April 30, 2025 • 25 mins
This week on WrestleChat, AntMan and Michael Glavin dive into the fast-tracked build to WWE Backlash in St. Louis and break down all the major storylines coming out of WrestleMania. From the surprising new feud between Becky Lynch and Lyra Valkyria to the return of Rusev (RUSEV DAY!), this episode covers all the latest chaos—and we’re here for it.
We’re talking:
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Why Cena vs. Orton doesn’t even need a story (but still has one)
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The Becky/Bayley betrayal that set up a new women’s title feud
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Seth Rollins’ confusing faction with Braun Breaker and Paul Heyman—are we feeling it yet?
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Rusev’s return and how the Redeemer character from AEW might actually shine in WWE
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Gunther vs. Pat McAfee: Is Pat crazy… or just crazy enough to win?
And yes… we go deep on Rock vs. Triple H—real heat or work 2.0? From cryptic social media posts to Triple H’s Hall of Fame speech snub, we connect the dots and speculate on who’s really pulling the strings behind the scenes. Vince? Ari? The Rock himself?
Plus: how you can win a full year of Netflix—just for following the show on the iHeartRadio app.
Hit follow, tap preset, and let’s ride the drama wave all the way to Backlash.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to episode eighty three of the wrestle Chat podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
I'm the ant man. He's Michael Glavin, and.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
We've got a quick build, quick build to Backlash going
down in Saint Louis coming up on May tenth. That's
here in just a couple of weeks. And that's why
Randy Orton is a part of this whole thing with Cina.
I like sometimes I like these quick builds when it's
not you haven't had six months and they just haven't
done anything, and then do a quick build into something
(00:30):
when you've had time. I feel like that there should
be something filled in there, and we had some storylines
this one.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
It makes sense.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
We have WrestleMania Backlash, you have three weeks, three and
a half weeks, whatever it is to get things ready
for this next pl e and man, Randy obviously the right.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
One for Sina. We'll get to that here in just
a little bit.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
But it feels like, you know, we talk about WrestleMania
being either the end of some storylines or the start
of others. We definitely had some things finished off in
that and we all have our feeling on Night one
and Night two and what have you. We got Sena
and Orton going up at Backlash. Love that Randy is
a part of that. Becky and Lyra just added this
past Monday night. That's gonna be a good one. Couple
(01:11):
Irish ladies and a and a justifiable quick story with
these two. You have Becky coming back teaming with Lyra
after a hurt Becky hurt, Bailey can't perform, So you've
got those two going in together, a couple of Irish
ladies winning the tag titles but then losing them the
following Monday. And then you find out that that Becky
(01:35):
is the one who attacked Bailey just so she could
get those titles. And now we have a story here,
off and run and that is worthy of an Intercontinental
women's Intercontinental title match at Backlash. Let's start with that
one here. How you, how are you feeling about these two?
And and like I said, with such a quick build, Michael.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
I know that speaking to Becky and Lyra, I know
that I'm gonna love the match, and I love the
promo work. And unfortunately, because of how again quick build,
you're gonna hear a lot of that theme. You know
in some of my responses it was rushed, but it
had to be. I mean, Becky comes back at Mania,
(02:14):
you can't really build anything before that. It's gonna be
a good match, But to try and cram the story
in like they're going to h I would have rather
This is me, I admit up front, this is me
being a little more critical of the story deeper than
what I normally go. If it was gonna be that quick,
(02:35):
I wish it would have just been Becky turning heel
and being like I want to be the only Irish,
you know, champion whatever, like, you know, just something more
simple instead of kind of this more drawn out reasoning
that we've hit. It's just hard to do in a week,
a couple of weeks, you know. So, But again I
can't say enough. I think this is gonna be a
(02:56):
really fantastic match, something to look forward to, that one.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Being the one that would actually benefit from having a
little longer to tell that story.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
I agree with it.
Speaker 3 (03:08):
Yeah, and Randy John don't even They could have just
announced it. They could have never had a meeting in
the ring and we would have been fined.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
I've been.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
They already have a story, they have a long history,
and to have that match be the one that pops
up for this one. And also it's I feel in
some ways it is it's predictable in the way that
we know that Randy's not going to win the title.
We're not going to end Sena's run right here, which
means something else is going to happen. We're gonna have something,
some underhanded thing happened, I believe anyway. I obviously don't
(03:41):
know that, but it makes me feel like, okay, since
we already kind of have some foreshadowing.
Speaker 2 (03:46):
If listen, his his.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
His final title run is not going to end three
weeks after after it started, So what else is going
to happen? That's the part that we don't know and
looking forward to, especially at at this pece we also
got on Monday. Evidently we're gonna have Sammy versus Seth,
or maybe Sammy versus Braun or maybe that doesn't factor
(04:09):
into backlash at all. They didn't really say much about that.
It was more about Sammy being a part of this
new group with with Braun Breaker and Seth Rollins and
of course the wise Man Paul Haymond. Or if you
don't want to be a part of this group, then
then you need.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
To take a Hike, you're going back to SmackDown. That
felt a little weird.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
I didn't hate the match, and I don't like I
don't mind seeing Braun just completely demolish somebody, which you
know it was if we have Suplex City, we now
we have Spear City with with Braun. But you had
you had some thoughts here on what Seth was blabbering
about with you have a choice us or them.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
I I'm in the middle period that I'm not sure
what to think about this. Yeah, same, I can tell
you that they seem to be treating it with the
same importance and spectacle that we did the Bloodline a
couple of years in.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
It is not that it's not the Woodline.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
You know, there were comparisons drawn to Evolution or Dangerous Alliance.
