When Shayna Baszler made the transition from MMA to wrestling, she didn’t have very high hopes of joining WWE. It was before the Women’s Revolution and the company wasn’t interested in signing competitors like her. The indie scene in US was also popularized by high-flying wrestlers. Her old-school style was not what fans looked for and at first, Baszler didn’t feel very good about her chances.
The former NXT women’s champion recently recalled this time during her appearance on Out of Character. She mentioned how the first time she felt confident was in Japan because the people there loved her style.
She still had a tryout with WWE before the inaugural Mae Young Classic. Though after not hearing back from officials for six months, Shayna had given up the hope of ever signing with the company. This is when the unexpected happened:
‘I’ll Probably Never Get Signed’
“I had my tryout, didn’t hear anything back. I went to Japan and I remember, we had gone on a dojo I was with. We had gone on a vacation.” recalled Shayna Baszler, “I was sitting in a hot tub at this spa. I remember being like, ‘You know what? This is pretty awesome. I’ll probably never get signed.’ I haven’t heard back from them.
She continued: “This is cool though. I’m traveling all over the world and I was like, ‘This is awesome. I’m living a pretty sweet life.’ So I had kind of like decided ‘Okay I did it, it’s not a big deal [that] I didn’t make it’ Then almost within the week that I got home from Japan, I got a call about the Mae Young Classic. So [it’s] kind of wild.”
Forbidden Door has been the trending topic of discussion among fans the last few days. Xavier Woods has now used it to retrieve the UpUpDownDown Championship from a released WWE superstar.
Tyler Breeze had held the YouTube brand’s top title for over 500 days until last year. However, Mia Yim defeated him in April 2021.
The gaming channel then went through an inactive phase. The content creators of the channel went on a strike in solidarity with Woods to get him a better deal for running the whole operation.
Unfortunately for the brand, it was during this time that many of their regulars were released from their WWE contracts due to budget cuts. This included Yim.
Xavier Woods announced the return of UUDD in May this year but the status of the championship remained in question.
Finally yesterday the New Day member noted that he had been trying to get through the Forbidden Door to retrieve the belt. Now Shayna Baszler has gotten the job done:
Woods and company are set to hold a tournament to crown a new UUDD champion on July 2. Baszler has earned herself a spot in it by getting the belt back.
This isn’t the only time the Forbidden Door has been opened by WWE this week. A number of AEW stars appeared on Monday’s Raw. You can check out the reason behind it here.
Many expected Miro to be presented as a monster from day 1 on the AEW roster. However, it wasn’t the case and the former WWE star debuted as The Best Man for Kip Sabian. This idea didn’t sit well with many fans.
Speaking about his disappointing AEW debut, Miro admitted that he knew that his initial gimmick wasn’t who he really was. He claimed that he gave Tony Khan a discount because the AEW president was signing him based on his Twitch persona:
“I gave Tony Khan a discount. I gave him a discount and said, ‘Tony, I will sign for this money because it’s the pandemic, but after that year and a half, we’re coming strong.’
I knew that he was signing the wrong guy. He was signing the Twitch guy.” said Miro, “He’s basing his opinions on my Twitch and that’s where the whole thing with Kip started. I knew that wasn’t me. That’s just not who I am.”
Though the former US champion has since broken out of that image. He has proven himself to be a worthy main eventer and signed a new deal with AEW for more money.
Speaking about his decision to re-sign, Miro said that AEW is a place where you can be creatively free. He explained that the freedom Khan allows him played a big part in his call to continue with the company.
Posted June 28th, 2022 in AEW, News. Tagged: Miro.
The Hardy Boyz, Edge & Christian, and The Dudley Boyz all made history when they competed in the first-ever Tables, Ladders and Chairs match during the SummerSlam 2000 event.
However, even though all three of these teams put their bodies on the line in this extreme bout, they were paid very little for their effort.
Hall of Famer Mick Foley, who was serving as the on-screen commissioner for WWE at the time recently revealed how much the three teams were paid for the match:
“I was still one of the guys. They fully understood that I wasn’t the commissioner, I’m not actually [in the] office, and I said, ‘How bad was it?’
