Austin/Vince Go One on One - Thought's?

[Navi]

So the big anticipated Steve Austin podcast aired tonight after RAW and quite frankly I came away a little disappointed, and shocked at the same time.

I fully understand he couldn't talk about the CM Punk situation, and looks like he wants it to go away as quickly as possible. He did however apologize for Punk receiving his termination papers on his wedding day, and said the door was open in the future for a return. So that part of it didn't surprise me at all.

What did shock me was what he said about today's roster and one wrestler in particular. Austin said he was in the back and the locker room was different from his day. Well of course it is. Vince agreed and stated that in a nutshell he didn't think the wrestlers where as motivated as they could be.

He also said the only person who had reached for the brass ring was Cena, no surprise there. But he did bring up the Shield guys by name, and said they had a good shot at getting to the top. All three of them. So it would appear that the WWE has planned for the future and is getting their ducks in a row, for when Cena eventually stops wrestling.

The shocker was the way he buried Cesaro. Austin asked outright about him, and Vince said Cesaro had limited verbal skills and no charisma. I think he blamed it on the fact that he was Swiss. What the hell. I wonder how Cesaro felt sitting there listening to his boss talk about him like that. Seems he won't be pushed anytime soon.

Another think that shocked me was the fact that he doesn't think the fans want to see the WWE Champ or Sting on TV all that much. Seriously Vince, we want a champ but don't want to see him defend the title? And the biggest name that never wrestled for you finally signs and we don't want to see him? Good God the man is out of touch.

I pretty much lost interest after that as they started to go down memory lane. It would be interesting to hear what other thought about this. We knew it wouldn't be ground shaking, but I expected a little more meat on the plate. What do the rest of you think?

 

[MartialHorror]

I felt the exact same way. I was especially shocked at what he said about Cesaro. Maybe Cesaro has attitude problems and that was Vince's way of humbling him?

 

[kadroan]

I felt the exact same way. I was especially shocked at what he said about Cesaro. Maybe Cesaro has attitude problems and that was Vince's way of humbling him?

I never heard Vince be so blunt on a potential talent. I'm hoping it's a shocker in the making where Cesaro wins the Royal Rumble match. They put him through a lot of stuff - being a Heyman guy, not being successful in capturing the US Championship twice or the IC Championship, lost the MITB match for the vacant WWE WHC and getting swept by Dolph at HIAC.

 

[stingray11214]

The biggest surprise was Vince admitting that Cesaro was going nowhere fast. Cesaro was always better as a tag pertner than as a singles wrestler.

 

[PeterSellersSTL]

That was a great interview and even though I disagreed with a lot of what Vince had to say philosophy wise it was still a great interview. Austin has found his calling, it was so much better live with a camera. I wouldn't mind 6 or 8 or 12 more Austin interviews on the network next year.

I particularly didn't agree with Vince's philosophy of having something for everyone. Trying to please everyone leads to spreading yourself to thin and people tuning in and out and no real feel tone or flow to the show. We all want to brand era but there's no overarching identity to the roster or show. Reality Era? It's not really reflected in the product - what is the identity of WWE these days..who knows.

Watching the podcast Stone Cold came across as borderline obsessive with wrestling and the WWE. I love his passion, and I just thought he'd make an awesome heel modeled after Robert DeNiro's character in "The Fan" with Wesley Snipes. Austin acting as a self-appointed rogue authority figure ruining matches, helping guys he personally likes would be wildly entertaining. Triple H and Steph were great don't get me wrong but their style has been done before and better by Vince. HHH had a mob boss undertone to his character but they didn't draw that out enough unfortunately.

Anyway, the interview was fascinating, I wonder how Cesaro feels being singled out and I hope Austin gets a chance to do another one on the Network.

 

[PeterSellersSTL]

The Lesnar thing they got so wrong too and I think Vince was covering his ass a little bit. 52 weeks of RAW Smackdown and 12 PPVs is a lot of wrestling to book so yeah I do get limiting Lesnar a bit but not nearly as much as they've limited him now.

And if he's not going to be seen on RAW please make yourself visible somewhere else. I've said it once and I'll always maintain that they screwed up big with CM Punk in 2011. He could have balanced being a part-time champion and a public-figure/ celebrity brilliantlly in 2011. The Comic-Con stunt was brilliant, him at Cubs games was great, the wwe title in the fridge was hilarious. He had everyone wanting to talk to him.

