SmackDown Results: 3/12/10 - Tiffany Joins SmackDown

The Glamazon's Biggest Challenge to Date

With Mickie James out of action, due to a staph infection, this leaves the SmackDown Divas division without a fan favorite. That was until Tiffany, the former ECW GM, decided that she was going to compete on SmackDown.

We witnessed last week Tiffany babysitting Rey Mysterio's daughter, Aalyah, during what would be a turning point for Rey Mysterio's feud with C.M. Punk. And without ECW, Tiffany's status within the WWE was questionable. However, for those that follow FCW, WWE's developmental territory, Tiffany has been training to become a Diva since 2007.

The Special Consultant of SmackDown, Vickie Guerrero, scheduled Tiffany's debut match to be against the Women's Champion, Michelle McCool. There is no question that Michelle McCool and Layla (Team LayCool) have manipulated Vickie Guerrero with false praises of being "simply flawless." Much like Edge in the past, Michelle realizes the importance of befriending someone in power. And what looked to be a squash match for Tiffany, turned into a hell of a brawl.

Tiffany, with wrestling gear resembling a sexy cheerleader, carried herself towards the ring with presence. McCool, taking Tiffany lightly, found herself in the mist of a fury of clotheslines, drop kicks, and forearms. Tiffany made an impact by taking the fight to the outside and Irish whipping McCool to the barricades. However, Vickie cost Tiffany the match with a blatant tackle. And to make matters worse, McCool drove her knee to the skull of Tiffany against the barricades.

Yet, before the 'Simply Flawless' girls could take out Tiffany, the Glamazon rushed to the ring to deliver some punishment. After a double lariat, LayCool were licking their wounds on the outside, allowing Beth Phoenix to drive Vickie to the canvas. And before Beth could deliver the finishing blow with the GlamSlam, Vickie made her escape.

Let's take this back to last week when Beth Phoenix asked Vickie Guerrero when she would have her title shot against Michelle McCool. Vickie simply replied, never. Beth Phoenix, no doubt the most dominating women's wrestling in all of the WWE past or present, has her biggest challenge to date - the authority of Vickie Guerrero.

Can this story line become the biggest thing to hit the Divas' division since the Mickie James-Trish Stratus rivalry? Could this feud of authority become the biggest thing since Stone Cold and Vince McMahon? I leave it up to you, the WWE Universe, to decide.

ECW Results: 2/15/10 - The Final E-C-DUB

R.I.P ECW 1992-2001, 2005

I'm not going to lie to you and say that ECW ended on February 15, 2010, because this was not ECW. ECW was not a brand, it was a promotion started in Philadelphia in 1992 under the name Eastern Championship Wrestling, until it evolved into what fans knew around the world as Extreme Championship Wrestling. Unlike Eastern-CW, Extreme Championship Wrestling focused on a mature male demographic.

ECW earned its reputation by becoming the true alternative to cartoon wrestling of World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling, by becoming the grittiest, explicitly violent, unedited program on television.

Extreme Championship Wrestling was truly a land of hardcore as it innovated specialty matches, which included Barbed wire match, Flaming Tables match, and Singapore Cane match.

I feel both ECW and my announcing career should have been retired after the ECW One Night Stand pay-per-view in 2005. WWE was classy enough to give everyone who was ever involved with the Original ECW, all of us who worked for the promotion and the rabid fans who made ECW, the closure we all emotionally craved. - Joey Styles

WWE purchased ECW's assets after Paul Heyman filed for bankruptcy and the promotion ended in 2001. WWE used the ECW video library to compile a three-disc DVD: The Rise and Fall of ECW, with a three-hour documentary of the company's history. With the video library and a series of books, interest for the Hardcore promotion was revitalized leading to WWE organizing the One Night Stand pay-per-view in 2005 with ECW Alumni. The success of that pay-per-view is what launched the travesty that was ECW as the third brand of the WWE.

According to Joey Styles, the voice of ECW, One Night Stand in 2005 was the true ending of ECW, and the brand, along with his announcing career, should have ended after that night. However, things don't usually end the way you want them to.

Mr. McMahon revitalized ECW by hiring ECW Alumni to jump start the brand: Tommy Dreamer, Rob Van Dam, Sandman, Sabu, and Balls Mahoney; along with a slew of new superstars: C.M. Punk, Mike Knox, Elijah Burke, Kevin Thorn, Marcus Corvon, Ariel, and Kelly-Kelly.