There there was purpose in those and whatever this faction is,
I think Seth Rollins is trying to hang his hat
on this I'm going to save WWE thing. The problem
is is that k FABE is the most dead that
(05:30):
it's ever been, and so what are you trying to
save then? When you have simultaneously you're director of the
board going It's all a work, It's all, you know,
it's all fake. So we're doing this very weird, suspend
reality storyline in the midst of the most real the
(05:52):
product has ever been. So if you're trying to save
w W, shouldn't you do that from a boardroom or
shouldn't you buy a bunch of stock or shouldn't he
like you know what I'm saying, Like, like.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
What you imagine that being a storyline? Hey, I just
want to let you know I just bought one hundred
thousand shares of stock in DKO, So you.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Know what I got to say now.
Speaker 4 (06:19):
I'm just saying, like that that right there where we are,
that right there would be the final night of Nitro,
Shane McMahon going, I bought w C.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
You know that that would be today's version of that.
So my my entire point is, I don't hate Seth
Rollins work. I don't hate Bronze work. I love everything
Paul Hayman does. It just doesn't make sense right now.
And if and if the the key phrase is right now,
then that's fine. I'm being patient. I'm watching. I'm not
even really complaining about it. I'm just saying it doesn't
(06:55):
have a very tangible why, And that's kind of where
I'm struggling in that. I think we're afraid to I
think we're always wanting to do something new and we're
afraid to draw comparisons. But like, what better way than
to make it the new age evolution or you know
(07:16):
something like that, like just let it be simple, the
kiss method, keep it simple, stupid. But anyway back to you, I.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
Think it's interesting. I think probably what if we put
our finger on it. What is interesting about this and
what maybe is unique and and maybe even a little
more uncomfortable with this, is that we're used to Paul
Hayman being the mic guy, and we don't have Paul
Hayman as the mic guy in this group. So what
is Paul Hayman in this group? If you've got seth
Rawlins out there running his mouth the whole time, why
(07:45):
is Paul there? Paul is supposed to be there to
put you over, to get you know, to to uh talk.
What is it the whole uh you're you're trying to
I'm gonna screw this up, but you're you're you're going
to cash a check that you're you're behind, can't buy whatever.
That's he's the guy doing that, running his mouth in
this one, he's not. If we talk about dangerous alliance
(08:07):
and what have you, it's a two point zero of that.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Well, he was the mouthpiece for that whole thing.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
In fact, the whole group that he had pretty much
at the time just not good on the mic. And yeah,
you know, Paul dangerously was the reason he was there.
So I wonder what Paul's actual involvement and reason of
being a part of this group is, because right now
it's not what it usually is, and that could be
part of the being uncomfortable anyway.
Speaker 3 (08:29):
Yeah, at this point, the only thing I can think
of is they just wanted to have somebody to be
bronze talker.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
Could be that, but he's not.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
Shown necessarily an innate weakness in that area anyway. So
we're gonna have to wait and see. I want to
be very clear, I'm not just like grumbling about it.
I'm just saying I don't understand it yet.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
I think anybody does.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Yeah, obviously the players involved. You know, we'll just have
to wait and see. They it makes it seem like
they're positioning it for a lot of stuff over the
next year. I don't know, maybe they're anticipating that Rock's
new movie, Smashing Machine. Uh is uh is gonna do well,
(09:14):
so then he won't be around for Mania next year.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
Did you watch the Did you watch the trailer for it? You?
Speaker 1 (09:21):
Yeah, it looks really good with me and my wife
watched it and she goes, what do you think? And
I go, it's great. He'll probably win a freaking Oscar
for it. Maybe, I mean it's like that good, like
he's that good in this and yeah, so that's a
different story.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
But I thought that's interesting.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Here.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
I am pissed off at the Rock and everything that's
going on in w w E, and then.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
I watched the trailer.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
I'm like, he's something. You gotta be kidding me. You're
freaking good. So dang good. H Russif Rusif is back.
It's now russef day every day, maka bless you. That's
the old Okay, Oh yeah, I thought you had asymologies.
No no, no, he's back. But here's the deal. Where
(10:07):
does he fit in the landscape of WWE as Okay,
Bruce's back, so what what does that mean? I mean,
we all really love Bruce to listen, to be honest,
because Lana came out with him, but he seems to
kind of be reviving this whole Redeemer storyline that was
actually started in AEW at least the promo that played
on Monday. That's what it felt like. Do you see
a place where he could just let's slide in Russev here?
(10:28):
Do you see one of those yet?
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (10:29):
I think he's automatic mid card ic champ us champ.
I mean, I think he can very quickly get into
the fold. I think what I enjoyed seeing is I
think his Miro character in ae W was always kind
of his peak in the sense of I think the
(10:51):
Miro character is better than the Russev character. I think
if we treat, you know, twenty twenty five Russev like Miro,
but then put that WWE machine behind it.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
I think it's a total do something with it.
Speaker 3 (11:06):
Total winner.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
And so this maybe the ae W it was just
promos like it was literally I never saw in fight.
It was all this Redeemers promos, and then then every
once in a while he'd come out. Look, then I
don't see see promos for three weeks and never see
r or Miro Brucev.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
The great thing that happened about his last run in
w W E is he was just a dominant force.
