Tossing Salt Presents:
Ultimate Wrestling Q&A
Nikita Koloff, Kenny Omega, Brad Armstrong & More
DougMaynard.com
Doug Maynard

This is the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A. I’m Doug, your host with the most and resident Guiding Light. I answer the questions everyone else is scared of. Nothing is off-limits. Let’s do this.

What does it say about AEW when Kenny Omega is coming back to wrestle for NJPW and not AEW?

Omega was one of the top stars of AEW and nearly died. And now, his return is working for NJPW? It makes no sense at all. All I can say, and at this point, it’s like beating a dead horse, is Tony Khan and AEW’s bad management & booking.

With RAW moving to Netflix and Dynamite about to be simulcast on MAX, what will wrestling fans fixate on and argue about when TV ratings become an obsolete metric?

I have faith in the IWC and wrestling fans everywhere. They will find something to fixate on and argue about. We still have crowd sizes, match quality, how this company uses this person and they’d be better off with X instead of Y, characters, storytelling, and the Montreal Screw Job to argue about. I think the wrestling fans will be okay.

Hulk Hogan says he might be working in the Trump administration. Thoughts?

This one might be true. According to Hogan, President Trump brought up the President’s Council on Physical Fitness, a role that Hogan would actually be qualified for. But since it’s Hulk Hogan, I’ll believe it when I see it, and probably not even then. Once the tales of Hogan’s past baggage start to show their head, any offer will probably be rescinded, brother!

Should WWE and AEW offer “Match of the Night” bonuses for PPVs/PLEs like UFC does?

WWE and AEW are scripted events and, in my opinion, it would make no sense. Would the bonuses be split between the wrestlers, the referee, the agents who put together the match, and the announcers? It takes contributions from all parties to make a match great so how would the payouts work? It’s too much hassle and complication. Let UFC do what they want, but pro wrestling? No, I don’t think so.

My picks for the 2025 WWE Hall of Fame are Gail Kim, Mickie James, Victoria, Bray Wyatt, Lex Luger, and Batista. Who are your top 6 for the HOF?

My Top 6 for this upcoming year would be The Midnight Express with Jim Cornette, Bray Wyatt, Victoria, Ivan Koloff, Mickie James, and Dutch Mantell.

What are your thoughts on AEW Full Gear? Rate the show from 1-10.

I haven’t seen the show, but I did watch some clips on YouTube and read several reviews. It sounds like a solid show but with too many matches as usual. It seems as if Mercedes Mone had the best match of her current AEW run, and Daniel Garcia & Jack Perry had an excellent match as well. Lashley looked great, and the ending of the show was a literal car crash. On a scale of 1-10? I’ll go with a 6.5.

What are your thoughts & memories of Brad Armstrong?

A talented young man who could have a good match with anyone. Brad Armstrong was, from all accounts, amazing in the ring, and working with Brad was, for most wrestlers, like a night off. The only problems that Brad had were his size, not being a large man or heavyweight, and getting over on television. Brad was a decent talker and as I said, amazing in the ring, but could never quite connect with the TV audience despite several gimmick changes and attempts. In the territory days in Georgia, Brad was very over with the crowds and had a strong push, but once everyone started to go national, that push died and he was, more or less, a jobber to the stars. It was a shame. He deserved better.

Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, and Madusa w/ Paul Heyman versus Ryback, Tommy Dreamer, Raven, and Dawn Marie. Who wins?

The three Paul Heyman guys and one talented Paul Heyman girl versus a failed attempt at being a Paul Heyman guy and three ECW originals. Looking at it, this match seems kind of lopsided, but it would be an interesting and fun match. The OG Heyman Crew would ignore the ECW crowd and concentrate on Ryback, giving him the beating of a lifetime. Why? Because it’s Ryback and he sucks! And after Ryback eats an F-5, a spear, and the Go-To-Sleep, Madusa nails him with a judo kick to the head and scores the pin. One more for the Heyman guys.

With so many challengers in the mix, who do you think will emerge as the next big threat to Jon Moxley’s reign?

If he managed to come out of the car crash okay, I think Darby Allin will get another shot. I’d like to see Christian Cage get a chance as well. But who will be the next big threat to Moxley? I said it in a prior column and I’ll say it again. Samoa Joe.

Does Nikita Koloff belong in the WWE Hall of Fame?

Nikita’s career wasn’t very long by wrestling standards, but the impact that he made during his time in the ring, as the Russian Nightmare, was incredible. So I would say yes to a possible induction. But I would take it a step further. Since, for whatever reason, WWE seems reluctant to induct Ivan Koloff into the WWE Hall of Fame, despite his incredible career of over thirty years and is the man who dethroned Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF Championship, why not pull a Chyna and do with Ivan as they did with Chyna and DX? Induct The Russians as a unit. Ivan Koloff, Nikita Koloff, and Krusher Kruschev (Barry Darsow). It would also silence a few of the critics waiting for Demolition to be inducted since Darsow played the character of Smash later in his career. It’s a no-brainer that would allow Ivan to get the kudos he deserves, plus allow Nikita and Darsow a spot and would pay homage to one of the best wrestling trios of their era. It works for me.

And there you go. My thanks for reading. Comments, thoughts, and any questions are welcome and appreciated. Be sure to like, share, and subscribe. And with that, I’m putting a lid on things and calling it a day. Be well, my friends, and watch out for foreign objects. I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!