WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler behind bars this morning after being arrested for domestic violence, according to WFSB.com.
Lawler, 66, and his fiancée Lauryn McGride, 27, allegedly got into an argument that turned violent and involved a gun. McBride tells Memphis police that Lawler held her against the kitchen counter, hit her in the head, pushed her against the stove, put a gun on the kitchen counter, and told her to “go ahead and kill yourself.”
Lawler told police the argument started when McBride lied about where she’d been. He claims McBride scratched him in the face, threw a candle at him, and kicked him in the groin. Lawler claims she was drunk and was threatening to kill herself.
Police officers were unable to determine who started the altercation, so both were arrested. They were both booked into the Shelby County Jail around 1am Friday. Lawler was previously arrested in 1999 for throwing a ticket at a Memphis police officer and running over his foot.
– Today’s wrestling birthdays include NXT star Gzim Selmani of Authors of Pain (22), ECW legend The Sandman (53) and WWE Hall of Famer The Ultimate Warrior, who would have been 57.
– Bryan Alvarez noted on Wrestling Observer Live that the current plan is for at least 6 NXT wrestlers to join the main roster next month during the WWE Draft. As we’ve been reporting, WWE is already scouting fresh talent to join NXT later this year once that roster is thinned out due to call-ups.
– Below are matches for tonight’s WWE SmackDown:
Luke Gallows vs. Big Cass vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Aiden English
Baron Corbin vs. Zack Ryder
Rusev vs. Kalisto
Xavier Woods vs. AJ Styles
Natalya vs. Charlotte
Cesaro, Sami Zayn and Dean Ambrose vs. Chris Jericho, Alberto Del Rio and Kevin Owens
– Batista has finished shooting his scenes for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy 2. Director James Gunn tweeted these props:
– This year’s Destination X edition of Impact Wrestling will air live (on a slight tape delay) July 12th from Universal Studios. The main event will see TNA World Champion Lashley defending against whoever theX Division Champion is at that time. Both titles will be on the line. To find out who Lashley’s opponent will be, check out the most recent tapings results:
In a promotional interview for this Sunday’s Money In The Bank event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Big E revealed who he would add to his crew if he had to.
In an interview with VegasSesven.com, The New Day member claims that he, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods always saw their group as a faction that would expand beyond the original three members. Big E says that although he thinks the group is a perfect fit right now with just the three of them, he would add Sasha Banks to the mix if he had to choose a fourth member.
“We’re all such big Sasha Banks fans—I think she would add a different dynamic, though she’s such a strong, beloved character that I don’t think she needs to be surrounded by anyone,” Big E said. “But if we were forced to pick someone, it would be Sasha Banks.”
Big E also talked about Money In The Bank, and said he’s excited to see Seth Rollins bounce back from his knee injury, and says Cena vs. Styles is a match fans have waited a very long time to see. You can read his entire interview here.
WWE continues to get aggressive with pursuing new talents as they plan to “raid” NXT for the upcoming brand split. Officials want experienced wrestlers who they can use on tour instead of the original idea of using the PC to take athletes and train them to wrestle.
It’s believed Big Damo and Noam Dar will join Moose and Tommy End at the September PC tryouts in Orlando. Dar will be working the WWE CWC later this month.
On a related note, WWE officials really wanted top star Will Ospreay for the CWC but he is signed to a two-year deal with New Japan. There was talk of WWE possibly trying to work with NJPW to get Ospreay in the tournament.
Despite The June 13th edition of WWE RAW fetching it’s lowest cable rating since 1997, one stock analyst expects the company to do just fine.
CNBC spoke with Pacific Crest analyst Evan Wingren about WWE, and specifically their WWE Network streaming service. Wingren says the streaming business will cause WWE’s stock to take off, and that using the Nielsen ratings to gauge the company’s business isn’t viable anymore.
“We believe WWE’s model is at an inflection point, and that it is on the cusp of demonstrating profitability that greatly exceeds its historical earnings power,” Wingren wrote. “A deep dive into WWE Network’s cost structure suggests greater leverage than we previously thought.”
Earlier this year, WWE revealed that their streaming service now has 1.82 million subscribers, a 39% increase from the year before.
