The professional wrestling and mixed martial arts industries often interconnected with one another.
Following her departure from Ultimate Fighting Championship, Ronda Rousey famously made her professional wrestling debut in 2018, racking up multiple title wins in the years after. Conversely, Brock Lesnar started his wrestling career in WWE, touted “the next big thing” in 2002. “The Beast” would go on to claim the WWE Championship and various ventures in NJPW, before taking a five-year hiatus from professional wrestling to pursue his MMA aspirations.
Another former WWE Superstar recently made his professional MMA debut on Saturday, December 17. After previous experience in amateur mixed martials and bare-knuckle boxing, Jack Claffey — better known as “Gentleman” Jack Gallagher — squared up for Full Contact Contender. Airing on UFC Fight Pass, the event entitled “FCC 32” featured Claffey taking on Marlon Jones in a bantamweight bout.
Marlon quickly gained the victory via TKO, defeating Claffey in 1 minute, 7 seconds in round one.
Marlon Jones brings it EARLY and gets the first-round TKO finish
Following his loss, Claffey expressed disappointment with his performance via Instagram.
“Here’s my favorite photo from last night,” he shared. “Very disappointed in myself and my performance. Happy the night ended with a win for @blackiechan_soda, who’s worked exceptionally hard for it. (Pictured here doing his best Steve Austin impression.) Thank you to everyone that’s reached out. Messages of support are always welcomed and appreciated. One win and one loss in 2022; life is all about balance. Bring on 2023! But first, coffee, cake, and @clara_sinclare.”
Claffey served in WWE from 2016 until his eventual release in 2020 after a sexual assault allegation. Most notably, he competed in the Cruiserweight Classic tournament, before moving over to WWE’s 205 Live show.
The modern generation of wrestlers have gotten smarter with their career choices. Unlike the older generation, many of the current-era wrestlers have started thinking about their future after retirement. They have started branching out to other professions they can work in after hanging their boots. Dolph Ziggler is one such star who has found an unlikely career in stand-up comedy.
The former world champion originally started it off as a hobby but he has slowly been creeping it up. It has gotten to a point where Ziggler has taken extended periods off from WWE to headline comedy tours.
During a recent appearance on The Archive of B-Sox podcast, the 42-year-old was asked if he plans to transition to a full-time comedy career in the coming time. Ziggler explained that he doesn’t want to leave the wrestling space but slow it down with time:
You Don’t Get To Wrestle Forever: Dolph Ziggler
“It’s really fun for me to devote half of my week to that kind of stuff. You don’t get to wrestle forever. I’ve been very lucky so far. I may be here for 10 nonstop years in a row. who knows?” said Dolph Ziggler, “But I like being able to branch out and do some other things. Whether go talk politics somewhere, do an interview, do a one man show do an improv show. Do an audition for something on Broadway.
Everything that gets you on stage, get that presence and just gets the rap going and gets you smoother and comfortable. That helps you as a stand up, but it also helps you in the ring, so [it] makes me a better wrestler. So either way, it’s a win-win. But I would love in 15 years from now, I’m showing up at WWE four times a year to wrestle somebody in a big match, and the rest of the year, I’m bouncing around. Me and Mick Foley are doing a comedy show or something.”
Though WWE’s retelling of wrestling history has not been too kind to the legacy of WCW, there are certain undeniable truths from that time. One of them is that 1997 was a white-hot year for the promotion.
The New World Order caught fire in 1996 and rode high into 1997 as WCW continued to tell a wide range of stories with one of the deepest rosters in pro wrestling history. Starrcade 1997 looked to be a crowning achievement with a star-studded PPV card that had enormous buzz around it.
Kevin Nash and The Giant would have a big man war. Larry Zbyszko and Eric Bischoff would blow off their heated non-wrestler feud in a novelty match. Most importantly, Sting was set to blow off a year and a half long angle with Hollywood Hogan.
The fact that WCW signed Bret Hart immediately before this PPV should have been a crowning achievement that added more momentum going into 1998. However, there’s a real argument that it instead sabotaged the biggest event in company history and foretold WCW’s demise.
Bret Hart’s Involvement Contributed To Sting Vs. Hollywood Hogan Unraveling
There’s no two ways about it—the Starrcade 1997 main event match between Sting and Hollywood Hogan was a mess. Fans had waited through the launch of the nWo, Sting’s transition to his Crow persona that haunted WCW from the rafters, and Hogan’s reign of terror over the company. By Starrcade, the stage was set to pay it all off with Sting as the prodigal son, returning to the ring to take the title.
A variety of factors contributed to the match’s failings. Eric Bischoff infamously claimed that Sting didn’t show up ready—claiming that his failure to get a tan was just one sign he wasn’t in the right mental or physical place to become “the guy.” Something went wrong on a re-planned finish, too. Whether Sting or referee Nick Patrick were more at fault, Hogan won clean and decisively only for Bret Hart to nonsensically demand the match be restarted and officiate the do-over ending.
The execution certainly got botched, but even if it hadn’t, the idea of an unjust finish before Hart had to restart things (on dubious authority) was a huge mistake to muddy the waters of Sting having his crowning moment. The match should have been kept simple and straightforward to give fans the most satisfying moment possible, after which they could’ve allowed Hogan to get his heat back one way or another in the weeks to follow.
Bret Hart’s Involvement Hurt Larry Zbyszko Vs. Eric Bischoff Too
The story of Eric Bischoff vs. Larry Zbyszko at Starrcade 1997 should have been very simple and straightforward. This was a retired wrestler vs. non-wrestler match, which offered some intrigue and made reasonable sense in its creative context. It should’ve come down to Bischoff maybe getting in a shot or two, but mostly the Living Legend putting him in his place in a five-minute squash.
