It's time once again for everyone's favorite column.....................mine! So children put your parents to bed cause the following content is gaurenteed to offend.
In this week's column, I will as always address the brands and what has been going on in the TWF as of late plus you will see part one of my sitdown interview with SlaughterHouse's Devon Cage in which he addresses some interesting things, so let's get things underway, shall we?
Badlandz
1. Big troubles for the big red machine: It appears that current champion Kane has no room to breathe since he has people coming at him from all sides including Buchanon, Chris Jericho, AJ Styles and Booker T, just to name a few. I question, can even Kane handle this or will one of these men put his fire out?
2. Reunions part 1: Badlandz is the scene for two of three reunions as of late, the first is current tag team champions Scott Steiner and Billy "The Outlaw" Gunn, who held tag team gold before on Rampage. The other is two of the four members of SlaugterHouse's Triple X in Lo-ki and "Primetime" Elix Skipper, which a lot of insiders question whether Skipper can win with anyone other than Christopher Daniels as his partner and if Lo-ki can be partners with anyone at all.
3. Enter the Sandman: The most recent addition to the show is the cain swinging, beer drinkinG, cigarette smoking Sandman, who made a a literal impact on the leader of the FBI, Nunzio, which his teammates are sure to take issue with, especially Nunzio's long time friend Big Vito who told me that he personally is going to teach the Sandman how he handles someone, anyone that messes with his friends and that he is going to hit the Sandman so hard he will knock him sober.
PrimeTime
1. Egofest: Over the past few months, it has really been a battle of egos between Randy Orton and Edge but some things have changed, for one, Edge is once again the Universal champion and Orton his number one contender. Now while the fans dislike both of these men, I for one am intrested in this.
2. Perfect vision: This past PrimeTime, former Universal champion John Cena confronted Edge, letting him know the title will not be out of his sight no matter who the number one contender is for it, so iI question will Orton and Edge really be a one on one match or will it be a triple threat match with both men battling John Cena in their heads considering he will be waiting for the winner.
3. Striking it rich: That is exactly what Shane McMahon did the moment he inked CM Punk to his contract because it has been a while since anyone has captured the fans like the straight-edge superstar has, if you want proof then recently at a promotional meet and greet for the Royal Rumble, Punk's line was one of the longest out of three, the first belong to tag team champions Jordan Rockwell and Shawn Michaels and the third belonged to The Rock. I took the liberty of attending and i got comments from Rockwell.
"I have said this privately and I will now publicly, when I say that CM Punk is simply the best we have right now, after all most guys that come onto a show that at the time had Edge, Randy, Cena and Corey woulda just got lost in the shuffle then with the addition of HBK, but not Punk! He got all these people's attention and he keeps it every week with his work, his heart and his passion for competition and I said to Shane after he debuted, if you don't give this guy a shot at the Universal title, then you are absolutely nuts and I meant it. CM Punk is a player on PrimeTime and he will be for a long time and sooner and I mean a lot sooner rather than later, he'll be wearing the Universal championship belt around his waist".
Okay now let's all take a break from my reviews and get to part one of my up close interview with SlaughterHouse superstar Devon Cage.
Joe Diano: I'm here with current SlaughterHouse member, Devon Cage and first off, let me thank you for taking the time to speak with me.
Devon Cage: My pleasure
Diano: Now first question is, how you got into wrestling.
Cage: Well to tell that story, I kinda have to begin with my name cause that's how I got into wrestling, basically my father's name is Preston Wilcox and he is named after my great-grandfather and my grandfather so he wanted to continue the tradition with his first born son, that being me. But my mother wanted to give her first born son the name Devon so they made a deal, she gets to name me and she would let my dad bring me into whatever business he got invoved in when I was of age.
Diano: Now from doing my research on you, I know you began doing backyard wrestling, is that how your father got into promoting?
Cage: Yes and it's funny because I would come home all cut up and bruised and I would say I took a tumble off my bike, then one day we did this match and this kid got cut and his mother flipped and began calling parents cause this was when me and my friends were in our early teens. And after that I got busted doing it a few more times so my dad decided the best way to keep an eye on me was to get involved so he went around to other parents explaining how things would be and they all pooled their money up to begin things and they got their hands on an old ring, then they bought a bunch of chairs and did posters and stuff like that to promote and we went from there.
