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SHIMMER Weekend in Review: News, Notes, Pictures and Videos

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When I arrived in Berwyn, IL for the latest tapings of SHIMMER Women Athletes, I had no idea what to expect. Yeah, I’ve been to wrestling shows before, but never something that I had such an investment in. SHIMMER had changed my perspective on women’s wrestling and I finally was getting my wish of seeing it live. Also, the four Joshi competitors were another unknown that had me buzzing with anticipation.

As soon as walked into the door, I was bombarded by tons of merchandise featuring some of my favorite wrestlers. Mentally, I spent almost all of my cash before I even got to my seat. However, my purchases would have to wait until intermission. The day started off with a mens tag team match, but I won’t bore you with the details. The REAL show started with SPARKLE. PJ Tyler from Femmes Fatales had a good match with another newcomer, Anna Minoushka. She Nay Nay also had a good showing with the spunky and vivacious Leva Bates. These were decent matches but they just teased me; I was ready for the main course.

The first taping (Vol. 29) had some great matches on the card including Kellie Skater vs Neveah, Cat Power vs Jessie McKay, and an awesome beatdown by The Canadian Ninjas, but business really picked up in the second half. One of my favorite matches of the night came from Australian grappler Tenille in a match against Sara Del Rey. I had never been too impressed with Tenille in the past; I always thought she had potential but was still quite green. Obviously, Tenille was out to send a message to all her naysayers, because she put on an awesome match. She didn’t come out on top put she definitely turned some heads. Later, she’d tell me that she’d been training very hard and she’s glad she’s improving.

The return of Madison Eagles was also a highlight of the night. The crowd was on fire for her and she got a huge “welcome back” chant after her match with Sassy Stephie. And then came the Joshi… Honestly, these women tore the house down all weekend, Ayumi Kurihara in particular. For all of us in attendance, the Japanese competitors were an absolute joy to watch and I wait for the DVDs to be released so I can relive these matches all over again.

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In Audio: Celebrating 5 Years of Melina

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Today, April 14th, marks the five year anniversary of three-time Women’s Champion and one-time Divas Champion, Melina in the WWE. Five years ago, Melina along with Johnny Nitro (now John Morrison) and Joey Mercury  made their debuts as the formidable team MNM, taking SmackDown by storm. It’s been a long road for Melina who has … Read more

Exclusive: Maria Kanellis on Her New Album, Apprentice, Divas Division Frustrations & Much More

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With her debut EP, ‘Sevin Sins’ now available on iTunes, we caught up with former WWE Diva Maria Kanellis to discuss her foray into music and a host of other topics. Despite being released in February, it’s been all systems go for Kanellis with her album, ‘Apprentice’ and a new career in MMA as a … Read more

Fight Network Picks Up Wrestlicious

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Wrestlicious has signed a deal with The Fight Network in Canada, extending the company’s Canadian distribution for the TakeDown series. The hit action/comedy series Wrestlicious TakeDown will air on The Fight Network (thefightnetwork.com) in Canada beginning in early May 2010.TakeDown will be the only all female wrestling series featured on the network in 2010. With … Read more

Raw Redux (April 12th, 2010): Way Too Quick & Far Too Slow

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So Eve Torres won a Divas Championship shot last week in what was probably the least prestigious win of its kind. That’s not a slight to Eve, though, because the evening gown stipulation dragged the match down like a rusty anchor. Still, it was promising to see an actual championship match made, and we moved on to this week with Eve vs. Maryse in the cards. So, did this match surpass its dress-wrestling origins? Let’s see:

David Hasselhoff introduces the match. Eve makes her way to the ring, and she dances a bit with Hoff. Michael Cole calls this an “interesting” and “unique” way to kick off Raw. I have no idea what that means, because while Divas Championship matches may be rare, they’re not exactly “unique” fare. Maryse is next, and the match starts. Maryse gets things rolling with a vicious slap, prompting a hair-pulling exchange that the referee eventually has to break up. Maryse slips out of the ring and Eve gives chase, meeting a blow from Maryse as soon as she reaches her.