And you know I reference that Takeru Triple H match
all the time with that Bill Domania and Rusev kind
of fits in that same kind of spot. I think
he could pick a fight with anybody, and it's just
good to start with because we we've got the background
(11:46):
on him that we know that he's somebody to reckon with,
you know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Well, and you know who we all want to see
him pick a fight with. We got to see a
Gunther match, yep, I mean.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
One I forgot from that is coming up at Backlash
on tenth in Saint Louis. Is maybe maybe one of
the best. I mean, he's already up there at the
top of one of the best promos already of twenty
twenty five, but it can also be compared to many
many others as being one of the great promos.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
Is from Pat freaking McAfee.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Standing up on the table defending his buddy sitting next
to him, the goat Michael Cole and saying, yeah, you
know what, I'll take on Gunther and let's do it.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Let's have him bring him out here right now.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
No better yet, Let's do something at backlash, and so
we've got now Pat McAfee the color commentary Monday Night
Raw on Netflix, actually taking on former world champion Gunther.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
Yeah, how do you feel about this match?
Speaker 3 (12:46):
Pat McAfee's beloved and he's just obviously he's a little
more basic in the way he works a match, but
it works for him so well. And every time I've
seen him Russell, I've always been impressed, and he's just
so likable as a person and you're just vested in
(13:07):
it right away.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
He's us that gets to sit on the ring side. Yep,
every much.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
I'm giggling about his show because on his show, he's
talking on the Pat McAfee show the next next day.
So on Tuesday morning, he goes, I've already started training.
I just walk and I do this. I'm just gonna
get I'm just gonna get my chat. I'm gonna get
it off. We're taking we're taking what I always say, uh,
Singapore canes, just because that's you know, it was attitude era, right,
(13:38):
But one of the Kindos sticks. We got guys taking
Kindos sticks to my chest just to prep for Gunther. Yep, yeah, yeah, absolutely,
he's gonna be chopped to death. But if if Pat
preps that way and it's good to go, this could
be a fun match.
Speaker 3 (13:53):
It will be fun. Yep, it'll be fun for sure.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
All Right.
Speaker 1 (13:56):
So I'm gonna address the elephant. Everybody's talking about it.
There's lots of rumors, there's lots of I mean, all
different directions, and you kind of alluded to something I
want to bring up in this one too.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
But Rock and H is this real beef?
Speaker 1 (14:09):
I mean, we've got instances of let's go back to
him being on Pat McAfee and talking about why he
wasn't part of WrestleMania, and everybody called BS after.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
He did like that.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
No, he said, you know, I would I would have
probably I would have tailored a few things, calling out,
what here's the day.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
He never uses his name.
Speaker 1 (14:32):
He never says his name, and sometimes that's the reason
we feel that there's something between he and Paul Avec
Triple H is because he doesn't say his name. He
talks he so he does that whole deal, calls out.
We've got then Dave Logreca from Busted Open coming on
(14:53):
the next day. He was off, but he had to
come on and say that's BS. Rock you not being
at Mania and your explanation was all just bs.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
And then you throw Triple H under the bus, saying
you would have tailored some of.
Speaker 1 (15:04):
The build up a little bit better and done it
a little bit different, that would have made it better
than what we actually got. That feels like you're throwing
him under the bus. And then you've got Rock actually
replying on social media to Dave la Greca saying everything
we do is a work. Everything, every conversation, every promo,
every interview, everything that we're doing as a work, which
(15:25):
makes me think that even this post is part of
the whole plan and a part of the fitting into
whatever scheme they have.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
But it feels very real.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
And he says, why don't you come join me and
Cody and Sena and the others.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
You left a lot of people out with the others.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
You didn't mention Triple it's the head of content creation
for WWE, Bruce Pritchard. Second in line, you don't mention
any of those guys. You talk about the guys over
is over their heads, but you don't talk about them
who are actually in charge of this. Also, something you
and I text about today that you know was the
Triple H didn't say a word about The Rock in
(16:03):
his Hall of Fame speech, leading everybody to really dig
in a little deeper and saying, oh, there's a real
beef between these two.
Speaker 5 (16:10):
Dude shouted out his old workout buddies, his hairdresser, the
guy that valet parked his car, everybody except the Rock.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
And you got to mention, didn't you. I think I did.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
The guy who's bought more T shirts from me, Michael Clavin,
here's given him.
Speaker 3 (16:32):
Here's the thing. I have no doubt that Rock's a
nice guy. I have no beef, real beef with the
Rock at all. But the dude is in a space
and has been for a long time that he gets
his way. His gym goes with him wherever he goes,
(16:53):
he has private chefs, he has earned the luxuries that
he has. But you can't just pretend then that it
doesn't affect the way that your outlook on life. Okay,
you know, I think you know offline too. We've talked
about some of the power that the Rock has in
(17:13):
the way he sways social media and his branding abilities
and all this type of stuff, and then you take
something that's so close to him, like professional wrestling that
he owes all of this too. He is going to
have that same feeling that when he speaks up people
should listen, especially with this ceremonial seat on the board
(17:35):
that he has, which either he bought for himself or
he kissed enough behind to make happen. So all of
this to say, I'm pointing out that anytime you hear
the Rock talk, it's that he's in charge of creative.
It's his idea, this we should do, that we work
(17:56):
together as a team. This nobody mentions him as part
of the nobody, not Nick con not Ari Emanuel, just
not Triple H, just Rock. And that's because he's not
in the day to day.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
He can't be.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
And so then when we come to these moments like
elimination Chamber, they're getting in a room and they're and
Rock has to go, Okay, bring me up to speed.
