Smarkasses Episode 25: Tensions on the Road to Mania- 2/27/2014 (WWE, TNA, ROH News and Rumors)

Statement on Not Covering the 2014 Winter Olympics

I just wanted to take the time to explain why I didn't cover the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. I had every intention of covering the Olympics because I love the winter sports. One of my favorite movies, Cool Runnings was based on events that happen at the Winter Olympics. I have always enjoyed watching the Olympics but this year was much different.

During the first couple of days many pictures were flooding social media, showing how poorly the living and lodging conditions were in the town. People were getting stuck in bathrooms, wild animals were roaming hotel room halls, and most of the rooms looked like they have been through a tornado. In my opinion, if your city is hosting the Olympic games you better take the time to invest the money into making your city look great for the athletes and fans. It has nothing to do with politics, and it has nothing to do with it taking place in Russia. It has everything to do with respecting those who come into your country. 

So in closing, I will admit to only watching about five minutes of the Olympics because I was disgusted with what I was seeing through social media. Hopefully in four years the condition in South Korea will be nicer and more accommodating. 

Recap, Review, and Results of 2014 Elimination Chamber

Tonight was the last major stop on the Road to Wrestlemania and it filled with a tension. Let me start by saying this pay-per-view was great until the very end and all the interference and swerves. Here are the results of the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view:

-Randy Orton wins WWE World Heavyweight Championship Elimination Chamber Match

-Intercontinental Champion Big E def. Jack Swagger

-AJ Lee def. Cameron – Divas Championship Match

-Titus O'Neil def. Darren Young

-WWE Tag Team Champions The New Age Outlaws def. The Usos

-Batista def. Alberto Del Rio

-Cody Rhodes & Goldust def. Ryback & Curtis Axel (Kickoff Match)The Wyatt Family def. The Shield

Things I absolutely hated about this show were the ending. The ending was not the right one. Daniel Bryan deserves to be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion and honestly the fans are going to quit watching the product if their man does not win the title. If they would have did this with Austin in the attitude era the WWE would have been out of business. The other match that was a train wreck was Batista and Alberto Del Rio. I think Batista has no business in WWE at this point. He's not same guy he was in his first run. Also the Diva's was absolutely atrocious. They better start improving the division or just get rid of it completely. 

Now as far as the rest of the show goes, it was awesome. The Wyatts vs. The Shield was phenomenal and will be a match of the year candidate. I like how they kept Roman Reigns strong while losing to the Wyatt Family and I am sure more will come out of it. I also enjoyed the Intercontinental Championship match between Big E and Jack Swagger. These two men brought it and brought it in a great way. Also the tag team division is stronger then it's ever been. the pre-show match and the tag title match were both very solid and all the tag teams are looking great right now.

I would have to give to pay-per-view a 7 out of 10 because overall it was really good. The ending really put a damper on it. I thought Cesaro, Reigns, Langston were the three top performer of the night. I really hope WWE does not seriously go through with the Batista vs. Orton main event for Wrestlemania 30. I honestly think it will be a train wreck if it happens. The Road to Wrestlemania 30 continues and we have 6 weeks left to find out what WWE will do. 

For more of Hollywood Joe's opinions on WWE, TNA, ROH and pro wrestling tune into Smarkasses with he and his partner Jordan Francisco.

Road to Wrestlemania 30: Week 4

First off I'd like to apologize for not writing last week. I was laid up in the hospital recovering from open heart surgery. Although I did love some stuff I've seen in the week or so. Monday Night Raw kicked off with the six Elimination Chamber participants confronting each other. Then Kane came out and decided that all six men would compete in singles competition that night. The first of those matches was between Daniel Bryan and Christian. Daniel Bryan wins despite Kane's efforts in costing him the match. Afterwards Kane brutally attacked Bryan. Antonio Cesaro and John Cena had a phenomenal match on Monday. This was fresh of Cesaro's win over Randy Orton on the previous Smackdown. Cena got the win but Cesaro has sure been impressive. Randy Orton and Sheamus also had a good brawl until The Shield came out and caused chaos. This led to the rest of the Chamber participants and The Wyatts coming out for a brawl to end the show.

Smackdown was no different in terms of building towards the Elimination Chamber. Daniel Bryan squared off against Jack Swagger and then faced off against Cesaro. Bryan won both matches but it was Kane and Cesaro who did the damage once it was over. The Wyatts defeated The Rhodes and Rey Mysterio in preparation for their match against The Shield. Sheamus and Christian squared off once again and it wasn't much different. Sheamus won but after the match was over Christian attacked Sheamus to end the show. 

