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FTR Retain AAA Tag Team Championships on Sunday

Ryan Droste
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FTR continue to hold tag team championship gold in Mexico.

Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler retained their AAA Tag Team Championships at a show on Sunday in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico. The bout was originally set to be against the Lucha Brothers (Pentagon and Rey Fenix), however FTR instead wrestled Dragon Lee and Dralistico. FTR won the belts from the Lucha Brothers last October.

The match against the Lucha Brothers was cancelled after Rey Fenix suffered a gruesome arm injury on AEW Dynamite in early January. The Lucha Brothers had been feuding with Dragon Lee and Dralistico, also brothers, recently in AAA as well.

Vickie Guerrero accompanied FTR to ringside on Sunday. During the match, Pentagon came out as Vickie was being ejected from the ringside area. Pentagon attempted to attack Harwood, but Dragon Lee got involved. As Pentagon and Lee confronted each other, Harwood was able to roll up Lee for the pinfall victory.

We would expect the Lucha Brothers to challenge for the titles in the not too distant future, based upon Fenix’s availability of course. FTR has now defended the titles on three occasions, previously on an episode of AEW Dynamite in November and at TripleMania in December.

Sunday’s match did not air live and should air at the end of the month or in early April on Space TV in Mexico.

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the report.

Check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube. 

Cody Rhodes Update: Current Status with WWE and AEW

Ryan Droste
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0

The Cody Rhodes saga continues.

In an update on where Rhodes might end up next, Fightful Select issued a report on Sunday evening looking at the lay of the land as it stands right now. There have been multiple offers from several wrestling companies to Cody, though it’s unclear which offers are still on the table. Everyone is being very secretive on the situation and they were unable to confirm if Rhodes has indeed signed somewhere.

Additionally, “at least one” of the Executive Vice Presidents from AEW believes that Cody has signed with WWE and will indeed wrestle Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 38 in just a few weeks.

WWE producers (agents) have reportedly not been briefed about any pending arrival by Rhodes. There was some talk about how Damian Priest did not use The Reckoning (Cross Rhodes) on television last week; apparently Cody himself was not aware of this though WWE producers don’t believe that this would have been an accident or coincidence.

Cody and Brandi were seen in Orlando this past week with their daughter alongside Matt Cardona and Chelsea Green at Disney. Nobody had heard of them being at the WWE Performance Center or taking part in any other business.

Cody and Brandi are continuing to work on television programming, though it’s unclear whether this is Rhodes To The Top, A Shot of Brandi, or an entirely new project for the both of them.

This Monday’s WWE Raw takes place in Jacksonville, Florida, the home of All Elite Wrestling and where Cody has wrestled numerous times over the last year.

Check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube. 

Quote: Big E’s Neck Injury May Mean The End Of His Wrestling Career

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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0

A former WWE physician consultant says Big E’s career is at stake.

Fans who tuned into WWE SmackDown on March 11 witnessed a scary incident on the show. Big E took an overhead belly-to-belly suplex from Ridge Holland on the outside. The former WWE Champion landed on his head and neck and couldn’t finish the match. He ended up being stretched out of the arena.

Big E revealed that he has a fractured C1 and C6. The good news for Big E is that he can move all his extremities, there’s no spinal or ligament damage, he won’t need surgery, and his neck fracture wasn’t displaced.

Big E’s Injury Possibly Career-Ending

Dr. David Chao, a former NFL team doctor for 17 seasons, had a piece on Outkick detailing Big E’s injury. He explained why this could be the end of Big E’s wrestling career.

“The C1 fracture is most dangerous as the top cervical vertebrae is a ring and is commonly associated with immediate death or complete paralysis. Thankfully the fracture was not displaced and he will not need surgery. However, this type of fracture often heals incompletely and it may mean the end of his wrestling career.

“The C6 fracture is likely a compression injury to the vertebral body. This likely requires immobilization but not surgery. One would anticipate a minimum of three-month recovery with return to full function and activities for this lower cervical injury.”

Big E has shown positivity and expressed gratitude throughout a time of uncertainty. He’s also garnered a slew of support throughout the wrestling industry.

PWInsider reported that Big E was initially planned for a six-man tag team match at WrestleMania 38. The site notes that he was going to team with fellow New Day brethren Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods to take on Sheamus, Ridge Holland, and Butch.

Sheamus Heaps Praise On Cesaro, Thinks He’ll Find Success Post-WWE

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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0

Sheamus has some kind words for his former tag team partner Cesaro.

Many were caught off guard when news broke that Cesaro and WWE couldn’t come to terms on a new deal. This means the “Swiss Superman” is now free to sign wherever he wants without a non-compete clause.

Cesaro’s Journey Doesn’t End Here, Says Sheamus

During an interview with The Dallas Morning News, Sheamus expressed his belief that any promotion would be lucky to have Cesaro on their roster.

“Honestly, when we started, Cesaro was like an acquaintance. When we started The Bar, we became brothers. I just saw him last week when I was staying in Florida. We stay in touch all the time.

“Legacy-wise, I think he’s one of the greatest I’ve ever stepped in the ring with. I never had to worry about anything. He made me a better wrestler, better performer just by tagging with him. To me, he’ll always be one of the greatest.

“I think no matter what he does or where he goes, he’ll be a massive success. He’s a huge asset to anybody who picks him up.

“I always believed the guy would be WWE champion – that’s never off the cards because people have left and come back, but I think that whoever snaps up Cesaro is going to have a major, major talent on their hands. And I think he’s got a lot left in him, as well.”

Cesaro had been with WWE since 2011 under the FCW developmental territory. During his time on the main roster, Cesaro captured the United States Championship but he was mostly viewed as a tag team wrestler in WWE.

