11-09-2002, 06:00 AM
Ross Report -- Nov. 8, 2002
Greetings from under the 200X black Resistol hat while enjoying a few days in the Florida sunshine in beautiful Sarasota.
Random thoughts and opinion:
RAW was a solid effort from Boston, and seemed to me to be an improvement over last week's broadcast. This Monday's broadcast from Cincinnati should be an even better show as is usually expected for the final RAW before a pay-per-view. RAW is definitely getting better.
In my opinion, SmackDown! was a very good show and had some excellent in-ring product with the possible exception of the Al Wilson material, which may have been a little long for my taste. Overall, however, SmackDown! told some excellent stories and was fun to watch.
Several more matches for the Nov. 17 Survivor Series from the sold-out Madison Square Garden will probably be added to the lineup this week on RAW and SmackDown! The card looks to be good on paper and should result in a very solid pay-per-view.
The Kurt Angle Classic is this weekend in New Orleans. Kurt and Brock Lesnar will both be attending; however, Lesnar will compete in Champaign, Ill., on Saturday, and Peoria, Ill., on Sunday, while Angle will be off to nurse his sore back.
Angle and Lesnar are both working through knee problems. Kurt will eventually need to have his knee 'scoped while Brock needs to rehab himself back to 100 percent from a PCL tear.
Goldust has the flu and may not be able to wrestle this weekend.
RAW Superstars included on WWE's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade float will be Triple H, Hurricane, Victoria, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Sgt. Slaughter, Coach, Mr. McMahon and yours truly.
WWE Fan Club members at Survivor Series will participate in a breakfast with Rob Van Dam, Booker T, Torrie Wilson, Goldust, Hurricane, Spike Dudley, Rey Mysterio, Chris Nowinski, Jamie Noble and Nidia. This will be held the morning of Survivor Series.
Shawn Michaels this Saturday will launch tickets going on sale in Dallas for our Dec. 3 event in the American Airlines Center.
Kevin Nash will be in Knoxville, Tenn., on Nov. 16 for a RAW ticket on-sale.
Several WWE Superstars were interviewed by CNN Monday in Boston for a piece that airs tonight (Friday) at 10 p.m.
Australian Nathan Jones is in the midst of his extended tryout with WWE. The 6-foot-10, 300-pounder has a ton of potential but is still very green and in need of more quality ring time. We really like Nathan's attitude and willingness to learn.
Must be a slow news week on the Internet when the rumor mill addresses Scott Steiner's contract terms (mostly erroneously) and that agent Terry Taylor has not signed his contract.
I also learned on the 'net that Kurt Angle was going to work less days in 2003, down to his regular scheduled four days on and three days off, which is what he has been doing the vast majority of the time. Not sure this is "news," but it was reported.
Congratulations to HWA's Les Thatcher on his recent marriage to longtime girlfriend Alice. Good luck, Alice! (Only kidding.)
When will the trade sending the Big Show to SmackDown! be finalized?
I am curious to see what sort of match Trish Stratus and Victoria have at Survivor Series with hardcore rules. It will certainly be physical.
Mark Henry is getting his ankle 'scoped today in Birmingham, Ala., by Dr. Jim Andrews.
Maven, who looks to be a RAW talent now, still has not recovered from his ankle injury but is close.
Rey Mysterio will probably get his knee 'scoped sometime in December.
Billy Gunn has regained some feeling in his arm and will return to Birmingham in about a month for another examination.
It is now believed that Mark Jindrak sustained significant ligament damage when he dislocated his ankle and could be out of action six months.
The Undertaker is still in need of elbow surgery and is also having problems with his lower back, the SI joint.
Al Snow is working through a sore knee, probably a torn PCL ligament, which he sustained a number of years ago.
Bubba Ray Dudley and Test are both experiencing lower back pain but are working through the discomfort. Both are being scheduled to be examined.
Jazz is back in the ring and looks to be about 30 days away from returning from ACL surgery.
Rhyno seems to also be about a month to six weeks away from returning to the ring full time.
