Forbes magazine writer Mike Ozanian recently published his list of the “Fab 40 Most Valuable Brands In Sports,” a list that WWE and UFC appeared on.
Coming in at number eight on the list was WrestleMania, which they estimate as being a brand name that is worth $105 million.
Meanwhile, UFC made the list and is valued at $440 million.
You can check out the complete list at Forbes.com.
A massive typhoon is headed for Japan and is expected to make landfall on Monday before hitting Tokyo on Tuesday. While TNA’s Bound For Glory pay-per-view is in Tokyo this weekend, the TNA crew should be back in the United States before the typhoon hits the mainland.
Meanwhile, TNA President Dixie Carter has been getting some flack from fans on Twitter for a tweet she posted about James Storm and the typhoon, one that many fans found to be in bad taste.
Since then, Dixie has posted another tweet apologizing for how the aforementioned tweet came off. You can check out Dixie’s apology tweet below.
The @JamesStormBrand tweet was supposed to be about James Storm. Sincere apologies how it was posted.
— Dixie Carter (@TNADixie) October 11, 2014
The following are highlights of a new Trib Live interview with Dean Ambrose:
On some Superstars being predictable: “There’s a lot of guys in WWE, you would know who they are, you know you’re going to see the same thing every single match. You know you’re going to hear the same thing every time they pick up a microphone. You know John Cena is never going to get mad at you no matter what you do. You could steal his dog or set his house on fire and he’s not going to get all that mad at you. He’s going to come out and do the same thing he always does. Me, I’m not like that. I get pretty upset pretty quickly.”
I don’t like having an entrance or anything like that too set in stone. A lot of guys come out and have the exact little dance or exact little thing that goes off at the right time with the pyro. What if I’m not in the mood to do my little dance this week?”
On the Attitude Era: “I don’t like my wrestling or entertainment in general to be too clean or predictable for me as a fan. When I say clean, I’m not talking about dirty jokes, middle fingers and stuff like that. I’m actually not even a big fan of that.
A lot of people talk about the attitude era being so great but a lot of it was terrible crap, sex jokes and over-the-top terrible bad comedy. It was Jerry Springer-like. They made a joke about a woman’s breasts. Hilarious, but where’s the wrestling? I look back on a lot of stuff now, and I’m like where’s the wrestling? It’s just a lot of crappy jokes.”
Check out the complete interview at TribLive.com.
MMANEWS.COM: Hackers Selling Nude Photos Of UFC’s Miesha Tate!
Kia Stevens, also known as Awesome Kong/Amazing Kong & formerly known as WWE Superstar, Kharma, joined Nani & Coach Kev for PANDEMONIUM on Wednesday night. Here is what the former Diva had to say.
Upon her introduction on the show as Kharma:
“Formerly known as Kharma… [laughs] don’t want anyone at the office giving you a call. [laughs]”
If she had still been signed to WWE, would she have accepted a role on Total Divas:
“Oh yeah. I totally would have. However, I think- like you [the host, Nani] said- I’m very honest. Sometimes, I’m honest at a fault where I have to act good & edit myself. & I usually don’t because I just find that you feel better when you just live in the moment & be true to yourself. & I don’t know if they could handle me because I’m like the… for real. What’s the name… Teresa Giudice flipping tables? She ain’t got nothing on what goes on in my everyday life ’cause, you know, I go from 0 to 60 in a second if it’s warranted. If it’s warranted & it’s on… where you put on that green light where you cross the line, I’m going to put you in the place. I will turn out the whole building. People usually read about, you know, like, you guys have read a few things that I did in my past, that I’m not proud of. [laughs] But it was warranted. We all know that some people had things coming. It’s bad. [laughs] I like reality but I think, lately, reality has been not so real & I’m real & I wouldn’t do things… it would have to be for real. Real issues ’cause there’s things in issues that people need to talk about. They [viewers] would relate to them.”