Before his time in WWE, Cesaro had been known for being in a tag team with Chris Hero. Together, they were called the “Kings of Wrestling.”

Still, some felt Cesaro had serious potential as a singles competitor but it wasn’t meant to be in WWE. He held tag team gold seven times under the WWE banner.

In the biggest singles win of his WWE run, Cesaro defeated Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 37.

Renee Paquette Explains Why Paul Heyman Was Her Favorite Person To Work With In WWE

Fernando Quiles Jr.
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0

Renee Paquette has reflected on her time working with Paul Heyman.

On camera, WWE fans know Heyman for being the Special Counsel to Roman Reigns and the former advocate for Brock Lesnar. Behind the scenes, Heyman has developed a reputation of being one of the wrestling industry’s most creative people.

Renee Paquette On Working With Heyman

Speaking to Ryan Satin on the Out of Character podcast, Renee Paquette explained why she found working with Paul Heyman to be enjoyable (via Wrestling Inc).

“The first person that comes to mind for me is Paul Heyman. I love working with Paul Heyman because he’s Paul Heyman, obviously, but he and I always had such a great chemistry and he was somebody that always pushed me to push him. I remember we did sit down with Brock and he had just turned on him and he’s distraught, he’s not shaved, I don’t think he’s slept the night before because that’s how Heyman works, he’s method to a T. It was one of those moments where he wanted me to push him.

“He’s sitting in that moment, being so vulnerable that that’s pushing me to go a certain place and then our characters had this push and pull relationship that it made me kind of want to take advantage of the fact like, oh, is Heyman sad about this? How do I get him with this, how do I grind him down? I always really loved working with Paul, he was so generous to me as a performer and one of the absolute best to ever do it. He really gave me a spotlight very early on and I know that he was somebody, whether he was talking to Vince [McMahon], Kevin Dunne, I know he went to bat for me a lot. I just loved working with him, he would get in my face and yell and be Paul Heyman. I always really loved those moments.”

Many have praised Heyman for his work on Reigns’ current “Tribal Chief” era. Legendary play-by-play commentator Jim Ross has gone as far as to say Heyman deserves credit for Roman’s character change.

Big E Receives Generous Offer From DDP Following Neck Injury

Ryan Droste
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0

Big E suffered two fractured vertebrae in his neck as a result of a suplex gone wrong this past Friday night during SmackDown. Now, a WWE Hall of Famer wants to help out.

During a tag team match on SmackDown, Big E was given an overhead belly-to-belly suplex by Ridge Holland. Big E landed directly on top of his head, suffering the injury in the process. Big E later published updates on his status via social, both on Friday night and on Saturday.

WWE legend Diamond Dallas Page saw what happened and wants to help out. In a message posted to his own social media account, Page made the following offer to Big E:

“After last nights #SMACKDOWN my heart goes out to my brother @wwebige If you need me brother I got you, after Ciampa & Ivar got done with their broken neck rehab they both came to my crib and stayed a few days with me to [DDP yoga] Rebuild ? @austincreedwins has my # ? don’t hesitate to reach out my friend! @wwe #wwe YOU got THIS! DDP”

As noted, other WWE stars have stayed with DDP in the past following rehab.

Luckily, Big E’s spinal cord and ligaments were not damaged in the injury and he will not have to undergo surgery.

Four months ago, Big E gave an interview where he discussed the need to protect one’s opponent during a wrestling match.

“There’s a certain level of trust you have with someone in what we do, because it is entertainment,” said Big E. “And I have to trust that you’re not going to dump me on my head and break my neck. So, if you respect me, I’ll respect you, we take care of each other and we’ll go home to our families, we pay our bills and we get to move on with our lives.”

https://twitter.com/WebmasterM1ke/status/1502647507377086472

Check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube. 

Saturday Night Results: Defy, Prestige, West Coast Pro, Warrior Wrestling

Jaychele Nicole
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Last night, various independent promotions hosted Saturday night shows. DEFY Wrestling, Prestige Wrestling, West Coast Pro Wrestling, and Warrior Wrestling all presented events on March 12. 

We have compiled results for three independent shows below along with ways to stream them, if possible.

DEFY Wrestling

DEFY Wrestling hosted its Defyant Nights event in Seattle, Washington. The event took place on March 12 at Washington Hall.

DEFY Defiant Nights Results (3/12)

  • Interim DEFY World Championship: Christopher Daniels (c) def. Wheeler Yuta
  • PCW ULTRA Women’s Championship: Danika Della Rouge def. Viva Van (c) to win the title
  • Eddie Kingston def. Big Damo
  • Tom Lawlor def. Kevin Knight
  • DEFY Tag Team Championships: The Bollywood Boyz (Gurv Sihra & Harv Sihra) (c) def. The Natural Classics (Stevie Filip & Tome Filip)
  • All Violence Legal: Eddie Kingston, Josef Samael & Schaff def. Midnight Heat (Eddie Pearl & Ricky Gibson) & Levi Cooper
https://twitter.com/rasslewriter/status/1502903867150721027?s=20&t=DooXFPiMwCMeiaIhe67H3g

Prestige & West Coast Pro

Prestige Wrestling and West Coast Pro Wrestling teamed up to present their As Real As It Gets event. The event took place on March 12 in Santa Cruz, California. The show took place at The Vets Hall. The event aired on IWTV and is available for streaming here.

