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FTR Want To Challenge For The NWA Tag Titles, NWA Responds

Chris Stephens
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Dax Harwood of FTR has stated multiple times on social media now that he would like to challenge for the NWA World Tag Team Championships. The NWA seems on-board with this idea as well.

Harwood posted a video of The Midnight Express vs The Fantastics and a follower of his asked about FTR possibly competing in the Crockett Cup.

“That is incredibly important to us; especially now. The lineage of the NWA is deep & historic. We’d love the opportunity to fight for the belts too.”

The NWA Twitter account responded to Harwood’s comments.

This is the second time an interaction like this between FTR and the NWA has taken place. Last month, the NWA replied to a comment by Harwood about the history of the NWA tag belts. They noted that perhaps Tony Khan and Billy Corgan could have a discussion about this.

It was also noted on Twitter, that the NWA could bring back the Crockett Cup. The tournament was cancelled last year due to the global pandemic.

Harwood responded to the NWA’s comments as well.

Another noted tag-team wrestler, Xavier Woods, would like to attend any NWA tapings with FTR involved.

“Is this happening in atl? I’m right down the street from the studio,” he Tweeted.

Kyle O’Reilly Comments On Recent NXT Releases

Chris Stephens
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Kyle O’Reilly’s longtime tag-team partner Bobby Fish was amongst the recent cuts from the NXT roster. Before they were both in the Undisputed Era, Fish and O’Reilly were known as reDRagon and won titles in ROH and New Japan Pro Wrestling.

O’Reilly took to Twitter to comment on the recent NXT roster cuts.

“The word of the day is “Bummer”. It was a bummer to see my friends lose their jobs but I take solace in knowing they will all end up OK and doing great things. Still though, major bummer.”

Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish – reDRagon

Fish and O’Reilly first began teaming together in 2012 under the name reDRagon. They have won titles in NJPW, ROH, and NXT.

They are 2x IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. They won the Super Junior Tag Tournament in 2014 as well. In Ring of Honor, they are 3x World Tag Team Champions and won the Tag Wars tournament in 2014 as well.

Along with other members of the Undisputed Era, they won the NXT tag titles 3x. They also won the NXT tag team of the year award in both 2018 and 2019. Pro Wrestling Illustrated voted them the Tag Team of the Year in 2019.

Peyton Royce Was Preparing to Ask for WWE Release

Alex Laybourne
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Peyton Royce was a woman who spent her entire life working towards joining the WWE. Recently, she sat down for an appearance on Insight with Chris van Vliet, where she talked about her wrestling journey.

For Royce, WWE was her dream job from when she was just 10 years. She held onto her vision and her dream, refusing to give it up for anything.

“I wouldn’t go to parties. I would be working out, a fifteen-year-old girl working out around my house. Because I thought ‘the fitter the better.’ And then I would take modeling lessons, I would do modeling competitions because when I was growing up it was the Divas era. And I thought I had to know how to model, I had to know how-to walk-in heels, and how to wear a dress and how to do my makeup and my hair. So, I took lessons to learn how to do that so I could just check off every single box and leave no stone unturned. There was nothing getting in my way.”

Peyton Royce Learned WWE Is Not Necessarily the Promised Land

In total, Peyton Royce spent 8 years with WWE and while her heel persona certainly resonated with fans, things never really panned out the way she envisioned as a child. As she spoke, Royce admitted to feeling increasingly unhappy during her final year(s) with the company.

“I really struggled when Brodie [Lee] passed,” Peyton Royce admitted. “I struggled with the big picture and putting things into perspective and was really unhappy at work, really unhappy. A few times I thought to myself I can’t do this anymore and I am going to ask for my release. A few times I was in the locker room, some sort of creative would change and it would just, I would be just so upset. Rhea Ripley of all people had to talk me off the ledge because I was about to walk into talent relations and say ‘I’m out. I don’t want to do this anymore.’ I was so unhappy. So, the release was a blessing in disguise. I was so close to asking for my release, but I never actually pulled the trigger.”

Peyton Royce has now served her 90 days cooling-off period and is free to sign for any promotion. With her husband (Shawn Spears) settled within AEW, it is not too crazy to hypothesize is being her ultimate destination also.

Kurt Angle Wanted a Retirement Match Against John Cena

Alex Laybourne
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It is the Kurt Angle time of year. The Olympics have just finished and a gold medal-winning wrestler is weighing up the idea of a run with the WWE. Everybody knows Angle’s story, and how he won an Olympic gold medal with a broken frigging neck.

