ZAH
Shakin' My Head: Angle in MMA, Prince Nana gone, WWE hirings and firings, and much more!
By ZAH
Sep 22, 2006, 05:51

08-18-06

“If you want it, you’re gonna bleed.”

Boo-yah, here we go!!

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Item # 1 – Kurt Angle going to MMA. 

Yes, kids...Mr. “WWE fired my ass because I’m so broken down physically and my life is falling apart” now wants to legitimately compete in MMA.

I dunno...a part of me wants to say, “F*ck him.  If he wants to destroy his body further then let him do it.”  The other part of me thinks that regardless of how much he claims to be “pain-free”, Kurt Angle is going to die extremely young if he continues to abuse his body without allowing it proper time to rest and rebuild...and because of that I should be concerned.

Kurt Angle is going to do what Kurt Angle wants to do.  I don’t know if he’s a narcissist or a perfectionist, but he’s got something deep down inside of him that makes him want to be known as the absolute best in every field that he choses...and each field deals with him being a superstar who places his body on the line.

I shake my head at this guy because he’s already got one hell of a legacy to look back on.  He’s one of the greatest amateur wrestlers the U.S.A. has ever seen.  He’s one of the greatest professional wrestlers the world has ever seen.  Does he really need to be one of the greatest MMA fighters the world has ever seen, too?  Why does his drive unnecessarily make him take chances with his body in order to become “the greatest of all time?”

Should Kurt Angle be revered or should he be pitied? 

I’m not so sure that I can even answer that question myself.  However, at this point all I have for him are best wishes...simply because I’m not really looking forward to how this latest episode of his life turns out.

Item # 2 – ROH loses Prince Nana.

For reasons not yet 100% public, Prince Nana has quit ROH.  This is what he had to say:

“I regret to announce my departure from ROH as of 9/16/06. I have to back track on many things concerning my career in sports entertainment and I think now is about the right time to do it. I know there is a gold mine for Prince Nana out there that will soon be revealed!

Please don't think this is my send off...This is a long needed vacation that I take from time to time with ROH. I intend to remain a loyal Oil supporter of all the athlete's, that continue to go above and beyond the call of duty for "Ring Of Honor"---- The Vision (Class of 2002).”

As a big ROH fan, I gotta say that this is a tremendous loss for me.  I’ve been a huge fan of Nana since the first time I saw him. I’ve always enjoyed the Embassy and I thought that his mic skills really helped launch Jimmy Rave’s career. 

I’m intrigued as to what he does going forward...I’m hoping that he secures a job with WWE or TNA so I can see him on a regular basis.  I think that if there was a time for heel managers to make a comeback in professional wrestling, this would be a great way to start.

You’ve got brilliance like James Mitchell in TNA, you’ve got comedy like Armando Alejandro Estrrrrrrrrrada on RAW, and you’ve got the sidekick like Elijah Burke on SmackDown.

Tell me that Prince Nana wouldn’t fit in perfectly in ECW...go ahead, tell me...

WHAT???  WELL YOU’RE WRONG!!! 

Nana would rock the casbah in ECW like no other.  Hell, he’d rock out on RAW or SmackDown, too.  I just want more Nana on my television.  Is that too much to ask?

Item # 3 – WWE releases the Boogeyman.

It is a sad, sad day.  Marty Wright, otherwise known as the Boogeyman, was released this week by WWE.

As I’ve said from Day One, Boogeyman was a guilty pleasure of mine.  When everybody else rolled their eyes at the mere thought of some wrestler named “The Boogeyman” wrestling on television, I wanted to wait and see what happened before judging.

What happened was that this crazy-ass mofo took a lame-ass gimmick and turned it into one of the most entertaining things SmackDown has ever seen.  It was so over the top, you couldn’t help but stand up and take notice.

The guy ate worms.  He didn’t just eat a few...he didn’t even just do a Fear Factor portion...the guy at a SHITLOAD of worms...simply to assist with the gimmick.  Not only that, but outside of the ring the guy lived the gimmick...refusing to be seen in public out of character.  He was widely reported as either being an intense old-school kayfabe-lovin’ genius, or he was borderline insane...which the thought of really made me enjoy him more.

Wright’s been working on returning from an injury for awhile now (c’mon...the guy’s in his forties...he’s bound to get injured).  With some vignettes already airing on SmackDown hyping his return, it was apparently decided that he was not doing enough to get back into shape and was not showing enough commitment. 

Yes...the guy who would eat worms on a nightly basis wasn’t showing enough commitment.

It’s a shame...for as much as he sucked ass in the ring – and let’s face it, Boogeyman is one of the worst all-time in-ring performers – he was entertaining as hell.  It’s also a shame that I’ll never get to use the following pics ever again...

If James doesn’t get an interview with this guy after his no-compete is over, I’ll be one unhappy Insanity writer.

Item # 4 – Cryme Tyme...already tired.

Yeah...I laughed at first.  I even chuckled at Week Two.  This time around, however, the gimmick has already played out.  The segment was forced, poorly acted, and generally not very funny at all.  The sad part is that these two guys haven’t even debuted on RAW yet.

Oh...and guess what?  They’re going to be babyfaces.

Item # 5 – WWE signs 2 Cold Scorpio

Booker T King Booker has been pushing for Scorpio’s re-hiring for awhile now.  While off of most people’s radars, Scorpio has been doing quite well for himself in Japan as the hardcore champion for Pro Wrestling NOAH.  He recently moved back to the U.S. and was given a tryout match with Rene Dupree before an ECW taping and impressed people enough that he now has a job.  I think it’s pretty safe to say that he’ll be going back to ECW. 