Well this this this, Okay, we're gonna do this. Well Rock,
hold on, no, no, no, no, we're gonna do this. And
so that was the very long way around of me
saying Rock is gonna keep doing his rock thing and
(18:32):
everybody else is gonna keep working around him. But he's
already kind of frustrating all of us common folk because
we can see right through the charade. And so I'm
gonna get off my soapbox now.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
So you think it's real. You think it's real.
Speaker 3 (18:51):
Oh, I think it's very real. I think it's very real.
I think the Rock knows that he has the ability
to insert himself. Think about every interview he d sorry
Emmanuel's name, every interview, go back and look I did.
It's every interview. He is, whether consciously or unconsciously, continuing
(19:12):
to place himself in the middle of day to day
creative when all he was asked to do was to
be a part of the WWE at a business level.
And now we're dealing with this Vince McMahon two point
zero where we tear up the script two hours before
the show. Albeit it's only for one segment, the one
that the Rock is going to be a part of.
(19:34):
But he's just Vince McMahon two point oh, stepping in,
messing a bunch of stuff up.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
I I just.
Speaker 3 (19:43):
We got to see where it goes.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
What if it is all of work, then they did
a great job. I think part of me thinks that
it is work. Stay with me on this train of thought.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
Here for a second kind of a whiteboard for this. Yeah,
you definitely would lead a whiteboard. Just use it in
your head though. It is for your whiteboard. In your head.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
It's work two point zero, okay?
Speaker 1 (20:10):
Where it it's You can't do the same k fabe
that you could in the eighties.
Speaker 2 (20:16):
And I say the eighties because by the nineties.
Speaker 3 (20:18):
I see where you're going with this.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
So you can't do that, but you can come to
an understanding from the very beginning. Whatever we do, there's
there's a goal in mind, and this is the goal,
whatever that is, whatever that goal is, And I can't say.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
What that is because I don't know it because I'm
still in your.
Speaker 3 (20:42):
Pretty much what you're saying, k fabe is no longer
that guy is an undead undertaker, right, k fabe is
now drama?
Speaker 1 (20:53):
Correct? Yeah, yeah, it's just two points. It's a two
point zero. So what he said in his reply two,
just the beginning of the reply to Dave la Greca,
was the only real thing out of any it.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
I say real.
Speaker 1 (21:09):
You gotta be careful with that word too, because what
is real, Well, the real is that everything is a
work the end period. Now everything else, I tell you
that you perceive as real is a part of the work. Yeah,
it's a new k fabe or a new work two
point zero.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Okay, But then my immediate response is, why is the
Rock the only one using this new k fabe?
Speaker 2 (21:35):
See, I don't think he is. I think we got
a little hint of that with Triple H not mentioning him.
Speaker 1 (21:43):
It's a new leg see back in the back in
the seventies and eighties. I'm gonna get you next time
I see you. You're gonna get all five of these.
You're gonna get.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Both thunder and light. You know, it's not that anymore.
It's not that.
Speaker 1 (21:54):
It's this, it's the it's social media on your phone.
It's what you say and read between the lines.
Speaker 2 (22:00):
And and to be.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
Honest, I think probably part of the work is what
we're doing right now. Somebody brings Dave Lagreca brings up something,
and you go, we could take a little piece of
that for the end goal.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Okay, Well, then reply to Dave. Okay, And it moves on.
Speaker 1 (22:17):
Who's the master though, who's the little puppet master behind
the scenes.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
If the whole seeing to take the position that it's not.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
A work, it's vincem Man. It's the only parties involved
in anymore, all.
Speaker 3 (22:29):
Time everything Vince the whole time.
Speaker 2 (22:33):
And he's really the undead. Yeah, he only be that guy.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
We'll find out that Vince passed away, but he really
didn't pass away.
Speaker 2 (22:40):
Didn't we already have that? Wasn't it in a limo?
And something like that happened.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
Hey, if you love raw and you don't have Netflix,
you've been borrowing your friend's account.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
This is your chance to get your own for an
entire year.
Speaker 1 (22:51):
If you've liked what we talked about today, you're invested,
you have fun, you chime in on all this.
Speaker 2 (22:56):
Do me a favor. Go open the free iHeart Radio app.
If you don't have it, download it from your phone's
app store. Get that first. It's free, you don't have
to sign up and don't pay anything. But then search
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go when you see it, go hit like or follow.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
I think it's follow in preset Preset is the one
you really want.
Speaker 2 (23:18):
Follow and Preset.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
Click both of those. It becomes part of your presets
at the top of the iHeartRadio app. Take a screenshot
of that, and then go to wrestle chatpodcast dot com.
Load up that screen shot. You'll be in the running
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Speaker 3 (23:39):
And so what you're saying is that you're going to
gift fifty two episodes of Monday Night Raw.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
Fifty bingo and we're going to do that just right
around Summer Slam, so you saill have a little time
between now and before we give that away. So go
check that out wrestle Chat podcast dot com and load
up your screenshot, and uh listen to us every week,
watch us every week on YouTube. Uh Man, we're gonna
(24:10):
have a lot to talk about next week as hopefully
a couple of more matches get announced for Backlash, we'll
give a full rundown and see what the Rock has
to say about next next week's show. He wants to
show up or doesn't, and maybe I have to ask Ari.
I think Ari is going to call him if he
really needs him and tickets are are slow, but.
Speaker 2 (24:28):
I need to call him and do that, and then
we'll talk about that.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Tickets are soft, so they called me.
Speaker 5 (24:39):
The Rock.
Speaker 3 (24:40):
It's walking into work and going I know all you
guys suck, but don't worry. I'm here now.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
I have made it. I have made I've showed up today. Yes, yes,
got my donuts right? Yes? You uh anything else? Do what?
