Tossing Salt Presents:
Ultimate Wrestling Q&A
Hook, Gunther, Trish Stratus & More
May 8, 2022
DougMaynard.com

Happy Independence Day! No, that’s just for me. Happy Mother’s Day to all the Moms out there. And especially to my Mom, Evelyn Rushin, and to my sister-in-law, the Infamous A-Mak! Love you both! And now, let’s talk wrestling. It’s the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A. Let’s do this.

Do you think this program with Danhausen is how they go about distancing Hook more from Team Tazz so they can remain heels while capitalizing how over Hook is and cementing him as a babyface?

I hadn’t really thought about it, but that makes sense. Hook is getting cheered really big now and putting him together with Danhausen will just make those cheers grow and get louder. Meanwhile, Team Tazz, with Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks, are playing classic heels. I think you might be right. Good call.

Do you think the crowd will turn on Hangman if he beats Punk at DoN?

If he wins fairly and he and Punk show mutual respect at the end of the match, he’ll be okay. If he wins by cheating, the fans will end up eating his lunch and most definitely turn. It’s all in the ending of the match and what immediately follows.

Do you see Wardlow’s momentum dropping after his feud with MJF?

Most likely, it will drop a notch or two. AEW is great at long-term storytelling and all that, but the follow-up usually tends to falter a bit. Unless you’re already made, like Punk or Danielson or MJF, you fall back into the crowd once you’re program is over and get lost in the shuffle. I hope, with Wardlow, this doesn’t happen, but so far, AEW’s track record hasn’t been that good at sustaining momentum for it’s stars.

Who is the most over faction at the moment, and is making the biggest impact in the industry. For me right now it’s Bullet Club, with fingers in AEW, Impact, and NJPW, as well as acknowledgment in WWE with Balor and Styles, these guys are making all the right moves.

For right now, I can see what you’re saying. The Bullet Club is getting mentions in AEW, Impact, New Japan, and WWE. That’s cool. In fact, one might say it’s just too sweet!

Can you name three wrestlers/managers that EVERYONE loves but you’re not a fan of them? Why?

Three folks that everyone loves, but I’m not big on? How about Big E, Sasha Banks, and Kenny Omega. Big E doesn’t impress me much. I explained about Sasha in the last Q&A I did last night. And Omega? Listen to Jim Cornette talk about Twinkletoes. I don’t agree with Corny on a lot of things, but when it comes to Twinkletoes McFingerbang, we agree 100%.

Who do you think will dethrone Roman Reigns?

For the WWE Championship, I think Cody Rhodes will be the man to have the honors. And for the Universal Championship, how about Brock Lesnar. He needs to get his tainted win back and get some revenge on Roman/Heyman for the turn that Heyman did on him.

With Gunther getting a “strong” push on Smackdown, how long do you think it is until he goes after Ricochet for the Intercontinental title?

It wouldn’t surprise me to see that happen when WWE does their Saudi show in September, but hell, if it happens before then, I don’t think anyone will be shocked. It won’t be long before Gunther is wearing gold.

Is the use of main roster people on NXT a good or a bad thing? Is it helping develop talent or just a quick fix to try and boost ratings?

It’s a good thing in my opinion because it has three benefits. It does, as you noted, increase ratings. But it also gives the main roster talents who are not being used regularly a chance to be used and be on TV. And best of all, while all of that is good, it allows these talents, who have experience on the main roster and knows what WWE likes and expects of their talent, to share that knowledge and experience with the NXT talents and better prepare them for their future ascension to the main roster. So everyone wins here. It’s most definitely a good thing.

Trish Stratus recently said in a Q&A that she would gladly come back to WWE for a GM-type role. Would you like to see Trish back in the WWE?

Trish as an Authority Figure for WWE? Well, Adam Pearce will soon be losing his partner-in-crime, Sonya DeVille back to the ring if the current storylines are any indication, and Trish would make a great replacement. Either that or bring Paige back. Either or works for me.

And there you go. My thanks for reading. Comments, thoughts, and any questions are welcome and appreciated. Until the next time, take care and be good. Watch out for the foreign objects. I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!