5 YRS AGO FLAGSHIP: Keller & Martin: McMahon choosing Cena over Batista, remembering Howard Finkle, WWE roster cuts during pandemic, more

In this week’s Flagship Flashback episode of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast from five years ago (4-16-2020), PWTorch editor Wade Keller was joined by PWTorch's Todd Martin. They discussed these topics:NEWS ANALYSIS:

• Howard Finkel and what he represented as a great ring announcer but also how Vince McMahon treated him and what that says about McMahon.
• Todd's strong view on WWE’s decision to release so many wrestlers yesterday during a pandemic just days before the next investor’s conference call.
• A review of that week's AEW Dynamite (including the Jon Moxley vs. Jake Hager main event)
• A review of NXT on USA
• Thoughts on WWE Smackdown (including Braun Strowman vs. Shinsuke Nakamura)
• Analysis of WWE Raw (including Drew McIntyre’s promo, Drew vs. Andrade, and Nia Jax squashing Kairi Sane).
• The latest on UFC

MAILBAG TOPICS:

• What was the reason Vince McMahon backed Chris Benoit enough to give him the title win at WrestleMania 20, and is he the most surprising WrestleMania main eventer ever?
• Why did Vince McMahon ultimately choose John Cena over Batista?
• Why does WWE have such unbalanced power over their independent contractors compared to how things work in Europe?
• Is A.J. Styles a former WrestleMania headliners now that he closed out the first night of WrestleMania 36, or does that not count?
• What is a list of Bret Hart’s best matches in WCW?
• What was the deal with Hunter Hearst Helmsley and “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig in the fall of 1996?

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