As one Olympic champion looks to start his career, another took the time recently to ponder the ending of his. Talking on his Kurt Angle Podcast, Angle discussed his long history of neck injuries and admitted that he is going to have to have neck fusion surgery at some point down the road.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CSMj9Y7rFcx/

“I have a lot of motor skill problems in my hands, my fingers because of my neck. Numbness down my arms, I have a lot of pain in my neck. I’ve been putting off fusion surgery for gosh, 15 years. I might not be able to put it off for much longer, I’m eventually going to have to have fusion.”

Neck injuries aside, Kurt Angle enjoyed a long run in a WWE ring, and a wrestling career spanning over forty years. Hanging up his boots in a quick match against Baron Corbin. Corbin was not Angle’s ideal choice for a final opponent but did what was necessary as an ageing star.

Kurt Angle is the Man Who Helped Cena Get His Start

Every WWE fan remembers the infamous moment a young upstart named John Cena claimed ruthless aggression was enough for him to take down Kurt Angle. While Angle won the match, it put Cena on the map pushing his career down the path it still treads.

Talking on his podcast Kurt Angle admitted that he would have liked his retirement match to have been against John Cena.

“I thought Cena made sense, I started his career and I thought Cena could end mine so it made better sense.” Angle explained, discussing how another possibility that had been floated was a match against Shane McMahon.

However, with his list of injuries, Kurt Angle admitted a match against Shane might not have been the best idea. The choice of Baron Corbin remains a strange one, however, Angle did as was customary and put over the younger star in his final outing. However, the poetry of the John Cena match would certainly have been a far more fitting end.

British Star Reveals Why His WWE Contract Offer Was Rescinded

Jake Skudder
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Adam ‘Flex’ Maxted recently appeared on the Tea and Tights podcast on BodySlam.net. The former World of Sport/WoS and current British independent star revealed on the show that he was offered a WWE contract, but this was rescinded due to his previous work as a ‘buff butler.’

“Unfortunately NGW weren’t able to pay our contracts so I was obviously technically a free agent, so I messaged Mr Regal and said look this is the situation, I’m not tied down to anything anymore” Maxted revealed on the podcast.

Adam Maxted on WWE Contract Offer

“Then I had a call from Kanyon Ceman, he said Mr Regal and a few others speak highly of you so we want to bring you in to our NXT UK Brand. So they offered me a contract there and then, they said as soon as I finish the phone call the contract will be sent through” Maxted revealed.

“You’ve got to go through background checks in WWE to then get signed so that they can cover themselves” the British star added.

“So, heres where the story takes its turn. So basically, and this is the truth, when I was younger I, when I worked in Belfast, I used to do do some work as a Buff Butler. Which involved wearing a bowtie and an apron and I’m mainly working at hen parties or you know women’s events I’m walking round with Champagne, passing their drinks, nothing crazy, and I did that because it was easy money, I was in good shape at the time, I was like 17, 18, 19, you know just trying to earn some money.”

ADAM ‘FLEX’ MAXTED

“I never got fully naked, you can google my name there’s nothing like that out there, you know what I mean because I checked all this and didn’t do it anyway there might be the odd picture of me in an apron?” The British star would conclude, revealing that it was purely a case of his past ‘incriminations’ stopping him from joining the company.

John Cena: “I Will Keep Doing This Until I Feel I’m Offending The Customer”

Jake Skudder
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WWE Superstar John Cena recently spoke to Chris Hardwick on ID1OT. The 16-time World Champion discussed several topics during the interview, which would include how long he intends on wrestling with the company.

“Returning to WWE, it’s a brand new world” John Cena would begin the interview. “A new cast of characters, new direction with the company, new platforms, new environment. There is a challenge there.”

“To challenge myself as a 44-year-old to go back, there is an intrinsic challenge there, a set of circumstances. That’s a good challenge in many ways. My body could tell me after this extended stay, ‘dude, you’re done’ or it could tell me, ‘You’re so far from done it’s crazy’” Cena would continue.

John Cena on WWE return

“That’s another interesting conversation with myself. If physically, I’m slower, I’ve said openly to everyone that I will keep doing this until I feel I’m offending the customer” Cena revealed. “I will continually go out there and do what I can to contribute and add.”

“I don’t want to go out there and be like, ‘Okay, just let him go out there and (do his thing).’ I’m not into that because I know what it’s like to pay for a ticket. If I were to get that on this go-round, it’s a humbling and tough thing that I will have to hurdle.”

