On Thursday’s episode of Impact Wrestling, two new matches were confirmed for the upcoming TNA Lockdown pay-per-view on March 10th.
TNA World Champion Jeff Hardy’s opponent at the show will be Bully Ray.
Kurt Angle will face Wes Brisco in a steel cage match.
Those matches are in addition to the already announced Team TNA (Sting & 3 partners TBA) vs. Team Aces & Eights (Devon & 3 partners TBA) steel cage match.
– While The Miz is still using the Figure Four leg lock as one of his finishing moves, f4wonline.com reports that the storyline of him being Flair’s new protege is probably done.
– In a move that will eventually have a big positive impact on WWE’s television ratings, the Hollywood Reporter reports that starting in September, Nielsen Media Research will begin accounting for viewership from streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu, as well as viewership from iPads and other mobile devices. Considering WWE’s partnership with Hulu Plus and the amount of people that watch clips of WWE television content on Youtube, WWE should see a substantial increase in their Nielsen ratings, which will in turn increase the amount of revenue they can command from advertisers.
Earlier this year, it was announced that Nielsen is partnering with Twitter to incorporate social media activity into the weekly Nielsen ratings as well. Between video streaming and social media activity being factored in, WWE’s strong embrace of emerging technologies and social media is about to pay off big time.
– WWE Champion The Rock is being advertised for the WWE Extreme Rules pay-per-view, which takes place on May 19th from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri. This is an unexpected move, as The Rock will be taking time off from WWE after WrestleMania 29 to begin filming the movie “Hercules” overseas.
– Speaking of Hercules, Norwegian actor Aksel Hennie has signed on for the film.
– Here’s video of The Rock promoting his new movie “Snitch,” which hits theaters tomorrow:
– WWE’s original plans for the Jack Swagger vs. Alberto Del Rio World Heavyweight title match at WrestleMania 29 was for it to be built up as an Ankle Lock vs. Arm Breaker submission storyline. After Swagger’s Tuesday night DUI & drug arrest, it remains to be seen whether WWE changes course with this match.
Also planned for Swagger, WWE recently contacted conservative talk show host Alex Jones about making an appearance at WrestleMania 29 for angle with Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter. Jones mentioned the proposal on his radio show this week, but did not say whether he’d be doing it or not.
– Here are some reactions to Jack Swagger’s Tuesday night DUI & drug arrest:
Jim Ross: Lots of legal experts on Twitter. Almost gleeful that a #WWE star made an apparent bonehead mistake. Due process/facts appear ill relevant … Now being lectured by people I don’t even know 4 Swagger’s mistakes. He made an error. Don’t know the consequences but I won’t bail on him.
The Iron Sheik: The Jack Swagger ready for push he look good and he have good manager the dirty dutch. Still if I want I can beat the f*ck out oh him. The Jack Swagger cant handle the moderation Iron Sheik class. Still i respect him and he be ready one day or I f*ck his ass make him humble.
MVP: “I wish he had been pulled over in Washington or Colorado.”
Lance Storm: To everyone asking about Swagger. A very unfortunate mistake, I have no idea what the fall out will be, but DUIs R irresponsible & Stupid … Could be very costly mistake.
Tommy Dreamer: Don’t kick a man when he is down We have all made mistakes nobody feeling worse than @RealJackSwagger I’m sure. Offer support not hate
The Pro Wrestling Syndicate wrestling promotion sent out a press release yesterday stating that Shane Douglas and Extreme Rising have contacted ECW Original New Jack and offered to “double his pay” to pull out of his scheduled appearances for PWS on April 4th and 5th.
New Jack reportedly denied Shane Douglas’ offer, telling him that he’s wrestling exclusively for Pro Wrestling Syndicate now and teased that 2013 would be his final year as an active wrestler.
Extreme Rising and Shane Douglas issued the following in response to the earlier post from Pro Wrestling Syndicate:
“We have been notified of a false statement being reported by your website concerning Shane Douglas and Extreme Rising attempting to pay wrestlers to no show another company’s event and would like to issue our statement direct from Shane Douglas himself.”
“I have NOT spoken to, nor any of the other partners of 5 Guys Wrestling/Extreme Rising, Jerome Young aka New Jack since December 29, 2012 at the Pennsylvania National Guard Armory. For the record no one has contacted –or offered anyone anything, working for PWS or any other company, and wish them all success. Extreme Rising has a loaded Wrestlemania weekend with three live events that we are focused and working on as we continue to put our energies into moving Extreme Rising forward.” -SHANE DOUGLAS”
* 2 MAJOR Angles Planned For Monday’s RAW (Related To Vince/Heyman, Punk/Cena)
– At one point, WWE was interested in booking a Rey Mysterio vs. Sin Cara match at WrestleMania, but those plans have been dropped.
