January 23, 2006 Observer Newsletter: UFC vs. WWE head-to-head, Sting makes TNA return

The second WWE vs. UFC Monday night battle on 1/16 saw WWE load up with the strongest Raw line-up since the last battle, while UFC countered by copying pro wrestling by promising the biggest announcement in the history of the company and one that will change UFC forever.

WWE’s idea was to end the show by solidifying John Cena as a star as he would save Ric Flair, who is the most beloved character in the company right now as the only guy who could break up live sex and still get cheered for it. Instead, Flair was the one everyone was talking about, as he rose from the dead and actually had people believing, even though they knew the company would never pull the trigger, that he could win the title one last time.

UFC expected to counter by having more action as opposed to the usual Monday night gabfest. Instead, matches that were booked evenly ended up in all but one case ending immediately, and there was more stalling, packages and talking.

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