Hailey's Newsies Issue 22 - April 19th 2009

This week, I had no time to update with I Love Money : WWE due to personal reasons. So there will be no I Love Money : WWE this edition. I've also decided to start this interesting little thing. It will be every 5 issue. So the debut of my surprise will be in 3 issues.

MVP To Raw

WWE made a brilliant move to have Evan Bourne and Rey Mysterio wrestling one another on Raw this week.
The match was made even more special since they were fighting for their respective brands (Rey Mysterio for Raw and Evan Bourne for ECW) to gain some draft picks.
Don't for a moment think that it was merely a coincidence that the WWE Intercontinental Champion was involved in this particular match.
Rey Mysterio picks up the victory, and the Raw brand received the first pick in the 2009 WWE Draft Lottery.
That pick ended up being WWE United States Heavyweight Champion MVP, who will now join the Raw roster for the very first time.

Despite losing the WWE United States Heavyweight Champion, the Smackdown brand doesn't necessarily lose a lot.
Don't get me wrong. MVP has a ton of charisma and ability. He also still has main event potential.
However, he hasn't exactly been used all that great on the brand over the last few months.
He might have been a champion, but he wasn't exactly a featured part of the show. His feud with Shelton Benjamin did absolutely nothing for either guy.
Smackdown more than made up for his departure with the addition of WWE Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio.

There's a handful of feuds that are available for MVP over the next 12 months.
One of the best feuds that MVP has ever been involved in was the one where he feuded with Matt Hardy over the WWE United States Heavyweight Championship.
The feud can happen again, and it can be just as entertaining. The big difference this time around is that Matt Hardy is now the heel and MVP is now the babyface.
A feud with the Miz over the WWE United States Heavyweight Championship could be good as well. Miz picked up a lot of momentum over the last year. Both are excellent talkers that could tell a pretty good story.
If WWE wanted to move MVP up into the main event level, then a feud against Randy Orton would make a lot of sense. That would plant the seeds for an eventual world title program between the two.
A program between MVP and William Regal might not have a lot of mainstream appeal. However, William Regal could easily carry MVP to some great matches. Plus, the difference in their characters would make a good base for an interesting storyline.

Matt Hardy to Raw

On Raw "last night", World Heavyweight Champion John Cena went up against ECW Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger. The winner would get two draft picks for their respective brand.
It was a brilliant idea by WWE to have two champions facing off against one another for a fairly big prize.
It was also a smart move in that it gave Jack Swagger some shine in the eyes of fans who don't necessarily keep up with ECW on a regular basis.
John Cena gets the expected win and picks up two draft picks for Raw.
One draft pick was Triple H.
The other draft pick saw Matt Hardy jumping over to Raw.

Even though he wasn't involved in the WWE Heavyweight Championship scene, Matt Hardy played an integral part on Smackdown.
His feud with brother Jeff Hardy was one of the highlights of the show.
Prior to his heel turn, Matt Hardy was also one of the most popular wrestlers on the brand.
Losing Matt Hardy is going to hurt Smackdown a bit, but the brand should be able to adjust.

There's plenty of options for Matt Hardy on Raw, but it all depends on how high up on the card that they want to put the former WWE United States Heavyweight Champion.
If WWE wanted to keep Matt Hardy in the midcard, they can put him into feuds against MVP or Kofi Kingston.
Matt Hardy and MVP have a history together on Smackdown. Matt Hardy and Kofi Kingston have never feuded before, so that would be a fresh program for the fans to see.
However, if WWE wanted to elevate Matt Hardy into a higher bracket, then they're going to have to start putting him into programs with the high profile wrestlers.
A feud with Shawn Michaels could do wonders for Matt Hardy. It's a feud that we've never seen before. Plus, with Shawn Michaels being at the top of his game (in terms of storytelling), it would easily make Matt Hardy look like a bigger star.
Feuding with World Heavyweight Champion John Cena would give Matt Hardy all the credibility in the world. He doesn't necessarily have to win the feud to come out a winner.
If Matt Hardy can somehow convince Triple H to work a program with him, then that would put Matt Hardy right up there with the best of them.
After feuding with Shawn Michaels, John Cena, and Triple H, the multiple time tag team champion would establish himself as a force to reckon with in the singles division.

Vladimir Kozlov to ECW

When Vladimir Kozlov initially made his debut in WWE, the company had him sitting in the audience for a few weeks (doing an occasional interview).
He was soon sent back down to developmental when management realized that they had made a mistake by calling him up too soon.
Vladimir Kozlov was then called up to the main roster on the Smackdown brand. After winning some meaningless matches against random opponents, he was given a shot at the main event.
Management has once again realized that they made a mistake by rushing things.
Vladimir Kozlov simply was not ready for the main event level yet.
With that in mind, WWE has decided to send Vladimir Kozlov to a place for more development.
This time, he's not heading to Ohio Valley Wrestling. No, Vladimir Kozlov is headed to ECW.