– Tickets for the 2013 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony at Madison Square Garden on 4/6 have sold out. It’s possible WWE will release more tickets in the weeks leading up to the event, but there’s nothing currently available on Ticketmaster.com
– WWE is currently paying WWE Hall of Fame inductees $5,000 and their inductors $2,500.
– Close friends of WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin are under the impression that he’ll never wrestle again. There’s still a chance WWE will get him to come out of retirement at WrestleMania XXX for one final match, but it remains unlikely.
* Rumored MAIN EVENT For Next Year’s WrestleMania XXX
(Partial Source: f4wonline.com)
WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler spoke with WMC-TV in Memphis to discuss his recovery after suffering a heart attack on RAW last year.
After “never” going to the gym throughout his decades-long wrestling career, Lawler says he has begun exercising with Lauryn. Lawler has kicked his habit of eating fried chicken several times per week and is now eating healthier at the advise of his doctors. Lawler says he feels great now and there was very little damage to his heart as a result of the heart attack.
Feeling great, Lawler says he’s itching to get back in the ring, but is still waiting on clearance from WWE’s doctors. One of the main reasons he can’t wrestle yet is because the blood thinners he’s taking (common for people after suffering a heart attack) would spell trouble for him if he were to ever get cut during a match.
Here’s what the King said about wanting to get back in the ring:
“The one thing I’ve not done since the heart attack is get back into the ring and wrestle. And, Lauryn says that I’ve been, the one thing that’s different about me since the heart attack, she says, ‘You’re depressed. You’re going through depression.’ Which I don’t feel it. I don’t think it. But, yeah, I certainly do miss the wrestling and I do want to go back and do it some more.”
– One half of the NXT tag team champions, Oliver Gray, was injured at the 2/17 NXT live event from Brooksville, Florida. Gray and his partner Adrian Neville (formerly PAC) were teaming against Bray Wyatt and Luke Harper, when Grey appeared to blow his knee out about 5 minutes into the match, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. The match stopped, with Gray laying on the ground in extreme pain and referees throwing up the “X” injury sign. He was helped to the back by NXT officials. No word yet on the extent of his injury.
– WWE returns to Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida tonight for another round of NXT telvision tapings. WWE superstar Randy Orton, WWE announcer Jim Ross and WWE Divas Champion Kaitlyn are all confirmed for the show.
* Pictures of EL GENERICO’s Recent NXT Debut
NXT Champion Big E Langston is currently overseas in Qatar with the RAW roster, so he won’t be in attendance.
Kaitlyn tweeted the following about her appearance tonight:
#NXT tonight @FullSail Orlando! Ill be there Champ'n it up. Who wants a piece of this??? (NXT divas only)
— Celeste Bonin (@CelesteBonin) February 21, 2013
Here is the TNA website’s official preview for tonight’s episode of Impact Wrestling from the Wembley Arena in London, England:
– Who is the #1 contender that will face Jeff Hardy at Lockdown for the World Heavyweight Championship? IMPACT General Manager Hulk Hogan was ready to make his decision this past week – but he never got the chance due to The Aces and 8s! Now, Hogan has vowed to finally declare the top contender on this Thursday’s broadcast! The question is, who will Hogan select to get a shot at the gold? Don’t miss Hulk’s decision!
– Who will Sting select to be on Team TNA to face the Aces and 8s in the “Lethal Lockdown” match at the Lockdown event on March 10? The Aces and 8s made the challenge this past week – and Sting accepted! Will Sting begin assembling Team TNA on Thursday night’s broadcast? Tune in and find out!
Thursday’s IMPACT will also feature TWO championship matches:
– The Knockouts Championship will be on the line as Tara defends the gold in a four-way match vs. Gail Kim vs. Velvet Sky vs. Miss Tessmacher
– The X Division Championship will also be defended on IMPACT as Rob Van Dam battles Kenny King
– Plus, the winner of the British Boot Camp competition – Rockstar Spud – will face Robbie E on IMPACT
All this and much more on Thursday’s IMPACT on SpikeTV at 8/7 as the road to the March 10 “Lockdown” event continues!
