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Triple H Apologizes To Paige For Joke About Her Being Promiscuous

Michael Reichlin
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22

Triple H has apologized to WWE Superstar Paige after making a joke to the media about her being sexually promiscuous.

Last weekend, Triple H spoke to the media ahead of the NXT Takeover UK event. He was asked about the possibility of Paige returning to the ring one day. In his response, Triple H joked that Paige can’t keep track of her sexual partners and that she probably has children that she doesn’t know about.

Paige was hurt by the “joke” and mentioned on social that it’s no wonder fans still treat her with disrespect, when her boss had such ugly things to say about him in a public forum.

Several of Paige’s colleagues expressed their support, including Renee Young:

Paige spoke with Gary Cassidy of BT Sport on Wednesday and revealed that she was “a bit perplexed” and taken aback by the situation. She added that Triple H reached out to her and “we’re going to be talking about some things, yeah.”

“Obviously I was a little bit perplexed, a little bit taken aback, because he’s someone that I truly look up to and he’s always been very respectful, so I feel like he got caught up, maybe, in a joke, that I just don’t think was appropriate to joke about,” said Paige. “I don’t know, I feel like it’s something that I don’t need to continually keep talking about because I feel like people have done a pretty good job of that.

He’s definitely reached out. We’re going to be talking about some things, yeah.”

You can see her comments here:

Triple H noted on Twitter that he’s reached out to Paige to apologize for his “joke” and is sorry if she or anybody else was offended.

Bully Ray Comments On Marty Scurll’s New Position With ROH Creative

Jake Skudder
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0

Wrestling legend and Busted Open Radio co-host Bully Ray recently commented on Marty Scurll signing a new deal with Ring of Honor that will see him join the company’s creative team in a leading role.

Marty Scurll’s future was a hot topic of conversation for the past several months. Some hoped he would stay with Ring of Honor, while others expected he would jump to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) or even WWE/NXT.

He wound up staying for big money and a role as one of ROH’s head bookers. Bully Ray thinks it was a big score to keep Scurll, but he would not have given him so much power behind the scenes.

Bully Ray on Marty Scurll’s New ROH Deal

“I’m happy for Ring of Honor that Marty staying I think it’s a good move for both,” Bully began. “Marty is without a doubt one of those guys, he’s become a massive star in Ring of Honor. Even going beyond ROH, doing some stuff with the NWA.

Bully Ray then also commented on how he felt Scurll was always the the biggest star in the Bullet Club faction.

“I’ve always said that Marty was the biggest star in the Bullet Club while the BC was part of ROH. Because his stock went up more than anybody else’s. His merchandise, which through the roof, and he actually did the same numbers if not better numbers across the board with like meet and greets and merchandise as as Cody and the [Young] Bucks. So Marty is definitely the babyface of the company.”

“Marty Scurll being a top guy in the company has to worry about the stuff that he’s doing.”

Bully was quick to mention that he does have reservations with a top star in the company having so much control behind the scenes.

“As far as being the booker is concerned; being a booker is a very very difficult job. Even on its own, because you’re worrying about creative or the directions of the matches of an entire company. Marty being a top guy in the company has to worry about the stuff that he’s doing, and now has to be patient and a good listener to all of the other talent in the company.”

“It’s always good to have different ideas”

He elaborated further, saying “If he is the head booker all the talent is going to want to talk to you about their push, about their characters, about their matches. So when Marty is at TV he has to make them see himself available to them. Just like Hunter did as the head of of ROH’s creative (Hunter Johnson, also known as Delirious). Hunter is still a part of the process so Marty and Hunter will be working together. But if the final decision goes to Marty that’s okay, because he has a different opinion, he might have a different look at the company. It’s always good to have different ideas but he’s going to have to make himself available to everybody.”

“I would have made Marty Scurll my ROH Champion”

Ray also outright stated that he would not have given the ‘pencil’ to Marty if he had the choice. “If it was up to me, I would not have made him head booker. I would have made him a part of the creative process with Hunter working side by side. I would have made Marty Scurll my ROH Champion.”

Bully also pointed out that he is definitely not involved in the official creative process. “I’m not a booker at ROH, I’m not the match maker at ROH. I’m a veteran who helps people when they ask for it behind the scenes.”

Financial Details Regarding AEW Dynamite Renewed Through 2023

Michael Reichlin
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2

The big news of the day is WarnerMedia expanding its partnership with All Elite Wrestling (AEW). AEW Dynamite has been renewed for 4 more years, through the end of 2023. Warner has ordered additional programing from AEW, which will see a new AEW show premiering later this year.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer has reported some new information regarding this developing story:

  • The four-year deal is worth $175 million ($43.75 million per year).
  • The new deal makes AEW a profitable this year. A big budget wrestling promotion achieving profitability in its first full calendar year is no small feat.
  • TNT has the option to renew Dynamite for an additional year (2024) at a “significantly increased” price.
  • The deal would also include adding another hour of television later this year, which would be taped on Wednesdays but air on another night, likely on TNT but could be on another Turner station. Full details of the new show have not been worked out past an agreement to add a third hour.
  • A new AEW show is launching later this year. The new show will be recorded Wednesday nights when AEW tapes Dynamite. No word yet on where the new AEW show will air.
  • AEW Dark will continue as a YouTube digital series.

