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Alberto El Patron Responds To Eli Drake’s Comments About His Suspension

Anutosh Bajpai
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4

After winning the Impact World Championship, The New Champion Eli Drake had commented on the former Champion Alberto El Patron’s suspension, stating that he doesn’t know whether or not he should be brought back to the company.

Now Alberto has responded to the comments of Drake during a recent conference call with WrestlingInc among other things. Below are some of the highlights from the call:

The comments of Eli Drake:

“To be honest, I don’t know anything about what Eli said after my suspension, which everyone knows was a wrongful suspension. I don’t really know, but whatever Eli said, he’s gonna have to back it up in the ring. He had the opportunity to be in the ring with me once, I took him to school, I taught him a lesson, and I think he had an amazing match for the first time in his life but it was because he was in the ring with Alberto El Patron, So whatever he said in the ring after my suspension, I don’t really care, because as you know, if I ever open my mouth I always back it up in the ring or in the streets or anywhere I have to back it up. I’m gonna have the opportunity to be in the ring with him pretty soon.

The difference between him and Drake:

“The difference between him and I, I earned that title, I fought for that title against one of the best performers in the world Bobby Lashley, and I won that title after hitting the 1-2-3 from the referee. He got it handed [to him], it was a present, it was an early Christmas present for Eli Drake. He’s not a real champion, real champions get their titles and get their victories in the battle.”

Impact moving to Canada:

“To me it’s fantastic. To be honest, when I joined Impact Wrestling I never understood why we were just doing it in Orlando. We need to go to other places, we need to give the opportunity to other people to see what Impact Wrestling has to offer,” he said. “So to me it’s fantastic that we’re not doing the tapings this time in Orlando and we are here in Canada, in this beautiful country. Of course the weather sucks, because it’s too cold out here (laughs). But the country is beautiful, I had the opportunity to perform in Canada so many times in the past and I know how passionate and how crazy the fans get when they get good pro-wrestling, and I’m 100 percent sure that’s exactly how it’s gonna be in the next few days. I hope the next time we get to do the tapings in Mexico!”

Tim Storm vs. Nick Aldis NWA Championship Match (Video)

Chris Stephens
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3

Billy Corgan took over ownership of the National Wrestling Alliance on October 1st, 2017. Yesterday, the first NWA World Championship match under his ownership took place during a taping of Championship Wrestling from Hollywood.

Billy Corgan’s NWA

Billy Corgan is working with former Impact Wrestling and WWE writer, Dave Lagana, on the project. The promotion has released several mini-documentaries through their YouTube channel as of late to build towards this match.

Tim Storm (c), the 52-year-old journeyman wrestler who also works as a history teacher, defended the title against Nick Aldis. A former GFW and TNA World Champion, Aldis threw his hat in the ring for an NWA title shot earlier this month.

The NWA streamed the match live on Facebook. The title match starts around the 7:30 mark below:

Chris Jericho On His Relationship With WWE, Working With New Japan & ROH

Anutosh Bajpai
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3

Chris Jericho recently appeared on Busted Open Radio to discuss the news of him competing against Kenny Omega at New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Wrestle Kingdom event on January 4th from Tokyo.

Jericho shed some light on how his relationship with WWE played into him taking this high profile booking. Jericho says WWE is still his home, but he’s not “handcuffed” to them and is free to work in Japan, with Ring of Honor and whoever he wants. At the end of the day, it will make him an even bigger star when he returns to WWE.

“I like doing stuff that’s never really been done. I think I’m in a very unique position in the WWE where I have a great relationship with the company, one guy [specifically], where normal rules might not apply. But I also do it with respect and with relevance to what they’re doing and realize that WWE is still my company, it’s still my home, but I’m not handcuffed to WWE.

If I want to go to New Japan to work a main event at the Tokyo Dome or put on my own cruise and work in tandem with Ring Of Honor, that’s OK, because guess what? At the end of the day, when I go back to the WWE it makes me that much bigger of a star.”

Chris Jericho enjoys a great deal of flexility with his schedule, which has drawn comparisons to Brock Lesnar. Jericho said he’s a mercenary and is making the most of his freedom.

“It’s an old-school, something that you would see (Hulk) Hogan or (Ric) Flair or (Nick) Bockwinkel or somebody do back in the 80’s when they would do a big shot in Japan just because it meant something… I’m not a world champion, but it’s a big deal for Jericho to go there and I love that sort of intrigue and I think certain guys in the WWE appreciate that as well in the office because it makes for a better business.”

Even though he’s a WWE guy, Jericho sees a lot of value in promotions like Ring of Honor and New Japan giving the wrestlers and the fans an alternative. He feels competition and options are good for everybody.

“The good thing about New Japan and even Ring Of Honor to an extent is showing that WWE is not the only place in town, and I think the first people that would be happy about that are the guys that are running the WWE because it just makes for a better business, for a healthier business. And not just for the boys but for the fans. It pushes everybody to think more and to be more clever and creative and to work harder.”

