WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has paid tribute to the late Burt Reynolds. The Canadian icon took the Twitter to write the following about the film star: “I had the pleasure to see Burt recently. Although visibly frail, he remembered me. I thanked him for his part of Wrestlemania X. He was a real fan, thoroughly enjoyed the event, the wrestlers & fans. He was a class act and I’m honoured to have been able to tell him that. R.I.P.”
Reynolds actually took part in WWE’s tenth WrestleMania event. The star of Cannonball Run and Deliverance served as ring announcer for WrestleMania X’s main event between Bret Hart and Yokozuna.
WWE also acknowledged the passing of Reynolds. Issuing the following statement: WWE is saddened to learn that Academy Award-nominated actor and Hollywood icon Burt Reynolds has passed away at the age of 82. The star of more than 50 feature films, including “The Longest Yard,” “Smokey and the Bandit,” “The Cannonball Run” and “Boogie Nights” (for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Reynolds was a special celebrity guest at WrestleMania X, serving as ring announcer for the main event WWE Championship Match pitting Bret Hart against Yokozuna. WWE extends its condolences to Reynolds’ family, friends and fans.
The iconic film star passed away at the age of 82 in Florida after suffering a cardiac arrest.
I had the pleasure to see Burt recently. Although visibly frail, he remembered me. I thanked him for his part of Wrestlemania X. He was a real fan, thoroughly enjoyed the event, the wrestlers & fans. He was a class act and I’m honoured to have been able to tell him that. R.I.P. pic.twitter.com/4c0F0nEdFs
Pro Wrestling: EVE will return to the Res Gal in London tomorrow night. Saturday 8th will see the all-female promotion host their ‘Maybe Wrestling Will Help’ event in Bethnal Green.
We’re heading into EVE’s biggest part of the year. The SHE-1 tournament will be starting in November and qualifying matches for the tournament are in full swing. WoS, Stardom and Frontline star Bea Priestley will be facing Kris Wolf in a SHE-1 qualifying bout. Recently featured on the mainstream ITV channel Jetta will be taking on WoS Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray and Sierra Loxton will face WoS star Viper.
Bea Priestley vs. Kris Wol
Jetta vs. Kay Lee Ray
Sierra Loxton vs. Viper
More matches will be announced on the night.
Pro Wrestling: EVE is becoming one of the biggest underground prospects in pro wrestling. The company has amassed a diverse fan-base outside of the ‘wrestling crowd’ by becoming one of the hottest attractions in London. Several of the company’s stars have appeared on mainstream UK television on WoS, ITV’s morning programming and BBC Documentaries. News outlets across the globe have featured EVE in the past year including New York Times, The Mirror, The Independent and The Metro.
Check out EVE’s on demand library here. You can sign up now for a free 7 day trial and check out their recent events such as Slayers in Spandex, Nasty Women and RIOT GRRRLS.
New Japan Pro Wrestling’s September scheduling is usually dominated by the DESTRUCTION shows – and 2018 is no different. This year’s lineup of shows will of course feature to ‘Road To’ shows, some of which will be available on NJPWWorld.
Here’s the full results for the September 7th show in Korakuen Hall:
Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi b. Shota Umino and Ren Narita – Owens took the win after hitting the Package Driver on Narita
Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Bad Luck Fale and Taiji Ishimori b. Juice Robinson, David Finlay, Michael Elgin and Ayato Yoshida – Tanga Loa took the win for his team after pinning Yoshida
Beretta b. Toa Henare – Beretta hit the Dudebuster to take the pinfall win
Hirooki Goto and Gedo b. Taichi and Taka Michinoku – Goto took the pinfall win after hitting the GTR on TAKA
Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, SANADA and BUSHI b. Minoru Suzuki, Takashi Iizuka, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and El Desperado – EVIL took the pinfall win over Iizuka
Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano and YOSHI-HASHI b. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomoaki Honma and Togi Makabe – Yano took the win for his team after rolling up Honma with a schoolboy
The Golden Lovers b. Tomohiro Ishii and Will Ospreay – Ibushi took the pinfall win after the Golden Trigger
Revolution Pro Wrestling (Rev Pro) held two nights of TV tapings earlier this week. Wednesday 5th night saw the company invade the historic York Hall. The show will begin broadcasting on FreeSports later this month and here are the results for Night 1:
Night 1
Jushin Thunder Liger b. Chris Brookes – Liger took the win with a Brainbuster, Brookes attacked him after the match. El Phantasmo appeared for the save.
The Great O-Kharn (w/ Lord Gideon Grey) b. Harrison Thompson – O-Kharn won in a squash, the match lasted around 4 minutes
Sha Samuels interrupted Kevin Kelly interview with Dan Magee. Samuels and Magee brawled before it was broken up
Zack Sabre Jr. b. KUSHIDA – ZSJ took the win with a kneebar submission. Chris Ridgeway observed the action from the walkway.