He didn't have to return to WWE on a new contract - all they had to do was pay him to defend at Summer Slam with the same stipulation with the same result. And then when the time is right u screw him out of the title and leave him unemployed without a contract. Let him "heal" up during the fall and comeback with one of the many contracts they sent him - to enter and win the Rumble.

Having said all that I think Lesnar being a part-time champ and people being so pissed about it could work to their favor. Have wrestlers continue to harp on the fact that he's not there and give him some heel heat. More live fans should be vocal about his absence , where are the Lesnar Sucks chants?

 

[MartialHorror]

The funny thing with Cesaro was that the fans WERE reacting to him very strongly before he was reduced to being a high caliber jobber. He still gets better heel pops though than a lot of the guys who are being put over.

 

[Headman]

I see a lot of fans get all pumped up about Cesaro, but my reaction to him as been lukewarm at best. I think Vince was right on the money with him. He's great in the ring, but lacks the charisma to connect with a broader fan base. The reason people here don't get that is because you're not casual fans. The casual fans were amused by his swing move for a little while and like chanting "We the people". The people here in the echo chamber misinterpret this as universal support and use it to back up their very fringe opinions.

If anything Vince likely did Cesaro a favor much in the same way he did when he claimed Daniel Bryan didn't draw money and was not a main event player. Obviously that was a calculated move because it played right into a main event storyline for Bryan. It could have been a candid answer but if anything Cesaro will gain some added support from fans in the short term. Ultimately though, I feel he'll fall back down the ladder because all the stuff about Charisma Mcmahon pointed out is 100% true.

 

[MrMojoRisin]

I didn't listen to it, just read the highlights later, but here's what I think about some of that:

I fully understand he couldn't talk about the CM Punk situation, and looks like he wants it to go away as quickly as possible. He did however apologize for Punk receiving his termination papers on his wedding day, and said the door was open in the future for a return. So that part of it didn't surprise me at all.

Not surprised at all that this is all he said about Punk, and also don't believe for a second that firing him on his wedding day was an accident. If you read the autobiographies of some of his former employees, Vince is well known for stunts like that, and always says the same thing afterwards... that it was a mix up somewhere.

What did shock me was what he said about today's roster and one wrestler in particular. Austin said he was in the back and the locker room was different from his day. Well of course it is. Vince agreed and stated that in a nutshell he didn't think the wrestlers where as motivated as they could be.

I wouldn't disagree with that. For the most part, I don't think the guys working there today are anywhere near as motivated as guys from the past. The big question they should be asking though... is why that is? It is a problem. Find the root cause of that problem and fix it.

He also said the only person who had reached for the brass ring was Cena, no surprise there. But he did bring up the Shield guys by name, and said they had a good shot at getting to the top. All three of them. So it would appear that the WWE has planned for the future and is getting their ducks in a row, for when Cena eventually stops wrestling.

That's a shot at everyone in the back right there. Maybe to Vince though, the brass ring is giving your entire life to Vince McMahon and the WWE, and Cena's been the only guy willing to do that? It's no secret how much Cena does for the WWE 24/7. Maybe that's just what Vince expects, and everyone else that's come along is only 18/6 committed (they want a few hours sleep and a day off too)?

The shocker was the way he buried Cesaro. Austin asked outright about him, and Vince said Cesaro had limited verbal skills and no charisma. I think he blamed it on the fact that he was Swiss. What the hell. I wonder how Cesaro felt sitting there listening to his boss talk about him like that. Seems he won't be pushed anytime soon.

Not cool to say in a forum like that, but I can't disagree with his assessment there. Cesaro has all the in ring skills in the world, but doesn't really connect beyond that.

Another think that shocked me was the fact that he doesn't think the fans want to see the WWE Champ or Sting on TV all that much. Seriously Vince, we want a champ but don't want to see him defend the title? And the biggest name that never wrestled for you finally signs and we don't want to see him? Good God the man is out of touch.

In Lesner's case, he's just covering his ass because of the contract he signed him too. We don't want to see the champ on TV because the champ can't be on TV that often because of the contract that the chairman saying that we don't want to see the champ on TV signed him too... and unfortunately, the guy signed to that contract happens to be the best guy on their roster and the most believable champion they have.

As for Sting? I think he's probably right. Sting in small doses these days is great. Sting every week, and even multiple times per week? He'd get exposed as the 57 year old man that he is pretty quick. They gotta protect him to keep him strong.

