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http://www.cheap-heat.com/nxt-takeover-brooklyn-summerslam-preview/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/nxt-takeover-brooklyn-summerslam-preview/#comments Sat, 22 Aug 2015 13:31:20 +0000 B+ Players CH Podcast Cesaro Finn Balor John Cena Kevin Owens NXT Seth Rollins SummerSlam Takeover Takeover Brooklyn The Undertaker WWE WWE Network WWE Universe http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=13670 If the Media Player gives you trouble – CLICK HERE – for our official page at YourListen! The boys are back in town! Mark, Gary, and “PG” Matt are back on the attack, and getting ready for a jam packed weekend of wrestling! B+ Player Radio is located just 40 minutes from the beautiful Barclay’s […]

If the Media Player gives you trouble – CLICK HERE – for our official page at YourListen!

The boys are back in town! Mark, Gary, and “PG” Matt are back on the attack, and getting ready for a jam packed weekend of wrestling! B+ Player Radio is located just 40 minutes from the beautiful Barclay’s Center, and we’ll be there LIVE Saturday Night for NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn!

We sat down to discuss what might take place at TakeOver, as well as the subsequent television tapings. In addition, we’re previewing WWE SummerSlam — also at the Barclay’s Center — this Sunday night! We will not be on hand for the ‘Slam, instead we’ll be hosting a Beer-B-Q viewing party with LIVE reactions!

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/ring-dissection-ring-dissection-brock-lesnar-2-0-year-2/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/ring-dissection-ring-dissection-brock-lesnar-2-0-year-2/#comments Sun, 15 Mar 2015 22:24:59 +0000 Scott Hayes Blogs Other Blogs Big Show Brock Lesnar CM Punk Extreme Rules HHH MMA Paul Heyman Ric Flair Royal Rumble SummerSlam Triple H UFC Undertaker Wrestlemania WWE http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=10440 Welcome back to the Lab. Where we slice and dice all things pro wrestling. This is another installment of the "Lesnar Dissection". For those of you curious you can see the dissection of "Year 1" right here: Just a reminder I am taking my scalpel to closer examine Lesnar's 3 year run since returning to […]

Welcome back to the Lab. Where we slice and dice all things pro wrestling. This is another installment of the "Lesnar Dissection". For those of you curious you can see the dissection of "Year 1" right here:

Just a reminder I am taking my scalpel to closer examine Lesnar's 3 year run since returning to the WWE the night after Wrestlemania 28. A quick overview. Lesnar came back. Crowd went crazy. F-5'd Cena. Lost the big PPV match. Broke HHH's arm. Won that big PPV match. Lost that PPV rematch at Mania… which leads us to?

The build to this saw a ramp up of some intensity. The story being Brock had made HHH tap out, at Summerslam. Hunter had KO'd Lesnar at Mania with a pedigree on the steps. Lesnar destroyed Trips office at WWE headquarters. The two brawled in a cage on Raw, too. So this is to settle it. A rubber match.

Lesnar came out first, but before he could finish entering, HHH attacked. Driving him into the cage. Hunter dominated the early going, until Brock went for a flying knee, but HHH got out of the way and Brock's knee crashed into the cage which became a focal point for the match. Brock complaining about the knee to Paul. It buckling during an F-5 attempt midway through the match. HHH hitting chop blocks, and using a chair against it… oh yeah… Paul slid a chair into the ring at the behest of the Beast. See… Brock had hit an F-5 and Hunter kicked out. So? They needed to up the ante, so to speak. Back to the action, Hunter continued to work that knee. Again I notice the crowd really isn't into this match… HHH's working of the knee and Brock's selling is great during the middle section of this match. Of course Trips locks in a figure four. Because…

Brock isn't tapping… Hunter is now punching the knee while he has the Figure Four in… BRILLIANT! Lesnar eventually turns it over. Hold gets broke. Brock gets up. Goes to climb out. Gets AAAAAALMOST there and Triple H hits the wounded knee with a chair. Ouchtown: Population, YOU, Brock. In that corner Triple H had hid a sledge up at the top of the cage. Spray painted silver! Lesnar is able to thwart that attempt and gets the sledge in HIS possession, that also goes poorly and Brock ends up in a Sharpshooter. Paul ends up in the ring trying to break it up, and eats a Pedigree! Lesnar also eats a Pedigree and kicks out at Two… PLUS! Heyman low blows Triple H. Lesnar regroups and then nails HHH with the sledgehammer. Hits the F-5 which was just a formality, and scores the pinfall. He places the sledge next to HHH for a little symbolism and limps his way to the back. Easily their best of the three matches. Good story and action throughout. From a booking standpoint I feel they leaned too much on Paul being involved physically and interfering. Heyman slammed the cage door into HHH's head, low blowed him, and was very involved in distracting HHH. Still… brought Brock's record to an even 2-2 since his return.

