Home Blog Page 3263

Mickie Defends “Piggie James” Angle, Bret Opens Online Store

Daniel Pena
-
4

— In an interview with The Wichita Eagle, Mickie James apparently defends the “Piggie James” storyline poking fun at her weight.

“Everyone was probably picked on at some point in their lives,” James told Kansas.com. “So it really touches people’s heartstrings. Everyone knows how that feels or can relate to that in some way. People can become involved in that because they can feel it.”

The former WWE Women’s Champion also commented on her passion for pro wrestling despite her foray into the country music world.

“I love wrestling,” she said. “That’s what I do, that’s who I am. I’m an athlete. I think (music) is just a different part of me. It’s not just Mickie James the wrestler who you see every Friday night, it’s a little piece of the other side, the part you wouldn’t know about me.”

You can read the interview in its entirety at the following link.

— WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has launched his first official online store at www.brethart.com/store. The online store features new T-shirts as well as autographed limited edition framed photos.

— The WWE Raw house show on May 1st, 2010 will be held at the Civic Center in Mobile, Alabama. Tickets go on sale March 13th, 2010. (Thanks to Devin Cutting)

Another WWE Release, New Women's Champion Crowned, More

Daniel Pena
-
0

— A fourth release has been confirmed today in referee Scott Armstrong, 50. A number of wrestlers are said to be upset over his departure as he is well liked.

Armstrong was hired in the summer of 2006, shortly after the company launched ECW. The oldest son of “Bullet” Bob Armstrong competed for a number of years in World Championship Wrestling before hanging up his boots in 2000 to referee.

Others released today include Maria Kanellis, Gregory Helms (a/k/a The Hurricane) and Paul Burchill.

— With help from Special Guest Referee Vickie Guerrero, Michelle McCool recaptured the WWE Women’s Championship from Mickie James on tonight’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown. This marks her third title win.

— Last night’s episode of WWE Superstars scored a 0.83 cable rating, with 969,000 viewers. The replay did a 0.16 rating with 161,000 viewers.

source: PWInsider.com

Another WWE Release, New Women’s Champion Crowned, More

Daniel Pena
-
6

— A fourth release has been confirmed today in referee Scott Armstrong, 50. A number of wrestlers are said to be upset over his departure as he is well liked.

Armstrong was hired in the summer of 2006, shortly after the company launched ECW. The oldest son of “Bullet” Bob Armstrong competed for a number of years in World Championship Wrestling before hanging up his boots in 2000 to referee.

Others released today include Maria Kanellis, Gregory Helms (a/k/a The Hurricane) and Paul Burchill.

— With help from Special Guest Referee Vickie Guerrero, Michelle McCool recaptured the WWE Women’s Championship from Mickie James on tonight’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown. This marks her third title win.

— Last night’s episode of WWE Superstars scored a 0.83 cable rating, with 969,000 viewers. The replay did a 0.16 rating with 161,000 viewers.

source: PWInsider.com

Sound Off 101: Batista Guns Down Ja Rule, World Rejoices

Jason Solomon
-
8
solomonster
Solomonster Sounds Off

DOWNLOAD THE PODCAST HERE:
Solomonster Sounds Off (Episode 101)
*right-click, “Save As”, or stream it!

Est. Runtime: 1 hour, 34 minutes

| Thoughts on THE CHAMBER and a great episode of Raw with one outstanding promo package

| Some delayed reflections on the final ECW and the horror that it (was?) Abraham Washington

| The first NXT is in the books and there is reason to be positive … but also some disappointment

| Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair to wrestle on the March 8th live “Impact” show

| New PPV titles for WWE, including one of the dumbest names for a PPV maybe ever

| A clip from a movie featuring RVD getting his ass kicked and Ja Rule getting killed by Batista (oh yes!)

Want your question on the air? Send feedback to [email protected].

Wanna subscribe to the Sound Off via iTunes? CLICK HERE!

