Ring Rust Radio is the best wrestling show on the airwaves, and this week was no different. With strong opinions on the Brock Lesnar, Sting and more, this is where you need to go to get all of your weekly WWE nuggets.
Bleacher Report featured columnists Mike Chiari, Donald Wood and Brandon Galvin give the lowdown on everything going on in the wrestling world. Also, Lucha Underground star Alberto El Patron joined the show to offer his inside perspective on the business.
With another unpredictable episode of Ring Rust Radio in the books, you can't afford to miss another second of the action. Catch us live every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET (some language NSFW) or follow us on Twitter @RingRustRadio.
We may just read your questions and comments live on the air. Visit our new website at RingRustRadio.com. You can also email us here: RingRustRadio@Yahoo.com.
*Some language NSFW.
Upcoming Guests/Events
March 24: Wrestling artist Rob Schamberger
March 31: Lucha Underground star Son of Havoc
Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns to Meet Face to Face on Raw
With less than a week until WrestleMania 31, WWE World Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns will interact for the first time since the night after the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on the go-home edition of Raw. Since Lesnar's limited appearances have tempered the build to some degree, WWE must knock it out of the park when the main eventers come face to face on Raw.
Question on Everybody's Mind: How Will the Build Culminate?
Although it is clear that the bulk of the WWE fanbase wanted Daniel Bryan to take on Lesnar at WrestleMania rather than Reigns, the world title match has the potential to make or break the entire show.
Despite the resistance to Reigns' ascent, he has an opportunity to prove himself on the grandest stage of them all, and there is reason to believe that he and the Beast Incarnate are capable of putting on a hard-hitting, exciting and memorable affair at WrestleMania.
In order to truly make that a possibility, though, WWE has to get the fans excited about the match. That is where the go-home edition of Raw comes in, as Lesnar and Reigns will finally be in the same ring together.
Paul Heyman has done a spectacular job carrying this angle on the microphone, but he can only do so much. At some point, it must become about the combatants who will lock horns at WrestleMania, and that should be the case on Raw.
Ring Rust Radio's Take
Aside from the fact that Reigns won the Rumble and Lesnar is the champion, WWE hasn't done much in terms of telling the fans why the WrestleMania main event is significant. Heyman has alluded to it by putting Reigns over only to suggest that he can't beat his client, but there are no personal issues between Reigns and Lesnar.
Since there is a lack of heat between them, WWE almost has to make them mix it up physically to some degree in order to build anticipation.
That was done to great effect prior to WWE Fastlane, as Reigns and Daniel Bryan engaged in a pull-apart brawl that had the arena buzzing. Something similar between Reigns and Lesnar could do wonders.
Neither guy has to get the advantage, and nothing extravagant has to be done. A few haymakers followed by a slew of referees and agents stepping in is precisely the kind of hype needed to garner some last-minute buys for WrestleMania and the WWE Network.
Rumor Mill
Possible change to Lesnar versus Reigns result (Reddit via WrestlingInc.com)
Sting Saves Randy Orton from an Authority Attack
After orchestrating a ruse in order to lull Randy Orton into a false sense of security on Raw, Seth Rollins and the Authority seemed poised to beat the Viper down. The tables turned quickly, though, as Sting appeared with his trusty bat in hand and helped Orton fight off the Authority while Triple H looked on in anger.
Question on Everybody's Mind: Has WWE Built Sting vs. Triple H Well Enough?
Two of WrestleManias top angles crossed paths on Raw, but there is no question that the match between Triple H and Sting is more likely to drive WrestleMania viewership than Orton and Rollins.
The latter bout may prove to be better from a technical perspective, but the novelty of seeing Sting compete in his first WWE match trumps that. As cool as that will be for longtime wrestling fans, it is fair to question if WWE has done enough to build up both combatants.