Diano: Okay, now how exactly did you first meet up with Scott Hall?
Cage: I first met him through one of the other wrestlers in the shows my dad was promoting because this guy was a friend of a friend type deal and he used to brag about knowing him and we did not believe him till one day we were putting on a show in some local gym and in walked Scott Hall and honestly at the time, I was doing some sick things and by that I mean Mick Foley type stuff and just so happened on this night I did the sickest of all which got his attention on me. Now I was doing a good job at the wrestling end of things cause I would study tapes that I could get when I could but on this night, I was wrestling this guy and he kept on jumping out of the ring so after a while I got ticked and I climbed to the top rope and I jumped off to the floor onto him and I did it without thinking about the landing and that it would hurt.
Diano: So who approached who about getting into the pros?
Cage: Well I think it was a mutual thing because my friend introduced me to him and he commented on my dive and I told him that firstly, I did not think about doing it or what would happen after I did it and secondly that was the first time I ever did that inside of an actual wrestling ring. He asked where I learned to wrestle and I told him the truth that I taught myself from watching tapes and tv and he asked if I was intrested in getting into the pros because if I was, he had just signed on with the then GWF and I asked what would I have to do and he gave me his number and said call him tomorrow, so I did.
Diano: So he introduced you to the Norton family?
Cage: Not at first, first he introduced me to his friends Kevin Nash, Mark Banks and Pat Spencer and then he introduced me to Wayne, Mister Norton and he told me that Scott spoke highly of me and he wanted to give me a try out match that night and I told him I did not bring my gear with me, all I had was what i was wearing and he said that would be fine for now.
Diano: So is that why you wore the shorts and the jersey and all that?
Cage: Yeah, he said he loved it because it was like I was a kid from the streets who was busting his ass to get to where he wanted to be and so I did not complain cause I was making money. The wardrobe people went out and bought several shorts, sneakers, jerseys and hats for me to wear to the ring as my ring and entrance gear from that point on in my career, so I guess I was the originator of dressing like that and not John Cena, you could say in a way.
Diano: Now after a while things began to click for you professionally since you won the Lightheavyweight title which was changed to the Cruiserweight title which they awarded to you, then came the United States title. But also your personal life began to click as well, so how so did you meet Becky Norton?
Cage: Uh God, you are gonna get me in trouble for this one, i met Becky a year after I began, so in 2002.
Diano: What was that like, going with the boss' daughter?
Cage: Well we did not start going out at first because she in her words did not like wrestling so going with a wrestler was out and also Wayne had one major rule and that was no one was allowed to date her. But the more I was around her and got to know her the more I wanted to be around her but I knew the rule so I began courting her behind everyone's back and she kept shooting me down and I basically refused to take no for an answer at this point so I would send her flowers with cards in them and leave messages for her and things like that till I finally wore her down.
Diano: How did her father find out?
Cage: Well at the time, Becky was in college and I would pay her visits from time to time and send her flowers to the school and apparently, she left one of the cards out that I sent with the flowers and funny thing is, I was in catering one day and he came in and got some food and sat at my table and after a few minutes or so he turns to me and says, so how long have you and Becky been going out? And I damn near choked on my food! I tried to deny it but he told me about the card and reached into his pocket and I thought I was getting my last paycheck but he gave me a paper with a address and was like, my house tonight, at eight sharp and I ended up having dinner with his whole family and he said he did not like being lied to and having his rules broken, but if this was what she wanted and I treated her right then he would approve.
Diano: When did things go downhill for you in the GSE?
Cage: Well Wayne brought others to run things and had different people from time to time and things were going good for a while cause I was with Scott and the guys and Mick Foley who I grew up idolizing and copying, was running things. But then things went down hill for me when Ric Flair took over, he basically forced Mick out and broke the group up like a bull in a china shop. But then I became a problem because he knew where I came from and he disliked me for it like he did Mick to the point where much like Mick, he called me a carnival act, but he could not fire me cause I was still United States champion, I was over with the fans and the boss liked me.
Diano: Wasn't that also around the time when he brought his son in?
Cage: Yeah, which was the other problem cause he wanted the United States title to help put his punkass son over but his kid was just not well liked in the locker room cause of what his father was doing to me, I might have come from where I did, but I busted my ass to be United States champion and they all knew it so basically he hatched a plan to try and get the title off of me by getting one of the boys on his side but problem was that guy was put on notice quickly about what would happen to him if he did anything out of the way he was not supposed to.