Colt Cabana b. Greg Burridge – Cabana took the win with a bridging pin in around 10 minutes
Roppongi 3K (Sho & Yoh) b. James Castle & Dan Head – Roppongi 3k took the win in around 10 minutes
Chris Brookes b. El Phantasmo – Brookes took the win after his CCK tag partner Jon Gresham distracted Phantasmo
Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) b. Team White Wolf (A-Kid & Carlos Romo) – Aussie Open took the win
Rocky Romero vs Chris Ridgeway – This match ended in a no contest when Zack Sabre Jr interfered and attacked both
Sha Samuels vs. Dan Magee – This bout ended in a DQ when both men shoved the referee
Undisputed British Cruiserweight Champion David Starr b. Kurtis Chapman – Starr retained his title after beating Chapman in around 10 minutes
The Hunter Brothers (Lee & Jim) b. Arrows of Hungary (Aaron Icarus & Dover) – This was a solid match but suffered from being very late in the taping
The Great O-Kharn (w/ Lord Gideon Grey) b. The O.J.M.O – O-Kharn won in another squash
Josh Bodom b. MK McKinnan – Homegrown talent Bodom took the name in 10 minutes
James Mason b. Darrell Allen – Mason took the win with a roll up
El Phantasmo b. Jonathan Gresham – Phantasmo took the win via DQ after CCK beat him down until Liger made the save
WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry gave his take on the current storyline between Becky Lynch and WWE SmackDown women’s Champion Charlotte Flair during a recent edition of Busted Open Radio on SiriusXM.
He also touched on how it seems that WWE fans are relating to Lynch over Flair. The former WWE World Heavyweight Champion stated that Flair was born to be great and came from greatness so her success is expected.
However, he pointed out how Lynch is the commonplace and her character comes across as someone who has struggled and came from nothing to the point where she worked hard to get where she is at now.
He noted that the fanbase of the company is people who work hard for a living. “The reason that this is an angle that we love so much is that we all identify with it,” Henry said.
Lynch vs. Flair is one of the top program featured on WWE SmackDown Live right now. They are set to compete for the gold at two upcoming events including the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event on Sunday, September 16, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center as well as the Super Show-Down event on Saturday, October 6, 2018 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Melbourne, Australia. Both events will air on WWE’s streaming service, WWE Network.
Drew McIntyre continues to speak out about the differences of the roster from those who were around in his first stint with the WWE as well as to his second/current run today.
The WWE RAW Tag Team Champion spoke with the AL.com to talk about various topics including how there has been a change in WWE culture since his last tenure. He stated that there have been guys who went through the NXT system who are the lending force now and that’s a big difference as everything keeps growing. “The big thing for me is that I’ve grown as a person, matured and returned to make a difference. What I do notice backstage is as good a roster as we have – we have the best roster in the world, men and women – but we do have a few people that perhaps aren’t fulfilling their potential. I know this because that’s who I was during my first run with the company.”
He continued by saying that he can see it when he looks around as it reminds him of myself when he didn’t realize the opportunity he had and that this was the number one show. He had to give it his all in and out of the ring in every possible situation.
He sees that now that he’s back and trying to tell people the answers. “If you don’t take the answers to the question, perhaps it’s time for people to go away like I did and find themselves. And if they don’t, perhaps they don’t belong on the number one show in the world because I can assure you there are people in NXT waiting to take their spots.”
McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler are expected to defend the RAW Tag Team Titles against The B-Team at the upcoming Hell in a Cell pay-per-view event on Sunday, September 16, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center.
Former WCW World Heavyweight Champion David Arquette made some headlines on Thursday after he took to social media to note that he was visiting WWE headquarters in Stamford, CT.
In one post on his official Instagram account, he wrote, “So close but yet so far away. @wwe @wwenetwork @tripleh @stephaniemcmahon” while on Twitter he noted that you “Can’t stop a dream @WWE @WWENXT @WWENetwork @TripleH.”
Arquette has been wrestling more often as of late as his next booking is for the upcoming the Northeast Wrestling event on Friday, September 14 in Fishkill, NY where he is slated to team with former WWE star “Hurricane” Shane Helms to face King Brian and Anthony Batile in a tag team match. You can see his posts here:
Former WWE Divas Champion and SmackDown General Manager Paige was featured in a video that WWE’s YouTube channel released that was titled, WWE Network Pick of the Week.
In the video, she talked about how she was watching the Mae Young Classic because she is looking to scout talent for the blue brand that she runs each and every Tuesday night on the USA Network.
Bully Ray wishes that former WWE Champion Daniel Bryan was able to participate in the historic All In event that went down last weekend in Chicago at the Sears Centre Arena, which aired on pay-per-view, FITE.TV, and ROH’s streaming service.
