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Caprice Coleman On Training With The Hardy Boys, Writing His Own Theme Music

Matt Boone
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ROH star Caprice Coleman recently appeared as a guest on The Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling podcast and spoke about a number of topics. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On training with Matt and Jeff Hardy:

“Some guys were wrestling outside on a ring that was in a yard and this was like actually the first time I had ever been in a wrestling ring and was excited. It was Matt and Jeff Hardy who were the trainers but it was way before they were famous and so they were trying to have their own little wrestling promotion and this way even way before OMEGA and I was their referee. I refereed their matches because they would travel a lot of places and back then Matt and Jeff were pretty much just wrestling each other or Matt vs. Joey so we had a handful of people and wrestled a different kind of style. I would go on the road and referee the match because a lot of refs couldn’t keep up with the matches going on. Shannon Moore was the other small guy and it’s funny because when he started out he was a lot bigger than I was and when I hit my growth spurt I was bigger than him.”

On the crop of talent that came out of Omega:

“At the beginning I had no idea because I was just somebody that wanted to train to wrestle. I just happened to fall into a place where I was among greatness. I slowly began to realize it because refereeing when you travel from place to place with Matt and Jeff when it was not a show that we put on, the way they treated them was kind of different. A lot of people wanted to work with them and then didn’t want to work with them. I would notice when somebody from OMEGA worked somebody from OMEGA we would steal the show. When we worked with other people they had a hard time working with us and we caught a lot of flack because people would say we worked spotty or we are just a high flyer. A lot of times we were the spotty guys and everyone that we wrestled were trained the old school wrestling way. We were way ahead of our time.”

On wrestlers not being able to keep up with the OMEGA crew:

“It was a Catch 22 because for the most part some of them couldn’t keep up but as time went on we just had to slow down a little bit. It made a lot of our careers last a lot longer. That’s why I’ve been here for twenty years and am in phenomenal condition because we’ve been able to adjust and find a happy medium where we can still be who we are but still last as long as some of us have.”

On writing his own theme music:

“I was given a new theme song when they broke up C&C Wrestle Factory and it didn’t have any words to it. The producer said this is your song and the first time I heard the song it was playing during a match I was supposed to be in and I was actually just waiting for the C&C Wrestle Factory music and they said that’s your song now go out and I was like okay but it didn’t have words to it. I said I liked the beat but if you want to put words to it let me know. A good friend of mine raps and I do hype man type stuff and he wrote the rap and I wrote the chorus and we put it down. Then we were kidding around about making a music video and laughed it off but we then we ended up having the ability to do it and we did and it came out pretty good.”

Video: Kurt Angle Says AJ Styles Is As Good As HBK, Talks About Decision To Leave WWE

Matt Boone
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https://youtu.be/WVle4-VPy8g

WrestleTalk TV recently released another clip from their sit-down interview with Kurt Angle, where Angle spoke about his decision to leave WWE and being excited about some of the talent he was going to get to work with in TNA. Below are some highlights.

On the WWE full-time schedule being what ultimately led to him leaving to join TNA:

“At that point, TNA was making some noise. It felt good to be a part of a smaller company that was getting more popular, more viewers. I felt very good about it. I didn’t have a choice. Vince McMahon wanted me to continue to go full time, and I couldn’t do the full time anymore. I look at John Cena now, and I don’t know how he’s done it for 11 years. I did it for six and a half.”

On being excited to work with fresh faces in TNA:

“I was on the road all the time. To go to a company where I’d be able to set my own schedule, that was great. To be able to generate interest from fans by wrestling Samoa Joe and AJ Styles and Sting, it felt good.”

Angle went on to say that AJ Styles was as good as Shawn Michaels as far as he is concerned, and he jumped at the opportunity to work with someone like him. You can watch a clip from Angle’s WrestleTalk TV interview above.

See A WWE Talent Termination Letter With Your Own Eyes

David Bixenspan
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WWE talent booking contracts have become almost commonplace online, thanks in large part to WWE’s own filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). As a public company, all of World Wrestling Entertainment’s executive officers need to have their contracts released in SEC filings. Since WWE has multiple executive officers who also happen to perform for the company, that means that their talent contracts are all public and we see the current WWE contract whenever they re-sign. Older contracts have also come out in lawsuits over the years, as well, along with other internal pay documentation.