Prestige And West Coast Pro As Real As It Gets Results (3/12)

  • The Conglomerate (Alpha Zo, D-Rogue & Midas Kreed) def. Adriel Noctis, Jody Himself, Lazarus
  • Shazza McKenzie def. Sandra Moone
  • Vinnie Massaro def. Juicy Finau
  • Alan Angels def. Robert Martyr
  • The West Coast Wrecking Crew (Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs) def. PPRay (Peter Avalon & Ray Rosas)
  • Kevin Blackwood def. Sonico
  • Prestige Tag Team Championship: C4 (Cody Chhun & Guillermo Rosas) (c) def. Paxxx Americana (Dark Sheik & MV Young)
  • Rocky Romero def. Charlie Haas
  • Prestige Championship: Alex Shelley def. Rey Horus and Titus Alexander (c) to win the title.
https://twitter.com/Aregularindyfan/status/1502849689930117123?s=20&t=57ytlI0uBeDu4xNC1YR6mA
https://twitter.com/Aregularindyfan/status/1502857722164875272?s=20&t=57ytlI0uBeDu4xNC1YR6mA

Warrior Wrestling

Warrior Wrestling held their 3/12 event titled Warrior Wrestling 20. The event emanated from McGowan Hall in Indianapolis, IN. The event streamed live on FITE TV. The replay is still available now.

Warrior Wrestling 20 Results (3/12)

  • Brian Pillman Jr. defeated Silas Young
  • Jake Crist defeated Storm Grayson
  • Warrior Wrestling Lucha Championship: Sam Adonis (c) defeated Psycho Clown
  • ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey defeated KC Navarro
  • Killer Kross defeated Jake Something
  • Warrior Wrestling Women’s Championship: Thunder Rosa (c) defeated Skye Blue and Athena
  • Lance Archer defeated Mike Bennett
  • Lil’ Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Myron Reed) defeated Top Flight (Dante Martin & Darius Martin) and Dante Leon & Arez
https://twitter.com/WrestlingCovers/status/1502831633992409093?s=20&t=VLoh1jAoEhCVKGL5axWprA

Scott Hall On Life Support Following Heart Attacks, Surgery Complications (Report)

Ryan Droste
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0

Wrestling legend Scott Hall is on life support following complications from hip replacement surgery.

The WWE and WCW legend underwent surgery last week but had serious complications following the surgery according to Wade Keller of Pro Wrestling Torch. This resulted in a blood clot which got loose. Hall reportedly had three heart attacks last night.

According to the report from the Torch, Hall is currently hospitalized at Kennestone Hospital in Marietta, Georgia.

Scott Hall first started making waves as a member of the American Wrestling Association (AWA) in the 1980s. He captured the AWA Tag Team Titles alongside friend Curt Hennig (the future Mr. Perfect) before departing the territory.

After some brief time with WCW, Hall turned up in the WWE where he achieved global superstardom as Razor Ramon. He won the WWE Intercontinental Championship on four occasions, including the most memorable bout of his career – a ladder match for the title against Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania X in Madison Square Garden. They had another ladder match the following year at SummerSlam that also earned rave reviews.

scotthallwrestlemaniaxrazor
Scott Hall (Razor Ramon) defeats Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania X.

Hall departed the WWE for WCW in 1996 alongside his friend Kevin Nash. Originally referred to as The Outsiders, they helped spearhead a wrestling boom period alongside Hulk Hogan as founding members of the nWo. Hall won the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship twice and the WCW Tag Team Championships six times.

After the collapse of WCW, Hall briefly returned to the WWE in 2002 where he wrestled Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania X-8 in Toronto. He also spent some time in the twilight of his career with Impact Wrestling, among various others.

Hall was inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame on two different occasions. First, as Razor Ramon in 2014, and later as a member of the nWo in 2020. He is a featured character in WWE’s new WWE 2K22 video game that released last week.

Check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube. 

Xavier Woods Returns to Action for WWE After Two Months

Michael Reichlin
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Xavier Woods returned to action at Saturday night’s WWE live event from Jackson, Mississippi.

The New Day member hasn’t wrestled in over two months. He’s been recovering from a leg injury (the plantaris muscle in his calf).

His last match took place on the January 7th edition of SmackDown, when New Day lost a street fight to The Usos. According to Woods, the injury occurred when he delivered a Tornado DDT to Jey Uso. Despite the injury, he was able to finish the match and actually took a Samoan Drop moments after hurting his leg.

Woods said he expected to miss 4-6 weeks of action, but was out for approximately 9 weeks.

At Saturday’s live event, Woods and Kofi Kingston competed in a tag team triple threat match for the SmackDown tag team titles. The Usos retained over New Day and the team of Sheamus & Ridge Holland.

WWE Jackson Results

Here are quick results from WWE Jackson (3/12/22):

  • Viking Raiders def. Los Lotharios
  • Shayna Baszler def. Aliyah
  • Ricochet def. Sami Zayn to retain the Intercontinental championship
  • Happy Corbin def. Shinsuke Nakamura
  • The Usos def. New Day and Sheamus/Holland
  • Sasha Banks & Naomi def. Charlotte Flair & Sonya Deville
  • Roman Reigns def. Drew McIntyre to retain the Universal Championship

FTR Would Return To WWE Under the Right Circumstances

Michael Reichlin
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Dax Harwood is hell-bent on making FTR the greatest tag team in wrestling history. Being a perfectionist can drive you to greatness, but it can also leave you feeling unsatisfied.

Harwood held a Q&A session for his Twitter followers on Saturday night and answered a variety of questions about his career.

Interestingly, Harwood says he’s not satisfied with his AEW career thus far and would consider going back to WWE under the right circumstances.

Dax Harwood on FTR’s Future

The following are some highlights of what Dax Harwood said about:

His dream match for FTR:

“Rematch vs Young Bucks. Who really is the greatest tag team of this generation?”