Speaker 3 (24:56):
It's French toast question.
Speaker 2 (24:58):
I'm sorry, You're correct?
Speaker 1 (25:00):
That right, that's true. Don't want to mess that one up. Yeah,
for cheat day, I'm sure.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
For the Rock. All right, that's gonna do it for
this week. I'm the ant man. He's Michael Glavin.
Speaker 1 (25:11):
We'll see you next week on the wrest of Chat
podcast Get the Rock Lenses
Speaker 4 (25:18):
M
Welcome to episode eighty three of the wrestle Chat podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
I'm the ant man. He's Michael Glavin, and.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
We've got a quick build, quick build to Backlash going
down in Saint Louis coming up on May tenth. That's
here in just a couple of weeks. And that's why
Randy Orton is a part of this whole thing with Cina.
I like sometimes I like these quick builds when it's
not you haven't had six months and they just haven't
done anything, and then do a quick build into something
(00:30):
when you've had time. I feel like that there should
be something filled in there, and we had some storylines
this one.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
It makes sense.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
We have WrestleMania Backlash, you have three weeks, three and
a half weeks, whatever it is to get things ready
for this next pl e and man, Randy obviously the right.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
One for Sina. We'll get to that here in just
a little bit.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
But it feels like, you know, we talk about WrestleMania
being either the end of some storylines or the start
of others. We definitely had some things finished off in
that and we all have our feeling on Night one
and Night two and what have you. We got Sena
and Orton going up at Backlash. Love that Randy is
a part of that. Becky and Lyra just added this
past Monday night. That's gonna be a good one. Couple
(01:11):
Irish ladies and a and a justifiable quick story with
these two. You have Becky coming back teaming with Lyra
after a hurt Becky hurt, Bailey can't perform, So you've
got those two going in together, a couple of Irish
ladies winning the tag titles but then losing them the
following Monday. And then you find out that that Becky
(01:35):
is the one who attacked Bailey just so she could
get those titles. And now we have a story here,
off and run and that is worthy of an Intercontinental
women's Intercontinental title match at Backlash. Let's start with that
one here. How you, how are you feeling about these two?
And and like I said, with such a quick build, Michael.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
I know that speaking to Becky and Lyra, I know
that I'm gonna love the match, and I love the
promo work. And unfortunately, because of how again quick build,
you're gonna hear a lot of that theme. You know
in some of my responses it was rushed, but it
had to be. I mean, Becky comes back at Mania,
(02:14):
you can't really build anything before that. It's gonna be
a good match, But to try and cram the story
in like they're going to h I would have rather
This is me, I admit up front, this is me
being a little more critical of the story deeper than
what I normally go. If it was gonna be that quick,
(02:35):
I wish it would have just been Becky turning heel
and being like I want to be the only Irish,
you know, champion whatever, like, you know, just something more
simple instead of kind of this more drawn out reasoning
that we've hit. It's just hard to do in a week,
a couple of weeks, you know. So, But again I
can't say enough. I think this is gonna be a
(02:56):
really fantastic match, something to look forward to, that one.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Being the one that would actually benefit from having a
little longer to tell that story.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
I agree with it.
Speaker 3 (03:08):
Yeah, and Randy John don't even They could have just
announced it. They could have never had a meeting in
the ring and we would have been fined.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
I've been.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
They already have a story, they have a long history,
and to have that match be the one that pops
up for this one. And also it's I feel in
some ways it is it's predictable in the way that
we know that Randy's not going to win the title.
We're not going to end Sena's run right here, which
means something else is going to happen. We're gonna have something,
some underhanded thing happened, I believe anyway. I obviously don't
(03:41):
know that, but it makes me feel like, okay, since
we already kind of have some foreshadowing.
Speaker 2 (03:46):
If listen, his his.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
His final title run is not going to end three
weeks after after it started, So what else is going
to happen? That's the part that we don't know and
looking forward to, especially at at this pece we also
got on Monday. Evidently we're gonna have Sammy versus Seth,
or maybe Sammy versus Braun or maybe that doesn't factor
(04:09):
into backlash at all. They didn't really say much about that.
It was more about Sammy being a part of this
new group with with Braun Breaker and Seth Rollins and
of course the wise Man Paul Haymond. Or if you
don't want to be a part of this group, then
then you need.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
To take a Hike, you're going back to SmackDown. That
felt a little weird.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
I didn't hate the match, and I don't like I
don't mind seeing Braun just completely demolish somebody, which you
know it was if we have Suplex City, we now
we have Spear City with with Braun. But you had
you had some thoughts here on what Seth was blabbering
about with you have a choice us or them.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
I I'm in the middle period that I'm not sure
what to think about this. Yeah, same, I can tell
you that they seem to be treating it with the
same importance and spectacle that we did the Bloodline a
couple of years in.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
It is not that it's not the Woodline.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
You know, there were comparisons drawn to Evolution or Dangerous Alliance.
There there was purpose in those and whatever this faction is,
I think Seth Rollins is trying to hang his hat
on this I'm going to save WWE thing. The problem
is is that k FABE is the most dead that
(05:30):
it's ever been, and so what are you trying to
save then? When you have simultaneously you're director of the
board going It's all a work, It's all, you know,
it's all fake. So we're doing this very weird, suspend
reality storyline in the midst of the most real the
(05:52):
product has ever been. So if you're trying to save
w W, shouldn't you do that from a boardroom or
shouldn't you buy a bunch of stock or shouldn't he
like you know what I'm saying, Like, like.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
What you imagine that being a storyline? Hey, I just
want to let you know I just bought one hundred
thousand shares of stock in DKO, So you.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Know what I got to say now.