WWEECW, or EC-DUB, really had no sense of direction as one by one the ECW Originals were released from the WWE. Then on December 29th, Tommy Dreamer wrestled his final match and released himself from his contract; thus ending any ties to the Original ECW.

Without even realizing it, EC-DUB became not a land of extreme, but of opportunity. Wrestlers such as C.M. Punk, Kofi Kingston, and Evan Bourne got their start in EC-DUB, while other superstars drafted there, would return to the major brand with either a new gimmick or new perspective on their career. Hence, why Mr. McMahon and the rest of the WWE had decided to scrap the whole EC-DUB programming to create a newly innovative show with it's sole purpose to creating new stars.

NXT Roster: The Controversy of Daniel Bryan

Next week, WWE will feature the new show NXT where eight pros will mentor eight rookies in a reality-television style programing.

The roster is as follows: Chris Jericho and Wade Barrett; William Regal and Skip Sheffield; Carlito and Michael Tarver; Matt Hardy and Justin Gabriel; Christian and Heath Slater; R-Truth and David Otunga; C.M. Punk and Darren Young; and The Miz and Daniel Bryan.

The rookie that stands out from the pack is Daniel Bryan, or "The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson. There is no denying that Daniel Bryan has the most experience out of any NXT Rookie, but he is far from a superstar. Sure, Daniel possess more wrestling ability than probably half of the current WWE roster, yet he needs help to get to the next level.

A lot of people were upset over the announcement that The Miz would be mentoring the American Dragon - because shouldn't it be the other way around? Most of these discrepancies came from wrestling-internet fans who have watched Daniel fight in Japan and ROH; but fighting for a crowd below 900 people is nothing compared to fighting in sold out arenas around the globe, with everyone chanting, buying merch, and a multi-billion dollar company investing money in your development.

When The Miz first arrived in 2006, he wasn't much of a sight. And no way in the history of ever would I have pegged Miz to one day hold the United States and the Unified Tag Team Titles; but he was given that opportunity by developing in EC-DUB alongside Johnny Nitro/John Morrison.

Daniel Bryan has all the talent in the world, but every wrestler has weaknesses. And that's what my job is, to find his weakness and make him the biggest star possible. - The Miz

No wrestler is born with the total "superstar" package, and Daniel Bryan's flaw is his mic skills and lack of charisma. NXT will be a great opportunity for not only the rookies, but for the pros to impart their wisdom and contribute to the growth of the WWE.

Final EC-DUB Title Match: Extreme Rules (Sorta)

Christian acknowledged the ECW Originals, working with Tommy Dreamer, mentoring Yoshi Tatsu, and what EC-DUB meant for him. I certainly felt that Christian should have made a bigger impact on his return to the WWE, and that EC-DUB was a demotion. But Christian didn't see it that way, he say it as his home. Possibly because for the past year, EC-DUB became his personal Peep Show.

Christian accepted Ezekiel Jackson's challenge for the ECW Title, and added, on his own accord, to defend it under Extreme Rules. Yet, the extremeness of a WWE Extreme Rules match is considered a paper cut to the ECW Originals who bled, stabbed, pierced, broke, and burned their bodies every night to make those three letters mean something. Christian arrived with Singapore canes, a trash can, and a shopping cart to set the overall tone of the match. Ezekiel brought his own weapon, a cunning manager in William Regal.

Zack Ryder, who felt should have been a part of the final match on EC-DUB, interfered with the match, but ended up getting flap jacked into the trash can and thrown - face first - over the ropes. Rosa Mendes slapped Christian - and what would have been ECW of him to strike a woman, allowed for a nice treat - then, after tonight, former-ECW GM Tiffany came running down the ramp and speared Rosa Mendes. Both Rosa and Tiffany have trained in FCW, and after this scene, not only is Tiffany beautiful, she is deadly.

The numbers game became too much for Christian, as he fended off William Regal with a Killswitch, only to be thrown back first through a table and covered by Ezekiel Jackson. After holding the title since Night of Champions - defeating Tommy Dreamer for the strap - Christian's reign of ECW Champion ended, and the title of Final ECW Champion went to Ezekiel Jackson.