JOHN CENA

“If I get the opposite and it’s like, ‘You’re quicker and can do some things better and define a new personality,’ then that’s a new conversation because I do not have much time left and if I want to give it like, ‘let’s really commit to this thing and really go all in,’ that’s an honest choice where other stuff will have to take a backseat” John Cena would conclude.

John Cena is set to main event WWE SummerSlam 2021 against the ‘Head of The Table’ Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship.

AEW’s Nightmare Family Officially Adds New Members

Jake Skudder
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All Elite Wrestling faction The Nightmare Family have added several new members to the group. During a recent episode of Sammy Guevara’s vlog, Cody Rhodes confirmed that four All Elite stars have been officially added to ever-growing group.

“If you are somebody who is part of The Nightmare Family, then I consider you more than a one day a week wrestler,” Cody Rhodes said on the vlog.

“And can take that Nightmare Family logo, jacket, familial connection. Do whatever the hell you want with it, take it to any company in the world — go anywhere with it, it means you are family” the former TNT Champion added.

Fuego del Sol, Red Velvet, KiLynn King, and Baron Black have all now officially been added to the stable, with Cody Rhodes also mentioning how fans incorrectly believed that Red Velvet was already a member.

The Nightmare Family now consists of:

  • Cody Rhodes
  • Brandi Rhodes
  • Dustin Rhodes
  • Arn Anderson
  • Gunn Club (Austin, Billy, and Colten Gunn)
  • Lee Johnson
  • Brock Anderson
  • Red Velvet
  • Fuego del Sol
  • KiLynn King
  • Baron Black
  • Diamond Dallas Page (association)
  • Glacier (association)
  • Tommy Dreame (association)
  • Stephen Amell (association)

With CM Punk’s links to Stephen Amell, there’s potentially a chance that he aligns himself with the group, should he make his much anticipated debut for AEW. That chance is slim however, as All Elite will likely keep Punk and the other rumored signee Daniel Bryan as main event singles talents.

Malakai Black Knew Things Weren’t Right After Big E Attack

Alex Laybourne
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Malakai Black was a recent guest on Talk is Jericho. During the interview questions obviously arose about his recent departure from WWE. Talking candidly, Black explained how he knew the writing was on the wall moments after he attacked Big E in his comeback moment.

Talking to new AEW roster mate Chris Jericho, Malakai Black explained how he had spoken to Vince McMahon ahead of his comeback, and the boss seemed interested in the storyline. However, it never felt right, and once it happened, he knew things were not going to work out.

“Two weeks before I attacked Big E. on the night of the last vignette, I had a sit down with Vince. And he was very convinced of it, he liked it. I just wanted to get his thoughts, I hadn’t seen him in six months, a lot happened at that point. So I wanted to sit down with him a little bit and kind of see how he was doing.”

“We had a little bit of, just a normal conversation. Like I said, I wanted to gauge, ‘How do you feel about it?’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, no, I like it. I like it a lot,’ And then when we did the attack on Big E, I came back. Something about it just didn’t feel right, and I told my wife … I don’t know what it was. The way he looked, something about it, there was a disconnect.”

Malakai Black Doesn’t Hold a Grudge and is Happy to Be Wrestling Again

Talking more, Malakai Black said that ultimately, Vince is the boss at WWE, and so has the right to call the shots. He knew the moment he walked backstage after attacking Big E. One of those moments where you just look around, and you know.

“I kind of felt that he had made up his mind even back then. Which is, hey, it’s his company. It’s fine, no harm, no foul.”

Not long after his release Malakai Black realized his contract only included a 30-day no-compete clause. Something he couldn’t believe at first, but soon took advantage of, signing for AEW as soon as he could.

“I contacted someone within the company. I said, ‘Look, am I reading this correct?’ And this person said, ‘No, that’s correct. Even now, I’m looking at it, you have 30 days,’ and I’m like, ‘Alright, perfect.’”

Malakai Black’s debut in AEW will go down as one of the most shocking moments in their short history given the expected downtime people believed he would have following his release.

Roman Reigns Declares Himself “Levels Above Anyone Else”

Alex Laybourne
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The current, reigning, defending and undisputed Universal champion Roman Reigns took to Twitter this weekend to make sure everybody understood, he was the head of the table. Proclaiming that he was “Different than anyone before. Levels above anyone else or anything in this industry.”

