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WWE SmackDown Results (1/15): Universal Title Match Contract Signing, Daniel Bryan vs. Cesaro

Robert Lentini
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WWE SmackDown aired live from the ThunderDome inside Tropicana Field. In addition to the takeaways below, Sasha Banks said Carmella can have another title match as long as she can have a match with Reginald first. Roman Reigns and Adam Pearce had the contract signing for their Universal Championship match at Royal Rumble tonight.

SmackDown Results (1/15)

  1. Shinsuke Nakamura def. Jey Uso
  2. Natalya def. Liv Morgan
  3. King Corbin def. Rey Mysterio
  4. Cesaro def. Daniel Bryan
  5. Apollo Crews def. Sami Zayn

Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:

Nakamura def. Jey Uso

Jey Uso battled Shinsuke Nakamura in the first match of the night. Before the match, Jey welcomed everyone to the “Bloodline Show” and boasted about running SmackDown with Roman Reigns. Jey said his family is calling the shots and Adam Pearce needs to be careful at Royal Rumble. Uso stated that everyone in the back needs to be thanking Roman Reigns for bringing them to relevancy. Jey declared his entry into the Royal Rumble and vowed to win it.

Jey added that after he wins the Royal Rumble, he will whip McIntyre or “Oldberg” at WrestleMania and take the WWE Championship. Uso noted that Nakamura beat Rey Mysterio, King Corbin, and Daniel Bryan during the Gauntlet match last week but said that they decided when he was done. Jey claimed that Shinsuke should be thanking them for letting him survive.

Shinsuke interrupted and said that if Roman Reigns is “The Big Dog” and joked that Jey is “his little puppy”. Nakamura then booted Jey Uso in the face and sent him tumbling out of the ring as SmackDown went to a commercial break. When SmackDown returned, Nakamura was in control and had Jey in a Headlock in the middle of the ring. Cesaro’s music hit and he made his way down to the ring as Nakamura slammed Jey into the ringpost as SmackDown went to another break.

When SmackDown returned, Cesaro was on commentary and said he was here to support his friend Nakamura. Michael Cole pointed out that Cesaro didn’t help Nakamura last week and Cesaro stated that Tropicana Field is really big and the show was over by the time he got to the ring. Cesaro also announced that he will be in the Royal Rumble match and will defeat Daniel Bryan tonight.

Jey took control of the match and beat Shinsuke down in the corner. Cesaro vowed to win the Royal Rumble and challenge Roman Reigns at WrestleMania to avenge Nakamura. Shinsuke battled back and hit Jey with a knee to the face. Nakamura followed it up with the sliding snap German Suplex for a near fall. Jey connected with a Neckbreaker and went for the cover but Nakamura was able to kick out at the last moment. Jey hit Shinsuke with a Superkick and rolled him up while using the ropes for leverage. Referee Charles Robinson caught it and started arguing with Jey. Nakamura capitalized and hit the Kinshasa for the pinfall victory.

After the match, Jey Uso threatened referee Charles Robinson and claimed that he could get him fired if he continues to disrespect the Tribal Chief.

Billie Kay Cost Liv Morgan

Natalya squared off against Liv Morgan tonight on SmackDown. Billie Kay joined commentary for the match and Tamina & Liv Morgan were ringside. Billie said she was trying out to be a member of the Riott Squad. Natalya slammed Liv’s neck across the top rope and unloaded several punches. Natalya planted Liv Morgan with a Suplex and then booted her in the back. Liv rolled up Natalya for a two count and Natalya responded with a Clothesline for a near fall.

Natalya got Liv in a Backbreaker submission hold in the middle of the ring. Liv escaped and rolled up Natalya for another two count. Liv hit Natalya with an Enziguri and followed it up with a knee to the face. Natalya leveled Liv with a Clothesline and Billie Kay made her way ringside with Ruby Riott. Liv hit Natalya with a knee to the face for a two count. Billie Kay demanded that the referee count faster but cowered away from Tamina as she approached her. Billie ran into the ring and Natalya capitalized on the distraction by rolling up Liv for the victory.

King Corbin def. Rey Mysterio

King Corbin faced Rey Mysterio tonight on SmackDown. Dominik joined commentary for the match. Corbin dominated the action early and leveled Rey with a Clothesline. Corbin taunted Dominik before punching Rey in the face. Corbin connected with a slam and went for the cover but Rey was able to kick at two. Mysterio hit a Hurricanrana and went for the 619 but Corbin countered into the Deep Six for a two count. The action spilled out of the ring and Corbin attacked Dominik. Rey hit Corbin with a Dropkick and stopped Dominik from getting into the ring. Corbin shoved Mysterio onto his son and then planted him with the End of Days for the pinfall victory.

After the match, Rey Mysterio and Dominik argued backstage. Dominik said he wanted to fight King Corbin and Rey told him that wasn’t a good idea. Rey added that he knows just the guy to talk to that will take care of Corbin.

Bayley’s Talk Show Debuted

Bayley hosted the very first episode of Ding Dong, Hello! tonight on SmackDown. Bianca Belair was the special guest.

Bayley emerged from a door in the middle of the ring and welcomed Bianca Belair to the ring.Belair took a seat in Bayley’s chair and got comfortable. Bayley was about to sit on the stool but opted to stand instead. Bayley joked that she is probably going to be in the Royal Rumble for like 60 minutes so her legs could use the workout. Bayley rolled footage of her defeating Bianca Belair last month and claimed that someone accidentally played that footage.

Bayley wondered if that makes her the best because she beat Bianca Belair a few weeks. Belair said she wanted a rematch and Bayley claimed that she had nothing to prove. Bayley suggested that they do an obstacle course next week to determine who is the best athlete. Belair accepted the challenge to end the segment.

Cesaro Picked Up An Impressive Victory

Cesaro squared off with Daniel Bryan tonight on SmackDown. Cesaro connected with a shoulder tackle and applied a Headlock in the center of the ring. Bryan escaped and connected with an Arm Drag. Bryan focused his attack on Cesaro’s arm but Cesaro quickly battled back and hit Bryan with an uppercut to the face in the corner of the ring.