Obviously, the reason that Bryan did not appear at the show was due to him being contracted with the WWE. However, he did give a nod to the event by sending out a tweet about it the day of the show. The WWE Hall of Famer spoke about his desire to see Bryan at the show if he had the opportunity during a recent episode of Busted Open Radio, which he co-hosts.
“Deep down in his heart of hearts, Daniel Bryan wishes he could have been on that show,” Ray said. He continued by stating that this was a type of show that Bryan is someone who prays that they can be involved with because that’s where it all begins for them. Ray stated that All In was basically a ROH-esque show and noted that Bryan started there and would have loved to been there.
"I haven't seen wrestlers and fans come together and have this much fun together since ECW One Night Stand. And that's the highest compliment I can pay to it."@bullyray5150 on the wrestler/fan excitement of @ALL_IN_2018#AllInpic.twitter.com/HlF49N7iw5
Since September of last year, the WWE Hall of Famer has taken a step back from being an in-ring competitor as he has only worked a handful of Ring of Honor shows since then.
As noted, Dave Meltzer reported in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Bryan just signed his new contract as they’ve agreed on terms. He signed it a few days ago but it’s not official since WWE hadn’t signed it, but that’s a formality and it should be official very soon.
AJ Styles recently opened up about his WWE success as well as his favorite matches while competing in the company.
The WWE Champion recently spoke with Amarillo.com to talk about various topics. When asked about his WWE success, he noted that he shouldn’t be the only one surprised about it as if you told him a few years ago that he would be WWE Champion two times, a United States Champion and held the belt for at least half of his career then he would’ve thought it was ridiculous.
“But, hard work has paid off. In the long run, if I was to lose this title tomorrow, I’ve had a great run and I’m very happy.”
His favorite WWE Matches
He stated that it’s tough to say which is his favorite match as he has had so many memorable moments so far as he pointed out his classic match with John Cena at the Royal Rumble a few years ago.
“There is also Roman Reigns. Then when I won the championship from Dean Ambrose. There are so many matches that are hard to pick.”
Styles is slated to make his next title defense against Samoa Joe at Hell in a Cell, which takes place on Sunday, September 16th from San Antonio, Texas at the AT&T Center. The show will stream live on the WWE Network and is available for purchase on select pay-per-view providers.
A new title match has been announced for the upcoming Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view event. Keep in mind that this announcement contains a spoiler as the match has yet to be revealed on television.
On Friday (September 7, 2018), the Baltimore-based promotion announced on their official website and social media that ROH Women of Honor World Champion Sumie Sakai will be defending the strap against Tenille Dashwood.
This match was set up once Sakai stated that she felt like she couldn’t truly call herself champion until she beat Dashwood one-on-one.
Ring of Honor is slated to hold their Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view event at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Friday, September 28, 2018. The event will air on traditional PPV outlets and the FITE TV app.
The promotion will be announcing more matches in the coming weeks. As a reminder, ROH will be holding TV tapings in the same venue the following night for upcoming episodes of their television show.
The Card
Bullet Club (Cody, Adam Page, The Young Bucks, and Marty Scurll) vs. CHAOS (Kazuchika Okada, Chuckie T, Beretta, Tomohiro Ishii, and Rocky Romero)
ROH Women of Honor World Champion Sumie Sakai vs. Tenille Dashwood
ROH Tag Team Champions The Briscoes vs. Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian
ROH TV Champion Punishment Martinez vs. Chris Sabin
Impact Wrestling presented another show from Toronto’s Rebel Nightclub last night. Next week’s episode will be the last of Impact’s 5 shows over a 22-day period in the city. In total, 8 episodes and 1 pay-per-view have taken place over the last couple of months from Toronto.
Impact heads to Manchester for a live show on Sunday and then they head to Mexico City for two nights of tapings next week.
Bound For Glory Main Event Revealed
Perhaps the biggest story coming out of Impact Wrestling this week is the confirmed main event for Bound for Glory. Johnny Impact interrupted Austin Aries’ promo time last night and informed the champion he will challenge for his belt in New York.
Aries, Moose, and Kross didn’t waste any time trying to soften up Johnny. The trio wrapped Johnny’s head around a steel chair and smashed it into the steel post.
Should Johnny still be able to make it to Bound for Glory, it would kick-start a big month for him. His season of Survivor begins airing in late September, he’ll challenge Aries on the 14th, and then sets sail with the Jericho cruise at the end of the month.
Konnan Returns To The Ring At Bound For Glory
Another match booked for Bound for Glory last night was the OGZ and King to face Konnan and LAX. A fictional crime boss ordered a ceasefire between the stables leading up to Bound for Glory.
The crime boss was upset a kid got run over as part of their rivalry and has ordered them to settle things once and for all at Bound for Glory.
Rich Swann Is Sick of Matt Sydal and His 3rd Eye
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUkKzGlYp7Y
Petey Williams defeated Rich Swann
Matt Sydal has been saying he would like to mentor Rich Swann. He appeared at the commentary booth during Swann vs Petey Williams this week.
