Tossing Salt Presents:
Ultimate Wrestling Q&A
Hook, Jon Moxley, Badd Company & More
June 16, 2023
DougMaynard.com

As I try and get myself psyched for yet another doctor’s appointment, I decided to answer a few of your questions. It’s the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A, where nothing is off-limits and we keep it real. Let’s do this.

Did you see the main event on AEW Dynamite? Thoughts on Jon Moxley’s “conversation” with Adam Page and one of the Bucks in full of the camera while Claudio & Eddie Kingston were fighting.

I saw the video on Twitter not long after the show ended and all I could do was shake my head. Moxley has been caught on camera blading several times and now, in full view of the fans and on camera, not even trying to hide it, he’s having a conversation with his opponents. A part of the blame goes to the camera guys and production crew as they should have cut away instead of showing Moxley’s mistake, but that still doesn’t make it right. Moxley is supposed to be a professional and that means paying attention to the camera and at least attempting to keep the appearance of a rivalry and fight. But then again, based on the ratings for the main event of AEW Dynamite, no one saw anything, so it’s not a big deal. I just can’t wait to hear Cornette’s comments on this. It should be epic.

Do you think CM Punk will be cheered or booed during his AEW return on Collision?

They’re in Chicago so he’ll be cheered. It might be a mixed reaction at first, but the live crowd there will come around. They always do.

Do you want to see Hook in WWE?

Hook has a lot of potential and would be a good prospect for WWE and NXT. His push in AEW is intermittent at best and his character has grown stale as a result. He needs to get more time in the ring and in front of a crowd to develop and grow as a wrestler and character and AEW, as it is, isn’t giving him the opportunities he needs to become all he can be. WWE could and would do that. Hopefully, whenever his contract is up, that’ll be his next move.

Killer Khan & The Missing Link versus Nikolai Volkoff and Iron Sheik, Who wins?

Man, this would be a fun match to see. It wouldn’t be pretty and we wouldn’t see any armlocks or dropkicks. It would just be a total chaotic mess of a brawl. And the winners? I think Nikolai and The Iron Sheik would take it.

Eddie Kingston is back in AEW. Thoughts?

I thought that Kingston had moved over to ROH to get away from AEW, but I guess that little matter has been conveniently forgotten so that he can be injected into this mess of a feud with The Elite, The BCC, and all of the Japanese stars conveniently showing up for the Forbidden Door event. Eddie didn’t look good on his return. He ran to the ring like he had a full diaper, and once he got there, Claudio had to lead him and do most of the work. I’ve never been a huge Kingston fan and this comeback hasn’t done anything as of yet to change my mind. Eddie’s back. Big deal!

Who was the better manager: James J. Dillon, Gary Hart, or Sir Oliver Humperdink?

Just by the status of who his clients were, The Horsemen, Dillon would probably get the nod in most people’s eyes, but Hart and Humperdink were both excellent in their own ways. All three were fantastic, with Hart focused on the odder or foreign characters, Humperdink with the strong groupings of mid-level stars, and Dillon with The Horsemen. I can’t say that one was better than the other because they were all great.

If Jerry Lawler was able to return to the ring for one last match, in Memphis of course, who would you pick as his final opponent?

If I had to pick the final opponent, how about Ric Flair? He’d surely take the booking just for the payday. Okay, I’m kidding. For Lawler, I’d get someone who has a history with The King, as well as can take care of Jerry in the ring and make him look like the King of old. How about Jeff Jarrett?

Do you remember Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka, aka Badd Company in the AWA? Thoughts on this underrated team? Do either of them still wrestle?

I remember Badd Company when they were in the AWA, managed by Diamond Dallas Page, and had their run as one of the final tag team champions. They beat the Midnight Rockers (Michaels & Janetty) to win the titles and then eventually lost them to Brad Rheingans & Ken Patera. They then went on to work together as the Orient Express, with Diamond under a mask, for ECW, WWF, and WCW. A good team that was lacking in size, but had great chemistry and moves. As for their current statuses, as of 2021, Tanaka still wrestles on occasion and runs a wrestling school in Fargo, North Dakota. Pat Diamond retired in 2008 and now works for the Decatur Parks and Recreation Department in Alabama.

Ryback recently said in an interview that Tony Khan and AEW would get a surge in ratings and could even overcome WWE if they hired him. Thoughts?

Ryback is delusional. His poll on his site had everyone telling him to retire. While a Ryback return to the ring for AEW might spike the ratings for one episode, just for the trainwreck curiosity factor, it wouldn’t last. Ryback was not a needle-mover during any point in his career and I can’t see that changing now. So yeah Tony, hire him. He’d fit right in with the AEW Elite.

And there you go. My thanks for reading. Comments, thoughts, and any questions are welcome and appreciated. And with that, let’s close up shop. I have to go to the doctor. Wish me luck. Take care and be well, my friends. Watch out for foreign objects and I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!