Maryse is showing more aggression than she has in a long, long time. I guess a championship defense will light a fire under anyone’s ass, but it’s nice to see her do more than run away–though she’s still doing that too. She slams Eve’s face onto the apron several times before tossing her back into the ring. Before Maryse can do anything more Eve goes on an offensive streak of her own, whipping Maryse into the corner, charging and getting an elbow to the face. Maryse tries to get in another lick but Eve again turns the tables, hitting a neckbreaker. She positions Maryse on the mat and climbs the turnbuckle, performing a beautiful moonsault.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t meet its mark, as Maryse rolls out of the way. Both Divas lay stagnant on the mat, and I’m pretty sure Eve knocked all the wind out of herself. God, that’s gotta hurt. Maryse laughs at her misfire, slapping her on the back of the head and standing her up for the French Kiss DDT. Even blocks it, though and, with that momentum, rolls Maryse up into an interesting bridge pin. She gets the 3-count and is the new Divas Champion. Eve celebrates while Maryse screams (in agony?).

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Impact Write-Up (April 12, 2010): Leather and Lace? More Like Bondage and Beat-downs.

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few months, it’s plain as day to see that the Knockouts division is slowly going down hill. The girls are being turned into pretty face divas instead of being allowed to get down and dirty, and be the Knockouts we all know they can be. This week’s Impact was another sign that the times are changing with the little Florida based company that desperately wants to compete with the billion-dollar empire that calls Connecticut home. Last week’s lock box disaster included contract winner, Velvet Sky, announcing that she would be facing Angelina Love in a Leather and Lace match. We got that match this week (sort of) and a lot more.

Angelina is the first competitor to make her way to the ring. I’m not seeing much lace on her outfit, but whatever. She’s got the TNA Knockout Championship strapped around her waist so I guess she can do and wear whatever she wants. That’s fair. She looks gorgeous, either way, and right at home with that title. The crowd gives her a nice reaction and it’s cool to see Angelina as champion again even if she won it in a cheap way. Velvet comes out second and she’s got her title and a microphone. She stops at the ramp and announces that tonight’s match is not going to be leather and lace because none of the perverts deserve to see her goodies (nevermind that she was more covered up this week than usual). Angelina rolls her eyes, not surprised, because she knows better than anyone than Velvet is all about shenanigans. Velvet smiles so pretty and says that tonight she is going to face Angelina in a handcuff match and that she was gunna whip that booty. Angelina perks up and gets annoyed, especially when the referee starts to manhandle her. He slaps those cuffs on her pretty tightly and Velvet makes her way to the ring once Angelina is secured.

To Velvet’s surprise, Angelina is the first to mount some offense. She stiffly kicks Velvet as she’s slipping between the ropes. Velvet goes down and begins screeching her head off, while Angelina happily puts the boots to her ex-best friend forever. The referee eventually pulls Angelina off Velvet, which gives the devilish Miss Sky the chance to grab the Knockout Championship and hit Angelina with it. Angelina goes down like a ton of bricks and Velvet takes control. She motions for the microphone and tells everyone that she forgot something. The match is now under “I Quit” rules. Velvet starts to beat on Angelina and show her who the true beautiful person is. Angelina basically has no fight at this point because well she’s handcuffed and got smacked with a gold belt. The beat-down is pretty weak, but props to Velvet for protecting Angelina during it. Velvet continues her offense and in a really cool spot, she starts choking Angelina with her own hair. Once Velvet tires of that she gets up, grabs the microphone, and demands that Angelina say those two magic words. Of course Angelina refuses.

