WWE Fans

Heard something hilarious. we had the Lex Express with Lex Luger, so lets get the Yes Express for Bryan.

[Love Buzz]

That Occupy was f'n epic. I was loving it. I had a brief scare when Sandow looked like he was going to get fired but phew it didn't happen, would of really dampened the spirit. I hope I can remember that in the years to come.

Nice to see the Basham Brothers are working security in Memphis. They've not aged well

To be fair FREAKZILLA alot of people mentioned it on the Steve Austin show phone in but I'm still giving you the credit anyway lol. My only concern is a screw job in the main event. Bryan is guaranteed to win his first bout because, as we all know, the main event will get the shit booed out of it otherwise. I really can't see WWE swerving and capitalising all of a sudden to give Bryan the ball at 30. I've watched enough to know of the dastardly tendencies so I'm staying cautious and not willing to go ape shit until it happens. They can get major ass heat on Batista here if he wins. Randy is gone.. no focus is on him any more, nobody gives a rats. Either Batista or Bryan is winning it. Probably be Randy now lol.

Raw started quite slow but got good after the occupy. I wasn't digging Cena and Bray, too many jokes. Bray does talk a lot of junk and I hate when people call themselves a God. That is just too ludicrous for me and requires a facepalm. The Taker segment was rather bland. Heyman should of taken a tombstone to get Brock even more pissed for when he shows up next. Heyman could still be around in a wheelchair or on crutches to be the mouthpiece.

I think Rusev is a big possibility for the 30 man battle royale. Fandango won in his very first match which was at Mania and it appears they might make that a new tradition now. No doubt it's just a 3D printed trophy painted bronze that means jack shit so a big name doesn't have to win it. I don't think JR will be pleased who said on his pod he isn't a fan of battle royales at Mania.

I don't think Bryan will end up like the Titanic.

why I mention the Titanic? I swear, its not one of my usual pointless posts.

Leo was at his popularity peak when The Titanic came out. He will never reach that popularity again (he says so himsefl), but Titanic made him a world superstar.

Bryan is at his popularity peak now, or it is coming at Wrestlmania. He may never be this popular again, but Wrestlemania will make him that 'world superstar' in WWE terms.

Bryan will sail to success at Wrestlemania ( oh boy) and no iceberg is going to stop him.

[HBM2]

Getting technical again, when extracting the audio and video streams from the native FLV file, and remuxing them to MP4, the aspect ratio defaults at 4:3, the FLV video's 16:9. I had to change the aspect ratio before remuxing, something I didn't do for Wrestlemania XX, but I redid it, the picture still looks the same. Pre-HD and all that, but for Royal Rumble 2011, looks better than the first remuxing time.

I'm not sure exactly what you were trying to do here (The aspect ratio is incorrect on the two stills)... Sometimes I acquire files that won't work in my video editor. Maybe the codec doesn't match, I'm not sure. When that happens, I will convert them with Freemake Video Converter. It's a free app for Windows. You can set the bit rate, aspect ratio, frame rate, frame size, etc. You can use the 'same as original' setting and only change the format which allows you to then put it in a video editor and make your own adjustments before rendering. It handles just about all formats, including FLV and MKV. You can convert them to many different formats as well. It's a very handy tool that might solve your problem. It also converts audio files.

[Love Buzz]

OK, you make a good point. I was already sold but now I'm more sold. I just don't like the thought of thinking he has to win then get depressed if it doesn't happen. I'd rather go in thinking he might not win just to have a calmer approach so to speak. A I told you so moment or go f'n ape shit spaz OMG ECDub! EcDub! I mean.. YES YES YES YES YES YES if he wins.

Just a thought but I think Bryan needs a better t-shirt. That Che Guevara like shirt sucks imo. They need the arms pointing up with the finger pointed on the front in the yes pose and a big ass YES on the back.

[Absent Friend]

Originally Posted by HBM2

I'm not sure exactly what you were trying to do here (The aspect ratio is incorrect on the two stills)... Sometimes I acquire files that won't work in my video editor. Maybe the codec doesn't match, I'm not sure. When that happens, I will convert them with Freemake Video Converter. It's a free app for Windows. You can set the bit rate, aspect ratio, frame rate, frame size, etc. You can use the 'same as original' setting and only change the format which allows you to then put it in a video editor and make your own adjustments before rendering. It handles just about all formats, including FLV and MKV. You can convert them to many different formats as well. It's a very handy tool that might solve your problem. It also converts audio files.