You can listen to the full audio from the show below:

Quotes via WrestlingInc

Eric Bischoff’s New Wrestling Project Revealed

Chris Stephens
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10

Eric Bischoff is back in wrestling. The former President of WCW was recently announced as the new co-owner of the Cleveland Knights Championship Wrestling promotion out of Ohio.

The first show for the promotion under Bischoff’s reign will be on February 2nd, 2018 at “New World Rising”.

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Erich Bischoff and Cleveland Knights Championship Wrestling

The promotion announced Bischoff’s ownership role at their event on Saturday night. Also in attendance Saturday, was UFC fighter, Jessica Eye.

Here are the complete results of their show on Saturday:

“RING ANNOUNCER: Hank Hudson
REFEREES: Dave Dawson, Michael Contos
D.V.D. COMMENTATORS: Jeff Gorman, M.E. Howerton
NEXT LIVE EVENT: Friday, February 9, 2018

(1) “GOLDEN TICKET” 12-PERSON TAG-TEAM MATCH (WINNER OF THE FALL BECOMES FINAL ENTRANT IN C.K.C.W. WORLD’S TITLE TRIPLE-THREAT MATCH LATER ON THE CARD): Taya (Valkyrie)/El Nazareno/Sonny Vice/O.T. Fernandez/”Riot City’s Most Wanted” (Sicend/Mac Mayhem) defeated C.P.A./R.C. Dupree/Ricky Mandel/Pat “Hooked On” Monix/”Bulletproof” Brandon Edwards/”The Impact Player” Seth Allen (Vice pinned C.P.A. via a top-rope leap for a flying cross-bodyblock press to win the “Golden Ticket”) in 12:20!!!

(2) GRUDGE MATCH: “Luchasaurus” Vibora pinned “Mr. Entertainment” J.D. Smooth in 7:39 following a chokeslam!!!

(3) C.K.C.W. WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH: Champion Vanilla Vargas (with Angel Fashion and Mike Mendoza) pinned Miss Hannah in 7:58 following a spinning sit-out “Tiger Bomb” to retain her title!!!

(4) FATAL FOUR-WAY MATCH FOR THE C.W.A. (CHAMPION WRESTLING ASSOCIATION) WORLD’S CHAMPIONSHIP: Champion El Sensacional Star Roger defeated DJZ, Robbie E, and Mike Mendoza (Roger pinned Mendoza following a “sunset-flip” short powerbomb despite earlier interference from Angel Fashion) in 9:33 to retain his title!!!

(5) “Tokyo Monster” Kahagas pinned “The Firebird” Shawn Phoenix in 5:43 following a modified package-piledriver!!!

(6) THREE-WAY TAG-TEAM “FLAG MATCH” (U.S.A. vs. CANADA vs. PUERTO RICO) (WINNING TEAM GETS TO WAVE THEIR FLAG): “Team Puerto Rico” (El Fenomeno BJ/”The Owner Of The World” Hiram Tua) defeated “Team Storm” (representing Canada) (Jaxon Argos/”The Next Trending Topic” Jack Pollock) and “Team U.S.A.” “The Rock ‘N’ Roll Express” (Ricky Morton/Robert Gibson) (Fenomeno pinned Argos) in 11:29!!! Morton and Gibson blasted Argos with simultaneous shoulder-tackles to enable Fenomeno to complete his “sunset-flip” takedown cradle for the duke!!!

(7) SPECIAL ATTRACTION MATCH: “Bad Ass” Billy Gunn pinned “King Of Sleeze” Joey Ryan in 10:04 following his “Fame-ASS-er” legdrop!!!

(8) TRIPLE-THREAT MATCH FOR THE VACANT C.K.C.W. WORLD’S HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE: “The Big Daddy Of Destruction” J-Rocc (with M.M.A. fighter Jessica “Evil” Eye and “personal ring-announcer” Dave Kich) defeated Angel Fashion (with Vanilla Vargas) and “Golden Ticket” winner Sonny Vice (J-Rocc pinned Vice following a piledriver) in 14:16 to regain the title!!!

*****It was announced that Eric Bischoff would be appearing at the next live C.K.C.W. event on Friday, February 9, 2018 as the new co-owner of Cleveland Knights Championship Wrestling!!!*****

(9) STEEL CAGE MATCH TO CROWN THE FIRST EVER C.K.C.W. WORLD’S TAG-TEAM CHAMPIONS: “The Heavy Artillery” (Thunder & Lightning) defeated “Stateline” (Damien Angel/Eddie Taurus) (Lightning pinned Taurus after his partner had elevated him for his “Ace Crusher”) in 7:20 for the title!!! All four participants were bloodied in this cage battle!!!”