Obviously, the title change means absolutely nothing because the title has now become defunct. The ECW Title joins the list of other defunct titles: Cruiserweight, Hardcore, Light Heavyweight, European, ECW Tag Team, ECW Television, and the WCW Championship.

In the hearts of the ECW fans, ECW either died in 2001 when it went bankrupt, or in 2005, when WWE provided fans with the closure it desperately deserved. However, let it be known that WWE bought out both WCW and ECW, and while the WCW Title was laid to rest when it was converted into the World Heavyweight Title in 2002, today marks the end of ECW's title history with Ezekiel Jackson, "The end has come, it has awakened, against you."

ECW Blames Tiffany; Hurricane Accepts Burchill's Offer

After last week's assault, Christian has had it with William Regal and wanted him in the ring, one-on-one. But instead of Regal, Christian was greeted by the presence of ECW GM, Tiffany, who holds herself responsible because she has refused Regal's requests for an ECW title shot. And despite her pleas not to give in, Christian was ready to give Regal exactly what he wanted in order to get him into the ring. William Regal accepted the title match, but under his terms that the match takes place next week when ECW is in England. Then Tiffany made it official under the condition that Kozlov and Jackson be banned from ring side.

Next week in England, Christian defends the ECW Title against William Regal.

Tiffany has stopped being the adorable GM and has become really incompetent. If she knew how to run her roster then maybe she wouldn't be disrespected every week by the Ruthless Round Table. It’s her fault Regal keeps attacking Christian and everyone else in the title hunt.

First Match: William Regal vs. Goldust. This match is considered a break for Goldust from having his taint handed to him by Kozlov and Jackson every week. Regal won with the Knee Trembler.

Second Match: Shelton Benjamin vs. Zack Ryder. Backstage, as he was gelling his hair, Ryder met ECW's newest Diva, Rosa Mendes. She started going off on how much she loves being on ECW, while Ryder became smitten with the Spanish Import. And, as luck would have it, she was the special ring announcer for his match against The Gold Standard. Except that it was more like bad luck as the distraction from Rosa applying lip gloss cost Ryder the match. Shelton connected with Pay Dirt and is set back on course to a brighter future in ECW.

Promo: The Hurricane listens to Paul Burchill's proposal. The Emerald Skywalker, penned by Josh Matthews, entered the ring with his Hurri-Cane, incase this was a setup. Paul proposed one final match to end the feud once and for all: If Paul wins, Hurricane must unmask; but, if Hurricane wins, both Paul and Katie Lee must leave ECW. Is it really a punishment? It’s pretty much a win-win scenario for the Burchills, either they unmask their foe, or they move up to either SmackDown or RAW. It was idiotic for Hurricane to accept, but that's what heroes do, accept all challenges.

Third Match: Vance Archer vs. Logan Jones. ECW’s newest acquisition is a former TNA star, and a 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champion. Lance Hoyt signed a deal with WWE in April of this year; training in FCW, he made his ECW debut last night against a local jobber. Mainly an exhibition match, Archer finishes with a Snap Reverse DDT.

Main Event: Christian and Yoshi Tatsu vs. Ezekiel Jackson and Vladimir Kozlov. The match played more like a handicap match, as Yoshi fought with both members of the opposing side. Christian tagged in to handle Kozlov and Tatsu took out Jackson on the outside. Christian won the match with the Killswitch and then Regal arrived to take out Christian. The Ruthless Round Table destroyed the ECW Champion, is this a sign for things to come?

Sheamus' Final Night on ECW; Christian Retains Gold

Is ECW falling under? ECW has failed to make an appearance in the last two pay-per-views and they lost Sheamus to RAW. It looks as though SmackDown and RAW are the ones with all the Bragging Rights.

ECW started off with the Abraham Washington Show, which has really grown on me ever since they decided to add Tony Atlas to the segment. Washington’s guest was the ECW GM, Tiffany, who has upgraded to her own entrance music rather than borrowing Torrie Wilson’s. The identity of the song has not yet been revealed. Abraham asked the tough questions, why was ECW not represented at Bragging Rigths; and what does she have to say about Sheamus’ move to RAW? Her responses were as follows: ECW was represented because stars like John Morrison and Kofi Kingston got their start in ECW, which is hilarious that she mentions these two specifically, since they were each pinned at Bragging Rights. As for Sheamus leaving, if a superstar is dissatisfied with working in ECW, then they are not welcome. The question that impressed upon me was the fact that the feud between Sheamus and Shelton was dropped; but Tiffany cleared the air by stating that Sheamus’ final match on ECW would be against Shelton Benjamin.