As of this weekend, the top matches for WrestleMania 29 were planned to be:
– The Rock vs. John Cena (WWE Title)
– Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger (World Heavyweight title)
– CM Punk vs. The Undertaker
– Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H
Aside from Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H, the rest of the matches could change by WrestleMania. There has been no change in the uncertainty surrounding The Undertaker’s status for WrestleMania. If he does not work the show, there’s been talk of adding Punk to the Rock vs. John Cena match.
John Cena vs. CM Punk on Monday’s RAW also puts the Rock vs. Cena match in question. However, a lot of promotional material for WrestleMania 29 has already been sent out and features The Rock vs. John Cena as the top match on the card.
Jack Swagger’s DUI & drug arrest on Wednesday is another wrench in the plans.
A Ryback vs. Chris Jericho (working as a heel) match has also been planned, but there was no tease of the match on RAW when Ryback and Jericho partnered with Sheamus against The Shield. With Jericho off television for several weeks, it appears WWE is going in a different direction with them as well. Sheamus vs. Mark Henry has been discussed, but we’ve yet to see any buildup there either.
Top superstars like Dolph Ziggler, Randy Orton, Big Show, The Shield, Kane and Daniel Bryan are also without any obvious opponents headed into WrestleMania.
Despite the lack of direction thus far, the feeling is that the show will still be a huge success due to the WrestleMania brand, the special attractions appearing (The Rock, Brock Lesnar, Bruno Sammartino) and the show taking place in the hot New York market.
– The planned main event for Wrestlemania XXX next April from New Orleans is The Rock vs. Brock Lesnar. Paul Heyman alluded to the blockbuster match on Twitter this week, writing, “I hear @TheRock has committed to @WWE #WrestleManiaXXX, and boy do I have an opponent for him!”
WWE has been purposely keeping Brock Lesnar and The Rock away from each other as best as they can, although they will both be on RAW together the week before and after WrestleMania 29.
– The all-time attendance record for the Mercedes-Benz Superdome is 78,344 for the 1997 Sugar Bowl game, however the building has been reconfigured since then. A sellout for the New Orleans Saints football team is 73,209. For a WrestleMania, since so much of the stadium is blocked off for the stage and other production equipment (more than what they make up by having seats on the field), a legitimate estimate of how many fans they can accommodate will be around 65,000 fans. WWE typically exaggerates the WrestleMania attendance by up to 10,000 to announce they have broken the venue’s all time record.
TNA star Hulk Hogan and WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart have a well-documented rocky relationship, dating back to 1993 when Hogan was supposed to drop the WWF Championship to Hart at SummerSlam ’93 but allegedly refused to do so before leaving the company. During a recent interview with Fighting Spirit Magazine (Issue 90), Hogan fired a brutal shot at “The Hitman”, claiming that Hart drove down the salaries of future WWF/WWE champions by agreeing to work for less than everyone else.
“The main-event guy made the most money when he had the belt,” Hogan explained. “When I was the (WWF) champion, I made the most money. It was an old rule that Vince (McMahon) Sr. had that, thank god, was passed on for quite a while. That changed when Bret Hart became champion; he’d work for a lot less than anybody else, so it changed everybody’s pay.”
Later in the interview, Hogan also implied that he felt that Hart was two-faced, stating:
“The last time I saw [Bret], he was flying around in my Learjet with me, and playing with my kids in the pool. Then, all of a sudden, we’re not cool.”
The six-page interview with Hulk Hogan is in Issue 90 of FSM, available on Thursday, February 21.
* CARTOON: Bret Hart Draws Picture of “STEROID KING” Hulk Hogan
– WWE is holding a Diva Search in Los Angeles, California this week. The event is not open to the public, as WWE is having modeling agencies bring in attractive, athletic young ladies to be evaluated. Being a wrestling fan is a plus, but wrestling training is not required.
– The Shield is getting rave reviews behind the scenes in WWE, which should not be a surprise. All three members are seen as having breakout potential, with Roman Reigns having the look and intensity of a top tier guy, Rollins being a great worker and Dean Ambrose having the “it” factor that sets him apart from everybody. Ambrose has been compared to a modern day Terry Funk, which is a strong compliment.
* Video: AMBROSE vs. ROLLINS vs. REIGNS at Developmental
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– Vince McMahon said to be tired of the John Cena vs. CM Punk feud, so their match next week on RAW will be the last time we see them cross paths for a while.
– The Rock has been nominated for “Favorite Male Buttkicker” at the 2013 Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards, which airs on March 28th.
WWE superstar & executive Triple H has been nominated for “Most Metal Athlete” at the 2013 Revolver Golden Gods Awards, which takes place on May 2nd and will be hosted by Chris Jericho.
