Opinion

Cook’s Wrestlers To Be Thankful For 2019 (10-6)

Just in time for Thanksgiving, Steve Cook has amassed a list of 10 wrestlers to be thankful for. Here are #6-10!

Published

6 years ago

November 25, 2019

Steve Cook

Just in time for Thanksgiving, Steve Cook has amassed a list of 10 wrestlers to be thankful for. Here are #6-10!

There’s no doubt that wrestling fans have a lot to be thankful for in 2019.

WWE has ruled the roost for so long and it’s tough to deny it. 2019 seems to be the year that opposite forces have made a stand. I don’t want to offend the WWE fanboys, so I will point out that WWE still has so many more viewers through USA, Fox & the WWE Network. Your company is still doing well, and we appreciate them for that. There are also other companies doing well, which is also good for the business no matter how much Phil O’Dowd wants to tell you otherwise.

There is a lot to be thankful for this year for wrestling fans. That’s why I’ve increased it to two columns. I’ve found so many wrestlers to be thankful for that we need two parts. Honestly, I could probably spread it to three or four, but I need to get all this done before the holiday. Here are some of the wrestlers I’ve been thankful for here in 2019.

10. The Rock N’ Roll Express

If you’re seriously going to talk about the greatest tag team of all time and you don’t have the RnRs in the conversation, you’re out of your mind. Go back to the 1980s when they were at their peak, and Ricky Morton was the absolute best at getting a crowd worked up while he was getting beat up, and ready for that tag to Robert Gibson. They kept it going in the 1990s in Smoky Mountain Wrestling. They made some appearances here and there and I kind of figured that would be it. But all of a sudden in 2019, here come Ricky & Robert again! They out here doing things in the NWA & AEW, which is perfect because NWA Powerrr gets a lot of their viewers on YouTube from people also watching AEW Dark.

It’s called cross-promotion. Some people get it and some people don’t. If you’re the folks behind the NWA and seeing how AEW fans are helping your views, you’re practically orgasmic and are all about Ricky & Robert going to AEW shows and doing some spots and getting over. You might not be happy about Jim Cornette burying all the people that might actually like AEW on his podcasts. You might be looking for an excuse to let him go, and you might let yourself get exhausted instead of editing his racist rants out of a show. I don’t know, I just write on the Internet. All I know for sure is that Ricky & Robert have been feuding with that Cornette guy for ages and they won’t get affected by his nonsense. And I’m thankful for that.

9. Darby Allin

I first saw Darby on Vice’s series “The Wrestlers” and he seemed like a really interesting guy. He was shown discussing a match with Ethan Page, and Page was all like “The people have been hyped up so much at this point that we can do less” and Allin wasn’t having any of it. He was going completely insane and Page was probably tearing his hair out as a result. But I appreciate a man that’s willing to lay it all out on the line in every match.

Allin isn’t a big guy, but the people don’t care about that. AEW fans have already figured out that the guy is willing to go further than most, and they appreciate him for it. Wrestlers often tease spots that seem completely insane with no intention of doing them. If Darby Allin’s involved, it just might happen. He might not have a long career, but let’s be thankful for it while it lasts.

8. Shazza McKenzie

I get told regularly not to post about mental illness because it will affect my career.

At the end of the day if being open and honest about the struggles makes me unsignable then I can live with that.

I can’t live with the idea that people look up to me and I would be sharing

— “HEARTcore” Shazza McKenzie (@Shazza_McKenzie) November 22, 2019

Twitter has been imploring All Elite Wrestling to #SignShazza for the past couple of weeks now, and I certainly concur with that sentiment. Any friend of Massive Q’s is a friend of 411mania.com-affiliated people like myself. Her desire for the Hot 100 to come back made me feel really good, as sometimes I’m not sure whether or not people remember anything that I’ve written over the past fifteen years. It’s good to know that somebody’s noticed.

Especially when they look like Shazza. Come on now, you know what I’m saying? Gotta be thankful for that.

7. Nick Aldis

One of the highlights of NWA Powerrr has been their champion acting like a classic NWA Champion. Aldis has been perfect in the role. He puts over all of his competition without argument, he puts the brand over without argument. He wears different suits on every show even though it was like 15 shows in two days. The man pays attention to detail.

I’ve been impressed. I wasn’t impressed with Aldis during his TNA run, and wasn’t sold on him when the NWA started building around him. As it turns out, that was the right decision. They’ve made some other bad decisions that took awhile to correct, but their main decision being to build around Nick Aldis wasn’t bad.

6. The Blanchard Family

What can one say about Tessa Blanchard at this point that hasn’t already been said? She’s been the backbone of Impact Wrestling & Women Of Wrestling during this year, doing completely different things in each promotion and still managing to be the highlight of each show. Talk about a performer having range, that’s Tessa Blanchard. WWE completely missed the boat on her, and that’s to the benefit of us that watch other wrestling shows too.