Who he’d want to face in FTR’s final match:

“Chad Gable & Jason Jordan.”

FTR’s ladder match against the New Day:

“I told all the guys involved, I can’t do the athletic stuff most ladder matches have, but we can tell a story and we can be BRUTAL. I love that match and I love those guys.”

A fan questioning if we’ll see Dax vs. CM Punk:

“You guys tell CM Punk that.”

Wanting to work for New Japan Pro Wrestling: 

“Cash and I want to win the NJPW Tag team titles. We’ve talked about it on many 4 hour road trips.”

If FTR would return to WWE:

“Yes, If the money and circumstances were right.”

Is he satisfied with his AEW career so far?

“No. Okay, back to normal Twitter shit. Thanks y’all!”

(Author’s Opinion: I wouldn’t read too much into Harwood’s comments about being dissatisfied with how they’ve done in AEW up to this point. Dax Harwood has set very high goals for himself and rightfully so. FTR is always striving for greatness. Dax is a perfectionist. FTR has held the AEW World Tag titles, but are they considered the greatest tag team in AEW history? Have they dominated the division and proven they are the greatest beyond a shadow of a doubt? Not yet.)

Jeff Hardy Names His Favorite Feud & Wrestling Mt. Rushmore

Michael Reichlin
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Wrestling legend Jeff Hardy made a big return to the national wrestling scene this past week. Months after being let go by WWE, the Mysterious Enigma made a shocking debut on Wednesday’s edition of AEW Dynamite.

The Hardys are back together. Matt and Jeff, one of the most decorated tag teams in wrestling history, have embarked on a reunion tour.

Jeff Hardy did a virtual appearance this week on Facebook for Signed by Superstars and fielded a bunch of questions from fans. Hardy spoke about his favorite matches, his favorite feud and named his “Wrestling Mt. Rushmore.”

Here are some highlights of what Jeff Hardy said about:

Jeff Hardy’s Best Matches:

Matt and Jeff Hardy are known for many things, but they are probably best known for their legendary TLC matches in WWE. It should come as no surprise that these are among Jeff’s favorite matches.

“Probably all TLC matches,” Hardy said.

As for his solo career, his World title ladder match match against The Undertaker from 2002 sticks with him to this day.

“Solo wise, myself versus The Undertaker for the World Title,” he said.

His Wrestling Mt. Rushmore:

We always like to hear who popular wrestlers name as their personal “Mt. Rushmore.”

When asked about his personal Mt. Rushmore of professional wrestling, Jeff Hardy named Shawn Michaels, Rey Mysterio, Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan.

That’s a diverse group, with HBK & Mysterio representing the athletic, innovative style that Hardy became famous for, while Flair and Hogan are the larger-than-life figures from the era Hardy grew up watching.

His Favorite Feud:

Jeff Hardy has been wrestling on national television since the mid-1990’s, so he’s competed against multiple generations of wrestlers.

To be Jeff Hardy’s favorite feud is quite an honor. Jeff says his matches against the late Umaga hold a special place in his heart.

“Favorite feud of all time,” Hardy said about working with Umaga.

Chris Jericho Thinks Triple H May Have Kept Him Out of the WM2000 Main Event

Anutosh Bajpai
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0

Chris Jericho made his WWE debut in 1999 and he instantly become a big star in the company. Jericho believes he could have even had his first WrestleMania main event within a year, if it wasn’t for Triple H. Y2J was interviewed on the latest episode of The Kurt Angle Show where they discussed the various stages of Jericho’s career.

During the talk, the AEW star claimed that he was originally supposed to be a part of the fatal four-way main event of WrestleMania 2000. He was going to be the fourth participant of the bout instead of Mick Foley:

“The original plan for that WrestleMania if you remember, it was a four-way title match with a McMahon in every corner. It was [The] Rock, Big Show, Triple H and Mick Foley. With Vince, Shane, Linda and Stephanie with whoever they were with. The original plan for that match was Hunter, Rock, Big Show and Jericho. And if you think that I’m just saying that because I heard rumors or someone told me, they actually made promotional pieces for the match.”

Chris Jericho showed a press kit for WrestleMania 2000 which featured his photo with the other three participants. He also recalled seeing a billboard on Sunset Boulevard with the same picture. However, he thinks that Vince McMahon didn’t believe in him enough at the time to put him in the spot:

“I think Vince just didn’t have the belief in me, I guess to put me in that spot yet. So he brought Mick back. That was after Mick had retired. I think Mick told me that Vince offered him enough money to pay his kids’ college educations. So he came back.”

“There Was A lot Of Politics At That Time” Says Chris Jericho

Chris Jericho

Interestingly enough, Jericho believes that his heat with Triple H during the early days might have cost him the opportunity. He mentioned how he is cool with The Game now but it wasn’t always the case:

“There was a lot a lot of politics at that time. When I say this, it’s not from a bitter point of view or an angry point of view. It’s just the way it was. So to come in, there was a lot of legit heat between Hunter and myself. [It] Involved China, [It] involved a little bit X Pac as well. But Hunter and I just didn’t like each other and I think Hunter had such a pull at the time, such power that if he didn’t like me of course, [he could have gotten me removed]. Even if he’s not going out of his way to bury me to Vince, I am sure every time my name came up he would be like ‘ugh, that guy? come on.’

It’s just kind of the way the business worked at the time. So I think that might have had a lot to do with it. [Hunter probably said] ‘You don’t want Jericho, is that a big enough name? Bring back Foley or see if Austin’s available.’ Or whatever it may be. That kind of [was] one of the reasons. Once again, I’m not saying that I’ve heard this. I just can tell. I can read the room for the past that we had. We’re really cool now but at the time we just fucking didn’t like each other, [it] just didn’t work.”