On whether she regrets not being a WWE Diva’s Champion while she was with the WWE:
“I don’t know if ‘regret’ is the right word. I’m such a grateful person… & I think if I wasn’t such a grateful person, I would still be there. I was so grateful just to had just been there that that may have been part of the problem. I was just grateful to go through Gorilla for my very first debut & that was fine for me. That was all I asked for. I turned to my fiance & said [mocking herself], ‘All I want to do is walk down the ramp. All I want to do is walk down the Gorilla at WWE, my life is complete.’ & that’s kind of all I did [laughs]. So be careful what you ask for because you might just get it. I don’t know. ‘Regret’ is a strong word but I’m pretty confident that, had I had a longer run, I would have had that belt across my shoulder. I’m extremely confident that would’ve happened.”
On the WWE Divas’ Championship Belt
“The butterfly belt? I’ve never told anyone this but I actually already have a belt drafted up of what my belt would look like if I were ever WWE [Divas] Champion. It’s badass. I do not care for the butterfly title & it would not go with my persona & I would insist that I have my own damn belt. I would totally push the design that I have it in my head & the vision that I have in my head because I think it would sell like hotcakes in stores. What did you say to do with it? Break it over my knee? I’m throwing it in a fire. [laughs] I’m melting it down. I would seriously melt it down & use the parts for my new belt.”
On what &/or who inspired her to be a wrestler:
“So many things. Just wrestling, in general. Trish Stratus is a big final influence. Her performance, & I just watched her & her progress in the ring, made me believe I could go in there & do it, as well. So, watching her, made me go ‘Ok. I’m actually going to do something. I’m in my 20s, have a lucrative career in business. I could take my 20s & gamble with a few of these years… a few of my young years & see what I could do in my Dream Chase. I’m going to take my 20s & dream-chase with them’ & why not? That’s what your 20s are for. It was like a joke that went way too far that just kept going & going & eventually, it evolved into a really nice career. She [Trish Stratus] learned her craft. I was a big fan in the 80s, watching every Saturday with my brother, who used to torture me in the living room every Saturday morning with the Camel Clutch, which is why I incorporate it in to my repertoire sometimes. I was a big fan of the ‘Attitude Era’, of course. ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin… Everybody was watching WCW & I was watching WWE, WWF at the time, fanatically. That’s all I would watch. I would watch it for ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin, & then the Rock, & then Mick Foley. Then, next thing you know, McMahon bought WCW & it was just awesome. But it was Trish & watching her because she wasn’t that good at first. [laughs] It was kind of cringe-worthy but she got SO good, so fast… & you could just see it in each week & it was extremely inspirational.”
Does she feel that WWE not having competition (like WCW) is an issue in today’s day & age:
“I disagree. I think they have a big bar to raise to. They may have the corner in wrestling. As far as entertainment, there’s so many outlets of entertainment available today. They have a lot of competition. I mean, Youtube, itself, is competition. People carry their TVs in their pockets nowadays. Gone were the days where you had 12 channels & wrestling was featured on one of them. So, wrestling has a lot of competition nowadays to grab the attention of the viewers & the youth & to maintain the fanbase… they haven’t gotten lazy just because they have wrestling in their pockets. They still do a lot of work to keep their viewers.”
On the most satisfying moment or experience in career, thus far:
“I can’t answer your question. [laughs] It’s hard to measure them because… each moment, each part of my life meant something different. You’re about to make me cry & don’t you dare [laughs]. My TNA debut… that was extremely important because I gained a lot of fame in Japan but I came home &, y’know, I wasn’t famous in America. So, debuting on TNA on American television while my mom was still alive, because she died extremely shortly after… like, barely a month after I got the belt there after I debuted. I debuted in October & she died in February so she was able to see because they smuggled her out of the hospital. She was able to see my American television debut. That was extremely important to me. Had she still lived, then I would say the Royal Rumble, of course. [laughs] Awesome experience. I mean, come on. [Nani mentions that Kharma was 1 of the only 3 females to ever enter the Royal Rumble] One of three & the first black female. I always have to say that, because, you know. [laughs] So in a few years when they do African-American history, they better put my picture up there [laughs], ‘Kharma, first African American female to participate in the Royal Rumble.'”
