NEW ORLEANS – Whether or not Batista truly knows what he is doing by accepting The Great Khali’s open challenge, their match at The Great American Bash is now official. The Animal couldn’t wait to put the ink on the paper when he sat across from the giant for a contract signing. When he wrote his name, he made a statement: he is certain and he is confident, despite Khali's impressive resume and massive size.

The Great Khali didn’t come to the table with the same enthusiasm as his pay-per-view opponent. Translator Ranjin Singh called Batista an animal who belongs in a cage rather than in the ring with a competitor like Khali, seemingly stalling the inevitable signing. After some thunderous words from The Great Khali himself, he signed and formally closed his open challenge.

Batista offered a handshake when the two Superstars rose from their seats, but when The Great Khali refused it, The Animal slapped him across the face. Batista may not be quite as tall as his opponent, but he is big enough to strike fear in the giant, who fled the ring. Displaying his power, The Great Khali tore the stairs away from ringside and threw them into the squared circle, only to have them returned via airmail along with every chair and a table. 

Edge did some redecorating of his own when he held a Mardi Gras celebration at New Orleans Arena. Dancing on a float in the middle of his parade, the World Heavyweight Champion made his way to the ring, surrounded by costumed party attendants. Unfortunately for the Rated-R Superstar, Kane was waiting behind one of those masks to give Edge a preview of things to come at The Great American Bash. The Big Red Machine sent Edge home from his party early, capping off a night of stalking the World Heavyweight Champion in the locker room area for two hours. 

SmackDown kicked off with a hard-fought match between Matt Hardy and Chris Masters that could have gone to either Superstar. Hardy found his way to a victory, however, with a Twist of Fate as his opponent at The Great American Bash, Montel Vontavious Porter looked on. When the bell sounded, MVP came to ringside and exchanged taunts, distracting Hardy and setting him up for Masters to apply the dreaded Master Lock from behind. MVP had his fun with the trapped Superstar, hitting him with elbows and the Playmaker and taking the mental advantage just nine days before they face. 

Mark Henry had his way with a Superstar, as well. The World’s Strongest Man was initially slated to take on Deuce, but the greaser pulled a fast one and convinced Eugene to take on his opponent in exchange for a ride in their hot rod. Eugene quickly regretted the deal when he saw Henry pound toward the ring. Deuce, Domino and Cherry laughed as they watched Eugene submit, ending a quick contest.

Jimmy Wang Yang also regretted stepping into the ring when he faced Finlay. The Irish brawler gave the redneck Superstar a taste of the Celtic Cross, leading to his victory, but that was only the beginning. Hornswoggle fired out from under the ring and donated his body to be used as a weapon as Finlay drove the leprechaun into Yang’s stomach.

In other SmackDown action, the Major Brothers picked up an upset victory against Chavo Guerrero & Jamie Noble when Brett Major pinned Chavo after a dropkick off the turnbuckle. Chuck Palumbo also earned his second win on SmackDown in quick, convincing fashion.

The Divas were in battle, as well. Victoria and Torrie Wilson faced to settle their differences after last week’s brawl during a photo shoot. The match took the beauties out of the ring as the two pounded each other, but Torrie took control and hit Victoria with two boots to the chest, leaving the former two-time Women’s Champion to be counted out.

Watch Friday Night SmackDown at 8/7 CT on The CW Network to see what develops just two days before The Great American Bash.

NORMAN, Okla. – Jim Ross has often talked about restaurant quality butt-whippings while calling matches on Raw, and now our fans will get a chance to find out just what that means. On Wednesday, Ross opened the first ever J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q, located just 20 miles south of Oklahoma City.

“I had a strong desire for a place of my own to come to and watch people have smiles on their faces, get a good meal and enjoy the fellowship and the camaraderie,” said the restaurant’s proud owner.

J.R. cites his upbringing for initially getting him involved in food. If it weren’t for the neighborhood cookouts he attended when he was younger, the desire for his own establishment may never have taken root.

“When we had company over for cookouts, it was a chance for families to get together,” he said. “My pals were there to play football with or shoot hoops or play baseball. The cookouts were more social occasions than anything else and the food was always great.”

Despite traveling for the last 34 years in the wrestling business, Ross has yet to find a match for his mother’s and grandmother’s cooking. He will share the wealth with his customers as much of the menu is made up of Ross family recipes.

“We’re not playing baseball or football or shooting hoops anymore, but the same feeling is here,” he said, determined to ensure a homey feeling at J.R.’s.

While seekers of a friendly environment are sure to be impressed with the hospitality, our fans will also be satisfied with the décor.

