It's time once again for everyone's favorite column............... mine! So kids put your parents to bed cause it's time for this show to begin.
As always I will be looking at all of the TWF's shows and picking the people I think were the mvp's of each show, but this month I have another big interview set up with the man that will face Money Mike at Wrestlemania 7, Joe Corey.
Rampage:
1. Wakeman vs Octane: Coming up at WrestleMania it will be Travis Wakeman challenging High Octane for the TWF World title and this will be a battle of two men that have been on a roll over the past few months. But when WrestleMania is over, I think Wakeman's roll continues with his fourth reign as TWF champion.
2. Mr. Money vs The Show: Also coming up at WrestleMania will be Money Mike going one on one with Joe Corey. Now since Corey's return following knee surgery, he's taken care of all the members of his former group with the exception of it's leader but Corey's one advantage is that he has owned Mike's brain as of late. So with the question being can Corey get his grandslam and beat Mike or will Mike stop Corey? Well in my opinion I say swing Vorey swing, cause The Show will put Mike in the poor house at Mania.
PrimeTime:
1. Icon vs Legend: At this year's WrestleMania, Jordan Rockwell looks to gain respect versus a sure fire first ballot Hall of Famer in The Undertaker. Now while I agree that while Taker is simply Taker, everyone must take into account the fact that Rockwell has been wrestling on a regular basis during Taker's hiatus. Now I think this will be thee most evenly matched contest of the night because both men are strikers and will throw hands and while Rockwell is a trained submission wrestler from his days with Dory Funk, jr. The Undertaker will go down on that mat also so the ultimate question is who will walk out of Vegas the winner in this one? I say it does not matter! Just sit back and enjoy without a doubt the greatest roller coaster ride to ever happen on PrimeTime.
2. Rated R superstar vs The Animal: Edge will defend the Universal title versus Batista in PrimeTime's main event. In this one I think Batista will turn Edge from rated r to pg 13 and leave with his first taste of main championship gold.
3. Choose Your Destiny: This match will see three men from both PrimeTime and Rampage compete for a shot at their brands main title. Now I am not going to even try to compare these six guys cause everyone knows I am a card carrying member of the Christian coalition so there is no need.
PrimeTime mvp: Batista for winning the right to face Edge for the Universal title.
SlaughterHouse:
1. Arrival of the man beast: The recent addition of the war machine Rhyno to the SlaughterHouse roster was a good one in my opinion, it adds more credibility to the shows' already impressive roster.
2. Xplosion: SlaughterHouse's X-division continues to be the shinning star of the brand with a lot of great young talent and several great veterans.
3. GM with the golden touch: SlaughterHouse general manager Jesse Steele has proven to be exactly what the TWF needs ever since he took control of SlaughterHouse .
SlaughterHouse mvp: General manager Jesse Steele for the growth of the brand in every way it has.
SMW and Asylum continue to improve on a daily basis so I once again take my hat off to the rosters and the men in charge of the two shows.
Now folks it's time for my up close and personal interview with Joe "The Show" Corey in which he discusses Money Mike, the fans and his goals after WrestleMania 7.
Joe Diano: I'm here with one of Rampage's top athletes and a former multi-time King of Cable champion, Joe Corey and first off I wanted to thank you for taking the time to do this interview.
Joe Corey: No problem, this has been a long time coming.
Diano: I want to start off in the most obvious place, how's the knee and you specifically after that attack by Money Mike?
Corey: Well, I would be a fool if I came out here and said that my knee was one hundred percent. I mean this injury should take four to six months to heal completely, and I came back after about three. Of course there will be some discomfort, but once I wrap it up and get my brace on, I will be good enough to accomplish my goal at WrestleMania.
Diano: Before we get into current events, let's back track for a moment, how exactly did the Horsemen thing begin?