Speaker 4 (06:19):
I'm just saying, like that that right there where we are,
that right there would be the final night of Nitro,
Shane McMahon going, I bought w C.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
You know that that would be today's version of that.
So my my entire point is, I don't hate Seth
Rollins work. I don't hate Bronze work. I love everything
Paul Hayman does. It just doesn't make sense right now.
And if and if the the key phrase is right now,
then that's fine. I'm being patient. I'm watching. I'm not
even really complaining about it. I'm just saying it doesn't
(06:55):
have a very tangible why, And that's kind of where
I'm struggling in that. I think we're afraid to I
think we're always wanting to do something new and we're
afraid to draw comparisons. But like, what better way than
to make it the new age evolution or you know
(07:16):
something like that, like just let it be simple, the
kiss method, keep it simple, stupid. But anyway back to you, I.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
Think it's interesting. I think probably what if we put
our finger on it. What is interesting about this and
what maybe is unique and and maybe even a little
more uncomfortable with this, is that we're used to Paul
Hayman being the mic guy, and we don't have Paul
Hayman as the mic guy in this group. So what
is Paul Hayman in this group? If you've got seth
Rawlins out there running his mouth the whole time, why
(07:45):
is Paul there? Paul is supposed to be there to
put you over, to get you know, to to uh talk.
What is it the whole uh you're you're trying to
I'm gonna screw this up, but you're you're you're going
to cash a check that you're you're behind, can't buy whatever.
That's he's the guy doing that, running his mouth in
this one, he's not. If we talk about dangerous alliance
(08:07):
and what have you, it's a two point zero of that.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Well, he was the mouthpiece for that whole thing.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
In fact, the whole group that he had pretty much
at the time just not good on the mic. And yeah,
you know, Paul dangerously was the reason he was there.
So I wonder what Paul's actual involvement and reason of
being a part of this group is, because right now
it's not what it usually is, and that could be
part of the being uncomfortable anyway.
Speaker 3 (08:29):
Yeah, at this point, the only thing I can think
of is they just wanted to have somebody to be
bronze talker.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
Could be that, but he's not.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
Shown necessarily an innate weakness in that area anyway. So
we're gonna have to wait and see. I want to
be very clear, I'm not just like grumbling about it.
I'm just saying I don't understand it yet.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
I think anybody does.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Yeah, obviously the players involved. You know, we'll just have
to wait and see. They it makes it seem like
they're positioning it for a lot of stuff over the
next year. I don't know, maybe they're anticipating that Rock's
new movie, Smashing Machine. Uh is uh is gonna do well,
(09:14):
so then he won't be around for Mania next year.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
Did you watch the Did you watch the trailer for it? You?
Speaker 1 (09:21):
Yeah, it looks really good with me and my wife
watched it and she goes, what do you think? And
I go, it's great. He'll probably win a freaking Oscar
for it. Maybe, I mean it's like that good, like
he's that good in this and yeah, so that's a
different story.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
But I thought that's interesting.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Here.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
I am pissed off at the Rock and everything that's
going on in w w E, and then.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
I watched the trailer.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
I'm like, he's something. You gotta be kidding me. You're
freaking good. So dang good. H Russif Rusif is back.
It's now russef day every day, maka bless you. That's
the old Okay, Oh yeah, I thought you had asymologies.
No no, no, he's back. But here's the deal. Where
(10:07):
does he fit in the landscape of WWE as Okay,
Bruce's back, so what what does that mean? I mean,
we all really love Bruce to listen, to be honest,
because Lana came out with him, but he seems to
kind of be reviving this whole Redeemer storyline that was
actually started in AEW at least the promo that played
on Monday. That's what it felt like. Do you see
a place where he could just let's slide in Russev here?
(10:28):
Do you see one of those yet?
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (10:29):
I think he's automatic mid card ic champ us champ.
I mean, I think he can very quickly get into
the fold. I think what I enjoyed seeing is I
think his Miro character in ae W was always kind
of his peak in the sense of I think the
(10:51):
Miro character is better than the Russev character. I think
if we treat, you know, twenty twenty five Russev like Miro,
but then put that WWE machine behind it.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
I think it's a total do something with it.
Speaker 3 (11:06):
Total winner.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
And so this maybe the ae W it was just
promos like it was literally I never saw in fight.
It was all this Redeemers promos, and then then every
once in a while he'd come out. Look, then I
don't see see promos for three weeks and never see
r or Miro Brucev.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
The great thing that happened about his last run in
w W E is he was just a dominant force.
And you know I reference that Takeru Triple H match
all the time with that Bill Domania and Rusev kind
of fits in that same kind of spot. I think
he could pick a fight with anybody, and it's just
good to start with because we we've got the background
(11:46):
on him that we know that he's somebody to reckon with,
you know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Well, and you know who we all want to see
him pick a fight with. We got to see a
Gunther match, yep, I mean.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
One I forgot from that is coming up at Backlash
on tenth in Saint Louis. Is maybe maybe one of
the best. I mean, he's already up there at the
top of one of the best promos already of twenty
twenty five, but it can also be compared to many
many others as being one of the great promos.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
Is from Pat freaking McAfee.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Standing up on the table defending his buddy sitting next
to him, the goat Michael Cole and saying, yeah, you
know what, I'll take on Gunther and let's do it.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Let's have him bring him out here right now.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
No better yet, Let's do something at backlash, and so
we've got now Pat McAfee the color commentary Monday Night
Raw on Netflix, actually taking on former world champion Gunther.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
Yeah, how do you feel about this match?