A statement such as this is certainly fitting for Roman Reigns’ current character. The transition from the force-fed face to dominant heel is easily the best thing to happen to him. While many can write off this tweet as merely being a continuation of kayfabe. Reigns playing the part of the angry lion at the top of the mountain. Looking down on those beneath him with nothing but disdain. However, in terms of the WWE landscape, his statement is hard to disagree with.

Roman Reigns has become a force to be reckoned with throughout the pandemic era. His reign as Universal champion has surpassed 300 days, and in that time he has fought some of the very best the company has to offer. Along the way, he built himself a legitimate bloodline stable, with his real-life cousins the Usos.

Roman Reigns is Dominance Personified in WWE Right Now

Heels are there to be hated, and whether you appreciate Roman Reigns as a heel or not, it is hard to deny his statement.

If you take a look at the numbers, Reigns has been the Universal Champion for over 300 days. Moreover, it has been over 600 days since he was last pinned in a match. That loss coming to Baron Corbin way back on December 15th, 2019.

That is the very definition of dominance and while the Tribal Chief is set to face off against John Cena at SummerSlam later this month, it’s valid to wonder how Cena is going to topple the head of the table. Cena hasn’t had a real singles match in almost two and a half years. When you compare that to Roman Reigns 600+ unpinnable streak, it is hard to see a feasible situation where Cena walks out with the belt.

Jinder Mahal On Advice For Released WWE Stars

Anutosh Bajpai
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WWE has released over 50 superstars this year alone. A lot of them didn’t even get an opportunity to showcase their talent properly during their time with the company and Jinder Mahal has an advice for the released stars.

The former WWE champion recently had an interview with SK Wrestling. The Modern-Day Maharaja said that his advice for anyone who has been let go recently is to look at it as an opportunity to redefine themselves:

“The door is always open in WWE, My advice to anyone who just got released is to look at this as an opportunity.” said Jinder Mahal,” An opportunity to redefine yourself. Make some noise.”

The former NXT star continued by mentioning how wrestling is super hot right now both in WWE and outside as well. With the return of fans, it’s a great opportunity to plant a flag and make a name for yourself:

“You know wrestling in WWE is super super hot. Internationally everything. We got crowds back. But wrestling outside of WWE is also picking up steam

And that’s a great place to plant your flag, make a name for yourself and eventually make it back to WWE.”

Jinder Mahal has firsthand experience of rebuilding himself after a WWE release. He was let go in 2014 but he continued working hard. He made his return to the company in 2016 and went on to win the WWE title in May 2017.

WWE To Release Trademark Of Chelsea Green Name (Report)

Anutosh Bajpai
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WWE has made contact with Chelsea Green and informed the former NXT star that they are going to release the trademark on her name, according to latest reports.

It was reported earlier yesterday that both WWE and the female star were trying to trademark the name she used as a performer in the company.

The news was especially surprising as Chelsea Green is the former WWE star’s birth name. The officials were trying to trademark it after letting her go.

The Ring of Honor star had expressed frustration over the situation with a tweet yesterday saying that she had never thought she would have to go in a legal battle over her birth name.

Now Fightful Select is reporting that the promotion contacted Chelsea Green on Sunday. They informed her that they were going to release the trademark and Green herself has confirmed the news to the site.

The 30-year-old was signed by WWE back in 2018 and she was assigned to the development territory NXT. She made her SmackDown debut in November last year.

However, WWE decided to release Chelsea after months of inactivity in April this year. She has made her ROH debut since then and returned to Impact wrestling as well.

Rene Dupree On Injury He Suffered In Match With Goldberg

Anutosh Bajpai
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Former WWE star Rene Dupree recently appeared on the That 90’s Wrestling podcast where he talked about a number of things. He also detailed his experience of wrestling with Goldberg.

The former Universal champion has a reputation for being an unsafe worker. He has injured many stars during his career which includes the infamous injury that ended the career of Bret Hart.

Dupree also recalled one such time when he was having a match with Goldberg. According to him, the former champion dislocated his collarbone:

“Yeah he dislocated my collarbone, we (La Resistance) had a pre-tape in the back with Goldberg and he hit me with the French flag and we had to do 5 takes.

To this day, if I try to flex it, it still hurts. Yeah he’s the s***s. He’s horrible; many wrestlers will tell you that.”

Rene Dupree then discussed Goldberg’s return to WWE programming in recent times. He said that the company must be really desperate to bring him back:

“To me they (WWE) must be desperate, that’s the only thing I can figure. They can’t create new stars or they don’t have confidence in the people they have.”

Apart from this, Rene also talked about things such as his WWE career from 2002 to 2007 and a potential return to the company in future.