Randy Orton Takes Shot at Kevin Owens For Getting Sent Home

Chris Stephens
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21

Earlier this month, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn were sent home from the WWE European tour. Speculation is they were removed from the tour for not following the script for their segment on last week’s Smackdown.

Owens and Randy Orton have been going back-and-forth with light-hearted insults on social media since this summer. Orton recently got in a good crack about Owens having been sent home from the tour.

Randy Orton and Kevin Owens Social Media Feud

It all started when Kevin Owens decided to crash someone’s wedding wearing a Rock t-shirt:

https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/929538544560992258

Orton decided to chime in and didn’t spare in his usage of emojis:

Owens probably thought this would earn him the last word:

https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/929855822796087298

Until he was hit with a verbal RKO:

UPDATE: Owens is not tapping out just yet:

https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/929865752395513857

Seth Rollins & Jason Jordan Feature In Nail Biting UpUpDownDown Match-Up (Video)

Roderick Stedman
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13

The final round of the Madden 18 Tournament on UpUpDownDown saw 3 time champion Seth Rollins (The Champ) take on Jason Jordan (Dick Wellington).

The video starts with a confident Seth Rollins reliving his victories against AJ Styles and discussing how annoyed and upset The Phenomenal One was with the defeats.  Jason Jordan reminisced about Styles playing Madden backstage at shows, and how dedicated he was with the tournament.

By half time of Rollins vs Jordan, the two superstars are caught at a 7-7 draw, with Jordan scoring an interception in the last 20 seconds of the half.  And so began a second half of intense football that will never be forgotten.

Early in the second half Seth Rollins asked the question: “What happens if we go into overtime”.  Jason Jordan replied to the question by adding 6 points to the board and denying Rollins the chance to score any.  The Champ is no more.

Rollins has openly shown how nervous he can become while playing Madden, and this is no exception.  He was caught rocking back and forth as he tries to work out why and how he is losing; Jordan meanwhile remains cool, calm and collected.

Early in the game, the two discuss how greed caused the interception that led to Dick Wellington‘s first half score.  Later they continued by turning the events into wise lessons for all on the pitfalls of greed, adding a moral tone to the video.  Unfortunately Seth wasn’t able to hide his frustration and anger in the closing moments as he walked up with a few seconds still left on the clock.

This is the first time in Madden Tournament history that Seth Rollins has lost.  He is no longer invincible and there is now a guaranteed new Champion in this year’s tournament.  Safe options for this year’s Champion would be AJ Styles, Luke Harper or Kofi Kingston.

Highlights of the video:

  1. Just how close Seth Rollins gets to the screen in the final plays of the game.
  2. Seth Rollins’ monologue as he leaves the game, resulting in some well timed dolphin sounds to censor his emotions.
  3. This quote from The Champ: “Fudge me.  Fudge me right in the fudging fudge”.
  4. Jordan’s sheer delight at the end of the video, he can’t contain his happiness as Rollins rants down the corridor.
  5. The fact that Jordan never practiced, or played the latest Madden game.

Dick Wellington joins the winner of the SmackDown Live showdown that was released yesterday, Luke Harper who shocked Jimmy Uso with a solid performance.

Bonus Question:

Does this mean that Seth Rollins will have to change his GamerTag on UpUpDownDown as he is no longer The Champ?

Finn Balor Clears Up Longtime NXT TakeOver: Dallas Rumor

Jon Fuentes
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6

WWE Superstar Finn Balor recently did an interview with Ringside Collectibles at Ringside Fest 2017 to discuss a number of professional wrestling topics. “The Demon King” cleared up a longstanding rumor that he had an accident in his trunks during his NXT TakeOver: Dallas match against Samoa Joe, and who he’d like to have a match with at WrestleMania. Here are the highlights:

The longstanding rumor that he had an accident in his trunks during his NXT Title defense against Samoa Joe at NXT TakeOver: Dallas:

“I want to tell everyone, there was a rumor that went around that I pooped my pants in that match,” he explained, “but it was actually the sweat on the baby blue trunks… So when Joe picked me up for the Muscle Buster and faced the hard cam, my butt was facing directly at the hard cam and everyone goes, ‘Oh my God, Finn’s pooped his pants!’ But it was just sweat, and maybe a little bit of Joe’s blood because I busted him open that day, too.”

His dream WrestleMania match:

“There’s a lot of people I would love to face… Triple H, Undertaker, AJ Styles. Either one of them, singles, one-on-one. Listen, I could wrestle eight matches at WrestleMania if I wanted to. I’m fit.”

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Backstage News On If Kenny Omega’s WWE Plans After NJPW Contract Is Up

Jon Fuentes
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Kenny Omega is arguably the biggest name in professional wrestling outside the WWE, and as his contract with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) draws to a close, many are left wondering whether or not he’ll make the jump over to WWE that so many before him have. Last year NJPW officials were worried that Omega would actually make the move to WWE, however, this year it doesn’t seem to be as big of a concern.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCdxT5D_dK4&feature=youtu.be

Omega’s current NJPW deal is set to expire on January 31, 2018, and per a report from Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there’s very little talk of him leaving the company. He currently reigns as the IWGP United States Champion and is planning on signing back with the promotion for another year. Omega’s new deal will give him a considerable pay raise in addition to having more creative authority in all angles he’s involved in.