But one thing that I don’t recall seeing before is an official WWE termination letter. In one of the ongoing series of concussion-related lawsuits from wrestlers and their families represented by lawyer Konstantine Kyros, one was filed by WWE last week. Specifically, it’s the 2008 termination letter for Nelson Frazier Jr., then known as Big Daddy V, also known as Viscera and (King) Mabel. WWE outside counsel Jerry McDevitt filed a motion where one issue covered was Frazier’s place of residence, so he filed Frazier’s termination letter to show where he lived when the two parties ended their relationship. Here’s the full letter, minus personal information that I redacted:

There are a few key takeaways here beyond just the curiosity of seeing one of these:

  • This is a notice of his termination being effective three months later. It’s tricky to figure out precisely how that relates to the conventional wisdom that there’s a 90 day “non-compete” period, as what WWE allowed during that period has changed at times. Here, it’s pretty clear that there are still 90 days left that the wrestler is still under contract and there’s nothing about being allowed to work elsewhere. These days, wrestler can usually pick up non-televised indie bookings while still being paid his or her WWE guarantee for 90 days, which can be fairly lucrative. One unique example is Daniel Bryan, who was re-hired before the 90 days were up after his abrupt firing in 2010.
  • The wrestler being told to pay “particular attention” to the “promoter intellectual property” section of their contract is essentially telling them not to use their WWE names. In the case of Frazier, page 25 of his 2007 contract says that the WWE intellectual property is Viscera, Vis, Big Vis, Mabel, M.O.M., Men on a Mission, Ministry of Darkness, Corporate Ministry, and The World’s Largest Love Machine.The previous page says his IP is just his real name.
  • Wrestlers must return “any tangible property” of WWE that they took possession of during the course of working for the company, “including, without limitation, costumes, accessories, inventions, and any title belts.” Since the wrestlers buy their own costumes, it’s hard t figure out what any of those could be other than the title belts.

Overall, though, there’s nothing too surprising here. It just helps demystify the inner workings of WWE a bit, and that’s always fun.

CM Punk In New UFC Video Game, Rosa Mendes On Her Pregnancy, Rusev, More

Matt Boone
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– MMANews.com has a new article looking at the new EA Sports UFC video game, which is scheduled to be released in the Spring of 2016. In the article, it is noted that former WWE Superstar CM Punk is included in the roster for the game.

– WWE Superstar Rusev celebrates his 30th birthday today. “The Bulgarian Brute” was born on December 25, 1985. Also celebrating birthdays today are former TNA Knockout Rhaka Khan (34) and former WWE and TNA star Chris “Braden Walker” Harris (42).

– E! Online recently spoke with WWE Diva Rosa Mendes about her move to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with fiancee’ Bobby Schubenski this weekend. During the discussion, Rosa also spoke about her WWE family checking in on her while she has been away pregnant. “It’s really cool that all the Divas have been calling me and checking up on me,” said Rosa. “Everyone’s just been so great!” Check out the complete article at EOnline.com.

Becky Lynch On Creation Of The Four Horsewomen, WWE’s Diva Revolution & More

Matt Boone
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WWE Diva Becky Lynch recently appeared as a guest on Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast and spoke about the Four Horsewomen, the evolution of the Divas Revolution and more. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On a writer coming up with the Four Horsewomen name and not knowing the other Horsewomen prior to joining NXT:

“Well, we didn’t start calling ourselves that and then we did an interview and then we were called the Four Horsewomen.”

“I didn’t know any of them and I remember just being at home and I looked them up on the internet, but I didn’t know them. I hadn’t seen them work before. I think I saw a few of [Sasha Banks’] independent matches, but that was it. That was it. I certainly never saw Charlotte work before.”

On the Four Horsewomen chemistry growing over time and the evolution of the Divas Revolution:

“[Chemistry] developed slowly. We were just all so passionate about it. We just really love wrestling. All of us just love wrestling and that’s it. It wasn’t a thing where we were like, ‘oh, we’re going to build this!’ It was just that we loved it and everybody wanted to get better constantly and everybody was so willing to help each other out. Like, when I arrived, Lord, have mercy, I couldn’t do my makeup and hair and these are all the little things that you need.” Lynch continued, “Sasha really helped me with all those things and everything like that.”

“It just slowly chipped our way up there [to having longer matches in NXT]. A lot of it started, you know, Paige and Emma had a really good match on the first [NXT] TakeOver, Arrival. And then, [Natalya] and Charlotte upped the bar. And then, Sasha and Charlotte upped the bar. And then, it kept going, kept going, and then we had the fatal four-way [at NXT TakeOver: Rival]. And then, it was me and Sasha [at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable]. And then, Sasha and Bayley at [NXT TakeOver] Brooklyn, which is one of the best matches, hands down, I’ve ever seen.”

