Inside Pulse Wrestling | The Stomping Ground: Anniversary Edition!

The Stomping Ground: Anniversary Edition!

by Mike Gojira on February 2, 2012

February 4, 2011.

That was the day the most consistent columnist on Inside Pulse debuted with his signature column, The Stomping Ground.

I know, I know; I’m being too modest, right?

It’s interesting to look back and see what a difference a year makes. The Stomping Ground debuted on a Friday afternoon with my Top Ten Mark-Out Moments from all my years as a wrestling fan. From there I parlayed this weekly gig into the column you all know and love on Thursday mornings.

What was going on in the world of professional wrestling last February?
*CM Punk was in charge of the Nexus, which quietly disbanded not long after, and was in a hostile feud with Randy Orton.
*The Miz was WWE Champion in a mini-feud with Jerry “The King” Lawler.
*Alberto del Rio had just won the first-ever 40-man Royal Rumble.
*Mysterious promos boasting the return of the Undertaker aired.
*The Rock was revealed as the host of Wrestlemania XXVII…which was a 4-hour promo for Wrestlemania XXVIII.
*Edge, without the knowledge of the fans, was quietly preparing for his retirement match at Wrestlemania.
*Jeff Hardy was TNA Champion while taking the term “riding high” way too literally.

Where are we now?
*CM Punk is the WWE Champion, poised to replace John Cena as the company’s go-to guy (we can only hope).
*The Miz has fallen into near obscurity.
*Alberto del Rio turned out to be a bust as champ; though it wasn’t all his fault. Punk’s pipe bombs overshadowed everything.
*The Undertaker has just returned to challenge Triple H to Round 3.
*The Rock and John Cena’s year-long promo for Wrestlemania XXVIII is nearly over.
*Edge is heading into the WWE Hall of Fame.
*Jeff Hardy has “cleaned himself up” and is once again a fan favorite.

I find it intriguing to look at how things have changed in twelve months. With the exception of the Undertaker and The Rock, could anyone have correctly predicted the state the business is in right now? CM Punk was on his way out the door, we all thought Jeff Hardy was gone for good, and nobody expected Edge to retire.

And yet, here I remain, unchanged. Still witty, still classy, and always fun to chat with. Here’s to another year of inanity!

Yes, inanity. NOT inSanity. Look it up.

Random Thoughts

*My friends and I decided to make the Royal Rumble fun again this year by participating in some gambling. With thirty slots in the Rumble match, at $1.00 a slot, we decided to hold our second annual Rumble Pool. I paid for 5 slots, so here were my numbers:

2: Alex Riley
16: Hunico
17: Booker T
18: Dolph Ziggler
30: Big Show

I was elated at the prospect of holding the coveted number 30…that is, until I saw Big Show lumber down to the ring in anticlimactic fashion. My saving grace was Ziggler, but Show ended that dream when he tossed out both Ziggler and Rhodes at the same time.

*My buddy’s girlfriend wound up with numbers 22 and 29…who just happened to be Sheamus and Chris Jericho, respectively. Needless to say, she didn’t care at that point who won the Rumble because she was now $25.00 richer (she paid for 5 slots as well).

*Another buddy of mine only paid for one slot, and he received that of Cody Rhodes. He was going crazy, shouting in vain at the television for Cody to stay in the match for as long as possible.

*The Cobra/Socko showdown was tremendous. By the time we reached the first third of the match, it dawned on everyone that the roster truly was incredibly thin and we shouldn’t expect a really riveting Rumble. When Foley and Santino began their duel, we all enjoyed it for what it was.

*I didn’t know Kharma had the kid already! Apparently she had a son, born on New Year’s Eve. That’s an awesome birthday!

*I was wrong in my prediction that Barrett would be a part of the final four. He was eliminated rather quickly by Orton, awkwardly enough.

*How fucking awesome was Ricardo Rodriguez, appearing in that busted car? That man is comedy gold.

*Yes, Kofi did a hand stand. I guess he can keep his job for now, until the company decides they no longer have a use for him.

*Why can’t every episode of Raw and Smackdown have two GREAT matches and one decent bout like we had this week?

Mike Gojira’s Fave Five

1. CM Punk: Despite the fact that I’m getting dangerously close to calling Punk a hypocrite (“I’m anti-bullying, but I’m not above poking and prodding Johnny Ace”), he has been putting on solid matches with Dolph Ziggler and Daniel Bryan in the span of one week. His pipe bomb two weeks ago at the expense of Laurinaitis proves he hasn’t lost a step on the mic.

2. Daniel Bryan: This guy is really making the most out of the fact that it appears he’s heading in the direction of a Miz-like title run. I’m pretty sure he thought he’d be main-eventing with guys who could ACTUALLY WRESTLE when he became champ, but you take what you can get. Now can we please get DB some quality opponents? That’s all I ask! The match with Punk was an example of what he can do when given someone who can move.

3. Chris Jericho: He’s back, baby! The REAL “best wrestler in the world” fired the first shot in the war with CM Punk on Monday with a Codebreaker. I can’t wait until these two confront one another on the mic. I salivate at the very thought of it.

4. Cody Rhodes: I’m a fan of this kid because you can see that he’s really trying to perfect the dickish heel who backs up what he says. Say what you want about his skills, but I think Cody has a bright future. Is he World Champion material? I’d say he needs some more seasoning. Perhaps in six months he could break into the main event scene.

5. Rosa Mendes: Those damn hips.

Super Cool Important Announcement Time!!!

