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Dave Meltzer's subscription-based Wrestling Observer Newsletter has recently reviewed and awarded star ratings to all the matches from WWE's latest pay-per-view, the inaugural Battleground event held in Buffalo, New York.    On the whole Meltzer has been equally, if not more, critical of the event as pro wrestling fans worldwide, awarding just one match a rating of over three stars out of five. Even more shockingly, the 3.5-rating was not awarded to one of the main event matches, but to the upper midcard tag team clash between the Rhodes brothers and The Shield.  It would be hard to argue that the work of Dustin ...

The World Heavyweight Championship has been in a state of decline since Jack Swagger cashed in Money in the Bank to win his first world title over three years ago. More recently, the lackluster reigns of Alberto Del Rio, Big Show and Sheamus seemingly solidified the "Big Gold Belt" as the company's second title: a championship for upper-midcarders.  However, the standard of challengers are as guilty as the champions in contributing toward the waning of the prestige of the title; in recent times, the biggest names, such as CM Punk, The Rock and John Cena, have overlooked the blue brand's world championship, ...

Back in May, in the post-WrestleMania season, I wrote an article that was heavily critical of WWE's flagship television shows: Raw and SmackDown.  However, over the last five or six months, sufficient changes have been implemented in the weekly Raw broadcast to make it feel like a worthwhile show almost every week.  Primarily, since the dawning of the new McMahon/Helmsley "dictatorship," as it has been referred to by Michael Cole, the show has had a clear direction and central developing storyline. In the post-WrestleMania season, we were treated to repetitive "the Champ is here" promos from John Cena, the company's then-top heel, CM ...

Triple H is a 13-time world champion, having won the WWE Championship eight times and the World Heavyweight title on five different occasions. Despite having not held a championship since his last run with the industry's most prestigious belt in early 2009, the current heel authority character is probably Hunter's best and his only realistic chance to hold a world championship for a 14th time. Certainly, WWE is not beyond thrusting the championship onto part-time Superstars. Although a bigger draw than the WWE's COO, The Rock returned to hold the WWE Championship from this year's Royal Rumble until WrestleMania 29, only wrestling on ...

Prior to taking time off from the world of professional wrestling, more specifically World Wrestling Entertainment, CM Punk found himself on the end of a significant losing streak. The longest reigning WWE Champion of the modern era found himself on the end of two straight pay-per-view defeats to The Rock, a loss to John Cena and, of course, a failed attempt at ending the Undertaker's WrestleMania streak. Pwmania.com reported earlier today that the "Best in the World" is rumored to be returning to WWE tonight: Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri with the fallout ...

"If I cannot overwhelm with my quality, I will overwhelm with my quantity." - Emile ZolaFor better or worse, gone are the days of the WWE brand split. Gone are the days of SmackDown and Raw being marketed as two separate shows competing against each other for dominance within the WWE Universe. WWE fans are now subjected to twice as much weekly programming but seemingly half as much original weekly content. Nowadays, Raw is the "A" show and SmackDown is largely a recap of said "A" show. Main Event and Superstars can be worth watching, but do they ever advance any ...

Since its inception in 2002, WWE's incarnation of the "Big Gold Belt" has, alongside the WWE Title, been considered one of the company's two world championships.There have been times in the comparatively short history of WWE's World Heavyweight Championship where it seemed to be the most contested and important title in the business. WrestleManias 20, 21 and 24 saw the World Heavyweight Championship match close the show, highlighting the importance the title was once deemed to have.Over the past few years however, the World Heavyweight Championship has paled and faded from true significance, with no doubt that it is indeed ...

The buildup and the booking of WrestleMania 29 is being criticized by some as lazy and predictable, and considering the three main events, it seems difficult to make an argument to the contrary.  The three main events (please WWE, nobody is forking over cash for the midcard World Heavyweight Championship feud) all appear to be easily called by anybody who follows the business. Ask anybody to put money on WrestleMania, and they'd likely tell you that Triple H, The Undertaker and John Cena are going to walk out of MetLife Stadium victorious come Sunday. This is highlighted by British betting company Betfred's ...

Let me preface this article to avoid disappointing those who are not a fan of predictions and speculation that is not grounded primarily in leaked information, with an acknowledgement that the following concept is nothing more than a fantasy booking. Still, hosting the first-ever, six-man tag team Elimination Chamber match on Feb. 17 would seem a plausible and interesting way to continue the ongoing feud between The Shield and three of the company's top faces. For those who are long-time fans of THQ's WWE video games, you may recall that 2003's "Here Comes the Pain" featured a 3 vs. 3 elimination chamber match type—a concept that has never crossed ...

The World Heavyweight Title has not always played second fiddle to the WWE Championship. Back when the company's two world titles were very much brand-exclusive, the former often closed out pay-per-view events, and could even be seen as the most important of the two during certain times. WrestleMania 20, 21 and 24 all culminated with the World Heavyweight Championship match.In recent years, however, the waning of the brand-extension and the death of Raw and Smackdown as distinct competitive franchises within the company has arguably led to the gradual downfall of the company's second world title.While the World Heavyweight Championship remains ...