ECW: The Cuban Wrestling Crisis

Greetings fine readers of WC's Be The Booker sub-forum. My name is Radikal, and I'd like to cordially welcome you to the world of ECW: The Cuban Wrestling Crisis.

This project officially began in September of late last year on a completely different forum. Now, I plan to make it available to those of you here in the WC, in the hopes that maybe you will enjoy reading it as much as I have writing it. So, before we delve too deep into the storyline, there are a couple of things that will require some form of explanation...

Biography

My interest in professional wrestling stems from an early childhood, much like many others who remain avid fans of the sport to this day. I began watching World Championship Wrestling in the 1990's, and have been hooked ever since. I've seen my fair share of times where the interest of professional wrestling begins to personally wane from time-to-time, yet I always find myself coming back. Nowadays, instead of eagerly awaiting for the next Raw or Smackdown, I've become far more emotionally invested in creating my own world of sports entertainment.

I've been writing fan fiction since early 2003, and until now, have been specifically involved with Pro Wrestling Forums. I wrote my very first project, Radikal's WCW, at the timid age of 14. Back then, full-length shows were quite popular and summarizing was scorned upon. Nowadays, it's become quite the opposite among those who enjoy this craft, but I guess I just never got the memo.

Last year, I tried to renew the magic of my WCW project with a fed called WCW/WWF: Revival, a storyline in which World Championship Wrestling, not the WWF, becomes the victor in the legendary Monday Night Wars of the late 90's. Yet, for one reason or another, things never panned out with the project personally, and I chose to scrap it altogether. Nowadays, I've concerned myself with this specific project and aim to one day complete it as a trilogy of sorts.

Now that you've gotten to know a little bit about me, let's talk about what really matters; the project itself.

Understanding the Universe

Spoiler:

The events that follow begin in June of 2011, and are ultimately set to end in March of 2012. Unlike some projects, this one does not follow in real-time. In the "Radikal Universe," there are four major promotions that you need to concern yourself with. They read as follows:

• Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)
• Donald Trump's Trump Wrestling Federation (TWF)
• Cary Silkin's Ring Of Honor (ROH)
• Mark Cuban's Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW)

Due to the major calomities that begin to fall prey upon the WWE (which you will soon be reading about as our story progresses,) as well as the collapse of the second largest professional wrestling promotion, Dixie Carter's Total Nonstop Action (TNA), professional wrestling has reached yet another boom period. This ultimately stems from two media moguls, Mark Cuban and Donald Trump, who have decided to take their war of words on the social media network Twitter, and raise the stakes by starting their very own promotions.

But Cuban and Trump are not the be all and end all of this boom period. In fact, they have very little to do in comparison to WWE Superstar, CM Punk, who begins to revolutionize the industry with his infamous shoot promo on the welfare of all things WWE on the June 27th edition of Monday Night RAW.

Although this project specifically follows the shows of Extreme Championship Wrestling, it does not solely report on that promotion, as you must realize that the WWE, TWF and ROH play a very large role in my Universe as well. Much like the Monday Night Wars, this is the start of a very cut-throat era in the business of professional wrestling. Vince McMahon, after losing superstar CM Punk, is a man on the brink of professional ruin. While financially healthy, the WWE begins to make some very questionable decisions with their talent, creatively and financially, on-screen and off-screen...

Without Punk's departure and his ever rising popularity, it's very plausible that both Mark Cuban and Donald Trump wouldn't have entertained the thought of beginning their own promotions in the first place. Also, in my Universe, Sinclair Broadcast Group opts not to purchase ROH from Cary Silkin. Therefore, much like the WWE, Ring Of Honor is a company on the brink of financial ruin.

Also, there's much more to this project than just the shows themselves. What happens outside of the ring is just as prevalent as what takes place within it. This includes newsfeeds from various wrestling websites, Twitter announcements or "tweets" from wrestlers and promoters, as well as magazine articles and interviews. This is mainly done to keep you invested in what's taking place in my own created world, therefore if a new wrestler has popped up into the project, you're not scratching your head and wondering why or how he/she got there.

The Format

Unlike most projects, this one implements nearly 100% full-length shows. While this may deter some from reading, it's the way I write and have always written. Some shows, (like CyberCore) are in fact summarized, while others (like Hardcore TV and monthly PPV's) are fully written out...