Instead, Bischoff mostly dominated with special referee Bret Hart seeming to help him at every turn. Finally, Bischoff went too far, using a steel plate to bolster a knockout kick at which point The Hitman nonsensically switched allegiances, beating up Bischoff and his corner man, Scott Hall. Finally, Hart proclaimed Zbyszko the winner by disqualification to put the confusing, ill-conceived farce of a match out of its misery.
How Bret Hart Should Have Been Used At WCW Starrcade 1997
There are two main ways in which Bret Hart may have been put to his best use at Starrcade. One would have been the delayed gratification of him simply having a presence, maybe cutting a short promo or coming out to celebrate with Sting to close the show to make his presence known without altering the course of the night.
Another option would’ve been to book Hart into a one-on-one match built to highlight his wrestling acumen and star power without distracting from the rest of the show. WCW had such a deep roster of fresh opponents for The Hitman who weren’t booked for the event like Booker T, Juventud Guerrera, or Chavo Guerrero.
Having Hart mix it up with one of these under-appreciated talents—making them look good before he submitted them with the Sharpshooter in a formula he’d used opposite mid-carders like Hakushi and Jean-Pierre Lafitte in WWE for years earlier —could’ve highlighted what Hart does best alongside the prestige of being able to say the event featured Hart’s debut match for WCW.
Signing Bret Hart should’ve marked a crowning Monday Night War moment for WCW as they welcomed a hot star who was arguably the most talented in ring performer in the world at that moment. Instead, he became a distraction, misused to the extreme in ways that neither he, nor WCW on the whole ever fully recovered from.
Liv Morgan is having the most successful year of her WWE career, but she’s already planning ahead for life after pro wrestling.
At 28 years old, she could be an active competitor for many years to come. Advancements in nutrition and training allow for wrestlers to compete well into their late 30’s, even early-to-mid 40’s. That said, it’s never too early to start planning ahead.
Not everybody wants to wrestle until they are physically unable to. Many people view WWE as a chance to gain financial security, become famous and branch out into other fields. Back in October, Morgan fulfilled a lifelong dream by getting killed on screen by Chucky of the popular Child’s Play horror series.
During their discussion, Morgan revealed that she’s already studying to become a real estate broker. She still has a long road ahead, but she hopes to one day open her own brokerage.
She revealed that she recently had “kind of a quarter-life crisis.” Despite her accomplishments, she felt that she was not doing enough with her life. She’s a successful public figure, but highly-motivated people are rarely satisfied with their accomplishments.
Morgan says a real estate brokerage license is just one of the new interests she’s decided to pursue. She also opened up a soap business and began taking acting classes.
Between real estate, her soap business and acting, she’s most looking forward to getting into movies when her days in the ring are over. She reiterated that getting killed by Chucky was a dream. She was starstruck by the killer doll and “melted” when she saw him in person for the first time.
Morgan also has a movie in the works titled, “The Kill Room” with Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson. She acknowledged that movie roles like this are available to her due to the popularity of WWE’s platform.
She has a lot going on outside of WWE, but has no plans to retire any time soon. While discussing real estate, her soap business and acting, Morgan said, “One day, if I ever part ways, I mean I will wrestle forever…”
The All Elite Wrestling star recently confirmed his involvement in a new toy line, scheduled to officially launch in the summer of 2023. Outside of his in-ring work, Page runs a popular YouTube channel, showcasing his love for action figures and retro toys. After many ventures of being gifted, purchasing, opening, and reviewing the toys, the “Toy Hunt Vlog” host is now a part owner of a toy line.
As revealed on his Instagram, Page is the official part owner of the Asylum All-Stars toy line. The Asylum Wrestling Store will include figures of the Road Warriors, Earl Hebner, Buff Bagwell, and more. In addition, he confirmed that pre-orders are available now.
“In the toy industry, I have checked many of the boxes, other than one, and that’s making toys, until today,” Page said. “I can happily, you can see the smile on my face, announce that I am officially part owner of a freakin toy line, Asylum All Stars.”
“The pre-order’s already available, by the way. If you want to support Ethan Page in his toy-making endeavors, this is how; go pre-order these brand-new figures. Get the Road Warriors, get Earl Hebner, get Buff Bagwell, and Scott Norton, ‘vicious and delicious.’ Do it. Go pre-order these bad boys.”
Page continued, explaining his ultimate hope for the project. “My goal is to bring as much awareness to this toy line as possible,” he said. “I think it’s a great throwback. It hit me with nostalgia the first time I saw it, so it’s very cool. I’m excited for you guys to see footage of that. I’m excited for you guys to follow me along the journey of helping create toys and having my name attached to wrestling toys that will be brought to the world. I feel the potential is limitless.”
Will The Judgment Day one day walk down the ramp on Monday Night Raw glistening with gold? Perhaps, but that’s not something the group needs.
The Judgment Day was founded by Edge earlier this year and the Rated-R Superstar recruited Priest and Rhea Ripley.
After Finn Balor joined, the group turned on Edge and welcomed Dominik Mysterio as a member at WWE Clash at the Castle in Cardiff.
Championships
While all four members of The Judgment Day have held gold in the past, none have won a championship as part of the faction.
Speaking on The Archive of B-Sox show, Priest said that the group’s success without titles just goes to prove how impressive all four members have been.
“How do you become a focal point of the show not being a champion? That makes you just that much more valuable, and I think that’s where we’re at right now. Let’s make this show revolve around us. Let’s be the main thing on this show, without even having championships.”
Damian Priest
While The Judgment Day is yet to hold gold, Rhea Ripley recently teased going after Bianca Belair and the WWE Raw Women’s Championship.
The Future
The Judgment Day has been around for less than a year, but Priest is optimistic about the future.