It was a good build up week to the Elimination Chamber. They teased more tension in The Shield while Roman Reigns gets stronger. The tag team division seems to be at a peak right now. On Friday Night it was announced that Hulk Hogan will be returning to WWE to host Wrestlemania 30 and make appearances on Monday Night Raw. This really has made Wrestlemania 30 a lot more interesting and will be curious to see how it all plays out. The Elimination Chamber is the last major stop on the Road to Wrestlemania 30 so here is the card for the show:

-WWE World Heavyweight Championship Elimination Chamber Match(Randy Orton/John Cena/Daniel Bryan/Cesaro/Sheamus/Christian)

-Intercontinental Champion Big E vs. Jack Swagger

-Darren Young vs. Titus O'Neil

-WWE Tag Team Champions The New Age Outlaws vs. The Usos

-The Shield vs. The Wyatt Family

-Batista vs. Alberto Del Rio
Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. Ryback & Curtis Axel (Kickoff Match)

It will be interesting to see how this effects the buildup to Wrestlemania 30. Keeping check back each week for the Road to Wrestlemania.

For more of Hollywood Joe's opinions checkout Smarkasses with along with his partner Jordan Francisco.

Did NASCAR Change Chase Rules to Protect History?

In 1964 Richard Petty won his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship and in 1994 Dale Earnhardt won his last championship. For 30 years two men dominated the race track along with a host of others like Darrell Waltrip, Cale Yarborough and David Pearson. Petty and Earnhardt each won 7 championships in that 30 year period which meant their dominance in the sport. Over the last decade NASCAR has been dominated by one man and that would Jimmie Johnson. Many have asked should Jimmie Johnson be put in the same category is Earnhardt and Petty since he now has six championships? If history is any indication then the answer would be no.

The Chase for the Cup began in 2004 which had a cut off period at the last ten races. In the beginning the top 10 drivers in the points standings would go on to compete for the championship with the points resetting. Over the last couple of years NASCAR has changed their scoring format and the amount of cars in the chase. It has been proven that if NASCAR ran under the old points system since 2004 then Jimmie Johnson would only have three titles, not six. Here is how it would have looked:

2004: Jeff Gordon
2005: Tony Stewart
2006: Jimmie Johnson
2007: Jeff Gordon.
2008: Carl Edwards
2009: Jimmie Johnson
2010: Kevin Harvick
2011: Carl Edwards
2012: Brad Keselowski
2013: Jimmie Johnson

As you can see no one would have won back to back years in a row. Now we fast forward to 2014. Not even a month ago NASCAR made changes to the Chase for the Cup and is officially calling it the NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase Grid. It was start off with 16 drivers. The Chase grid will be divided into four rounds. 

-The Challenger Round (races 27–29)
27 GEICO 400 Chicagoland Speedway, Joliet September 14
28 Osram Sylvania 300 New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon September 21
29 AAA 400 Dover International Speedway, Dover September 2
Starts with 16 drivers, each with 2,000 points plus a 3-point bonus for each win in the first 26 races.

-The Contender Round (races 30–32)

30 Hollywood Casino 400 Kansas Speedway, Kansas City October 5
31 Bank of America 500 Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord October 11
32 Talladega 500 Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega October 19
Starts with 12 drivers, each with 3,000 points.

-The Eliminator Round (races 33–35)

33 Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500 Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway October 26
34 AAA Texas 500 Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth November 2
35 Quicken Loans 500 Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale November 9
Starts with eight drivers, each with 4,000 points.

-The NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship (final race)

Ford EcoBoost 400 Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead November 16
The last four drivers that are at the top of the points will start the race at 5,000 points, with the highest finisher in the race winning the Cup Series title.

Now I don't about everyone else out there but I think this was designed to see more people win championships and to see less of Jimmie Johnson. A lot of old school NASCAR fans do not want to see him tie or beat the record that Earnhardt and Petty share. Watching the same guy win every year eventually gets old and boring which eventually causes the sport to lose money due to lack on interest. It's been said many times on NASCAR TV that sport has lost money over the last decade. Maybe the NASCAR Championship Grid will solve a lot of problems and bring a bigger interest into the sport. 

Tune to the 2014 NASCAR Season which is just getting started. Be sure to check us out for any NASCAR newsworthy topics throughout the year.

Lita to be Inducted Into the 2014 WWE Hall of Fame

The third inductee to the 2014 WWE Hall of Fame is a Diva that is well deserving of the honor. Amy Dumas better known as Lita debuted in pro wrestling in 1999. She worked in ECW as Miss Congeniality and then made he way to WWE.

When she arrived in WWE she was the valet with Essa Rios. This pairing would be short term and eventually she would have a role that would forever change her life and career. She joined Matt and Jeff Hardy as Team Xtreme. Lita would go on to feud Trish Stratus, Jacqueline, and Stephanie McMahon.

In April 2002, Lita suffered a severe neck injury that would sideline her for 17 months. During that 17 months she would appear on Sunday Night Heat as a commentator. When she returned to action she teamed with Trish Stratus to take on a the duo of Christian and Chris Jericho in the battle of the sexes.