Visit The Solomonster on Twitter @ twitter.com/solomonster

Maria Kanellis Comments On Her WWE Release (Pictures)

Staff
-
15

Maria Kanellis, who was released on Friday by World Wrestling Entertainment, commented on her departure at Twitter.com/MariaLKannelis. She wrote:

“Alright guys let’s talk. I did not ask for my release. I was released. I am still going to kick ass in other areas!! I am excited about the future! But I am sad about never getting the Championship. I am sad about not getting the chance to go to Wrestlemania again. Passion is my Motivation! Time to Sing! Time to work for Charity! Time to Dance! Time to be Alive again! Much love to my FANS, my FAMILY, the DIVAS, and my FRIENDS! There is a bright new future when one door closes another opens! Bring on the Doors! Spanks and Kisses”

Here are some recent pictures of the former WWE Diva promoting her music career:

Maria Released By WWE, Daniel Bryan-NXT, Fozzy-NC

Staff
-
7

— WWE diva Maria Kanellis has been released. Maria had been with WWE since competing in the 2004 Diva Search competition (she placed 5th) and was voted the 2009 Diva of the Year.

– Daniel Bryan wrote the following on Twitter regarding the NXT premiere:

“Finally saw the NXT debut. I was proud of my performance but definitely saw areas I could improve. I need a better mentor!”

Follow Daniel Bryan & 80+ Wrestlers & Divas at PWTweets.com.

WWE Announces 2 Superstars Have Been Released

Staff
-
12

WWE.com has announced that Shane “Hurricane” Helms and Paul Burchill have been released.

Shane Helms’ most recent WWE run began back in 2008. Since then, he has served as both a backstage interviewer and wrestler and performed as both Shane Helms as well as The Hurricane. He was arrested along with Chris Jericho in late January for public intoxication and was part of the ECW brand when it folded earlier this month.

Paul Burchill had been with WWE since 2005 and was also part of the ECW brand before it folded. There was talk he’d be moving to RAW.

Both men were wished the best in all future endeavors.

Additionally, we can confirm that WWE is planning to release several more superstars in the coming weeks as part of the annual “spring cleaning” (yeah, we know it’s still February) .. Several members of the ECW roster as well as one WWE diva in particular is believed to be at risk.

Jim Ross Contract Update, WWE Stock Near 52-Week High

Staff
-
8

— WWE’s stock price is flirting with its 52-week high today, peaking at 17.08 on Friday morning (just shy of the 17.10 high). The stock price is up a whopping 89% from where it was a year ago.

— WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross posted a blog update on JRsBarBQ.com Friday morning with an update on his health and future plans in the wrestling industry. Ross wrote that nothing is finalized yet, but potential plans are in the works and he hopes to attend WrestleMania 26. Ross wants to return, but WWE’s hectic schedule might be too much for him at this point. He questions whether he can still handle traveling 51 weeks a year while performing at the level he’s expected to. “Thank God I’m feeling better but many, major decisions have to be addressed,” Ross wrote. “I can only say that time will tell over the next few weeks and the best decision will be made. This by no means that my love for the business has diminished whatsoever.”

Sting's Future, Hogan & Flair, Backstage Mood In TNA

Staff
-
0

– As announced on last night’s TNA iMPACT!, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair will come out of retirement on March 8th in a tag match that will see the two legends on opposite sides of the ring. Hulk Hogan will team with Abyss against Ric Flair and TNA champion AJ Styles.

– Despite the fact that he’s one of the biggest names that TNA has access to, one big name that’s been conspicuously absent in recent weeks is Sting.  The company knows that he’s not interested in being too involved in the product these days and his name isn’t mentioned too often by TNA officials.

– With the dust starting to settle from Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff’s arrival in TNA, the backstage atmosphere at the most recent iMPACT tapings was said to be very relaxed at the most recent TNA iMAPCT! tapigns in Orlando. Hogan and Bischoff seemed more down to earth and comfortable when working with the TNA talent. Some credit the improvement in backstage morale to Dixie Carter constantly telling people she wants to keep TNA a positive, fun work environment.