And when they said $10,000, I was like, ‘You got $10,000 for that?’” recalled Mick Foley, “So I went to Jim [Ross, Head of Talent Relations at the time] on their behalf and petitioned for more money.”
The Hardcore Star revealed that he mentioned the match between The Undertaker and Big Boss Man to Ross. He protested against the fact that Taker made much more for the bout that wasn’t as good.
According to Foley, it felt ‘like a slap’ in the face of the three teams to be paid so little for their hard work. His petition did get them bumped up from there.
The recent string of AEW and NJPW injuries forced Tony Khan and company to make many major changes to the Forbidden Door PPV. This included the main event of the show which featured Jon Moxley instead of CM Punk.
Dave Meltzer talked about the PPV event on Wrestling Observer Radio. He revealed that the Hardcore star was originally expected to be on the opposite end of the card.
The original idea for Jon Moxley was for him to be part of the six-man tag team match that opened the show. The bout saw Shota Umino, Wheeler Yuta, and Eddie Kingston going up against Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, and Minoru Suzuki.
The interim AEW world champion would have joined Shota Umino who has been his protege. Though it’s unknown whether he would have replaced anyone from Yuta and Kingston, or they planned on adding a fourth contestant to Jericho’s team instead.
CM Punk won the AEW World Heavyweight Championship from Hangman Page at Double or Nothing in May. However, he had to step away from the company only days later after suffering a broken foot.
Jon Moxley ended up replacing him in the match against Hiroshi Tanahashi at Forbidden Door. Mox won this bout to become the interim AEW World Champion.
Cesaro kept his WWE departure very quiet and it was only after he became a free agent that fans got to know about it. Nobody knew what he was planning for his future in the following months. Some even believed that he could ultimately return to WWE before he made his AEW debut as Claudio Castagnoli at Forbidden Door.
In the post-show media scrum, the former WWE star was asked about his inspiration behind joining the promotion. He first mentioned how the perfect opportunity for him arose due to Bryan Danielson’s injury. The newest AEW star explained that he is always looking for a challenge. AEW is the place where he felt like he could challenge himself:
A Kid In Candy Store
“Sometimes the stars align for a perfect moment. That’s what happened tonight. I hope Bryan is alright and I hope Bryan will be back. But it’s just perfect fit. I just talked to Mox. We’ve been going back for 10-12 years. I have known him [for] so long time.” said Claudio Castagnoli, “We used to ride together. We used to work out together. We still do. It just fits you know. At the end of the day, I’m always looking for new challenges. Here in AEW, it’s like I am a kid in a candy store.
“So here’s the other thing, you always look for a challenge. I mean, Zack Sabre Jr. on Sunday, and then Blood and Guts on Wednesday? That’s a challenge. That’s awesome. To me Blood and Guts, that’s like a staple, right? To be thrown right in there with my friends, with Mox, Yuta, it’s just amazing. That’s what gets you up in the morning, right? That’s what makes you work out every day. That’s what makes me tick. So I can’t wait. It’s awesome and what I love is that show is [on] free TV. Where do you get that on free TV? It’s awesome. So it’s like, to me that’s again, kid in a candy store.”
If you use the quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription
Adam Cole already went into his Forbidden Door match banged up and the physical bout he wrestled only appears to have made things worse.
The former NXT champion wrestled a fatal four-way match for the IWGP heavyweight championship. The other contestants of the bout were Jay White, Kazuchika Okada, and Hangman Page.
The ending of the match saw Okada trying to deliver a rainmaker to Cole but White interrupted before he could execute the move. Jay White hit the Bladerunner on Okada and then pinned Adam Cole who just collapsed to the side.
This awkward finish to the bout got people talking and many wondered if Cole had suffered another injury. Bryan Alvarez said on Twitter that the former champion is believed to have suffered a concussion:
Adam Cole’s injury believed to be a concussion, wishing all the best to him.
