JR: WrestleMania 26, Tazz's Career, Stables, More

Jim Ross is back with another blog from jrsbarbq.com. Here are the highlights for this week:

- No, the wrestlers do not stay at the same hotel, but catching them at the right moment at the hotel, while they are not dining, or waiting in line at an airport will oftentimes work. It is a game of chance, but some fans seem to know where the wrestlers stay better than many of us in the company. Don't ask me how, as I haven't a clue.

- The WWE has a group of people that consider various sites for WrestleMania and they try and work a year or two in advance. I was in that loop at one time, but no longer am. I have a good idea where Mania will be in 2009, but that isn't for public consumption ? as of yet.

- The WWE has access to the complete WCCW library, so one would think that material would be a staple on WWE 24/7 for years to come. I see more World Class oriented DVDs being released in the future as well. Iceman was a solid in ring hand, but a better talker than a wrestler in my opinion. "It be's that way, some time," as Ice Man used to say.

- A one time, Gary Hart was one of the very best managers in the biz. Bill Watts once told me that when Hart was on top of his game he was hard to beat and could verbalize with the best of them. Gary Hart created a legitimate aura that encouraged fans to genuinely dislike him and fans would pay to see him and his wrestlers destroyed. That emotion is largely missing today. I am sure that Gary could contribute creatively with any company, but sometimes it is really challenging for "old timers" to survive in the corporate world of which they are unaccustomed.

- Injuries shortened Tazz's wrestling career. I am sure he would have preferred to go out on his terms, but that, unfortunately are the breaks of the game sometime. If Tazz had remained healthy he would have had a great run in the WWE, despite his critics saying he was too short, which I personally never bought into.

- I do not personally know if Bob Sapp wants to make the physical commitment to become a wrestling star. I do like wrestlers who come from successful tenures in other sports or with extensive sports backgrounds getting into wrestling, but only if their hearts are in it.

- There was nowhere to go with that scenario of J.R . being a bad guy. There was no pay off. I wasn't going to become a wrestler and I felt I was cast in that role by people, more or less out of spite, because they knew I had no desire to become an in-ring performer whether it be a good guy or a bad guy. It was short term, near-sighted booking that had no pay off and was merely a TV ploy to perhaps enhance ratings.

- I could see factions and groups coming back, before I could see young wrestlers going out on their own and verbalizing their own promos.