The Wrestling Thread: WWE WrestleMania 31 [NSFW]

[Irene Demova]

I better get someone I like in this sweepstake.

I have a feeling I'd go one worse than last year and end up with Orton.

Hornswoggle

[sw26]

Bryan Danielson's dark match from the January 4th Raw. Honestly the first time I've seen him wrestle (never watched any ROH) and he does look pretty impressive technically. Whether WWE will ever actually do anything with him is another matter entirely though.

[Baron Zemo]

I better get someone I like in this sweepstake.

I have a feeling I'd go one worse than last year and end up with Orton.

Hornswoggle

Orton is facing Sheamus ?

[Corazon de Leon]

It's the strawberry floating Royal Rumble bitches!

Using the list that KKLEIN so kindly provided(and having mopped up the last two he added right before I made this post), Drumstick and I have successfully created a 54 man Royal Rumble. All places have been assigned randomly, including places for myself and Drumstick. Your number corresponds to the entrant who comes in at that number in the 2010 Royal Rumble - the winner is the person whose numbered wrestler wins the Rumble(obviously). I will now reveal, in numerical order, who got what:

1. Cardinal Chunder
2. AJ Styles & Dangerblade
3. Irene Demova & Return of the Star
4. Shafto & Trufax UK
5. Frank & Floex
6. Drumstick & Mafro
7. BaronZemo
8. Ginga & Tomvek
9. Born Skippy & Trebell
10. Deadpool & Johnny Ryall
11. Balloon Sod & Sw26
12. Prototype & Link
13. Dark Dragon 64 & Rog
14. Teh Bork & Magic Milner
15. Bear
16. E-Man & Miguel007
17. Ryan0rz & JV
18. KKLEIN
19. Soulfinger & IronMaiden
20. Lonestar & YouSmellLikeWee
21. PsychicSykes
22. Cropolite & Pell
23. Gaminglegend & Mockmaster
24. Phatman & Andrew_Version1
25. Lucien & Hank Scorpio
26. Blackouthero & PCCD
27. Adam Pollard
28. Jam Master Jay
29. Chocolate Jim & Zellery
30. J.Vengeance & Poncho

And thus concludes this evening's draw. To get you in the mood for the Rumble itself, here are some random facts about the event:

The first official Royal Rumble Pay Per View was won in 1989 by Hacksaw Jim Duggan.

The record for most Royal Rumble wins is held by Stone Cold Steve Austin with three.

Shawn Michaels(1995 & 1996) Stone Cold Steve Austin(1997 & 1998) and Hulk Hogan(1990 & 1991) have all won back to back Royal Rumbles.

The Royal Rumble 2008 was the first WWE Pay Per View shown entirely in HD.

In 1998, Mick Foley entered the Royal Rumble three times under the personas of Cactus Jack, Mankind and Dude Love. He is the only wrestler ever to have done this.

Shawn Michaels(1995) and Robin Ethics(2004) have both won the Royal Rumble as entrant number 1, while Rey Mysterio(2006) and Vince McMahon(1999) have won the event as entrant number 2.

27 is the luckiest number - a total of four entrants have won entering at this number, more than any other. These were Big John Studd in 1990, Yokozuna in 1993, Bret Hart in 1994 and Stone Cold in 2001.

The most eliminations in a single Royal Rumble were by Kane, who dominated the ring in 2001 only to be the final contestant eliminated by Steve Austin.

The shortest amount of time that a Royal Rumble winner has been in the ring for is 8:28, set by John Cena in 2008. He beat the previous record of 8:59, claimed by Brock Lesnar in 2003.

The longest lasting winner is Rey Mysterio, who beat Robin Ethics's previous record by staying in the ring for 1:02:12 before eliminating Randy Orton to win the match.

EDIT: Added Trufax in twice(strawberry floating name changes).

[Cardinal Chunder]

NUMBER 1!?

[Jam-Master Jay]

I better get someone I like in this sweepstake.