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ODB Comments on State of Knockouts Division

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Former Knockouts Champion, ODB posted the following on her Facebook page after seeing last night’s episode of Impact: Just watched from my DVR the Knockouts match. Wow, WTF is happening to our division? While it seems that ODB is commenting on the direction of the division under the current regime, I will let you make … Read more

Raw Response: April 12th, 2010

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Tonight’s Raw will be hosted by “Baywatch” alum and all-around pop culture phenom David Hasselhoff. The show was pre-taped, so if you’re curious about its goings-on you can view the show’s spoilers here. As always, tune in at 9/8 CST on the USA Network. Discuss the show in the comments!

Impact Feedback: April 12th, 2010

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Tonight on Impact, Angelina Love takes on Velvet Sky in a ‘Leather & Lace’ match following last week’s Lock Box Showdown. Who will come out on top? View spoilers for the show here. Remember: Impact begins at 8pm ET tonight and every week going forward on Spike TV. Discuss the show in the comments!

Eve Torres Becomes Divas Champion

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Congratulations to Eve Torres on becoming the new WWE Divas Champion on an edition of Raw taped in London, England earlier tonight. Eve’s title win makes some history as she becomes the first Diva Search winner to win a championship. Torres defeated Maryse, a two time Divas Champ, for the belt.

Mr. Glamazon’s Hitting the Ropes: Issue #2

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Well I think our first date went well. I picked you up on time, bought you dinner, told some funny jokes, picked a decent movie, and then dropped you back home before curfew. All in all it was a good night, except for one thing. I did all the talking. It was all about me. So, enough about me…for our second date lets climb the ropes together and turn our attention to where it belongs, the wrestling ring.

I thought in general this was a shaky week for the WWE. I like Jack Swagger and think he has a great future, but to have him cash in his MITB briefcase on a taped program like Smackdown seemed to detract from the moment, from the important elevation of his career. Nothing is as exciting when you know it is taped. Whether the WWE wants to admit it or not, show spoilers are out there and people do find out results beforehand. Michael Cole called us “Internet geeks” this past week. Whatever. Maybe it’s not a huge percentage, and maybe it’s not their target audience (i.e. kids), but there are plenty of us that do read the results beforehand and I felt the intimacy of the moment was stolen from Swagger. Do it on RAW (they cross brands all the time) or at a PPV. Give him that special “live” moment. I kind of felt bad for him even though this win is great for his career. I don’t know. Am I wrong here? To what degree should the WWE care about how the Internet affects their business?

And just to remind you…there are only 4 weeks to go until the first “rookie” is eliminated from NXT. Settle down. I know the excitement is overwhelming. I can only imagine the “innovative” challenges NXT has in store for us over the next few weeks, maybe jumping rope, maybe karaoke. This past week was bizarre, although I haven’t had that much fun watching dudes carry a keg around since I was a junior in college. For me personally NXT has been a major let-down. I support the concept – trying to establish new stars – but I expected this show to be a “peek” into the training and conditioning of future superstars, not 8-on-1 matches vs. Kane. I think NXT is so contrived I find myself missing The Abraham Washington Show. And at least with ECW we would get the occasional Rosa Mendes “cha cha cha”. (Speaking of bad WWE TV, what happened to WWE Superstars? They should just change the tag line from “Expect Everything” to “Expect William Regal and a Colon Brother”.)

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Another Divas Match on Raw?

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Tonight’s Raw guest host, David Hasselhoff posted the following on his Twitter page: Raw tonight Diva triple Match !!! It’s possible that Hasselhoff may just be confused or it could be that there is a triple threat match on Raw tonight in addition to the Divas Championship bout between Eve and Maryse. If so, I’m … Read more

In Video: New Video Packages for Eve Torres, Gail Kim & Kelly Kelly

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WWE has added some new Diva videos to its ‘Smart, Sexy & Powerful’ series. Last month, WWE.com uploaded videos dedicated to the likes of Michelle McCool, Mickie James and others, now we have three more for Eve Torres, Gail Kim and Kelly Kelly.

