– TNA star Davey Richards revealed on his official Facebook page recently that he is now officially engaged to his girlfriend.
– TNA World Heavyweight Champion Eric Young will be hosting “Monster Week” on Animal Planet this week.
TNA Star Reveals He’s Engaged, Eric Young TV Appearances This Week
Backstage News On A Longtime TNA Producer Quitting The Company
TNA’s Senior Audio Producer Jason Seeman reportedly resigned from the company on Monday. Seeman left the company after eight years as an employee.
The backstage reaction regarding Seeman’s departure was that of shock, as many within the company saw Seeman as one of the most well-liked and hardest working employees in the TNA production crew.
(Credit: PWInsider.com)
Short Sleeve Sampson Speaks On Backstage Heat For Extreme Rules Photo
The following are highlights of a new interview with Short Sleeve Sampson:
His favorite moment in WWE: “There are definitely several different ones. The ones that stand out the most are the parodies. I was mini-Kurt Angle and I worked with Angle and did some work with John Cena as well. Both of them are very professional and fun to work with.–Another one was my Undertaker parody and working with him and JBL. I don’t know if getting chokeslammed by The Undertaker was the best thing in the world, but hey, how many people can say they’ve been chokeslammed by The Undertaker?”
His relationship with Vince McMahon: “It was a huge honor to work for him. I have a lot of respect for Vince and what he’s done, whether or not I agree with some of his decisions. He’s the head honcho and to work for the number one company is a great experience.”
Backstage heat reports at Extreme Rules: “I had been taking pictures throughout the day and after the weeLC match, I uploaded some of those pictures to my Facebook and social media pages. I was getting a lot of comments on the pictures and after an hour or so, someone commented on that particular photo: “If I were WWE, I’d fire Short Sleeve Sampson right now.” And I thought why would someone say that? So I looked at the picture and saw that Cena and the Wyatts were in it and I was surprised. So I deleted the picture. That was all done before their match took place that night. In that hour, people probably saved the photo and uploaded it, because the next day I saw that the photo went viral.
WWE never contacted me about it. I actually talked to them and everything’s been fine. There’s no heat. Had I known what was in the background, I never would have uploaded the picture. And I put up an apology for that online. I appreciate everything WWE has done for me and the opportunities they’ve given me and I would not want to burn any bridges.”
Check out the complete interview at PWMania.com.
Kazarian Talks Last Few Months In TNA, TNA Sale Rumors & More
The following are highlights of a new Between The Ropes interview with Frankie Kazarian:
On the last few months with the company: “Honestly, since after Bound for Glory, there just wasn’t any direction for Bad Influence the tag-team. We continued to ask questions, we continued to pitch ideas and it was just like “OK, we’re thinking of this or that” but we never got a straight answer and we were just kind of floating. It kind of bothered us because, honestly, we’re too good for this. We should really be involved in something. When Davey (Richards) and Eddie (Edwards) came in, we were kind of licking our chops. Sweet! This could be six months, a year. A lot of folks on the internet and within the wrestling community were excited for the potential matchup of us and The Wolves. So were we and so were they when they came in. So we thought we were going to get back in the fold and it never happened and we never got a straight answer other than we’re going with other teams. What can you say other than OK? After the UK, we did Lockdown with Muta and Sanada. That was great and after that we were left off television. Right then it was like OK, they literally have nothing going on for us. And here we are now.”
On seeing so many longtime TNA wrestlers no longer with the company: “It’s different. My last day at TNA, I said this to a few people, I didn’t feel like I was leaving TNA because I didn’t feel like I recognized the company. There was still people I’ll miss but it didn’t feel like I was leaving TNA. Honestly, there was a couple of red flags, and this was even preceding when I was starting to make up my mind about my current situation, AJ Styles leaving obviously, because I’m very close to AJ and knowing what he was going through and talking to him, that was huge. I was like wait a minute. I say this as his friend and I say this selfishly, I don’t understand why they didn’t do whatever it took to keep him there. And I’m not just saying that because he’s a friend. I’m saying that because he’s a franchise guy. He’s one of the best in the world. He’s a good human being. He’s a guy you can continue to build the company around. He leaves and real soon thereafter Jeff Jarrett leaves so that was a big red flag being waved. Wait a minute … things are changing. I don’t know that they’re changing for the better. It could just be me. Internally, management, complete turnover, people on the creative team, people in management. It really is just different.”