Malakai Black On What Paul Heyman Told Him About Being In Charge Of Raw

Anutosh Bajpai
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Malakai Black was one of the talents Paul Heyman tried to push during his time as the Executive Director of Monday Night Raw. Though he got lost in the shuffle not long after Heyman was removed from the position.

The former NXT champion discussed his relationship with Heyman during a recent appearance on Talk Is Jericho and claimed that they ‘meshed’ from day one.

Talking about Heyman’s run as the Executive Director of Raw, Black claimed that the former ECW owner told him that he only had ‘one night of control’ over things:

“He once told me that he had one night of control. That was the first night he was on, and after that, everything became a fight. Well, maybe ‘a fight’ is not the right word but a debate, which I can understand, but sometimes it makes you wonder.”

Malakai Black also revealed the plans Paul Heyman had for him and Buddy Murphy, another former WWE talent who Heyman saw as a big future star:

“He’s like, ‘I want to set something up between you and Buddy, that we can come back on WrestleMania in three – four years, maybe five years down the line. We lay a foundation now, and then five years from now, we circle back around,

But we make it bigger. We put it on a bigger stage, and we can draw from what you guys did there.’ It writes itself because that’s how wrestling’s done.”

Paul Heyman was made the Executive Director of Raw back in June 2019. He tried to push young talents as opposed to WWE’s approach of relying on older stars before being relieved of his position in June 2020.

Paul Wight On Why He Transitioned To AEW: “I Could See The Writing On The Wall”

Anutosh Bajpai
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Paul Wight, fka Big Show recently had an interview with The Ring Report where he talked about a number of things such as the recent WWE releases and more.

The former world champion was asked about the recent WWE releases potentially ending up in his new promotion. Replying to it, he claimed that the momentum is with AEW and explained why he made the transition himself:

“Anyone now who has been in this business long enough is smart enough to see where momentum is going and you’ve got to agree that it’s with AEW. It’s got a great groundswell of support from fans who are really into the product.

The storylines are unique. They have a different flavour and excitement about them. I made the transition myself because after four decades, I left as I could see the writing on the wall of where professional wrestling was headed.”

He was then asked specifically about Bray Wyatt, Braun Strowman and Ric Flair potentially joining the promotion. Paul Wight claimed that there is always an opportunity for them to contribute:

“For those other talents like Bray Wyatt, Braun, Ric Flair, and all those guys, there’s always an opportunity for people of that caliber to be a part of AEW and contribute, that’s the thing with wrestling. You never say never.

Wight continued to explain that the young prospects can learn from these veterans and the former WWE stars can prepare young AEW names for the future.

Bronson Reed Comments On His Release From WWE

Chris Stephens
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Bronson Reed is one of over 50 wrestlers WWE has released in 2021. The former NXT North American Champion took to social media recently to comment on his departure from the company.

“I was very shocked, very upset,” Reed said. “As you know this doesn’t just affect me but affects my wife as well as we are here in a foreign country. But my wife is a super positive person and she’s kept my positive as well.”

“The love and support that I’ve received online is just incredible. I was trending on Twitter. That means a lot to me, it means a lot to me that a lot of you feel for me and will still continue to follow me no matter what.”

“I did want to thank NXT, I want to thank Hunter and Shawn for believing in me. I want to thank all the coaches; Terry Taylor, Scotty 2 Hotty, Normal Smiley, Steve Corino, those guys that I learned a lot from. And I want to thank all the boys backstage as well. It was a great locker room to be apart of.”

Reed continued to talk about what might be next for him in his career.

“I am staying positive and I do believe I am bar none the best super heavyweight in the world. And I will continue to prove that,” he continued. “As they say, one door closes and another one opens but for me, many doors are open and now it’s just about which one I want to walk through.”

Chelsea Green & WWE In Trademark Dispute Over “Chelsea Green”

Chris Stephens
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Chelsea Green’s birth name is Chelsea Green. Despite this, both WWE and Chelsea herself have been attempting to trademark the name. Green was released from WWE in April. She is 1 of 52 wrestlers the company has let go in 2021 alone.

Green signed a 3-year deal with the promotion in September 2020. Shortly after, WWE filed to trademark the term “Chelsea Green” for wrestling purposes. On literally the same day that she was released, Green filed to trademark the name as well.

Green took to social media recently to comment on the situation.

Green is not the only person in this situation either. Keith Lee’s real given birth name is Keith Lee, but he is also in a trademark dispute with WWE over it.