Finn Balor’s WWE main roster call-up is said to be imminent. There are rumors of Balor debuting at Money In the Bank on Sunday but the debut could be held off until the WWE Draft.
It will also be interesting to see if The Wyatt Family, Randy Orton or Neville return at MITB on Sunday. They are all set to return in the next few weeks and The Wyatts have been rumored for MITB.
WWE is expected to sellout the 13,000 seat setup for Sunday’s PPV, their first at the new T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
WWE began issuing “Fan Council” surveys back in April in an effort to gauge customer interest on various products.
A new survey was issued this month with several big names in the running for their own DVD & Blu-Ray sets. Some of the sets WWE is considering producing include “The Best of 1997” and “Masters of the Mic.”
Here are all of the potential projects WWE listed in their newest survey, courtesy of WrestlingDVDNetwork.com:
Stephanie McMahon
From growing up a McMahon to ultimately becoming chief brand officer in WWE, Stephanie McMahon’s story is one of female empowerment in a predominately male oriented business. Stephanie worked through different departments at WWE including the creative team and became one of the most captivating on-screen characters in WWE history.
Hardy Boyz (Match Compilation)
The Hardy Boyz, Matt and Jeff, were born to wrestle, starting in their early days jumping on a trampoline to ultimately rising through the ranks of WWE. Matt and Jeff are the perfect combination of high flying and ground attack that dazzled the WWE Universe. Their matches were legendary, now you get a chance to own them.
The Kevin Owens Experience
Now’s your chance to follow Kevin Owens around in his daily routine to find out what makes the “Prizefighter” tick. Listen as he recalls honing his craft on the independents before coming to WWE.
Best of 1997: 20th Anniversary
A look back at the year 1997. It was the rise of Stone Cold Steve Austin, the birth of DX, the summer of the Hart Foundation and the debut of Kane. And who could forget the infamous Montreal Screwjob?
Shane McMahon Biography
Shane McMahon, the fourth generation of the legendary McMahon family, sits down for the first time ever to tell his story
Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns has burst on the scene to become one of the biggest Superstars to date, but it’s no surprise that his historical lineage has set him up for greatness.
Cruiserweight Championship: 20 Years Later
A match compilation looking back at the legacy of the Cruiserweight Championship and its roots in WCW, creating the likes of Chris Jericho, Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mystery and Dean Malenko.
The Rise of NXT / OVW
In recent years NXT has emerged as an incredible box office draw for WWE with sold out live events and Network specials. Watch WWE’s “developmental” system churn out future Hall of Fame Superstars like John Cena, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, Batista, Kevin Owens, Charlotte and more.
Masters of the Mic
Countdown of the top 25 talkers in WWE history – Stone Cold, Dusty Rhodes, Chris Jericho, The Rock, Mick Foley, Paul Heyman – they’re all here!
Goldberg
Who’s next? “The Man” sit down with WWE to break his silence. A compilation of all-new interviews and career-spanning matches.
WWE® and PPTV Announce Exclusive Multi-Year Partnership in China
WWE Live Event Returns to Shanghai in September; WWE Signs First-Ever Chinese Talent to Developmental Contract
WWE ushered in a new era in China today, announcing an exclusive multi-year content distribution agreement with PPTV; the return of a WWE live event to Shanghai on Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 7 pm; and Bin Wang as the first-ever Chinese talent signed to a developmental contract. The historic announcements were made today at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai by WWE Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer Michelle D. Wilson, WWE Superstar John Cena®, WWE Vice President & General Manager of Greater China Jay Li, WWE Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events & Creative Paul “Triple H®” Levesque, Vice President of PPTV, General Manager of PPTV Sports Stephen Zhang and CEO of Shanghai Expo Development Ltd. Ding Hao.
This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here.
“Today’s historic announcements further demonstrate WWE’s long-term commitment to China,” said WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon. “Partnerships with PPTV and Expo Group, as well as the signing of Bin Wang, will enable us to engage our fans in China like never before.”
As part of WWE’s commitment to its fans in China, the company announced an exclusive multi-year agreement with PPTV to deliver its flagship shows Raw® and SmackDown® in Mandarin.
