– Triple H will be hosting a conference call on Wednesday to promote Thursday’s NXT Takeover special on the WWE Network.
– Former WWE Superstar Romeo Roselli will be playing one of the main characters in “Jersey Shore Massacre,” which is scheduled to hit theaters in late-August.
– In light of WWE’s ongoing financial troubles and the company’s efforts to make the WWE Network profitable, Chief Strategy & Financial Officer George Barrios recently stated that we might see advertisements on the Network soon.
According to industry sources, ads could begin popping up on the WWE Network as early as the first quarter of 2015. As previously reported, there has also been some discussion about increasing the monthly subscription cost to bring in additional revenue.
– The ringside timekeeper who got a ‘wedgie’ from Alicia Fox last night on RAW was Berkley Ottman, son of former WWE Superstar Fred “Tugboat/Typhoon” Ottman.
TNA ADDS THREE TELEVISED AUGUST EVENTS IN NYC
TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY, MAY 30 AT 10 A.M. ET
NASHVILLE, Tennessee (May 27, 2014) – In response to incredible demand from IMPACT WRESTLING fans, TNA Entertainment is adding three televised events in New York City August 5, 6 and 7 at the famed Manhattan Center’s Grand Ballroom. Tickets for the August New York City IMPACT WRESTILNG Live! events, which will broadcast on Spike TV in the U.S. and to millions of fans in more than 120 countries across the globe, go on sale this Fri., May 30 at 10 a.m. ET, and are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.com and by phone at 800.745.3000.
Tickets start at $20 and elite front row ringside seats are available for $75. A pre-sale for the August events will start at 10 a.m. ET on Wed., May 28. For exclusive pre-sale codes follow TNA President Dixie Carter on twitter @TNADixie.
A limited number of VIP Packages, which include premiere seating, a meet and greet autograph session with select TNA Superstars and a commemorative souvenir, are also available starting Wednesday at 10 a.m. via ShopTNA.com.
TNA has now announced a total of six televised IMPACT WRESTLING Live! events this summer at The Grand Ballroom of the Manhattan Center; June 25 –27 and Aug. 5 – 7.
For more information on TNA in NYC visit www.impactwrestling.com and follow @IMPACTWRESTLING on twitter and on Facebook at www.fb.com/IMPACTWRESTLING.
Following Brad Maddox being fired as the General Manager of RAW last night, WWE.com is running a poll asking fans about who the next GM should be. With over 14,000 votes cast, WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan has a commanding lead with 43% of the votes. Paul Heyman is in second place with 11%.
Here’s the full list of choices:
Unfortunately, “Kill this stupid, outdated GM gimmick” is not one of the options.
– Jeff Jarrett’s Global Force Wrestling has applied for the trademarks “Global Force Wrestling”, “GFW” and “Global Force Entertainment” to be used in “digital media and streaming material on the internet.”
– TNA has booked three more Impact Wrestling tapings at the Manhattan Center’s Grand Ballroom in New york City. Aside from next month’s shows on June 25th, 26th and 27th, TNA will be taping three more shows on August 5th, 6th and 7th.
How will TNA be received when they debut at the Manhattan Center? If this video from last weekend’s ROH “War Of The Worlds” show is any indication ….
(Source: PWInsider)
– Today’s wrestling birthdays include WWE Diva Natalya (32) and Eric Bischoff (59).
– NXT stars Simon Gotch, Braun Stowan, Becky Lynch and producer Ryan Katz appeared on RAW as Adam Rose’s Rosebuds.
– Former WWE star Johnny Jeter of Spirit Squad fame announced on Facebook yesterday that he recently got engaged.
– Christian is ready to return to action, according to Dave Meltzer’s Wrestling Observer radio show. In the past, WWE has been in no rush to bring Christian back to television when he’s recovered for an injury, but he could be back soon.
– Renee Young got ribbed backstage at Monday’s WWE RAW from Knoxville, Tennessee. During a backstage interview with Evolution that aired after RAW on the WWE Network, Triple H told her that The Shield should not bring a pen to a sledgehammer fight. Randy Orton said that they’ve already proved they are the superior faction and Batista joked that they should sue if The Shield doesn’t show up for their fight on Sunday.
