MSNBC reporter Lawrence O’Donnell called out Linda McMahon on World Wrestling Entertainment’s lingering steroid issue during an appearance on Morning Joe last week, claiming she “made money off the blood of people who destroyed themselves for a living for you.”
The former WWE Superstar responded by saying O’Donnell was “behind the times.” She cited the company’s drug testing policy, cardio testing, and even noted padding around the ring. After McMahon finished responding, O’Donnell thanked her for giving him a situation where he can ask a politician about WWE. However, he went back on attack mode moments later by saying WWE gets away with drug problems because “everyone thinks your business is a joke.”
You can watch the 7-minute exchange below, courtesy of MSNBC.com:
Credit to the Wrestling Observer for some of the information used in this report:
— Creative has begun tossing around ideas for this year’s annual post-WrestleMania WWE Draft. Current plans see both Jack Swagger and Big Show being sent over to SmackDown.
— The final episode of ECW will see Christian defend his ECW Championship against Ezekiel Jackson in an Extreme Rules Match and Yoshi Tatsu & Goldust team up to face Big Show & The Miz for the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship.
Credit to the Wrestling Observer for some of the information used in this report:
— Creative has begun tossing around ideas for this year’s annual post-WrestleMania WWE Draft. Current plans see both Jack Swagger and Big Show being sent over to SmackDown.
— The final episode of ECW will see Christian defend his ECW Championship against Ezekiel Jackson in an Extreme Rules Match and Yoshi Tatsu & Goldust team up to face Big Show & The Miz for the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship.
— Recently released WWE grappler Eric Escobar, who has since resurfaced in Puerto Rico, recently cut a promo on television knocking his former employer, describing the company as “disorganized” behind-the-scenes. He also said he wasn’t told he would be paired with Vickie Guerrero on television as her new boyfriend until John Cena told him.
The former SmackDown Superstar equated WWE to a home where the mother wanted one thing, the father wanted something else, and the kids wanting another thing.
Apparently saving face, he later said in the following promo that he left the company on good terms with the door open for a return.
— Lilian Garcia will be appearing on The Special Delivery Show on XM 202/Sirius 197 Saturday night at around 9:45 p.m. Visit www.SpecialDeliveryShow.com for more information.
In other Garcia news, the former WWE ring announcer recently took part in a photo shoot for NOH8, an organization in favor of equal rights marriages. Her photo was released this past week at the following link.
— WWE Hall of Famer “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, who was arrested on suspicion of DUI last July in Los Angeles, has since had the charge expunged.
Unified Tag champion The Miz was interviewed by Kevin Eck of the Baltimore Sun this week and told a story about getting kicked out of the WWE locker room for 6 months shortly after he joined the company. Miz said:
“I got kicked out for eating a piece of chicken over a guy’s bag in the locker room, and I got kicked out for six months. I had to find a place to shower, to use the restroom, to change. I’ve had it pretty rough in the WWE just because I’m an outsider, and WWE is kind of like a close-knit family or like a fraternity. Once you’re an outsider trying to lurk in, they will haze you and haze you and try to see if you’re up for the task or if you’re just going to quit. I’m not a quitter. I’m more of a person that says bring it on.â€
Miz also talks about older guys like Hogan and Flair still wrestling, how the business has evolved in recent years, his goals and more. To read the full interview, visit BaltimoreSun.com.
Follow The Miz & 80 other wrestlers and divas on Twitter at PWTweets.com.
Credit to the Wrestling Observer for some of the information used in this report:
— Regarding the future of ECW talent stemming from WWE’s decision to pull the entire roster from Tuesday nights in support of the new NXT series, the feeling is that most of the wrestlers will find its way onto other brands rather than be released. As the storyline goes, ECW talent will become “free agents” once NXT debuts and can choose to join either Raw or SmackDown.
While roster changes have not yet been finalized, the plan at last word was to keep key partnerships such as Zack Ryder & Rosa Mendes and William Regal & Ezekiel Jackson together when sending them to Raw or SmackDown.
At least in the short-term, most of the ECW talent will be used on WWE Superstars rather than Raw or Smackdown.