Check out our initial report on the subject for more on AEW Dynamite on TNT being renewed for through 2023.

AEW Dynamite Renewed Through 2023, Additional Programming

Michael Reichlin
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23

All Elite Wrestling is here to stay. Three months into a successful run on TNT, WarnerMedia has announced that AEW Dynamite has been renewed through 2023.

AEW President Tony Khan commented on the news in a press release sent in to SEScoops.com. “When we launched AEW one year ago, we wanted to start a revolution that would disrupt the wrestling business, but everyone said that it would take a strong weekly television partner to make AEW real in the eyes of everyone – above all, the fans,” said Khan.

He continued, “What virtually no one realized at the time was Kevin Reilly and TNT were committed to this very same movement from Day One, and their belief in us made it possible for AEW to think and act big from the start. Here we are, only three months into Wednesday Night Dynamite, and now we’ve been extended through 2023! We’re now making the ultimate statement that the team of AEW and TNT is here to stay and to bring fans more of the great wrestling that the fans demand and deserve.”

The press release notes that both parties are continuously exploring ways to further expand this relationship. Most notably, “The parties have agreed to launch another night of AEW action, offering more of the fans’ favorite wrestlers, with a second show straight-to- series.” It is not clear at this time whether the second night of AEW action will air on TNT, or across Turner’s other television/digital platforms.

Kevin Reilly, Chief Content Officer of HBO Max and President of TNT, TBS, and truTV, gave his take on AEW’s success. “When Tony Khan first shared with me his idea of starting a new wrestling league, I was impressed by his audacity to go up against a contender that has been the only game in town for twenty years, and ultimately believed that together we could bring his vision for a new, authentic, gritty product to bear. The fans have spoken and after only three months, we have seen AEW shake up the wrestling world and this will only continue as we build upon this momentum.”

AEW Dynamite has averaged 1.2 million viewers each week in Live + 7 Day Viewing. In just three months, AEW: DYNAMITE has reached nearly 32 million people across all platforms. The show also delivers the youngest wrestling audience on television.

David Benoit To Pay Homage To His Father In Wrestling

Rayan Sayyed
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6

David Benoit, son of Chris Benoit, says that he has plans to get into the world of professional wrestling. The 27-year-old is the eldest son of the former WWE star who committed suicide after taking the lives of his young son Daniel, and second wife Nancy.

David, who is Chris Benoit’s child from his first marriage, talked to Chris Van Vliet in a recent interview. The interview covered a number of different topics, including David’s plans to get into wrestling.

David praised All Elite Wrestling for their work and said that he loves the storytelling by the company. Benoit said that he has a year of training left and he would like to sign with AEW or NJPW when he graduates. He said that he has attended AEW events and that has instilled a desire in him to return to wrestling.

“When I came here for Double or Nothing when I was sitting out in that crowd, man. I just got lost in the moment again, like I was way back in 2000 when my dad was wrestling still,” Benoit said.

He has said that he wants to wrestle for AEW before too, and stated that he’s been “messing around in the ring right now with a couple of guys from AEW.”

David wants to have a technical wrestling style and said that he has had wrestling gear made identical to his dad’s. He even wants to use the “Chris Benoit” ring name when he starts wrestling.

“I don’t own his name yet,” said Benoit. “I have his middle name I can legally use it if I want to and they can’t come after me. Yeah, I think it would be cool. I’ve got the tights with the claw.”

He added that he would use Chris’ wrestling entrance music and is even in talks with the band Our Lady Peace who performed the song “Whatever”.

David also thinks that his father Chris Benoit should be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame for his achievements. He said that he believes his father will be inducted someday.

NWA Hard Times: Nick Aldis Vs. Flip Gordon Signed For Event

Rayan Sayyed
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1

The National Wrestling Alliance has announced that a “huge” inter-promotional match will take place on the company’s upcoming pay-per-view event, NWA Hard Times.

According to the announcement, NWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis will face Ring of Honor’s Flip Gordon in a singles match.

The match will take place at the GPB Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday, January 24 during the upcoming pay-per-view.

Nick Aldis has made appearances at ROH events this past weekend, with him attacking Marty Scurll at ROH Center Stage. Aldis also appeared at Honor Reigns Supreme, where he was run off by Villain Enterprises’ Brody King and Flip Gordon.

Marty Scurll has signed a new deal with ROH and has joined the booking team of the company. His new contract allows him the freedom to work with other promotions like the NWA.

The NWA Hard Times sold out in three hours when the tickets went live on December 20, 2019. The company also announced that the VIP tickets sold out in just three minutes. The quick sell out comes after their previous event, NWA Into The Fire also sold out in the three hours time frame.

Hard Times will also feature a tournament to crown a new NWA World Television Champion. The announcement was made during the Into The Fire pay-per-view, along with the announcement of Hard Times.

NWA Hard Times will take place on January 24, 2020, in Atlanta, Georgia at the GPB Studios.

AEW Bash at the Beach Dynamite Preview (1/15/20)

Michael Reichlin
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0

AEW Bash at the Beach kicks off tonight with a special edition of AEW Dynamite live from Miami, FL. If you’re in the area, limited tickets are still available at AEWTix.com.

Bash at the Beach is being billed as a 9-day “fan extravaganza” that continues next week aboard Chris Jericho’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Rager at Sea cruise. It’s part of AEW’s broader strategy to keep things interesting in between the company’s quarterly pay-per-views.

