

Last night just when I think the WWE could not do anything new, anything interesting and thought that they couldn't grab anyone's attention they did the unthinkable. At the end of Raw John Cena came out to call out The Rock. The Rock came out and the challenge was made. Cena challenged Rock to a match and The Rock accepted. However this match will not take place until Wrestlemania 28, a year from now. It's fitting though that WWE has run out of ideas but pulled the one card they had left. I've never heard of a match being made one year in advanced so thank you WWE. This match in my mind will no doubt transcend the WWE like Hogan-Rock did. Look at these two, they are known by almost everyone.

The Rock started his WWE career in 1996 at Survivor Series and quickly made a name for himself. He won the Intercontinental Championship on multiple occasions, won the WWE Tag Team titles and obviously won the WWE Title. His decline in wrestling started in 2002 when he really started making movies. He's been in quite a few movies but none of them have reached the levels that they should. The ones that stick out to me are Walking Tall, Faster, Rundown, Gridiron Gang and Scorpion King. I think one of the reasons he came back is he knows his movies haven't reached the heights that they should have. The other reason The Rock agreed to this in my opinion is because Wrestlemania 28 is in Miami. Also do you think he wants people to remember his last match as he and Mick Foley vs. Evolution at Wrestlemania 20

Then there is John Cena, who came in right when The Rock was leaving. John Cena has taken the WWE by storm. Cena has won the U.S. title, Tag titles and is a multiple time WWE Champion. He has made a couple of movies, put out a rap album but the difference between he and The Rock is that Cena didn't leave the company and forget about the fans. Cena is what Hogan and Austin was in the past. A lot of people dislike John Cena but that's what makes him so great is because he embraces it. He loves the WWE and is completely passionate about it.

The Rock vs. John Cena on April 1st, 2012 will be a match that no one will ever forget. The torch will finally be passed to Cena like it should have been a long time ago. I applaud The Rock for coming back and making things right with the WWE fans. It will be interesting to see what happens with both men throughout the next year. The Rock obviously has a few movies coming out and John Cena will continue to wrestle and hopefully win back the WWE Championship.

It's kind of hard to lose interest when you're waiting for next year to come around. All I can say is Wrestlemania 28 will simply be electrifying and the millions and millions of fans cannot wait.

Thoughts on Wrestlemania 27

Last night it was the biggest night of the year in pro wrestling. However it was probably the biggest disappointment ever. The two matches that got the most hype didn't live up especially The Miz vs. John Cena but I will get back to that in a bit.

The first match of the night was the World Heavyweight Title Match between Edge vs. Alberto Del Rio. It was a great match with some interference for both guys. Alberto Del Rio proved he belonged in the spotlight but on this night Edge along with Christian got the better of Del Rio and his entourage. Edge keeps his title and then destroys Del Rio's car.

Next up was Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes. I thought this was a solid match with some good story telling. It's nice to see Rhodes getting pushed and getting a win over Mysterio at Wrestlemania.

The match that was a complete waste was Big Show, Kane, Santino Marella and Kofi Kingston taking on The Corre. The match lasted a whole 3 minutes and to me it's s a slap in the face to Big Show and Kane who should have been in big time matches. Obviously The Corre lost as you knew they would.

Next up was Randy Orton vs. CM Punk and this was a great match that both guys should be proud of. In my opinion these two should have been added to Cena and Miz for a fatal four way because it would have been a lot better. Punk really silenced his critics last night. A lot of people think he's overrated but he's one of the best heels in the business right now and he proved that last night. However in the end an RKO got the job done and Orton prevails

Michael Cole w/Jack Swagger vs. Jerry Lawler with Stone Cold as the special referee was entertaining. Swagger got the stunner, Cole got humiliated but in the end the Raw GM reversed the decision and gave Michael Cole the win. Stone Cold also gave Josh Matthews and Booker T the stunner which was hilarious. It was a horrible match but very entertaining because of the Texas Rattlesnake.

Then the match that everyone was talking about was the No Holds Barred Match between The Undertaker and Triple H. This match was intense from the start. Both men really put it all on the line. The one thing I didn't like about the match is Triple beat the hell out of Taker for thirty minutes and then all of a sudden Taker gets Triple H in Hells Gates for 3 minutes and The Game taps out. Both men were physically exhausted, and both are injured. It was good but not great like HBK and Taker was. I honestly hope that was not Triple H's last match because he needs to go out on a lot better of a note then that and really so should The Undertaker.

The other match that was short was Trish Stratus, Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler and LayCool. In my humble opinion Dolph Ziggler and John Morrison should have had their own match for a title. It was nice seeing Trish at Wrestlemania again but that match was another waste of time

The main event had two very unique entrances for both The Miz and John Cena. The match was okay but the ending sucked. The match ended in a double count-out and then The Rock came out and restarted the match. He then proceed to give Cena the Rock Bottom and allowed Miz to retain the title. After the match, The Rock beat up Miz again for good measure and Wrestlemania ended with a guy who doesn't even wrestle anymore.

Overall I would say Wrestlemania 27 is right up there with 8, 9 and 11 as being very disappointing. There were a couple of good segments backstage with The Rock and Austin. Then I thought Rowdy Piper knocking out Zach Ryder was hilarious. So yes there were a few good moments.

It's really going to be hard for me to ever watch another wrestling pay-per-view again. Between the crap that happened at TNA's last one and then the disappointment of last night at Wrestlemania makes very hard for me to even like wrestling. In my humble opinion wrestling reached it's pinnacle two years ago when Shawn Michaels took on Undertaker at Wrestlemania 25. I don't think pro wrestling can ever create something that great again.

Road to Wrestlemania: Week 9

This week on the final week before Wrestlemania it was intense. The show started off with Randy Orton and CM Punk confronting each other. It ended with Punk giving Orton the GTS gaining momentum for Wrestlemania. The first match of the evening saw World Heavyweight Champion Edge and Christian defeating Alberto Del Rio and Brodus Clay. Unfortunately for Edge, Del Rio got the last laugh.

Another match that worked on build up for Wrestlemania saw the duo of U.S. Champion Sheamus and Dolph Ziggler defeating Daniel Bryan and John Morrison. I really think the match between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan has the potential to be match of the night if it goes well.

Speaking of build up for Wrestlemania the segment with Triple H, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels was intense. I am really not sure about this match because everyone assumes that The Undertaker is going to win. What if he doesn't? How will this change wrestling and the WWE. More importantly how will the fans react?

Raw ended with The Rock, John Cena and The Miz all in confrontation with each other. However John Cena got the last laugh by watching The Rock beat up Miz and then giving The Rock the Attitude Adjustment.

That's how Raw ended headed into Wrestlemania. There wasn't much of a Smackdown this week. Just highlights from Wrestlemania Axcess. The official card for Wrestlemania 27 looks like this:

-WWE Champion The Miz vs. John Cena
-The Undertaker vs. Triple H (No Holds Barred Match)
-World Heavyweight Champion Edge vs. Alberto Del Rio
-Jerry Lawler vs. Michael Cole with special referee "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
-John Morrison, Trish Stratus & Snooki vs. Dolph Ziggler & Lay-Cool
-Randy Orton vs. CM Punk
-Eight-Man Tag Team Match
-United States Champion Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan
-Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes

Thank you for joining me on the Road to Wrestlemania. Be sure to check back on Monday for my thoughts on the show.