By: Bobby Melok | December 6, 2011
On the WWE’s recent tour of Japan, several Superstars took part in a very special sports-entertainment tradition. They have the jacket and full stomachs to prove it.
The Ribera Steakhouse is a landmark in the Land of the Rising Sun. For years, Superstars have made pilgrimages to this small steakhouse in Tokyo, where their predecessors have wined and dined.
Photographs of those who have passed through for a meal line the tiny restaurant from floor to ceiling. Superstars sit down for a king-sized helping of steak, rice and corn. When they’re finished, they become members of an exclusive group when the restaurant’s proprietors present them with a satin coat emblazoned with its bull’s head logo.
For some, like WWE Champion CM Punk, it’s a chance to follow in the footsteps of their heroes. “I always remember looking at early wrestling magazines when I was a wee little Punker and seeing guys in these Ribera Steakhouse jackets and it became this elite group,” he told WWE.com.
“If you knew a guy that had a Ribera coat, that meant he did a tour of Japan. It’s a coveted thing.”
While satin jackets are no longer trendy or part of mainstream fashion, having been relegated to the retro lines of athletic clothing companies, Ribera’s garments are a badge of honor in the world of sports-entertainment.
[ Digitals | Screen caps ]
WWE Champion CM Punk, Alberto Del Rio and The Miz signed a contract for their WWE TLC bout
Now that the combatants for WWE TLC’s WWE Title Match were set, the Interim Raw General Manager upped the ante by making the bout a Triple Threat Tables, Ladders and Chairs Match. Although it is one of WWE’s most career-threatening bouts, all three Superstars eagerly signed the contract before attacking each other in an all-out brawl. As officials hit the ring to try to break up the melee, the WWE Universe cheered wildly, knowing they will see one hell of a match in two weeks.
WWE Championship Triple Threat TLC Match
WWE Champion CM Punk, Alberto Del Rio and The Miz will square off in a Triple Threat Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match with the WWE Title on the line. Only one man can leave a winner when the current and two former WWE Champions meet in the first-ever Triple Threat TLC Match for the WWE Championship at WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, live on pay-per-view Sunday, Dec. 18.
Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis announced this high-octane match where the Superstars will use tables, ladders and chairs as weapons and as tools to reach the WWE Title, which will be suspended some 20 feet in the air over the ring. Dangerous, harrowing and thrilling, TLC matches push competitors to the limit physically and mentally as they battle at dizzying heights in their quest for squared circle immortality.
The Miz and Del Rio had to defeat two SmackDown Superstars – Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan, respectively – on Raw Supershow to earn their spots in the WWE TLC Match. While John Cena was named as another participant, he gave up his chance at the WWE Title to give his friend, Zack Ryder, an opportunity to earn a U.S. Title Match against Dolph Ziggler.
John Cena, Alberto Del Rio, CM Punk, Mark Henry, The Miz and Randy Orton all had an amazing year, but which competitor deserves to win the Slammy for “Superstar of the Year?” Vote now!
WWE.com has added photos of CM Punk from Yokohama, Japan.
Related Links:
Digitals > Other > WWE Overseas 2011 > Yokohama, Japan
@CMPunk: Yes, this really happened. pic.twitter.com/4i3m1V0w
Related Links:
Pictures from other websites > Twitter.com > CM Punk’s Twitter
CM PUNK
Last Week: 1
This Week: 1
The WWE Champion successfully defended his title against the underhanded Alberto Del Rio on Monday night.
Thanks to Kim, we have scans from the Holiday 2011 issue of WWE Magazine. Check them out below and make sure you stop by Kim’s sites, Ted-DiBiaseJr.com and Jillian-H.com, the ultimate sources for Ted DiBiase Jr. and Jillian Hall!
Related Links:
Books and Magazine Scans > WWE Magazine > Holiday 2011
CM Punk spoke briefly at the beginning of Colt Cabana’s Art of Wrestling podcast this week. Head over to WeLoveColt.com to listen to the show.
Bring It Back!: ANY classic WWE Title that’s NOT the Spinner
By: Michael Burdick | December 1, 2011
click to enlarge
WWE.com joins the call of the WWE Universe on Facebook and Twitter, pleading for the WWE to abandon the current “Spinner Title” design and return to the pride and tradition radiated by past WWE Titles.
The WWE Title carried to ring today was created specifically for John Cena, reflecting a time when The Cenation Commander-in-Chief was rapping his way through SmackDown. However, while Cena has long since traded in the giant chain around his neck for dog tags, the Spinner design is still “kicking it old school.” Shouldn’t it have long since gone the direction of other classic personalized titles like Edge’s Rated-R Superstar Spinner modification and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s “Smoking Skull” Championship?
If a change is required, there is no shortage of prestigious replacements from which to pick. Looking back through the annals of WWE history, the Winged Eagle Title has to be at the forefront. [...]
Still, the sheer popularly of the Winged gold does not make it the only brass ring in the sea. Another earth-shattering possibility would be its Attitude Era cousin, featuring a variation of the Eagle, along with a more circular structure similar to the traditional championship, a bigger globe and the larger “Champion” on the bottom.
Not only was the Attitude Era Title carried by greats including The Rock, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and a slew of other tremendous champions, but bringing back a symbol of WWE’s period of uncontrollable bedlam is truly befitting of the rebellious nature of the current titleholder CM Punk. [...]