I have a feeling I'd go one worse than last year and end up with Orton.

Hornswoggle

Orton is facing Sheamus ?

Haven't watched RAW since last week, and even then I was flicking between it and Impact.

Still, I can guarantee I'd get someone gooseberry fool.

[Jam-Master Jay]

28

Oooooooh yeeeeaaaarrrrh!



Also, sw26, I'd suggest looking at some of his matches via Youtube/Dailymotion.

[Corazon de Leon]

NUMBER 1!?

You have as much chance of winning as anyone else - number 1 has won it twice before.

[Corazon de Leon]

KKLEIN, could you please stick that on page 1 in case it gets lost?

[KK]

TNA executive Eric Bischoff said in an interview published today that he believes he has more talent and more of a feel for the wrestling business than WWE CEO Vince McMahon. He offered a few quotes explaining his position.

"I have a tremendous respect for Vince and, in a perverse way, like him. But at the end of the day, I think I'm better than him. I'm more creative than him and have a better feel for the business," Bischoff told Alex Marvez before laughing. "It's just that he happens to be a lot more successful than I am."

Bischoff added that WWE is a big, hulking machine, but he believes TNA is sleeker and is positioned to take more chances that could eventually allow TNA to compete with the machine.

"Think of WWE as a giant aircraft carrier and TNA as an 18-foot speedboat. There's a lot the aircraft carrier can do, but it's also big and slow," Bischoff said. "We can bring a more flexible, aggressive and nimble approach. There is an open-mindedness and risk-taking mentality that exists here. That's one thing I really like about this company."

Bischoff is consistent that he doesn't believe McMahon is creative and only makes changes to his product when shoved - not just pushed. Bischoff made a similar comment in the current Torch Talk with Wade Keller.

"I don't think quite honestly he's that creative of a person, to be really honest about it. The creativity is not his strength by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, I think he's one of the least creative people that I've worked with," Bischoff told Keller. "However, he is good at taking other people's ideas and twisting the, turning them, modifying them to fit the formula that clearly has worked for him."

Bischoff hit on a number of January 4-related topics in his interview for Marvez's weekly column. The following are other highlights of the interview.

-- Bischoff said he has watched the Jan. 4 Impact "between 50 to 75 times" looking for ways to improve the product.

-- Marvez reported that Bischoff was "not happy with some of the production values and a disastrous finish to the opening X-Division cage match."

-- The Genesis PPV on Sunday will feature more changes to the TV product, but Bischoff did not specify what the changes will be.

-- Bischoff, who was one of the stars of the January 4 Impact with his performance in an authority figure role, said he felt good about his performance.

"It felt great. I enjoy performing. It was kind of a release for me in a way," Bischoff said. "But the biggest kick I got was the process of creating and producing, the backstage pressure of being live and the teamwork we had."

Well, we're certainly seeing the lack of creativity from McMahon at the moment. Him & his writers are astoundingly bankrupt of ideas.

[Cardinal Chunder]

NUMBER 1!?

You have as much chance of winning as anyone else - number 1 has won it twice before.

Twice out of 22 Rumbles. Not this year though, I just know it.

[Rog]

13!?

Thanks to showbiz voodoo they'll never have 13 as the winner

[A J Styles]

Number 2!

[KK]

How many Rumble Sweepstakes have there been? 4?

[Rog]

Hacksaw won the first rumble from #13 Seems wrestlers don't follow the showbiz voodoo.

[KK]

KKLEIN, could you please stick that on page 1 in case it gets lost?

Done.

According to Dixie, TNA are relaunching their website over the weekend.

[Baron Zemo]

#7?

FML

Poncho, Wanna trade ?

[Chocolate Jim]

29 with Zell o/

[Corazon de Leon]

How many Rumble Sweepstakes have there been? 4?

We did the first one in 2006 and I got Tatanka, so this will be the fifth I think.

[A J Styles]

If your paired, is it joint winners or is there some quiz to find the sole winner?