The legendary career of WWE Hall of Famer Gorilla Monsoon will be celebrated in a new biography from Entertainment Culture Writing Press.
On Twitter, writer Brian R. Solomon spoke highly of Monsoon, stating in a thread that he was “beloved by multiple generations of WWE fans” and was part of the McMahon “inner circle.”
In his final tweet, Solomon confirmed that he will be writing Monsoon’s biography, which is titled ‘IRRESISTIBLE FORCE: THE LIFE & TIMES OF GORILLA MONSOON.’
He became a trusted member of the McMahon inner circle, even owning a piece of the company at one time. His presence behind the scenes was so valued that the area behind the curtain, where he’d see wrestlers off and greet them when they returned, is literally named after him.
Next year, from @ECWPress and the author of Blood & Fire: The Unbelievable Real-Life Story of Wrestling’s Original Sheik, comes IRRESISTIBLE FORCE: THE LIFE & TIMES OF GORILLA MONSOON.
Born Robert James Marella, the man who would become ‘Gorilla’ would begin his wrestling career in 1958 as ‘Gino Marella’ playing on his Italian-American background.
When Vincent J. McMahon reformed the Capitol Wrestling Corporation into the World Wide Wrestling Federation in 1963, the two struck-up a friendship, and Marella was at one time the 1/6 owner of the company.
By the end of that year, Monsoon was challenging WWWF Champion Bruno Sammartino, and in 1976, was involved in an infamous segment where he performed an Airplane Spin and slam on Muhammad Ali.
With Vincent K. McMahon taking over the company from his father, Monsoon would continue to wrestle, before becoming a commentator and later WWF President.
In October 1999, Monsoon passed away aged 62, and his body was buried near his son Joey, who had died in a car crash years earlier.
ECW Press
While not associated with Paul Heyman’s extreme promotion, ECW press very clearly knows their appeal to wrestling fans.
Titles to their name include ‘The Woman who Would be King’ a biography of Alundra Blayze, and Capitol Revolution: The Rise of the McMahon Wrestling Empire.
Bob ‘Hardcore’ Holly, Al Snow, and former WWE referee Jimmy Korderas are all just some of the stars to have worked with ECW Press.
West Coast Pro Wrestling held its live event, West Coast Best Coast, on March 4 at the United Irish Cultural Center in San Francisco, California.
The event had West Coast Pro Champion Titus Alexander defend his title against Nick Wayne in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match. Alexander and Wayne went to a time-limit draw the last time they wrestled against each other. Another match on the card had “Speedball” Mike Bailey taking on Timothy Thatcher. WWE Hall of Famer Lita attended to help crown the new West Coast Pro Women’s Champion as Masha Slamovich faced Sandra Moone.
For fans that want to watch West Coast Pro Wrestling: West Coast Best Coast, you can subscribe to IWTV for $9.99.
Wrestling Revolver held its live event, Drip, on March 4 at the Horizon Events Center in Des Moines, Iowa.
The event had a mix of talent from Impact Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling, and other independent promotions. The card saw Revolver World Champion Steve Maclin defending his title against Rich Swann in an Iowa Street Fight. Both wrestlers work for Impact Wrestling but can compete for independent promotions. Another match on the card had The Bullet Club’s Chris Bey and Ace Austin defending their Revolver World Tag Team Championships against The Rascalz’s Trey Miguel and Zachary Wentz and The Second Gear Crew’s Matthew Justice and Mance Warner.
The event went live on FITE for their subscription service, FITE+, for free. To subscribe, fans wanting to watch the card and other Wrestling Revolver events must pay 7.99.
Wrestling Revolver: Drip Results
(C) Steve Maclin def. Rich Swann in an Iowa Street Fight Match for the Revolver World Championship
(C) Rocky Romero def. Jake Crist vs. Lince Dorado in a CMLL World Historic Welterweight Championship Match
1 Called Manders def. Crash Jaxon in a Hoss Match
(C) Alex Shelley def. Matthew Palmer in a Revolver Remix Championship Match
The UNIT (JT Dunn & Infrared w/ Phil Stamper) def. The Death Dollz (Rosemary, Taya Valkyrie, & JesSICKa) in a No DQ Trios Match
Fulton with Matthew Rehwoldt def. Dan the Dad
Johnny Revolver def. Ninja Mack
Kushida def. Jonathan Gresham
The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz) def. The Second Gear Crew (Matthew Justice & Mance Warner) & (C) The Bullet Club (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) in a Revolver World Tag Team Championship Match
Keith Lee made his return to AEW television last month to continue his feud with former tag team partner Swerve Strickland.