Bryan hit a Dropkick and went back to work on Cesaro’s arm. Daniel sent Cesaro out of the ring and hit him with a Crossbody off the top rope. Daniel went for a kick but Cesaro got out of the way and Bryan kicked the ring post as SmackDown went to a commercial break.

When SmackDown returned, Bryan was back in control and got Cesaro in the Yes Lock in the middle of the ring. Cesaro escaped and swung Bryan around the ring before locking in a Sharpshooter. Daniel broke free but Cesaro planted him with a Suplex for a two count. Daniel hit Cesaro with a Yes Kick and both superstars fell to the canvas. Bryan went for the Running Knee but Cesaro countered with a massive uppercut. Cesaro followed it up with Neutralizer for the pinfall victory.

Apollo Crews def. Sami Zayn

Apollo Crews faced Sami Zayn tonight. Sami’s documentary crew followed him around and he was wearing a shirt that read “I am the Intercontinental Champion”. Intercontinental Champion Big E joined commentary for the match and had a couch set up next to the announce table.

Zayn Clotheslined Apollo out of the ring and started trash talking with Big E. Crews bounced Sami’s face off the announce table and followed it up with a Moonsault. Back in the ring, Crews climbed to the top rope but Sami knocked him to the canvas. Sami rolled up Crews but was grabbing Apollo’s tights for leverage and the referee caught him.

Sami hit an Exploder Suplex and set up for the Helluva Kick. Crews countered into a roll-up and pulled on Sami’s tights for the pinfall victory. After the match, Sami shouted at the referee and claimed that there was a conspiracy. Crews grabbed the Intercontinental Championship but Big E took it away from him. Big E told Crews that this was the only time he would ever touch the title in his life.

Reigns Will Face Kevin Owens At Royal Rumble

Universal Champion Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman were shown backstage to begin the show. Heyman said that the contract Reigns will be signing tonight for the title match against Adam Pearce at Royal Rumble. Paul told Roman Reigns that the match needs a stipulation to allow Roman to teach Pearce about fear and respect. Heyman took the contract before Reigns signed it and said he will bring it back to Adam Pearce. Heyman added that Roman can consider this matter “handled” and walked away.

Heyman approached Adam Pearce as he will talking to Sonya Deville backstage. Paul told Pearce that he has an opportunity to main event Royal Rumble and a chance to take the Universal Championship from Roman Reigns. Heyman paused and told Deville that her perfume is very effective. Paul told Pearce that the match is now No DQ and Pearce quickly signed it.

Roman Reigns then told Heyman that he doesn’t want a No DQ match, he wants a Last Man Standing match. Roman told Apollo Crews to take a seat because he can learn something from this. Reigns instructed Heyman to go make sure that Adam Pearce comes down to the ring later to make their Last Man Standing match official.

Heyman once again approached Adam Pearce backstage and said that Roman Reigns suggested a Last Man Standing match. Paul told Pearce that he can sign the contract later tonight with Roman Reigns in the ring. At the conclusion of SmackDown, Universal Champion Roman Reigns came to the ring with Heyman and Jey Uso at his side.

Adam Pearce slowly made his way to the ring holding the contract. Reigns took a seat at the head of the table and told Adam Pearce to sign the contract. Pearce hesitated and Heyman joked that this is not making for good television. Adam signed the contract and then Roman did the same. Reigns had a giant smile on his face as he handed the pen back to Paul Heyman. Reigns told Pearce that is the last contract he will ever sign. Adam told Reigns that he has waited all night for Roman to sign the contract and left the ring. Peace made his way up the entrance ramp but started limping towards the top.

Pearce stated that his knee is bothering him and that standard WWE contracts all say the same thing, “card subject to change”. The microphone kept cutting out but Pearce could be heard saying that he will find a suitable replacement. Kevin Owens then came to the entrance ramp and signed the contract. Reigns will now battle Kevin Owens in a Last Man Standing match at Royal Rumble.

Opinion: It is a shame that there was technical difficulties during the final segment because I thought it was well done. I really enjoyed SmackDown tonight and it is amazing how much better this show is than RAW. Bayley’s talk show was entertaining and Bryan vs. Cesaro was the match of the night. Owens and Reigns have had some good matches recently and I’m down for another one at Royal Rumble. The visual of Apollo sitting next Reigns and learning from him was great and hopefully he becomes a part of that stable. Crews is insanely talented but has never been featured prominently on the main roster. It would be huge for his career if he is now aligned with Roman Reigns.

AJ Styles Discusses Bullet Club Reunion In AEW

Andrew Ravens
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AJ Styles was part of the Bullet Club faction during his time with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Also part of the group was Kenny Omega, Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson, and The Young Bucks. 

With the working relationship between AEW and Impact Wrestling in place, there was a mini-reunion on the first episode of AEW Dynamite between Omega, Gallows, Anderson and The Young Bucks. 

Styles’ career in NJPW took off when he joined the group in NJPW. While doing an interview with Bleacher Report, he looked back on his time in the group. 

Styles started off by wondering how it got over so well and thinks it was because there were guys that genuinely wanted to hang out together. He noted that they were together outside of the ring.

Styles then briefly commented on the members mentioned above being back together. 

“We were actually hanging out, and I think that’s why it worked so well for us at that time. We all hang out together, so seeing those guys, I’m happy for them. It’s cool they’re able to continue what they started, whenever it was.”

The former WWE Champion made it known in a previous interview this week that he would like to wrestle Triple H at WrestleMania 37 in a few months. 

WWE Elimination Chamber Gets New Date, Updated 2021 PPV Schedule

Andrew Ravens
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The WWE pay-per-view schedule for this year is slowly coming together. 

The company will be hosting the Elimination Champion pay-per-view next month. However, per a report by Pwinsider, the show won’t take place on February 28th as originally planned. Instead, the show has been moved up a week and will now take place on February 21st. 