I will say in regards to Sting though that if they weren't planning on any immediate followup on his Survivor Series debut... they shouldn't have used him at all. They had a great spot set up where they could have strapped a rocket to Ziggler, made up for all the past booking mistakes with him, and started him on the path to be a new top guy by having him take out the Authority single handedly. Instead, they had Sting put the final nail in the coffin (which is the only nail that gets remembered), and missed another opportunity. But that was all probably just because Ziggler doesn't want that brass ring.

 

[Navi]

I didn't listen to it, just read the highlights later, but here's what I think about some of that:

Not surprised at all that this is all he said about Punk, and also don't believe for a second that firing him on his wedding day was an accident. If you read the autobiographies of some of his former employees, Vince is well known for stunts like that, and always says the same thing afterwards... that it was a mix up somewhere.

I wouldn't disagree with that. For the most part, I don't think the guys working there today are anywhere near as motivated as guys from the past. The big question they should be asking though... is why that is? It is a problem. Find the root cause of that problem and fix it.

That's a shot at everyone in the back right there. Maybe to Vince though, the brass ring is giving your entire life to Vince McMahon and the WWE, and Cena's been the only guy willing to do that? It's no secret how much Cena does for the WWE 24/7. Maybe that's just what Vince expects, and everyone else that's come along is only 18/6 committed (they want a few hours sleep and a day off too)?

Not cool to say in a forum like that, but I can't disagree with his assessment there. Cesaro has all the in ring skills in the world, but doesn't really connect beyond that.

In Lesner's case, he's just covering his ass because of the contract he signed him too. We don't want to see the champ on TV because the champ can't be on TV that often because of the contract that the chairman saying that we don't want to see the champ on TV signed him too... and unfortunately, the guy signed to that contract happens to be the best guy on their roster and the most believable champion they have.

As for Sting? I think he's probably right. Sting in small doses these days is great. Sting every week, and even multiple times per week? He'd get exposed as the 57 year old man that he is pretty quick. They gotta protect him to keep him strong.

I will say in regards to Sting though that if they weren't planning on any immediate followup on his Survivor Series debut... they shouldn't have used him at all. They had a great spot set up where they could have strapped a rocket to Ziggler, made up for all the past booking mistakes with him, and started him on the path to be a new top guy by having him take out the Authority single handedly. Instead, they had Sting put the final nail in the coffin (which is the only nail that gets remembered), and missed another opportunity. But that was all probably just because Ziggler doesn't want that brass ring.

All good points and while I agree with most of what you're saying I do disagree with one of them, Dolph Ziggler.

At first I thought they weren't going to push Ziggler because of the fact that he seems to get injured a lot. So maybe the WWE mindset is why push a guy who is injury prone.

I think that Ziggler has proved though, that with all the beatings he took at the Authority's fingertips, the injuries he did receive were accidental, and he is fit and ready to go. Ziggler is one guy you can count on to go out a put on a good match, and let's face it, this as McMahon said is sports entertainment, and Ziggler entertains the crowd.

Hopefully they can see that new and give him the push he truly deserves, although one more injury will likely be the last of any pushes he ever gets.

Considering Austin is the one who brought Cesero up, and the only name he mentioned, it would be interesting to hear McMahon thoughts on some of the other guys. Rusev for instance, who in my mind doesn't connect at all with the fans and would be nowhere without Lana by his side. I actually think Cesero is a better wrestler than Rusev any day of the week.

 

[RobertTheBruce]

Thoroughly enjoyed the interview, and there is no deying the man knows his shit. Did find the omission of Ziggler and the persistent mentionings of Wyatt intriguing. But other than that there is a rhyme and reason to every little detail, that as fans we should accept we will never understand totally.

 

[MrMojoRisin]

All good points and while I agree with most of what you're saying I do disagree with one of them, Dolph Ziggler.

At first I thought they weren't going to push Ziggler because of the fact that he seems to get injured a lot. So maybe the WWE mindset is why push a guy who is injury prone.

I think that Ziggler has proved though, that with all the beatings he took at the Authority's fingertips, the injuries he did receive were accidental, and he is fit and ready to go. Ziggler is one guy you can count on to go out a put on a good match, and let's face it, this as McMahon said is sports entertainment, and Ziggler entertains the crowd.

Hopefully they can see that new and give him the push he truly deserves, although one more injury will likely be the last of any pushes he ever gets.

