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  February 22, 2018 12:52 AM PST

  LONDON -- It might be billed as a one-off, two-night special, but dont think for a minute that WWE hasnt got its eyes on bedding down with a permanent presence in the United Kingdom. Nike Roshe One Slip On .Paul Triple H Levesque, WWE executive VP of talent, live events & creative, pulled no punches when asked about WWEs ambitions for all of its brands across the pond.Well do 30-ish events here in the coming year, and were putting together plans now for the next four years, and really trying to stamp what we do here for the long term, Levesque told ESPN.The latest WWE brand to be launched, the United Kingdom Championship tournament, was announced in a bombshell news conference at Londons O2 Arena on Thursday morning.Although Levesque told ESPN that plans for the 16-man, single elimination competition -- which will take place live on the WWE Network Jan. 14-15 in Blackpool, England -- have been in the works for over a year, the timing of the announcement is certainly intriguing.Free-to-air U.K. terrestrial television channel ITV recently commissioned a one-off wrestling special, under the old World of Sport Wrestling banner that used to air in the 1980s, with the pilot set to be screened on New Years Eve in a prime-time slot.If the show is successful, it could become a regular staple of ITVs lineup. But while World of Sport Wrestling is looking to lock performers down to contracts, William Regal confirmed to What Culture Pro Wrestling in London that talent featuring in the U.K. Championship tournament will be free to work for other U.K. promotions.WWE has always had a very special relationship with the U.K., and I think this is another step in that relationship, of putting our foot on the ground and not only saying this is our home away from home, its our home, Levesque added.Thats the goal, is to become a weekly show. Hopefully we can make that work out, a weekly show that can feature the best of the U.K. talent and put that out there in a way that gives talent here a clear path into the WWE. Starting here and moving up the line and going through things. I think thats a huge opportunity and will help everybody down the line.With the popularity of cable television declining in the United States, and streaming platforms on the rise, it makes sense that WWE could be preparing the groundwork for a global territory system.The U.K. Championship tournament will no doubt provide a pipeline of local talent to WWEs developmental promotion, NXT, and Mexico, Japan and Canada would be obvious candidates in which to set up similar promotions.Its a way for us to get more talent, period, talent that want to lace up boots and put on trunks and do this, Levesque said. One of the things I found five years ago when we started this process [of the WWE Network], was giving people a pathway to get to the WWE. It gives us a platform like nothing else to go and do this type of content. I think you see that with NXT becoming its own brand, and the cruiserweights with 205 Live. That same process is beginning to happen there. And this is another step in that direction. Theres a systematic approach.[Before] it kind of was this pipe dream. You hear people like?Finn Balor?or Nigel McGuinness say, It was always my dream, but just how do you do it, right? You just kind of do what?you do and you do it for so long that maybe someone will see me or maybe Ill get my stuff in the right persons hands, but how?Balor did eventually make it to WWE in 2014, via NXT, after having wrestled for 14 years on the independent circuit, including eight years in New Japan Pro Wrestling.McGuinness, on the other hand, saw his in-ring career ended prematurely by health issues in 2011, after a deal with WWE fell through in 2009 for the same reason. But he will commentate on the U.K. Championship tournament alongside Michael Cole and Regal at the Empress Ballroom.Whether its a Pete Dunne or a Trent Seven or a Wolfgang, or any of the guys in this tournament -- theyre good, theyre really good, and youre gonna see that here, Levesque said. Were taking these guys and giving them the platform to show the world what they can do so they can fulfill their dreams and be a part of the WWE.People can put it out there in any way they want. Success is not just measured by getting to that, theres a lot of successful people [outside WWE], but I think anybody with any level of success, if you said, Would you like to be at Wrestlemania in front of 100,000 people? its a different level of success.Many of the 16 men competing in the U.K. Championship tournament have been pooled from Insane Championship Wrestling, Progress and Revolution Pro.Going forward, Levesque said WWE will work with the U.K. independent promotions to