The loss of Vladimir Kozlov would have been big had the WWE Draft Lottery happened a few months ago when the big man was involved in high profile programs with the Undertaker, Jeff Hardy, and Triple H.
Over the last few months, his momentum has declined severely since management stopped using him in high profile situations.
In fact, his momentum was dropped so severely that he was left completely off of the Wrestlemania 25 card.
Smackdown should be able to do just fine without Vladimir Kozlov.

It's really hard to imagine Vladimir Kozlov not being involved in the ECW main event scene.
Dropping him any lower than that could quite possibly damage his momentum to the point where it becomes extremely difficult for the company to help him rebuild it.
Should a babyface wrestler end up capturing the ECW Heavyweight Championship within the next few months, you can expect Vladimir Kozlov to be used as a challenger for the belt.
With a heel champion right now in Jack Swagger, it's hard to imagine the two of them feuding. It's also difficult to imagine either one of these guys being turned into a babyface right now, too.
It's not too hard to imagine WWE putting Vladimir Kozlov with one of the many veteran babyfaces on ECW to help make him look good.
Tommy Dreamer, Christian, and Finlay all fit that bill.
WWE could also do a feud between Vladimir Kozlov and Evan Bourne. A typical "David vs Goliath" storyline could work well for these two.

Morrison to Smackdown

On Monday night, the Miz and Kofi Kingston were battling to secure a draft pick for their respective brands.
John Morrison interfered in an attempt to help his partner. However, the interference backfired, and the Miz ended up losing the match by disqualification.
Kofi Kingston won a draft pick for the Raw brand.
Ironically enough, the draft pick ended up being the Miz.
Miz & John Morrison embraced one another. Seconds later, John Morrison was flat on his back as his former tag team partner surprised him with an attack.
John Morrison was now left on his own.
However, he's not left on the ECW brand. On Wednesday, the former WWE Intercontinental Champion was drafted over to the Smackdown brand during the supplemental draft.

The loss of John Morrison hurts ECW, but most fans are probably not going to realize it right away.
The reason for that is because he's been used on Raw and Smackdown quite a bit over the last few months. There were times where John Morrison was used on all three shows in the same week.
Those that watch ECW, though, are going to notice his disappearance a bit more because he won't be around to provide some entertaining matches and segments.
With his move to the Smackdown brand, it appears as if the company is going to start using him more exclusively on the brand.

The potential for John Morrison to become a main event wrestler on the Smackdown brand is there. The company just needs to find the right mixture of feuds to put him in.
WWE needs to put John Morrison into an immediate feud with Rey Mysterio. The two can battle over the WWE Intercontinental Championship, a title that John Morrison has held in the past.
Between John Morrison and Rey Mysterio, there is enough of a unique moveset to keep the fans interested in their matches.
Back when they were fighting over the ECW Heavyweight Championship, John Morrison and CM Punk developed some tremendous chemistry. The two produced some highly entertaining matches together.
Now that CM Punk has won the Money in the Bank briefcase again, the timing seems right for the two of them to be placed into a program together again.
John Morrison and Jeff Hardy were involved in a program on Raw a couple of years back. The feud was far from great, but both wrestlers are higher up on the card now. It might be time to revisit that feud.
If WWE can somehow build up enough momentum for John Morrison through these feud, then they can finally have him step up into a program with the Undertaker.
The best case scenario would see WWE building up John Morrison into a credible opponent for the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 26.
However, that's going to require every single little thing to click together just right.

Hart Compares Hogan & Flair

In a recent interview with Maxim magazine, Bret Hart compares himself to a couple of wrestlers.

The following is what he had to say.

Quote:

"I'd never say I was better than The Dynamite Kid or Curt Hennig [Mr Perfect]. But I do know I was better than Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan and a lot of the other guys. Mark Calaway [The Undertaker] was a great pro: if you had to dive over the top rope and he said he'd catch you, trust him, he'd catch you. Pro wrestling is about trust and respect."

Palumbo Points the Finger

In a recent interview with Monday Night Mayhem, Chuck Palumbo recently revealed his feelings about his release from WWE.

When the topic came up about his program with Jamie Noble and Michelle McCool, Chuck Palumbo took the opportunity to unleash some verbal jabs at Jamie Noble and Arn Anderson. The former WWE Tag Team Champion blamed the two backstage agents for the storyline failing.

Chuck Palumbo stated that Jamie Noble was booking himself in a superior manner because he wanted to make himself look good to management. He also stated that Arn Anderson was not a fan of his work and that the former member of the Four Horsemen did things to show Vince McMahon that Chuck Palumbo wasn't going to be a success.

