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Sammy Guevara Addresses Critics Labeling Him As A “Dangerous Performer”

Andrew Ravens
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Sammy Guevara has done a lot during his tenure with AEW thus far and has much more to accomplish in his pro wrestling career. With great success also comes with challenges. 

He has faced this in the way of criticism among fans, which has led to the label attached to his name as being a dangerous performer. Most notably, last August, he tossed a chair towards the head of Matt Hardy that resulted in the future Hall of Famer needing to get stitches as he used the wrong chair that wasn’t gimmicked. 

“The Matt stuff, a bunch of unfortunate stuff happened there,” Guevara said during an appearance on Wrestling Inc. Daily “It was almost like we were cursed for a minute.”

He recalled how they had a great match at Double or Nothing last year and that’s what people forget. One minute, nothing bad happened then all of a sudden other things started happening including the  Broken Rules Match at All Out where Hardy was knocked out after a botched table spot. 

“It is what it is man. People can have their opinions. That’s their right. I know who I am. It’s wrestling. This isn’t the easiest of things to do, and I know everybody wants to be safe and stuff, but this stuff is dangerous to do. As much as everyone wants to be like, ‘He’s dangerous.’ There’s a reason I’m in the ring. These people are not. What we do is very dangerous, and there’s a reason I’m doing this dangerous thing and they’re watching this dangerous thing.”

Guevara will be part of the Inner Circle vs. Pinnacle Blood and Guts match this Wednesday night on Dynamite.

Chris Jericho Talks About a Potential Mike Tyson Fight

Alex Laybourne
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Chris Jericho is a wrestler who continues to evolve in wrestling business. It is one of the reasons he is held in such high regard by those that love the sport. His recent transition from heel to babyface is a prime example of this.

Not only did his character go from the most hated to the most cheered for, but he did it with an entire faction. There is no denying that the Inner Circle are now firm faces in AEW. While this sets the stage so well for their blood and guts match with The Pinnacle this month, it did put a spanner in the works of another potential rivalry.

Iron Mike Tyson first appeared on AEW back in May last year and quickly built some solid heat with Chris Jericho. A heel at the time, their confrontation got fans talking about a potential fight.

Chris Jericho Still Interested in Working with Mike Tyson

Talking in an interview with the NY Post, Christ Jericho talked about his time working with Mike Tyson. Remarking how his recent move to a babyface character effectively put the brakes on the pair ever facing off in the squared circle.

“I’d love to have a match with Mike, but the dynamic has switched. You don’t want Mike coming in as a bad guy. That’s hard to do, he’s Mike Tyson and Jericho is a good guy, so we can’t really work each other.”

All hope is not lost, however, as Chris Jericho believes there is a way for the pair to get in the ring and have a good match.

“So maybe we can do a tag team against somebody else.” Jericho was quick to add.

A partnership between the two could work very well, as Jericho’s experience in the ring could help Tyson’s lack thereof. Whatever happens, it sounds that if Chris Jericho has his way, we will be seeing Mike Tyson in AEW again.

Santino Marella To Triple H & Stephanie: My Daughter Is Ready For WWE!

Michael Reichlin
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Former WWE Superstar Santino Marella believes his daughter is ready for the bright lights of WWE.

The master of the Cobra now runs the Battle Arts Academy in Ontario, Canada. One of his star pupils is his daughter, Bianca Carelli.

Santino sent a tweet to WWE executives Triple H and Stephanie McMahon urging them to take a look at Bianca. He wrote that she’s been coached from day one to be a total superstar. She’s finishing her biology degree this summer and is “ready for her time to shine.”

Bianca thanked her father for the kind words, noting that she “learned from the best” and “loves him to infinity.”

WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix also chimed in, stating that Bianca was cutting promos at 10 years old that blew everyone away. She wrote, “Ready to take on the world!!” and tagged the official @WWENXT account on the response.

Braun Strowman On Backstage Chaos In WWE, Raw Viewership

Michael Reichlin
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Braun Strowman recently spoke with Graham Matthews for Bleacher Report.

The oversized Superstar spoke in-depth about WWE effort to produce entertaining content during the pandemic era. Strowman admits that WWE has dealt with a lot of challenges over the past year, but was quick to praise his fellow wrestlers.

“The boys and girls in the back, we all work really, really hard,” he said. “It’s been a little chaotic because everything’s been all over and people get sick and things change last minute. And part of me enjoys that, I’m not going to lie.”

Strowman made history last week on Raw by competing in three separate matches on the same show. He says things were chaotic backstage due to people being hurt, sick and “stuff changing.” He admits being freaked out by everything dumped on his plate, but ended the night feeling satisfied.