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Sting’s Future, Hogan & Flair, Backstage Mood In TNA

Staff
-
5

– As announced on last night’s TNA iMPACT!, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair will come out of retirement on March 8th in a tag match that will see the two legends on opposite sides of the ring. Hulk Hogan will team with Abyss against Ric Flair and TNA champion AJ Styles.

– Despite the fact that he’s one of the biggest names that TNA has access to, one big name that’s been conspicuously absent in recent weeks is Sting.  The company knows that he’s not interested in being too involved in the product these days and his name isn’t mentioned too often by TNA officials.

– With the dust starting to settle from Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff’s arrival in TNA, the backstage atmosphere at the most recent iMPACT tapings was said to be very relaxed at the most recent TNA iMAPCT! tapigns in Orlando. Hogan and Bischoff seemed more down to earth and comfortable when working with the TNA talent. Some credit the improvement in backstage morale to Dixie Carter constantly telling people she wants to keep TNA a positive, fun work environment.

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

*Spoilers* WWE SmackDown Tapings Results For Friday

Staff
-
14

SmackDown *SPOILERS*

Credit to Jim Fields & PWInsider.com for this live report:

WWE SmackDown!:

– Chris Jericho cuts a promo saying he’s the best and didn’t deserve what happened on Monday. Edge comes out and talked about how he’s always spearing Jericho. Jericho hit Edge with the mic but Edge speared him again.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match
– Dolph Ziggler d. John Morrison & R-Truth in a Triple Threat to qualify. Morrison hit Starship Pain on Truth but Ziggler pulled Morrison out and covered Truth.

Women’s Title Match
– Michelle McCool d. Mickie James to win the Women’s Title. Vickie Guerrero was the referee. She slapped James while she had McCool rolled up and McCool hit a head kick to win.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match
– Kane d. Drew McIntyre with a kick to the head while Drew was on the ground to qualify. Drew had cut a promo before the match saying he’d stay undefeated. I guess not.

– Miz came out and cut a promo saying that he The Big Show need opponents for WrestleMania. He told Teddy Long to work on that. Long came out and said that since Show isn’t here tonight will be singles action. It’s Miz vs. Edge tonight.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match
– Shelton Benjamin d. CM Punk to qualify. Rey distracted Punk, who turned around into Paydirt.

– Edge d. Miz with The Spear. It was a good back and forth match.

Dark Match Main Event

Edge said that he doesn’t want to wait. He wants Batista for the dark main event now!

– Edge d. Batista by DQ when Jericho hit The Codebreaker. Matt Hardy, CM Punk and kane all also hit finishers on each other for fun I guess.

BTLS Responds To Kong Suing Him For Racist Threats

Staff
-
11

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2010

The following statement is from syndicated and satellite radio host Bubba the Love Sponge®:

“This morning I was made aware of allegations made in a petition for full bill of discovery by Ms. Kia Stevens, a professional wrestler with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. The allegations in this petition are one hundred percent false. To be clear; everything contained in this petition is not true. Ms. Stevens attributing outrageous racist statements and physical threats to me is disgusting.”

“We can prove without any doubt the allegations made in this petition are false. First Ms. Stevens claims that she was called on the air, at 5:08 AM on February 10th, we are not even on the air until 6 AM Eastern time. We have phone records and eye witnesses that account for my every movement that day from 4:50 AM forward. No call was made to Ms. Stevens at all.”

“We will be pursuing all legal remedies available to us in the State of Florida to fight these deliberately malicious allegations.”

WWE Star Says Interview Comments Were Taken Out Of Context

Daniel Pena
-
3

Cryme Tyme’s Shad Gaspard posted the following comments on his MySpace account concerning the following interview published online today.

The SmackDown star claims his comments about WWE’s PG-rated product were taken out of context and only published due to the recent attention he’s garnered from possibly landing a role in the forthcoming Conan the Barbarian remake.