I agree, which is why it annoys me that they just went half assed on Ziggler at the Survivor Series. In my mind, they should have let him finish what he started and take out the Authority clean. Have him standing triumphant at the end, and then the next night really put over the fact that Ziggler was the one who finished the Authority. It would have served them better in the long run instead of going with Sting as the guy who dealt the death blow.

 

[#tamale]

The interview was solid and what I was expecting. The only point that I want to touch on is Cesaro.

My main criticism of the WWE and wrestling fans is the notion of mic skills. I reject the notion that in order to be a main event player you need god like mic skills otherwise you are just not cut out to be a main event player. Not every wrestler is going to be The Rock or Austin on the mic.

Which brings me to my next point that because they don't have those mic skills, they let them flounder along. What kind of thinking is that? You need to find what you have with a certain wrestler and work with that to make them a star. Not just stop because they lack one or two things. Cesaro has every tool necessary to be a star but lacks in mic skills. So build something around that. Brock has horrible mic skills, so they pair him with Heyman and use promo packages to build up his character. Ziggler is not great on the mic, but his recent booking has built him as a strong face character.

Yes, Cesaro needs to find his character that connects with the audience, but why can't it be just a superb wrestling machine who is as gifted as an athlete as they come and will dominate you in the ring? Recently they had the youtube video of Ziggler and Cesaro building up their 2 out 3 falls match at HIAC and it was great. Find other ways to build your stars. Don't stick to the same formula.

This is not just for Cesaro, but for other wrestlers. This is not to disparage Fandango, but I'd rather see a creative video package building up Fandango instead of another squash match which noone cares about.

Be creative in pushing your stars.

 

[DCLXVI]

The interview was solid and what I was expecting. The only point that I want to touch on is Cesaro.

My main criticism of the WWE and wrestling fans is the notion of mic skills. I reject the notion that in order to be a main event player you need god like mic skills otherwise you are just not cut out to be a main event player. Not every wrestler is going to be The Rock or Austin on the mic.

Which brings me to my next point that because they don't have those mic skills, they let them flounder along. What kind of thinking is that? You need to find what you have with a certain wrestler and work with that to make them a star. Not just stop because they lack one or two things. Cesaro has every tool necessary to be a star but lacks in mic skills. So build something around that. Brock has horrible mic skills, so they pair him with Heyman and use promo packages to build up his character. Ziggler is not great on the mic, but his recent booking has built him as a strong face character.

Yes, Cesaro needs to find his character that connects with the audience, but why can't it be just a superb wrestling machine who is as gifted as an athlete as they come and will dominate you in the ring? Recently they had the youtube video of Ziggler and Cesaro building up their 2 out 3 falls match at HIAC and it was great. Find other ways to build your stars. Don't stick to the same formula.

This is not just for Cesaro, but for other wrestlers. This is not to disparage Fandango, but I'd rather see a creative video package building up Fandango instead of another squash match which noone cares about.

Be creative in pushing your stars.

Cesaro fan here. Was strange hearing Vince's personal views on him... creative played a big part in why he "isn't connecting" after the forced heel turn as Austin mentioned. He was getting a push and was connecting with the Swing as a signature move and then was quietly abandoned by Heyman. Something has just not felt quite "right" about his heel run in terms of connecting with people.

I disagree about wrestlers/mic skills etc. Look at Hogan, the guy had like 2 or 3 moves and connected with the crowd. Mic skills are crucial when you have to fill 10-15 minutes with a dragging promo and keep people somewhat captivated. This is talking about being a top guy - not midcard. Guys like Roman Reigns or Cesaro could not carry those lengthy segments. Brock doesn't need to, he's a "beast" and had a legitimate run as champion of UFC and Heyman has got a massive hard on for him and it works as his "mouthpiece".

In the end I see this benefiting Cesaro. He was the only wrestler Stone Cold mentioned and Stone Cold is obviously impressed with the guy as he has mentioned him in the past. Better to be mentioned by Stone Cold pointing out booking flaws than not be mentioned at all.

 

[MartialHorror]

What bugs me is that Cesaro got huge pops around wrestlemania when people thought he was turning face. WWE chose to not pursue that, which began the deflation of his potential rise. How do you blame Cesaro for that? If he turned face and fans got tired of him, then Vince would have a point.

Swagger honestly fits Vince's criticism more. Swagger got tons of momentum going into his Rusev feud, but fans were obviously less interested when he started fighting Bo Dallas. I do think that reflects on Swagger, although maybe his constant losing got on fans nerves.