“This past Monday was a prime example,” he continued. “Everything was crazy because people got hurt, people were sick and stuff changes. All of a sudden, you’re in three matches in an hour and 10 minutes’ worth of a three-hour show. You’re freaking out, but when you get out there and get it done and hit a home run, it’s such a satisfying feeling.”

Braun Strowman On Raw Viewership

WWE has done commendable job during the pandemic, but most would acknowledge the product has been hit-or-miss in recent months. It’s difficult putting on a 3-hour show every Monday night, but he reiterated that the talent is doing their best.

“It’s a tough time right now,” said Strowman. “With how technologically advanced, everybody is and the media and stuff like that. It’s a challenge for everything that’s on television to try to draw live viewership. I’ll be honest, I haven’t even had cable in my house in the last decade. I keep up with our shows via our apps and social media.”

Braun Strowman finished by saying he believes WWE consistently goes above and beyond to keep their viewers entertained.

The Monster Among Men will challenge for the WWE Championship at the company’s next pay-per-view event, WrestleMania Backlash. He faces WWE Champion Bobby Lashley and Drew McIntyre in a triple threat match.

Head over to Bleacher Report to check out the complete interview.

Daniel Bryan’s Profile Moved to Alumni Page of WWE Website

Alex Laybourne
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Following his defeat last Friday, Daniel Bryan’s removal from Smackdown brand is complete. His profile has been removed from the brand page on wwe.com and is now located on the Alumni page.

Whether this is kayfabe storytelling or Bryan really has finished his tenure with WWE is still unanswered. However, given that his contract runs for a few more months, it is highly likely we will be seeing the Yes movement maestro returning to the screen in due course, either for RAW or NXT.

While a move away from WWE could be a possibility, it’s unlikely we will see Daniel Bryan in an AEW ring just yet. A move back to the Japanese wrestling scene is also possible. However, with his recent comments about full-time competition and his dedicated family man mentality, a trip around the world is also unlikely.

Daniel Bryan was made to look very strong in his defeat at the hands of Roman Reigns last week. This alone makes it unlikely that we have seen the last of him. A move to RAW would make the most sense, both for him as a wrestler and from a storytelling perspective. Raw is currently a heel-heavy brand, and with the other two real babyfaces being locked in a single storyline right now, a move there would give a much-needed boost to things.

The other option is far more intriguing, especially given his recent comments about allowing wrestlers to perform across companies.

The professional wrestling landscape is very uniquely positioned right now. A storyline based around a man losing his spot on a roster has never been packed with more potential.

Chris Jericho Names NJPW Stars He Wants To Work With

Chris Stephens
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Chris Jericho recently spoke with Comicbook.com to promote Wednesday’s Blood and Guts match on AEW Dynamite. Jericho’s Inner Circle will go to war against MJF’s Pinnacle faction in the first Blood and Guts match in AEW history.

During his discussion with Connor Casey, Jericho spoke about the “forbidden door” and AEW’s ongoing partnerships with Impact and New Japan Pro Wrestling.

AEW currently has a working relationship with Impact, but Jericho does not think they should do a full-blown invasion storyline with the Toronto-based promotion.

“Our roster is jam packed as it is,” Jericho said. “And I think our involvement with Impact has been pretty much what it should be. I’m not saying this in an egotistical way, but AEW is at a completely different level than Impact is. So anything that we’re doing with them benefits them a lot more than it benefits us, in my opinion.”

Jericho feels that it’s a good thing for AEW stars like Kenny Omega and Private Party to appear at Impact events. However, don’t expect to see him doing the same.

“Chris Jericho will never go to Nashville and work in an empty studio in front of somebody,” he added. “There’s just no reason for me to do that. If those guys came over to invade, who are they going to [send]?”

AEW could always do an invasion angle down the road if it makes sense, but for now, they need to focus on their own up-and-coming talent. They have so many guys that are on the verge of breaking out that he wants AEW to focus on them, not outsiders.

Jericho on AEW vs. NJPW

Although Chris Jericho isn’t keen on wrestling in an empty studio for Impact Wrestling, he did express interest in matches outside of AEW. In particular, Jericho is interested in facing several wrestlers from NJPW.

“There’s a couple of matches there that I would love have. [Minoru] Suzuki and Jericho,” he continued. “I think Ospreay and Jericho. I think Kenny and myself as a tag team against Tana and Okada or against Ibushi and Okada. That’s a Tokyo Dome main event. So all of those matches are in the pipeline. I love Japan.”