Starting June 28, for the first time ever, fans in China will be able to stream all three hours of Raw and two hours of SmackDown on demand exclusively on PPTV and PPTV Sports. Fans can download the PPTV App and watch Raw and SmackDown on Smart TV’s, set-top boxes, mobile devices and tablets, as well as on PPTV.com and Sports.PPTV.com. In addition, WWE short-form content will be available on PPTV’s digital platforms and PPTV will leverage popular digital and social platforms, including WeChat and Sina Weibo, to share WWE content with fans throughout China. PPTV will also launch and manage a new WWE website in China.
“There’s a long history between PPTV Sports and WWE in programming distribution. Now with the new exclusive partnership, these joint efforts will bring passion and family-friendly fun of WWE programing to millions of fans here in China just like in the U.S.,” said Stephen Zhang, General Manager of PPTV Sports.
WWE LIVE EVENT
WWE returns to China with its first live event in more than three years with WWE Live 2016 China on Saturday, September 10 at 7 pm at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. Tickets for WWE Live 2016 China will go on sale this Saturday, June 18 at 12 pm and can be purchased online at gewara.com and wesai.com, or by calling the Gewara ticket hotline at 1010 1068. WWE Superstars scheduled to appear include current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns, current WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte and WWE Superstars John Cena, Seth Rollins and Sasha Banks.
“WWE’s China debut rocked Shanghai Expo in 2010, and now we are excited that deafening cheers from WWE fans will be heard again in 2016 at the Mercedes-Benz Arena,” said Ding Hao, CEO of Expo Group.
WWE made history today by signing Bin Wang to a developmental contract, giving him the opportunity to train to become the first-ever Chinese Superstar in WWE history. At 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, the 22-year-old from Anhui has been training for the past two years in Japan at Inoki Genome Federation (IGF), a wrestling and MMA promotion founded by WWE Hall of Famer Antonio Inoki.
Wang will relocate to Orlando, Florida this Sunday, June 19, where he will begin training out of the state-of-the-art WWE Performance Center. With seven training rings, a world-class strength and conditioning program and cutting-edge edit and production facilities, the Performance Center will allow Wang to develop his skills through a comprehensive program that includes in-ring training, physical preparedness and character development.
“It is an honor to be the first-ever Chinese talent in WWE history,” said Bin Wang. “There are no fans in the world that show the same passion as the WWE Universe, and I look forward to training and developing my skills so I can perform for them in the future.”
TNA held another round of Impact Wrestling tapings on Wednesday night from Orlando, Florida. This show will air July 5th:
– Dixie Carter returns from her hiatus and books Champion Mike Bennett vs. the whole X Division in Ultimate X
– Eddie Edwards won the X Division Championship in Ultimate X
– James Storm defeated Eli Drake by DQ
– Raquel and BroMans defeated The Decay and Rosemary. It was revealed that Bram and Rosemary are having a fling
– Jade defeated Marti Bell in a Street Fight
– Segment with Billy Corgan, Bennett, Maria and Dixie. Bennett is upset about the title and he promises to ruin Destination X on 7/12
– Destination X will also feature World Champion Lashley vs. X Division Champion Eddie Edwards with both titles on the line. Impact ends with Edwards holding both titles.
Eddie Edwards won Ultimate X at Wednesday’s Impact tapings to become the new TNA X Division Champion. Mike Bennett had the title going into the match, which was made by Dixie Carter.
Edwards won the title at Sunday’s Slammiversary PPV but then lost it at Tuesday’s tapings to Bennett, in a match that airs on 6/21.
The Ultimate X match with Edwards regaining the title on Wednesday will air 7/5.