The confidence that Omega will resign with NJPW shines through as he has already been advertised for shows beyond his current deal with the company. Ring Of Honor (ROH) currently has him booked for their April 7th Ring Of Honor Supercard of Honor show, which he is expected to serve as the headliner for. Omega is expected to be a major part of NJPW’s plans in 2018, and recently expressed his confidence in resigning with the company after telling Tokyo Sports, “I’m staying in New Japan 100 percent. This is where wrestlers can be themselves and fight for themselves. I want to show how great a place it is.”

Al Snow Talks Wrestling Getting Dubbed ‘Fake’ While Movies Aren’t

Jon Fuentes
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0

Former WWE Superstar Al Snow recently did an interview with the Pat Buck WrestlePro Show to talk about a number of professional wrestling topics. Snow touched on wrestling being labelled as ‘fake,’ the art of selling inside the ring, and why wrestling is more scrutinized for being ‘fake’ while other forms of entertainment such as movies aren’t. You can check out the highlights here:

Wrestling being dubbed as ‘fake’:

“It’s just the outcome. All the wrestling moves are quite real. All the stuff you know, you know how to actually go in there and truly, not competitively, you know how to apply an armbar and break a guy’s arm. You know how to hook a guy in a hammerlock, you know how to hook a headlock, you know how to take a leg, waist lock a guy, all those moves are quite real,” Snow said. “They are all legitimate moves. Some of the bumps we take are ‘video game-esque,’ but when you take the bump it is quite real. One thing that is fake is the outcome, where the fact that when you go out there I am going to win and you are going to lose.”

The art of selling:

“I don’t sell the pain, I sell the fact that it might create an opportunity for you to beat me, and that is what I am selling because physically the audience never relates to what we do,” he said. “I mean there are eight things to what we have experienced, but if we were to tell them after the show tonight to stand outside the door as they come out and ask the audience what do they think the ring is made of? They will tell you it’s a trampoline or a mattress and we all know it is not. But you can’t convince them of that because they see the ring either give or that the padding provides some sort of cushion. They don’t understand because they have never done it… Before you step foot in the ring, you have never once took a backdrop, took a dropkick, did something off the top rope, you can’t physically relate, but audiences have known since the late 30’s that Wrestling is predetermined.”

Wrestling being scrutinized for being ‘fake’ while other forms of entertainment such as movies aren’t:

“Because for a long time we have tried to, initially when everyone first tried to smarten up, we still tried to perpetuate the lie, and even though it is kind of an odd situation, even though everyone knew that it was fake, that they were being worked (predetermined), which is where the code word, ‘Kayfabe’ came from,” he explained. “You never yelled the word out or made it obvious, we always integrated it into a sentence so that the ‘mark’ or the fan did not know that you were signalling to everyone that they were in the locker room. Kayfabe, of what it is being used now, that wasn’t protecting the business, that was protecting the audience. Kayfabe, in the way that it is used now is like when you are going to watch a movie. The producers of that movie spend an ungodly amounts of money for one reason: that is to protect you that not one solitary thing is not out of place where for one second it takes you even for a second out of that movie.

“It’s a way for you to protect the audience, and the one way you do that is to never stop selling the finish. The two things that an audience pays to believe in, either tonight or anywhere else, doesn’t matter style or how you approach it, because the number one thing in Wrestling is if it sells that is what you do. Two things that they pay to believe in is: who you are, second reason is why did you do it? The magic in Wrestling is once we step into that ring, you and I can absolutely do anything,” he continued. “To prove my point personally I have made a living and made really good living doing this [training] than the 15 years prior making people believe I can knock people out with a plastic head. People till this day, believe that I can win by hitting someone with ‘Head.’ It’s the only time I use it when I want to win. If I hit somebody and did something else with it, I end up pouring it out and it’ll no longer be what it is, and I believe it when I am in the ring so they can believe in it to, which is what they pay for me to do. They wonder when I am going to act crazy and hit somebody with a plastic head. The concept that I can actually render another person unconscious is ridiculous, but has anyone ever question it? Until I bring it up nobody thinks about it.”

You can listen to Al Snow’s interview on the Pat Buck WrestlePro Show by clicking here.

