Old School RAW - For the Win...Until Next Week

The Old School RAW was probably the best RAW of the year, kind of sad in a way since we know that next week we'll be back to the same old crap.  WWE really went all out, bringing back the old ring, attires, sets, legends etc.  It was crazy to see all the old 90's stuff back, and it actually felt really fresh.  The same old crap we see every week has gotten REALLY stale, so seeing the old stuff was like a breath of fresh air.  Some of the old features they used even made me wonder why they don't still use them, such as the picture in picture promos like the one Kofi Kingston did.  This was a staple of the 80's and early 90's, and gives guys a chance to get some talking in and make sense of what they're doing.  Also the old set was nice, with the giant RAW letters and just a few fireworks.  We don't need the exact same stage and effects EVERY SINGLE week.

Another thing that majorly stood out, was Roddy Piper delivering on the mic like he's done many times in the past.  His Piper's Pit with John Cena, Randy Orton, and Wade Barret actually made me care about the angle for the first time.  Piper is gold and knows how to get a story over, which is why he should be in a regular role on the Pit to help get stories over.  Speaking of delivering, Jim Ross returned to the broadcast booth as a guest commentator on the Daniel Bryan vs. Jack Swagger match, and immediately had me thinking how SOMEone had to wake up and get JR back in the permanent position he deserves instead of sitting on the sidelines. 

Not everything worked (Mae Young's segment felt a bit forced, but we can't expect much more from Mae these days) but overall it was a very fun show, proving WWE could still entertain us if they try.  The TV-PG thing was pushed way more than it has in a long time, with various cuss words being used here and there......which is nice for adults who don't want to watch a total kiddie show.  I would've like to have seen a legends battle royal on the show, since guys like Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Tony Atlas, and Tatanka were there and geared up and ready, but only made cameos.

I hate to think of the usual crap RAW's returning next week, but in my opinion, if nothing else tonight proved that the legends can be used to enhance what the new guys are doing and can help keep things interesting rather than the same old RAW is BORE that we normally get.

RAW Recap: 07/28/08

Here's just a short rundown of what happened at last night's Monday Night RAW:

RAW has been kicking ass lately. The plots have been thicker, the writing better, and the action more over the top. Guys like Kofi Kingston and occasionally the now solo Paul London have been adding that high flying attitude that RAW has been missing leading up to the draft. Rey Mysterio should be in there somewhere, but we've seen him like... what now? Twice?

This Santino/Beth Phoenix lovers angle is hilarious. I haven't laughed that hard at WWE in a LONG time. Santino is the acclimate performer right now. He's skilled in the ring, but at the same time great on the mic and had excellent comedic timing. He's always funny, but last night, with Beth Phoenix, I was almost to tears I was laughing so hard.

Michael Cole got his ass kicked. It was supposed to be Jerry Lawler and Hacksaw Jim Duggan against the World Tag Team Champs, with the straps on the line, but at the last minute a referee ran in with a note from the new GM that replaced Hacksaw with Michael Cole. King got taken out of the match, and Michael Cole got clobbered by Cody Rhodes. So Michael Cole was out for the rest of the show, and that's always good. Though they did bring out Mike Adamle to fill in, and that's always bad. Mike Adamle is a moron.

Earlier in the night Shane McMahon said we would see CM Punk squaring off against one of the most technical free agents in the business, and that turned out to be William Regal making his return, in a weird singlet. Though no mention of him being KOTR and only a quick mention of him being GM before. Punk won, but not before William Regal broke his nose accidentally. Cheers to Regal!

Mickie James won against the ugly blond who sings a lot. I can't remember her name, because this is usually when I go take my evening #2. Katie Lea jumped Mickie at the end though, and demanded a shot at Summerslam.

Out next was Jericho for the Final Highlight Reel. Jericho played a couple of his old funny clips, and said the true career he ended was not HBK... it was Y2J. Jericho said we could all say goodbye to Y2J and the old Chris Jericho. He demanded a shot at CM Punk's title, and told Shawn Michaels to stay home and get some rest.

JR is now coming to ringside, and he says "I don't know why I'm here, I should be on my way to Hershey, Pennsylvania for Smackdown. I was told to be here." King and Adamle don't know either. Mike Adamle keeps insisting he was told to be there too, and it's obvious he would have to replace Michael Cole.

Promo airs saying Shawn Michaels will be live via satellite next week. WWE jumping the shark yet again.

