Tuesday, July 14, 2009

ECW Thoughts - July 14, 2009

Starting things off with Shelton Benjamin vs. Christian? That's awfully nice of WWE. Good match, as I would expect a match between these two to be. I have to say though, I'm getting a little tired of music starting mid-match so a guy can come down and provide a distraction. We've seen it at least four times this week, why can't the guy just walk to ringside without a theme song? Oh well. As I said, the match was enjoyable, Christian showing once again why he's the most underrated Superstar in the business today, Kozlov was amusing on commentary and I have to admit I'm downright shocked that Shelton picked up the win. Here's hoping for a Shelton vs. Christian ECW Title match on PPV by the end of 2009.

Loved the interview with Ezekiel Jackson, his whole persona just works for me; hard-hitting, intimidating, but not the typical in your face roaring behemoth type. He comes across like a monster with a brain, which is definitely more depth than they usually give to the "hoss" types. Like I said last week, as long as Zeke can hang in the ring against actual members of the roster, he has "future champion" written all over him.

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Paul Burchill was a decent match, good to see The Ripper back in action after unfortunate events took him off the road. That back suplex that Burchill hit was gross and so was the knee that Yoshi hit to pick up the win, I almost though Paul was legitimately knocked out from that one. Also, have to agree with Matt Striker, it's pretty surprising to see how fast the audience has latched onto Yoshi, he was getting bigger cheers than some guys who have been around for years.

Striker & Matthews hype ZZ Top on next week's Raw and suggest "Legs" may have been written about Tiffany. Well, here's another fun ZZ Top fact: the song "Legs" is actually older than the ECW General Manager.

Zack Ryder vs. Goldust wasn't anything special, but Goldust was looking pretty good out there, definitely more into his work than I've seen him in years. I always have a soft spot for Goldust, he's one of the pioneers of the Attitude Era and one of the most unique characters to ever step foot in a ring. Obviously he's never going to be WWE Champ, but he's always a solid hand to have around and I like having him on ECW to work with young talent like Ryder.

SHEAMUS! Kick-Out's favorite new wrestler returns after taking a week off and crushes another Local Competitor. That bicycle kick was rough and his finisher is absolutely BRUTAL! I don't know why it makes me cringe, it's really not that different from a typical backbreaker, but the Rock Bottom aspect of it just makes it look so much more painful. Sheamus is definitely a welcome addition to the roster and I can't wait to see what he has in store for "E C Dobel Yeh."

Tommy Dreamer vs. Vladimir Kozlov was about as good as match between Vladimir Kozlov and Tommy Dreamer should be. Not to take anything away from either guy, but they're probably not ideal opponents and it's probably why Kozlov won't be competing for the ECW Title on PPV. Vlad is slowly getting on the path to becoming the most improved wrestler of 2009, but I think he needs to be working with someone like Christian to really realize his potential. That's why I'm thinking Christian gets the title back at Night of Champions and takes on Kozlov at SummerSlam.

Pretty good show, perhaps a bit too much going on? Five matches on ECW is a lot and I much prefer three long matches to five short ones. But it's understandable, lots of new faces in the Land of Extreme and they all need to be introduced, so this works for now. I do have one big gripe... where the hell is William Regal?!


  1. How long until England vs. Ireland? (I'd guess that's been done with Finlay before?)

  2. Actually Finlay & Regal used to team up... I assume it was very uncomfortable backstage.

  3. My question is what sort of information Zack Ryder is seeking from the radio, since he's so adamant that it tell him everything it knows.

  4. Another ZZ Top fun fact, whilst Striker & Mathews may think "Legs" would suit Tiffany, it was actually used for Stacy Keibler, albeit through Kid Rock. True Story.