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Ex-WWE Writer On Why Triple H Intimidated Him

Jon Fuentes
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0

Former WWE writer Brian Gewirtz was recently a guest on former WWE Tag Team Champions Edge and Christian’s podcast, E&C’s Pod Of Awesomeness, to discuss a variety of professional wrestling topics. Gewirtz explained why he felt intimidated by a lot of performers he worked with, why WWE higher-ups didn’t want Edge and Christian doing comedy, and why comedy is an integral part in the growth of future main eventers. You can check out the highlights below:

Feeling intimidated by a lot of performers in the company:

“Yeah, I mean, [Edge, Christian, The Rock, Chris Jericho, and Kurt Angle] was probably the starting five of my first go around. I think, like, Al Snow and Steve Blackman too. Yeah, it’s a great starting line because, as a writer and everything, you’re supposed to write for everybody, but, like, human nature gets in the way. I mean, I was intimidated by a lot of people and if nobody was… I always figured, like, Triple H is very intimidating, and he was a big star, and he always seemed to put his material together himself, so it’s like, ‘okay, great – he’s all set.'”

“Rock, I had met at MTV before coming [to WWE], so I kind of knew him, and, well, he helped get me an interview with WWE in the first place, so we clicked right away and Mick [Foley] too, and Jericho. And this was at a time too when Jericho was going through a period where it was, like, ‘I’m losing to Viscera on [WWE Sunday Night] Heat? What the hell is going on?’ That type of thing. And then, [Edge and Christian], I think [clicked right away as well]. We’re around the same age. I pretended to like hockey a little bit to open the door.”

WWE higher-ups not wanting Edge and Christian to do comedy out of fear they wouldn’t be taken seriously:

“Yeah, that was a big back-and-forth that I used to have when the subject of Edge and Christian came up and it was ‘they’re too goofy – they’re too goofy; they’re never going to be main eventers if they’re going to be doing this type of ridiculousness’ and my argument was, and I’m sure it was not eliquated in a nice, mature way at the time. It was probably more like, ‘you’re stupid!’ and running away or something like that. But the point that I did eventually get across was, ‘it’s like, well, you’ve got to start somewhere, right?’ Like, [Edge] went from silent rage and puffy shirt, and evil vampires, and running around the subway for some reason, and now, [he has] got an identity.”

Comedy being a key starting point for many future main eventers:

“Nobody’s saying you have to be this forever, but now you’re more comfortable on the mic and you can go out there and cut a promo.” Gewirtz added, “but, no, it’s all that stuff though that gave you the ammunition to eventually evolve, that was my roundabout point, to eventually evolve into ‘The Rated-R Superstar’ and, I can’t really peg [Christian’s] character into one little catchphrase. I don’t want to say ‘The One More Match Guy’ because that doesn’t really do [him] any justice. I guess ‘Captain Charisma’. That’s true.”

You can listen to Gewirtz’s interview on E&C’s Pod Of Awesomeness by clicking this link here.

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

Jack Swagger Offers His Thoughts On Cody Rhodes’ WWE Departure

Jon Fuentes
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0

Former WWE Superstar Jack Swagger recently did an interview with The Huffington Post to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Swagger discussed what was special about working for WWE, what he failed to accomplish during his time with the promotion, and Cody Rhodes’ exit from the company. You can check out the highlights here:

What was special about working for WWE:

“I was very lucky to go to the biggest company in the world and wrestle. You definitely see the bigger arenas, the bigger crowds, hear the bigger pops, work with he bigger names. You can’t put a monetary value on that, because it’s so special.”

What he failed to accomplish while with the company:

“Anything I did not accomplish there, it wasn’t because there was a thumb over my head, pushing me down. It’s because I didn’t accomplish it. That’s the way I choose to go through life and look at things and move on.”

Cody Rhodes’ exit from the promotion:

“He has a very good brain for this business – he always has – and he really knew his game plan and what he wanted to do. He executed it very well.”

You can read Swagger’s full interview with The Huffington Post by clicking here.

Ronda Rousey Attends NXT Event (Photo), Latest From Charlotte & McCool

Jon Fuentes
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7

– Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey was at last night’s NXT event in which she interacted with fans and hung out with some of the NXT talent. Kairi Sane Tweeted out her reaction to getting to meet “The Rowdy One”:

– WWE posted the following video in which they take a look at Charlotte Flair and ex-WWE Women’s Champion Michelle McCool teasing a potential dream match against one another. McCool retired from WWE in 2011 as a two-time Women’s and two-time Divas Champion. She recently noted on Twitter that she’s been “dying for someone to ask” her for one more match:

Triple H vs. Jinder Mahal Announced For In India Next Month

Staff
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14

Next month, WWE heads to India for live events in New Dehli on Friday, December 8th and Saturday, December 9th at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium.

Although Jinder Mahal is no longer the defending WWE Champion, the Modern Day Maharajah will still be a big focus of the shows. He’s expected to get a hero’s welcome, but fans may be conflicted about who to cheer for when Mahal steps in the ring.

In a video posted on Twitter on Saturday night, Triple H said fans have asked him ‘a million times’ if he’ll be wrestling in India. Indeed, he will and his opponent will be Jinder Mahal.

