WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels recently spoke with Ring Rust Radio to promote his new book, “Wrestling For My Life: The Legend, the Reality, and the Faith of a WWE Superstar”. You can listen to the full interview at Blogtalkradio.com.
Here’s what HBK said about the pressure that will be put on Roman Reigns as the “Face Of WWE” –
“As far as him being a top star moving forward, I have very little insight on that. I’m the guy that sits there and looks in the rearview mirror and am very thankful for the stuff that I got to do. As far as the pressure, it’s going to be tough. WrestleMania is pressure filled anyway and more so when you’re going for the first time in what might be the main event.
If you are being dubbed or people seeing you as the next guy those things mount up. They are important and you want to live up to them and it’s especially hard. Back in my day it was the beginning of the internet and we had the newsletters, but I imagine now with social media it’s all right there at your fingertips. I’d imagine it’s even tougher nowadays. Our line of work if very cynical and a lot of it is driven by cynicism, cruelty, and meanness. It’s easier to believe the negative stuff than the positive stuff. The feel good stories don’t usually spend a lot of time on the front pages.
It’s gotta be a pretty tough row to hoe for the guys nowadays. Along with the great notoriety and the good stuff that comes with it, there’s always some negative that comes with it and you have to do your best to balance it along the way.”
Samoa Joe announced on Tuesday that he is parting ways with TNA Wrestling after 9 years with the company. Based on what we’re hearing from sources in TNA, it was a very amicable split and the door is open for them to do business again in the future.
Joe’s decision to leave TNA was very similar to that of AJ Styles. Like Styles, Joe had been with the company since its early days and it all came down to money. TNA today is a very different company than it was several years ago, operating with a drastically reduced budget. TNA was unable to match the money that Joe had been previously making. The negotiations were ‘friendly’ the entire time, but in the end, TNA simply couldn’t offer him enough to stay.
Joe will have no problem finding work elsewhere. The question is, where does he go next? WWE, Ring of Honor, New Japan Pro Wrestling, Lucha Underground and working the indy scene are all viable options for the former TNA World Champion. TNA does not have ‘no compete’ clauses in their contracts, so Joe could theoretically show up in another promotion as early as this weekend.
Triple H is said to be very interested in giving Joe a shot at NXT. Vince McMahon does not have much interest in him, but there’s already talk of giving him a tryout at the Performance Center in the upcoming weeks/months. Paul Heyman, the advocate for WWE’s reigning, defending Heavyweight Champion of the World, took notice of Joe’s announcement –
Hmmm RT @SamoaJoe I have decided to part ways with @ImpactWrestling. My very best to them moving forward, and my eternal thanks to the fans.
During this week’s WWE SmackDown television taping, which took place on Tuesday night in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, a new singles match was made official for WWE Fastlane.
In a long-awaited battle between brothers, Goldust and Stardust will meet one-on-one at this Sunday’s pay-per-view following their breakup at this past Monday’s edition of WWE RAW.
Make sure to join us here at the website for live WWE Fastlane play-by-play results coverage this Sunday night.
The following are spoiler results of the WWE Main Event taping, which took place in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
– Sin Cara & Kalisto def. Heath Slater & Curtis Axel in tag-team action to kick off the show. The Lucha Dragons picked up the win via their double-team finisher for the pinfall victory.
– Stardust def. Zack Ryder in singles competition in his first official match as a heel.
– Titus O’Neil def. Adam Rose via disqualification. Rose came out to face O’Neil. He sent the Rosebuds to the back but they didn’t stay. They ended up attacking O’Neil, which led to the DQ. Darren Young ended up coming out to make the save and clean house. Young and O’Neil then celebrated to the theme song of the Prime Time Players.
– Cesaro def. Jack Swagger in the headline match of this week’s edition of WWE Main Event. This was said to be an excellent match that the crowd was well into. Tyson Kidd interfered a few times in the match and in the end, Cesaro picked up the “W” after hitting Swagger with his Neutralizer finisher for the 1-2-3.