One the talk last year of TNA being close to being sold: “I didn’t know. I heard the rumors and there’s no one I can really ask. It’s not like I can call Dixie (Carter) and go hey, are we being sold? I could but I would never do that. Obviously, it’s none of my business. I would hope and pray that if that were to go down that they would call a meeting and say “hey guys, by the way, we’re selling the company”. When it was all going down, I had people here i the gym near where I live asking me if TNA is being sold. I was like I don’t think so. And then we all got an email from Janice Carter one day saying, first email and last I promise you I’ll get from Janice Carter believe it or not, saying please don’t believe the rumors, we’re not being sold. And I thought that was odd because I was like wow, all these years and all these rumors of TNA and everything that’s ever been said and now we finally get a letter saying don’t believe the rumors. OK. All I can do is take that at face value but we later found out that maybe that was … I still don’t know what the situation was because that’s all part of the business side. I had hopes that whoever wanted to buy it wanted to buy it because they were passionate about wrestling and wanted to try and do something different with the product. But apparently it’s not being sold, it’s not for sale, there’s not a for sale sign on it.”
Check out the complete interview at BetweenTheRopes.com.
Triple H Talks About Daniel Bryan Surrendering The WWE Championship, “Little Internet Dweebs”
WWE COO Triple H is back for this week’s sitdown interview with Michael Cole. Here are some highlights of the interview, which was taped from London, England:
– Triple H talked about how in true WWE fashion, they’ve taken over the UK. He said he’ll be going on private tours of the Vatican and the Coliseum in Rome.
– When asked about Daniel Bryan being home in the United States recovering from neck surgery, Triple H said it’s odd not having the “face of WWE” on tour with them.
– Cole brought up Stephanie McMahon’s promo from RAW, where she urged Daniel Bryan to show up on next week’s show to surrender the WWE World Heavyweight championship. Triple H says the reason they’re allowing Bryan to surrender the title instead of outright stripping him of it is because Bryan will become a and his “little internet dweebs” will get upset. If Daniel Bryan is a man, he will do what’s “best for business” on RAW. If he doesn’t, The Authority will deal with it.
– The discussion shifted to The Shield and their upcoming match against Evolution at Payback. Triple H said Evolution is going to put an end to The Shield and eliminate them one by one at Payback. When Payback is over, Triple H guarantees The Shield will no longer exist.
– Triple H then talked about Bo Dallas’ “debut” on SmackDown this week, touting that he’s the longest reigning NXT Champion in history and is finally getting a shot at the main roster. He also hyped Hulk Hogan being the guest host of this week’s SmackDown from London, saying that Hogan will be making a special announcement about the WWE Network.
*Spoilers* WWE SmackDown Tapings Results For Friday
Backstage Reaction To WWE’s Recent Financial Woes
There was a lot of fear in WWE on Monday about how Vince McMahon would react to the implosion of WWE’s stock and the company losing approximately $350 million in value on Friday.
It’s said that Vince feels mislead by his management team that WWE would be getting a much better television deal than they ultimately got. Especially with Vince McMahon personally losing a lot of money and credibility on Wall Street, certain people will be held accountable.
The company taking such a massive hit in value has many people expecting the company to release talent to cut costs.
Internally, the company is disappointed with the number of WWE Network subscribers and the company is expected to make significant changes to how the Network is promoted.
(Information from PWInsider.com was used in this report)
Video: Hugh Jackman Cuts A Promo On John Cena
Hollywood megastar Hugh Jackman appeared on ESPN SportsCenter yesterday and was asked by Jonathan Coachman (yes, that Jonathan Coachman) to cut a promo on John Cena.