– A Ryback heel turn has been teased lately, with him losing several high profile matches and walking out on his team at Elimination Chamber. If WWE does go through with the heel turn, it would lead to a John Cena vs. Ryback program after WrestleMania. While Cena could certainly benefit from a fresh heel monster to play off of, Ryback is somewhat limited in the ring and losing the crowd support would hurt his character a lot.
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– The Vince McMahon vs. Paul Heyman fight next week on RAW is likely going to be used as a setup for the Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar match at WrestleMania. It’s possible we’ll see run-ins from the WrestleMania opponents.
– If The Undertaker does commit to wrestle at WrestleMania, Monday’s RAW from Dallas, Texas is a logical opportunity for him to return. One scenario we’ve heard would be The Undertaker costing CM Punk his match with John Cena (and a shot at The Rock at WrestleMania), setting up the match between them.
– An interesting statistic about the age of WWE’s audience. Many people think that WWE’s current PG product means that a very large portion of their audience must be children. Currently, only 21% of WWE’s US audience is under the age of 18. Compare that to the Attitude Era, when that number was almost 40%. Back then, 4.5 million kids under 18 were watching WWE TV each week, compared to only 1.5 million now.
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– With WWE working on several projects for Bruno Sammartino this year, the future WWE Hall of Famer is expected to be a playable character in the new WWE 2K14 video game, in an attempt to draw in older video game players.
– As for Bruno’s Hall of Fame inductor, WWE’s top choice is Arnold Schwarzenegger. Bruno and Arnold have been friends for over 40 years, when they worked out together in New York and California in the late 1960’s early 70’s. Bruno Sammartino was one of the judges of the Mr. Olympia contest that Schwarzenegger won and also they judged several bodybuilding contests together in later years.
They remain friends to this day and will be together in a few weeks when Bruno Sammartino is inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame that is part of the Arnold Classic in Columbus, OH on March 2nd.
– Following WWE’s recent statement that they will no longer be paying to send Tammy “Sunny” Sytch to rehab, the former Diva wrote the company an apology letter. She took responsibility for the negative comments she made about WWE during a recent interview, but said that her comments were made out of anger and frustration and when she was not taking her prescribed medication. She said instead of accepting her own shortcomings, she projected her anger onto WWE.
She also admitted that the real reason WWE switched her to a different treatment facility was because the first facility recommended the move. The second facility was very different and as comfortable, which made her very angry.
– As previously reported, El Generico made his WWE NXT debut at a recent live event and appeared in his signature lucha libre mask, cape and ring gear. While many fans were relieved to see that it appeared WWE had not altered his beloved gimmick, it’s unlikely that he’ll get to use the El Generico name in WWE. WWE likes to own the names of their characters and typically does not allow wrestlers to bring their established names to the company unless they’re willing to sign over those rights.
* PICTURES of EL GENERICO’s Debut at NXT
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
The Rock will be off television for a few weeks, as he’s currently in Panama filming his new TNT reality competition show, “The Hero.” He is booked for the following upcoming RAW events:
3/4 – Buffalo, NY
3/25 – Philadelphia PA
4/1 – Washington DC (Week Before WM29)
4/8 – East Rutherford, NJ (Night After WM29)
After the post-WM29 RAW, The Rock will be headed to Hungary and Croatia to film “Hercules,” a project that he’s stated in interviews is very important to him.
The Rock has been preparing for the role of Hercules for close to a year, which is why he’s so muscular right now. Since filming for Hercules begins right after WrestleMania, his physical training and his physique will be peaking at that time.
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– There is talk in WWE about how creative is handling Dolph Ziggler’s push. While he had strong wins over Randy Orton at Survivor Series and John Cena at TLC, he’s been constantly losing on television lately. He is still in line for a World Heavyweight title run, but the momentum he had at the end of 2012 has stalled out.
– WWE’s writing team has been in somewhat of a rut lately, with a lot of disagreements and politics being played. The recent flip flopping on the Team Rhodes Scholars breakup is seen as one of example of poor planning and lack of commitment to storylines.
Many of WWE’s top superstars, including The Rock, CM Punk, John Cena and others, are pitching their own ideas and not relying on creative to direct their characters.