OVW wrestler Nick Dinsmore will have a 'scope to repair his torn meniscus knee ligament.
All other injured WWE Superstars are progressing on schedule based on their doctors' reports.
Hulk Hogan's upcoming autobiography is getting a great deal of press within the book world. It will be on shelves in a few days.
And the question remains, can Lesnar F5 the Big Show?
Lots of money and expertise being expended for the construction of the first-ever Elimination Chamber.
The King's autobiography is still scheduled to hit bookstores in December. Having read a great deal of this one already, this should be a fun read for all, especially longtime fans.
Lots of positives slowly beginning to develop on RAW and SmackDown! Just my opinion, but I like what I'm seeing from Test & Stacy Keibler, William Regal & Lance Storm, Booker T and RVD in single competition, all the female talents, Chris Jericho and Christian as World Tag Champs, Bubba and Jeff Hardy together, Triple H, albeit a popular superstar, as the lead antagonist on RAW, and Kane who continues to evolve on Monday nights.
SmackDown! highlights include the great work done by the Guerreros, Edge & Rey, Angle & Chris Benoit, Matt Hardy's new persona, John Cena's development, Brock Lesnar's slow evolution as a fan favorite allowing our fans to make the final decision much like Stone Cold a few years ago, Albert's improvement and the exciting cruiserweights. As we have discussed before, we are in the process of building new main-event-level Superstars, with several deserving talents being provided excellent opportunities to advance. Your guess as to who will make it to the next level is as good as mine, but I can say, without a doubt, that the shelves are not empty. Next year looks to be a breakout year for many young talents. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
My OU Sooners have a tough challenge awaiting them Saturday in College Station, Texas, against the always dangerous Texas A&M Aggies. Oklahoma is a nine-point favorite but this will be a very hostile environment before 80,000 plus at Kyle Field. This is a must-win situation for the Sooners, but they have been playing very well, and I hope they can take care of business against their Big 12 South adversary. Expect a physical, Slobber-Knocker of a football game.
Take care of yourself and count your blessings. See you Monday in Cincinnati.
J.R. (Boomer Sooner!)
Greetings from under the 200X black Resistol hat while enjoying a few days in the Florida sunshine in beautiful Sarasota.
Random thoughts and opinion:
RAW was a solid effort from Boston, and seemed to me to be an improvement over last week's broadcast. This Monday's broadcast from Cincinnati should be an even better show as is usually expected for the final RAW before a pay-per-view. RAW is definitely getting better.
In my opinion, SmackDown! was a very good show and had some excellent in-ring product with the possible exception of the Al Wilson material, which may have been a little long for my taste. Overall, however, SmackDown! told some excellent stories and was fun to watch.
Several more matches for the Nov. 17 Survivor Series from the sold-out Madison Square Garden will probably be added to the lineup this week on RAW and SmackDown! The card looks to be good on paper and should result in a very solid pay-per-view.
The Kurt Angle Classic is this weekend in New Orleans. Kurt and Brock Lesnar will both be attending; however, Lesnar will compete in Champaign, Ill., on Saturday, and Peoria, Ill., on Sunday, while Angle will be off to nurse his sore back.
Angle and Lesnar are both working through knee problems. Kurt will eventually need to have his knee 'scoped while Brock needs to rehab himself back to 100 percent from a PCL tear.
Goldust has the flu and may not be able to wrestle this weekend.
RAW Superstars included on WWE's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade float will be Triple H, Hurricane, Victoria, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Sgt. Slaughter, Coach, Mr. McMahon and yours truly.
WWE Fan Club members at Survivor Series will participate in a breakfast with Rob Van Dam, Booker T, Torrie Wilson, Goldust, Hurricane, Spike Dudley, Rey Mysterio, Chris Nowinski, Jamie Noble and Nidia. This will be held the morning of Survivor Series.
Shawn Michaels this Saturday will launch tickets going on sale in Dallas for our Dec. 3 event in the American Airlines Center.
Kevin Nash will be in Knoxville, Tenn., on Nov. 16 for a RAW ticket on-sale.