Surprise Guests: William Regal w/ Ezekiel Jackson and Vladimir Kozlov. Regal begged Tiffany to reconsider giving him another title match; but, her position was still against. Tiffany even told Regal that he may never get another ECW Title shot. Then, after Tiffany made her exit, Regal started tearing down the set of the Abraham Washington Show and screaming uncouthly.

First Match: Shelton Benjamin vs. Sheamus. In last week’s post, I talk about how Sheamus called out Shelton for having a mediocre career, and for wasting his natural ability. Shelton, in an interview with Savannah, touched base on this allegation and admits that after eight years he doesn’t have much to show for it, but he’ll be damned if he gave up now. He also sees Sheamus as running away from the fight that he started, using RAW as an excuse. This match, and the following, was a pay-per-view caliber match that saw the best quality wrestling that ECW had to offer. And after seeing Shelton as the Intercontinental and United States Champion, he never looked more like a champion than he did last night. The aerial assaults and his aggressiveness show a new found spark in his career. I can definitely see him one day becoming the World Heavyweight Champion; but last night, the match belonged to the Celtic Warrior.

Segment: Gregory Helms and Rosa Mendes. Rosa is the newest acquisition to ECW, who goes on about being famous and thrilled to be on ECW. Helms wasn’t interviewing her, he had just said hello. The Burchills interrupt this meet and greet to provide a message to The Hurricane, to come to the ring next week. Challenge accepted.

Main Event: ECW Champion, Christian defends his title against Yoshi Tatsu. For weeks, Christian has been taking Yoshi under his wing because he has a bright future with the WWE, but that this match, as Christian considered, would be a lesson in losing gracefully. Christian won the ECW Title back at Night of Champions, making him the longest reigning current champion in the WWE; but, his cockiness could prove to be his downfall. The match saw a lot of close calls, and it almost seemed as if Yoshi would become the new ECW Champion; but, after a third attempt, Christian locked in the Killswitch to retain the title.

This match can go down in history as a rookie World Title shot, other examples are: 2001, Jeff Hardy vs. The Undertaker for the Undisputed Title; and 2008, Evan Bourne vs. Matt Hardy for the ECW Title.

But before Christian could congratulate Yoshi for an amazing match, the Ruthless Round Table decimated him. At this point, William Regal is just beating a dead horse, because how many times are we going to see the same ending to ECW? What ECW needs is for Shelton Benjamin to start striving for the title; heck, I wouldn’t even mind seeing The Hurricane face off against Captain Charisma.

Note: As a result of the Bells Palsy Attack that J.R. endured, ECW welcomes its newest member to the broadcast team, Byron Saxton from FCW. And taking over J.R.’s position will be none other than Matt Striker. Therefore, Friday Nights will be hosted by the 2008 Slammy Award Winning Announce Team of Striker and Todd Grisham.

Chris Jericho Visits ECW; Yoshi Tatsu Declared #1 Contender

Last Night's ECW became, for one night only, the best in the world at what it does with the arrival of Chris Jericho. His mission, to strengthen his SmackDown team with the best that ECW had to offer.

However, his meeting with GM Tiffany did not go as planned, as she refused to lend her roster over to the aid of SmackDown. If Tiffany did her homework, she would know that if it were not for the help of SmackDown - ECW would not be on the air right now. In 2007 we had what was known as the SmackDown-ECW Talent Exchange, where members of each roster would appear on the other show to boost ratings. And now Tiffany denies the captain of SmackDown, when RAW never bothered to help in the past, from handpicking the best in the land of Extreme?