On if she has plans on making a return to WWE:
“I think the window on that possibility is getting shorter & shorter as the months & years go by. I do have an injury that I’ve been working again… two bulging discs. I am due to get surgery real soon & shave some of that herniation off. We’ll see after that. After that, then it’s very very possible because I’ve been very transparent that WWE said, ‘Get healthy… come back… doors open’. ”
On her in-character threat to The Bella Twins during her last appearance on RAW:
“It’s awesome that everyone remembers that [how she threatened the Bellas during her last speech on RAW]. It’s always brought up to me. I would love to go back & give them their come-up-in [laughs], even though they’re face right now. But it’s not up to me, it’s actually up to you & your viewers & listeners & what you guys do. People keep asking me when am I coming back. I don’t have an answer for you. I’d be there tomorrow if I could. There are certain things, like my injury I need to take care of that. There were other things, emotional issues that needed to be dealt with. I needed some time off. I needed to be released & to address some personal issues. While one of the personal issues have been addressed, there’s still the lingering physical issue & that’s the only loose end to tie up.”
On what the next chapter of her career is:
“I’m glad you asked that. Today, I launched a Kickstarter & your listeners can look it up by going to my Twitter page, @Kharma. It’s a website I’m raising money for, which tracks good deeds. If you were to do a good deed for someone & write down or stamp & you put the stamp on there, they’ll enter your serial number & say, ‘Hey, this person bought me a cup of coffee.’ You’d be able to see how far your good deed goes through my website. I hope someone buys a cup of coffee or gives someone an umbrella who needs it in the rain that turns in to a big tip for a waitress that turns into a great present for Toys For Tots, etcetera, etcetera. So I’m encouraging everyone to do good deeds & help me build the site so we can make this world a little less crappier.”
On the best advice that her wrestling trainers had given her:
“When you don’t know what to do, punch them in the face.”
Listen to the whole interview at www.vocnation.com & www.thebradyhicks.com. You can hear Nani & Coach Kev on PANDEMONIUM every Wednesday at 7:30pmEST onwww.vocnation.com & www.thebradyhicks.com. Follow Nani on Twitter: @MuppHits. Follow Kev on Twitter: @damageathletics. Follow VOCNation on Twitter: @vocnation
The following are highlights of a new Newsday interview with Mark Henry:
On his his world heavyweight title run: “I was fed up with mediocrity. I wanted to show strength that most people are afraid to bring out. It was hard for me to come down from that. I would leave the arena completely exhausted — physically, mentally and emotionally. I’d make myself angry to the point that it was sickening. And I realized when I started doing that, that a lot of it was real frustration. I was tired of being trivialized. I was tired of being made the butt of the joke. I was going to retire. I was tired of it. And when I voiced that opinion, with that kind of anger, it was like, “Damn, if you’re going to be angry like that, then put it in the ring. Don’t just say it. Do it.” And that’s what happened. I started living it. And it was the best time of my career.”
On being a locker room leader: “Most definitely. You have to set an example for the future of the industry. I’m early to the arena. I’m late to leave. It’s business. I try my best to present myself with a level of respect in the locker room. I’ve never been a drinker or a smoker. I don’t cuss people out. I don’t show myself in a light where people will not respect me. I command respect. I make guys say, “Sir.” I say, “Sir,” even though they’re young guys. I want them to have a level of discipline that is expected more like by a father or your boss than as a contemporary or somebody that you work with. We’re businessmen. And you have to be able to come to work and put on a hard hat and work. If not, you’re bad for the people that come after you. So I set that example. I relish that role. I take it on full speed ahead, because I don’t want this business to suffer when I’m gone. And I will be gone soon. So these guys need to be able to uphold the standard that I was forced to do, and that I expect.”