AEW Bash at the Beach Card

AEW is promoting the following matches for tonight’s broadcast:

  • A #1 Contenders Match has been announced to determine the next challengers to SCU’s AEW World Tag Team championships. It will be The Young Bucks vs. Kenny Omega & Hangman Page vs. Santana & Ortiz vs. Best Friends.
  • After turning down Chris Jericho’s invitation to join the Inner Circle last week, Jon Moxley will square off against the faction’s resident blue chipper, Sammy Guevara. Guevara vows to show Moxley how foolish he was to snub Le Champion.
  • PAC vs. Darby Allin in singles action.
  • Diamond Dallas Page returns to action when he teams with Dustin Rhodes & QT Marshall. They’ll face Maxwell J. Friedman, The Butcher & The Blade
  • Top-ranked female competitor Hikaru Shida teams with Kris Statlander against Awesome Kong & Mel of the Nightmare Collective.

Cody Rhodes will also respond to MJF’s stipulations. Is Cody willing to jump through MJF’s hoops in order to get his hands on his former protege?

Join us here tonight night for our AEW Bash at the Beach Results & Takeaways.

Impact Wrestling Results & 5 Takeaways (1/14/20)

Chris Stephens
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1

Impact Wrestling presented its first show since Hard to Kill on AXS TV and Twitch last night. The show featured a sit-down interview with the new Impact World Champion, Tessa Blanchard.

Impact Wrestling 1/14/20 Quick Results:

  1. The Desi Hit Squad defeated Reno Scum, TJP & Daga, and the Rascalz (Wentz & Dez) – fatal 4-way tag match. (taped at Hard to Kill)
  2. Joey Ryan defeated Johnny Swinger (taped at Hard to Kill)
  3. X-Division Championship
    Ace Austin defeated Moose, Eddie Edwards, and Fallah Bah – fatal 4-way match. (taped at House of Hardcore)

Here are 5 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 1/14/20:

Sami Callihan Threatens Tessa Blanchard

Losing the Impact World Championship might not be sitting well with the already unstable Sami Callihan. Tessa Blanchard’s sit-down interview this week was interrupted by a video message from Callihan.

Highlights of Blanchard’s title win was shown as well as clips of the entire locker room coming out to celebrate with her after the PPV ended. Blanchard then sat down with Josh Mathews and spoke about the importance of her title victory. That’s when Sami Callihan interrupted.

Calihan’s video panned out and revealed he was somewhere in the same studio Blanchard was. When Blanchard went looking for Callihan, however, a new video was shown. This video featured Callihan telling Blanchard that when he gets revenge, she will never see him coming.

RVD, His Girlfriend and His Girlfriend’s Girlfriend Celebrate

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzk2moM8iNQ

RVD defeated both Brian Cage and Daga at Hard to Kill. He held a celebration with his girlfriend and his girlfriends’ girlfriend in a hotel room this week. RVD noted that Forbes and her girlfriend weren’t even born yet during ECW’s heyday. RVD also noted that wrestling nowadays is basically a tribute show to him, with everyone doing his moves.

Eventually, the celebration got so steamy that the Impact Plus app had to cut in with a clip of the Deaners as “the Hard Workers” from the retro show they did a few weeks back.

Joey Ryan Gives Johnny Swinger His Comeuppance

Joey Ryan and Johnny Swinger met in single’s action this week. This match stemmed from the epic Wrestlers Court segment a few weeks back. Then last week, Tommy Dreamer caught Swinger trying to put somas in Ryan’s water. Dreamer eventually forced Swinger to drink the soma water instead.

Swinger hurt himself in this match when he attempted to deliver a headbutt to Ryan’s groin. Ryan then hit a penis suplex on Swinger but Swinger grabbed the referee during the move, taking him out momentarily. Ryan would then pick up the win with a lollipop assisted superkick.

Ace Austin Retains X-Division Title In Fatal 4-Way From House of Hardcore

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8l1h6rtySb0

Ace Austin was in tough this week. He had to defend his title in a fatal 4-way match against Eddie Edwards, Moose and Fallah Bah. The match was filmed at a recent House of Hardcore event.

The end of the match came when Edwards took Moose out with the Boston Knee Party. Edwards was then leveled with a powerbomb by Fallah Bah leaving Austin and Bah as the only two wrestlers standing. Austin then hit Bah with the Fold from up top for the win.

It is not clear if Trey’s mother was watching. Trey still has a grudge against the X-Division champion, however.

Desi Hit Squad Pick Up A Big Tag Win

A fatal 4-way tag match kicked off this week’s episode of Impact. The match was taped from the Bomb Factory at Hard to Kill on Sunday but did not air on the PPV. It was noted on commentary that TJP normally teams with Fallah Bah but as Bah has another match scheduled on the show, Daga as his replacement partner in this match.

Rohit Raju and Mahabali Shera picked up the win for their stable this week after a Sky High. Josh Mathews noted on commentary that the win likely puts the Desi Hit Squad in a position to challenge for the Impact tag team championships.

AEW Rankings Released

Chris Stephens
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1

All Elite Wrestling has revealed its newly weekly rankings. The promotion made a slight change to the release schedule of its rankings last week, now releasing them on Wednesday mornings.