— WWE The Music: A New Day sold 5,988 units in its first week of release, reaching No. 94 on Billboard. However, it should be noted that WWE’s latest compilation album was primarily pushed for downloading on Amazon.com rather than CD purchase.
— Last week’s episode of WWE Superstars drew a 0.97 cable rating with 1.05 million viewers, setting the show’s all-time audience record.
Credit to the Wrestling Observer for some of the information used in this report:
— Regarding the future of ECW talent stemming from WWE’s decision to pull the entire roster from Tuesday nights in support of the new NXT series, the feeling is that most of the wrestlers will find its way onto other brands rather than be released. As the storyline goes, ECW talent will become “free agents” once NXT debuts and can choose to join either Raw or SmackDown.
While roster changes have not yet been finalized, the plan at last word was to keep key partnerships such as Zack Ryder & Rosa Mendes and William Regal & Ezekiel Jackson together when sending them to Raw or SmackDown.
At least in the short-term, most of the ECW talent will be used on WWE Superstars rather than Raw or Smackdown.
— WWE The Music: A New Day sold 5,988 units in its first week of release, reaching No. 94 on Billboard. However, it should be noted that WWE’s latest compilation album was primarily pushed for downloading on Amazon.com rather than CD purchase.
— Last week’s episode of WWE Superstars drew a 0.97 cable rating with 1.05 million viewers, setting the show’s all-time audience record.
– WWE developmental star and former Ring of Honor champion Bryan Danielson has a new name in Florida Championship Wrestling. At last night’s television tapings, he was introduced as “Daniel Bryan.” WWE almost always requires that they own the ring names of their talent, so Danielson likely refused to sign over the rights to the “Bryan Danielson” name – thus, Daniel Bryan.
– John Morrison worked the SmackDown/ECW live event last night in Ecuador, teaming with Matt Hardy in the opening match of the night. Morrison and Hardy defeated The Hart Dynasty. Morrison appeared to be fine and showed no signs of a broken ankle. As we reported yesterday, Morrison’s claims on Twitter that he broke his ankle were not true and he was simply “working the Internet fans.” (Editor’s note: Man, he really got us good!)
– Mickie James will make her live concert debut on February 22nd in Nashville, TN as a part of the Dustin Wells Gift of Music concert. Mickie will share the stage with country music stars Rascal Flatts, Kellie Pickler, Jason Michael Carroll, Keith Anderson and Little Big Town.
— MSN.com reports that WWE’s fourth quarter 2009 earnings results came in below expectations of most financial analysis. Analysts expected $0.18 per share in Net Income, but WWE reported $0.15. Analysts also predicted $123.8 million in Q4 2009 revenue, but WWE reported $117.3 million. The stock price is down approximately 1% today, so the market didn’t punish them too bad for falling short.
— Former XFL president and long-time WWE employee Basil V. DeVito, Jr. has been promoted to the Board of Directors. He will fill in former CEO Linda McMahon. He has been with WWE since 1985 and ha served as WWE’s Business Strategy adviser since 2003.
— WWE is advertising a huge main event for next week’s 2/19 Supershow at the Allstate Arena in Chicago. World Hwt. Champion The Undertaker will team with John Cena & Edge against WWE Champion Sheamus, Batista & Randy Orton. (Source: Keith Lipinski).
— MSN.com reports that WWE’s fourth quarter 2009 earnings results came in below expectations of most financial analysis. Analysts expected $0.18 per share in Net Income, but WWE reported $0.15. Analysts also predicted $123.8 million in Q4 2009 revenue, but WWE reported $117.3 million. The stock price is down approximately 1% today, so the market didn’t punish them too bad for falling short.
— Former XFL president and long-time WWE employee Basil V. DeVito, Jr. has been promoted to the Board of Directors. He will fill in former CEO Linda McMahon. He has been with WWE since 1985 and ha served as WWE’s Business Strategy adviser since 2003.
— WWE is advertising a huge main event for next week’s 2/19 Supershow at the Allstate Arena in Chicago. World Hwt. Champion The Undertaker will team with John Cena & Edge against WWE Champion Sheamus, Batista & Randy Orton. (Source: Keith Lipinski).