 

[MR K]

Daniel Bryan isnt great on the mic, he connected through his amazing wrestling skills and his insanley over YES! chants. I think what Vince said will either make or break Cesaro, depends on his character. He can either go out and impress the hell out of everyone or he can continue to be bland and nothing will happen for the guy. He needs to see this as an opertunity rather than critisism.

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

Regarding Cesaro, I question the WWE's viewpoint on who fans want to see, because from everything I've been able to see, their PPV buys were pretty static regardless of how they built up the main event, and who they had in it. That's been tougher to gauge now because of the WWE Network, but I really have trouble buying McMahon's POV there.

 

[stingray11214]

You know, I saw the video again, and Vince said that nobody was willing to go for the brass ring, that they are not ambitious, and that they are worried about getting someone mad. Well, I can tell you a good reason for why the locker room is scared of doing anything: Zack Ryder! Why would ANYONE want to go out of their way to try to get themselves over after what VKM did to him after he tried?

 

[JoeFromTomsRiver]

Here's what I took from that podcast.

CM Punk was correct during his "pipebomb" promo in '11 that the WWE will be better off when Vince is dead.

That is brutal and harsh, and it's not easy for me to say, but I truly believe that.

"Out of touch" doesn't even begin to cover it.

 

[snazzy]

Another think that shocked me was the fact that he doesn't think the fans want to see the WWE Champ or Sting on TV all that much. Seriously Vince, we want a champ but don't want to see him defend the title? And the biggest name that never wrestled for you finally signs and we don't want to see him? Good God the man is out of touch.

I see it differently for multiple reasons.

The first being Brock Lesnar's star power. Yes, you'll probably groan but there is no doubt that Lesnar is a draw to those who aren't even wrestling fans, he is a big name in the industry. I actually agree with Vince that his apperances should be special, they should mean something. Why should he show up just to demolish another superstar? We know he is menacing and I think it will be running into a brick wall, asserting this every week. Now if he comes out, I know that something big is going to happen. I personally would get tired if he was around so much. The title is in such a unique position whereby whoever goes over Brock, will be OVER. Simply because of who Brock is and how he is portrayed. He is portrayed as a unique and special superstar and that's what he is, and I think him not appearing solidifies this portrayal.

Secondly, his gimmick. He's portraying this MMA fighter, sort of boxing type character where people see him as a legitimate threat. I don't really need to explain how him turning up every so often to beat the crap out of people ties in with his gimmick.

Finally, he's a heel. He's meant to be hated. You've probably heard it before but if you take a step back and read all the threads, posts, he is generating legitimate heat. Everyone GENUINELY hates the guy behind the character because they think that's who Lesnar actually is. This is causing almost everyone, casual fans and the smarks in the IWC to hate the guy. The fact he isn't even being mentioned pisses people off even more. Who does this benefit? The guy who's going to go over Brock. Why did Lesnar break the streak? Generate heat and portrayal as a legitimate threat.

There's a common trend. It's all building up to a Wrestlemania moment where whoever faces Brock will get one of the biggests rubs in history (even bigger than the one Taker gave Brock). So I see it as they are setting up for one moment, after which a new era will be defined with your new, young champion.

I'll be pissed off of course if Lesnar loses to a part-timer at WM, but if it's a Reigns (personally would prefer face Rollins (fantasy booking)) sort of guy, I think all of this was well engineered and worth it. If they go with Reigns I think it will be a bit meh because too predictable, that's why I'm hoping they throw in someone else, and Reigns was to just get us off the scent.

 

[chuckmdubya]

Speeking specifically about the Cesaro comment:

There has been criticism of WWE's handling of Cesaro on Wrestle zone for a good while now. People who frequent the forum here are probably all huge life long wrestling fans, marks and smarks alike. We are able to see the in ring talent of a superstar much better than the average fan. When we see how good Cesaro is with technical wrestling and timing we recognize that. When we see him do things that are usually done by men who are 50 lbs heavier we are impressed.
But the average wrestling fan who just watches raw, doesn't see these things. I think this is where Cesaro is hurt badly. As Vince correctly stated, he doesn't have the charisma or personality that the average fan wants to see. The reason people like the Rock, Austin, Cena, Undertaker were so popular is because they had their talent and personality right out on their sleeve for everyone to see. Cesaro's talents are currently only on display for the 5-15 minutes he is in the ring, other than that he is not very enteraining.

