Even the Dirtsheets Get Worked (Corre Eight-Man Match)

The WWE did a pretty sneaky thing yesterday.

First, some backstory. The leaked WrestleMania card from a month or so ago had an eight man tag match listed in it featuring the Corre going up against a mish-mash of Smackdown faces (and Kane, who was a heel at the time). There was no hide nor hair of that match to be announced, even if the Corre was terrorizing Kane and Big Show for the better part of the last month. The other two names dropped were Kofi Kingston and Christian. The former name didn't make a whole lot of sense until Friday, when he dropped his Intercontinental Championship to the big name of the Corre, Wade Barrett. Christian didn't make sense at all, since he was totally entangled in the Edge/Alberto del Rio angle.

Santino's inclusion: An intentional mis-leak?
Photo Credit: WWE.com

Now, here's where the sneakiness comes in. They posted an error page with source code on it that intimated that the eight man tag would go on as leaked earlier. The dirtsheets, who don't like to look bad by and large, by the way, went wild with this, posting the spoiler and speculating that the angle to include Christian in the match would be shot later that night. Again, even though Christian was entrenched in the World Championship angle, they insisted that this match was going to happen. I had an inkling that they might have included Kofi in the match, but I wondered who'd they recruit for the fourth spot.

"You know," I thought, "The Corre attacked Kozlov and Santino two weeks ago. I wouldn't be surprised if one of them were inserted, or maybe both would get in and the Corre would debut a new member, like, I don't know, SKIP SHEFFIELD?" Well, the rogue group didn't debut a new member, but I was right in my own speculation partially. Both Santino and Kozlov were introduced as Kane and Show's teammates. The reaction from the sheets was one of surprise, even though the cards were right there in front of their faces.

Now, to their credit, I didn't really see anyone decrying it as a bad call in a fit of bitter balls about being wrong about their leaked sources, or even intimating that their sources may have intentionally leaked false information to make it a genuine surprise. However, this really shows some danger in how to report news. As with any news reporting, you really don't go on rumors. That doesn't stop reporters, mind you, and it's a big reason why I have great issue with ESPN. However, in wrestling, because of kayfabe, what the companies keep guarded is much more plentiful than what teams and leagues do in other sports. This leads to the sheets to grasp at straws in order to scoop everyone else, moreso than what happens in reputable journalism. It also leads to getting worked more than in other fields of reporting, mainly because of that kayfabe. With the dissemination of information so easy in the digital age, WWE has to send out fake leaks to keep people off their scents. They even worked people within their own company over The Rock guest hosting WrestleMania, telling everyone up to the moment before he came out the first time that it was going to be Justin Bieber.

Now, this instance is pretty benign. However, it serves as a reminder that it happens and that these dirtsheets need to be more responsible. Because while it's not a big deal whether they misreport that it's Kofi Kingston and Christian in a match instead of Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov, it can be a big deal if that reporting leads to something a little less concrete. Rumors and "leaks" like those were big reasons why people believed there was more than one Ultimate Warrior, or even worse and more insidious, that Lex Luger was the one who killed Miss Elizabeth, not herself via accidental overdose. I should know, I was in that latter camp for the longest time, and even though I don't know Luger personally, I feel shitty that I blamed him for something that wasn't his fault.

The moral of the story? Don't believe everything you read on news sites, even if they're reputable ones like F4W Online. Be judicious with how you believe spoilers from events that haven't taken place yet, and most importantly, judge the product with your eyes, not by what someone reports to you. It may not be that big a deal, but it's always your responsibility to be well-informed.

Even if the stakes are only who's in a piddling midcard match at WrestleMania.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!