The first match was a #1 contender's match for the ECW Championship: Zack Ryder vs. Yoshi Tatsu. In recent weeks, Tatsu has been proving himself in the Land of Extreme, and Christian feels that no one is more deserving than Yoshi Tatsu. Ryder has also proven to take Christian to the extreme limits of their abilities - but once you have a shot, it is time to move on. Yoshi Tatsu became the #1 Contender by a combination of an enziguri and a elbow drop-spring board. Aside from Evan Bourne in 2008, Yoshi Tatsu is possibly the youngest, most undeserving superstar to get an ECW Title shot. Veterans who have been in the business for years and will possibly never get a real World Title, deserve a shot at the ECW title. Even Zack Ryder first appeared on ECW as part of the tag team, The Major Brothers. Ryder has become a WWE Tag Team Champion last year and has now undergone a complete gimmick change and honed his wrestling skills. William Regal or Ryder should be contending for the title; but I guess its not enough for ECW.

Next match: Sheamus vs. a local jobber. Sheamus attacked ruthlessly with all the intend on destroying his opponent. Several times during the match, Sheamus pulled away from the cover in order to inflict more damage. It wasn't until Shelton Benjamin made his was to the ring did the real fight begin. These two have a lot of heat towards one another, and a definitive match between these two would prove to be a classic.

The following: Paul Burchill w/ Katie Lee calling out to unmask The Hurricane. It was pretty obvious that Hurricane would send out a double to mess with the Burchills. Paul's promo is really bad; and its not because he's British, cause William Regal cuts great promos. For being the first British OVW Champion, I'd expected better. When Hurricane came out from behind, he started wielding his Hurri-Cane - yes, a metal cane. As the entrance theme states: Watch Out, Cause There's a Hurricane Coming Through.

And the Main Event: ECW Champiom, Christian vs. One-Half of the Unified Tag Team Champions, Chris Jericho. Because of Jericho's continued defiance of the ECW GM, he was placed in this match against the best that ECW had to offer. During his pursuit of making the elite SmackDown team, he looked to William Regal's Ruthless Round table. An interesting exchange of pleasantry's between Regal and Jericho - complimenting one another's suits. This moment was inspired by Barney Stintson, what up! Ergo, Jericho left empty handed. The match between Christian and Jericho was instantly classic, as these two former tag team partners, who have not met inside the squared circle in over 6 years, broke out in a Canadian Brawl. And something that has always bothered me is that both superstars utilize the same lower rope choking maneuver. You know that move, when the opponent falls neck first into the bottom rope and the attacker jumps on the back and uses the top rope as leverage. Well, both superstars used it on the other in this match. They seriously need to come up with a name for that move, because it's too much to have to explain this every time. Christian even broke out of the Walls of Jericho and avoided 2 Lionsaults. It was a quick Killswitch that was engaged for the win. In reality, Jericho had to lose, because what would that say for ECW if the champion can't even defend the pride of the brand?

Final Assessment: RAW couldn't deliver on a Michaels-Jericho match, so they assume that a Christian-Jericho would suffice? Well it didn't, but it was a nice treat.

Next week, Christian defends the title against Yoshi Tatsu.

Ruthless Roundtable Dominates ECW; New Ring Announcer; ECW Not So Extreme

ECW opened up with William Regal and his Roundtable, Ezekiel Jackson and Vladimir Kozlov, making their way to the ring to announce the #1 Contender for Christian's ECW Title.

In light of what happened to GM Tiffany, Regal felt it critical to name himself as the new #1 Contender. This decision was not popular amongst many of the ECW fans, but none more spoken than Zack Ryder.

Zack Ryder was screwed over last week from his one-on-one match against Christian and now William Regal is #1 Contender?

With both parties arguing over contendership status, Christian came out with 3 people, he felt, more deserving for a title shot.

1) A Janitor 2) Tony Atlas 3) Yoshi Tatsu

Yoshi Tatsu has been winning matches as of late, and pinned both Regal and Ryder in the past couple of weeks. Should he be considered #1 Contender?

Honestly, Yoshi Tatsu just arrived in the WWE and should not get a title shot already. How about people who have actually strived for years for a title? This recent yo-yo effect with the World Titles amongst the WWE Superstars is annoying. The WWE and World Heavyweight Titles have become interchangeable - Orton said, "I am now a 6-time WWE Champion." Wrong, he is a 5x WWE Champion and 1x World Heavyweight Champion. The correct term is a 6x World Champion.

Thing about ECW, it's mostly a developmental show with 1 title. If one wins the ECW Title, it doesn't make you the best in WWE, just the best on ECW. Despite ECW being considered a 3rd brand, it is not equal to SmackDown or RAW. The Real ECW had Mid-level titles and was not a brand it was its whole company. And has anyone notice that their is nothing Extreme about The Land of Extreme? What happened to Tornado Tag Teams? What happened to blood, thumb tacks, and flaming tables?

