Tossing Salt Presents:
Ultimate Wrestling Q&A
WALTER, The Godfather, Sabu & More
November 14, 2021
DougMaynard.com

Damn, AEW Full Gear was off the charts last night. It was great to see Hangman Adam Page capture the AEW World Championship away from Kenny Omega, plus we had victories by CM Punk, Britt Baker, Bryan Danielson, The Inner Circle, MJF, etc. And best of all, Baron Von Raschke with the claw. It was awesome. And that is all the people need to know. Now let’s do the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A. Are you ready? And away we go.

MJF said that people don’t watch AEW because of the ex-WWE stars. Is he right?

People watch AEW because they enjoy good wrestling action, great characters, good storylines, and that unique product that is often imitated but can not be duplicated, that is professional wrestling. They watch for the AEW homegrown talent AND the ex-WWE talents. So long as the product is good and the wrestlers are good, their backgrounds matter little to most fans. They watch AEW because it’s consistently the best wrestling show on TV right now and no other reason aside from that is needed.

Orange Cassidy versus Danhausen. Who would win and how much would Jim Cornette freak out?

I can already hear in my head Jimmy Cornette ripping such a match apart and going nuts about the stupid mud show activities between Pockets and Danhausen. But he would compliment any good actual wrestling moves and then rip apart the comedy and stupid stuff, as he should. As for who would win, don’t tell anyone, but I actually have enjoyed some of Orange Cassidy’s early work and he’s actually a damn good wrestler when he wants to be. I haven’t seen too much of Danhausen’s work aside from photo-bombing and promo stuff so I can’t really judge him so far as ring work goes fairly. Cassidy would put the squeeze on him and take the win at the end of the night.

Should WWE bring WALTER up to the main roster?

If they’re careful in the booking and keep him in a role similar to his current position in NXT-UK, I would say yes. WALTER is a hell of a talent and matches against the likes of Roman or Brock would be instant classics. But the main rosters creative (Vince) tend to screw things up more than doing it right so far as NXT talent is used. Bring up WALTER and put him under the guidance of Paul Heyman or William Regal and yes, bring him up. But if he’s going to be a “Vince Project”, well we saw how well that worked for Bearcat Keith Lee, right? If that’s the case, leave him in the UK.

Where is Elias?

I haven’t seen any reports about him being injured, but I also haven’t seen anything about him being backstage at the shows. So where is Elias? Probably out taking a walk somewhere wondering how he went from a solid mid-card spot that was getting over to the position he’s in now on WWE TV. I don’t know where he’s at, but I hope he returns soon.

What was your favorite Charles Wright gimmick/character?

What are the options? Papa Shango, Kama, Kama Mustafa, The Godfather, and The Goodfather. The character of Kama, either incarnation, didn’t do much for me. The Goodfather was cool as part of the Right To Censor story, but it wasn’t all that in the big picture of things. So Papa Shango or The Godfather are my options as to the favorite. Well, I don’t want to end up throwing up black stuff, but Shango was freaking lame. I know I ain’t the only one and pimping ain’t easy. My favorite, definitely the Godfather.

Jim Cornette or Paul Heyman? Who is the better manager?

It’s like comparing apples to oranges or steak to lobster. It’s all a matter of tastes and what you like and then look for in a professional wrestling manager. Cornette is the better wrestling manager in my opinion, while Paul is the better advocate. You can’t go wrong with either one.

WWE allegedly has decided that they’ll only hire younger talents, under 25 for the women, and from other places than the Indy promotions. Do you agree with these changes?

I get where they’re coming from in trying to build future talent that will have a longer shelf life rather than people already in their thirties or older that will only be around for a few short years max. On the developmental side of things, it makes sense. But on the common sense side of things, they’re going to miss out and pass up a lot of very talented and entertaining performers because of this point of view. HHH realized that and signed talented wrestlers that were ready now and just needed a little seasoning here and there to be WWE ready. Vince wants talent that is molded from the start to be WWE superstars and have that longer shelf life to them because they haven’t been tested yet in the Independents and haven’t got the wear and tear on their bodies yet. Either way has both pros and cons, but I personally think Vince will lose more than he gains by these new policies.

Do you think Sabu is really retired?

I think that if a really good payday comes up, Sabu will find the strength and be willing to do “one more match”. I think his body does need the rest and if he does stay retired, more power to him. He deserves a long, peaceful, and happy retirement. But if he does another match or two, that’s fine too. That’s his call and whatever he decides to do, I wish him the best in the days to come.

And there you go. My thanks for reading. Comments, thoughts, or any questions you may have that you’d like to see me take a crack at, give me a shout and we’ll make it happen. Until the next time, take care of yourself and stay safe. I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!