WWE 2K15 Now Available For Pre-Order (10/28 Release)
Take-Two has officially announced that WWE 2K15 will be released on October 28th for Playstation 4, Xbox One, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.
Pre-Order WWE 2K15 Now From Amazon.com
It remains to be seen if Take-Two will continue building on the foundation built up by THQ over the years or if they will build a completely new game from the ground up.
Hopefully, we’ll get a first look at WWE 2K15 at the upcoming E3 convention on June 10-12 from Los Angeles, California.
Goldberg Says He Would Wrestle For WWE Again
Former WWE & WCW Superstar Bill Goldberg was Jim Ross’ guest on this week’s Ross Report podcast. When asked if he would consider wrestling one more match, Goldberg said he’s open to it if the money is right. He still hits the gym 5 days a week, stays in great shape and would want his young son see him wrestle live at least once.
“My last conversation with WWE brass, which was a while ago, was to the effect of I have a seven-year-old son who would love to see me wrestle and whatever differences we’ve had in the past, if you guys want to make some money and do this again, then I’d then be willing to talk about it. That is my answer.”
When asked who his ideal opponent would be, Goldberg named Brock Lesnar, Triple H and Roman Reigns.
“Hunter and I will always have unfinished business until the day I die,” Goldberg said, regarding to their behind-the-scenes issues from Goldberg’s WWE run over a decade ago.
“Brock and I have unfinished biz in the ring,” a reference to their infamous match at WrestleMania 20.
Goldberg named Roman Reigns due to their mutual backgrounds playing college football in Georgia.
“Whoever it is, I don’t care,” Goldberg said. “As long as it makes sense, then I’m in for it.”
You can listen to the interview below:
Adrian Neville & Sami Zayn Work Dark Match, Main Event Preview
– Prior to Tuesday’s WWE Main Event and SmackDown tapings from London, NXT Champion Adrian Neville defeated Sami Zayn.
– The following matches will take place on tonight’s episode of WWE Main Event:
- Cesaro vs. Mark Henry
- R-Truth vs. Damien Sandow
- Naomi vs. Aksana
ROB VAN DAM: Worth Keeping On The WWE Roster? (Editorial)
Monday’s Taped RAW From London Dips Below 4 Million Viewers
Monday’s taped episode of WWE RAW from London drew a 2.72 rating with 3.763 million viewers, down significantly from the previous week, which did a 2.88 rating and 4.006 million viewers.
Here’s the hourly viewership breakdown:
- Hour 1: 3.535 million viewers
- Hour 2: 3.903 million viewers
- Hour 2: 3.852 million viewers
*Spoilers* WWE SmackDown Tapings Results For Friday
WWE taped Friday’s episode of SmackDown this afternoon from the O2 Arena in London, England. Here are the spoiler results:
* SmackDown opens with WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan coming out to a huge pop. Hogan cut a promo about being the host of the show and hyped that the WWE Network is coming to the UK soon.
* Matches announced for later in the show include The Usos vs. Erick Rowan and Luke Harper and Dolph Ziggler vs. Batista in a No DQ match.
* Batista defeated Dolph Ziggler in what was described as a good No DQ match.
* Bo Dallas made his re-debut, defeating Sin Cara in under 4 minutes. He cut a cheesy heel promo before the match and got a lot of heat from the crowd.
* The Wyatt Family came out, with Bray cutting another great promo on John Cena and hyping their upcoming match at Payback.
* Sheamus defeated Alberto Del Rio. Cesaro was on commentary.
* Vickie Guerrero came out to the ring and got a ton of heat. She was quickly interrupted by Adam Rose and the Rosebuds. They all danced to the ring and Adam Rose entered, telling Vickie to be a Rosebud, not lemon.
* The Usos (with John Cena) defeated Roman and Harper (with Bray Wyatt) in a 10 minute match.After the match, the Wyatt Family beat down the Usos and John Cena to end the show.