Swann had defeated Petey Wiliams last week with a standing shooting star press but a rematch was ordered for tonight between the two X-Division stars. Williams picked up the win after Sydal distracted Swann, allowing him to hit the Canadian Destroyer.
Swann and Sydal were seen arguing in the back later.
Allie and Kiera Hogan Rescued Tessa Blanchard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBO8vT3OEB8
Knockouts Championship Tessa Blanchard (c) defeated Su Yung
Tessa Blanchard solidified her spot at the top of the Knockouts division this week when she pinned former champion, Su Yung clean. After the match, however, Yung’s army of undead brides eerily marched a coffin onto the entrance ramp.
With Blanchard distracted, Yung attacked and hit her with the Panic Switch. As Yung was about to lock Blanchard in the coffin, however, Allie and Kiera Hogan came to the rescue. Allie has promised she won’t let Su Yung lock anyone else in a coffin.
After being rescued, Blanchard did not seem pleased with Allie or Hogan. Blanchard said she can take care of things by herself.
Brian Cage To Team With The Lucha Bros
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kH1QrsZS_LY
The Lucha Bros cut a promo in the back. They sent a message to Brian Cage that if he really wanted to know what it felt like to cause Sami Callihan and oVe pain, then he should team up with them.
Previously, Cage saved Pentagon and Fenix from a 3-on-2 beatdown from the Ohio-based wrestlers.
Katarina Does Not Understand What Platonic Means
The Desi Hit Squad defeated Joe Hendry & Grado
Before the Desi Hit Squad defeated Joe Hendry and Grado last night, Hendry debuted a new music video. This video was a tribute to the platonic love he feels for his buddy’s girlfriend, Katarina.
After the Desi Hit Squad defeated her team, however, Katarina cut a promo on Grado. She said he was always losing and then said she was in love with Hendry. She kissed Hendry but the Prestigious One was having none of it. He loudly questioned if Katarina knew what “platonic” meant.
Grado and Hendry were shown in the back later. It seems Grado really appreciated Hendry being a good friend to him. Wrestling loves good friends!
Eli Drake’s Great Adventure and “Night of the Dummies”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnRcY8itQtA
Eli Drake defeated Stone Rockwell
Eli Drake held another “Open Challenge” this week. This brought out local wrestler, Stone Rockwell. The man of adventure was quickly dispatched by Drake, however, after being attacked from behind before the bell.
Drake’s themed One Night Only pay-per-view “Night of the Dummies” will premiere on the Global Wrestling Network on September 14th. The lineup for the show is below:
Eli Drake vs Eddie Edwards
Moose vs KM
Sean Carr vs Brute Vanslyke
Z&E vs LAX
Homicide vs TBD
Wagner Brown vs Axel Lennox
Alisha Edwards vs Rebel
Fallah Bah vs Richard Justice
Impact Wrestling At MediaCon
On Sunday, Sami Callihan will bring a barbed wire baseball bat into a match with the famed UK-hardcore wrestler, Jimmy Havoc.
The show will air live on Twitch. Here is the lineup:
Impact Wrestling Tag Team Championships
LAX (c) vs Jody Fleisch & Jonny Storm
Barbed Wire Baseball Bat Death Match
Sami Callihan vs Jimmy Havoc
Eli Drake vs Joe Hendry
Su Yung vs Lana Austin
Rich Swann vs Matt Sydal vs Trevor Lee
Quick Results:
Petey Williams defeated Rich Swann
the Desi Hit Squad defeated Joe Hendry & Grado
Eli Drake defeated Stone Rockwell
Knockouts Championship
Tessa Blanchard (c) defeated Su Yung
Sami Callihan & oVe defeated Zack Wentz, Trey Miguel, & Ace Austin
Bound for Glory (October 14th)
Impact World Championship
Austin Aries (c) vs Johnny Impact
Major League Wrestling returned to the War Memorial Auditorium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Thursday night for MLW: War Games. Matches on this show were taped for the weekly MLW Fusion show on beIN SPORTS. War Games is expected to air next Friday night, with the replay being uploaded to MLW’s YouTube channel the following night.
MLW War Games Results
– Ricky Martinez (w/Salina de la Renta) defeated Jake St. Patrick.
– The Lucha Brothers (Pentagon Jr & Rey Fénix) made their way out to the ring alongside Konnan where they talked about future plans. This led to Salina de la Renta walking out where they were presented with new contracts to sign. This is when Penta and Fenix grabbed the contracts to rip up.
– The New Hart Foundation (Teddy Hart, Brian Pillman Jr & Davey Boy Smith Jr) defeated The Stud Stable (Michael Patrick, Leo Brien & Parrow) (w/Colonel Robert Parker). After the match, Patrick and Brien attacked Parrow, which marked his removal from the stable.
– Jimmy Yuta defeated El Hijo de LA Park (w/Salina de la Renta).