Why would he fit in there more than anywhere else?  It’s because he’ll help put over the newer talent like everybody else.  I like the “ECW Originals” vs. “New ECW Extremists” bit that WWE is doing right now.  It’s not blatant...it’s not obvious...but it’s working to put over the new wrestlers.  Guys like Test, Mike Knox, CM Punk, Kevin Thorne, and Matt Striker need some form of legitimacy...and beating older ECW wrestlers (as much as it may dismay old ECW fans) is a way to do that.

Anyway, as long as Scorpio doesn’t get turned into Flash Funk again, I’m down with the hiring. 

Item # 6 – Dear God...please let this be the end.

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Pillar to Post 

Each and every week I’ll take three statements that you, the WorldWrestlingInsanity.com readers, have submitted on the hot topics du jour and then get two or three volunteers to give their thoughts and insight.  Ladies and gentlemen, this week I give you three great World Wrestling Insanity) readers the_nWo, koolbluecat, and DJ Lunchbox (whom you can hear on http://wrestlingmayhemshow.com/)!

1. Agree or Disagree
ECW should create a secondary or tag title.

the_nWo:  Disagree (on the Tag Titles at least).

I think the ECW roster is a little too small for another title, really. I can see the purpose for another singles title, but I'm really mixed on it. There definitely aren't enough Tag teams to have a Tag Championship, and actually care about it. However, if they could find another singles title to throw in the mix, I'd say go for it. There should be some build-up title to the ECW Title.

koolbluecat: Hell yes I agree.

I hate tuning in every Tuesday and seeing just one damn title being defended. Bring back the TV title and the tag titles. And the sooner the better. Have a tournament for each similar to the Gold Rush tournament from RAW a few years ago.

DJ Lunchbox: Agree.

The TV title was a very big part of the old ECW and it should be with this one as well. With names like Terry Funk, Shane Douglas, Eddy Guerrero, Taz, and RVD as former title holders, the belt would be perfect for the likes of CM Punk. It could also give people like Kevin Thorn, Test and Christopher W. Anderson a reason to be on TV. The point of belts such as these are to prepare the lower card wrestlers for the big time, right?

2. Agree or Disagree
TNA’s “big announcement” will live up to the hype.

the_nWo: Agree.

I've been killing myself over this...TNA couldn't have picked a better time to spring up a surprise announcement at No Surrender, what with the known talks with SpikeTV and Goldberg going on (And despite the fact Kurt Angle is going MMA, he's been thrown into the rumors as well). I think it'll actually be a good announcement though, perhaps a 2-hour timeslot or better airtime, or maybe even a touring schedule. I'm somewhat in suspense over what it could it be.

koolbluecat: Depending on what it is I have to say disagree.

As much as I like TNA I do not buy their PPV's. I'm not going to pay a chunk of money to hear this "big announcement". I seriously doubt that it’s anything that will shake wrestling to its core or become a major moment in wrestling history but it is intriguing.

DJ Lunchbox:  Disagree.

Sadly I have already heard what the big announcement is. Let's just say that it TNA will be only the second federation to commit creative suicide. I hope Vince is in the mood to buy another federation because TNA is gift wrapping themselves.

3. Agree or Disagree
Kurt Angle + MMA = Very bad idea.

the_nWo:  Fully agree.

I found myself slapping my forehead when I read the statement from Angle's website. When he was released he sent out a letter stating he wanted to take a break and not even a month later, he's ready to jump into something just as physically demanding, if not more, than wrestling. WWE released him so they'd be free from responsibility, but Kurt appears to want to jump into his own grave.

I just hope Angle takes his time to heal up. Sure, he could go do MMA if he wants...but not a month after having some serious injuries. Kurt needs to learn to take time off for his body to heal. If he doesn't, I fear we'll be saying it, for a lack of better words, that Kurt f***ed up.

koolbluecat: Agree on a thousand levels.

Let me borrow one of Kurt's I's. Insanity. With some of the guys on there I don’t expect Kurt to be there long if he does show up. This world isn’t the WWE where they decide who wins. In this one, if you can’t handle it, you get your ass whooped. Those guys compete to win and some are just as hungry for the win as Kurt, maybe even more so. It would be sad to see Kurt piss off someone like Chuck "Iceman" Liddell or Tim Sylvia and then just get killed. No Kurt needs to stay where he belongs and that’s in WWE. Not TNA, not MMA, not UFC, or any other place he doesn’t know. WWE can afford his injuries a lot better than the other competitions. He can be more comfortable in WWE and they'll treat him better. Kurt to MMA? Insanity.

DJ Lunchbox: Agree.

Kurt Angle is a fantastic wrestler. He deserves every bit of hype and praise that he has ever received during his career. However, Kurt got to a point where his body was broken down so much that he wasn't able to get into the ring without pain meds, and he couldn't get through (most) matches without injury. Now he wants to go to MMA where everything is going to be much more high impact. Maybe if he had gone there INSTEAD of WWE in the first place then he would be better off. Say Kurt goes and gets decimated. He is addicted to, above all else, competition. With Kurt being who he is, he will do anything to compete on the same level as his opponents. I don't want to say it, but as is I think Kurt Angle will be lucky if he makes it to see 2010.

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Thanks guys!!  I’m looking forward to seeing who gets to join me as a guest columnist next week. 

No problem.  Either e-mail me at Zah@worldwrestlinginsanity.com or hit me up at ZAH Nation, found in the Insanity Message Board and let me know that you’d like to participate.  Also, don’t forget to stop by my MySpace page and add me.

So until next week…

L8R