When he did, the former WWE star also debuted a new natural look with white/grey hair. Since that return, he has continued to evolve his look with robes and capes.
While doing a new interview with Fightful’s Grapsody podcast, Lee addressed the new look and explained that part of it is a middle finger to people that tell you what you need to look like.
“I think that what inspired that look or return and all of that, I think in my previous interview the exact terminology I used was, ‘A giant middle finger to society and a lot of companies that want you need to look like, a lot of people that tell you what you need to look like.’ Instead I decided to say, ‘Okay, here’s reality’,” Lee said.
Make A Statement
Lee pointed out that he made statements about this in the past with his first grey hairs. He wants people to be comfortable with who they are and the best versions of themselves.
“While I want people to take care of themselves physically and do what they can to adhere to their health, things of that sort, I’m going to be the trendsetter that says, ‘Okay, naturally grey hair, white hair, however you view it, I’m going to be the one who sets it off.’ Because I am who I am and I don’t really care what people say or think about me, I am going to be successful doing this,” Lee said. “I’m going to change the game once again. That’s what I always do. That’s really what it’s about.”
Although Lee said that he looks forward to putting an end to his feud with Strickland, he won’t do it at Revolution as neither star is booked for the show.
Game Changer Wrestling held its event Holy Smokes on March 4 at the Showboat Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
GCW: Holy Smokes featured Ultraviolent Champion Rina Yamashita defending her title against Kasey Kirk. Her last successful title defense was against Ciclope at GCW Fight Club on Sep. 10, 2022. Another match on the card had Hijo Del Vikingo take on Alex Zayne.
The event went live on FITE for their subscription service, FITE+, for free. Fans wanting to watch the card on Video on Demand must pay $7.99 to subscribe. The promotion will hold another live event on March 5 for FITE+ members.
Last year, there was a lot of talk about what MJF would do when his contract with AEW comes due in January 2024.
This was put on television through a storyline that led to him cutting a heated promo where he called AEW President Tony Khan a ‘mark’ and dared him to fire him. He showed up at the end of the All Out event in September before beating Jon Moxley for the AEW World Heavyweight Title at Full Gear that November.
It’s been reported that WWE has an interest in signing him when he’s free and clear of his AEW deal. MJF has reminded fans in countless interviews and promos that his contract is coming up. He shifted this to a work and came up with the “bidding war of 2024” line he has used on TV.
The Admission
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reports that MJF told one WWE talent, “I’m looking forward to being there in 2024.”
The source said that MJF wanted them to think he was serious, but the person didn’t take anything MJF said too seriously. The report added, “Word of him saying that had made its way to other talent there, as well.”
It should be noted that MJF has said he’s looking to sign with whichever company will offer him the most amount of money. Whether it’s AEW or WWE, MJF is a top star who continues to improve and will be getting paid either way come 2024.
Kofi Kingston is currently on the sidelines with an injury.
On Friday’s episode of WWE SmackDown, it appeared that Kingston had suffered an injury in a segment that also featured Sheamus, Drew McIntyre, Karrion Kross, and LA Knight to set up a 5-way match on next week’s show to determine who will face Gunther for the Intercontinental Title at WrestleMania 39.
Kofi Kingston’s Status
Unfortunately, that is the case. FightFans.co reported today that Kingston is dealing with an arm injury. Bryan Alvarez also reported the news on his Twitter account.
While the exact injury and timeline for his return is unknown, the word is that it is expected to be a lengthy period of time. The report added that there is already talk of a replacement for Kingston in the match.
Kingston’s most recent match was a dark match with Jinder Mahal that saw Kingston go over the fellow former WWE Champion at a February 24 SmackDown event.
Kingston and Xavier Woods previously dropped the NXT Tag Team Titles to Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) at WWE NXT Vengeance Day.
AEW is playing into the past locker room divide with the feud over the Women’s Title heading into Revolution as Jamie Hayter will defend the title against Ruby Soho and Saraya in a triple threat match at the show.
In 2022, there had been locker room issues between certain stars, whether that was CM Punk’s issues with The Elite, Hangman Page, and Colt Cabana or Eddie Kingston pie facing Sammy Guevara, or the incident with Andrade and Guevara. Also, there were issues with members of the women’s roster with Thunder Rosa, something the promotion held a meeting about when rosa returned to the road with AEW a few weeks ago as part of the Spanish commentary team.
The idea with this women’s storyline is that Soho and Saraya are outsiders from WWE going up against AEW homegrown talent in Britt Baker and Hayter.