– Jason Cade (w/Rhett Giddins) defeated Myron Reed. After the match, Jimmy Yuta attacked Jason Cade.
– Brody King vs. PCO ended in a double disqualification.
– Brian Pillman Jr (w/Teddy Hart & Davey Boy Smith Jr) defeated Vandal Ortagun.
– Mexican Death Match: LA Park defeated Pentagon Jr.
– Simon Gotch defeated Gangrel via disqualification.
– Davey Boy Smith Jr defeated ACH.
– Filthy Tom Lawlor defeated Joey Janela by DQ once there was interference from James Storm.
– Teddy Hart defeated Rich Swann.
– James Storm defeated Alan Ocean.
– MLW Championship Match: Low Ki (w/Salina de la Renta) (c) defeated Rey Fénix.
– War Games Match: John Hennigan, Tommy Dreamer, Shane Strickland, Kotto Brazil & Barrington Hughes defeated Sami Callihan, Jimmy Havoc, Leon Scott, Fulton & Abyss.
Konnan will return to an Impact Wrestling ring this October. At Bound for Glory, Konnan will be involved in a 6-man tag-team war between his LAX and King’s OGZ. Until then, a ceasefire has been ordered between the two rival factions.
The 54-year-old veteran recently participated in MLW’s Battle Riot as well.
BREAKING: The first match is OFFICIAL for Bound For Glory. Konnan returns to the ring to join LAX to face The OGz and King in six man tag team warfare.
Head Of Crime Family Books Match For Bound For Glory
The first match for Bound for Glory 2018 was booked by the leader of a fictional crime family last night.
Even the most violent of gangs have to answer to some higher authority. @MadKing1981 and @Konnan5150 were summoned to a meeting for breaking the code and a MAJOR match was then made for Bound For Glory on October 14th! #IMPACTonPoppic.twitter.com/N5bzy3ymTw
Last week both Konnan and King received calls that caused them to drop what they were doing and leave. This week it was revealed Konnan and King had been summoned by the leader of the crime family that evidently Konnan and King are both in. The leader of the crime family was upset that a child got hurt in the middle of their rivalry.
Why Did A Kid Almost Get Killed On Impact Wrestling?
Two weeks ago King ran over a child in the streets of Toronto. The kid was hanging around with Konnan and LAX celebrating their tag title win when King ran him over.
Some fans expressed concern or criticism of the angle. Last night, the storyline reason why the kid was run over became clear. The fictional crime family only decided to get involved in King and Konnan’s feud after a civilian, and a child civilian at that got hurt. The crime leader said their feud was bad for business and it needs to be sorted out once and for all. He then booked the 6-Man match for Bound for Glory with King joining the OGZ and Konnan returning to the ring with LAX.
The leader of the crime family then ordered a ceasefire between the two groups until Bound for Glory.
Last night on Impact Wrestling, Johnny Impact revealed he is the next to be granted a world title match against Austin Aries. The match will take place on October 14th in New York City as part of Bound For Glory. The match comes at a significant time for Johnny. His season of Survivor premieres less than 3 weeks before the pay-per-view.
BREAKING: The main event of Bound For Glory is OFFICIAL. @AustinAries will defend the IMPACT World Championship against the Mayor of Slamtown @TheRealMorrison! #BoundForGlory
Johnny Impact Interrupts Austin Aries, Moose, and Killer Kross
So far, Aries’ run as champion has seen him take on the likes of Alberto El Patron, Pentagon, Fenix, and most recently, Eddie Edwards.
Killer Kross aligned with Aries and cost Edwards his shot at the World Championship. Last week, Moose joined in on the attack as well, giving Aries two of the largest men on Impact’s roster watching his back.
There was concern at the end of last night’s episode that Johnny won’t be able to make it to Bound For Glory, however. The trio of Aries, Moose, and Kross wrapped his head around a chair and gave him a con-chair-to around the steel post.
The Impact roster will be pretty busy in October. After Bound For Glory, they hold 2 nights of tapings in the same venue and then set sail with Chris Jericho just 11 days later.
Rey Mysterio’s return to the WWE seems to be in the works but not even the master of the 619 knows when he’ll return back to the industrious company.
On a recent episode of the Jim Ross Report, Rey Mysterio was the latest guest and he addressed his current position with WWE.
WWE Return
“We started off with an anonymous call in January [about] coming back for the [Royal] Rumble, which was a big surprise to the fans because every time I go to a signing they say, ‘damn, Rey, I did not expect to see you there,’ so I guess that started off the whole conversation about possibly making a return. We’re still in the mix of it. We’ve been going back and forth, talking about possibly returning this month and then this month, so the longer it extends, the more I get work outside. That’s my bread and butter. That’s what I do for a living. I’m just waiting for them to say, ‘now’.” Mysterio explained, “when they say, ‘now,’ if the time is right, let’s go!”
The Indies Are the Place To Be Right Now
While Rey waits for the call to return back to WWE, he is very much enjoying his time in the indies.