*Spoilers* WWE Main Event Tapings Results From London
WWE taped tonight’s episode of Main Event this afternoon from the O2 Arena in London, England. Here are spoiler results:
* Cesaro and Paul Heyman kicked off the show and got a big reaction from the crowd. Heyman was cutting a promo until Mark Henry came out to interrupt him. They set up a match between Cesaro and Henry later in the show.
* Damien Sandow came out dressed as Sherlock Holmes. Sandow defeated R-Truth in what was described as a long, boring match.
* Naomi defeated Aksana. There were a lot of CM Punk chants during the match.
* Cesaro defeated Mark Henry.
Legends House Preview For Thursday, WWE Stars Name Their Favorite Wrestlers
– The official WWE website has a new article up featuring current WWE Superstars and WWE Divas naming their favorite wrestlers of all-time. You can check that out at WWE.com.
– The following is the official synopsis for this Thursday’s edition of WWE Legends House on the WWE Network:
“”When the WWE Legends engage a ruthless enemy in a game of live action role play (LARP), their strength as a group is tested.”
Full Content Listing For WWE’s “United We Slam: Great American Bash” DVD Set
The following is the full content listing for WWE’s new “United we Slam: Great American Bash” DVD and Blu-ray set that is scheduled for a July 15th release:
DISC 1
Bringing the Game Up a Level
NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match
Ric Flair vs. Nikita Koloff
Charlotte, NC • July 6, 1985
Exclusive Commentary Provided by Dusty Rhodes & Larry Zbyszko
#1 Contender’s Match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
Rock N’ Roll Express vs. Arn & Ole Anderson
Greensboro, NC • July 26, 1986
Exclusive Commentary Provided by Dusty Rhodes & Larry Zbyszko
Steel Cage Match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Ric Flair vs. Dusty Rhodes
Charlotte, NC • July 26, 1986
Exclusive Commentary Provided by Dusty Rhodes
Victory is Mine!
War Games Match
The Road Warriors, Dusty Rhodes, Nikita Koloff & Paul Ellering vs. Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Lex Luger & JJ Dillon
Atlanta, GA • July 4, 1987
The Mighty Road Warriors
Sting & Lex Luger vs. Road Warriors
Charlotte, NC • July, 1988
Exclusive Commentary Provided by Dusty Rhodes & Larry Zbyszko
DISC 2
Double Header
NWA World Television Championship Match
Sting vs. The Great Muta
Baltimore, MD • July 23, 1989
NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match
Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk
Baltimore, MD • July 23, 1989
Birth of an Icon
NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match
Ric Flair vs. Sting
Baltimore, MD • July 7, 1990
Steiner Brothers vs. The Fabulous Freebirds
Baltimore, MD • July 7, 1990
Tag Team Turmoil
Quarter Finals Match in the NWA Tag Team Title Tournament
Dustin Rhodes & Barry Windham vs. “Stunning” Steve Austin & Rick Rude
Albany, GA • July 12, 1992
WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
Sting vs. Vader
Albany, GA • July 12, 1992
DISC 3
Getting Back on Track
Macho Man Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair
Dayton, OH • June 18, 1995
Afraid of Outlaws
WCW Responds to The Outsiders’ Challenge
Baltimore, MD • June 16, 1996
Falls Count Anywhere Match
Diamond Dallas Page vs. Macho Man Randy Savage
Moline, IL • June 15, 1997
Things Only Genies Could Conjure Up
Ultimo Dragon vs. Psicosis
Moline, IL • June 15, 1997
Chavo Guerrero vs. Eddie Guerrero
Baltimore, MD • June 14, 1998
WCW Cruiserweight Championship Match
Dean Malenko vs. Chris Jericho
Baltimore, MD • June 14, 1998
“Rowdy” Roddy Piper & “Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan & Bret “Hit Man” Hart
Baltimore, MD • June 14, 1998
Somebody Call Me an Ambulance!
