First round goes to Raw
The first week of the official WWE brand split is in the books, and Raw definitely had the better show.
However, there are many ways to look at this.
Raw has way more talent that Smackdown does, so the early split of the brands should favor Raw most of the time.
The WWE鈥檚 flagship show was given a much deeper roster and look no further than the celebration in the ring at the end of Battleground.
If you watch the event again on the WWE Network, watch the post-match celebration after Dean Ambrose retained the WWE title against Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns.
To say that the talent in the ring was less than stellar is an understatement.
Raw is without a doubt 鈥渢he show鈥� when it comes to the WWE, but with time, Smackdown will be able to hold its own.
There are a lot more established wrestlers on Raw, and Smackdown will have time to build up wrestlers.
Most reputable wrestling journalists agree that it will take time for Smackdown to get things going, but as the old adage says, Rome wasn鈥檛 built in a day.
Fans have to understand that this is a long-term process and while Raw was more entertaining this week, give Smackdown a few months.
When you consider that arguably the top two draws on Smackdown, other than Ambrose and A.J. Styles, are both past their prime (John Cena and Randy Orton), there is a lot of room for growth with younger stars.
Yes, Raw won this week, and it will probably win most of the upcoming weeks and months, but Smackdown needs time to create stars.
And considering the fact that The USA Network wants higher ratings from Smackdown, the WWE needs to establish the stars soon.
Dudley鈥檚 sign extensions
The Dudley Boys signed contract extensions this week so look for them to be around a while longer.
I was surprised that the WWE did not split the team up, as Bubba Ray would be a major player as a singles competitor.
But for the time being, they will remain a team.
1960s Mt. Rushmore
After several weeks of countless news stories in the pro wrestling world, things slowed down a bit and we are able to finally take a look at the 1960s.
This decade was one of change as the powerful National Wrestling Alliance began to splinter when Vince J. McMahon, father of current owner Vince K. McMahon, broke away from the NWA.
Here are the top four performers from the decade in my opinion.
Bruno Sammartino
While others from here in the Pittsburgh area hold Sammartino on the highest pedestal, I am of the belief that he was an amazing regional wrestler that got the most out of what he could.
Supremely talented, he was a wrestling God in the northeast as the WWWF took advantage of the huge Italian population in the region.
While other territories do not see him as we do since we live in Pittsburgh, there is no doubt that Sammartino deserves this spot, and it will not be his last appearance in the series.
Killer Kowalski
A repeat honoree, Kowalski was the epitome of a top villain during his time.
Had Kowalski come up in a different era, say an era with national television, he would have been an even bigger star and for sure he would have been a multi-time world champion.
The Fabulous Moolah
Arguably the longest-tenured female wrestling star in history, The Fabulous Moolah was a must for this decade.
While she was later billed as the women鈥檚 champion for 26 years in a row, she actually wasn鈥檛, but her fingerprints are all over the lineage of women鈥檚 titles in various promotions.
In my book, she is the godmother of women鈥檚 wrestling.
Lou Thesz
This is the fourth, and final, decade that Thesz is listed.
Think about that for a second, his career was strong enough to last nearly 40 years.
In comparison, Steve Austin鈥檚 run in the WWE as the top guy last around five years, minus injuries.
1970s Mt. Rushmore returns next week
Next week, we look at the 1970s.
Will the Mt. Rushmore for that decade be much different than this one?
In memory
This week鈥檚 column is dedicated to the memory of 鈥淎unt鈥� Paulette Moorer.
Email questions/comments to Bill at powerhousehughes@gmail.com or tweet them to @BillHughes_III