AEW Men’s Single’s Rankings:

Le Champion: Chris Jericho (0-0)

  1. Jon Moxley (1-0)
  2. Cody (1-0)
  3. Kenny Omega (0-0)
  4. PAC (0-0)
  5. Sammy Guevara (2-0) (previously unranked)

Sammy Guevara enters the rankings this week. He bumps Maxwell Jacob Friedman out of the top-5. The top 4 remained the same this week.

AEW Women’s Single’s Rankings:

Champion: Riho (2-0)

  1. Hikaru Shida (0-1) (+1)
  2. Nyla Rose (0-1) (+1)
  3. Kris Statlander (0-1) (-2)
  4. Awesome Kong (1-0)
  5. Britt Baker (0-1)

Statlander’s loss to Riho on Dynamite this week dropped her two spots in the rankings. As a result, Nyla Rose and Hikaru Shida each moved up one spot.

AEW Tag Team Rankings:

Champions: Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky (SCU) (0-0)

  1. Proud and Powerful (0-0)
  2. The Young Bucks (0-0)
  3. The Best Friends (0-0) (+1)
  4. Kenny Omega & Adam “Hangman” Page (1-0) (previously unranked)
  5. The Lucha Bros (0-1) (-2)

The Lucha Bros dropped two spots this week and Hangman Page and Kenny Omega debut in the rankings. Page and Omega defeated Private Party and the Lucha Bros dropped a match to Cody and Dustin Rhodes on Dynamite.

Impact Lockdown Returning March 28th

Chris Stephens
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0

It has been 4 years since Impact Wrestling held a Lockdown event but the steel cage-focussed show will be returning in 2020. The event will be exclusive to Impact Wrestling’s streaming service, Impact Plus. Lockdown 2020 will emanate from St. Clair College in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Impact Wrestling Bringing Back Lockdown

There have been 12 Lockdown events in Impact/TNA history. Along with Slammiversary and Bound for Glory, the event was at one point a staple of Impact’s PPV schedule. The last time the event was held was in 2016. The main event of that show was Matt Hardy taking on Ethan Carter III for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.

The entire 2009 Lockdown is available on Impact’s YouTube page:

Lethal Lockdown Match

Impact/TNA has also used a War Games-style match at these events in the past. While only one ring is used for Lethal Lockdown matches, two teams face each other and wrestlers from each team enter the match at staggered intervals. 16 of these matches have taken place at Lockdown events over the years.

The last Lethal Lockdown match occurred in 2016 when the Doll House defeated Velvet Sky and Gail Kim. The year prior a team representing TNA defeated a team representing Jeff Jarrett’s Global Force Wrestling.

The Usos On Taking A Break From WWE

Rayan Sayyed
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0

The Usos were guests on this week’s WWE Backstage where they talked about a number of topics including their favorite moments in WWE to what they were up to over the past few months that they haven’t been on WWE.

For those who are unaware, Jimmy Uso got arrested for DUI in July, and the duo was off WWE programming since then, until their return to SmackDown on the January 3 episode.

“You all know how it is being on the road, it’s hectic. You almost get tunnel vision on the road,” Jimmy Uso opened up. “It becomes your baby, it becomes what do I need to do? How can I fix that crack? How can I get over with this? How can I talk this way? How can I look this way?”

“And you put so much energy into this, right? And I think that’s what we were doing. We didn’t slow down. You almost got to get away from it.”

“Detox,” Booker T added, to which Jimmy agreed. Booker also talked about understanding what one has and how quickly one can lose it.

“Like you said it could be gone in a quick moment,” Jey said. “When you in those moments, when you’re at your lowest, the only way you can come up; you see all the opportunities in front of you when you’re at your lowest. And that’s where we were headed to.”

The Usos stated that they had to “dip off” and get grounded by getting back with their family and their roots.

The Usos made their surprise return to Friday Night SmackDown on January 3, where they saved Roman Reigns from King Corbin and Dolph Ziggler’s attack.

During an interview backstage after the match, the duo said that they missed the WWE Universe and they had to come back. We got things right and got back on track, they said.

Kane Returning To SmackDown This Week

Anutosh Bajpai
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3

WWE has announced that the former World Champion Kane will be returning to the company on this week’s episode of SmackDown Live for a ‘special appearance’.

Kane last appeared on WWE TV during the September 26th edition of Raw. He captured the 24/7 Championship for a bit during his appearance on the show. Though he was attacked by Bray Wyatt later in the night.

There is no word yet on what the Big Red Monster will be doing at the episode but the company is teasing his participation in Royal Rumble.

Kane On If He Is Retired From WWE

During a recent interview with Sporting News, Kane was asked if he is retired from WWE and replying to the question, the former champion had explained that he is looking forward to making an in-ring return:

“When people ask me if I’m looking forward to getting back in the ring, I’m like, ‘eh, I don’t know what I’d be doing, but I’m sure at some point I’ll do something.’”

While not confirmed, WrestleMania season will kick off with Royal Rumble so it’s possible that Kane gets involved in a feud upon his return and it would be interesting to see if it leads to a match at the Show Of Shows.

WWE NXT Preview: Battle Royal, Dusty Rhodes Classic Bouts

Andrew Ravens
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0

WWE NXT is back for its second episode of the new year with an interesting lineup, so let’s take a look at the preview for the show. 