It is not clear if WWE’s attempt to trademark the real names of performers would hold up to legal challenge.

It has been quite the eventful year for Green thus far. Since being released, she has already appeared in Ring of Honor, Impact Wrestling, and is set for the NWA Empowerrr PPV at the end fo the year.

Green has a new episode of her “Green With Envy” podcast coming out later tonight as well. It will be released at midnight tonight.

Andrade El Idolo Wants ‘The Whole Family’ With Him in AEW

Jake Skudder
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AEW star Andrade El Idolo reportedly wants to have ‘the whole family’ with him in All Elite Wrestling.

According to the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, that means that the former WWE Superstar wants to see stars from ROH and beyond make their way over to All Elite.

Dave Meltzer confirmed that the new AEW signee wants to bring more than Chavo Guerrero with him over to All Elite, with his partner Charlotte Flair someone who he is really eager to see make the jump over from WWE.

“Andrade has told people that he wants the whole family there. And by the family, it’s, you know, RUSH, Bestia, Dragon Lee, him, Ashley [Charlotte], Ric, that’s what he wants. Ashley, you know, I don’t know her. I’m certainly not going to speak for her, I sense that she wants to be in WWE, that it’s the big leagues to her.”

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER

Andrade Wants Charlotte Flair in AEW

It’s doubtful that Flair will be making a move over to AEW, but there’s a chance that this news was leaked to try and help secure the WWE Superstar a better contract.

With Charlotte Flair one of the bigger names on the main roster, WWE will no doubt want to ensure that she does not go anywhere, and news like her partner wanting her to move to the competition (despite what Vince McMahon may say) is a good bargaining tactic for negotiation.

Ric Flair however is a different prospect, with the former WCW and NWA star almost a shoe-in to appear on the AEW product, with the history between himself, the TNT network and stars such as Tully Blanchard? There’s at least a one-off appearance waiting to happen for the Nature Boy.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ4mxP2ncuq/

Pete Dunne: When His WWE Contract Finishes Revealed

Jake Skudder
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It was recently reported by Fightful Select that WWE NXT Superstar Pete Dunne is extremely close to the end of his WWE contract and that he has not as of yet signed an extension to remain with the company.

This week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter noted that Pete Dunne’s WWE NXT contract is up at the end of August.

Prior to this report, there were no reports as to when Dunne’s contract was up, only that he is in a situation similar to Adam Cole, whose own contract ended around NXT Great American Bash and he signed a extension up to WWE SummerSlam 2021.

“Pete Dunne’s deal is also coming due on either 8/31 or 9/1. He’s another super worker who has been in the system for years and should have been a main roster star, even if he started as part of a tag team, long ago.”

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER

Pete Dunne Moving To AEW

Pete Dunne began on the WWE NXT UK roster, holding on to the WWE United Kingdom Championship for 685 days. Dunne was then moved to NXT in the United States ‘officially’, where he then won the NXT Tag Team Championships with Matt Riddle in early 2020.

Dunne is considered a hot commodity, with WWE eager to keep the 27-year-old performer and stop him moving over to AEW. The former PROGRESS World Champion could be a major player if he were to make the move to All Elite, with a wealth of experience but youth meaning that he’s got at least another potential 15 years left in his career, should he wish to wrestle for that long.

Chris Jericho Reveals If He Will Do Any More Deathmatches in AEW

Jake Skudder
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AEW Star Chris Jericho recently spoke to the Inside the Ropes website. The former WWE Superstar discussed several topics during the interview, including his no holds barred/deathmatch against Nick Gage on AEW Dynamite.

‘Le Champion’ Jericho revealed in the interview that he has no plans to do any other deathmatches for the rest of his career; although, he would be prepared to get gory once again if the storyline dictated as such.

“Well, I’m not being egotistical when I say, ‘Of course it was my idea, and of course I was fine with it’ because I thought of it. I booked the whole match as well” Jericho began.

“You never thought you’d see Chris Jericho in that type of match, maybe not on TNT, but why wouldn’t you see Chris Jericho in that type of match? Because I’ve done every other match!” the former AEW Champion continued

Chris Jericho vs Nick Gage

It was then that Jericho stated that he would do another similar match if the storyline called for it. The ongoing blood feud between Jericho and MJF may well necessitate a match of this type, or close to it.

“If the story fits, I’ll do it – because it is all about storytelling. Obviously, it’s not something I would want to do every night or probably will ever do again but when you’re talking about the story that we’re telling, it was perfect for it. And I think that match was a classic in its genre.”