Then there’s Tully, who for way too long was one of the forgotten Horsemen. Chris Hyatte wrote an incredible column about remembering Tully Blanchard that was lost to the Internet. Tully was the perfect heel in the 1980s, then disappeared. He’s back now in AEW, and quite honestly he needs more people to manage along with Shawn Spears. The man needs to build a stable. Maybe at some point his daughter can be part of it. Tully has always been perfect at being hated, and that’s his best quality.

Numbers 5-1 coming soon!

About Chairshot Radio Network

Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!

MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)

THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)

SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5

Classic POD is WAR

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Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Opinion

Chairshot Staff Picks: Money In The Bank

Extra, extra read all about it… Chairshot Staff picks are in!!!

Published

2 weeks ago

June 6, 2025

PC Tunney

Sing it with me… money money money money moneeeeeeeeeyeeeeee… everybody’s got a price! MONEY IN THE BANK is here!!! How money will our staff picks be?!?

AJ – Roxanne Perez
Andrew – Stephanie Vaquer – *Bubba Sparxxx Impression* I don’t tell stories, I let them tell theyself.
Dave – Guilia – A stacked field but I just like her here.
DJ – Naomi
DPP – Roxanne Perez
Jason – Alexa Bliss
Patrick – Roxanne Perez
Rey – Naomi – If Naomi loses, we riot!
Rob – Naomi
Greg – Alexa Bliss – Bliss has had huge reactions since returning and is moving a ton of merch. While I can see them wanting to build Roxanne Perez, Giulia, or Stephanie Vaquer, I think Alexa Bliss.

Tunney’s Take: Rhea Ripley – I’ll make my case short and sweet… Mami in the Bank! You can’t leave that money on the table.

Chairshot Pick – Tie – Naomi 3 & Roxanne Perez 3 (Alexa Bliss 2, Giulia 1, Rhea Ripley 1, Stephanie Vaquer 1)

AJ – LA Knight
Andrew – El Grande Americano – Feels correct given his push and the fact he’s over.
Dave – Seth Rollins – Got to push that new faction.
DJ – LA Knight
DPP – El Grande Americano
Jason – LA Knight
Patrick – Solo Sikoa
Rey – LA Knight – Looks like another push, and he does have history with Cena.
Rob – Solo Sikoa
Greg – Seth Rollins – This company is extremely high in the El Grande Americano gimmick, but this match comes down to Seth Rollins or LA Knight. Given the Rollins storyline, it’s his briefcase to win.

Tunney’s Take: El Grande Americano – Picture this: Chad Gable wins the AAA Mega Championship and El Grande Americano wins MITB! WHAT A SATURDAY in LA!!!

Chairshot Pick – LA Knight 4 (El Grande Americano 3, Seth Rollins 2, Solo Sikoa 2)

AJ – Becky Lynch – Sadly
Andrew – Becky Lynch – I still don’t care about Lyra.
Dave – Lyra Valkyria – Starting to warm up to her and Becky has a lot to do with that.
DJ – Lyra Valkyria
DPP – Becky Lynch
Jason – Becky Lynch
Patrick – Lyra Valkyria
Rey – Becky Lynch – Put some fire on the Irish Beef.
Rob – Becky Lynch
Greg – Becky Lynch – I don’t think you do a rematch here just to have Becky lose again. Unless Bayley shows up to help Lyra.

Tunney’s Take: Becky Lynch – A big part of me feels that winning this title checks off a major box for Becks in her HOF career.

Chairshot Pick – Becky Lynch 8-3

AJ – Cena & Paul
Andrew – Rhodes & Uso – Easy way for Cena to lose without eating the pinfall.
Dave – Rhodes & Uso – Get the QB back on the winning track.
DJ – Rhodes & Uso
DPP – Rhodes & Uso
Jason – Cena & Paul
Patrick – Cena & Paul
Rey – Rhodes & Uso – Heels usually lose these kinds of matches. Logan takes the pin.
Rob – Cena & Paul
Greg – Rhodes & Uso – I hope Jey isn’t an afterthought here like Cody was last fall when he was paired up with Roman. I think Cody pins Cena to set up Cody-Cena 2 at SummerSlam.

Tunney’s Take: Cena & Paul – I don’t think Cena is involved in another loss until he loses the WWE Championship. I also think Logan Paul is NOT done trying to capture Jey Uso’s World Heavyweight Championship. …Travis Scott in the house?

Chairshot Pick – 6-5 Rhodes & Uso

In closing I want to thank everyone on the panel for participating with their picks! You can follow each prognosticator/podcaster on X @ the handles below. We all enjoy Pro Wrestling so remember three things… be respectful of others, comparison is the thief of joy and HAVE FUN!

AJ – @PhenomenalAJB
Andrew – @IWCWarChief
Dave – @AttitudeAgg
DJ – @TheMindlessPod
DPP – @itsmeDPP
Jason – @JediFett
Patrick – @WrestlngRealist
Rey – @itsreycash
Rob – @rbonne1
Greg – @gregdemarco44
PC – @PCTunney
TheChairshot.com – @ChairshotMedia

prowrestlingtees.com/TheChairshot – a PLETHORA of GREAT designs…MAKES A GREAT GIFT!