Speaking about his tenure with the group so far, the former U.S. Champion said that The Judgment Day is just getting started.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been a roller coaster, yes, but we’re ending it at the highest point. We all feel like we’re not even where we need to be yet, which is crazy. The things that we look forward to, the things that we talk about, and what we want to accomplish, we’re just getting started.”
In recent weeks, The Judgment Day has been feuding with the O.C. (AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows, and Mia Yim.)
It may be a good while yet before Snoop Dogg and his gold WWE Championship are reunited after the title went missing this week.
On social media, the rap legend and WWE informed fans that the title had been ‘stolen’ during Snoop’s ongoing ‘Holidaze of Blaze’ tour.
Snoop, a WWE Hall of Famer as part of the celebrity wing, was presented the title by Bianca Belair and Becky Lynch at the WrestleMania 39 tickets launch party in August of this year.
Lost and Found
On Instagram, WWE shared footage of comedian Guillermo Rodriguez with the golden title, saying he won’t give it back to Snoop.
After a ‘moments later’ cut, Rodriguez revealed that he has already lost the title, and it is unclear where it is now.
Rodriguez is best known for his work on Jimmy Kimmel Live as the sidekick of the popular late-night talk show host.
Expert belt creator Dan Beltzer (@BeltFanDan) senses this developing news story might be seasoned with a hint of show business. Beltzer noticed that more than one belt has been used as part of the news coverage, a sign that this may be part of an angle to generate publicity for Snoop and/or WWE.
The Custom Snoop belt being stolen seems like a storyline. 2 different belts have been shown if you look closely.
When asking for the help of fans, Snoop Dogg stressed that he needs to find the gold WWE Championship before WrestleMania 39.
Many have taken this as a sign that the rap legend will have some involvement with the show which will take place on April 1, and April 2, next year.
Snoop is no stranger to WrestleMania, having performed his cousin Sasha Banks to the ring for her WrestleMania 32 triple threat match for the WWE Women’s Championship.
WWE WrestleMania 39 will take place at SoFi Stadium, in Los Angeles, California and mark the fourth two-night WrestleMania in a row.
The lives and careers of three former WWE Superstars have been celebrated at the inaugural Women’s Wrestling Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
The Women’s Wrestling Hall of Fame was announced in October of this year, with Angel Orsini, Christopher Annino, “Tex” Green, and Gary “Pitbull” Wolf being considered responsible for the idea.
Slam Wrestling was the first to report that Alundra ‘Madusa’ Blayze, Jazz, and the late Luna Vachon are among the first three inductees.
Blayze and Jazz collected their awards in person at the ceremony this past weekend, while Vachon, who died in 2010, was represented by her ex-husband David ‘Gangrel’ Heath.
Other names reported to be inducted include Cora Livingston, Mildred Burke, Beverly Shade, Marva Scott, and Ethel Johnson.
Babs Wingo, the tag team of Toni Rose & Donna Christanello, Susan Green, ex-WWE referee Rita Chatterton, the entire GLOW promotion, and 2014 Olympic gold medalist Iryna Merleni are also set to be inducted.
The niece of Maurice ‘Mad Dog’ Vachon, Luna’s wrestling career began in 1985 and she would join the WWF in 1993.
Leaving in 1994, Vachon would have stints in ECW and WCW before returning in 1997, and would remain until 2000, when she was released over an outburst backstage.
Vachon would continue wrestling on the independent scene until 2007, before her death aged 48 in August 2010 due to a drug overdose.
Jazz
Inspired by Jaqueline Moore, Jazz set out to become a professional wrestler in the late 1990s, and would join ECW in 1999.
Joining the WWF after the collapse of the extreme promotion, Jazz would later capture the WWE Women’s Championship and successfully defended the title at WrestleMania X8.
Winning the title again the following year, Jazz would leave WWE in 2004 and compete for Chikara, Shine and AEW among other promotions, before her retirement in Impact last year.
Alundra Blayze
Alundra Blayze’s wrestling career may be best remembered not for what she did in the ring, but what she did with a trash-can.
After leaving the WWF while still the Women’s Championship, Blayze appeared on WCW programming and threw the title in the trash, saying it is what she thought of the WWF Women’s Title.
In actuality, Blayze was very concerned about the spot, but was forced into it by Eric Bischoff.
Blayze would be blamed for the spot and blacklisted from WWE for 20 years, before her WWE Hall of Fame induction in 2015.
This week’s episode of WWE RAW will air live tonight from the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.
Becky Lynch and Bayley will square off tonight on the red brand in a singles match. Damage CTRL interfered in a Triple Threat match a couple of weeks ago in the main event of Raw and attacked Becky Lynch. Alexa Bliss capitalized and went on to win the match to advance to a #1 contenders match the following week.
Bliss battled Bayley last week to determine the #1 contender for the RAW Women’s Championship. Becky Lynch got her revenge and attacked Damage CTRL ringside. The distraction cost Bayley this time and Alexa capitalized to win and earn a title match against Bianca Belair.
Judgment Day’s Damian Priest and Finn Balor are set to take on Street Profits in a tag team match tonight. Rhea Ripley and Dominik are advertised to be ringside. Montez Ford sent out a warning earlier today and warned fans to put on their seatbelts ahead of Raw.
The Miz and Dexter Lumis are set to battle in a Winner Takes All Ladder match tonight on WWE Raw after months of feuding. Johnny Gargano played a key role in WWE Official Adam Pearce making this match last week.
AEW announcer Mark Henry has defended AJ “Top Dolla” Francis of Hit Row following his botch on this past Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown.
Hit Row battled Legado Del Fantasma and Viking Raiders in a Triple Threat Tag Team match. During the match, Top Dolla went for a dive over the top rope but didn’t make it and tumbled to floor as SmackDown announcer Michael Cole joked that is probably the reason why he doesn’t do high flying moves too often.