There have been various changes made to the 2021 pay-per-view schedule. Originally, the Royal Rumble was supposed to take place on January 24th, but will now take place on January 31st. The belief is WWE will not have fans in attendance at the show St. Petersburg, Florida at Tropicana Field.

It was just reported that WrestleMania 37 was supposed to take place on March 28th, but has now been pushed back to April 11th. 

Updated 2021 PPV Schedule 

  • Royal Rumble – 1/31
  • Elimination Chamber – 2/21
  • Wrestlemania 37 – 4/11

The 2020 Elimination Chamber event was the last PPV event presented by WWE before the COVID-19 pandemic.

It featured Shayna Baszler defeating Asuka and Liv Morgan and Natalya and Ruby Riott and Sarah Logan in the Elimantion Chamber Match to become the new #1 contender to the Raw Women’s Title, which was held at the time by Becky Lynch. This was the main event.

Young Rock Trailer Released (Video), Premiere Date Set for February 16th on NBC

Andrew Ravens
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The premiere date for the upcoming “Young Rock” television series has been announced by NBC. On Friday, it was announced by the television network that the series is slated to debut on February 16th at 8:30 EST on NBC.

The synopsis of the new series reads, “Young Rock focuses on different chapters of Dwayne Johnson’s life. From growing up in a strong and resilient family, to being surrounded by the wild characters of his professional wrestling family, to playing football at the University of Miami, the show will explore the crazy rollercoaster that has shaped Dwayne into the man he is today and the larger-than-life characters he’s met along the way. “

The show will star Dwayne Johnson, Joseph Lee Anderson, Stacey Leilua, Adrian Groulx, Bradley Constant, Uli Latukefu, Ana Tuisila, Fasitua Amosa and John Tui star.

The Rock released the following trailer for Young Rock on Saturday:

The executive producers listed for the series include Nahnatchka Khan, Dwayne Johnson, Jeff Chiang, Dany Garcia, Hiram Garcia, Brian Gewirtz and Jennifer Carreras.

NBC picked up the series that is about the early life of the former WWE Champion last year. The first season, which began production in October in Queensland, Australia, at locations in and around Brisbane and South East Queensland, will have 11 episodes. 

Britt Baker Says She Never Wants To Be A Babyface Again

Chris Stephens
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Dr. Britt Baker DMD has been a focal part of AEW’s women’s division since the beginning. She spoke to TSN recently about juggling two careers as a wrestler and as a dentist. Baker also spoke about her heel turn and how she hopes to never be a babyface again.

“Before COVID hit, I would work in the dental office Monday and Tuesday, grab the latest flight I could to whatever city we were wrestling in,” Baker said. “We would have AEW Dynamite live on Wednesday and then Thursday morning, I’m on the first plane out of there – sometimes it’s a redeye – to get back to the dental office and work Friday, as well. I very graciously welcome the weekend, that’s for sure.”

When Baker was going to school and training to be a wrestler, there were people who told her she wouldn’t be able to do both.

“My peers really, really pressured me with that sort of talk, that ‘Britt, you can’t do both of these. You have to do one or the other,’” she continued. “And it kinda pissed me off. It fuelled my fire, and I would just say ‘Why? Why do I have to do one or the other? Why do I have to be just a dentist or just a wrestler?’ And I think because it kinda fired me up a little bit. I typically tend to go against the grain, so I would just put one foot in front of the other and take it one day at a time. I didn’t really have a long-term plan as to how I was going to figure it out or be successful in both.”

Britt Baker On Turning Heel

When AEW began, Baker was a true babyface. She would later turn heel and become one of the more entertaining acts on the show. According to Baker, she never wants to be a babyface again.

“I definitely love being a heel,” Baker said. “ I don’t wish to be babyface ever again. It’s so much fun to really dive into what really gets under other people’s skin – and what gets underneath your own skin – to bring out the traits you hate in others and the traits you hate in yourself. It’s fun! As sick and twisted as that sounds, it’s very enjoyable.”

The full interview with Britt Baker can be read here.

Drew McIntyre Provides Update On His Health & Royal Rumble Status

Michael Reichlin
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WWE Champion Drew McIntyre is currently out of action while battling COVID-19.

During his time away from the ring, McIntyre took part in a virtual panel at the CES consumer technology tradeshow. He joined the GlobalVC Sports panel. The organization brings together sports business executives, investors and entrepreneurs.

McIntyre was interviewed by veteran sports journalist Bonnie Bernstein. Despite having COVID-19, he remains asymptomatic and feels good. He fully intends on being medically cleared by the end of the month, when he is scheduled to faceBill Goldberg at the WWE Royal Rumble.

McIntyre also touted WWE’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. He emphasized the serious nature of the disease. According to the champion, WWE’s protocols have prevented him from interacting with and potentially infecting others.

Other topics discussed include his journey to WWE, making his debut at just 22 years old and finally reaching the top of the mountain by defeating Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at last year’s WrestleMania.

You can watch Drew McIntyre’s comments from the GlobalVC Sports virtual presentation at NYVCSports.com.

WWE WrestleMania 37 Date Changed (Report)

Michael Reichlin
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WWE WrestleMania 37 will no longer be taking place on Sunday, March 28th, as originally scheduled.

We’ve been hearing in recent weeks that WWE has been considering pushing the event later by a few weeks. Fightful Select reports that the new targeted date for the show is Sunday, April 11th. A WWE source has confirmed to us that the date change has been discussed in recent weeks and April 4th and 11th were under consideration.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, WWE held a press conference to announce that WrestleMania 37 would be held at the new SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Early branding for the event touted the WrestleMania was ‘going Hollywood’ in 2021.

WrestleMania 37 Location Change

The final location of WrestleMania 37 is still unclear. Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida is still the frontrunner, according to what we were told. The venue was originally supposed to host WrestleMania 36 before that show was moved to the Performance Center in Orlando, FL.

WWE has yet to address if the event will still take place from California or have any fans in attendance. The fact that WrestleMania 37 tickets never went on sale to the public makes this date change a lot easier.