On moving to main WWE roster and being in no hurry to leave NXT:

“I was never in a rush to get up here [to the main roster] because NXT was so amazing. I think before with the whole developmental thing, it was all, ‘oh, I [have] got to get up to the main roster’, but with NXT, we were building this, just like [Jericho] said, this incredible entity and you can feel it and everybody was so passionate and so excited and the women’s division was unparalleled. It’s just absolutely amazing.”

“I was actually out injured when I got the call because I had sprained my hip flexor, my hip becsor. I sprained that when we were in Pittsburgh [Pennsylvania] and I was out. This was shortly after the match I had with Sasha at [NXT] TakeOver [Unstoppable], but I was just starting to get better.”

Vince McMahon’s Christmas Message, Cena’s Year-End Thoughts, WWE Jingle Bells Rocked

Matt Boone
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– WWE posted the above video in celebration of the 2015 year-end holiday season. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all SEScoops.com fans!

– WWE Chairman Vince McMahon posted the following Christmas message to the WWE Universe on Thursday evening.

– As he prepares to make his WWE return at the WWE live event in Madison Square Garden on Saturday, John Cena posted the following year-end message to fans on Twitter.

The Rock Promises A Holiday Surprise Before Monday’s RAW

Matt Boone
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While The Rock wasn’t able to accept his Slammy Award this past Monday on WWE RAW, he did give an online acceptance speech and promised a big surprise for next Monday prior to RAW.

The Rock wrote the following on his official Instagram page regarding winning the “This Is Awesome Moment of the Year” award for his WrestleMania appearance with UFC star Ronda Rousey, and his “surprise” planned for Monday.


The Rock hasn’t appeared on WWE television since WrestleMania, however he did turn up at a WWE live event in Boston this Summer, where he confronted Bo Dallas. It’s worth pointing out, however, that he noted that his surprise would be before this coming Monday night’s edition of WWE RAW.

Foley’s Parody Four Horsewomen, TTTT Viewership, Renee Young’s “Body Of A Young Boy”

Matt Boone
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– Featured above is the latest edition of “Eden’s Style,” which features Nikki Bella, Corey Graves and other stars talking about the fashion at this year’s Slammy Awards. Renee Young, who is also featured in the clip, jokes to Eden about haing “the body of a young boy.” Young was also told by Kevin Owens that she looks ridiculous this week.

– The WWE Tribute To The Troops 2015 special, which aired on the USA Network on Wednesday, December 23rd, drew 1.802 million viewers. The show finished second on the night in cable viewership and in the 18-49 demographic, trailing only college football.

– As seen below, Mick Foley and his children, Noelle, Dewey, Hughie and Mickey Foley all participated in a family Christmas photo parodying the Four Horsewomen of NXT — Sasha Banks, Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Bayley. Also featured are comments from Becky Lynch and Bayley regarding the photo.

https://twitter.com/RealMickFoley/status/679833051170476032

Chris Jericho On Legitimacy Of WWE’s Drug Testing, His Friends On Current WWE Roster

Matt Boone
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WWE Hall Of Famer Chris Jericho recently spoke about the legitimacy of WWE’s drug and concussion testing policies, as well as his current travel buddies on the active WWE roster. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On who he hangs out with when he’s on the road with WWE these days:

“When I go on the road [with WWE now], I hang out with [Sami] Zayn, and Neville, and the Usos, and big uce, [Roman] Reigns, and [Dean] Ambrose, and Seth [Rollins], and [Dolph] Ziggler, Miz. Those guys are my friends and they’re all 10 years younger than me, but that’s who I hang out with because all the guys that I know are pretty much gone. They’re either retired or dead.”

On the legitimacy of WWE’s drug testing and concussion policies:

“The testing is real. Concussion testing. Heart testing. Everything is very, very strict because [WWE] wanted to stop guys from basically dying at a young age and wanted to take control of it.”

On nearly being suspended for testing for elevated levels of testosterone, as WWE requires a a T/E ratio of 4:1 or less:

“I kept getting readings of 10:1, 8:1, 9:1. And the guy finally called me. He said, ‘listen, you [have] got another elevated level.’ I said, ‘okay, listen, I know that you think that I’m on something, but I’m not, so if I wasn’t on something, what could this be?’.” Jericho continued, “he goes, ‘well, you probably have a tumor.’ I’m like, ‘what?’ He goes, ‘you probably have a tumor.’ Like what kind of doctor says that, ‘oh, you probably have a tumor’?”