Longtime TNA performer Samoa Joe announced via social media on Tuesday that he has officially ended his tenure with the promotion.
“I have decided to part ways with Impact Wrestling,” said Joe. “My very best to them moving forward, and my eternal thanks to the fans.”
TNA executive John Gaburick also commented on Joe’s departure, writing, “On expiration of Samoa Joe contract, TNA and Joe have agreed to part ways. Joe will always be a member of our family & we wish him the best.”
I have decided to part ways with @ImpactWrestling. My very best to them moving forward, and my eternal thanks to the fans.
Several of the TNA regular performers are said to be very happy that the recent set of television and pay-per-view tapings are now over. It was said to be a long five days for all involved, with many of the wrestlers working almost every single taping.
It was noted over the weekend that Wrestle-1 performer Jimmy Suzuki was headed to Orlando for a “big TNA announcement” on Monday. While that never happened, Suzuki is in town with The Great Muta, and was in attendance at the TNA taping on Monday night. According to TNA sources, there was never any announcement planned, despite Suzuki claiming otherwise on social media.
– The WWE Monday Night War Volume 1 DVD is still scheduled for a summer release, while Volume 2 of the series is expected to be released in the winter. The set was pushed back and the format was changed from three discs to four.
– Part-time WWE performer Chris Jericho has been announced as appearing on the next season of the VH-1 series, “That Metal Show.” Jericho has appeared on the show in the past.
– Former WWE announcer Kevin Kelly is the guest on this week’s edition of Jim Ross’ “Ross Report” podcast. The show will be available tonight at PodcastOne.com.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Shawn Michaels is the guest on the latest edition of Steve Austin’s “Steve Austin Show” podcast. The official description for the show reads as follows:
SASc – EP195 – WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels
“WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels talks to Steve about his new book, and his time in the ring. They cover WM 14 and what that was really like for Shawn given his injuries then, Shawn’s retirement from pro-wrestling, his in-ring work philosophy, hitting rock bottom with pills & coming out on the other side, best advice he got from Macho Man Randy Savage, what he learned from Ric Flair, and how shooting’s going for his reality TV show, MacMillan River Adventure.”
– The official WWE website has video footage of The Bella Twins at the 2015 ESPN Sports Science Newton Awards during Super Bowl weekend. You can check that out at WWE.com.
– Stardust’s (Cody Rhodes) wife, NXT Diva Eden, posted the following tweets regarding the promo on RAW:
Daniel Bryan recently appeared on Turnbuckle Weekly with Chuck Carroll, which you can listen to at Washington.CBSLocal.com. Here are some highlights:
– Bryan revealed that he was not officially cleared to return to the ring until the day before his first match back. He wasn’t cleared at the time he announced he would be in the Royal Rumble. On that Monday, Bryan said he was only about 90 percent sure medical clearance was imminent.
– Bryan said that he had been in touch with WWE in the three or four weeks before the announcement and let them know that the treatment was finally working and he was preparing to return.
– When asked about the negative reaction Roman Reigns got at the Royal Rumble, Bryan said it had less to do with overzealous Philadelphia fans and more to do with the hardcore WWE wrestling fan base that traveled from all over to attend the show.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:
Brock Lesnar’s WWE Future: “Sources are saying that it looks more promising that Brock Lesnar could well stay with WWE past WrestleMania due to concerns over long term health affects of competing in MMA specifically concussion oriented issues later in one’s life. gain, these are ‘sources’ and how reliable they are can only be judged after WM31 and following the status of the former UFC Heavyweight Champion. One thing is certain, if UFC believes, and rightfully so in my view, that CM Punk will sell PPV’s for at least his first two fights then what would a healthy Brock Lesnar mean to the UFC brand in a time where no combat sport company has a plethora of bona fide star power that can move the needle on the pay per view business.”