I'm not sure how it picked up the stream it did, but when the FLV file was downloaded, the aspect ratio was 16:9 and the resolution was 960x720. I extracted the video and audio streams with FLV extract and remuxed them with MP4muxer (videohelp.com is the source for all these tools), and set the resolution to 1280x720, it still came out 960x720 but the aspect ratio turned to 16:9. Without altering the resolution before remuxing, the aspect ratio was 4:3. At 16:9 the picture stretches to fit the screen whereas 4:3 at full screen, doesn't, thus leaving black borders. That's just what I worked with, I'll toy around and try FVC, but I'm satisfied already just because it can go full screen.

Originally Posted by Alan Kellerman

I don't think Bryan will end up like the Titanic.

why I mention the Titanic? I swear, its not one of my usual pointless posts.

Leo was at his popularity peak when The Titanic came out. He will never reach that popularity again (he says so himsefl), but Titanic made him a world superstar.

Bryan is at his popularity peak now, or it is coming at Wrestlmania. He may never be this popular again, but Wrestlemania will make him that 'world superstar' in WWE terms.

Bryan will sail to success at Wrestlemania ( oh boy) and no iceberg is going to stop him.

I only watched Titanic once as a kid and in that age group, it was tough to watch. Too long, melodramatic, but that's the memory I kept. As an adult, I don't know, I might appreciate it more. It turned me off to Leonardo Dicaprio, but later in life, seeing him as a man in Blood Diamond turned me back into him. We watched that movie in World History class in high school. Why show an R rated movie to kids under 18, I have no idea. That teacher was very open minded. After that I saw the Scorsese movies he's been in and appreciate him more as one of the best actors today. I haven't seen many new movies since 2011, so that includes J. Edgar, Django Unchained, and Wolf of Wall Street.

I'd add the fact the man never won an Oscar, which is unfair. At least Daniel Bryan has been a world champion, but will get a more prestigious prize if Wrestlemania XXX ends how it should end.

[Love Buzz]

Problem is WWE make their 4:3 pre-hd stuff into 16:9 by changing the black borders with that hazy marble effect stuff so it gives a wide screen illusion. It's rip-off hd or upscaled if you want to call it that but they call it hd. BOOO!! It's the equivalent of watching a dvd on a blu-ray player and upscaling it. Quality improves a bit but not drasticly. I had a con on a dvd player. Claimed to be able to upscale but of course it couldn't because it doesn't have a blu-ray laser but being an idiot at the time I fell for it because I didn't know shit. Looking back I can't believe they were even allowed to sell them. Saying all that I guess if they re-encoded the video streams with vc-1 or avc then maybe it is hd... ok, now I've stumped myself. Ok, now I had a think, I'd say no it doesn't. None of this is probably helpful. I just felt like mouthing off about stuff that bugs me.

Zack Ryder flopped first time, this time everyone is too busy caring bout Bryan to give a flying fuck bout reZort. He poorly timed this shtick although the music score made me feel something for him. Then I paid close attention to his voice and thought he sounded like an idiot for some reason. His accent makes him sound like a teen. He should of waited til after the Mania hype has ended then maybe I'd care.

[Absent Friend]

Thoughts on Main Event

1.) Just as I thought when The Ryback was talking about his entry into the 30 man Battle Royal, Curtis Axel appeared in a PIP promo and mentioned him being in the battle royal. Well two teams that are jobbers, I wonder who would win? The match focused a good deal on Axel's offense, as he was taking over a Matador for half the match. That offense was nice, making think the guy's an unfortunate case of simply not clicking with the fans. The only thing to say for that is just give it time, Axel's talent make sure he stays in WWE for a long time to come. Until then, just try and keep impressing in the ring. He did just that, but of course Los Matadores would make a comeback. Their offense from that was alright, and the match was a bit better than what one might expect. Just plays into Main Event giving more time for matches to cook. I actually figured after this realization, that Rybaxel would win. They didn't, ah well. The match was alright. Oh wait, it ended with the mystical schoolboy rollup of doom, recently plucked from the Divas division and exported to the males, as the biggest stars have now used it recently. From Big E to John Cena, and now Los Matadores. My goodness.