Head over to Comicbook.com to check out their full interview with Chris Jericho.

The NJPW-AEW forbidden door flies open again on the May 12th edition of Dynamite. Jon Moxley will defend the IWGP United States Championship against NJPW’s Yuji Nagata. Moxley will also be in action on an upcoming episode of NJPW Strong.

Big Angle Teased For Wednesday’s MLW Fusion ‘Season Finale’

Chris Stephens
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The season finale of MLW Fusion airs this Wednesday on YouTube. It will be the final first-run show for the next two months.

MLW boss Court Bauer recently announced that the promotion will take a hiatus until July, when the return in front of a packed house at Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena.

With the “Season Finale” show falling on Cinco de Mayo, MLW is teasing a big angle involving Azteca Underground.

Scheduled for this week’s show is Myron Reed challenging Lio Rush for the World middleweight title. Richard Holliday will also be in action although an opponent has yet to be named.

Azteca Underground

The Azteca Underground angle is expected to make a big impact in the promotion shortly. Last week on MLW Fusion, Salina de la Renta escaped from El Jefe’s handlers via helicopter after falling out of favor with the organization.

https://twitter.com/salinadelarenta/status/1387775808744431618

The Lucha Underground style faction has yet to reveal who “El Jefe” is but many are speculating it could be Dario Cueto. Konnan is expected to return to the promotion shortly as well.

MLW News and Notes

In addition to the Azteca Underground angle, MLW is said to be looking to freshen up its roster. PW Insider noted that the company is in the midst of negotiating with new talent. An MLW source stated the company is looking to have “a focus on bringing in high profile talent.”

Calvin Tankman is said to have impressed a lot of people in MLW as well. He had a high-profile match against Jacob Fatu for the MLW World Heavyweight Championship at Never Say Never.

The biggest match the company is building to continues to be Alexander Hammerstone challenging Jacob Fatu. It is rumored that this match could take place on a special event broadcast on DAZN.

https://twitter.com/MLW/status/1389040261955686407

Matt Hardy Fires Back At “Shock Jock” Jim Cornette’s Negativity Towards AEW

Chris Stephens
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Matt Hardy is arguably one of the most innovative wrestlers of the current era. Jim Cornette, on the other hand, has been frequently critical of the current state of the wrestling business. The two have been clashing on social media as of late.

Ironically, this all started when Matt Hardy put out a tweet encouraging people to not be so negative online. He wrote, “If you read/watch someone’s take & you dislike it, why would you waste any of your time to negatively comment on it? This is odd. Move on. People believe differently than you, whether you accept it or not. Unless someone’s being unethical & immoral, let people live their life.”

This led to someone commenting that Hardy sometimes is sometimes critical of Jim Cornette online.

Naturally, this led to Jim Cornette responding.

Matt Hardy & Jim Cornette’s Exchange

“Not a gig, Matt, just my real opinions since I’m done with this dog & pony show some of you guys call wrestling these days. A shame what’s happened to the business. Had great respect for you when you didn’t teleport to other dimensions and change clothes in a fucking ice machine,” Cornette Tweeted.

Reby Hardy wasn’t going to just sit on the sidelines while someone insulted her husband.

https://twitter.com/RebyHardy/status/1388991620868149249

Things then started back up in the thread this morning. Hardy sent out the following at 9:30 AM.

“Your principles will always be tested by people who care more about fame than integrity or money instead of what’s right. Cash in & be a whore or stand up for what you believe in and have a bunch of stupid idiots say you “can’t change.” Words of wisdom. Also don’t do stupid shit,” Cornette responded to Hardy’s Tweet.

WWE Raw Preview (5/3): Lashley In Action, Two Title Matches

Michael Reichlin
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WWE Raw returns tonight with an all-new episode from the ThunderDome at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

The road to WrestleMania Backlash continues. We are now less than two weeks out from the pay-per-view, which takes place Sunday, May 16th.

WWE is hyping several items for tonight’s USA Network broadcast, including two championship bouts and WWE Champion Bobby Lashley in action.

Here’s the WWE Raw Preview for May 3rd, 2021:

  • Bobby Lashley will face either Drew McIntyre or Braun Strowman in a non-title match. Lashley is set to defend the gold against Drew McIntyre at Backlash.
  • Raw’s Tag Team Champions, AJ Styles & the giant Omos, will defend the titles against the New Day in a WrestleMania rematch.
  • Charlotte Flair has her sights on Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley.
  • Lana & Naomi will challenge Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler for the WWE Women’s Tag Team championships.