The company is building up this show around three matches including a contest that will crown a new #1 contender for the NXT Women’s Title. 

Bianca Belair, Candice LeRae, Chelsea Green, Dakota Kai, Vanessa Borne, Kayden Carter, Mia Yim, Santana Garrett, Io Shirai, Shotzi Blackheart and Xia Li will compete in this contest. 

The winner of the bout will take on NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley at the NXT TakeOver: Portland show that goes down on Sunday, February 16, 2020 at the Moda Center.

WWE had a few NXT UK talents appear on last week’s show. With the WWE Worlds Collide show taking place next Saturday night as part of Royal Rumble weekend, fans could see some stars across the pond appear on this show to further build matches as the show gets closer. 

WWE NXT Preview

WWE holds this show in Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University. WWE is advertising the following items for tonight’s broadcast:

  • #1 Contender’s Battle Royal for Women’s Title at NXT TakeOver: Portland: Bianca Belair, Candice LeRae, Chelsea Green, Dakota Kai, Vanessa Borne, Kayden Carter, Mia Yim, Santana Garrett, Io Shirai, Shotzi Blackheart and Xia Li.
  • Kushida & Alex Shelley battle Grizzled Young Veterans in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic
  • Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne face Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster next Wednesday in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic

WWE will also be creating new programs and building on the hype for existing feuds. We could also be getting more match announcements for the next specials involving NXT and NXT UK talents with Worlds Collide and NXT TakeOver: Portland. 

As usual, fans should expect more matches and segments to be revealed this afternoon for NXT. 

Join us here later tonight for WWE NXT Live Results and our post-show NXT Takeaways feature.

Luke Harper & AEW’s Inner Circle Member Attend Hockey Game Together

Elias Signs Multi-Year Contract Extension With WWE

Anutosh Bajpai
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1

Elias has agreed to a multi-year contract extension with WWE.

The news was first announced by Ryan Satin on the latest episode of WWE Backstage and the company later confirmed it on their website with a post as well.

The Drifter started his wrestling career in 2008 and was signed by WWE in 2014. He was assigned to the NXT brand after his signing where he stayed until 2017.

Elias then made his main roster debut in April 2014. Though he spent the first few months of his main roster stint, appearing on various backstage segments.

The former NXT star was drafted to SmackDown Live during the 2019 draft and has been a part of the Blue Brand’s roster ever since.

He took part in the King Of The Ring tournament last year and made it to the semi-finals. However, he was later removed from the competition due to an ankle injury.

With this announcement, Elias has joined a long list of stars WWE has successfully managed to re-sign in recent months ever since the inception of AEW.

The company has not revealed any detail on Elias’ contract so it’s hard to say how long he will be staying with the promotion. But in recent times the standard length for new WWE contracts have been 4 to 5 years.

Mercedes Martinez Among Names To Sign With WWE

Andrew Ravens
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2

Several prospects have signed with WWE that includes some notable names that fans will know. 

On Tuesday, WWE announced that these signees have reported for training this week at the Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. 

Among the listed WWE athletes include former Mae Young Classic competitor and veteran talent Mercedes Martinez as well as Emily Andzulis of NBC and The Rock’s Titan Games.

WWE Performance Center Head Coach Matt Bloom is leading the training with help from fellow coaches Robbie Brookside, Serena Deeb and Johnny Moss. 

Mercedes Martinez Among Names To Sign With WWE

Here are some details on the other prospects that are included in the class: 

Mercedes Martinez, Jake Atlas and more report to WWE Performance Center

Six new recruits have reported to the WWE Performance Center, joining the ranks of Superstars in training at the Orlando, Fla., facility. The class includes independent wrestlers, an acrobat and a former NFL player, among others.

Jazmin Benitez, a veteran grappler known worldwide as Mercedes Martinez, is no stranger to the WWE Universe. She made it to the semifinals of the inaugural Mae Young Classic in 2017 and returned for the second edition of the tournament in 2018. She’s also competed on NXT television on several occasions.

Emily Andzulis of Powell, Tenn., brings a diverse athletic background with her to Orlando. The 27-year-old is a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and trains in Taekwondo. She competed on Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s “Titan Games,” and was crowned the first female Titan.

Anthony Francis is a 6-foot-5, 330-pounder with five years of NFL experience under his belt. The former defensive tackle played for the Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks and Washington Redskins.

Kenny Marquez, a.k.a. independent wrestling standout Jake Atlas, brings his unique experience in gymnastics and cheerleading to the WWE PC. The 25-year-old California native broke out in promotions like Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, and appeared on an episode of “Undercover Boss,” featuring Stephanie McMahon, where Marquez explained to WWE’s Chief Brand Officer that his dream is to become the first openly gay WWE Champion.

Sidney Bateman is a 27-year-old acrobat from St. Louis, Mo. Bateman was a cast member for Cirque du Soleil’s “LUZIA” show, where he specialized in hoop diving.

Mercedes Martinez, Jake Atlas and more report to WWE Performance Center

Zechariah Smith towers over the new recruits at 7 feet tall and 310 pounds. The Oklahoma native played college basketball for Morgan State University before going pro internationally. He also played for the longtime rivals of the Harlem Globetrotters, the Washington Generals.

The Miz To Host ‘Cannonball’ Game Show On USA Network This Summer

WWE RAW Viewership (1/13)

Andrew Ravens
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0

The WWE RAW viewership numbers are in. 