On his reaction when he was told he might be suspended despite WWE finding out that he naturally produces elevated levels of testosterone:

“I said, ‘you can’t suspend me! It’s like suspending me for having a naturally big nose! Like, it’s natural! You can’t suspend me, you dummy!’ But that’s how strict the testing is.”

Lucha Underground Planning Live Events During WrestleMania Weekend

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Lucha Underground officials are discussing the possibility of holding live events in the Dallas area during WrestleMania weekend, according to PWInsider.com.

These would be the first-ever live events from the promotion. While no shows have been announced as of this writing, the talks are serious enough that the company has reached out to contracted talent and told them they might be needed.

WrestleMania weekend has turned into a huge weekend not just for WWE, but for indie promotions and fan fests to capitalize on the huge influx of wrestling fans to the host city. Jim Ross will be doing multiple performances of his 1-man show throughout the weekend, WrestleCon will be in full force and there will be big shows from Ring of Honor, Evolve, Shimmer and more.

Season two of Lucha Underground premieres January 27th, 2016 on the El Rey Network.

WWE Reportedly To Investigate, Sideline Wrestlers Without Health Insurance

David Bixenspan
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Mike Johnson at PWInsider is reporting that WWE alerted the roster yesterday to a new bit of policy enforcement. Back in May of 2011, all of the talent had to sign a rider to their contracts that was then added to the standard talent booking contract. From section  9.12 (d) of Stephanie McMahon’s 2013 talent contract, which is the most recent contract publicly available (all caps formatting is in the original):

NOTWITHSTANDING PROMOTER’S CURRENT POLICY OF PAYING MEDICAL EXPENSES FOR INJURIES WRESTLER MAY INCUR WHILE PERFORMING UNDER THIS AGREEMENT, WRESTLER SHALL MAINTAIN, AT HIS COST AND EXPENSE, HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE. THIS HEALTH INSURANCE MUST REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR THE TERM OF THE AGREEMENT, AND WRESTLER SHALL PROVIDE PROMOTER PROOF OF THIS INSURANCE ANNUALLY. WRESTLER MAY AT HIS ELECTION OBTAIN HEALTH, LIFE AND/OR DISABILITY INSURANCE TO PROVIDE BENEFITS IN THE EVENT OF PHYSICAL INJURY ARISING OUT OF OTHER PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES; AND WRESTLER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT PROMOTER SHALL NOT HAVE ANY RESPONSIBILITY FOR SUCH INSURANCE OR PAYMENT IN THE EVENT OF PHYSICAL INJURY ARISING OUT OF HIS PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES.

Since then, WWE and Linda McMahon (who ran for one of Connecticut’s United States Senate seats in 2012) have been able to truthfully claim in the media that all talent has health insurance. That’s even though WWE does not provide the insurance or offset the cost in any way (unless WWE covering all on the job injuries lowers the wrestlers’ premiums).

What Johnson is reporting today is that WWE announced to the talent that as of February 21st (Johnson wrote 2/21/15 but that appears to be a typo in the context of what he wrote), they will be doing random checks with insurance companies to make sure that the wrestlers are fully compliant with the terms of their contracts. The memo stated that anyone without insurance must get everything in order in the next 60 days or else risk their status being that they would “not be available” to wrestle.

In other words: If you don’t have insurance, you’re being sidelined.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEu6NGPA0Cg

If the details of the report are true, then WWE must have or be in the process of getting HIPAA waivers from each talent to contact their insurance companies. HIPAA refers to the terms set by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, which put the current American medical privacy laws into effect. Without a HIPAA waiver from each wrestler for their respective insurance company,the insurer is legally bound from telling WWE (or anyone else without a waiver) if the person in question is a member. It’s not entirely clear why WWE is doing this right now. The obvious inference is that some wrestlers found ways to game the system, perhaps by dropping the coverage for most of the year.

Outside of WWE, there is now widespread coverage of wrestlers in Mexico stemming from a deal made this past Summer. Around 2003-2004, TNA did provide group health insurance to wrestlers, but it didn’t last long and reviews of the coverage were mixed at best.

Two Big Changes Being Discussed For Next Year’s Slammy Awards

Matt Boone
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One of the big complaints coming out of this year’s Slammy Awards was the fact that so many top stars that won awards weren’t present to accept them, including The Rock, Ronda Rousey, Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, Sting and John Cena. The voting is legitimate, so it wouldn’t be practical to call in big names like The Rock and Brock Lesnar without even knowing if they’re winning awards. On the flip site, winners not being in attendance feeds the perception that the Slammy Awards aren’t important enough for the big stars to show up for.