All that and more is going down in just a matter of hours. Check back later tonight for our Raw Results & Takeaways. You can also catch up on last week’s show with WWE’s Top 10 Raw Moments video:

Will Ospreay Comments On Wrestling Dontaku & World Title Run

Chris Stephens
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Will Ospreay is set to defend his IWGP World Championship on night 2 of Wrestling Dontaku tomorrow against Shingo Takagi. He recently sat down with NJPW1972.com and spoke about his run as champion.

Ospreay was asked how he feels being called the IWGP World Champion.

“It sits with me. It sits well with me. It’s all about the journey. Years ago I saw what was then the IWGP Heavyweight Championship on a guy I admired in AJ Styles, and he said to me ‘if you want this, you’ve got to come to Japan’,” Ospreay said.

Ospreay was also asked about his United Empire faction and what he enjoys about having them with him.

“I enjoy having them there. You see a lot of shenanigans from seconds in New Japan. But I’m different. I don’t need Jeff Cobb and Aaron Henare to help me win a singles match. We work together in tags of course, and we’re training hard together to help improve there. But I never need help in singles matches.”

Whoever comes away from Wrestling Dontaku as IWGP World Champion will face Kazuchika Okada on May 29th at Wrestle Grand Slam. Ospreay spoke about the importance of that match and facing Okada once again.

“The history with Okada is against me. I only beat him once, and that was the one and only time I needed help to win a match. If, when I beat Shingo, Tokyo Dome is May 29. It’ll be my third big singles match in under two months, and Okada has had a lot of rest.”

The full interview with Will Ospreay can be read here.

“It Wants Blood” Horror Film Featuring Lita Finally Released

Chris Stephens
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WWE Hall of Famer Lita (Amy Dumas) appears in the horror movie, “It Wants Blood.” The film was made by Acid Bath Productions in 2019, but is now (finally) available for rent and purchase at Vimeo.

The official synopsis reads, “Two giant monsters are forced to battle head to screaming head on the political circuit as they run against each other for a seat as a senator. But the unsuspecting public doesn’t realize there are actually creatures that each running mate owns, feasting on helpless, big-breasted, quivering-lipped women and charity-thieving priests. The perils of politics never involved two enormous behemoths fighting to the death…until now! You’ll be on the edge of your seat watching fangs feasting on heaps of flesh as beautiful babes are fed to the beasts in It Wants Blood!”

Here are the trailer for It Wants Blood:

What Lita Has Been Up To Lately

Lita has been keeping in contact with fans as of late with a pen pal club.

https://twitter.com/AmyDumas/status/1368633298512191488

She also has a Twitch channel that she keeps active.

Last year, in an interview with the Women’s Wrestling Weekly podcast, Lita commented on WWE doing another Evolution PPV.

“Dude, why is it not back? So Mae Young got so much positive feedback, Evolution was sold out, granted, you can’t look at your own timeline for how people feel because they’re like, ‘You’re so great,’ and I’m like, oh, everyone loved it, but from what I got, everybody responded really positively to it, even just financially, it was sold out, I don’t understand why there is not another Evolution, why it didn’t make the regular PPV cut, was really shocking to me.” 

Kenny Omega Responds To Andrade’s Challenge

Chris Stephens
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Andrade appeared on AAA’s Rey de Reyes show over the weekend and issued a challenge to Mega Champion Kenny Omega for TripleMania. Omega has since responded to Andrade on Twitter.

Andrade has since responded to Omega as well:

“BUSY GUY. I debuted at 13 years old and I always kept busy and traveled around the world winning championships and you in Japan playing with children when I was a superstar, now is my first #Traquilo year,I will wait for your answer on the beach”

Angles For TripleMania

The Rey de Reyes show set up several angles that will likely play out at TripleMania. In addition to Andrade appearing on the show and challenging Kenny Omega, Impact Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo challenged Faby Apache after she won the Reina de Reinas championship. Purrazzo then attacked Apache and put her in an arm-bar. The match between the two will be title for title.

There was also an invasion angle on the show. Sam Adonis,  Puma King and Diamante Azul are now a stable known as La Empresa and are playing up their history with CMLL. The Sexy Star character has also been recast with Hija de Gatubela now playing the role.

Shawn Michaels & Kevin Nash Discuss ‘WWE Untold” Documentary

Michael Reichlin
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Shawn Michaels and Kevin Nash are the subjects of “WWE Untold: Two Dudes With Attitudes.” The documentary is now streaming on Peacock.