On some of his locker room role models: “Ron Simmons is No. 1. He jumps right out as one of those people. Steven [William] Regal. I remember hearing Steven Regal cuss out a group of guys, whose names I’m not going to mention because they were A-list, top five-percent guys. It was like, “Pick your trash up! Your mama don’t live here! Grow up. It’s not a pig sty.” He just went off. And I was laughing my [expletive] off, because he was talking to them like children. And later on, I saw one of those guys go up to him and say, “Hey, Mr. Regal. I apologize. I’ll make sure that don’t happen again.” And I was like, “That’s what it’s all about.” It’s not about being a tyrant. It’s about making people change and making people respect the ground that they walk on, because this is important ground. It’s hallowed ground. And everybody who comes after us has to be able to set that standard. If not, then we are corrupting the business, and it’s going to be defunct in a decade.?”
Check out the complete interview at Newsday.com.
The following are highlights of a new Shake Them Ropes interview with former NXT trainer Nick “Eugene” Dinsmore:
On seeing the WWE Performance Center: “No, this is something that when I first saw it, it blew my mind. I heard they went and looked at the New York Giants facility to see what the standard is for professional athletes, and I feel like the Performance Center far exceeds that.”
On new talent coming in: “There’s a wide variety of talent there, from former professional athletes to actors to independent wrestlers… They’re people that can perform. It’s something special I saw at the Performance Center.”
On KENTA (Hideo Itami) and Prince Devitt’s (Finn Balor) integration into WWE: “Kenta would have English class every day to help with his English. Fergal had apparently never driven a car before, so he would have driving classes. WWE was right there to help anyone who wanted to take a college course to help them with their WWE product, WWE was a very helpful company. Phenomenal.”
Check out the complete interview at VoicesofWrestling.com.
– As noted earlier this week, Randy Orton reached a new part-time deal with WWE that allows him to miss certain weekend live events. As far as the upcoming European tour is concerned, Orton will only be working the first week of shows. Orton vs. Dean Ambrose is scheduled as the main event for their leg of the tour for the first week, while Orton will be taking off the rest of the tour.
– Below are some recent NXT attendance figures:
September 25th for TV tapings at Full Sail University drew 400 fans for a sell out
October 2nd in Jacksonville drew 130 fans
October 3rd in Cocoa Beach drew 100 fans
October 4th in Fort Pierce drew 160 fans
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
Former WWE women’s wrestler Alundra Blayze, who was known as Madusa in WCW (the woman who threw the WWE Women’s Championship in the trash can on Nitro), was hospitalized after an accident at a monster truck show in Melbourne, Australia recently.
She says she will recover and plans on attending Monster Jam’s upcoming shows in Adelaide on October 11th and Sidney on October 18th.
Madusa wrote the following update to her fans on Facebook:
“Hello all my ?#?pinkwarriors? just want to give you an update I have had hundreds of questions asking if I’m okay so I want to set the record straight. Yes. ?#?timewillheal?
Had an awesome night in Melbourne the pit party was phenomenal and I did take a bad spill during freestyle…. however I am on my way to recovery and I will be in Adelaide and Sidney. I was at one of the best hospitals in Melbourne. I want to say thanks to all the doctors and nurses and staff you guys were great, all of my fans who are such great supporters I thank you. The biggest of big shout out to my colleagues of monster jam.
– WWE Diva AJ Lee recently quipped on Twitter that she “doesn’t have friends.” This fact was played up on the WWE App during RAW, with Lee talking about how she’s a loner in the WWE locker room.
“That was a joke, but it’s funny ’cause it’s true,” Lee said to Tom Phillips. “Everyone knows that I don’t exactly have friends in the locker room and maybe that’s because I don’t like to [does mocking voice] talk about shoes, and clothes and boys! But sometimes, you gotta take what you can get.”
– In the following video that was recently added to WWE’s YouTube channel, Stephanie McMahon discusses WWE 2K15, Sting and more.
– The Rock is scheduled to star in the film adaption of the book, “Not Without Hope,” according to a new Deadline article. E. Nicholas Mariani is set to handle the adaption of the book, which is centered around four friends who were capsized during a deep-sea fishing trip. The Rock is expected to play the role of Nick Schuyler, who wrote the original book.
