Money In the Bank living up to all the hype, the follow-up on Raw bringing even more drama and the local tag team of the Ghostbusters capturing the New Era Tag Team titles are just three of several newsworthy items this week in the world of pro wrestling.
C.M. Punk defeated John Cena to win the WWE championship in one of the best-received pay-per-views in several years. It had high expectations to live up to going in and certainly seemed to deliver as evidenced by the incredibly hot live crowd and overwhelmingly positive reviews posted on numerous wrestling websites.
It is expected that the buy rate will be up considerably from recent B shows (non WM, SummerSlam or Survivor Series events), but there is the very real possibility that the entire Punk angle could be limited to increasing interest among the hardcore fans and not have the legs to carry over to generate more interest among casual fans or create significant numbers of new fans. Let's hope it can really be the start of a genuine renewal for the industry.
Regardless of where the angle goes next, Punk's shenanigans have created greatly renewed hope for needed change in WWE that was bolstered on Raw when Triple H came out to prevent Vince McMahon from firing John Cena and relieved him of his duties as chairman of the company.
Although the Cena-Punk five-star bout that went over 30 minutes in duration was the focal point of the ppv in Chicago Sunday night and was naturally enhanced by the vociferous crowd, the other bouts on the show were also main event worthy in execution and excitement, with Alberto del Rio winning the Raw MITB event and Daniel Bryan the surprise victor in the Smackdown MITB match.
Del Rio was ordered by McMahon to come out and cash in his briefcase opportunity immediately after Punk pinned a surprised Cena, who refused to be part of Vince's backup plan of Montreal II, where he tried to get the bell rung without an actual submission taking place. While Del Rio made it to the ring only to be thwarted by a right hand to the noggin from Punk before the new champ and local favorite disappeared into the crowd with Vince's coveted title belt, the announcers made it clear that since the referee had not rung the bell, Del Rio had not used up his MITB shot at the championship.
Before being relieved of his duties on Raw, Vince had ordered an eight-man tournament to determine a new champ since he was never going to mention Punk's name again. Rey Mysterio and the Miz were the finalists, but had their final bout postponed until Sunday night's Raw. Meanwhile, Punk has been showing up on Youtube.com and other places with photos of himself with the belt with Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels, Chicago Cubs stars and even one with the strap in Punk's refrigerator at home.
Expect Punk to take some time off, but continue to keep himself relevant on social media and eventually return to feud with the "new" bogus champ and maybe Triple H down the road. There has also been talk from Punk himself about wanting to work with Steve Austin at some point down the line.
The Ghostbusters, hailing from none other than Shamokin, defeated Better Than You and South Philly's Finest in a three-way for the New Era Wrestling Federation's inaugural tag team championship in the main event of the company's July Genocide show held last Saturday night at the North End Fire Company in Pine Grove.
The event had a particularly local flavor to it. Another Shamokin grappler, Tony Deppen, knocked off Kulpmont's Jamie Magnum in a solid bout. In the semi-main event, International and Ring of Honor wrestling star Claudio Castagnoli, who is rumored to be headed to the WWE in the near future along with Kings of Wrestling partner Chris Hero, managed to beat Shamokin native Aaron Arbo and Serious Business Andy Header in another dynamic triple threat match.
Sara Del Rey, who is one of the most talented women wrestlers on the independent scene today, also emerged victorious in a three-way over Simply D'Vyne and Jackie Daniels. Sean Williams went over Sean Silence and Kras Van Tasel made Mike Marvel submit in their encounter. Ettel and Silver bested Fredor and Berg. Mr. Saturday Night and Rock'n Rebel took the measure of Teo Frost and Mount Carmel's Nick Destiny. The Bloodhounds and Mean Mark Mest defeated Chef DZ Gillespie and Donovan Brown on a reversed disqualification due to a controversial chain thought to be involved in the finish.
Don't forget about the local pro wrestling event this Saturday night at the Ralpho Sports Complex with the stars of PCWS featuring a six-man tables match with Ox Hogg, Tommy Golden and Rapid Fire Maldonado going up against C.M. Serenyi, Bulldog James Dylan and a mystery partner. The Creamator, will also be in the house. Belltime is 7 p.m. at 206 S. Market St. in Elysburg.