At this point, I was expecting we're gonna get a good Summerslam WHT match. You have 6 guys wanting it. CM Punk has it, Batista, Cena, Kane, JBL, and now Jericho all wants shots. The HITC is already going to be hanging over the ring at Summerslam, so they can't do an Elimination Chamber, so I think they might do a 6-man HITC.

Boy was I wrong.

Big mainevent, Cena and Batista beat JBL and Kane in a tag team match. I bet those guys were tired since they practically had the same match, a couple hours earlier when they pretaped the SNME show.

It's 11:15 and here comes Shane McMahon to introduce the new RAW GM. I'm hoping and praying for Bischoff................... but no.

On camera we didn't see who got up and climbed in to the ring, but as Shane McMahon looked to the back to introduce the GM, we all waited, and when no one came out, Shane turned to the ring and said "Your new RAW General Manager is..." the camera pans to the ring to see who's standing behind Cena and Batista.... "MIKE ADAMLE!"

WHAT?!

MIKE ADAMLE?!

WHAT?!

Cena and Batista look legitimately shocked, with Cena even laughing at one point and saying "is this a joke?" I wish it was a joke... but no... it looks like Mike Adamle is the new RAW GM.

.... and just when RAW was getting so good.

WWE news: Shane on RAW, King and JR Back Together, Michelle McCool Resented Backstage.

-- Shane McMahon will be appearing live and in person on Raw this Monday night in Washington D.C. According to WWE.com's preview for Raw on Monday, McMahon may be naming a new General Manager for the brand. Here is what they wrote: "In recent weeks the McMahons have implored the WWE Universe to cease the civil unrest that resulted from the absence of the injured WWE Chairman, Mr. McMahon. Will Shane name a new General Manager when he appears on Raw this Monday?" You can read the preview in its entirety at this link, which consists of vague information. They don't have anything else officially scheduled for Monday's Raw at this point. On another note, Stephanie McMahon will obviously be unable to appear on Raw due to her pregnancy, as she's due any day now.

-- According to the webmaster of Jim Ross' official website, Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler will be calling the entire 8/2 Saturday Night's Main Event broadcast, which is scheduled to be taped before Raw goes live on the air at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. this Monday night. You can read the message at this link.

-- In the SmackDown Divas locker room, there is a bit of resentment from some of the ladies towards reigning WWE Divas Champion Michelle McCool. Whether it's true or not, the feeling is that McCool has some power as the star of the women's division on SmackDown and that she comes across like the veteran leader even though she doesn't really have that much experience in the wrestling business. This was actually the case before McCool won the WWE Divas Championship at The Great American Bash last Sunday as the belt doesn't have anything to do with the resentment. A few weeks ago, Natalya Neidhart was reportedly upset with McCool due to a behind the scenes incident involving the two in which McCool tried to show her how to lock up correctly and how to work "WWE style," which is more about telling a story in the ring than doing a bunch of random moves. On the other hand, McCool doesn't really appear to be in the wrong, and all of this probably has more to do with the typical wrestler mentality of someone becoming a star when others think they're not as good as they themselves are, and then they come up with reasons why. Also, since McCool in involved in a real-life relationship with Undertaker, it would appear that some of the resentment and jealousy towards her is due to that. In other words, when a Diva is dating a Superstar wrestler and then gets a push, that's obviously going to get people talking.

Breaking News: CM Punk Has Won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

In a shocking turn of events, WWE actually did something unpredictable, and kicked off RAW with a long segment involving Jim Ross's farewell speech, which was interrupted by Edge and his Edgeheads....which lead to a heated promo by Edge, saying he'd never appear on RAW again, which brought out Batista, who destroyed Edge, kicked his ass all over the arena, which was topped off by CM Punk cashing in his money in the bank, and defeating Edge for the World Heavyweight Title. Talk about fresh, a guy who just got drafted to RAW, and who hasn't been giving a huge main event push yet, walks in and wins the World Title. Like him or not (I'm not the biggest CM fan,) this was great booking, something exciting and unexpected, and a guy winning the title who you wouldn't expect. Finally WWE does something right, shakes things up, and gets us out of the boring John Cena-Triple H-Randy Orton title picture that's been boring for ages now! Let he era of CM Punk begin!

WWE RAW is Good Again....Until the Main Event.