Lucha Underground: “Watching more Lucha Underground and it continues to remind me of when TBS did wrestling at Center Stage on West Peachtree in Atlanta. I loved that venue and the overall gig as living in Atlanta was a blast and I lived only about 15 minutes away from the building. Lucha smartly shoots their small but enthusiastic crowd which is comparable on how WWE shoots NXT. It’s essentially a plus sized TV studio with few more whistles and bells. It can create a unique atmosphere and fun live event experience.”
As always, you can buy Jim Ross’ amazing line of BBQ products at WWEShop.com.
WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair recently spoke with the Bell 2 Bell podcast about his status these days, his daughter making it to the main WWE roster and more.
Below are highlights from the interview:
ON WORKING WITH RODDY PIPER AND THE HIGHLANDERS: “Oh yeah, I do remember that, wearing the Kilt and everything, Roddy had two with him, so we thought “why not?”, we had a lot of fun that night in Glasgow. I’ve known Roddy since 1976 or 77 and he’s just a great guy, we’re very very close friends.”
ON WHAT IS RIC FLAIR DOING WITH HIMSELF THESE DAYS: “I was just on RAW last week, I’m on RAW about 8 or 9 times a year and my daughter is, of course, in NXT. I just keep busy doing a lot of appearances for the company and I keep busy with my own promotional stuff, you know, like autograph signings, hockey games and NFL Hockey games. Basically I work every weekend….if I want to.”
ON CHARLOTTE MAKING IT TO THE MAIN ROSTER: “Do I think she’s ready? She’s been ready for at least 3 months. The question is whether they are ready for her. The DIVA’s devision needs a good shaking up, and she’s the one to do it. I don’t know what the time scale is like, but there is nobody like her, I’m not saying it because she is my daughter, but because she is just that good.”
– The Ultimate Warrior’s Twitter account has released the official artwork for WWE’s upcoming “Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe” DVD and Blu-ray that comes out on April 14th:
NXT Tag Team Champion Buddy Murphy recently spoke with FOX Sports Australia to talk about becoming the first Australian to hold WWE gold. Below are some highlights:
Making History:
“Being the first Australian to ever actually hold a WWE promoted championship — it is a huge honor. It’s something that can never be taken away. Words can’t describe it.”
WWE Scouting Talent In Australia:
“We have so much talent down there so it would be silly not for them to look at Australia. We have myself and also Emma tearing it up here. I believe WWE will be going back down there to get some future superstars.”
Bonding With His Partner Wesley Blake:
“We started at the performance centre at the same time and from that day onwards we were joined at the hip. Wesley is my closest friend. You don’t need lots of friends you only need a couple of good ones. It was very natural for us to decide to become a tag team because we do everything together and I think that shows in the way we work. We have a very good style together and gel together.”
As the entire northeast freezes under a mountain of snow, the WWE decided to dip down to Orlando in an attempt to heat things up heading into Sunday’s Fastlane pay-per-view. The show featured eight matches, as well as appearances from Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes. Without further ado, here are the pros and cons from this week’s episode of Raw.
Pros
Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler was pure gold. Before the match, the two engaged in a hilarious back and forth, with Rollins laying down some burnsauce by telling Ziggler: “I know you fancy yourself a comedian but the only thing funny about you is that joke you call a career.” It was also hilarious to hear Ziggler question whether J&J getting him the wrong chocolates ruined his Valentine’s Day. Something tells me his Valentine’s Day was ruined for other reasons… As for the match, it was fast paced, full of spots, and exactly what you’d expect from two of the best workers in the business. Other than the J&J interference and non-finish, this was pretty much perfect on every level. I suspect a match between these two will be added to Fastlane after Smackdown. Here’s to hoping they give these guys 15 minutes and let them tear the house down. Highlight of the night by far.