The Divide
During a recent interview with Fightful’s Grapsody podcast, Ruby explained that she is not choosing sides. She noted that she just wants to go to work and home and mind her own business. Soho isn’t interested in picking a side because she’s the only person she can count on.
“I did the group thing before. I did it for four years. Some of the best times of my entire life. I ain’t doing it again. I’m over it. I’m choosing my side. I’m choosing me and I’m the only person I can depend on to make sure I take home that gold. So as far as the cat fight crap that keeps happening, I would love for it to just stop. But I don’t know how to run away from it and still run towards the gold. I feel like it’s just something I have to maneuver through in order to get to where I want to be. But, yeah, it’s been an ordeal.”
Regarding the divide fracturing the women’s roster, which is currently playing out on television, she takes pride in helping build up the women’s division.
“I think this divide was a long time coming. It was going to happen regardless because of how many people that have come from somewhere else coming into the company. I think that it was inevitable because, after a while, the homegrowns are like, ‘We built this place,’ and the outsiders are like, ‘We came here to try to make this place better.’”
Soho added that there’s an argument on both sides.
Major stars in professional wrestling all have certain matches that define their legacies. Sometimes they’re title matches or main events. Sometimes it comes down to match quality and two or more performers putting on a show that keeps fans talking for years to come.
In a lot of cases, fans can’t see these kinds of matches coming. After all, even with the most talented performers in the ring, questions of how much time they’re allotted, what kind of chemistry they’ll have with each other, or what the booking looks like can all color how the match comes across.
However, at AEW Revolution this weekend, the writing is on the wall. In their main event, world title Iron Man Match, Bryan Danielson may well have the most important bout of his AEW tenure. For MJF, this could be the most important match of his career.
MJF Must Prove Himself As An In-Ring Champion
It’s no secret that MJF rose to the top of AEW on personality and talking skills. Since before the company even launched, MJF cultivated his promos and a commitment to garnering heat, which included remaining a heel at every turn, never letting fans see him out of character.
MJF took his skills to new heights last year with a worked shoot angle fans still haven’t fully unraveled. That storyline saw him stay off television for a period of months only to come back and claim an AEW Championship shot, which he converted into his first world title reign at Full Gear.
MJF had some very good matches in 2022, including a brutal Dog Collar Match with CM Punk and his title fight with Jon Moxley. However, in the catalog of AEW Champions to date, there’s little doubt MJF remains the least proven commodity in the ring.
In facing Bryan Danielson, MJF clearly has a more than capable dance partner. Still, the pressure will be on for the champion to hold his own over a full hour, hanging with one of the best in the world for the longest match of his career.
Bryan Danielson Needs A Great Match To Solidify His AEW Legacy
Bryan Danielson garnered an electric response when he made his surprise first appearance for AEW at All Out 2021 and he followed it up with sensational time-limit draw match, going the distance with Kenny Omega.
A bit if the of the luster has worn off over the year and a half to follow, though. Danielson has yet to win a title nor a single PPV match since joining AEW. While many fans were excited for him to join the promotion to ride out his career putting on world-class matches with a fresh slate of opponents, he also hasn’t had many “all-timers” either—his run arguably peaking so far with that early Omega match.
Despite his less than sterling win-loss record, Danielson now finds himself in his first AEW main event and world title match. All the more notably, for a wrestler who has built a career on exceptional ring work and remarkable stamina, he has an ideal showcase in the sixty-minute Iron Man Match format.
So it is that—win, lose, or draw—Revolution marks an opportunity for The American Dragon to redefine his AEW legacy with a great, marathon match that helps further legitimize his younger opponent.
There Aren’t Many Great Iron Man Matches In Mainstream Wrestling
The Iron Man Match is an inherently epic gimmick. While lots of matches have the theoretical potential to go long, knowing that competitors will work for a full half hour or hour sets the stage for a number of twists and turns and the foreknowledge that the first person to pick up a pin, submission, disqualification, or count out fall won’t necessarily be the winner overall.
Despite the ways in which an Iron Man Match can be appealing, it also has its limitations. Particularly in the modern era, retaining fans’ attention for a full hour straight is no small feat. In addition, the gimmick requires heightened physical conditioning for both participants to ensure they can still deliver in the latter stages of the match—particularly for the kind of exciting conclusion fans will be waiting for to cap such a long match.
AEW has only hosted one Iron Man Match before—a free TV bout between Kenny Omega and PAC three years ago. Bryan Danielson and MJF are uniquely situated, then, to make the Iron Man Match work in AEW.