Hit Row went on to win the match and earn a shot at the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships this Friday on WWE SmackDown.
Top Dolla has defended himself over the botch and posted clips of him hitting the move in the past.
I was 50 lbs heavier in this video than I am now. My leg gave out on live TV and some of y’all jokes are actually very funny but calling me a liar is super weird. It could’ve been way worse so I’m blessed ?? Y’all don’t care doe ??
Top Dolla
AEW commentator Mark Henry responded to the post and defended Top Dolla. Mark also questioned why he would listen to those who have no idea what it takes to do the move while the cameras are rolling.
Bro, anyone that has ever performed has failed. It’s a part of the process to get better. Why would you listen to people that have no idea how to do what you did,the ability or confidence to do what you did an the athleticism to perform that maneuver when the cameras are rolling.
Mark Henry
Bro, anyone that has ever performed has failed. It’s a part of the process to get better. Why would you listen to people that have no idea how to do what you did,the ability or confidence to do what you did an the athleticism to perform that maneuver when the cameras are rolling. https://t.co/ciGSX04ZKK
Top Dolla spoke with Ryan Satin on the Out of Character podcast last month and revealed his goals for after WWE.
The former NFL player signed with the promotion in 2020 and debuted in NXT in 2021. The stable briefly debuted on the main roster before they were surprisingly released in November 2021. Triple H brought the group back earlier this year besides Swerve Strickland, who signed with All Elite Wrestling after he was released by WWE.
Top Dolla told Ryan Satin that his goal is to host The Tonight Show following his WWE career and believes that his years of being in front of the camera will make him ready for that opportunity down the line.
Charlotte Flair wished former rival and WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus a happy birthday today.
WWE legend Trish Stratus celebrated her 47th birthday. She recently appeared on the September 5th edition of WWE RAW when the company was in Toronto. Damage CTRL confronted the WWE legend but Bianca Belair, Asuka, and Alexa Bliss made the save.
Stratus took to Twitter earlier today and thanked wrestling fans for all the birthday wishes she received. Charlotte Flair responded and wished Trish a happy birthday as well. Flair has not appeared in WWE since her loss to Ronda Rousey in an I Quit match at WrestleMania Backlash.
10 Hut @trishstratuscom Have A “Happy?Birthday” My Friend & That’s An Order??Hope YOU’RE Having A Fun & Wonderful Celebration????????YOU Deserve It??PS:THANKS For Making My @_SgtSlaughter Shirt Look Sooooooo Good??? Ok At Ease & I’m?Dismissed!!!
Trish Stratus Says Charlotte Flair is the Best Female Superstar
WWE released a list of the 50 greatest female Superstars in modern WWE last year on Peacock and Trish Stratus was ranked number one. Sable, Lita, Gail Kim, AJ Lee, and other legends were featured on the list.
Trish was asked about the list on Busted Open Radio and claimed that she would have put Charlotte Flair at number one already.
It’s a bold thing for them to put out. Lists are subjective. I don’t know who was behind the list. Did my mom vote? Internally, with me and my team, I knew there was the top five and I was grateful to be in the top five.
I for sure thought Charlotte was going to be number one. That’s where I put her. It was crazy when they put that video package together and you get emotional looking back on that ride and they position you the way they did. I was lucky, I say all the time that I only got any accolades that I got because of the people that surrounded me.
Mandy Rose walked into Tuesday’s edition of WWE NXT as the reigning Women’s Champion. She left the show without the title and her job.
WWE released Mandy Rose on Wednesday morning after Roxanne Perez ended her 413-day reign as NXT Women’s Champion. The company believed they had no choice due to the explicit content Mandy was posting on her subscription site for fans.
Speaking on the Jim Cornette Experience podcast, the legendary manager and promoter discussed Mandy Rose’s release from WWE. He noted that he is pro-porn, but not if you are representing a company trying to make deals with Disney.
In all honesty, and by the way, I’m completely pro-porn. But if they’re supposed to be [PG], they can’t do Playboy anymore, right? Because they’re a PG company, the sponsors they don’t want [it].
So I haven’t seen the material so I don’t know whether it’s mild to wild or anything in between. But if the executives of the company that she works for said well she’s a featured person in NXT and she’s the champion and all this stuff but holy sh*t, if anybody sees and finds out.
You know, that’s the thing if they say Jesus Christ, you can’t, you know, have an aunt Fanny out there in front of God and everybody. Whether it’s a private or personal deal or not, or whatever.
If it’s going to show up on the internet in some fashion, this is probably something you should have not done while representing us and we’re trying to do deals with Disney, then I understand that.
Jim Cornette
Jim Cornette on Mandy Rose possibly earning more outside of WWE
It was reported that former WWE Superstar Lana (CJ Perry) earned more this year on her subscription site than she did during her best year in WWE. Mandy Rose’s subscription site will likely rise in popularity following her release from the company and the added attention it has received.
Cornette noted on his podcast that it makes sense that Mandy would choose modeling over wrestling if she can earn similar money.
The question becomes which endeavour was she making a bigger profit at? Was she making more money travelling all over the place getting in a ring with people that are going to land on her and landing on sh*t herself and getting beat up or whatever the f*ck?
Or is she gonna make more money in I assume a less violent setting showing off, as aunt Lola would say, what God gave her? So if it’s anywhere close maybe that’s the preferable f*cking direction there.
Roman Reigns’ dominance in WWE seemingly has no end in sight. The Undisputed WWE Universal Champion has become unstoppable with The Bloodline by his side and it would take the right set of circumstances for The Tribal Chief to be defeated.
Reigns successfully defended the title against Logan Paul, Drew McIntyre, Riddle, Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, and Seth Rollins this year. The Head of the Table has gone through the best of the best to stay on top of the company.