Ambulance Match
Diamond Dallas Page vs. Mike Awesome
Baltimore, MD • June 11, 2000
WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
Jeff Jarrett vs. Kevin Nash
Baltimore, MD • June 11, 2000
Ups, Downs, Heartbreaks & Laughter
Hulk Hogan’s SmackDown Role Revealed, Mick Foley Puts Over Adam Rose
– WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley continues to put over Adam Rose. In a recent tweet posted on his official Twitter account, Foley wrote the following:
I'll sign the legends deal if I get my own Santa figure & a spot on the @WWEAdamRose #ExoticExpress. Call me @WWE – make it happen! #RAW
— Mick Foley (@realmickfoley) May 20, 2014
– Speaking of WWE Hall Of Famers and Twitter, Hulk Hogan recently tweeted the following, revealing his role for this week’s WWE SmackDown, which is being taped this afternoon in London, England:
I am hosting SMACKDOWN at the 02 in the UK and the WWE Universe HULKAMANIACS are going to blow the roof off the 02 tonight brother HH
— Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) May 20, 2014
John Cena, Bray Wyatt, Bruno Sammartino, Paige & Batista Heading To Chicago Comic Con
Wizard World issued the following today:
Superstar John Cena® Heads Five WWE® Standouts To Attend Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, Aug. 21-23
WWE® Superstars John Cena®, Batista™ and Bray Wyatt™, WWE® Hall of Famer Bruno Sammartino™ and WWE® Diva Paige™ will attend Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, Aug. 21-23 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Ill. Special VIP packages now available.
Wizard World today announced WWE Superstars John Cena, Batista and Bray Wyatt, WWE Hall of Famer Bruno Sammartino, and WWE Diva Paige are scheduled to greet fans, sign autographs and pose for photo ops at its biggest and longest running event, Wizard World Chicago Comic Con on August 21-22-23 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center.
Cena will appear on Thursday, Aug. 21, from 3:30-7:30 p.m.; Bray Wyatt and Paige will attend on Friday, Aug. 22, from 3:30-6:30 p.m.; Sammartino is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 23 from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., and Batista is slated for Saturday from 2-5:15 p.m. followed by a Guardians of the Galaxy panel at 5:15 p.m. Tickets for all events are extremely limited.
“Coming back to Chicago is a great thrill for me,” says Cena. “The fans here have always been good to me, and I really enjoy all my Wizard World appearances.”
“It is so great to meet not only the WWE Universe, but also fans of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy,” says Batista (Dave Bautista). “I’m really excited to be joining my co-stars Karen Gillan and Michael Rooker at Wizard World for our Guardians of the Galaxy panel just weeks after the US debut.”
“I had so many great matches in Chicago during my Hall of Fame career, it’s such a thrill to be going back,” says Sammartino. “It’s great to relive these wonderful memories with the WWE Universe here in Chicago.”
In addition to the five WWE stars, top celebrities scheduled to attend Wizard World Chicago Comic Con include David Boreanaz (“Bones,” “Angel”), Matt Smith (“Doctor Who”), Karen Gillan (“Doctor Who,” Guardians of the Galaxy), Anthony Mackie (Captain America: Winter Soldier), Norman Reedus (“The Walking Dead,” Boondock Saints) and many more.
It is the 10th of 16 events in the 2014 series produced by Wizard World, Inc. (OTCBB: WIZD) and will also feature a top-drawer collection of well-known comics artists and writers and a variety of activities, exhibitors and special attractions. Wizard World Chicago Comic Con show hours are Thursday, August 21, 3-8 p.m.; Friday, August 22, noon-7 p.m.; Saturday, August 23, 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Sunday, August 24, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Press Release: Eric Bischoff’s Company Expanding Into Social Gaming
The following press release was issued today:
MX Digital Partners with Traffic Generation (Traffgen) to Enter Multi-Billion Dollar Worldwide Market of Social Casino Gaming
LOS ANGELES, May 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — MX Digital, the leading US-based developer and distributor of worldwide branded-online-gambling games with distribution in 26 countries, has signed an unprecedented deal with Traffic Generation (Traffgen) to bring waged games to the social casino space. The company, which designs, produces, and distributes branded global entertainment for broadcasters, brands, and intellectual properties, will provide exclusive branded slots games including David Hasselhoff, Blues Brothers, Hulk Hogan, James Dean, as well as other celebrity branded themed games from their catalog to the social media marketplace.