So I've sat back and observed RAW the past few weeks, and I've seen a much more enjoyable show since Wrestlemania 24. Things were getting terribly boring for awhile, and predictable as well. Now I'm not saying there aren't still things that suck, such as WWE constantly having the main event made by an in ring promo, just like tonight's was, where Regal talked about Orton and JBL wanting rematches with Cena and HHH. Regal says they want rematches at the pay per view, then says "But tonight, there will be a tag match...".....now STOP right there, at THAT very point, we know that the tag match will be Orton and JBL vs. HHH and Cena, but as we do EVERY week, we have to sit through "It will be, JBL and Orton......" (Again, we must pause, and pretend we don't know who the opponents will be,) "Taking on John Cena..........(who could the partner be???)........and TRIPLE HAITCH (Regal's spelling of his name)"......this process occurs week after week it seems, and DAMN is it old and tired. Same old guys, same old main events, but wow, the WWE midcard and even lowercard angles and matches have been great lately! Chris Jericho pulled a great match out of Batista on Monday, and Jericho had a great match with HBK at Judgement Day, hmm, seems maybe Jericho should be main eventing! Jeff Hardy has exploded back on the scene, picking right up where he left off, getting huge pops from the crowd, and he's possibly the most over guy in the company. Is he main eventing? Nope. How about Mr. Kennedy, his new role as a bad ass face has been really good, and he's getting great reactions, and his match with Regal was really good, and popped the crowd for the finish. Even the stuff with Cade and Murdoch is fresh, any involvement with Roddy Piper is great, and his stuff with Santino is no different, its a nice little extra story on the side that is more character based. The divas are doing their part, as the heel on heel Beth Phoenix vs. Melina feud is new and interesting, and both are good in the ring, so no complaints in the diva area on RAW. So really it seems that new talent is shining lately, and the main even scene is just stale. We've seen Triple H as champ before, seen his entrance 12 million times. Cena has been used much less lately, which is very good, after he was crammed down our throat for a few years. Even mainstays like Shawn Michaels, have been able to get involved in a good fresh feud with Batista and Jericho. For some reason, it's the main event/WWE Title picture that can't heat up right now. Because of the great talent under the main event, I'll keep watching and enjoying RAW....Smackdown, still very boring in my opinion, and ECW is so pathetic, its not even worth watching. I think my next post will be a look at TNA, and what is good and what is bad there, similar to this post, but shockingly, in my opinion, the best thing in TNA right now......are the TNA Knockouts! More to come.....

Paul London Update

In J.R.s weekly blog, he posted the following message:

"Paul London has a foot injury that will see him back in action in a matter of only a few weeks for you Kendrick/London fans out there. I am a big fan of this combo. "

Its nice to finally know where Paul has been for the past few months.

All 3 WWE Shows to debut new sets next week!

The reason why Triple H destroyed the titantron on last night’s edition of RAW is because this week was the final week for that particular RAW set. As we reported several days ago and WWE confirmed today, all three brands will be debuting new sets in preparation for their new High Definition programming next week.

Heat and RAW Spoilers for 12/31/07

RAW and Heat Spoilers

Dark Match:

Brian Kendrick vs "The Natural" Nick Nameth w/ ???
Nick come out with some muscular dude that I did not reckonize and I couldnt catch his name. Brian Kendrick wins with a Small Package. Im still wondering who Paul London pissed off, he hasnt been seen on TV in a long while.

Heat Matches:

Snisky vs Super Crazy
Snisky wins with a pumphandle slam, typical jobber match.

D.H. Smith vs Jobber
D.H. Smith wins with a Back Suplex.

Charlie Haas vs Drew McEntyre
Drew wins with a Northern Lights Suplex. Charlie Haas has a new gimmick where he goes under the ring and puts on a luchadore mask for some reason.

RAW:
No Opening Pyro
RAW starts off with Randy Orton in the ring talking about how 2007 is the best year of his career and how 2008 will be even better. Jeff Hardy comes out to shut him up and cuts a pretty decent promo. Orton tries to give Jeff an RKO but Jeff reverses it into a Twist of Fate.

Backstage Segment
Matt and Jeff Hardy talking about how Jeff is going to win at the Rumble and when he does he will give Matt the first title match.

Kennedy vs HBK
Kennedy wins after he reverses the Superkick into a Complete Shot, or as I like to call it, the Kenplete Shot.

Backstage Segment
Vince makes a match for later, Regal vs Hornswoggle.