Brock's next match was to be one for the ages. The story starts with CM Punk and Paul Heyman. Their friendship over the years and Paul managing Punk during his 434 day reign as WWE Champion. At Money in the Bank that year, Paul Heyman turned on Punk (Side note, I was there! Four rows behind the announce table… LOOK FOR ME, in a Cesaro shirt and with a Switzerland Soccer Scarf.) So Punk fought his way through the Heyman Guy B-Team. Axel and Ryback. Working like crazy to get his hands on Paul. Eventually Paul yells "ITS CLOBBERIN' TIME", and we set off for this match at Summerslam.

Hype video for this match was amazing. The match was made No DQ, which they announced on the pre show. That's a head scratcher. Why not hype that up more? Lesnar out first. Punk out second and crowd going CRAZY. I miss "Cult of Personality" as an entrance song. Already this crowd is more live and hype than the three HHH/Lesnar matches COMBINED. Punk tries to come out firing, but gets thrown into the corner and eats shoulders and stomps. Early story was Punk trying to come out hard. Being tenacious, but it not working as Lesnar just manhandling Punk. Eventually Punk hits a big kick and a couple knees and a suicide dive to get some momentum. Punk tried to use the top half of the entrance steps, but Lesnar just shoulder tackles them into Punk… side note: WHY when a HUGE dude snatches up the ring steps the announcers freak out about "THEIR POWER AND STRENGTH", and yet Punk grabs them with relative ease and now one says a word? Don't answer that, it was rhetorical.

Punk dominates on the outside. Hits a diving clothesline off the table, and then notices Heyman. He stalks Heyman, and gets run over by the Beast for his troubles. Lesnar rag dolls Punk across the Spanish Announce Table. Then over the main table… his back hit awkwardly on one of the monitors. Brock overhead belly to belly's Punk, before this match final gets back in the ring. Lesnar clobbers. Punk tries to rally, before Lesnar snuffs it out. Punk's back is bleeding due to the early spot on the announce tables. Lesnar lots of trash talk during this match is great. Him calling himself the Best int he World, and dismissively yelling out to the crowd, "THIS IS YOUR BOY, HUH?"

This match is physical. Brock's knees to the ribs, or Punk's forearm smashes. Lesnar bear hugs Punk and I would immediately tap out at that move… not because of the pain, though I'm sure it could hurt like hell… but cuz Lesnar is so sweaty. I'd just tap out and yell "GET IT OFF ME!" Punk goes for an axe handle smash off the top. Gets caught… clearly Brock forgot his NFL training because nary a fair catch signal was made! Huge fall away slam. Punk fights out and ends up biting Lesnar. Then starts in with kicks galore. Forearms get Lesnar wobbly, and Punk hits a flying knee off the top rope. Then his trademark running high knee into the corner x2… NOPE! x3 – caught by Lesnar – but Punk hits a head kick, and the Macho Man elbow, which was really more splash than elbow. That got a 2… PLUS! Punk signals for the GTS. Lesnar gets out, hoists Punk for the F-5, but Punk gets out and hits a head kick. More great counter wrestling. As Punk again hoists him for the GTS, but Lesnar reverses THAT into the Kimura. Punk tuns that into an arm bar, and eventually gets Lesnar into a triangle. That becomes a deadlift power bomb, but Punk keeps the triangle on. SECOND deadlift, and then running power bomb. "This is Awesome" chant is well deserved. Lesnar hits the Three Amigos. Or… ya know… his version. Which is more raw brute power less smooth when rolling to keep it going.

Lesnar goes to the outside to get a chair. Punk climbs to the top rope and dives onto chair/Lesnar. That one hurt both of them. Chair then used across the brick wall that is Lesnar's back. Match back inside the ropes, Lesnar gets the chair, but then eats a low blow. Punk does a chair assisted elbow drop off the top. I was sure that was it the first time I saw it. Three Minus as Lesnar BARELY kicked out in time. Punk wears out that chair on Lesnar's back some more, UNTIL? Heyman snatches it from him. Now Punk is able to grab Heyaman, but again Lesnar makes the save. Lesnar hoists Punk up, but Punk has Heyman's tie. Which led to a great exchange between Heyman and Lesnar with Lesnar telling Paul to "LET GO!" Punk hit the GTS on Lesnar, but between Paul breaking it up and Lesnar kicking out the match CONTINUES. Punk reversed the F-5 into a DDT, and then locked in the Anaconda Vice. Heyman slid in with a chair, but is cut off. Punk punches Paul and then locks in the Vice. Paul tapping away frantically then a SUPER high velocity chair shot to Punk breaks that up. Nasty shots. Then an F-5 onto that chair puts an end to a spectacular match.

EASILY Lesnar's best match since his return. Great match. Great story. No surprise this was on many a "Year End" list that year.