As they were wrapping up the interview, Triple H asked Renee why she wasn’t wearing any shoes. She responded, “I don’t really have an answer…” The camera then panned down to show Renee Young standing there barefoot as she stood there looking flustered.
– Here are this week’s RAW Fallout videos:
Alicia Fox speaks about her match with Emma on Raw.
Adam Rose and his Rosebuds get the party started to celebrate his debut victory on Raw.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross made his debut as a boxing commentator on Monday night on a live show for Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions that aired on Fox Sports 1.
Here’s video of Jim Ross calling the main event, followed by a post-show interview with Jim Ross.
http://youtu.be/wPwEPnuTxrI
Following his FOX Sports 1 boxing commentating debut, Jim Ross checked in on FOX Sports Live to recap his night at the fights.
http://youtu.be/rTgeNoRbCKc
After Monday’s WWE RAW from Knoxville, Tennessee went off the air, John Cena grabbed a microphone and joked about the locals drinking moonshine all weekend to celebrate Memorial Day. Since a lot of people were clearing out, he said it must be past “last call.” He then started singing “Rocky Top” with the crowd, which brought out Bray Wyatt.
John Cena taunted him with the “no pearls in your pants” routine, which provoked Wyatt and led to a match. Cena defeated Wyatt with an Attitude Adjustment in about 6 minutes.
Both men hit their signature spots, with Cena kicked out of Sister Abigail. Towards the end, the referee got knocked out, allowing Rowan and Harper to interfere. Bray brought a steel chair into the ring but accidentally hit Rowan with it, allowing Cena to hit his finisher for the win. After the match, Cena sang Rocky Top again as he left the ringside area.
Overall, it was a lively crowd, with a good portion of the upper deck curtained off.
– WWE will tape this week’s episodes of Main Event and SmackDown tonight from the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA.
On Main Event, Erick Rowan and Luke Harper will challenge WWE Tag Team Champions The Usos in a non-title match. On SmackDown, we’ll see a Champion vs. Champion match, with US Champion Sheamus facing Intercontinental Champion Bad News Barrett.
WWE legends Ric Flair and Scott Hall are expected to attend the tapings, with Flair rumored to be making his TV return on SmackDown.
– RAW General Manager Brad Maddox was fired on RAW by The Authority after being destroyed by Kane. Maddox had been on on-air authority figure for over two years.
Here are the 10 most-watched WWE Network shows for the past week:
It was announced on RAW that Hornswoggle will face El Torito on Sunday’s WWE Payback kickoff show in a Hair vs. Mask match. Plus, Daniel Bryan will have to decide if he wants to surrender the WWE World Heavyweight Championship or see his wife Brie Bella fired.
Join us here this Sunday night for our Live Coverage of WWE Payback.
No Holds Barred Team Elimination Match
– The Shield vs. Evolution
Last Man Standing Match
– Bray Wyatt vs. John Cena
United States Title Match
– Sheamus (c) vs. Cesaro
Intercontinental Title Match
– Bad News Barrett (c) vs. Rob Van Dam
Divas Title Match
– Paige (c) vs. Alicia Fox
Mask vs. Hair Kickoff Pre-show Match
– El Torito vs. Hornswoggle
– Daniel Bryan will appear to answer Stephanie McMahon’s request to surrender the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. If he does not, his wife Brie will be fired.
It was revealed during the WWE RAW pre-show on the WWE Network on Monday night that Paige will be defending the WWE Divas Championship against Alicia Fox at this Sunday’s WWE Payback pay-per-view.
With that now known, here is your updated official WWE Payback pay-per-view lineup for this Sunday.
No Holds Barred Elimination Match
– The Shield vs. Evolution
Last Man Standing Match
– John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt
Intercontinental Championship
– Bad News Barrett (c) vs. Rob Van Dam
United States Championship
– Sheamus (c) vs. Cesaro
Divas Championship
– Paige (c) vs. Alicia Fox
The Authority, Kane & Brad Maddox Fired
This week’s show begins with an extensive Memorial Day video package. After that, we shoot live inside the arena and Justin Roberts introduces Stephanie McMahon and Triple H. HHH’s “King of Kings” music plays and out to the ring comes The Authority.