Diano: But if I recall right, he finally got to you.
Cage: Yes he did, during a match I tore my mcl and pcl plus I had some bone chips in my right knee and I needed surgery and U would be out well over the title defense period and past my contract expiration. So he used that to his advantage and stripped me of the title and released me with an injury settlement>
Okay folks, that is it for now, please tune in to SlaughterHouse's upcoming show to see part two of this interview where Devon gets even more personal when it comes to the issues with Ric Flair, the nWo, his marriage and his return to wrestling.
Now let's get back to my reviews.....
Rampage
1. Fall from grace: I once voted Money Mike as the best heel in wrestling and while that might be true, I have to for the first time ever question where his head is at because instead of him going after another TWF title reign, he is fueding with the returning Austin Pyromania and partner Taylor and that all began cause Taylor was trying to once again find his way into Stephanie McMahon's panties. Then to top it off, he is facing of all people, The Boogeyman at a pay-per- view. I think that in itself is enough said when you got the best heel in wrestling facing a movie set reject, bottom line, I am sure Mike has a lot of fun with the billion dollar princess but fact is, I think maybe he needs to do what everyone knows he should and that is get rid of that distraction and focus on the TWF title.
2. Between The Rock and a hard place: Speaking of the title, I think current champion Chris Masters has gotten himself into a bit of a spot because not only is he faced with the problem of facing Hall of Famer The Rock, but in my opinion, I do not think he can really trust his "partner" Mark Henry because to think Mark Henry does not want to be champion himself I think is a mistake. Everyone gets into wrestling to be the champion on his respective show or they do not belong, the only question I have is how long before the world's strongest man gets tired of protecting and not facing the champ?
3. Beauty brawl: Over the past few weeks, there has been a lot of heat between everyone's favorite diva Mickie James and Luyu Dawnstar and the center of this is rookie China Rose who is seemingly attached to Dawnstar for some reason. Now while James is in my opinion the top woman in wrestling, a three time and current Women's champion, and one of Rampage'a more popular figures, I question if Rose's obsession is over Luyu doing well in her career cause she is a fan or if it is all a set up to get inside Mickie's head so that she can pounce on her when the time is right.
SlaughterHouse
1. From outcast to top of the heap: Recently, Outcast became the new TWF heavyweight champion, a happening that shocked a lot of people but in my mind and in those of his supporters, he has been the shows top guy ever since he was given the chance to make a name for himself by general manager Steele.
General Manager Jesse Steele on Outcast: "When I first saw him wrestle at an M.O.W. show, there was just something about him that captured me so I had to ink him to a deal when I was able to. Then I realized that while he is not the biggest guy on the show, he has a big heart and a huge desire to be someone, so I gave him a shot in the X-division and he proved he belonged. Then without the title, he showed he was a very talented young man that deserved a shot so when I had the chance to put this guy into the spotlight that is the top tier of the show, he came through again so bottom line, when you got someone who shows he wants it and that he can be, you let him be".
2. Reunions part 2: The second part of the reunions was between former multi-time tag team champions Nick Dinsmore and Rob Conway, better known as the Lords of the Ring. As many know, these two parted on bad terms and that caused Dinsmore to not want to associate with his former partner. But thanks to recent happenings, they were put together and they proved they still got it.
3. Cage/Daniels: I for one am enjoying this fued between these two because while it is all about who is better than who, they have helped elevate the X-division to new heights every time they meet and I can't wait to see where these two will take things every time I know they are on the card.
In the End
1. In the end, I hope that Chris Masters is not as much of a meathead as the members of every locker room in the TWF thinks he is when it comes to trusting Mark Henry cause like I said above, I do not doubt Henry wants that TWF title.
2. In the end, I want to see Shane McMahon give CM Punk a shot at the Universal title cause like Jordan Rockwell said, CM Punk is the best the TWF and PrimeTime has today.
3. In the end, I pray Mickie James is as smart as she is hot cause i feel turning her back on China Rose will be a mistake.
4. And in the end, I pray and hope Money Mike wakes up before he falls even further then he has already.
Well that's all the time I have for this column so to borrow a line from Christian to add to my own, this has been my two cents and if you didn't know...... now you know!