Triple H vs. Jinder Mahal will take place on the December 9th card and The Game is is touting it as “the biggest match in India’s history.”

Triple H just has one question for Jinder Mahal and the fans of India. “Are you ready?”

Does WWE Have an Age Problem?

Jake Skudder
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50

WWE’s latest PPV offering Survivor Series is just over a week away and following the events of RAW and Smackdown the card has been changed dramatically, arguably for the better.

One of the marquee matches on the card is the 5-on-5 Traditional Survivor Series Elimination match between Team RAW and Team Smackdown. On the face of it this is a star studded bout and it throws up opportunities for some in ring confrontations that we haven’t seen in years.

One thing however that isn’t being discussed is best summed up in a tweet I read earlier this week:

Now, looking at the match from an overarching standpoint you can clearly see that (relatively) recently promoted NXT stars Shinsuke Nakamura, Bobby Roode, Samoa Joe and Jason Jordan are in this bout, which is a bonus and a clear indication that the WWE is looking to promote newer stars on both sides of their brand split…but while Shinsuke, Bobby and Joe are new to the WWE fan base they are in the later stages of their career.

The fact that Jason Jordan is the only performer in this bout still in his twenties should be of concern to WWE, it is pivotal for the company to be constantly evolving and to be looking for ‘the next big thing’….which leads me to the main event.

AJ Styles vs Brock Lesnar is a top drawer match, no doubt about it. When it was announced that Brock would be facing Jinder Mahal in the Survivor Series main event it saw a fairly tepid response from the WWE faithful and on paper AJ is certainly a better foe for Brock on the 19th. But what is important to remember is the fact that both AJ and Brock are now both 40 years old, Jinder Mahal is 31.

I completely understand that Jinder did not set the world alight when he held the WWE Championship, and I can appreciate that while AJ may be 40 he could feasibly still perform at a top level for at least another 4-5 years. What concerns me as a longtime WWE fan is the fact that they are just not building younger stars and are now starting to purely rely on independent performers who they can cherry pick from the worldwide scene to plug the gap.

When you look at the current crop of ‘homegrown’ top level WWE performers, I’m talking John Cena, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle, you have to consider the age at which they debuted on television:

  • John Cena – Smackdown June 27th 2002: 25 Years Old
  • Kurt Angle – Heat March 7th 1999: 30 Years Old
  • Brock Lesnar – RAW March 18th 2002: 24 Years Old
  • Randy Orton – Smackdown April 25th 2002: 22 Years Old

Compare this to the recently promoted top stars of RAW and Smackdown and you have a real disparity there. I might be unfair in my assessment, I am comparing today’s crop of stars to one of the most unique and stacked group of performers from the old OVW territory back in the early 2000s…however the issue is truly evident when you take this final point into consideration:

In the 5-on-5 match, who is the one performer that seems out of place and hasn’t been given the same push as the others? If you said Jason Jordan then we’re on the same wave length. Jordan is a younger talent that needs to be built in this match, otherwise what is the point?

You may completely disagree with me, or you may agree that the ageing main event roster is a bubble that will eventually burst and cause a tremendous ripple effect on the WWE product…either way I want to hear from you in the comments.

WWE Superstar Shocks UpUpDownDown Madden Tournament

Roderick Stedman
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7

The penultimate match in Round 1 of the 2017 NFL Madden 18 Tournament included a new face to UpUpDownDown, and Seth Rollins should be worried.

Jimmy Uso reached the quarter final stage last year against AJ Styles which resulted in an entertaining match.  The highlights of that game are:

  1. The amount of censorship required in the final minutes to keep Jimmy Uso family friendly.
  2. AJ Styles’ delight in securing outrageous interceptions.

The Prince of Phenomenal made his way into the SmackDown Live semi finals, to face Jack Swagger, with a 24-17 win over UCE.

Unfortunately for UCE, he didn’t have much luck in this year’s tournament either as he came up against a surprising adversary.  Out of all the superstars, Luke Harper does not spring to mind as someone who would be video game savvy, yet he proved any doubters wrong.

While his in-ring persona suggests that he may not be familiar with electricity, let alone Xbox One or PS4, he is more than capable of taking the challenge to Seth Rollins in the 2017 tournament.  A mixture of good football knowledge and understanding of how to convert that knowledge onto the virtual pitch is exactly what made Seth Rollins The Champ.  However, Luke Harper has proven that he has all those skills too.

What’s even better about this video is the amount of fun that each superstar had; it doesn’t even seem like Harper has missed a beat or bean away at all from SmackDown Live.

Highlight of the match:

Jimmy Uso repeatedly trying to rip his shirt and off and failing.

Daniel Bryan Takes The #OneChipChallenge (Video), New Bullet Club Member, Yeaton

Staff
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– Earlier this week video game journalist Dan Ryckert challenged SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan to take the #OneChipChallenge. For those who are unfamiliar, the challenge involves eating a Paqui tortilla chip, which is made with very spicy ghost pepper and California Reaper peppers. Bryan joked, “If I can’t handle it, I’m not a real man.”