Tony Khan was later asked about the AEW star in the post show media scrum. He explained that it made more sense to end the bout than to risk further damage. The AEW President also ensured the fans that Cole will be fine long term:
“Yeah, I think Adam Cole will be okay. He was in the match. It was a very physical wrestling match and he was pinned in the match. The timing of it wasn’t [right].
It may not have looked when people expected it to happen but that’s when it happened. He’s gonna be okay long term, but probably if he couldn’t continue wrestling it made sense [to end the match]. I think if you can’t keep fighting there’s discretion is a better part of valor. I think long term he’ll be okay.”
If you use the quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription
Claudio Castagnoli fka Cesaro in WWE made his surprise debut at Forbidden Door and joined the BBC. His free agency was a blessing in disguise for AEW and Tony Khan as a number of big names had to be removed from the PPV due to various injuries.
In the post-Forbidden Door media scrum, the AEW president told the story of how Castagnoli’s AEW debut came together. He revealed that he had contacted the former WWE star before he knew that Bryan Danielson will not be competing at the PPV. The original idea was for him to debut at ROH’s Death Before Dishonor PPV on July 23:
‘I Have Claudio Under Contract, Bryan’
“I asked him about coming in actually before I knew for sure that Bryan was out, but I had pretty good idea that Punk would be out. I could tell there were going to be a lot of changes. We already had a lot of injured people. I had no idea we’d have even more on the run up to the show.
“So I figured there was a chance that if Bryan made it back, that there was a good chance that probably he would have started at Death Before Dishonor. It would have been great moment there but I think for the crowd here this is something very special. As long as Bryan’s Okay, that’s the most important thing. I think he will be fine. It was great to have a great moment here at Forbidden Door. So things worked out perfectly.
“I was very fortunate. I talked to Bryan on the phone last weekend. He just wasn’t feeling 100%. As soon as he said that I said ‘We’re eight days from the pay-per-view. but if you’re not feeling 100% today, don’t even think about wrestling on the pay-per-view. Don’t even think about wrestling at Blood and Guts.’ I didn’t even want to take another chance as soon as he said that. So he mentioned Claudio, and, I said ‘it’s funny cause I have Claudio under contract, Bryan.’ I hadn’t told anybody. You’re the first person I mentioned it to.”
If you use the quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription
FTR is having an incredible year and things only got better for them at Forbidden Door. The AEW stars won a three-way match to become the new IWGP Tag Team Champions. The duo were interviewed backstage after their big win. They first claimed that they will make the Japanese people fall in love with them, the same way as America.
FTR then went on to explain that this win makes them one of the greatest tag teams in the history of the business. Now their names should be written beside teams such as The Hart Foundation and The British Bulldogs:
We’re Gonna Make New Japan Our House
“We’re coming New Japan. We’re gonna make New Japan our house. We’re gonna make it our house because we are the absolute best tag team on this planet. As we have been here in America, we’re gonna make you Japanese people fall in love with us. You know why? Because we love you. We’re bringing our fighting spirit, FTR’s fighting spirit to Japan.”
“I think now here in America they could put our names beside the Midnight Express. Now they could put our names beside the Hart Foundation, The Bulldogs, Demolition. The list goes on and on. But now we’re coming to Japan. Now we’re coming to New Japan and we’re bringing these [titles] with us.
“You can write our names on the same notepad as Muta and Hase. You can write our names on the same Notepad as Bam Bam Bigelow and Vader. You can write our name on the same notepad as the Steiner Brothers. Because right now I’m telling you, none of those three teams can measure up to the greatest tag team of all time – FTR.”
You can check out their reaction in the video below:
Claudio Castagnoli fka Cesaro is finally All Elite and the wrestling world is as excited to see the former WWE star join Tony Khan’s promotion as the fans.
Speculations had been high ever since Bryan Danielson announced that a mystery opponent will be replacing him in the match against Zack Sabre Jr. at Forbidden Door.
Many signs pointed toward the former WWE star making his AEW debut on the show. He got one of the loudest pops when he finally arrived.