So then Lesnar went away… for a while. A… LONG… WHILE. Lesnar did a couple appearances leading into Royal Rumble "dislocating" Mark Henry's elbow. Lesnar also started calling himself, or Heyman called him the #1 contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Anyway, back to him and Show. At the time Henry and Big Show were besties. This being Big Show's "face" season… cuz Big Show turns like the seasons. So Big Show wanted revenge for his buddy. Lesnar being physically dominated in the run ins with Show leading to:

Lesnar attacks before the bell. Takes Show down. Gets a chair, cuz what is a Lesnar match without weaponry? So he sets off in destroying Show. To give a play by play: Chair shot. Chair shot. Chair shot. Chair shot. Chair Shot. Chair shot. etc. etc. etc. Heyman actually goes to give Brock a NEW chair because the original has taken too much of a beating. Bell finally rings. Lesnar charges in for another chair shot and eats the KO Punch. Each man stumbles around on the outside. Show works the body. Crowd okay for this… clearly they were about to be crazy loud with the insanity that followed in the Rumble. Lesnar ends up F-5ing show… though it was more F-U styled. Quick match. Just a beat down squash type match. Post match Lesnar continued to destroy Show with chair shots. He breaks another chair over Big Show, and Heyman tosses him a THIRD chair. Clearly this was setting up to make Lesnar look as dangerous as possible for his Mania match.

You know I didn't know if we would get to a second Wrestlemania match with Lesnar. Clearly this second year of Lesnar has gone a lot better than the first. Going into Wrestlemania he was on a three match winning streak. Had a Match of the Year contender under his belt, and finally we were lined up to get the match that had been rumored and talked about since Lesnar and Taker crossed paths in an arena at a UFC show. The story for Taker's Mania matches have pretty much been the same for the last 6 or 7 years. "Wrestler X" wants to break the Undertaker's streak. WHAT is the "Undertaker's Streak", you ask? Going into the match the Undertaker had never been defeated at Wrestlemania. He was 21-0. As impressive as that is… that they never had him lose a random match? What's MORE impressive is the Deadman's longevity. This would be his 22nd appearance at the Grandaddy of them all. When it would take 14 Mania's without a Taker appearance to be able to say "Taker appeared at half of all Wrestlemanias?" That's saying something.

Ultimately Lesnar and Heyman were moving forward saying that Lesnar was the Number One Contender. McMahonagement was like, sorry Brock. Here you can have a contract for a match of ANYONE of your choosing. Brock and Heyman were very sad panda'd about this. So they were content to not fight at Mania, but Taker returned. Choke slammed him through a table and boom.

Hype video for this match was stellar, but if there is ONE Thing the WWE does consistently well its these video packages. Heyman saying "He IS the �ONE'"… "All good things DO come to an END." He's more prophet than advocate there. JBL actually mentioned Lesnar's IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Can't remember THAT One being mentioned before.

Entrances end… man that was LLLLLLONG. I love Taker's entrance, but that one felt so long. Brawling to begin. Lesnar overhead belly to belly's the Deadman. Brock clothesline Taker over the top rope, but Taker lands on his feet. Little more brawling. Taker focusing on Brock's shoulder. Slow start with Taker controlling. VINTAGE leg drop on the apron! [/Michael Cole] Snake eyes. Taker goes for a chokeslam, but Lesnar gets out, hoists for the F-5. Taker gets out. Taker misses a running big boot into the corner, and gets hung up on the top rope. Giving Lesnar a body part to work. I notice the crowd is pretty dead for this. I'm guessing its because everyone thought this was a foregone conclusion. Lesnar dominates this for a while. Methodical destruction. Taker turns the tide with a big DDT. He gets rolling. Big running corner splash. Snake eyes. Big Boot. Taker calling for the chokeslam. GREAT chokeslam. Lesnar jumped outta his shoes on that one. TWO… PLUS!

Taker goes for the Tombstone… Brock out F-5! Taker kicks out. Brock stares in disbelief. Crowd starts to come to life. Taker can't get up, but lures in Lesnar and locks in the Hell's Gate. Deadlift power bomb. Not a full lift, but Taker is a big dude. Still impressive. Back to the Hell's Gate. ANOTHER deadlift power bomb. This one Lesnar gets him up. JBL makes a good point. Taker has been on his back for five minutes of this match. Locked in two Hell's Gates, but hasn't been off the mat. Lesnar locks in the kimura. Taker reverses it and locks in a kimura of his own. They battle in the corner after the ring break. Taker goes for old school. Lesnar pulls him down onto his shoulder. F-5… the sequel! Taker kicks out. Lesnar goes into German mode. Hits two. Mounted punches in the corner for Lesnar means Brock is about to go for a LAST RIDE! Taker collapses. Rewatching this Taker legit looks out of it. Tombstone! Cross armed cover… THREE – MINUS!!! Taker sits up. Crowd meekly reacts. Signals for another Tombstone. Hoists him, Lesnar counters that, and gets Taker into F-5 position. That was impressive. Lets make it F-5 the trilogy! And… cue… THIS:

Crowd was stunned. Total disbelief, then grumbling. Booing. A decent "bullshit" chant. No ONE saw this coming. Match was affected by Taker's concussion. It was good, not great, but that finish was so memorable. Also the first match that wasn't filled with weapons or Paul running in, or distracting. The huge standing ovation at the end was touching. Legit concern for if this was the Undertaker's last match especially as the reports filed in about him spending the night in the hospital. Whether or not the finish was called on the fly. Even the ref count felt weird when I watched it live. Watching it THIS time, it was normal. They just booked it so there was no reaction. Bell didn't ring, Brock's music didn't start. They even took a few beats before announcing a winner. They sold the shock so well people at first were thinking someone screwed up. But the production with the crowd shots right after, and the graphic say otherwise.