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SATURDAY – The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY – Keeping the news ridiculous… The Oddity / The Front and Center Sports Podcast

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE’s PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS…IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O’Dowd’s 5X5

Classic POD is WAR

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About Chairshot Radio Network

MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

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CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5

Classic POD is WAR

Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!

All Shows On Demand

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Opinion

Chairshot Staff Picks: Backlash St. Louis

Chairshot Staff picks!!!

Published

1 month ago

May 9, 2025

PC Tunney

May is upon us and with that, so is Backlash from St. Louis! What does the first PLE after WrestleMania have in store for the WWE Universe? Let’s see if the Chairshot Staff can properly interpret the crystal ball of rasslin’ future.

AJ – Pat MacAfee – Gunther has to start losing control and who better than an announcer.
Andrew – Pat MacAfee – Goldberg getting involved does seem correct here.
Dave – Gunther – He’s not losing to a broadcaster.
DJ – Gunther – Pat is sent to the shadow realm until football season is over.
DPP – Gunther – Post match beat down leads to Pat time off.
Jason – Gunther – One massive spot and or bump from Pat.
Patrick – Gunther
Rey – Gunther – RIP MacAfee, t’was a good life.
Rob – Gunther
Greg – Pat MacAfee – Why? Goooooldbeeerrrrrgggggg!

Tunney’s Take: Gunther – Seems like the right pick here. Pat may be getting some time off and Gunther needs more heat.

Chairshot Pick – GUNTHER 8-3

AJ – Lyra Valkyria – Becky’s hopefully putting her over, still mad about Dakota.
Andrew – Becky Lynch – I have no real interest in Lyra currently.
Dave – Becky Lynch – Lyra is boring AF!
DJ – Lyra Valkyria – Bayley interferes.
DPP – Becky Lynch – Becky cheats and steals the title.
Jason – Lyra Valkyria – Bayley costs Becks.
Patrick – Becky Lynch
Rey – Becky Lynch – Story needs to jump up a bit, Becky Charlotte’s Lyra.
Rob – Lyra Valkyria
Greg – Becky Lynch – It’s been fun, Lyra. (It kinda hasn’t)

Tunney’s Take: Lyra Valkyria – Bayley’s interference should set up some type of program with Becky as we head towards Summer(Slam).

Chairshot Pick – BECKY LYNCH 6-5

AJ – Jacob Fatu – Great way to put him over w/ two former WHCs and LA Knight.
Andrew – Jacob Fatu – He’s Jacob Fatu!
Dave – Jacob Fatu – Too soon to pull the belt off him.
DJ – Jacob Fatu – Priest and LA can’t decide who’s is bigger.
DPP – Jacob Fatu – Your hardcore match, tables and chairs involved.
Jason – Jacob Fatu – The Champ retains due to or in spite of Solo.
Patrick – Jacob Fatu
Rey – Jacob Fatu – All gas. No brakes. Ain’t losing.
Rob – Jacob Fatu
Greg – Jacob Fatu – Someone from The Samoan Dynasty ain’t winning a title just to drop it.

Tunney’s Take: Jacob Fatu – Uncle Mo is on Fatu’s side and other than Knight, I don’t see Drew or Priest holding the US title in the current circumstances of this title’s landscape.

Chairshot Pick – JACOB FATU 11-0

AJ – Dominic Mysterio – Judgement Day shenanigans just leading up to Finn turning on Dom later.
Andrew – Penta – Dom’s fine having a short reign, could also work for pushing AAA.
Dave – Dominic Mysterio – He’s probably more over than Penta.
DJ – Dominic Mysterio – Dirty Dom takes home the gold and the girl.
DPP – Dominic Mysterio – Big Head helps Dom pull out the win.
Jason – Dominic Mysterio – By hook and crook.
Patrick – Dominic Mysterio
Rey – Dominic Mysterio – Latino Heat keeps burning. Finn gets closer to the edge.
Rob – Dominic Mysterio
Greg – Dominic Mysterio – Someone from The Guerrero Dynasty ain’t winning a title just to drop it.

Tunney’s Take: Dominic Mysterio – That belt looks good with the king of chicken tendys. I can see Penta and Rey reforming as a tag team sooner than later.

Chairshot Pick – DOMINIC MYSTERIO 10-1

AJ – John Cena – Why? Cena wins, lol.
Andrew – John Cena – Shenanigans ensue so it’s not a clean win.
Dave – John Cena – The last time is now.
DJ – John Cena – Randy hears voices telling him he needs an Attitude Adjustment.
DPP – John Cena – Cena tries to cheat but the ref doesn’t call for a DQ.
Jason – John Cena – Nefarious means, Randy not ready for Evil John Cena.
Patrick – John Cena
Rey – John Cena – Cena just counting down the dates. Should be fun though.
Rob – John Cena
Greg – John Cena – You know they want Cody to be the hero in the end.

Tunney’s Take: Randy Orton – Once upon a time Randy got himself intentionally disqualified and it cost John. Saturday, history repeats itself with a 180-degree twist. Cena retains via Orton DQ victory. This time, Travis Scott’s appearance takes care of that task.

Chairshot Pick – JOHN CENA 10-1