“I think God put me in the position to be where I’m at now.” Mysterio continued, “I’ve been very blessed throughout my [pro wrestling] career, J.R. and to be able to start off the year with the Rumble, unexpected, and then moving onto The Greatest Royal Rumble, and then, still for the first time doing my show in New Japan, which that was checked off my bucket list. I’ve never been there before and I was very excited and pleased to go for the first time. And the year’s not over yet. All In, last [Saturday], it was history. I just felt I’ve been at the right place at the right time.”
In less than thirty days, Justin Credible (real name PJ Polaco) has found himself behind bars.
According to Pro Wrestling Sheets, Credible’s arrest occurred in Waterbury, CT this past Tuesday.
The charges are the following:
Misdemeanor Disorderly Conduct
Misdemeanor 3rd Degree Assault
Felony Criminal Violation of a Restraining Order
Credible is incarcerated at New Haven Correctional Center in New Haven, CT. While currently listed as “Unsentenced” he does have a $50,000 bond.
Credible’s court date falls on October 1st in Waterbury, CT for all his criminal charges. The following cases are on the docket for that court date: Tuesday’s arrest; the March 3, 2017 arrest (Misdemeanor Disorderly Conduct, Misdemeanor 2nd Degree Threatening); the December 1, 2017 arrest (Misdemeanor 2nd Degree Criminal Mischief, Misdemeanor 2nd Degree Breach of Peace, Felony Criminal Violation of a Protection Order); the August 14, 2018 arrest (Misdemeanor Disorderly Conduct, Felony Violation of Protective Order).
Major League Wrestling (MLW) might have given the strongest indication yet that Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix are WWE bound next year. Following memorable performances at last weekend’s All In pay-per-view, the Lucha Bros. were in action at Thursday night’s MLW War Games event from Ft. Lauderdale, FL. The MLW Twitter account posted the following before the show:
Did you spot it? Of course you did. There’s a reason this tweet has so many interactions. So, what is nxt for Pentagon and Fenix? As we’ve been covering, the brothers from Tijuana, Mexico are said to be on the radar of WWE.
Recently, it was noted in the Wrestling Observer that they are not accepting independent bookings beyond the end of the year. Many industry pundits have taken this as another indication they are will headed ‘up north’ in a matter of months.
In addition to working for Major League Wrestling, Pentagon and Fenix also have prominent roles with Lucha Underground and Impact Wrestling.
What matches are you excited should Pentagon and Fenix sign with WWE?
The 2018 Superstar Shake-up saw many talents being exchanged on Raw and Smackdown Live. One of those talents that migrated from brand to brand was Zack Ryder. After a tag team stint with Mojo Rowley that turned into a feud, Ryder was taken to Raw but has yet to make his television debut on flagship show this year.
Zack Ryder was a guest on Lilian Garcia’s podcast, Chasing Glory, and revealed his feelings on his current situation in the WWE.
Count Your Blessings
“At the end of the day, like right now with Monday Night Raw, I am not being used. Can I cry about it or can I be grateful and say that I am still here. I mean, you can go to a toy store and buy a Zack Ryder action figure today so my life can definitely be a lot worse.”
“What am I going to do, sit around and be bitter? I hate when people do that. Like, poor me. Come on, we’re here in WWE. Can things be better? Yes! But they can be so much worse. I am not a super positive person, but come on. You have to look at yourself in the mirror. Trust me, there have been times where I have been bitter, but what does it solve? Nothing.”
Z! True Long Island Story
Many fans remember Zack Ryder’s youtube show, Z! True Long Island Story, and praised the show for its content and exposure of the Long Island native.
When Ryder made the announcement that his show would become a WWE Youtube exclusive, many were confused and concern on why Ryder would let WWE take over his show.
“I was doing the YouTube show and it was at the peak of its popularity before it went to sh*t. That whole process where I basically had to hand over my YouTube show is where I saw my hard work literally go down the drain, and everything I did to earn my spot on television, only to see it bump down lower and lower. I will admit, I was bitter. I was asking myself why all of this was happening. I had proven myself and I felt like I was being punished. I was definitely bitter for that.”
Learned Mistakes
“I think I could have done a couple of things. I don’t really have any regrets, but three in particular with one of them being that time period I should have went and knocked on Vince McMahon’s door and asked what was going on here but I didn’t. Was I afraid or intimidated? Maybe, but I didn’t do it, and that is one of my biggest regrets because I didn’t have any ground to stand on. Since then we have built a relationship, but then when I was in my hottest point and was in the top three of merchandise selling at one point I should have gone in there but I didn’t, which is on me. It was nobody else’s fault but mine.
“I could have been in better shape, a bit bitter. I was still kind of skinnier there; perhaps not by much but 10 lbs makes a big difference but back then I didn’t know what I was doing. All that is on me. I am not blaming anyone else but myself.”
