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JR's Blog: J.R. Talks Balor vs Nakamura on @WWENXT, #CWC Tourney, OklaMania, Show vs Shaq, @JohnCena

Posted: Jul 18th 2016 By: Jim Ross

Greetings from Norman, Oklahoma and thanks for paying us a visit here on our site. The Ross Report with Eric Bischoff part two is getting great reviews and feedback and I hope that you will listen and you can do so without leaving the site by simply returning to the home page and making one click. I thank all of you that have subscribed for free to The Ross Report podcast at iTunes. BTW, Eric gives everyone a timely update on his friend @HulkHogan among many other topics in this show.

Watched ample, TV wrestling Wednesday night as my wife is in Pittsburgh where she attended the Guns 'n Roses show at Heinz Field Tuesday night so I had the run of the remote.

Smart programming by WWE to have the Finn Balor vs Shinsuke Nakamura match comprise the entire NXT broadcast. I liked that idea and it worked for me. The match was excellent but for some reason, after it was over, I was left wanting more which isn't a bad thing for the record. The strategy was sound in how the match was constructed and the only negative that I can pinpoint, after the fact, is that after Balor effectively focused on Nakamura's leg that Shinsuke forsake his 'selling mode' and efficiently used the 'damaged' leg offensively down the home stretch of the match. A small sell in that process would have effective and would have enhanced the overall story telling of the match. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the match and the commentary of Tom Phillips and Corey Graves as they provided a viable narrative of the contest and they stayed focused on what was on my TV screen which is always the best route to travel. Balor and Nakamura are both ready to headline any WWE event that one can book them on going forward. Anxious to see how they each fit into the WWE Draft next week.

The attempt to make pro wrestling commentary as close to a legit, sports presentation as possible seemingly works much better than random, Sports Center-like banter and amateur attempts at humor as it is a disconnect when seeing one thing on one's TV screen and hearing about an entirely different topic. Which of the two sources of information do I process and retain when I'm seeing one thing and hearing about another?

The WWE Network promotion for the CWC program debut with Mauro Ranallo and Daniel Bryant was timely and it worked. It was made to feel as if the CWC event was a big event and it actually is in the big picture. It's great that many deserving talents are getting to perform on WWE TV which will enhance their careers and will likely help many to secure more indie bookings going forward and may even land select talents a full time job in WWE.

WWE did a good job of introducing their viewers as to who these Cruiserweights are and why I should invest in them during this process and beyond. It's much akin to the process that we broadcast CBS Sports Network boxing inasmuch as we try to tell the boxing fans who these fighters are and why these boxers are worthy of you watching them fight on our broadcast. FYI..I return to TV with @AlBernstein on Saturday night July 23 from Cancun on @CBSSportsNet for another hot, boxing card.

CWC certainly focused on Kota Ibushi from NJPW who is a talented athlete and if Kota can master speaking some English he could be a major star in North America and beyond. However, not being able to communicate more easily with his biggest audience in WWE isn't wise. The good news is that Ibushi learning to speak some English is a fixable matter. Can you say Rosetta Stone?

Loved seeing WWE utilize time limits because how can one possibly think that having no time limits even loosely equates to a legit, sporting event? It can't IMO. Pro wrestling promotions that do not utilize time limits are making a mistake. End of story.

I was also interested in the fact that the Cruiserweight bouts were not over scripted, high spot fests and crash and burn scenarios as there was plenty of believable, mat wrestling sequences and attempts at submissions in virtually every match. That's good booking.

Mauro and DB had a good night at the announce desk and they stayed focused on the video on my TV and kept me attune on what I was seeing and did not insult my intelligence with eye rolling declarations while calling the bouts like they were main stream sports contests. This style of broadcasting of a pro wrestling event was old school and effective and was a refreshing change as to what we often times hear on many broadcasts within the genre these days. The more analysis that DB can provide the better and Mauro teed it up for Daniel well through the hour.

I will be watching the CWC on the WWE Network for its duration without question. Really nice work by all involved.

Black hats off to @JohnCena for an excellent job hosting the ESPY's Wednesday night on ABC TV. The WWE's poster boy was spot on and represented well to say the least. During the ESPY's, John shed a positive light on the business of pro wrestling of which we all should be grateful.

In case you missed it, our RINGSIDE with Jim Ross and Friends shows are now scheduled for Saturday April 1 and Sunday April 2, 2017 in Orlando at Plaza Live. Both shows are matinees and both will see the VIP ticket holders get their time at noon while both shows start at 2 pm and will be over in PLENTY of time for fans to make other events such as the WWE HOF on Saturday night and Wrestlemania itself on Sunday. Tickets start at $25 and all tickets go on sale the day after Summer Slam on Monday August 22 at 10 am ET at www.ticketfly.com. Circle the on date on your calendars as our tradition of presenting our RINGSIDE shows at Wrestlemania weekends continues. I hope to see you there!

Tickets are selling fast for the NWA Legends Fan Fest in #Charlotte August 4-7 and you can find out all the info on this annual, must see event at www.nwalegends.com including how you can help us fund the documentary @6:05 Film. You will regret missing this event if you don't attend I can assure you.

We are excited to be affiliated with two, big events in Oklahoma this weekend including Saturday night at 7 pm in Shawnee at the Firelake Casino Arena and Sunday from 10 am-5 pm for OklaCon at the Cox Convention Center in OKC followed by a huge, pro wrestling event at 6 pm. Many HOFers are booked during the weekend including Sting, Kevin Nash, Jim Duggan, Jerry Lawler, yours truly, the Hardy's, Jim Cornette, the Rock 'n Roll Express, Jeff & Karen Jarrett, Dalton Castle, Roderick Strong, Moose, War Machine, Marshall and Ross Von Erich, Abyss, EC3, Angelina Love, Mickie James, Amber Gallows, Donovan Dijak, and more. Tickets start at only $20 and will be available at both venues and for Sunday's OklaMania event you can also hit www.ticketmaster.com.

Grill with JR's this summer and you can stock up online from www.wweshop.com and for UK and Ireland delivery visit www.americansoda.co.uk, Also, Ingles Markets in the southeast USA has JR's in over 200 stores.

Our potential business venture with our Australian partners is looking good thus far, too.

Both major EVOLVE iPPV events this weekend, Saturday at 4 pm ET and Sunday at 7 PM ET are available on the @FITETV App. All you need is a smart device and WiFi and you're all set any where in the world.

Nice publicity stunt by WWE having Big Show and Shaq talk about having a "match" at WM33 in Orlando while both were attending the ESPY's. That would be a marketable "attraction" bout that should garner ample main stream publicity. I'm interested in the process if this concept moves forward.

Idea...would a giant, tag team match featuring Show and Shaq as partners be easier to execute and still provide the desired publicity?

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J.R. @JRsBBQ