Castagnoli went on to prove that he hasn’t lost any step during his time away from wrestling. He ended up winning the match by pinning Zack with a a powerbomb.
Wrestling World Is Excited For Claudio Castagnoli
The wrestling world reacted to this headline-making debut of the former champion. This included stars from both WWE and AEW roster.
Eddie Kingston, who previously claimed that Claudio Castagnoli did not have the balls to join AEW, reminded everyone of his old remarks:
Other names who reacted to this big Forbidden Door debut include people such as Renee Paquette, Bully Ray, Evil Uno and more. You can check out the reactions below:
Natalya’s childhood wrestling crush was Shawn Michaels.
The former SmackDown women’s champion recently visited Dr. Beau Hightower. She was asked which wrestlers she grew up watching during the treatment. Replying to it, she took the name of people such as Randy Savage, Kenta Kobashi and Bret Hart. She then revealed that Michaels was her childhood crush:
“Shawn Michaels was like my very first crush. When I was a little girl I loved The Rockers. When they were the Rockers, I had a huge crush on Shawn Michaels. My little sister liked Marty Jannetty. We would always watch them wrestle my dad and my uncle.”
I Find Him To Be A Stand Up Guy
This is an interesting answer because of the infamous Montreal Screwjob and the strained relationship between Michaels and Natalya’s uncle Bret Hart. When asked if she is allowed to say this about Shawn, the female star mentioned how the wrestling veteran has always been very nice to her. She explained that the two stars will never be over that, but the rivalry is something that is between Michaels and her uncle:
“I don’t really know if we’ll ever be past that. Well see, I love Shawn Michaels. He’s been nothing but wonderful to me. I worked with him a couple weeks ago at NXT, and he’s just a really nice person. I find him to be a stand-up guy but, you know, with his situation with my uncle, it was something between the two of them.”
Natalya was accompanied by Shayna Baszler and Raquel González. They also talked about things such as the physicality of wrestling and why wrestling injuries are worse than MMA.
Hulk Hogan doesn’t have the best of reputation among fans especially after some recent controversies. It appears that the backstage perception of the Hulkster isn’t any better either.
Former WWE producer Dan Ryckert recently appeared on MinnMax. He talked about his time in WWE, producing podcasts for the company and more.
Speaking about Hogan, Ryckert offered a bold take on the former world champion. He explained that a lot of people he has worked with are professionals, but not Hogan:
“Hulk Hogan’s a massive piece of sh*t. No, he’s a terrible person, but, you know, I kind of worked to some degree with most of the roster I’d say and a lot of legends and stuff. Ultimately, a lot of these people, they’re pros.”
Hulk Hogan has especially found himself in hot waters after a video of him making racist remarks surfaced online back in 2015. In light of the controversy, Hogan was briefly removed from the WWE Hall of Fame.
WWE removed other mentions of the nWo original from their programming at the time. The Miz replaced him as a judge on Tough Enough.
Though the former face of WWE was later reinstated into the Hall of Fame in 2018. He got inducted a second time in 2020 as part of the nWo.
The recent string of wrestling injuries has affected all major promotions. They have also started the debate about the physicality of wrestling. Both Natalya and Shayna Baszler recently shared their thoughts on the same.
The former Hart Dynasty member visited the clinic of Dr. Beau Hightower. She was accompanied by both Shayna Baszler and Raquel González. During the treatment, the topic of wrestling injuries was brought up. Natalya shared her belief that staying on top of the injuries is the best approach. She then discussed how even the simplest things in wrestling can leave you with bruises:
“I do believe in prehab, not rehab. If we stay on top of our injuries and we keep [working on them]. With what we do it’s so physical. People often say like what we do is fake. It’s like, it’s so hard, Even just hitting the ropes will leave you with bruises. Hitting the mat’s hard, the ropes are hard, the turnbuckles are hard. It’s hard.”