Back to ECW, Tiffany has returned to resume her role as GM and announced 3 matches that would take place during the course of the night. WWE Storyline is that Tiffany was involved in a car accident, explaining the arm cast. In reality, she injured herself at an FCW event.

First match: Vladimir Kozlov and Ezekiel Jackson vs. Tommy Dreamer and Goldust. No, the WWE is not forming a new tag team, but for the past three or so weeks, Dreamer and Dust have been involved in Tag Team action. It's surprising how WWE is building Goldust, seeing as this is a multiple go-around in the WWE again. Dreamer was aggressive in the ring, which is good seeing as they are going up against two muscular giants. Kozlov and Jackson build some credibility as a tag team as they face an actual team of superstars. The destruction of jobbers was getting a little stale.

Second Match: William Regal vs. Yoshi Tatsu. The match to determine whether Tatsu's win last week was a fluke. And after this match, it might have been. However, the referee gave the win to Yoshi Tatsu, despite the fact that Regal's foot was under the rope. Josh Matthews said that a Ref's call is absolutely final - well, on the contrary, if the GM decides to, they can change the decision or have the match restarted. Appears Tiffany avoided the situation.

Main Event: ECW Champion Christian vs. Zack Ryder. The announcers stated that these two competitors have had two classic matches together and that Christian is getting closer to figuring Ryder Out. As I recall, Christian pinned Ryder twice, so if anyone should be figuring who out, it's Ryder. It's one thing for Ryder to come out in half trunk/tights, but that see through black shirt is NOT cool bro! The match would have made a nice tri-fecta in their rivalry, if it wasn't for the Ruthless Roundtable attacking Christian outside of the ring. Not only did they destroy Christian, but they attacked Zack Ryder for speaking out.

And just incase you haven't noticed, ECW has a new ring announcer by the name of Lauren Mayhew. She is a singer and actress, most likely hired to take over Lilian Garcia's singing of the National Anthem at WWE events. A lot of people were unimpressed by the new announcer's ability to introduce superstars - but everyone has to start somewhere. Not everyone is a Justin Roberts or a Tony Chimel on their first night. Through time, she will get better - I think, lol.

Final Assessment: ECW needs to become 2 hours long like the rest of WWE, and introduce a mid-level title. Possibly bring back the Hardcore Title? And hire more superstars - new people are the future of the company. Mayhew is rather new to the whole experience and will need a lot of practice before she can fill Lilian's shoes. Regal was cheated from victory last night, its time that ECW realized that Regal is a force to be reckoned with.

GM Tiffany Injured; ECW TItle Not Defended at Hell in the Cell?

ECW opened with William Regal addressing the audience that the ECW GM Tiffany was involved in a car accident, and the doctors do say that she will make a full recovery, she is at home nursing her injuries. And because of Regal's past experience as RAW's GM, the WWE Board of Directors has made him the interim GM of ECW.

But just to assure everyone, Tiffany did NOT get into a car accident. According to her twitter account, Tiffany appeared in FCW's live TV Taping the thursday before ECW - You just might catch me in action ;)

Well, indeed she did get some wrestling action as she injured herself in the match. She fractured her humerus bone. WWE Creative team will work in the fracture as a result of the "car accident."

Now that we have that out of the way, let's take a look at William Regal's awesome GM skills: Changing the main event match between Ryder and Christian to a 4-on-1 Handicap Match including The Ruthless Roundtable. That would have been a match that I would like to have seen... however, the Board of Directors were not pleased and instead changed the main event match once again to include Yoshi Tatsu, Goldust, and Tommy Dreamer.

Never did the Board of Directors once interfered when Vickie Guerrero did any of her crazy calls: Banning the Undertaker from the WWE, Granting her then-husband Edge unlimited opportunities to the World Title, and unbelievable immunity from contesting on regular tv. But no, let's stop Regal from beating the pulp out of Christian.

ECW consisted of two matches and a segment of the Abraham Washington Show.