He wrote:

“It has been brought to my attention that there is an article about me for an interview that I did several months ago, that was supervised by the WWE. The interviewer was very cool but for some reason, has decided to take some of the comments I made out of context, and not use our full conversation. At the time of the interview, we were laughing and joking and having a good time. But now, several months later, because of all the press for Conan, he has made me sound ignorant and uneducated by excluding parts of the conversation. This is a common tool of the media. I myself enjoy WWE programming, but at the same time, sometimes find myself disagreeing with the direction things go. Nonetheless, I always understand that there is a bigger picture than what I see in front of me. As a whole, WWE has taken great strides in preserving our PG rating, and has achieved much success, seeing as our ratings have gone up and our viewership has as well. If this story were worthwhile and creditable, he would have put it out several months ago.

“I’ve always had a love hate relationship with wrestling dirt sheets. But since the last few fiascos where false information was said about me, and websites have corrected themselves and done better reporting, and websites like PW Insider, Lords of Pain, 411 Mania, and E Wrestling have done a great job deleting rumors, and reporting factual news about the wrestling industry. For that, I congratulate them, but this article about me likening the WWE to porn is pure B.S. Lets face it, the only reason it has been brought up now is because of my recent press outside of the WWE.”

Update On This Year's Hall of Fame Class, Meet Shawn Michaels

Daniel Pena
-
0

— Hart family patriarch Stu Hart and “The Million Dollar Man” are expected to headline this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class, so from a marquee standpoint compared to recent years, it will be weaker. Bret Hart will be inducting his father while DiBiase will be inducted by two of his sons, Ted Jr. and Brett.

WWE is flying the entire Hart family in from Canada for the ceremony and the DiBiase family will also likely be in attendance.

Ultimate Warrior was asked to headline this year’s ceremony since it’s taking place in his hometown of Phoenix. Warrior himself publicly stated last year he would be willing to do it, but a deal could not be reached, believed to be due to money.

— Shawn Michaels and his wife, Rebecca, will appear at Cabela’s this Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas. HBK, Rebecca, Weston and Jodi will surprise “another deserving hero with the hunt of a lifetime.” They will be joined by Cabela’s Pro Staff Weston and Jodi Clark from the Higher Grounds Outdoors television show. Click here for more information.

— Click here for Howard Finkel’s thoughts on this past Monday’s episode of Raw. He notes changing his tune on seeing Undertaker and Shawn Michaels battle again at WrestleMania.

(partial source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

Update On This Year’s Hall of Fame Class, Meet Shawn Michaels

Daniel Pena
-
2

— Hart family patriarch Stu Hart and “The Million Dollar Man” are expected to headline this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class, so from a marquee standpoint compared to recent years, it will be weaker. Bret Hart will be inducting his father while DiBiase will be inducted by two of his sons, Ted Jr. and Brett.

WWE is flying the entire Hart family in from Canada for the ceremony and the DiBiase family will also likely be in attendance.

Ultimate Warrior was asked to headline this year’s ceremony since it’s taking place in his hometown of Phoenix. Warrior himself publicly stated last year he would be willing to do it, but a deal could not be reached, believed to be due to money.

— Shawn Michaels and his wife, Rebecca, will appear at Cabela’s this Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas. HBK, Rebecca, Weston and Jodi will surprise “another deserving hero with the hunt of a lifetime.” They will be joined by Cabela’s Pro Staff Weston and Jodi Clark from the Higher Grounds Outdoors television show. Click here for more information.

— Click here for Howard Finkel’s thoughts on this past Monday’s episode of Raw. He notes changing his tune on seeing Undertaker and Shawn Michaels battle again at WrestleMania.

(partial source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

Triple H Turning Heel, Jericho Pokes Fun At McIntyre, More

Daniel Pena
-
16

sources: Wrestling Observer Newsletter, PWInsider.com

— There is talk once again of turning Triple H heel as he is looking at doing so later this year. This was something talked about last year but put on the back burner due to the most recent DX reunion.

— The Feb. 5th edition of Friday Night SmackDown scored a 1.8 broadcast rating, it’s lowest number in a while. The show drew 3,159,000 overall viewers.

— As reported yesterday, Drew McIntyre’s backstage nickname is Avatar, apparently because of the joke that his fiancé (former ECW General Manager Tiffany) controls him. This tidbit was brought to Chris Jericho’s attention with the WWE World Heavyweight Champion saying on Twitter, “Tru Dat. Looks just like a NaVi.”

