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JR's Blog: RAW is Richmond..UK Spoken Word Tickets Selling Splendidly..Order JR's Online..Father's Day Gift Ideas

Posted: Jun 11th 2013 By: CMBurnham

Good day to all. Let's get to grilling....

I updated my observations at the recent WWE Tryout Camp I participated in down in Tampa on my last blog that I posted on Sunday after I arrived back in Oklahoma. Check it out.

Big night in Richmond tonight as RAW emanates from the Coliseum that is seemingly timeless. It was the home for many Mid Atlantic Wrestling events over the years. My first TV taping for Crockett Promotions after the Crockett's bought out Cowboy Bill Watts was in Richmond for a double taping of one NWA Pro broadcast and one Worldwide Wrestling show. Bob Caudle and I did the the NWA Pro show which was considered the 'B' show while Tony Schiavone and David Crockett did the 'A' show which was Worldwide.

Those shows were 6 segments in length with five commercial breaks and were the norm in that generation within the genre as it related to local, one hour wrestling shows. Bob and I would tape our show first, sort of the warm up act for Tony and David, and then be through for the evening. These shows were done live to tape and not voiced over in post production.

I'd expect more Payback PPV bouts to be made official tonight considering that this is the last Monday Night RAW prior to the PPV in Chicago on Sunday.

Curious to follow the storyline involving HHH, Mr. McMahon, Stephanie McMahon and, subsequently, Curtis Axel on RAW tonight. I have no idea where this matter is headed but I can say that for Curtis Axel to be in this conversation with the aforementioned individuals is nothing but good for the son of Mr. Perfect.

Will Daniel Bryan continue to steal the show tonight on WWE's flagship broadcast as he has the past few weeks? I'm relatively certain that he will find a way. We had a young man in the recent Tampa tryout camp who reminded me of Daniel Bryan a great deal. I suggested to him that he watch every Daniel Bryan match that he could find. Same body type and a perfectionist in mastering the in ring drills. Plus, he won a Gold Medal at the Pan American Games in wrestling.

John Cena vs. Ryback is the official headliner for the Payback PPV but they will be hard pressed to follow CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho in Punk's hometown and with both men's penchant for show stealing. Two, highly skilled, proud performers like Jericho and Punk will make it very difficult for whatever immediately follows them to succeed. I could see a Divas match being held immediately after Punk/Y2J finish their business in the Windy City.

It's been smart of WWE to continue to hold World Champion Dolph Ziggler out of contact. There should be no rush and to err on the side of caution is always best for any injury especially a concussion. I expect Ziggler to make his presence felt in a big way tonight on RAW just six days prior to Payback. Ziggler is one of WWE's most valuable resources and I fully expect for him to have a breakout year in 2013 leading into something significant at WM30 in New Orleans.

One of the best attributes of the new, WWE Performance Center will be the presence of a full time strength and conditioning coach who will have world class equipment with which to work. Over time, we will see talents transform their bodies and become stronger and more explosive thanks to an organized, systematic training regime that has never been utilized to this degree ever in the business. This matter hasn't been discussed that much but, trust me, it is a huge feature of the new facility.

Just ask successful D1 college sports programs such as Alabama and Oklahoma how important their strength and conditioning programs are. Same goes for the good programs within the NFL.

I've always stressed that any athlete entering WWE Development, or even the Indies, should have a viable, Plan B in their 'back pocket' because most who enter the program, based on the math, won't make it to the main roster. Perhaps those who don't make it and then lash out is because they don't have a viable plan B. However, who's to say that they can't work the Indies and then try to come back to WWE? It's been done in the past. Bottom line is to not burn any bridges in a business as small as sports entertainment or, for that matter, any business.

Only a handful of tickets remain for the VIP Meet and Greet portion of my 1st ever, Spoken Word Tour in the UK coming up in late August. All tickets are selling fast and it looks likely that all be sold out come show time. For info on these shows or to buy tickets just go online to http://www.psievents.eventbrite.com/.

Remember that JR's products make great Fathers's Day gifts that can be used on the grill or in the kitchen. Online ordering is easy and efficient that includes delivery to your home by simply logging onto http://www.wweshop.com or in the UK, Europe, etc to http://www.americansoda.co.uk. Amazon in the UK also sells JR's BBQ Sauces, Chipotle Ketchup and Main Event Mustard.

You're invited to follow me on Twitter @JRsBBQ.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy RAW tonight LIVE from Richmond.
Boomer Sooner!
J.R.