2.) Oh God, the Scooby Doo movie with WWE. I'm going to watch that, really. CM Punk wasn't advertised, but I think I saw his animated image in the movie, so I assume they didn't edit his parts out. Wouldn't be surprised if that happens. It's like video games, the characters are beefier than in real life. No way Santino's body competes with HHH, and Big Show's a bit chubbier (for lack of a better term), as well as Brodus Clay. And Vince? The build on that guy dates back to the late 90s, early 2000s, he hasn't looked like that in years, and it's just age. He's no Chuck Norris.

3.) AJ Lee is bored. That's what she said, she said she'll prove why she's the longest reigning Divas champion. She ended her promo saying "268-forever," which makes me think the title's changing hands. Will it? Natalya had a serious face on her, it was a bit, scary? Game face, something, and her attire looked a bit meshier, if that makes sense. Meanwhile the builds of both women are seemingly more defined, abs I see a little.

4.) Holy fucking shit! I counted, 15 minutes, excluding commercials, but dude, 15 minutes! It's no coincidence that this match comes weeks after Emma and Paige, going at it for a similar amount of time, but on NXT Arrival. So in WWE, this is just crazy. One thing I noticed between both women were their facial expressions. It didn't really have anything to do with a cheap fix for masturbation, just that they seem to be more palpable than I can ever recall. Mostly from selling movies, some coming after executing moves or before as a psyche up thing. It started with chain wrestling, Natalya getting the better of it and continuously trying to lock in a hold on AJ. Whether that be around the head, or on a leg, she wanted to hook AJ every which way but loose. This kind of wrestling isn't even that prevalent in the male division. It showed that this was going to last a while, and as time passed, nothing was rushed. Neither woman hit their signature moves after only 5 minutes of action. The fact it also went to a commercial break showed that it was going to last a while. The only flaw I have to bring up, is just something I probably should not have picked up on. Referee John Cone giving the time to both women. On one hand, it's positive, because one time he said "7" after the match already reached 7 minutes! Then "6," meaning there's 6 minutes left in the match, so what are they going to do? I wonder because that's a very long time for women, but AJ and Natalya were adept at lasting the time without overly slow spots. There were slow moments, but more of a pacing deal, than just a case of either woman blowing up. AJ's submission game came later into the match, trying to win with a guillotine choke, then trying the Black Widow. The Tamina factor was pretty minimal. She did no damage to Natalya physically. One distraction bit before the break, push the ropes for AJ to reach after a long sharpshooter, getting on the apron and trying to distract Natalya towards the end. Natalya didn't move from her position, staying in sight of AJ, all she did was turn her head quickly to Tamina, then back to AJ and wham, Shining Wizard. I was fully convinced that AJ would lose, first because of her promo and what happened on RAW, and here, the long Sharpshooter period. Also commentary brought up their past matches, so I try to remember and find out what they did there, and what they could do here to differentiate. The differences are notable, Tamina's interference aspect was minimized, and Natalya was more even with AJ and so damn close to winning, one could almost taste it. But Tamina's distraction towards the end said the finish is coming. So Shining Wizard, Black Widow. This was the second attempt, Natalya countered the first. So after a long time, would she tap out? Once again with the referee, Cone said "take your time." That just told me Natalya was going to tap out, and she did. About 10 seconds or so after he gave that line, she tapped, AJ retains. So again, if I didn't hear the referee, this match therefore would be flawless. At the same time, he's not either of the women, so AJ and Natalya were flawless. This is so right up there with the aforementioned Paige and Emma match. I don't want to say it was better, but it's right at that level for sure. So for WWE's main roster, this is the best Divas Match of 2014 so far. Satisfying wrestling spread out for 15 minutes and executed very well. No botches, all crisp, snug, tight gift box of women's wrestling. After this, who the hell is going to beat AJ? After such a great match, I think it's sad to expect Nikki Bella to be the one. NO! NO! NO! See, AJ should lose the title in an awesome match, like this one. She's not going to get an awesome match out of Nikki, and I have my doubts for Brie. I don't really want Naomi to unseat her either. Really, it falls to two other women, by my own desire. Paige and Emma. Yes, because the memory's strong that those two, Natalya, and AJ Lee, are the best female wrestlers in WWE, and hell, let's just say the world to make it sound more epic. If Natalya gets another shot, I'd welcome it, though it would be best for mass interest, if they put a stipulation to it. 2/3 Falls Match sounds sexy. Anyways, this was one of those matches where when the final bell rings, I exhale. That was a good ride.