It seems as though they put more effort into these ones, they’re a step above the last batch for me. I particularly like Eve’s one, the narration makes her come across as a determined, serious athlete which is perfect given that she is competing for the Divas Title tonight. Watch them all below:

EVE TORRES

The rest after the cut:

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SHIMMER Volume 32 Taping Results

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Diva Dirt‘s Steven is on hand at this weekend’s SHIMMER festivities in Berwyn, Illinois. Today, SHIMMER will be filming Volumes 31 and 32 to round out the weekend. Below are complete results from the Volume 32 taping.

1. Jamilia Craft def. Malia Hosaka via a wheelbarrow rollup. Jamilia once again is really green. Lexie-on-a-Stick attacks Craft several times. Lol. Not a great match but I didn’t hate it.

2. Rachel Summerlyn def. Kellie Skater with a Texas cloverleaf. Not a bad match. Skater’s chest still looks horrible.

3. Cat Power def. Nevaeh with the Side Effect. Neveah put in a great effort. Nice to see that she can go, even without Ashley Lane.

4. Allison Danger & Jennifer Blake def. Annie Social & Melanie Cruise. Blake pinned Social after a modified pumphandle slam. Jen and Danger start a Addams Family chant calling Social and Cruise, Wednesday and Pugsley. Lol. Things broke down at the end but great nonetheless.

5. Tomoka Nakagawa def. Jessie McKay with the fisherman suplex. Jessie hit three running knees strikes and two School Girl Crushes but Nakagawa spits in her face and hit the suplex for the win.

Backstage interview with Madison Eagles. Eagles says that she won’t defend the title tonight.

6. Portia Perez def. Tenille via superkick. Portia’s elbow is heavily taped. Tenille works on the arm at the start. Portia tries to escape but Tenille cuts her off with a kick. Portia gets the upper hand and takes it to Tenille busts out her awesome bridging Indian deathlock. Tenille would be my pick for breakout star of these tapings.

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Madison Eagles Becomes SHIMMER Champion

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Australian wrestler, Madison Eagles has ended MsChif’s two year reign as SHIMMER Champion. Eagles pinned MsChif just moments ago at the SHIMMER Volume 31 taping in Berwyn, Illinois. Eagles becomes just the third SHIMMER Champion. Sara Del Rey was the first ever champion but lost the belt to MsChif on Volume 18 in April 2008. … Read more

SHIMMER Volume 31 Taping Results

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Diva Dirt‘s Steven is on hand at this weekend’s SHIMMER festivities in Berwyn, Illinois. Today, SHIMMER will be filming Volumes 31 and 32 to round out the weekend. Below are complete results from the Volume 31 taping.

SPARKLE (Pre-Show)
* PJ Tyler & Leva Bates def. Anna Minoushka & She Nay Nay. PJ pins She Nay Nay after a modified fisherman suplex. Bates is really over. Surprisingly good match.

Volume 31
1. Kellie Skater def. Jessica James with a running necksnap. James is really tiny, think AJ Lee but she uses it to her advantage. Lots of quick strikes and rollups. Good matchup. I see Jessica going places. Crowd was behind her the whole time.

2. Jessie McKay def. Sassy Stephie with the School Girl Crush followed by the Boyfriend Stealer. Great Back and forth match. Sassy pulled some awesome moves but Jessie managed to take the win.

4. Malia Hosaka def. Rayna Von Tosh with a chicken wing face buster. Crowd is hot for Rayna. Gorgeous in person. Sloppy match to be honest, but Rayna is hot enough to make me not care!

5. Mercedes Martinez def. Tomoka Nakagawa with a top rope fisherman buster. Great technical wrestling at the start. Sick brainbuster midway through. Nakagawa almost got the win with a fisherman buster.

6. Melanie Cruise def. Allison Danger. Cruise wins after Annie Social distracts the ref allowing her to roll up Danger. After the match the heels beat down Danger and Jennifer Blake makes the save. Danger and Blake challenge Social and Cruise for Vol. 32 to be taped later today.

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