That’s especially noteworthy given the uneven history of the match-type in WWE, where a number of fans suggest iterations like Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels and The Rock Vs. Triple H haven’t aged well. There’s an opportunity for AEW to one-up WWE, and further their status as the company that delivers at the highest level in the ring, especially on PPV.
There will be no telling how Bryan Danielson vs. MJF plays out until AEW Revolution this weekend. Nonetheless, the pieces are in place for both men and their company at large to make a major statement if the Iron Man main event delivers.
Naomi (real name Trinity Fatu) is set to make a pro-wrestling-related appearance since the controversial WWE walkout.
The former WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion is scheduled to appear at the WrestleCon event during WrestleMania 39 weekend in LA on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2.
Other stars appearing at the convention include Mercedes Mone, Young Bucks, Goldberg, Adam Cole, Toni Storm, Brandi Rhodes, Kurt Angle, Kevin Nash, Mick Foley, Ric Flair, Ricky Starks, The Acclaimed, Thunder Rosa, and Jake Roberts.
This will mark Naomi’s first wrestling-related appearance since she walked out of WWE last year. Mercedes Mone (formerly Sasha Banks in WWE) and Naomi had walked out of Monday Night RAW due to creative differences in May last year. There have been various sides to the story. It was also reported that the former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions confronted the then WWE Chairman Vince McMahon over their issue.
It was reported by Bryan Alvarez in January that Naomi was expected to make her return to the company which led to speculation that it could happen with her being a surprise entrant in the Women’s Royal Rumble match.
The case of Sami Zayn and The Bloodline is a curious one. The former NXT champion wasn’t even considered a main event talent by many fans up until a year ago. However, he has turned haters into supporters with his performance in the past year. Many believe that he should have beaten Roman Reigns at the Elimination Chamber PPV. Though Paul Heyman is promising that Sami’s story is not finished despite the loss.
The special counsel recently appeared on the SI Media podcast. He was asked if there was ever any inkling to change the WrestleMania plans for Reigns due to Zayn’s rise to popularity. The former ECW owner claimed that it’s always a possibility:
“There’s always an inkling to change any plan because the old expression is you have a test audience every night and we’re very adaptable. We think we have a really good formula here. We think we have a really good path. I don’t think you’ve seen the last of Sami Zayn. In fact, I can guarantee you haven’t seen the last of Sami Zayn, nor Kevin Owens, nor any of the other players in this act that we’ve put together.
There was a very compelling reason to put Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn on Elimination Chamber. The timing was perfect for us and oh my god, we just happened to be putting that show in Montreal, where the reception to Sami would be something that other audiences will aspire to top just because they wanna be the best audience ever.”
‘That’s What We Do’: Paul Heyman
Many people still believe that WWE should have saved the bout between Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn for WrestleMania 39. Paul Heyman addressed this belief and explained how the loss still helped the Honorary Uce:
“So we saw this Montreal opportunity. We also saw the timing could not be better. We’re heading into the Royal Rumble with Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens, and then all the different opportunities that interweave themselves with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. The timeline for the story just fit. I understand that people have wanted more and more and more for Sami. That’s the object. We try to do that with every challenger. We did that with Drew McIntyre going on over to Cardiff in the UK. We did that with Brock Lesnar going into SummerSlam when he drove a tractor out to the ring and demolished the ring. We did that with the group that we took on in the WarGames in Survivor Series. We did it with Kevin Owens going into the Royal Rumble.
We try to do that with everyone that comes into the co-starring role with Roman Reigns in terms of who his opponent’s going to be for the match that we’re trying to sell. And hopefully, on the flip side of being defeated by the Tribal Chief, the Undisputed Champion Roman Reigns, you are worth far more. Have a far more passionate fan base. Sell far more merchandise, sell far more tickets than you did before. You are more famous, more accepted, more valued by the audience than you were before we got our hands on you. That’s the whole object of what we do. I hope six months from now, people are still clamoring more and more and more for Sami, that’s what we do. We try to make stars out of everyone that’s within our orbit.”
You can check out Paul Heyman’s full interview below:
Brett DiBiase has made a plea in the case against him connected with Mississippi’s largest welfare embezzlement scandal.
WLBT reports DiBiase pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States in US District Court. He previously pled guilty to two charges in Hinds County Circuit Court.
Now, he awaits his sentence in state court and faces up to five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
The Scandal
Brett was one of several people who were connected to the fraud where they were accused of the embezzlement of millions of dollars in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funding. Brett paid $48,000 through his business Restore2, LLC by using false claims to get the money as he covered up these payments by falsifying documents, invoices, books, reports, and ledgers.
Others involved in the case were indicted and later convicted. The names included were former DHS Executive Director John Davis, Nancy New, Zach New, and Ann McGrew.