It Starts Adding Up
Shayna Baszler then discussed how wrestling injuries are worse compared to MMA injuries. The former UFC star mentioned that even though MMA injuries are more severe, you get the time to recover from them after every fight. Whereas in wrestling, you have to be on the road five days a week and don’t get any time off:
“There’s less recovery time. You have your fight and then you get a couple of weeks where you’re like eating junk food and you get to live a little. Even when you’re back to training when it’s not fight camp. The research on concussions and stuff is out. So there’s not a lot of camps that do hard sparring every week like old school days. So it’s like, you get time in between but when we’re on the road, five days a week it starts just adding up.”
Miro is a flagbearer of the new generation of stars who make formidable opponents in the ring but also join each other in playing video games once the show is over.
Though it’s no secret that stars from the older generations are not a fan of this changed environment in the locker room. People like The Undertaker have claimed that ‘grit’ is missing from today’s wrestling.
The AEW star responded to this sentiment during an interview with Fightful. He mentioned how he doesn’t understand the people who look at video games negatively:
“People are trying to talk bad about video games, which I never understood. We all have our downtime. Some people want to drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes and do heroin and others want to play video games.”
Miro discussed how some of the old-timers have called it a bad thing. He went on to call out The Undertaker for his remarks:
“Some of these old timers are calling this a bad thing. I don’t think it’s a bad thing just because we have more brains now than people before doesn’t mean video games are bad.” said the former TNT champion, “Sorry Undertaker, we don’t have guns and drugs, and don’t fight each other backstage.”
Miro also revealed how he started streaming his gaming sessions after his WWE release. The former US champion said that it all happened accidentally when he was sitting at home, waiting for his non-compete clause to expire.
Posted June 26th, 2022 in AEW, News. Tagged: Miro.
Only one event has been produced under the ROH brand since Tony Khan bought the company. Fans have been waiting to hear more about the future of the promotion.
Now a new report is suggesting that things may change in future. Per PWinsider, the word-making round is that an announcement regarding the next Ring of Honor event ‘should be coming in the next few days.’
Tully Blanchard who was shifted to ROH previously made an appearance on Rampage this past Friday. He teased that his Tully Blanchard Enterprises faction will be going after Jonathan Gresham.
This might be an indication that a match between Gresham, who currently holds the ROH world champion and Brian Cage will be built up in coming times.
The report also suggests that there won’t be any change to the ROH commentary team. Caprice Coleman and Ian Riccaboni will continue being the voices of the brand.
It’s expected to take place in Lowell, Massachusetts. Several ROH events have been produced there in the past. It’ll also play well with AEW’s touring schedule as the July 27th Dynamite is scheduled to take place from Worcester, Massachusetts.
Pat McAfee has continued to impress people with his mic skills ever since joining WWE. This list now includes none other than The Rock.
The former NFL player cut a promo on this week’s episode of SmackDown. He challenged Baron Corbin to a match at the upcoming SummerSlam PPV.
McAfee also paid tribute to The Great One during his promo. He used the Hollywood star’s ‘millions and millions’ catchphrase while calling out the Lone Wolf, dubbing him as ‘bum ass Corbin.”
?BUM ASS CORBIN..
Why don't you ponder this.. #SummerSlam YOU & ME.. NASHVILLE TENNESSEE
In front of the MILLIONS.. & MILLIONS in the #WWE Universe
This promo was so good that even The Rock took notice of it. The People’s champion wrote on Twitter that this was a great promo which he enjoyed watching:
“In front of the MILLIONS…. AAAAAND MILLIONS….“BUM ASS CORBIN” That’s good shit brother! Great promo. Enjoyed watching this #ISmellIt”
The Rock has not been seen in WWE for a while. His last televised appearance came in 2019. He was involved in a segment with Becky Lynch during SmackDown’s 20th anniversary which also included Corbin.
Pat McAfee last entered the ring as a competitor during WrestleMania 38. He first defeated Austin Theory in a singles match before losing to Vince McMahon in an impromptu bout. The segment ended with Stone Cold Steve Austin coming out and delivering a stunner to everyone involved.