Now, The Abraham Washington Show featured a new guest, John Morrison? What is Morrison doing back on ECW? Anyway, he was sporting his new t-shirt available on WWEShop.com and was actually pleased with the Abraham Washington Show - which is a first, because no one ever likes to be on it or hear Abe's jokes. Then the weakest surprise guest was Dolph Ziggler. He sat down on the couch and starred at Morrison but could not get a word in edge-wise. The segment thus ended with Ziggler left alone. - No respect for "Perfection."

The first match was "The Gold Standard" Shelton Benjamin who took on Paul Burchill. Prior to the match, as Shelton walked down the ramp, he was attacked by Sheamus. He badly banged up Shelton's arm and it didn't seem possible for Benjamin to agree to face Burchill. Now, Burchill has been on a losing streak as of late, losing to the likes of The Hurricane and Tatsu, you would finally think that he could beat a wounded man, right? Shelton proved his tenacity in the ring, willing himself to victory. Shelton is the best pure athlete in the the Land of Extreme and his face change is inevitable.

The final match was an 8 man tag team match: ECW Champion Christian, Tommy Dreamer, Goldust, and Yoshi Tatsu vs. Zack Ryder and The Ruthless Roundtable. Before the match, Christian had a pep talk with his team, but most importantly it's what he said to Yoshi Tatsu, "you represent the new blood here on ECW, we're all excited about your future but we need you to step it up tonight." Not only did Tatsu step it up, he won his team the match by pinning William Regal with a Roundhouse Kick.

So far, out of the four new superstars that Tiffany signed over to ECW: Yoshi Tatsu and Sheamus have bright futures in the WWE.

The Board of Directors restricted Regal from creating any matches that would effect the ECW Championship, including #1 Contender matches. As of right now, there is no ECW Title match set for this Sunday's Hell in a Cell ppv. This would mark the first WWE ppv not featuring an ECW match since WWE decided to make their ppvs tri-branded.

In all honesty, there is no point in having one ECW match at the ppv, what's the point of dragging Matt Striker and Josh Matthews to commentate on one single match, especially if that match turns out to be 8 seconds like SummerSlam?

Plus, Zack Ryder became the #1 Contender and then had one of the best ECW title matches the following week. From not winning the title, it now leaves Christian without an opponent. And GM Tiffany did ban Regal from having another ECW Title shot, so who's next?

If ECW really wanted a match for the Hell in a Cell ppv, they should have Shelton Benjamin finally face off against Sheamus. But that's just me.

WWE Divas Studios: Tiffany

Donald Trump's Trade Make or Break ECW?

ECW kicked off with an announcement from the vivacious General Manager, Tiffany stating that ECW has lost a lot of great talent but has also gained some. The reality is that the trade has severely crippled ECW. Three of the five competitors from Sunday’s Scramble Match have now found homes on RAW and Smackdown.

Evan Bourne, no doubt the most exciting commodity, has also left the Land of Extreme to thrive on Monday Nights – as seen during the Gauntlet match, Evan almost pinned the WWE Champion.

The Hart Dynasty, possibly the most exciting union since The Miz and John Morrison, has left for Smackdown – in hopes to dominate Friday Nights and one day obtain both the Unified Tag Team and Women’s Titles. It is no secret that ECW is always cheated out of their top tier superstars, mainly to RAW who tend to capitalize on ECW’s hard work.

After losing seven superstars, what is next for ECW?

Tiffany, learning much from the previous GM, has reinstated the Superstar Initiative – a program that brings in fresh talent over from FCW, training grounds, over to the WWE.

The first of the new superstars was Yoshi Tatsu, a Japanese wrestler, facing off against “The Gold Standard” Shelton Benjamin, re-debuting on ECW. Not much is known about Tatsu’s wrestling technique, except for an enzuigiri that knocked the Gold Standard out cold – giving him his first victory on ECW.

ECW has also acquired a new talk show, hosted by Abraham Washington. Gimmicked as having the gift of gab, Washington is actually an instigator – badmouthing superstars and causing problems - as his guests, the Bella Twins, were about to pull hairs until they discretely left.

With the departure of one Irish Brawler, ECW has introduced the arrival of another Celtic Warrior by the name of Sheamus. During his match with a local jobber, Sheamus was instantly portrayed as a heel, driving his knee into his opponent's back for the 1-2-3 victory.

In the weeks ahead, how will the superstars from the initiative fare along with the superstars from the trade? And with three threats gone, will Dreamer have a long title reign, or has new threats emerged?