CM Punk, Dolph Ziggler, SummerSlam and Latest WWE News from Ring Rust Radio

Ring Rust Radio is the best wrestling show on the airwaves, and this week was no different. With strong opinions on CM Punk, Dolph Ziggler, SummerSlam and more, this is where you need to get all of your weekly WWE nuggets.

Bleacher Report featured columnists Michael Cahill, Brandon Galvin, Mike Chiari and Donald Wood give the lowdown on all things going on in the wrestling world. Former ECW star Shane Douglas brought his inside knowledge to all the wrestling talk. The Ring Rust Radio crew gets down to the crux of the wrestling business with the professionals.

With another unpredictable episode of Ring Rust Radio in the books, you can't afford to miss another second of the action. Catch us LIVE every Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET (some language NSFW) or follow us on Twitter @RingRustRadio.

We may just read your questions and comments LIVE on the air. Visit our new website at RingRustRadio.com and you can also email us here: [e-mail].

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(Some language NSFW)

Upcoming Guests/Events

Aug. 28 - Former ECW star Tommy Dreamer

Sept. 11 - Former ECW and current ROH star Steve Corino

Late September - Former WWE star Matt Hardy

SummerSlam Review

With SummerSlam in the books, there were certainly plenty of WWE topics for the Ring Rust Radio crew to talk about. CM Punk retained his WWE Championship against John Cena and Big Show and seemed to turn heel the next night by attacking Jerry Lawler, Brock Lesnar defeated Triple H and Dolph Ziggler got revenge on Chris Jericho after a SummerSlam loss.

Question on Everybody's Mind: Was the Ziggler vs. Jericho Feud Handled Correctly?

It may not be the hottest topic in the WWE currently, but nothing created more of a debate among the RRR panelists than the Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho situation. Jericho defeated Ziggler at SummerSlam, but general manager AJ Lee put together a match the very next night in which Ziggler's Money in the Bank contract was on the line, while Jericho's WWE contract was on the line.

Some have argued that it was smart to give Jericho the win at SummerSlam since he hadn't won a big match since returning, but at the same time he is leaving to tour with his band, Fozzy. Ziggler, on the other hand, is supposed to be the WWE's next big star and next World Heavyweight Champion, yet he had to put over Jericho on the second-biggest show of the year.

Ring Rust Radio's Take

Arguments can be made for either side, but there is little doubt that the WWE creative team botched this one. Ziggler should be built to look like a credible force so his chances of succeeding as World Heavyweight Champion are heightened when the time comes to cash in.

Instead, Ziggler lost to a guy who was supposedly washed up and couldn't win the big one anymore. That is in addition to his loss to Alex Riley a couple weeks ago.

The WWE tried to save face by having Ziggler win on RAW, but he should have just won at SummerSlam in the first place. Even if Jericho had lost at SummerSlam and went on tour, he would still be cheered as loud as ever whenever he returns. That win did absolutely nothing for Jericho, but it definitely hurt Ziggler as he pursues the world title.

Bleacher Report Insider Scoop: RAW Wins Doesn't Make Up for SummerSlam Loss

Shane Douglas Extreme Rising Interview

After being such a fantastic guest the first time he joined Ring Rust Radio, we just had to have ECW legend and Extreme Rising promoter Shane Douglas back on the show. We were finally lucky enough to make that happen as The Franchise shared his thoughts on the up-and-coming Extreme Rising promotion, as well as the wrestling business in general.

Question on Everybody's Mind: Will Extreme Rising Continue Its Steady Improvement?

There is no question that things didn't go according to plan when it came to the original Extreme Reunion shows, and Douglas has been the first one to admit it. He and the other driving forces behind the promotion rebooted things a bit, however, and the Extreme Rising events in New York and Philadelphia were both considered major successes.

Now he is hoping that the Nov. 17 show in Philly will be even better. Douglas said that a lot of extenuating circumstances led to the first set of shows failing, but he learned from the mistakes and has done everything possible to turn things around.

There is currently plenty of buzz surrounding Extreme Rising, and if another great show takes place in Philadelphia, it should have some legs moving forward.

Ring Rust Radio's Take

Douglas and many of the guys involved with Extreme Rising were part of ECW, so they know what does and doesn't work with regards to running a wrestling promotion. Paul Heyman did a lot of great things from a creative perspective, but things often went awry in terms of administration. Douglas is trying to to excel at both in order to make Extreme Rising a major hit, however.

Based on the discussions we have had with The Franchise thus far, it is very clear that he has a great mind for the business and is incredibly passionate about wrestling.

Douglas called himself "the biggest mark there is" and there is no doubt that he wants Extreme Rising to thrive more than anyone. That alone won't be enough to make it happen, but Douglas has so much experience in the business that we like Extreme Rising's chances to sustain.

Bleacher Report Insider Scoop: Latest WWE Rumors

TNA Tidbits

TNA has definitely been a bit hit and miss recently, as there have been some decent angles, but also plenty of trash thrown out there as well. It all comes down to a matter of preference when judging story-lines in professional wrestling, but I'm sure that most would agree TNA is currently putting forth one of the worst professional wrestling angles in recent memory.

Question on Everybody's Mind: How Bad Is the A.J. Styles Storyline?

Over the past several weeks, TNA has been rolling with a story-line in which A.J. Styles is suspected to be the father of Claire Lynch's unborn child. She, Christopher Daniels and Kazarian have accused Styles of being the father and even have a picture of him passed out next to Claire in bed.

The storyline originally started when it was thought that Styles and Dixie Carter were having an affair, but it hasn't gotten any better.

The storyline is set to come to an end soon since the actor playing Claire Lynch has reportedly parted ways with TNA, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen in the first place. Just when it looks like TNA is starting to gain some momentum and begins receiving some compliments from wrestling fans, it does something like this and reaffirms WWE as the dominant force.

Ring Rust Radio's Take

This story-line has always been bad, but it reached a low point on last week's episode of Impact. Styles faced Daniels in a match where, if Styles won, he would take a paternity test the following week. If Daniels won, however, then Styles would have to admit that he was the father of Claire's child.

The worst part about it was that Sting accepted the stipulation as if he has some kind of authority over somebody admitting to being a father.

Thankfully, this angle is just about over because it was ill-conceived, and we have no clue why it was allowed to go for as long as it has. When Vince Russo was let go by TNA fans probably figured that it would signal the end of Russo-esque story-lines, however, apparently Russo is gone but not forgotten.

Bleacher Report Insider Scoop: TNA Impact Preview

Check back for more on World Wrestling Entertainment as it comes, and visit Bleacher Report’s Wrestling Page to get your fill of WWE/TNA. For more Wrestling talk, listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics you just can’t miss (some language NSFW).

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