Two changes are being discussed for next year’s Slammys. One is to have the voting take place one week prior to the show itself, this way WWE would know ahead of time who the winners are so that they could arrange to have them at the show. In the case of The Rock, where he could still be busy with movie commitments, WWE could send film crews to record an acceptance speech.

The second change proposed was to move the annual Slammy Awards to WrestleMania week, as most of the top stars will already be in town, so there won’t be an issue with not having big stars on-hand to accept the awards in person. The problem with doing that is that WrestleMania week is already very busy, and putting the Slammy Awards on the post-WrestleMania edition of RAW would potentially ruin what has become one of the biggest and most exciting RAW shows each year.

Roman Reigns On Attacking Triple H, Tuning Out Negative Reactions & More

Matt Boone
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WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns recently spoke with WWE.com about his road to becoming the champion, attacking Triple H and more. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On his performance at WrestleMania against Brock Lesnar:

“I stand on that performance. That was a fight out there and the crowd knew it. Regardless of how they felt about me when I walked in, they certainly felt a definite way when I left, and I think that’s respect. I think that’s what’s helped me along this full year’s process. They can see I come out every single night and I’m not playing about this big-fight thing. I do it different than anybody else, because I’m willing to bang heads every single night. I don’t think anybody else could have gone out there with Brock Lesnar and do what I did. I stand by that and I’m proud of it. My father and my mother were in the front row watching and they got to see their son go toe-to-toe with Brock Lesnar. Not many people can say that.”

On if he finds it difficult to tune out any negative reactions to what you does:

“It’s something I’ve had to teach myself over the past few years, because I am a person that cares. I do. I wouldn’t be in this business and do what we have to do and go through all the stuff we have to put up with if I didn’t care. Sometimes I have to pull myself back [and remind myself] the world is a big place. Don’t focus on the negativity. Focus on the positivity and the people that want you to do well, then, do it for them and for yourself. Sometimes I do things for myself; sometimes I do things for my family; sometimes I do things for my friends. There’s a great system where I’m not doing this just for one dream, I’m doing this for a bunch of people’s dreams. I have a great crew and a great family that loves me.”

On his recent attack of Triple H:

“I haven’t been able to watch much of the stuff back I’ve done in the past few weeks. But one thing I notice is anytime me and H are in the ring together, there’s always that buzz. You can feel it, there’s a tingle in the air. Regardless, when you have that buzz, it’s going to get to the physicality, so that’s how it’s got to go down.”

Update On Stephanie Slapping Around Tom Phillips On RAW

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The conclusion of Monday’s RAW saw Stephanie McMahon slapping the daylights out of WWE announcer Tom Phillips. Although WWE officially stated that Phillips was not injured during segment, his face had a bad welt and he was kept off Tuesday’s live SmackDown special to sell the angle.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that Phillips was legitimately shaken up by the first slap, much like Roman Reigns was the previous week. The angle has been a big topic of discussion backstage this week. Whether or not he was hurt by the attack, a lot of people were questioning why an announcer took so many strikes to the head, especially with Triple H working closely with Chris Nowinski on concussion awareness.

Big E shared his two sense regarding the assault on “Young Boy Tom”:

J Sports Drops Live RAW, NXT Ahead Of WWE Network Launch In Japan (1/5)

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WWE RAW will no longer be airing live Tuesday mornings on Japan’s J Sports network. Instead of the weekly 3-hour live broadcast, the shortened Hulu version of RAW will now air Thursday mornings at 10am starting January 7th. It will replay in Japanese at 10:30pm on Thursdays.

J Sports will be airing an edited 1-hour version of Smackdown in English on Saturday mornings at 10am a 1-hour Japanese version of SmackDown on Monday nights at 6pm. NXT is being dropped from the channel all together.

The WWE Network launches in Japan on January 5th.

H/T: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Upcoming NXT Title Feuds Revealed For Finn Balor, Dash & Dawson

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Following last week’s NXT Takeover: London event, the next challenger to Finn Balor’s NXT Championship will be Baron Corbin. A lot of fans were surprised to see Corbin go over Apollo Crews clean, but Crews has a bright future and Corbin has been a pet project of management for some time. Corbin has shown marked improvement over the past year and will make a good heel challenger to Balor during Q1 in the lead up to the big WrestleMania weekend show.