Both men ate a chip and the results were hilarious. Daniel Bryan sat there cool and comfortable while Ryckert lost it, coughing in pain and in disbelief that Bryan was unfazed. Bryan refused a drink of [dairy free] Muscle Milk afterwards said he felt so good that he did a cartwheel on the table they were sitting at. Check out the video:

– Longtime WWE timekeeper Mark Yeaton tweeted the following on Friday, noting that he “doesn’t miss that place at all” after leaving the company 3 years ago.

– The Bullet Club has established a new ‘chapter’ in Australia and inducted Gino ‘Juicy’ Gambino as the newest member.

https://twitter.com/CoolzInferno/status/929305106163499008

Kazuchika Okada Appears for Melbourne City Wrestling, Promises to Bring NJPW stars to Promotion

Jake Skudder
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IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada performed for Melbourne City Wrestling today in the main event of #MCWRain.

Okada defeated ‘The Business’ Slex in front of a sold out Thornbury Theatre in what was MCW’s biggest event to date.

During his time in Australia the ‘Rainmaker’ made some promises that will be massively beneficial to the Australian independent scene going forward, namely that he will be bringing in fellow New Japan Pro Wrestling stars Tanahashi, Naito and Kenny Omega to MCW “as soon as possible.”

Make of that what you will but this is a very exciting time for the Australian wrestling scene and it looks to keep getting bigger and bigger as time rolls on.

Are you based in Australia? Did you Okada in MCW today? Let us know in the comments…

Big Return Reportedly Set For RAW Next Week

Jon Fuentes
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Former WWE Divas Champion Paige has been away from WWE TV since last summer after violating the company’s Wellness Policy twice, in addition to getting surgery to repair a neck injury. According to a report from PWInsider, Paige is set to return to WWE TV next week on RAW. Initially it was believed that Paige would return as a member of SmackDown Live, however, it now appears she will remain on Monday Night RAW.

Paige is also expected to join Team RAW at Survivor Series later this month. It’s possible she’s added to the Triple Threat match between Dana Brooke, Bayley, and Mickie James to determine the team’s final member. She could also take someone else’s spot before the pay-per-view (PPV) as well. We’ll keep you updated as we learn more…

Rev Pro/NJPW Global Wars Night 2 Full Results

Jake Skudder
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Revolution Pro and New Japan Pro Wrestling hosted two nights of international action in London this week. Night 1 of ‘Global Wars’ took place Thursday night and the event is now available to purchase via Rev Pro’s On Demand service.

Here are the results from Night 2 in Walthamstow from Friday night:

CCK (Chris Brookes, Travis Banks & Kid Lykos) b. Chaos (Hirooki Goto, Yoshi-Hashi & Gedo)

Toru Yano b. “Liverpool’s No.1” Zack Gibson

Josh Bodom b. Rocky Romero

Tomohiro Ishii b. Dave Mastiff

Undisputed British Cruiserweight Championship Match: “All Day Star” Ryan Smile b. El Desperado – by pinfall to retain the Undisputed British Cruiserweight Championship

Tetsuya Naito & Bushi b. Yuji Nagata & Keith Lee

Minoru Suzuki b. “Super King Of Bros” Matt Riddle

Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr defeated “The Aerial Assassin” Will Ospreay – by submission to retain the Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship

UK Performer from WWE Tryouts Posts Incredible Body Transformation Photos

Jake Skudder
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‘The Pride of Wales’ Eddie Dennis recently took part in a tryout during WWE’s tour of the United Kingdom.

Dennis has been a longtime standout on the independent scene in the United Kingdom, having seen success with his F.S.U tag team partner Mark Andrews as well performing as a singles star for ATTACK! Pro, Rev Pro and now PROGRESS.

Eddie’s story is unique, he left his steady nine to five job as a head teacher to become a full time pro wrestler and follow his dream earlier this year…and the changes both in ring and physically are evident. Eddie recently posted a tweet showing his incredible transformation from July to November and you can check this out below:

https://twitter.com/EddieDennis1986/status/928939328943910912

You can check out a video released earlier this year detailing the journey for Eddie from classroom to wrestling ring below:

WWE UK Stars Announced for PROGRESS Chapter 57

Jake Skudder
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PROGRESS has unveiled the final 2 matches from their upcoming Chapter 57 show: ‘Enter Smiling.’

Moustache Mountain (Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) will be taking on the Grizzled Young Veterans, comprised of Zack Gibson and James Drake. Bate & Seven have been portrayed as heels on the preceding chapter shows however their appearance alongside Pete Dunne at last month’s Electric Ballroom show saw the PROGRESS faithful cheer the longtime antagonists.