“Some of the biggest stars in the business donated their attire. Triple H’s boots, Ric Flair’s boots, Shawn Michaels’s outfit from WrestleMania, an outfit from Undertaker, boots ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin wore in three WrestleManias, Mick Foley’s last official Socko and Kane’s last mask, to scratch the surface.”

Also on display are pieces that make up one of the most impressive John Wayne collections of memorabilia in the country, as well as a room dedicated to Mickey Mantle.

“A lot of the decoration is also pictures that I’ve had the privilege of being involved in over the years,” he added, stating the photos and WWE pieces span four decades. “And there’s a real beautiful display of my induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in the entryway.”

J.R. was surprised at how supportive Superstars were, stretching from classic Legends like Dusty Rhodes to Superstars still building their legacy like Edge. When he asked for donations, he expected only autographed photos. When he finished collecting, Ross had a gathering of items that he never thought people would give up.

“I can’t thank all those guys enough. Their images are here in a respectful fashion, like they deserve.”

Not only do the walls accommodate our fans, but the heart of J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q beats the same way WWE’s does.

“It is much like the infrastructure of WWE in that it’s a team effort,” he explained. “Success is always a team effort.”

Ross hopes for his restaurant to grow someday, but he insists on sticking to a formula for quality.

“It’s like WWE, which has a great track record of building Superstars. You focus on one Superstar and you cultivate that Superstar’s image. Superstars have to deliver the goods as well, or it doesn’t work. We’re going to develop one star restaurant, the original J.R.’s in Norman, with the goal in mind that if we are successful, we are going to build others.”

J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q seats 130 people. The kitchen can handle smoking 100 slabs of ribs at once, courtesy of a giant smoker and hickory wood. Ross describes it as “Old school barbecue.” Going beyond the traditional, the menu also features things like barbecued pizza, quesadillas and soft tacos. There are also healthy choices, which many barbecue restaurants don’t provide.

The birth of J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q can be traced back to J.R.’s Cookbook. Virtually all of the menu’s recipes come either from the publication or from Ross’s family.

“We didn’t want to settle for average and we wouldn’t settle for average. Everything had to taste homemade and authentic. So I was involved in every phase of [the restaurant’s formation] except for the stages of physical construction. I was very much hands-on involved with the recipes. When your image and your name are on it, I just refuse to settle for average.”

J.R. even came up with most of the wording for the menus, which features sports-related items like Superstar Salads, Hall of Fame Ribs, Body Slammin’ Sandwiches, Tag Team Partner side orders and Finishing Maneuver desserts. He also contributed writing for the official site at http://www.jrsbarbq.com/.

“We’ve been having the equivalent of football two-a-days,” he said about the preparation. “We’ve been cooking and serving. It’s like doing scrimmages. And now it’s game day. At 11 this morning we kicked off, and it’s real and the season has begun.”

J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q also provides catering. It is open seven days a week between 11 a.m. and 10 p.m. For more information, call (405) 360-4BBQ.

“It’s real exciting for me. I’ve eaten at barbecue places all over the world and I just knew what I thought tasted good.”

Customers can also visit the restaurant’s Web site to order J.R.’s famous sauces, jerky and other products.

“It’s really a great place. We think our food is going to be outstanding and our staff is friendly. Like we say here, a smile and a thank you goes a long way.”

A little more than one year ago Beth Phoenix stepped into the ring for her first singles match on Monday Night Raw. The outcome wasn’t at all what she or anyone else could have predicted – a broken jaw from a concrete-fisted shot to the face from Victoria.

The injury placed Beth on the shelf for the remainder of 2006, and half of 2007. Her return to the ring on Monday when she filled in for an “injured” Melina was almost as big of a surprise as the ending of her first match. Laying low and staying “out of sight, out of mind” while on injured reserve worked flawlessly upon her surprise return.

“My return was definitely strategic; it was definitely time to get back in the ring,” Beth said. “I went through a lot to come back. It took two titanium plates and nine screws to fix my jaw, and that’s all I’ve thought about since it happened. Before my match, the only thought I had went back to last year; how I was laid up in the hospital, how my jaw was broken in three places and misaligned so I couldn’t even talk.”
 
The pain pulsating from her mangled jaw and the surgery it took to fix it was nothing compared to the pain of watching other Raw Divas compete on national television while etching their mark in the fabrics of WWE history. The backlog of disdain that built up for the Divas healthy enough to compete (as well as chew food or talk) instilled in Beth a necessity to prove that the injury she suffered wasn’t a case of glass jaw. Instead, it was a freak accident that only postponed the inevitable.