Pinnacle was a popular but relatively short-lived group in the history of AEW. Dax Harwood of FTR believes it may have been the most mishandled thing in all of modern wrestling. The FTR recently had an interview with Joseph Staszewski of the New York Post. Among other things, they talked about the rise and fall of The Pinnacle.
Cash Wheeler first talked about the recent controversy involving the former leader of the group, MJF. He said that he hopes the young star gets what he wants:
“With Max right now, I don’t really know. I try to stay out of all the office business because I’m not very good at it and I’m not very good at hiding my emotions as it is. It’s just, I hope he gets what he wants. I know what it’s like to be in a spot where you don’t feel like where you want to be. So I hope he finds that.”
Most Mishandled Thing In Modern Wrestling
MJF with Pinnacle
Discussing the end of the group, Wheeler said that he feels like they could have done things differently. Dax Harwood then shared his belief that it could have been one of the biggest angles in the modern wrestling history before claiming that he didn’t always see eye to eye with MJF on the plans for the faction:
“You called us to talk to FTR. I’m not here to talk about Max. I don’t care what Max does. I will say this, I think the Pinnacle may be the most mishandled thing in modern wrestling history because that could have been one of the biggest angles in the world, one of the biggest groups in the world. Max and I always didn’t see eye to eye and I’ll leave it at that.”
Apart from this, the duo talked about things such as the upcoming Forbidden Door PPV and what it would mean for them to win the IWGP tag team championships. The ROH tag team champions are set to compete in a triple threat match against the IWGP tag champs United Empire and Roppongi Vice in a winner takes all match at the show.
Fans have been waiting patiently for the AEW Fight Forever Video Game. While a timeline for its release is still not set, Kenny Omega is hoping that it will be ready before the end of this year. The former AEW champion recently had an interview with Fightful. He discussed things such as his recovery from the various injuries and more.
Providing an update on the development of the game, Omega mentioned how he didn’t know what ideas they would be able to implement in their budget when he first took on the project. Now they’re at the stage where the creative process is almost complete. They are now fine-tuning things:
“Now it’s almost time for me to find something else within this project to do because the creative process is almost complete where we know how the matches will flow. We know some of the systems. We know how the action-reaction type stuff [will work]. It’s now in a process of being tuned and then finely tuned from there.”
Kenny Omega then mentioned how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the game. It got to a point where it seemed like they would never be able to release it. Though now with the help of some old contacts that have now joined the project they are hoping to get it out before the end of this year:
“It got to a point where it seemed bleak like maybe we would never release this thing, but we kind of got past that. We hopefully can be on schedule to make sure that we get this game out by this year. Hopefully, fingers crossed.”
Apart from this, Kenny Omega also talked about the upcoming Forbidden Door PPV. He mentioned how his NJPW run was arguably the most important phase of his career. He said that he is very happy and satisfied that they have been able to create a forum with AEW where different companies can work together.
Jeff Hardy forced Tony Khan and AEW to make major changes to their plans when he got arrested for driving without a license while being intoxicated earlier this month. The AEW owner recently took part in a media call to promote the Forbidden Door PPV. Among other things he also addressed the actions of the Charismatic Enigma.
Khan first mentioned how Jon Moxley also battled with alcohol addiction but he did the right thing by seeking help. What Hardy did was completely different and per Tony, this is why they handled the situations differently:
“With Jeff [Hardy], it’s totally different. The way it went down is totally different and that’s why the statements and the way we handled the two things are different. In this case, I don’t think there is any comparison. Jeff is doing much better. As I understand, Jeff is in treatment. I don’t want to say too much about what is going on because it’s his business, but I’m here for him for whatever he needs. I’m really glad nobody got hurt.”
‘It’s His Last Chance’
Though Tony Khan later said that he’d be remiss if he didn’t give Jeff the credit for finally doing the right thing. The AEW president claimed that this is Hardy’s last chance:
“I’d be remiss if I didn’t give Jeff a lot of credit for now doing the right thing. This is why we said Jeff has to the right thing if he wants to stay with AEW. It’s [his] last chance.”