Stephanie begins by welcoming us to a “historic edition of Monday Night Raw.” She says tonight is all about choices. She says Daniel Bryan has the choice tonight to do the right thing and surrender the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The fans break out in “Yes!” chants.
HHH continues by talking about how some people become flash-in-the-pans and some people become legends. He calls Daniel Bryan a flash-in-the-pain. A light “CM Punk” chant breaks out in Knoxville. HHH then goes on to talk about how Evolution are legends and that The Shield won’t be able to stop them at Payback this Sunday.
“The Game” goes on to talk about the contract signing tonight between Evolution and The Shield.
Stephanie takes over and says an issue with RAW General Manager Brad Maddox needs to be addressed. She orders Maddox to come out to the ring. Maddox enters the ring and HHH yells at him for allowing Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns to serve as guest commentators for the Roman Reigns vs. Batista match last week, despite orders from The Authority that no member of The Shield be at ringside. HHH asks Maddox to explain himself.
Maddox says he didn’t want to let The Shield be guest commentators. He says he was forced. Stephanie says she heard Maddox got roughed up by The Shield and understands that he didn’t have a choice. She says he hopes he understands that right now they have no choice.
Kane’s music and fire-pyro explodes and “The Big Red Machine” makes his way to the ring. Stephanie orders Kane to teach him a lesson. Kane obliges and chokeslams Maddox and then Tombstone Piledrivers him. Kane’s fire-pyro explodes again, his music plays, and Kane and The Authority stand over a fallen Maddox.
Stephanie asks for the music to be cut. She says she forgot to mention one thing. She tells Brad Maddox, “you’re fired.” Triple H’s “King of Kings” plays again as The Authority and Kane make their way to the back. We head to our first commercial break of the evening.
Cesaro (with Paul Heyman) vs. Rob Van Dam
When we return from commercial, after a quick “Bo Dallas makes RAW debut tonight” vignette, we see Cesaro and Paul Heyman already standing in the ring. Rob Van Dam is introduced by Justin Roberts, and RVD makes his way to the ring. Out next is Bad News Barrett, who cuts a “Bad News” promo on his way to the ring about Memorial Day and Van Dam losing to him this Sunday at Payback. Barrett joins the commentary team for this match, which is a one-on-one encounter between Van Dam and Cesaro.
The bell rings and here we go. Van Dam gets an early lead, all-the-while Barrett is talking on commentary about how he’s not going to beat him at Payback this Sunday. We head to an early mid-match commercial.
When we return from commercial, Cesaro is in firm control of the match, going for multiple near-falls in a row. We see some highlights of action during the break of Cesaro throwing RVD out to the floor.
Van Dam makes a comeback and hits pretty much all of his RVD-type moves. Barrett appears out of nowhere, leaving commentary to interfere, but Van Dam sees him and kicks him before he can enter the ring. As soon as RVD turns around, however, Cesaro rolls him up for the 1-2-3.
Winner: Cesaro
After The Match: “The Celtic Warrior” Attacks
After the match, Sheamus’ music hits. The WWE United States Champion sprints to the ring and ultimately blasts Cesaro — his opponent for Payback this Sunday — with a Brogue Kick. We head to another commercial.
Eva Marie (with Nikki Bella) vs. Summer Rae
When we return from commercial, we see Eva Marie and Nikki Bella standing in the ring. Summer Rae makes her way to the ring.
The bell rings and here we go with a Divas singles match between Marie and Rae. Summer gets control of the match, but is eventually distracted, as Fandango and Layla come out, dance around and make out. Eva rolls her up and gets the 1-2-3.
Winner: Eva Marie
Batista & Randy Orton and Goldust & Cody Rhodes Argue, Triple H Makes A Match
Backstage, we see Randy Orton and Batista talking. In walks Goldust and Cody Rhodes. They say they’re issuing an open challenge to any tag-team tonight. The two teams argue until Triple H comes in and makes a match between the two teams. HHH says this won’t be any ordinary match. We head to commercial.