cultivate talent and provide them with a global platform.The only way you get better at this is by doing it and getting to those big dances and doing this with more pressure on you, he added. As they progress, theyre going from there to NXT or to Raw or SmackDown and making their way up that ladder.And to me now, if Im a kid looking at that, and Im sitting at Raw, now that burns into my head -- Im gonna do this for a living. Heres what I gotta do. I get trained, I go here, I go there. Theres my way to the top. It gives you a goal.There are several names conspicuous by their absence from the U.K. Championship tournament -- the three British stars not under a WWE banner who are most known to global audiences. Zack Sabre Jr. competed in the Cruiserweight Classic this past summer but is not believed to be tied down to a deal anywhere. Theres a definitive reason for Ring of Honor duo Marty Scurll and Will Ospreay (who also has a contract with New Japan Pro Wrestling), as those contracts restrict them from competing for WWE.Levesque confirmed to ESPN, though, that a name like Ospreay is definitely on WWEs radar.Will Ospreay is an amazing talent, he said. Theres a lot of amazing talent out there. When theyre available, when its the right time for them, I wanna work with all of them.Its funny to me people say things along the lines of this guy is an amazing talent but maybe hes not the right fit, or this guy doesnt have the experience. If theyre great at this, then talent is talent, Levesque continued. I wanna bring in the best talent; I wanna help them be better. I wanna take our process and help them be the best they can be.Some people go like, Oh, they try to fix things. We dont try to fix things, we try to make them better. I learn something new every single day about the business because it changes on a daily basis. Anybody [who] thinks they dont have anything to learn in this business is crazy. Nike Roshe One Print .  Breaking three of his own world records on his way to winning in Paris, Chan silenced the critics and left the audiences standing in appreciation and awe. Nike Roshe One Cheap . -- Bobby Ryan helped the U. http://www.nikeroshesalecheap.com/cheap-nike-roshe-one/nike-sportswear-roshe-one-dmb.html .com) - Manchester City midfielder David Silva is expected to miss the next four weeks because of a calf problem. The reveal season for Mean Streets of Gadgetzan is in full swing, with 132 cards set to be revealed in Hearthstones next expansion. With 132 cards to review -- 131 after our Grimestreet Pawnbroker card reveal -- we better skip the exposition and get moving with the second big chunk.Dont laugh about the Counterfeit Coin, its a legit option even without an effect. Not as good as Druids Innervate, it does fit well into Rogue decks. Rogue has a number of Combo cards, all which this activates and in Miracle builds, helps cycle your deck with an extra mana, that one extra mana sometimes being crucial in a big Gadgetzan Auctioneer turn.Lotus Assassin is fine as a five-mana 5/5 in that it starts with Stealth and any things it kills that it survives gives it another Stealth, meaning that either the enemy uses some kind of area-of-effect spell to get rid of it or you get to determine the trades. Theres no place for this card in Miracle, but it could see a niche role in a Burglary-type deck that uses more minions. Probably the best place for this card will be in Arena, where Stranglethorn Tiger, a 5/5 with Stealth that doesnt have a chance to get its Stealth back, sees play.Shaku, the Collector, if played at all, will see play if the card-stealing versions of Rogue are strong enough to see competitive play. The Stealth effect is key here because a 2/3 for three mana can be easily removed, which Hobgoblin decks never became a competitive thing (a three mana 2/3 that did not have Stealth).Priest isnt the only lower-tier class to get some help in Gadgetzan, Paladins suffered as well, with the NZoth Paladins getting pushed out the tournament meta, which only the occasional Anyfin Paladin keeping Uther in tournament play.We start off with a reasonable secret in Getaway Kodo. Unlike some of the weaker Paladin cards, this one can see significant play outside of a Secret Paladin build. Mages Duplicate essentially did the same thing for three mana (but two minions) and Getaway Kodo can be used similarly here. In fact, its probably better outside of the Secrets builds since playing it is better with one huge minion while the more Secret-heavy build relies on having a large board that makes trades awkward. And you want to be sending something like Sylvanas Windrunner or Ragnaros back to your hand, not the 2/1 Defender you get from Noble Sacrifice.Meanstreet Marshal, Grimestreet Outfitter, and Grimestreet Enforcer all enable minion-heavy builds