— Earlier this week, Bobby Lashley’s superstar profile was removed from the TNA website, leading many to speculate that he was leaving the company to pursue his MMA career full time. Lashley posted a brief message on his LashleyNutrition.com site telling fans to stay tuned:
“Alot of fans are asking me about my future in wrestling. I will address everything at a later date. Thank you for the support. – Bobby”
— In an interview with Fanhouse.com, TNA star Mick Foley had some positive things to say about the often-criticized head writer of TNA, Vince Russo. “I think even Vince Russo would probably agree that him being world champion was possibly not the best idea in the world. But he’s a very creative guy,” Foley said. “He loves to write. He loves to make characters and I think people who, you know the people who chant ‘fire Russo’ really have no idea how large of a contribution he made to the wrestling product that they sometimes seem to like. I’m talking about the wrestling product overall as in this generation of wrestling. I think he was one of the key guys right up there with the top on-air talents.”
— Earlier this week, Bobby Lashley’s superstar profile was removed from the TNA website, leading many to speculate that he was leaving the company to pursue his MMA career full time. Lashley posted a brief message on his LashleyNutrition.com site telling fans to stay tuned:
“Alot of fans are asking me about my future in wrestling. I will address everything at a later date. Thank you for the support. – Bobby”
— In an interview with Fanhouse.com, TNA star Mick Foley had some positive things to say about the often-criticized head writer of TNA, Vince Russo. “I think even Vince Russo would probably agree that him being world champion was possibly not the best idea in the world. But he’s a very creative guy,” Foley said. “He loves to write. He loves to make characters and I think people who, you know the people who chant ‘fire Russo’ really have no idea how large of a contribution he made to the wrestling product that they sometimes seem to like. I’m talking about the wrestling product overall as in this generation of wrestling. I think he was one of the key guys right up there with the top on-air talents.”
WWE star John Morrison claims to have broken his ankle at Tuesday’s SmackDown tapings, but that is not the case.
Morrison’s match with R-Truth was cut short after Morrison went down after leaping over Truth. Morrison was helped to the back by Truth, a WWE trainer and the referee.
Morrison posted a message on his new Twitter account stating:
“My ankle is broken in three places, but I’m just going to walk it off- on the flight to Quito”
To update the story – Morrison is working the Internet fans. He traveled to South America for SmackDown & ECW live event tour and will not miss any dates.
He’s currently scheduled to participate in the SmackDown Elimination Chamber PPV match on 2/21.
As reported here this morning, WWE’s 2009 financial results revealed a sharp decline in the 2009 Survivor Series PPV buyrate (down 26% from 2008) while the company’s new gimmick-themed events (Hell in a Cell, Bragging Rights, TLC) all did better than their 2008 counterparts.
Vince McMahon stated during this morning’s WWE conference call that the WWE Survivor Series title is “obsolete” and has “outlasted its usage.” He said WWE does not intend on using the name moving forward. As a result, it appears WWE is considering more gimick-themed PPVs, including several concepts used back in WCW.
In a survey sent out to the WWE Universe this morning (link) WWE asks fans what their level of interest is in the following potential PPV event themes:
Tournament Event: Single elimination “bracket style” tournament where Superstars would compete in multiple matches during the night to become the tournament winner.
Street Fight Event: Main events would include”street fight” matches where there are no disqualifications and pin-falls count anywhere. Superstars often compete in normal street clothes.
Legends Event: Match participants would include WWE Legends from the past.
Money in the Bank Event The main event “Money in the Bank” match requires Superstars to climb a ladder and retrieve a briefcase hung high above the ring. The winner can “cash in” the briefcase for a championship title shot throughout the year. Qualifying matches earlier in the event will determine participants for the “Money in the Bank” match.
WWE Draft Event WWE’s annual Draft where Superstars and Divas learn which brand they’ll be a part of for the next year. The Draft is often the beginning of new conflicts and matchups.
Battle Bowl Event Random tag-teams compete together – sometimes arch rivals – with the winning teams being put in a 2-ring Battle Royal. The winner could potentially receive a championship title match.
Roulette Event Main event match stipulations would be determined by the spin of a roulette-type wheel.