– Speaking of Deadline, the website reports that AMC is getting out of the unscripted television business, outside of keeping “Talking Dead” and “Comic Book Men.” If true, this would mean Smashing Pumpkins front man Billy Corgan will have to find a new cable home for his “Resistance Pro Wrestling” promotion, as he was originally slated to run his shows on AMC.
The following are highlights of the latest Jim Ross blog:
On The Rock at WrestleMania 31: “Does it automatically mean because Rock was in NYC Monday on business and he did a promo segment with Rusev that the Great One is automatically ‘booked’ for WM31 in Santa Clara, California? The next reason the Rock will be booked at WM31 is because his grandfather, the great, High Chief Peter Maivia, wrestled in that territory for years for Roy Shire. Rock delivered the magic that I assume Brian Gewirtz wrote for him. Don’t get me wrong, the WWE could drastically use @TheRock at WM31 but only if there was a valid story behind the match/return and if he could make enough RAW TV’s to engage the audience in his rivalry even considering the ‘pop’ he received Monday night in Brooklyn. The surprise visit by Dwayne Johnson Monday night was by far the highlight of the broadcast. By far….”
On Rusev: “Many old school bookers would have never allowed Rusev to be bounced around as he was Monday night but instead would have had Lana step between the two men and ‘forced’ Rusev to exit the ring.”
On Brock Lesnar: “Been reading where Brock Lesnar is not expected back on WWE TV until January which I find extremely hard to believe. Can that be true? If it is, I’m astonished.”
Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.
The following are highlights of a new Sports Keeda interview with Chris Jericho:
AG: You’ve wrestled many great matches and faced some of the biggest names such as Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle. Here’s a hard one for you – What has been your best match so far in your career?
CJ: Well I mean, yeah it is a hard one, but sometimes, if I have to tell you one, the one between Shawn Michaels and myself at Unforgiven 2008 – it was a match for the world title. It was a great match and the culmination of the angle that basically grew organically on its own for over 5-8 months. It was a perfect example of really good storytelling.
AG: In recent years, you have come back and put over talents such as Fandango and Bray Wyatt. Do you think WWE has dropped the ball with them since?
CJ: I mean, put them over, beat them or both. It’s just a matter of working with new characters and new guys. WWE doesn’t drop balls; your career goes in waves, it goes in cycles. I know that more than anybody else. Sometimes you work on top, sometimes you’re not and when you’re not, it’s upto you to make your mark and get back on track again. I think that WWE has a plan and never tries to sabotage anybody on purpose. Why would they do that? It costs them money.
Someone like Bray Wyatt has a huge potential, huge upside. He’s got a long way to go, so there are no worries and no rush. Fandango – I thought was kind of a one trick pony as far as his character and gimmick go. There is only so much you can do with it. I think it’s time to update that character and take it to another place because you can only do so much with a character like that.
RM: A lot of the wrestlers in their interviews have mentioned about how snug you are with your work, which in my opinion is what makes it all the more believable. The working style in the WWE, especially in this day and age, is a lot less physical except for a couple of people. Have you had anybody complain about your style or have you toned it down over the years?
CJ: No, not at all. I mean I just worked the way I work. Maybe when I first came to WWE back in 1999. There must have been complaints from certain people but I think those people were complaining about everything I did. Whenever I worked with people like Chris Benoit, Bob Holly, Bradshaw or any of those guys, they worked hard. That doesn’t mean you are stiff, it means you are working solid.
I don’t ever get complaints for the way I work and nor would I expect any. I am not hurting anybody, either Sheamus or Cesaro or anybody who works the general hard style, you are just working, trying to get the best possible match you can make it. No one’s breaking any bones or losing any teeth. I just work hard and that’s what it’s all about.
Check out the complete interview at SportsKeeda.com.
The Wednesday, October 8th edition of TNA Impact Wrestling drew a final cable rating of 0.85, according to Nielsen Media Research. That is down from the 0.875 final draw that the show scored last week.
Wednesday’s Impact Wrestling show averaged 1.102 million viewers for Spike TV, which was actually up from the average of 1.097 million viewers for the previous week’s show.