in which Paladin rapidly draws low-mana cards, buffs them, and floods the board. Meanstreet Marshal is a Loot Hoarder with a condition but a discount and if youre playing the other two cards, youll likely have buffed this card by at least one attack. In Arena, dont expect to see the Marshal.The Grimestreet Outfitter is a bit like a bargain basement version of The Mistcaller in Shaman decks. It empowers your hand early for a tempo loss, but at least it does it early enough in the game that the bonus and hand size may be worth it. The Enforcer might as well be a 4/4 with Taunt, simply because removing it will be priority if the player dropping this has a hand - think of it as an Emperor Thaurissan for aggressive decks.Small-Time Recruits is a straightforward card to go along with this Aggro Paladin theme. Paladin doesnt have a ton of natural card draw without conditions, theres no Warlock hero power or two-mana Wrath. If youre playing this kind of deck, this card helps refill your hand. If you dont, the card really doesnt do anything.Wickerflame Burnbristle is my favorite of the Paladin cards released and may see play in different deck archetypes. Shielded Minibot was a terrific Paladin card, a two mana 2/2 with Divinne Shield. Nike Roshe One Hyperfuse. For one mana more, you get a Taunt and the ability to restore health as well, probably four points unless your opponent burns removal. Aggro decks could ignore Shielded Minibot, they actually have to remove this card.Not a lot of Mage so far -- the class isnt hurting -- and here were have a card in Manic Soulcaster that makes sense for a more Grinder-style of Control Mage that seeks to slowly crush the opponent and win sometime near or during fatigue. A three-mana 3/4 is always playable even if you cant take advantage of it -- Fjola Lightbane and Eydis Darkbane never became key cards in constructed, but there were never cards that you hated to run have. The ability to add an extra Sylvanas Windrunner or Ragnaros or Archmage Antonidas to your deck can have value to this type of Mage. Freeze Mage lists are too tight to take much advantage of this card.In Shaky Zipgunner and Trogg Beastrager, we get two cards that enable a minion-type Midrange Hunter over the Secret-heavy style weve been seeing since Karazhan. Both are reasonably statted cards with decent, but not overpowering effects that will probably see more play in Arena rather than a more refined tournament deck.I love the concept of Piranha Launcher, both for the art/concept -- who wouldnt like to have a gun that shoots piranhas? -- and the novel effect it has. Problem being is that its too slow to fit into any current Hunter deck, it begs for a Control Hunter deck, but the cards just arent there for that.We start things off with the simple Mark of the Lotus, a one-mana spell giving all your minions +1/+1. Essentially, take Power of the Wild, make it one mana cheaper, but in return, remove the opportunity to summon a 3/2 Panther. Its a good buff card -- as is Power of the Wild -- but its a real cost given that sometimes you just want the 3/2 Panther. Frequently youll draw this card without a good board state for the buff. I can see decks that play two Powers of the Wild replacing one of them, but I cant see this card supplanting it entirely.Pilfered Power looks very powerful on its face, but the three mana cost is significant, which keeps it from being as good as it looks at first glance. Decks that run a lot of smaller minions, necessary to get the most value from this card, likely dont have enough large minions to really take advantage of the extra mana. And decks that would like this effect the best, if they have a large board, theyve probably already won.Lunar Visions gives a significant mana discount, a very powerful thing to have in a card game, but you also have to build a very specific type-of-deck to make this preferable to Nourish, one that is extremely minion heavy. And thats hard to do in Druid, because Wild Growth, Innervate, Wrath, and Swipe are must-haves and you could easily put in another 6-8 desirable spells in your deck, even in a Beast build. If you dont have high odds of drawing two minions, Nourish is preferable.Hey, a free 7/7! Kun the Forgotten King has a nice upside, a free 7/7 on Turn 10, but theres a serious cost as you cannot play this card at all until 10. Its not like one of the Giants that you can feasibly reduce the baseline cost, but a card that has to stick in your hand until you have ten mana. And the longer this card is in your hand, the fewer options you have in your hand to make sure you survive that long. An interesting card that might see play -- maybe well finally get a true Aviana Ramp Druid -- but this could very easily be one of the more overrated cards in the set.31 down, 131 to go! ' ' '