In Review!

What a difference a year makes. Year one saw Brock's return and was super underwhelming. Year two? Whoa. The best of the Brock vs. Triple H trilogy. A Match of the Year contender with CM Punk at Summerslam. A pretty forgetful, throw away "match" with Big Show, which served its final purpose which was building up to a huge clash against the Undertaker at Wrestlemania. I can't imagine many people were up on thinking Lesnar would end the streak. Hell… I can't recall anyone thinking Lesnar hand any kind of shot. He capped this year in the WWE with a win that trumps any WWE World Championship win. He did something no one thought would happen and most didn't want to happen. The WWE really solidified Lesnar in this campaign. They had a plan for him. They built him well and executed that incredibly well. He was able to put on memorable matches and really cemented himself. I was very on the fence about him returning. I'm not a fan of the part timers. Even if its a "heavier" schedule like Lesnar does, than say when the Rock was around leading into Mania 29. This year helped bring me around. At the very least you have the opportunity to book enthralling matches and have this once in a generation attraction. A legitimate fighter and a great pro wrestler who really found his groove melding those worlds together during this year. They course corrected after year one and came out with a bigger star and box office draw. I look forward to taking a look to his third year. Where we know he had bigger and better things in store!

Scalpels down.

…To Be…CONCLUDED!

http://www.cheap-heat.com/lucky-thirteen-2-top-13-years-of-the-past-2-decades/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/lucky-thirteen-2-top-13-years-of-the-past-2-decades/#comments Tue, 13 Jan 2015 02:16:40 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Blogs Other Blogs Top Lists 2 Cold Scorpio Adrian Neville AJ Styles Austin Aries Batista Bill Goldberg Bobby Lashley Booker T Bret Hart British Bulldog Bryan Danielson Chris Benoit Chris Jericho Christian Christian Cage Christopher Daniels CM Punk CZW Daniel Bryan Darren Young Dave Batista Davey Boy Smith Davey Richards David Arquette Dean Malenko Degeneration X Dwayne Johnson Eastern Championship Wrestling ECW Eddie Guerrero Edge Elimination Chamber Eric Bischoff Extreme Championship Wrestling Four Horsemen Goldberg Hell in a Cell HHH Hollywood Hogan Impact Jake Roberts Jeff Jarrett Jerry Lawler Kane Ken Shamrock Kevin Nash King Booker King of the Ring Kurt Angle Latino Heat Mankind Matt Sydal Mick Foley Money in the Bank Montreal Screwjob Mr. Perfect New World Order Nigel McGuinness Nitro NJPW NWA NXT One Night Stand Owen Hart Paul Bearer Paul Heyman Perry Saturn Phil Brooks Psycho Sid Radicalz RAW Razor Ramon Ready 2 Rumble Rey Mysterio RF Video Ric Flair Ring of Honor Rob Feinstein Rocky Maivia Roddy Piper ROH Royal Rumble Ryback Sami Zayn Samoa Joe Scott Steiner Sean Waltman Shane Douglas Shane McMahon Shawn Michaels Smackdown Starrcade Stephanie McMahon Steve Austin Stone Cold SummerSlam Survivor Series TAKA Michinoku Ted DiBiase The Alliance The Rock TNA Todd Gordon Total Nonstop Action Triple H UFC Ultimate Warrior Undertaker Vampiro Vince McMahon Vince Russo Wade Barrett WCW Wolfpac Wrestlemania Wrestling Society X WSX WWE WWF XFL http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8812 Lucky Thirteen #2 Top 13 Years of the Past 2 Decades Written by Mark Adam Haggerty I can’t remember back to a time before I was a wrestling fan. I can recall being six-years-old and thumbing through my parents modest little library of movies, suddenly stumbling upon a set of black Disney-like big boxes that […]

Lucky Thirteen #2
Top 13 Years of the Past 2 Decades
Written by Mark Adam Haggerty

I can’t remember back to a time before I was a wrestling fan. I can recall being six-years-old and thumbing through my parents modest little library of movies, suddenly stumbling upon a set of black Disney-like big boxes that contained the first five Wrestlemanias. From that day I was hooked. I began tuning into WWF Superstars and WCW Saturday Night every single week, and by the spring of 1993 I was begging my parents to order Wrestlemania 9 on pay-per-view. Over the past 20 years I’ve had my share of favorite moments, but I often ask myself, what was the best year in professional wrestling? Maybe not best, but how about the most influential? Most impactful? Okay here it is: What was the Most Important Year since I Became a Fan? When other sites limit their lists to Top Ten, we take it a Step Further with the Lucky Thirteen—counting down the Top Years of the Past 2 Decades.

