TNA offers Final Resolution tonight on pay per view from Orlando, while WWE will be taping its annual Tribute to the Troops show in Norfolk tonight for a later broadcast and will be right back to it with a live Raw from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey Monday evening as the company continues its march toward next Sunday's TLC ppv.
Final Resolution will feature Bobby Roode challenging Jeff Hardy for the TNA heavyweight championship. A.J. Styles battles long-time nemesis Christopher Daniels and Austin Aries tangles with Bully Ray. Tara wrestles Mickey James for the Knockouts crown and a big tag team bout features Devon and Doc and two masked members of the Eights going up against Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Garrett Bischoff and Wes Brisco.
RVD and Kenny King go to the mat over the X-division title and Hernandez and Chavo Guerrero defend the tag straps against Matt Morgan and Joey Ryan. Sounds like a decent show on paper.
The Christmas holidays used to mean some huge cards from major wrestling promotions with year long storylines often coming to resolution. In recent years, it has meant WWE stars visiting and performing for our troops. This year will be no exception as Vince McMahon and several popular WWE personalities visited our service men and women stationed oversees recently and there will be a big taping tonight at the Scope in Norfolk, Virginia that will air during the week before Christmas.
This edition will be the tenth consecutive year of WWE doing a Tribute to the Troops extravaganza and will include appearances by Kid Rock and the Muppets. Where have you gone David Allen Coe? Perhaps only Dusty knows.
The big news from the past week is a shake-up in the line-up for next Sunday's TLC ppv. WWE champ C.M. Punk reportedly underwent successful knee surgery this past week for a meniscus tear and will be out of action for a couple of weeks. Punk has been working hurt for a while and the decision was made to go to the injury angle with Ryback on last week's Raw to explain the need for the legit surgery.
Punk will be on television, but will not be doing any wrestling in the immediate future. He is expected back in time to wrestle Rock at the Royal Rumble and was already up and around after the scope done by the infamous Dr. James Andrews, surgeon to the stars. The Insider could also probably benefit from having my orthopedic surgeon on standby these days as I can feel your pain, Mr. Brooks.
Retired independent wrestler D.C. Drake, who wrestled at Shamokin Area High School several years back, had the dubious distinction of being reported deceased by several wrestling websites this past week. Not so. That brought back memories of the late Gorilla Monsoon erroneously reporting the death of Superstar Billy Graham in his wrestling column in the old Philadelphia Journal newspaper over twenty years ago. Though he has had his share of close calls, Wayne Coleman is still with us and poor Bob Marella the one long gone to the squared circle in the sky.
(Shamokin's Bill Gilger "arranges" the interview each week with The Insider)