-It looks like the Royal Rumble winner will face the world champion at Wrestlemania afterall, as Jim Ross made it official in his report. The WWF was toying with the idea of breaking tradition by not giving the winner at the Rumble a world title shot. This would pave the way for wrestlers who need a big win to get over, and not just the one who would most likely win the title at Wrestlemania. I say break tradition, because with the #1 contender crowned for Wrestlemania, it always drags out a long-ass feud between himself and the champ. Might as well put your money on the Rock now...
-CBS and Viacom shareholders have agreed for the 36 Billion Dollar merger the other day. This will enable for Viacom to start running operations and have complete control over CBS. A growing concern for the WWF is the fact that one company can not own two network stations due to Monopoly laws. Viacom would obviously drop UPN, the station they owned before the purchased CBS. If UPN is dropped, no more Smackdown. We'll just have to wait and see if the Government would allow for Viacom to have two network stations, thus saving Smackdown's life. Of course, Viacom can sell UPN, but it wouldn't be so sure if the WWF deal would still be in tact. What would be nice is if UPN folds, that Smackdown moves to CBS. I can dream, can't I?
-Boy, I can't wait to see Smackdown in 2000. From the results, I can see that it had a lot of odds and ends in the show. I wonder what is up with X-Pac defeating Big Show? Looks like we'll see much more of Chyna and Chris Jericho doing battle, as there was one of those evil double pins tonight. Kurt Angle defeated Rikish Fatu, WHO IS NOT YOKOZUNA, in a match where I'm disappointed with the outcome. Rikishi has the size and power to be big in the WWF, whereas Angle will only be decent when he's in a good "angle". Oh well, I hope to enjoy Smackdown whenever AT&T kills off one of my WB channels.
-Various news sources, including many WCW employees, are insisting that Ric Flair will be returning to WCW Monday to be the new commissioner of WCW. I agree with Calvin that it's a swerve just like they did with Scott Steiner. Vince Russo knows what goes on for the internet, and I'd imagine that he'll tell his WCW boys to throw out rumors to all of us news posters to feed off of. This kind of makes you mad when you are searching for reliable news only to be a part of a lie. I guess this is how Russo wants to achieve shock value these days, and it makes the good WCW news sources a joke.
-Good ol' Gene Simmons isn't taking any crap from WCW, as he wants them to honor their agreement to have a wrestler on WCW programming. Demon will definately return sometime soon, but the wrestler to play demon is uncertain. This is a good example of the bad judgements that Eric Bischoff made during his run as President of WCW. Who the hell was watching him when he made crummy deals like this? Seriously. It was a big deal in which KISS would make a killing of merchandise sales(close to 100% for KISS items). This is just one of the headaches that Eric Bischoff has left for WCW to fix. I'm sure we'll see more.
-I don't care where your partying tonight, but be sure to tape ECW on TNN tonight at 8pm Eastern Time. Tonight will feature the rematch between Masato Tanaka and Mike Awesome in one of the best matches of the year in my opinion. Those two can really go! I mean what better way to ring in the new year than with a super violent wrestling match? I couldn't see it any other way. Probably like me, you won't be watching TNN tonight, so tape it!! Set the timer on your VCR before you go out and party! Just do it!!
What on earth will the year 2000 bring to wrestling? Well I think that the entertainment part of it will reach new heights and continue to grow. Many think that wrestling has peaked, but I feel that there is still room for more fans. I'm sure there will be annoying parental groups out there trying to take wrestling's steam away, but the federations will adjust and move on.
I think many wrestlers will shine like never before this year. The Rock is definately going to rule the year 2000, as he's going to be on top for years to come. Other wrestlers like the Hardy Boys will shine even more, and continue to impress us with their awesome moves. The WWF will also make the most of newer wrestlers like Chris Jericho, Tazz, and the Big Show who all have so much damn potential waiting to be unleashed.
I think a whole bunch of wrestlers will retire in 2000, or at least be very close to it. Wrestlers who are constantly injured while wrestling in their 40s will eventually have to give up, and some wrestlers in their 30s will also have to retire due to the ring damage on their bodies.
WWF, I feel, can only get better, but they won't make any big jumps in ratings. They are on top right now, and they have a firm position right now. WCW can make a charge if they get organized better, and not try to confuse us with quick matches and segments. WCW has the star power and youth to make a good run, but they need to book it correctly. Scott Steiner needs to stay healthy because he was one of the best heels in the business. WCW really needs to develope wrestlers in their midcard arsenal for the future of WCW to survive. Wrestlers like Vampiro, Buff Bagwell, EVERY Luchadore, Perry Saturn, Chris Kanyon, and a cast of many others must get developed properly and eventually replace the older guys on top right now.
ECW is the key in this situation because they are going to be HUGE in 2000 in my opinion. The TNN show should grow and start making a big difference in the wrestling world. ECW MUST keep their current talent. They can't let wrestlers like Rob Van Dam, Mike Awesome, Sabu, Raven, Sandman, Tommy Dreamer and the cast of many others go. They need all of them to truly survive in the bigtime wrestling business. ECW seems to get all of the best raw wrestling talent, and they can continue to keep things fresh. The Video Game will help many newer fans get familiar with ECW, and it will definately boost ECW's status. It's time to shine for ECW.
@Well that raps this final edition of the Phat Daily Column up for 1999. I just want to thank everyone for supporting and reading my work this year. I'll continue to pump out these columns, and you should know by now that I'm reliable everyday. Unless this damn Y2K stuff actually screws me over, just chill till the first edition of the 2000 Phat Daily Column. Enjoy your New Years!!!
Take Care, and Thanks so Much for Reading this year!