Here are five superstars that could potentially become Undisputed WWE Universal Champion in 2023:
#5. Solo Sikoa
Solo Sikoa is The Enforcer of The Bloodline and a man of few words. However, he recently showed what he is capable of with a brutal attack on Matt Riddle on WWE RAW. It will take someone special to topple The Tribal Chief and perhaps Sikoa is equipped to do.
He mainly uses the Spinning Solo (Uranage) as his finisher but has recently introduced the Samoan Spike to his moveset. His uncle, Umaga, used the move and Solo paid tribute to him several times during his attack on Riddle. Roman Reigns seems to like having Solo by his side and will make for an easy target if Sikoa ever decides to go after the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
Solo Sikoa's face says "Yep… That's me. You're probably wondering how I got in here." pic.twitter.com/1vNxaB2fdO
The Rock has been rumored to return to WWE for some time now and challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
WrestleMania 39 is in Los Angeles at SoFi Stadium, a perfect venue for the match as The Rock has become one of the most popular actors on the planet following his wrestling career.
The Great One could return to try and humble his cousin, while The Tribal Chief may view The Rock as inferior at this point. A match of this magnitude may not need the title due to the star power involved, but it would make the match even bigger Roman’s historic title reign was on the line as well.
Roman has the power to tell WWE Official Adam Pearce that The Rock doesn’t deserve a title shot based on his name. It would make for a great story if The People’s Champion won the Royal Rumble to earn a title shot and conquered The Tribal Chief at WrestleMania 39.
— ????? ????? ????? ?????? ¹³¹? (@_RomansLegacy) December 5, 2022
#3. Austin Theory
Austin Theory has had a bizarre 2022, and it looked like it was going to be back to square one for the 26-year-old. He won the Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder match as a surprise entrant and fans immediately rejected it. Former WWE CEO Vince McMahon gave Theory his stamp of approval but it didn’t resonate with fans.
Vince and Theory had a series of awkward backstage conversations, including the former chairman just taking away his first name because he didn’t like Stone Cold Steve Austin. After Vince McMahon resigned in July, it appeared that Triple H and the new regime were not sold on Austin Theory at all.
He couldn’t buy a win on television, and his cash-in attempt at Clash at the Castle was foiled by Tyson Theory punching him from the crowd. Theory then decided to cash in on the United States Championship and it backfired. He is one of the few superstars that have a failed cash-in attempt on his resume but has quickly overcome it. Austin captured the US Title for the 2nd time at Survivor Series and time will tell if he goes after the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship next year.
Who's Your Daddy! Chants lead to Roman Reigns Warning Austin Theory " If he Keeps Messing Up the Tribal Chief is going to be his Daddy". Rough night for theory ???#WWERaw#AcknowledgeMepic.twitter.com/jiSNpWdkDY
Cody Rhodes has made it known that he has returned to WWE to go after “the big one”. The former AEW EVP boxed himself into a corner in All Elite Wrestling by saying he will never challenge for the AEW World Championship if he lost to Chris Jericho at Double or Nothing 2020.
The American Nightmare wound up losing the match after MJF threw in the towel for him. Maxwell showed his true colors and hit Rhodes with a low blow after the match as well. There are two things keeping Cody Rhodes from going after Roman Reigns at the moment, injury and his rivalry with Seth Rollins.
Cody returned to WWE as Vince McMahon’s handpicked opponent for Rollins at WrestleMania 38. Rhodes defeated Rollins at the biggest event of the year, and went on to defeat him two more times in 2022. Unfortunately, Cody tore his pectoral muscle training for their third bout at WWE Hell in a Cell 2022.
He wrestled the match anyway with the injury, and revealed his severely bruised chest at the premium live event. The American Nightmare will likely have to finish his feud with Seth Rollins when he returns, as Seth attacked him with a sledgehammer on the RAW after HIAC to write Cody off TV. If Rhodes is able to get the fans as invested in him as they were in June, he should be in line to challenge Roman Reigns next year.
.@CodyRhodes in two-minutes sells his match with Rollins, plus highlights the sheer importance of wins and losses.
Sami Zayn has spent the majority of 2022 trying to earn the respect of Roman Reigns and the rest of The Bloodline. Roman has quickly grown found of The Honorary Uce but it took some time for Jey Uso to come around.
At WWE Survivor Series WarGames, Sami proved his worth to The Bloodline. On the SmackDown before the premium live event, Kevin Owens attempted to warn Sami that The Bloodline will eventually turn their back on him and he should betray them first. The Honorary Uce was unaware that Jey Uso was listening in on the conversation and lied to his face when he was asked if he had spoken to anyone.
Roman Reigns confronted Sami Zayn about the lie during Survivor Series and Sami admitted everything. He claimed he was simply trying to protect The Usos because they had a big match in the main event to determine which team got the advantage at WarGames.
Zayn went on to guide The Bloodline to victory at WWE Survivor Series. He booted his old pal Kevin Owens in the groin and followed it up with the Helluva Kick. In a selfless act, The Honorary Uce stepped aside to allow Jey Uso to hit KO with a Frog Splash for the pinfall victory. Sami is now set to team up with Roman Reigns against Kevin Owens and John Cena on the final episode of SmackDown of the year.
If Sami continues to earn the trust of The Tribal Chief, he can perhaps finally begin to destroy The Bloodline from within. Zayn’s plan to reach the top of the company may come to fruition in 2023.
El Hijo del Vikingo is one of the hottest wrestlers in the world and promotions in the US have been waiting to book him for a very long time. That has finally been able to happen in recent weeks as Vikingo was able to obtain his visa.
It seems like a new show or promotion is announcing he’s booked every day with GCW being the first. There’s just one caveat. AAA will not allow any Vikingo matches to be streamed. So if you’re ordering shows or paying $4.99 for every GCW show, you’re out of luck.