5.) I had to pause the show so I could focos entirely on that match, it deserves that kind of attention. After taking a deep breath, I resumed the show. It's Emma and Santino in their first date, god fucking dammit. Did Santino say "excrement?" I think he was trying to say "excellent," but dude. Excrement. That's what this is, shit. Santino seems into the date, Emma was a bit off, wanting pepper. Santino got up to get it, but the table cloth with food on top went with him and he made a big mess, and then he "accidentally" fell. Emma felt bad and said she'll never order pepper again. That was ridiculous, I feel bad for Emma. Santino said Emma wants a "fun buddy." When bored and uninterested, I try to interpret these differently. Something more edgier. So, "fun buddy." Nah, "fuck buddy," that sounds pretty hot. Emma looked...emmazing. Ha, see what I did there?

6.) So Total Divas commercial played, and this time I captured the interesting Summer moments. A picture lasted for a second, showing Fandango and her about to have sex. AWWW MAH GOODNESS! Then her saying he was packing a little something something. AWWWWWWW MAH GOODNESS! Fandango got a big dongo! Jesus, can't Summer get her own reality show? Something on dotcom, or on the Network, why Total Divas? Hell, I'd watch Marine 4 because she's going to be in it. She's got massive potential to be a big time star in the future. Her ring work needs sharpening up, but that comes with time. What sells me on the potential is her personality. She's the right kind of spunky, and not the annoying kind like Cameron. Some other videos, recapping Occupy RAW, plugging the Monday Night War, which is coming soon on the Network. WCW's greatest PPV matches DVD, volume 1 coming up or it's available now.

7.) Mark Henry vs. Dean Ambrose for the US Title. After what happened with AJ and Natalya, I didn't expect the title to change hands here. I was right. Ambrose did more offense in this match, targeting the knee and giving more of a fighting effort. It felt refreshing because Dean doesn't get this kind of situation regularly. Recently it's been Roman Reigns and now Seth Rollins, Ambrose has come off as a third wheel. He wasn't the third wheel here, but the match didn't really put Ambrose over as a great wrestler. With Mark Henry, that's just a tough sell job especially when he's the face, Ambrose is the heel. So the match wasn't all that good and lagged a lot after Ambrose's initial attack on the knee. The interest developed in the end, but it doesn't help Henry when he's the one who initiated contact with Seth Rollins. Just because Rollins pointed out to Charles Robinson that Dean got his foot on the bottom rope. Henry smashed Rollins in the face for no reason, attempted to do some corner splash or whatever, got distracted with the Shield staring at him. Ambrose capitalized for the win, so Mark Henry beat Mark Henry. Kind of pathetic, but Ambrose wins, so yay!

Something that came to mind is who will fill the Battle Royal. 30 men, will the Shield and Real Americans, Usos, Codedust, Outlaws, all in that? Errrrrrrrrr, those aforementioned teams could definitely have their own Wrestlemania matches, so just thinking that as well as Fandango and how that basically affects Summer Rae and Emma, now I have to take issue with this Battle Royal. It does play into the common tradition of filling up the card for the sake of getting names and them getting a paycheck. Why does WWE care that much? It's kind of strange. Yeah, the Battle Royal victory could be huge for someone, like Alexander Rusev, Cesaro, or Roman Reigns, but man, it just now feels like a big cop out with Andre's name and image slapped on it to cover up these inadequacies. That being said, after getting a wish granted in the form of Daniel Bryan's double duty Wrestlemania moment, I now peg this Battle Royal as the potential worst part of Wrestlemania. There's good booking, there's bad booking, then there's lazy booking. For now, I think this is lazy booking. But Hogan hyping it up and all that jazz, you're not supposed to think it's lazy booking, but if it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's a duck.