Corey: Mike and I realized fairly quickly after he came to the TWF that we were the definite future of this business. In order to get the future to come quicker, we decided to take matters into our own hands. After a while, we thought that the future can only come by acknowledging the past. That's how we decided to become the Four Horsemen. Mike wanted to bring in Jason Oliver from PrimeTime, and it was my decision to bring in Carney. After all my wars with him, I thought that the one person who could get to turn things around was the same person who turned his world around... me.
Diano: One thing I think needs explaining, at one point you were the second biggest heel on Rampage and also it's hottest young star, the guy everyone said should become world champion. Why go into the whole Horsemen thing when obviously you did not need them?
Corey: You see, it was never about needing The Horsemen. It was about strength in numbers. You are exactly right, I was the hottest star on Rampage at one time, that being around WrestleMania of last year. With that said, how many shots did I get at the World Heavyweight Championship? That's right, none. I figured that with The Horsemen behind me, the higher ups in the TWF would have to take notice.
Diano: Now obviously that did not come to be, because during your actual World title match up against Drew Blood, the then champion, Mike shocked the world when he turned on you and cost you the title when it was over. What was going through your head?
Corey: Well, Mike wants everyone to believe that I got kicked out because I was putting myself ahead of The Horsemen. If that were the case, then why did I turn down my rematch for the King of Cable at Anarchy Rulz to team with his handpicked member? If anyone has been putting themselves ahead of The Horsemen, it has been Mike himself. Look at what he has done to the progress of Carney as soon as I left. Since they kicked me out, I don't think that Carney has won three matches. Now as for what was going through my head, I was in disbelief. This was a man who was my best friend. Hell, he was the one who got me the title match, I didn't even ask for it. That is the great thing about how hypocritcal Money Mike is. He accused me of trying to steal the spotlight, but he is the one who put it on me. The truth of the matter is that Mike was jealous.
He was worried that I was starting to move past him in the people's eyes, and he couldn't handle it. So Mike does what he does best, he worries about himself. Instead of approaching me and working this out, he decided to just eliminate his problem. Unfortunately for Mike, he forgot to take the one thing from me that he needed to... my last breath.
Diano: Speaking of moving past him, as I said you were at the top of your game when Mike came to Rampage following having to earn a spot on the roster, do you think and or agree that while you did not need the Horseman, that he did?
Corey: Well, Mike has accomplished so much in his GSE career that it is hard to discredit his ability. However, when it comes to the TWF, Mike did need The Horsemen. Mike joining up with me got him to the front of the line. He didn't have to go through anyone to get to where he ended up. I mean look at his first big match. He faced Shawn Michaels at Anarchy Rulz, only four months after his debut. Do you realize how long it took me to get a match against not only someone the caliber of Shawn Michaels, but HBK himself? It took me almost two years!!! Yes Mike needed The Horsemen, and more importantly at the beginning, he needed me.
Diano: So basically in your mind Mike used Joe Corey to become someone on Rampage?
Corey: I think it was obvious.
Diano: In wrestling there is a phrase that talks about owning a space in an enemies head, and I think since you returned that's been the case. How far into Mike's head do you think you are?
Corey: Well, it depends on if you mean how far in Mike's head am I, or Starman?
Or both of us.....
Or are we just the same person?
I guess that's something that may be taking up space in Mike's head, so I guess it depends on if that can all be attributed to me? You can be the judge of that.
Hey, Mike cost me the World title, so I did it right back to him? The question should be this: Am I willing to go so far that I would put the mask on to help Mike win the title, and then put it back on to make him lose it?
Diano: Well you do bring up a very good point there, and I know you may not answer this but I will ask this question anyway. Was it you under the mask the night Mike won the title in the hopes that he'd keep it until you got to him?
Corey: Now why would I answer that question now? I think it is in my best interest to wait to answer that question until, oh I don't know, after WrestleMania perhaps.
Diano: So I guess possibly what The Show giveth then The Show can taketh away from Money Mike?
Corey: We'll see.....
Diano: now since you have been back the oddest thing of all is the fact that the fans have actually taken to you, what's it like to go from where you were to where you are now?