Several WWE Superstars were interviewed by CNN Monday in Boston for a piece that airs tonight (Friday) at 10 p.m.
Australian Nathan Jones is in the midst of his extended tryout with WWE. The 6-foot-10, 300-pounder has a ton of potential but is still very green and in need of more quality ring time. We really like Nathan's attitude and willingness to learn.
Must be a slow news week on the Internet when the rumor mill addresses Scott Steiner's contract terms (mostly erroneously) and that agent Terry Taylor has not signed his contract.
I also learned on the 'net that Kurt Angle was going to work less days in 2003, down to his regular scheduled four days on and three days off, which is what he has been doing the vast majority of the time. Not sure this is "news," but it was reported.
Congratulations to HWA's Les Thatcher on his recent marriage to longtime girlfriend Alice. Good luck, Alice! (Only kidding.)
When will the trade sending the Big Show to SmackDown! be finalized?
I am curious to see what sort of match Trish Stratus and Victoria have at Survivor Series with hardcore rules. It will certainly be physical.
Mark Henry is getting his ankle 'scoped today in Birmingham, Ala., by Dr. Jim Andrews.
Maven, who looks to be a RAW talent now, still has not recovered from his ankle injury but is close.
Rey Mysterio will probably get his knee 'scoped sometime in December.
Billy Gunn has regained some feeling in his arm and will return to Birmingham in about a month for another examination.
It is now believed that Mark Jindrak sustained significant ligament damage when he dislocated his ankle and could be out of action six months.
The Undertaker is still in need of elbow surgery and is also having problems with his lower back, the SI joint.
Al Snow is working through a sore knee, probably a torn PCL ligament, which he sustained a number of years ago.
Bubba Ray Dudley and Test are both experiencing lower back pain but are working through the discomfort. Both are being scheduled to be examined.
Jazz is back in the ring and looks to be about 30 days away from returning from ACL surgery.
Rhyno seems to also be about a month to six weeks away from returning to the ring full time.
OVW wrestler Nick Dinsmore will have a 'scope to repair his torn meniscus knee ligament.
All other injured WWE Superstars are progressing on schedule based on their doctors' reports.
Hulk Hogan's upcoming autobiography is getting a great deal of press within the book world. It will be on shelves in a few days.
And the question remains, can Lesnar F5 the Big Show?
Lots of money and expertise being expended for the construction of the first-ever Elimination Chamber.
The King's autobiography is still scheduled to hit bookstores in December. Having read a great deal of this one already, this should be a fun read for all, especially longtime fans.
Lots of positives slowly beginning to develop on RAW and SmackDown! Just my opinion, but I like what I'm seeing from Test & Stacy Keibler, William Regal & Lance Storm, Booker T and RVD in single competition, all the female talents, Chris Jericho and Christian as World Tag Champs, Bubba and Jeff Hardy together, Triple H, albeit a popular superstar, as the lead antagonist on RAW, and Kane who continues to evolve on Monday nights.
SmackDown! highlights include the great work done by the Guerreros, Edge & Rey, Angle & Chris Benoit, Matt Hardy's new persona, John Cena's development, Brock Lesnar's slow evolution as a fan favorite allowing our fans to make the final decision much like Stone Cold a few years ago, Albert's improvement and the exciting cruiserweights. As we have discussed before, we are in the process of building new main-event-level Superstars, with several deserving talents being provided excellent opportunities to advance. Your guess as to who will make it to the next level is as good as mine, but I can say, without a doubt, that the shelves are not empty. Next year looks to be a breakout year for many young talents. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
My OU Sooners have a tough challenge awaiting them Saturday in College Station, Texas, against the always dangerous Texas A&M Aggies. Oklahoma is a nine-point favorite but this will be a very hostile environment before 80,000 plus at Kyle Field. This is a must-win situation for the Sooners, but they have been playing very well, and I hope they can take care of business against their Big 12 South adversary. Expect a physical, Slobber-Knocker of a football game.
Take care of yourself and count your blessings. See you Monday in Cincinnati.
J.R. (Boomer Sooner!)
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