Descriptions of imagery, actions, music and everything that describes what you can't see uses the font Courier New, including matches. Commentary and verbal parts, as well as outside information, uses Verdana font. Headings and footers implement the font Palatino Linotype.

Matches themselves are hardly ever summarized and are usually described by what happens second-by-second. I leave up to you, the reader, to suspend your belief and imagine that indeed, these matches sometimes would take a lot longer in reality than they may appear when written out.

Unlike most BTB's, this one follows a chronological order of chapters. I use chapters because, when it comes down to it, there's a story I'm trying to tell here, just as much as I am a wrestling promotion and it's weekly activities. Eventually, I will post a Table of Contents for you to follow, located upon the post below me...

Acknowledgments

While I don't know any of you, I'd like to thank you for deciding to read my work and encourage you to post your concerns OR opinions without any hesitation. The only way for me or you to grow as writers is to be honest with one another, and be acceptive of another's constructive criticism or praise with open arms and a willingness to improve.

From my PW family (even though they aren't or never will read this) I'd like to thank each and every one of them for giving me the confidence to do this and the courage to improve in creating my project. It's been a lot of fun so far and hopefully will continue to be that way!

So please, do read and voice yourself. I look forward to sharing this with you and acknowledging your work as well!

Thanks!


Sincerely,
- Rad.

Spoiler:

March 7th, 2011 - Plans are put in place within the WWE Creative team to break CM Punk free of New Nexus, and push him as the next big face of the company. Although Punk's contract is set to expire in July, Vince wants to test the waters with 'the Second City Saint,' and see if he can somehow break into the hearts of the more commercial fans. The company intends to develop this push through a long list of great potential opponents; John Cena, R-Truth, Alberto Del Rio, Mark Henry, Daniel Bryan - all leading up to a Wrestlemania match with none other than Chris Jericho.

May 1st, 2011 - Punk's long standing feud with Randy Orton finally comes to closure at Extreme Rules, where CM Punk loses his second straight match to the so-called 'Apex Predator.' WWE Creative finally formulates the plan for Punk's "Contract Angle," to begin or possibly end at Money In The Bank in July.

June 27th, 2011 - Punk infamously sits atop the entrance ramp in a Stone Cold t-shirt below the Titantron, giving one of the greatest shoot promos in wrestling history to thousands of fans live on Monday Night RAW, at one point even telling the crowd that "the company would be better off if Vince McMahon was DEAD."

June 28th, 2011 - Vince McMahon suspends CM Punk for his comments on RAW. Speculation over whether or not this is kayfabe runs a muck in the internet wrestling community, all as discussion of Punk's contract has continued to go unannounced to the public....

July 11th, 2011 - CM Punk returns to Monday Night RAW with a megaphone and discusses his conflict of interest with Mr. McMahon to the audience once again, this time in detail about the events that occurred two weeks ago. WWE Champion John Cena informs Punk that, while he does not necessarily disagree with Punk, his comments are a poor representation of how a WWE Superstar should conduct himself on air, especially with children watching at home. Punk informs Cena that he in fact is thinking of the children; he's trying to spare them of having to deal with another decade of 'Cenation' and spinner belts. A rift is now seemingly beginning to form between the WWE crowd; Either you're Pro-Punk, or Pro-Cena.

July 14th, 2011 - WWE's Chairman of the Board, Vince McMahon, is unable to succeed in getting CM Punk to agree to a contract extension. While Punk had originally been planned to win the WWE Title at the MItB event, McMahon Jr. is unwilling to let the Second City Saint walk out of his hometown the WWE Champion, without being guaranteed that Punk will return. Punk reportedly informs McMahon that the amount of pay they are willing to offer him is not substantial to what he feels he deserves, especially in loo of his recent growing popularity. McMahon proceeds to tell Punk that they will convene on this matter tomorrow evening.

July 15th, 2011 - Vince McMahon offers Punk a more generous deal than before, yet, CM Punk is unwilling to agree to the terms, as he specifically requests creative control over how his character is utilized on-screen. McMahon is unwilling to give up the Creative Team's power, and tells Punk in so many words to kindly excuse himself from the office.