Kevin Nash made his WWE debut in June of 1993 as Michaels’ bodyguard, Diesel. It was the start of a friendship that has spanned nearly three decades. They’ve done it all together. They’ve been bitter rivals and they’ve been tag team champions. From the main event of WrestleMania to the WWE Hall of Fame, Michaels and Nash’s careers are forever linked.

Michaels spoke with TMZ Sports this week to promote the project. Here’s what he said about Nash’s role in his transition from mid-card act to Hall of Fame headliner. “Kevin was a really big part of my life and really, obviously of my career, in taking my singles career, and I would arguably say to that main event level,” he began.

“I felt like I was doing pretty darn well transitioning from Sherri to myself, but it was sort of in that Intercontinental Championship area. I think as Kevin joined me in that time, we were able to take one another to another level within the WWE. When you’re in it doing it, it all happens very fast and you don’t really have a time to look back and think about that, so every time they come with these documentaries it’s always fun to be able to take some time and focus and talk about the appreciation you have for that time.”

Michaels and Nash brought out the best in each other on camera. However, Michaels admits they were both troublemakers behind the scenes. You can watch some of HBK’s chat with TMZ Sports in the player embedded below:

Kevin Nash says he got emotional while watching the documentary and called his time with Shawn Michaels an amazing part of his life. He thanked WWE and

Tamina Names The ‘Roman Reigns’ Of WWE’s Women’s Division

Michael Reichlin
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Universal Champion Roman Reigns is the top dog in WWE. After years of fans rejecting him as the next face of the company, his current Tribal Chief persona has finally resonated.

WWE veteran Tamina recently spoke with ViBe & Wrestling and was asked who she feels is the ‘Roman Reigns’ of the Women’s Division.

She first said that if we’re talking only women of Polynesian culture, it’s gotta be her, not Nia Jax. “It’s not Nia for sure, definitely not Nia,” she joked.

Tamina then named Charlotte Flair as the Roman Reigns of the WWE women’s locker room. “I would say probably Charlotte at this point. She came back and she definitely got something on her head. She is coming back for something and definitely wants to prove who she is. She came out and put everybody on the spot and she addressed all the locker room, so I would have to say maybe Charlotte right now.”

Charlotte Flair is a logical pick. Both are second generation competitors who have racked up more world title accolades than you can count.

WWE has a deep women’s division that includes other prominent stars such as of Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Bayley and Alexa Bliss.

Check out ViBe & Wrestling’s interview with Tamina:

Former Nexus Member Michael Tarver Says That John Cena ‘Buried’ Him

Jake Skudder
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Former Nexus member Michael Tarver recently spoke to VOC Nation’s Talkin Sass podcast. The former WWE Superstar discussed a number of topics during the interview, including how he felt he was ‘buried’ by John Cena during his time on the WWE main roster.

“The irony of how WWE works, you could be the man or the woman in developmental, and (when you) get to the main roster, it doesn’t matter how good you are,” Tarver began on the show.

“If one of the main people there don’t like you, they will do everything they can do to bury you” Tarver added. “I got to the main roster and just got buried.”

Michael Tarver on John Cena

“It was [John] Cena,” Tarver revealed, discussing who at the top of the card in WWE was ‘burying’ him. “I don’t have any heat with him now, I make jokes about it.  But there was a target on my back.  I don’t know why he targeted me, but it is what it is.”

“We ended up on good terms (but) I had to defend myself a lot” noted. “Everyone was high on me, and then all the sudden they all turned on me. People wouldn’t shake my hand, they wouldn’t even speak to me.”

Roman Reigns Alludes To ‘Forbidden Door’ During Promo

Jake Skudder
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WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns defeated Daniel Bryan on this week’s episode of WWE SmackDown. With that win, Roman has ‘banished’ Bryan from the blue brand of WWE.

Following the win Reigns posted a video online, saying that the former WWE Champion Bryan should ‘thank him’ for giving him the ability to go home and ‘be a dad.’

“Already putting in the work, just a few hours removed on Saturday morning” Reigns began during the mid workout video. “Last night, I achieved greatness once again. As I’m hitting this cardio, I’m sitting here thinking, the whole world should be thanking me.”

Roman Reigns on Daniel Bryan

“Daniel Bryan, you should be thanking me” Reigns added. “I’m a man of my word, I did what I said I was going to do. Not only did I give the audience what they need, I got rid of you and I’m driving us forward, taking care of the future, getting rid of the old.”

“I gave you what you wanted. You made it clear; you were looking for a new door” Roman Reigns continued, alluding to Daniel Bryan saying that he potentially wants to wrestle elsewhere. “What better way to go through the new one when the old one hits you in the ass? That’s what I did, I closed this door on you.”