Sting has appeared on WWE programming four times thus far, and he has gotten the better of the Game on every occasion. The Vigilante pushed the Authority out of power at Survivor Series, helped three fired Superstars get their jobs back, beat down Triple H at Fastlane and, most recently, saved Orton.
It was already apparent from the start that Sting was destined to defeat Triple H at WrestleMania, but failing to at least create the illusion of Triple H having a chance is bad booking.
Ring Rust Radio's Take
There is still one episode of Raw remaining before WrestleMania, which means there is one last chance to make the King of Kings look strong. With that said, there hasn't been any indication that Sting will even appear.
It is possible that there will be a surprise, much like last this past Raw, but one can only assume that WWE would want to advertise something that significant for the final Raw prior to WrestleMania. Add in the fact that much of the focus will be on Reigns and Lesnar, and it isn't outside the realm of possibility that Triple H will be left to finish off the build on his own.
That would be a massive mistake, since the only way to salvage the build at this point is for Triple H to hand Sting a massive beating. Triple H has already cut a number of good promos in this feud, but adding one more without getting any type of physical advantage won't help his cause.
For all the talk among Internet fans of Triple H being a "burial machine," Triple H has done nothing but put others over in recent years. He'll do so once again at WrestleMania, but it is far too predictable this time around.
Rumor Mill
Backstage talk regarding Triple H and NXT (Wrestling Observer Newsletter via WrestlingInc.com)
RRR Interview with Lucha Underground's Alberto El Patron
Few Mexico-born wrestlers have made as big of an impact in the United States as Alberto El Patron. His tenure with WWE may have come to an end, but El Patron is still a central figure in professional wrestling as part of the up-and-coming Lucha Underground promotion.
El Patron will be a huge factor in Lucha Underground's success moving forward, and he joined Ring Rust Radio to discuss that and so much more.
Question on Everybody's Mind: What's Next for Alberto?
Since leaving WWE, El Patron has been on a roll in several different promotions. In addition to joining Lucha Underground, he is the AAA World Heavyweight champion in Mexico and has also worked for Ring of Honor.
Lucha appears to be El Patron's primary focus at this point, though, and he believes that the sky is the limit for the rapidly growing company.
Lucha Underground is a fantastic product. They have the right people talent and backing up the product. I am 100 percent sure that this company is going to be one of the top-three wrestling companies around the world at the end of this year.
...
I have been doing the wrestling shows all over the world. People are stopping me and telling me how much they enjoy the product and how different it is. The fans said they have been waiting for something like this that they can watch and enjoy every week.
Becoming one of the top-three companies in the world is certainly ambitious, since Lucha Underground is in competition with WWE, TNA, ROH, AAA and New Japan Pro Wrestling for that honor. If it continues to bring in stars of El Patron's caliber, however, it is a goal that is very much within reach.
Ring Rust Radio's Take
El Patron's greatest success in WWE came early during his run as an arrogant heel. El Patron has naturally portrayed a face character in Lucha Underground and AAA, since he is beloved by the Latino fanbase, but he made it clear that playing the good guy isn't necessarily his preference.
I love being the bad guy. Everybody loves the bad guy, including the chicks. That's a place where I would like to be, but at the end of the day I'm going to be what the fans want me to be or where they put me.
When I left the other company [WWE], they decided to put me in the good guy side. I have been working as a babyface since then. I'm not going to say I am not enjoying it, but I do. If you would ask me, though, I would love to be a bad guy again.
It is tough to argue with how El Patron is being utilized in Lucha Underground currently, given the company needs someone with star power and cachet to be the top face. If it is able to land someone such as Rey Mysterio in the near future, though, the door could be open for El Patron to undergo a character transformation and back to his heel roots.
B/R Article
Alberto El Patron Talks Lucha Underground, Rey Mysterio, WWE and More
Ring Rust Radio's Season 7 Fantasy WWE Standings
1. Brandon Galvin: 342.5
2. Joe Arcidiacono: 295
3. Mike Chiari: 262.5
4. Donald Wood: 50
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