War Games Event Teams of 5 collide in 2 cages. 2 participants begin the match with a new participant added every 5 minutes. This process is alternated between teams until all members from both teams are present.
As reported earlier, WWE’s 2009 financial results revealed that the most recent Survivor Series PPV was down a sharp 26%
During an investor conference call this morning, WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon revealed that after 23 years, the Survivor Series PPV concept has come to an end and will not be used again. McMahon stated:
“We think that Survivor Series is obsolete, as far as that title is concerned. It was something that worked many, many years ago, in terms of a creative standpoint, various teams competing. That really is not advantageous as the consumer now looks as what actually they are buying. And it’s such a broad … Survivor Series yes, many years ago, was one of the original four pay-per-views, but it’s outlasted its usage and it is one of the things in terms of re-branding, this year and going forward, that will be re-branded. No longer will we have that title, Survivor Series.”
WWE Survivor Series debuted back in 1987 and for many years featured primarily team elimination matches. The show had lost much of its identity in recent years and will likely be replaced next year with a new gimmick-themed event.
With the release of WWE’s fourth quarter 2009 financial data earlier today, we have details on the performance of the company’s four Q4 PPVs. For the three months ending December 31, 2009, WWE’s PPV revenue rose from $15.9 million in 2008 to $16.3 million in 2009.
The overall increase in Q4 PPV buys is attributed to a the success of WWE’s new gimmick-themed PPVs, which out-performed their 2008 counterparts. However, this year’s Survivor Series took a sharp hit, which kept the revenue increase to only $400,000 for the quarter over 2008.
Here’s the data:
Hell in a Cell did 283,000 buys, up 7% from No Mercy 2008 (261,000).
Bragging Rights did 181,000 buys, up 15% from Cyber Sunday 2008 (153,000).
Survivor Series totally bombed. The show did 235,000 buys, down 26% from 2008 (319,000)
Tables, Ladders & Chairs did 228,000 buys, up 15% from Armageddon 2008 (193,000).
World Wrestling Entertainment has released its financial results for the final quarter and entire year of 2009.
To view a PDF file of the complete report from corporate.wwe.com, click here. From the report:
WWE® Reports 2009 Fourth Quarter Results For the year, Net Income Increases 11%
STAMFORD, Conn., February 11, 2010 – World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:WWE) today announced financial results for its fourth quarter ended December 31, 2009. Revenues totaled $117.3 million as compared to $125.4 million in the prior year quarter. Operating income was $17.8 million as compared to $23.3 million in the prior year quarter. Net income was $11.2 million, or $0.15 per share, as compared to $13.6 million, or $0.18 per share, in the prior year quarter.
“We concluded a strong year with solid performance in the fourth quarter, which was highlighted by 7% growth in Adjusted EBITDA. For the quarter, we generated revenue growth and improved margins in our live event, pay-per-view, and television businesses,†stated Vince McMahon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “For the full year, we achieved a 13% increase in Adjusted EBITDA.   The results reflected the significant improvements we have made in productivity and a heightened fiscal discipline, which we intend to sustain going forward. The increased operating leverage we have established will enable us to drive greater profits as revenue growth returns. We are confident in our ability to achieve our targeted earnings growth.†The WWE business outlook targets average annual earnings growth of 15% to 20% over the 2009- 12 period.
Summary Results for the Twelve Months Ended
Total revenues through the year ended December 31, 2009 were $475.2 million as compared to $526.5 million in the prior year. Operating income for the current year was $77.1 million versus $70.3 million in the prior year. Net income was $50.3 million, or $0.68 per share, as compared to $45.4 million, or $0.62 per share, in the prior year. EBITDA was $91.6 million for the current year as compared to $83.4 million in the prior year. Current year expenses included the benefit of $8.3 million in tax credits associated with our television and digital media production, an increase of $7.4 million in bad debt expense related to a prior business partner and a $2.2 million restructuring charge associated with a 10% reduction in staff. As previously disclosed, the prior year results included the recognition of a $6.4 million advance related to a multi-year contract with a book publisher, an expense of $3.5 million associated with our McMahon’s Million Dollar Mania brand awareness campaign and a $1.9 million charge for our film See No Evil. Excluding these items, Adjusted EBITDA was $92.9 million for the current year as compared to $82.4 million in the prior year. (See Schedule of Adjustments in Supplemental Information)
Credit to the Pro Wrestling Torch for some of the information used in this report:
Though they may be big stars on television and draw relatively high ratings, that doesn’t necessarily translate into big checks for the stars of TNA’s Knockouts division.