Kong Sues BTLS, March 8th iMPACT! Will Have Overrun

Staff
-
4

— TNA Knockout is alleging that radio personality Bubba The Love Sponge called her at 5 a.m. on February 10th from a blocked phone number and threatened her. Kong, who got into a backstage altercation with Bubba after he said “F— Haiti” on Twitter, claims that Bubba identified himself, told her the call would be played on the radio and threatened her with some very racist and offensive comments.

She asked AT&T to give her the identity of the blocked caller so that she could take further action, but they declined to release that information. As a result, she has filed a lawsuit against both AT&T and Bubba. For more on this, visit CourthouseNews.com.

Read More: Bubba The Love Sponge Responds To Kong’s Allegations

— Spike TV has granted TNA Wrestling an 8-minute overrun for the March 8th edition of iMPACT!, the first night of the new Monday night war. No word yet on whether this is a one night deal or if they’ll run over every week like WWE RAW does. (Source: PWInsider.com)

NXT News: TV-14 Rating, Filming At FCW, Otunga's Wedding

Staff
-
0

– WWE programming is rated TV-PG and acceptable for the whole family, but Tuesday’s WWE NXT debut on SyFy was actually rated TV-14 (“Parents strongly cautioned”). According to WWE, the TV-14 rating was an error. A WWE spokesman told the Hartford Courant, “There was a miscommunication between SyFy and the programming guides. All of our programming is PG.”

– WWE will be filming a lot of NXT segments at the Florida Championship Wrestling gym in Tampa, Florida. This comes as a blessing to Steve Keirn, who runs FCW, since WWE has paid for a lot of upgrades to the gym and to the production equipment.

– WWE NXT rookie David Otunga, who has long been engaged to Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson, told E! that he would be open to marrying the one-time “American Idol” finalist in a wrestling ring.”We could do that,” said Otunga. “I don’t know if Jennifer would go for it, but I’d be up for it.”

– WWE reported on their website via listatlas.com that the WWE NXT Rookie list on Twitter is the #3 fastest growing list this week.

(Partial credit to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

NXT News: TV-14 Rating, Filming At FCW, Otunga’s Wedding

Staff
-
3

– WWE programming is rated TV-PG and acceptable for the whole family, but Tuesday’s WWE NXT debut on SyFy was actually rated TV-14 (“Parents strongly cautioned”). According to WWE, the TV-14 rating was an error. A WWE spokesman told the Hartford Courant, “There was a miscommunication between SyFy and the programming guides. All of our programming is PG.”

– WWE will be filming a lot of NXT segments at the Florida Championship Wrestling gym in Tampa, Florida. This comes as a blessing to Steve Keirn, who runs FCW, since WWE has paid for a lot of upgrades to the gym and to the production equipment.

– WWE NXT rookie David Otunga, who has long been engaged to Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson, told E! that he would be open to marrying the one-time “American Idol” finalist in a wrestling ring.”We could do that,” said Otunga. “I don’t know if Jennifer would go for it, but I’d be up for it.”

– WWE reported on their website via listatlas.com that the WWE NXT Rookie list on Twitter is the #3 fastest growing list this week.

(Partial credit to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

WWE Movie News: Batista & Randy Orton's Projects

Staff
-
0

– WWE Studios will begin working on a movie called “Killer Karma” soon. The movie has a $10 million budget and will be released in theaters, starring WWE Champion Batista. The movie is about a guy being released from prison (presumably Batista) who is trying to get his life in order with fate, friends and enemies getting in his way.

– WWE began filming the movie “Big Red” in New Orleans this week. It stars actors Ed Harris and Amy Madigan with RAW’s Randy Orton. The movie is based in the mid 1960’s and focuses on a smart 12-year-old boy whose teacher makes him work with a social outcast on a project and the outcast has an incident with a bully at school. Orton will star as the father of the bully who tries to get Harris fired him his job as teacher. Madigan will play the school’s principal. Big Red is an example of a new strategy being employed by WWE Studios, which is to cast big name Hollywood actors in their films and use WWE superstars as supporting characters.