In the spring of 2004, Lita had reunited with Matt Hardy to feud with Kane through the summer. Eventually they ran a storyline where Kane was the father of Lita's child. After Lita miscarried in the storyline she went after Trish Stratus who tormented her for months. After the rivalry with Trish ran it's course the events of the next couple of months would change her career and life once again.

She began an on air romance with Edge which would ultimately lead to controversy and chaos with Matt Hardy. From Summer through fall Lita would be in Edges corner as he and Hardy would compete in some the best matches of the careers. In Survivor 2006 she retired after losing the Women's Title to Mickie James. Her year and a half run by Edge's side changed the fans perspective on her and she felt like her life was no longer private outside of the WWE ring.

She has made multiple appearances since retiring including Raw 1000 against Heath Slater. She has been linked romantically to CM Punk and she has also worked several independent events. Lita has an animal charity called Amy Dumas Operation Rescue and Education (A.D.O.R.E.). She also is apart of the punk rock band The Luchagors which formed in 2006. Lita has appeared on Dark Angel, Fear Factor, The Weakest Link and Headbangers Ball. Lita along with Trish Stratus dominated the women's division for a long time. No two diva's past or present have had the chemistry Lita and Trish had. They were the pioneers for a different era in women's wrestling and now Lita joins Trish in the hall of fame.

Congratulations to the four time WWE Women's Champion Lita on her induction to the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2014.

Road to Wrestlemania 30: Week 2

This week on the Road to Wrestlemania 30, the authority kicked off things with telling Randy Orton he will face his 5 elimination chamber opponents over the next couple of weeks. He faced off against Daniel Bryan and lost on Raw but he beat Christian on Smackdown. This Monday he faces John Cena as their storied but old rivalry continues. 

The feud between the Wyatt Family and The Shield keeps getting stranger by the minute. The Wyatt's are still acting as a cohesive unit while tensions are mounting between members of The Shield. Many in the wrestling world have high hopes for Roman Reigns and I have a feeling that this will play out in the match at Elimination Chamber match. 

Another thing that is playing out is the little rivalry between Batista and Alberto Del Rio. I am sure they will have a match at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view. Other smaller storylines that were being built up this week include Kane's chokeslams to Daniel Bryan, and the split up of Darren Young and Titus O'Neill. They also continue to show the failures of Jack Swagger and showcasing his partner Antonio Cesaro. 

I don't feel like much else happened this week on the Road to Wrestlemania 30. It seems as though the product is stale right now and things are up in the air for the biggest show of the year. As we get closer to Elimination Chamber things might be a little more clearer as to what Wrestlemania 30 will look like. For now fans will have to make due with what they have. Check back next as the Road to Wrestlemania 30 continues.

Smarkasses Episode 24: Best in the World, 02/04/2014 (WWE, TNA, ROH News and Rumors

Road to Wrestlemania 30: Week 1

This past week began the Road to Wrestlemania 30. Before I begin I would like to point out that I will not be writing anything about CM Punk unless he comes back on the road or how it affects things headed into the Royal Rumble. As well all know Randy Orton kept his WWE Title and Batista is the number one contender coming out of the Royal. The fans were unhappy with the outcome of the Rumble and that would show itself the following night.

On Monday Night Raw, Daniel Bryan confronted The Authority about the Rumble and said he wanted in the Elimination Chamber. Triple H set up match with Sheamus, John Cena, and Daniel Bryan who would take on The Shield. The winners of the match would go on to be in the Elimination Chamber match. The Shield would lose that opportunity when The Wyatts caused The Shield to get DQ'd and allowed the other three to advance on to the chamber.

On Smackdown, Christian and Antonio Cesaro both qualified for the final spots in the Elimination Chamber. It seems as if the Real Americans are going to break up with the successes of Cesaro and the failures of Swagger. Speaking of splitting up and not teaming anymore, Titus O'Neill turned on Darren Young. It was a move that officially broke up the Primetime Players who have been teaming for awhile now. Speaking of teams, The Shield defeated Sheamus, Daniel Bryan and Rey Myserio in the main event on Friday Night. The Shield also challenged The Wyatt Family for a match at Elimination Chamber which was accepted.

Brock Lesnar has also been on a rampage and wants the WWE Title. He took out the Rhodes during their tag team title rematch against The New Age Outlaws. Right now the top contenders to the WWE Title are the five challengers in the chamber match, Batista who won the Royal Rumble, and Brock Lesnar who feels he deserves a shot anyways.

It was an interesting start to the Road to Wrestlemania 30. I expect things from The Uso's, Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston on the Road to Wrestlemania. These guys have the talent and ability to put on a show. This is the Road to Wrestlemania 30.

For more of Hollywood Joe's opinions on WWE, TNA, ROH and the world professional wrestling checkout Smarkasses with he and Jordan Francisco