Speaker 3 (12:46):
Pat McAfee's beloved and he's just obviously he's a little
more basic in the way he works a match, but
it works for him so well. And every time I've
seen him Russell, I've always been impressed, and he's just
so likable as a person and you're just vested in
(13:07):
it right away.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
He's us that gets to sit on the ring side. Yep,
every much.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
I'm giggling about his show because on his show, he's
talking on the Pat McAfee show the next next day.
So on Tuesday morning, he goes, I've already started training.
I just walk and I do this. I'm just gonna
get I'm just gonna get my chat. I'm gonna get
it off. We're taking we're taking what I always say, uh,
Singapore canes, just because that's you know, it was attitude era, right,
(13:38):
But one of the Kindos sticks. We got guys taking
Kindos sticks to my chest just to prep for Gunther. Yep, yeah, yeah, absolutely,
he's gonna be chopped to death. But if if Pat
preps that way and it's good to go, this could
be a fun match.
Speaker 3 (13:53):
It will be fun. Yep, it'll be fun for sure.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
All Right.
Speaker 1 (13:56):
So I'm gonna address the elephant. Everybody's talking about it.
There's lots of rumors, there's lots of I mean, all
different directions, and you kind of alluded to something I
want to bring up in this one too.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
But Rock and H is this real beef?
Speaker 1 (14:09):
I mean, we've got instances of let's go back to
him being on Pat McAfee and talking about why he
wasn't part of WrestleMania, and everybody called BS after.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
He did like that.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
No, he said, you know, I would I would have
probably I would have tailored a few things, calling out,
what here's the day.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
He never uses his name.
Speaker 1 (14:32):
He never says his name, and sometimes that's the reason
we feel that there's something between he and Paul Avec
Triple H is because he doesn't say his name. He
talks he so he does that whole deal, calls out.
We've got then Dave Logreca from Busted Open coming on
(14:53):
the next day. He was off, but he had to
come on and say that's BS. Rock you not being
at Mania and your explanation was all just bs.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
And then you throw Triple H under the bus, saying
you would have tailored some of.
Speaker 1 (15:04):
The build up a little bit better and done it
a little bit different, that would have made it better
than what we actually got. That feels like you're throwing
him under the bus. And then you've got Rock actually
replying on social media to Dave la Greca saying everything
we do is a work. Everything, every conversation, every promo,
every interview, everything that we're doing as a work, which
(15:25):
makes me think that even this post is part of
the whole plan and a part of the fitting into
whatever scheme they have.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
But it feels very real.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
And he says, why don't you come join me and
Cody and Sena and the others.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
You left a lot of people out with the others.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
You didn't mention Triple it's the head of content creation
for WWE, Bruce Pritchard. Second in line, you don't mention
any of those guys. You talk about the guys over
is over their heads, but you don't talk about them
who are actually in charge of this. Also, something you
and I text about today that you know was the
Triple H didn't say a word about The Rock in
(16:03):
his Hall of Fame speech, leading everybody to really dig
in a little deeper and saying, oh, there's a real
beef between these two.
Speaker 5 (16:10):
Dude shouted out his old workout buddies, his hairdresser, the
guy that valet parked his car, everybody except the Rock.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
And you got to mention, didn't you. I think I did.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
The guy who's bought more T shirts from me, Michael Clavin,
here's given him.
Speaker 3 (16:32):
Here's the thing. I have no doubt that Rock's a
nice guy. I have no beef, real beef with the
Rock at all. But the dude is in a space
and has been for a long time that he gets
his way. His gym goes with him wherever he goes,
(16:53):
he has private chefs, he has earned the luxuries that
he has. But you can't just pretend then that it
doesn't affect the way that your outlook on life. Okay,
you know, I think you know offline too. We've talked
about some of the power that the Rock has in
(17:13):
the way he sways social media and his branding abilities
and all this type of stuff, and then you take
something that's so close to him, like professional wrestling that
he owes all of this too. He is going to
have that same feeling that when he speaks up people
should listen, especially with this ceremonial seat on the board
(17:35):
that he has, which either he bought for himself or
he kissed enough behind to make happen. So all of
this to say, I'm pointing out that anytime you hear
the Rock talk, it's that he's in charge of creative.
It's his idea, this we should do, that we work
(17:56):
together as a team. This nobody mentions him as part
of the nobody, not Nick con not Ari Emanuel, just
not Triple H, just Rock. And that's because he's not
in the day to day.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
He can't be.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
And so then when we come to these moments like
elimination Chamber, they're getting in a room and they're and
Rock has to go, Okay, bring me up to speed.
Well this this this, Okay, we're gonna do this. Well Rock,
hold on, no, no, no, no, we're gonna do this. And
so that was the very long way around of me
saying Rock is gonna keep doing his rock thing and
(18:32):
everybody else is gonna keep working around him. But he's
already kind of frustrating all of us common folk because
we can see right through the charade. And so I'm
gonna get off my soapbox now.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
So you think it's real. You think it's real.
Speaker 3 (18:51):
Oh, I think it's very real. I think it's very real.
I think the Rock knows that he has the ability
to insert himself. Think about every interview he d sorry
Emmanuel's name, every interview, go back and look I did.
It's every interview. He is, whether consciously or unconsciously, continuing
(19:12):
to place himself in the middle of day to day
creative when all he was asked to do was to
be a part of the WWE at a business level.
And now we're dealing with this Vince McMahon two point
zero where we tear up the script two hours before
the show. Albeit it's only for one segment, the one
that the Rock is going to be a part of.