Monday’s edition of WWE RAW averaged 2.030 million viewers in Lexington, KY at the Rupp Arena on the USA Network, which is down from the 2.385 million viewers the previous week. 

RAW Viewership

Here is the hourly viewership breakdown, courtesy of ShowbuzzDaily:

  • Hour 1: 2.218 million – Last Week: 2.550
  • Hour 2: 2.059 million – Last Week: 2.409
  • Hour 3: 1.814 million – Last Week: 2.195

The episode was expected to decrease in its viewership from last week. The reason for that is due to the competition it faced despite the company building up several matches as well as an appearance by WWE Champion Brock Lesnar alongside Paul Heyman. 

Here is the hourly 18-49 demos breakdown:

  • Hour 1: 0.66 – Last Week: 0.78
  • Hour 2: 0.61 – Last Week: 0.75
  • Hour 3: 0.56 – Last Week: 0.70

The biggest competition that WWE RAW faced came in the way of the college championship football game on ESPN between LSU and Clemson that did
25,004 million viewers. 

Some of the matches that took place include Drew McIntyre defeats AJ Styles and Randy Orton, Ricochet defeats Mojo Rawley, Charlotte Flair defeats Sarah Logan, Bobby Lashley (w/Lana) defeats Rusev, Aleister Black defeats Buddy Murphy, and AOP (Akam & Rezar) & Seth Rollins defeat Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe & The Big Show in the headliner. 

There was also a segment with Paul Heyman, Brock Lesnar, and R-Truth. 

WWE will attempt to increase its viewership for RAW next week, which shouldn’t be an issue due to the competition that the show will face compared to this week with the NCAA National Football Championship game on ESPN that was expected to draw big ratings.

Also, next’s week’s episode of RAW, which is going to be held in Wichita, KS at the Intrust Bank Arena, will be an important show. It will serve as the go-home edition of RAW for the upcoming Royal Rumble pay-per-view event. 

In case you missed the show, you can check out the five takeaways here. 

Watch: Top 10 Moments from Monday’s RAW (1.13.20)

Tommy Dreamer: “I Do Not Feel Tessa Blanchard Is Racist”

Jake Skudder
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Wrestling legend Tommy Dreamer made some rather interesting comments about the Tessa Blanchard situation on a recent episode of Busted Open Radio on Sirius XM.

Over the weekend, Blanchard was accused of racism and bullying by several former co-workers, including NXT star Chelsea Green and NWA Women’s Champion Allysin Kay. Despite the controversy, Blanchard made history Sunday night at Hard To Kill when she became the first woman to win the IMPACT World Championship.

Dreamer works for Impact as a backstage producer and says he does not believe Tessa Blanchard is racist. He also does not believe everything that was being said about her on social media.

“I see ‘Tessa Blanchard’ was trending and I’m like ‘Oh look, P. R.'”

Dreamer began, “I land and the world was caving in on Impact Wrestling for half a second. I look and I see Tessa was trending and I’m like ‘Oh look, P. R.’ You know that’s pretty good stuff that’s going on right now. Then I click and I’m like oof that’s not good,” Dreamer began. “I just sit back and I take all this information. I also like to get to two sides to every story. Some of what I was reading I was like ‘yeah no that’s not true.”

He continued, “But you know, you you take everything for what you read until you finally talk to the person. I’ve said this so many times before, social media is a blessing and a curse. But, it’s a very very crappy situation that happened but when you’re around people that love you, when you’re around people that support you, only around people where you have the ability to tell them the truth, you know what the other side of the story is. Hey, you know that’s a good thing.”

“It becomes almost like gang warfare where everyone jumps on the hot topic”

Dreamer elaborated further, saying “I text Tessa, she didn’t get back to me. I went and spoke to her finally at the show and obviously she she was not in a good place mentally; because it becomes almost like gang warfare where everyone jumps on the hot topic.”

Dreamer also wanted to make it clear that he has a good relationship with both Tessa and some of the other performers who have made accusations against her.

“I would state that I have a great relationship with her, I also have a great relationship with a lot of the other women that were talking about her. I was not there, I do know that there was a very very physical confrontation between her and this other wrestler and that led to I mean a physical brawl. Sometimes in the heat of battle you say things that you regret. I know that Tessa used to date a famous wrestler who’s in WWE that is African American. I know Tessa is currently engaged to Daga who is Mexican, I do not feel that Tessa Blanchard is racist.”

With Blanchard now IMPACT World Champion it will be interesting to see how the company handles the situation going forward. Tessa Blanchard becoming the first ever Women’s World Champion in the company was a storyline built over the past 8+ months, seemingly becoming derailed (from a PR standpoint) over the weekend.

You can check out more IMPACT Wrestling news here.

AEW Bash At The Beach To Feature Unique Set Design

Michael Reichlin
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All Elite Wrestling invades Miami, Florida this week for a special Bash at the Beach edition of AEW Dynamite. It will be the start of a 9-day “fan extravaganza” that continues next week aboard Chris Jericho’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Rager at Sea cruise.

AEW’s top stars have been doing the media rounds this week to promote Bash at the Beach, a reincarnation of WCW’s classic pay-per-view series. The Young Bucks appeared on ESPN’s West Palm affiliate on Tuesday and explained how AEW’s take on Bash at the Beach came together.