You can listen to the interview in its entirety below:
All quotes were transcribed from Chasing Glory With Lilian Garcia.
Anything can happen in WWE, and tonight (Thurs. September 6, 2018) was a perfect example.
SmackDown Live star Luke Harper appeared at the NXT live event in Buffalo, New York. He challenged NXT North American Champion Ricochet for his title. Check out a video of Harper making his surprise entrance here:
Harper needs to keep busy after his tag team partner, Erick Rowan, suffered an injury that will keep him shelved for some time. The pair were forced to drop the SDL Tag Team Titles to The New Day a few weeks ago due to Harper’s injury.
As for Ricochet, he’s enjoying his reign as NXT North American Champion. He defeated Adam Cole at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 4 to capture the title in an amazing bout. He’s definitely someone to keep your eye on when he eventually comes to the main roster.
Discussion: What do you think of main roster talents making surprise appearances at NXT shows? Let us know in the comments section below!
On Thursday, Hollywood legend Burt Reynolds passed away at the age of 82-years-old. Reynolds served as the guest ring announcer for the main event of WrestleMania X back in 1994, which saw Bret Hart defeat Yokozuna for the WWE Championship.
Reynolds co-starred in the the remake of the 2005 movie The Longest Yard. That movie featured cameos from many professional wrestlers, including Steve Austin, Kevin Nash Goldberg and The Great Khali.
WWE issued a statement on the passing of Reynolds; extending their condolences to his family, friends, and fans:
“WWE is saddened to learn that Academy Award-nominated actor and Hollywood icon Burt Reynolds has passed away at the age of 82.
“The star of more than 50 feature films, including “The Longest Yard,” “Smokey and the Bandit,” “The Cannonball Run” and “Boogie Nights” (for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Reynolds was a special celebrity guest at WrestleMania X, serving as ring announcer for the main event WWE Championship Match pitting Bret Hart against Yokozuna.
“WWE extends its condolences to Reynolds’ family, friends and fans.”
WWE Superstar The Big Show was recently interviewed by CBS San Francisco to discuss several professional wrestling topics.
Firstly, “The World’s Largest Athlete” talked about his recent physique change. There was a point in his career that he believed he needed to be 500 pounds to truly be “The Big Show.” He soon realized, however, that wasn’t the case at all:
“As my career started winding down, so to speak, I realized I didn’t need that anymore. I didn’t need that to be successful,” Big Show said. “I needed to be lighter, I needed to be in better shape. And it was just a personal challenge.”
It’s John Cena’s Fault
The Big Show credits John Cena and a conversation they had backstage at a show one night as a big motivator for him. Cena sort of challenged Show to become a “giant with abs.” One year later, Big Show was 90 pounds lighter:
“The whole thing is John Cena’s fault,” said Big Show. “John Cena and I were watching the show in a monitor. Usually, if you go to our shows, if John and I aren’t working, we’re sitting there watching the show together.
“John and I were just cracking jokes on each other, and I made the comment about a giant with abs, who’d want to see that? And John Cena looked me square in the eye and said, ‘Yeah, a giant with abs. Who would want to see that?’
“And he walked off. But the way he said it, he challenged me that I couldn’t do it. And it really upset me so bad that I got my act together that week and started in. It took me a little over a year and I dropped 90 pounds.”
Discussion: What do you think about John Cena motivating Big Show to get in better shape? Let us know in the comments below!
Big Cass recently joined WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T’s podcast, Heated Conversations. Cass was released from WWE in June. He lost back-to-back pay-per-view (PPV) matches against Daniel Bryan.
After the Money In The Bank (MITB) PPV, Cass was released from WWE. It was reported that Cass was let go due to behavioral issues and disobeying direct orders from Vince McMahon. Since his release, Cass says he hasn’t watched WWE programming:
“One-hundred percent. I haven’t watched SmackDown, Raw, PPV, I haven’t watched anything wrestling since I got released. I’ve just been doing my thing, working out, and eating right.
“Binge watching my favorite television shows that I’m trying to catch up on. I have not watched a single second of wrestling since I got released. I don’t even know who the champions are these days.”
Just cause Cass is gone from WWE doesn’t mean he doesn’t keep in touch with his old coworkers. Cass says he still keeps in contact with Kevin Owens and Daniel Bryan:
“I talk to my buddies from WWE still, like Kevin Owens, or Daniel Bryan who has helped me in more ways than one. They just say the work outside WWE is incredible compared to what it was when they were just working independents.”
Discussion: What do you think about Cass not watching WWE TV since being fired? Sound off in the comments section below!
The WWE Hall Of Famer first talked about his transition into the “Crow” character and why he never went back to his old blonde look:
“The Crow character by the time it came alive and hit the scene and evolved to what it turned into, it would’ve never made sense to go back to the blonde flat-top haircut,” Sting said.