PWG has Vikingo booked for their Battle of Los Angeles (BOLA) shows in January. This might be one of the rare times it’s a good thing they don’t stream and you can only watch shows by buying DVDs. It is suspected that Vikingo’s matches will be available on the DVDs. Night One of BOLA has been announced and Vikingo will be taking on Black Taurus and Bandido in what will certainly be a banger and potentially an early Match of the Year candidate.
N1 2023 BOLA:
Bandido vs. Black Taurus vs. El Hijo del Vikingo Titus Alexander vs. Daniel Garcia Michael Oku vs. Konosuke Takeshita Jordynne Grace vs. Jonathan Gresham Aramis vs. Shun Skywalker Alex Shelley vs. Masha Slamovich SB KENTo vs. Lio Rush Latigo vs. Komander
On Wrestling Observer Network (via WrestlingCovers), Dave Meltzer said there’s a possibility that AAA could waive the “no streaming” rule if Vikingo were booked for AEW or IMPACT.
Meltzer on WON said there could be a possibility of AAA waiving the no streaming policy for Hijo Del Vikingo’s US matches should AEW or IMPACT decide to book him. ??? pic.twitter.com/erj0JEKpqv
IMPACT has had a relationship with AAA in the past. They’ve done crossover shows and Vikingo wrestled on those shows.
He also has ties to AEW as the AAA Mega Champion. He was scheduled to face former Mega Champion, Kenny Omega for the title. Omega vacated the title due to injury. Vikingo defeated Bandido, Samuray Del Sol, Bobby Fish, and Jay Lethal to become champion. Just today, he said that he could come to AEW to finally get his match with “The Cleaner”.
“The third time’s the charm. It’s now been two occasions that Kenny Omega and I were gonna wrestle, but for this and that, it wasn’t able to happen, but now I have the Visa. So if he doesn’t come (to Mexico), then I will go look for him. Expect some big surprises. Why not have ‘El Gran Jinete’ go and look for him in his own house? Anything can happen. My home, AAA, is always giving surprises. I don’t know, maybe in the future, I will go to his house, or him in ours, or somewhere in the middle. Anything can happen.” (h/t Fightful)
Vikingo versus Omega is a pay-per-view worthy match. It would be interesting to see how AAA would treat television match leading up to a pay-per-view or if AEW would have to air the match on one of it’s big themed TV shows, St. Patrick’s Day Slam.
The demand for Vikingo to appear in either (or both) promotions is huge and will only get bigger as Vikingo wrestles for more promotions in the US and more fans are able to see what he can do.
Former WWE Superstar Lana, now known as CJ Perry, is reportedly making more money on her subscription site for fans than she did during her best year in WWE.
Lana managed Rusev for the majority of her run on the main roster in WWE. Rusev is now signed with All Elite Wrestling as Miro, while Lana remains a free agent. The 37-year-old may not be in any rush to return to the professional wrestling industry, as she is reportedly making more money on her BrandArmy site than she ever did in WWE.
According to Fightful Select, Perry is currently earning more than she ever did in WWE, just like the recently released Mandy Rose. Lana has appeared in a couple of films since her release in 2020 but has mainly been focusing on her BrandArmy content. Her site launched earlier this year and she made over $20,000 on the first day.
— Savelina-Fanene.Com | Fansite (@SavelinaFCom) November 2, 2020
Lana on if She Would Work for All Elite Wrestling
Lana spoke with The Man Cave Chronicles earlier this year about her acting career and if she would ever join Miro in All Elite Wrestling.
During the conversation, Lana disclosed that she would love to do something with AEW one day, whether it be with Miro or others. She claimed that she just wants to tell compelling stories and would love the opportunity if it ever came about.
I love television and movies, but you don’t get that instant gratification. You don’t even know, all you really get is online with the critics. When you are live performing in the wrestling arena, you know exactly how they feel immediately.
It is just such a relationship that I really am thankful for that I have with the audience. So I’d love to do something with AEW. If the story is right, I’d love to do something with Miro or maybe with other people. But I want to tell compelling stories, so if it is right I would absolutely love it.
Goldberg hasn’t been seen on WWE television for months and while he has publicly expressed interest in wrestling again, he has been waiting on the sidelines for that to happen.
There was word that Goldberg had a new WWE contract, but that’s not the case. Last week, rumors went around that the Hall Of Famer had inked a new deal that would keep him under contract for two years with five matches guaranteed over that time and three matches to be against new talent that he hasn’t faced.
The rumored deal would’ve also seen those five matches take place in Saudi Arabia and WrestleMania.
The Truth
Fightful Select reports those close to him say not so fast and specifically, they said, “that would be news to his reps that negotiate those kinds of deals.”
Goldberg’s current WWE agreement runs through 2022, but there are no matches remaining on it. There’s always a chance he signs a new deal with WWE, but according to his reps, that’s not the case yet.
Goldberg has only wrestled once in 2022, which was the Roman Reigns match at Elimination Chamber. In 2021, he worked three matches – a loss to Drew McIntyre at the Royal Rumble and Bobby Lashley at SummerSlam before beating Bobby Lashley at Crown Jewel.
Former WWE Superstar Velveteen Dream made his views on law enforcement perfectly clear during his arrest earlier this year.
Dream, real name Patrick Clark, was part of 2015’s WWE Tough Enough and while he did not win, his impressive performance earned him an NXT contract.
In 2020, Clark was accused of sexual misconduct with minors, and while WWE claimed their investigation provided no evidence, he was quietly released from the company the next year.
Earlier this year, Clark was arrested after an incident at a gym, where it was alleged that he attacked and bit an employee at the facility.