There is talk of Finn Balor defending the NXT title against Sami Zayn at the WrestleMania weekend show from the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. That venue holds about 7,000 fans and tickets sold out immediately.

NXT tag champions Dash & Dawson will be feuding with Jason Jordan & Chad Gable in the coming months, which should be a phenomenal program. Both teams are getting better and will bring out the best in each other as they continue to establish their acts.

As we’ve been reporting, NXT ticket sales have been very strong for the live events scheduled for January. All of the shows outside of Florida sold out except for the 1/15 show from Green Bay.  Ticket sales are dragging for the 1/22 TV taping from Orlando during Royal Rumble weekend. The lower portion of the venue is sold out but there’s still plenty of seats left.

H/T: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Cage Matches Planned For SmackDown USA Premiere, Date For Flair On Stone Cold’s Podcast

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– Local ads for the January 7th WWE Smackdown premiere on the USA Network from Laredo, Texas are promoting two steel cage matches. These might be dark matches, but WWE will definitely be stacking that show to make a strong first impression on USA .

– Sales for the WWE 2K16 video game are up from last year’s installment. The game got much more favorable reviews this year.

– The Stone Cold Podcast with Ric Flair that’s already been taped at Steve Austin’s ranch will air on the WWE Network on January 11th immediately following WWE RAW from New Orleans.

H/T: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Stardust Cleared To Return From Neck Injury, But Kept Off WWE TV This Week

Matt Boone
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– As noted, Ric Flair noted during a recent edition of his “WOOOO! Nation” podcast that Stardust is currently out of action with a neck injury. Although he was sent to a local hospital for fear of a possible bone fracture but was cleared, Flair claims it is a neck injury that Stardust is dealing with as a result of his December 7th RAW match against Jack Swagger.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Stardust was medically cleared to return to the ring this past Monday, but for whatever reason, did not work this week’s RAW or Super SmackDown shows.

As noted, Stardust also missed the WWE Tribute To The Troops taping last week due to the same injury, as he and real-life wife Eden had the following exchange on social media that confirmed the fact that Stardust was originally scheduled for the taping.

Alex Riley On Being Frustrated Doing Commentary, His Plans To “Go For It” In WWE

Matt Boone
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7

WWE Superstar Alex Riley recently appeared on “The Wrestling Compadres Slamcast and spoke about the status of his knee, his plans for his WWE return and how frustrating it was being a WWE announcer when he wanted to be in the ring.

On the status of his injured knee following his third surgery on it:

“The rehab [has] taken a little bit longer than I would have originally liked. When the doc got in there, he saw a couple of other things and tried to do this stem cell procedure. Basically, when he got in there [he noticed] I was missing a lot of cartilage kind of on the lateral side of my knee, so he kind of did this procedure that hasn’t really been approved yet, but it was Dr. Andrews down in Pensacola [Florida], who is a fantastic doctor and gets a lot of professional athletes. Like, he did a stem cell procedure, and unbeknownst to me and the WWE, it took a little bit longer for the recovery. But I’m glad he did it. My knee feels great.” Riley added, “until my knees completely give out, not one of them, but both of them, I will be in there fighting it out.”

On if being an athlete helps you break into pro wrestling:

“I think being an athlete and being used to the contact and the brutality of tackle football certainly helps. I think it’s something that will get you used to what you have to do as an athlete in the WWE. Now, mentally, I don’t think so. I think it hurts you because wrestling is something that is very individualistic and even your coaches, they know from what they did and what they were successful at, but nobody can tell you how to be you. And I think what happens to athletes that come in here is that they’re so used to ‘run to that line and catch the ball and we’ll pat you on the back and say ‘good”. That’s not how this business works. This business is ‘you have to create a path. You have to create a line of your own and then maybe we’ll throw you the ball, maybe we won’t’.” Riley continued, “you have to think for yourself [in professional wrestling]. You have to have your own ideas. You have to have your own beliefs. You have to believe in something so strongly and really be willing to die for it, in a way, because you’re going to be tested when it comes to that and your character, who you are, [and] what you stand for has got to come from inside and nobody can tell you that. And I think that was a lot of what my struggle was at first. I didn’t really know who I was unless a coach was telling me where to go or ‘do this drill’ or do that.”

On Titus O’Neil and Mojo Rawley:

“[O’Neil]’s a big guy. He [has] got a lot of talent. He’s certainly a good athlete. And when it comes to professional wrestling, you put him out there and JBL says it all the time, and I don’t know if I completely agree with it, but he has everything that it takes to be a world champion. And when you’re being told things like that and it just is not happening [it is frustrating]. Titus came in a year and a half after I was in FCW and when it’s not happening, he just made the choice where he’s going to start kicking in doors until he gets at least somewhat of what he thinks he deserves. So he [has] done a great job in that regard. He has not quit. He [has] fought and he’s being rewarded for it.”