July 17th, 2011 - Punk is welcomed in his hometown of Chicago with one of the most passionate reactions heard from a wrestling crowd in years, while John Cena is continuously booed at every corner. The two competitors put on a 5-star match in front of nearly 15,000 passionate fans. Before the match though, Vince McMahon informs Punk that he will be losing clean to Cena in his last official WWE match. Punk becomes irate, telling McMahon that he is unwilling to sabotage his image in front of the very place he was born and raised. A heated argument soon ensues, as several workers report objects being thrown, as well as McMahon taking out his frustrations with Punk onto the remainder of the roster. Despite this, McMahon has his associates inform Punk that he will indeed allow him to go out a winner in his own hometown.

Near the end of this fantastic bout, both CM Punk and the roaring Chicago crowd are stunned when MItB contract winner, Alberto Del Rio, storms the ring. The look within Punk's eyes reveal that Vince is attempting to screw him out of his win. Unwilling to fall over so easily, Punk goes against the impromptu storyline, famously breaking kayfabe and exiting the ring with his now new-found and seemingly stolen WWE Title in hand.

Spoiler:

SINGLES

Abyss
Alex Shelley
Austin Aries
The Blue Meanie
Brian Kendrick
Chris Harris
Chris Hero
Chris Sabin
Christopher Daniels
Colt Cabana
Davey Richards
Diego Corleone
El Generico
Homicide
Jack Evans
James Storm
Jerry Lynnn
Jimmy Jacobs
Justin Credible
Kazarian
Low Ki
Madison Rayne
Mickie James
Mike Quackenbush
Monty Brown
Paul London
Rhino
Rob Van Dam
Rockstar Spud
Sabu
Samoa Joe
The Sandman
Shark Boy
Steve Corino
Stevie Richards
Tommy Dreamer
Tyler Reks

TAG TEAMS

The Dudleys (Bubba Ray & D-Von)
Jack & Quack (Jack Evans & Mike Quackenbush)
Peligro Abejas (El Generico & Paul London)
The Rising Sons (Yamamoto & Yang)


NON-WRESTLERS

Bill Alfonso (Manager)
Christy Hemme (Interviewer/Ring Announcer)
Mick Foley
Joey Styles (Commentator)
Taz (Commentator)

Spoiler:

CHAPTER I - HOW THE WWE GOT PUNKED
CHAPTER II - IF IT'S A WAR YOU WANT...

CHAPTER I
HOW THE GOT PUNKED

After CM Punk's infamous shoot on the state of WWE backstage politics on the June 27th, 2011 edition of Monday Night Raw, the Second City Saint still faces the inevitable end of his written contract with the company. Chairman of the Board, Vincent K. McMahon, has planned to resign Punk after the Money In The Bank PPV - but not all things always go as planned.

In fact, Vince's assurance that Punk will resign with the company is appearing to now blow up in his face, as his shoot promos garner him much more popularity with the wrestling world abroad than he could ever have foreseen before. With Punk's unwillingness to resign with the promotion, Vince and his creative team now plot a different end at Money In The Bank - a clean win for defending WWE Champion, John Cena.

Punk pleads with the creative team to at least let him go out in respectable fashion in his hometown of Chicago on the night of July 17th, 2011, but as us fans know all too well, Vince McMahon has never been the man to do what people think is 'the right thing to do.'

Enter WWE Money In The Bank. The Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. 14,815 fans are at a fever pitch from the very beginning of the show, chanting CM Punk's name at an almost deafening level. Vince McMahon is currently backstage; sweating at the brow. The WWE Chairman of the Board is riddled with nervousness, unable to calculate the scope of what his show may reap, by consequence of his eventual actions.

After an urgent meeting with his board of directors, Vince approaches CM Punk in the locker room, discussing over the finer parts of his main event match. Vince acknowledges to him that he has reconsidered the clean loss to John Cena, but that in order to maintain the prestige of the WWE Championship and save it from looking weak, he wishes for eventual RAW Money In the Bank Winner, Alberto Del Rio, to cash his contract in after the contest. Punk refuses. Already on edge, Vince McMahon storms out of the locker rooms, leaving behind only the trail of an already damaged ego...

***28 MINUTES INTO THE MATCH***

Michael Cole: ".. And Punk realizes he's gotta get Cena, and alm- almost a dead carcass, back into the ring."

Jerry Lawler: "Yeah, and that's the worse case scenario for Punk right there."

Michael Cole: "That's 240 pounds of dead weight you gotta get back into the ring, so CM Punk doesn't get counted out."