The Video
In a new video published by TMZ, the former NXT Superstar can be seen being taken into custody by law enforcement.
Clark tells police that he did not commit battery and that they should allow him to call a lawyer.
The ex-Superstar can be heard ranting at the officers, before admitting that he is “a little drunk.”
Clark also repeatedly tells the police that he was never told his Miranda Rights and that his lawyer would file a lawsuit, adding that he is a “WWE wrestler.”
After the Arrest
After the arrest, Clark was officially charged with two misdemeanor counts of assault and trespassing, charges that he would plead not guilty to.
The former NXT North American Champion was released from jail on September 9, after posting a $1,200 bail.
The matter was disposed of in September after the claimed victim indicated he did not intend to prosecute.
Despite the controversy to his name, Clark has shown interest in being rehired by WWE and believes it could happen one day.
From uninspired storylines to older stars taking the spots of younger talents, there were a number of factors that led to the downfall of TNA after a historic rise. One such factor was sideling top stars such as Kurt Angle when factions like Aces & Eights dominated the TV programs.
The Olympic Gold Medallist talked about this time in the company’s history on the latest episode of his podcast. He was asked if the officials ever invited him to be part of the infamous faction. Angle replied negatively saying that he is glad he was never asked to join the group:
“No. no, they didn’t. I’m glad they didn’t. I don’t think I would have liked being [a part of it]. I know this – if I would have went in, I wouldn’t have been one of the top guys. I would have been hanging out in the mid card somewhere so that it wouldn’t [have] help me at any point in time.”
-Kurt Angle
‘It Grew Out Of Control’: Kurt Angle
When Aces & Eights were running roughshod at the TNA roster, top stars such as Kurt Angle and AJ Styles were working a meaningless programs. Speaking about the time, the former TNA champion discussed how they were just trying to stay relevant and figure out what their position in the roster would be once the storyline was over:
“That was the problem, the Aces & Eights storyline took over TV. It got so big. Same exact thing happened with the nWo in WCW. It was a cool little faction, then all of sudden it grew and out of control. They were just too many. At this point in time, there were a lot of members of Aces & Eights.
We were just treading water just trying to get through the storyline and see where our places were going to be afterward. It’s really difficult when they’re doing a storyline [and] they’re not trying to involve you. You’re not really involved in the storyline. That’s the main storyline going on TV and you got your top two guys – AJ Styles and Kurt Angle, that’s no part of it.”
Planning is well underway for next month’s Royal Rumble premium live event, with things kicking into high gear after the holidays.
WWE presents the Royal Rumble on Saturday, January 28, 2023 from San Antonio, Texas at the Alamodome. The event will stream live on Peacock in the US and on the WWE Network internationally.
Matches the Rumble will be announced in the coming weeks, but WWE has already locked in the top of the card. Some aspects of the Rumble can’t be announced until after the December 30th edition of SmackDown, which will be headlined by John Cena teaming with Kevin Owens against Sami Zayn and Roman Reigns.
Royal Rumble 2023 Matches
Here’s what’s currently in the works for the Royal Rumble, according to our friends at WrestlingNews.co:
Barring an injury, the card will feature Reigns defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Kevin Owens.
Ronda Rousey defending the WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship against Raquel Rodriguez
Edge will battle Finn Balor, who will revive his Demon alter-ego. There’s been talk of this being a Hell in a Cell match.
It’s also been rumored that WWE will be introducing a new stipulation match at the Rumble, a Pitch Black match. Bray Wyatt, who has been feuding with LA Knight, was linked to this Pitch Black concept. However, it seems unlikely WWE would hold four big stipulation events on the same card (two Royal Rumbles, Hell in a Cell and Pitch Black), so it’s likely we’ll see either Hell in a Cell or Pitch Black.
Mick Foley was a key name in Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s career, which helped make him a big WWE star. They had a memorable rivalry in early 1999 before teaming together as the Rock ‘n’ Sock Connection.
The latest episode of Young Rock featured the story of both The Rock and Foley, with Foley teaching a lot of things to the young Johnson.
Foley took to Facebook to share a heartfelt message to The Rock for his appreciation after watching the show. He wrote the following:
Heartwarming Message
Mick Foley
“ROCK & SOCK: a true connection
I’m not sure words can do justice to how grateful I’m feeling after watching last night’s episode of #YoungRock While I’ve had some special wrestling moments in front of thousands, last night’s moment was just me, alone in my hotel, tears in my eyes, as I watched an actor portraying me (doing a fine job, too) teaching Dwayne Johnson’s character a lesson about the gift of Christmas giving.
It’s funny, because there was a time – many, many years ago – when I wondered if @TheRock appreciated me. Well, brother, he has answered that question in the affirmative so many times, in so many ways that I feel foolish for having ever wondered. In turn, my respect and admiration for Dwayne Johnson has only grown over the years – as has my appreciation for the incredible moments we shared together – on the road, in the ring, and on the microphone.
Thank you Rock, for being so good to me. Your kind words – in person, on social media, in texts and VM’s, have meant so much to me. If I did in fact, teach you a lesson about giving, it is one you have paid forward a thousand times over. Merry Christmas, my friend.”
The Rock has been rumored for a match with Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 39, and WWE has discussed the idea of him making an appearance at the Royal Rumble match next month.
Cody Rhodes is expected to lock up with an old nemesis once he’s back from his injury.
Rhodes returned to WWE in April of this year at WrestleMania 38, mere weeks after announcing his departure from AEW in February.
The former three-time AEW TNT Champion has been out of action since June after suffering a torn pectoral hours before the WWE Hell in a Cell event.
Rhodes Plans
Despite his torn pectoral, Rhodes fought through the pain to defeat Seth Rollins inside the barbaric Hell in a Cell structure.