In an interesting bit of trivia, April 11th would be the latest date in the calendar year that WrestleMania has ever occurred. That current record is held by WrestleMania 34, which took place April 8, 2018.

We will provide further update when WWE publicly addresses the date change.

Impact Hard To Kill Main Event Changed: Alex Shelley Unable To Appear

Michael Reichlin
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Impact Wrestling has sent in word that there’s been a change to the main event of Saturday night’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view.

The scheduled main event was supposed to be AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and Impact World Tag Team Champions The Good Brothers vs. Impact World Champion Rich Swann and the Motor City Machine Guns. Unfortunately, MCMG member Alex Shelley will be unable to appear and has been pulled from the match. His replacement will be Moose.

According to Impact, Alex Shelley contacted the company late Thursday night and informed them he will be unable to travel to Nashville, TN for the PPV. The company cited “unavoidable circumstances” as to why Alex Shelley cannot appear.

Moose commented on Twitter, “Hey Kenny Omega, I heard you put on 5 star matches…. GREAT. But the real question is have you ever met a God? You meet one tomorrow night.”

Impact executive Scott D’Amore also commented on the situation:

“When we got the news from Alex there was no question what we needed to do. Extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures – I personally contacted Moose and he accepted the match immediately. I know Rich Swann in particular has his issues with Moose. but this is time to put personal issues and egos aside.

“HARD TO KILL is a huge event for IMPACT Wrestling and a historic one for professional wrestling in general. IMPACT Wrestling needs to put our best foot forward. Moose fits that bill. He is a physical specimen, a five-tool athlete, and has proven himself to be a world-class professional wrestler. Kenny Omega and The Good Brothers will have their hands even more full now when they step into the ring with IMPACT World Champion Rich Swann, IMPACT Original Chris Sabin, and the TNA World Heavyweight Champion Moose.”

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Hard To Kill: Updated Card

The following is the updated lineup for Impact Wrestling’s Hard to Kill PPV:

  • Rich Swann, Chris Sabin & Moose vs. Kenny Omega & The Good Brothers
  • Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo vs.Taya Valkyrie
  • Havok & Nevaeh vs. Kiera Hogan & Tasha Steelz to crown Knockouts Tag Teaam Champions
  • X-Division Champion Manik vs. Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raju
  • Old School Rules: Eric Young, Deaner & Joe Doering vs. Cousin Jake, Rhino & Tommy Dreamer
  • Barbed Wire Massacre: Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan
  • Special Attraction: The Karate Man vs. Ethan Page
  • Rosemary & Crazzy Steve s. Tenille Dashwood & Kaleb

Hard to Kill is available for purchase at FITE TV and on traditional pay-per-view via InDemand, DISH, DirecTV, Vubiquity, Rogers, Bell, Shaw, Sasktel.

Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame Class Of 2021 Announced

Chris Stephens
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The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame in Wichita Falls, TX, has announced its class of 2021. The museum is still open for visitors but it is by appointment only.

This year’s inductees are as follows:

  • Pioneer Division: Mad Mountain Dean & Paul Bowser
  • TV Era Division: Tiger Conway Sr. & Jose Lothario
  • Modern Era Division: Tony Atlas & Wildfire Tommy Rich
  • Women’s: Judy Martin & Juanita Coffman
  • International: Leo Burke
  • Executive: Don Owen
  • Tag Team Division: Rock ‘n Roll Express (Robert Gibson & Ricky Morton)
  • Territory Era: Skandor Akbar
  • Referee: Ronnie West

The ceremony is currently scheduled for May but things could change. The Hall of Fame posted the following message to its Facebook page:

“We were hoping to be able to make a bigger announcement at this time regarding the Induction weekend, currently scheduled for May 13, 14 & 15, 2021 in Downtown Wichita Falls but we are still working towards a resolution towards an event to keep everyone safe in this crazy time in our World!!”

Notable inductees from last year included Dory Funk, Tim Brooks, Luna Vachon, the Great Kabuki, Debbie Combs, the Bushwackers/Sheepherders, Jake Roberts, Magnum TA, Curtis Iaukea, and Karl Kox. Gory Guerrero, Owen Hart, Bobby Eaton and several others were inducted in 2019.

Rosemary Talks Relationship With Taya Valkyrie & Hard to Kill PPV

Chris Stephens
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Impact Wrestling presents Hard to Kill on Saturday night. Rosemary will team with her old Decay stablemate, Crazzy Steve, on the show. They’ll take on the team of Tenille Dashwood and her personal photographer, Kaleb Conley (aka Caleb Konley). Rosemary’s longtime ally, Taya Valkyrie, will challenge Deonna Purrazzo for the Knockouts title on the show as well.

Rosemary spoke to Women’s Wrestling Talk about the upcoming PPV and her relationship with Taya. It should be noted that when Rosemary speaks she refers to herself in the plural sense, i.e “we” instead of “I”.

“The Valkyrie and the Demon have gone to war so many times. And we know each other so well, that when we decided, we say decided, when we were commanded by the shadow to form an alliance with her, it was not difficult to do so because we already knew her so well,” Rosemary said. “And the fact that we became so dominant as a tag team, leading up into the announcement of the tag team titles, by being returned to Impact, we really knew that we had something there because we could rely on her to be where we needed her to be and vice versa.”

Rosemary On Hard to Kill & Crazzy Steve

Rosemary also spent some time talking about the upcoming Hard to Kill PPV. She suggested that she would like it if Taya won the title and then the two of them later won the tag belts.

“In the most immediate future, the most ideal, the most ideal path, the most ideal reality to manifest, would be if the Valkyrie was to win the Knockouts championship this Saturday and then down the road we were to capture the tag titles and bring all the belts into the fold,” she continued.

Rosemary also spoke about realigning with her Decay teammate, Crazzy Steve.

“We already have seen the return of our dear brother Crazzy Steve into Impact Wrestling. While we have not had too many interactions with him as of yet just know that we are talking and when the time is right when the shadow was ready for our brother crazy still too Crazzy Steve to realign with the demon assassin. That would be as you said, trouble for anyone involved.”