On his announcing gig and how he’d rather be in the ring:

“When they had taken this from me and for whatever reason I was doing the commentary, and, again, certainly a good opportunity to do it, but do I think I should have been in the ring [instead]? 100%. Did it feel like a cage? Yes. In the regard that I was sitting there every single Monday night watching people out there that I felt that I was better than, but I couldn’t get in there.” Riley added, “I’m sitting there every night talking about people, telling people how great they were or how great they are and how bad I was and that’s B.S.”

On how he plans to “go for it” when he returns:

“When I come back, I promise you, I’m going for it. Now whether I become WWE [World Heavyweight] Champion or I’m in NXT for the next three years, regardless of where I am or where I’m placed, I’m swinging for the fence, so it’s going to make a loud noise and I’m sure you guys are going to hear it, but I have no more, I don’t want to say I have no more fear because I certainly fear things, but very little. Very little at this point.”

Backstage Reaction To Roman Reigns Winning WWE World Title

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On the whole, the the WWE locker room was very supportive of Roman Reigns winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

There have been instances of jealousy in the past when certain performers were earmarked for main events and shot to the top, but Reigns is well liked and respectful to everybody back stage. There was genuine excitement behind the scenes when Roman finally had his ‘moment’ on RAW last week and the acceptance says a lot in terms of how Reigns is perceived backstage.

As the WWE Champion, he does have to be a locker room leader to a degree and so far he’s off to a good start.

H/T: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Update On Cesaro’s Shoulder Surgery & WWE Return

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Cesaro underwent surgery back in November 23rd to repair torn tendons in his shoulder. The estimated recovery time was pegged at 4-6 months.

Cesaro has been rehabbing the injury at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando. He’s scheduled to visit Birmingham, Alabama in early January to meet with Dr. James Andrews and his team. There he will have additional therapy and will get an update on how his shoulder is recovering.

Unless he’s progressing well ahead of schedule after the first month, he is still expected to miss WrestleMania 32.

WWE Announces Holiday Marathons On WWE Network

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WWE Network will be airing marathons of their original programs over the holidays. They issued the following press release on Wednesday with all of the details.

WWE Network Holiday Marathon

Join WWE Network over the holidays for marathons of our best original programming.

THURSDAY, DEC. 24
Swerved – starting at 7:00 a.m. ET
WWE teams up with the director of “Jackass” and “Bad Grandpa,” Jeff Tremaine, as WWE Superstars and Divas prank one another in this hilarious original series. No one is safe when it’s time to get Swerved!

FRIDAY, DEC. 25
Table for 3 – starting at 7:00 a.m. ET
Table for 3 is a one-of-a-kind program that places the WWE Universe directly at the table with some of the biggest Legends, Superstars and Divas in WWE today. Hear the real men and women behind your favorite personas share never-before-told stories and offer unique insight into the world of sports-entertainment!

SATURDAY, DEC. 26
“Total Divas”: Season 4 – starting at 10:00 a.m. ET
The WWE Divas division reaches new heights and friendships are set aflame as “Total Divas” returns for Season 4. Trinity is back along with Nikki and Brie Bella, Natalya, Eva Marie, Paige and Alicia Fox for an inside look at these women’s lives in and out of the ring.

SUNDAY, DEC. 27
Beyond the Ring – starting at 12:00 p.m. ET
WWE Beyond the Ring is a gripping spotlight on the triumphant and turbulent careers of WWE’s most famous Superstars. Each true story will offer fresh revelations about these larger-than-life personalities, with insight coming from the people who know, or knew them best – close family and friends, embittered in-ring rivals, childhood crushes, high school mentors, the WWE Superstars and Legends themselves, and more.

MONDAY, DEC. 28
The Monday Night War – starting at 7:00 a.m. ET
The Monday Night War is WWE Network’s original series documenting the epic television ratings battle between sports-entertainment icons Vince McMahon and Ted Turner. On Monday nights in the 1990s, Turner’s World Championship Wrestling and McMahon’s Monday Night Raw aired head-to-head in primetime, defining a power struggle that rewrote the rules of television and forever changed the face of sports-entertainment.