Cena appears physically consumed and in pain from Punk's GTS that had failed to land in the usual location of the chin, and this time rather, connected into the ribs of 'The Champ.' Both men remain outside of the ring, with CM Punk nearly falling over Cena in an attempt to catch his breath. Immediately after the referee begins the count, Punk rolls the WWE Champion back into the ring. He signals to the Chicago crowd, who praise him with yet another boisterous pop. Moments later, Punk returns to his feet, but is quickly met by an agile John Cena, who quickly locks him into an STF submission. Yet, Punk is able to reach back up to his feet, and begins striking Cena several times in his already weakened ribs, until he's finally able to break the hold. Punk kicks Cena in the sternum, and hoists him into position for yet another GTS, but Cena squirms out and lands on his feet! Cena delivers an opposing kick to the sternum, and lifts Punk up into position for the Attitude Adjustment..... but Punk breaks away! Cena spins back around, and is met with an Enziguiri Kick! Cena wobbles to the side for a second, until Punk lifts him back once more onto his shoulders, and cleanly connects with the GTS! He hooks the leg.... 1......... 2........ 3!!!!!!!!!




Chicago erupts into cheers, as the referee grabs the coveted WWE Championship, and hands it to CM Punk whilst raising his right arm. As the crowd and Punk attempt to collect themselves, the last few chords of "This Fire Burns," by Killswitch Engage blaring over the loud speakers, a familiar sight can be seen emerging onto the entrance ramp.


Michael Cole: "Well would you look at this, Mr. McMahon has came out here accompanied by John Laurinatis, the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations, one of the men verbally attacked by CM Punk a couple of weeks ago on RAW."


CM Punk continues to look exhausted, but has enough strength to peer back at the corporate stooges standing in his sight. Punk glares back at the two men with cold eyes, as the packed Chicago crowd can be heard booing from every corner of the Allstate Arena. Suddenly, Alberto Del Rio comes dashing past McMahon and Laurinatis, briefcase in hand. Del Rio slides into the ring, but is met with a very serious CM Punk who ducks under a clothesline attempt from Del Rio, and slides beneath the bottom rope of the ring. Del Rio appears confused, not realizing what he should do. CM Punk stares coldly back at McMahon, who looks as if death has now washed over his face, before jumping over the guard rail and exiting solemnly through the crowd, his newly won WWE Championship still in hand.

Originally Posted by Pro Wrestling Torch

As many of you may well know by now, now former WWE employee CM Punk has become the most talked about man in the business of professional wrestling. Confusion and disbelief ran a muck within the community of internet, and even casual fans, last Sunday at WWE's Money In the Bank Pay-Per-View live in Chicago, when CM Punk apparently broke kayfabe and dodged the planned attack by RAW's Money In the Bank Winner, Alberto Del Rio. A puzzled, and somewhat unseasoned competitor was the man once known as Dos Caras Jr., as he stood within the middle of the ring like a deer in the headlights, before CM Punk coldly made his exit through the crowd.

The realism was drenching out of every pore of the last 45 seconds of that show, which left us, the audience, ablaze with questions, doubts and all sorts of hypotheses. Am I really seeing this? Is it real? Is there something more to this? Has Phil Broo- err, I mean, CM Punk (don't mind me and my sporadic Russo-ism,) secretly signed back already with World Wrestling Entertainment and we're just all a long for the ride!?

Aside from the obvious effort to not mention Punk's name the next night on RAW, the Tuesday following, those questions we're all put to rest, as the man we know as CM Punk, became the sole focus of a viral video that ended up being uploaded straight to Youtube that night. Needless to say, almost as quickly as the video was completed, it had become an overnight sensation.

The back story follows as such. Punk had gathered at a favorite local restaurant just outside of the Rosemont area, adjoined by good friends and former ROH co-workers, Colt Cabana and Ace Steel. After a good night of enjoying Chicago's finest ribs, Punk was approached by a fan with a camera in hand, asking him why he did what he did. The rest... is history.

CM Punk: "First and foremost, let's get this straight. With all due respect, I'm not Bret Hart. What I mean by that is, you can only screw me once. So basically, I told Vince he could stick his anabolic steroid-injected c#@! right back into his slacks, live on Pay-Per-View."

CM Punk: "Don't fool yourself for a second into thinking that last minute was following storyline, because it wasn't. That was Vince McMahon, ladies and gentlemen, trying to kayfabe rape CM Punk in his rectum, let alone in the very town he was born and raised."