Ted Lanes, CFO, MX Digital says, “Our recent success and growth in the international waged sector combined with our portfolio of gaming with the biggest names in social media, makes the expansion to social gaming truly exciting. Social casino gaming is currently a $1.7 billion industry and some have predicted it will be as big as $7 billion in a few years. MX Digital definitely plans to be at the forefront with our continued role out of games featuring iconic entertainment figures.”
Traffgen CEO Andy Caras-Altas said, “We are very excited to be working with branded content in the social space as it provides an opportunity to leverage the large social media following associated with these brands. Hulk Hogan, for example, has over two million fans on facebook and over a million on Twitter. We believe there is a great deal of potential in leveraging international brands. The ability to have a conversation with the players will help virality and thereby help to build the social following. Conventional social casinos find it hard to build this virality and we hope that this will drive acquisition in a fundamentally different way for MX Digital. The end result can be to make the most of the social nature of Facebook and to drive traffic more cost effectively.”
MX Digital will now join other leading companies including Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc., IGT’s Double Down Casino, Zynga, Wynn Interactive, Foxwoods Interactive and Foxwoods Development Company, with others in the social gaming space.
About MX Digital:
MX Digital is a leading US-based developer and distributor of branded-online-gambling games, with distribution in 26 countries. As industry leaders in game marketing and promotion, MX Digital designs, produces and distributes premium entertainment for broadcasters, brands and intellectual properties. MX Digital has designed, produced, and distributed game content to the largest international game platforms in the US, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean. The ongoing goal: creating games around these brands while delivering recurring revenue and brand-extension. Key management and shareholders include Matias Montero (Product Development), Ike McFadden (Commercial Director), Ted Lanes (CFO), Eric Bischoff and Bischoff Hervey Entertainment Television (BHE TV). MX Digital is based in Los Angeles and is represented by Creative Artists Agency (CAA). More information about MX Digital can be found at www.mx-digital.com.
About BHE:
Founded by partners Eric Bischoff and Jason Hervey, BHE TV is a turn-key company specializing in the creation and production of television content operating in Burbank, CA and at Paramount Pictures in Hollywood, CA. BHE has created, developed, and produced both television pilots and series for NBC, VH-1, CMT, A&E, E!, Discovery, Nickelodeon, History Channel, Tru TV, ABC Family, FOX Sports, TNT, TBS, Fuse, ABC, WE, Spike, & Playboy TV. Currently, BHE produces hit series, including: The Devils Ride (Discovery Channel), See Dad Run (Nickelodeon) and Hardcore Pawn: Chicago (TruTV).
About Traffgen:
Traffgen is at the heart of gaming convergence, providing data analytics and marketing technology and services to clients spanning the social, online and land-based casino sectors. Traffgen’s unique convergence platform, The Hub, consolidates raw customer data from multiple verticals to provide a valuable single player view. Its detailed reporting and powerful marketing systems empower gaming companies to implement effective player engagement, retention and development strategies to increase business-wide monetization rates. To find out more about The Hub, please visit http://www.traffgen.com/the-hub/.
Another Firm Investigating WWE For Possible Securities Fraud
Ademi & O’Reilly, LLP issued a press release announcing that they are investigating WWE for potential securities fraud claims, “Specifically, WWE’s statements that it would double the value of its domestic contracts for its two most popular shows, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown, and that the prospects for its recently launched streaming video network were strong were false and misleading.”
Check out the full release below:
“We are investigating possible securities fraud claims against World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. resulting from inaccurate statements WWE made regarding its business practices, financial statements and prospects.