TNA held another round of Impact Wrestling tapings on Wednesday night from Orlando, Florida. This show will air later this month on June 28th:
– Braxton Sutter won a battle royal to become new #1 contender to X Division Champion Mike Bennett. Shane Helms, Andrew Everett and Trevor Lee attacked Sutter after
– Mike Bennett retained over Sutter
– Bram defeated Rosemary by DQ when The Decay interfered. The story of the match was that Bram wouldn’t hit Rosemary
– Matt Hardy comes out in a wheelchair and challenges brother Jeff to a match in 6 weeks. The winner will own the Hardy name and the loser is banned from using it. Jeff accepts the challenge. Matt gets up out of the wheelchair and sneak attacks, then revealing the match will take place in just 1 week at their home in NC
– Grado, Shera and Tyrus defeated The Tribunal and Al Snow
– Bobby Lashley retained the TNA World Title over Drew Galloway and Ethan Carter III in a 3-way
Revolution Pro have announced that Pete Dunne will be taking on Noam Dar on Sunday July 3rd at the London Cockpit in Marylebone.
Dunne’s Cruiserweight title will not be on the line as he is booked to defend against Will Ospreay at the Summer Sizzler, Rev Pro owner Andy Quildan took to Twitter to confirm that if Dar wins the bout then he will be the number 1 contender.
Both Dunne and Dar performed for Rev Pro at the recent Angle vs Sabre Jr Supershow and had stellar matches on the undercard, both are highly experienced Cruiserweight talents on the UK scene and Dar is scheduled to appear at WWE Cruiserweight Classic later in the year. Dunne narrowly missed out on a place at the ‘Classic when he lost to ‘The Gentleman’ Jack Gallagher at PROGRESS Chapter 29.
Tickets for the event are available at Gigantic.com.
Sunday July 3rd: Live At The Cockpit 10 Tickets ON SALE NOW… & here's the first match signed! pic.twitter.com/W6X6R9Cn3r
As seen below in these Instagram posts, Ryback says he’s excited about the brand he’s building for his future after WWE. As noted, Ryback is currently in the middle of a contract dispute with WWE and it’s believed he will be let go when the current deal expires soon.
Really excited about the brand I’m building and the things that I’m going for. Wrestling is just 1 part of my life and I refuse to let that be all I am or all that I’m known for. #FeedMeMore is who and what I am as a human being and greatness lies inside all of us. Don’t settle for being average. Stay hungry, set goals and reach those goals. Always say thank you and then it begins #FeedMeMore
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGsQvtby3xO/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGm9qhtS353/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGm90CsS36L/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGm_B8cy39M/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGnHHY1S3xZ/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BGnTvrwy38l/
Posted June 16th, 2016 in News, WWE. Tagged: Ryback.
– As noted, WWE recently applied to trademark Legion of Doom, the name used by WWE Hall of Famers Paul Ellering and The Road Warriors, Hawk and Animal. Speculation was that Ellering would be bringing the name back for The Authors of Pain in NXT. However, WWE dropped the trademark application earlier this week.
– Triple H tweeted these photos from his visit to Shanghai, China last week for some business meetings and a WWE tryout camp:
We noted before that former TNA star The Amazing Red was booked for the WWE Cruiserweight Classic this summer but had to back out due to an ankle injury.
Red posted the following today about missing the tournament:
Thank you everyone for the kind words! Long story short, I got surgery done 3 times in One month… 1st one was done incorrectly, 2nd was to relieve pressure and stop infection, 3rd fixed it. Everyone who knows me knows that I wanted this more than anything, especially in WWE and especially now. I know that things happen for a reason and I trust God and what he has in store for me. I’m not quitting, ima stay being the hardest worker ever, i won’t stop… I need to make this dream come true, especially for my kids. For my #HouseOfGloryWrestling family… I’ll lead by example. #GodIsGood #PositiveVibes (thank you to all who helped me btw, vibes) #LoveYa
He posted some really graphic photos of what his foot looks like, you can check them out on Facebook.
Earlier this month (6/10), WWE filed several trademarks for the phrase “Clash of Champions.”
Longtime fans will remember the NWA & WCW “Clash of the Champions” events, which were live cable specials that featured PPV caliber matches with limited commercial breaks. NWA/WCW ran 35 of these shows from 1988-1997, with all of them available for viewing on the WWE Network.
With the brand split coming up next month and reports that WWE is looking to increase the number of brand-specific shows, could we see the return of the Clash?
Sgt. Chris Melendez announced on Twitter that he has left TNA, as seen below in his tweets.