AEW Bash at the Beach

According to Nick Jackson, Bash the Beach is part of AEW’s broader strategy to freshen up the AEW Dynamite formula in between the company’s quarterly pay-per-views.

“Our plan is to do four pay-per-views a year, so we realized we have to dress up some of the shows on Wednesday to not fall into a formula,” said Jackson. “Try to make some of them feel more special than other ones. That was the thinking process on this. To bring something back from the past that has such a cool history.”

WCW’s Bash at the Beach pay-per-views featured unique set designs that included sand, palm trees, a boardwalk aisle, tropical birds and more. The 1995 installment actually took place outdoors at Huntington Beach, California. Nick Jackson knows that fans are expecting a ‘special’ look this Wednesday and AEW plans to deliver.

He continued, “Cody happened to get the trademark and owns it now. He brought it to Tony’s attention and we all thought it was a good idea. I think fans are gonna be excited because we’re gonna try to make it a special show, even from the look of things.”

We say this most weeks, but AEW has lined up a loaded card for this week’s Dynamite. The following is a preview for Wednesday’s AEW Bash at the Beach episode from Miami:

  • The Young Bucks vs. Kenny Omega & Hangman Page vs. Santana & Ortiz vs. Best Friends (#1 Contenders Match)
  • Jon Moxley vs. Sammy Guevara
  • PAC vs. Darby Allin
  • MJF, The Butcher & The Blade vs. DDP, Dustin Rhodes & QT Marshall
  • Kris Statlander & Hikaru Shida vs. Awesome Kong & Mel of the Nightmare Collective

Plus, Cody Rhodes will respond to MJF’s challenge and stipulations.

Join us here Wednesday night for our AEW Bash at the Beach Results & Takeaways.

H/T to Fightful.com for the transcribed quotes

The Miz To Host ‘Cannonball’ Game Show On USA Network This Summer

Michael Reichlin
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0

WWE Superstar Mike “The Miz” Mizanan has signed on to host a new competition series titled, Cannonball.

The show will feature contestants facing off in “the biggest, wettest, slippery-est water sports competition ever created.” Cannonball premieres this summer on the USA Network and is slated for a 10-episode first season.

TV and radio personality Rosci Diaz will co-host. Her credits include a BET’s 106 & Park (2006-2012) and Entertainment tonight (2012-2014). Comedian Simon Gibson will serve as sideline reporter.

Cannonball has been described as an obstacle course competition along the lines of Wipeout. The water-based challenges will include sliding off a 100-foot waterslide and rocketing off one of the world’s fastest drop towers. Contestants will battle to claim a $10,000 cash prize.

Along with his wife Maryse, The Miz also stars in Miz and Mrs. Season two of the hit reality series premieres January 29th on USA Network.

For more information on Cannonball, visit TheWrap.com.

MLW Signs With ICM Partners, Eyeing New TV Deal

Chris Stephens
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0

MLW is eyeing new TV deals and has signed on with ICM Partners. According to news first broken by Deadline Hollywood, the talent agency has partnered with MLW and will be looking to broker new TV & streaming deals for the promotion.

ICM is a talent agency with offices in Los Angeles, New York, Washington, and London. They typically represent showrunners in the TV and film industry.

MLW’s TV rights become available this spring. The promotion is touting a 43% growth in total viewers from 2018 to 2019 while on BeIN Sports.

ICM Partners will also help MLW launch “MLW Studios.”

“ICM Partners will also represent MLW with the launch of MLW Studios, a multi-platform media studio, offering a slate of original scripted and non-scripted programming,” an MLW press release states.

Episodes of MLW Fusion currently air Saturday nights on BeIN Sports. They are later posted in full to YouTube.

Court Bauer Comments

“As the only free agent in the wrestling space in 2020, MLW is in a unique position in the television landscape,” said Court Bauer, creator and Chief Executive Officer, Major League Wrestling.

“MLW provides an extraordinary entertainment experience, showcasing some of the sport’s most storied and iconic families, embracing the Mexican lucha libre culture and presenting original content in a 360 manner.”

https://twitter.com/MLW/status/1217155972893945856

Ronda Rousey Gives Jackass Star Steve-O A Tour Of Her Farm (Video)

Chris Stephens
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Ronda Rousey and Travis Browne currently live on Browsey Acres, a sustainable ranch located in California. They recently posted a YouTube video of Rousey giving Jackass star Steve-O a tour of the ranch.

“We’re kicking off our smorgasbord of Steve-O content with Ronda and Trav giving the Jackass GOAT a tour of their sustainable farm Browsey Acres. He’s also working on some gnarly cauliflower ear,” a description of the video reads.

In addition to his acting and stunt work, Steve-O is a noted animal activist. He describes himself as a “bleeding heart veggie guy.”

“The entire tour features an interesting discussion on the ethics of meat and working towards a cruelty-free and healthier, self-sustaining lifestyle,” the description continues.

Rousey and Steve-O both talk about their attempts at a vegan diet and attitudes to sustainable agriculture in the video. It can be viewed in the player below:

Ronda Rousey on How WWE Influenced Her UFC Career

In a previous video posted by Rousey, she talked about how WWE influenced her approach to her UFC career.

“I wanted to make women’s MMA take off and I was looking at what the women’s fights didn’t have that the men’s had,” Rousey said in the video. “Because women could have exciting fights but nobody gave a s**t and I was trying to figure out why nobody gave a s**t.”