“We’re going to live the ‘Show up and Win’ mantra and keep putting work in” Reigns added. “Next Friday on SmackDown, not only do I expect you to acknowledge me — we’re not talking about you Daniel Bryan, we’re done with you. Go have fun, be a dad, save the world, hug a tree, whatever you want to do — To the WWE Universe.”

“Some of them call you that, but to me you’re mine. You’re my audience and my people” Reigns concluded. “Not only are you going to acknowledge me on Friday, you’re going to thank me.”

Do you want to see Daniel Bryan leave WWE and look for a ‘new door?’ Let us know in the comments

Daniel Bryan Reveals His Favorite Ever WWE Match

Jake Skudder
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WWE Superstar Daniel Bryan recently appeared on My Mom’s Basement. The former WWE Champion discussed a number of topics during the interview, including his favorite ever WWE match.

“My favorite match in my WWE career is my match with Kofi at WrestleMania 35,” Bryan stated on the podcast. “It’s so special and such a cool moment. One of the things that I love is it’s Kofi winning at the end.”

“WrestleMania 30, my shoulder is horrible, I hurt my neck, I have this horrible pain down my arm and I have to get up and do media the next morning” Bryan continued. “Everyone comes up to you and are like ‘congratulations.’ There’s a lot of responsibility.”

“When I wrestled Kofi, everyone goes to Kofi and says congratulations to him. I get to have my moment with him and be like ‘Hey man, thanks. That was awesome’” Bryan noted. “Then, I get to hug my wife and daughter and go home the next day. Kofi is the one who has to do media and deal with people congratulating him.”

Daniel Bryan on Brock Match

Bryan also brought up his match against Brock Lesnar from Survivor Series 2018, after he had just turned heel. “I love my match with Brock Lesnar. It’s cool because I just turned heel and I was like, ‘I finally get to wrestle Brock Lesnar and it’s as a bad guy.’”

“One of the things I’m very proud of is I went out to boos, got them to cheer me by the end, and when I left they still boo’d me. Wrestling Brock gave me a deep-seated appreciation for how great Brock is. The other stuff, it’s hard to narrow down” Bryan concluded.

Do you think that Daniel Bryan will be moving on to RAW or NXT following his ‘banishment’ from SmackDown? Let us know in the comments

Carmella Talks WWE Releasing Billie Kay and Peyton Royce

Jake Skudder
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WWE SmackDown Superstar Carmella appeared on this week’s episode of The Bellas Podcast. Carmella discussed a number of topics during the interview, including the recent WWE releases of Billie Kay and Peyton Royce.

Carmella seemed as shocked as anyone that the former IIconics were sent packing just a couple of weeks ago from WWE. Billie Kay in particular seemed to have carved a perfect niche for herself in a comedy role on SmackDown; Kay had begun teaming with Carmella before getting released in April.

“I think everyone was,” Carmella began on the podcast, saying how the release of the two IIconics shocked the WWE locker room. “I don’t know what the right or wrong thing to say is. All I can speak from is my experience and we were super excited for this story.”

Carmella Rocked By Their Release

“I felt like ‘I’m done with this whole sexy gimmick they want me to do or try to be sexy’” Carmella added. “Which is fine and it’s fun to be sexy, but I wanted to show my personality more. I wanted to show a little bit more of a fun side.”

“And I was really looking forward to doing that with Billie [Kay]” Carmella continued. “Our entrance alone, she was cracking me up. She was so funny. I was really looking forward to where that was going to go. And obviously, unfortunately, we can’t do that any more.”

“Those two were some of my closest friends since I’ve been here, since they got here,” Carmella noted. “So this was the first time I was like really rocked by a release. I was like ‘wow. These are my friends. They’re not just my co-workers.”

Where do you think Billie Kay and Peyton Royce will end up next? Let us know in the comments

Andrade Challenges Kenny Omega to Defend AAA Title at Triplemania

Alex Laybourne
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Since his release from WWE Andrade was the subject of much speculation about where he would head. With his 90-day release clause coming to an end, we have already heard two major announcements from the Mexican star.

Andrade is wasting little time in getting himself back to where he wants to be and has now called out triple promotion champion Kenny Omega.

In a video released on YouTube, Andrade can be seen challenging Kenny Omega for his AAA title, at the promotion’s annual Triplemania event.

The company have not yet set a date for the event, but this only gives Andrade more time to get back into top ring conditioning. After his sporadic use in WWE and the mandatory post-release rest period they insist on, Andrade will need a few matches to get his wings back under him.