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

WWE Movie News: Batista & Randy Orton’s Projects

Staff
-
1

– WWE Studios will begin working on a movie called “Killer Karma” soon. The movie has a $10 million budget and will be released in theaters, starring WWE Champion Batista. The movie is about a guy being released from prison (presumably Batista) who is trying to get his life in order with fate, friends and enemies getting in his way.

– WWE began filming the movie “Big Red” in New Orleans this week. It stars actors Ed Harris and Amy Madigan with RAW’s Randy Orton. The movie is based in the mid 1960’s and focuses on a smart 12-year-old boy whose teacher makes him work with a social outcast on a project and the outcast has an incident with a bully at school. Orton will star as the father of the bully who tries to get Harris fired him his job as teacher. Madigan will play the school’s principal. Big Red is an example of a new strategy being employed by WWE Studios, which is to cast big name Hollywood actors in their films and use WWE superstars as supporting characters.

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

Hulkamania Tour Company Bankrupt, Orlando Jordan Storyline

Staff
-
4

– It was reported a few weeks back that Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff wanted TNA to stop doing live events until they got everything in TNA on the right track. Their position was based on poor house show performance in November and December. Being that TNA did great live event business in January (following the successful January 4th show), the live events were never scrapped. Jeff Jarrett, Don West and Jeremy Borash are currently in charge of live events.

– The company behind the “Hulkamania: Let the Battle Begin” tour of Australia has gone bankrupt and the expected DVD of the Hulkamania tour of Australia probably won’t be released. Hulk Hogan reportedly wouldn’t allow them to market the DVD until the promoters paid him money he was still owed for the tour. The show was scheduled to air in Australia on TV a few months ago and there was talk of another tour in China, but those plans are off.

– The new bi-sexual storyline with Orlando Jordan got off to a bad start with TNA and Spike TV officials as neither of them were happy with the way Jordan’s male companion was rubbing him in the bit that didn’t air on iMPACT. The guy with Jordan is the same guy that was with him when he got fired from WWE a few years back.

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

Latest Video Blog From Matt & Jeff Hardy

Staff
-
0

Matt and Jeff Hardy have posted their latest video blog to YouTube:

Episode #13 Outside Of Cracker Barrel

“After each one of us had just gotten back into North Carolina after long road trips, it was time for myself, Jeff, & Kimo to grab some lunch at one of our favorite spots-Cracker Barrel. After lunch, we turned the Flip on, and captured whatever came out. Enjoy guys!”

Latest Video Blog From Matt & Jeff Hardy

Staff
-
4

Matt and Jeff Hardy have posted their latest video blog to YouTube:

Episode #13 Outside Of Cracker Barrel

“After each one of us had just gotten back into North Carolina after long road trips, it was time for myself, Jeff, & Kimo to grab some lunch at one of our favorite spots-Cracker Barrel. After lunch, we turned the Flip on, and captured whatever came out. Enjoy guys!”

McMahon's Reacton To Danielson, WWE Purchases Tape Library

Daniel Pena
-
0

sources: PWInsider.com, Wrestling Observer Newsletter

— WWE has reportedly purchased the Ultimate Pro Wrestling video library.

The California-based UPW — which is now defunct — was often used as a training ground for prospective wrestling talent as it was stepping stone in the development of many past and present mainstream performers including John Cena, Samoa Joe, Chris Masters, Tara (a/k/a Victoria), Christopher Daniels, Jon Heidenreich, The Miz, Melina, Sim Snuka, Mike Knox, SoCal Val and Lena Yada.

— Vince McMahon was reportedly pleased with Daniel Bryan’s performance on last night’s premiere episode of WWE NXT as he felt they made him “a star” in one night as a result of his interaction with The Miz and match with Chris Jericho.

— The final episode of ECW drew a 1.14 cable rating with 1.45 million viewers, up from its final weeks.

1...3,2623,2633,264...3,323Page 3,263 of 3,323