Our investigation focuses on the extent to which WWE issued false and misleading statements regarding its business practices, financial statements, past and future business performance and prospects. Specifically, WWE’s statements that it would double the value of its domestic contracts for its two most popular shows, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown, and that the prospects for its recently launched streaming video network were strong were false and misleading.”
Jim Ross Blog: RAW Thoughts, Paige Losing In London, Wyatt Family, Cena & More
The following are highlights of the latest Jim Ross blog:
On The Wyatt Family: “When the audience is encouraged to sing along to a supposed villain’s singing of a spiritual hymn and the antagonist also uses Mick Foley’s ‘cheap pop’ line of mentioning the city from which the show is emanating, those matters are not helping the talent become a ‘hated’ performer. Perhaps that’s the idea….perhaps the end game will be that Bray Wyatt isn’t a villain but Harper and Rowan might be. I have a crazy storyline idea on the new Ross Report Podcast that drops today (Tuesday) at 6 pm Pacific time at podcastone.com featuring @Goldberg. Check it out.”
On John Cena: “At the end of the night not one fan favorite came to John Cena’s aid as he was being beat like a Government Mule by three men. The humanity of it all. One would assume that at least one ‘good guy’ would wonder out to the stage in an attempt to ‘do right’ if not to only get beaten by the three, bearded, disenfranchised Duck Dynasty gone bad Swamp People. (I watch too much TV.)”
On Paige losing in London: “I wasn’t shocked whatsoever that Paige lost on TV in her home country and neither should anyone else who’s been alive for more than a few hours. Obviously, just as I did, WWE liked what they saw last week with Alicia Fox and wanted Alicia to get an impactful win and beating Norwich, England’s own Paige was the solution that was used. If you think about it long enough, it’s not bad casting. Hey, we’ve all seen worse.”
Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.
Mainstream Media Outlets Report On WWE Losing $350 Million In One Day
As previously reported, WWE stock plummeted recently after news of the company’s new deal with NBCUniversal was announced.
Several mainstream media outlets have picked up the story, almost all of which are using the headline that Vince McMahon lost $350 million in one day.
You can check out some coverage of the story, which is trending worldwide on Facebook and Twitter today, at the following links:
– MSN.com
– NESN.com
Rob Van Dam: Worth Keeping on the Roster?
Last summer, Mr. Monday Night made his triumphant return to the WWE at Money in the Bank. Since returning, Rob Van Dam has unsuccessfully challenged for the World Heavyweight Championship against Alberto Del Rio and will fight Bad News Barrett for the Intercontinental Championship at Payback.
RVD has wrestled a part-time schedule since returning and has been involved in few meaningful feuds. He obviously isn’t getting any younger, and with a part-time schedule and diminishing skill in the ring, is Rob Van Dam really worth keeping around at this point in his career?
The case for RVD: Despite not being as versatile as he once was in the ring, RVD can still perform moves that many superstars could only dream of pulling off (the Van Terminator against Del Rio at Night of Champions is just one example).
His part-time schedule also means that he is not overexposed. He still gets a decent pop each time he performs, even if he is probably not as popular as in years past, and his limited schedule will ensure that fans do not grow tired of him quickly.
However, his biggest selling point is that he is putting younger guys over. Whereas some part-time superstars demand a large contract and complete creative control over their character, RVD is much like Chris Jericho in that he is willing to work a part-time schedule while largely putting over the younger talent.
Fans saw RVD put over Del Rio this past fall and will likely see him do the same against Bad News Barrett at Payback. His act is still fresh, and as long as he continues to put over the next generation, there is no reason to not have him appear occasionally.
DDP & Jake Roberts Comment On Scott Hall’s Recent Issues
WWE Hall of Famer Scott Hall missed an appearance at a Big Time Wrestling event in California due to ‘personal issues.’ Hall tweeted about the situation, noting that he had been dealing with “medical problems” and thanked fans for their support.