Khan mentioned how Moxley didn’t put anyone at risk with his actions and so the two things cannot be compared. He also revealed his recent talk with Matt Hardy where he told the AEW star that they will support his brother through his treatment.
One of the main goals of Wardlow is to help grow AEW in all directions. This includes helping the company boost their female viewership as well.
The heavyweight recently had an interview with Forbs. He talked about things such as his early days in wrestling, getting paid $5 for shows and more.
Speaking about his goals in the company, Wardlow said that he is very in tune with numbers. He explained that his main goal is to help expand the viewership numbers in all categories, including the female viewership:
“I’m very in tune with numbers, and my main goal for AEW is, I want to be the reason we have more viewers. I want to be the reason the female viewership goes up.
I want to be the reason that 18-49 demographic goes up.” said Wardlow, “I want to be the reason our ratings are higher,”
The former IWC star also discussed the recent influx of talent in AEW. Some fans are not happy with outside stars taking the spotlight from talents such as him but the AEW star explained that it’s good for them.
He mentioned how someone like CM Punk brings a lot more eyes to the product. The former Pinnacle member said that it’ll only help the company grow and put more eyes on talents who have taken a backseat when they start getting pushed again.
Brock Lesnar made his surprise return during the June 17 SmackDown and immediately reignited his feud with Roman Reigns. WWE was then quick to announce a rematch between the two for the SummerSlam PPV. A lot of fans were not happy with this decision but Corey Graves believes it’s not such a bad thing.
The Raw commentator talked about people’s reactions on the latest After The Bell episode. Graves first said that the Last Man Standing stipulation gives him the feeling that it’s going to be the last chapter of this rivalry. He then explained that while people have seen this match before, it’s been a draw every time:
“Of course, you’ve got people whining and complaining, ‘Oh, we’ve already seen this.’ You’re right, you have seen it, and every time you’ve seen it, has it not been awesome? Every time Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns are in the same ring, is it not magic?
Does the arena, or in this case a stadium, not rise to its feet to watch two behemoths who have proven themselves to be worth every dime because they are box office draws?”
WWE had originally planned for Randy Orton to challenge the Tribal Chief at the biggest party of the Summer. However, The Viper has been dealing with some injuries that could keep him out of action for the remainder of the year.
How do you feel about WWE booking yet another Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar match? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.
Jeff Jarrett is back with WWE in a new role. The Hall of Famer has been given the title of Senior Vice President of Live Events. His new job in the company has been described as a high-level executive position.
During his most recent appearance on After The Bell, Jarrett talked about his newfound responsibilities and how it all came together. He explained that it all started with his Hall of Fame induction in 2018. Jeff made an appearance at the 2019 Royal Rumble and then got hired as a backstage producer:
“In 2018 I got inducted into Hall of Fame. Fast forward a year later, did Royal Rumble and then came on kind of in a producer role. Then I guess I was under CWT, creative writing team, which encompassed a lot. But then after about six months, I was moved into the live event department. So in a lot of ways, I’m kind of coming back to the position that I got into.”
Unfortunately for Jeff Jarrett, the whole world shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic not too long after he took over the responsibility of running live events. The former WCW world champion was then moved to a different department before he parted ways with the company. He wasn’t brought back immediately when WWE went on the road again in July last year but Jarrett finally got the call last month:
“So the whole world shut down as we know it. Then during the pandemic, I worked in international for quite some time, and then we went our separate ways. So just as of late, it all happened really quick.
It’s hard to believe that WWE is back on the road almost a year. So as that ramping up process [began]. Everyone knows how the organization made some smart decisions to run lean and mean. Highly profitable. But I am really grateful that the executive team said, ‘Hey, we’d like you to basically come back into the Live Event department'”
AEW and NJPW are set to present one of the biggest cross-promotional events in the history of American Wrestling in Forbidden Door this Sunday. Though the two promotions were not on such good terms just a couple of years back. NJPW officials were not happy with The Elite for leaving the promotion to found their own company. At a time when the two organizations didn’t even have a line of communication, Jon Moxley became the bridge that helped close the gap.