[Absent Friend]

Randall Orton: 5-6
John Cena: 5-2
Christian: 4-8
Daniel Bryan: 13-7
Kane: 0-5
CM Punk: 2-3
Batista: 3-4
Sheamus: 11-3
Brock Lesnar: 1-0
Roman Reigns: 11-6-1
Seth Rollins: 8-5-1
Dean Ambrose: 9-5-1
Mark Henry: 1-4
Cody Rhodes: 9-7-1
Goldust: 8-8-1
Bray Wyatt: 10-2
Erick Rowan: 8-4-1
Luke Harper: 8-3-1
The Usos: 17-1-2 (Jey Uso: 18-1-2, Jimmy Uso: 18-1-2)
Big Show: 4-1
The Miz: 4-1
Dolph Ziggler: 3-6
AJ Lee: 7-6
Tamina: 1-6
New Age Outlaws: 4-7-1 (Billy Gunn: 4-9-1, Road Dogg: 4-9-1)
The Ryback: 2-11
Curtis Axel: 2-16
Big E. : 12-5-1
Alberto Del Rio: 10-5
Kofi Kingston: 6-8
Rey Mysterio: 4-8
Sin Cara/Hunico: 2-9
Jack Swagger 5-11
Cesaro: 7-11
Damien Sandow: 2-6
R-Truth: 3-3
Xavier Woods: 1-6-1
Fandango: 4-8
Brodus Clay: 0-1
Naomi: 5-1
Cameron: 6-3
Rosa Mendes: 0-1
Natalya: 5-3
Nikki Bella: 7-2
Brie Bella: 5-1
Aksana: 2-8
Alicia Fox: 2-8
The Great Khali: 1-0
Heath Slater: 0-5
Jinder Mahal: 0-8
Drew McIntyre: 0-8
Summer Rae: 0-6
Emma: 6-2
Tyson Kidd: 2-0
Los Matadores: 4-5 (El Torito: 2-0)
Justin Gabriel: 0-1
Titus O'Neil: 2-4
Darren Young: 3-2
Santino Marella: 1-2
Zack Ryder: 0-2
Eva Marie: 1-1

As a little update, it turns out that playing the video through VLC, rather than MPC, will treat a Network video as 1280x720 regardless of remuxing into 16:9 or not, as I downloaded the opening Vince McMahon welcoming video to try that out.

Also to note, the pre-HD videos can't stretch to full screen, the black borders are part of the video. Ehhh, I don't mind now because I find out everything upscaled for HD gets the black border treatment, as opposed to true conversion. For WWE, over 100,000 hours of content that they own, I guess the upscale method's cheaper and quicker, and without possible loss of quality and odd stretching.

If only burtog was here to share in this, I loved that they're finally profiling Sara Amato, and it reveals she helps out with main roster divas.

“To me, [Sara Amato] is the best American female professional wrestler I've ever seen. And I'm talking about ever — including people who’ve been on national television, who wrestled in any era,” Dave Prazak, a producer of Illinois-based all-women's league Shimmer Women Athletes, told WWE.com. “Sara is that good.”

This claim may come as a surprise — if not sound like complete hyperbole — to fans unfamiliar with the onetime Sara Del Rey. But those who have seen her trade forearms with Kharma in New York City or relentlessly headbutt Manami Toyota in the dojos of Japan know that the fierce “Death Rey” — who unabashedly prioritized striking ability over sex appeal — spent a decade pursuing perfection in her chosen craft of wrestling.

Now, Amato is helping shape the look and feel of NXT’s women’s division and, in turn, WWE’s Divas division, for years to come. It just so happens she’s making history doing it, as the first female coach at the WWE Performance Center.

For the self-described tomboy — a protégé of Daniel Bryan who has an affinity for “manipulating people with holds” and considers training her favorite aspect of the game — there couldn’t be a more perfect scenario. When she was approached with the idea of joining the training staff in mid-2012, Amato knew she had knowledge to impart, especially to young women entering an arena dominated by men.

“It’s just not the same for men and women to learn, and I thought I’d love to share what I learned along the way with anyone who’s listening,” she said. “It was a very natural fit. It felt like the ultimate dream.”

Amato was raised on Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior, and she learned the ropes at the Hayward, Calif.-based All Pro Wrestling Boot Camp, the same program that produced former WWE Superstars Spike Dudley and Crash Holly. Several months into her training — around the time Amato says she was “just starting to put it together” — APW’s coaching staff changed, and a new head instructor arrived. Enter the man who would irreversibly alter her outlook on wrestling: “The American Dragon,” Daniel Bryan.