(19:34):
But he's just Vince McMahon two point oh, stepping in,
messing a bunch of stuff up.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
I I just.
Speaker 3 (19:43):
We got to see where it goes.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
What if it is all of work, then they did
a great job. I think part of me thinks that
it is work. Stay with me on this train of thought.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
Here for a second kind of a whiteboard for this. Yeah,
you definitely would lead a whiteboard. Just use it in
your head though. It is for your whiteboard. In your head.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
It's work two point zero, okay?
Speaker 1 (20:10):
Where it it's You can't do the same k fabe
that you could in the eighties.
Speaker 2 (20:16):
And I say the eighties because by the nineties.
Speaker 3 (20:18):
I see where you're going with this.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
So you can't do that, but you can come to
an understanding from the very beginning. Whatever we do, there's
there's a goal in mind, and this is the goal,
whatever that is, whatever that goal is, And I can't say.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
What that is because I don't know it because I'm
still in your.
Speaker 3 (20:42):
Pretty much what you're saying, k fabe is no longer
that guy is an undead undertaker, right, k fabe is
now drama?
Speaker 1 (20:53):
Correct? Yeah, yeah, it's just two points. It's a two
point zero. So what he said in his reply two,
just the beginning of the reply to Dave la Greca,
was the only real thing out of any it.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
I say real.
Speaker 1 (21:09):
You gotta be careful with that word too, because what
is real, Well, the real is that everything is a
work the end period. Now everything else, I tell you
that you perceive as real is a part of the work. Yeah,
it's a new k fabe or a new work two
point zero.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Okay, But then my immediate response is, why is the
Rock the only one using this new k fabe?
Speaker 2 (21:35):
See, I don't think he is. I think we got
a little hint of that with Triple H not mentioning him.
Speaker 1 (21:43):
It's a new leg see back in the back in
the seventies and eighties. I'm gonna get you next time
I see you. You're gonna get all five of these.
You're gonna get.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Both thunder and light. You know, it's not that anymore.
It's not that.
Speaker 1 (21:54):
It's this, it's the it's social media on your phone.
It's what you say and read between the lines.
Speaker 2 (22:00):
And and to be.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
Honest, I think probably part of the work is what
we're doing right now. Somebody brings Dave Lagreca brings up something,
and you go, we could take a little piece of
that for the end goal.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Okay, Well, then reply to Dave. Okay, And it moves on.
Speaker 1 (22:17):
Who's the master though, who's the little puppet master behind
the scenes.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
If the whole seeing to take the position that it's not.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
A work, it's vincem Man. It's the only parties involved
in anymore, all.
Speaker 3 (22:29):
Time everything Vince the whole time.
Speaker 2 (22:33):
And he's really the undead. Yeah, he only be that guy.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
We'll find out that Vince passed away, but he really
didn't pass away.
Speaker 2 (22:40):
Didn't we already have that? Wasn't it in a limo?
And something like that happened.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
Hey, if you love raw and you don't have Netflix,
you've been borrowing your friend's account.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
This is your chance to get your own for an
entire year.
Speaker 1 (22:51):
If you've liked what we talked about today, you're invested,
you have fun, you chime in on all this.
Speaker 2 (22:56):
Do me a favor. Go open the free iHeart Radio app.
If you don't have it, download it from your phone's
app store. Get that first. It's free, you don't have
to sign up and don't pay anything. But then search
for wrestle Chat podcast there. Pep that in and then
go when you see it, go hit like or follow.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
I think it's follow in preset Preset is the one
you really want.
Speaker 2 (23:18):
Follow and Preset.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
Click both of those. It becomes part of your presets
at the top of the iHeartRadio app. Take a screenshot
of that, and then go to wrestle chatpodcast dot com.
Load up that screen shot. You'll be in the running
to win Netflix for an entire year. You didn't catch
all of that right now, just go to wrestle chatpodcast
dot com and it explains everything when you click on
that banner right there.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
And so what you're saying is that you're going to
gift fifty two episodes of Monday Night Raw.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
Fifty bingo and we're going to do that just right
around Summer Slam, so you saill have a little time
between now and before we give that away. So go
check that out wrestle Chat podcast dot com and load
up your screenshot, and uh listen to us every week,
watch us every week on YouTube. Uh Man, we're gonna
(24:10):
have a lot to talk about next week as hopefully
a couple of more matches get announced for Backlash, we'll
give a full rundown and see what the Rock has
to say about next next week's show. He wants to
show up or doesn't, and maybe I have to ask Ari.
I think Ari is going to call him if he
really needs him and tickets are are slow, but.
Speaker 2 (24:28):
I need to call him and do that, and then
we'll talk about that.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Tickets are soft, so they called me.
Speaker 5 (24:39):
The Rock.
Speaker 3 (24:40):
It's walking into work and going I know all you
guys suck, but don't worry. I'm here now.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
I have made it. I have made I've showed up today. Yes, yes,
got my donuts right? Yes? You uh anything else? Do what?
Speaker 3 (24:56):
It's French toast question.
Speaker 2 (24:58):
I'm sorry, You're correct?
Speaker 1 (25:00):
That right, that's true. Don't want to mess that one up. Yeah,
for cheat day, I'm sure.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
For the Rock. All right, that's gonna do it for
this week. I'm the ant man. He's Michael Glavin.
Speaker 1 (25:11):
We'll see you next week on the wrest of Chat
podcast Get the Rock Lenses
Speaker 4 (25:18):
M
Host
Anthony "The AntMan" Lay
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