I would rarely disagree with Vince McMahon in all matters WWE, he knows wrestling better than anyone alive, he has made hundreds of stars and dozens of superstars. Vince is right about Cesaro. But I believe that Vince wants Cesaro to be very successful and is making an attempt to motivate him as well.

 

[Navi]

I see it differently for multiple reasons.

The first being Brock Lesnar's star power. Yes, you'll probably groan but there is no doubt that Lesnar is a draw to those who aren't even wrestling fans, he is a big name in the industry. I actually agree with Vince that his apperances should be special, they should mean something. Why should he show up just to demolish another superstar? We know he is menacing and I think it will be running into a brick wall, asserting this every week. Now if he comes out, I know that something big is going to happen. I personally would get tired if he was around so much. The title is in such a unique position whereby whoever goes over Brock, will be OVER. Simply because of who Brock is and how he is portrayed. He is portrayed as a unique and special superstar and that's what he is, and I think him not appearing solidifies this portrayal.

Secondly, his gimmick. He's portraying this MMA fighter, sort of boxing type character where people see him as a legitimate threat. I don't really need to explain how him turning up every so often to beat the crap out of people ties in with his gimmick.

Finally, he's a heel. He's meant to be hated. You've probably heard it before but if you take a step back and read all the threads, posts, he is generating legitimate heat. Everyone GENUINELY hates the guy behind the character because they think that's who Lesnar actually is. This is causing almost everyone, casual fans and the smarks in the IWC to hate the guy. The fact he isn't even being mentioned pisses people off even more. Who does this benefit? The guy who's going to go over Brock. Why did Lesnar break the streak? Generate heat and portrayal as a legitimate threat.

There's a common trend. It's all building up to a Wrestlemania moment where whoever faces Brock will get one of the biggests rubs in history (even bigger than the one Taker gave Brock). So I see it as they are setting up for one moment, after which a new era will be defined with your new, young champion.

I'll be pissed off of course if Lesnar loses to a part-timer at WM, but if it's a Reigns (personally would prefer face Rollins (fantasy booking)) sort of guy, I think all of this was well engineered and worth it. If they go with Reigns I think it will be a bit meh because too predictable, that's why I'm hoping they throw in someone else, and Reigns was to just get us off the scent.

to a certain extent I agree, the WWE champ should be special and no the title shouldn't change hands like a hot potato, but it should at least be visible. And that where McMahon is out of touch with the fans.

Look at it this way. Every other champion we've had in the past has had to defend the title at mostly every PPV. The only person who seems to not have to do that is Lesnar, because of the contract they signed with him. So what happens when his contract is up at Mania and he drops the belt to whoever. Let's say it's Reigns and I really hope it isn't cause he's not ready.

Will Reigns then be allowed to sit at home for a few months and not bother to show up to work? Will he just be allowed to defend the title once every 4 PPV's like Lesnar? And what are the other guys like Cena, Orton, Ziggle, Ambrose striving to achieve, a midcard title belt? I mean hell who even have a MITB PPV, if there is no champ in sight, why carry an ugly briefcase around for a year?

Sorry that sounded douchy and it didn't mean too, but you see my point. I don't hate Lesnar, it's not his fault. The WWE was stupid enough to sign this contract with him and now we're stuck with it, doesn't mean we have to like it though. Vince is out of touch or just plain dumb and I don't think he's a stupid man. So that's why his remarks made no sense, because when Austin asked him "Where is the champ?" he comes up with this shit. It's almost like he didn't expect that question, and was making it up as he went along.

First of all he makes the statement that the locker room isn't motivated and doesn't want to reach for the brass ring. Well Vince, you've taken the brass ring, put it on a guy and let him walk off with it and any motivation that goes along with it.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Speeking specifically about the Cesaro comment:

There has been criticism of WWE's handling of Cesaro on Wrestle zone for a good while now. People who frequent the forum here are probably all huge life long wrestling fans, marks and smarks alike. We are able to see the in ring talent of a superstar much better than the average fan. When we see how good Cesaro is with technical wrestling and timing we recognize that. When we see him do things that are usually done by men who are 50 lbs heavier we are impressed.
But the average wrestling fan who just watches raw, doesn't see these things. I think this is where Cesaro is hurt badly. As Vince correctly stated, he doesn't have the charisma or personality that the average fan wants to see. The reason people like the Rock, Austin, Cena, Undertaker were so popular is because they had their talent and personality right out on their sleeve for everyone to see. Cesaro's talents are currently only on display for the 5-15 minutes he is in the ring, other than that he is not very enteraining.