The son of WWE Hall of Famer Ted Dibiase did work for WWE from 2008 to 2011 where he was used in FCW (Florida Championship Wrestling), then-WWE’s developmental territory where he was a Tag Team Championship.
Paul Heyman and Cody Rhodes had a memorable promo segment on the February 6 edition of WWE Raw.
This was where Heyman talked with the 2023 Men’s Royal Rumble winner on behalf of WWE Undisputed Universal Champion Roman Reigns ahead of their clash at WrestleMania 39.
The topic of Cody’s late father Dusty Rhodes was the main focal point of the promo. Rhodes thanked Heyman for reigniting Dusty’s passion during his ECW days. Heyman told Rhodes that in the last conversation he had with Dusty, the legendary wrestler told him that Cody was his favorite son, but Reigns was the son he always wanted.
The Pressure
While speaking on the SI Media podcast, Heyman looked back on the promo.
“I like pressure. I don’t find pressure to be burdensome. I find it to be inspiring. We have Cody coming out of the gates now one-on-one with Roman because this was the night after the Elimination Chamber where Roman Reigns defeats Sami Zayn. so you know it won’t be Sami, you know it’s going to be Cody challenging Roman and an audience. I’m sorry, this was before the Elimination Chamber, but an audience that is really honed in on the arrival of Sami Zayn as a superstar.”
Heyman continued, “Here’s Cody, with his own narrative, his own story to tell, and as he will tell his story to finish. And a compelling one at that, and an emotional one at that. We have to tell his story as well. The pressure is we have a first time WrestleMania main event and an audience that is very critical of new people in the main event of WrestleMania….The pressure really was to demonstrate Cody Rhodes as someone who is capable of hanging with and telling himself a WrestleMania main event level story for the audience to absorb and become invested in.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t toSEScoops for the transcription.
Although Ronda Rousey is dealing with an injury, she is not expected to miss WWE WrestleMania 39 in April.
According to PWTorch, the top WWE star has aggravated a prior injury, but the report stated that it wouldn’t prevent her from competing at WrestleMania next month in Los Angeles.
Rousey was originally set to team with Shayna Baszler to take on Tegan Nox and Natalya on Friday’s episode of SmackDown. However, plans had to change due to Rousey’s injury.
Plans Change
WWE did an angle on the show where it was revealed that the two teams got into a brawl backstage at the show earlier in the day. The announcers would later explain that Rousey suffering an injury in the brawl caused the tag team match to be nixed and a singles match between Baszler and Nox was made.
Baszler won the match via armbar while Rousey was with her good friend during the match while wearing a sling on her arm.
As of late, Baszler and Rousey have been teaming together. Rousey has stated that she wants to have a tag team run with Baszler, which is reportedly the direction for both stars by WWE as they’re supposed to challenge for the Women’s Tag Team Titles at WrestleMania 39.
WWE Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER has spoken about the perception from some fans that his character and the Imperium stable are rooted in Naziism.
When WWE changed WALTER’s name to GUNTHER, the original change was meant to be ‘Gunther Stark,’ also the name of a Nazi U-Boat commander in World War 2.
Last week, GUNTHER received a rating of 88 in WWE 2K23, which raised eyebrows from fans, given that the number is used as code by modern-day Nazis.
In a simple letter-number code, 88 is HH, which Nazis and white supremacists uses as a dog whistle for “Heil Hitler.”
Living With It
As an Austrian (the same nation as Hitler) who spent much of his career competing in Germany, GUNTHER is well aware of the significance of the two nations in WW2.
Speaking on The Ringer’s Cheap Heat podcast, the reigning Intercontinental Champion was asked about the negative stigma as an Austrian who was based out of Germany competing in the U.S.
“That’s the history of the two countries,” GUNTHER replied “That’s something we can never change. We have to live with it. But obviously, that’s something that got thrown at us before and still gets thrown at us. We don’t really acknowledge it because it’s so far away from what the truth is.”
GUNTHER.
GUNTHER added that often, anyone who considers himself to be in any association with fascism cannot acknowledge the differences Austria and Germany have made since 1945.
“Austria and Germany have made huge efforts to be hard on themselves when it comes to their history and keep themselves in check.”
GUTNHER.
The Austrian went on to say that he and Ludwig Kaiser (who is German) have prided themselves on how their nations treat the seriousness of their past atrocities.
Taking Things Seriously
Imperium’s appeal to WWE fans has come with how serious the characters of GUNTHER, Ludwig Kaiser, and Giovanni Vinci are portrayed on TV and at live events.