The full interview can be viewed in the player below:

Kevin Nash Defends WWE’s COVID-19 Protocols

Chris Stephens
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Kevin Nash recently responded to an article online that was critical of WWE’s COVID-19 protocols and policies. Nash noted that he discovered he had the virus via WWE’s testing program. The article Nash was responding to was specifically critical of WWE using Ric Flair in storylines and angles during an ongoing pandemic.

“Saw this in a Google feed. The story says the WWE doesn’t do a adequate job Covid testing. Complete bullshit. Everytime I’m involved I’ve been quarantined in a hotel room after being tested then brought to the arena. I was positive and sent directly to my home to quarantine,” Nash Tweeted.

Nash revealed he had COVID-19 this September. He was responding to a Tweet by the Rock when he announced the news. The Rock had just revealed members of his family had tested positive.

“Welcome to the team. Very sorry you’re family is infected. I was tired for a while didn’t train for the 4th day. My wife still hasn’t got smell or tastes back. Son was asymptomatic. Pray you heal up quickly. Thank you for making people realize it’s real,” Nash Tweeted.

Nash also plays the lead role in a pandemic themed movie, “COVID-19 Invasion.” A description of the film reads “Chinese bats invade America. It’s up to Navy Seal Team Six to stop them.”

Update On Ricochet’s WWE Contract Status

Chris Stephens
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Ricochet won’t be leaving WWE anytime soon. While there have been several reports online with various different information regarding his contract situation, Ricochet is locked up to WWE for several years. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Ricochet is under contract with WWE until 2024.

“Ricochet’s contract here expires in the summer of 2024. He signed a five year deal when he moved to the main roster,” wrote Dave Meltzer. The report continues to say that he signed at a time when WWE was offering good deals to keep people from going to AEW.

This is the second time in 4 months that Ricochet has shot down rumors of him leaving WWE. Back in September he posted the following:

Ricochet originally signed with WWE in 2018. Rumors surrounding his contract status began being reported earlier this week. Ricochet commented on them last night and there was an update in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter this morning.

The 32-year-old has been on the main roster since on February 18th, 2019. He is a former United States Champion, and faced Brock Lesnar in Saudi Arabia. While in NXT, he won the NXT North American Championship and the 2019 Dusty Rhodes Classic along with Aleister Black.

Sha Samuels Announces Signing To NXT UK

Anutosh Bajpai
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Indie star Sha Samuels made his on-screen in-ring debut for the NXT UK brand during this week’s episode of their weekly show on WWE Network.

The heavyweight star was built as Ed Harvey and he competed in a match against Joe Coffey. Unfortunately for the new NXT star, Coffey emerged victorious in this bout.

One interesting thing that happened during the match was that Samuels grabbed the mic mid-match. He announced that he wasn’t Ed Harvey and everyone knows his real name Sha Samuels.

After the match, the new WWE star took on his Twitter and announced that he has officially signed a contract with the company after a long journey full of ups and downs:

https://twitter.com/NXTUK/status/1349810314137763841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1349810314137763841%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.postwrestling.com%2F2021%2F01%2F14%2Fsha-samuels-officially-signs-with-wwe%2F

This is not the first WWE match for Samuels and he previously wrestled in a dark match for the company during the NXT UK taping in 2019 at Plymouth.

Prior to his signing with the company, Sha Samuels has wrestled for many top indie promotions including companies such as wXw, RevPro, OTT and ICW.

He is not the only star to have joined the brand in recent times and WWE has signed names such as Ben Carter and Rampage Brown in the past few months.

Chavo Guerrero On Why He Hasn’t Returned To WWE: “You Have To Give Up Your Life”

Anutosh Bajpai
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Chavo Guerrero had a decade long run with WWE from 2001 to 2011 but the former champion hasn’t made any appearances for the company since then and a lot of people wonder why he hasn’t made a comeback.

The former Lucha Underground star recently had an interview with Rick Bassman’s ‘Talking Tough’ show where he spoke about a number of things and also explained why he hasn’t returned to WWE.

Guerrero explained that he is doing a lot of different things such as running his own cigar and beer company which he would have to give up for a WWE return:

“I would have to give up too much to sit there and go back to WWE full-time. WWE takes — you have to give up what you’re doing in your life to do that,

And I have so many other things going on with Hollywood and my own ventures, my own cigar company, my own beer company, my podcast so it’s hard. I think it’d be hard for me to give up everything like that.”

Though later in the interview, Chavo Guerrero claimed that he doesn’t have any hard feelings and suggested that he would be open for a return for the right amount of money:

“It’s all about making money. If we can make money and Vince [McMahon] thinks like, ‘Hey Chavo, let’s bring you back in,’ make him money, make me money then it works out. If it doesn’t then it doesn’t. There’s no hard feelings.”

Chavo Guerrero had a successful career in WWE and he won over a half a dozen titles in the company but the former WWE star left the promotion in 2011 after requesting his release.

Candice Michelle On Unique Clause In Her WWE Contract

Anutosh Bajpai
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WWE is usually known for controlling the careers of superstars signed with the company in and outside of the wrestling world as well but it appears Candice Michelle was an exception to this rule.

The former WWE star recently had an interview with WrestlingInc where she talked about things like being considered an eye candy and more.

During the interview, Michelle talked about being featured in the ad for domain provider GoDaddy which got her a lot of attention and she revealed a unique clause in her contract that allowed her to keep control over certain things:

“So I had a clause in my contract which allowed me to do that. Because I was coming from Hollywood, I just had a different type of contract from the average wrestler who comes from the indie scene or comes from the wrestling school.

My website was off-limits and certain things on there were off limits that they weren’t allowed to take away from me or have control over,” said Candice Michelle, “and GoDaddy just happened to be one of those.”

The female star also recalled having heat in the locker room due to not having an indie background and her lack of experience in the pro wrestling industry.