During a recent interview with Wrestling Inc., Hall’s longtime friend Diamond Dallas Page commented on what might have triggered Hall returning to a dark place:
“I think the [Ultimate] Warrior passing affected a lot of people,” DDP said. “I know Scott and Jake had great discussions with him. Both of them were supposed to work with Warrior at sometime and didn’t. Scott was supposed to tag with [Ric] Flair at Survivor Series and that was around the time Warrior ended up leaving. Jake was doing all those vignettes and that didn’t work out either. Jake held onto that anger until they talked. Scott will never put himself out there as the poster boy for being cured. He’s thinking he could fall today. He only lives a mile from me, which was his design, and sometimes he’ll just come by. I am a foundation of positive energy because the other way sucks. You need to figure out how to pull yourself up again.”
Jake Snake Roberts also appeared on last week’s Piper’s Pit podcast and noted that Hall had “slipped up” and he was praying for him.
Monday’s UK RAW Heavily Edited, WWE Diva Makes Maxim’s Hot 100 List & More
– Stephanie McMahon’s in-ring segment that aired on Monday’s RAW from London was heavily edited. According to several live reports that we got from fans, she was completely drowned out by CM Punk chants at one point. Several of the matches were also heavily edited.
– Sunday’s episode of WWE Total Divas on the E! network drew 1.313 million viewers and a 0.6 rating in the 18-49 demographic. This is up from the previous week.
– WWE Diva Eva Marie is ranked #83 on this year’s 2014 Maxim Hot 100 list. They wrote about her:
“This professional wrestler and fashion model pins down viewers on E!’s series Total Divas. She says a little prayer each time she wrestles, she’s a fan of the Kardashian clan, and insists that being a Diva is a 24/7 job.”
Mick Foley Poses A Serious Question To WWE
WWE legend Mick Foley posted the following on his Facebook page on Monday night, questioning whether top company executives should be portraying evil characters on television:
A SERIOUS QUESTION FOR WWE
“I swear, I’m not posting this right after WWE Monday Night Raw to be a smart alec, a trouble-maker or to create drama. But, could it be – following the precipitous tumble of WWE stock, that having real life WWE Chief Operating Officer Paul Levesque and Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon performing simultaneous duties as the on-air “Authority” is simply not best for business.
No matter where I might go, what I might say, and what type of home appliance WWE decisions may occasionally cause me to break, World Wrestling Entertainment is a GREAT company – a company that managed to post record profits during the worst economic downturn in a generation. I just bought stock myself – some I’m putting money where my mouth is here. I’ve heard from reliable sources that the WWE Network hasn’t yet met its initial goals, and that the recent TV deal signed with USA Network wasn’t as lucrative as investors had hoped. But there has to be something more – probably alot of little things. Might one of those things be the blurred line between the real life McMahon-Levesques and the characters of Triple H – WWE Universe and Stephanie McMahon – WWE they portray?
I vividly recall Vince McMahon looking at me like I was legitimately insane in 2007 when I told him I didn’t think the WWE Universe (I actually called them “fans”) made the distinction between Vince McMahon, the face of WWE, and “Mr McMahon” who, at the time, as a TV personality, has presumably been blown to smithereens in a televised exploding limousine incident.
Likewise, I’m not sure that everyone “gets” that Paul Levesque and Stephanie McMahon are definitely seasoned and intelligent business people who simultaneously portray horrible bosses as on-air authority figures. The lines are awfully blurry – and while most fans seem to understand that the real life Stephanie is that legitimately kind, caring soul we see on “Raw” as the face of the “Be a Star” campaign, and other positive endeavors that the company is involved in – she can be awfully convincing when she has that mic in her hand, and is dressing down, maligning…and occasionally slapping the dog poop out of WWE talent. Personally, I think Steph has been simply sensational as a character this year – but I’m not sure everyone “gets” that she’s essentially a really nice person, doing a really good job of being really, really bad.
Look, I don’t have all the answers, and there are probably far more factors at play than I am capable of understanding. But maybe, just maybe, having investors watch the Chief Operating Officer of a billion dollar company (past tense) kick the dog poop out of a hand-cuffed employee (or Independent contractor) is not best for business as far as Wall Street is concerned.”