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve hinted at a change coming to my Smackdown Report. I’m pleased to announce that, on Saturday, February 4 (a year to the day that I debuted), Kelly Floyd and I will watch Smackdown simultaneously and chat about it through the Interwebz! Picture one of Rhett or CB’s interviews and you’ll get the general idea. The interesting thing about this concept is that she’s in Arizona and I’m in New York, so it should be quite the experiment. We’ll post the chat on Saturday evening for your enjoyment.

What does this mean for the Not-So-Live Smackdown Report and Top Ten Thoughts on Smackdown that are usually up? Who knows? If this works out, it might replace both. Be sure to comment on our first joint venture so we know what you think.

Before I leave you to your devices (whichever porn sites you regularly visit), here are a few of my favorite editions of The Stomping Ground, in case you may have missed them:

A look back at the most famous heel stables in wrestling (part one)

Part two of my retrospective on heel stables

Wrestlemania memories

My stance on the relevance of the IWC

100 (yes, 100) thoughts on wrestling in general

A decidely different take on the 2011 walkout

Guest columnist Kelly Floyd and her thoughts on the Divas

My live notes in attendance for Survivor Series

The biggest wrestling hiccups of 2011

Finally, here’s a real treat for you: my first-ever appearance on Inside Pulse on Glazer’s Morning Backlash last January.

So long, and thanks for all the views.

Tags: alberto del rio, chris jericho, cm punk, Cody Rhodes, Daniel Bryan, edge, Jeff Hardy, John Laurinaitis, Kelly Floyd, kharma, Kofi Kingston, Mike Gojira, monday night raw, Ricardo Rodriguez, Rosa Mendes, royal rumble, sheamus, Smackdown, The Rock, TNA, undertaker, WWE

Mike Gojira

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Since February of 2011, "The Master of Smarkasm" Mike Gojira has tickled the funny bones of Inside Pulse readers with his insightful comedy, timely wit, and irreverent musings on the world of professional wrestling. Catch his insanely popular column, The Stomping Ground, and his award-winning Not-So-Live Smackdown Report every week. He is also totally modest and doesn't know the meaning of hyperbole.

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Zork

Why do people always feel the need to bring up the Anti Bullying crap with stuff that goes on in a storyline? We’ve all known since this crap started that they don’t mean it when they get into this Anti Bullying campaigning, so who really cares? It just feels really pointless when people take these random potshots at wrestlers for playing their part in a storyline. I can understand it to an extent when people bring this up with Vicki Guererro and everyone making fun of her weight…which she’s lost a lot of.

But John Laurinaitis? Really? A guy who is known as a bully and power player against talent backstage?

Putting all that aside, when people bring this up are they trying to say “If you’re campaigning against bullying don’t have it or actions that can be interpreted as bullying on your program.” is that it? So, make the product worse or stop campaigning, is that the message everyone tries to get across or is it “Stop lying and campaigning, it’s dumb and you’re a wrestling company.”, is it that one?

Wrestling without thematic elements of bullying in it is like an action movie with no bad guy. It’s gotta happen, and I don’t see why bullying used as a thematic device should be done away with because it is one of the most effective elements you can use to tell a story…because everyone can relate to it somehow.
Mike Gojira

Wow. Angry much, Zork? I was making an observation, not condemning the company. The problem is that most of the audience doesn’t know the kind of shit Laurinaitis has allegedly done behind the scenes. They only see him as a tool, but storyline-wise he didn’t act douchey until CM Punk got in his face…repeatedly.

I get that it’s similar to what went down with Austin/McMahon, but in my eyes Johnny Ace doesn’t seem able to pull off the performance the company is looking for. He just comes across as a pathetic sap, or at least did until the last couple of weeks.

I’m not saying that Punk should change, but the WWE should give him a better reason to push Ace around other than “he’s an authority figure.”
http://www.facebook.com/people/Kyle-Fitta/100002150061980 Kyle Fitta

I agree with Zork. The anti-bullying campaign has nothing to do with what goes on in the wrestling show. CM Punk making fun of Johnny Ace is part of the show. In this day and age, most people realize that WWE is just show and that these wrestlers are being paid for what they do and that is perform.

If WWE was suppose to base their show around no bullying, it would be literally impossible because you cannot have wrestling without their being signs of bullying.
Anonymous

Congrats on 1 year at the Pulse Mike, looking forward to Kelly and you teaming up for SmackDown!
Zork

I wasn’t angry, just a rant cause I’ve seen people repeatedly take shots at their character’s actions on the show and bring up the Anti Bullying stuff. I realize not everyone knows about Johhny Ace and what he’s done but the whole thing about this angle and since they’ve brought Johnny Ace onto TV is that they are catering to both audiences by sprinkling inside references in with the story all the time.

It’s not exclusive to one audience or the other. Again, sorry if I came across as if I were angry at you because I’m not, I was just ranting about something I notice that people comment on. I also realize you weren’t condemning the company, but you were talking about calling Punk a hypocrite which is what I actually took exception with.

Congrats on your anniversary btw, I like reading your stuff.
Mike Gojira

Much appreciated, Zork. It’s weird how sometimes one throwaway line can incite passion in a person, huh?
Mike Gojira

As I said to Zork earlier, it’s not really the way Punk is attacking Ace that I think is discomforting; it’s the fact that, to the general populace who don’t read “the sheets,” Ace is just a tool and (up until recently) had not shown much hostility toward Punk until it was brought out of him. In the interest of character development and for the sake of plot, it just seemed a bit “off.”

I’m also not saying that people are emulating what the characters do and that the WWE should be more careful with what they present; it’s obviously a fictional representation.

Perhaps the justification for Punk’s actions should have been brought to light when this feud started, and not just in the last month.
Zork

That’s the magic of writing opinion pieces.
Jonah Kue

Awesome. Happy Anniversary, Goji.