Tossing Salt Presents:
Ultimate Wrestling Q&A
Jeff Hardy, Matt Cardona, The Royal Rumble & More
DougMaynard.com
Doug Maynard

Welcome to the show. It’s the only pro wrestling Q&A that matters. You have questions, and I have answers. It’s the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A. I’m Doug, your party host, guiding light, and the man with the best mullet since Billy Ray Cyrus. Are you ready? Let’s do this.

Bret Hart says that there’s not a single Triple H match that he would consider great. Thoughts?

And others might say that there isn’t a single Bret Hart match that they would consider great. Bret is entitled to his opinion. It doesn’t mean he’s right.

Would Powerhouse Hobbs end up on NXT or the main roster if he signs with WWE?

Hobbs will have to do the NXT route first before going to the main roster, to learn the WWE style, and unlearn the mistakes that AEW is so famous for. Cornette did a long segment on his podcast talking about this. NXT first, and then, after some proper training, the main roster waits.

What is your response to people who say WWE is sports entertainment, but AEW is real wrestling?

I say Toni Storm and Orange Cassidy. If that’s not sports-entertainment, then nobody is. Both companies are a mixture of both.

Do you think WWE is underusing Matt Cardona already, or is this just the beginning of his rebuild?

So far, the return has been less than impressive, but I’m going to try to think positively and say this is the start of a major push for Cardona. I don’t expect to see Cardona get the Cody/CM Punk style push, but I think he’ll be challenging for the US or IC title soon.

Trey Miquel says he’s taking a break from wrestling for a while and has been released from his AEW contract that he had just signed. Thoughts?

This is a breaking story as word is coming out that Miguel’s deal with AEW was terminated due to powers above Tony Khan, and his absence and subsequent vacation from wrestling might not be as simple as he’s trying to say. I guess we’ll just have to watch and see how this develops.

Alec Price & Jordan Oliver are All Elite. Thoughts?

Who? I’ve never heard of either of them, but congratulations to the newest stars of All Elite Wrestling.

The Royal Rumble is two weeks away, and yet, nobody has “declared” for the Rumble yet. The build has been terrible. Thoughts?

I guess that everyone was waiting for Cody to declare his spot before jumping in and claiming a spot. Cody declared on SmackDown this past Friday night, so we’ll probably be bombarded by names in the days to come. The build has been lackluster for sure, though.

If you could pick three surprises for the Royal Rumble, both men’s and women’s, who would you bring in?

For the men, I’d like to see The Masterpiece, Chris Masters, appear, along with Santino Marella and Danhausen. As for the women, let’s go with Mickie James, Tessa Blanchard, and Gail Kim.

Jeff Hardy recently revealed that he’s been wrestling with two bulging discs in his neck since October, but is hoping to avoid surgery. Thoughts?

I hate this for Jeff, but it makes me wonder why he is even wrestling now on TNA and matches with Matt? I guess Jeff realizes that the end of a great career is approaching and is trying to hold on as long as he can. Best wishes to Jeff for a full and painless recovery, but to continue to wrestle? That doesn’t make sense to me.

Cody Rhodes has already finished his story, so why do they keep pushing him?

Cody’s story isn’t finished until he’s retired or dead. Cody is being pushed because he’s Cody Rhodes, and he’s a star. It really is just that simple.

Jade Cargill has been WWE Women’s Champion for nearly three months and hasn’t defended the title yet. Thoughts?

Cargill has the look, but she doesn’t seem to be everything inside the ring that she should be. WWE is trying to protect its investment with smoke and mirrors rather than have her actually wrestle and defend that title. It sucks and is definitely not best for business, but it’s WWE, so what do we know, right?

TKO is reportedly moving forward with plans to expand WWE’s premium live events into more two-night formats. At the top of the list are Survivor Series 2026 and the 2027 Royal Rumble. Thoughts?

The Rumble, Survivor Series, and Money in the Bank would all work better as two-night events. I get that and see the logic. Unfortunately, WWE and TKO see it more as a chance to fleece the fans and make money than for any other reason. TKO seems to be trying to break us all financially, and unless the prices come down, this will end up hurting more than it helps. The right thing for the wrong reasons. ‘Nuff said!

And there you go. Thanks for reading. Comments, thoughts, and questions are welcome and appreciated. Reach me by e-mail at Doug28352@yahoo.com or on X at @Doug28352. Be sure to like, share, and subscribe. And with that, let’s wrap it up. Take care and be well, my friends. Watch out for foreign objects; that is all people need to know. I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!