Melendez lost his left leg in Iraq after a 2006 IED blast but pursued a pro wrestling career and was signed by TNA in 2014 after training at the Team 3D Wrestling Academy.
.@IMPACTWRESTLING I've decided to move on to the next chapter of my life.I learned alot in & out of the ring.Thank You for the opportunity!
As noted, last night’s Impact Wrestling episode on Pop TV had major technical difficulties due to bad weather in the area of Pop’s master control. The 10:50pm replay drew 210,000 viewers. This is down from last week’s first-run episode, which drew 326,000 viewers.
This week’s late show, which featured the Slammiversary fallout, was ranked #144 on the Cable Top 150. Last week’s show was ranked #116.
Stephanie McMahon held a Facebook Live Q&A session on Wednesday to promote her memoir, which is due out later this year. She discussed a wide variety of topics, including why writing a book about her life, the toughest promo she’s ever cut, her favorite feuds and much more.
When asked if she ever plans to wrestle again, Stephanie said she would love to, but it’s not entirely her call.
“That’s up to the decision maker. But I would love to one day. Like I said, it’s something I truly just absolutely love. But again that depends.
As long as whatever I do helps develop somebody else and helps get them over, and I know that those of you watching understand what that means, but as long as it does help develop somebody else, that’s the ultimate goal of my character. Then it’s something I would absolutely love to do. Are you kidding? Who wouldn’t love to do that?”
She also revealed that if she wasn’t a part of WWE, she’d want to be a choreographer because she loves dance. She also might have gone into marine biology because a high school science teacher was a strong influence on her. You can check out the full Q&A session here:
– John Cena did a pretty great Hulk Hogan impression on the new NBC primetime variety show Maya & Marty. In this segment, John Cena and David Schwimmer (Martin Short) audition for FX’s new show Hulk Hogan v. Gawker.
– The dark segment after last night’s WWE SmackDown tapings saw The Club attack Dean Ambrose until Roman Reigns made the save. This brought out Seth Rollins, who attacked Reigns but Reigns sent him retreating.
– Triple H noted on Twitter that this year’s NXT Takeover: Brooklyn show has officially sold out. The show will once again take place from the Barclays Center during SummerSlam weekend.
Ring of Honor announced on Wednesday that Final Battle 2016 will take place from the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on Friday, December 2nd.
ROH has been running NYC shows from Terminal 5 ever since 2014, with a lot of fans being unhappy with the Terminal 5 location due to the seating configuration and obstructed views.
PWInsider reports that ROH’s return to Hammerstein is not a one-shot deal. ROH will be running several shows from the Manhattan Center location in 2017 “and beyond.”
Tickets for Final Battle will be available soon. For more information, visit ROHWrestling.com.
The following is El Rey’s official preview for tonight’s episode of Lucha Underground:
“LUCHA UNDERGROUND” INTRODUCES THE FIRST EVER ‘SIX TO SURVIVE’ MATCH ON THE NEWEST EPISODE AIRING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15th AT 8:00 PM ET/PT ON EL REY NETWORK
In the newest episode of “Lucha Underground,” six luchadors compete in the FIRST EVER “Six to Survive Match”! With just a few episodes left of the eye-popping second season, the luchadors are just getting fired up! Tune in Wednesday, June 15th at 8:00pm ET/PT on El Rey Network for another week of the adrenaline-fueled series. Don’t miss new one-hour episodes of the lucha libre wrestling series from Emmy Award®-winning producer Mark Burnett Wednesdays at 8:00PM ET/PT.
-Blake Oestriecher has published a new article for Forbes looking at AJ Styles’ feud with John Cena. Oestriecher makes a compelling case that AJ Styles is bringing out the best in Cena, more than Triple H, Bray Wyatt, Del Rio and countless other superstars ever could. Check out the article over at Forbes.com.
Discussion: How do you see this feud going? Will AJ win the first match and then go on to lose the series, or can the Phenomenal One break the trend we’ve seen with Bray Wyatt and Kevin Owens?
– WWE.com has published photos from WWE’s first-ever tryout camp in China.
– Zack Ryder is giving away free autographs to fans who buy his new WWE Shop t-shirt, the first in a few years. Details are in this tweet: