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According to a recent interview in the New Zealand Herald (of all places), WWE superstar John Cena reveals that while his neck surgery went well, he’s still six weeks to two months away from an in-ring return.

The interview, which never talked about that time Cena wore baby clothes in-ring, quoted Cena as saying, “The spinal cord is a very touchy thing to start messing with and that was a wake-up call that’s for sure…”

One has to wonder if, with a neck injury like this, Cena’s career might have been shortened and will be limited upon his return, much in the way Kurt Angle’s career has been. Although he can continue to wrestle, one might expect a more careful, less risky style from the former champ upon his return to the ring.

Former WWE announcer Jack Reynolds passed away late last week. Reynolds was a WWE announcer just prior to the era in which WWE became a coast-to-coast brand name. He did the announcing on WWE All-Star Wrestling in the early 80s, then was the original host of Prime Time Wrestling on USA, a show that preceded the WWE Raw era.

Reynolds was not a major part of the WWE picture by the time WrestleMania and Hulkamania swept the nation with digital signage, so only long-time East Coast fans are probably familiar with Reynolds work. This is especially true due to the fact that by the time WWE went coast-to-coast, the typical broadcast teams consisted of folks like Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Gene Okerlund and and a young Vince McMahon.

Still, Reynolds was a key figure during the time leading up to pro wrestling’s big boom in the 1980s. Those who remember him are sure to miss him.

Although he’s at least “a year away” from his WWE debut, according to his father, Reid Flair may eventually become the newest member of the Second Generation faction that currently includes Cody Rhodes, Ted DiBiase Jr., and Manu.

While it’s a ways off, if he matures and develops properly, adding Reid Flair to that group could become WWE gold: can anyone say “the second coming of the Four Horsemen?” Having a young Flair join a slightly older faction that includes Rhodes, DiBiase and Manu would certainly be a step toward having son Reid follow in his father’s legendary footsteps.

While it’s far to early to know if Reid can be successful as a professional wrestler, you have to believe that it is the potential of something like this which has WWE talent scouts watching Reid Flair’s development with more than a casual interest, even if it means swapping Mexican recipes with Flair family members.

Chris Jericho versus Shawn Michaels is one of the longest-running feuds in recent WWE history, and for good reason; not only can these two men deliver devastating, impressive matches each time they are called upon to do so, but both are so good on the mike and such skilled in-ring storytellers, that even after running for more than six months, the feud doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of aging.

Perhaps that’s because the WWE writing crew is really putting their creative juices to work on this epic storyline; each time you think the feud has reached its crescendo, a new chapter unfolds that reveals something about one or both participants in the feud.

It’s not often that I admire the writing in pro wrestling; too often it’s chock-full of cheap, tawdry storylines meant to inspire the cheap laugh or shock. But Jericho-Michaels has been a fascinating ride, and considering to began during the waning days of the shorter, but still interesting, Michaels-Flair feud, it’s amazing how this thing is still going on.

The last time a WWE storyline ran this long was when Triple H and Stephanie McMahon began the infamous McMahon-Helmsley Era storyline, around a decade ago. This storyline has been far more fascinating. And I doubt it will inspire as many Halloween invitations and Steph masks.

Hulk Hogan’s latest foray into wrestling looks like a big, fat bust. Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling promotion features a load of D-list celebrities who, it seems, can’t wrestle their way out of a wet paper bag - but they’re learning the trade.

That’s the concept behind the show; part wrestling promotion, part reality show in the vein of WWE’s original Tough Enough competition, the show fizzles out of the game as literally over half of the celebrities cast in it appear not to even have known what professional wrestling was, prior to the first episode.

While it’s clear most of the cast would be better off on a show about tropical cruises, Dennis Rodman and Danny Bonaduce at least look like they might be trying.

Still, with such old-school WWE castoffs as Brian Nobbs of the Nasty Boys, Brutus Beefcake, and Jimmy Hart running the show, it’s unlikely this CMT program is going to gain any traction.

Next!

The writing had been on the wall for a while.

First, he was separated from tag partner Trevor Murdoch, who was released by WWE. Then, after being reinvented as Chris Jericho’s protege, Lance Cade disappeared from WWE TV for a while. Last Tuesday, the hammer finally fell: WWE released Lance Cade.

While Cade never really got over with the audience, and thus this news is probably going to be about as interesting as the latest developments in acne treatments, the real item of interest here is a transparency question.

The WWE never really stated directly why Cade was released. However, Jim Ross, on his blog, dropped hints, detailing enough of the circumstances about events leading up to Cade’s release that suggest the real reason is a violation of the WWE’s Wellness Policy.

About a year ago, in the wake of the Benoit Family Tragedy, WWE made it very public that they would soon be much more transparent when employees are released for Wellness Policy violations. Now, a year later, it seems the company may be slipping back into its old method of covering over the actual circumstances.

That’s unfortunate, as it reduces public trust in WWE and allows performers to remain in denial about possible problems they may be facing in their lives.

Let’s hope that if Cade is facing certain behind-the-scenes problems, he will face them down directly and get his life back on a positive and healthy track.

Although Ric Flair was given one of the classiest send-offs in all of WWE history, the ring veteran isn’t taking retirement well. According to online reports, he’s even negotiating for a return to the wrestling ring.

If it happens, however, it won’t be in WWE, TNA or even in the US. Word is, Flair is negotiating with several promotions based out of Japan for some matches that would inflate his bank account impressively, which just goes to show how important budgeting and planning is, even in retirement.

Flair’s official line currently is that his retirement applies only to the US and European markets. Let’s hope the Living Legend doesn’t embarrass himself in his golden years, the way Muhammad Ali has, on occasion.

The Jericho-Michaels feud has been money for WWE ever since it began in earnest, just after WrestleMania last spring. Several Match of the Year candidates have sprung out of this feud, and placing the strap on Jericho at the last PPV makes tonight’s match mean even more.

Neither Jericho nor Michaels have ever needed alcohol rehab, to the best of my knowledge, nor have they ever checked into a drug treatment center, and that’s great since it means they had very clear minds going into tonight’s 22-minute marathon main event match, which is a Michaels specialty stip: a ladder match.

Like most ladder matches, this one was full of great high-spots, holy crap moments and near-finishes. After all these months of feuding with Jericho only rarely getting the upper hand, the big win here means a lot more in solidifying Jericho’s claim on the title than it would have meant if not for the six-month-plus build-up of this top-notch feud by two exciting in-ring performers.

Here’s hoping Jericho moves on to a new feud now for a while, to begin a build-up to a potential WrestleMania main event match… perhaps against Michaels. But if they keep harping at this feud every PPV, it’ll be stale by the time the next WrestleMania rolls around.

That’s it for my No Mercy 2008 coverage! Stay tuned for other news and notes between now and the next PPV, which by the way is one of my favorites: Cyber Sunday 2008!

WINNER: Chris Jericho retains the World Heavyweight Title

RATING: 9.0 (out of 10)

Before this match, there was an entertaining segment involving MVP, Ted DiBiase Jr., Cody Rhodes, Manu, C.M. Punk, and Kofi Kingston that was entertaining, and a couple of too-brief filler matches in which Batista totally dominated JBL and Big Show won via TKO stoppage over Undertaker. But I’d rather skip right to the meaty dual main event matches, to shine a sconce on the real interesting matches tonight.

The first of these was a SmackDown match involving Triple H defending the WWE Title against Jeff Hardy. These two rarely hook up, but it’s always been memorable when they do and tonight’s match was no exception. Lots of fast-n-furious near-falls, reversals and such that really kept a person guessing at the finish, and Jim Ross was in top form on the announcing duties, really doing great at putting Hardy over as a legit threat to Triple H’s title reign.

The final minute or two is what put the match over the top and made this, in my opinion, the best match of the night. Great 17-minute match.

WINNER: Triple H retains the WWE Title

RATING: 9.1 (out of 10)

The Kane-Mysterio match was the first match of the night to really get the PDAs blazing with IMs. Kane has been threatening to unmask Mysterio for several weeks now.

So it was a bit disappointing that the match ended suddenly with what looked like a brutal chairshot on Mysterio by Kane, delivered while Rey was in the air, in the middle of a jump.

Not sure if this one’s storyline or a legit injury-accident in the midst of a match, but that kind of uncertainty seems to be what they were going for. For the eleven minutes it lasted, though, the match had some juice, which is saying something considering Kane is not one of my favorite workers by any stretch of the imagination.

WINNER: Rey Mysterio by DQ

RATING: 7.7 (out of 10)

Ever since pairing with Santino Marella for comedy, Beth Phoenix has been able to get far more over with WWE audiences than she ever did as an anonymous powerhouse woman wrestler. Therefore, her title retaining win tonight against Candace Michelle is completely understandable.

Despite being a brief, four-minute match - not much longer than the normally give on Raw for a women’s title match - the action was fairly consistent and high-energy, which is important for the appeal of these matches.

Now that the Glamarella storyline seems to be headed toward break-up mode, it’s unlikely the mismatched pair will be selecting any Bugaboo strollers anytime soon, although if they did “settle down” for a life full of rugrats, that’d be a top-notch choice of stroller.

Anywho, the match was short but fun. A nice change-of-pace match, but nothing special.

WINNER: Beth Phoenix retains Women’s Title

RATING: 5.0 (out of 10)

For an opening match, the ECW Title match between current champ Matt Hardy and challenger Mark Henry was, at least, more entertaining than an infomercial for the best acne treatment. Hardy and the ECW Title have received a lot of positivity recently; Hardy pinned Triple H on the MyNetwork debut of SmackDown, and this win over Henry solidifies and legitimizes Hardy’s place as ECW champion.

The match was under 10 minutes, though, and opened the show, so it’s not like ECW is gaining that much respect; but at least with the strap on Hardy, they’re getting better than the lumbering performances recent super-heavyweight ECW champs have been able to produce.

WINNER: Matt Hardy retains the title

RATING: 7.5 (out of 10)