Hurricane Helms to ECW

When you talk about talented performers, there are few as gifted as Hurricane Helms is.
He's as solid of an in-ring performer as the majority of the other wrestlers in WWE. Hurricane Helms also has an underrated personality that he has yet to be able to show in WWE.
For about 7 years now, wrestling fans have been eager to see what Hurricane Helms can truly do. We haven't seen how great he can really be.
First, he was saddled with a gimmick (which was wildly popular with the younger wrestling fans) that prevented him from being taken seriously enough as a credible challenger.
Then, he was riddled with injuries that kept him on the sidelines far too often.
Now, Hurricane Helms has a chance to get the spotlight.
On Wednesday, during the WWE Supplemental Draft, Hurricane Helms was drafted over to the ECW brand.

Most wrestling fans aren't even going to notice that Hurricane Helms is gone from the Smackdown brand.
Since returning from the injured list, Hurricane Helms hasn't really done anything of significance.
Hurricane Helms was briefly involved in the program between Jeff Hardy and Matt Hardy. He was also given a win over then United States Heavyweight Champion Shelton Benjamin in a non title match.
He was also given some comedic segments prior to his actual in-ring return.
However, none of these things were of much significance to the overall product.

Now that he's on ECW, there's interesting feuds that Hurricane Helms could possibly be involved with.
The brand is now known as the one where wrestlers are given a bit more of an opportunity to shine (mainly because it's not as important as the two big brands).
In order for Hurricane Helms to shine, though, management is going to need to put him in the right feuds.
WWE needs to give him a quick feud that he can win immediately. Zack Ryder is pretty far down the ladder, so he's a potential victim for Hurricane Helms. Paul Burchill is another potential victim.
After that, management can throw Hurricane Helms against Tyson Kidd. The younger can produce some entertaining spots in the match. Plus, Hurricane Helms can make him look good in defeat.
If management wanted to continue pushing Hurricane Helms up, then they can have him capture a win over a big heel like Mark Henry or Ezekiel Jackson.
Finally, WWE can throw Hurricane Helms into a title program against Jack Swagger or Vladimir Kozlov (who will probably end up winning the belt within the next year).
An ECW Heavyweight Championship reign should do well for Hurricane Helms. It should give him enough credibility to be drafted to Raw or Smackdown in a year to work in the midcard.

Lockdown 2009 Stream

When most wrestling fans think of the term "Lockdown 2009 stream", they instantly think about the ability to watch the pay per view through various websites.
However, the term "stream" is also used to describe how the pay per view matches are lined up.
Having great matches is one thing. Putting those matches in logical order to ensure that the fans appreciate it more is another thing.
Let's take a look at the stream for Lockdown 2009.

Through their website, TNA has announced how the matches at Lockdown 2009 will be streamed. Below is the order of the matches.

• Suicide vs Kiyoshi vs Sheik Abdur Bashir vs Black Machismo vs Consequences Creed
  
• Madison Rayne vs Sojo Bolt vs Daffney vs ODB
  
• Motor City Machine Guns vs No Limit vs LAX
  
• Abyss vs Matt Morgan
  
• Awesome Kong vs Angelina Love vs Taylor Wilde
  
• Beer Money vs Team 3D
  
• Jeff Jarrett, Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles, and Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle, Booker T, Kevin Nash, and Scott Steiner
  
• Sting vs Mick Foley
  

Looking over the card, TNA has done a superb job of streaming Lockdown 2009.
Fans should be instantly treated to some action in the Xscape match for the TNA X Division Championship. All five guys should be able to produce some intense moments.
The fans should continue to be entertained by the Queen of the Cage match. The winner will more than likely receive a nice push for the following month.
The Motor City Machine Guns, No Limit, and LAX are all talented teams. These guys have a shot at stealing the pay per view.
Abyss really excels at the gimmick matches. He should produce really well in this match. It should also make Matt Morgan look like a bigger star.
The TNA Knockouts Championship match should be a solid one.
There's so much hype behind the tag team title match between Beer Money and Team 3D. Fans have really been looking forward to this match, and the emotion behind it should make things all the more better.
Christopher Daniels' inclusion into the Lethal Lockdown was a good move. All eyes will be on the match to see if Jeff Jarrett makes his rumored heel turn and joins the Main Event Mafia.
The buildup between Sting and Mick Foley has sparked memories of their legendary feud back in WCW. This match alone is worth buying the pay per view for.

Source : WrestlingRevealed

i think moving gregory to ECW was a good choice. thanks for the news.

This has potential to be the single greatest newsie ever posted in the history of the universe. :O

Now rant about how Layla has no personality and will soon be released, even with the move to Friday nights!