13. 2003
The list had to start somewhere and after cutting away seven years of nonsense I thought, what better place to begin than with 2003. Looking back I feel as though the year felt much bigger than it really was. Momentous occasions like Wrestlemania XIX and Stone Cold's retirement drew considerable attention but it's hard to isolate many other memorable moments. By this point Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and Ring of Honor were both open and doing business, although nowhere near the level of success that they'd each see within a few short years. WCW had been closed since 2001, so WWE was slowly filtering out the Turner-holdovers and rebranding wrestlers like Booker T and Rey Mysterio as WWE Superstars. Twenty-oh-Three was the year Bill Goldberg made his long-awaited debut on Monday Night Raw where he famously told Dwayne Johnson, "You're next Rock!" In addition to a handful of interesting gimmicks and storylines scattered across the calendar, 2003 featured must-see-TV for anyone curious as to what lurked beneath the red and black mask of "The Devil's Favorite Demon" Kane. While it may appear dull in hindsight, 2003 was a fun time featuring the sex and violence of the Attitude Era, mixed with the incredible in-ring action so many of us value today.

12. 2010
Twenty-Ten proved to be an auspicious time for all wrestling organizations. Wrestlemania 26 featured the final match in the venerable career of "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels when he failed to defeat The Undertaker in Glendale. But as one man's career ended, eight more were just getting started; the initial NXT program was a far cry from the extraordinary show we see each week on the WWE Network, but it did introduce the WWE Universe to Superstars such as Ryback, Wade Barrett, Darren Young, and even the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan. Twenty-Ten was the year in which the unimaginable happened when Bret "The Hitman" Hart made his return to WWE television after a thirteen year hiatus. But 2010 was big for the competition as well. Not only were independent promotions the world-over hitting their stride due to the added exposure brought-on by social media, but TNA was enjoying one of its most visible years to date thanks to signing Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff and a number of other established talents. In addition to inflating their roster, TNA made several changes to their product; they would begin to implement a traditional four-sided ring, and even attempted to compete live on Monday's with WWE Raw. The year 2010 was an exciting time for wrestling fans across the planet, and is the most modern year on my countdown.

11. 2007
It’s true that 2007 can hardly be considered a great year for professional wrestling, let alone the WWE. For a while it seemed that active wrestlers appeared on Nancy Grace more than they ever did on Raw or Smackdown. But if I'm here to countdown the most important years in wrestling, this certainly had its share of newsworthy events. In the summer of 2007, the WWE suspended more than half of its active roster in response to a litany of wellness violations for a variety of substances, most notably Human Growth Hormone. This year was historic for being the official end of "The Ruthless Aggression Era"—a period of time significant for exposing younger talent and transitioning the product out of the overtly controversial Attitude Era. In 2007 TNA expanded its flagship show IMPACT to two hours and embarked on what would be a defining age for the promotion. One of my favorite events in history happened in 2007, "The King of Europe Cup." The �Cup was a one-off event that took place over a two day period in the United Kingdom. A must-watch event that is readily available on YouTube and features well-known workers such as Adrian Neville, Sami Zayn, Matt Sydal, Davey Richards and a man who won the ROH World title in 2007—Nigel McGuinness. Sadly it's safe to say the most infamous moments of 2007 occurred between June 22nd and June 25th as the world became aware of the chilling circumstances surrounding Nancy, Daniel, and of course "The Crippler" Chris Benoit. Unfortunately for all of the positives, 2007 will forever be marred by the heinous actions of a troubled man that led to irreparable changes across the industry and what has been dubbed, "The PG Era."

10. 2006
It would appear as though 2006 was the last year representing any semblance of what was once regarded as a pop culture phenomenon. The ECW One Night Stand pay-per-view the previous year was such a success that WWE officials opted to resurrect Extreme Championship Wrestling complete with a one-hour timeslot on the Sci-Fi Channel. Edge and Rey Mysterio each made history in 2006 by becoming world champion; first Edge at New Years' Revolution and then Rey at Wrestlemania 22 in Chicago. Poised to be a contributing factor in the �New ECW', former champion Kurt Angle shocked the world in 2006 when he signed with TNA Wrestling. This year was famous for launching the career of current TNA Champion Bobby Lashley, as well as helping to define that of former Ring of Honor World Champion CM Punk. There were over a dozen debuts throughout the year due to ECW on Sci-Fi and Smackdown's "New Superstar Initiative." In Ring of Honor, the world title picture was dominated by Bryan Danielson who secured his spot atop the card from September 2005 until December 2006. In addition to WWE and TNA, MTV delivered an over the top unreal wrestling experience known as "Wrestling Society X." WSX only lasted one short season but familiarized fans with future names such as Matt Sydal and reintroduced established stars like Sean Waltman and Vampiro. Twenty-oh-Six was a great year for good storytelling that included Vince McMahon's rivalry with Shawn Michaels, Booker T becoming King Booker, and the continuing drama between Edge and John Cena. Rounding out the top ten, 2006 was an enjoyable year without much in the way of defining moments but never short on excitement.