Since capturing the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Brock Lesnar has been virtually invisible. Aside from a few pre-taped interviews, Lesnar has yet to appear since retaining his title last month at Night of Champions.
The latest reports indicate that Lesnar will continue to wear his invisibility cloak, as he is not scheduled to appear again on television until January, meaning the title will likely not be defended for the next three pay-per-views.
With an absent champion and a highly dissatisfied fan base, my question is simple: Is Brock Lesnar’s title run the worst of all-time? In my opinion, it has all the ingredients to take home the honor.
Not only has Lesnar’s title run not been memorable thus far, it doesn’t make sense from either a business or storyline perspective.
On the business front, Raw has gone off a cliff over the past few months. Fans have expressed their displeasure online, crowds are chanting “This is stupid,” and the rating for last week’s episode of Raw was the lowest since 2012.
Although the company wasn’t exactly serving up filet mignon over the summer, there’s no denying that it was a bit tastier than the rump roast they’ve been dishing out over the past few weeks. I also think it is no coincidence that the downturn in the quality of Raw directly coincided with Brock Lesnar becoming champion.
WWE issued the following:
WWE® CELEBRATES 15 YEARS OF SMACKDOWN® TONIGHT ON SYFY
STAMFORD, Conn., October 10, 2014 – WWE will air a special 15th Anniversary episode of SmackDown, tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Syfy. With nearly 800 original episodes, SmackDown is the second longest-running weekly episodic program in U.S. television history, only behind WWE’s other flagship program, Monday Night Raw®. Averaging 3.1 million viewers each week, SmackDown beats all Friday primetime viewing on any cable network.
As part of the 15th Anniversary show, Dwayne “The Rock®” Johnson will appear in a special segment.
Tonight’s SmackDown will be the 790th episode for the series. In comparison, Saturday Night Live has aired 766 episodes since it began in 1975, Gunsmoke aired 635 episodes from 1955-1975, Lassie aired 591 episodes from 1954-1973 and The Simpsons has aired 552 episodes since it began in 1989.
As part of the festivities, celebrities including Ben Roethlisberger, Cedric The Entertainer, Kyle Busch, Snoop Dogg, William Shatner and others will share photos from their WWE experiences on their social media platforms.
Prior to the 15th anniversary episode, fans can watch the WWE Network special Edge and Christian’s 15th Anniversary SmackDown Show that Totally Reeks of Awesomeness, featuring WWE Hall of Famer Edge and WWE Superstar Christian, offering entertaining insight into the greatest moments from SmackDown’s 15 year history. The program is now available as part of WWE Network’s video-on-demand library, containing more than 2,000 hours of content.
“DID YOU KNOW” FACTS ABOUT SMACKDOWN
1. The name SmackDown came from WWE Superstar Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s popular catchphrase, “Lay the Smackdown.”
2. SmackDown has been broadcast from 170 different venues, in 148 cities and towns, in seven different countries including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Iraq, Japan, Italy and Mexico.
3. It would take more than two months of uninterrupted viewing to watch every episode of SmackDown back-to-back.
4. WWE Superstar John Cena® made his WWE debut in June 2002 on SmackDown.
5. WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar® competed in a 60-minute Iron Man match on SmackDown in September 2003.
6. Brock Lesnar and Big Show® fought to a no contest when the ring collapsed after Lesnar superplexed Big Show on SmackDown in June 2003.
7. Stephanie McMahon was the first SmackDown general manager while Teddy Long has the longest total tenure as a SmackDown general manager.
8. Mr. McMahon won his only WWE Championship on SmackDown on September 16, 1999 when he defeated Triple H® with Shane McMahon as special guest referee.
9. The first Friday episode of SmackDown was on September 9, 2005 and featured Batista® defeating JBL® in a Bull Rope Match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 170 countries and 35 languages and reaches more than 650 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Dubai, Munich, Dubai and Tokyo.
Additional information on WWE (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to https://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.
TMZ.com caught up with WWE legend The Rock on the streets of New York City on Wednesday and asked him if he’ll be competing at WrestleMania 31 next March.
The Rock responded, “I don’t think so.” He jokingly added, “I might get hit in the mouth, I don’t want that.”