I would rarely disagree with Vince McMahon in all matters WWE, he knows wrestling better than anyone alive, he has made hundreds of stars and dozens of superstars. Vince is right about Cesaro. But I believe that Vince wants Cesaro to be very successful and is making an attempt to motivate him as well.

I really think a lot of people are misjudging this and it's important to look at it the other way, cos I think they did qualify it, but not till later on in the interview, so the real meaning is missed.

Vince DID put Cesaro over for a good number of his attributes, while the "maybe it's cos he's Swiss" line was an eyeroller, the reality is that he doesn't have the innate charisma some of the other talents do have, or if he does, hasn't found the right method yet.

They touched later on how Austin was EXACTLY in the same situation when he came in, that he was a "mechanic" in Vince's eyes, exactly as Cesaro probably is. Austin looked within himself and found the idea himself, Stone Cold... and the rest is history. Tying in to Austin's "challenge" I actually saw Vince as giving Cesaro a "green light" to take the required risks to find his own character/niche rather than anything derogatory about him. While it didn't come out on the interview I'd be certain Austin said something along the lines "If I can help you, here's my number" to Cesaro and a few of the others.

Vince made more mention of Rollins, Ambrose and Bray because the are doing it already.They've all come up with creative elements to enhance their onscreen presentation and to get over, Cesaro was based on a couple of the more "logic defying" moves in WWE...

Thus they are farther ahead in the pecking order and less likely to be part of that "scared" mentality Vince tried to play down and Austin made a point of saying was there IS Cesaro in a nutshell.

He made a big point of saying he hoped to turn it round for Cesaro... but made clear it's in his hands. I'd have been more interested to hear Austin ask about Adam Rose...

As for the rest of the interview:

Not so sure the "apology" was 100% legit, after all Punk's big line to Vince was "Apologize", the class thing to do would have been to also apologise to AJ and acknowledge she too was affected. So not as great a move as it sounds, even if he'd called her April it would have shown true class. So it seemed a little hollow.

Vince was as honest as he could be and some of the stuff was very interesting, like Shane and for those who know other shoot stories some hypocrisy was there too, like Batista and Jericho doing the exact same blood wise and all concerned getting fined.

He did a good job putting JR over while still making clear what happened wasn't ok... perhaps it was a "final olive branch" before he goes for the NJPW/GFW job for more than the one off...

It was sad to hear Vince's views on "wrestling" and competition, even if in the main he was right that everything else is competition... It's clear Austin and a whole section of fans still love wrestling first, it was disappointing even for Austin that Vince's mantras didn't even crack a "look I loved the wrestling business, but it doesn't exist any more..." from him.

This was a great experiment and I am sure that Trips, maybe Shane and JR for starters will do specials in the future. I'd love to see Austin and Rock talk like this. If this can be a semi regular thing, maybe the RAW after a PPV for example, then it could be a major reason to subscribe to the Network.

 

[The Warlord]

Jesus Christ...I don't know why everyone is so bent out of shape over Vince's comments about Cesaro. He didn't "bury" him. He offered his opinions on Cesaro and all he said was "At the moment" there's something missing and that he was lacking the IT factor. He needs to work on his verbal skills.

Vince in his podcast said people, including himself, learn every day.

Cesaro is a great talent but needs to work on certain things to get to the next level. It's not fucking rocket science, people...so pull your tampons out and get over it.

Overall I thought it was an excellent podcast. If you listen to the Steve Austin show this one with Vince seems like just another Tuesday show...except that it was VINCE MCMAHON. It was great to hear his take on different subjects and fun to hear stories from the past.

IF people thought it was going to be an hour long shoot on CM Punk then you're an idiot anyway. Steve did a great job on asking all the tough questions that people wanted to hear...and Vince didnt shy away from any of them, including Punk.

Austin proves again that he has the best wrestling podcast going today.

Great show

 

[ColeMc]

I liked it, particularly the part about Vince wanting to get in the ring. And their various degrees of success with Stonecold's stunner.

He made a point to say he wasn't giving up on Cesaro but that he hadn't quite gotten over with the fans, and this isn't all down to Vince these days. He made the point that there is a team of writers behind it now, not just himself and Pat Patterson.

I was left baffled at Jim Ross because I don't know the story there, anyone else know?