“From the time I was able to exercise again, I worked on honing my craft and ultimately becoming more dangerous,” she said. “All the time on the shelf only made me angrier and more focused at reaching the top of WWE.”

However, who does her anger target? The Women’s Championship only fits around one waist, which makes her coalition with former Women’s Champion Melina extremely peculiar.

“The other Divas are intimidated by me – as they should be,” she scoffed. “I’m here to make an impact. Making friends is not on my agenda. Don’t get me wrong, all the Divas have to share space and have to be professional, but whoever is in my way will be plowed over if they don’t move.”

But that didn’t answer the question regarding her alliance with one of WWE’s most notorious gold-driven Divas.

“Look, it’s simple: I’m here to do what’s best for me and my career to make it to the top,” she snapped. “It’s time for me to make up for all the time I lost when I was hurt; as I said, taking out my anger on any person who gets in my way of getting to the top.”
 
Now that Beth has returned to Raw and has apparently chosen to align herself with Melina, she may want to worry less about re-injuring her jaw and worry more about the new enemies she forged her first night back. 
bron:wwe.com

The murmurs in the Raw locker room started almost immediately after the Superstars – and millions of fans worldwide – heard the familiar gravelly voice and saw the all-too familiar sight: Triple H holding his trusty sledgehammer like a holy scepter.

The vignette was the second video of Triple H that the Raw Superstars and our fans had seen during the show last week, but it clearly had the most impact. The first video showed The Game shortly after he suffered a torn quadriceps at New Year’s Revolution this past January, having surgery and talking about his long recovery ahead. But in the second video, the 10-time World Champion did what he does best – capture attention – as he declared, “In case you have forgotten, I am The Game! And I’m back!” (WATCH)

The Superstars clearly hadn’t forgotten Triple H in the nearly six months since his injury. Eyes widened, and jaws dropped. Questions such as “What does this mean?” and “When is he coming back?” raced around the locker room. King Booker forgot his British accent as he muttered to Queen Sharmell, “Tell me, I didn’t just see that?”

Even the smirk on Randy Orton's face faded. When WWE.com asked the Legend Killer for his thoughts on his hated rival and former Evolution teammate’s return, he brushed aside our reporter’s recorder and said, “No comment.”

Orton brushed shoulders with Carlito, who was leaning up against the wall and munching an apple. He rolled his eyes and sucked his teeth as he watched Orton storm away. The Caribbean Superstar had watched the video like everyone else and was less than impressed.

“I don’t see what the big deal is,” Carlito spat. “I don’t feel he’s [Triple H] done much around here. He doesn’t add anything to Raw. We’re better off without him.”

Perhaps Carlito was just trying to play it cool, but he and all of WWE have been put on notice. The Game is coming back, and it looks like he’s ready start kicking a**. The list of Superstars who have fallen to Triple H is a who’s who of legends in sports-entertainment. From The Rock to Hulk Hogan to Mick Foley to “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and everyone else in between, The Game has made a legendary career out of taking on and beating the best.

As a gladiator who thrives on competing when the lights are brightest and the crowds are at their loudest, it had to have nearly killed Triple H to miss WrestleMania 23 and the 80,000-plus fans at Ford Field in Detroit. He had to have been stir-crazy watching the competition heat up on Raw week after week as he sat at home and rehabbed his injury.

But soon, as Triple H’s entrance song says, it will be “Time to Play The Game,” again on Raw, and some Superstars can’t wait for his return.

“To me, it's like having the flag bearer, the standard by which all things are measured [come back],” said Sandman, a Raw newcomer who has never been on the same brand as Triple H. “To me, I’m looking forward to his return because it can only mean things are gonna heat up around here.”

Triple H’s imminent return has also brought out the fan in some Superstars who happen to be former rivals.

“Triple H was the first guy I ever won the Intercontinental Championship from, and that was an honor in itself,” said Jeff Hardy. “It’s always great to see that guy – he’s so entertaining and creates such positive energy between him and our fans. I would love to see him. It would be great if he came back before the end of the summer. … I’m anticipating it like everyone else.”

Besides when, another question our fans and Superstars must be pondering is what will Triple H want when he returns. Who will he target? He has said he wants to win an 11th World Championship. However, he also had to be fuming when Randy Orton and Edge took credit for putting him on the sidelines when they were partners as Rated-RKO. In addition, could The Game seek new legends – or legends-in-the-making – to conquer, Superstars he hasn’t faced yet, like Bobby Lashley and Mr. Kennedy?

Only Triple H holds the answers to these questions. For now, Raw Superstars and the rest of WWE had best be on top of their game.

Watch the Triple H video from this past week's Raw.