Kenny Omega has been the AAA champion since October 2019. While his appearances for the company have been limited due to covid, he will surely have to defend the belt at their big PPV. A bout between these two men would have a big draw for all wrestling fans.

Andrade Making Moves

Earlier this week Andrade announced he was signing for Mexican promotion Federacion Wrestling. He will participate in a multi-man tag match at their debut show in June.

Andrade is also scheduled to face Alberto el Patron at the end of July. More details on that match here.

For now, it looks as if Andrade will be sticking with his unmasked look. However, at the start of the video, he was wearing a La Sombra pendant. This is the latest in a series of hints that we might see a return of his masked character.

Chris Jericho Talks Editing Botches from AEW Matches

Alex Laybourne
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The pandemic era has changed wrestling in a number of ways, including the (re)introduction of taped matches. In a recent interview on Wrestling Observer Radio, Chris Jericho talked about how AEW will do several different takes of a spot just to get it right.

AEW Dynamite is often branded as being a live show. However, there have been instances during the pandemic where AEW has taped several shows. During his recent chat with Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez, the G.O.A.T of professional wrestling talked about how matches would be edited to remove botches. He went on to say he had gone through as many as three takes on a single spot.

“We worked with Top Flight, me and MJF against Top Flight, and I was gonna put one guy in the Walls and the other guy that jumps over me sunset flips over me where I catapult the other brother to where he’s on MJF who’s on the floor. When we tried this thing it fcked up so bad. We tried it again that it fcked up even worse the second that we had to try it a third time. I was like, ‘I would never do this, but why not take advantage of it?’ It’s a taped show.” Jericho said during his interview.

Blood and Guts Will Leave No Room for Error

Botches are a part of wrestling. We are talking about athletes who put together some of the most acrobatic displays you will see humans perform. Their spots take talent, timing and understanding in order to pull them off. It’s understandable that sometimes things don’t go fully according to plan. For the viewers watching at home, this can be everything from frustrating to illusion breaking. The benefit of watching taped matches is that the stars have the chance to stop, reset and try again. This allows them to create spots that look exactly as expected.

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Jericho raises an interesting point. He went on to discuss using edits and re-shoots to make sure things went perfectly. Is that still wrestling? Do fans want a 100% flawless set of matches?

One thing is for sure, the blood and guys match will leave no room for error. AEW has confirmed that this match will be shot live. The other matches on the card, however, will be taped in advance.

Willow Nightingale to Make AEW Debut Against Thunder Rosa on AEW Dark: Elevation

Alex Laybourne
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This week on Elevation, Willow Nightingale will be making her AEW debut going head-to-head with none other than Thunder Rosa.

Many wrestling fans will not know Nightingale. However, those that follow the indie wrestling scene will no doubt be familiar with her name. The recent in a line of talent from NYWC – New York Wrestling Connection, she comes into AEW with a young, but strong pedigree.

Willow Nightingale debuted only 6 years ago in 2015 but has wrestled for some of the more prominent indie promotions, including CZW, House of Glory, and Shimmer. She was also a tag-team champion in Chikara. She held the women’s tag-titles as part of The Bird and The Bee for 228 days. They were the reigning champions until the company closed its doors at the end of 2020.

The chance of her picking up a victory against a wrestler with the momentum of Thunder Rosa is highly unlikely. However, this will not be your everyday squash match. It has everything it needs to be one of the better fights of the night. If she plays her cards right, it could be a major steppingstone for Willow Nightingale to get a full-time spot on the AEW roster.

The female division is growing in the company, and as rumours of a female-only show abound, we could find ourselves getting very familiar with Nightingale as the year goes on.

Willow Nightingale’s debut for AEW was called by fans after spotting her in the crowd during an episode of Dynamite. This is not the first time a wrestler was spotted in attendance before making their debut for the company.

Young Rock Renewed For Second Season

Chris Stephens
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NBC’s “Young Rock” featuring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has been renewed for a second season. The 10th episode in the series aired this week and garnered 2.4 million viewers. The 11th episode in the series will air on May 4th.

NBC announced that both “Young Rock” and Kenan Thompson’s show “Kenan” have been renewed yesterday.

“It has been a true joy to watch Dwayne Johnson & Kenan Thompson on NBC every week and see families connect with their relatable, entertaining and heartwarming stories,” said Lisa Katz, president of scripted programming for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. “We’re thrilled to renew both of these shows for another season and can’t wait to see more from Dwayne, Kenan and the incredibly talented casts and producing teams behind each of them.”