On the podcast, GUNTHER explained that taking wrestling as seriously as they do is not just part of the act fans see each week.
“We mean it! We build our livelihood around it. Why should we not take it seriously? There’s no playing a character or anything like that. That’s just what we are.”
GUNTHER.
GUNTHER will defend his Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 39 against an opponent yet to be decided.
Last month, Sonya Deville was arrested for gun possession in Atlantic City, New Jersey, but she remains in good standing with WWE.
A valet discovered the weapon in her car’s glove box and called the cops before Deville was arrested a short time later because she didn’t have a proper New Jersey permit.
She was charged with one count of unlawful weapon possession. Deville got the gun after a man allegedly attempted to kidnap her in 2020 during a home break-in in Florida and she wanted it for personal protection. Although it is legally registered in Florida, it’s not in New Jersey.
At the time of the arrest, it was reported that Deville didn’t have heat in WWE for the arrest because they understand why she would want to protect herself following the stalker incident.
The Latest
Pwinsider.com reports that Deville has not been pulled from the road and she is still slated to make all of her scheduled appearances for WWE including wrestling SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair at the March 12th live event at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The report noted that WWE was aware she had applied and received a permit to carry a gun. Deville is slated for a court appearance later this month.
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Lita has capped off an intense week with an appearance at a recent independent wrestling event.
During this week’s Raw, Lita captured the Women’s Tag Team Titles with Becky Lynch by dethroning two-time champions Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai and IYO SKY.)
This win marks Lita’s first taste of championship gold since 2006 and makes Lynch the sixth WWE Women’s Triple Crown Champion.
Hoodslam
Lita’s win at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan was an emotional night for her, but the Hall of Famer has also appeared at a smaller show.
At last night’s Hoodslam: GET YOUR ASS TO MARCH: Fall of the Hoodslammer event, Lita made a surprise appearance to the delight of the fans.
Using language that you won’t be hearing on Raw, Lita told the crowd “f**k the fans” who chanted the phrase back in excitement.
Lita, who did not bring her WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship with her, then handed the mic to Sheikah before being on her way.
With WrestleMania 39 now just 28 days away, there is a real possibility that Lita will enter the April 1, show as Champion.
It has been reported that WWE plans on Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler challenging for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships at the event.
With that said, recent programming would leave you to believe that the plan is for Lita, Lynch and Trish Stratus to face Damage CTRL next month.
With WrestleMania 39 happening across two nights, there is the chance that Lita and Lynch could compete on both nights, as Natalya and Tamina Snuka did in 2021.
WWE Superstar Tamina Snuka is grateful for her lengthy career in the promotion but believes much of her tenure failed to reflect who she is.
Tamina, the daughter of ‘Superfly’ Jimmy Snuka, debuted on WWE’s main roster in 2010, alongside the Usos, and would immediately feud with the Hart Dynasty.
It wouldn’t be until WWE Hell in a Cell 2019 that Tamina would win her first championship, capturing her first of nine reigns as 24/7 Champion.
Not Me
Before 2016, WWE’s female Superstars were branded ‘Divas,’ and the term continues to have a negative stigma.
Many still see the ‘Divas Era’ as a time when women’s wrestling was little more than titillation for male viewers, despite the multiple accomplished women wrestling at the time.
Speaking about her tenure as a ‘Diva’ Tamina told PW Mania that she appreciates how long she’s been with WWE, but never quite fit with the previous era.
“I would look around and think that’s not me. These women were model types of women, and I’m Tamina. I’m a tomboy, and I’m a wrestler.”
Tamina Snuka.
It wouldn’t be until 2015’s Women’s Revolution that WWE would try and drop the more harmful aspects of the Divas era, and the term was dropped entirely following WrestleMania 32 in April 2016.
Reflecting on wrestling today, Tamina said that the idea of women entering wrestling is met with much more support given how the attitude to women’s wrestling has changed.
“I have two daughters. They could very well go to college, come back and tell me they want to get into wrestling. You want a good change for everyone and want something great. Right now, I do feel like that’s where we’re at. We evolved and got better. You want good things for these women. You want to have change. You want to evolve. You want to break even more barriers.”
Fans tuning in to this weekend’s AEW Revolution 2023 Pay-Per-View will see one wrestler on the show receive their ‘final burial.’
Last June, Christian Cage turned heel on Jungle Boy Jack Perry, attacking the young star after he and Luchasaurus lost the AEW World Tag Team Championship to The Young Bucks.
This betrayal would also mark the end of Jurassic Express, as Luchasaurus would align himself with Cage as part of the feud.