Umaga vs Hacksaw - Royal Rumble Qualifier
Umaga win in 2 mintues after the Samoan Spike

Backstage Segment
HHH is interviewed by Todd Grisham, Vince interupts and says if HHH loses in any way, he will not be in the Royal Rumble match.

JBL Returns
He comes to the ring and three HUGE sets of pryo goes off after he gets into the ring. He cuts a promo on how he is better and richer than everyone, Jericho interrupts and they have a good old fashioned brawl.

Mickie James vs Melina vs Beth Phoenix - Womens Title Match
Beth retains after giving Melina the Fishermans suplex.

Jeff Hardy vs Santino Marella w/ Maria and Carlito
Match ends in a No Contest after Randy Orton comes on the Titantron from backstage, he shows Jeff that he has beaten up Matt, and then gives Matt the concussion kick.

Backstage Segment
Jeff rushes to his brother side, and Orton has run from sight.

Hornswoggle vs William Regal
The match ends in a no contest after Vince hands Regal his brass knucks, but he cant hit Hornswoggle. Vince barraids Regal in the ring and Regal just walks away.

Backstage Segment
HHH and Flair have a discussion about their upcoming match.

HHH vs Ric Flair
Ric Flair wins via DQ after Regal comes down and punches Flair after HHH pedigrees the Nature Boy.

Biggest Pops
1. Ric Flair
2. Jeff Hardy
3. Chris Jericho

Biggest Heat
1. JBL
2. Randy Orton
3. HHH (While Attacking Flair in their match)

Breaking News: WWE Superstar INURED at RAW Taping!

The following comes from WWE.com:

Former World Tag Team Champion Lance Cade was injured after separating his left shoulder at a live event in Atlanta on Friday night.

According to athletic trainer Chris Brennan, the severity of Cade’s injury cannot be determined until he undergoes an orthopedic evaluation.

“Lance could be out of action for four to six weeks,” Brennan told WWE.com. “Of course, those numbers could change depending on the orthopedic evaluation.”

WWE.com will update this situation as more information becomes available.

Stone Cold Changes Name

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin is following in the footsteps of Ultimate Warror and Chyna as he has legally changed his real name to his wrestling name. "Stone Cold" has legally changed his name from Steve Williams to Steve Austin.

DarkDefender85's Top 25

1. Edge - The Rated R Superstar climbs to the top after beating Batista and The Undertaker.
2. Jeff Hardy - The Swantoning Superstar is on the roll of his life after beating HHH and Randy Orton.
   
3. HBK - The Showstopper stopped Mr. Kennedy with Sweet Chin Music.
   
4. Batista - After losing the World Title and losing again on Smackdown, it looks like the Animal has been put to sleep.
   
5. CM Punk - A Dq win over MVP and a 6 man tag win help Punk this week.
   
6. Rey Mysterio - A countout win over MVP helps the 619er.
   
7. Randy Orton - The WWE Champion is coming up sweet with a loss to Chris Jericho and getting pinned by Jeff Hardy.
   
8. HHH - The Game seems to be on pause, making fun of Vince McMahon isnt going to help HHH.
   
9. Finlay - A Win over The Great Khali skyrockets Finlay in the Top 25.
   
10. The Undertaker - He didnt get pinned at Armageddon but didnt win the gold.
    
11. Big Daddy V - Pinning the ECW Champion helps ECWs Monster.
    
12. MVP - The US Champion isnt acting like a champion these days.
    
13. Ric Flair - The Nature Boy will not go quiet into that good night.
    
14. Chris Jericho - A war of words with JBL and a DQ win over Orton help Jericho.
    
15. Mr. Kennedy - In impressive match with HBK help Kennedy.
    
16. Rhodes and Holly - The new tag champion keep the gold after beating Cade and Murdoch.
    
17. Shelton Benjamin - The new gold standard of ECW keeps on winning.
    
18. Carlito and Santino - The new tag team get a win over London and Kendrick.
    
19. Miz and Morrison - The WWE Tag Champion tasted defeat on ECW.
    
20. Umaga - The Samoan Bulldozer plowed through a barricade but lost to Ric Flair.
    
21. Mark Henry - The World Strongest Man got a win with Big Daddy V by his side.
    
22. Moore Wang - Shannon Moore and Jimmy Wang Yang proved to be a lethal combo with a win over the WWE Tag Team Champions.
    