CHRIS JERICHO

“I think it might even be the most-watched death match of all time in the fact that we had 1.2 million people watching it. Show me another deathmatch that had that type of viewership” Jericho would conclude.

Kurt Angle Says That WWE Performers “Don’t Connect With Fans” Anymore

Jake Skudder
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WWE and TNA Hall of Famer Kurt Angle recently sat down with Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp. The Olympic gold medallist discussed several topics during the interview, including how he feels WWE performers are not able to connect to the crowd like they used to in prior eras.

“It’s not the same. I think the character development was a lot stronger back in the early 2000s, 1990s, 1980s,” Kurt Angle began on interview. “We were able to connect with the fans a lot better. Now they don’t really connect with fans.”

“There are some characters, but for the most part, today is about performance” Kurt Angle continued, alluding to the idea of in-ring technicality being more important to modern performers than developing a rapport with the fans.

Kurt Angle on modern wrestling

“It’s about what you can do in the ring. How good you are. It’s about high-flying stunts and acrobatic stuff. These guys are incredible athletes today” Angle would conclude.

Kurt would also reveal who he felt was the best writer when he was performing with the company. “Brian Gewirtz,” Angle emphatically stated. “He was my writer at WWE. I think he was the best writer in the history of the business.”

“Actually, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson hired him to be a writer for his production company, and that was a brilliant move”, Angle continued.

“Brian was incredibly talented. He was a nerd too, so he liked to do nerdy stuff and he liked me to do nerdy stuff,” Kurt Angle revealed, praising the former WWE/WWF writer.

Check out the full interview with Fightful below:

Update On How Adam Cole’s Meeting With Vince McMahon Went (Report)

Chris Stephens
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Recently, reports surfaced that Adam Cole’s contract with WWE had expired and he’d agreed to an extension to run through SummerSlam. Cole met with Vince McMahon at Smackdown on Friday night. How the meeting went was addressed on Wrestling Observer Radio.

“I was under the impression that they promised him a main roster spot,” said Dave Meltzer. “And they told the writers that they want storylines for Adam Cole on the main roster, on RAW or Smackdown. So, I think that was part of the meeting that happened yesterday.”

Adam Cole Is The “Exception To The Rule”

Cole’s status with WWE was determined “the exception to the rule” regarding WWE’s recent objective to focus on bigger talents.

“There’s always exceptions to the rule and Adam Cole is an exception to the rule,” Meltzer said.

“He’s an exception to the rule that they are not looking to cut a guy like that they are looking to keep a guy like that. And they are looking to feature a guy like that.”

Meltzer continued to say that he has not heard the same regarding other smaller talents on the NXT roster.

“I haven’t heard that for KUSHIDA, or Kyle O’Reilly, or Ciampa or Gargano or anyone like that,” Meltzer continued.

The 32-year-old has been with the company since 2017. His 396-day reign as NXT Champion is the longest single reign in the title’s lineage.

Update On Expected Changes To NXT (Report)

Chris Stephens
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The look, format, and wrestlers pushed in NXT are all expected to change. The focus of the show is expected to fully move back to being a developmental brand with an objective to produce main roster talent in WWE. The expected changes to NXT were addressed recently on Wrestling Observer Radio.

“Paul Levesque and Shawn Michaels didn’t have anything to do with the cuts,” said Dave Meltzer. “It was done by Vince McMahon, Bruce Prichard, and John Laurinaitis. And the basic gist is NXT is going to change in some ways. They think that a lot of the competitors are too small and too old.”

He continued to say that the basic feeling is that NXT lost the war and now it is returning to its previous goal of developing talent for the main roster.

“This is the aftermath and this is the new direction. And the new direction is younger guys and bigger guys,” Meltzer continued.

“What happened happened and now they want to get it back to what it was.”

He would continue to say that WWE doesn’t want older or smaller wrestlers. The focus will return on developing talent that “could one day main event WrestleMania”.

“The wording is ‘no more midgets, no one starting in their 30s, they want people who can be box office attractions and main characters’ so that’s what they are looking for now,” Meltzer continued.

Daniel Bryan Compared To A Modern Day Bret Hart

Michael Reichlin
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Bret Hart is revered as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, so a comparison to the Hitman is high praise. During a recent discussion with Wrestling Inc, former WWE wrestler Tucker say Daniel Bryan is the closest thing we have to a modern day Bret Hart.