Apart from this, Candice Michelle opened up about her infamous romantic angle with Vince McMahon. You can check out her comments on the matter at this link.

AJ Styles Wants To Face Triple H At WrestleMania 37

Anutosh Bajpai
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0

AJ Styles faced The Undertaker in a highly praised boneyard match at last year’s edition of WrestleMania and he wants to face another legend at this year’s edition of the show.

The former WWE Champion recently spoke to WWE Now India and answered fan questions such as the origin of the Styles Clash and more.

During the interview, the former champion was asked which star he wants to face next at WrestleMania after his match with The Dead Man and Styles took the name of Triple H:

“Triple H is definitely the next guy I’d like to face at some point if it could happen, maybe not. But it was an absolute pleasure to be in the ring, or not necessarily the ring, the Boneyard with the Undertaker.”

This is not the first time AJ Styles has expressed interest in a match with the King Of Kings and the Phenomenal One has previously listed him alongside people like Edge and Drew McIntyre as potential opponents.

Triple H also made a brief return to the ring earlier this week during Monday’s episode of Raw and the Evolution member seemed to be in pretty good shape.

With the probability of the Undertaker not competing at WrestleMania this year being high, it’s very much possible that Triple H could be brought in as a special attraction. It would be interesting to see if all this talk leads to an actual match between him and AJ Styles.

Ricochet Responds To Reports Of Him Leaving WWE Soon

Anutosh Bajpai
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0

WWE star Ricochet has responded to the reports about his contractual status with the company and denied the rumors about his future.

The high flying star took on his Twitter yesterday and replying to a report of him possibly leaving the company soon, he claimed that the news is fake:

For those who don’t know, it was first reported back in September that a top WWE star has decided not to re-sign with the promotion and leave the company when his contract expires.

It was then revealed recently that Ricochet’s current deal with the company is expiring soon and the One and Only has not signed a new deal with the promotion.

The former NXT star apparently signed a three year deal with WWE back in 2018 which means that his current contract will be expiring sometimes this year.

While Ricochet has claimed the news to be fake, we have seen a trend of stars denying reports about their comeback or departure from the company recently which have eventually come true.

So while the Raw star is claiming that the reports are not accurate, it’s very much possible that he is working the fans until he gets free of his WWE deal.

Stone Cold Steve Austin Joining The Third Season Of Dark Side Of The Ring

Anutosh Bajpai
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0

Stone Cold Steve Austin will be joining the third season of the Dark Side Of The Ring documentary series.

The former WWE star recently appeared on Won’t Stick to Sports talk show where the Texas Rattle Snake talked about the upcoming second season of Straight Up Steve Austin.

Interestingly during the interview, host Jemele Hill mentioned that the former world champion will be joining the first episode of Dark Side Of The Ring season three, to talk about the death of Brian Pillman:

“Other than our show, my favorite show on Vice is Dark Side of the Ring, which is a docu-series about pro wrestling, you’re actually on season three to talk about the life and unfortunate death of your friend Brian Pillman,”

The news has since been confirmed by both the official Twitter account of the documentary series and Steve Austin himself as well:

Brian Pillman began his wrestling career in the late 80s and he wrestled for many famous promotions such as NWA, WCW, ECW and WWE as well.

The American star crossed paths with Steve Austin in both WWE and WCW. In WCW, Pillman teamed up with Austin in a team called Hollywood Blonds.

The two then had a feud in WWE and fans remember this rivalry for a controversial promo filmed in the late star’s home where he pulled a gun on Stone Cold Steve Austin before the cameras went black.

Brian Pillman unfortunately passed away due to a heart attack in October 1997. The 35 year old star was found dead in his motel room in Bloomington, Minnesota.

AEW Tops NXT Ratings (1/13), Trump Impeachment Coverage Dominates

Michael Reichlin
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TV ratings are in for Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite and NXT TV. Dynamite scored a decisive win over NXT with New Year’s Smash (Night 2). Here’s the breakdown, courtesy of ShowbuzzDaily:

  • AEW: 762,000 viewers, 0.30 Rating (A18-49), 31st on cable
  • NXT: 551,000 viewers, 0.14 Rating (A18-49), 70th on cable

Both shows were impacted by coverage of US President Donald Trumps’ second impeachment, which dominated the list of Top 30 shows on cable for the evening. Unfortunately, NXT was hit much harder by this competition.

AEW viewership was up around 15% from last week (+20% in the key demo), while NXT viewership fell around 14% (-12% in the key demo). This was the lowest total audience for NXT since March 2020.

You can check out recaps from both shows here:

Charlotte Flair Blasts Article Calling Her An “Intolerable” Corporate Champion

Michael Reichlin
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0

Charlotte Flair is fed up with ignorant fans and publications questioning her worthiness to be featured in main events.

Earlier this week, the Daily DDT blog ran an article titled, “Does Charlotte Flair Deserve the Hate She Gets?” Writer Max Everett had some mixed things to say about the 12-time Women’s Champion. He acknowledged she is very talented, but also labeled her an ‘intolerable’ corporate champion who gets priority treatment at the expense of others who ‘legitimately’ earned their spots.

“Charlotte Flair is the latest corporate champion to be selected by Vince and the selected face of the women’s roster… What makes Flair so intolerable to many is how she lingers at the top and threatens to demean and squash any worker that has legitimately made their way up the mountain.”

Charlotte Flair: “I Will Always Be In The Title Picture”

Charlotte Flair replied to the article on Twitter and did not hold back. She took issue with the author ‘garbage’ take.

“I should just scroll block this garbage, but words matter, so I will take a few moments to educate you since both a human and I would assume an editor allowed this bullshit to sully Al Gore’s internet.”

Charlotte Flair responded to criticism that WWE thrusts her back into the title picture whenever she takes time off. She defended her occasional breaks and pointed out the double standard as it relates to her male counterparts.