In light of Awesome Kong’s contractual dispute with TNA Wrestling, multiple sources have noted that the average pay for a female performer in the organization is between $200 to $400 per appearance. However, it’s widely assumed that Christy Hemme and Lisa Marie Varon (a/k/a Tara) make more money due to their past ties with World Wrestling Entertainment with sources believing that Kong makes slightly more than $400 per shot, which is considered a “high end salary” in the No. 2 wrestling organization in the world.
It’s interesting to note that a female performer who made the “high end salary” of $400, exclusively appeared on television, and appeared on every single television event held over the course of a calender year would only garner $26,000 at most. Although, that number comes in before one figures in road expenses, wardrobe expenses and taxes. Regarding travel, TNA solely covers airfare, leaving talent to cover the rest including lodging. Also note, there is no downside guarantee, thus meaning talent only get paid when they are used.
With that being said, TNA holds live events most weeks and permits talent to seek independent bookings, thus allowing them to garner more money. Furthermore, television exposure greatly increases a wrestler’s booking fee, most especially for talent previously not seen on national television.
Regarding Kong, she has asked for a raise on several occasions but company officials have apparently not honored her request despite her lofty standing on television. Kong reportedly blew up last spring when she found out that then newcomer Brutus Magnus was being paid more than her.
It was reported recently that Kong has regularly vented backstage about the company spending frivolously on newcomers. Since then, multiple sources have confirmed that she was very upset with Ric Flair’s wife being treated to limousine service on the company’s dime at a recent show. TNA never grants limo service to its female performers.
It is believed that Kong has several years remaining on her contract with TNA. She refused to appear on the company’s recent UK tour and at time it was widely assumed that she was upset with Bubba the Love Sponge’s controversial remarks concerning the country of Haiti. However, multiple sources say the issue has since been resolved and that her ongoing problems with the organization are related to pay.
The primary reason Gail Kim left TNA for World Wrestling Entertainment was due to the significant discrepancy between the amount of money being offered by both companies. According to multiple sources, Kim did not want to leave TNA, but felt she had no choice but to bolt for WWE due to the massive difference in pay.
Hulk Hogan was a recent guest on the Monday Night Mayhem radio show. Hosts Big Mosh, Blade, Todd Vincent, Chaz spoke to the Nature Boy about a number of topics and you can listen to an audio clip (MP3) of the entire interview at MondayNightMayhem.com. Here are the highlights of what Hogan said about:
How He & Bischoff’s Experience in WCW Will Help Them In TNA: “It’s not a cookie-cutter thing…you just lock down like you did when you ran against Vince with Ted Turner. I thought that would work just to work it in and make a crack, but things are different than they two-three months ago because of the economy. When you figure in the networks & the head of Viacom, and they’re watching the minute by minute numbers for 18-34, it’s not like you could just plug in the old NWO and do it like we did when we punked Vince out. It’s ever-changing moving parts, so we did learn from our mistakes; like when you get successful sometimes, you can get too full of yourself. Believe me, we are so grateful to be working with Dixie, we are so grateful to be with TNA, such a young company that’s got ‘more moves than a bowl of Jello.’ It’s not a public company where you gotta’ sit down with people to talk about votes & what we aren’t going to do. We don’t have a bunch of people that don’t know the wrestling business running the company. We have learned from our mistakes, and we are learning, almost like on the job training, because some of the stuff that worked two weeks ago, didn’t work last week, so we’re digging in and have our ears & eyes to the ground.”