Steve-O talked about his appearance on WWE RAW on the Joe Rogan experience below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFRIFQO1Cec

Velveteen Dream Injury Update

Chris Stephens
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1

Velveteen Dream has been on the shelf since September. He hasn’t wrestled since dropping the NXT North American title to Roderick Strong on the September 18th, 2019 episode of NXT.

According to comments made by Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, Velveteen is dealing with a serious back injury.

“I know the injury was pretty serious,” Meltzer said on the show. He would also say he hasn’t heard an update on Velveteen’s condition in a long time, however.

“Back injury,” Meltzer confirmed when asked what injury Velveteen was dealing with.

Velveteen Dream Injured

When Dream went on the shelf, it was reported that he had been dealing with a back injury for some time. The injury had gotten worse before he would take time off to deal with it, however. There is currently no timetable for his return.

Velveteen Dream won the NXT North American title from Johnny Gargano this summer. Two endings to the match with Gargano were taped, one with Gargano retaining and the other with Dream winning the title.

Dream recently lost the title to Roderick Strong in September. Strong is scheduled to defend the title against Keith Lee on NXT in two weeks.

Eric Bischoff Comments On Bringing Master P Into WCW

Chris Stephens
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In numerous books and podcasts covering World Championship Wrestling, much has been made about Eric Bischoff’s deal to bring Master P into the company. The famous rapper was involved in a storyline along with his No Limit Soldiers against the West Texas Rednecks in 1999.

Bischoff himself recently commented on Master P’s deal with WCW on a recent episode as his 83 weeks podcast. The 83 Weeks YouTube channel released two videos on the subject today.

“His presence on MTV was another reason why by 1999 we were pretty interested in him,” Bischoff said regarding Master P’s mainstream credibility at the time.

“Master P had a very, very large and important audience. A much younger audience than WCW had that was in a silo. That was a demographic that may or may not have paid attention to WCW without integrating somebody like Master P into a storyline.”

“There was a lot of good reasons to do it,” he continued. “I take exception to the fact that wrestling fans consider this kind of a joke move.”

Bischoff’s comments can be heard in the player below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPuG9zPZJY0

Eric Bischoff On What Led To Master P Leaving WCW

Bischoff also refuted reports that happened at the time that Master P left WCW due to a deteriorating relationship with WCW management.

“Master P was never a long-term deal,” Bischoff said on the show. “It was a short-term program as was Dennis Rodman. Dennis Rodman was never going to be a long term player.”

Those comments were released in a separate YouTube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhVjFfdu2a8&t=7s

Drew McIntyre Discusses Momentum Ahead Of Royal Rumble

Steve Russell
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Drew McIntyre came out on top of a high-stakes triple threat match this week on Monday Night RAW. “The Scottish Psychopath” managed to emerge victorious despite competition from AJ Styles and Randy Orton. Following the matchup, McIntyre caught up with WWE in a backstage exclusive, where he claimed to be ready to fight for a championship opportunity.

Drew McIntyre’s Royal Rumble Momentum

“I think this momentum is everything,” McIntyre said regarding the upcoming Royal Rumble. “I don’t know when exactly…when things have turned around for me. I reckon, if I was going to guess, about six or seven weeks ago.”

He continued, “I’ve been on a bit of a roll, and the key to it all is: I don’t know what went wrong when I first came back to Monday Night RAW; obviously I was on a bit of a warpath. But I had a lot of people in my head, a lot of people by my side. It wasn’t really me, and I don’t know how I let it get to that stage. I had a little injury not so long ago. I found myself again, and everything you see right now, whether I’m talking on the microphone, whether I’m in the ring, this is 100 percent Drew McIntyre.”

He then explained how not one World Champion has ever given him an opportunity during his entire WWE career, though a former multi-time champion certainly believes he is capable of it. McIntyre stated how, because every champion is too scared to face him, he’ll just have to earn the opportunity by winning the Royal Rumble match later this month.

If you use any quotes from this article, please provide a H/T to SEScoops.

Triple H Says Tyson Fury Wants A Bigger Role In WWE

Chris Stephens
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According to comments made by Triple H recently, Tyson Fury would like a bigger role in WWE when he returns. Triple H spoke with Metro UK reporters this weekend while in Blackpool for the NXT UK Takeover event. During a media event, Triple H spoke about Tyson Fury’s future with the company.

Triple H spoke about how Fury first has to get through his rematch with Deontay Wilder on February 22nd before plans are made for his WWE return.

“That fight on February 22nd will be huge to him as to what his next steps are in all of this. So, we’re open to that stuff but it needs to be right for everybody,” Triple H said.

“Yeah, I think there are thoughts out there of a lot of things with Tyson Fury. He had a blast working with us,” Triple H continued. “It’s funny, one of the things that I learned with him doing the press for the other time he worked for us is that in his mind as a kid, he saw himself being a WWE superstar, not a boxer.”

Triple H would continue to talk about Fury’s performance at Crown Jewel against Braun Strowman. He also mentioned that he believes Tyson Fury wants to do something bigger than he has with WWE.

“The entertainment side of it, that showmanship side of him is in front. So I think he would love to do something more with us. He’d love to do a bigger thing.”

The full interview with Metro UK can be read here.

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