If you use any quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription.

Kevin Owens Promo Seemingly Cut from SmackDown

Jake Skudder
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WWE RAW Superstar Kevin Owens was reportedly set for an in-ring promo during this week’s episode of SmackDown, but it was pulled.

Fightful Select recently reported that Owens was listed internally as having an in-ring promo on the show, but a video package ran instead.

They noted: “Kevin Owens was listed for an in-ring promo internally, but a video package ran instead. It was to be produced by Jason Jordan.”

The video package that would end up airing showed Owens challenging Stone Cold Steve Austin to confront him at WrestleMania 38.

Austin would of course accept the challenge, and The Rattlesnake is now set to appear on the show.

Kevin Owens WWE SmackDown

What Stone Cold will eventually end up doing remains to be seen, but we will see the Hall of Famer at the show.

It is not currently known why WWE opted to remove Owens from appearing live on the show, but the video package sold the story of the confrontation well enough anyway.

It is also not known if we’ll see Steve Austin on RAW or SmackDown ahead of WrestleMania 38. It’s likely however that WWE will opt to keep the former WWE Champion off-screen until he appears in Dallas, Texas.

Becky Lynch Returns to Action at WWE Live Event

Jake Skudder
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WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch has returned to action after suffering from a fractured voice box.

The injury occurred ahead of this past week’s episode of WWE RAW, and Lynch did not appear on camera for the show itself.

Becky was however backstage towards the end of the show and told fans via social media that Bianca Belair had caused the voicebox injury.

There was some uncertainty as to whether Lynch would be able to return to action in the short term, but she has now wrestled again for the company.

Becky Lynch WWE Return

Becky Lynch performed on the Saturday 12th March ‘Road to WrestleMania’ live event from Columbus, GA.

Lynch took part in a handicap match on the show, which saw Bianca Belair, Liv Morgan & Rhea Ripley defeat The Man, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Queen Zelina & Carmella and Doudrop.

Following the initial worry that Becky Lynch might not be able to make WrestleMania 38, it now appears that she has been cleared for in-ring action.

Although not one of the main events of the two-night show, Becky vs Bianca is still a top bout for the card, and WWE will not want anything to jeopardize its position on the biggest show of the year.

With the injury to Big E on this week’s episode of SmackDown, the company will likely be even more vigilant in ensuring that potential issues to the WrestleMania card are avoided in the final weeks ahead of the show in Dallas.

SmackDown Rating Falls Narrowly This Week

Jake Skudder
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This week’s episode of WWE SmackDown reportedly saw a small fall in viewership compared to last week, according to the overnights.

WWE is currently building up to WrestleMania 38 from Dallas, Texas, and they will be hoping that they can maintain the weekly television audience ahead of their biggest event of the year.

Spoiler TV has reported that the Friday March 11th episode of the show brought in 2.133 million viewers on FOX.

The show also had a .5 in the all-important 18 to 49 demographic. An interesting stat to note is that the show actually held the audience of 2.133 million viewers across both hours.

SmackDown Overnights

Comparatively, the overnight ratings for the Friday March 4th episode of SmackDown drew an average of 2.1395 million viewers. That show also had a .5 in the 18 to 49 demographic.

The ratings for SmackDown towards the end of February saw the show hover below the 2 million mark, so these recent weeks of shows can only be considered a success for the company.

What is promising for WWE is that this week’s show actually held the number across the two hours, indicating that there is investment across the show rather than just the main feuds.

The show opened this week with WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and ended with an Intercontinental Championship match between Ricochet and Sami Zayn.

The company will be hoping to hold these sorts of numbers as we head towards WrestleMania at the start of April.

AEW Rampage Viewership This Week Reportedly Below 500k

Jake Skudder
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0

This week’s episode of AEW Rampage on the TNT Network was again a taped show, and the viewership reportedly fell below 500,000.

Alfred Konuwa, who seems to be fed the fast national ratings for Rampage when they’re low, indicated this week that the Rampage number was below the half a million mark.

The Friday March 11th episode of Rampage apparently had a viewership of 480,000, down from last week. It’s worth noting that a demographic breakdown for the 18 to 49 number has not yet been revealed.

Comparatively, the March 4th episode of AEW Rampage had a viewership of 545,000 with a .22 rating in the 18 to 49 demographic.

AEW Rampage Ratings

There’s no indication right now as to whether the network is happy with the recent numbers from AEW on Friday nights.

Whilst the ratings and viewership has been declining, with last week’s show actually being 34% down from what was showing on TNT last year at the same time, it is first run programming for Turner.

Rampage was initially a far more important aspect of AEW’s weekly programming, with CM Punk originally wrestling almost exclusively on the show.

Although Tony Khan initially promised that it was not a “B show” for AEW, it does appear somewhat as though it is becoming the natural number two behind Dynamite on TBS every Wednesday.

Bron Breakker Reacts To NXT Title Loss: “It Is What It Is”

Anutosh Bajpai
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0

Bron Breakker is still trying to digest his NXT championship loss to Dolph Ziggler, though he is promising that this story is far from over.

The now former champion had an interview with Dallas News. He discussed things such as his Raw debut, a potential move to main roster, and more.

Speaking about losing the NXT title to Ziggler during the Roadblock event this past Tuesday, Breakker said that he is no way close to being done with the Show Off:

“I’m … I’m still in a little bit of shock. You know, it is what it is. There’s nothing I can do about it now. It’s over. You just wake up, dust myself off, back to work.

As far as Dolph Ziggler goes – and Bobby Roode, for that matter – we are no way close to being done.” said Bron Breakker, “I’m sure I’ll run into them again down the line. But, I just got to get better.”