23. Ryder and Hawkings - The Former Major Brothers helped Edge win and keep the World Title this week.
    
24. Jesse and Festus - The Odd Pair get a win after Festus beat Domino.
    
25. The Great Khali - The Giant got toppled by a Fighting Irishman
    

WWE Magazine Spoils Chris Jericho's Return to RAW

Can WWE really be this stupid???

WWE has confirmed the return of Chris Jericho before it actually happened. The latest issue of WWE Magazine features Chris Jericho on the cover with the tag line “Chris Jericho: The real story behind Y2J’s shocking return”. On the cover photo Jericho is shown plugging in two power cables. The magazine will hit newsstands later next week.

As we have been reporting for over a week, WWE decided to go forward with plans to bring Jericho back on the November 19th edition of RAW (one night after Survivor Series). This became pretty clear during the Save_Us videos that aired on WWE television last night as the videos all but confirmed Jericho was coming to RAW next Monday.

A photo of the newest issue of WWE Magazine featuring Jericho is now online.

Eve Torres Wins 2007 Divasearch

The votes are in and Eve Torres is the winner of the 2007 WWE Diva Search! Learn all about your new Diva and check out complete coverage of the competition.

DarkDefender85's Top 25

1. Batista - The Animal Sent The Deadman a Message with an explosive spear on Smackdown.
2. Randy Orton - A tag team loss and a superkick moves the WWE Champion down a spot.
3. HHH - The Game Got the Upperhand on Umaga in a Brawl.
   
4. Umaga - Umaga gave as good as he got on RAW.
   
5. Matt Hardy - A 7 inch gash in his head didnt stop him from beating Finlay and Mysterio in a tag match.
   
6. CM Punk - The Straight Edge Superstar picked up a with on ECW with Balls Mahoneys help.
   
7. Kane - The Big Red Machine picked up a huge win against Mark Henry.
   
8. The Undertaker - The #1 contender chokeslammed JBL but got speared by Batista.
   
9. MVP - The Ballin Superstar picked up a tag team win with Matt Hardy.
   
10. Jeff Hardy - Jeff picked up the win for his team when he pinned Mr Kennedy.
11. HBK - With Jeff Hardys help, The Showstopper picked up a tag win.
12. Big Daddy V - Defeated Morrison and Miz in a Triple Threat.
    
13. Finlay - Got the edge on Rey Mysterio with a shilleliegh to the gut.
    
14. Rey Mysterio - A shilleliegh to the gut and a loss did not help Mysterio this week.
    
15. Mr. Kennedy - Another loss does not help RAWs resident loud mouth.
16. London and Kendrick - Picked up a win against the Tag Champions in a 6 man tag.
    
17. Jesse and Festus - Another win helps this odd duo.
    
18. Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch - The tag champion were on the losing end this week.
    
19. D.H. Smith - The baby bulldog got an impressive win in his Raw debut.
    
20. John Morrison - The Shaman of Sexy Did not have a good week.
    
21. The Miz - ECW's Chick Magnet had an even worse week.
    
22. Cody Rhodes - Picked up a win against Shelton Benjamin on RAW.
    
23. Chuck Palumbo - In a WWE.com exclusive Chuck showed Dykstra The Full Throttle.
    
24. Elijah Burke - Defeated Nunzio in a sprisingly competitive match.
    
25. Balls Mahoney - With CM Punks help, Balls finally got another win on ECW.
    

Update: Candice Michelle's Injury on RAW

Candice Michelle was injured after falling from the top rope in her match against Women's Champion Beth Phoenix on Raw. She was rushed to a local medical facility where it was determined she suffered a cracked clavicle.


Further tests are currently being conducted to rule out any other possible injuries. Candice will be out of action 6-8 weeks.

CHRIS JERICHO TO RETURN TONIGHT?!

Chris Jericho has been interviewed on several radio shows in the past week to promote his upcoming book release. During the interviews, Jericho has been asked about his heavily rumored return to WWE. Each time, Jericho responds with vaugue and even misleading statements.

Contrary to what Jericho would like us to believe, reliable sources confirm that the plan is for Jericho to return to WWE at Cyber Sunday. However, if USA Network President Bonnie Hammer has her way, Jericho will return on an episode of RAW before the Pay-Per-view.

Bonnie Hammer has been very outspoken to WWE management about RAW's declining ratings. She has made countless storyline suggestions to WWE's creative team, none of which have been used.

HBK & Vince Have Major Altercation

Source: PWTorch.com

Vince McMahon has a history of singling people out backstage and embarrassing them in front of other wrestlers. Last Monday when Shawn Michaels was the target of Vince's juvenile behavior, it blew up in Vince's face and left even Stephanie McMahon speechless.