The Rock will make an appearance Friday’s SmackDown 15th Anniversary special. In a backstage segment that was taped at Monday’s RAW from Brooklyn, The Rock and Triple H discuss who would win a potential match between the two of them at WrestleMania 31.
Bully Ray tweeted the following on Wednesday night after Impact, teasing that he and Devon are indeed finishing up with TNA soon.
Despite not winning tonight, me and @TestifyDevon #Team3D have decided to go after 1 of our other favorite sets of Tag titles…stay tuned.
— Bully Ray (@bullyray5150) October 9, 2014
As we’ve been reporting in recent weeks, Bully Ray is one of the high-profile stars that’s leaving TNA. Initially, he was not even scheduled for Sunday’s Bound For Glory pay-per-view, but was later added to the show.
On Wednesday, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer reported that TNA recently made a lucrative offer to CM Punk similar to the money Hulk Hogan was being paid by the promotion a few years ago.
Since then, Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com reached out to sources in TNA, who told him there was no truth the story. “No offer was made, officially or via an intermediary – no truth to that rumor.”
People close to Punk are saying that he currently has no interest in returning to pro wrestling, much less for TNA.
There were also reports over the weekend that CM Punk was hanging out in the locker room at a live event for Ohio Valley Wrestling. While Punk was at the show (as a guest of Cliff Compton), he was not in the locker room and was not socializing with the wrestlers there. Punk was there to visit OVW owner Danny Davis.
– Due to WWE’s issues with the depth of their current roster, Chris Jericho will in fact be making a quick return to the company for their upcoming European tour.
While he is not scheduled to appear on RAW, he is set to work six dates on the European tour, from November 10th through November 15th, with a possible appearance on SmackDown.
Jericho tweeted on Wednesday night:
I am RETURNING TO THE #WWE in NOV!! •Click link for preview• http://t.co/IEezm2lH6q pic.twitter.com/RdUlYhTmF6
— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) October 8, 2014
The following are highlights of a new WWE.com interview with Hideo Itami:
On his debut at NXT Takeover II: “I was very excited when I made my debut. It was the biggest moment of my career because WWE has always been my goal. The NXT Universe was very welcoming to me and very happy. I was very nervous before I made my debut, but excited, too.”
On the meaning behind his name: “It means ‘Hero of Pain.'”
On the transition from Japan to the United States: “Everything is an adjustment. (Laughs) Driving on the right side instead of the left side, like in Japan. In the house, I notice a lot of people don’t take their shoes off, but in Japan we always take off our shoes. Even the toilets and showers are different here in the U.S. I do like American food but I still miss my Japanese food.”
On his long term goal: “I want to be a World Champion and I would like to compete at a WrestleMania. It’s funny because the thought of making it here first popped into my head about 10 years ago. Around 2003, 2004, I thought about walking away from wrestling and then I attended a WWE show in Japan. From that point forward, I was re-inspired to make it.”
Check out the complete interview at WWE.com.
As seen on the website yesterday, Paul Heyman cut a promo prior to Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown television taping in Philadelphia that ended up being posted on YouTube. While there is no word yet as to whether or not the promo will air on SmackDown this Friday night, the plan right now is to keep Heyman off of television for a while. He was reportedly not at Monday’s RAW in Brooklyn.
While plans could change, the idea is to keep Heyman off of television for a while, as to not call attention to the fact that WWE’s World Heavyweight Champion is away and missing pay-per-view events.
As noted, Brock Lesnar is not scheduled to return to WWE until January.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– WWE is set to do another major promotional push for the WWE Network starting after the Thanksgiving holiday. They will be pushing the Network as the best Christmas gift possible for the wrestling fan in your home.
– Below is a new video interview with Kevin Steen, courtesy of Jim Varsallone of The Miami Herald.
(Partial Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– Although Roman Reigns’ interview on Monday’s RAW was said to be “live via satellite,” he was backstage at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. We noted originally that the plan was for Reigns to do a taped interview, however Reigns himself said in a media interview that he was going to appear live on RAW. Apparently this was a simple case of miscommunication between WWE and Reigns.