“To me, Daniel Bryan is the modern day Bret Hart,” he began.”“He’s the man. He’s the best. Whether it comes to his mind and talking through how and why we’re going to do things or whether it comes to the execution of said thing in the ring, I don’t think you or me could point out somebody or defend somebody better than him at either of those two things.”

Both Hart and Bryan are known for their technical expertise, so the similarities are there. Tucker said not only was Daniel Bryan an incredible mat technician, he was also a locker room leader. Many younger WWE Superstars would turn to Bryan for advice in and out of the ring.

Daniel Bryan & Bret Hart
Daniel Bryan & Bret Hart

Tucker and former partner Otis would consult with Daniel Bryan on ways to improve their team, Heavy Machinery.

“What a glorious opportunity it was for us to be able to pick his brain a little bit and kind of see how he moved around the Heavy Machinery pieces. ‘What do you guys do?’ Having a discussion about the ethos, if you will, of Heavy Machinery and that might be able to play off of them in the large scale, in the big picture.”

He recalls Bryan helping them review the ins and outs of their presentation. Everything was considered, from their promos to their character development

“Just kind of seeing how [Bryan] operates, seeing what questions he’s asking what people and why he’s going about doing those things, at least for me, I was trying to take away as much of that kind of stuff as I possibly could from working with someone like that.”

Daniel Bryan will be a tremendous asset wherever he winds up, whether its AEW, New Japan Pro Wrestling, back in WWE or elsewhere.

Backstage Notes on WWE Releases Becoming a ‘Regular Occurrence’ Going Forward

Jake Skudder
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WWE made even more releases this weekend, with 12 names being cut from the roster across the NXT and 205 Live shows. The biggest names to be released were Bronson Reed, Bobby Fish and Tyler Rust; all of which seemed to be locked in with the company going forward.

According to a new report from Fightful Select, WWE making these releases of talent is going to become a ‘regular occurrence going forward. A source noted to Fightful that “Vince McMahon can personally put a stop to any of these,” when it comes to the names being cut.

WWE Releases becoming regular

The same source claimed that WWE releases are going to be a regular occurrence moving forward. However, the source also personally expects that “2021 will be an outlier with both the frequency and the level of talent.”

The idea of ‘mass releases’ hadn’t been a topic of discussion or concern in WWE for nearly four years, since the summer of 2016 and the beginning of 2020 and the pandemic.

A number of former WWE Superstars have already made the move over to AEW following their releases. Interestingly, Vince McMahon himself even joked about making more cuts to help All Elite on a recent investor’s call, saying that he didn’t understand their investment structure.

Here is the full list of talent that was released from their WWE contracts on Friday:

  • Bronson Reed
  • Bobby Fish
  • Mercedes Martinez
  • Leon Ruff
  • Tyler Rust
  • Jake Atlas
  • Ari Sterling
  • Kona Reeves
  • Zechariah Smith
  • Asher Hale
  • Giant Zanjeer 
  • Stephon Smith

Major Changes To NXT Expected (Report)

Chris Stephens
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Last night during WWE’s broadcast of Smackdown, it was reported that several members of the NXT roster have been released. According to a report from PW Insider, sweeping changes are expected to take place for the brand as well.

Among the changes expected to take place are a new logo, lighting, and a different look and feel. Additionally, it is being reported that the show will undergo some type of format change. An increased focus on younger and developing talents is also expected to be part of the changes.

The changes expected to occur further the debate as to if NXT is a developmental territory or a 3rd media rights brand.

Moving NXT to the USA Network on Wednesday nights did not derail AEW Dynamite as may have been the goal.

Is NXT WWE’s Developmental Brand (Again)?

In its quarterly filings recently, WWE has returned to referring to NXT as a “developmental” brand.

“Metrics exclude the events for our domestic and United Kingdom NXT brands. These are our developmental brands that typically conduct their events in smaller venues with lower ticket prices. We did not conduct any ticketed NXT events in the periods presented,” reads page 33 of WWE’s report.

In an interview with Newsweek when NXT moved to the USA Network, Adam Cole stated that NXT is no longer a developmental brand.

“We’ve called it this for a while, but we look at NXT as the third brand. And now I feel this move to USA just solidifies it. Instead of calling it “moved up” it’ll just be “moving.” Some guys may move to RAW or SmackDown. Some guys on RAW or SmackDown can move to NXT. To me, this move to the USA totally solidifies NXT as the third brand. I’m sure you’ll see lots of guys moving to different brands as time goes on.”

Adam Cole’s future with NXT continues to be up in the air. Reports recently stated Cole was backstage at Smackdown for a meeting with Vince McMahon.

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