Bryan recognized Amato’s strong work ethic right off the bat. He recalled the day her class was learning to perform back body drops.

“The person who was giving them to her collapsed underneath her, and when she landed, she separated her shoulder,” Bryan said. “She rolled out of the ring, popped her shoulder back in and rolled into the ring.”

Another collapsed backdrop, another separated shoulder. Amato again rolled out of the ring, popped her shoulder back in place, and wanted to continue. Although Bryan admired her tenacity, he couldn’t let her go on. “At that point, we had to say stop,” he said.



Bryan soon took her under his wing, working with her in one-on-one sessions. Amato credited him with teaching her how to watch wrestling with an analytical eye. He also exposed her to different styles, sharing his VHS tape collection and introducing her to everything from Battlearts in Japan to European catch wrestling. Before long, Amato was competing not only on the U.S. independent circuit, but also in Japan, a nation where women’s wrestling once flourished on the backs of the aforementioned Toyota, Bull Nakano, and Amato’s all-time favorite, Aja Kong. She called Kong her “ultimate wrestling inspiration.”

“WWE had gorgeous women, but I never saw myself as that,” Amato said. “I knew they were beautiful women. I just couldn’t relate to them. But once I saw Aja, I thought, ‘Whoa. She’s not worried about what her hair looks like or what she’s wearing. She’s just in this.’”

The name Sara Del Rey grew in popularity abroad, as well as stateside in the mid-2000s, at a time when all-women’s organizations were just sprouting in the U.S. independent scene. When Shimmer Women Athletes opened its doors in 2005 with the stated mission of giving women’s wrestling a serious and competition-based platform, she instantly became their ace, appearing on the first 48 events without missing a show. Amato also grew into a locker room leader, somebody who less experienced talent would ask to critique their matches.

“Young wrestlers looked up to her as someone to aspire to be like because she proved that gender doesn’t have to hold one back from being a top-flight pro wrestler,” said Prazak. “She is a huge benefit to the future of Divas in WWE.”

Amato turned into a star personality for groups like Ring of Honor and Chikara Pro, too. She’d regularly steal shows with her rugged matches, some of which were against men. Cesaro witnessed Amato’s fighting spirit up-close when he teamed alongside her in the indies. The Real American extolled her technique.

“She doesn’t wrestle like a girl, she wrestles like a man, and I mean that in the best way possible,” he said. “She has a very physical ring style; she’s technically very gifted and is probably technically better than a lot of the guys I’ve been in the ring with.

“She also kicks harder than a mule,” he added.



Bryan takes pride in having witnessed Amato transform from a student into a locker room peer, and he finds it rewarding that fans compare her to men.

“They’d say, ‘Oh, she’s good for a girl.’ And Sara wasn’t good for a girl,” he said. “She was good.”

Amato’s polish can be owed, in part, to her willingness to travel the globe in search of diverse opponents and new techniques and styles. Bryan said she made sacrifices that many men wouldn’t make.

“She lived in Japan for nine months and slept on dojo floors. She went and lived in Mexico in some scary places to go live by yourself if you’re a woman,” he said. “She was going places that most guys wouldn’t to become a better wrestler.”

With her wrestling-driven wanderlust and tireless work ethic — combined with inspirations like Bryan and Kong — Amato developed a style that was, in many ways, a stark departure from the once-ubiquitous lingerie matches of The Attitude Era. She’s a big fan of WWE’s current family-friendly direction because it allows women and men to be treated more comparably, with an eye toward competition in the ring.

Yet, Amato’s adamant she’s not at the Performance Center to churn out a bunch of Sara Del Rey clones. If anything, her goal is just the opposite. Remarking that she’s “blown away daily” by the level of talent working out in Orlando, Amato observed that each woman in NXT brings something unique to the table.

“Diversity is really entertaining to me, and I hope other people feel that, too,” she said. “All of these girls were signed for a special talent or a specific reason, and that’s awesome. Let’s go with that. If you want to be sexy, I’m not going to tell you not to be. The important thing is to give the best that you have to offer and to feel comfortable doing it. I think when you’re genuinely happy and good at what you’re doing, it’s going to show, and it’s going to make you a better performer.”