CM Punk: "But you know what... everything I said in those shoots were 100% legitimate. I meant every word that came out of my mouth. Every word. And I'll be damned if anybody's going to ever cut my microphone off again. Yes, Vince offered me a contract, but the word that was transplanted within that comment is 'lucrative.' Unless we grew up reading different dictionaries, I was by no means seeing how that contract translated into him realizing what I'm worth."

CM Punk: "I'm CM Punk.... and this has been an advertisement for the committee of recognizing Vince McMahon as a maniacal, self-righteous, soul-feeding pig. Vince, much like your theme song - your conscious has no chance in HELL."

Originally Posted by WrestlingClique.com

After a near decade of being the only chief competitor of World Wrestling Entertainment, TNA announced today that the company has filed for bankruptcy, due in part to poor television ratings, low pay-per-view buy rates, and an even lower backstage morale. "It was a good run while it lasted," said Eric Bischoff, "I think it's time now that I head back to Wyoming and focus on my brewing company. This business has given me so much, but I'm looking forward now to a quiet life in the mountains."

TNA's subsequent demise feels all too familiar, as the WWE once again reigns supreme amidst the top of the pro wrestling mountain. Look for the top company in the industry, who already have quite a lengthy roster to start with, to begin to trim down on workers with ending contracts in order to make room for the more drawable stars left behind by TNA...

@Kurt_Angle: "Thank you, to all the fans who have supported and believed in me after all these years. I'll never forget you."

@Sting: "It's time I settle down and live my life for God. Please allow those WWE rumors to die, people - I'm calling it quits."

@Ric_Flair: "Packing my bags and heading back to the WWE... I can at least promise you that I'm not the Anonymous RAW General Manager."

@Hulk_Hogan: "It looks like Dixie Carter should go back to college and re-take those Business Administration courses. This is a damn shame, brother."

@AJ_Styles: "To my brothers and sisters backstage, and the millions of you beloved fans, thank you for the memories. I'd be nothing today without your support. Watch out, Chicago - here I come."

Originally Posted by Prowrestling.com

Paul Heyman is a legend among the world of professional wrestling fans, mostly due in part to how he revolutionized the business in the 90's, as the creative force behind Extreme Championship Wrestling. Today, we had the chance to sit down with Mr. Heyman, to ask him a few choice questions about the wrestling business as it stands today, his plans for the future, and his thoughts on the hottest name in wrestling today; CM Punk.

PW.com: "Thanks for meeting with us, Paul."

Heyman: "It's my pleasure."

PW.com: "So, Paul, a lot has been going on lately within the industry of professional wrestling. The CM Punk-WWE debacle, Dixie Carter and the financial collapse of TNA, Ring of Honor failing to secure a television deal earlier this month... where do you see yourself amidst all of this chaos?"

Heyman: "Well, at the moment, I've been in a collaborative relationship with the UK newspaper and website, The Sun, as some of you may already know, as well as working on my multimedia project The Heyman Hustle. It's been a great joy to do, a nice change of pace, but I have certainly missed the industry as of late. To answer your question, of all my aspirations within the professional wrestling business, I'd be lying to you if I didn't say bringing back ECW hasn't always been a dream of mine."

PW.com: "So are you unhappy with the way things went down with WWE's utilization of the ECW brand?"

Heyman: "Oh, of course I was, and I still am. Don't get me wrong, Vince McMahon didn't have to bring back ECW, but he certainly wouldn't have done it unless he saw possible dollar signs involved with it, like any good businessman does. At the same time, I can't help but feel he tarnished it's legacy a little bit. There was definitely potential looming with that product, but as many of you know, Vince is a very stubborn, stubborn man."

PW.com: "Speaking of CM Punk earlier, how do you feel about him? His recent breaking of kayfabe at the WWE Money In the Bank PPV has been the most talked about topic among the internet wrestling community, and a couple of weeks ago on RAW, he referred to himself as a 'Paul Heyman Guy.' Care to comment?"

Heyman: "*chuckles* Yeah, I got a real kick out of that. Surprised Vince drowned his ego enough to let him say it. What can I say, he's a great competitor, and the biggest thing in the business right now for a very good reason. He's very intelligent, and I saw that instantly in him when we had the chance to work together back in 2006. I'll tell you this - of any of the people I'd choose first to work with in this business, he'd definitely get my vote."

PW.com: "Well thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule today to talk to us Paul - it's greatly appreciated."

Heyman: "Anytime, my friend. Anytime."