TUESDAY, DEC. 29
WWE Breaking Ground – starting at 10:00 a.m. ET
This sports docu-series goes behind the scenes like never before, chronicling the trials and tribulations of the performers, coaches and staff at WWE’s state-of-the-art NXT training center in Orlando, Florida.

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 30
WWE Legends’ House – starting at 10:30 a.m. ET
These men started the phenomenon known as WrestleMania and now, 30 years later, come together for the ultimate reunion. Eight WWE Legends are all under one roof, where friendships will be tested, rivalries pushed, challenges undertaken … while the laughs and tears flow with “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Tony Atlas and “Mean” Gene Okerlund.

THURSDAY, DEC. 31
Best of WWE Network 2015 Marathon: Day 1 – starting at 9:00 a.m. ET
As 2015 winds down and we prepare for the arrival and excitement of a new year, take a look back at some of WWE Network’s highest-rated programming and most memorable shows in celebration of the year. From original shows like WWE Breaking Ground and Swerved, to unforgettable events including WrestleMania and NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, join WWE Network in remembering 2015.

FRIDAY, JAN. 1
Best of WWE Network 2015 Marathon: Day 2 – starting at 9:00 a.m. ET

SUNDAY, JAN. 3
WWE Breaking Ground – starting at 3:00 p.m. ET
Catch up on every episode of WWE Breaking Ground in time for the season finale coming on Monday, Jan. 4, immediately following Raw.

Natalya On Tough Enough Contestant Joining Total Divas, Rosa Mendes’ Pregnancy

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WWE Diva Natalya recently spoke with Digital Spy to promote the new season of WWE Total Divas, which premieres on E! in January. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On new Total Diva Mandy (Amanda Saccomanno from Tough Enough):

“I’ve only known Mandy from Tough Enough. My husband and I watch everything on the Network, we watch anything WWE – Raw, SmackDown, Tough Enough – so we would watch it every week. I actually really liked her on the show. I thought she stood out because she had a lot of personality. Joining Total Divas I didn’t know how she would be, because everybody’s really nice when you first meet them – but so far I really get along with her.”

“She’s very genuine, believe it or not. It’s funny because you would look at her and think she has the potential to be a quote-unquote ‘Diva’. She’s beautiful and has obviously got an awesome body and she could have a lot of attitude, so to speak, just based off of how she looks. But I feel like she brings the right attitude. After spending time with her I feel like she’s really genuine. I feel like she makes a great cast member. Obviously I don’t choose who joins our cast but when I work with new people – new girls, new guys – I always try to treat them how they treat me, and judge them based on my own experiences with them. There’s nothing worse than judging a book by its cover, so I really like her.”

On having a pregnant Total Diva in Rosa Mendes:

“It’s definitely a different aspect. It’s good because it’s added a whole new layer to Total Divas that we’ve never seen before. We’ve seen weddings, we’ve seen family health issues, we’ve seen people that want to get married that aren’t getting married, we’ve seen people that are married. The fact that she’s doing something that’s a first ever for our show is cool and I think it will bring a lot of interest to the viewers.”

“It’s cool – it shows that WWE is celebrating women that are of every walk of life. The company is really embracing Rosa’s pregnancy which is a huge testament to WWE embracing not only diversity but also supporting women.”

Sami Zayn Makes NXT TV Return (Video), Viewership Drops For Super SmackDown, More

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– Former NXT Champion Sami Zayn made his NXT television return on Wednesday’s episode on the WWE Network. As seen by the above clip posted by WWE this evening, Zayn returned to the ring with a victory over Tye Dillinger in a match that was taped after last week’s NXT TakeOver: London special.

– Also on this week’s edition of NXT TV, Elias Samson re-debuted under his new character. Samson defeated Bull Dempsey in one-on-one action on the show.

– The Tuesday, December 22nd live WWE Super SmackDown show drew 2.264 million viewers, which was actually down from the 2.332 million viewers for last Thursday’s taped edition of the show.

Viewership For TNA’s “Best Of 2015” Premiere On Pop TV

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TNA’s first-ever show on Pop TV, a 2-hour Best of 2015 (Part 1) special, was watched by 111,000 viewers. Part 2 airs next Tuesday night at 9pm EST.

On Tuesday, January 5th, Impact Wrestling premieres on Pop TV with a live 2-hour show from Bethlehem, PA. That show will be the official launch of the TNA on Pop TV era and will get a better idea about the viewership they will be working with.

Impact was drawing around 300-450,000 viewers on Destination America during the final few months of that run. Pop TV is available in more homes than Destination America, but switching networks/nights again won’t do them any favors.

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

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