When TNA iMAPCT! Will Move To Monday Nights: “All week we have been getting good news, and we are pushing hard in that direction. There’s stuff that’s already been scheduled, there’s budgeting issues, there’s shows for the new season, so it’s not like ‘Ok, let’s go live on Monday nights.’ Nothing is that easy. A lot of the fans, a lot of the ‘smart marks’ are saying we should go live Monday nights. They have no idea what it entails, I’m just now having people set me down after 30 years of wrestling and go ‘Guy, you know what it’s all about.’ Now you’re dealing with the network and the way the audience flips & changes…it’s almost like that metal that comes out of ‘The Terminator.’ Right when you think you have it figured out, it starts to mold, and manipulate, and shape. Pushing hard for Mondays, trying to get there, a lot of variables, but it looks much better than it did yesterday.”
If He’ll Wrestle In TNA: “I learned one thing in Australia, and that was I shouldn’t be in the ring anymore. The way my body is beat up, I was definitely on a wing & a prayer in Australia. I just needed to air my shorts out after the crazy divorce & legal stuff. If you could imagine jumping out of a plane without a parachute and know hopefully that you are going to land safely & being naked…that’s how it was in Australia. I needed to get out of the house, get back in the ring, and feel that love & that crazy vibe even if I was dragging a leg or limping around. I found out in Australia that me wrestling in a ring in not the place to be, so if I was to wrestle in TNA, the hardest part of my night is walking down that ramp and staying straight-faced, because my back, and my hips, and legs hurt so much. If you watch closely, I’m doing a bit of a shuffle out there, so if I was crazy enough to wrestle in that ring, they might be using a broom & a dustpan to sweep out the ring at the end of the match, so not anticipating going in the ring.”
John Cena Saying He’s Wasting His Time in TNA: “John’s doing what he’s gonna’ do take care of his family, true to his paycheck. We see John Cena all the time at the (Tampa Bay) Rays games with me & Brian Knobbs when we’re up in the box. He’s just doing what he has to do to cover his ass brother. You never know, one day John Cena may be working for me. Vince McMahon could be working for me…who knows?”
Big Changes & New Talent In TNA: “I’ve got all kinds of people from the WWE calling me, wanting to hang out, wanting to talk, wanting to fell me out. This thing is really going down. I mean whether you like it or not, I’m not looking for the players like back in the day. When I was running, we had these crazy big contracts, these big money contracts, but times have changed. At the end of the day, I’m looking for these guys who want to help me build a company. I’m looking for these guys that invest their hearts & their souls like Samoa Joe said…’whatever it takes.’ Like AJ Styles said, ‘whatever it takes, with no limitations.’ Those are the type of guys I’m looking for to build this company and step in. Jeff Hardy, Rob Van Dam, if (John) Cena wants to play that game down the road, he can get real. I’m looking for guys who can get real with me & not a bunch of posers.”
Vince Russo: “My mother told me if you can’t say something good, don’t say nothing at all. Sometimes you have to look at the big picture, and sometimes if things get real nasty, you don’t want to step in shiznit, you want to step over it. Because I’m getting along with TNA right now, I’m not saying I get along with Vince Russo. I’m not saying I get along with everybody, but the big picture is for me to make a left-handed, back handed comment about this situation right now, I haven’t read his book, and I didn’t hear the radio interview. But all I know is if you’re gonna’ tell the truth, you gotta’ tell all the truth, not just part of it, and that’s all I’m gonna say.”
Hulk Hogan was a recent guest on the Monday Night Mayhem radio show. Hosts Big Mosh, Blade, Todd Vincent, Chaz spoke to the Nature Boy about a number of topics and you can listen to an audio clip (MP3) of the entire interview at MondayNightMayhem.com. Here are the highlights of what Hogan said about:
How He & Bischoff’s Experience in WCW Will Help Them In TNA: “It’s not a cookie-cutter thing…you just lock down like you did when you ran against Vince with Ted Turner. I thought that would work just to work it in and make a crack, but things are different than they two-three months ago because of the economy. When you figure in the networks & the head of Viacom, and they’re watching the minute by minute numbers for 18-34, it’s not like you could just plug in the old NWO and do it like we did when we punked Vince out. It’s ever-changing moving parts, so we did learn from our mistakes; like when you get successful sometimes, you can get too full of yourself. Believe me, we are so grateful to be working with Dixie, we are so grateful to be with TNA, such a young company that’s got ‘more moves than a bowl of Jello.’ It’s not a public company where you gotta’ sit down with people to talk about votes & what we aren’t going to do. We don’t have a bunch of people that don’t know the wrestling business running the company. We have learned from our mistakes, and we are learning, almost like on the job training, because some of the stuff that worked two weeks ago, didn’t work last week, so we’re digging in and have our ears & eyes to the ground.”