“I have taken time off three times while on the main roster. First time was when my dad was sick. Second time was a 6 week injury that was followed up by 18 months of staring at lights to help create a star. 3rd time is now. What exactly is it that I’m avoiding? I keep looking for the article where you trash one of the male champions for taking time off and being inserted back into the title picture. Didn’t find one. Shocking. Wonder why.”

She then laid out clearly why she always winds up in the title picture. “I am in the title picture, and I will always be in the title picture. It’s one of those unfortunate side effects of excelling at something; you wouldn’t understand.”

Charlotte Flair

Bully Ray & Ric Flair Defend Charlotte

Former WWE Superstar Bully Ray recently defended Charlotte Flair on Busted Open. Bully calls her one of the greatest women’s wrestlers of all time. Unfortunately, says some ‘foolish and ignorant’ fans can’t appreciate that. “She’s possibly in the top three females of all time,” said Bully. “It’s not even up for debate. That’s a cold hard fact. And to sit there on social media and to talk crap about Charlotte? ‘Oh, she’s only in that spot because her father.’ I mean, how old is that one? Because OF COURSE if she didn’t have the last name Flair? She wouldn’t be as athletic as she is, she wouldn’t look as good as she does. She wouldn’t have the gear that she does…just stop it already!”

Charlotte’s father Ric Flair also recently sang her praises. Of course he may be a bit biased, but if anybody knows what it takes to make a successful pro wrestler, it’s Ric Flair. He told CBS Sports, “She’s the best woman on the roster, but she’s the best woman of all time. I’ve been in the business 49 years. Give me an example of who you think is better. You can’t.”

Charlotte Flair’s track record of success speaks for itself. Pay per view main events, singles matches, tag team matches, Royal Rumbles, she does it all. She is a 5-time SmackDown Women’s Champion, a 4-time RAW Women’s Champion, held the NXT Women’s Championship twice and was the final WWE Divas Champion. She’s one half of the reigning WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions and won last year’s Women’s Royal Rumble.

Don Callis Talks Wanting To Run The Wrestling Business

Chris Stephens
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Impact Wrestling co-Vice President and Kenny Omega’s manager, Don Callis, was recently interviewed by Chris Van Vliet. During the discussion, Callis teased that there is more to come in his angle with Kenny Omega and the Good Brothers.

“Kenny and I have a lot of plans and what people are seeing from a national television perspective is just the fruition of those things,” Callis said. “We take great pride in the fact that when people think they have seen the apex of it, we try to do something different, take it to the next level.”

Callis talked about how he cut a promo in WWF as a complete unknown and called out Vince McMahon. What he said in the promo, Callis said, was indicative of what he wants from the wrestling business.

“I called out Vince McMahon. I said that I wanted to run the World Wrestling Federation, I wanted to run the wrestling business,” Callis said. “But it was true. I never had any interest in being a pro-wrestling manager, or being a color commentator, I wanted to be the person pulling the strings. I was 29-years-old when I said that.”

Don Callis On Being Offered A Job On WWE Creative

Callis continued to say the timing wasn’t right for him to run the wrestling business, however. WWE did offer him jobs working in creative but he turned them down.

“I wrote 6 weeks of television for Kurrgan to get him to try to get him to a different level and I wrote it out in a week-by-week format,” Callis continued. “That would be fairly common now, in 1997, it was pretty unheard of.”

Callis said that after doing so, he was offered a spot in WWE creative but turned it down. He ended up getting released from the company in 1999. The belief is he was fired by Bruce Prichard for “getting over at the talent’s expense.”

Callis then went to ECW and performed as Cyrus the Virus. During his interview with Chris Van Vliet, Callis referred to Paul Heyman as one of the most influential people in his career.

Don Callis On Comparisons To Paul Heyman

“There’s probably been 3, I’d say,” Callis said when asked about the most influential person in his career. “Kenny’s uncle the Golden Sheik, for sure. Bad News Allen (aka Bad News Brown) who kind of took on my training after the Sheik moved on. And then Paul Heyman in ECW.”

Callis then explained the key difference between what he does and what Paul Heyman does, however.

“I’ve been happy for Paul that he’s had the success that he’s had cause he’s a very talented and hard-working guy. Did a lot for me. There have been people now that have been comparing us. I think it’s an unfair comparison for Paul. Cause Paul is a tremendous wrestling performer, a character on a wrestling show. He does a wonderful job of that. I’m not a character. I am the essence of who I am and what I do is done at a much higher level than what characters like Paul, with all due respect, can do.”

The full interview with Don Callis can be heard in the player below:

The Story Behind WWE Missing The Chance To Sign Big Show Before He Joined WCW

Jake Skudder
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Former WWE referee Mike Chioda recently appeared on an AdFreeShows Patreon exclusive interview. The special episode of the Monday Mailbag would see Chioda tell an unbelievable story regarding The Big Show, Pat Patterson and Vince McMahon from the 90s.

“We’re in North Carolina” Chioda began on the show. “We’re at the show, and of course Vince [McMahon] and Pat [Patterson] would always watch the monitors. They would watch what WCW was doing, and it’d be in Vince’s office. I’d say three to six months prior to this show in North Carolina? We’re doing Monday Night Raw and I’d met Big Show, before he was a wrestler. And I was in a nightclub in Philadelphia, I lived in South Jersey, and I was in a nightclub in Delaware Ave, in Philadelphia.”

“Well, who comes up to me? Big Show” Chioda continued. “He comes up to me and I turn around. This guy is huge! I’m like ‘holy sh*t, my god this is another Andre [The Giant].’ So, I talked to Big Show for a while at that club, and he knew who I was and everything, that’s why he came up to me. I mean his hands are huge, he’s got great hair, he’s in great shape, AND he’s huge. So I get his name and his number.

screenshot 214

Big Show as The Giant

“I’m at TVs one day and I said, ‘Pat, you’ve gotta check this guy out, he’s another Andre The Giant, unbelievable great shape. Huge, long hair, hands just like Andre! I’m like flipping out with Pat, you know? I’m telling them, ‘you got to call this guy!'”