Burial
During last night’s AEW Rampage, Jungle Boy appeared in a video promo and said that a fight with Cage isn’t enough, and he looks to end the Canadian veteran.
Jungle Boy vowed that there will be “grave consequences” for Cage, who has referenced Jack’s father Luke Perry as part of their feud.
The actor, best known for roles in Beverly Hills 90210 and CW’s Riverdale, died in March 2019, and his passing has been used for heat by Cage.
Jungle Boy said that he’ll allow Cage to say ‘hi’ to his dad, and promised that their match at Revolution will be the “final burial.”
While not sharing the same name as WWE’s Buried Alive match, the Final Burial has clear similarities to the bout.
WWE’s first Buried Alive match came in 1996, when Mankind defeated The Undertaker, and the Phenom would also lost the second match against ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin in 1998.
It wouldn’t be until the August 30, 1999, edition of SmackDown that The Undertaker would win a buried alive match, teaming with the Big Show to defeat the Rock ‘n Sock Connection.
Unfortunately for the Phenom, he would lose the two following matches, losing to Mr. McMahon at Survivor Series 2003 (thanks to the interference of Kane) and being bested by his brother (thanks to the interference of the Nexus) at Bragging Rights 2010.
A young fan had a night at WWE SmackDown that they’ll never forget after being overcome with emotion during the show.
On last night’s episode of the blue brand, Rhea Ripley picked up a submission victory over her former tag-team partner Liv Morgan, in her latest momentum-building win ahead of WrestleMania 39.
When WWE’s cameras cut to the crowd, a young fan could be seen crying while being nurtured by an older guardian.
This fan had a much better time at SmackDown after being able to hug the former Women’s Champion, but she’s not the only fan to have had quite the reaction.
Following The Miz’s 2010 WWE Championship victory, a young fan was shown on camera, and her feelings on his Money in the Bank cash-in were clear.
‘Angry Miz Girl’ who’s real name is Cayley, was welcomed back to WWE later that year as part of the 2010 Slammy Awards, and would have an interaction on the show with The Miz.
In 2020, to mark a decade since her WWE moment, Cayley shared an autograph given to her by The Miz on Instagram.
Fans will also remember Ellis Mbeh, who’s reaction to the Streak being broken in 2014, would earn him the moniker of ‘Shocked Undertaker Guy.’
Lacey Evans’ latest incident with social media has resulted in one AEW wrestler taking aim at WWE’s Southern Belle.
On her Instagram Story, Evans shared the following post from user @BedrosKeuilian, which suggested that mental health issues are easy to fix.
“How to fix 99% of anxiety & depression
1) Excercise hard daily 2) Eat clean 3) Put purpose over pleasure 4) Make a lot more money 5) Stop overthinking 6) Help others and be kind 7) Mind your own f*cking business
Your problems are much easier to solve than you think…”
Evans’ post received backlash from fans, with the belief that some points are oversimple (#5) and others are purely detrimental to one’s mental health (#7.)
AEW Response
Fans are far from thrilled by Evans’ latest social media message, and AEW’s The Bunny has also spoken up.
In a video shared on Instagram, The Bunny didn’t mention Evans by name but responded to points the Superstar made.
“Some of us manage our mental health issues with medication. To suggest that simply exercising, eating a certain way, working more; etc etc etc will cure your mental illness is harmful and perpetuates the notion that mental health issues aren’t actual ILLNESSES.
“If anyone out there is struggling to do basic human activities due to their anxiety, depression, etc, you aren’t alone. Please take care of yourselves and don’t listen to the narrative that you are choosing to suffer. I know from experience that you are doing the best you can. Sending love to all of you.”
This is hardly the first time Evans’ actions online have sparked backlash, as she posted a video that featured veterinarian-turned-naturopathic physician Joel Wallach.
In the video, Wallach (who has no medical certification despite listing himself as a physician) claims that ASD and ADHD “didn’t exist” when he was a kid (also untrue.)
Evans’ name trended on Twitter as a result, and the WWE Superstar also liked tweets that mocked those who were criticizing her.
Bryan Danielson is motivated to become AEW World Champion this weekend, and believes he is the best he has ever been.
Danielson arrived in the promotion in late 2021, mere months after being handed his WWE exit at the hands of WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns.
Tomorrow night, Danielson will challenge AEW World Champion MJF at Revolution in the promotion’s first Iron Man match.
The Best
Before coming to AEW, Danielson made his name as Daniel Bryan in WWE, becoming a multi-time World Champion and Grand Slam winner.
While Danielson earned a legion of loyal fans during his eleven years on the main roster, he told The Ringer this week that AEW is where he shines best.