When TNA iMAPCT! Will Move To Monday Nights: “All week we have been getting good news, and we are pushing hard in that direction. There’s stuff that’s already been scheduled, there’s budgeting issues, there’s shows for the new season, so it’s not like ‘Ok, let’s go live on Monday nights.’ Nothing is that easy. A lot of the fans, a lot of the ‘smart marks’ are saying we should go live Monday nights. They have no idea what it entails, I’m just now having people set me down after 30 years of wrestling and go ‘Guy, you know what it’s all about.’ Now you’re dealing with the network and the way the audience flips & changes…it’s almost like that metal that comes out of ‘The Terminator.’ Right when you think you have it figured out, it starts to mold, and manipulate, and shape. Pushing hard for Mondays, trying to get there, a lot of variables, but it looks much better than it did yesterday.”
If He’ll Wrestle In TNA: “I learned one thing in Australia, and that was I shouldn’t be in the ring anymore. The way my body is beat up, I was definitely on a wing & a prayer in Australia. I just needed to air my shorts out after the crazy divorce & legal stuff. If you could imagine jumping out of a plane without a parachute and know hopefully that you are going to land safely & being naked…that’s how it was in Australia. I needed to get out of the house, get back in the ring, and feel that love & that crazy vibe even if I was dragging a leg or limping around. I found out in Australia that me wrestling in a ring in not the place to be, so if I was to wrestle in TNA, the hardest part of my night is walking down that ramp and staying straight-faced, because my back, and my hips, and legs hurt so much. If you watch closely, I’m doing a bit of a shuffle out there, so if I was crazy enough to wrestle in that ring, they might be using a broom & a dustpan to sweep out the ring at the end of the match, so not anticipating going in the ring.”
John Cena Saying He’s Wasting His Time in TNA: “John’s doing what he’s gonna’ do take care of his family, true to his paycheck. We see John Cena all the time at the (Tampa Bay) Rays games with me & Brian Knobbs when we’re up in the box. He’s just doing what he has to do to cover his ass brother. You never know, one day John Cena may be working for me. Vince McMahon could be working for me…who knows?”
Big Changes & New Talent In TNA: “I’ve got all kinds of people from the WWE calling me, wanting to hang out, wanting to talk, wanting to fell me out. This thing is really going down. I mean whether you like it or not, I’m not looking for the players like back in the day. When I was running, we had these crazy big contracts, these big money contracts, but times have changed. At the end of the day, I’m looking for these guys who want to help me build a company. I’m looking for these guys that invest their hearts & their souls like Samoa Joe said…’whatever it takes.’ Like AJ Styles said, ‘whatever it takes, with no limitations.’ Those are the type of guys I’m looking for to build this company and step in. Jeff Hardy, Rob Van Dam, if (John) Cena wants to play that game down the road, he can get real. I’m looking for guys who can get real with me & not a bunch of posers.”
Vince Russo: “My mother told me if you can’t say something good, don’t say nothing at all. Sometimes you have to look at the big picture, and sometimes if things get real nasty, you don’t want to step in shiznit, you want to step over it. Because I’m getting along with TNA right now, I’m not saying I get along with Vince Russo. I’m not saying I get along with everybody, but the big picture is for me to make a left-handed, back handed comment about this situation right now, I haven’t read his book, and I didn’t hear the radio interview. But all I know is if you’re gonna’ tell the truth, you gotta’ tell all the truth, not just part of it, and that’s all I’m gonna say.”
— Once again, Shawn Michaels is planning on taking time off following WrestleMania. He will then return in August in time for SummerSlam.
— It would appear that World Wrestling Entertainment has parted ways with developmental women’s wrestler Jenny Quinn (a/k/a Penny Cash) as her photo has been removed from Florida Championship Wrestling’s roster page.
Quinn is a Tampa-based model the company signed in 2008. She tore her anterior cruciate ligament last May and had just recently returned to action.