The NXT star also talked about his Raw debut and getting to work with veterans such as Ziggler, Tommaso Ciampa and Robert Roode just in the past few weeks.

Breakker said that it’s been a great experience and he has been learning a lot about the business. He claimed that he couldn’t be happier to be in the learning position that he is in.

Original WrestleMania Plans For Big E Before Neck Injury

Anutosh Bajpai
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WWE had planned a New Day reunion for this year’s edition of WrestleMania before Big E suffered the unfortunate neck injury at Friday’s SmackDown.

PWinsider recently provided some update on the former WWE champion. They revealed what the officials were planning for him before this week’s episode of the blue branded show.

According to the site, Big E and Kofi Kingston were supposed to reunite with Xavier Woods soon. These three were expected to take on Sheamus, Ridge Holland and Butch at WrestleMania 38.

Woods suffered a muscle tear while wrestling against The Usos back in January. He was expected to stay out of action for 4 to 6 weeks.

Ridge Holland was drafted to the SmackDown brand during the 2021 draft. He has been paired with Sheamus since his arrival on the main roster.

This week’s episode of the blue branded show saw Pete Dunne joining this team. Now renamed to Butch, Dunne was introduced as Sheamus’ protégé.

The WrestleMania plans are obviously up in the air now with Big E suffering a broken neck. The good news is that he won’t require surgery.

There is no word on how long he may stay out of action but at this point, competing at the Show of Shows seems very unlikely for the New Day member.

GCW: Astronaut Results(3/12)

Tyriece Simon
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Game Changer Wrestling held their first event at Center Stage Theater in Atlanta, Georgia, with GCW: Astronaut.

The main event saw H8 Club vs. Second Gear Crew for the GCW Tag Team Championship. GCW: Astronaut also had ROH Champion Jonathan Gresham vs. Blake Christian in a non-title match. GCW wanted to have the match at The Wrld on GCW, but Gresham couldn’t make the show. The event aired live on FITE and is available for on-demand purchase for $13.99

GCW: Astronaut is the last Pay-Per-View before GCW: The Collective at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. GCW: The Collective will occur from Mar. 31 to Apr. 2, with 12 PPV events. Wrestling fans can buy each event individually or buy the bundle for $139.99 on FITE.

https://twitter.com/GCWrestling_/status/1502744020778463237

GCW: Astronaut Quick Results

  • AR Fox defeated Nick Wayne
  • Gringo Loco defeated Ninja Mack
  • Matt Cardona did a in-ring promo before his match. He talks about GCW’s Joey Janela’s Spring Break 6 in Dallas, Texas and said he should be challenging for the GCW World Championship, instead of wrestling Chris Dickinson.
  • Matt Cardona defeated “Action” Mike Jackson
  • After the match, Cardona did a in-ring promo disrespecting Jackson and said he was going to beat Dickinson at GCW’s Joey Janela’s Spring Break 6. Dickinson comes out and Cardona leaves the ring. Jackson beats up Cardona and throws him in the ring. Dickinson tries to Powerbomb Cardona, but Cardona escaped.
  • Tony Deppen defeated ACH
  • Alex Colon defeated Jimmy Lloyd, Jordan Oliver, Zen Shi, Cole Radrick, and Manders in a Six-way Scramble Match
  • Bobby Flocko and Cavron Canyon vs Ash Bennett and Rico Gonzalez ends as no contest after Joey Janela interrupts the match and attacks everyone.
  • Janela did a in-ring promo and vows to “Kill” Sean Waltman at GCW’s Joey Janela Spring Break 6. He also claims GCW wouldn’t be where it is without him and demands that people should “Give him his flowers” at GCW’s Joey Janela’s Spring Break 6.
  • Allie Katch defeated Jordynne Grace
  • AJ Gray defeated EFFY to retain the GCW Extreme Championship
  • Jonathan Gresham defeated Blake Christian
  • Christian did a in-ring promo after the match thanking the fans
  • H8 Club(Nick Gage and Matt Tremont) vs. Second Gear Crew(Mathew Justice and Mance Warner) for the GCW Tag Team Championship ends in a draw
https://twitter.com/Aregularindyfan/status/1502854980306407425

After the match, fans chanted for the match to be restarted. Tremont challenged Second Gear Crew and The Briscoes to a three-way dance at GCW’s Joey Janela Spring Break 6. The fans still booed, but Gage thanked the fans to a lukewarm response, and the show ended.

Ric Flair Interested In Managing Cesaro

Anutosh Bajpai
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Cesaro has not revealed his next move after his WWE departure yet but Ric Flair is interested in managing the Swiss Superman in AEW if he gets the chance.

On the 16th episode of his Woo Nation Uncensored podcast, the 16-time world champion discussed things such as Jeff Hardy’s AEW debut and more.

He was also asked if he would like to manage the former WWE star. Replying to it, Flair said that he would love to teach Cesaro how to be nasty:

“Manage him? I’d love it! Then you work on him with little things that make him nasty. You’ve never seen him be nasty. You take a guy with his skill and his strength and teach how to be nasty, just little tricks of the trade, he’d be really hot.

If I was managing him, I would call Tony Khan out to the ring and I’d knock him down from behind” said Ric Flair, “and have Cesaro give him a giant swing and put him in a hospital for a month.”

The wrestling veteran also talked about Cesaro’s WWE career. He said that the former US champion’s matches with Seth Rollins were the high point of his career.

Flair explained that he liked the Bar but his matches with Seth were really good. He claimed that he has never seen Cesaro have a bad match.