– Ryan Katz, Becky Lynch, Simon Gotch and Braun Stowman from NXT were scheduled to be at RAW tonight to be part of Adam Rose’s “Rosebuds” entourage.
– WWE Hall Of Famer “Nature Boy” Ric Flair is scheduled to attend the SmackDown television taping on Tuesday night in Atlanta, Georgia. As noted, WWE has been in talks with Flair about bringing him back as a regular TV character.
(Credit: F4WOnline.com)
– The following is a photo of WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross at the official weigh-ins for the Rocky Juarez vs. Rene Alvarado boxing match, which of course is the main event of the FOX Sports 1 event that he will be providing television commentary for tonight.
Don't miss @JRsBBQ on tomorrow's #GoldenBoyLive broadcast of Alvarado vs Juarez @FOXSports1 @FOXDeportes 9PM ET pic.twitter.com/knziY35nzh
— GoldenBoyPromotions (@GoldenBoyBoxing) May 26, 2014
– Below is a new video of Bill Apter interviewing legendary wrestling manager J.J. Dillon:
Former WWE Superstar and ECW Original Sabu was reportedly advised earlier this month by doctors to retire.
Sabu recently broke several bones in his arm during a match, and due to other issues and a long career of wear-and-tear, he was told that he needs to end his in-ring career this year.
The hardcore legend has continued to wrestle matches on the independent scene, as well as international tours, and has reportedly told friends that he has no intentions of actually retiring from the sport.
The following are highlights of a new In Your Head Wrestling interview with Matt Striker:
On people yelling in your ear while doing commentary: “Again, this has always been brought up; people say they’ve heard guys like Mick Foley or Tazz say this or that. You have to understand; those guys had a much different relationship with Vince (McMahon) than I did. Mick Foley made millions of dollars with Vince; I’m sure they spoke to each other differently than Vince would speak to me. I can say that I never was straight-up yelled at in my ear. Did Vince give passionate direction? Sure, but you have to understand what the man wants. If Vince comes in your ear and says “Talk to me about how strong Sheamus is” and you just repeat what Vince says “Well, Sheamus is really strong” of course he’s going to get angry. But if you go into a story about how strong Sheamus is, because Mark Henry noticed that Sheamus bench-pressed as much as he did in the gym earlier today, well now you’re giving it some depth. And I think that once Vince realized that I understood what he was looking for, he kind of left me to my own devices, as bad as some of my devices may have been in hindsight.”
On WWE’s version of ECW and working with the original ECW guys: “Yeah, my thoughts were again, “Oh cool, I’m a part of something.” Looking back, ECW really gave me a vehicle to get a little bit of quality television time and ECW also got me to WrestleMania. When else would Matt Striker get an opportunity to go to WrestleMania? I was real fortunate for that, and some of the matches that we had I’m real proud of. The matches with guys like Rob Van Dam, Sabu, Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Stevie Richards, Danny Doring, and Guido, they weren’t wrestling matches; those were fights. You fight those guys, and you end up either becoming really close friends with them, or you can’t stand the sight of their face.”
Check out the complete interview above.
WWE’s Twitter account just issued a ‘breaking news’ alert that tonight’s RAW will feature a contract signing between The Shield and Evolution ahead of their match this Sunday at WWE Payback.
If previous WWE contract signings are any indication, it seems highly unlikely that this one takes place without a huge brawl ensuing.
For more on tonight’s RAW, check out our RAW Preview.
– In light of WWE’s stock dropping to $11 per share, there have been some analysts suggesting that WWE should take the company private again. Most people in WWE are against the idea, feeling that being a public company gives them mainstream legitimacy.
– Joey Styles tweeted that additional episodes of ECW Hardcore TV will be added to the WWE Network soon.
– Hornswoggle noted on Twitter that today marks 8 years that he’s been with WWE:
8 years ago today I debuted @wwe . I think since then I have proven I'm not just some circus act, keep that in mind @WWEElTorito ! #thankyou
— Hornswoggle (@wwehornswoggle) May 26, 2014
The official website for Golden Boy Promotions recently noted that Jim Ross will be handling the commentary for their boxing card on FOX Sports 1 tonight:
“Hall of Fame WWE Commentator Jim Ross will be making his boxing commentary debut on the “Golden Boy Live” specialMemorial Day broadcast on FOX Sports 1 and will be in attendance at the weigh in to meet and greet with Army soldiers, fans and is available for media interviews.”