Despite the fact that Shawn Michaels returned to WWE a month ahead of schedule, he still has heat with Vince. Shawn made it clear before he returned that he wants more control over his schedule. He won't be doing any overseas tours and will work a somewhat reduced schedule so he can spend more time with his family.

When Shawn showed up to RAW last Monday for the first time since his injury, Vince started "chewing him out" in front of the lockerroom. He made fun of Shawn's attitude and his clothing, among other things. To the surprise of everybody, HBK fired back at Vince and put him in his place. Shawn made it very clear to Vince in front of everybody that he won't be disrespected by anybody or treated like a rookie.

The wrestlers were shocked that somebody finally stood up to one of Vince's tirades. According to our source, nobody was more shocked than Stephanie McMahon. Witnesses were reportedly amused that Shawn humbled Vince in front of everybody. The McMahon's are not necessarily disliked by the roster but this definitely brought Vince down off his high horse.

Shawn and Vince have had a volatile relationship for well over a decade. There is no indication that this incident will have any ramifications on Shawn's WWE status.

Booker T Releases Statement Regarding Release!

As reported and confirmed by WWE earlier today, Booker T and Sharmell's release from World Wrestling Entertainment is effective October 27. These releases had been expected by some even before Booker's 60-day drug suspension from the company. It should also be noted that the decision was made by Booker and Sharmell to leave the company and not WWE.

Lic. Manuel R. Batista passed on a link to a statement by Booker T on his official website regarding his and Sharmell's release from WWE effective October 27:

Announcement

We want to begin by thanking the many wonderful WWE fans that we have had the privilege of entertaining over the last eight years. Sharmell and I have enjoyed the opportunity to put smiles on your faces night after night. We also want to thank everyone in the wrestling community for their support of our very own P.W.A. (Pro Wrestling Alliance). The dream of bringing professional wrestling back to my home town of Houston, Texas is coming to fruition, and we have you to thank for it.

I want to address something that has been on my mind for quite some time now in regards to my recent suspension from WWE. I want to state for the record that I was not taking any illegal substance, or anything outside of my physician's care, and that the suspension was unwarranted. However, rather than fight the suspension or publicly voice my discontent, I used this recent hiatus to rest, work with the P.W.A., and reflect on the direction of my career as a professional wrestler. I also, for the record, have never at any time ordered anything from "Signature Pharmacy". This allegation is upsetting, and the careless and slanderous reporting of this matter is currently being addressed by my legal counsel.

I would like to also address any possible rumors or misinformation regarding our release from WWE. I had been unhappy for quite some time with the direction that the Company was going in. In fact, I asked for my release back in July for that very reason. However, after further contemplation, I decided to continue on with WWE because of my passion for this industry and my desire to entertain the fans. Unfortunately, it quickly became apparent that my unhappiness with my work environment was beginning to take a great toll on other aspects of my life. I knew that it was time to make some extremely tough decisions. Therefore, in the interest of my mental, physical, and spiritual well being, I along with my wife, asked for our release from World Wrestling Entertainment for the second time within months. We were graciously granted our release and we have since amicably parted ways. While the business relationship between ourselves and the WWE has ended, we will continue to be involved in Professional Wrestling. We hope that our loyal fans will follow us as we make this transition.

Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts, and we will see you soon!

Booker T. and Sharmell

Breaking News: Daivari Released!

WWE confirmed today that they have released RAW superstar Daivari. According to one source the superstar demanded his release several weeks ago, but the paperwork was not finalized until this week.

The following is the official statement from WWE.com:
WWE has come to terms on the release of Raw Superstar Shawn Daivari. We wish Daivari the best in all his future endeavors.

ECW & Smackdown Teaming Together?

WWE.com has learned that several meetings have taken place between Acting SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero and ECW General Manager Armando Estrada that, if ratified, would allow SmackDown and ECW Superstars to compete on Tuesday and Friday nights.

While nothing is signed as of yet, locker room sources say that this open door agreement between Vickie and Estrada will be discussed tonight, live on ECW on Sci Fi. No further details have been released, and when pressed for more information, Estrada was tight-lipped (a rarity in its own right).

“I have no news for you right now,” said Estrada. “But tonight on ECW on Sci Fi (10/9 CT), I will give some insight into these meetings.”