Another massive tag team bout has been announced and will see the new team of Jimmy Havoc & Mark Haskins take on Jack Sexsmith and a mystery partner. Sexsmith has been teasing a number of names to appear alongside him, including ‘The Game’ Triple H (although this obviously isn’t likely…).

AJ Styles’ Message To Brock Lesnar (Video), NJPW Lands India TV Deal

Jon Fuentes
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– While at last night’s WWE live event from Milan, Italy, WWE Champion AJ Styles issued a message to his Survivor Series opponent and WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar. “The Phenomenal One” expressed his confidence in being able to pull off the upset win over “The Beast”:

“Now I am the WWE Champion once again, and now I have the opportunity at Survivor Series to face Brock Lesnar,” Styles said. “I know what you’re thinking, ‘AJ, you can’t beat him! He’s a beast! He’s a giant!’ Well, you know there was this one guy, who had a slingshot and a stone. And I have a ring that I’m going to slingshot myself into victory, when I take it to Brock Lesnar! And that’s how the story will end.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BbVR_y6g81C/

– In addition to airing Ring of Honor and Lucha Underground content, DSport (a premium sports TV channel) has announced that they will now be airing New Japan Pro Wrestling in India. No further details have been disclosed at this time:

https://twitter.com/DSportIN/status/928868601443971072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://twitter.com/DSportIN/status/929290553014890496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Latest On Ronda Rousey WrestleMania Plans

Jon Fuentes
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Ex-UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey has long been rumored to be making the career switch over to professional wrestling, and it looks like her in-ring debut could come as soon as WrestleMania 34. Rumors have been running rampant regarding who Rousey will face in her debut match, with a Four Horsewomen of MMA vs. the Four Horsewomen of WWE match leading the charge.

Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Dave Meltzer confirmed these reports by claiming the Four Horsewomen vs. Four Horsewomen is confirmed for “The Show Of Shows.” Early rumors had the match happening later this month at Survivor Series, however, those plans were pushed back to allow the four mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters to extend their in-ring training. Another argument that was made indicated that Rousey’s in-ring debut will bring a ton of publicity, so it makes sense to do it on as big a platform as WrestleMania.

If all goes well after the match, WWE will then begin to build towards a singles feud with Rousey – most likely against either Stephanie McMahon or Charlotte Flair.

ROH’s Joe Koff Talks The Young Bucks Cease And Desist Situation With WWE, New Streaming Service

Andrew Ravens
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Ring of Honor COO Joe Koff recently spoke with Chuck Carroll of CBS Sports to talk about various topics. Here are the highlights:

The Young Bucks cease and desist situation with WWE:

“To be really honest with you, that was between them and WWE. I think they handled it perfectly. If they were to ask me my advice, I would probably have advised them to do it the way they did it. This is beyond Ring of Honor. It’s nothing that happened under our watch. We didn’t have anything to do with it. They acted very responsibly. They are very, very good businessmen. Not only are they gifted performers, they are very good businessmen, and they’re smart about how they do business. I think in their minds — I don’t speak for them — it probably wasn’t worth a war.”

Ring of Honor’s new streaming service:

“Yeah, we have an app coming out in the first quarter. It really became developmentally the right time to do it. We saw an opportunity. We had a long discussion about it. We looked at the business model and how it impacts our business. We just felt that this was the time to create our own Ring of Honor stream. … Well we might continue [PPVs on] both. I would like to migrate personally to stream model, because a lot of people are watching on those devices anyway. And the quality is so good. And you know a lot of those boxes are hooked up to big sets and smart TVs and stuff like that. I’m not ruling out traditional pay-per-views, but the world is going that way.”

 

Latest On Daniel Bryan Trying To Get Medically Cleared To Wrestle

Chris Stephens
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Daniel Bryan has made no secret that he wants to return to in-ring action. While WWE doctors are unwilling to clear Bryan, he has received conflicting advice from other medical professionals. Bryan recently spoke to the Trentonian to provide an update.

“I’m trying to get cleared as we speak,” Bryan said. “All my tests have come back fantastic, better than people who have never had any concussion-type stuff. But it’s a weird thing. We’re in a weird situation politically with the climate around concussions; right now, it’s very difficult.”

He continued, “WWE would love to have me back, but is that the smart thing for me as a business to bring me back? If I was to come back, and they let me back, would they get a lot of flak for it? They have a ton of stockholders that they’re responsible for. It’s more than just, ‘Is he healthy to do it?’ There’s more than that to the whole situation.”

Bryan is adamant that he’s healthy enough to wrestle again, but the the ‘politics’ of WWE being a risk-averse public corporation is a big obstacle.

“All the concussion doctors think that I’m healthy enough to do it and that I should be able to do it — well, I don’t want to say all of them, I’m sure there’s somebody out there who doesn’t think that — but there’s a lot more than goes into it than just that. That’s the unfortunate situation with giant corporations and big business in the United States.”

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