“I feel as a wrestler, I’m the best I’ve been. I feel like I’m the best I’ve been.”
Bryan Danielson.
Danielson’s time with the promotion has allowed him to work with several younger stars who he never would have had the chance to wrestle had he stayed in WWE.
Speaking about these stars of the future, Danielson recalled the question he always asks whenever he gets backstage.
“My thing with the younger talent, is mostly, ‘Hey, did you have fun? Were you able to experience joy out there? How did you feel about the match? Did you feel good about it?’”
Bryan Danielson.
Danielson added that he’s been “pleasantly surprised” by working in the ring with the likes of Wheeler Yuta, Lee Moriarty, Bandido, Konosuke Takeshita and others.
Favorite Opponent
Beginning his wrestling career in 1999 under the tutelage of Shawn Michaels, Danielson has worked with countless opponents, but one stands out.
“Randy Orton, might be one of my favorite people to ever wrestle, in the sense of he and I just clicked, and Randy Orton is so good.”
Randy Orton
WWE’s Viper has been out of action for close to a year with a severe back injury, and there have been rumblings that his in-ring career may be over.
The 2018 All In wrestling supershow was referenced during this week’s episode of WWE SmackDown on FOX.
In September of that year, stars of various promotions came together to host the event, billed as “the biggest independent wrestling show ever.”
After showing that there was support for a non-WWE product, many of the names associated with All In would go on to be part of All Elite Wrestling, which launched in January 2019.
SmackDown
One significant name who was part of All In is Cody Rhodes, who made an appearance on this week’s edition of the blue brand.
Speaking about his upcoming WrestleMania match, Rhodes said there are those who think toppling Roman Reigns is an impossible goal, but he has a history of defying the odds.
The American Nightmare said that there were people who believed he would never be more than Randy Orton’s lackey, referring to his days in Legacy.
Rhodes added that there were some who thought that All In would be possible, saying:
“There’s no way 10,000 people would pay to see my buddy’s little indie show.”
At the September 2018 event, Rhodes would defeat Nick Aldis to capture the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
The event began after Dave Meltzer dismissed the idea that any event other than a WWE show could sell 10,000 tickets, a statement that Rhodes accepted as a challenge.
Reigns Response
Rhodes, as predicted, was very passionate with his promo, but the Tribal Chief had some barbs of his own.
Speaking about being trained by Cody’s father Dusty Rhodes, Reigns bust-out an impressive impression of the American Dream, who told Reigns in developmental that he had ‘it.’
Cody Rhodes made an appearance on this week’s episode of SmackDown to confront Roman Reigns. He also put on his 33-match undefeated streak on the line after the show went off air.
The opening segment of this week’s SmackDown saw The American Nightmare confronting The Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. The two had a heated exchange that got personal.
The WrestleMania opponents, however, avoided a fight before their upcoming big match. The segment ended with both the stars shaking hands.
The main event of the show saw Sami Zayn competing in a bout against Solo Sikoa. Though this wasn’t the last match of the night and WWE presented two dark matches after SmackDown went off air.
What Happened After SmackDown
The first dark match after the show featured Charlotte Flair in action. The SmackDown Women’s Champion put her title on the line against Sonya Deville.
The second dark match then saw Cody Rhodes, who has been undefeated since his return last year facing Finn Balor in a singles match.
The former AEW star went on to win the match against the Judgement Day Leader. Rhodes cut a promo after the bout and said that he hopes to leave WrestleMania as the Undisputed WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
Uncle Howdy has remained an ominous figure who lurks around but never gets his own hands dirty ever since his introduction to WWE TV, but this changed on tonight’s episode of SmackDown.
Bray Wyatt called out the winner of the Lashley vs. Brock Lesnar match at Elimination Chamber before the PPV last month. The bout, however, ended in a disqualification after The Beast Incarnate delivered a low blow to his opponent.
Bobby Lashley made a trip to SmackDown this week in response to Bray’s tricks. He called out the former Universal Champion for a confrontation.
Uncle Howdy In Action
While Bray was nowhere to be seen, Uncle Howdy did make an appearance. He first showed up in a video on the Titan Tron.
The mysterious character then attacked Lashley from behind, marking it the first time he has gotten physical with an opponent.
Though Bobby Lashley did not stay down for long. As Howdy ran the ropes, Lashley planted him and set him up for a spear. However, lights then went out and when they came back on, Bobby was left alone in the ring.
WWE has not made the match between the former WWE Champion and The Eater of Worlds official yet but all signs indicate that they will meet at the Show of Shows this year.