Show writer and former WWE creative team member Brian Gewirtz took to Twitter to comment on the show being renewed.

The Rock recently revealed to Deadline that Young Rock star Uli Latukefu, who plays the college-aged Rock on the show, has also been tapped for a role in Black Adam. The DC Comics movie starring the Rock is due for release in the summer of 2022. It has not been revealed what role Latukefu will have in the movie.

Chris Jericho On How “Blood & Guts” Is Different From “War Games”

Chris Stephens
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AEW will present “Blood & Guts” on the May 5th edition of Dynamite. Chris Jericho and his Inner Circle will take on Maxwell Jacob Friedman and the Pinnacle. While the double-ring steel cage match draws many comparisons to the War Games matches created by Dusty Rhodes in the 1980s, Jericho says Blood & Guts will be different.

“It’s not a true blue War Games either,” Jericho said on Wrestling Observer Radio. “The apparatus is different just because of the way – I don’t think I’m giving anything away here – the configurations of Daily’s Place… you’ve never seen an apparatus like this, there are some differences to it.”

“Blood and guts really is a new version,” Jericho continued. “It’s not WWE’s version of a War Games, it’s not Dusty’s version of a War Games, it’s AEW’s version of War Games which is why it’s called Blood & Guts, it’s got a different name to it. And I like that, I like the fact that it has to be a different match, not just because we don’t own the copyright for War Games because we actually are making this a little bit different from what you’re used to.”

Jericho also confirmed while there might be some blood, no guts will be visible during the match (unless something has gone horribly wrong).

“I’m sure there’ll be some blood. There won’t be any guts. I don’t want to disappoint you guys but nobody’s going to be hara-kiri’ed with a samurai sword where you see the endtrails or anything like that,” Jericho said.

Jon Moxley’s Return To NJPW Announced

Chris Stephens
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Jon Moxley defeated KENTA to retain his IWGP United States Championship on an episode of New Japan Strong in February. AEW recently revealed that Moxley will defend that title May 12th on Dynamite against NJPW’s Yuji Nagata. NJPW announced last night on New Japan Strong that both Nagata and Moxley will be in action on next week’s show.

Jon Moxley will team with Chris Dickinson next week on New Japan Strong to take on the team of Yuji Nagata and Ren Narita.

NJPW President Comments On New Japan Strong

In a recent interview with NJPW1972.com, NJPW President Takami Ohbari spoke about the importance of New Japan Strong to the promotion.

“Up to now, New Japan has been exclusively about Japan,” he said during the interview. “Until very recently, the only way to see a New Japan wrestler live outside of Japan was in another company. And vice versa; the only path to wrestlers from overseas to compete in a NJPW ring was an incredibly difficult one. What we have in STRONG is a mid-way point. That’s what I’ve always wanted to build. Now we have a place for wrestlers from all these other promotions to get together. It’s a place for wrestlers you’ve never seen before and matches you’ve never seen before. Without a practical example, it was hard for me to go out in that press conference in November 2019 and say ‘listen, this is going to benefit fans all over the world’, but now it’s happening.”

Chris Jericho Describes “Assassination Attempt” Story Referenced On Dynamite

Chris Stephens
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On AEW Dynamite this week, Chris Jericho made reference to Jake Hager having saved him from an “assassination attempt” in Abu Dhabi in 2012. Jericho appeared on Wrestling Observer Radio recently and detailed what exactly took place during this situation.

“That is a true story. He didn’t save me from assassination but he did have my back,” Jericho said on the show. “We were in Abu Dhabi and we were in a club and some guy was being a jerk so I just walked by him and gave him a body check, body checked him into the wall, a good o’l fashioned hockey move.”

“He claimed that his father owned, and I quote, 27% of the country and that I would be assassinated by the end of the day, like in 24 hours. I had a bounty for $7 million on my head.”

Jericho continued to say that he asked the person if $7 million was a good number for a bounty and what other size bounties are given in similar situations.

“Hager was behind me going ‘dude, this is the wild west, don’t mess with this guy.'”

Jericho would later say that he went back to his room and was thinking he wouldn’t go out again until things blew over. Eventually, he was convinced to go back to the same club, however.

“I go back to the club and the bouncer’s there and he goes ‘oh, you haven’t been assassinated yet’ and it’s like ‘no, should I be worried?’ and he goes ‘that m***erf***ker says that all the time. His dad doesn’t own the country, he owns a gas station down the street.’ But at the time we didn’t know and Jake had my back when I was threatened with assassination in Abu Dhabi.”

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