9. 2000
When the new millennium dawned on the world of professional wrestling, so too did a number of landmark milestones and controversial occurrences. WCW released the unsuccessful "Ready 2 Rumble," starring a variety of World Championship Wrestling athletes and the man who would soon become WCW Champion—David Arquette. Not only was 2000 the year all WCW titles would be stripped and reassigned, it was also the year in which the World Championship was devalued and strapped to a B-list Hollywood celebrity. But not all was bad in the world of sports and entertainment as 2000 marked the first time Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson hosted Saturday Night Live, which he did to rave reviews. While Eric Bischoff returned to WCW, a new set of "Radicalz" debuted in the WWF; Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko all jumped ship and began appearing on WWF TV in the early months of the new millennium. The Year Two-Thousand was a defining era for the Undertaker who chose this year to swap his demonic demeanor for the apparel of the "American Badass." Hulk Hogan would say his final goodbye to his WCW fans thanks to a scenario gone wrong involving the Hulkster, Jeff Jarrett, and head-writer Vince Russo. An exciting year for wrestling of course with Kurt Angle capturing his first of many world titles, but perhaps the biggest thing to happen in 2000 was the debut of Vince McMahon's now defunct football league—The XFL. Whether you're a football fan or an admirer of the "Scream" film franchise, 2000 had something for everybody to get excited about.

8. 2005
If ever a year signaled things to come it was 2005. For fans of the WWE, 2005 was the year Monday Night Raw returned home to the USA Network after a five year run on Spike TV. Two first-time world champions were crowned at Wrestlemania—John Cena and Dave Batista. But TNA had its own share of successes in 2005: the company made its highly anticipated debut on Spike TV; Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles, and Samoa Joe had the only 5-Star Triple Threat Match in history; and Christian Cage signed a deal, opening the gates to a deluge of ex-WWE Superstars. ECW was in the midst of a resurrection that would culminate in 2006, but 2005 was the year the WWE hosted the first "ECW One Night Stand," in New York City. On the independent scene, a former backyard wrestler named Phil Brooks won the ROH World Heavyweight Championship from the highly decorated Austin Aries, thus placing CM Punk on WWE's radar. Later that year another future WWE Champion would capture the ROH World Title and hold it for over four hundred days—"The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson. Back in the WWE, six daring individuals were getting ready to introduce the world to "Money in the Bank," and later that year Shawn Michaels faced Hulk Hogan for the first time ever at Summerslam. Chris Jericho was fired by Eric Bischoff and then Bischoff himself was released resulting in Eric leaving the arena in the back of a garbage truck. But even in the silliest of times, sadness rears its ugly head and it was in 2005 that the world was forced to say goodbye to the former WWE Champion, "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero. From the highs to the lows, 2005 was an important year that no one will ever forget.

7. 1994
Not such an enormous year for the industry-leading WWF, but a landmark time period for much of the competition. Having survived his battle with the US Government, Vince McMahon was back in full control of his company; 1994 was the year of Wrestlemania X and the infamous bout between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels that would set the bar for ladder matches to come. The Undertaker mysteriously disappeared at the Royal Rumble and come Summerslam, the WWF fans were privy to not one—but TWO Undertakers! Of course this was the year that the Hart Family rivalry between Bret and Owen kicked into high gear, including a match of the year contender at Wrestlemania and a championship cage match at Summerslam. But outside the confines of the WWF, events began to take place that would lay the foundation for the Attitude Era. The NWA was the longstanding governing body of professional wrestling in the United States and Japan for several decades. In 1994 the NWA title was to be decided in Philadelphia at Todd Gordon's Eastern Championship Wrestling, with Shane Douglas set to win the gold. Instead Douglas disregarded the title, disgracing the NWA in the process by claiming he would not represent a company that, "died, R.I.P. seven years ago!" ECW broke away from the NWA and declared themselves Extreme Championship Wrestling with "The Franchise" as their champion. Down in WCW, Eric Bischoff was moving ahead by leaps and bounds thanks to an array of positive changes in production, including the debut of WCW Saturday Night at Disney's MGM Studios in Orlando. But perhaps there was nothing in '94 as monumental as when WCW signed Hulk Hogan. Bischoff wasted no time in booking the dream contest WWF refused to feature at Wrestlemania VIII two years earlier. In his debut match alongside Mr. T and Shaquille O'Neil, Hulk Hogan defeated "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair for the WCW Title. Who's to say if things had gone differently in �94, the industry of today might be something else entirely.