Corey: Well, I have never tried to get the fans on my side. I am not doing anything different now than I did before the injury. If the fans want to cheer me, that's their choice. I'm not looking to have the fans against me, but I'm not going to change for their approval either.
Diano: The one constant is the chants of next World champion, so question is even though you have Mike at WrestleMania, how far in the back of your mind is High Octane or Travis Wakeman and more specifically the TWF World title?
Corey: Mike is first and foremost in my mind right now. Sure, when he won the TWF World Title, it would have been great to beat him and get the title at the same time, but I am focused on him. Now, once I beat Mike in Las Vegas, I have no doubt in my mind that I would be the rightful number one contender to whoever is the champion. So after I beat Mike, be it Octane or Wakeman, you are next, and that belt, the belt that should have been mine to begin with, will take it's rightful place around my waist.
Diano: Obviously you have owned the Horsemen since you have been back, but going into Vegas it's still going to be a five on one situation. Any concern on your part that with the odds against you, your quest for vengence ends and not in your favor?
Corey: Well, I would hope that Mike is going into WrestleMania wanting the same thing as me, to know who is the better man. The only way we are going to know that is to keep everyone from ringside. Now I don't know what Mick Foley was going to announce on Rampage, but I have an idea of my own. Why don't we make this a Pure Wrestling Match. We bar everyone from ringside, and we incorporate some new rules to make sure this is a wrestling match, and not a hardcore match. I want to prove that I am the best wrestler in the world at WrestleMania, and this would be the best way to do it.
Diano: Now i wanted to talk to you about one of those five against you, Stephanie McMahon. She has been your biggest obstacle since day one, a suprise Mike joined with her or no?
Corey: Well, I knew from the beginning that Mike had a thing for Stephanie, if anything it was unhealthy. It was like his main goal outside of the ring. But I really did not believe that she would do what she did. The two of them were so different, or so it seemed, that it seemed unlikely that this could have happened.
Diano: Now I know you said you are not going to change to get the fans respect or anything like that, but it seems that they've been the only constant for you since obviously you don't have many if any friends from the day you came to Rampage. So going into WrestleMania against, as you eluded to, a proven veteran, would you agree that you'll need these people more than even you'd care to admit?
Corey: Having the people on my side probably will help me late in the match when I need that something extra, but that something will be in me anyways. I know I have what it takes to beat Mike, and it doesn't matter if it is in Caeser's Palace or an empty arena, I will get my revenge.
Diano: You like many young guys in the TWF had the honor of being touched by the late Eddie Guerrero during your time in the TWF, what's it like going into these arena's, especially coming up at WrestleMania, knowing that you won't see him there?
Corey: There is not a day that goes by that I don't miss Eddie Guerrero. Sure WrestleMania will be tough because it's the biggest show of the year, but it is hard to go to any arena and not see his face there. And that too is another reason I have to get even with Mike. I never got to see Eddie Guerrero one last time because I was in the hospital recovering from my knee injury that those assholes caused. It is because of them that I never got to say goodbye to one of my best friends, and I will never forgive them for that.
Diano: Lastly, when it's all over and you hang your boots up for the last time, how do you want The Show to be remembered by his peers and the fans?
Corey: I want to be remembered as the man who destroyed The Horsemen one by one. I want be remembered as one of the best wrestlers of all time. And lastly I want to be remembered as the greatest TWF Champion ever.
In the End:
In the end I would like to firstly congratulate and wish everyone luck upcoming at WrestleMania 7 and also I want to say to the members of the Four Horsemen do not celebrate Jason Oliver's win over Max Ogden, celebrate when you earn the right to bare the name of a stable that once housed Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, J.J. Dillion and all the others that held the four fingers up. So far I think you haven't. After being dominated by the Hart Family and Joe Corey. And to Joe Corey himself, I say that you need to stop worrying about Mike and concentrate on that TWF World title that in my opinion you should have had last year. And in the end, I say to all of you that read my column....... thank you!
That's all the time for this edition so till next time, this has been my 2 cents and everything you dreamed they'd be..... and then some!!!!!!!!!!