— Tickets for the SmackDown taping on April 6th in Chicago go on sale February 20th at 11 a.m. (Thanks to Devin Cutting)
(credit to the Wrestling Observer for some of the information used in this report)
— Universal Studios has updated the TNA schedule on their website. Here are the changes and additions:
* The TNA tapings in early March have been moved back to March 8th & 9th, so the live special on March 1st appears to be off.
* The TNA taping on March 24th has been canceled.
* TNA will be holding tapings on April 5th, 6th, 19th & 20th.
(Thanks to Devin Cutting)
— Angelina Love posted a note on her MySpace account today making it perfectly clear that she does not have an account on Twitter. She wrote:
I’ve made this a status update before, but I guess people didn’t read it right or didn’t see it because I’m still getting messages & questions about this……..
I DO NOT HAVE A TWITTER ACCOUNT!!!!
I DO NOT HAVE A TWITTER ACCOUNT!!!!
If you are twatting with someone who says they are Angelina Love, Angel Williams or Lauren Williams (or any mix of those names) you are twatting with a poser! I have no plans to get a Twitter account either so I hope that clears it up.
— Samoa Joe, Hernandez and Sylvan Grenier headline for Top of he World Wrestling on Mar. 5 at the Pierre Charboneau Center in Montreal.
TMZ.com caught up with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson this week and asked the former WWE superstar who owns the rights to his signature catch phrases, such as “Do you Smell What The Rock is Cookin.”Johnson said he shares ownership of the phrases with World Wrestling Entertainment. They also share ownership of the the name “The Rock,” as well.
The camera guy then got a little fresh with People’s Champ and asked him why he used to wear “panties” in the ring. Johnson clarified that he wore “trunks” and that maybe it was just him dreaming of The Rock wearing panties. He then got into his $180,000+ Bentley coupe.
Bret Hart spoke to Alez Marvez of Scrippsnews.com this week in a lengthy interview discussing his return to World Wrestling Entertainment. He says his parents and Owen Hart would say “hell froze over” if they were still around to see him return to WWE after a 14 year absence.
Hart teased that his current storyline with Vince McMahon would culminate with a match at WrestleMania. Despite the stroke he suffered back in 2002 and the fact that McMahon is 64 years old, he can still move around well enough to put on a good match.
“I’ll never put on the performance I want to have, but I’ll be able to do enough to entertain and give a good show. I’m very careful about what I do and allow myself to do and what can be done to me. WWE has gone through great effort to ensure all that and make sure I’m comfortable with everything.”
One thing he was unsure of when considering a return to WWE was how his past issues with Shawn Michaels would come into play.
“When I came back, I didn’t know if the whole thing with Shawn would erupt again. The truth is, Shawn has been real good with the whole thing. You can tell this is a weight lifted off his back, my back and I think even Vince to a certain degree. It feels like a new start.”
The Montreal Screwjob was a long time ago, but the situation set off such shock waves in the industry that even today, many fans can’t tell what aspects of his current WWE run are part of the storyline.
“I’m trying to turn a negative into a positive. I think this is good for wrestling fans. I know for a lot people this whole thing seems quite real. If I can deliver realism in today’s wrestling, I’ll think I’ve done a good job.”
– WWE officials are impressed with Vance Archer as his push is expected to continue.
– Former WCW World Heavyweight Champion Ron Simmons’s name has been discussed for induction into this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class. He worked what was billed as his retirement match this past weekend in Cedartown, Georgia. The standout collegiate athlete will be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame on Feb. 20.
– Tommy Dreamer posted a blog on WWE Universe in which he offered additional comments on ECW’s final television shows:
“Some people are happy, some people are sad about ECW going off the air,” Dreamer wrote. “The Original die hard ECW fans knew it wasn’t the same. That Original ECW was a magical time in wrestling and can never be duplicated. If you go back in the archives of my blogs,you can read many opinions of those days.
“I think the new ECW had some great expectations, but had some extreme shoes to fill in. Let us not pass negative judgement on the show. As a fan I have enjoyed many moments of ECW TV( except for anything involving Abraham Washington or (Vladimir) Koslov no offense). To read the full blog, visit WWE.com.