Thanks to WrestleZone for the quotes

House of Glory: Salvation Results from NYC

Michael Reichlin
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House of Glory held its latest iPPV, HoG: Salvation, on Friday night from the NYC Arena in Queens, NY.

The event aired live on FITE PPV and featured a broadcast team that included longtime friend of the site, The Solomonster (Jason Solomon).

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House of Glory: Salvation Results

Here are the quick results from HoG: Salvation:

  • Mantequilla def. KC Navarro
  • The Mane Event (Midas Black & Jay Lyon) def. The Amazing Graysons (JP & Tommy)
  • Ken Broadway def. Michael Fain
  • Evander James (w/Scarlett Meidan & Joey Silver) def. Carlos “La Sombra” Ramirez
  • Low Ki def. Biff Busick to retain his HOG Crown Jewel Championship
  • Natalia Markova def. Taya Valkyrie to retain her HOG Women’s Championship
  • The Briscoes def. Penta El Zero Miedo & Arez (sub for the injured Rey Fenix) in a Winner Take All Match to win the HOG Tag Team Championship and retain their ROH Tag Team Titles

House of Glory returns to the NYC arena on tax day, April 15th.

ROH Supercard Of Honor XV Match Card, Date & Time, How To Watch

Jaychele Nicole
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Ring of Honor is returning to host their annual Supercard of Honor show as a part of WrestleMania weekend.

Ring of Honor announced on October 27, 2021 that they would be going on hiatus for the first quarter of 2022 after their Final Battle event. All their wrestlers and staff were released from their contracts on various dates.

Supercard of Honor 2022

Supercard of Honor XV will be the first wrestling event of 2022 promoted by ROH following their hiatus. This is also their first event under the ownership of Tony Khan. This year’s event will be the 15th event in the Supercard of Honor chronology.

On the March 2 edition of AEW Dynamite, Tony Khan announced that he had purchased Ring Of Honor. This has left the Supercard of Honor XV up in the air and there are many questions surrounding the booking. For more information on the Supercard of Honor planning being in disarray, click here for our exclusive.

Date & Time

ROH Supercard of Honor XV will take place on April 1, 2022 at 8PM EST.

The event is located at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas.

Match Card

  • Undisputed ROH World Championship: Jonathan Gresham (c) vs. Bandido (c) (w/ Chavo Guerrero Jr)
  • ROH Tag Team Championships: The Briscoes (Mark & Jay Briscoe) (c) vs. FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood)
  • ROH Pure Championship: Josh Woods vs. Wheeler Yuta
  • Interim ROH Women’s World Championship: Willow Nightingale vs Mercedes Martinez (Winner to Face Champion Deonna Purrazzo At A Later Date)*
  • Alex Zayne vs. Sw3rve Strickland
  • Jay Lethal vs. Lee Moriarty (w/Matt Sydal)
  • Ninja Mack vs. Tully Blanchard’s New Client
  • ROH World TV Championship: Rhett Titus vs Minoru Suzuki
  • Joe Hendry To Appear

*Deonna Purrazzo is unavailable for Supercard of Honor

WrestleCon 2022 Schedule, Matches, Dates & Times, How To Watch

Jaychele Nicole
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The annual WrestleCon event is about to take place during WrestleMania weekend for the 8th time.

WrestleCon is an annual event that takes place during WrestleMania weekend. This year, the event will take place in Dallas, Texas. The convention will happen from March 31 to April 2. The convention features signings, photo ops, and live events. For a full list of events, guests, and tickets, click here.

This year’s WrestleCon event features six live events. IMPACT Wrestling, AAA, New Japan Strong, and Zicky Dice have events scheduled for the Dallas convention.

This will be the go-to article for an updated list of the shows and matches that have been announced for this year’s edition of WrestleCon.

Where & How To Watch

Some of the shows are available for purchase individually on the FITE platform. However, there is also a bundle available for purchase that will host all of the events on a continuous stream. The AAA live event is only available if you purchase the FITE Fest WrestleCon Bundle. The bundle also includes Major Wrestling Figure Podcast: Live XII and Thuzio: SuperShow Live!. The full bundle is available now for $74.99. 

All of WrestleCon’s live events will take place indoors, inside the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

Shows & Matches Announced

March 31st:

AAA Lucha Libre: Invades WrestleCon (6:00PM EST)

  • Taya Valkyrie, Niño Hamburguesa, and Micro Man vs. Los Mercenarios (Rey Escorpión & La Hiedra) and Mini Abismo Negro
  • Los Jinetes del Aire (Octagón Jr. & Aramís) and Mr. Iguana vs. Los Vipers (Arez & Abismo Negro Jr.) and Fabi Apache
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship: La Rebelión (Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf 450) (c) vs. Aero Star and Drago
  • No Disqualification Match: Pagano, Drago Kid, and Jack Cartwheel vs. La Empresa (Puma King & Sam Adonis) and Gringo Loco
  • Psycho Clown vs. Black Taurus
  •  AAA World Cruiserweight Championship: Laredo Kid (c) vs. Bandido vs. Flamita

Mark Hitchcock Memorial WrestleCon Supershow (10:00PM EST) – $14.99

  • Minoru Suzuki vs. Biff Busick
  • Tomohiro Ishii vs. Timothy Thatcher
  • The Briscoes (Mark & Jay Briscoe) vs. Low Ki & Homicide
  • Bandido vs. Speedball Mike Bailey
  • Mia Yim vs. Athena
  • Ace Austin, Black Taurus & Josh Alexander vs Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid
  • Team Onita (Atsushi Onita, TBA, TBA, TBA & TBA) vs Team PCO (PCO, TBA, TBA, TBA & TBA)
  • Dirty Dishes Match: Taya Valkyrie vs John Morrison
  • Rock N’ Roll Express