Chioda would then reveal the funniest part of the story. “So a couple months goes by and that’s when I’m walking past Vince’s office in North Carolina. And all of a sudden? I see Big Show, which then he was Paul Wright, I saw him in WCW on the monitor. Vince and Pat had their eyes on his monitor like ‘holy sh*t who is this guy!?'”

“So I walked by, and I’d seen him on the monitor. I go ‘hey Pat, what happened to that guy? He didn’t work out? Or he didn’t want to come over here?’ Vince looks at me, looks at Pat. Pat goes ‘what do you mean?’ I said ‘I gave you that guy’s phone number a couple months ago, Pat. I told you I met him in Philadelphia nightclub. He was a bouncer.’

Then Vince McMahon lost it. “Vince went, ‘What the f*ck Pat!’ Vince goes ‘Mike, you mean this guy!?’ and I went ‘yes that guy.’ I get out of there because Vince says ‘excuse me, Mike,’ and he slams the door!”

“Only five minutes later Pat comes and chases me down. He said ‘Mike what the f*ck! What the f*ck? You gave me HIS number? That was him!? I said yes, that was him. ‘I thought you were talking about El Gigante! we had already signed him!'”

So Big Show could’ve been in WWE before he went to WCW.

Eric Bischoff On Trying To Purchase WCW In 2001

Chris Stephens
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0

WCW was sold to Vince McMahon at a reduced price in 2001. The transaction ended the Monday Night Wars. Eric Bischoff had been attempting to purchase the company in the days leading up to the sale to Vince McMahon, however.

He spoke about this recently on an episode of his 83 Weeks podcast. Bischoff mentioned that he knew he had his detractors in the company in 2001 but was excited to rebuild WCW.

“It was certainly exciting, no question about that,” Bischoff said. He’d continue to talk about the detractors he had in the company at the time.

“Many of the people that were such a big part of WCW while we were growing the brand and had so much success were still there, but there were also a number of people there that I knew were not fans of me. There were people that I wasn’t necessarily that thrilled with even while I was there. I knew going back under the circumstances it was going to be real challenging.”

Bischoff also mentioned that he would have put more emphasis on the cruiserweight division in 2001 if he had taken ownership of WCW.

“I knew that the cruiserweight division was something that was going to have to come back. In a way, that it represented some of the best cruiserweight action that we saw when we brought that division to professional wrestling on a consistent basis. Not just calling someone a cruiserweight, like the X-division.”

“It was definitely one of the things that I wanted to go back to in a big way,” he continued.

He specifically mentioned Shane Helms (aka Hurricane Helms) as someone who would play a large role in the division.

“Shane Helms, for example, was one of the early ideas that we had of really reaching out to a much younger performer, somebody that brought a different style and obviously a different demo to the party.”

Eric Bischoff also recently spoke about WWE’s NWO angle in 2002 on his podcast. He feels Vince McMahon’s involvement in the angle made little sense.

Bischoff’s comments can be heard in the player below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMH50visgvw

Eddie Kingston Talks Emotional Speech Following Brodie Lee Tribute

Jake Skudder
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0

AEW‘s Eddie Kingston recently appeared on Renee Paquette’s Oral Sessions podcast. The ‘Mad King’ would discuss a number of topics on the show, including his current relationship, appearing overseas and tribute to his long-time friend Brodie Lee.

Eddie Kingston made a speech following the Brodie Lee Tribute episode of AEW Dynamite. It wasn’t something that Kingston planned; but he felt he had to say something to the other talent about the emotion of the show. He also stated how as a further tribute to Brodie? They should bring that to the forefront every single week.

The speech was filmed and released by AEW. It would end up going viral amongst wrestling fans.

Eddie Kingston on Tribute Speech

“Homicide busted my balls about it” Eddie Kingston began on the podcast. “‘I see you’re the locker room leader now!’ I’m like, ‘leave me alone.’ He’ll randomly send me like a picture of something saying ‘boss’ on it or something, I’m like ‘oh come on.'”

“I just had this overwhelming feeling of energy after the show was over” Kingston then continued. “And I was kind of like, I feel like I need people to understand why I’m getting this energy. I just started…just yelling because I was like, ‘why can’t we do this every week? Why does it take one of our fallen brothers to pass away for us to be this emotional in the ring? Bring it out to the people so that people can feel us?’ You know?”

Eddie Kingston then described how everyone would quieten down and then his speech started to get filmed. “And then? I’m going on and on and I’m like ‘oh man this is really embarrassing, people are looking at me. What the fuck is going on!?’ And then I see the camera and you can actually see me, see the camera! I Look at it and I go ‘okay! We got to carry it! Then I run away as fast as I can, because it’s not about that. And I get why they (AEW) put it up [online] and that’s cool.”

Did you see the speech from Eddie Kingston? Let us know in the comments

Update On Chris Jericho Testing Positive For COVID-19 In September

Chris Stephens
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0

Chris Jericho revealed on an episode of Talk is Jericho recently that he tested positive for COVID-19 back in September. Jericho said he was asymptomatic and was actually surprised that he tested positive. More information on this was revealed recently on Wrestling Observer Radio.

“He believes that he got it from a family friend, is what I understand,” said Dave Meltzer regarding Jericho. “Had no symptoms. Nobody in the family had any symptoms but the friend tested positive so he went and checked and tested positive.”

“(He) quarantined, did not feel bad. At the next TV, he passed the test and worked the next TV after the quarantine was over.”

There have been some fans wondering if Jericho’s positive COVID test is related to cases that Lance Archer and Nick Jackson had around the same time. In the case of Lance Archer, however, it’s believed he got it from a friend.

“It was from a family member who may have gotten it from a friend when they were taking the dog to the vet, I think is the story,” Meltzer said about Archer.

Nick Jackson doesn’t know how he got the virus.

“Nick Jackson doesn’t know how he got it. He doesn’t know if he got it from a taping, he doesn’t know if he got it from the airport but when he got home from the taping, he was sick right away,” Meltzer continued. “He was traveling with Matt and he was traveling with Brandon Cutler and they were fine.”

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