– Below are some recent WWE attendance figures:
October 3rd in Toronto, Ontario, Canada drew 4,700 fans
October 4th in Providence, Rhode Island drew 5,500 fans
October 4th in Trenton, New Jersey drew 4,000 fans
October 5th in Bridgeport, Connecticut drew 3,000 fans
October 5th in Allentown, Pennsylvania drew 4,400 fans
October 6th in Brooklyn, New York for RAW drew a legit sellout of 11,800
BROCK LESNAR To RETURN To UFC After His WWE Deal Expires In 2015?! [READ >>]
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
The following are highlights of a new Ring Rust Radio interview with Eddie Edwards:
Edwards on moving to Wednesday and Spike TV negotiations: “As far as the move to Wednesday, I think it was a good idea, you know, with the NFL having the Thursday night games televised now, I thought it was a good idea because it’s a similar fan base and it’s just a smart thing to do. As far as the contract situation, you know, we have nothing to do with that so we just focus on our stuff in the ring and let that stuff handle itself; if you can’t control it, no need to worry about it.”
Edwards on working with Team 3D and The Hardys, and what he and Davey Richards have learned from the experience: “I mean, we have no choice but to learn from being in the ring with those guys. Both teams are legends and me and Davey both watched them growing up and we want to have careers like both of those guys. Being in there, you have no choice but to learn and see what true tag wrestling is and it’s just an honor to be in there with guys of that caliber.”
Edwards on whether he prefers to work tag team or singles: “Right now it’s all tag team stuff, I feel like we have something great going and I would never want to do anything to deter that. Do I look forward to singles matches? Yes, but right now the main concentration is tag wrestling.”
On disappointment that The Wolves are not scheduled for Bound For Glory: “I think as competitors we want to be on every event that they have, but I think they were just trying to play it safe due to Davey’s injury and whatnot. I know that we’re both disappointed but they gotta do what’s best for the company. Either way it’ll still be a great show.”
The most important aspect of building an entertaining match: “I think it would be trying to connect with the fans. The crowd, you have to get that emotion out of them, so that’s the main focus because if the crowd is not paying attention and they’re not emotionally involved they’re not going to care, so you have to make that connection.”
On some of the differences between American wrestling and Japanese wrestling, both in terms of style and crowd interaction: “The style is definitely more hard-hitting and more intense than one might see in the States, and the crowd, you almost have to earn their respect because they almost look at it as a pure sport over there, so they’re waiting to see what you can do and once you get them reacting to what you’re doing, you know you’re doing something right because they won’t just give it to you, you have to earn it.”
Independent wrestlers who would be a good fit in TNA: “There’s so many talented guys out there right now, the Indies is overflowing with them. It’s unfortunate because obviously everyone can’t be seen all the time, but obviously Ring of Honor has a lot of great guys, I don’t know if they’re considered Indy or not, but look at the roster for PWG. You could just pick and choose from that roster and so many of those guys would be ready to jump right into TNA.”
Would Edwards prefer to wrestle with Davey Richards in a tag team match or wrestle against him in his final match either with the company or his career: “That’s a good one, could I do them both? I don’t know, it’s a tough one, I think it’d be, depending on who our opponents are, tag wrestling.”
Check out the complete interview at BlogTalkRadio.com.
– Paul Heyman’s Heyman Hustle has published exclusive photos of WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus’ recent appearance at the Wizard World Hamilton Comic Con event. Needless to say, she’s looking better than ever.
– With WWE SummerSlam 2015 taking place from the “NY/NJ” area, the Wrestling Observer reports that WWE is expected to announce a major Los Angeles-based pay-per-view at the December 30th live event from the Staples Center.
– WWE Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler indicated on Wednesday that United Airlines still has not returned his luggage, including his Intercontinental Championship belt. He tweeted:
update: still no bag or contact. bought new clothes & supplies just to go to work! lose my number @united
#PRAYFORDOLPHsbag
— Dolph Ziggler (@HEELZiggler) October 8, 2014