April 1st:

Zicky Dice’s Trouble In Paradise 2 (2:00PM EST) – Free on Twitch 

  • EFFY vs “Speedball” Mike Bailey
  • Sensational Sextuplet Scramble: Frontman Jah-C vs Keita Murray vs Carlie Bravo vs Levi Shapiro vs Darian Bengston vs Lord Crewe
  • Lince Dorado vs Black Taurus
  • Rich Swann vs Scotty 2 Hotty
  • Jonah Turk vs Deonn Rusman
  • Masha Slamovich vs BEAR (a literal bear)

NJPW Strong: LoneStar Shootout (6:00PM EST) – $14.99

  • Chris Dickinson vs. Tomohiro Ishii
  • ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey vs. Jay White
  • Ren Narita vs. Rocky Romero
  • David Finlay, Juice Robinson, Kevin Knight, & Daniel Garcia vs. Karl Fredericks, Clark Connors, Yuya Uemura, & Mascara Dorada
  • Minoru Suzuki vs Killer Kross
  • Blake Christian vs JONAH
  • Team Filthy (“Filthy” Tom Lawlor, JR Kratos & Royce Isaacs) vs Team Rosser (Fred Rosser, Alex Coughlin & Dylan Kyle Cox)

IMPACT: Multiverse of Matches (10:00PM EST) – $19.99

  • Ultimate X Match For The X-Division Title: Trey Miguel vs Vincent vs Chris Bey vs Rich Swann vs Blake Christian vs Jordynne Grace
  • “Speedball” Mike Bailey vs Alex Shelley
  • Good Brothers (Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson) vs. The Briscoes (Mark & Jay Briscoe)
  • Jay White vs. Chris Sabin
  • Tomohiro Ishii vs. Eddie Edwards
  • Josh Alexander & JONAH vs IMPACT World Champion Moose & PCO
  • Chelsea Green & Matt Cardona vs Mickie James & Nick Aldis
  • Champ Champ Challenge: Deonna Purrazzo Open Challenge
  • IMPACT Knockouts Tag Team Championships: The Influence (Tenille Dashwood & Madison Rayne) (c) vs. Tasha Steelz & Savannah Evans vs. Havok & Rosemary vs. Gisele Shaw & Lady Frost

April 2nd

USA vs The World 2022 (12:00PM EST) – $14.99

  • Undisputed British Cruiserweight Title Match: Rich Swann vs Michael Oku
  • Warrior Wrestling Lucha Title Match: Sam Adonis vs La Hiedra vs Mr. Iguana vs Abismo Negro Jr.
  • Davey Richards vs “Speedball” Mike Bailey
  • Rachael Ellering vs Jessica Troy
  • Workhorsemen (JD Drake & Anthony Henry) vs Bandido & Rey Horus
  • Calvin Tankman vs. Big Damo
  • Gringo Loco & Flip Gordon & Caleb Konley vs. Aeroboy & Aramis & Arez

Athena and Jade Cargill Tease Match Through Fiery Twitter Exchange

Jaychele Nicole
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Jade Cargill and Athena had a back-and-forth exchange on Twitter which teased a possible match between the two.

Athena, formerly known as Ember Moon, was released from WWE on November 4, 2022. She has since returned to the independent scene with her most notable match being against Thunder Rosa at Warrior Wrestling 19. She is currently scheduled to take part in some WrestleMania 38 weekend events when she faces Mia Yim at this year’s WrestleCon. 

On this past week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, the current TBS Champion asked who’s left for her. She urged someone to step up and answer her open challenge. Cargill defeated Tay Conti at Revolution last Sunday. She says she’s ready for real competition and that she’ll give them her “kiss of death”. Cargill posted this promo to her Twitter. 

The Twitter Exchange

To which Athena responded with, “Hmmmm [thinking face emojis]…”

“Hmmmm? What? Say how you feel if you feel it. I don’t play games. Open up,” Jade responded.

The former NXT Women’s Champion replied, “Sure, Jade Cargill. I’ll give in to your request and ill say loud enough for the people in the back…even though I’m pretty sure I know the answer. GIVE ME A MATCH SO I CAN TAKE YOUR TITLE! Talk to ya boy and make it happen… I’ll be waiting.”

Cargill answered by throwing shade in reference to her WWE release, “You’re welcomed kid. I’m a needle mover. I’ll help you out. Clearly you need it. Looking kind of dry out there without TV.”

Below is the full back-and-forth exchange:

Shayna Baszler And Natalya Want To Be In The Women’s Tag Title Match At WWE WrestleMania 38

Jaychele Nicole
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Natalya and Shayna Baszler are currently petitioning to be added into the WWE Women’s Tag Team Title match at WrestleMania 38.

New Women’s Tag Team In The Division

On the March 11 edition of SmackDown, Shayna Baszler and Natalya teamed up for the first time. They took on Naomi and Sasha Banks in a losing effort. Natalya was pinned by Banks after she was hit with a Codebreaker. 

Baszler and Natalya appeared on the most recent episode of Talking Smack to talk with Kayla Braxton about their future as a team. Shayna asked what they need to do to get a match at WrestleMania. Natalya informed her that she will be taking WWE Official Sonya Deville out for dinner to try and make it happen. 

WWE Women’s Tag Team Title Match At WrestleMania 38

There is already a WWE Women’s Tag Team Title match scheduled for WrestleMania 38. On WrestleMania Sunday, Queen Zelina and Carmella will defend their titles against Sasha Banks & Naomi and Rhea Ripley & Liv Morgan. Natalya & Shayna Baszler are currently trying to politic their way into the match.

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