(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
Scott Hall is currently in Georgia staying at Diamond Dallas Page’s “Accountability Crib” along with Jake Roberts. Hall posted the following video on Wednesday evening, talking about the video that was posted online last week of DDP and Jake Roberts inviting him to live with them. That original video was taken offline and Hall says he was the one that told DDP to remove it. However, as he explains below, he told DDP to put the video back online and gives an update on his journey:
“It came to my attention a day and a half or so ago when I was in Florida that there was an unflattering recording of a phone call of me talking to Dallas and Jake that I have no memory of, and apparently I was very intoxicated at the time. Dallas and I were talking on the phone and he offered to pull it down… and I said, yeah, yeah, pull it down. Having arrived here in Atlanta now and after seeing it, I just want to say that I don’t recommend that kind of behavior, I’m not endorsing it. It’s been my story, I’m Scott Hall and I approve these message.”
Here’s Scott Hall’s statement, followed by the original video:
Earlier today, TMZ.com broke the story that WWE superstar Jack Swagger was arrested in Mississippi last night after a SmackDown taping and charged with DUI, marijuana possession and speeding (all misdemeanors).
Swagger is in the midst of the biggest push of his career and is scheduled to challenge for Alberto Del Rio’s World Heavyweight championship at WrestleMania 29. It remains to be seen how WWE will respond to Swagger’s DUI & drug arrest, but the following portion of WWE’s Wellness Policy could spell trouble for him:
“Any WWE Talent, who is arrested, convicted or who admits to a violation of law relating to use, possession, purchase, sale or distribution of drugs will be in material breach of his/her contract with WWE and subject to immediate dismissal.”
“Subject” to immediate dismissal does not mean mandatory dismissal. Countless WWE wrestlers have been arrested for DUI in recent years, however the drug possession charge could really hurt him.
The Sun Herald reports that Jack Swagger’s court date for his Tuesday night DUI, marijuana possession and speeding arrests is March 12th in Biloxi.
Swagger was pulled over at 11:59 pm last night on Lorraine Road near Morningside Drive in Biloxi after an officer saw his 2013 Ford Taurus speeding.
Police Capt. Craig Petersen said, He was released to an acquaintance who picked him up at the police station.”
Swagger was released on a summons and is due in court on March 12th.
– Monday’s WWE RAW drew a 3.30 cable rating and averaged 4.66 million viewers. Here are the hourly numbers:
Hour 1: 4.82 million
Hour 2: 4.67 million
Hour 3: 4.49 million
– TheAtlanticWire.com has an article up about Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter’s new ultra-conservative gimmick in an article titled, “The WWE’s Tea Party Wrestler Is Making Conservatives Hit the Mat.”
– Speaking of Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter, World Heavyweight champion Alberto Del Rio will respond to their “State of the Union” on Friday’s SmackDown:
2K and WWE Announce Exclusive Multi-Year Agreement for WWE Video Game Series
2K and WWE (NYSE: WWE) today announced that they have entered into an exclusive multi-year agreement granting 2K the exclusive worldwide rights to publish the critically acclaimed WWE video game franchise across all major platforms and distribution channels. The series, which will continue to be developed by Yukes in Japan, will combine the studio`s signature gameplay with 2K`s commitment to authenticity in WWE `14, the latest iteration of the popular, long running series. With the addition of the WWE franchise, 2K will continue a highly-successful, 15-year tradition established by past WWE titles. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“The WWE series is a great addition to our stable of triple-A titles, and we`re very happy with this exclusive agreement with our new partners,” said David Ismailer, Chief Operating Officer for 2K. “We look forward to capturing the excitement of WWE and marrying it with the same commitment to authenticity and entertainment that we give to our NBA 2K and MLB 2K franchises.”
2K has a strong history in growing premier sports simulation titles, evidenced by the incredible commercial success of the NBA 2K series, with more than 15 million units of NBA 2K11, NBA 2K12 and NBA 2K13 sold-in to date worldwide. This year, in the first week of its release, NBA 2K13 sold 49 percent more copies in the same time frame than the franchise`s previous record-holder, NBA 2K11.
“2K`s reputation for outstanding quality and dedication to authenticity are a perfect fit for WWE,” added Casey Collins, Executive Vice President, Consumer Products for WWE. “This new partnership will ensure that WWE continues to be one of the leading video game brands in the world and we look forward to continuing the franchise with the benefit of their expertise across a variety of platforms.”
“The development work on the WWE franchise is impressive, and we`re excited to combine our background in developing the NBA 2K series with theirs in this new partnership,” concluded Greg Thomas, Executive Vice President of 2K Sports. “Fans can expect the most authentic WWE experience on game consoles this fall.”
Developed by Yukes, WWE `14 is not yet rated by the ESRB and will be available for consoles in the fall of 2013.