This win marked Rhodes’ third Premium Live Event victory over Rollins, after defeating the Architect at WrestleMania and WrestleMania Backlash.
During Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer reported that there are plans for Rollins and Rhodes to continue their feud and that there will be “more talk” about the two soon.
It is unclear how this will affect Rollins’ current feud with United States Champion Austin Theory, or if this will result in him turning heel again.
When his injured happened, WWE announced that Rhodes would miss nine months, which would put his return in March of next year.
WrestleMania 39
WWE may want fans to believe Rhodes won’t be back until March, but nobody is buying this claim.
Instead, Rhodes is expected to return next month at the Royal Rumble, and is a favorite to win the Men’s Rumble match.
Upon his return to WWE, Rhodes told fans on the post-WrestleMania episode of Monday Night Raw that he returned to become WWE Champion.
Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart may be known as the best there is, was, and ever will be, but does he hold a candle to AJ Styles?
Hart is a two-time WWE Hall of Famer, having been inducted in 2006 and inducted as part of the Hart Foundation in 2019.
Styles, a two-time WWE Champion, debuted for the promotion at the 2016 Royal Rumble Pay-Per-View, and is also a Grand Slam champion.
Styles Vs. Hart
Both Styles and Hart are considered two of the best wrestlers of their respective eras, but which is better?
During the latest episode of his ‘Oh You Didn’t Know’ podcast, WWE’s Senior VP of Live Events ‘Road Dogg’ Jesse James gave his pick.
“He [Styles] is a better wrestler. He has been working very hard ever since he showed up at the [Royal] Rumble. He’s older now and he’s slower now and he wants to work smarter now, but when he first got here and I think he was very much in his prime, the road puts it on you and that life.”
‘Road Dogg’ Jesse James.
In recent months, Styles has been feuding with the Judgment Day, and has reunited with Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows.
Road Dogg also named AEW’s Kenny Omega as one of the greats, saying he is currently below the Phenomenal One.
Road Dogg and Bret Hart
This week is hardly the first time that ‘Road Dogg’ has spoken about Bret Hart, and while others have respect for the Hitman, James isn’t among them.
In November, James told listeners of his podcast that he “never saw what the big deal was” in regards to Bret as a performer.
“I don’t think Bret was a great wrestler. He was a wrestler. I think I was a better sports entertainer than Bret was and I think that’s where the money is.”
Former WWE and AEW star Bobby Fish has spoken about the lack of “direction” in the latter promotion.
Fish worked for years as part of NXT and the Undisputed Era before his release from the gold brand in August 2021.
In October of last year, Fish joined AEW where he reunited with Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly, but chose not to re-sign with the company when his deal expired in August of this year.
Direction
Fish made a big splash when he arrived in AEW, which made his abrupt departure from the promotion this year all the more surprising.
Speaking with The Wrestling Perspective’s Podcast this week, Fish was asked about his AEW run, and said he “would have liked a little more direction.”
Fish was quick to say that AEW, like any other promotion, will never get everything right and that thinking they would is an unfair assumption.
NXT
Before coming to AEW, Fish spent four years of his career in WWE NXT, where he is a former NXT Tag Team Champion.
Speaking about his time in the Undisputed Era, Fish said he and the group worked closely with Triple H and NXT Head Writer Joe Belcastro.
Fish is especially proud of his work in WarGames, saying he was a huge fan of the iconic structure during his youth and it was an honor to compete inside.
It was also said that the UE were given bullet points rather than a script to follow, and the group’s success in promos earned them the nickname ‘one-take UE’ amongst the production team.
Fish added that the WWE can be criticized for being overproduced and micromanaged, but it was nothing they dealt with much.
Since Triple H took over main roster creative, Kevin Owens has once again been a big part of WWE television and that importance will likely only grow as the road to WrestleMania picks up.
He was supposed to be on television for SmackDown this week, but that didn’t go as planned. WWE aired a live episode this week before taping next week’s Friday right after the show went off the air from Chicago.
What Happened
(via WWE)
Fightful Select reported that Owens was supposed to be on both week’s episodes, but he couldn’t make it due to what was called a “nightmare travel situation.”
The report added, “Owens had to be written out of the shows and major production and writing changes were made. Originally Owens was supposed to be face-to-face with the Bloodline to introduce the John Cena video.”
Cena will team up with Kevin Owens to take on Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn on the December 30th edition of WWE Friday Night SmackDown.
This comes after The Bloodline (Roman Reigns, The Usos, Sami Zayn, & Solo Sikoa) vs. The Brawling Brutes (Drew McIntyre, Sheamus, Butch, and Ridge Holland & Kevin Owens) in the Men’s WarGames Match at this year’s Survivor Series premium live event.
Kenny Omega has been a household name for years thanks to his in-ring skills as he is considered one the best pro wrestlers on the planet. Omega has always competed at a high level whether that be in New Japan Pro Wrestling or AEW. In that time, he has faced numerous top opponents all over the world.
The former AEW World Heavyweight Champion also doesn’t shy away from competing on less popular shows. Omega decided to compete during the latest taping event for AEW Dark, held on Saturday from Universal Studios.
In Action
Omega worked the set of tapings when he wrestled Hagane Shinno in singles competition. It’s unclear when the episode of AEW Dark with Omega will air.
Omega is set to team up with The Young Bucks and square off against Death Triangle in their next match in the best-of-seven series with Death Triangle, for the AEW Trios Titles. The two teams will clash in a No Disqualification Match on the December 21 Dynamite episode. If necessary, the sixth bout will be a Falls Count Anywhere contest.
We will have spoilers on the homepage later tonight. You can check out some tweets of Omega’s appearance below:
Kenny Omega working the Universal Studios AEW Dark tapings against Hagane Shinno! pic.twitter.com/VaThzizpJM