6. 1998
The Attitude Era might have started in �97, but 1998 was the year in which the world was introduced to the brand new World Wrestling Federation. WCW turned up the heat on the competition by introducing a brand new Thursday night program on TBS titled, "Thunder." This was the year that saw The Four Horsemen reunite on Monday Nitro including Ric Flair who had since left the company. The NWO was continuing to grow and would eventually split into two entities: NWO Hollywood with Hulk Hogan, and NWO Wolfpac lead by Kevin Nash. WCW cornered the video game market in �98 with one of the most prolific wrestling games in history—WCW/NWO Revenge for the Nintendo 64. Over in the �Federation, Superstars were beginning to get "hardcore" and a new title with a 24/7 stipulation was introduced on TV. Not only were the �falls' taking place backstage and in the audience, but from on top of the Hell in a Cell as Mick Foley was launched from the structure, and then drilled through it at the 1998 King of the Ring. WCW continued to beat the WWF in the Monday Night War due to a consistent strategy based on booking their top matches on cable, rather than pay-per-view. Bill Goldberg, who had already made a name for himself by maintaining an unprecedented winning streak made history when he became the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. But Bill was far from the only bald-headed badass to win gold in 1998. Earlier that year, Stone Cold Steve Austin captured his first world title after defeating Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania XIV in Boston. It was a profitable year for all wrestling companies including ECW, but 1998 would be the last year WCW would succeed in dominating the WWF in the ratings.

5. 1996
Maybe it's because Shawn Michaels' boyhood dream came true at Wrestlemania XII; or the initial formation of the NWO at Bash at the Beach; even the insane rivalry between "The Excellence of Execution" and "The Texas Rattlesnake." Whatever it was, my personal favorite year in professional wrestling was 1996. The spring began with a bang as Scott Hall made his first appearance on Turner Television, joined just a few weeks later by Kevin Nash. In June of 1996, Stone Cold Steve Austin broke from Ted DiBiase and became the King of the Ring; during his royal coronation, Stone Cold uttered a phrase that would change his career forever—"Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!" But just as heels began to turn face, so did longtime heroes turn to the dark side. Along with the debut of the New World Order was the introduction of the evil Hollywood Hogan, who won the WCW title in August 1996 and held it just six days shy of one year. The Survivor Series that fall was famous for memorable main event matches as well as a number of debuts including that of the first ever third generation WWF Superstar, Rocky Maivia. Paul Bearer made the turn on �Taker in favor of the far more deranged Mankind; The Ultimate Warrior and Jake Roberts returned for a short period, each feuding with Jerry Lawler; Roddy Piper was featured on both WWF Wrestlemania and WCW Starrcade; ECW was beginning to break out nationwide. But most importantly—the Monday Night War was just getting underway. WCW debuted Nitro on TNT in the autumn of �95, and it was in 1996 that WCW finally succeeded in stealing Vince McMahon's spotlight.

4. 2001
In terms of the industry changing forever, 2001 might have been the most cataclysmic year in wrestling history. It was this year that WCW fans became aware of what was to become of their preferred promotion. Although many familiar faces were involved in negotiating the resurrection of WCW, it was Vince McMahon who purchased his competition for a mere $2.2 million dollars—a price that included licensing, tape libraries, and the contracts belonging to twenty-two WCW performers. In addition to the end of World Championship Wrestling, Paul Heyman signed a deal with Vince McMahon in 2001 some months after ECW was unseated by the WWF as Spike TV's premier wrestling program. The World Wrestling Federation was the winner of the Monday Night War and the Attitude Era was at an end. The summer of 2001 was highlighted by the Invasion storyline featuring an enormity of former WCW and ECW talents rallying together against the WWF with Shane and Stephanie McMahon leading the charge. This would be the year that Stone Cold Steve Austin would turn heel twice, first by joining forces with Vince McMahon at Wrestlemania and then by turning on the WWF and joining the Alliance. Speaking of Wrestlemania, Houston hosted the Seventeenth annual extravaganza—an event like none other that included the highly revered TLC triple threat tag match won by Edge and Christian. On September 13th, Vince McMahon and the WWF Superstars set a national precedent by appearing in Texas just days removed from the World Trade Center attacks in what Vince called, "the largest public gathering of its size since the events of Tuesday." In December of 2001 the two world titles were unified in a competition that would see Chris Jericho beat The Rock as well as Steve Austin in the same night to become the first ever Undisputed WWF Champion in history. The year 2001 was a peculiar period for the wrestling industry as it was the only year in which the WWF was faced with no immediate competition.

3. 1999
With the Attitude Era in full swing, 1999 was an enormous year for the WWF both inside the squared circle as well as on Wall Street. The WWF became the first wrestling promotion in history to go public in 1999, and followed the success with a series of groundbreaking business decisions still in effect today. The company introduced Smackdown on the UPN Network on Thursday Nights as competition to WCW's Thunder on the TBS Superstation. The Rock was enjoying his inaugural championship title reign and would face Steve Austin for their first of three �Mania encounters at Wrestlemania XV in Philadelphia. Unfortunately the good can often be overshadowed by the tragic; on May 23, 1999 the world of professional wrestling lost one of its favorite stars when Owen Hart fell to his death in Kansas City, Missouri. Owen will never be forgotten as his passing was one of the most earth-shattering moments in history—wrestling or otherwise. Behind the scenes, longtime WWF head writer Vince Russo had become disenfranchised by the �Federation and jumped ship to rival WCW where Eric Bischoff was forcibly removed from his post as president. As WCW struggled during turbulent times, the WWF continued to prosper with the continuation of the McMahon/Austin saga, the further explored escapades of Degeneration X, and the debuts of The Big Show and Chris Jericho. The WWF would experience its first Monday night ratings victory since 1996 when Mick Foley defeated The Rock for the WWF Heavyweight Championship on a taped episode of Raw airing January 4th 1999. Titles changed hands that same night on TNT when Hollywood Hogan won the WCW title from Kevin Nash for a fifth time thanks to a booking misstep nicknamed "The Finger Poke of Doom." The Land of Extreme was also abuzz in �99 as this was the year ECW would debut on national cable television thanks to The Nashville Network, soon-to-be-known as Spike TV. The last year of the 20th Century was a period of growth for the WWF, but proved to be an unpredictable era for WCW, making it difficult to compete in the coming years of the new millennium.

