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I haven't been to a WWE pay-per-view since October 2007 for No Mercy. On that night, I saw the WWE title get handed to one man who lost to another, who retained against a different man, who then lost it to the guy who got it handed to him at the beginning of the night. Got all that? Also on that night, if you go back and watch the show, I -- yes, I -- started the "Y2J" chant at the beginning of the show. I take pride in that. True story. Why? Because Vince McMahon responded to the chant. Check YouTube. So fast forward to 2012, and the WWE is back in Chicago on PPV presenting "Extreme Rules". I attended the event with my girlfriend and had a great time. I thoroughly enjoyed the show from top to bottom. I know she did as well. Don't worry -- I'll tell you why.
As I stated in my column after the RAW following Wrestlemania, a crowd can kill a show or they can make it. Also, I know a show can kill a crowd (see: Extreme Reunion). I know Chicago is always at the top of the list of places to do a show, and that's something the Chicago crowd should take pride in. So I was hoping for not only a hot crowd but a smart crowd. A sea of marks just aggravates me. I was glad that the crowd was smart for the most part. A gentleman sitting behind me said, and I quote, (while John Cena was cutting his promo to end the show), "They'll want you back when ratings plummet, and there's no more wrestling business." Wait, what? There will be no wrestling business if Cena leaves? I'm sure some moron said the same thing about Hulk Hogan. Anyway, I digress; the actual show was great -- three top notch matches, two of them for titles, and the main-event. The other matches were "eh," but they had good entertainment quality because of the crowd. I have two examples off the top of my head. I'm sure those watching enjoyed the "Goldberg" chants when Ryback wrestled, and I'm sure some of you enjoyed the love for Ziggler and disdain for Clay.
As for the main-event, wow, what an atmosphere for that match. The crowd was way into it, and when Lesnar was being stiff, there were several people who screamed such things as "Go back to the UFC" and "This ain't the UFC, Lesnar". I personally enjoyed Lesnar being stiff. People who do not do wrestling say, "It's too fake," but when it isn't fake, fans cry, “That's too real.” That's why they say that you can't make everyone happy. I didn't read a bad review of the show from anyone on my Twitter feed; if you didn't like the show, I'd love to hear from you (@FordPWInsider). The WWE is back in town on September 3, and my girlfriend (@_Cathy_C_) will be there, especially after this great experience.
LESNAR DIDN'T THROW A "TEMPER TANTRUM"
As you read late Monday night right here on PW Insider, Lesnar had an outburst following the Extreme Rules PPV. If you missed it, here it is:
"According to several sources, Lesnar lost it on a number of WWE officials and began ripping apart a dressing room, upset over the John Cena promo that closed the PPV. The original plan was for Cena, despite winning, to be so beaten that he was carried out of the building, leaving an opening for Lesnar to brag that while he had lost the battle on a fluke, he had won the war. When Cena decided to address the audience, Lesnar perceived it as Cena double crossing him and lost in on WWE officials. It's not yet known how they calmed him down, but tonight's angle with HHH was planned in advance as a way to remove Lesnar from TV. Sources within the company have indicated that Lesnar's current deal only requires him to work two dates minimum per month."
Can you blame him? If this report is indeed true and Cena ventured off script, Lesnar has every right to be mad. Something clearly was off because Cena got on the mic talking about how he was going to get in trouble and might be gone for a while, yet the next night, he's booked on the next PPV. I don't get it. Why did he talk at the end of the show? Was he just looking for a cheap pop by putting over Chicago? I really didn't understand it while it was happening, and I'm even more lost following RAW last night. I'd feel safe betting that Cena had ulterior motives -- he must have. I'm just having a hard time figuring out what those motives could have been.
The bottom line is Brock Lesnar has EVERY reason to be UPSET. They have script writers for a reason! Follow it! It's bad enough they built Lesnar as a killing machine, only to do the J.O.B. on the P.P.V. to Cena. Then you add the fact that Cena made him look bad in typical Super Cena fashion, I'm glad SOMEONE was mad. I hate to break it to you: Lesnar isn't the first guy to have an outburst. Does anyone remember Bret Hart at Survivor Series '97? Now I know that Hart had a little more to be mad about, but we are arguing semantics at that point. I'm sure Lesnar's ego is fragile at the moment. Remember, he's back in the WWE after a UFC run that ended on a not-so-high note, so I'm sure Lesnar isn't the same Lesnar we had in the WWE years ago. He is brought back, then asked to do the job, but told "No worries -- Cena will win the fight, but you'll win the war" only to have Cena pull a fast one. Wouldn't YOU be mad?
OTHER RANDOMNESS
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