“Even if I wanted to, there’s not enough hair on my head to do that anymore. So I just couldn’t pull it off. But let me tell you something, if I thought I could pull it off, I would’ve attempted it in these later years.
“Because so many people talked about it and they’re so nostalgic about it. And WrestleMania 31 is a big example of that with DX and nWo and people just freaked out over that.”
Who’s Idea Was It?
Upon transitioning to the “Crow” character, Sting implemented face paint into his look. Sting revealed which fellow Hall Of Famer came up with the idea to use face paint:
“They put Ric (Flair) with Ricky Morton, and Ricky gets hurt,” said Sting. “So Dusty says, ‘Stinger baby, I want to put some color on your face, color on your tights and color on your boots. And I want to put you with Ric.’
“So we did a little story line with JJ Dillion and the Four Horseman and Ric Flair in Raleigh, North Carolina for a TV taping. It was no real heat angle, we just kind of did our thing and it took off. So Dusty is the real reason why the color started to begin with.”
Discussion: Which of Sting’s gimmicks did you prefer? Let us know in the comments section below!
Don Callis offered his thoughts on All In weekend in the latest episode of his podcast, Killing The Town. Callis is the executive vice president for IMPACT Wrestling and a commentator for New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW).
Callis served as a commentator for the All In pay-per-view (PPV) this past Saturday. He revealed The Young Bucks asked him to do so back at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka, Japan in June. Callis said he enjoyed All In weekend and visiting with some of his old wrestling buddies.
Stay In Character
He did, however, note one thing he wasn’t too big a fan of. Kayfabe is dead in today’s era of wrestling. However, Callis doesn’t believe “monster heels” should be getting chummy with fans at events such as autograph signings. He’d prefer they stay in character:
“I think there’s too much familiarity, in my opinion, between fans and wrestlers,” said Callis. “But I also see why it’s good for business, so I don’t have a quote-unquote ‘problem’ with it.
“I’ll tell you one of the things I don’t like, and it’s not anyone specifically, but I think there are characters in wrestling.
“Like if you’re a heel, if you’re a strong heel, if you’re a monster heel, like a Su Yung or an Undertaker, or those sorts of characters, I don’t think you should be out selling gimmicks, signing autographs without your gimmick on.
“Your facepaint, or your hair, or whatever you do to yourself to get in this monster heel gimmick, I don’t think you should be out there signing autographs and being nice to the fans.
“Because, I think now the fans will like it, but you’re actually doing them a disservice, because if you’ve protected your gimmick as a heel properly…if you are an actual heel and you have actual heat, why would you want to screw that up by meeting [fans].
“Like if you meet 100 fans over the course of a weekend, why would you want to spoil all the hard work that you’ve done and spoil what the fans have been enjoying about you by being a babyface to them? I just don’t understand that.”
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross took to his podcast, The Ross Report, to recap All In weekend. All In was a huge success thanks to all the work Cody and The Young Bucks put into it over the months.
The Sears Centre in Chicago was jam-packed for a show that more than lived up to the hype. There were several big events during All In weekend for visiting fans to attend. Most of them were streamed on Fite TV so fans not in the area could enjoy them as well.
Ross revealed that Fite TV did “record business” over All In weekend:
“They set record business,” JR said. “The Fite app is saying that their PPV business is the biggest they’ve ever had and it will easily exceed one million dollars in sales. They just did phenomenal business.
“I talked to Mike Weber and Mike told me that Fite was the number one sports app over the weekend in the land.
“That means that this wrestling event orchestrated by Cody, The Young Bucks and certainly Conrad Thompson, drove more revenue than MLB TV, ESPN, Fubo TV, UFC and even the fantasy football draft. That’s some app business baby.”
Fans Upset CM Punk Wasn’t At All In
Pro Wrestling Tees’ store also reaped the rewards of All In weekend. CM Punk held a massive autograph signing at the store in Chicago. Many fans were hoping for a surprise appearance from Punk on the All In pay-per-view (PPV). That never happened, however, much to the disappointment of fans:
“This kinda bothered me. CM Punk had a great signing that did phenomenal business for him and for Pro Wrestling Tees, Ryan Barkin, all those great people that work there.
“By the way, Pro Wrestling Tees sold about a half-a-million dollars worth of t-shirts over the weekend,” Ross revealed. “Half-a-million dollars worth of t-shirts at this ‘indie wrestling event’. That’s pretty damn special isn’t it?
“Anyway, CM Punk has this successful signing. Punk did not show up at All In and I don’t even think that is the right terminology. I said that he didn’t show up like he was supposed to show up, and then didn’t.
“And that’s not true either. CM Punk was never advertised to be at All In. I was not disappointed watching the replay on Fite that he was not there, because I never expected him to be there.
“I didn’t feel badly by deserting his fans by not going to All In, I just think we all need to move on, really. Let the guy be happy in whatever he wants to do. I enjoyed his work for a long time and if he wants to move on, let him move on.”