2. 2002
If 2001 was the end of an era, 2002 was the dawning of a new age across the varied landscape of professional wrestling. The WWF began by changing its name to World Wrestling Entertainment in light of a conflict regarding the World Wildlife Fund. The campaign was dubbed "Get the �F' Out" and would help introduce audiences to an entirely new breed of "Ruthless Aggression," in the now-WWE. Two new promotions would rise from the ashes of the fallen WCW and ECW. There was former WCW Champion Jeff Jarrett's Southern-based Total Nonstop Action Wrestling—a subsidiary of the National Wrestling Alliance. TNA was originally intended to be a pay-per-view only promotion hosting ten dollar events once a week. In 2002 they crowned their very first Heavyweight Champion, former UFC and WWF competitor "The World's Most Dangerous Man" Ken Shamrock. Meanwhile RF Video—a pro wrestling video distribution company, was looking for a new promotion now that ECW was gone. Rather than working with established groups such as CZW, RF owner Rob Feinstein founded Ring of Honor and ran their first event, "The Era of Honor Begins" in April 2002. Back in the WWE, the entire roster was split into two warring halves—one set for Smackdown and the other relegated to Raw. The year was infamous for the seemingly relentless parade of surprise appearances that lasted the entirety of 2002. Former Superstars like Mr. Perfect and Scott Steiner became part of the current roster once more; Eric Bischoff debuted as the new General Manager of Monday Night Raw; the NWO opened No Way Out; but perhaps most surprising of all was the return of Shawn Michaels after more than four years away from the ring. Michaels captured the World Heavyweight Championship in the first ever Elimination Chamber Match when he defeated five other superstars including Triple H. Maybe one of the greatest years in the past two decades, but not quite number one.

1. 1997
The Number One Year of the Past Two Decades is 1997, and it shouldn’t be hard to see why. This year was the official launch of The Attitude Era in the WWF, signifying Vince McMahon's intention to compete with WCW on a whole new level. The competition didn't waiver however, as World Championship Wrestling was eager to meet the demand of audiences across the world. The "New Generation" made way for D-Generation X, a heel group similar to the NWO featuring Shawn Michaels and Triple H at the forefront. It was DX at the center of one of the most scandalous nights in wrestling—"The Montreal Screwjob." WCW was having its best year since Eric Bischoff took control of the company and bested their direct competition every week thanks to compelling storylines and the introduction of a former Atlanta Falcon named Bill Goldberg. The NWO storyline had yet to run its course and was complimented by the slow-build and impending confrontation between Hollywood Hogan and Sting at Starrcade. The Undertaker would become the WWF Champion for the first time in nearly six years when he defeated Psycho Sid at Wrestlemania XIII in Chicago, the same night Bret Hart and Steve Austin would wrestle their Match of the Year to a stunning conclusion. Paul Heyman's third party promotion dubbed Extreme Championship Wrestling would present their first ever pay-per-view event Barely Legal thanks in part to the promotion they received during the ECW Invasion of Monday Night Raw. The WWF became far more innovative during this period and introduced audiences to the Hell in a Cell and by circumstance the demonic younger brother of the Dead Man, Kane. It was also in 1997 that a hapless play-by-play announcer named Vince McMahon became one of the most detestable villains in professional wrestling history. The WWF would also begin debuting a number of midcard titles including the European Championship first held by The British Bulldog, and the Light Heavyweight Championship won by Taka Michinoku. WCW continued to maintain their edge in the ratings due to quality in-ring performances as well as plot twists and surprise appearances from WWF Superstars-turned-WCW Big Boys. It's not really a question: when asked about the single most action-packed and influential year from the past two decades of wrestling, I don't hesitate when I say 1997.

Conclusion
This list is ripe for discussion and debate, just as any other countdown featured in The Lucky Thirteen. You might agree, you probably disagree, I may have even listed your favorite year toward the bottom. It’s nothing personal, I promise. This list lives outside of the WWE Universe, but is of course greatly influenced by it. In regards to not including 2014, I didn’t want to include a year that hadn't yet concluded when I began compiling my information. I will say however with NJPW, the birth of the WWE Network, the salvation of TNA, and the first ROH Classic PPV, 2014 is sure to climb higher than any other year of the “Reality Era.” Whatever your feelings may be, I hope to see you again next week for another exciting countdown exclusively at Cheap-Heat. My name is Mark Adam Haggerty and this has been—The Lucky Thirteen.