I enjoyed the Dusty Rhodes backstage segments. The match between the New Day and Gold and Stardust was also nice, as it served as a nice juxtaposition between the brawling opening contest between Ambrose and Harper. Following the match, Stardust attacked his brother and called Dusty a “polka-dotted freak of a father.” I’ll admit, they’ve dragged this out forever and I wasn’t too excited at first, but I’m now getting into it.
Roman Reigns was the man last night. He sounded like a completely different person during his backstage interview before his match with Kane. His calm, confident, and collected demeanor is a stark contrast from the nervous guy we saw out there a few weeks ago talking about beanstalks while stumbing over every other word. His match with Kane was actually decent too, with Reigns winning via countout after hitting a big Spear. Daniel Bryan was on commentary during the match, with he and Reigns playing off of one another very well. It was also humorous to hear Michael Cole state: “Daniel Bryan is trying to steal Roman Reigns’ thunder. Roman Reigns just beat Kane, guys!” That means about as much as beating the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2015.
For a comedy segment, the Paige bit was actually hilarious. The outfit was funny, it actually served some sort of purpose in furthering her feud with Nikki Bella, the fans seemed to be enjoying it, and the match with Summer Rae was good for the time they were given.
The Dean Ambrose “weekend update” promo, where the Lunatic Fringe was parked at a desk looking like a shady used car dealer, was also entertaining. His match with Luke Harper featuring some nice, brawling action and was a good opening contest. JBL’s “we’ve got an air psycho” line had me cracking up, and his plot to force Barrett to sign the contract for Sunday was perfect. Nobody in the midcard deserves the IC Title more than Ambrose, and it looks like he’s going to find a way to capture the gold on Sunday.
Bray Wyatt’s promos are starting to become a bit repetitive, but I still enjoyed his work this week. He once again attacked the Undertaker, stating: “You’re an empty shell, and any fear that I once of you has turned into nothing more than putrid, hateful pity.” I can’t wait to see this program.
– Indy wrestlers Mia Yim and Leva Bates (NXT performer “Blue Pants”) worked as Rosebuds on Monday’s RAW.
– John Laurinaitis was backstage a last night’s RAW from Orlando. He was also on WWE’s recent tour of Abu Dhabi.
– After Titus O’Neil reunited with Darren Young on RAW, Heath Slater said he’s going to start focusing on himself, since he’s apparently no longer teaming with Titus.
I'm going to start focusing on ME!!! I'm better on my own… It's about time I get what I deserve… #MyTime
2K Games has released the new Hall of Pain DLC pack for WWE 2K15, a story-driven campaign that highlights the rise of The World’s Strongest Man Mark Henry between 2011 and 2013.
Speaking of Paige, she’ll be making her second appearance on Chris Jericho’s Talk is Jericho podcast this week.
– WWE NXT coaches including Bill DeMott, Norman Smiley and Robbie Brookside were all used in the pull-apart between Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns at the end of RAW. DeMott and Brookside were holding back Reigns as RAW went off the air.
– Last night on RAW, Titus O’Neil saved Darren Young from a beatdown at the hands of The Ascension, leading many fans to wonder if we were seeing the reformation of the Prime Time Players. With both men’s careers floundering in recent months/years (and the Rhodes Brothers breaking up), this doesn’t sound like a half bad idea. In this RAW Fallout video, Darren Young questioned whether or not he’s ready to team up with Titus again.
– The unidentified wrestler that teamed up with Darren Young on last night’s RAW was independent wrestler Kevin Kross. He’s wrestled for Future Stars of Wrestling out of Las Vegas, Nevada.
– The dark main event after Monday’s RAW from Orlando saw John Cena defeat Bray Wyatt. Wyatt dominated Cena for most of the match, until Cena made a come back and won with the Attitude Adjustment.
During the match, Wyatt got sick in the ring and threw up a “significant amount.” At one point, Wyatt lifted John Cena up, but lost his grip and dropped Cena, who suffered a cut from the botched spot.
Dark match. John Cena got cut on his face and Bray Wyatt is puking his guts out. Seriously. Wtf