The former AEW world champion was one of the first major stars to be working for both the companies simultaneously. He was a major catalyst in opening up the line of communication between the two wrestling promotions. Mox talked about being one of the most important figures that helped build this relationship during his recent appearance on The Sessions podcast.
Moxley was one of the first names to popularize the Forbidden Door term. However, he claimed that he is over it now because a Forbidden Door does not exist between AEW and New Japan anymore:
“I really am over that term myself.” said Jon Moxley, “Everybody is using that. Tanahashi actually coined it but now it’s not forbidden anymore because now there’s a nice little working relationship. So the door is not forbidden anymore. There are [other] forbidden doors but there does not exist one between AEW and New Japan.”
‘People Told Me To Stop Working For New Japan’: Jon Moxley
Jon then recalled the time when AEW and NJPW did not want to talk to each other. Per the former WWE star, there were plenty of people who told him to stop working for the Japanese promotion. Though he knew that it would be the end of all possibility of a crossover if he did so:
“There were plenty of people that told me to stop working for New Japan. They did not understand it, they were like ‘you should stop going there.’ I knew that I was like the last linchpin, the last domino. If I fell then there would be no communication ever. There were so many people on both sides that were agreeing with me. It just didn’t open the communication. I think like when that Harold guy got fired from New Japan I think that kind of opened it up a little bit.”
Ric Flair has been enthusiastically preparing for what’s being built as his final match next month but an opponent for the Nature Boy has yet to be announced. Fightful Select provided some update on the situation after it was initially reported that the wrestling veteran would be teaming up with FTR for the match.
The original idea was for The Rock N’ Roll Express to team up with Ricky Steamboat to face this trio before Steamboat declined to be a part of the bout. Steamboat was actually ready for the fight and the two parties had a meeting about it. However, his asking price was ‘extremely high’ and they were unable to come to an agreement.
After Ricky Steamboat’s denial, the chances of FTR making it to the show are starting to look thin as well. Per the site, the AEW owner Tony Khan was yet to give them the clearance to work the show as of Thursday afternoon. While the reason why Khan has not approved this appearance is not known, it’s worth noting here that he had a falling out with Flair following Dark Side of The Ring’s Plane Ride From Hell episode.
The wrestling world had bashed Flair for his conduct on the flight. Ric’s former podcast co-host Mark Madden has hinted that Tony even disinvited the wrestling veteran from his birthday party this year. Despite the controversies, people’s interest in Ric Flair’s final match seems to only increase as the date comes closer. The event was recently moved to a much larger venue after they sold out the arena initially booked for the show.
Ric Flair’s final match is scheduled to take place from the Nashville Municipal Auditorium on July 31.
Impact Wrestling star Lady Frost has decided to move on from the promotion. She has asked for her release less than a year into her run with the company.
The female star revealed this news on Twitter earlier today. She thanked the fans and the staff of the promotion for the opportunities she has been given:
“I have officially asked for my release from @IMPACTWRESTLING I want to thank the incredible fans, staff, and locker room, as well as @ScottDAmore and @gailkimITSME for the opportunities given to me. Thank you for a great experience.”
I have officially asked for my release from @IMPACTWRESTLING I want to thank the incredible fans, staff, and locker room, as well as @ScottDAmore and @gailkimITSME for the opportunities given to me. Thank you for a great experience.
Lady Frost made her wrestling debut at the age of 33 in March 2018. She competed for WWE in her very first match and the Impact star lost to Asuka in a squash match.
She went on to wrestle for some known promotions in the following years. The most notable of it was her AEW debut where Frost and Jennacide teamed up for a loss against Diamante and Ivelisse for an episode of Dark in November 2020.
Lady Frost made her Impact Wrestling debut in July last year. She answered an open challenge issued by the then Impact Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo.
Impact Wrestling has not yet responded to the release request of the wrestling star. We will keep you updated on any development in the story.