JR also tweeted the following to hype his debut as a boxing commentator:
Just finished fighter’s meetings for Oscar de la Hoya’s @GoldenBoyBoxing for @FOXSports1 live fights tomorrow night at 9 eastern. #letsgo
— Jim Ross (@JRsBBQ) May 26, 2014
Update: On RAW, Daniel Bryan refused to surrender the WWE World Heavyweight Championship to Stephanie McMahon. Stephanie showed Bryan footage of his wife Brie putting her hands on her two weeks ago when Bryan was stretchered out on RAW, which Stephanie said was grounds for firing. Bryan now has until Sunday’s Payback pay-per-view to decide if he will surrender the title. Whether or not the title is vacated on Sunday or not, it’s still rumored that a new champion will be crowned soon.
With WWE Payback being this Sunday and the top matches for that show already finalized, there’s a lot of talk behind the scenes that the vacated WWE World Heavyweight Championship will be up for grabs at the June 29th Money in the Bank pay-per-view.
Making that show a “must see event” – we could see one MITB match for the vacated championship and second MITB match, with the usual Money in the Bank briefcase on the line, containing a contract for a future title shot.
– With WWE stock taking a catastrophic hit since WrestleMania XXX (dropping from $31 to $11), WWE CEO Vince McMahon has lost around $842 million of personal wealth. He’s still worth around $700 million. A source close to Vince says that he’s very bothered by the media coverage of him no longer being a billionaire.
– In honor of Memorial Day, WWE is donating a portion of today’s WWEshop.com proceeds to the Hire Heroes USA organization, which helps veterans transition from military service to civilian life.
– Adam Rose has been tweeting about Jack Swagger, encouraging him to break away from Zeb Colter, who he has dubbed a “grumpy super lemon.”
“Do you think if Jacky boy got away from grumpy pants @WWEZeb he would want to party? I think so! I think we should start a campaign to separate jacky boy and @WWEZeb!
Let’s free Jacky from the grumpy super lemon!!! #wwe #rosebud #FreeJackyBoy from @WWEZeb!!!! Let’s try get this message out! #wwe #rosebud”
(Partial Source: Wrestling Observer)
WWE recently signed three new Divas to developmental contracts: Dasha Kuret, Savelina “Lina” Fanene and Dani Jackson. Savelina Fanene is actually a cousin of WWE legend The Rock. Her grandfather and The Rock’s great grandmother were siblings. Lina, who is from California, has a background in sports and is friends with WWE Diva Layla.
She attended WrestleMania 28 in Miami (John Cena vs. The Rock) and The Rock’s mother Ata Johnson reportedly encouraged her to get into pro wrestling. She started training at a wrestling school in California and impressed WWE officials during a recent tryout camp.
– In honor of Memorial Day in the United States, WWE.com is featuring “15 Patriotic Moments We Salute.”
– The Ultimate Warrior’s wife Dana has published a Memorial Day message, which you can view here.
– Jim Ross has updated the the Q&A section of JRsBarBQ.com. When asked why John Cena is feuding with Bray Wyatt instead of chasing the WWE World Heavyweight championship, JR responded:
“I’d suggest that Cena is working with Bray to help establish Bray as a star. Cena doesn’t need a title to be considered a star at this stage of the game. Bray doesn’t have to win the series of matches but the rub Cena provides will enhance Wyatt.”
– Here’s the official preview for Sunday’s Total Divas “Season Finale: Part 2” – which will go head-to-head against WWE Payback:
“Wedding Mania: Brie and Bryan get married; at the same time, Nikki’s secret marriage is exposed to John; and the Divas compete at WrestleMania.”
It was recently announced that Total Divas will be returning for a third season and Rosa Mendes is joining the cast.
– After Total Divas – May 25, 2014
Renee Young and Alicia Fox recap Episode 10 of Season Two of E’s “Total Divas.”