That emphasis on individuality isn’t lost on the women she works with, both at the Performance Center and on the road at Raw and SmackDown. Divas like Aksana and Summer Rae note the influence Amato has had on their growth, whether in regard to refining their in-ring mechanics, helping them break out of their shell or just giving women a voice in coaches’ meetings.



“She listens to you,” said Aksana, who has received tips from Amato. “She lets you be yourself, and she listens to what you’d love to do, and if she corrects you, you will be happy she did.”

The fact that she was chosen as the Performance Center’s first female trainer signifies the high level of trust the company has in Amato, Summer Rae explained. When Amato began training NXT Divas, her first order of business was to revisit the fundamentals. The ballroom brawler said “Death Rey” instilled in her an understanding that women can be both beautiful and strong fighters inside the ring.

“It’s great to have a woman in our corner,” Summer Rae said. “She can relate to us, and she empowers us. She tells us that we can do the same stuff as the guys and do it just as well. Sara’s been a really positive role model to all of us at the Performance Center. We’re really lucky to have her.”

Whether her current role as a coach will lead Amato to ring time in WWE’s Divas division remains to be seen. She recently looked for her ring gear but came up empty-handed. Misplaced singlets aside, Amato is more than content continuing what she’s doing now: training in the ring and sharing her passion for sports-entertainment with the next generation of Divas.

Cesaro already sees a difference in the way the women of NXT compete since Amato’s arrival, and he believes it won’t be long before the entire WWE Universe gets a better sense of what to expect from the Divas of tomorrow.

“The women’s division is going to be under an even closer microscope with WWE Network,” The Real American said, calling attention to NXT’s newest platform. “The division is just going to get more and more competitive, and I think people will be surprised by how competitive it will get. It’s just going to be more enjoyable for the viewer and it’s going to be great wrestling, great entertainment, because of it.”

For now, Amato’s concentration is squarely on the WWE Performance Center, not attaining WWE Superstardom. Still, she’s quick to explain that she wouldn’t rule out a run in WWE.

“If the opportunity comes up, I definitely wouldn’t say no,” she conceded, before adding, fittingly, “After all, that’s why we train.”

They also have a photo gallery of her here, and photos of what she currently does as a head trainer, here, I'll share some select ones.

I saw that Awesome Kong and Sara Del Rey match in an ROH show. Final Battle 2010 I think, that was awesome! It was 7 minutes actually, short, but super explosive.

I think the older looking woman on the last picture is Allison Danger (Steve Corino's sister).

Today's Jericho podcast was with Maria Menounos. One way to sum it up, any negative feelings towards her that are rather common as a wrestling fan who sees an outsider get in and try to do what I love to see, is washed away. It was washed away a good deal when I read her Hall of Fame speech transcript, and then watching the Hall of Fame last year, where she inducted Bob Backlund. Despite fans giving her a very hard time (Jim Ross criticized them, Jericho in the podcast called them "idiots"). She's a wrestling fan, she trained for that guest host match in mid 2009 despite the company not asking her to wrestle, her feelings towards Wrestlemania 28 and that diva tag match there, Dancing With The Stars, other stuff.

[Vile]

Didn't Allison Danger used to go out with Christopher Daniels too? And as for Summer Rae, I hope her and Fandango put out a sex tape.

Originally Posted by Love Buzz

Zack Ryder flopped first time, this time everyone is too busy caring bout Bryan to give a flying fuck bout reZort. He poorly timed this shtick although the music score made me feel something for him. Then I paid close attention to his voice and thought he sounded like an idiot for some reason. His accent makes him sound like a teen. He should of waited til after the Mania hype has ended then maybe I'd care.

I feel really bad for Zack, he does all this work to get over on his own, and no matter what, those in charge keep him down. He's like the real life version of the Daniel Bryan storyline, which goes to show that even if you get all the fans behind you, if you're kept off TV or occasionally shown on the wrong end of squash matches, you're going to fall off the face of the earth. Too bad there's no Woo Woo Woo movement. And I think you're right, a big part of it is that his accent just makes him sound like a moron, and his look doesn't help too much either.

Personally I love the idea of the battle royal at WrestleMania, if nothing else because it will give deserving wrestlers (like Heath, Drew and Jinder) a chance to at least be on the card. Although I do think people like the Shield need to be in their own, separate matches. They're too important to be stuck in just a battle royal.